Thoughts of the Heart: A Christian Woman

Reading....for the love of learning

2011-10-09T14:41:00.000-04:00

I've taught 3 children to read already. When I first started homeschooling it was a daunting task for me. Why I couldn't even remember how I learned to read. Did they teach me phonics or whole language? My first language is Spanish, but I had to learn English sometime around 8 yrs.. old. Most children in 3rd grade have already learned to read by then, so I'm not sure how they taught me since I was placed in a 3rd grade class as soon as school began the year we arrived to America.

Children are all different. My first son took off after the Teach Your Child to Read in 100 easy lessons. We briefly went over the Hooked on Phonics stuff and moved right into spelling rules because he has been reading and progressing on ever since. He reads at the speed of light and keeps me hopping as I try to keep up with the young adult section of the library. My second son was a different story. He couldn't take all the sounds that TYCTR offered. We had to go straight to Hooked on Phonics and slowly learn the short sounds, then the long sounds, then the diagraphs, dipthongs...etc I still monitor his oral reading to check to see where his vocabulary is going and how much he is retaining when he reads. My third child was average, not to slow and not to fast. She was right where she was suppose to be and moving on at the expected pace. But the fourth, well let's just say she is a combination of the second and her very own.

So what have I learned about teaching children to read?
1. They need to be exposed to a lot of phonetic awareness activities, like listening to rhymes and then having them fill in the end of the well reviewed rhyme. Ex.
Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall
Humpty Dumpty had a great ____

This is the first step in their brain making a connection with sounds.

2. Reading is not a race that we should start as soon as we our child is 3 or 4. Some children are not ready at 4 or 5, but how long do we wait till we teach them to read? The question lies in the child and his abilities. In homeschooling there is a great advantage to waiting but also to starting. YOU must spoon feed the child history, science, etc until he can proficiently read for himself. Why? Because if not they will be delayed in everything else. I say this because I am not a believer in letting children choose when it is time to learn to read. Reading takes a bit of work for some children. Their abilities may well be able to start reading but not their will to work at it. The advantage to delay is that the child may need a little more time to mature, to develop motor skills, to grow mentally. This is not an option in public school, where children get left behind because they didn't grasp something as quickly as others. So you must observe the child and his phonetic awareness, his ability to recognize letters, and whether he can retain information well or not.

3. Once we teach them to read, we must listen to them read orally for the next couple years. Listening to them read orally is important because you can catch reading problems this way. You can tell whether a child is having trouble pronouncing words and which sounds specifically he is having trouble with. You can tell whether they know how to divide syllables this way. You can tell if they are smart enough to retrieve the information from what they are able to read by context clues and or because they substituted words they could not sound out. And you can help them by making them face the word. By having them read each syllable and reminding them why it makes that certain sound. They will learn when to pause, when to stress words, etc...

There's probably more that I could say but everyone is waiting for me so we can go to the library at this very moment.

2011-2012 school year under way (long and windy)Be warned!

2011-09-02T11:03:00.001-04:00

    Well, next week we start our 6th week of school. We have done one week on and one week off since the end of July to make up time for when the baby gets here. Overall, we had a good summer but my little breaks are over. We are doing 7th, 5th, 3rd, and Kindergarten. (plus a little Preschool with Noah, which I have yet to decide whether to do everyday or every other day).

    Our school this year has a new addition since Chloe started Kindergarten . The boys and Annabelle still get up at 6:30am and Jesse gets math(Saxon 87) done while Grant and Annie do Bible with me. This year we're covering from Saul's reign thru the minor prophets with Rod and Staff's Bible reading program.(most of it is oral because we are using it mostly for our Bible)

      At about 7:30 am Annie and I do math(R & S 3rd grade math) while Grant does his Saxon 65.
During this time, Jesse works on finishing math, doing Spelling or Bible. (also Rod and Staff) and we break for breakfast. After breakfast, everyone gets dressed, beds made, teeth brushed, etc.

Around 9:30 Jesse practices piano. This year we are using Bastien(the older edition). He has two hymn books, the classics book, his lesson book, a technique book and his theory book. This is different from our previous years where he has focused on the Suzuki method and used the Hal Leonard books for lessons. But I'm pretty pleased with it so far, and so is he. He really likes the Bastien books. This year I've taken Annie and Grant under my wing sort of speak and I've been teaching them lessons with the Bastien books also. I can probably do this until they get to book 2 or so and then we will have to try to get them in with a teacher.

   Soon after our morning chores, I do English (R & S) with Annie, send her on her way to get it done, along with Spelling and Handwriting, and begin school with Chloe. This was the first year I have ever attended a homeschool conference, and there I decided to purchase Christian Light's new Kindergarten curriculum. We do about 3 worksheets a day that entail learning letters and their sounds, numbers, prereading skills, handwriting etc. Except on Friday, which I save for some kind of Educational game and an extra project or so. I've also started using Teach Your Child How to Read in 100 in Easy Lessons with her because she is definitely not ready for Hooked on Phonics yet. We're also going to start using Happy Phonics next week. For her other subjects, we are using Learning at Home with Ann Ward Pre./K. and this leads us to storytime. We have a great library and depending on the subject that she is learning about, I tailor her storybooks to go along with that. We check out non-fiction, fiction, craftbooks, etc around the subject she is learning about.

     We are usually done with storytime at about lunch time(12-12:30) so we take a good break. (I really need it by then) Sometimes I wonder how this all can be done, but it does. Jesse is about done with everything, except English and any checkups that I may need to get with him on.(The check ups would be our discussion time for Science or History plus checking work in those areas. We usually do those once or twice a week.) Grant is also done with his Math, Spelling, Social studies, or Science( depending on the day) and Handwriting. After lunch and our break, it is about 1:30 or 2pm. (How time flies!) I then tie things off by getting English done with the boys, and science or S.S/history with Annie.

So after telling you all this dear blog, all I have to say is that God is very good to me to allow me to keep my head straight with a good planner that helps me hang all this information and make it work!

A cry....for our souls as well as our country.

2011-08-14T16:24:00.000-04:00

A Peaceful Confirmation

2011-07-31T15:08:00.001-04:00

The thought recently settled in my heart.
"This baby inside me pleases God. "
You may think this is a strange thought but it brings peace to my heart. I hear so many
"Are All those your children?"
"One, Two, Three, Four,....."
"How do you do it, with all those children?"
Blah, Blah, Blah...."I even had a man laughingly tell me he would commit suicide if he had that many children!

But the voice of God isn't saying this. There is a sweet restful peace within my heart. A reassurance of God's approval. A loving thought of this precious gift entrusted to us by God.

A Word With Solomon....

2011-07-17T19:23:00.000-04:00

Having boys growing up on you is not easy. Being a parent in general is no easy task. Whoever stated the fact that parenting doesn't come with an instructions manual had it right. The only one I've found that comes close is the Bible. But even then, God gave us a lot of leg room. Sometimes it is easier to read word by word what to do about a certain situation then it is to seek for wisdom and guidance and then have the faith to follow through with God's direction. Solomon must have felt this way too and so I've been thinking about his life and ours.

His life saddens me sometimes. To think that he may not have made it to heaven brings me to ponder on those things that weighed him down. He loved. He loved foreign women. He loved how they made him feel and how they looked. He loved gold and all his cups were made of gold not silver because silver was not worth anything in his sight. He loved wisdom and had so much of it that he finally reasoned within himself about the futility and vanity of life without seeking God foremost. But his loves took his heart. They dimmed the vision and allowed him to deceive his heart!

My older son and I had a conversation about being real a week or two ago. About serving God in earnest, without playing church. We spoke about the fruits of the spirit and works of the flesh. How hard it is to strive at being good in our own flesh! It is even harder to live in the Spirit ( I mean by this,doing the things which are pleasing to God) while feeding the flesh. We as humans learn very quickly how to feed the flesh, but sadly know little about dying to it. We feed it food, pleasure, satisfaction, material possessions. We love. We love the beautiful things. Desire wealth to make us blessed, and love those who love us best. But like Solomon our loves would separate us from His love. Rob us from our First Love and cause us to be just as idol worshipping as Solomon and Israel became. They mar our vision of Christ and fill our ears with so much sound that we can't or won't take the time to hear Him. All the while dulling us into the notion that all is well and Christ reigns, when the truth is that He can't abide because there is no room.

Our conversation led me to this final point. We can't live by works because they fail us but we can't live without them either because that would not be faith. So we must live by Faith. Faith that God will save us. Knowing God will strengthen us. Looking to God who will lead us. Faith cannot be separate from our actions. Our works show our faith.They make us get up and seek God. Did not works show the faith in Solomon or any other man we are told about in the Bible? The righteous gave forth actions of obedience while the unrighteous brought forth works of disobedience. Both in faith. Some in a faith unwavering in a God that does not fail and cannot lie;others placing their faith in temporal things, the pride of life, and their merits.

Solomon left us many words to ponder, and some of the instructions needed for parenting. Words of wisdom and truth that will last through the ages. What did hinder you Solomon? You did run well. And his words come back in wisdom and say, "Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments; for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgement, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil." Ecclesiastes 12: 13-14

Checking in....

2011-07-02T15:15:00.003-04:00

I have almost forgotten how to do this blog! I've been contemplating putting it on a setting where only I can read it since this whole idea started out from those thoughts anyway.But ...... I liked blogging. I just haven't for a while now. Let me explain why...quickly since I need to take the children out to swim. :O)

1. My homeschooling became busier with a 6th grader, 4th grader, and a 2nd grader. Plus a toddler to keep us occupied.
2. We had several unexpected remodeling projects, which left us with a better looking house.
3. Now I'm pregnant with my seventh and over the nausea so things are much better.
4. We started school this week and we'll be doing school every other week till I have 4 weeks under my belt. This will allow me to take time off after the baby gets here.

So you see, life's been busy. My kids are now 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, and 2. We started 7th, 5th, 3rd grade, and Kindergarten. I've done gone over to the other side when it comes to teaching methods and now we use all Rod and Staff with living books on the side to keep our history and science relevant.

Life is good. God has been so good. Now we need to think of a name for this little boy in the oven. My kids like Elliot. Elliot? So blog maybe I'll blog again soon. Maybe sooner then last January. But I have an excuse....several.

It has been so long ago...

2011-01-15T23:58:00.003-05:00

I can't believe how long it has been since I last wrote on my blog! Life just got busy or maybe I had to choose between blogging and more important things. There have been times I have thought of just deleting this blog, but I really don't want to do that. There are some very special thoughts written here for me. Things I don't want to forget So I guess I can't promise to be very frequent but I will try to share my thoughts once again.
Thoughts about God, about raising my children (which is getting more challenging as the boys get older), about homeschooling,.... about my life.

Summer Happenings (Dear Journal Letters)

2009-07-08T07:53:00.006-04:00

Dear Journal,

Summer seems to be flying by! We haven't done much except for swim in our pool and go to the library summer reading program shows every Wednesday.
We've been out of school since early June but I have spent a lot of thought since then on our new school year coming up. We switched math for 1st -3rd grade so I've been making sure I have everything needed.
The children are bored and I feel like sometimes I'm a constant referree, especially for the two older boys.
The boys were able to go flying a week or two ago with the EAA Young Eagles program. Each had a chance to fly for about 20 minutes in a small airplane and talk to the pilot, ask questions, etc. It was a great experience for them. (I don't think we could afford them that experience anytime soon.)
They don't realize how good they have it. God has blessed them so much. July 20th they will be attending a history camp full of boy fun and living history from Creation to present. (And this a gift from a good friend.)

All this living causes me- no forces me to alter my life. I see a constant need during summer break from school to manage my time and space better and yet I have trouble with this.
So many thoughts this summer, so little time...

Sincerely,

Being Seen Through

2009-06-13T21:01:00.003-04:00

Oh, God today I came before your throne...
Help my heart to have a clear and open entrance, uncluttered by the cares of life.
That I can reach your robe and touched it and be renewed by thy healing touch.

Oh, God today I saw more clearly what it was in my heart that you saw.
Help me not to willingly deceive myself into thinking you did not see my flaws.

Oh, God today please look down upon your maiden
And with mercy and grace help me.
For without your face turned toward me
I will die helplessly.

Oh, God today...forgive me
Oh, God today... redeem me
Oh, God today... sustain me
Oh, God today...today... I need thee.

School Plans

2009-06-03T15:15:00.007-04:00

The used curriculum sales have come and gone. But it seems I bought the things I needed prior to the big sale. It was fun while it lasted but it was so good to know I already had the meaty stuff for our school year already purchased.
You tend to feel this way when there is a line of women waiting for the doors to be opened and then everyone rushes in. There are so many people looking over the subject tables that you can't hardly squeeze in especially with a double stroller by your side. Imagine women picking up curriculum left and right and all you can do is see the item you thought you wanted get put in someone's bag who got there before you did.
"I didn't really need that," was my consolation.

So what did I buy for next school year? Well, lets see....

1st grade Rod and Staff Beginning Arithmetic 1 (TM, both student workbooks,and speed drills) All I need are the blacklines.

2nd grade Rod and Staff Math and English(the whole set)Not for this coming year, but it was such a bargain that I bought them since I would have to next year.

3rd grade Rod and Staff Math TM and Student Text and English TM and Student Text

4th grade Rod and Staff English Student Text. Not for this year, but free is a good price.

5th grade Rod and Staff English TM and Student Text.

Milliken books

3rd grade Zoner Bloser Spelling Text

Zaner Bloser Handwriting Manuscript/Cursive

Saxon 65 (TM, Student Text, and Dive CD)

DK My Amazing Human Body CD

A civil war book, Alphabet Makers, a spelling drill CD, flashcards, My State Notebook from Abeka for our study of Tennessee, and a few other misc. items.

I'll be using Weaver again for next year's social studies/history, Bible, and science. Though I still need to get 5th grader's spelling, I've pretty much got it covered. I think. :o)

So have you gone shopping for your school next year? What was your favorite item? Please tell me- don't keep me in suspense!

I think mine would have to be the Rod and Staff purchases (Can't you tell I've overdosed?) But the friend who sold me the Saxon, offered me the Dive Cd for an outstanding price and I almost passed it up. I finally came to my senses when I realized teaching math next year might be more than I can handle. So 10 yr. old will be getting up to his Saxon Dive Cd and after he gets taught the lesson can get on with his math, while I teach 8yr. old and 6 yr. old 1st and 3rd grade math.

Homeschool aspirations are the thing daydreams are made of these days.

A month in time...

2009-05-24T17:34:00.009-04:00

Can it really be May 24th? Time has just flown by. Maybe it went by so quick because I haven't had adequate sleep every night and I've been in a state of recovery.

Baby is one month old now. She had me worried for a couple weeks because she wouln't latch on right the first week and my milk supply went down. Her weight went down too. We finally got the latch under control (and not a moment too soon because she had me in so much pain I just about wanted to quit doing this) but she began to gain weight and I began to heal. I pumped a little and have been taking Fenugreek (an herb that is suppose to help build your milk supply up.)
My little 5 1/2 yr. old graduated Kindergarten Saturday. She was so excited.

We have resumed school this past week and can say I didn't get much done but the essentials which are Math and Language Arts. We did go to the Aquarium one day and to Dollywood another day. Overall, our fieldtrips went well since baby nursed and slept most of the day. (Though I couldn't have done any of that without my husband.)

The exciting part of homeschooling for me has begun. The Curriculum Sales! I've got a milk crate full of books to sell and have started shopping for some of my things for this coming year. I've decided to switch our math in 1st -3rd grade. So I'll be shopping for what I think will be Rod and Staff Arithmetic. I'm also looking for Rod and Staff English for 3rd and 5th grade. Our big regional used curriculum sale is Saturday and I can't wait! (I know..I know... you're so excited for me, but I've always like the beginning of the school year and teaching the stuff is not half as fun as looking for it and having great aspirations about teaching it.)
My husband's garden is doing good. He planted lots of tomatoes from seed, cabbage, corn, potatoes, red peppers, beets, onions, and squash.

Considering he had a kidney stone a week and a half before I delivered, our lawnmover died, our weed eater is dying, his work vehicle is sick and he hasn't found time to fix it, and we finally got the pool open -this is a great accomplishment. I think the trick is to plant potatoes. They make your garden look good.

I feel somewhat tired but it is really good to have my body back. I've been thinking that maybe this summer I can finish some of the things I wanted to get done before I got pregnant. -Like paint the dining room and finish our kitchen trim.

Oh, it's good to dream and plan during times like these. Even if sometimes it can't or doesn't get done.

You never know ... it might.

Did I happen to mention that giving birth brings forth pain?

2009-05-04T15:12:00.003-04:00

It does.

It also brings lack of sleep.

Nursing woes..."Why won't she latch on right?"....

Beautiful looks from the children as they hold their new baby sister.

Emotions of one minute of chaos and another of peace.

The realization that if we can keep the bathrooms clean, the laundry moving along, the children fed, and the baby nursed that we have been successful afterall.

One day I'll miss days like these, but right now I just need to lay down for a bit. (That's hard to do around here.)

Baby #6 has Arrived!

2009-04-26T18:55:00.006-04:00

She's here and she's so so precious!

Our baby #6 has arrived! She was born April 23rd at 8:36 am. She weighed 8lbs 1 oz. and is 20 1/2 inches long. We are very thankful for our sixth little gift from God, a safe delivery, and the joys she brings to our growing family!

Now we're going to take a 3 week break from school while we adjust. :o)

The Bunny Family's Beginnings

2009-04-19T16:05:00.017-04:00

I crosstitched this picture around 1995-1996. Yesterday was my 17th year Anniversary.

We didn't do anything fancy,(We're not very fancy folks.) except that we have now converted our 1995 Windstar Van into an 8 passenger vehicle. That's right, it was a 7 passenger, but now it will carry safely all six children.

Friday we found a nice back row seat that matches in color our interior seats and through my beloved's many talents (one being that he can weld) has clicked in the 3 seater seat into the spot where the two seater seat use to be. He switched the bottom metal pieces and now we can seat all the children. He's my hero! We can now postpone purchasing a full size van for a couple of years. All for less than $100!!! This is why it pays to have your spouse be your very best friend.

Little did I know that one of my neighbors would one day call us the bunny family. Some of my neighbors have just recently started noticing I'm pregnant. How could they miss it??

I didn't have any children back when I crosstitched that picture. To be honest, I would never have dreamed of having what I have now. But I was starting to feel like children were so sweet and cute and that perhaps I might want to get one of those one day. We even treated some of our friend's kids to places like the Aquarium and Chucky Cheese.

Eventually, he got me a lab mix puppy.

Six months later, God blessed us with Baby #1.

Two years later, with Baby #2.

Two an a half years later with Baby #3.

23 months later with Baby #4.

And 22 months later with Baby #5.

I can't wait for Baby #6 - She should arrive anytime now!

It's In The Little Things That God Builds Our Character

2009-04-17T10:14:00.004-04:00

(Someone posted this on a digest that I occassionally read.)

A Christian

Several years ago, a preacher from out-of-state accepted a call to a church in Houston , Texas . Some weeks after he arrived, he had an occasion to ride the bus from his home to the downtown area.

When he sat down, he discovered that the driver had given him a quarter too much change. As he considered what to do, he thought to himself,
'You'd better give the quarter back. It would be wrong to keep it.'
Then he thought, 'Oh, forget it, it's only a quarter. Who would worry about this little amount? Anyway, the bus company gets too much fare; they will never miss it. Accept it as a 'gift from God' and keep quiet.'
When his stop came, he paused momentarily at the door, and then he handed the quarter to the driver and said, 'Here, you gave me too much change '
The driver, with a smile, replied, 'Aren't you the new preacher in town?'
'Yes' he replied.
'Well, I have been thinking a lot lately about going somewhere to worship. I just wanted to see what you would do if I gave you too much change. I'll see you at church on Sunday.'
When the preacher stepped off of the bus, he literally grabbed the nearest light pole, held on, and said, 'Oh God, I almost sold your Son for a quarter.'

Our lives are the only Bible some people will ever read.
This is a really scary example of how much people watch us as Christians, and will put us to the test!
Always be on guard -- and remember -- You carry the name of Christ on your shoulders when you call yourself 'Christian.'

Watch your thoughts; they become words.
Watch your words; they become actions.
Watch your actions; they become habits.
Watch your habits; they become character.
Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.

Standardized Testing

2009-04-16T14:58:00.007-04:00

We just finished our standardized testing. Whew! Now I can have the baby,... I think. The boys took the Standford Achievement Test yesterday and today with the regional group in our area. One of the parents needed to help either proctor the test, assist, do nursery or be a floater. It cost me $28 per test and I think that's a deal since it usually would cost $40 + costs for a proctor to administer the Standford. The CAT test is cheaper but like I said, $28 was a good price.
They put me in the hospitality room. I was in charge of coffee and snacks. I didn't think about my every hour potty breaks but the coordinator did, so this was a good place for me to be. Our 10 yr. old tested with the 4th graders and the 8 yr. old tested with the 2nd graders. Here's some of their responses:

So how was your test?

