What Women Fear

I attended the "Women of Faith" conference in Indianapolis this past August. For those that don't know what that is, it's an event for Christian women to come and spend a couple days in fellowship with other women, and listening to various speakers about important issues. All the speakers did an amazing job, but the one I felt the most connection with was Angie Smith. She lost her daughter just a few short hours after birth, and as most of you know, I lost my daughter two weeks before my due-date. Angie grew up with a lot of fears that consumed her, and so did I. 

I bought her book "What Women Fear" at the conference. I have been reading a little bit here and there, and finally finished it tonight. It normally doesn't take me four months to read a book, but I have been swamped with life, and often don't have time for reading. That reminds me, I need to add that to my list of 2012 "commitments": Make more time for reading!

Okay, anyway, this book was very amazing. She mentioned fear of storms, public speaking, fearing God and many others. I don't want to spoil it for those who haven't read it, so I'll stop there. I encourage all women to read this book if you haven't already. Angie is a wonderful person with a great personality. She's funny, kind, and just an awesome person to listen to. You will be amazed at how great of a job she did with writing this book. You won't want to put it down! 

She also has a blog if you're interested in taking a look. Bring The Rain

Thankfulness

Have you ever stopped to think what you're truly thankful for (besides on Thanksgiving)?
I know most of us thank God for the big things, but what about little things? I want to encourage anyone who reads this, to come up with 20 things that you are thankful to God for TODAY. Not yesterday, not last week or last month. TODAY. Here is my list.

1. eyes
2. feet
3. arms
4. Zach's affection
5. clothes
6. food
7. pets
8. winter
9. having 2 weeks off from work
10. dishes to eat on
11. christmas tree
12. good friends to talk to throughout the day
13. God!
14. Joyce Meyer's Confident Woman Devotionals
15. air
16. car
17. laptop
18. water
19. church family
20. washer/dryer

Some of these may seem unworthy of mentioning in your opinion, but when you thank God for each one of these, and you acknowledge him for blessing you with each item on your list, he smiles! He also sees that since you thank him for the small things, you can be well trusted with the big things.

Christmas Clean-Up

Christmas went well. We all enjoyed our gifts, but the most special gift of all was being able to be with family and celebrate Christ's love for us. We went to church, and then afterwards, went to Pastor Thomas and Lynna's house for Christmas dinner. I know that a lot of people like to be with just their own families for Christmas, and there's nothing wrong with that, but I enjoyed being around Christian friends while celebrating the true reason for the season. To me, it was a very special day. 

Now it's time for clean-up. Fun, fun! We have boxes galore in our living room for the tree and other miscellaneous decorations. We also have a box full of trash that needs taken to the curb (wrapping paper,  bows, etc. that the kids tore off their presents). After the decorations come off, it's time to take down the tree. I think we're going to throw this one away since we've had it for a while, and get a real one next year. I've never had a real tree, so this should be fun!

Hope you all had a very Merry Christmas! Next up: New Year's!!!

Day 1 of Homeschooling: SUCCESS!

Yesterday was our 1st day of homeschooling and it went well! The boys enjoyed being at home. We read a book that had a lot of "pointillist" artwork in it. (The artist uses dots to make a picture, rather than brush strokes. All of the dots together form a picture). We got out some paint and made our own pointillist paintings, which are now beautifully displayed in our living room. I also had them practice their math skills. Bible time is a part of each of our lessons, and the boys really enjoy it. I'm glad I get to teach them at home because they get to learn at their own pace, instead of being forced to learn many things in one day. Homeschool rocks! :)
 

Five In A Row

So last Sunday, I posted about getting the kids enrolled with K12. Well, after talking with a couple other Homeschooling Moms, and doing a LOT of research, I decided to go with Five In A Row instead. I love reading, and I believe books are SUPER important! Five In A Row bases all lessons on books. You read one book every day for a week. Each day, after reading the story, you pick a lesson or two. So Monday, you may choose Art and Science. You can do an Art activity and Science activity based on the book. Tuesday, you may opt for Geography and Math, and so on.

The books are selected by the Five In A Row creators, and they choose stories which deal with strong family relationships, perseverance under trial, and other important values that children SHOULD be learning, but don't seem to be being taught in public school. They are only focused on the actual academics, but seem to not care less about other important values. Yes, I know this is the parent's job to teach, but I believe schools should reinforce these core areas.

