Possibilities

Exodus 35:30-35

Bezalel and Oholiab

³⁰ Then Moses said to the Israelites, “See, the Lord has chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, ³¹ and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills— ³² to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, ³³ to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic crafts. ³⁴ And he has given both him and Oholiab son of Ahisamak, of the tribe of Dan, the ability to teach others. ³⁵ He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as engravers, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers—all of them skilled workers and designers.

 Isn't this the coolest?!  I love how it says that the LORD has done these things.  

He has given His Spirit.  He has given Wisdom.  He has given understanding and knowledge.

He has given His people skills.  All kinds of skills!

 This is exciting stuff!  God has a purpose and direction for each of our lives.

How can we use our skills to glorify God today?

How can we help our children discover what gifts God has given them?  And then, how can we give them opportunities to use those skills in this beautiful life?

 Excited about the possibilities,

  

Motherhood is Beautiful

Click on this link for a great blog post...

Pros and Cons of Homeschooling

I really like this post written by Jamie from The Unlikely Homechool.

It states, very well, how I feel about homeschooling.

 

I'm so glad that the pros outweigh the cons!

 

The kids spread topsoil with me for two days.  Such hard workers!

The kids received a zip line from my parents for Christmas and Nate just put it up.  Fun times!

 

 

 

 

Parenting

Reading through a book on parenting for the second time.  I am struck again by the awesome privilege that my husband and I have of raising these children for God's glory.

 
"You must raise your children in the fear and admonition of the Lord.  

You cannot do so without investing yourself in a life of sensitive communication in which you help them understand life and God's world.  There is nothing more important.  

You have only a brief season of life to invest yourself in this task. 

You have only one opportunity to do it.  

You cannot go back and do it over...you must, therefore, prioritize.

To do this job of parenting well, it must be a primary task.  

It is your primary calling.

Baby #6 - BOY! - due mid (or late, knowing me) July

...It will mean that you can't develop every interest that comes along.  

The costs are high."

Shepherding a Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp
(Emphasis mine)

Read this blog post this morning (after a weekend where I just got my first ever smart phone - an iPhone no less...)

"We mused over the Psalm of David this morning, and I stopped mid-sentence, because that’s when it came to me, and said to my kids: “Aren’t you glad David didn’t have an I-phone!”

Imagine it: Selfies with sheep. Status updates about how bored he is. Tweets about what a rough life he has. No doubt photos of the lion he killed WITH HIS BARE HANDS, the perfect makings of a narcissistic hot-head."

 Hahahaha!

 

Yeah...I'm glad he didn't have an iPhone either.

 

Good reminders for me!

 

 

Too funny! (and true...)

I'm not on Facebook anymore, so when I occasionally have the feeling of "I just have to share this!" I usually just have to let it slide.  

But THIS...

It was too good not to share.  

I think that the advice shared in this post, coupled with showing our children how to serve others by serving our families, is great.

 

 

Some Mornings I Need a Little...

Like when I wake up to this note that I forgot I told Nate to write me (so I wouldn't forget to do what I told him I'd do...)

And I wasn't planning on going anywhere because there are all these dishes still in the sink and I add to them by making more dishes for our hungry selves...

And I come around the corner to find that my little guy was practicing his skills with the scissors...

Even little messes here and there can make my blood pressure rise.

Thankfully God provides all the patience I need if I only ask and obey (and then have my kids help clean up!) 

James 1:19-20
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.

1 Corinthians 13:4a

Love is patient, love is kind.

Proverbs 15:18
A hot-tempered man stirs up dissension, but a patient man calms a quarrel.

Galatians 6:9
Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

Just wish I'd ask and obey every single time.  ;)

Linked up to the Hip Homeschool Hop.

I wanted a tan, but I ended up with wind burn

When I was in high school, instead of going to Myrtle Beach for Spring Break, my family went on skiing vacations to Colorado or other such COLD vacation spots.

When I'd get back from skiing the slopes, I'd walk the halls at school and see tan lines and white t-shirts sporting the warmth of other, non-skiing vacations.  I may have also been wearing a white t-shirt, but it didn't look nearly as nice with my wind burned cheeks and pasty white arms.

I felt so sorry for myself.

I even remember pouting to my mom while we were on one of those ski trips.  I didn't like to be cold.  I wanted to get a tan and go to the beach and be...like everyone else!

Now, looking back, I see how ungrateful I was.  I didn't realize or appreciate what an incredibly expensive, unique vacation I was given by parents who showered me with love and opportunities. 

Nate and I are going to make decisions for our children that they may not like.  They may pout at times and want something different - something that someone else has or does.