Yesterday - 10 yr old's reply "Oh, it was easy. I had fun!"

Today - "Some of the math was hard."

How was the Bible section, was it easy like you thought? Did you know what Omnipotent meant? (He thought Bible was going to be a breeze.)

"I remembered from a couple weeks ago when I asked you. It means all powerful.

The science section was kind of hard."

So what did you think about testing? Was it hard? Did you remember to borrow?

Yesterday - 8 yr. old's reply " It was fun, but they asked me about thermometers, and things like how much more in word problems, so I just guessed on some of those. The teacher said it was going to be easy. I asked her if it was going to be 1+1 easy. She said it wasn't that easy. The math wasn't so easy. She also said we shouldn't look at other people's papers because they could be wrong. She was right."

Today - I didn't ask yet. They were the last to finish and he needed to go play.

You might wonder why I test if I don't have to. I don't test every year, but I have tested in 2nd and in 4th. Our 4th grader will test with city schools next year and I wanted to see how he was progressing in Social Studies and Science.

I test because I want them to learn to test. I also test because I already know their weaknesses and strengths but it's good to see how he does in a test situation. Will their weaknesses be worse or will they perform under stress? I also want them to see that other homeschoolers are also expected to really learn. That our homeschool is the real thing, and that they have a responsibility to learn the required subjects for their age and grade.

So now I'll wait for the results to come in the mail. We'll see how easy that test really was.

Two weeks left..

2009-04-13T14:54:00.006-04:00

Can we say waddle? Yup, I'm waddling. It seems this baby has taken over my body, but the good news is that there's only 2 weeks left of this. And not a moment too soon, because any longer and I won't look like I'm carrying twins. I'll look like I'm carrying triplets. So what are some pregnancy points for me to remember:

Eat when you're hungry, even if you're nauseous.

Think positive, you shall see your waist and toes again.

Walk slow. Walking fast does nothing but bring on contractions

Dinners should be fuss free, quick and easy. Not tenderloin specials where everyone and everything needs your assistance.

Looking through your container stored baby clothes is nostalgic (especially after 2 girls), but a real motivator to get you to get ready if you do it at about 38 weeks along.

Don't' sit too long, don't stand too long, and for Pete's sake don't go to Dollywood anytime soon no matter how tempting! Go to your friend's house instead and sit on her sofa..maybe she'll treat you to a nice hot cup of cocoa. :O)

Oh, yeah, don't do crazy field trips like going to the water treatment plant during the first trimester.

If your handheld doesn't work, get a new one asap. Rushing down the stairs to answer the phone can be dangerous.

Did I miss anything?

Innocent Mix-ups

2009-04-04T14:10:00.004-04:00

Here's another amusing memory for the books-

While practicing violin, the 8yr. old noticed his piece called Ode the Joy was written by Beethoven. He was pretty pleased with himself when he exclaimed,

"Oh, isn't he the one who said -
Romeo, Romeo let down your hair?"

At least I know he has been exposed to the Fine Arts of Literature and Music.

Sourdough Happenings

2009-04-01T14:24:00.009-04:00

My new sourdough starter seems to be very healthy now. It is now doubling in size within several hours after you feed it. I've used it twice, but it wasn't at full boost (or it wasn't doubling yet). When I made bread with it, I doubled the amount of starter called for in the recipe and it turned out too sour. I won't do that again.

I happened upon this website called Breadtopia.com and found the starter recipe I used there. This is a great source for those who like making bread. The fact that he actually shows you what the starter should look like is very helpful.

Hope you enjoy the videos!

Sincerely,

Homeschool Lyrical Science Vol. 2 Giveaway

2009-03-29T22:02:00.004-04:00

Here's a nice giveaway from MamaArcher's Blog:

These are “singing science texts”. The complete program includes the text, tape or CD, and reproducible workbook. Each chapter in the text begins with a song. Memorization of scientific terms and concepts should be fairly painless as students sing such memorable lyrics.
Setting important science concepts with old, familiar tunes, they have created songs teaching the science topics of mammals, ecology, and biomes.
The reproducible workbook has exercises to reinforce the lyrics and textual information and ensure comprehension of the material. The first exercise in each chapter set has students fill in missing keywords from the lyrics. The second quizzes on information from the chapter. This exercise varies somewhat in format. The third exercise is in short answer/essay format and concludes with some “Digging Deeper” questions which require some critical thinking. A complete answer key is provided at the back of the workbook.

DETAILS FOR THE GIVEAWAY:

1. Included is the complete kit(teacher book, workbook, cd) plus an extra workbook.
2. The final day for entries is March 31.
3. Please place a post about the giveaway on your blog.
4. Return to her blog and leave a comment with the URL of your blog post.
5. For an extra entry, browse her blog and choose one of your favorite posts that she has written, blog about that post linking back to her blog again.
6. Winner will be announced on April 1st.

Kind of late, but you still have time!

Sincerely,

The Teacher In All of Us.

2009-03-27T22:06:00.006-04:00

As I sat through my boys' music lessons today and I thought about the teachers before them, I looked at their qualities in teaching and was inspired. They truly are good teachers.

One inspired my boy by her love for music, while the other one introduced a concept that with her gentle touch made the medicine go down with a smile from his face. They didn't allow them to sit in a comfortable place where there was nothing required or expected, but at the same time used the love for learning and gentleness to make progress and help them grow.

What makes a good teacher? Homeschooling has forced me to look at this question very personally.

I remember back in high school when we were given our classes at the beginning of the school year. Next to our class would be the room # and the teacher's name who would be teaching that class. We all knew whether that teacher expected excellence or whether we would be passed if we laughed at their jokes. We knew which ones could care less whether we understood the subject and which ones actually loved the subject and wanted to share that passion with each and everyone of us who took the course.

A good teacher inspires. They inspire by example. They love the topic perhaps not because of the content but for the love of learning it. They know it well enough to know more than the student and are brave and humble enough to venture out and learn some more about it. This being because they love to learn.

A good teacher is gentle, kind, long suffering, and patient. I have much to learn in this area of teaching. I'm nice, really I am, but I could be nicer, more patient, and definitely more kind. Would I be a better teacher if the pupils I'm focusing on weren't my own flesh and blood? Would the patience that is needed be more readily available? Probably.

I saw it so clearly today as I watched their teachers teach.

A good teacher expects progress by doing their part. Sometimes we think that the remedy is to go easier on the child. To not require a lot from them but let them get enthused on their own and then try to keep up. As a teacher, this would be the easiest route, but is it the best one for the student? Am I teaching by example? Am I inspiring them by it? Am I challenging them to better themselves, and there by causing them to learn important disciplines in life?

We are all teachers and someone is learning from us. There is a teacher in all of us....and
teaching we are.....

May God lead us as we teach, so the lessons taught will bring forth fruit that God would be pleased at.

Recall Notice

2009-03-24T11:03:00.003-04:00

A friend send this to me by email. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Recall Notice

The Maker of all human beings (GOD) is recalling all units manufactured,regardless of make or year, due to a serious defect in the primary and central component of the heart.
This is due to a malfunction in the original prototype units code named Adam and Eve, resulting in the reproduction of the same defect in all subsequent units.
This defect has been technically termed "Sub-sequential Internal Non-Morality, " or more commonly known as S.I.N., as it is primarily expressed.

*Some of the symptoms include:

Loss of direction
Foul vocal emissions
Amnesia of origin
Lack of peace and joy
Selfish or violent behavior
Depression or confusion in the mental component
Fearfulness
Idolatry
Rebellion

The Manufacturer, who is neither liable nor at fault for this defect, is providing factory-authorized repair and service free of charge to correct this defect.The Repair Technician, JESUS, has most generously offered to bear the entire burden of the staggering cost of these repairs.. There is no additional fee required. The number to call for repair in all areas is: P-R-A-Y-E-R.

Once connected, please upload your burden of SIN through the REPENTANCE procedure.. Next, download ATONEMENT from the Repair Technician, Jesus, into the heart component.

No matter how big or small the SIN defect is, Jesus will replace it with:

Love
Joy
Peace
Patience
Kindness
Goodness
Faithfulness
Gentleness
Self control

*Please see the operating manual, the B.I.B.L.E. (Believers' Instructions Before Leaving Earth) for further details on the use of these fixes.

*WARNING:* Continuing to operate the human being unit without correction voids any manufacturer warranties, exposing the unit to dangers and problems too numerous to list and will result in the human unit being permanently impounded.

For free emergency service, call on Jesus.

*DANGER:* The human being units not responding to this recall action will have to be scrapped in the furnace. The SIN defect will not be permitted toenter Heaven so as to prevent contamination of that facility. Thank you foryour attention!

- GOD

P.S. Please assist where possible by notifying others of this important recall notice, and you may contact the Father any time by 'Knee mail'.Because He Lives!

Updates and Reviews

2009-03-19T21:24:00.005-04:00

I thought I'd post an update and review post since I'm totally not updated and let's not mention the review, because we are just keeping this train moving along. :O)

Our 1 1/2 year old is doing much better. We're not sure what caused his tonsilitis, but it seems to have been viral. His white blood cell count got up to 27,000! We are back home now from the hospital and he is back to his old self. He is very normal for himself now(finding all kinds of things to get into) and I am very thankful he is well.
In other news, I started a Sourdough Starter Saturday and can't wait to try it out. I think the brew is just about ready! This is my first time making my own from scratch. I hope to post on this soon. I know, this sounds sooooo exciting. But what can I say- I dig bread making!
To review our school week- well....we're getting the essentials done but I think for Social Studies and Science we may take a more Five in a Row(very relaxed) sort of approach to finish off the year and start back on our Weaver next school year. I'm just tired and about to pop. Well, not quiet that big but I'm getting there. So maybe I'll make it more storytime about Einstein, the Caesars of Rome..A Bug collection..and whatever else my kids want to explore and learn about while we sit down and relax.
The Spring Cleaning Challenge didn't happen much last week. The children did get at least half the baseboards done around the house, and I did get the curtains washed, but that's about it. Between doctor's appointments and a sick baby, plus the hospital stay, I'm just glad to be home.

Spring is almost here and the trees out my upstairs bathroom window are starting to bloom. The birds are getting loud again about 6 am and we are watching our tomato plants take off indoors. My husband bought me two semi dwarf apple trees a few days ago. We just need to figure out the perfect place to put them.

In the midst of all of life's concerns, God is always so good!

A Trusting Matter..

2009-03-15T22:08:00.006-04:00

We Cry Out
Father of life, seated on Your throne of grace
It's only by Your mercy we are saved
Lord, You have said if we call upon Your Name
We and our families will be saved

So we cry out Your Name,
El Shaddai, God of grace
Lord Most High, Jesus Christ
We rely on Your grace,
Adonai, crowned in praise
Lord Most High, Jesus Christ

Father of love, never failing to forgive
Each moment is a gift from You to live
We're only here to tell the world about Your grace
Until the day You take us all away

We will cry out Your Name,
El Shaddai, God of grace
Lord Most High, Jesus Christ
We rely on Your grace,
Adonai, crowned in praise
Lord Most High, Jesus Christ

O, so we cry out Your Name,
El Shaddai, God of grace
Lord Most High, Jesus Christ
We rely on Your grace,
Adonai, crowned in praise
Lord Most High, Jesus Christ

I have added this song to the Songs I like... on the bottom sidebar. It is a gentle reminder to myself that He is my all in all and I will hold on to Him as an anchor to my soul.

Our little 1 1/2 yr. old is in the hospital. I seems a lot of people are sick lately. His white blood cell count is quite high and he has tonsilitis. The doctor thought it would be best to try antibiotics through an IV.

Spring Cleaning Challenge (Update #2)

2009-03-11T15:18:00.008-04:00

Spring Cleaning is underway here though you can't tell too much since I'm following such a global order. It seems for me it works best here and keeps me motivated. There's nothing like the feeling that all the windows are done, not just 2 or 3. Besides, since there are so many of us, when I'm done completely with one room and move to the other, the one I finished doesn't last much to give me the same gratification. Globally works for me.

We did get all our windows done, except for the french door windows in my room. (My room is always last it seems.) I also finished up all the fans except in my room.
The curtains are getting washed and some I'm moving around.
I have 4 blinds to speak of, and 2 are goners.
I came to the realization about 2 years ago that blinds are not for me.
I don't like cleaning them and curtains or cloth shades work beautifully.
Look at those windows shine! I drove up today and noticed the glimmer.

♥ I have a handy tip for anyone wanting to clean those nice little crevices in a fan. Use a Q-tip. They work really well.

Here's my plans for this coming week-
(Please understand, I'm far from tidy and neat. I lost the persistance about 3 kids ago. Things here get cleaned as needed, and when I can get to it. Sometimes it is impressive and sometimes it's depressive.)

So here's my to do list:

Clean refrigerator.

Clean and organize the big upright freezer.

Children-clean baseboards throughout the house

Children-wipe down outside of doors, hutches, and door frames.

Dust top of fridge, freezer, hutches, and doorframes.

Dust edge of ceilings for cobwebs.

The thought of getting these things done before the baby gets here is so pleasant that it has kept me on track. There's nothing like knowing that these things are not on my plate when I'm serving everyone elses and the baby calls.

Here's a nice poem that I found in The Best of Barbara Johnson's book:

Good Housekeeping

Lord, it is not the dirt and clutter in plain sight that nag at me.
It's the hidden dirt...you know, behind the refrigerator, in the closets, under the bed.
Dirt that no one sees or knows about but me.
It's the same way with my life, God.
It's those hidden sins that I can't keep up with...those petty little grievances, the grudges, the resentments, the unspoken harsh feelings, and the superior attitutes.
Thoughts and feelings that no one else knows about but me...and You, God.
Help me, Father, to clean my heart as I would my home.
Take away all the dust and cobwebs of pride, ill feelings, and prejudice.
The dirt behind the refrigerator will never hurt anyone.
The dirt in my heart will.

-Source Unknown

Laughter makes good medicine..

2009-03-07T11:55:00.005-05:00

Yesterday was my birthday. I turned 35. As I sat there doing school with my boys I thought I'd read a little of the Best of Barbara Johnson. Here's a few things that made me ponder and made me laugh:

"A smile is a wrinkle that shouldn't be removed."
"You have to face the music before you can lead the band."
"Life is what happens after you make other plans." (Boy, isn't that true?)
"Age is not important, unless you're cheese."
"God don't make no junk."
"There's nothing like a little experience to upset a theory." (So true... so very, very true...)
"The people who tell you never to let little things worry you have never tried sleeping in the same room with a mosquito." (I was really cracking up after I read this!)
"Things are looking up...I'm now only two weeks behind."
(A little boy's prayer) "Dear God, take care of my family, take care of the whole world. And please, God, take care of Yourself, or we're all sunk."

Of Detergent and Determination

Some may climb Mount Everest in search of thrills galore,
But I scale peaks that rival it just past my laundry door:
Slopes of socks and underwear, sheer cliffs of shirts and pants-
Oh, yes, I live in mortal fear of a laundry avalanche!

Hope these brought a smile to your face as they did to mine. It was the start to a very nice day.

Sincerely,

Beginning Spring Cleaning Challenge

2009-03-04T15:29:00.011-05:00

I decided to join the Spring Cleaning Challenge over at Meaningful Days. I think we have till April 30th to do our Spring Cleaning done. This is a great motivator for me since the baby is due April 27th, and after she arrives I won't get much done for the next 3 weeks or so.

I decided to get my windows done this week and also my fans. Windows are usually not a big deal because I'm truly blessed with the kind of windows that pull in and so you can clean both the inside and outside from the inside. (It's been a little cold this week, so I don't think you would have caught me outside doing that.)

Well, we're not off to a fabulous start. I've only got the living room windows done and not completely because my stomach muscles aren't working real well for me to get the top windows back up! (This is funny, but not too funny.)

I think perhaps I should have picked the refrigerator

I'm suppose to update on my blog every Wednesday, so I'll either update tonight on today (on this post) or next week on this week. Gee, I don't count the week over till the weekend, and Saturday seems to be most productive for me since I seem to not have to do school that day. So maybe I'm not doing so bad after all.

I'm still counting my kitchen cupboards since I did get those organized, except under the sink.

So my goal is to get all the windows done(19), and five fans cleaned. I'm not trying to brag, because these windows aren't huge and they aren't hard to do if you weren't as pregnant as I am. Besides, my boys will help me with the patio door windows.

Since I'm waiting on help to get the windows up, I guess I should wash the curtains too. They seem a bit dusty.

Some random thoughts on modestry...

2009-03-02T20:21:00.004-05:00

I was meaning to submit a post on modesty to the Carnival of Modesty that Mama Archer is having for March, but somehow missed the boat sort of speak because I'm not too keen on how to do the Carnivals. So I thought I'd post some thoughts on it. Here we go.....

What is modesty? Is it important?
Does it mean to cover every portion of your body so that it wouldn't make you seem attractive to the eye of the beholder?
Can an individual be modest and yet be one who shows forth beauty and something to behold?

In the world as we know it, a great deal of time is spent slowing feeding the masses style. The perception that to be beautiful you must be physically attractive or bring forth desire has permeated to all ages across the board. Perhaps this is why we can't seem to find modest clothing for the young. Oh, it is out there, but you have to look high and low and when you find it the industry will make sure to dissuade you by marking it high and pricey. It is almost as if there was an agenda out there to devastate individuals by robbing them of their innocence through the lust of the flesh.

I personally believe there is an agenda. It comes straight from the enemy of our soul. This agenda says that what God has set forth through out scripture is not so. That times change, people change, God's word and standards have changed. Unfortunately, society, much of the church, and the world have bought into this deception. We are reaping from it though through moral decay.

I could sit here and post on all the things that I think are modest. The following are a few things that I hold true to my heart. I believe a woman should dress like a woman because God has made her so and that a dress will do you more good than pants ever could.
That what is good for the goose is also good for the gander and that modesty is a hard thing to legislate because it should come from the heart. (And man looks on the outside.)
It should be done because we care about how we affect others. (Woman affecting men and vice versa.)
It should be done because if not it is as if we are laying our pearls before swine when we go forth displaying those things we have been endowed with, with the desire to bring on attention, impression, or lack of confidence in what God has made us.

Modesty is an issue of the heart. Questions like, "Shall I cover those things deemed precious in the sight of God so as to keep my heart and my brother's heart pure?" needful? They are definitely worthy of our time, prayer, and contemplation. One can do it to please others, but the beauty of holiness comes from doing it because we love God and we love the brethren.

A person adorned in modesty has great worth. They are a token of purity to their spouse and if not married a treasure given wholly to the Lord. A heart that needs no clothing to adorn.

Our Week In Review

2009-02-28T11:39:00.004-05:00

Well, I haven't got my camera battery issue taken cared of, and so I don't have any pictures. :o(

Around the House: This week in review should be pretty quick too, since I don't feel like we got much done. Except- I organized my kitchen cabinets and I feel like a new woman! Yes sirree...those kitchen items in their new locations make me feel like I have a brand new kitchen. There's nothing like changing where you keep the baking power.
We purchased some gamma lids for my 5 lb buckets where I keep my soft and hard wheat, my dehydrated refried beans, and oatmeal. It is now super easy to open them.

In School: 5 yr. old-

This week we learned some new phonograms - and reviewed some that she doesn't quite have down: ed, ew, ey, ei, ar. We normally work thru her Hooked on Phonics workbook and in the meantime I teach her the phonograms from the original Writing Road to Reading method. She has also enjoyed reading from some of the early Abeka readers.
In Math, I've introduced subtraction using cusienaire rods and she seems to like figuring them out. We also reviewed decimal street by having her take- say number 52 and in our place value mat making the number with rods. So she would pick out 5 ten rods and place them in the tens place, and 2 unit rods and place them in the ones place. She's getting good at this. She practiced counting by two's, tens, fives, and backwards from 20.

8yr.-

In Math this week he is working on perimeters and subtraction with borrowing. He learned the concept of $ sign/decimal point verses the cent mark, and we used rods to demostrate the dollar and cent place values. We also spent more needed time playing some math games from Math Mouse games. The games involved addition and multiplication. (He used his skip counting facts to help him solve the multiplication problems.)
L.A this week involved him working on his poem memory work. He spent time writing out a post card and mailing it. He also worked on copy work and dictation. He learned about adverbs this week and seems to understand them well. First Language Lessons does a really good job teaching this for a child his age.

