It's a lovely morning here in the Northwest, as in it is forcasted to be cloudy today and not rainy.

It is a trying time of year for me. My Dad loves to tell a story about me that when I was a little baby, he'd take me out in the rain or the cold and immediately I would start crying. I feel like that on the inside now. Oh, where I live is beautiful. The terrain, the wide variety of activities within a short distance from one another, the green...but the constant rain... Well, I'm sorry, you probably didn't come to my blog to hear a lot of whining. I live in the jet stream and I live on the foothills. This time of year I dream of moving somewhere a little sunnier. In the late Spring, Summer, and early Fall, I wouldn't dream of living anywhere else. Our ties have us rooted here anyhow.

This morning, I felt like a "normal" family. Jon was taking Riah to school and he and I got up early (as in 7:00) to get her ready to go. I cleaned, the other kids slept. We have such freedom with our business that we tend to not get up till 8:30 or 9:00 and often Jon doesn't leave until 10:00. I'm always so behind in my day because of this...at least this time of year when it's dark before 5:00. It seems like with most families the husband has to be to work by a certain time and that provides some routine. Of course, I know of other families where the Dad work swing shift. That would be a definite challenge. I am challenged enough to establish a routine for my family with a decently early bedtime and a decently early wake time.

I'm planning on going out and soaking in some light and doing a bit of shopping before the Thanksgiving rush. Then, I'll homeschool. Wish me God's blessings.

In Him-

 

My sweet Preschooler and I went on our very own nature walk today to seek out color on a somewhat drabby day. This November has been a very mild one, indeed, but also has lacked sunshine. So we determined ourselves to find our very own "sunshine" by finding colors in the brown of late autumn.

 

At first, it seemed everywhere we looked there was brown, which we still found beauty in.

 

 

 

 

Here, we found STARS! She said they look like fireworks too.

 

 

Then we started noticing all the pretty green around still, even after the frosts.

 

 

 

And the pretty green lichen and white fungi were plentiful.

 

 

We couldn't decide if we wanted to call these berries "red" or "purple", so we called them "red purple".

 

 

And finally, there was this neat looking orange fungi. We thought they looked like orange fingers!

 

 

But the most colorful thing I found in nature today, was my sweet Gabby Rose.

 

 

 

I can't believe it's Thanksgiving week.  We bought a 25lb bird this year, so I had to put it in our fridge Saturday , which is way early for me.  But it just made me realize how close Thanksgiving really is.  I'm going to make a list today of all the things I want to get done this week.  I usually bake my pies on Wednesday, still have to practice cookies with Sarah, that will probably be Tuesday.  It's things like that I need to make a list for, otherwise I'll forget the things I need to get done, and only do the things I want to do. 

I will be finishing up our Christmas cards today.  Well, the cards are done, pictures developed and yearly letter printed out.  I just need to sign the letter, put the kids ages on the back of the pictures, then put it all in the envelopes.  Maybe I'm a little optimistic on getting that all done today, but it's my goal.  We also have a bible study tonight, so we'll see how much I get done.  I just made a mental list of all the things I need to bake this week, I'm tired all ready. 

We finished school already.  We have this whole week off, makes things easier for me.  But the kids doubled up on their school work on Thursday, and had Friday off too.  Which was nice.  I helped out decorating our church last Thursday, it was lots of fun.  The kids were so good, and finished all their school work while I was gone.  (Proud mama here). 

Friday was a great day.  I went to a new woman's bible study I'm going to on Friday mornings, and it was such a blessing.  Then in the evening the kids both had homeschool outings to go to, so Paul and I had a date night.    We went to the Olive Garden, and had such a nice time.  We haven't had a date in a couple of weeks, it was very nice.

Saturday we decided to brave the stores and do our grocery shopping on the Saturday before Thanksgiving.    It was a bit of a mad house, but it was fun.  The hardest part was the cold, blowing wind.  We all just wanted to get home.  I thought I had gotten everything I needed and wouldn't have to go back out to the store before Thanksgiving, I was wrong.    I forgot to get a big thing of cool whip for a fruit salad I'm making.  Can't make it without it, so I guess I'll be running back to the store real quick on Monday.  Then I won't enter a store again until after the weekend sometime.  I stay clear of them all during this time of the year.    We don't do the black Friday shopping, and I just read today how they limit those 'specials' anyway.  Like those tvs or something big on sale.  Only 4 can be sold from the whole store!    Only four people will get that big deal.  Ugh, so not worth it to me.

