The sorriest excuse I hear from "Christians" is that title statement. "I'm just not called to do that." How the church has made the people believe that this is a valid excuse for defying God's commands is a travesty.
How we can take the Word and twist the words and come out looking like the world, and not be scared about it - is beyond me.
We are called to fear The Lord. Most of us have forgotten, or decided to ignore that bit of advice. It means that we should fear breaking His commands, letting Him down, sinning against Him, more than we fear making others uncomfortable, loosing face with our friends, loosing our job due to our morality, losing our place in our world.
I hear the above excuse from parents regarding adoption, giving stuff away and moving overseas, staying at home and parenting my own kids, serving my husband, homeschooling.
Especially homeschooling. Wow, what a touchy subject that is. But if you are a Christ follower, and want your kids to have hearts consecrated to Him, then you can't really put them into public school. If a parent or parents truly have no other choice, then that parent better be on his/her knees begging for protection from all that is evil in the public school. And be prepared to fix what the school breaks. Sadly funny that we have a 'war against evil', yet we feed evil in our schools.
I'm reading a great book called What's so Great About Christianity, by Dinesh D'Souza. He talks about the public schooling sector, both grade schools and college. Dinesh uses facts and takes quotes from respectable sources. He is not scouring the trash to find some periodical with articles no one ever reads - he quotes lectures from Harvard, NY Times articles, etc.
"The strategy of (secular teachers) is not to argue with religious views or to prove them wrong. Rather, it is to subject them to such scorn that they are pushed outside the bounds of acceptable debate...Teachers can pressure students to abandon what their parents taught them simply by labeling those positions simplistic and unsophisticated."
Dinesh wraps up the chapter by stating "children spend the majority of their waking hours in school. Parents invest a good portion of their life savings in college education to entrust their offspring to people who are supposed to educate them. Isn't it wonderful that educators have figured out a way to make parents the instruments of their own undoing. Isn't it brilliant that they have persuaded Christian moms and dads to finance the destruction of their own beliefs and values?"
Read God's Word to find out just what you are expected to do as a Christian, then do it. Raise your kids to be bold for Jesus, teach them the Word, protect them from the world. Put the Kingdom first and everything else will be added to you. Put yourself first and you are in for a high temp. eternity with lots of irritating screaming and crying. That should scare you.
People ask us how we'll afford college for 5 boys. We won't. I don't expect God to want each of our boys to go to college. He has good plans for them, our job is to help them find God's plans and follow them. If college is in order then we'll seek out Christian colleges for our Christ chasing kids. And then they will go out into the world, sure and secure, confident in Him - not in their own strength or might.
Showing posts with label homeschool. Show all posts
Showing posts with label homeschool. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
facts or beliefs?
I've been re-reading articles from christianhomeschool.us. This site has some great resources to help you get, and keep things in perspective.
As a homeschool parent it is easy to get sucked into the world's way of educating. We can forget our purpose, and before you know it, we look like the local public school, just smaller and with less money.
Israel Wayne puts it like this:
"What a child knows is really insignificant compared to what he or she believes. It is vital that our kids know:
"Are all the programs we are involved with bringing us closer to God and each other, or mostly wearing us out?"
In another article by Judith Kowles I hi-lighted and underlined her statement that:
"God is impressing upon us (her and her husband) that academic achievement is not His main concern. God's main concern is that our children end up with hearts consecrated to Him."
Be a relaxed homeschooler - I love that. Now that I'm 43 I'm kind of trying to learn to relax. I hope that by the time I'm 80 I will be totally okay with napping and drooling in the living room while the grandkids play.
Marilyn Howshall believes that "true education is teaching children how to learn, equipping them to learn, and guiding them into their specific life-purpose by God's design." Wow! Is that all I need to do, piece of cake - kidding.
Note to self - my purpose in teaching my boys is to help them find their purpose in Jesus. So that they can figure out what good plan God has for them.
Now I am not saying that reading, writing and math is not important. We all need the basics. But does my 9 year old need to understand NAFTA? Does my 11 year old need Algebra. No. Not to be repetitious, but No. and No again.
A good barometer to use is this from Maggie Hogan:
Go get some icecream.
Kids in our nature study class took the above 5 pictures. Kids love to be outside!
Go Outside.
As a homeschool parent it is easy to get sucked into the world's way of educating. We can forget our purpose, and before you know it, we look like the local public school, just smaller and with less money.
