Sparrow's Nest Academy - OR - Mama's homeschool gym and angst chamber
• Jan. 15, 2010 - Reading about Haiti
The front page of the newspaper was sprawled across the kitchen table this morning when i came down. T's coffee cup, some forks and a plate.
I had a little baby whose favourite position lately (much to my delight and to the other children's delight) is squashed flat against my chest, with her downy head tucked into my shoulder, so every part of her body is pressing against me.
I made a hot chocolate (from protein powder - it's good! and no carbs!), and an omelette (just learned how to make them properly last night! mmm!), and sat down to see what was new.
The front page was the picture of a corpse from Haiti, and the first six or so pages were given over to stories that hint at the devastation that must be ongoing in Haiti. I understand their urgency - the people putting out the newspaper want people to feel an urgency in mobilization, not to think "well, maybe next week we'll do something" but to get out their checkbooks, to start helping.
As i read the stories, it seemed like a whole nother world. Here, we've had warm weather for January - and a lot of melting snow. People are chipping the ice around the drains in the road, to try to let some of the wet escape that way, and Haven spent half an hour yesterday chipping away the ice on our sidewalk to keep us bylaw compliant. There is still a lot of snow, but it's shrinking every day, and i can feel my spirits rise as the sun shines and the snow dissipates. I know it won't last forever, but it is such a blessed reprieve in the middle of a six month sentence to see a light at the end of the tunnel and know that you won't be trapped in winter forever...
Anyway, reading these stories, of families separated, children missing under rubble, and no one able to help the mother try to dig out her two other little girls, who are alive right now but may not be for much longer, already having lost her husband in the rubble and having been able to save only her youngest daughter, who is two... was shocking and horrifying and made me cry.
And then i felt a little hand on my arm. My little curly headed dolly caught my eye, cocked her head, and gave me her cheesiest grin, full of tiny milk teeth, and then laid her cheek on my arm, snuggling in and closing her eyes in pleasure.
Yes, as a family we need to do something to help these people. And at the same time, it makes me feel my blessing all the more keenly, to be here in Canada, far from war or terrorists, or earthquakes or famine. To have seven strong children and a faithful, kind and generous husband who loves me and protects our little ones.
I am trying to keep that balance in my heart - between mourning with those who mourn and letting it rob all the joy from my own life.
1.i'm grateful that Jesus loves me. I'm sure He's got more important things to do, but He. Loves. Me.
2.my wonderful husband - God is so good to me, and daily demonstrates His own heart to me through my husband. He is inspiring, kind, righteous, so smart and good, and my best friend. (and so hot! LOL!)
3.healthy, fun, smart kids - i love being a mama to these seven little people, and the best part is watching them grow up into embryonic adults - hard to believe they will one day be independant of me, but it's becoming more plausible by the month... and it's beautiful and fun!
4.a warm house - it's not huge, and there are things i'd change (more room to eat!) but it's cute :) and there's room for all of us, and it's a nice little house, snug and warm..
5.my sisters - there is nothing nicer than having two people who know you inside out and still love you, and who are walking the same road you are.... AND who will sing with you! LOL!
6. my homeschooling encouragement list (tidbits). I'm so grateful for you ladies on tidbits - for your friendship, and kindness - for your help and insight and for thinking the best of me and helping me to be a better mom and wife and homeschooling mama
7. that i live in the mountains, surrounded by beauty. They are balm to my soul when the world's ugliness is overwhelming.
10. books! I started keeping a journal of all the books i read (it's one of the questions we answer last in our library board meetings :)) - and I love that i'm able to be on the receiving end of people's art and craft, thoughts, emotions and pleas... I wish i could write! Maybe in November i will try again...
Unless you believe that Jesus came to set us free, to rescue us and make us whole.
In which case, this is an awesome Christmas post.
But if you can't cry right now, please go away, and come back and read it when it doesn't matter if you weep. Because some people need to be saved, set free, and made whole. And right now they are tiny, hurting, and horribly mistreated.
I found a link to a youtube video today (from a United Families email) about a woman who is making a difference right now in an area that i find hard to think about, and helpless to do anything about. Here is her video (warning - it made me sob)
After watching her video, i went to the website, signed up to make a chapter of MOM here where i live, and wrote this letter to the PM, Stephen Harper.
Please feel free to copy, paste, personalize, and send this letter as well - it's on their website (only mine is personalized, so feel free to add/subtract from it as your situation and feelings dictate)
Dear Mr. Harper,
Nothing is more important to Canada, and to Canadians, than our children. I am a mom to seven children from 14 down to one year old, and to think that across our nation, little ones like mine are misused, terrorized, raped, and abused, makes me sick to my stomach and makes me weep.
