One of the things I love about homeschooling is that it can be out of the box.  I don't mean pulling all my curriculum out of a box and giving it to my kids, either.

Today, my two older kids went on a field trip to visit the office of a local missions organization that works with the poor in 3rd world countries.  One thing this organization does is it puts together gift packs for children that include hygiene packs of toothbrush, toothpaste, washcloth, and soap, as well as a few school supplies and usually a small toy, like the kind that comes with a kids' meal.

Dancing Queen and Roboboy were involved with sorting toys to make sure they were not missing any parts or broken, and packing them into gift packs.  It was a simple job that a kid could do, and it saved the adults in the missions organization a lot of time by not having to do it themselves.

After they got home, we had a talk about how blessed and fortunate we are, and how the small toys in these packs may be the first and only toy many of these children have ever received.

The kids were really touched by the experience, and enjoyed it too.  They told me they'd like to go and volunteer regularly to help out.

What more could I ask for?  A day where the kids are thinking of others, doing something for someone other than themselves, and enjoying and finding satisfaction in it!  A day where they're learning about missions, serving God and blessing others less fortunate than themselves.

Meanwhile, I got to have some special one on one time with Bubbles after she got home from kindergarten, and she thoroughly enjoyed the extra attention.

This is one of the many reasons I homeschool!

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I have been quite busy lately, but I must stop and count my blessings...

1. Over 300 salvations, and even more recommitments and rededications to Christ over the Good Friday/Easter weekend at our church, among our English adult and children's services!  What a party the angels must be having in heaven right now!

2. I was nominated  for the best geographical blog over at the homeschool blog awards.  (Thanks, TC, for your nomination!  What an encouragement!)  There are a lot of wonderful blogs out there, and I am thankful to be one of them, and even more thankful for the wonderful words of wisdom and encouragement, and the hands and hearts of friendship that have reached out to me from around the globe through the blogosphere.  If you haven't gotten around to voting yet, get over  to www.homeschoolblogawards.com and do it quick.  Voting closes in a few short days.  You never know what kind of encouragement you may be giving to someone!

 3. I'm so thankful for the blessing of my homebuilders' cell.  This bunch of ladies welcomed me just a few short weeks ago into their group, with a bit of fear and trepidation, with me being a pastor's wife.  But, once they realized that I'm just as human and vulnerable as they seem to feel they are, they have opened their hearts and lives to me.  Four out of the 7 ladies present today are married to pre-believing husbands.  As I listen to their struggles and heartaches, I am so thankful for the faith I share with my husband, and my heart breaks for their painful situations, even as I admire their strength, courage and faith in the midst of challenging circumstances.

4. I'm grateful for the blessing of my children.  I don't know how the conversation started, but over dinner the children were asking me to share with them the stories of their births.  They never tire of hearing about the day they were born.  As wave after wave of precious memories swept over me, tender memories of their baby days, I am grateful for this blessing of family.

5. I cannot even begin to express my gratitude for my precious Savior and friend, Jesus Christ, who came to earth and lived a life to show me what life can be, then died for my sins and yours, and rose again to defeat death with an unquestionable and resounding triumph that still resonates through the ages some two thousand years later.

Well, these are just a few of the countless blessings I'm thinking on today.  Take a moment and count a few of your blessings too.  You will be sure to feel much better after you do!

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I've been observing some progress in my ds, Roboboy.  Lately, he's been spending hours on end, drawing his own mini comic books.  He really does show a good eye for drawing perspective and dimension.  He's still very slim on writing the stories for these comics, only a few short speech bubbles throughout, but it is encouraging him to write some on his own.

And his reading is progressing too.  It's something I always worry about, his lack of interest in reading.  A fellow blogger, Lindafay of Higher Up and Further In, encouraged me to let him do all his own reading of school books.  I worried that he would resist, but he has quietly and happily submitted to that.  Sometimes he reads quietly on his own, and sometimes he asks to read aloud to me.  So, at least I know he is reading some, even if, for now, it's mainly what he's assigned for school.  (Thanks, Linda, for some great advice!)

But today, I picked out a few books from the adult section of the library about comics: a comic encyclopedia, a book about drawing, and a book about drawing comics, and he borrowed them all because they looked so interesting to him.  So far as I can tell, he's only browsed the pictures so far, but who knows?

But as we were leaving the library, he picked up a free magazine published by our local science center, and as we were sitting at the bus stop waiting for our bus home, he began reading it aloud.  He seemed to take great pride in every big, multi-syllable word he managed to sound out for himself.

I just finished reading a book called "Reading David" about a mother and son's journey with his dyslexia.  At times it made me cry.  I could so identify with that mother.  It's painful having a child with a learning disability.  You want so much for him to succeed that you inadvertently put additional pressure on him and make him feel even more like a failure when he can't do what he knows you long for him to do.  And you never, EVER intended that!

Sometimes it seems like there's no right thing you can do.  If you do one thing, you make him feel like a failure.  If you do another, you're not addressing the problem or helping him learn how to cope with it. 