Israel Wayne puts it like this:
"What a child knows is really insignificant compared to what he or she believes. It is vital that our kids know:
- What they believe.
- Why their beliefs are true.
- How to articulate their beliefs.
- How to live their beliefs consistently."
"Are all the programs we are involved with bringing us closer to God and each other, or mostly wearing us out?"
In another article by Judith Kowles I hi-lighted and underlined her statement that:
"God is impressing upon us (her and her husband) that academic achievement is not His main concern. God's main concern is that our children end up with hearts consecrated to Him."
Be a relaxed homeschooler - I love that. Now that I'm 43 I'm kind of trying to learn to relax. I hope that by the time I'm 80 I will be totally okay with napping and drooling in the living room while the grandkids play.
Marilyn Howshall believes that "true education is teaching children how to learn, equipping them to learn, and guiding them into their specific life-purpose by God's design." Wow! Is that all I need to do, piece of cake - kidding.
Note to self - my purpose in teaching my boys is to help them find their purpose in Jesus. So that they can figure out what good plan God has for them.
Now I am not saying that reading, writing and math is not important. We all need the basics. But does my 9 year old need to understand NAFTA? Does my 11 year old need Algebra. No. Not to be repetitious, but No. and No again.
A good barometer to use is this from Maggie Hogan:
- Did my children learn?
- Do they want to learn more?
- Was God honored in our home?
Go get some icecream.
Kids in our nature study class took the above 5 pictures. Kids love to be outside!
Go Outside.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Variety - the spice of blogs
What we've been up to lately, well at least for this past week.
In our homeschool this year we are focusing on reading and writing. We read a lot!
magazines
fiction
non-fiction
news
advertisements
cereal boxes
You get the idea. If it has letters strung together in words, we read it. And we talk about it.
I am always looking for bits and pieces of great or terrible writing to share with the boys. Sometimes I read just a few lines from a magazine article, or just a chapter from a book.
Here's an example from Smithsonian magazine, an article about lions written by Abigail Tucker:
"Packer, 59, is tall, skinny and sharply angular, like a Serengeti thorn tree."
I just love that description of a man who lives at the lion house and has done so for 31 years.
We pick apart advertising and talk about how to be smart readers.
And we write. Much of the time I do the actual pen on paper and the boys do the thinking and dictating. It can be too much to think, put ideas in a row, pencil on paper, spell, edit....intimidating.
I don't want to ruin writing for my boys. I hated writing until just about a year ago, and I'm 43 so do that math. I suffered from red pen abuse, all the way through college. So I stopped writing.
Two of our favorite writing projects are:
Our most favorite way to build a story is:
I make a statement. The boys ask questions, which I write down. Then I write for 10 minutes or so, then read what I have written. The boys ask more questions, offer advice on where I need more interesting words, or where my thoughts need clarity. I re-write.
The boys watch me perform the writing process, then we use the 6 traits to refine what I write.
Examples of leading statements:
It all started when I broke my nose...
It was the librarian's fault...
If only Jill hadn't shown up...
The day I got my head stuck in the chimney....
She was the worst part of 3rd grade...
The boys love to help me revise and edit my work, so much safer than working on their own work. This is building up to the time when they have the tools and the experience to write on their own, and to enjoy it.
Of course we go outside. Here's what we've seen:
Yo making walnut date bars. You can't just head outside, you need sustenance first!
Hiking with our Nature Studies class.
Next year I'll be schooling all five of our boys; good thing I love teaching!
In our homeschool this year we are focusing on reading and writing. We read a lot!
magazines
fiction
non-fiction
news
advertisements
cereal boxes
You get the idea. If it has letters strung together in words, we read it. And we talk about it.
I am always looking for bits and pieces of great or terrible writing to share with the boys. Sometimes I read just a few lines from a magazine article, or just a chapter from a book.
Here's an example from Smithsonian magazine, an article about lions written by Abigail Tucker:
"Packer, 59, is tall, skinny and sharply angular, like a Serengeti thorn tree."
I just love that description of a man who lives at the lion house and has done so for 31 years.
We pick apart advertising and talk about how to be smart readers.
And we write. Much of the time I do the actual pen on paper and the boys do the thinking and dictating. It can be too much to think, put ideas in a row, pencil on paper, spell, edit....intimidating.
