I opened the bedroom door to find the kids were already up and active throughout the house.The oldest was working on cereal for the little guys and the little guys had already thought of a chasing game to play.This morning sickness really starts my day behind schedule, but Jim was so happy to hear we are having another baby.The kids were looking forward to having another member of the family.
So we start our day and start the assembly line to get the kids fed and dressed and ready for school.In the front yard, I checked the mail and there was a letter from the government, putting it aside I called Jim to see if he was expecting anything, he said to just leave it until he gets home that evening.
More work to do with the kids and follow up appointments with the doctors since they require extra testing now that I’m over 32.Wish they would just be happy for me having my 4th child and not worry so much about my high risk category.The kids want to know more about the new baby, so we watch a PBS special on the development of the baby that I had recorded when the last one was due 3 years ago.God is so good in the miracle of these babies.
After schooling, the kids are busy playing outside while I’m getting dinner together, which is harder to do nowadays.Jim is fabulous at grilling during these first few months of pregnancy, knowing I can barely handle getting everyone fed without tossing cookies.With the kids settled into a bath routine, Jim is working on today’s mail and paper work when he opens the letter from the government.He let’s me know he needs to talk about it once the bed time stories are done.
Coming downstairs, I see that he face is ashen.“What’s the matter?““You better read this letter,” he replies.I take the letter.“With your maternal age over 32 and your high risk pregnancy, along with the fact that you already have more than the assigned 2 children, it has been determined that this pregnancy is not to the benefit of the community.You are hereby required to report to the Planned Parenthood Abortion Clinic at 3PM tomorrow for termination of this pregnancy.Failure to show up will result in your arrest and confiscation of your house and your children remanded to Children’s Protective Services.”
My heart stops as I awake in a cold sweat.And I hear in my thoughts, it was only a dream, only a dream. Yes, it’s only a dream, if this story had been true, we would be living with National Health Care.
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This week, Americans gather with loved ones to celebrate Thanksgiving. This holiday season is a time of fellowship and peace. And it is a time to give thanks for our many blessings.
During this holiday season, we give thanks for generations of Americans who overcame hardships to create and sustain a free Nation. When the Pilgrims celebrated their first Thanksgiving nearly four centuries ago, they had already suffered through a harsh and bitter winter. But they were willing to endure that adversity to live in a land where they could worship the Almighty without persecution. When President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863, the United States was in the midst of a terrible civil war. But in that hour of trial he gave thanks -- because he believed America would weather the storm and emerge into a new era of liberty.
During this holiday season, we give thanks for those who defend our freedom. America's men and women in uniform deserve our highest respect -- and so do the families who love and support them. Lately, I have been asked what I will miss about the presidency. And my answer is that I will miss being the Commander-in-Chief of these brave warriors. In this special time of year, when many of them are serving in distant lands, they are in the thoughts and prayers of all Americans.
During this holiday season, we give thanks for the kindness of citizens throughout our Nation. It is a testament to the goodness of our people that on Thanksgiving, millions of Americans reach out to those who have little. The true spirit of the holidays can be seen in the generous volunteers who bring comfort to the poor and the sick and the elderly. These men and women are selfless members of our Nation's armies of compassion -- and they make our country a better place, one heart and one soul at a time.
Finally, I have a special note of thanks to the American people. On this, my last Thanksgiving as your President, I am thankful for the good will, kind words, and heartfelt prayers that so many of you have offered me during the past eight years. I have been blessed to represent such decent, brave, and caring people. For that, I will always be grateful, and I will always be honored. Thank you for listening.
# # #
From ME: May you be surrounded with family, friends, food and the spirit of the Lord as we give Thanks to the Lord for He is Good!
Well, I actually forgot to let the homeschool blogger group know about the relaunch. My apologies.
The show was GREAT! We have decided to put the show on talkshoe which allows people to call in. It also has chatting that the wonderful Cindy Rushton has made famous. The show is every Thursday from 2-3PM CENTRAL time (adjust as necessary for your timezone).
We had Malia Russell from http://www.homemaking911.com as we discussed how to have frugal holidays and still make it wonderful for your children. She had some great ideas and promised to put some recipes on her website for our listeners to check out.
Next week we will be discussing Support Groups: do they help or just take up space? So book mark the show and let us know your thoughts on support groups.
http://www.talkshoe.com/tc/31631
Hope your fall has been a great one of adventure,
great books and
children lighting up in discovery!