10 yr. old-

This week in math he learned about percentages/fractions, quadrilaterals, and two step word problems. He spent time playing during our math time with 8yr. old a game from Math Mouse games where he could work on fractions and multiplication while brother worked on addition and multiplication.
In L.A. He also wrote out a postcard and and a letter to family and mailed out. He also reviewed adverbs- which were not really set in his mind well. We have been working on newspapers and so we researched a little a bout editors, publishers, opinions, facts, and the set up of the front page. He made a front page with Flag, Editorial, Index, and Top Story. He also spent some time writing some letters to our make-believe editor.

Other subjects-

I can't say we did an awful lot of other subjects, except music has been a biggie around here for everyone. The children have begun playing Music Ace on the computer, and Music by Jumpstart.
We visited the police station this week and the children got a chance to see what the inside of the station looks like and how the police files a report.
5yr. old has been commenting on how her nervous system seems to really get the message to her brain quickly about being cold after a shower.
Avoiding the very appearance of evil seems to keep coming back into our conversations.

That's our review of the week. It seems I had a hard time moving on this week because we didn't really continue too much our science and social studies. I think that's ok though. Maybe we needed it. We should be covering insects next.

The weather is getting nice again and it makes me anxious for Spring.

Where have I been?( Journal Letter )

2009-02-26T15:28:00.004-05:00

Dear Journal,

I better make this quick since I'm running out of time. Like time is fleeting right? I've been swimming somewhere in my thoughts between switching violin teachers, becoming a little more savvy about identity fraud, organizing my kitchen cabinets, and feeling a little more pregnant each day.

Have I mentioned that it is getting very difficult to bend over? That my mother in-law teases me about getting thru the door, and that when I'm done with this pregnancy I plan to get most of my waist back? By the way, mother in-law had 11 children, and I don't have trouble getting thru the door.

In other news, I'm done with my teaching turn at co-op. The children learned about Squanto, Paul Revere, Helen Keller, Thomas Edison, Abraham Lincoln, Ben Franklin, and Harriet Tubman. The last quarter ends at the end of April, so my loyal friend and co-op partner will finish the school year with geography and I'll just smile along.

My pondering thoughts of the moment ~ I'm not one of those unbreakable people that never cry. I know about crying. I've cried over being hurt by people I love or don't even love, over accidents I've had, after I had a baby or two, when my husband looks at me the wrong way, when I feel I'm incapable to the task at hand, and when I have failed God miserably.

Sometimes, I'll go thru a season where I haven't shed too many tears if any, but then all of a sudden, it happens.
Crying is good for the soul sometimes- just as long as you don't drown in your weeping. It helps clear stuff out, keeps hurtburn from building up, and keeps you from becoming unfeeling.
Just make sure if at all possible, you're the one who turns the faucet on, and keeps it from dripping over spilt milk.

Since I mentioned milk, I've gotten a deal of a steal on powdered milk and have been making 2 qt. batches and using it in my cooking. If you're interested in recipes using powdered milk you ought to check out the Hillbilly Housewife link I have on my sidebar. She has recipes for everything from shakes to buttermilk, even cheese. Just make sure you keep your powder milk fresh and you won't be able to tell. (I keep mine now in the freezer)

See ....It's a good thing you don't live in my brain because you'd been swimming all over the cerebrum this week. This is why for people like me, thinking too much on a certain subject can be dangerous.

Sincerely,

Delicious Tenderloins and Intimidating Moments

2009-02-18T13:55:00.014-05:00

I was a little stressed last night. Someday, I'm going to look back at these moments and laugh, but last night was not funny.

I like to cook, I really do, and I'm not just trying to convince myself of this.

But I have a hard time getting the joy of cooking to show when I have to do too much multi-tasking. For example, keeping a 1 1/2 yr. old from making constant messes (and he does), breading tenderloins (which I was), having 8 yr. old come by every so often telling me how starved he is (he did) , 10 yr. practicing piano and needing help on a new hymn, plus having any other little person needing everything from a snack to bathroom attention can be much for me.(Specially since it seemed I was washing my hands every 5 minutes.) Does it sound like I'm complaining? No, not really. I just want to share this Pork Tenderloin recipe I made last night, and let you know that it turned out very good, but not stress free, quick, or easy. So if you chance to get a craving and decide to make this, take this warning to heart: Do it undisturbed!

By the way, I also decided to make it extra hard for myself by making Old Fashioned Sweet Potatoes.(I needed to use the rest of my sweet potatoes so I had to peel and slice. These are so good that perhaps I thought it was worth the effort.) 8 yr. walked in while they were cooking and said, "Ughh, I like mashed potatoes better.")
The easy part was the Cranberry Stove Top Stuffing, and green beans.

Creamy Pork Tenderloin

2 Pork tenderloins (about 1 lb. each)
1 egg
1 Tbsp. water
1/2 tsp. rosemary or Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. pepper
dash of garlic powder
1 Cup seasoned dry bread crumbs
3 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1/2 lb. mushrooms, sliced
2 Tbsp. margarine
1 can cream of chicken, undiluted
1 Cup light sour cream
1/4 Cup chicken broth

Cut each tenderloin into 8 pieces.
Place each piece on wax paper and flatten to 3/4 in. in thickness.
In a shallow dish, combine the next five ingredients. Dip pork into egg mixture, then into bread crumbs.
In a large skillet over med. heat, brown pork in oil for 5 min. on each side. Remove to a one large or one large and small baking dish. (I needed a 13x9 and a 2qt baking dish) Keep warm.
In the same skillet, saute mushrooms in butter until tender. Stir in soup, sour cream, and broth; pour over pork. Cover and bake at 325* for 1 hour or until pork is tender.

Yields 16 tenderloin patties.

This recipe comes from The Best of Country Cooking 1999 (Taste of Home books)

When Daddy got home, I looked a tad frazzled. He walked through the door, and reached out for the children with these words: "How's all of my babies?"

They were very normal, but it was I that needed a little therapy.
During dinner he happened to mention a conversation he had with a co-worker. "....Precious Stones are made from lots of pressure."

I hope this thought blesses you as much as it did me.

According to my friend..I'm not into ♥'s this Valentine Season. (Our Week in Review)

2009-02-13T21:58:00.012-05:00

I can't believe how quickly this week has gone by! Maybe I was productive, because I don't have a dry load of laundry waiting for me to fold and put away right now.

Around the House: We did the basics. While school is in session around here, that's about all we get done. (Specially, if I'm pregnant.)
Today, I had a prenatal visit and the glucouse test. I got to see the baby in the 4D ultrasound. She's got chubby cheeks and weighs 3lbs. 10 oz. according to the ultrasound measurements. I've gained about 25lbs. Could this be why I'm seemingly hungry every few hours?
I had enough bread to get me by till this weekend. I should be making bread this Saturday.

School: 5 yr. old-

In Math this week we have been working on simple addition, and decimal street. She's getting better at recognizing the difference between the units(ones) and the tens. Also, worked on the hundreds.
In reading, she has been reading from her HOP reader and reviewing her phonograms. Her new sounds this week are: ew, tch, oy, oi, ph. We review all her sounds almost every day and she's starting to pick them out in words she notices around and about.
For music this week, she has began to teach herself Rocky Top and continues to practice the other songs she can play by ear. She also made up her own little song that she plays with different complimenting notes, hands together.

8 yr. old-

In Math, we are learning to skip count by 12's learning to calculate inches by feet. Working on subtraction facts/addition. In Math U See, working on Magic Squares and area. Reviewed random skip counting from multiplication 2's-10's.
L.A. Reviewed past memorized poems, four types of sentences. Worked on direct and indirect quotations, narration/dictation, adjectives.
In music, didn't practice too much and picked a different song for a Fiddle Competition.

10 yr. old-

We did much better this week because I got my act together and corrected each math lesson that day and so he made corrections that same day. Introduced multiple-digit multiplication (ex. 23x42=).
L.A we are working on newspapers. Pulled out our handy dandy typewritter. Would you believe the ink still worked? It did. And they typed away. They have been playing with it and decided they would be reporters. We're covering research on Ben Franklin and Peter Zenger's involvement in the printing of newspapers. Worked on odd verbs. Copied poem to a poem format, typed, and printed out to mail to River of Words Poetry Contest. Worked on vocabulary definitions and their parts in speech. Also worked on contractions and possesive pronouns, which he has trouble on.
In Music, he also didn't practice much this week and needs to spend good practice time to prepare well for recital. (I'm not sure why they didn't practice much?? Maybe it was the weather. It was just so nice outside.)

In Science and Social Studies-(Dear friend says I should post pictures and tell you how I'm not into hearts but more into brains.)

We began our study about the brain this week. We read about the five senses, traced the brain and labeled it, and dissected a cow's brain. We also disscussed which parts do what and a few things that hinder us from solving problems.

Here's a few of their speculations during our dissection: (Which involved me cutting the brain in half and showing them the two hemispheres. Letting them touch the cerebrum, cerebellum, and medula. They were to take notice of the different texture for the 3 different parts.)

"Is that what our brain really looks like?"
"Is it really that soft?"

I was amazed at how little a cow's brain is. Also the cerebellum is small and it took me a while to recognize it since I was looking for something about half the size of the cerebrum. Instead it was about 1/5 of the size of the cerebrum. I thought this would be a really queazy project, but it turned out that it didn't bother me any more than dealing with the liver, gizzards, stew meat from a turkey or beef cut.

Was it worth it? Definitely. The children were amazed and the safety issue of how important it is for them to care for their head really hit home. This is one memory that won't be forgotten. Sadly, I couldn't get any pictures because I was having trouble charging my camera.

Well, there you have it. A whole week in review. I forgot to mention that our Bible lesson covered Achan's sin and Israel's battle with the city of Ai. God isn't mocked, and sin seriously separates us from Him. Perhaps our study wanted us to think a little more on premeditated sin. What do you think?

Hope you have a very nice Happy Valentine's Day. ♥♥♥

Grocery Good Deals!

2009-02-11T20:45:00.005-05:00

Ok, I've got to admit, I stop clipping coupons about the time that....gosh I can't remember. Probably when I moved near your friendly Super Wal-mart and realized I wasn't saving too much more since I didn't have the super douper deals available at my new location.(And Walmart ended up costing me about the same w/o the coupon.) Since then, I've noticed the Sunday paper doesn't really put out a lot of coupons that would be of much interest to me, or they have gone from coupons to almost nothing.

I decided to use my friendly Wal-mart to my advantage this week and took advantage of the price match policy. Let me share with you the deals I got:(By the way, I jotted down the item, sale price, and location, so that I could tell the cashier and she wouldn't have to search for it.)

1/2 gallon ice cream $1.39 (I bought 2)Strawberry and Cookies and Cream. :O)

Peanut butter, small jar $.99 (bought 3)

Pork TenderLoin $1.99 lb. (This basicly slashed the price in half!)

1 gallon Milk $2.50 (bought 3)

Strawberries $1.99 a quart (bought 2)

Ground Chuck $1.99 lb( I don't consider this a deal, but it seems you can't get it any cheaper around here these days or at Walmart for that matter.)

Hamburger Helper Makes a fast Meal $1 (bought 2)

It seems my mind has drawn a blank so that must be the jist of the price match deals for me last night. Anyway, I'll be keeping an eye on my Sunday Grocery Ads and utilizing the price match which I hadn't paid too much attention to before. I feel the I saved a buck fever coming on already.

Quick Late Review of the Week..w/ a spin on things.

2009-02-10T15:36:00.005-05:00

It seems that I've gotten a little behind on this review of the week thing. I might not always have one. This one is going to be a little different since I need to make it quick and I really had more thoughts to share on my week's events than I did details.

Around the House: I don't feel I was very productive this week. I got my bathrooms cleaned, we got our taxes done, the laundry is progressing, and school is steadily moving along.
Sometimes, I look at my progress and it could be pretty disappointing if compared to other ladies who seem to have it so put together. But then I remind myself, that for one thing comparing oneself to another is not wise since each have their own cross to bare, and that perfect or not, I will get to it- whatever it may be someday. Oh..., I didn't get my bread done.

School: Friday night we sat down and started talking. We do that quite a bit around here. The conversation went from talking about piano to Einstein's childhood.
Einstein lived with facination with light, the stars, space. He liked all the things that perhaps had me in knots when I took trig and physics in highschool. (By the way, I dropped trig and physics after the 1st quarter because it was beyond me, I didn't need the credit, and my teacher recommend it.) He loved the things he loved to learn and avoided the very things he didn't.
He had to go back and learn the things he avoided to get to the goals he wanted and loved.
We have continued our poem studies and the children have submitted one poem for a contest and are in the procees of submitting a second one this week. Here's an outstanding resource link for writing contests: http://homeschoolwriters.com/
They have a contest going on right now, w/ a deadline of Feb. 14th, in which the children who get a price will be awarded their poem published in a book and a trip to Washington DC. The topic for this one is nature. Most submissions are free, and many include K-12th.

There has been and on going discussion at our home between the 4th grader and the 2nd grader concerning whether Thomas Edison or Samuel Morse were more important.
In co-op we made slime as an experiment to help the children remember Thomas Edison.
He is a great example of how to try again.

I have decided to spend a little more time in the MathUSee foundations workbook and put Miquon on hold for a bit. Alternating is good, specially since we're a workbook ahead in Miquon and sometimes it gets sticky. Or should I say, icky?
Saxon 54 Math, what could I say about Saxon? I love Saxon Math 54. 4th grader knows his timetables/division impressively well, and though he gets 3-8 wrong problems in a lesson(30 problems in all), it is mostly out of lack of attention or lazyness to write out the problem. I love the way it is set up and teaching from his lesson book has never been easier for me. At least easier than Miquon.

In other news- we let the boys join a church sports program and play basketball. I have mixed feelings about sports. I really, really do. Not so much when they're young, but all things change when they get older. So it has been 2 yrs. since the last time they played sports. Except in P.E. Why my mixed feelings? I want them to have a rounded education. Not centered on one thing alone. This, I feel, we have done well at so far. Sports brings mixed feelings because of what goes on as they get older. I have provided for the children a selective socialization of friends that I felt would not damage the labor of love that has gone into homeschooling them. Sports for some reason, seem to attract attitudes as they age that I don't want to allow the boys to perceive as becoming of a Christian. So....it will be monitored and kept on low priority.

Our Bible Study this week was about avoiding the very appearance of evil. When we don't avoid the appearance of evil than perhaps we are not our brother's keeper, nor our own. For we bring distaste to the gospel. We just don't care, and God wants us to.

Well, this is all for now. I have many more thoughts to share, but like Thomas Edison said,
"...Not enough time..."

Sincerely,

A Big Thought on Music and Prose

2009-02-06T13:55:00.011-05:00

Here's a little bit of something to chew on....

"Lord, what music hast thou provided for thy saints in heaven, when thou affordest bad men such music on earth....."

~Walton

The Sounds of Music

I live in a world full of sounds of music to my ears.
The melodies come quickly releasing feelings I can hear.
It is the sound that keeps me thinking,
The melodious waves that capture more than just a tune.
It is as if my brain is drawn upon the moving words.
As if my heart can hear beyond its orchestrated chords.

I see it now, reflected more within my offspring
For she hears it too.
The echoes float within her,
And desperately escape her soul.
Perhaps, if harnessed better,
Hers will produce a wonderful work.
One that will glorify God and cause Him to say,
“It is good.”

This is dedicated to my first daughter.

With Love,

Shakespeare

2009-02-03T22:08:00.007-05:00

8 yr. old asks 10 yr. old, as we hurriedly walk down the hall at church, trying to get to the sanctuary on time.
"Do you know why Shakespeare was so intense?"

This (a bit) stressed mother wonders, "Why?"

He responds with, "Because he drank too much coffee."

I thought I'd better get that down before I forget.

Decisions

2009-02-03T21:15:00.005-05:00

I heard something today that stirred my thoughts about decision making. My thoughts on this weren't concrete enough to put in a post this morning.( I'm not sure if they're solid enough to make sense now but I'll try.)
Then my 10yr. asked me a question. (It seems I'm getting several deep questions this week.) He asked, "What does the word LUST mean?"
I had to think about that a minute because to the pure all things are pure and the word lust does have a meaning. To lust means to desire something very strongly. This could be power, fame, money, the opposite sex, etc. (After I answered this question, the question I had deep in my mind was, " What peaked his interest to want to know what the word lust meant?")

His mind accepted my answer which I thought over once more and thought was pretty on target when he came back at me with another question. "What's wrong with that?"
(This is where I'm thinking, "OK, that's a legitimate question......except that who told him it was wrong?") I really didn't know the answer to it so I send him off to his Daddy who I was sure would answer the question better. He did. He told him to lust meant to covet after something.
That in my mind would describe it better. See, God knew children needed dads for questions like these. It also helped me with my thoughts on decisions.

Lust has a lot to do with our decisions and we all make decisions within our days. We make decisions about jobs, moves, things we want our children involved in, things we choose to be apart of or not.... etc, and we usually have firm believes behind those choices. How much the pull lust has on us concerning those decisions is quite different from individual to individual. What feeds our heart will have a lot to do with how much hold lust has over us.

If God is our Lord then he should weigh heavily first in our decision making. How will the decision affect our relationship with God?
If we have a spouse then he should be second for we've entered into a covenant with him or her also. How will our decision affect that covenant?
If we have children, then they should be third on our priority list because we are caretakers and responsible for their physical as well as their spiritual needs while in the stage of childhood.
How will our decision affect our stewardship over them?

These 3 questions will keep things in the right perspective and help us in our decisions day to day. Not to mention they will help keep lust at bay.

Now, if only I could keep my son from perusing through my Janet Oke, Frank Peretti.... books because he reads his library books too fast and runs out of reading material, I'd have one less decision to make.

Yours Truly,

Our Week In Review

2009-02-01T20:31:00.011-05:00

This is my 2nd time doing Our Week in Review and I had anticipation to get to it.

Around Our House-
Dear Husband had a week off from work. I can't tell you how high in cloud nine I was Monday and Tuesday. He has worked just about straight since after Christmas, and has been gone almost every weekend. The saying (and don't laugh if I get it wrong) "Distance makes the heart grow fonder," is so true. I appreciate that man so much more now than ever. Not just because he is the provider of our home, my husband, and partner in this journey of mine, but because he's my friend. And I missed him alot. So let me tell you what went on around our house...

Daddy and the boys cleaned the van in and out. He also steam cleaned the living room carpet.
I'm not sure what I did.....except for the normal cooking, cleaning/laundry, school, etc. This is probably due to the fact that I was on cloud nine. Oh, I did make my five loaves of bread.

School-

5yr. old:

In Reading/Phonics, we played Happy Phonics games this week. We used games that reviewed ch, wh, sh, th, long sound of e, first sound of ea, ee, and the famous er,ir,ur,wor,ear,our. Her newest sounds are ng, oa, igh, tch. Played several times this week Curious George Reading and Phonics on the computer.
*Math- We worked on patterns and she made some of her own. I gave her a jump rope this week and she has been using it to practice counting and of course jumping! She also read to me lottery numbers from our Chinese cookie fortunes. (This was a good exercise, because the numbers were random and not in order.) Reviewed decimal street again.

*Music- Practicing her Ode the Joy, but mostly Long Long Ago. She can now play the melody with both hands at the same time.

8yr. old:

Math- Began continued work in Miquon on subtraction.
L.A- For his reading, he has been reading orally Beautiful Stories for Children. He bought himself "In His Steps, What Would Jesus Do."(an illustrated adapted classic version) from a swap your used books bookstore. He learned about quotation marks this week and we reviewed the helping verbs list.
Music- Practiced violin alone this week. He said he really liked his new song "Dixie" and practiced it more than needed because he finally got the right note in the tough part of the song.

10yr. old:

Math- spent the week taking test and making corrections of past 10 lessons. I could let it go, but I feel that math requires attention and accuracy. Some of the mistakes were because he was too busy cutting up with his brother. :0)
L.A- In English, he worked on Cinquain poetry. This was a good type of poetry to review/teach parts of speech. Also, worked on Limericks. Reviewed difference between linking verbs and helping verbs.
Music- practiced his piano. He has two pieces he has begun working on for the March recital.

Social Studies/Bible:

This includes everyone since we're all learning about the same things in our studies, just at different levels. Our S.S stems from the children of Israel walking around the city of Jericho 7 times and blowing their trumpets. We read together about Bach and the children listened to Back Comes to Call by Classical Kids. 10yr. old read to 8yr. old about Beethoven.
We also covered aspects of music like dynamics, tone, tempo by singing hymns and traditional songs loud,soft,fast,and slow. And by listening to songs that changed the feel from happy to bouncy or smooth to boisterous. We watched The King and I.

I meant to also cover Hymn Writers with an Adventures in Odyssey but we didn't get to that. We will probably get to it tomorrow.

Art: We painted this week. The boys have been learning about painting in their co-op class, so they painted some more at home.

Co-op: Co-op went well for me this week. I taught in our 1st and 2nd grade class about Benjamin Franklin and they made a sort of kite lapbook. And 5yr. old covered the letter "P" in her class by having a Princess Tea Party.