I don't want to ruin writing for my boys. I hated writing until just about a year ago, and I'm 43 so do that math. I suffered from red pen abuse, all the way through college. So I stopped writing.
Two of our favorite writing projects are:
- the boys spout out topics of interest to them
- i list the topics
- we vote to chose one topic
- they brainstorm, i write out their ideas either in list form or a web
- we talk about and agree on how to organize our ideas sensibly
- then we put it all together
Our most favorite way to build a story is:
I make a statement. The boys ask questions, which I write down. Then I write for 10 minutes or so, then read what I have written. The boys ask more questions, offer advice on where I need more interesting words, or where my thoughts need clarity. I re-write.
The boys watch me perform the writing process, then we use the 6 traits to refine what I write.
Examples of leading statements:
It all started when I broke my nose...
It was the librarian's fault...
If only Jill hadn't shown up...
The day I got my head stuck in the chimney....
She was the worst part of 3rd grade...
The boys love to help me revise and edit my work, so much safer than working on their own work. This is building up to the time when they have the tools and the experience to write on their own, and to enjoy it.
Of course we go outside. Here's what we've seen:
Yo making walnut date bars. You can't just head outside, you need sustenance first!
Next year I'll be schooling all five of our boys; good thing I love teaching!
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Rampin' up for homeschool
After about 5 years of being my kids' primary educator, I finally had a good year last year! That's not to say that I never blew it; my head did spin around a few times, but never actually shot off.
This is what worked last year, and will be used this year, with some modifications for Number One.
We have 5 boys, I don't school them all at home. I would like to do a good job at schooling them all, but I'm just not there. Tom has his hearing impairment and other delays that make me nutty; Bis is an attention seeker. Bis has greatly improved, he no longer breaks everything, or lies all the time - but he likes to play dumb and that instantly makes me furious. My problem, not his, but until I master my fury, he needs to not school at home.
Last year I had Yo and EQ at home, this year Number One will be home, too. I have missed having #1 at home.
Back to what works for us. I have a set daily schedule of things we do together:
The far right column, free choice, has nothing to do with the specific days; I just had room in the margin so made a list there. So there are things we do together, like every day at 12 I read to the boys for an hour, yep an hour. On Tuesdays at 2 we watch a documentary. You get the idea.
Free choice are for those times that we do not school together. The boys have folders with tabs for each free choice item. We have about 15 hours that are not filled in the week, and about 12 hours of free choice options to fill those hours. I know from experience that we don't always fill our time; and that's OKAY! Honestly, even if your homeschool friends tell you they stick to a schedule and never stray....they are lying, or just better than me.
Here is what Number One's folder looks like:
Each day has 3 hours of free choice. The boys plan their day in the morning to fill those three hours. They choose. Seth may choose to do all of his math on Monday, that's cool, no problem. EQ may choose building, spelling, Bible reading, art and cooking, great!
It's good to have choice. My boys like choice, but at the end of the week, they need to have all of the tabs moved to the done spot in their folders. So they can put off spelling, but it still has to be done. If I get a grumpy kid I can point out that they planned their day, not me, so buck up. A boy that gets things all done before Friday gets to sleep in, and knock off early...whooohooo!
I have a list of local hikes we want to take, so I am ready for Friday's 10-12 hike. I have lists of parks, so we are ready for park day.
Suggestions for writing times:
picture writing (cut pics from magazines, write a story, use pics to illustrate)
creative writing
be a reporter
diary entry
book report
documentary report
change the ending of a story
Ideas for art:
photography
hot wax drawing (paper on hot plate like you use for pancakes, crayons to draw with)
paint with toes
sketch
silhouettes
illustrate a book you are reading
cave painting
torn paper
mosaic
We will be using nature journals that I'll order up for us in the next week or two. For history we will keep a timeline and tie it in to biblical history. Cooking includes finding a recipe, making a list for the store, and making the food item.
Refer to links for where we do our spelling, and where we get our news, or do math on the computer.
I'll post a book list on another day.
This is what worked last year, and will be used this year, with some modifications for Number One.
We have 5 boys, I don't school them all at home. I would like to do a good job at schooling them all, but I'm just not there. Tom has his hearing impairment and other delays that make me nutty; Bis is an attention seeker. Bis has greatly improved, he no longer breaks everything, or lies all the time - but he likes to play dumb and that instantly makes me furious. My problem, not his, but until I master my fury, he needs to not school at home.
