I AM living my dream! I am a wife to my very best friend and the most wonderful man I've ever met - Joey and Mommy to 4 beautiful blessings! Being a wife and mom IS my dream and God has blessed me richly in allowing me to live it! I am blessed even more by our ability to homeschool our children. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/ en-us Homeschool Blogger Thu, 28 May 2009 17:58:00 -0500 Thu, 28 May 2009 17:58:00 -0500 It seems that Amish reading has taken the book world by storm!  I know I love to read about the Amish - whether it be a book about their lifestyle, their cooking, or a fiction novel written in that setting.  I believe they are an amazing group of people - my husband has said many times he thinks we should have been born Amish! What has caused all of this excitement, though?  I'm sure there has always been some amount of fascination associated with the Amish folk and their lifestyle...but it seems in the past few years, that fascination has grown. So much so, that national magazines and news programs are talking about it!  Here's some more information I received recently from the lovely folks at Waterbrook Multnomah Press (the company I do book reviews for): Amish Love What’s all the hubbub about Amish fiction? Major media outlets like Time and ABC Nightline are covering it, and authors like Cindy Woodsmall are making the New York Times bestseller list regularly. What makes these books so interesting?  Check out the recent ABC Nightline piece here (http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/story?id=7676659&page=1) about Cindy and her titles When the Heart Cries, When the Morning Comes, and When the Soul Mends. It’s an intriguing look at Amish culture and the time Cindy has spent with Amish friends.  And don’t forget that Cindy’s new book The Hope of Refuge hits store shelves August 11, and is available for preorder now. I'm excited about these new books and I hope that all of you will check them out this summer! http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/693606/ Thu, 28 May 2009 17:58:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/693606/ Things have been quite busy around here lately!  I won't bore you will all of the details of our lives, but I'm mentioning it so that you know why I haven't actually read this book! It's not that I didn't WANT to read it, I just didn't have a spare moment to do so.  However, I'm posting a review for those that are interested and maybe one of you can actually get the book read and tell me how good it is! Here is the description from the back cover: You already know it’s not easy being a single man in this culture today. But it is easy to be overwhelmed, to feel helpless and hopeless about living by God’s high standards for singles. It’s easy to cave in to the pressures of this sex-soaked world and accept defeat—blaming the media, the culture, even girlfriends who don’t know how tough it can be.  But many men have read books like Every Young Man’s Battle and Tactics and have committed themselves to stand strong and pure in the power of God, and to go on the offensive against the onslaught of negative stereotypes. Some have suffered. Some have fallen. But many have experienced victory—and you can be among them.  What makes those committed men so desirable to women? Be Her Hero is their motto. From best-selling author Fred Stoeker, along with his son Jasen, come the straightforward insight and real-life examples you’re looking for to help you take personal purity to its logical conclusion. Here’s straight truth with irrefutable evidence of what makes an ultimate hero to women who long for men of faith—men who stand by their convictions and make their world a safer and better place.  Are you ready to accept the challenge? Here's another good book to add to your summer reading list!  Happy Reading http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/692924/ Fri, 22 May 2009 20:30:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/692924/ Blogging, that is.  For a while I was keeping up with it pretty well, but now it's pretty much fallen by the wayside!  I wish I could be better at this, but somehow...I guess it's just not in me.  However, I am going to TRY to do better :) We have been so busy lately!  Between school and being sick and just plain life in general...things can get pretty hectic, quickly!  I've missed so much that I wanted to blog about - Rhett and Abby playing soccer, Thanksgiving and Christmas...Heck, I even missed Valentine's Day!  The children are doing so well with school this year.  They have really enjoyed all of their subjects - which is a plus!  Maicee is making great strides, too!  James is growing like a weed!  I am going to try to post some photos later.  He got his first tooth over the weekend!  Anyway, that's all I've got for now :)  http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/661598/ Mon, 23 Feb 2009 14:47:00 -0600 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/661598/ My precious little nephew is growing so BIG!  Here is the  most recent photo of him: Isn't he just the cutest thing?  We recently had a Fall Harvest Party at church (very fitting, I think, since our church is called HarvestPoint  ).  