The children are so excited because someone has given us a trampoline! (with net) And I am too. Maybe they can wear some of that boy energy out bouncing to their hearts' delight. This will help my starting to get very achy ligaments and pregnant joints a break. Did I mention how much I love Spring?

Revisiting Samuel

2009-01-31T21:51:00.003-05:00

Tonight my 8 yr. old asked me a question.
He asked, "How do you know it is God talking to you about getting saved? What if I only want to get saved because I don't want to go to hell, but it's me and not God speaking to me?"

This is a deep question. It's deep because I don't know all the answers to it. And the answers I have may not be the ones needed. It's deep because I truly want the children to go to God looking for the Saviour. I also don't want to get in the way. I could jump at the opportunity, but it would be I jumping and not him. I want it to be their moment with God. Their decision. Their act of faith and their start of a relationship with Almighty God. If God is visiting his heart, then God is dealing with him and therefore knows better than I how to deal with him as an individual.

He wanted to talk about God, salvation, and about his soul. So we talked.

This has been our prayer over the years. That their heart would be tender to hear God. That they would begin to seek the Saviour because they begin to sense the need for Him. That there would be a concern for their soul.

Samuel was a child when God visited Him. He didn't recognize the voice of God.
I have tender thoughts about this account. Perhaps because it is such a beautiful picture of the grace and love of God.
Eli, who was not in the will of God, directed Samuel to go back and lay down, but he told him that if he was called again he should answer, "Speak, Lord; for thy servant heareth." God called again, and Samuel answered.

He and I took a little, private time to pray tonight. I prayed out loud for God to keep his heart tender to his dealings. And that if He was drawing him to get saved, that God would give him assurance and faith to believe in Him and trust Him.
He prayed that God would help him and he prayed that God would let him know whether it was His calling to Him he was sensing through out his day. My heart wanted to pour buckets of tears out to think of God's faithfulness to deal with my children, but I saved them.

Maybe God will keep calling, and my son will answer. This is what I'm going to pray about tonight. Those tears a better spent alone with God.

Pancakes and Homemade Syrup

2009-01-29T13:48:00.005-05:00

I thought I'd share the recipe I like best for pancakes. Also, within the last couple months I've been making our syrup and it is starting to grow on me. You can get imitation maple flavoring or the real stuff. I just happen to get Mapleine at Walmart to start out. I don't like the fact that it has sulfiting agents though so once I'm done with it, I'll probably go with the real stuff.

Pancakes

1 Cup of all-purpose flour or soft wheat if you grind your wheat
1 Tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 beaten egg
1 cup of milk
2 Tbsp. cooking oil

Heat skillet to 325* or heat up frying pan on medium. Mix well the dry ingredients with the wet until just blended. Pour desired amount and cook till lightly brown. Flip and do the same. Keep warm in the oven or a covered plate.

*I use buttermilk, and decrease baking powder to 1 tsp. and add about 1/2 tsp. of baking soda. I also add cinnamon to ours if I add fruit like bananas, berries, and apples. Also we usually triple the recipe and get about 18-20 hand size pancakes. What's left over we freeze for later during the week's breakfast.

Homemade Syrup

Boil 1 Cup of water. Add 2 Cups of sugar. Add 1/2 tsp. Mapleine and stir. I boil this over medium heat for about 5-8 minutes. Let it completely cool and store in the refrigerator. Serve in a syrup dispenser.

* I've also used Blackstrap Molasses to flavor it instead of Mapleine. You have to add 1-2 Tbsp. but it works well too. Also, it's thinner than the syrup from the store, but a little of it over your pancakes goes a long way. I also double or triple this recipe and keep the extra in a mason jar in the fridge.
That's all there is to it. Definitely worth the $2+ savings for us!

We usually have this for breakfast on Saturday mornings while we listen to the children's radio programs that come on our local Christian radio station. Shows like Paws and Tales, Adventures in Odyssey, and Down Gilead Lane.

Hope you have an outstanding breakfast this Saturday. If you happen to have pancakes, maybe you'll remember me.

A Thrist...

2009-01-27T14:53:00.008-05:00

I've been thinking about water lately. I've noticed some of the children are not drinking most of their water at meal times and then I noticed that they weren't drinking much water at other times. We don't usually buy soft drinks or Kool-aid around here so they always seem to be served water with their meal. Occasionally, after they eat, I'll serve them fruit juice, and of course with something sweet or breakfast they sometimes have milk, but water is our main source of drink around here. With all that said, I've been a little concerned about their intake and kept thinking about it.

Water is an important part of our diet. It cleanses, lubricates, and moisturises our body. But do we get enough to quench our thirst? Your thirst is not quenched by milk or juice, or soda/sugar drinks. They are digested for what they are. But water is a different story. It satisfies the feeling of being a thirst. If you do not provide your body with the water necessary,( half of your body weight in ounces) you eventually drown out that a thirst and you lose the desire for water because you are offering it a substitute but not a remedy.

Our time with God is like that. There is no where else we can replenish our peace and strength but going to the source of living water. I often think of the woman at the well who Christ spoke to. She knew not of the living water He spoke to her of and hadn't tasted of it because she kept looking to be made complete. She was looking in the wrong place for satisfaction.

We do that sometimes even in Christ. Instead of seeking living water from the Master, we fill our time with amusements of all sorts. We feed the flesh and substitute His presence instead of getting from God what we really needed. Instead of taking the time to take our cares to Him. Instead of crying out to Him when our inner being is saying, " I'm A Thirst!" We ignore it or do something else that fills the quietness in the room and busies the mind from hearing His small, still, voice.

Our Spirit notices though. It sends warning signs through our unrest and our moodiness. It notices. It seeks and cannot be calmed so it feels discontent and we try to appease it.

For a Christian and an unbeliever, this is a great gift of God, to be able to feel our Spirit A Thirsting. For if you are thirsty then He can quench your soul. If you can feel it, your heart is not so hard that it cannot be touched. If you're thirsty, and take a drink from His living water, He can satisfy your thirst.

These are good things to ponder on.

Our Week in Review

2009-01-24T14:50:00.009-05:00

I got this idea from Lighthouse Academy Homeschool Blog and thought it was a nifty one. I'm sure it will be tailored as we move along. We'll see how long it lasts. :o)

Around the House: Organized the school closet(it was getting unbearable), made 5 loaves of bread, rearranged my bedroom(I must do this once a year, but I think this time it's just right.) Went through the girl's toybox and finally took a large bag and misc. to the thrift store. I wasted a lot of time on my blog. Hubby has been working a lot of hours/days for several weeks and it seems that I miss him a lot, so what do I do?- Blog. Is this even good for me?

In School:

Bible- The Walls of Jericho and Talking to God.

With 5 yr. old-

L.A - reviewed these phonograms, which includes all their sounds a,b,c,d,e,f,g,h,i,j,k,l,m,n,o,p,qu,r,s,t,u,v,w,x,y,z, or, ar, ow, oo, ck, wh, er(her)ir(first)ur(church)wor(worships) ear(learns) our(courage), sh, ch, ee, ai, ay, th. (I'll only cover the ones she's learning next time. )She's learning some new ones.. igh, oa, ea, ng.

Social Studies- Looked at the book Castle by David Macaulay. We are learning about why there were or are walls around a city or castle. Learned about Handel and his Messiah from books and Classical Kids.

Science- She told me what Lava is in our conversations about rocks. We were talking about Igneous rocks and she was describing to me how they are made.

Math- Covered a concept from MathUSee with her, Decimal Street. How to know whether 20 is written like 20 or 02 from a Kindergartner's point of view? Tell me how many tens live in the tens house. How many live in the units house? (Because only up to 9 can live there.)

Music- Though I'm really torn whether to even go there because I've been there(started my first at 5) and done that(learned I should have waiting till 7). She taught herself Ode the Joy by herself and is now learning Long, Long Ago with a little help from me. Right hand only. What am I going to do???

With 8 and 10 yr old-

Social Studies- Learned about the Berlin Wall, The Great Wall of China. Discussed why we have walls. Began study on music with Handel. I've included on the sidebar a Classics for Kids Podcast. I tried to teach the concept that most have the ability to enjoy music, but some are given the gift to make it. (5yr. seems to have been case in point) 8yr. old was shocked that she could play Ode the Joy so quickly and now was starting on Long,Long Ago)

Science-They researched rocks and made a chart to describe. Went looking for rocks to classify outdoors.

Math- Good grief..... 10 yr. old has geometry terms like isosceles, equilaterals, translation...

L.A- 8 yr. old wrote his first thank you letter to our neighbor. An official letter with opening, greeting, body, closing, and signature. He also addressed the envelope. This was to thank her for the nice goodies she brought to them during Christmas. 10yr. decided he would do the same. He's been reading a lot of Shel Sylverstein and writing different types of poetry.

The children played in the snow twice this week. We actually got snow and enough cold weather to cancel church and co-op. But it didn't last long.(I'm so glad.) The crocuses in my front yard have peaked their pretty color. Could it be that Spring will soon be here? I hope so.

Maybe the weekly review shouldn't be this thorough.

On account of my 100th Post, let me show and tell a few things about myself....

2009-01-22T15:09:00.015-05:00

1) I collect perfume. I started when I was a teenager and the mall gave out more than just scented wipes for samples. I use to have more, but I parted with them. The three on top of the decorative box are over or about 15 yrs. old! I do use them just not that much. That's Giorgio in the middle and Liz Clairborne on the right. The one with the greenish bottle -cap top in the front left is the real Samsara oil straight from Egypt!

2) I also like music boxes. The one with the little mice see-sawing on a spatula plays Whistle While you Work. The Precious Moments one says "Friends Never Drift Apart" and it plays That's What Friends are For.

3) I use to stick my head between the two front seats of my grandfather's car and sing. The seats were close enough to each other that it just covered my ears enough to cause the microphone affect. I use to sing real loud in the shower and rather high because it drove my mom crazy. So now you know that I like to sing.

4) I was part of an egg fight at school/out of school in a suppose to be a surprise, "It's your Birthday Bash" at the age of 7. The funny thing is that my mom knew something was up, because I very casually asked her if getting egged hurt.

5) I dissected a human course over a 3 day period at a Medical School with an Anatomy class in some kind of Summer Camp between my Freshman and Sophomore yrs. in High School. I had already decided that I wasn't going to pursue the medical field, so I thought I'd try this out.

6) I also collect scarves that I rarely use now. I just haven't been able to part with them. Because of this, I was able to demonstrate to the 1st and 2nd graders in our co-op what real silk feels like by passing some of these beauties around.

7) I use to trade sandwiches at school because I didn't like ham and peanut butter. Apparently, whoever it was I was swapping with, didn't mind. This happened in South America, Colombia by the way, and peanut butter was not really used much, if ever. My grandmother must have given my mom some she brought home from her trips to the USA and so mom was trying to use it up.

8) I've seen the Redwoods in California, the White House in Washington, D.C., had my honeymoon in Seattle, Washington, visited the squares in Savannah, Georgia and actually lived in one of those big colonial homes on Victory Drive., rode the elevators to the top of the Arch in St. Louis, Missouri, and seen many other states in between. I can say that I'm happily settled where I live.

9) My first real job was as a receptionist for the rectory of the Catholic school parish I attended as a child. By the way, I am not a Catholic now. I was born into the Catholic faith though and remained so till about 14 yrs. of age. I am now what you would call a - Non-Denominational- Born Again -Full Gospel- Fundamental- (of Holiness Doctrines) Christian. Whew! There's a lot to that. To put it simply, I just believe the Bible, nothing but the Bible. I want to follow Jesus so please help me God. (There's a hint of humor in that.)

10) Here's a picture of my family and I. We took this picture in summer 2008.

So there you have it. 100 Posts and now you know me better. Let me know if you do something like this, and I'll come by and read about you.

Yours Truly,

Celebrating a very Happy Birthday!

2009-01-20T13:14:00.012-05:00

Yesterday was my hubby's birthday. The children were so excited they made sure to let him know.

They waited anxiously, undecided whether to turn the lights on or off for their surprise.

They really wanted to have a hot dog roast with lots of ketchup, chips, cake and marshmallows over a patio fire, but I finally convinced them that it was too cold for the outdoors.

They helped set the table, and dinner was set and ready as he walked through the door. Instead of the roast, we had Jalapeno Chicken over rice, biscuits and dessert!

10yr. old played the piano and we all sang Happy Birthday. Then he blew out his candle and we all sat down for dinner.

Daddy loves banana pudding so I made him a banana cream trifle. (Same thing ,except I made the cake in a larger pan than normal, added peanutbutter chips and chocolate chips. When cooled, I cut it into small cubes and replaced this for the vanilla wafers. )

I think he was surprised and touched by it all.

New look!

2009-01-18T15:30:00.002-05:00

I thought I'd change things around. What do you think?
I like it! I guess the new year has brought on new colors for me.

A few things I've learned while homeschooling...

2009-01-17T21:47:00.006-05:00

There are a few things I've learned while homeschooling that I thought I'd share on this blog. It seems the first year you home school you are about to climb a huge mountain and you don't know how well the ups or down will go or whether it's even possible. Well, it feels the same way the next year and the year after that except you have more confidence in yourself because you know it's possible and actually successful even if you had more downs than ups.

I guess I realized teaching reading wasn't so hard since my first son took off and now I have to put time limits to how much he reads or he wouldn't ever come down from la-la land. But then my second little fellow came along and he wasn't so thrilled. As a matter of fact- neither was I.
But his handwriting back then was beautiful. Notice I said, "back then." He is now in 2ND grade and he could take a few lessons from Kindergarten. Though, he returns to his old ways when he wants to.
I had to take a different approach to teaching him to read and had to reconcile with myself that it was not going to be my way or the highway. (What was the point anyway?) He has just now plunged into chapter books like Geronimo Stilton. I asked him if he was having trouble with any of the words. He said a few, but that didn't seem to bother him because he was having so much fun reading them. A few words jumbled up didn't matter much.

If you think reading can get scary, try going back to explaining those wonderful fractions in math. Things like 1x 1/12? The answer to this is easy, but it took me a while to figure it out. I've started them all counting beans, pennies, dimes, nickels...backwards from 20, odds and evens..playing Math Mouse games...etc.

I've learned through trial an error what works for us and what is disastrous. I've also learned that we have more time than I feel we have to learn the concepts needed to succeed in life. (Though, I still believe deep inside that they should be reading well by third grade if you have multiple children to teach -and only two eyes, one mouth and two hands, not to mention one brain to keep up with all of them. If they can read well, then they can do many things on their own that could not be done without your assistance otherwise.)

History and Science have been fun for us all along, with little discomfort if any. Over the years, I've read to the children picture books about important people in history like Mr. Lincoln, Helen Keller, the Wright Brothers, Benjamin Franklin..etc. I've exposed them to American History early on before they really understood that it was something they would have to learn someday. They've played pirates, explorers, patriots and more. They've drawn pictures of the way people dressed and the homes people lived in during certain time periods, of battles that took place, of weapons and the kind of warfare that was used. We've listened to living stories on tape or Cd that incorporated fiction with true history to make it fun.

Sometimes, I wonder how I've taught science to my kids, but it really has happened so naturally. They learned about insects by catching them and making a bug chart. They glued them and labeled them to their chart. We have collected rocks, searched for clouds, taken walks that brought on all sorts of conversations that filled their brains with information without ever having to memorize stuff that didn't fit their attention. We've read books that introduced those special messengers called the 5 senses and then had them use them personally. This is called exploring the human body the way it should be done.
How about creation and the millions of years ago stuff that is forever showing up in all kinds of literature? We've exposed them to the truth and what is real and showed them what is not.

All in all, I've learned each child of mine has been different. They all have their own way of learning and taking information in. But children are sponges and they will soak things in some time or another.
Homeschooling them has given me the opportunity to build relationships with them, while at the same time teach them about God's beautiful story.
It has not all been pleasant and without tears. But that does not mean the sun won't shine tomorrow and that perhaps then he or she won't do better. It does not mean that I can't teach and so I should just let someone else do it. It means that perhaps it's time to look at doing it a little different from what we thought was the way it should be done and try it again.
Perhaps, I'm a better teacher then than I thought.

My Brother's Keeper

2009-01-09T22:53:00.014-05:00

I remember church services where this song was sung as a new Christian. My heart would cry out to God for strength to follow Him.

Somebody Prayed For Me

I have no affiliation with the church in this video, but it did bring tears to my eyes to hear it once again.

Here's another poem straight from my heart.

My Brother's Keeper

I remember the day Jesus found me
And how that He cleansed me from sin.
I remember that somebody prayed for me,
They sacrificed their time,
They got down on their knees and prayed for me.......

And so God was faithful and brought me out,
Out of the deep miry clay.
Put a love in my heart for the things that He loves,
And I was made my brother's keeper.

For when I cry, He feels my pain.
When I hurt, He knows how it feels.
He bore so much upon the tree,
to see me be my brother's keeper.

Shall I be a stumbling block or two?
Should I not have the character of Uriah*?
Shall I sin the sin of Balaam**
And cause someone to fall,
For something that will only last a lifetime?

Epistles read of men,
That's what we are today.
Good or bad, Cain knew that
He was his brother's keeper.

I wrote this poem, and cannot express my heart completely. Hope it will somehow bless your heart, and remind you of the love we are to have for those within the body of Christ.

* You can read about Uriah in 2 Samuel 11
** You can find references and read about the sin of Balaam in 2 Peter2:15; Num. 31:15-16; 22:5; 23:8; Jude v. 11; James 4:4

And finally, I Cor. 8:11-13. The whole chapter, though small, is worthy of your attention. So if you get a chance take a look at Paul's concern for the brethren.

Sincerely,
Linda

In the Kitchen....

2009-01-08T09:58:00.007-05:00

I thought I'd post some recipes from our dinner last night. Perhaps it was all the yummy melted Velvetta cheese taste that has been floating in my mind. :o) We had Please Give Me More Casserole, Cherry Fluff, and Cornbread.

Please Give Me More Casserole
1lb of ground turkey or lean ground beef (If I use ground Turkey, I dash it with a little bit of soy sauce)
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 can of mushroom soup
1 can 8oz tomato paste
1 can of corn or half a bag of frozen corn(16oz bag)
2 tsp. chili powder
3/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. salt(optional)
1/4 lb cubed Velvetta -type cheese
1 cup of macaronni

Cook meat with onions and green peppers. Drain if necessary. Cook macaronni and set aside, drained. Add soup, paste, corn , macaronni, and seasonings. Mix well. Pour into casserole dish and top with cubed cheese. Bake for 25-30 min. at 375* or till melted and bubbling. Yum!

Cherry Fluff
1 carton frozen light whipped topping, thawed
1 can crushed, unsweetened pineapple, drained
1 can (21 oz.) cherry pie filling
1 can (14oz) fat free sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1/4 crushed pecans or toffee candy bar

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl; Mix well. Chill several hours or overnight. Makes 12 servings.

*************************************************************************
In other news, our local grocery store had boneless, skinless chicken breasts on sale for $1.29 lb!
We stocked up and after dinner canned about 12 quarts, and 2 quarts of pork loin chops! You can't hardly get a can of chicken for probably under $1.50 for 6-11 ounces!

Now, when I want to make supper all I have to do is open a can of chicken and put it into my casserole recipe. That saves me the time of having my act together and cooking the chicken early. And since it made broth, I now have it to put into my rice, creamed spinach, gravies, etc... It gives rice such a good flavor.

I think age has made my husband even sweeter as the years go by, because he stayed up to watch the pressure cooker stay at 15lbs. for 75 minutes. While we were cutting up the raw chicken breasts and putting them in the quart jars, he said kiddingly, "I missed my calling in life. I should have been a butcher."

What I've been up to....

2009-01-03T15:51:00.006-05:00

The new year has begun and I've been going over the last year. I find myself reviewing thru my mind what went on.

My boys have grown up a little more this year and opened my eyes to see have much different girls are to boys.

I've matured a little more this year. Really, I have. I can tell. As time goes on, I've noticed that what I thought was maturity really was baby steps. I've physically, spiritually, and who knows how else grown this year. Yeah!

I got pregnant. This will make #6

We paid off a lot of land next door to us.

I'm sure there are many more things that could be put down in review, but I'll spare you.

So what am I up to now?

I've been doing some research on the early roots of American Protestants. Why, you might ask? Because I'm intrigued at where the so called Christian faiths of today came from and specifically where and why they've changed. You might think that it was a cultural thing, but I think it was more than that. Besides, even if man changes, God doesn't- and so neither does his word. There are people that put so much stock in what their preacher says, which by the way sometimes trumps the word of God, yet why does he answer the way he does, and where does he originally get his theology? It should be always from the Bible, but then you go back to whether they are fundamental or modernized. Whether they are Catholic or Protestant. Pentecostal or Baptist. Armenian (branching from John Wesley's Methodist) or Calvanistic. And so on and so on and .... Religion can be worn by anyone, but having religion is not walking with God. Religion therefore in my humble opinion is not something we should rest our confidence on. Because religion changes according to the tide. Clear as mud?