Yet right now, across the country, 45,000 men are trafficking in computer images
of young children being sexually abused and violated. Research consistently
shows that 40 per cent of these men are also actively abusing kids, which means
there are at least 16,000 child abusers across the country.
This is a national epidemic. It is staggering.
Internet child abuse traffickers leave electronic footprints that trained experts
can follow, right to their computer terminals. But the number of trained police
experts that can track down Internet child abusers, and rescue the children being
abused, is woefully inadequate in every province and territory. Right now police
can only catch only a few dozen child abusers a year. We need to be catching
thousands every year.
I know that you believe, like I do, that we must do everything possible to protect
children from child abuse aided by the Internet. That is why I am asking for your
help.
We urgently need many more expert internet child abuse investigators in every
police service across the country, from the RCMP to the smallest municipal police
department. I urge you to make this a priority, and to work cooperatively with
every other level of government to make it happen. This is the most important thing i think police could do. More than catching thieves, more than parking tickets, and speeding, more than bylaw enforcement. Catch the perverts.
We can solve these terrible crimes against kids. We just can’t solve them fast
• Dec. 8, 2009 - Grooveshark measurably improves your workout!
Well, not so sure about the "measurably" part. But it sure makes it more fun!
Hits from the '80s...
and 15 minutes, each punctuated with 5 clean and presses (15 lb dumbbells) and 5 rows (bodyweight on chin up machine)
our '80s workout music tonight:
In a Big Country (Big Country)
West End GIrls (Pet Shop Boys)
Heat of the Moment (Asia)
Tempted by the Fruit of Another (Squeeze)
Take Me Home Tonight (Eddie Money)
Making Love Out of Nothing At All (Air Supply)
Holding Out For A Hero (Bonnie Tyler)
Don't Stop Believing (Journey)
Tennessee (Arrested Development)
When the Levee Breaks (Led Zeppelin)
Misty Mountain (Led Zeppelin)
Too Much Time on My Hands (Styx)
Is one of these songs an "altar to the Unknown God" by musicians who are singing about God's unbelievable love? Vote yes or no in the comments! And tell me which one *you* think may fit the bill!
Prize will be the fame of having your name on my blog!
My friend, Mrs. Crystal, alerted me to a cool competition for children grades 4-12, Atco's Celebrating Excellence Challenge, with prizes of trips to the Olympics, and new laptops. My eldest wasn't that interested, but my oldest daughter was!
Here is the link to the contest, and here is her essay:
How I work for excellence and leadership as a big sister
and babysitter
By Haven F
As a big sister of 5 siblings, and a babysitter, I work for excellence. I wish
to have those small children, my siblings and the children I baby sit, like it
when I’m there and miss me when I go.
I am usually always helping with my baby sister, as my mom home-schools us all,
and usually needs a bit of help from us older children. I usually help by
keeping her occupied, or babysitting her while mom is away. As I got older, I
started changing her diaper, and putting her to bed. I sometimes baby-sit my
younger siblings for mom, or try to think of ways have fun with them. I want
them to know, if they’re hurt, or if they fall down and get a bump, scratch, or
skinned knee, I'll comfort them. That’s what I’m there for.
I want them to know that I’m there, that if they want someone to give them
attention, look at what they’ve done, or even just play a game, that I’ll do it.
I also work for leadership. In a household of nine people, that’s not too hard.
The little guys love to follow me around, or copy me. When we were decorating
our Christmas tree, for instance, I grabbed a long gold garland, and immediately,
my younger sister did the same. When I start reading, one of the little babies
picks up a book, upside-down, and pretends to read with me. Also, my baby sister
always pretends to talk on the phone, just like me. We have an old, burnt out
one exactly for that purpose.
I love playing group games, in the backyard, or elsewhere. My little brothers
and sisters love making ‘baby worlds’ with me, which usually consist of as many
blankets and pillows as they can find, twisted up into little nests. One of my
favourite games to play with little kids is called hide-and-go-tag, a mixture
of tag, and hide-and-go-seek. They almost all love it. Or I tell stories, when
they’re not too rowdy. They also love attention, and hugs. I’m always wishing
This isn't my husband, but i think i've seen him do all of these "exercises" at one time or another... I love the curls part... "You don't have to look at the weight. You know the onesie won't rip, just feel the burn..."
Tonight's workout:
10 sets, reduced by one rep each time (starting at 10)
of rows, thrusters (15 lb dumbbells) and pushups
See the score board? Who won? (hint: not me...)