But hopefully, someday, they'll look back on the decisions we made and realize what amazing opportunities they were given.  And how much they were (and are) loved.

  Linked up at the HHH

Budgeting with Kids

Numbers, calculators, budgets...

That's my hubby's idea of a fun time.  ;)

For the first 8 years of our marriage, I did our budget.  

It was a miserable job for me.  Or maybe I just did a miserable job??  

Either way, I did not enjoy it in the least.

For the past 2.5 years, Nate has taken over our budget and, WOW, am I thankful!  He's so much better at it, and he actually ENJOYS it.  Crazy man.

While Nate was teaching the older kids how to budget using our household budget, he decided that they should have their own budgets. 

Granted, they don't have much money (we don't give allowance, but they do get money from grandparents for various holidays.  They can also make money if they do jobs for us around the house.), but he wants them to learn how to wisely use (give, save, and spend) the little that they do have.  If they can start making good choices when they are young, hopefully that will save them from making stupid (oftentimes detrimental) choices when they get older.

They were very excited to have their own budget, and I thought it was a brilliant idea.  

Hopefully they'll learn well from their wise-with-money Daddy.

Reasons We "Keep On Keepin' On" With Homeschooling

Not too long ago, I'd had it with homeschooling.

I was in the first trimester of a particularly sickly (for me) pregnancy.  I had absolutely no desire to teach or even think about schooling our children.

I lobbied my husband (which happens to be appropriate since he's a local politician ;) ) numerous times to send them to school.  I'm pretty sure I would have signed them up had he agreed (he says I wouldn't have...guess we'll never know.)

How thankful I am for him!  He's so unchanging and steady and knows how I can be - ready to try something else, especially when I'm weak.

He assured me that our kids were doing just fine during this period of time that I was unable to continue on with our curriculum.  I knew they were learning how to do the laundry and the dishes and be servants to their mother who laid on the couch most days.  He also pointed out some things that I'd have to do if we sent them to school - things that I currently didn't have to stress over (and I'm not just talking about having to unload the dishwasher by myself.  ;) )

Putting the silverware away - you can tell I didn't have him pose for this pic.  ;)

He told me I'd soon feel better (as in my other pregnancies) and I may even enjoy homeschooling again.

You know what?  He was right.

We've completed four weeks of school (since I was sick) and overall it has gone really, really well.

But, I know how it feels to not want to continue. 

I know how it feels to desire that the "burden" of educating your children fall on someone else's shoulders. 

I know how it feels to have homeschooling be perceived as a burden and not as a blessing.

I also know how it feels to be on the other side.  The wondrous other side where I find almost everything about homeschooling alluring.

My feelings can be rather unpredictable at times.  I can't make decisions based on my moods.  (Shocking, I know.)

So, when I'm feeling down in the dumps about homeschooling, I need to remind myself of why we do this counter-cultural thing in the first place.

Below are some of the reasons we have chosen homeschooling over other educational options (in no particular order).   

Disclaimer:  I've always hesitated to put our reasons down online because I have so many close friends and family that have chosen other educational options.  However, I hope they know by now that I respect them and trust that the Lord is leading each of them in their decisions.  That said, These are OUR family's reasons.  This isn't a judgement on your educational decisions.  (You can read this link and know that my hope has never been in homeschooling.)  Just as you probably have a list of reasons you send your child to his or her school, this is a list to HELP ME REMEMBER our reasons when I'm feeling extra low.  

* We desire our children to have a foundation that is based upon godly morals and principles - an education that does not take the Creator out of the created.  In our house, every subject ties back to the Creator God.

* We knew that I could most likely develop stronger bonds with our children if they weren't separated from me every day for 7-8 hours.  Also, the kids could develop stronger bonds with each other seeing as how they have no choice BUT to play with each other for the majority of each day.  Even if they'd rather not...  ;)

Youngest with Oldest

* Private school is expensive.  We didn't ask, "is Private school worth the cost?"  We asked, "is Private school worth having me go back to work?"  For our family, the answer was, "No."  We knew we could teach the same (or similar) "stuff" for a fraction of the cost while still maintaining our desire and conviction to have me stay home.

* Our immature children don't need to be around other immature children for 7-8 hours per day, every day with very little mature adult interaction.  I was a teacher.  As much as I enjoyed those kids and would have liked to give them my attention, it couldn't always happen.  Short conversations with pats on the head here and there were par for the course.  I felt badly that I couldn't help direct and "love on" them more, but it just wasn't possible.

* I enjoy being around my kids and they like being around me right now too.  I didn't feel like giving that up so soon.