Everyone played this game where they got into two lines and there were two big baskets full of clothes at the front of each line.  Each person had to run up, put on the first piece of clothing they grabbed from the basket (no matter WHAT is was), and run to the back of the line - then the next person was up...sort of like relay.  Well, people just kept piling clothes on until everything in the baskets were gone...so people ended up having 8-10 layers on!  It was hilarious! I volunteered for camera duty, so I got out of having to "dress up", but it was a lot of fun to watch.  Rhett and Maddy were playing other games at the time, so only Abby and Maicee participated, but here is a cute snapshot of them all "gussied up": On another note, Madalyn lost something very important recently.  She doesn't care that she lost it.  In fact, she's happy that she lost it...and so are we!  What is it, you ask?  Her braces!!!  She's been wearing them since July 2005 - so almost 3 1/2 years - and there were no tears present the day we got to say good-bye to those things.  I'm missing photos - sorry!  I know you guys can't believe, huh? She is loving not having braces and being able to eat anything that she wants. Now, if we can just not lose the retainer...We've already been down that road with her brother...but I digress. Then, to finish off my lovely tale....the children all had surgery last week.  Yes, I said ALL.  As in ALL.  As in 4...at once.  It was NOT fun.  They had some warts that had popped up on their hands and Rhett had them on his feet (we are assuming from the trampoline).  We were going to have them removed one child at a time...but when we went in to see the surgeon, we discovered that they were contagious warts - that they had caught them from someone and that they would only pass them back and forth to each other if we didn't do all the surgeries at one time and get rid of them.   So, Thursday morning, bright and early, we headed to the hospital and they all had surgery....they were all in pain when they woke up - they used a laser to remove them, but the pain was quickly taken care of by some pain meds.  Except for Rhett.  His were the worst (the ones on his foot) and he ended up having to have some really strong pain medication shots before he was out of pain.  When we got home we had to clean the entire house with bleach.  I mean EVERYTHING.  All the school books, pencils, toys, floors, bathtubs, showers, counters, every surface, etc.  All bed clothes had to be washed in hot water and bleach.  All of Rhett's shoes had to be washed in bleach.  The computer, all video games, EVERYTHING...literally had to be washed down with clorox wipes or washed in bleach.  We even had to go outside and bleach the trampoline.  We were at it from 3 pm until 12:30 that night!  Talk about exhausted.  BUT the house is clean, sanitary, and wart-virus free!  I called my brother (who lives across the street with his family) and told them to check their children for warts...if they have any, they must go have surgery, too, before they are allowed to come over and play again! They all seem to be doing pretty well.  Abby and Rhett had them the worst (Maddy and Maicee only had 2 each), so they will obviously take longer to recover.  Abby only had a couple that clustered, so her recovery time will even be shorter than Rhett's - he had a HUGE cluster area on his foot so he will be in bed for the rest of the week!  Oh, well....this gives  him plenty of time to work on that research paper he has to write for Bible class! Please pray for quick healing and for the pain to subside quickly as well.   http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/620419/ Mon, 17 Nov 2008 09:30:00 -0600 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/620419/ Last night, as we sat in front of the computer, watching the election results, it was almost as if there was a lead weight in my stomach.  When John McCain came on and gave his concession speech, I actually had tears in my eyes.  The fear that had gripped me for what was going to come to our country - our family - our children - suddenly became too much. I went to bed last night with such a heavy heart, but knowing that God is in control.  I awoke this morning with a determination in my spirit to TRUST and not be afraid.  Barrack Obama may have been voted into an office by a group of fallible humans, but we serve an infallible KING that can never be voted out of His place, will never leave His throne, and will always be in total control.  This is my measure of peace: 3 Strengthen the feeble hands,        steady the knees that give way;  4 say to those with fearful hearts,        "Be strong, do not fear;        your God will come,        he will come with vengeance;        with divine retribution        he will come to save you."  5 Then will the eyes of the blind be opened        and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Isaiah 35:3-5 Our God is STILL God.  When we have fear that our rights and freedoms will be taken from us, we have God's promises that we are HIS people and He will take care of us.  The eyes of the blind will be opened! 