Description
My children belong to the Hero Generation... we are striving to raise them to fulfill their personal missions. We strive to make our home a haven from the turmoils of today's society. Come visit us as we share some of our story.
Aspire to Inspire before you Expire
Have a specific interest?
Browse this blog by Category!
Just personal stuff to keep the family and friends up to date.
These are stories about my children who belong to the hero generation (from The Fourth Turning).
Knowing where you are headed helps keep you on track. Here is where I keep my "flight plan".
Anything about our homeschool - funny stories to new schedules... never know what's going on here.
Stories about the family from my memory or others. Plus, memories in the making.
The papers I've written for the Five Pillar Certification
Simply thoughts and comments on the classics I'm reading.
Quotes of interest to me... may or may not include commentary.
Browse through my recipe folder. Food and non-food recipes.
Scripture references, usually with commentary. Very personal - might not be open to comments.
Anything Thomas Jefferson Education related.
Little tidbits here and there about what it takes to lead a healthier life. Including mine.
My deeper thoughts, or sometimes a thought provoking/inspiring story.
My blog for CU writings & ponderings
My other blog, generally more lighthearted.
I'm wanted to practice writing in a different genre. So I decided to write some fan fiction for fun. That's what you'll find here.
![[Valid RSS]](valid-rss.png "Validate my RSS feed")
My Heroes
Redbeard - 39
Me (Texasblu)- 38
Athena - 15
Venus - 12
Iris - 8
Orion - 5
Mercury - 5
Apollo - 3
Hercules - 3
Catch the Wave - Surf's Up Baby!
LDS News SourceLDS News Source is a LDS news portal that currently searches over 5000 news sources daily.
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
� Homeschool Buyers Co-op
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
Folks That Make Blogging Fun
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
Homeschool Blogger Friends
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
�
<<
?
|
LDS Blogs
|
list
>>
Get your own calendar
|
Support for LDS Homeschoolers
My thoughts at 02:21 PM, June 3, 2009
Personal Notes
From time to time I meet Bishops (or have friends that do) who think they have the right to ascertain whether or not a family should homeschool or not. They are mistaken. Here is a copy of a letter sent out in 2000 that was read in sacrament mtg. to dispel all the controversy. Unfortunately, it seems many people were missing that day, or at the water fountain. Please note NUMBER ONE.
 So the next time a Bishop or ANYONE in the church starts to misuse their authority, you might refer them to this letter. It has not been revoked. They have no right to tell you how your children should be educated, no matter what their opinion is.
Personally, I think this is a shame. Homeschooling families don't need the added stress of fighting those their supposed to look for love and support. Ah, but the church is perfect, not the people, so we move forward with faith. Those paradigms can't be shifted without help and inspiration - and who better to do it than a homeschooler? :) |
| Shared Thoughts(0) | Care to Share? | Link Me |
|
You've Gotta Sleep Sometime
My thoughts at 08:10 AM, May 7, 2009
Master Plan
I went to the LDS Natural Mom's conference in Jordan, UT a few weeks ago. It was an interesting experience for me, because I had no concept on how I was going to make it happen - I just knew I needed to be there, so I signed up and said, "I'm going". It all fell into place without me having to spend a whole lot of brain power on it. Amazing.
While there, I gleaned a lot of old information that I hadn't given thought to in a long time as well as some new information that helped spur me on to doing things that I knew I COULD do, but didn't have the HOW. So that's what the next few blog posts (spanned over days - can't do it all at once) are about - just stuff that was really pertinent to me.
Today I want to share about early to bed, early to rise.
WAIT! Before you run off screaming, let me explain. ;)
I have been working on going to bed earlier and getting up earlier. I just felt that I needed to do that. Well, two sources confirmed this for me. The first was Donna Goff. She said that it was her experience (and she has plenty) that any time a mother said she felt out of sorts, overwhelmed, and burned out, she wasn't reading her scriptures. She might try to do family scriptures, or spouse scriptures, but most often, she was not taking the time for PERSONAL scripture study. She said the best time to do this was in the morning. It sets the tone for the day, etc. "Being a nightowl is a habit," she insisted. Then she went on to describe the benefits of going to bed. (If I could find my notes, I'd list them. :P You can laugh - it's okay.)