Last year I had Yo and EQ at home, this year Number One will be home, too. I have missed having #1 at home.
Back to what works for us. I have a set daily schedule of things we do together:
The far right column, free choice, has nothing to do with the specific days; I just had room in the margin so made a list there. So there are things we do together, like every day at 12 I read to the boys for an hour, yep an hour. On Tuesdays at 2 we watch a documentary. You get the idea.
Free choice are for those times that we do not school together. The boys have folders with tabs for each free choice item. We have about 15 hours that are not filled in the week, and about 12 hours of free choice options to fill those hours. I know from experience that we don't always fill our time; and that's OKAY! Honestly, even if your homeschool friends tell you they stick to a schedule and never stray....they are lying, or just better than me.
Here is what Number One's folder looks like:
Each day has 3 hours of free choice. The boys plan their day in the morning to fill those three hours. They choose. Seth may choose to do all of his math on Monday, that's cool, no problem. EQ may choose building, spelling, Bible reading, art and cooking, great!
It's good to have choice. My boys like choice, but at the end of the week, they need to have all of the tabs moved to the done spot in their folders. So they can put off spelling, but it still has to be done. If I get a grumpy kid I can point out that they planned their day, not me, so buck up. A boy that gets things all done before Friday gets to sleep in, and knock off early...whooohooo!
I have a list of local hikes we want to take, so I am ready for Friday's 10-12 hike. I have lists of parks, so we are ready for park day.
Suggestions for writing times:
picture writing (cut pics from magazines, write a story, use pics to illustrate)
creative writing
be a reporter
diary entry
book report
documentary report
change the ending of a story
Ideas for art:
photography
hot wax drawing (paper on hot plate like you use for pancakes, crayons to draw with)
paint with toes
sketch
silhouettes
illustrate a book you are reading
cave painting
torn paper
mosaic
We will be using nature journals that I'll order up for us in the next week or two. For history we will keep a timeline and tie it in to biblical history. Cooking includes finding a recipe, making a list for the store, and making the food item.
Refer to links for where we do our spelling, and where we get our news, or do math on the computer.
I'll post a book list on another day.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
various pics and ponderings
My favorite bumper sticker of the week:
BOOBIES
give your baby the breast
My friends A in TX, and M in WA would like that on their bumpers, I'm just sure of it.
286. Great Grandmother L.
287. speckled puppy tummy
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288. little E who conquered the dinosaur head and jumped off by herself
289. friends who come for dinner and survive the chaos
290. the completion of painting the boys' rooms and bathroom
We went to the park today, took Harley along to get him used to things like strollers and screaming kids. Wore him out!
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I have wanted to write about hearts, but just haven't had the words.
Church on Sunday was about the tendency to have our hands and feet moving, but our heart disengaged.
But the greatest of these is Love. You can be top dog, go getter, degreed, PHD'd, and all that, but if you have not Love....
I go through days, maybe even weeks feeling like I've accomplished much, but my heart was not involved; I've been cold, detached, effective yes, but not loving.
Sometimes loving feels like accepting bad behavior, looking the other way, taking a break from the incessant need to correct and guide and teach.
I can't afford to take a break and simply love; Good Lord, what might happen! Ugh, dirty clothes not in the basket, dirty boys with dirty ears, clothes on inside out and backwards, toilets not flushed. To hell in a handbasket to be sure!
Just let me get them squared away, then I'll take the time to love on them. I won't be as likely to get jelly in my hair.
Then on the 28th I opened my daily blog update from Ann at aholyexperience and she had a link for a free Charlotte Mason e-book.
I like free.
I like Charlotte Mason's work. Sweet. The book is called "A Thinking Love". I have just begun reading it, but I'm hopeful that it was a timely God sent gift to me and will help me put my heart ahead of my foot and hand action.
Here is the link so you can have your own bit of free today:
http://simplycharlottemason.com/books/a-thinking-love/
Finding the lines between laying down the line and showing grace or mercy towards my kids is really hard for me.
It is easier to bark at them, correct them, and get on with things, than to stop and make a decision about correction via punishment or teaching,
or showing them grace in the moment.
It just seems like it takes so much time! and I'm busy, you really have no idea. but then I think about what is the busy? what do I do each day that is the most important task in my now? Raising boys.
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Harley and I enjoyed walking at the park today. He's a boy, what is it with me and boys? He makes me laugh, and that helps me be a little lighter with my two legged boys.