* We can tailor their education to their needs.  Also, with only a handful of students, it doesn't take all day to teach them what they need to learn.  They have more time for exploration, life-skills training, volunteering...or more important things like, shooting each other with Nerf guns.  ;)

* We can vacation when we so desire.  We can also take the day off when it's warm in the Spring or when we stayed up too late with friends.  We can do school while everyone else has a snow day, decide to take a snow day when no one else has one, or take the day off when our friends are also off.  In short, the word FREEDOM sums it up rather nicely.

Went on a work trip with Nate during the week in mid Sept. and surprised the kids with an overnight stay at an indoor water park.

I'm sure there are more reasons that we have chosen to homeschool, but those are the ones that immediately come to my mind.

So, when I'm feeling like I don't want to continue or I'm just in a "homeschool funk", I hope to re-visit these reasons (and even these reasons).  Maybe they'll help give me the right amount of encouragement to...

Keep on Keepin' On.  

P.S.  I don't think it's a good idea to homeschool in a bubble with just your immediate family.  Homeschoolers should be part of a real, live community (online community is good, but not as good as live relationships).  We are part of a church family that has those who homeschool and those who don't.  We're also part of a large homeschooling group that does field trips and play dates.  This gives us accountability and encouragement.  Community is so important. 

If you want to read more of my thoughts on homeschooling, you may be interested in:
how we deal with the dreaded Socialization question,
or how we overcame our disagreement about how we'd educate our kids,
or even how we organize our homeschool.

Grocery Store Ponderings

I've got a post up today over at Heart of the Matter Online if you care to take a look. 

Off to make something to eat.  These cravings...

The Power of Words

I can’t tell you how many times I hear a mom debasing her kids, telling me how “sick and tired” she is of the things her children are doing or how her children are, “driving (her) crazy!” I think it’s more common to hear of something a child is doing wrong than something a child is doing right. I have found myself falling prey to this complaining attitude at times and then realize that I just made my child look bad in front of people to get a laugh or to commiserate with someone else whose child happens to be doing something similar to mine. This type of complaining isn’t edifying to my child or me, and it surely isn’t pleasing to the Lord. To make matters worse, sometimes this complaining happens when the child or teen is standing right there listening. By the way, children and teens are always listening.

I once met a Christian lady who monopolized the conversation by telling me about her problem-laden children...to read more of this post, head on over to Heart of the Matter where I continue.

(Linking up to the Hip Homeschool Hop) 

Our Hope is in...Homeschooling?

(I think it's appropriate that this article is posted on our first day of school.  :) )

We chose to homeschool our children for various reasons, the main reason being that we started out our parenting journey with not agreeing on the type of schooling for our soon-to-be-born daughter.  Nate wanted private school, and I couldn’t see sending her anywhere but public school.  God changed both of our hearts and drew us toward something completely different.

After we decided that homeschooling was the way in which we were going to educate our children, we were inundated with all of the studies, statistics, and “evidence” that said what a phenomenal education they would have.

They would be brilliant because we could take advantage of whatever curriculum/tutors/classes that were offered, making sure we were teaching each child based on their “learning styles”.

They would be able to think outside of the box since they weren’t stuck inside a box (traditional school) all day.

They would be able to interact well with all ages since they wouldn’t be socializing only with kids their own ages all day long.

They would be well-rounded since we could take advantage of the vast array of real life learning opportunities throughout the days and not only in the couple hours each evening after school.

Our family life would be enriched as we spent day after day together bonding over various learning adventures, able to pick up and go when the educational opportunities arose...

To read more of this article and find out what I think, go to Heart of the Matter where they've graciously allowed me to post yet again.  :)
 

Hard Work, Sweat, and Socks

Our kids, for the first time ever, will be attending a formal school this year.  Okay, so it's not every day.  It's not even most days.  It's only one day a week, but to them (and me!) it feels like a big change.

We've always given them school supplies on or near the first day of school, so this year wasn't going to be much different (I thought).  Until, Emilia informed us that since they (the two oldest) were going to attend a school this year, they should have some new (or at least new to them - we like "thrifting") clothes.  Thinking this seemed like a reasonable request, I proposed this idea to my frugal husband who's response was,

"Do they need new clothes?"

I hadn't checked yet.  I was just thinking of getting them each one outfit or even just a shirt.  I was basically asking him if we had a line in our budget for such extravagances (I obviously didn't think it was an extravagant request).  His answer was clear and to the point.

"If they don't need clothes, they can earn the money to buy what they want."  (We often talk to the kids about needs verses wants.)