Then we were priviliged to hear Cliff Dunston who used to be a BYU professor talk about natural healing, and while he spoke he talked about going to bed early. He said at 10pm you hit your second wind, so you don't feel tired. By 11pm you are running purely on adrenals. Adrenals are a key part of your endocrine system - which is what gives you the ability to fight illness, heal, etc. Adrenals are something I had to work with a lot with my thyroid when it was hypo - and I was notriously up all night.
So I've been experiementing. (You know me.) Confession time. Redbeard and I have been discussing what we are going to be doing next year for the kids. I am very serious about following my patriarcal blessing and writing on a serious level. It's my mission, and the pull is so strong I don't think it's appropriate in my case to say this is not the season. It IS. So there's that, plus my boys turned 5 this year. They're already asking about letter recognition and wanting to do more love of learning things at their age than any of my girls did. Add this to Athena wanting to prepare to go to college when she's 17, Venus and Iris' schooling, and I'm wondering can I really do this?
I took Donna at her word. I'll be the first to admit my personal scripture study suffers at the hand of living. I wrote on my personal blog that no matter what time of morning I wake up, within 15 min. I have a child up with me. I don't have a lot of "alone time" - I take extra long showers. But the alternatives to not homeschooling left me empty. Redbeard and I pray over these decisions - both of us have been blessed with discernment. Neither of us felt good with public school, or charter schools. Neither of us felt good about me giving up my writing. So when she said this, it was like she was speaking right to me.
So I went to bed at 10pm, got up about 6am, and read my scriptures. Magic. I'm not kidding - the whole day flowed and was so easy, I couldn't imagine what in the world I was so overwhelmed about. Kids were learning, I had time to work on my book, chores were completed, etc. The next day, I didn't read my scriptures. What a yucky day. It was a mess, and that's all I have to say about it.
Not that every day is as perfect as that first day, but it makes a huge difference for me. Somedays I don't get much read, and somedays I feast. For those who believe we are a creator of our own lives, and there is nothing to reading your scriptures that makes a real difference - it's all in my head, I've got an answer for that. Beliving in God the way I do, I believe that He gives us those instructions (we HAVE been instructed to read our scriptures everyday) knowing that it puts that intention in our heads/hearts, helping us create that experience, creating our own acceptance to His blessings. Or, in other words, why fight collective intention?
As for the going to bed early thing - I am really focusing on changing those life habits. It has not proven to be a simple thing. Most of the time (it's only been a few weeks) I make it to bed by 10pm. Sometimes though, when I really get into my writing, or I'm out with hubby and it gets late, I meet the wee hour of 1am again. I'm working on being forgiving of myself, because logically I know it takes time to make a lifestyle change. Esp. since it was a lifestyle my husband and I collaborated together. Now he says, "I never see you".... but I refuse to go back - my physical health and the health of my homeschool/home depend on my willingness to change for the better. I hope I don't sound like Redbeard is making this difficult - he isn't - he's actually been very supportive. But there are sacrifices being made, and I want to acknowledge those too, so a clear picture is painted.
I'm not a perfect woman. I've never claimed to be. But I am very clear that when I am in obedience to the Lord, my ability to do more is increased, and I don't understand how. The nice thing is, I don't have to understand. Sometimes, it's just about doing.
I'll write more later on the rest of that conference (hopefully with my notes.) |
| Shared Thoughts(2) | Care to Share? | Link Me |
|
Letting pain get in the way
My thoughts at 07:54 AM, May 5, 2009
Quotes
Pain is temporary. Quitting lasts forever. - Lance Armstrong
Don't you love this? A friend of mine shared it with us on Twitter, and I could feel my breath suck in. Lovely thought.
I didn't get my Commonwealth pics and video posted over here because I was having issues, so they're on my Making My Own Colors blog. Patience is a virtue I've always struggled with.... *grin* |
| Shared Thoughts(0) | Care to Share? | Link Me |
|
Little Golden Books Online
My thoughts at 09:12 PM, March 29, 2009
Homeschooling Daze
I grew up with Little Golden Books. Most of us in the 70's did I think. Anyway, I haven't felt compelled to buy any of the reprints that I've seen in the bookstores, but I stumbled across this blog that has put scanned images of vintage Little Golden Books online. You can find it here:
|
| Shared Thoughts(0) | Care to Share? | Link Me |
|
Porter Rockwell
My thoughts at 02:14 PM, March 28, 2009
Quotes
“Porter Rockwell was yesterday afternoon ushered into heaven clothed with immortality and eternal life, and crowned with all the glory which belongs to a departed Saint. He had his little faults but Porter’s life on earth, taken altogether, was one worthy of example, and reflected honor upon the church. Through all his trials he had never once forgotten his obligations to his brethren and his God.”