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Each blade of grass is beautiful.
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Like my favorite fireworks on the Fourth of July.
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Central Texas, June, 100 degrees, cactus two feet away, and mushrooms? Seriously?
Library books I'm reading:
The Case Against Fluoride by Connett, Beck, and Micklem
I am totally against drugs in drinking water. Where's the informed consent in that? and the statistics do not support fluoridated drinking water; in fact the opposite is true. If you are a fluoride junky, read this book.
Amexica by Vulliamy
The whole United States, Mexico deal fascinates and disgusts me. This book is specifically about the border land, almost a country in and of itself. So far this is a well written, sad, enlightening book. It was completed in 2010 so stats are very current.
Day of Honey by Ciezadlo
One woman's life in the Middle East from 2003 to 2009.
The above are non-fiction works.
The Beauty of Humanity Movement by Camilla Gibb
About contemporary Vietnam
The Help by Stockett
Wow, this book kept me up at night, made me cry; it's rare for a work of fiction to make me cry. Set in Mississippi in the 1960's, written in multiple voices, from white women and their maidservants. I just kept counting back the years and thinking how all of that nastiness and hate is not history, it's like it was yesterday.
What were people doing and thinking? What were my parents doing! How could educated, Christian, people let that crap go on so long? Ugh.
It is a really good book. Be brave and read it. Consider what is ugly in your community, city, state or country. What are you going to do about it?
BOOBIES
give your baby the breast
My friends A in TX, and M in WA would like that on their bumpers, I'm just sure of it.
286. Great Grandmother L.
287. speckled puppy tummy
288. little E who conquered the dinosaur head and jumped off by herself
289. friends who come for dinner and survive the chaos
290. the completion of painting the boys' rooms and bathroom
We went to the park today, took Harley along to get him used to things like strollers and screaming kids. Wore him out!
I have wanted to write about hearts, but just haven't had the words.
Church on Sunday was about the tendency to have our hands and feet moving, but our heart disengaged.
But the greatest of these is Love. You can be top dog, go getter, degreed, PHD'd, and all that, but if you have not Love....
I go through days, maybe even weeks feeling like I've accomplished much, but my heart was not involved; I've been cold, detached, effective yes, but not loving.
Sometimes loving feels like accepting bad behavior, looking the other way, taking a break from the incessant need to correct and guide and teach.
I can't afford to take a break and simply love; Good Lord, what might happen! Ugh, dirty clothes not in the basket, dirty boys with dirty ears, clothes on inside out and backwards, toilets not flushed. To hell in a handbasket to be sure!
Just let me get them squared away, then I'll take the time to love on them. I won't be as likely to get jelly in my hair.
Then on the 28th I opened my daily blog update from Ann at aholyexperience and she had a link for a free Charlotte Mason e-book.
I like free.
I like Charlotte Mason's work. Sweet. The book is called "A Thinking Love". I have just begun reading it, but I'm hopeful that it was a timely God sent gift to me and will help me put my heart ahead of my foot and hand action.
Here is the link so you can have your own bit of free today:
http://simplycharlottemason.com/books/a-thinking-love/
Finding the lines between laying down the line and showing grace or mercy towards my kids is really hard for me.
It is easier to bark at them, correct them, and get on with things, than to stop and make a decision about correction via punishment or teaching,
or showing them grace in the moment.
It just seems like it takes so much time! and I'm busy, you really have no idea. but then I think about what is the busy? what do I do each day that is the most important task in my now? Raising boys.
Harley and I enjoyed walking at the park today. He's a boy, what is it with me and boys? He makes me laugh, and that helps me be a little lighter with my two legged boys.
Each blade of grass is beautiful.
Like my favorite fireworks on the Fourth of July.
Central Texas, June, 100 degrees, cactus two feet away, and mushrooms? Seriously?
Library books I'm reading:
The Case Against Fluoride by Connett, Beck, and Micklem
I am totally against drugs in drinking water. Where's the informed consent in that? and the statistics do not support fluoridated drinking water; in fact the opposite is true. If you are a fluoride junky, read this book.
Amexica by Vulliamy
The whole United States, Mexico deal fascinates and disgusts me. This book is specifically about the border land, almost a country in and of itself. So far this is a well written, sad, enlightening book. It was completed in 2010 so stats are very current.
Day of Honey by Ciezadlo
One woman's life in the Middle East from 2003 to 2009.