10 So do not fear, for I am with you;        do not be dismayed, for I am your God.        I will strengthen you and help you;        I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10 We don't have to be afraid.  God's hand is holding us.  He has America in the palm of His hand - where it's always been.  That doesn't mean this country is living in God's will - I don't believe it is....and I believe we will suffer the consequences of living outside of His will.  But what we must remember above all is to TRUST God - it's all we have. 13Who is going to harm you if you are eager to do good? 14But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened." 15But in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect I Peter 3:13-15 As Christians, we may suffer under the changes that are made during the next few years.  We may suffer for doing the right thing - we already do on a lot of levels.  However, I am trusting God that He can use the next 4 years to bring a time of change - and not Obama's change - to our nation....but a time of REVIVAL.  So, we need to be ready, as Scripture says, to give an answer for the hope that we have.  How can we be so hopeful when things look so dim?  The only answer can simply be, JESUS CHRIST. And in the end, all WILL worship Jehovah God.  There is no other end.  He has already won!  Sometimes we forget that the war has already been fought and our God REIGNS!  These little battles we go through in life are just that...battles.  They seem like giants to us, but to God, they are just little bumps in the road.  He's already won the most important fight of all. "Great and marvelous are your deeds,       Lord God Almighty.    Just and true are your ways,       King of the ages.  4Who will not fear you, O Lord,       and bring glory to your name?    For you alone are holy.    All nations will come       and worship before you,    for your righteous acts have been revealed." Revelation 15:3-4 God is still God.  He is still on the throne.  He is still the KING OF KINGS.  Praise Him today for His mercy and His grace - and for His LOVE.  AND for His Judgement - it is always righteous. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/614822/ Wed, 5 Nov 2008 07:31:00 -0600 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/614822/ This book review isn't like the ones I normally do.  It isn't for a publishing house.  It isn't for anyone in particular.  Or maybe it is.  For whatever reason, I feel led to write it, so here we are. I had never heard of this book 2 months ago when it was recommended to me by someone I respect very much.  I went on my way basically forgetting about it, until I stumbled upon a little controversy over the book in a group I'm on.  This piqued my interest, so I did a little investigating and found that there was a good bit of negativity swirling around this novel. However, lest I have negative feelings about someone, based on a book I'd never taken the time to read, I began to pray about reading the book myself.  I decided to read it and made a commitment to read it completely - no matter what.  It only took me about 3 chapters to be sorry that I made that commitment. I won't bore you with my pages (yes, pages) of notes, but I will tell you that this book is full of new age and wiccan philosophy.  If I had not studied false religions in the past, I might not have picked up on quite as much as I did,  but there was a great deal that I think most any Christian would easily find.  It puzzles me greatly that this is touted as such a great book by the Christian community, when it holds such falsities compared to the Word of God.  However,  I don't suppose I should really be all that surprised... But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2 Peter 2:1 The Lord made it clear that there would be those that would come to deceive - those that would be false teachers.  I don't claim that Mr. Young has intentionally came to deceive...but he is most certainly misguided, misdirected, and deceived himself.  His book is full of heresy and sacrilege. My thoughts on this book in total:  BEWARE.  If you choose to read the book, do so with your eyes wide open.  Know going in that it is full of unbiblical theology. I'm happy to report that the dear lady that first recommended the book to me, has since come back and said that after re-reading the book she has come to the conclusion that she was somehow "sucked in" the first time and she sees the lies and error in the book now.  She doesn't even know I've ever read it.  If you've read The Shack, I'd love YOUR opinion on the book.  Please leave something in the comment section!  http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/611612/ Wed, 29 Oct 2008 07:55:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/611612/ My precious nephew - James Elliot - born October 7, 2008, at 6pm, weighing 7 lbs 13 oz and measuring 21 1/4 in long.  My beautiful sister, Maegan, and her beautiful son  My brother-in-law, Mike (The proud papa), and the little man Oh, what a face!? Snoozin' You will certainly be seeing more (ok, lots more) pictures of this little guy - we are all tee-totally in love! Lo, children are an heritage of the LORD: and the fruit of the womb is his reward. Psalm 127:3 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/611377/ Tue, 28 Oct 2008 16:49:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/611377/ It has certainly been a long time since I blogged!  