~ Joseph F. Smith June 1878
It always bothers me how there is so much controversy surrounding this man in the church. We once performed a piece I wrote concerning him and his first wife's courtship. It was a little rowdy (as one can expect), but at the end my husband read something about how he never lost his love for Joseph Smith or the church, and his voice broke. I remember feeling a witness that this was true, and that he was a magnificent man. We are all so imperfect - I think it's harder for those whose lives have been well aired. Sometimes I wonder what kind of fiend I would be made out to be if my life were under a microscope. |
| Shared Thoughts(1) | Care to Share? | Link Me |
|
Truth
My thoughts at 08:50 PM, February 16, 2009
Quotes
All truth passes through three stages:
First, it is ridiculed;
Second, it is violently opposed; and
Third, it is accepted as self-evident,
-- Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860) |
| Shared Thoughts(1) | Care to Share? | Link Me |
|
"Cleaning Day" - How I'm Getting It Done
My thoughts at 03:09 PM, February 10, 2009
Homeschooling Daze
One of the things that I have always done (when I'm smart, that is) is I use Monday for "cleaning day", but you could call it "life skills day" if you like. It's something that Dr. Kimber taught me to do and I have come to realize that anytime I deviate from this course, I end up with a big mess on my hands. I've written about this before, but here's what he taught me to do.
Sunday - Day of Worship
Monday - Clean the house! This is also the day I do any mini-OAMC sessions. I like to make Redbeard;s lunches ahead of time. :)
Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday - School days!
Friday - Get out of the house. I like to use this day or the days we hit the museum, or take a field trip over to Craters of the Moon, etc. Sometimes it's simply a day to go to the City Bldg or a park day, whatever, Just because you're getting out of the house doesn't mean you aren't getting schooling done. This is the day you get all that "outer world training" under your belt that is school related. But it gives a change of pace.
Saturday - Family day/Date night - I usually use this day for temple day.
Just some interjections. First of all, Dr. Kimber taught that the reason for "cleaning day" was that if you are a practicing LDS person with children, chances are your house is a mess on Monday. He said the song "Saturday" we learned in Primary should be renamed "Monday". Monday you can still FIND your shoes to be shined! Monday is the day you get everything ready for the week. Saturday is too late! He said this way mothers are not killing themselves trying to do it ALL on the same day.
One of the parallels I see in this to TJed is this - CORE first. Not only do kids need to learn how to take care of a house (I have a problem with FLYlady - the fact that she is even needed on that scale is sad! And why on earth do we think it's acceptable for people to need some weird women from Britian to come in and teach us how to clean our homes, or a SUPERNANNY to raise our children? No, never underestimate the powerful life skill lessons you teach along side academics!) So you teach these core values first in the week. That's not to say they aren't doing dishes or vaccuming all week long - but the deep cleaning stuff like scrubbing walls or toliets - THAT'S done on Monday.
Another thing about cleaning day is the importance of Mother working alongside the little ones. I have noticed over the years how wonderful everyone cooperates and how quickly projects are completed when I work alongside them. When I delegate and say, "You do this and you do that while I'm doing this" almost always (I can't think of a time it worked out, but there might have been ONE, so I say almost) ends up with someone practicing unrighteous dominion and another in tears. Mother must work alongside her children - I don't understand it fully, but I have some inklings why. I just accept it and move on. :)
Tues, Wed. and Thurs. are pretty cut and dry to me. You know what you're doing with your homeschool. Do it!
Fridays. I still consider this a school day, although we take a break from "formal" teaching. It's a day that if Iris is really into a book, we finish it. It's a day that my older girls go to Commonwealth. It's a day we all get to see the world outside of our house. Why? Dr. Kimber taught me that most (not all) Moms experiencing burnout were the ones that never got a change of pace. Moms needed to refill their tank ever bit as much as the kids do. Not only do the kids need those enriching activities (it's how kids learn about the world around them) but Moms need to see that world as well. Jeff Allen from mysuccessfullife.com taught me that without a neighbor, you go nuts. I believe that - I tried teaching in solititude the first year we lived in Idaho Falls - and I very nearly did go "nuts". Friday is a VERY improtant school day.