And you worry that it reflects on you as a parent.  Will his misbehavior due to his own feelings of insecurity and failure make other parents think you are a terrible parent?  Will other parents quietly withdraw their children from playing with your child because they think he's stupid, or badly behaved, or worry that whatever is wrong with him will rub off or reflect badly on their child by association?  Will other kids make fun of him?  Will adults label him?  Will that label follow him around for the rest of his life?  The questions are endless!

The book did seem to end on an encouraging note, that as the child does eventually learn to read, and learns coping methods, he seems to outgrow the worst of it, and can go on to do well in school.

And all this for a child that I love so fiercely that I would do almost anything to protect him from harm.  I sat reading this book at the library cafe today, with him sitting across from me working on the latest installment of his comics.  As I looked up and watched this child of mine, I was almost overwhelmed with how much I love him.

Thank God that I have a hope that goes beyond my own human ability to help him deal with his "disability".  Roboboy and I, we both have a loving heavenly Father who created Roboboy just the way he is, and He doesn't make mistakes. 

Not only that, He loves Roboboy even more than I do (hard to imagine, but true nonetheless), and He promises that He will always "work all things for our good, to we who love Him and are called according to His purpose."  I've found so far in my own journey into the world of dyslexia, that when I've reached the end of my understanding, when I have no idea how to proceed forward, He has NEVER failed to show me how to take the next step.  For this I am truly grateful.

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I've been homeschooling for the past four years without being in a support group.  There is a group called the Singapore Homeschool Group, but I've struggled to get involved with most of their activities due to travel distance, timing, etc.

But, hopefully, that's about to change.  There are 5 families just beginning to homeschool not only near where I live, but right in my own church!  I am so excited!

When I learned about 2 other families just starting out a couple of months ago, I decided it was time to do something.  They've been helping me to "suss" out a few other families.  So, I met with 2 of the families once for a picnic in the park, and we're planning another meeting at my house tomorrow, with an additional 3 families.

Honestly, I don't mind that my kids are the oldest ones.  (They get along with lots of kids of a wide range of ages.)  And I don't mind that I've been homeschooling the longest and the others are just starting out.  (Fresh minds, fresh ideas!  Woo-hoo! )  I'm just so excited to have other homeschooling families nearby to link with and fellowship with and get to know.

Because I'm in the midst of packing for our trip to the USA (3 more days!) tomorrow's meeting will be short, but I'm so looking forward to the meeting of minds, the sharing of joys, frustrations, ideas and solutions.

The kids and I baked chocolate chip cookies today to share with the group.  They're getting so good in the kitchen!  Bubbles, my 4-year-old, helped put the cookie dough on the cookie sheets.  Roboboy put the cookie sheets into the oven, watched the timer, and took them out of the oven.  Dancing Queen took the cookies off the baking sheets and put them on a rack to cool.  All I had to do was supervise and slice the chilled cookie dough (It's a great recipe for slice and bake cookies.  You make up 4 logs of dough and freeze them.  Then you just take out and thaw, slice, and bake the cookie dough as needed.  The whole recipe makes 12 dozen cookies.)

Anyway, I'm eager for some fresh insights, ideas and pleasant mom chat over a nice cup of tea and fresh chocolate chip cookies!

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I have a confession to make.  Because of my son's learning difficulties, and especially because the educational psychologist identified problems with short-term memory, I was afraid to try Scripture memory with my kids.

I knew they did it at church, but I also know that I did Scripture memory at church, in the church girls' club I belonged to, and in the Christian school I attended.  I memorized tons of Scripture in my childhood, and I'm so thankful for that solid foundation!

I was so afraid of stressing out my son, of making him feel badly about himself when his sister would memorize things faster than him, of failing.  But God, in His gentle way, has been nudging me about Scripture memory.  So, with much fear and trepidation, I began a couple of months ago...

Since my fearful, timid beginnings, and in a surprisingly short time, my beautiful son has memorized the names of all 66 books of the Bible (and their themes!!), Psalm 23, and the Lord's Prayer--joyfully.  There have been no painful comparisons between himself and his sister.  Nothing damaging to his self-confidence or self-esteem.  In fact, he delights in correcting his sister when she forgets which book comes next.  He enjoys taking turns reciting and picking up where she left off.  And he speaks out the Word of God with such confidence and assurance!

God is so good!  I know He must be laughing at me up in heaven, just like we laugh at a puppy who barks at his reflection in a mirror, or at a baby's funny antics as they grapple to come to an understanding of something of the world around them.  Oh, me of little faith!  I should have known that, when God wants His children to hide His Word in our hearts, that He will do all that is needed to help us to do just that!

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There are times when my children amaze me.  Today is just one of those days!  (Now, mind you, the purpose of this blog is not to blow my own horn, (far from it!) but to just stand in awe and amazement at God's wonderful blessings to me!)