Sunday workouts were supposedd to just be the dumbbell complex workout again (it's so effective!)
20 minutes, doing 5 dead lifts, 5 cleans and 5 thrusters every minute.
I got to minute seven and had to take a break and nurse an insistent little dolly at my feet - and then get to choir practice - and i had already put in two hours prep time and had more to go when i got home, so i never did the other thirteen minutes... so not the whole workout (T and the children did it, though!) - but still, not wasted time! I still did *something* :) and that's what the exercise challenge is about for me...
Tonight's was a modified "Fran" - if i were doing this properly, i would be lifting 65 lbs - instead i used 15 lb dumbbells.
21 thrusters, 21 rows
15 thrusters, 15 rows
9 thrusters, 9 rows.
I finished before Bonnie Tyler's "Holding out for a Hero" was over. I don't know if that's a good thing or not... i'm still waiting for my song to come up on the playlist... (www.grooveshark.com makes it easy to make a playlist with requests from everyone who is working out - but whoever is seventh might be done working out by the time his song comes up...)
We were almost done putting groceries away, and we looked down to see Mimi trying to squeeze her teddy into the slit on the top of the pop carton... Finally she scooped him up, hugged him to her chest, and said "Happy!"..
well, workouts have been more frequent, i think, because T is involving the children. It is chaotic, it is frantic, it's fun. I think the people who enjoy it most are the babies who aren't actually working out - but they make the atmosphere so joyful.
Babe Meow loves to jump on people's backs as they do their pushups, and both she and Uly like to throw toys underneath us as we do sit ups or pushups. But they love doing squats with us, yelling "up down!" or counting randomly along, yelling out "27, 28, 9! 27! 4!"
It is crazy! But it's a workout, and i think we will be getting more workouts in this way rather than waiting for the littles to go to bed, and then hoping we'll have enough energy to work out then...
So.... tonight's workout was
four rounds (i only did three, though..)
of
20 rows
30 pushups
40 situps
50 squats.
That's still a lot of reps, and a nice workout!
We're finding a lot of times, the littles will finish first, and then T still has a lot left to go (since he's using heavier weights) - i think we may move toward a "how many sets in 30 minutes" type of format for a bit and see if that's more fun. Or not!
It's finally Friday. I feel like i have been holding my breath all week, waiting to talk to my best friend with skin on.
I read Say You're One of Them by Uwem Akpan and i needed to reconnect with T, who always grounds me when despair threatens to overtake me. Instead, this week has been filled with pencilled annotations on the big calendar, library board meeting, fiddle club practices, worship team practice, wrestling, and on and on...
The first night i was reading the book, i forced myself to finish the story, and it was so dark and bleak i read another, hoping it would end better, and let me sleep. But instead i finished it, and i was up late, it was dark, my husband breathing beside me, hoping for a good night's sleep before he got up early to go to work.
I wished in those late, inky moments, for someone to talk to. Someone to share my sorrow with. Someone to speak to me and tell me that the world isn't really that bad. And i felt a nudging. "You've got Me." He says quietly. So i started to pray, telling him my heart, how broken i felt, praying for Africa, for children, for justice, and for the mercy that brings justice and makes darkness, sin, cruelty flee.
And as i'm praying, i'm still wishing for someone with skin on. Just to hold vigil with me until i can sleep. If i can sleep. And as i pray, God answers me from the other room. I hear baby Meow's voice. A little cat's meow, a little wail, getting louder. Baby needs me. I get up in the dark and carefully stumble to the door, find my warm dolly wrestling up to standing in her crib, her soft hair curly and standing on end. "Num nums,mama" "Yes," i soothe, "Come with mama". She nestles like a tiny kitten into my arms, trying to lay down and go back to sleep, pacified that she will be taken care of, and once i tuck her between T and me, she latches on, her soft little breaths keeping me awake.
The comfort of being a mama in those moments showed me one more way that God is here with us. Emmanuel. God with us. We are His hands, His feet, and sometimes we are standing in for "the God with us" when we least recognize it. But He knows.
Matthew 5:4
4Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
I seem to write about this at fairly regular intervals, but i do think it's one of the most important things i'm doing in homeschool and in life, with my children. and so necessary for me.
and i loved it! For one, she writes much more eloquently than i do :) - but there were a lot of beautiful truths expressed there... i loved the vision of intergenerational faithfulness of her example; (go read to see!)
I loved her idea of writing the first letter of each word down on a "cheat sheet" so you can easily check yourself as you go on your day.