What else have I been up to?

Well, I made bread today. Here's the baby. He seems to always want to help me in the kitchen. Making bread is his favorite.

I'm also wanting to check out a book I heard about last night on the radio program Haven Today, about the 5 Languages of Love. From what I heard, people have different ways of expressing love and if perhaps you don't relate then they have a hard time understanding that you love them.

For example: Some people feel loved when they get a gift. That's how they know because you took the time to get them something special. Others might see your love when you do an act of love- like your husband cleaning the dinner dishes everynight for you. Others might consider you loving them if you spend quality time with them, while some want to feel your touch.

Which one are you?

I think I'm the spend quality time with me type, but I need to get the book and read it to learn a little bit more about it because I'm not sure. Gifts don't do much for me and I really don't like to be ignored by someone who I love. I'm not too touchy, and as for acts of service - well they're greatly appreciated. This should be fun, since I think I have my husband all figured out!

The Hiding Place

2008-12-30T21:23:00.004-05:00

Tonight we had dinner while we listened to Focus on the Family's Radio Theater The Hiding Place. This audio was based on the true story of Corrie TenBoom. I read the book when I was about 19 yrs. old. As I listened to the plot unfold and Gemany take over Holland, Corrie's words rang through my mind.
"I lied Papa. It was intentional, not just a mistake, and what bothers me so much is that it was so easy for me to do."
The story makes it obvious that she was not a liar. My mind went back to when I was 19 and thought about her predicaments. Would I have lied to the Nazis?

How easy is it to be dishonest with others if one is dishonest at all? A person might find fault with Corrie TenBoom, but to read the book and see if you're not touched by her testimony, her character and tenderness of heart would be a better option. Perhaps she was being put through the fire and made to burn off all the impurities.
I have a poem (it could be a song) I copied on the inside cover of my Bible, it seems now a long time ago, written by Amie Johnson Flint.
It goes like this:

He giveth more grace when the burdens grow greater.
He sendeth more strength when the labors increase.
To added affliction, He addeth His mercy,
To multiplied trials, His multiplied peace.
When we have exhausted our store of endurance,
And our strength hath failed ere the day is half done,
When we reach the end of our hoarded resources,
The Father's full giving is only begun.
His love has no limit, His grace has no measure.
His power has no boundary known unto men.
For out of His infinite riches in Jesus,
He giveth and giveth and giveth again.

God alone knows our heart. I guess Corrie's words stuck with me because I'm drawn by her innocense and her concern that she so easily out of fear lied. When we can easily deceive or flat out lie or sin, and not be bothered-the question to ask is why? Why is it not bothering me? Is my heart in such a state that it will not cry out to God? Will it not cry out to the Saviour, to heal me, to cleanse me, to help me? To rescue me from me?

Maybe it is time for me to check from the library Corrie TenBoom's book The Hiding Place. It's been so long since I read it that I need to be reminded again.

What we did for Christmas-2008

2008-12-26T16:13:00.016-05:00

Monday, I prepared 2 loaves of pumpkin bread with chocolate chips. I also made a new recipe called Braided Sausage and Cheese Bread. I made two loaves of that too. This was all in preparation to go out of town. We drove about 5-6 hours to the Creation Museum in Kentucky (20 min. or so from Cincinnati, Ohio) It really took us a little longer to get there because as we entered the suburbs of Cincinnati, they had just had an ice storm come through and traffic was at a crawl or even stopped. So Tuesday we didn't make the Museum but did make ourselves comfortable at the Clarion compliments of a very good price from Priceline.

Above is a picture of a dinosaur in the Garden of Eden. If God created all land animals than the dinosaurs were there too.

Adam is naming all the animals:On Wednesday, we made our way to this outstanding museum which was packed because as a gift to the community and anyone who wished to come, admission price was free on Christmas Eve. By the way, this was all made possible by Answers Through Genesis.

Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.(Picture above)

Adam and Eve after they sinned and God covered them with skins. A reminder of the verse that tells us that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins. (Picture below)

This is real science at work! The children enjoyed seeing all the different dinosaurs. It was nice to present it to them in a truthful form with a correct timeline in mind. Not millions and millions of years ago!

The next pictures are small scale models of Noah's ark. The second picture shows the earth almost drowned by the water. Those are people on the rocks or tips of the mountains.

There were a lot of theaters with very moving, thought provoking 10- 30 min. shows about dragons, dinosaurs, Noah's flood, and human reasoning(evolution) and how it contradicts science and the Bible.It even showed informaton on the Scopes Trial and America's slow departure from Bible truths that have made schools what they are today. It included a 2 hour tour through creation, the fall, the flood, and finally the last Adam, Christ and God's redemptive plan. The planetarium had a beautiful star presentation about the star that led the wise men. There were also live Nativity characters you could talk to.

As I watched God's beautiful story unfold in such a well presented and public place, I was reminded how much I love the gospel story. If you ever get a chance to visit, it will be time well spent.

Christmas was again a reminder of my Saviour. A memory to the children of why He came to earth.

We ended the day on Thursday, with an evening dinner with my parents at our home.

Hope Your Christmas was also a soul moving reminder of why we need Him.

May your New Year be filled with thoughts of Him and so much more...

Somes notes on Sunday's message about the Wheat and the Tares.

2008-12-14T16:54:00.005-05:00

Today, I think I heard one of the best messages I've ever heard addressed to the church. It's a shame I can't replay it but I wanted to write down a few of the things that stuck in my mind. The text was found in Matthew 13:24-30.

The Wheat and the Tares are both planted. They both had an experience. They both supposedly got saved. But God sees the Tares among the Wheat. One holds on to the experience and church, while the other holds on to faith and Jesus.

Wheat and Tares both grow. Plants grow and so do weeds. They both look alike because Tares are counterfeit, but one has the grain and the other does not. One develops fruit while the other conforms.

Three things hinder the Tares:

Their experience. They got just enough of it to be immune and be lost without realizing it.

Their Believe. They believe in the Word. They participate in church and perhaps are quite active but that does not make them any more real than sticking an artificial flower inside a page of the Bible.

So called helping people. These are the same people who prayed with them, perhaps prayed for them while they repeated along. The people who perhaps out of concern pressured them to get saved. The same people who remind them of a commitment made at their church. The same people who try to help God by getting in the way.

I've watched all these things happen! It's all over the churches nationwide, bar none!

The Tares are there perhaps because of comfortable preaching, but even in uncomfortable preaching, they are produced in six months or less! One only need to open their eyes and be truthful to one's self to see that there are not as many Christians that claim Christ as their Lord, that truly have the goods. Lots of good people. Lots of religious people. Lots of self righteous people. Lots of lost people.

The service ended with an altar call that brought me to tears. This was not an emotional altar call. The music did not bring on feelings of contriteness and pressure to pray. It was a flat out call from 2 Corinthians 13:5

"Examine yourselves,whether you are in the faith; prove yourselves...."

The question was asked, "Are you a Tare?"

The question was not,"Do you need to rededicate your life to Christ, or do you need to get saved again?" The question was flat out, "Are you a Tare?"

I cried as I stood there. I cried because that was the sweetest question that preacher could have asked anyone who was there.

Quick notes on pregnancy and recipes..(cookies and meatloaf)

2008-12-12T14:47:00.005-05:00

I'm sitting here blogging while I eat one of my delicious no-bake cookies. Yum! These things are so good that a pregnant woman should not be allowed to eat these things! I really shouldn't, but I've been craving them for about 2 days. I get a little worried that if I eat too many sweets I'll have such a big baby that I'll have another c-section. I had one of those with my third, and for anyone who thinks this is the way to go(and I've spoken to some who do think this), let me tell you it's not! And I know, because I've had four the normal way and recuperation is a lot better the normal way. (Besides, I get queasy, just thinking about a cut across my lower abdomen.)

Want to know how much my other babies weighed? Probably not, but I'll tell you anyway.

6 lbs 12 oz. (2 weeks early)
8 lbs. 8oz.
9 lbs 8oz.
8 lbs. 12oz.
9 lbs. 2 oz.
?

I have friends who have bigger babies, like 10 lbs+!

I'm short, FYI, and there's only one place for this baby to go. Thankfully, I've lost all my weight with all the babies. But since I have no stomach muscles to talk about (or they've become so flexible that they just keep on stretching) my belly seems to just keep going while I'm pregnant.

Here's a quick meatloaf recipe. I've never been able to make a meatloaf that I was sincerely impressed with, but this one is a worthy kind. It gets its merits from the glaze and the fact that it cooks in about 17 minutes!

Carrot Meatloaf

2 cups shredded carrots

1 green pepper cut up in small pieces(optional)

1 cup dry bread crumbs or quick oatmeal

3 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup milk

1 envelope dry onion soup mix or about 2Tbsp of beef bouillons, 1Tbsp onion powder, 2tsp. salt

2 lbs lean ground beef

1/2lb. ground pork (optional)

Glaze: 1/2 cup ketchup, 1/4 cup packed brown sugar, 2 tsp. prepared mustard

In a bowl, combine carrots, green pepper, crumbs, eggs, milk and soup mix. Add meat, and mix well. On microwave-safe platter, shape mixture into a circle with a 9 in. diameter; form a 3 in. hole in the center. Cover with wax paper and microwave on high for about 16-18 minutes, or until no pink remains. Make sure it is rotating every 3 min. Drain. Let stand for 5 min.

Meanwhile, in a cup mix glaze ingredients. Spread half of glaze over meatloaf. Microwave on med. for 1 minute. Remove. Warm left over glaze to serve.

Yields: 10 servings. Recipe halves easily.

No Bake Cookies

2 cups sugar

1 stick margarine

3 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa

1/2 cup milk

Use a big saucepan to heat on med/high. Let ingredients boil for 1 1/2 to 2 min. (No more than 2 min.)

Add quickly 1 cup peanut butter and 3 cups of quick oatmeal

Stir and scoop onto wax paper to cool. Makes about 2 doz. cookies

Hope you enjoy these two recipes. The meatloaf comes in handy when you need to make a quick meal. The cookies...well you can't just have one.

Who was that pesky thief?

2008-12-10T10:39:00.006-05:00

It seems someone has stolen my 9yr. old's bike! The children have been leaving their bikes out in the front lawn lately and yesterday when he went to go ride it before we went out, it was gone.
I know how shocked he felt. When we lived in a big city many years ago, before we had children, someone stole our van, not once-but twice! When I was a little older than my son, I had what I thought was a good friend, steal something of value from me. Turns out I found it among her things a couple weeks later.

Satan is like that. He tries to steal our joy, and he tries to steal our peace. He tries to take something that doesn't rightfully belong to him for all the wrong reasons.
Our son went looking for his bike yesterday but didn't see it anywhere. Sometimes we look for our joy but it seems no where to be found. I've always felt that if someone stole from me, perhaps they needed it more than I did. Though, that doesn't replace the wheels of a bike, van, or something of value. It does bring you to see that God knows who the pesky thief was. He knows their heart and motives. He knows the enemy of our soul, too. He knows when he is out on the prowl.

Should we hold on tight to our earthly possessions so the thief won't take any more? I think you should be a good steward of what God has given you and take care of them.(That's why the rest of the kids put their bikes in the backyard after that.) Should we fret that the enemy is getting under our skin trying to steal our joy? Scripture tells us to take our cares to Jesus who cares for us. He tells us to be still and wait on God. He reminds us that it is He who will make us strong. We are no match for the enemy, and who does he think is in charge around here anyway? Does he not know that there is not one hair on your head that falls that God doesn't know about? Scripture tells us that we know all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28) So he is just a tool in the Master's hand. A tool he plans to use to sharpen our focus, strengthen our heart, and brings us closer to His care.

So next time you feel like a thief is lurking around. Take guard -and tell the Master.

By the way, after I read this to my sons, the 9yr.old reminded me that their Daddy told them it is every sparrow that falls that God knows about, and that He knows every hair on your head.
So I stand to be corrected, I think. ♥♥

My moment...

2008-12-06T16:24:00.009-05:00

This picture is called Simeon's Moment by Ron DiCianni. It's a beautiful portrait to me of what Christmas is all about and yet so much more.

If you look at it for a while, you'll see how tenderly he holds the baby. He was holding more than just a mere baby, and Simeon knew it. He had met the Redeemer, his only Salvation, held Him, and looked into His Eyes.

This is the way I want to hold Christ in my heart.

"Thanks be to God for His indescribable Gift!" 2 Cor. 9:15

Hairy

2008-12-03T09:07:00.005-05:00

Today, 7yr. old was observing his arm during math and noticed quite a bit of hair on it. He'll be 8 yrs. old Saturday. So he's growing up on me.

"Oh, no. I'm getting hairy arms!"

Then he asked, "Mommy, what's the name of the guy in the Bible who was hairy and sold his birth certificate?"

9yr. old and I couldn't help but look at each other. Does this strike you funny?
It did us. He wasn't quite sure at first what was so funny. Esau sold his birthright not his birth certificate!

A little something about the Christmas spirit.

2008-11-30T17:02:00.007-05:00

Christmas will soon be here and the retail stores make sure to have a jolly Christmas spirit. The thought of how to approach Christmas was never something I really dwelled on very much until I had children.

How does one present Christmas to them? Should we continue the tradition of Santa Claus the fairytale, the theme that Christmas is a happy one if one gets several presents, and perhaps that one should have good will to all during this festive season? I'm not being sarcastic. I'm serious.
These are questions I started to seriously consider. How was I to raise them to honor God during this holiday and yet build wonderful thoughts and memories about what Christmas really meant?

I started out with the easiest one for me. I ditched Santa right from the start. As a matter of fact, my kids call him Jingle Bells because the little ones forget his well-known name to this day. (Though we have respect for the original man called Nicholas.) I decided he was not going to get one ounce of glory from us, since he had nothing to do with salvation.

The others have not been so easy to deal with though. The hardest would have to be the great emphasis on presents. God the Father gave His utmost gift to us by letting His Son become man for us that He would save us. Jesus gave His life willingly. He forgave willingly. He gave up His home on high willingly. I've often thought that when they get older, I would like to begin taking them to places like orphanages/children's homes or soup kitchens to help on or during the Christmas season. I want them to see that Jesus came to serve, not to be served. That Christmas if celebrated correctly should be a time to demostrate His love through us. All this said, we've kept the gifts to a minimum of 1-3 presents per child, some years slightly more and some years less. We try to get them something they like and something they need. This is hard to do sometimes because I think of the nice things that I could give them. But it grieves my heart to think that they'll grow up and leave Jesus on the side as a religious afterthought compared to Santa, presents, etc.

Christmas music plays in our home any time of the year. It really does. It could be April or September and you might just hear it were you to call me or visit. During this time, the children love to take the manger out and position the pieces just as if they were setting up the stage for that great day long ago. We listen to Adventures in Odyssey's episodes about Christmas. We go and visit churches that have excellent Christmas plays about the birth of Christ. One year the children participated in the Best Christmas Pageant Ever production in our town. I want them to remember us remembering Jesus. I want them to desire Him like the faithful did long ago in that little town of Bethlehem. I want them to look for and find the Messiah . To seek Him out. I want them to see what I see and hear what I hear, and many others like me. To look into the eyes of the Saviour, and forever be changed.

Jesus is the Reason for the Season. Let this be your guide in making Christmas a wonderful season to remember.

Sweet Potatoes and some more...

2008-11-29T15:30:00.007-05:00

Last night we canned 14 quarts of sweet potatoes. Plus, I have a crate full of fresh potatoes to go along. Was this my idea? Not really. I just suggested to my husband that since I used up all the potatoes we grew in the garden by Thanksgiving that we should buy some now that they're on sale. He bought 60 lbs! They were on sale at Wal-mart for $0.25/per pound and he thought this was a super deal! So last night we canned. The nice thing about this is that we spent a lot of time together in the kitchen, and now I have 14 qt. jars of cooked sweet potatoes to make some nice things like biscuits, a quick side dish, or my favorite -sweet potato casserole. This really is the best sweet potato casserole recipe. I've tried others and this is the one for us. I wrote it down in a notebook I still have from when I first got married. It's time to put it somewhere else, don't you think? Hope you find you like it too!

Best Sweet Potato Casserole

3 cups mashed sweet potatoes

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup. butter or margarine

1 tsp. vanilla

(Sprinkle cinnamon and nutmeg into potatoes. I would say about 1/2 -1 tsp. of cinnamon and 1/4 - 1/2 tsp. of nutmeg. It depends on your tastebuds.)

Mix sugar, eggs, milk, butter, and vanilla into sweet potatoes. Mix well. Pour into buttered 9x9 baking dish. Prepare topping.

Topping:

1 Cup brown sugar

1/3 cup of butter

1/2 cup chopped pecan (I sometimes cut this in half and add coconut)

1/3 cup flour

Mix all ingredients for topping. Crumble on top of potato mixture. Bake at 350* in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes.

In other news, I had a pretty good time preparing food for Thanksgiving this year. I can't say that of every Thanksgiving Day. There have been some years when I really dreaded all the preparation, but this year was very good for me. I made a turkey, gravy, refrigerator yeast rolls, two sweet potato casseroles, some corn, and a Dump Cake (with the cherries we froze this year). I don't think I made anything else, if I did, I can't remember. My stepdad made the other half of the dinner so don't think we forgot the mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, pumkin pie, ham, and green beans. I saved the water I boiled my potatoes in to make my bread today.

It must be the pregnancy doing that to me, because I go through strange phases in the kitchen when I'm pregnant. Really, I do.

I really got into cheese with my first. I began to love cheese, specially Gouda.

Maybe the second and third pregnancies were normal, because I don't remember anything in specific.

I just about became a vegetarian with my fourth pregnancy. I was making things like Spinach/Tofu Pizza!

With my fifth pregnancy, I was all about bread. Sourdough bread, banana bread, whole wheat bread, 7 grain bread, lots and lots of bread. The thing is that I didn't have a bread mixer like I do now, so I was kneading it all by hand. I made bread till the week I went into labor.(And still do.)

I'm not sure what the kitchen specialty will be now, except that I've been reading different cookbooks lately and making Chinese food.

Maybe our baby GIRL likes egg rolls and crab ragoon! (That is if the ultrasound is right). I sure do.

A Thanksgiving prayer with thanks.

2008-11-26T10:27:00.004-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!
As I was thinking about what to post, my son mentioned that I should post on Thanksgiving.
So I will. I'll tell about what happened the other day.

We usually pray to thank God for our food before every meal. Sometimes if we forget, somewhere in between. The 3yr. old has at times totally dominated the "Who would like to pray?" She always seems to. Her prayer goes something like this:

(In baby talk, of course)
"God, thank you for our food, Mommy, 1yr. old, 7yr. old, Daddy, 5yr, old, 9yr. old, our house, our clothes, Lobo the dog,my toys.............and for everything!"
(Whew!)

She gets quite upset when she can't say the prayer, but so do some of the others since she wants to do all breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The other day I asked the 7yr. old to pray. This was his prayer:

"God, thank you for the food and for all that you have blessed us with this year. Amen."

I didn't say anything, but I was touched. Touched because he didn't pray in a hurry or from repetition. He meant it. God has blessed us this year. The funny thing is that there isn't as much to go around this year as there has been other years. Yet, God has provided abundantly for us this year. I was touched because my boy saw the provision of God.

He didn't mind that we haven't been able to go out to eat as much as before. He didn't mind that we're eating baked potatoes in place of potato chips for lunch with our sandwich. He counted it a blessing when he realized that God had provided him with a coat when I couldn't find the liner to the coat we did have, and needed a coat. He's appreciated the more frequent desserts I make because Daddy isn't buying the Little Debbie snacks, and I could go on and on.

I was so touched to see that He could see beyond what he can't have, and be thankful for what He does.

When we told the children about the baby that is on the way, they were so excited. The 7yr. old couldn't believe God would give us another baby.

So for Thanksgiving this year, I'm thankful for many things. But I'm very grateful for all my children, who daily show me that God is so good. I'm also thankful for my partner in all this.
I was thinking about him yesterday. He isn't eloquant or polished. He isn't refined. Though there are all kinds of men out there and probably some like him or better, non could match his noble and tender heart. With all his faults and mine, God has blessed us with a beautiful family.

Hope your Thanksgiving is full of good food, good memories, and God.

The Rules

2008-11-22T17:40:00.006-05:00

Jesus leads us to Holiness.
Holiness does not lead us to Jesus.