My oldest, Dancing Queen, showed me a poem she had written, just for "fun".  It was beautiful!  I'm trying to persuade her to post it on her blog.  We'll see if she does.  Somehow, this daughter of mine just has a beautiful poetic turn of mind.  The way she phrases things, and pictures things with words is just lovely.  I never imagined a 10-year-old could write such vivid poetry.

Then, my 9-year-old, Roboboy, took a math "test".  Mind you, we just switched over to Singapore Math this year, and we have found it extremely challenging (even for Mom!)  Now, here in Singapore, kids even at age 7, 8 and 9, are taking hours long tests, that I personally find exhausting.  So I asked him to do just section 1 of the test today (worth 40 point of an overall 100).  This wonder boy of mine scored 40/40!  A perfect score!  (This is my "dyslexic" child, the reason I actually began homeschooling, though my reasons have since changed!)  Woo-hoo!

Finally, my dear little Bubbles.  Yesterday, a lady from our church asked if she could come over and talk to me about homeschooling.  She feels quite convicted that she is supposed to homeschool her daughter, now age 5, and wanted to ask me questions and bounce ideas off me, etc. 

When she arrived, she had her 2-1/2 year-old son with her.  He was asleep, but quickly woke up when she tried to lay him down on our sofa.  He was sleepy and clingy, finding himself in a strange place.  4-year-old Bubbles was the ultimate hostess.  She pulled out her Thomas the Tank Engine wooden train set and began to play until, within a few minutes, he was no longer clinging to his mom, but happily playing alongside her with the train set.

Then, when he got tired of playing with the trains, she took him to her room, where they played cars, bowling, etc.  She offered him a snack, after making sure it was ok with his mom.  Then she shared some nice picture board books with him.  We were able to talk for almost 3 hours while she entertained this little fella, with very minimal interruptions!  And she did this on her own, without me asking her to entertain him!

I'm so thankful that I am privileged to be Mom to these three precious people!  They are each so beautiful and unique in their own special ways.  And, to be able to homeschool them, and have the opportunities to see these daily victories, successes, and signs of growth and maturity: well, all I can say is, "Wow!"  I'm overwhelmed.

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My dear hubby is home again.  He was away for the weekend on a missions trip to Bekasi, Indonesia.  He wants to bring our family there sometime, so the children can see for themselves the vast contrasts of how people live.

He visited areas that could make him feel like he was in an expensive American suburb, with gorgeous homes worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. 

And he visited homes in a village built right next to a landfill, where the children got up each morning to go pick through the garbage to find recyclable items they could sell to get a little more money for the family to survive.

All within driving distance of each other.  Makes you think, huh?  We are soooo blessed!

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Life is so big and so varied.  Sometimes the homeschooling experience seems a little overwhelming to me as I struggle to educate and inform my children about this big, big world we live in and the role that they play in it.

There are the BIGGIES: spiritual life, character development, values, devotional life, Bible knowledge and life application, etc.

Then there are the 3 R's: readin', 'riting, and 'rithmetic, the basic foundations of any education.

Then, of course, there's important stuff to learn about the world: science, geography, history, social studies, astronomy, geology, biology, chemistry, nature studies, animal studies, and all that.

And, there are basic life skills, like how to deal with conflict, how to manage money, cooking, cleaning, shopping wisely, and countless more.

Of course, I haven't even mentioned any of the arts, and they are important too: art appreciation, painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, music, photography, cinema, theatre, drama, poetry, literature, and all the other beauty in our world.

Sometimes, it seems like there are about a zillion things I want to teach my children and I wonder how in the world am I ever going to squeeze it all in?  And how do I find the balance?

I'm a planner and an organizer, and I admit I struggle when I can't seem to put together just the "right" system for keeping all these jugglin balls in the air with regard to my children's education.  That's probably the perfectionist in me--howling over the gaps I foresee in their education, knowing I haven't given enough focus to this item on my list, or seeing my ds struggle with this item on my list, knowing I must take the time to slow down and help him in that area, all the while fighting against the time this will take away from my agenda for his education.

Maybe that's my problem.  It's MY agenda.  I realize I am focusing far too much on me, and not enough on what My Father wants these precious little ones He's placed under my care to learn.  Matthew 6:33 says, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."  I can cling to this promise, that if I place Him first, and seek hard after Him, He will take care of getting all my little ducks in a row, and I'm certain, in a far better way than I could ever do it myself!

Lord, please be the Lord of my children's education.  Help me to teach them what You want them to learn.  And help me to relax and enjoy the journey, not worrying so much about the destination.  Help me to trust You, day by day, moment by moment, to guide them (and me) in all You have for us.  Help me to release them to be the people You've created them to be, with all their own unique talents, interests and abilities.  Help me to keep believing that You have a special place in this world just for them, and that they, each one, have a special contribution to make.  Help me to set aside perfectionism and agendas, and schedules and goals when I hear Your still, small voice calling us to something higher.  Help our family as we learn and grow together.  Thank You for the blessing that we can truly do this together as a family.  Amen.

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