After a hiatus for almost a year, we are about to relaunch
The Homeschooler Next Door.
We will be relaunching in November,
same bat time,
different bat station
at 2PM Central time on Thursdays.
Yes, we will take off for Thanksgiving.
So have your tea ready, have the playdates set so you can gather around your computer for an hour of The Homeschooler Next Door, the kitchen table of homeschool talk.
We have many surprises for you that we will be discussing here on the blog and on line. So stay tuned as we get back in the saddle again!
• May. 19, 2008 - Where have all the Homeschool radio shows gone?
Well, I was feeling bad, not having done a radio show in about a year, when I checked on the other shows. Seems podcasting was a big thing in 05 and has since deminished over the last several years.
Was this a fad? Or was the hard work necessary for radio shows just too much for hard working homeschool Moms and Dads?
Yes, it does take someone with a producers hat to line up guests. It takes an editor 5 hours to edit a one hour interview. It takes a PR person to let everyone know that the radio show has a new entry.
For our show, I was the producer and host and pr person. My kids were the editors. They went to college and keep saying that I'm not allowed to edit the shows since I make the changes to abruptly,
But we had fun doing them, I have 10 more that need editing, and Yes, I really really would love to put this on REAL RADIO, but need sponsors.
I think that was the downfall of most homeschool radio shows. There was no money in it, it had to be your passion. Even the well ad supported shows have since gone numb. It just was not enough to hire an editor and pay for the audio server and the website server and take AAALLL that time from your kids.
If anyone knows of an Investment Angel who would like to see Homeschool Radio show, please have them contact me. I'm ready to continue and do this on the real airwaves (perhaps satellite radio!!)
Having had a tough week, I was starting my Saturday with a check on iTunes for the Next Door podcast. Not being very proficient in the iTunes format, I stumbled across the top 100 iTunes section. That was interesting, lots of great radio shows, old time radio shows, shows for kids, or classes learning a new language. And a few shows that would not EVER be on my computer
But thnking how cool it is that they have a top 100 category, although as a podcaster I never get stats, , I went to the category for The Homeschooler Next Door podcast to see if it was even listed.
Low and behold, it's listed at number 65 in the top 100 podcasts under Education>K-12.
I went like WOW!
How Kewl is that??
So I checked the 1-64 podcasts and none of them are Homeschool Podcasts. So, being the soft spoken type person that I am, I was excited with no place to tell people about this.
I mean, I'm on lists for webmistresses, but this is not website based. I'm on lists for self publishers, but this was not regarding my book. I'm on radio lists for people doing broadcasts, but this regarded the podcast not the streaming part of the show! So where do we shout from the housetops (homeschoolers don't have time to find mountains), that hey, afer 18 months of work, there is some actual recognition!!
Anyway, this could not have been done without my great kids who edited the show. Jessica and Joy have worked hard on the podcast. AND most important of all, they tell it like it is when they say that I cannot in no way edit the show or click on my computer while doing an interview! LOL They are great!
Also, thanks to all the wonderful people who have been on the show! We try to have a great line up of well known speakers and authors and regular homeschool Moms who have great stories to tell. As the Kitchen Table of Homeschool Talk we try to help by explaning how to homeschool, not just why or how fabulous it is, but how do I do this thing called homeschool??
So if you know people who are wondering about homeschooling, be sure and tell them to check iTunes for some great homeschool talk!
Hope everyone had a great holiday. We have more interviews in the can, just waiting for the big move to get the editing done.
As some know, I have older adult children. We are moving down the block from my daughter for 2 months while she has her new baby. As a homeschool family, we are here to support each other so we are moving the teens and the dog to a rent house down the block. We will watch toddlers and help as needed with housecleaning and dinner making, and all sorts of fun stuff. The teens get to continue their studies, The Homeschooler Next Door will continue on schedule, and we get to be there for the new addition to our family.
That's one of the great things about homeschooling. We can pick up our schooling and move it where we need it.
BTW, we have some great interviews coming up. We have Dr. Jeff Myers, Marilyn Rockett and her new book, Tammy Cardwell, Kim Kautzer from Write Shop and Bill and Betty in our que, just about ready for prime time! Do stay tuned as we bring the best about homeschooling to the Homeschooler Next Door on Drama Free Radio or on iTunes
After the ballyhooed Dr. Phil show aired last Friday, we decided not to take this lying down. Neata, a homeschool mom and clinical psychologist, talks with us about *the research* that Dr. Phil may have been referring to in his show.