Nate likes to wax sentimental about his early days growing up in a matchbox house without a basement where he slept in a porch-turned-bedroom (that had no heat) in the frigid Michigan winters.  He tells stories to our kids that always start out with the following:

"When I was a kid..."  Which immediately makes the kids and I groan and laugh at the same time, but we do listen, whether from respect or just plain old curiosity.

He often shares about how he only had one black and white television.  And he had to get up to turn the channels.  With pliers.

Then we hear about how his family's cars and house didn't have air conditioning.

And he likes to remind the kids, when they're complaining about not being able to play on the Wii, that his family didn't have a microwave, let alone a VHS player or Nintendo.  Some of their cars didn't have a radio.  Tape players were for the rich.

He goes on and on telling our kids how easy they have it compared to how he grew up.  They groan intermittently and I usually add in how he even had to walk up hill, in the snow, for 7 miles to go to school.  With no shoes.   He tells them that's not true.  He had shoes.  ;)

"Our life now," he pauses, "Is so different from how I grew up.  You guys have it good."

"Our life now," I say, "Isn't that much different from how I grew up, except that I used to have central air (not window air conditioners).  And a pool."

We all laugh at the differences, but it makes us think (well, us adults at least).  Nate and I ponder and pray about how we can raise grateful, hard working, God-fearing individuals when all their needs and most (if not all) of their wants are met on a day-to-day basis.  The kids and I can be heard lightheartedly reminding each other (if there is complaining) as we go about whatever (unpaid, regular) chore we're doing at the time, to work (and work well) as we quote the verse, "The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat." 2 Thessalonians 3:10b.  We understand and believe that humans were created by the Lord to work and are most content and satisfied when they are working as unto the Lord. 

So, we decided "if you want it and don't need it, then you have to work for it" was a good motto, even for kids 8 and under. 

Conveniently, we had A LOT of yard work to do last Saturday, so it was the perfect time to have the boys work with us (Emilia was away at my parents' house).

And work they did.

Nate offered them $20 if they worked all day long with us (from about 9-5 with breaks here and there for running to the store, eating, etc.).

Tommy (2 years old) held a shovel and stayed (mostly) by our sides while the rest of us worked as well.  He enjoyed "laboring" next to us.  :)  

Matthew (4 years old) made it 2 hours and was able to earn $4.  Not so bad! 

Jonny (6 years old) made it the whole day.

Not kidding.  The kid was a machine.

I barely heard him complain.  He was pretty motivated to earn that $20 because there was something he REALLY wanted to buy with his money... 

Socks.

Not just any socks, mind you.  These were special socks with different animal feet pictured on the top of each sock.

What more could anyone want for going back to school?! 

So, he worked and worked and worked some more.  He even kept working when I got out the kiddie pool for the little boys.  He did duck his head under and run through the water numerous times throughout the humid 92 degree day, but he kept working with us until 5pm painfully came around.

He even worked a little longer because at one point, about half way through the day, I said to him, "Okay, keep on shoveling," to which he responded, "You have to work too."  (I was working, by the way.  Stinky and sweaty.  I may have been drinking water at that moment or taking a picture...) 

Nate heard Jonny's remark and calmly (but firmly) said, "Jon, $1 has been deducted from your pay.  You don't ever speak to your boss like that."

So, in order to get the whole $20 bill, he asked if he could work longer.  Of course.  I think he worked another half hour-ish (or less) past 5pm and we let him have it.

He done good.

On Sunday, both boys tithed 10% of their earnings to the Lord, proclaiming that He is ultimately the giver of all good things.

Today, I took the kids to Costco where the beloved socks reside, and both boys used their money (Matthew used the $4 he earned on Saturday plus $3 that he already had) to buy a package of 8 animal feet socks.  They immediately tried many of them on when we got home and pretended to be that particular animal.  Matthew even shared his new socks with a little brother who was excited to join in the animal feet fun.

Emilia, wanting a chance to earn money as well, worked around the house for me today doing laundry, dishes, dusting, picking up (basically whatever I told her to do), and was able to earn $7.50 (I paid her $3 an hour).

She liked the girly socks that Costco had, but after noting the price, she put them back.  She wants to save her money and earn some more to buy something she really wants.

All in all, I think my husband is pretty terrific and smart.  I can't tell you how impressed I am with the work ethic I saw displayed in our children.  I underestimate them many times.

Will we always do this?  I'm sure this will be quite common in our household, but we'll always evaluate each situation/child individually.

Tonight, I'm thankful for the wonderful educational value of some hard work, sweat, and... 

Socks.