I heard these two statements recently and thought they were jewels to store up. There is so much truth in both statements if fully digested and thought about. But I guess to do this you must understand what Holiness is:

Some people put Holiness in a religious category of very conservative beliefs from old-time full gospel churches. Other people might think it is referring to holy living. In my mind, I'm referring to both.

Holy living- is it....abiding by the Ten commandments... the Golden Rule...right living...etc? What else could we add to this? This is where the rules come in don't they? Don't do this and you shouldn't do that. Pray, read your Bible, and so forth.
This must be why the Bible tells us that the Law killeth, but the Spirit giveth Life.
This is also why I want to store forever these two statements in my heart.

Jesus leads us to Holiness.
He does. That is if it is Jesus who leads us there. Jesus represents everything we should be and nothing that we shouldn't. If we fall in love with Jesus then we will love His every way of living. Jesus is our way to God. He is the molder of our clay and the strength of our being. He knows exactly how to mold the clay and how much the clay can take. He is our propitiation. We are made free to show forth a beautiful work in progress by the Savior of our soul.

Holiness does not lead us to Jesus.
In our righteousness, we are as filthy rags to God. In our best we are but what without Jesus?
Nothing. Standards and the law are dead and a sacrifice in themselves. They bring grief in the long run because unless they are written in your heart by Christ himself, they are works of man that will perish.
One can be molded by man, but the clay will not tolerate but so much from someone besides the one who made it. Holiness ends where it began without the author- In a separate state from God. It can leave a heart in servitude instead of freedom from sin.

Oh, but to love God and His Righteousness! This is a product of those who have been redeemed.
The good that God produces as He burns up the chaff in one's heart comes after someone has been born again by His Spirit. It is the scent put forth by His very presence.

Rules are good because they bring things into order and set forth boundaries of safety and well-being. Standards that are biblical show us how much we truly need God. They show us sin for what it is and this is good. God's written Word is a beautiful story of what Holiness is and what it is not. God's Spirit is the one that sculpts this picture in our lives. He makes us living epistles to be read of all men.

Those kind of rules are indisputable.

I spent sometime reading in Romans the other night, and this verse stood out. It has been on my mind since then.

"But God commendeth his love toward us in that,
while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8

He showed His love for me while I was a sinner. It was underserved then and it is underserved now. The difference is that I now love Him. Can I say more?

I realize this is a serious sort of post. They are my thoughts. Thoughts that one day I may want to reread or that my children may want to read about. I want them to see that what we do, we should do because it has been revealed in our heart by God- not because a man is teaching it from the pulpit or because we have decided this to be a good thing. It is this kind of work within us that lasts for eternity and brings forth fruit that abounds.

Discontent

2008-11-17T15:14:00.007-05:00

Down in a field, one day in June,

The flowers all bloomed together

Save one, who tried to hide herself,

And drooped that pleasant weather.

A robin, who had flown too high,

And fet a little lazy,

Was resting near this buttercup

Who wished she were a daisy.

For daisies grow so trig and tall!

She always had a passion

For wearing frills around her neck,

In just the daisies' fashion.

And buttercups must always be

The same old tiresome color,

While daisies dress in gold and white,

Although their gold is duller.

"Dear robin," said this sad young flower,

"Perhaps you'd not mind trying

To find a nice white frill for me

Some day, when you are flying?"

"You silly thing!" the robin said,

"I think you must be crazy.

I'd rather be my honest self

Than any made-up daisy."

"You're nicer in your own bright gown;

The little children love you;

Be the best buttercup you can,

And think no flower above you."

"Though swallows leave me out of sight,

We'd better keep our places.

Perhaps the world would all go wrong

Were there too many daisies."

"Look bravely up into the sky,

And be content with knowing

That God wished for a buttercup

Just here where you are growing."

-Sarah Orne Jewett

Clippings

2008-11-13T15:16:00.006-05:00

Clip..Clip..Clip..Clip..Clip....100+ clips. Can you guess what all the clipping is?

Funny thing is I have never been clipping and had someone reading Hank the CowDog while it was going on.

"Hey, Mom. That's getting close to the quick."

"What are you doing now?"

"Ouch"

"Are you almost done?"

Hank the Cowdog must have been good because he was laughing every once in a while.

Dear Journal Letter (cheese...violin, math)

2008-11-11T14:45:00.010-05:00

Dear Journal,

I thought I'd write personally today. My mind has been in a lot of places but lately I've had it stuck between the pages of a book about cheese. How I get myself involved in these things I'll never know, but the desire to learn to make cheese has surfaced off and on for a few months now. You would think with all I have to get done and all I don't get accomplished that I would stick to the task at hand, but nooooo...not me. The thought of trying something so pioneering just thrills me sometimes and then there are other times when it makes my head spin. Then it hit me today at co-op as we were learning to weave like the Navajo Indians, "What are you thinking trying to learn to make cheese when you haven't even worked on your crocheting since when, August??" My mind reasons this out by interrupting and saying, "Hello...if I always waited till everything was complete, I'd never go anywhere or do anything."

My 7 yr. old has a nice Christmas Beginner Group performance at the Mall in December. He just started playing the violin in April and is doing good except for:

His practice time is short(about 15-20 min.)

He's been practicing playing most of the C sharps like C naturals, and doesn't practice pulling the bow out far enough.

One more thing, he hasn't been playing the 1/2 notes long enough. He's been playing them like quarter notes.

With all this said, it has come time for me to step in and make sure that he practices a little better by being present and attentive during his practice sessions. It took two consecutive (1hr)sessions to make a lot of progress so far. While I was making dinner, he mentioned how he should probably quit because he couldn't imagine spending that much time every practice.

"Think about it hard and let me know by Thursday. You can let your teacher know then." (gulp..)

Practice took 40 minutes last night. He paid close attention to the C sharps and the half notes so they didn't have to be repeated as much. Half way thru, he was giddy with joy that he had improved so much. At the end of the session, he told me he couldn't quit now. All I could do is be proud.

Math has been going really well at our house. I just love that Saxon 54. I'm sure it's not for everyone, but I really like it. It has done a great job helping me teach the 9yr. old and I love the progress we have made. Maybe it is because we do a very untraditional program like Miquon at the beginning. Maybe it's because I floundered around remembering math with my first son and things are just falling into place now. I'm not sure, but all I can say is that we seem to have found some happy ground that is very stable and secure in Saxon's middle school series. Not to mention, how much Math U See has helped us round out the Miquon progress and move smoothly along with the others right behind. I now have good feelings about what I'm going to do with the others.

Well Journal, I must bid you farewell. I need to get ready to make dinner. I would like to make Chicken and Dumplings tonight.

Linda

A Quiet Moment To Keep

2008-11-02T17:15:00.013-05:00

Here I am at the keyboard once again. The house is quiet and no one needs anything. I'm looking forward to going downstairs in a few minutes and warming up some Pepperoni and Sausage Pizza I made yesterday and eating it along with a warm piece of pumpkin pie.
Can you tell I'm relishing the moments? I am, and do you know why? Because my children and husband have left to grandma's house to visit for the rest of the day and I alone am left to keep it.

I can't say that I'm an exemplary keeper of the home. I would fall short of some people's standards, I suppose. I look at the house sometimes and I have to make choices throughout my day. I have to choose whether to spend time really talking to my children or cleaning my room. Having reading time with them or mopping and scrubbing the floors. There doesn't seem to be time to do it all. At least not for me, so I have to choose. Some days, my home is clean-but some days well....I'm off somewhere perhaps making a memory, or homeschooling, or making dinner, folding laundry.... This is no excuse for not doing the task at hand, but for me I have come to a great compromise. I will be content to do what I can with my time and make a home for my family by keeping it.

So how do you keep the home? I can't say that I'm an expert either, because I've only been married 16 yrs. and well...we can all learn something new, right? But I think keeping the home is this:

To love those that it holds with your heart.
To nourish it by feeding it Words of Life.
To make it a place where the heart is touched.
To keep it from that which would seek to harm.
To make memories that will echo through time.

There's probably more explicit things that could be put on that list, but those are just common sense things that I don't need to mention. I will say this though, you can't keep the home if your heart is not in it. You can't keep the home if you're not there. You can't nourish the home if you have nothing to give to it. It will not be a home where the heart is touched if your heart is hard and untouchable. You can't keep it from harm if you let harm come in. And finally, the memories won't echo through time if time is not taken to make them.

This is a lot to think about. I started out thinking keeping the home was staying there and keeping it clean.

Keeping a home.
Oh, what a privilege.
To Be the Love Abiding Strand
That holds together in perfect union,
Those that within it would labor in.

Seeking the strength of the Almighty
To guide the keeper's words and ways
This task of keeping is worth the gaining,
and losing of one's own self in it.

Now I guess, I'll go eat my pizza.

Apple Fritters

2008-10-28T14:34:00.005-04:00

This is a good recipe from the Taste of Home
30 min. Cookbook.

Apple Fritters

2 1/2 Cups all-purpose flour or if you grind, soft wheat
1/2 Cup instant nonfat dry milk powder
1/3 Cup sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1 Cup water
2 Cups chopped, peeled tart apples

Oil for deep frying
Confectioners' sugar

In a mixing bowl, combine the first five ingredients. Beat eggs and water separately and stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in apples.
In a deep fryer or electric skillet, heat oil to 375*. Drop batter by teaspoonfuls into oil and fry until golden brown. Drain. Dust with confectioners' sugar. Serve warm.
Yields about 3 1/2 dozen

Enjoy! We had these for dinner last night with baked sweet potatoes, Golden Baked Chicken, and green beans. They were a real hit with the children. We also had enough left over to have them with eggs, juice, and syrup this morning.

Untitled Poem by Alice Cary and a lesson learned.

2008-10-27T09:46:00.009-04:00

True worth is in being, not seeming;
In doing each day that goes by
Some little good; not in dreaming
Of great things to do by and by.
For whatever men say in their blindness,
And spite of the fancies of youth,
There's nothing so kingly as kindness,
And nothing so royal as truth.

By Alice Cary

I really like this poem. I found it a few days ago. It speaks to me of being honest with one's self, and about how that what we do today is just as important as our future dreams.

Yesterday, I learned a new lesson. Sometimes, the best lessons are learned by living them out. I thought I'd include it in this post as a poem of my own.

Lesson Learned

No matter my days, my circumstances, or the emotions that go on.
I could be selfish and not worship but all this has not changed You God.
You deserve all the praise and all my affections.
You deserve my hands lifted up.

Though I may not feel wanting to worship;
Though the song does not rise up from within,
God, I will give you honor and glory
Because of who You are.

Then I know my thoughts will move on- past the I, the me and my.
For You are ever greater than the feelings which rise inside;
Tomorrow will be another day, perhaps full of thankfulness and praise;
As for today, I thank you God for I know who You really are.

I know You hold my tomorrows, and that You will hold my hand.

More Conversations...

2008-10-22T21:00:00.005-04:00

9yr. old walked into the kitchen as he was taking a 3-5 minute break into piano practice....

"I've been thinking about what John saw in Revelation."

Now, I can't quite sent him trotting off to continue practice when he says this, can I?

"Those streets of gold were made of such pure gold. Why we wouldn't really understand how pure they are. They don't have any minerals mixed in with it or anything! And another thing, if God makes His streets of gold then He must not think gold is very important. I mean we use tar to make our streets!"

This is the mind of a child. He has been thinking about Heaven and what John saw. Perhaps he'll catch a vision of that glorious place. Perhaps, he'll remember the words of Christ as he warned about not setting our affections on things below but on things above. Maybe, he'll get a deep desire to go there.

It seems that Christ knew that it would be easy to set our affections on things below. I was walking through the grocery store the other day and the thought crossed my mind about another depression. How would we handle such a thing? It wouldn't be easy for anyone, but it would be much harder for those whose affections were on things below. It would be much harder on those who lived at one time very well off. It would be an adjustment to all, but those that don't have much, don't have much to miss. Those that are rich and do not live in moderation would have a lot to get use to.

My little boy's vision of Heaven.... I hope it grows and that the Spirit of God nourishes it.
A vision of Heaven will cause us to want to be pilgrims, looking for a city whose builder and maker is God.

A Post For Me to Remember

2008-10-17T20:25:00.014-04:00

Usually I write my posts with my children in mind, since I hope to one day give them these journals in CD form, but this post is really for me.

Homeschooling has its ups and downs. It has given me the opportunity to learn about myself in a way that perhaps I may never have given myself the chance to learn. One thing that I have learned is that I really enjoy teaching. I'm not talking about handing over a workbook and saying, "Here you go, finish page so and so..." But I'm talking about really teaching.

I've discovered that I like teaching most things relating to Language Arts, specially English. I enjoy teaching other subjects, some more than others, but English has inspired me! From seeing pretty handwriting to hearing them laugh while they enjoy reading, to correcting grammar, and listening to them recite poems. It is like seeing a flower bloom in slow motion, and I love the scenery.

It almost follows my belief in a quote I read that says "Excellence is not an accident." Neither is good penmanship nor is quality,thoughtful writing.

I've replaced a few books on my sidebar for some books that I believe come with excellence in mind. One is First Language Lessons. This is really a good beginning grammar book. The author does a very good job leading a parent in teaching grammar. The further we progress in this book the more impressed I am. We are in the first couple of weeks into the 2ND grade material or the second half of the book.

I would have never realized I enjoyed teaching about helping verbs and that I would relish in hearing beautiful poetry being recited by my kids. That proofreading sentences and seeing cursive flow would actually motivate me in our homeschooling. I thought I was more the medical type. Boy, was I wrong! My husband even mentioned it to me one day. He said, "You know, Linda. You really like to teach them..."

Yeah, I guess I do. When the laundry is not piling high and I can come up with good dinners and can keep my house in order - those are the best days for me. But I've had days where I just wanted to go somewhere and bury my head and cry. Where I thought perhaps this task we had undertaken was going to be too hard. That is why I'm writing this post. Because I know I will have long days again and I want to come back and read this. I want to remember what I have really liked about homeschooling. I want to encourage myself to know that these years will soon be gone and what I instill in them now will not so easily be removed because I have loved teaching them to love to learn. And they will not go away empty or void. Some things can be forgotten, but there are some things love writes within our very soul.

There is no doubt in my mind that God will be faithful to write within their hearts things that only these years could have inspired within their mind and soul. That is my prayer for homeschooling my children.

So Linda, when you read this again someday soon, dry your tears and thank God in heaven for His faithfulness to you. Thank Him for giving you a love to learn and for instilling within you the love to teach. These are priceless tools in homeschooling.

My Bag of Apples

2008-10-14T14:44:00.006-04:00

It's funny how little things spur on memories.
Today, it was a big bag of apples that did it. This is not the first bag of apples I've received this week. My neighbor gave me another bag earlier this week. I very gratefully received them and counted it as God's provision. You see, it takes seven apples to go along with lunch. (5 for the children, and 2 for my husband and I.) If I happen to be short on other fruits that week, then we might have apples everyday and that could be- say five days. So 5x7 is 35 apples.
God's provision for us is so amazing! He knows exactly what we need and does not forget His children.

So my mind went back in time, to a time when I was 19.
My husband and I had been married maybe a year. God seems to show himself at different times and in different ways. This particular time He seemed to want to specifically let me know that He was there. You see, I had checked a book out of the library called How to Clean Everything and I was really impressed by all the ideas and good information. I really wished I didn't have to take it back. We all need all the help we can get and I definitely needed some.

I took it back, and resume my week by going back to the piano lessons I had started that year. I guess I must have been waiting on the piano teacher that day because I began to look at her bookcase and read the various titles of books she had shelved there. Would you believe she happened to have the very same book I checked out of the library? When she returned back into the room I mentioned to her how I had just checked that book out of the library and how that I thought it was a really good book. She pulled it out of the shelf and gave it to me! She said she wanted me to have it as a gift. After lessons, I could not remove the thought from my mind that it had been God who gave that book to me. He was the only person that knew how much I had wanted to keep that book. This has always been a very humbling and yet sweet experience for me. He knows the desires of our heart and chose that day to bless me.

I really didn't have much of an earthly father and couldn't tell you much about him, but oh- can I tell you about my Heavenly Father....there aren't enough words to tell you about Him.

By the way, I still have the book on my bookshelf. A reminder of God's provision.

Thought for the Day...

2008-10-13T13:52:00.004-04:00

"If wisdom's ways you wisely seek, five things observe with care: of whom you speak, to whom you speak, and how, and when, and where..."

Author -Unknown

Times when they make me laugh....

2008-10-08T14:24:00.007-04:00

Fall 2008:

9 yr. old asks,"I wonder what could be making Mommy nauseous?"
7 yr. old responds with, "I think it was that soup you made about six weeks ago, Mom."
(His timing is exceptionally good.)

What did you think about P.E at co-op today?(P.E. is optional and starts 1 hr. before co-op begins)
7 yr. old says," Boring, all we did is Duck-Duck Goose."
9yr. old responds with, "All we had time to do was Duck-Duck Goose!"
(We have yet to make it to the beginning of P.E. but maybe the 5yr. would enjoy it too. She would never have said that.)

3yr. telling me why she loves her 1 yr. old but doesn't love her sister while her sister keeps interrupting, "She hit me and hit me and hit me....excuse me 5yr. old...she hit me and hit me and hit me....excuse me 5yr. old......She hit me, and hit me...." You get the idea don't you? By the way, it is the 3 yr. old that you'd better beware of.

9yr. was spreading some jam on his toast and tends to eat jam with bread instead of bread with jam so I cautioned him with, "Be conservative about the jam." He looked at me kind of confused and said," What does politics have to do with jam?"

Perhaps, I'll keep updating these kind of posts as I they come up.

Yummy Pork Chops!

2008-10-06T21:54:00.005-04:00

Thought I'd quickly write these down. They are my creation and I often forget those!

Blue Cheese Pork Chops

Preheat oven to 375*

Pack of Pork chops or Pork steaks (about 3 or 4 for us)
About 3-4 Tbsp. of Blue cheese dressing
About 1 tsp. of Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning

Trim fat and cut steaks into smaller portions if steaks are large.
Mix everything together. Put the pork in something like a 9x13 pan. Cover with foil. Make five to six small (1/4 of inch or so) slits on top of foil and bake for about 50min.

Enjoy!

We had these this evening along with broccoli, macaroni and cheese, and stuffing.
Yum!

Dear Journal Letter (a casually long update)

2008-10-05T17:46:00.004-04:00

Dear Journal,

I've been wanting to write but I've had all kinds of thoughts running through this mind of mine. Topics ranging from how I'm going to teach Lewis and Clark to 1st and 2ND graders in our co-op to Suzuki piano becoming more Traditional to the definition of apostasy. You see, how could you possibly come up with a sensible post? My days go from good when I'm caught up with my laundry and the downstairs is organized and tidy to a poem that describes my heart is heavy and I need to take my cares to the Lord. And yet in all this storm raging within me, I find my Savior cares so much for me.

Co-op has been good this year considering I have 3 children to home school and toddlers to keep me busy. The prep time for this one hour class hasn't been hard and I've really enjoyed teaching them. I'm sharing our teaching with another dear mom who I'll alternate every 7 weeks with. So two more turns of mine and then she'll have to do the prep work, at least for 7 weeks. We've learned so far about what an explorer is, Marco Polo, C. Columbus, H. Cortes, and Capt. Cook. I've learned a few things along the way. I've been reminded of a few things -those being that greed is a great motivator and inflicter of sorrow, that perseverance and good workmanship brings forth great things, and that there is a great will to live beyond the mundane.

Music has lately troubled my heart torn by what I feel would be most appropriate and an excellent teacher who has a different opinion than I. We began Suzuki piano when my little boy was 5. If I had to do it all over again, I would have waiting till he was 7. He has had good piano theory and very good ear training. But alas, we are moving to a more traditional approach. We
have decided to drop the Suzuki Vol. 2 book and pay more emphasis on his reading. His teacher is really a good teacher and has the better in mind for him. But the Suzuki method, I feel requires more time than I have to give now, plus I want his reading to progress further on. She wants him to have the freedom to untimidly move about the keyboard, to be able to feel the music. Who would know that this would be such an issue in my heart, to play by ear or read the music? She has began to introduce an option that I'm beginning to see as a wonderful compromise. He's in the process of memorizing A Gift to Be Simple and Kumbayah after the fact that he can play them both fluently by reading the music.