I can't believe I've went so long without an update!  Things around here have just been incredibly busy - my sister and her husband had their first baby, it's allergy season and I've got 3 allergy kids, an allergy husband, and one daughter and I both have asthma, PLUS my oldest has a serious sinus infection (he's had sinus surgery once before) that could lead to another surgery.  Needless to say, blogging hasn't been on the top of the priority list! My little nephew is awesome - we are all in love!  I want to post some pictures of him, but my sister and her husband don't have a digital camera so they "borrowed" ours while at the hospital and I am beginning to wonder if I'll ever get it back! :)  Maybe this weekend! School is going good.  We took a week off when the baby was born, to help out,  but other than that we've stuck to the schedule STRICTLY - I've been really proud of myself (and the kiddos of course!). I don't think I've ever done a post without pictures - if I have I don't remember...so this feels really weird. I placed a new video in the sidebar from AFA (American Family Association) that is really good - if you have time, check it out.  Ok, well I guess that's enough rambling!  I will try to do a REAL post this weekend - when I have pictures and no school going on and I'm not in the middle of cooking supper :) http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/609113/ Thu, 23 Oct 2008 17:12:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/609113/ I am late posting this review, but it took some time for my mind to process all that I read.  Although I've heard about the sex trade industry before, to me it was a relatively little known subject.   When I got the invitation for the book review, I almost rejected it - simply because I normally try to stay away from reading or viewing things that have people being tormented or tortured.  However, when I prayed about it, God really layed it on my heart that if we as Christians take an attitude of "I don't want to know about that", then who WILL want to know about it?   As hard and ugly as it is, Christians need to inform ourselves of the evil that is going on all around us - and to try to find a way to help when we can.  That's what Somaly Mam does in this book.  She brings out the ugly, the horrid, the evil - and lays it out in the open.  She puts her life story - all of her personal misery - right out front so that others may know what thousands of girls are going through every day and night.  This isn't a book of gruesome details - it's tactfully written.  It was written from the heart of a hurting woman, who's come to terms with the pain of her own life in the only way she knows how - by helping those in the same place find a new life - just like someone helped her. I highly recommend reading it.   Here is the summary from the back of the book: Born in Cambodia and orphaned at an early age, Somaly Mam, a Buddhist sex trade survivor, grew up never knowing her real name or birthday.  As a teenager, Somaly Mam was sold into prostitution and spent years in the brothels of Cambodia where she witnessed and experienced the full-blown horrors of the human sex trade – rape, torture, and nearly unfathomable abuse.  After her eventual escape, she could not forget the young girls (some as young as 5) left behind in the brothels, and so she returned to serve them. Her new book, "The Road of Lost Innocence," is her newest means of advocacy. It tells her personal story, ultimately inviting people of conscious, such as our Christian community, to become involved (or to continue involvement) in this war against an epic evil, a modern battle for "the least of these." Truly, not only is this book worth reading, it's worth sharing.  I am not certain how we can all help directly in Somaly's work, but we can all help those that are suffering around us.  I encourage each and every one of you to visit Voice of the Martyrs, start receiving their newsletter, and get your children involved.  We do our children such a disservice by not reminding them of the wonderful freedoms they have by living in this great country - the freedom to worship GOD - and not be killed for it.  And the freedom to not be sold into sexual slavery by strangers.  I thank God for the reminder - even through a buddhist named Somaly Mam. To purchase the book click here. http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/596799/ Sun, 28 Sep 2008 18:25:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/596799/ ...to even begin to express how precious this is to me.... They were watching "deer hunting" with Papa and the next thing I know - they are out.  I couldn't resist a picture :) **Please excuse the half-finished wall behind them - it will be done - one day!** http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/592947/ Sat, 20 Sep 2008 23:30:00 -0500 http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/mom24wonders/592947/