What we do the day after Thanksgiving is put up all our Christmas decorations.  As most of my regular readers know, we put up our decorations the day after Thanksgiving, and take them down the day after Christmas.  But we really enjoy setting them up.  We eat Thanksgiving leftovers, drink eggnog, and watch It's A Wonderful Life.  My kids really enjoy that movie.  And it really is a fun, relaxing day.  We are pretty mellow with our decorations, so it only takes a few hours.  Hanging the Christmas lights in the kids bedroom takes the longest, but it's what they love the most.  Falling to sleep with their Christmas lights on.

Well I should get going and work on the Christmas cards.  It's snowing pretty heavy out right now.  We need to go out tonight, I hope it lets up soon.  But it is so pretty.

"Christian
homes and churches are the only institutions in which our children will learn to find themselves in God's story. When they are united more by the trends of pop culture than by the faith and practice of the whole church in all times and places, our youth become victims of our sloth. We should not be surprised that over half of those reared in evangelical homes and churches today do not join or even attend a church regularly when they go off to college. If we are going to see our children grow up into Christ instead of abandoning the church, our
spiritual life at home and in the church must incorporate them into the teaching and fellowship of the apostolic faith. They can find "ministry opportunities" through United Way, the Peace Corps, or Habitat for Humanity. They can find friends at the fraternity or sorority. They can find intellectual stimulation in class. And they can find a sense of meaning and purpose in their vocations. If their home churches exchanged the ministry of preaching and teaching the apostles' doctrine for a variety of ministries and activities that they could find legitimate versions of in the world, then it is difficult to come up with a reasonable answer when they ask, "Why do I need the church?"

--Michael Horton, The Gospel-Driven Life: Being Good News People in a Bad News World

A homeschooler here in Washington wrote this article. I thought it was pretty good, so I'm sharing it with you. The only thing I think I would add is that actual involvement in pornography is not the only danger of cell phone and internet use (although that's a high enough risk all in itself) and just because we homeschool does not mean our children are protected from these dangers. There are scales of grey regarding what we choose to center our minds on and the internet (and texting and movies and what we see in stores and what we listen to on the radio, etc.) are all real dangers. They can also be a blessing. Let's go for God's best. Let's honor Him with our lives.

Thinking about Giving a Cell Phone, iPod, or PDA for Christmas?
Protect Your Family from Pornography
By Lori from WA

 
While technology can be a fantastic tool for worthwhile endeavors, it can also be an instrument for engaging in grave evil.  Advancing electronic technology has made pornography and sexual content readily accessible on cell phones, iPods, and PDA’s (and basically any other wireless or mobile entertainment device).    If that’s not bad enough, individuals can buy long distance phone cards at the grocery store to use for anonymous “phone sex,” and download music mp3s with explicit content.  In other words, we’re not just talking about protecting children from internet porn any more.   Even if your family doesn’t own any of the previously mentioned electronic devices, your friends do and your children’s friends do too.  Most of us have a TV­an electronic device that will become more problematic as it continues to morph and merge with other technology. 
 
Pornography is a global problem, but America owns a lion’s share of the blame.   According to Michael Leahy, recovering sex addict and bestselling author of Porn Nation: Conquering America's #1 Addiction, pornography is “a 57 billion a year global industry and America is the largest producer, consumer and exporter of porn in the world.” Leahy is an expert on emerging tech trends in pornography and has been featured on ABC's 20/20, The View, USA Today, and numerous other major media sources. 
 
According to the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families, children are often exposed to pornography between the ages of 10-14, if not before.  I would add that today’s pornography is exponentially worse than what my generation saw in 1970s magazines (featuring women).  The Internet contains the most vile filth of every kind, including the sexual exploitation of very young children, sodomy, bestiality, and horrors that would be inappropriate to mention here.  All of these images and video are just a mouse click away.
 
Approximately 60 percent or more of the Internet is made up of sexually explicit content.   According to Family Safe Media, 72 percent of males and 28 percent of females (yes, females) visit pornography sites.   Pornography is easy to access and easy to engage in privately and secretly.  The same goes for explicit conversation via texting (or “sexting”) which can be typed out right under a parent’s nose. 