My littles are learning James 2 this fall with me - and i could do this easily - add this to my part of the memorizing...
and for my own memorizing projects...
she has a ton of great resources re: memorizing too - i think sometimes the thing's in the doing - not necessarily having the right system or doing it perfectly, but just being faithful and taking a kick at the cat every day...
"Am I good at workouting?" asks Lulu as we walk down the stairs to meet Daddy, beaming in front of a white board.
"I love workouting with you and Haven. Cause Haven an' me hold hands an' kiss in between our situps. We're best friends" he says matter of factly about his big sister.
We were down to only five children tonight - our littlest and our biggest girls were just wiped out today, and went to bed early.
Our workout was a little late, too, as i prepped for the school week, pulling books on the ancient Americas, photocopied worksheets, maps, coloring pages, wrote out my plan for the week, and organized everyone's day for tomorrow...
But finally we are down there and this is the workout:
"Race to One Hundred!"
Pick any exercise you like. You will do one hundred of that exercise. If you can do all one hundred in a big long stretch, bully for you! You will be done soon! If not, every time you take a break, you have to pay for your break before you restart the count, by doing ten burpees.
Burpees aren't my favourite.
I chose squats (body weight) and i got to 50 before my quads were burning (they've been the stars in our workouts lately so there's always a little stiffness the last few days) - and i did two sets of 50, with my ten burpees in the middle...
T is still working out, although the children have all run upstairs for a banana before bed, and i am not hearing any noise at all. We're all pretty tired i guess. Hopefully a good sleep will set us all right for a fun week!
Lux Venit has posted twice on Cynthia Tobias' book on Strong Willed Women - her original post is here
She asked some questions at the end and wanted all readers to post on their blogs, so she can have as many answers as possible - I'm posting mine below to incite you all to post your own answers - you can post here on my blog, or you can go to Lux Venit and bless her with your wisdom (you know, us strong willed women love to share wisdom, don't we?)
~~~~~~~~
Would you call yourself a strong-willed woman?
yes, i would. it takes a strong will to get out of bed every morning, change a diaper, nurse a baby, bathe three toddlers, make breakfast, get my 14 yo out of bed, all while people are dancing around with things they want to distract me with :)
Do you view the possession of a strong-will as a positive or negative characteristic?
honestly, i haven't always thought of it as a good thing - and my teachers in school certainly did not. Even in college, one professor told me "We need to break your will!" (Eek!) - but one day i was talking to my friend and he rephrased it and said "that's not strong will, that's passion." And i think he's right. I am a passionate person, and i will work hard to try to conform the world to what i know to be right, as much as i am able.
Do you feel like your strong-will hinders or enhances your walk with Jesus?
He MADE me like this - and i believe it gives Him pleasure to see me working whole heartedly, caring about the things He has given me to care about...
Do you believe a woman has to give up her strong-will in order to follow Christ?
No :) I believe He uses all of us in the way He has made us. He made some quiet, some loud, some musical, some thoughtful, some artistic - none of those are bad things, not all of us have those gifts, but a strong will is definitely a gift from God.
Strong-willed women have a more difficult time fitting in with the rest of the women at church. Agree or disagree.
I think we tend to talk too much and steam roller other people. There can be a lack of empathy especially about causes that are sources of deep passion (for me, pro life advocacy is one of those areas). But God has given us into His body to not only play our own role, but to encourage each other, and to have the sharp edges smoothed off, and He has brought wonderful people into my life (and i bet into yours, too)to help me learn the things i need to learn (and continues to do this, out of His great and overwhelming love for me)
Today wasn't Wy's birthday, but we celebrated today anyway, since it's more fun to have a party on the weekend. We had a Wii tournament (archery) (which he came in second to his little brother who is seven!) - and a Marble Slab birthday cake (i prefer the cones by FAR!)... plus lots of treats, presents, and fun...
And after dinner we had our workout. T is pretty faithful about getting all the littles downstairs and getting it organized. With our big computer dying, all our iTunes are missing, so we worked out tonight to the tune of babe Meow crowing "One Two!" and "Up Down!" She loved doing the squats (it's crazy how flexible little ones are! She was just about sitting on the floor every time) and we all loved working out with her there to cheer us on...
Travis' "the tabata mix won't work" workout...
We couldn't use our tabata mix, so we did 20 second intervals of working and rest -
we did a set of pushups, a set of situps (i did captains's chair) and a set of squats
20 seconds of work, 20 seconds of rest.
And we did ten total sets each of the three exercises...
I'm a homeschooling mom with seven littles 13 and under... changing diapers and dealing with hormones and loving that God trusts me with this big job and this big joy!