It seems that it has been so long since I've spoken to anyone about Apostasy, that I kind of forgot the exact meaning of the word. I had to look it up in the dictionary. I knew it either meant someone who was saved and left the truth or I was thinking it might be someone who knew better and was teaching false doctrine. Turns out that it was someone leaving the truth.
I read 1st and parts of 2ND Peter along with Jude today. The thoughts that stuck in my mind was the dog going back to its vomit, and having been better not to have known of the truth and left it since the end of apostasy is worse.
I'm not a believer that once you're saved - you're always going to be saved. I believe you can walk away from God. I also believe someone who has genuinely been born again will have quite a time leaving the Savior. For He will not easily let you go. He tugs at your heart through His Spirit. But His Spirit can only be grieved so long. That makes apostasy ever so sadder I think.
I've been thinking about that and the parallel of marriage came into my mind. Salvation is like that vow of marriage. Perhaps they forget their first love. It is a decision to stay married. A decision to be faithful to the groom. A choice made out of love for Him who first loved me. When you break the vow, you've committed adultery and unless you make things right with the groom, you are an adulteress. The Bible tells us about no adulterers entering into Heaven. Or perhaps it was idolatry or.....
The prophet Hosea comes to mind. He loved Gomer yet she would not.
This apostasy that I speak about could happen to me, to my heart. Would I go back to the heart I had previously to coming to Christ? I could if my heart gets hard. I could if my eyes waxed dull. I could if my love turns to other and I forget the Savior. And the scary thing is that it all could happen and I could remain in church. A waterless cloud with no savour, with withered fruit that has no roots, or perhaps I could leave it all and start over -but that I don't know how to do. For how would I erase the feeling of His presence or face life all be myself again. It could happen, and if it did, mark that I would be what is called an Apostate.

Spies

2008-09-28T16:25:00.003-04:00

We've been learning about the art of espionage in our home for Social Studies. This correlates with our Bible lessons which right now are on the spies that went into Jerico to spy out the land.
The children have really enjoyed this chapter. I have assigned them everyday a different person in our household to spy on and their job is to be unnoticed and report to me without anyone knowing who told on who, what. They get paid a nickel for any true intelligence report.
We've also learned about codes like morse code and acronyms and the beginnings of the alphabet. They have designed their own spy language to communicate with me. I can tell you they are having a ball with this. They've learned about the "dead drops," the CIA, KGB, and FBI.

I've also learned a few things too. It became real evident to me that one should value loyalty. Many spies were either very loyal or very greedy. Some were blackmailed into sevice while others offered their services for lots of money. The love of money truly is the root of all evil, and many will sell their souls for it.

Our next Bible lesson is on how that we are spied on everyday by Satan and his cohorts. He is a subtle and intelligent spy. He is in the blackmailing and recruiting business. He checks our actions and watches carefully to see if we have a price.

Stained Handkerchief

2008-09-19T19:09:00.007-04:00

Homemade laundry soap has not worked so well for me. I was really excited about it and went ahead and made it but I'm afraid that I'm finding a lot of stains in our clothes. Maybe I didn't do something right. I really wanted it to work for us. Maybe we wash too big a load? I doubled the amount of cups per load since it was so cheap to make, but that didn't seem to help either.

Somewhere in time I heard the illustration of sin being like a black stain on a white handkerchief. The handkerchief being the heart. I've been thinking about stains lately. Denial set in about my laundry but I've just about had it with the stains. Frank Peretti's book The Oath has also stirred a lot of thoughts within me about the handkerchief.

I guess if you had to explain the theory a little more in detail I would say that everyone gets a handkerchief the color of ecru. They all get stained but start out so faint against that background that you can't even tell at first. The owner eventually starts to notice that their handkerchief has some flaws. Some intentional and some that just couldn't be helped. Though, he or she tries to get that hanky cleaned up because the pesky stains are really getting on their nerves, it never seems to look white enough. The fact is, it never will look white on its own.
So the proprietor has only 2 choices to make. He can either keep the hanky ecru clean or just ignore the color and the deep stains set in all together. Can ecru ever look white? There is such a difference.
Of course there is the Weaver of it all that could change the color of the fabric from ecru to white, but that would require admitting that there is something very wrong with ecru. That the stains tend to blend in at first and that if you keep it free from heavy stains, you can't hardly tell how dirty it really stays.
Suppose the owner does come to the Master Weaver and He does such a thing for the helpless fellow. A new life starts out with a white handkerchief. Never again to pretend it is clean. At least not for long.
White is not a true color. It is a hue or shade of color. That is why as a white handkerchief it would show any stain clearly without it blending in. It would show for what it is. A stain would look so out of place. Surely it would make the owner uncomfortable. He would have to go to the Master Weaver with any problem in the fabric and the Master Weaver would make it clean again. If he didn't, the stains would soon set in and spread throughout the fabric to the point that it would eventually shade in most places ecru once again. The Master Weaver would see it and know. The owner would have to not care any more.

Sin is so much like this illustration. It blots our handkerchief and our minds. There is no question about the stain, the handkerchief's condition, and the Master Weaver's ability. The question that arises is which color is your handkerchief? Ecru or White?

Fear

2008-09-13T12:50:00.004-04:00

Do you recognize fear? That feeling that rises from your insides and clutters your thoughts? It seems to slowly close your airways and makes you want to run. But fear isn't only the scary feeling that you might get from reading something like Frank Peretti's books. No, fear can be much more.

Let me share briefly some of them with you. I won't go into detail with some since this was part of my life and personal at that.
But I remember fear..... hiding in utility closets of apartment buildings waiting for someone I was terribly afraid of to leave the vicinity. The only problem was that there were also rats that liked to visit those utility closets and I sure didn't want to be there if one stopped by. I'm still afraid of rats!
I remember fear coming home with a D on a science test and knowing that Mom was not going to be happy. She meant well and made me keep good grades.
Fear when I thought I was so sick I was going to die, and reading medical books did not help the situation!
Fear when I laid down at night and it was just my brother and I and Mom wasn't there for the evening. I still remember listening to noises outside and holding on to my younger brother's hand for comfort.
Feeling fear when I went into labor with any and all of my children.
As I first tried to homeschool and felt so sick pregnant with my third. Failure is not a pretty thought.

Feeling Fear......have you felt it? And yet God sweetly reminds us of who He is and why we shouldn't fear. Why He's the one that led the children of Israel out of Egypt. The One who cleansed and made me whole. The One who helped Job and the three Hebrew children. The One who won my love. The One who knows....

He told Joshua and the Israelites, "Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed; for the Lord thy God is with thee wherever thou goest." (Joshua 1:9)
He also tells them in another place in scripture to "quit ye like men, and fight."

Fear tends to make us so like man. It makes us want to quit and run. God, who is for us, says the opposite, "Stand, Fight, Keep Going."

He reminds us of His love and wonderful works, and how that He can deliver. This gives us a back bone that says, "I will press on because my Redeemer liveth!" Because He Liveth!

I wrote this post because I needed to hear it- to read it. Perhaps more than you'll ever know. I had been thinking about fearing. It just so happened our 9yr. old listened to part of one of Frank Peretti's books on tape and he got scared. (Though Christian Fiction, this isn't really appropriate for children.)
The subject of fear seemed to come back over and over in my mind.
And so did...... the greatness of God.

Can we say, "Does he bite?"

2008-09-03T15:33:00.011-04:00

My mom brought the kids a bug today. A big bug today! She found it and at first thought it was dead. Since we've had an insect collection in the past she thought the children would enjoy taking up this new pet.

We've hosted some interesting insects - Praying mantises, eggs that became big caterpillars and then cocooned , Katydids, crickets, grasshoppers, cicadas, and now a Rhinoceros Beetle.

The best learning is active learning. It's the kind the mind seems to record best. No doubt they will never forget this one. Beetles are insects. This one is as big as about 3/4 of your finger, eats leaves, and is horned. We've put it in a 10 gallon aquarium with dirt, a few plants, a stick or two, and a rock.

Remember Monday.

2008-08-26T20:52:00.009-04:00

We started school on Monday. If it wasn't because 9yr. old took almost an hour doing math, because a grieving relative stopped by, and we had to go to P.E. class when we were already behind schedule we would have done pretty good. By the time the day was over I felt like I had been clearly brought back to the reality of homeschooling several children. Summer break is definitely over and it was blissfully sweet.

Take note of homeschooling hazards:
Delays, Interruptions - be it the phone or visitors, and too many activities.

One good thing from our school was our Bible lesson though. We take our Bible lessons from the Weaver curriculum. Sometimes I can say these are way too deep and more than I want to keeping it simple, but it has also been a good source to stir the fire and many good lessons have come forth from our Bible time.

Monday was just that.

We have covered all the way to the children of Israel receiving the law and some of their wanderings in the wilderness. We are beginning again at the passing of leadership to Joshua and so we reviewed a little....

Why did the children of Israel not enter the promise land? They didn't enter because of unbelief. Unbelief led them to forget God.

They forgot God!
They forgot He was there when they murmured and sinned. They forgot that He cared. They forgot all the wonderful things He had done for them. They woke up in the morning and didn't think about God. They went through their day and he wasn't on their mind. They lived year in and year out and He was just part of their heritage. The law.

Today we reviewed and God so lovingly had a simple child's book make the point.
One of the lines to a song within the pages said,

It's a long time that I'll love you,
Never, Never go away.

Can you hear God's heart?

I sang this song to them and then the words just came....
(Do you know why I think they forgot God?
Because they didn't love Him. There was no love to keep Him in their heart. )

"I love you so much. How could I ever forget you? I couldn't.
I love God too and I can't forget Him either, but if I stop loving Him, then I'll forget Him and you will too. He'll become an afterthought.
I'll forget all the wonderful things He has done for me."

I don't ever want to forget God.

The womb, a cry, and Hannah.

2008-08-23T22:16:00.006-04:00

I've been thinking about Hannah today. You know the Hannah I'm talking about don't you? Hannah from the Bible, the mother of Samuel the prophet.

Her womb was closed up and she could not conceive. This greatly bothered Hannah and when they went to the temple she cried out to God. This wasn't quiet crying. It couldn't have been. Eli the priest wouldn't have thought she was drunk and making a spectacle of herself in the temple if it was quiet and unnoticeable.

She was crying!
There are different kinds of crying for me. There's the kind that comes from a sad story or a movie like "Mother of Mine." There's the kind that is mixed with laughter from doing something so accidental as to run into a guy wire and messing up your front bumper. And then there's the kind that reaches into your soul and cries from sorrow. Cries and the tears just run, cries and your heart voicelessly reaches out.. . Hannah cried, and God heard her.

Her womb was open.
Does God give us children as gifts, as arrows? Does He open the womb for some and keep other women's wombs closed? He is the Giver of Life. Was it their lack of scientific knowledge that led the women of Hannah's day to believe that God had closed their womb? Or was is perhaps a closer knowledge to truth and faith that openly disclosed this info? To have a womb that won't give forth fruit- I think this is why many a woman today will opt for adoption.

When God answered her prayer her womb became fruitful. It became a womb that gave forth little Samuel. What fruit has come forth from my womb? Will any of the children have a heart like Samuel? Will they cry out, "Speak my Lord, for thy servant heareth," even in their lack of knowing His voice.
Will they cry out?

Little fingers, little toes

Planned ahead by the Master.

Useful vessels here below-

Oh, to be a Mother.

Sewing, Crocheting, and School....

2008-08-22T21:38:00.009-04:00

I felt a wave of accomplishment this week because I finished the curtains to the boys' room. I made 8 cream colored panels with 13 yards of fabric.
(60"x 45" approx. finished size)
It seems that time has caught up with me though and the price for homeschooling is time. Yet the awakened feeling of doing things I haven't done in say...10-12 yrs is so strange and good for me.

I started a beautiful afghan 12 yrs. ago, made 11 squares for it and took a year break. Sometime after that I had my first born and it has been kept in a storage bin until last week. I pulled it out and took a good look at it. I have forgotten quite a bit about crocheting and oh, if only you could see some of my crosstitching patterns! But it's coming back to me little by little and just yesterday as I listened to another homeschooling mom talk to me during P.E class I figured out how to do the leaves on the roses.

I need to make 12 more of these to complete the afghan. Perhaps the thought of how pretty it will look on my recliner and the thought of having made it myself will keep me going. One day I would like to teach my girls how to crochet and how to crosstitch.

It's been about two weeks now since we started getting up at 6:45 am and now 6:30 am. We slept in during summer but now need to get back to out routine. We started getting up this early last school year to avoid the little ones during our busy school work and it worked beautifully for us. So for the last two weeks we have read, prepared school stuff, etc. during our morning hours. I'm really a morning person and have really enjoyed this. I may start school next week, but I covet the extra time I've had to do little things here and there.

Huckleberries and a long thoughtful road...

2008-08-19T16:42:00.004-04:00

We went camping with family on Friday night. We'd never been to this particular mountain and didn't have any idea how rough the carved out road up to the camping sight was. I thought we crawled up the mountain for at least five miles trying to avoid the rocks. It was probably more like 2 miles but it took a long time. We probably won't do that to our vehicle again. If we had known that it was going to get that bumpy we would have camped out somewhere else but once you started up the road there was no room to turn back till maybe half way up there and we kept thinking that we would surely be there soon.

It was worth the trip though and we had lots of fun. We picked 2 gallons of Huckleberries(which I thought were going to be blueberries) and about 1/2 gallon of blackberries. There were wild ponies there and we heard them sometime during the night. The boys roasted marshmallows, picked berries and ate them, and even got to pet one of the ponies before it trotted away.

On our way down the mountain my husband made a statement that stayed with me. Maybe it was because the berries were small and it took a long time to get 1 gallon. Maybe because once you found a good tree you stayed with it..
He mentioned that he truly understood what Jesus was saying about the kingdom of Heaven being like a treasure hidden in a field and when a man finds it, he hides it and for the joy of it goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. (This is found in Matthew Chapter 13)

After he mentioned it, I kept thinking about the kingdom of God. I was exposed to it and found the treasure when I was 14.
Maybe He found me and I responded. It made me want God more than my will, the desires of my heart, more than the fashions and doings of the day, and more than the world's wisdom. I desperately wanted God and was willing to sell everything to have Him within my heart with peace, and forgiveness, and adoption, and with the love and joy that only He could give...

The Kingdom of Heaven....Oh, to seek for it and find Salvation- to buy it and make it one's own. There is no greater treasure anywhere on earth.

How the Sight Does Adjust....To the Dark

2008-08-09T23:17:00.008-04:00

Every night so far I get baby 1 yr. old ready for bed, with his blanket, a sippy full of milk, by turning the fan in his room on, giving him a kiss and a wave goodnight. He's so cute. Sometimes he's so tired he waves back goodnight. Later on that evening I go back in there to retrieve the sippy. I don't turn the lights on because that might wake him and I haven't put a night light in there, because it will just get pulled out the next day. So sometimes I have to search for the sippy with my hands because it's so dark in there that I can't see much. Within a short amount of time, I begin to see enough to find it. My eyes got use to the dark. They adjusted. If I was to stay in the bedroom for a good while, like I did when he was nursing, seeing would not be a problem.

This is often a good reminder that we can get use to the world. It may seem odd and unfamiliar at first. It may take a little time to find our way around in it, but given time we will adjust. It's kind of like the frog who wouldn't jump into a frying pan or boiling water. But if you put him in a pan with cool water and slowly warmed him up you might have yourself a cooked frog that didn't know what happened.

God's Word says to be not conformed to this world. (Romans 12:2)... That friendship with the world is enmity with God. (James 4:4)
God tells us not to love the world, neither the things that are in the world...(I John 2:15)......To keep ourselves unspotted from the world. (James 1:27)
And we even learn about Demas, who forsook Paul, having loved this present world. (2 Tim. 4:10)

Demas's sight must have adjusted to the dark.
These are sobering thoughts, but not ones to be avoided.
Oh, that God would help us in this present time to see sin clearly as an ugly thing and the world's luster for the cheap imitation that it tries to be. That He would keep our heart tender to not sin and hurt the Saviour's heart. That He would everyday purge the world from our hearts.
That He would keep our sight as so that it would not adjust.

Looking thru the Eyes of a Girl...

2008-08-08T11:00:00.003-04:00

I've had many thoughts this week.

There's a new book on my sidebar called NEW FOUND LAND by Allan Wolf. To be self sufficient is a great thing. One that many couldn't fathom. But so is having present conveniences. These people back in Lewis & Clark's day knew what the word work meant. I know very little of that kind of life when it comes to work, yet these people knew so much more about survival, of excellence, of life.

There's excitement in our household as we prepare to go camping. We're going tent camping with family at a mountain about 2hrs away, and then going blueberry picking the next day.

5yr old asks, "Are there bears out there in the woods?"

"There could be." I reply.

"Do bears eat meat?"

"Yes."

"I don't know that I want to go camping on the mountain."

"Are there snakes out there?"

3yr. old says, "I don't like snakes."

Dear Journal Letter (Long Absence...#?)

2008-08-04T10:42:00.007-04:00

Dear Journal,

We finally got our computer Internet going again. This is good in some aspects because I can now keep up with what's going on in our community concerning homeschooling, but I liked the absence. I really did...

School will soon start for us. I haven't decided whether to start the 2ND week of August or the last. I'm not in a hurry since I want to get a few more decorating things done around the house, so I'll probably start the last week or September 1st. I finished painting the boys' room except for the doors and a little bit of trim. I'll start on the stenciling soon. We moved the bunk beds into their room which cleared a lot of space for them and now their room looks so nice. I think they like it. This project has stirred within me feelings concerning our home. Feelings that have been asleep for awhile, I think. I've been so busy homeschooling and taking care of children that the joy of homemaking has been on the side burner.

Is there really a joy that comes from making a house a home?

There is. And mine has woke up. I keep thinking that if a baby comes our way again that perhaps it will become tucked away somewhere in the filing box of my life. And this may happen, but for the meantime, I'm going to feed this desire to make our house a home sweet home. The old wood that perhaps shows, for the time being will show with glee. And the furniture that shows it's wear will compliment its occupants.

In other news, I've been sick lately and just starting to feel better. Seems I caught Walking Pneumonia. Didn't I get this nasty plight sometime before this year? I wouldn't wish it on anyone. I thought I'd cough my abdominals out! Thank God for modern medicine, because I don't wish to know how bad it could have gotten.

Sincerely Yours,

Linda

P.S Today is Friendship Day.

Detour into the Valley of Humiliation

2008-07-18T17:58:00.016-04:00

Early this morning my 7yr. old and the 5 yr. old were sitting together in the recliner listening to an Adventure In Odyssey called Pilgrim's Progress Revisited. We really like those episodes. I can't quite recall what I was doing but the story started talking about the valley of humiliation. Christian was going through the Valley of Humiliation.

What exactly is the Valley of Humiliation? Is that where we make a total fool out of ourselves and God removes any pride left over?

I'm not sure I can define it well, but it stirred some memories which I would classify as in my valley of humiliation folder. I haven't lived long and really don't know if this would qualify, but as a Christian we must all pass through some of these.

I was in my Sophomore year in High School and had been saved about a year. Some schools are good and some are not so good. This one happen to be in the not so good with a few exceptional teachers category. The class I was not doing so good in had a teacher that was probably a good in his prime, but as of late had a sleeping disorder and yet was still employed and teaching the present subject.

That day we had an exam. As I was turning in my test my teacher must have been having a good dream because he was past the stage of dozing. He also must have fallen sleep before he put away the test with the answers. So there it was laying out before me- The answer sheet and I could tell, even upside down what the answers were and mine were not right! I decided not to turn my test in and disturb the teacher's rest and went back to my seat. After I changed my answers, I turned in the test and returned to my seat. As soon as I sat down, a classmate of mine looked at me and said,

"I thought you said you were a Christian?" Do you sense the silence in the air?

This was probably one of my first Valley's of Humiliation. It was as though Satan himself was taunting me. But it seemed more like the Lord was looking straight at me. I had done more than just sin. I had brought shame to the name of Christ.

I left the class by letting the teacher know, and asking him to just give me a zero on it.

I went home and wept. How could I go back to school? Those were my thoughts. How could I continue to try to live like a Christian when I had failed the Lord and brought shame to the gospel? I called my pastor for advise and he very wisely comforted me and thought the best course of action was to apologize to those I thought perhaps had seen it. And that's what I did the next day. I told them I was sorry for what I had done- for the example I had set. They have no idea how sorry I was to have misrepresented the Lord. Most scoffed at it and thought it was silly. The classmate who ushered those words said,

"You're really serious about this Christian thing."

Life went on and I survived that Valley, but I learned a great deal about repentance and humiliation before the Lord. These Valleys of Humiliation are not pleasant, but they are needful. They make us realize that without Christ's help and an honest and sincere heart we cannot please God. They help us see the subtleness of sin, our weaknesses, and how our righteousness is as filthy rags.
These are lessons that turn dross into gold.

Pride

2008-07-15T15:48:00.004-04:00

Pride comes in many forms it seems
But very far from God it sits,
or stands and sometimes even prances back and forth...

It yields its will,
Surmising that it is correct,
in which it could be but might as well not be
Because of Pride.

It builds a wall,
Repelling all the attributes of God,
Yet it's Mercy and Grace that make some headway
Through the ever tightening cracks.