Here are four reasons I’ve heard from parents as to why they are not safeguarding their children:

(1)   “I’m computer/electronics illiterate--I don’t know what these devices are capable of doing and my kids know way more than me. I don’t feel equipped to figure out how to install or administer filtering software or parental controls.”

My response:  Hold off buying or allowing your children to have these electronic gadgets until they become necessary.  And, when you buy, consider your children’s needs­not wants.  For example, there are cell phones on the market without picture/video/internet capabilities (research and ask about them).  There are also “stand-alone” electronic organizers you can buy as opposed to a PDA (does a 15-year-old really need to sync their schedule with a computer?).  If you decide to consider a mainstream electronic device, ask retailers and service providers if you can shut down certain capabilities (learn also if the phone can connect to internet via other wired/wireless connections outside your home, and if the device can download and upload media).  In summary, get informed with the basics.  Then, get help from on-line resources, friends, and your local retail/computer store to be sure you can put filtering or specific parental controls in place.

(2)   “I trust my children.  They can only go on the Internet when I’m at home, otherwise they know they’re not allowed.”

My response: My husband and I don’t trust ourselves not to sin, and we don’t trust our kids not to sin.  I recently read a quote from a pastor named Bill Perkins that pretty much sums it up:  "If you think you can't fall into sexual sin, then you're godlier than David, stronger than Samson, and wiser than Solomon.”  The stakes are high with pornography so my husband and I take serious precautions to reduce the risk of exposure.  Here’s what we have in place:  We log on to our computer with a parental password (important:  it’s not written down anywhere).  I have an administrative password for our filter which only I know (important:  it’s not written down anywhere).  Our filtering company sends regular Internet activity reports to my husband and me (he and I are both accountable to each other as well as with the kids).  We have a separate user account for our oldest who needs access to the internet for classes.  His user account is filtered down to a “white list” of preapproved sites with no search capability.  Further, his email may only receive messages from pre-authorized senders.  Now, you may think all of this is extreme, and your family may choose do the filtering differently (it’s a personal decision and it’s up to you).  However, I’m trying to stress that I’m much more concerned about limiting the risk of exposure to pornography than other less “risky” areas where my children might disobey me.  If a device poses a risk, it’s either treated as a “controlled substance” or it’s out of here.
 
(3)   “I’m so busy, I don’t have time.”

My response:  Please make the time and let something else slide for a while.  Our children are an inheritance and a gift from the Lord.  They deserve our responsible and reasonable protection.
 
(4)   “Sooner or later my children are going to be exposed to pornography.  I can’t control their sinful hearts, or their temptations.  If they look for something hard enough, they’ll find it.”

My response:  While there are many aspects of our children’s lives that we cannot control, including the sinful nature of their hearts and the sin that surrounds us, it’s important that we don’t assume a fatalistic attitude that equates to laziness.  Our children may gain access to pornography elsewhere.  But, my husband’s and my personal goal is to make it as difficult as possible for our children (or anyone else’s children) to access pornography in our home, or on a device someone in our family carries around with them.  As parents, we must also pray consistently for our children’s hearts, their pursuit of holiness, and for the restraint of evil in this world. We also must pray for the salvation and/or rescue of those who are trapped in the slavery of pornography, which is an addiction that affects non-Christians and Christians alike. 
 
Parents, you can do this!  Please visit the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families (NCPCF) at http://www.nationalcoalition.org/home.asp  You will find a wealth of information including opening lines of communication with your children regarding pornography, and how to be a wise shopper (learning about the capabilities of electronic devices before buying).  You’ll also find information about filtering software and applications for the Internet and portable electronic devices, statistics, and other excellent resources.  The two filters recommended on the website have filtering for internet and mobile phones whereas most others do not. 
 
A sister-section of the NCPCF website has a page that’s an excellent starting place: http://www.icarecoalition.org/icarepurpose.asp
 
Lastly, if you have a child who has, or is engaging in the sin of pornography, here is an excellent article for parents about a Christ-centered approach to helping them:  http://www.crosswalk.com/parenting/teens/11600384/

 

 

 I write you sitting comfortably in my home - although that may not sound surprising - I have been without use of my pc/internet access for what seems like forever.  But tonight, it is working again, and I am sitting on my couch with my laptop, watching The Sound of Music with my family at the same time.  I do hope to visit with all my friends, but before I go around and visit, I wanted to at least finish my post of Biltmore Estate.