I think Five In A Row will be awesome for the boys because they already love to read. Well, Robbie does. Zach doesn't know how to read yet, but I know he'll love it once he grasps it. I'm really glad I found Five In A Row, and am anxious to get started. I went to the school today and withdrew the boys, and tomorrow starts day 1 of homeschooling. Yay! :)

Homeschooling with K12

I have always wanted to homeschool Robbie, but I've always been talked into keeping him in regular school "for the socialization". I don't see how they can develop socialization skills when they have to sit in class and listen to the teacher, and then do work on their own. If they talk, they get in trouble. The only time they get to socialize is at recess. Both boys would have more time for socialization by staying at home and playing with the kids down the street. 


Robbie's in 2nd grade now, and I've noticed a lot of things that make me want to start homeschooling this year. First, his attitude seems to be getting worse. He'll smart off to me, yell at everyone in the family, and whine when he doesn't get his way. Second, this past Tuesday, I had to keep him home from school because Monday, a boy in his class told him he was going to kill him. Then on the way home, a boy on his bus called him the "F" word.

I went to the school Tuesday morning and talked to his teacher, and then the principal. His teacher understood why I was keeping him out for the day. The principal wasn't so understanding. She kept telling me that he needs to be in school. The way I see it, if his life is being threatened, he does NOT need to be in school. I spent a good part of the day Thursday, researching homeschooling. The one I found to be the best for the boys was K12. A friend of mine uses K12 for her son and she loves it, so now it's my turn to try. I filled out an application for both boys, and submitted all the required documents. 

I just got word today that all documents were received and approved, and the boys were put on a wait list. From what the guy told me the other day, if everything goes through in time, the boys could be set to start January 16th. I hope they get approved for that slot because I am so ready for them to start homeschooling, especially since I found out that Zach got punched on the bus today.  Come on K12!

Another 2-year Anniversary (Baptism)

Today marks the 2nd anniversary of another wonderful day; My and Travis' baptism. We got baptized the day after our wedding, as a way of starting a new life with God and each other. The past two years have been amazing. I've noticed a lot of changes in my life since I turned to God. The obstacles that used to seem like mountains, are now a mere speedbump on the road. It feels good to come out of darkness and into the light. I still have a ways to go, but I take comfort in the fact that I have a life partner to share this journey with.

Our 2nd Anniversary! :)

Today is our 2nd anniversary! I can't believe it's been that long already. We didn't really do anything fancy since money was a little tight this year, although we did get to eat lunch at Taco Bell! :) We ran some errands and then I went to work at 2 pm. When I got home, we ran to Walmart. Travis bought me a pink & green cake and a new ring! We ate dinner (cake for dessert), and put the kids in bed. I had a school seminar, and Travis slept because he has to work tonight. Overall, it was a good day, but it would've been better if I could've spent the whole day with Travis. Next year, hopefully I can afford to take the day off so we can go do something together.

4-H

Church went well this morning. Travis, Robbie, and I read the story of Mary becoming pregnant with Jesus, and Robbie lit the 2nd advent candle. After service, I took Robbie up to the 4-H fairgrounds for the Open House, and to get signed up for Mini 4-H. He's excited! He wants to do Arts & Crafts and Collections. Our first meeting is February 13th. I wish I could've done 4-H when I was little. I could've learned so many skills, but I feel like I missed out. It helps, though, knowing that I can encourage Robbie on his projects. This will be his first year in, so it will be exciting to see the things that he comes up with.

After the 4-H Open House, we went on a tour of an old church here in town. I can't remember the name of it, but it was really neat to see all the old stuff in there. I'm not much of a History person, but it was interesting. Travis loves History so he had a blast! The boys got to decorate pinecone ornaments with glitter, and Robbie made a strand of popcorn, and sewed a piece of a quilt.

Christmas Festival

Travis and I took the boys to our downtown Christmas Festival last night. It was so neat! We missed it last year, so we wanted to let the kids experience it this year. We started our night by going out to eat at Hometown Classic Pizza. They moved to a bigger building, and they now have a big window to put decorations in. Right now, it's housing a beautiful Christmas tree and Nutcracker.

After we were done eating, we walked down to the square and listened to the Christmas Carolers, while trying to stay warm. We grabbed some yummy hot chocolate and cookies, and went walking around for a few. At 6:45, we witnessed the lighting of the Christmas tree, followed by the Parade. We saw Santa ride in on a firetruck. I guess the reindeer must have been sleeping!

The boys wanted to stay and visit Santa in his house, but there was already a long line that formed while we were watching the parade, plus the boys needed to get home and get to bed. We promised them that we would go back another day when it wasn't so crowded. Santa will visit his house on the plaza a few more times before Christmas, so the boys will have plenty of chances to see him.

Overall, we had a very awesome night. I feel like I'm getting into the Christmas spirit more this year than I normally do. I like it!