Saturday is whatever you need it to be. Since Dad is out working all the time, it's good to spend SOME time with the family as a whole. I think it's a great day in the summertime for working as a family in the garden. We have spent the day sledding, tickle fights on the floor, watching movies together, shopping (not always for things we intend to buy right away), etc. Redbeard and I use it as a temple day sometimes because of time allowances, but sometimes we make the last session on Friday night so we can focus on Sat. It's whatever is right for you.
And of course, this is all subjective to our own families.
I don't worry about "hours spent on schoolwork" because I teach year round and I know I teach more hours than the school ever thought about. I don't waste time like the schools do either. Athena has commented on the wasted time coming and going from classes, the chattering during, etc. What she knew about public schools socially from the year we had the catering truck serving school lunches has been confirmed through seminary, and what she didn't know she is getting a full dose, and has come to greatly appreciate the way we chose to educate her. Even if I suggest a classic she's not impressed with right away. ;) But that is the task of the mentor - to help them stretch and grow. *grin*
Mind you, I am not saying homeschooling is for everyone and that people who send their kids to public school are giving them a lousey education. I'm not saying that at all. What I'm saying is what everyone knows - even though the kids are at school for "X" amt of hours, the kids aren't really doing schoolwork all that time. I make sure my kids know their stuff, and if they finish early like Redbeard did in his classroom studies, then instead of having to sit quietly waiting for others, mine are off onto another learning adventure - whether it's from a book or living life. That's all I'm saying.
|
| Shared Thoughts(0) | Care to Share? | Link Me |
|
Hitler's (Gore's) Youth
My thoughts at 01:29 PM, February 6, 2009
Personal Notes
I don't know if anyone is still reading this blog or not (it's been difficult keeping it up) but I wanted to share this video. Maybe I'll share it on my other blog too - I don't know.
Anyway, This is Glenn Beck -
|
| Shared Thoughts(1) | Care to Share? | Link Me |
|
Never Despair
My thoughts at 03:14 PM, January 15, 2009
Quotes
"We should never despair, our Situation before has been unpromising and has changed for the better, so I trust, it will again. If new difficulties arise, we must only put forth new Exertions and proportion our Efforts to the exigency of the times." ~ George Washington
I wrote a piece on my main blog that was pretty heavy - wish I had found this quote for that post. Oh well.
This blog is going to be revived soon. Getting my ducks in a row - got spread a little thin with everything that happened this fall. Still we march on. Whoever you are that are still checking in - thank you for being patient with me. :)
|
| Shared Thoughts(0) | Care to Share? | Link Me |
|
Parents Night
My thoughts at 09:07 PM, December 18, 2008
Homeschooling Daze
Well, if anyone is still coming to visit, I'm so glad to see you. I have been busy with my unemployed spouse for the last month. If you've ever had an unemployed spouse, you know exactly what I mean. :P
Anyway, he's leaving for Denver on the 1st of January - not us - and will be working out there for three months. I'll have much more time for blogging then... and, my spouse will be happy because he is providing for his family. This is very important to any man who believes in his responsibilities. Also, Redbeard had to give up teaching his Italian class to do this, and that was hard for him to do. The kids will be taking an acting class this semester instead.
I wanted to share some pics and video from parent's night at Commonwealth. It was a good night - I only took pics and video of choir... silly me. They sounded really good though. :)
Redbeard was a very relaxed Master of Ceremonies...
Venus singing! She is the smallest girl in the school!
Athena in a relaxed stance singing - cracked us up!
Well, I thought I did a better job filming! And I can't believe how quiet it is! ERG! I hope you can hear it - I don't think you can hear the one boy very well. And I don't know why their heads are chopped off at one point - it didn't look that way in the camera! LOL! Oh well Mom, I tried. ;) If for some reason the video doesn't show up (photobucket and homeschool blogger are not being kind tonight), you can go here to watch it:
http://s144.photobucket.com/albums/r194/Athenasmom/?action=view&urrent=birthdayandparenttg005.flv
Just copy and paste. Homeschool blogger's html isn't working either - I'm pretty fed up. I'm working on changing over to strictly blogger... so watch closely for when I do! :) |
| Shared Thoughts(0) | Care to Share? | Link Me |
|
|