The above are non-fiction works.
The Beauty of Humanity Movement by Camilla Gibb
About contemporary Vietnam
The Help by Stockett
Wow, this book kept me up at night, made me cry; it's rare for a work of fiction to make me cry. Set in Mississippi in the 1960's, written in multiple voices, from white women and their maidservants. I just kept counting back the years and thinking how all of that nastiness and hate is not history, it's like it was yesterday.
What were people doing and thinking? What were my parents doing! How could educated, Christian, people let that crap go on so long? Ugh.
It is a really good book. Be brave and read it. Consider what is ugly in your community, city, state or country. What are you going to do about it?
Saturday, May 28, 2011
this last bit o' may
Here in TX the school year is wrapping up.
Tom finished school on Friday, he "graduated" from 5th and will be in 6th next year, at middle school. I don't get the "graduation" thing; have a class party, enjoy that last day, but a graduation ceremony, seriously? mediocrity runneth over if you ask me.
Anyway, he's done for the year and we are happy about that. Bis and Number One finish up next Thursday.
In our homeschool we've been hanging out with the wild animals in Africa, Brazil, Minnesota - all over the world. Check out the animal cams at
http://www.sportsmansparadiseonline.com/Live_Webcams.html
Our favorites thus far are the bears, the hummingbirds, the foxes, the Australia cam, and the Pete's Pond cam in Bostwana. On the two Africa cams we've seen zebra, gazelle or some deer sorta beast, baboons, and lots of elephants! We've heard lions, but not yet seen them. I love the audio on the Australia cam, lots of bird chatter.
254. technology that brings half way around the world to our dining room table in real time
255. lion growls and chuffing
We've been to 4 parks in 3 days. Central TX has an awesome park system. Washington State for all its beauty, stinks in the park department.
Note the snake at the water line? It's a blotched water snake, non-venomous; EQ will tell you it's a deadly viper and it chased us. He exaggerates.
The above pics are from a new park in our little town; it's a small town, we have 4 parks. They will soon be connected by a bike path. This new park has a 10 acre pond stocked with catfish and bass; catch and release only.
This little guy was on Bis' head. I was thinking it was a baby tarantula, but it's just a central TX jumping spider - sure is cute!
This skate park is in the town just south and west of us; it's not far. All five boys enjoy skating, and it's a great park; everyone is well mannered and the teenagers look out for the little guys. Teenagers are adorable.
Tom finished school on Friday, he "graduated" from 5th and will be in 6th next year, at middle school. I don't get the "graduation" thing; have a class party, enjoy that last day, but a graduation ceremony, seriously? mediocrity runneth over if you ask me.
Anyway, he's done for the year and we are happy about that. Bis and Number One finish up next Thursday.
In our homeschool we've been hanging out with the wild animals in Africa, Brazil, Minnesota - all over the world. Check out the animal cams at
http://www.sportsmansparadiseonline.com/Live_Webcams.html
Our favorites thus far are the bears, the hummingbirds, the foxes, the Australia cam, and the Pete's Pond cam in Bostwana. On the two Africa cams we've seen zebra, gazelle or some deer sorta beast, baboons, and lots of elephants! We've heard lions, but not yet seen them. I love the audio on the Australia cam, lots of bird chatter.
254. technology that brings half way around the world to our dining room table in real time
255. lion growls and chuffing
We've been to 4 parks in 3 days. Central TX has an awesome park system. Washington State for all its beauty, stinks in the park department.
Note the snake at the water line? It's a blotched water snake, non-venomous; EQ will tell you it's a deadly viper and it chased us. He exaggerates.
The above pics are from a new park in our little town; it's a small town, we have 4 parks. They will soon be connected by a bike path. This new park has a 10 acre pond stocked with catfish and bass; catch and release only.
This little guy was on Bis' head. I was thinking it was a baby tarantula, but it's just a central TX jumping spider - sure is cute!
This skate park is in the town just south and west of us; it's not far. All five boys enjoy skating, and it's a great park; everyone is well mannered and the teenagers look out for the little guys. Teenagers are adorable.
Friday, May 20, 2011
the view from where you are
241. smell of freshly mown grass
242. a husband who does not give up
243. reminders to push through the hard places, glorifying Him
244. bird shell bits on the sidewalk
245. bat commandos devouring mosquitoes
We dined at my favorite place, Louisiana Gumbo Cafe, and caught the bat show at the same time.