Deceiving Pride even fools those who sit and wait on God.
It mocks within the gullible friend who takes it to its side.
It's favorite mode of transportation-
He rides on feelings and admiration.
Beware of Pride's hellucinating -
Poison.

--------------------

Sometimes, I just like the poetic approach.

Reminicing the Old Paths and a little on Work

2008-07-13T16:16:00.011-04:00

It's been ten days since my last blog. I really don't mean to be so spaced out, but I guess making a home has kept me busy.

This morning as I got ready for church I began thinking about camp meetings. I thought about good old fashion preaching, about the Lord descending upon services and feeling His very presence amidst. About altar calls that drew me to my knees and helped me make things right. About the peace of God that causes the praise to stay within one's heart. About the state of the church and how that you can't throw the old paths away because of it. No- you can't throw away the old paths, not when they're in your heart. Not when they have become part of your heart. The love of God constrains one to walk in the old paths of His Word. Perhaps when I finally get to Heaven one day, there will be a reunion for the saints like never seen before and it will be better than camp meeting days ever were or could possibly ever be!

______________________________
A Word on Work

I've been thinking about the work ethic as of late. I would like the children to grow up to have qualities of good workmanship. This is a hard task for man, I think. Everything takes work- gardens, dinners, playing the piano or the violin, raising children, the maintenance of a home and of personal property, organization....you name it. I'm preaching to the choir here. But I think about what you don't or won't have without it. I think about the ruin that comes to things and even people in neglect or procrastination.
My children are very blessed to have opportunities that were not available to me. They have a 2 parent home (that desires God). They have several siblings that provide company and friendship. They have been afforded the opportunity to play piano and violin. I've been able to home school them.
All these wonderful things require work. As they grow I want them to see that work is beneficial and not a burden. That one day they will have a chance to work at whatever God so brings their way, and that they can and should do it to the best of their ability.
All this said, we as parents have a large task ahead of us.

The Lowlights and the Highlights..small view into God's view

2008-07-03T18:42:00.007-04:00

Yesterday and the day before's lowlights:

Wiped up several pee spills from the 3yr. old who has been potty trained for over a year now,but is boycotting going to the potty by herself from either fear of ants she encountered last year while we were remodeling our bathroom, or just plain stubbornness.
Wiped up lots of salt and pepper from 1 yr. old who can't seem to stay off the table or out of mischief.
Patched up living room chair which 3 yr. old punctured hole in with only the Lord knows what.
Propped up radio antenna which 7yr. old accidentally broke off.
3yr old's elbow popped out of joint again.(2nd time)

The highlights:

I had enough Chocolate Malt-a-Meal w/marshmallows for everyone to have a bowl for breakfast. (six bowls)
We went to the Library's Summer Reading Program and watched the Mad Scientist perform some neat experiments to show gravity, centrifugal force, and what you can do with dry ice.
Cleared hallway where I had several bins of clothes waiting to be taken downstairs to the basement.
I had fresh pineapple brought back by a friend from Hawaii, 1/4 c. of sweetened condensed milk(I loved this stuff when I was little.) And later, a cup of Butter Pecan Ice Cream.
I got my bread done for the next week in a half. (five loaves)
3yr. old's elbow is OK now.
Best of all, today is my 3rd born's birthday. She's 5 today.

So what did I glean from all this?

Well, I was not a happy camper when I saw the hole on the furniture. I didn't enjoy one bit watching the 3yr. old just stand there and pee all over the kitchen floor, and I definitely was having a frustrating day with all the wipe ups I had to keep up with from the 1 yr. old. I mentioned the highlights because I don't want to be ungrateful for all my blessings throughout the days. Then it hit me.

As I went over my frustration and disappointment, I stepped back and viewed the children for what they are. Children. Left to themselves, they are helpless.

This must be how God looks at us. We are at times disobedient, stubborn, fearful, destructive and yet he loves us for what we are. His creation, some even His own. He has sympathy/empathy, tender mercies, and wants the best for us.

I had a much better day today. I think it was because I was looking at them through a different view.

Cherries and Paint...

2008-06-27T07:15:00.005-04:00

OK, I know I didn't have anything planned this summer except for the Summer Reading Program at the library and lots of swimming in our back yard. I haven't blogged much lately because I've been too busy either going on walks with my hubby and the kids or figuring out how I'm going to decorate the boys' bedroom.

We probably wouldn't have gone on so many walks but we happen to find a cherry tree, 4 to be exact. We stopped to gaze at the oodles and doodles of cherries on the tree, had a few (we were at the cemetery -so the dead people didn't mind), and Jimmy said,
"Call the Cemetery tomorrow and ask them if we can pick the cherries."
They said yes, so we went picking. The children had a grand time! They picked, played, picked some more, rode their bikes, ate some cherries, got a little sticky, and picked some more. In total I think we picked about 8-9 quarts of cherries.
Want to know how to pit cherries?
Have lots of little boys and girls! :O) Give them a straw. Have them put the straw right through the middle of the cherry, and the pit will come out on the other side. Our 7 yr. old was pretty proficient at this. But since we don't have any plans of moving, and the cemetery isn't going anywhere either, we bought a cherry pitter that pits a wee bit faster. Besides, I've been wanting a fruit tree for my birthday, Mother's day, Valentine's Day, whatever day and the folks around here are a little behind on this specific present, so hopefully this experience will get them thinking.

So what else has delayed my blogging? Well, I got the decorating bug. Mind you that I'm not very talented in the area of decorating. I could give you the excuse that I've been too busy having children, wiping fingerprints, potty training, and reading books to them to decorated in detail. And I just have, but truly I just haven't done too much decorating besides matching a few items and hanging up a few nice picture frames.
I decided to paint the boys' room a brown mustard yellow. I'm going to stencil some horse shoes, sheriff's stars, maybe a few other items around in a border sort of way in burgundy or blue. Then I'm going to stencil in black, cowboy sayings like, "Rope Up a Star, Partner!" ,"Fly Like the Wind!... Wish I knew some other inspiring western sayings. If you happen to know any and think of one, drop me a comment a let me know.
I've even lost my mind and decided to make these curtains I've envisioned in my mind in either blue or burgundy.
After I'm done with this, I hope to move on to the dining room. I can't waste much time. Summer is quickly moving along and you never know, the Lord might send another baby. So you see I feel an urgency in getting my project done. I painted their bedroom last night and need to do some trim work and run a 2ND coat. Maybe, after my creation is done, I'll post some pictures. In the meantime, the colors will keep running through my mind.
Oh, sometimes I think I've forgotten my artistic abilities!

Taco Soup

2008-06-21T16:09:00.005-04:00

Here's a quickie for you, good and healthy too. We had this last night and then we went... I tell you about that later.

TACO SOUP

2lbs ground beef
1 med. onion, finely chopped
1 can(28 oz) crushed tomatoes
1 can(15oz) tomato sauce
1 cup water
1 can of corn(drained) or whatever frozen veggies you have on hand that you like
1 can (15oz) pinto beans, drained
1 envelope taco seasoning mix
sour cream,shredded cheese, sliced avocados, tortilla chips(optional)

In a large pot, brown beef and onion, and drain. Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, corn, pinto beans, and taco seasoning. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. If desired, top each serving with cheese, and then sour cream.

Yields about 10 servings

Enjoy!

Return to Kingdom Refrigerator - the side by side allegory

2008-06-14T18:27:00.010-04:00

Last time we left our faithful Knight in skirts...... she had conquered the Dragon of Slouthfulness and deeply wounded him. Faithfully following the King"s proclamation found in Titus 2:5 , she humbly summited herself to the King's edict and slew that dragon far away from the land. (Read more about it Here.)

Since then, the Land of Refrigerator shined with the glow of cleanliness (at least for a time), leaving our knight wondering if trouble was brewing deep within the land's borders. Knight Linda didn't fear cleaning up the small blots that sometimes crept up here and there. Sometimes the citizens of that land would carelessly make crumbs that would leave you wanting the shine back, but it was nothing that couldn't be dealt with easily. Our brave knight could handle this job.

Our story takes a twist though, when the borders of Kingdom Refrigerator were enlarged. Now what would take our Lady Knight one hour to battle, took two or three! It may not have taken her so much time, but the new borders needed to be completely inspected and thoroughly battled over. New additions to the land had to be cleaned up, and Knight Linda wondered when she would finally finish her task. Thankfully the King knew her situation and sent a very good esquire who had joined her company for almost five years now. This esquire faithfully followed the Knight's requests and dried all the washed up properties with great care and enthusiasm. She knew that without the esquire's help her duties could have taken longer and would have lacked the sweet company needed for Lady Knights all around. The true saying, "To whom much is given, much is required," rang in the back of our dear Knight's mind. Thankful for her new addition, she hoped to be faithful to her King and a good steward to the land. She knew those dragons would come lurking again, but she was not alone. Oh no, she was not alone.

The End

So there you have it. We now have a side by side refrigerator and a little more work. I couldn't have asked for a better 5yr. helper though. :o)

Curriculum latest, school is over, and birthday news.

2008-06-03T14:45:00.005-04:00

The school year is over for us and so are the curriculum sales in this area. I have sold and bought and have been getting a few things I didn't find. I must say this is my favorite time of year and as we drew to a close, my children rewarded me with the question,
"Since school is over can we still read and talk about our history?"

Today I signed them up for the Library Summer reading program. Our library has a wonderful reading program with special guests each week to perform, read, encourage, and delight. We are sure to visit every week this summer.

In other news...2yr. old turned 3. My baby is growing up!! The sun is taking its toll on her and she's quickly going to pass me up in shades of tan. She looks like me, which is odd because they tend to look more like their daddy. The resemblance gives me a weird feeling.

So what kind of goodies did I get for the coming year:

*For Instruction in Righteousness

*Saxon 54 (for the 4Th grader)

*Learning At Home by Ann Ward Pre K- Kindergarten (I use to have this but I sold it, and now I think I'll use it again and found it for an outstanding price!)

*All the Miquon I'll need for child #3 and child #4 (thanks to my friend who kept an eye out for me)

*Story of the World Vol 2 (for our library)

...and several other things.

I'll be starting Weaver Vol. 3 . This is a real accomplishment for me because it seemed like something that would take forever to get to. Time is flying and my two boys have finished well and will begin next school calendar as a 2ND grader and a 4Th grader, not to mention my little 5yr. old who will start Kindergarten.
I can say from my heart that I have enjoyed homeschooling the children. It has been an adventure for all of us that I have not regretted. Now, all I have to do is weather the summer months. We're not going to do much. :o)

Playtime Reminders

2008-05-28T21:24:00.005-04:00

7 yr. old says
"I'm going to ride my bike. Let's pretend it's my horse. OK?"
"The Piggies are coming! The Piggies are coming!" (Can you hear the giggles?)
"The British are coming! The British are coming!"
All this is going on while I'm trying to make dinner, and I can see and hear most of it out our kitchen bay window. Minutes later, the girls have the baby in a wagon sucking on lollipops as the carriage boy pulls them along.

These are those kind of moments that you want to hold onto forever. Minutes that you don't want to pass away. It must be their smiles that have captured my heart. Something about their innocence and not so, that brings tenderness to their cry.
-But I'm getting sidetracked here because my blog tonight was suppose to be about playtime. What was it that I was thinking about concerning playtime? I was thinking about how that their thoughts pour out into their play. Can you tell mine had been thinking about the Revolutionary War? We read an early reader today called Sybil Ludington's Midnight Ride. It was a very good book. The pictures were just right for all of them and even the 4 yr. old was caught up in the story. We have really enjoyed this time period in history. From the bravery and humble heart of George Washington to the unbelievable betrayal of Benedict Arnold. And it thrills my heart to think it is pouring out into their playtime.

There are many lessons to be learned from children, and I have only begun to scratch the surface on some of them. Playtime....a very good reminder of what our children are digesting.

The Blank Paper Effect

2008-05-26T10:20:00.006-04:00

It seems people who like to blog like to look at a blank piece of paper and begin writing. There is something good about coming up with your own thoughts and somehow in your own way putting them down on paper. (In our case, a computer screen.)
I believe it is very much like this also with children. There is a good place and time for workbooks, but how much better a blank piece of paper? Some say it's plain and unmotivating. I can see where it would have to be jump started if all a child was use to was filling in the blanks. But once they felt the freedom of expressing themselves, oh..... think of the possibilities.

What can a child do with a blank piece of paper? They can draw for you what they've learned with all the details they picked up along the way. A child can have fun drawing the houses from whatever time period you're studying. Drawing battles and labeling them is like a stamp of ink upon their memory. How about drawing a famous character with the fashion of that day? They can sketch weapons, inventions, vehicles of the time. The blank paper is a friend to us mothers wanting to instill a love for learning.

As they get older and begin to learn to write, given time, a blank piece of paper will fill out with words.
Their spelling and vocabulary will improve and blank papers will give wings to their creativity.
I use composition books for their copy work and dictation. I have them correct their spelling on a blank piece of paper. They must compose a sentence for their misspellings. Here's a few:

- We have a certain sink so big I can fit a bicycle in it!
- I have to write a sentence about a cell.
- The central is the middle.
- I object to the language of science!
- Weak energy is of no use.
-If you get a clock in working order it would include lots of minutes.

If the child can put it down on a blank piece of paper then the child is learning and retaining it.

The Blank Paper Effect-
Trying it for a season ,without giving up will make a believer out of you.

Fences

2008-05-22T06:08:00.009-04:00

We have an open lot next to our house that we cleared last year. Clearing it was the best thing we could have done when it comes to maintenance and usage, but there were a few drawbacks. We lost our privacy. When we had the woods next to us no one could see us outside our patio.

There were some nice things that occurred from it too, like getting to know a nice elderly couple above us. They are in their 70s or 80s, probably more like their 80s. While we tilled a garden, Bud would come out and talk to my husband. He would jokingly tease my husband about all the work he put into it. It's almost like it reminded them of how much they liked gardening but because of bodily ailments couldn't really do anymore. His wife got to know my kids. When I would pick green beans she would come out and talk to me. We started a nice friendship, and many nice conversations about all kinds of subjects came forth from meeting them.

Sometimes we wished we had the privacy again though, because they could see any crazy idea we had. And we have lots of them! So eventually, like 3 weeks ago, we rearranged our fence. We had a backhoe come and dig. He moved some fencing around, added some new fencing up, tilled a new area for the garden, and yesterday we went and bought tomato, green and red pepper, and strawberry plants. It's nice to be able to do things without being watched. But I wonder if the elderly couple miss seeing us. The fencing is nice, but in the process I feel like we have stopped being a blessing. There was a cost for our fence that was more than money and labor.

We often build fences to keep us safe from getting hurt and for privacy, and there is a lot of good in that. But sometimes I think we build fences and keep people we could otherwise befriend out or at a safe distance. Yesterday, as I pondered our loss, I thought about my neighbors. Perhaps I'll go visit her sometime soon.

A little Spanish..

2008-05-19T21:29:00.007-04:00

I have been looking over my bookshelves because tomorrow is our area's curriculum sale. I've got 2 medium boxes full of stuff to sell. I can't wait! This is definitely better than shopping for clothes for me.
Well, as I was looking through books and convincing myself that I would never get around to using this and that I found a Spanish song typed out on white copy paper. Would you believe that someone gave me the words to that song about 12 yrs ago or so? And that I still have it?

I'm going to post it with the translation or a close translation to the verses:

Title: Que Lindo Es Mi Cristo
My Christ is so Beautiful

Verse 1
Ques lindo es mi Cristo,
My Christ is so Beautiful.
Cuan Grande es su Amor,
Whose love is so grand,

Yo andaba perdido, El vino y me ayo.
I wondered lost, He rescued me.

Con sus tiernas manos, el me acaricio,
With His tender hands, he touched me.

Tomo mi en sus brazos, y alli me arrullo.
He took me in His arms, and there cradled me so.

Chorus
Que dulces caricias, las the Salvador
How sweet are the dealings, the ones from the Saviour.

Caricias que llenan mi alma de Amor.
Dealings that fill my soul with Love.

Su vos me asegura, conmigo esta,
His voice reassures me ,that with me He abides,

Esta para siempre, por la Eternidad.
He's with me forever, through Eternity.

Verse 2
Que lindo es mi Cristo,
My Christ is so Beautiful.
Cuan grande es su Amor.
Whose love is so grand,

Que diste tu vida, por mi pecador,
You gave your life, for me- a sinner.

Dejaste tu Trono, por venir aqui,
Leaving your throne, to come down here,

Buscando perdidos, me encontraste a mi.
Buscando perdidos, me encontraste a mi.
Looking for lost ones,... you found me.
Looking for lost ones,... you found me.

It doesn't sound really swell in English, but in Spanish there is a passion of beauty in that song, and a sweet reminder of small beginnings.

A little story ...Anonymous and an old song.

2008-05-17T12:31:00.003-04:00

I have been meaning to blog this. I wrote it down in the back page of my Bible many years ago. I think it's something I heard over the pulpit. I thought about it again this morning and thought I'd go ahead and share it.

Once there was a boy who stood on the beach collecting the starfish that the ocean's waves had brought to shore. As he found each starfish he would carefully throw it back into the depth of the sea. A man came over to the boy. Puzzled at the boy's action he said, "Boy, why do you even bother. There's so many thousands of starfish and only one of you. It doesn't really matter if you save a couple when thousands are lost everyday!"
At this the boy picked up a starfish and threw it far into the ocean. Looking at the man he replied, " It mattered to that one!"

I also heard a song yesterday called I See a Crimson Stream. Here's one of the verses that touched my heart.

When gloom and sadness whisper
You've sin'd no use to pray,
I look away to Jesus,
And He tells me to say:

I see a crimson stream of blood,
It flows from Calvary,
Its waves which reach the throne of God,
Are sweeping over me.

That's really so good to my heart that it makes me want to pray!

Dear Journal Letter #6 ("Do what works for you."said I.)

2008-05-16T09:53:00.010-04:00

Dear Journal,

This is really my favorite time a year. The used curriculum sales start next week for us here in my spot of the world. Homeschooling has its pros and cons but picking out and buying the curriculum is a big pro for me. I actually have lots of fun. There are so many choices and I get a real kick from looking at books that are at a great price and go with our school stuff. Plus, don't let me forget the fact that I get to sell the stuff we don't want or need any more.

This year we used First Language Lessons by Jessie Bauer, the folks from A Well-Trained Mind. This is a great book for first and second grade grammar. It follows a Charlotte Mason approach-incorporating poetry, dictation, memorization, and covering the grammar they need to know in an effective way that steers away from the fill in the blank approach. Our 7yr. old has done great with it.

We also used Language Arts Through Literature ( the Yellow Book) and Primary Language Lessons for 3rd grade. If I could only show you my son's composition book! The yellow book was easy but it covered the things that perhaps were not quite settle in his mind. The Primary Language Lessons is basicly a drill book
which rounded out the easyness of LLATL. Both these books follow a Charlote Mason approach incorporating nature study, dictation, art, memorization, and copy work to teach grammar.

So what will I use for 2nd and 4th?

The 2nd half of First Language Lessons for 2nd grade.

LLATL Orange and we'll finish the second half of Primary Language Lessons for 4th grade.

I already have these handy in my bookshelf, so what am I going to the book sales for? To get all the other things I might get that we'll enjoy. Things like Adventures in Odyssey sets, educational games, maybe some math, some interesting Bible books I saw recently, Christian Light Readers, Story Hour vol 2-5 cd sets, non-fiction living books...... I could go on.

Maybe next time I'll tell you why I won't have to hunt for my core curriculum.

Linda

Doctors and Immunizations

2008-05-13T15:03:00.005-04:00

Today I took our One yr. old to his 1 yr. old check up. Everything went well. He's growing good though genetics are taking over and he might be short. :o)

I feel I picked a good pediatrician for my children. Today, I felt like I definitely did. It was time for his MMR immunization. Our doctor had reservations about it. The topic of immunizations had come up several times in the years I've taken the children in and he always has been on the side of better safe than sorry, except for the MMR which he has been studying and the Chicken Pox vaccine. I've let all the children be immunized with a little prayer in my heart and an uneasy feeling. He showed more concern this time. He said studies showed 1 out of 150-250 children get Autism or PDD from it! Surely, he meant 150,000! But he didn't.

1 out of 150-250!
There was enough concern in his mind to feel that the vaccine was questionable.
Maybe, the PDD symptoms came from too much TV watching? He said that had also been speculated.
When do most children with Autism begin to show signs? He said usually at about 15 months but some people don't catch it till the children are 2 or 3 yrs. old. What a coincidence!

Doctors are human. They make mistakes. I'm glad when you have some who show concern and study.
Today, I didn't let them give him the MMR vaccine. He said we could think it over and maybe have it done several months from now if we wanted to. So I left the office thinking.

If it happened to happen, what's worse -Measles, Mumps, Rubella, or ...Autism?