 

 

 

Have you ever visited the Biltmore Estate in Ashville, North Carolina?  If not, it is worth the effort if ever given the chance to visit it.    The house covers 4 acres, totaling 175,000 square feet. It consists of 250 rooms and  includes 35 guest and family rooms, 43 bathrooms, 65 fireplaces, and three kitchens.  The old fashioned kitchens are my favorite rooms in the house.  In fact, I love everything in the basement - the 70,00 gallon indoor pool, the old fashioned laundry rooms, and the multiple pantrys.  I wish I had pictures to share of all this, but you are not allowed to take pictures once in the house.  Also in the basement is a gymnsasium and a bowling alley. 

 

 

 

 

.A favorite room of my children and husband is the two story library.  This is an amazing room filled with old books and beautiful woodwork.   

 

 

 

 

Upstairs on the third floor, in addition to more bedrooms, are areas where guests once
played parlor games and took afternoon tea, as well as rooms formerly occupied by ladies’
maidservants.

.

Fully electric and centrally heated, Biltmore House, at the time of its completion, was
considered one of the most technologically advanced structures ever built.  It used some of Thomas Edison’s first lightbulbs, elaborate indoor plumbing for all 34 bedrooms and even had several elevators (that still work today.)

 

 

So that's it - now I'm going to see if I can come by and visit and say hi!

 

Spinach Salad

1 pkg. spinach (10 oz)

1 (12 oz.) carton small curd cottage cheese

½ c. chopped pecans

½ c. sugar

3 T. vinegar

2 tsp. prepared horseradish

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. dried mustard (very important, and I always use more than ½ tsp.)

 

Directions:

In a large serving bowl, layer half of the spinach, cottage cheese, and pecans. Repeat layers.

In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients. Drizzle over salad and toss to coat. Serve immediately. Note: If you don’t plan to use this immediately, just add the dressing right before serving.

 

Ok, many of us have  children of varying ages and maturity levels.  When we are at the museums and see something we really  want our teens to see or we really, really want to see ourselves, we generally have two choices: missing out or praying our younger children do not really get it. I have a solution that might work for you.

Here in SC, the state museum has an exhibit put on by the US Holocaust Memorial Museum called Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race.  In their own words, “the exhibit traces the journey of eugenics from its start as a scientific concept in the late 19th century to its deadly use by Nazi Germany as a justification for the sterilization and murder of millions of people. Viewer discretion is advised. “  As a matter of fact, when I was at the museum picking up the info, the curator looked at my kids and pointed to the younger ones and HIGHLY advised me not to take them in to that exhibit.  I told him I wasn’t I was just getting info. 

Well there are many mothers out there who in the same boat.  Here is the solution we came up with: tag team.  Get a group or just one other mother and go to the museum (ps most museums have free or deeply discounted prices with current homeschool IDs)  While some of the mothers are taking the kids through the other parts, the moms & teens can go in groups of two or more and go through the exhibit.  This way, no one misses out but you do not expose kids to something you do not think they are ready for. 

This is one of the most favorite recipes I post every year about his time ...judging by the emails I get. 

Well, it is starting to get chilly.  (unless you happen to live in SC where the four seasons are almost summer, summer, still summer and Christmas; none of which are cold)  With all of the left over chocolate bars from Trick or Treating I thought I would share my recipe for homemade Hot Chocolate.  We usually make this on Christmas Eve in my house.  Now I warn you, this is NOT low fat in any way shape or form. So it goes without saying, this is probably the tastiest recipe known to mankind.

Hot Chocolate

1 Chocolate bar per person (Hershey’s is still the best) or a hand full of Hershey's kisses

1 c. Heavy Whipping Cream per person

sprinkle of cinnamon for garish (optional)

Pour the cream into a heavy sauce pan.  Heat slowly over med heat.  If it starts to scorch, remove from heat.

Chop up the candy bars (in a food processor works best).

Add to the cream and use a whisk to stir it in.  It should only take a minute to melt the chocolate.  

Pour in a cup and enjoy.  You can sprinkle on some cinnamon or put in a candy cane. 

Lastly, if you drink more than 1 cup a day for a week, avoid the scale for a week or two.  MMMMMMMMM Oh, Yeah, that is good.

My big two year old had her first potty success tonight. A poo poo on the potty! I've been telling her "poo poo" when I see her making that face and tonight she told me "poo poo" so we sat her on the potty and soon enough she had a success. It may be silly, but I couldn't be prouder.