Now that would freak out some of y'all, but I LOVE bats. These guys kept coming, for a good 15-20 minutes, thousands of them.
They live under the bridges. Austin actually built a bat cave into the new construction of the Congress Street Bridge; how yummy is that! The absence of mosquitoes is highly noticeable to us Northwest natives.
246. friends who don't mind the dog hair
247. the view from my kitchen sink
Tender, aka EQ, was practicing spelling on spelling city; Yo was copying from work that I printed out over at http://shipfullofpirates.com/
Wanted - A boy that stands straight, sits straight, acts straight, and talks straight...it goes on to desribe many fine attributes of what we value in our boys.
Copy work is wonderful; it teaches spelling, punctuation, vocabulary, and wise work can impart wisdom as well. Tender is copying the beatitudes. Quality is far more important than quantity.
Man sets a fine example for our boys, but examples can be subtle and subtle is lost on some of my kids. I don't know if it's a cultural thing, or if my boys were too hungry to pick up on examples; or perhaps examples were lacking in Addis Ababa.
We then turned to art, Native American art. First we read creation stories from various tribes and compared those to our Story of Creation; Yo was amazed by the many similarities, this lead to pondering how they came to believe what they believed?
This site has great Haida art, the tribe who's art we were interested in:
http://artfromthetribe.com/
We really have artistic boys. Notice the fish sketch below my coffee mug? Number One drew that; it's awesome. Grandparents will be getting copies.
The finale was dinner, this was given rave reviews, accompanied by I Love Yous! The pic isn't that great, I need a new camera, or I guess I want a new camera, not a need, just a want...
242. a husband who does not give up
243. reminders to push through the hard places, glorifying Him
244. bird shell bits on the sidewalk
245. bat commandos devouring mosquitoes
We dined at my favorite place, Louisiana Gumbo Cafe, and caught the bat show at the same time.
Now that would freak out some of y'all, but I LOVE bats. These guys kept coming, for a good 15-20 minutes, thousands of them.
They live under the bridges. Austin actually built a bat cave into the new construction of the Congress Street Bridge; how yummy is that! The absence of mosquitoes is highly noticeable to us Northwest natives.
246. friends who don't mind the dog hair
247. the view from my kitchen sink
Wanted - A boy that stands straight, sits straight, acts straight, and talks straight...it goes on to desribe many fine attributes of what we value in our boys.
Copy work is wonderful; it teaches spelling, punctuation, vocabulary, and wise work can impart wisdom as well. Tender is copying the beatitudes. Quality is far more important than quantity.
Man sets a fine example for our boys, but examples can be subtle and subtle is lost on some of my kids. I don't know if it's a cultural thing, or if my boys were too hungry to pick up on examples; or perhaps examples were lacking in Addis Ababa.
We then turned to art, Native American art. First we read creation stories from various tribes and compared those to our Story of Creation; Yo was amazed by the many similarities, this lead to pondering how they came to believe what they believed?
This site has great Haida art, the tribe who's art we were interested in:
http://artfromthetribe.com/
We really have artistic boys. Notice the fish sketch below my coffee mug? Number One drew that; it's awesome. Grandparents will be getting copies.
The finale was dinner, this was given rave reviews, accompanied by I Love Yous! The pic isn't that great, I need a new camera, or I guess I want a new camera, not a need, just a want...
BREAKFAST FLOPOVER
12 eggs beaten
1 or 2 lbs sausage
1 1/2 cup grated cheese
refrigerator biscuits
Heat oven to 375. Grease 3 qt. casserole.
Cook meat, remove, scramble eggs. Put meat into casserole, add the cheese in a layer, top with cooked eggs. Separate the biscuits and put on top of the casserole. Bake 15 minutes or until the biscuits are done. Dump onto a serving plate. Serves 7-8 easily.
Thursday, May 19, 2011
why do i teach my children?
239. golden curls
Proverbs 22:6
Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.
Psalm 78:4-8
We will not hide these truths from our children;
we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the Lord, about his power and his mighty wonders.
For he issued his laws to Jacob;
he gave his instructions to Israel.
He commanded our ancestors to teach them to their children,
so the next generation might know them- even the children not yet born-and they in turn will teach their own children.
So each generation should set its hope anew on God,
not forgetting his glorious miracles and obeying his commands.
Then they will not be like their ancestors-stubborn, rebellious, and unfaithful, refusing to give their hearts to God.