Now we did email Dr. Phil's people asking specifically what research he was referring to, but have received no answer to date. So Neata discusses the research that has been done on homeschooling children and what are the research findings.
She also discusses the way Dr. Phil could have done the show if he was serious about presenting homeschooling as an alternative educational choice instead of just wanting to show homeschooling in a skewed format to gain ratings.
Finally, because there are varieity of flavors of unschooling, Chris from Lubbock talks about the various shades of unschooling. A mom of 4, she understands the ebb and flow of unschooling.
Well, we hope you all had a great time with family and friends. We had a quiet time at home. The show today was just me talking heart to heart about what Thanks Giving to God is really all about.
Next Week we will take on Dr. Phil. His show is such an ambush about homeschooling that I just can't believe the guy is from Texas! I'll record his show and then do a point by point rebuttal of his show on next week's The Homeschooler Next Door. If you have questions or comments you would like read on the show, please get them to me by Monday as that's the day we will be taping. Just go to the site to fill out our form, we will get back with you. http://www.thehomeschoolernextdoor.com
Well, with the school year starting and the poltical season in full swing, we have been busy. My teens are in a co-op for ASL and biology for the first time in their lives. My 18yo realized this was her first time to be in a class. But I was just not ready to dissect anything! So they are in co-op one day a week, and we are volunteering for a campaign one day a week. This has definitely sped up the week since we are so used to having our own ebb and flow of time.
My editor, who is also my daughter, returned to college to finish her degree in Film and Television. However, with directing a play, learning video editing, taking management course for the company she works for and working full time, the editing of the radio show for Mom has fallen by the way side.
So all this to say, yes, we are still in business, We have had several great interviews and they are all sitting there waiting to be edited. So please don't give up on us.
as a matter of fact, we just celebrated our first year on the air! We aired on October 13, 2005 for the first time, and have been on air for a year. We are also on iTunes for 6 months now, which is a great thing.
The next interview will be Cindy Rushton on October 26th, and then on November 2nd we will have a great show about why homeschoolers should be politically active and how to help this election. As I'm telling my friends, what will YOU do in the next 2 weeks that will change the world? Helping with a campaign can change everything, and take your kids!
Until next time, this is The Homeschooler Next Door, blessing to you and your family.
As we begin our homeschool year, it's always great to get new ideas on how to get organized. We are talking with Debbie Williams author of *Put Your House in Order* and *Organized Kidz* which was written with her 7 year old son. With great hints about everyday homeschooling and how to get a handle on your time and your home, you will enjoy this week on The Homeschooler Next Door.
Hi, welcome to the Homeschooler Next Door, the kitchen table of homeschool talk radio.
We have been on the air for many months now, airing every Thursday afternoon with some great guests on Drama Free Radio, an Internet Christian Radio Station with lots of great talk and great music, all of it safe for your 4 year old and your grandmother.
Just recently Tammy Cardwell, editor of Eclectic Homeschool Online, has joined us for a 10 minute review of books and curriculum at the end of every show!
You can check our archives for past interviews with:
1) a Mom who gave Russian kids a summer camp in France,
2) Joanne Juren, founder of the homeschool honor society Eta Sigma Alpha,
3) Doug and Patsy Arnold, founders of Texas Special Kids,
4) Tricia Smith Vaughan, the Thinking Mama, and
4) Jesscia Hulcy, creator and founder of KONOS,
to name a few of the archives that can be found on the site and on iTunes.
Plus lots more as we are inviting many great home school Moms to come and talk.
If you would like to have your questions answered on the air, just call (214) 615-6044 ext 1577 and leave us a question to be aired on the show.
Join us for tea every Thursday at the kitchen table of homeschool talk. The Homeschooler Next Door is the longest running homeschool talk show on the internet, so join us as we talk heart to heart about homeschooling.
, I went to the category for The Homeschooler Next Door podcast to see if it was even listed. 
So please don't give up on us.
as a matter of fact, we just celebrated our first year on the air! We aired on October 13, 2005 for the first time, and have been on air for a year. We are also on iTunes for 6 months now, which is a great thing.