Deuteronomy 6:5-7 and again the same in 11:19
And you must love the Lord your God with all you heart,
all your soul,
and all your strength.
And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today.
Repeat them again and again to your children.
Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road,
when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.
Is He really talking about me, the parent doing these things? Many of us certainly hope not.
How much easier to send them to school for 7 to 8 hours each day, then perhaps on to after school "care".
Then come Sunday we put them into groups with same age peers to be taught by other adults. Then we're back to Monday again and it's off to school.
But I do teach my kids....when is that? You find the time to dedicate yourself to their training when exactly? At home, on the road, going to bed and getting up?
I have some of my children at home and some at school. I see the difference. I know they need to be at home. I can't keep them safe at school from all that public school is, and honestly .... it is mostly bad.
The thought of 5 at home overwhelms me, and then I remember that when I am overwhelmed He steps in, my Superhero, and He makes it all happen.
Next year I will have three at home; this summer I will prayerfully ask Him to guide me, do they all need to be home now? Or if I wait and bring another home the following year will that be okay, Lord?
Why does God command me to teach my children? The written thoughts of author Israel Wayne resonate deep with me:
To refine me in the trial of the homeschool. Me, refine me. The hard place of homeschool is a fire for me and separates out the dross in me as I teach them about Him.
I never thought about what teaching does for me. But in reflecting I can see my own growth, I can see the trail of ick left behind in this trial of teaching.
As a family to seek first Matthew 6:33
Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need.
All, everything you need, even academics. Seeking Him first, all that we need will be found.
What we know is insignificant compared to what we believe.
Nothing is more important than our relationship with God and each other, not chemistry, not algebra, not even early reading.
God has good plans for our kids, they will have success as a natural result of obedience to God.
Give them tools. Teach them how to learn, how to research, how to dig....Trust them.
Is what you are doing right now drawing you and your children closer to God or just frustrating you?
240. boys who love water
Proverbs 22:6
Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.
Psalm 78:4-8
We will not hide these truths from our children;
we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the Lord, about his power and his mighty wonders.
For he issued his laws to Jacob;
he gave his instructions to Israel.
He commanded our ancestors to teach them to their children,
so the next generation might know them- even the children not yet born-and they in turn will teach their own children.
So each generation should set its hope anew on God,
not forgetting his glorious miracles and obeying his commands.
Then they will not be like their ancestors-stubborn, rebellious, and unfaithful, refusing to give their hearts to God.
Deuteronomy 6:5-7 and again the same in 11:19
And you must love the Lord your God with all you heart,
all your soul,
and all your strength.
And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today.
Repeat them again and again to your children.
Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road,
when you are going to bed and when you are getting up.
Is He really talking about me, the parent doing these things? Many of us certainly hope not.
How much easier to send them to school for 7 to 8 hours each day, then perhaps on to after school "care".
Then come Sunday we put them into groups with same age peers to be taught by other adults. Then we're back to Monday again and it's off to school.
But I do teach my kids....when is that? You find the time to dedicate yourself to their training when exactly? At home, on the road, going to bed and getting up?
I have some of my children at home and some at school. I see the difference. I know they need to be at home. I can't keep them safe at school from all that public school is, and honestly .... it is mostly bad.
The thought of 5 at home overwhelms me, and then I remember that when I am overwhelmed He steps in, my Superhero, and He makes it all happen.
Next year I will have three at home; this summer I will prayerfully ask Him to guide me, do they all need to be home now? Or if I wait and bring another home the following year will that be okay, Lord?
Why does God command me to teach my children? The written thoughts of author Israel Wayne resonate deep with me:
To refine me in the trial of the homeschool. Me, refine me. The hard place of homeschool is a fire for me and separates out the dross in me as I teach them about Him.
I never thought about what teaching does for me. But in reflecting I can see my own growth, I can see the trail of ick left behind in this trial of teaching.
As a family to seek first Matthew 6:33
Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and He will give you everything you need.
All, everything you need, even academics. Seeking Him first, all that we need will be found.
What we know is insignificant compared to what we believe.
Nothing is more important than our relationship with God and each other, not chemistry, not algebra, not even early reading.
God has good plans for our kids, they will have success as a natural result of obedience to God.
Give them tools. Teach them how to learn, how to research, how to dig....Trust them.
Is what you are doing right now drawing you and your children closer to God or just frustrating you?
240. boys who love water
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