When There's No Tomorrow

Memory Verse: Ecclesiastes 1:13-14
I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid on men! I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

Assignment: We only have today. Should God take you today, have you accomplished everything that you wanted to, needed to. Have you said all the things that needed to be said? Let’s have no regrets, let’s make sure we get to those things, so that when we’re standing before the Lord, the only thing we need to do is to worship him.. and not regret not getting to that thing on our to do list. Stop - go take care of that thing…. then, come tell us what you choose to share.

I can't imagine I will ever be able to stand before God and be free of regret. If today were my day to go home, I know there would be plenty. Here are a few...

I would wish that I had prayed more...

worshipped harder...

obeyed Him immediately.

I would wish that I had smiled instead of frowned...

listened instead of scolded...

spoken wisely instead of sarcastically.

I would have wanted more hours spent serving in love and sharing His love with those who had no idea...

I would wish that I truly deserve it when He says, "Well done, good and faithful servant."

But I, in my flesh, do not deserve it.

I am no more than a lowly sinner full of regrets.

How in the world will I ever stand before Him without them?


Perhaps it is because He is the One that changes sinners into saints. He is the One who transforms us from holy to holy. He is the One who makes us deserving.

Because of His sacrifice I will stand before Him. And then I will live free of regret forever.

"Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God!

How unsearchable his judgements, and his paths beyond tracing out!

Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?

Who has ever given to God, that God should repay him?

For from him and through him and to him are all things.

To him be the glory forever! Amen."

-Romans 11:33-36

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BFS #106- Have it your way!

Memory Verse: Isaiah 40: 1- Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.

Assignment: Tell us all about how you have “your” relaxing time, more especially how during the cooler months you take time to curl up with your favorite movie, book, Bible study, and what your favorite warm drink would be.

Share a picture of your favorite spot in the house or your favorite warm beverage, your favorite movie or book; possibly even your favorite Bible Study or maybe your women’s Bible group.



I know this is totally unoriginal...but this simply is my favorite spot in the house. I love a hot, HOT bubble bath, a good book, and a diet coke with ice. I turn the roaring vent fan on to drown out all the "kid noise" and relax for a good hour or two.

I have to say, I've enjoyed this assignment. Even though hubby is always willing to give me my time, this event still does not occur very often. And since we were required to show a picture, it was necessary to fill the bath. And since the bath was already full, there was no sense in letting all that water go to waste...needless to say, I finished the book. Pin It Now!

M'm M'm Good

Memory Verse: Psalms 13:6 NIV
I will sing to the Lord, for He has been good to me.

Assignment: Post your favorite fall recipe/recipes to share.

Well I thought I'd share a simple recipe for applesauce. I had never made applesauce and it is SO easy, I don't know why I haven't. I made it with the kids this past Monday while we were doing a unit on apples. The next day we went on a field trip to a U Pick Farm and brought home 1/2 bushel of apples...so we'll be making some more in the next couple of days!

Applesauce

1 quart of peeled and sliced apples
I cup of water
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. lemon juice
cinnamon to taste

Put all ingredients into a saucepan and cook until apples are tender (about 20 minutes). Mash the mixture using an electric mixer until applesauce is smooth. Store in an air tight container in the refrigerator until cold.

The kids and my husband all loved it. I even let Baby L have some for lunch today. We'll also be making candy apples this week as well. Now that's M'mmmmmmm! Pin It Now!

BFS #104 - Never Leave Home Without It!

Memory Verse: Matthew 28: 20 - Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the world. Amen.

Assignment: In the memory verse Jesus tells us that He will never leave us, not even at the end of the world. He assures us in this verse that He will be with us and that means through everything we go through in life. I thought it would be interesting to write about the things we would never leave home without. For some it might be baby needs, others it might be a gym bag and bottle of water, and for some it might be your Bible and a notepad or small journal, maybe even your son or daughters favorite blankie! I’d like for you to write about something that you would never leave home without.


A diaper bag...I have six kids. 'Nuff said.

My cell phone...No, I'm not one of those people that have the phone surgically attached to my head. But once I was ran off the road by a speeding truck on a icy road (he didn't stop) when my oldest was just a newborn. Luckily, my friend was in the car with me and my aunt lived down the road. I left the baby with my friend and had to walk about a half mile in the snow. My husband and I decided a cell phone was a necessity item after that.

My sunglasses...I just mentioned this in the previous post. This isn't a fashion statement, but I seriously need my glasses. This is because the sun hurts my eyes. I have no idea why, but it started a few years ago and I wear sunglasses in all seasons now. My guess is that it has to do with fatigue. I don't have time to slow down and think about how tired I am with all these little ones, but I do show signs of it. This is just my season to be tired. It's worth it. Pin It Now!

Evidence of our Wackiness

This is WACKY WEEK here at Blogger Friend School! Everything is wacky fun! This week YOU, the student, get to share something of your choice that is little “Wacky”!!!

Have you done something crazy in your homeschool? Do you fingerpaint with your toes? Do you let your children do your hair? Do you wear your pajamas during homeschool? Oh, the list is endless, but it’s up to you and how much fun you want to have.

To make it even “wackier” (not sure if it’s really a word, but hey, we don’t check spelling this week at BFS either!!!…..try and type some or all of your post sdrawkcab. (backwards!)

Exhibit 1: Science Experiment
Conclusion...One year olds and Oreos don't mix.


Exhibit 2: Mutating into storybook characters










Exhibit 3: Fictional Geography

I actually had the kids cut out and paste this map of Columbus' first voyage in their history notebooks. Notice anything askew? Perhaps the large fictional country of Bergonia (half the size of the US) in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean? The only thing wackier than me not noticing the fictitious Bergonia on the map before printing it, is the creators of the very detailed website dedicated to Bergonia. Included on the website is maps of the country, details about its population, religion, wildlife, etc., etc. There's even a page that tells the entire story of Columbus landing on the island during his first voyage to the Americas. This is the page I found when I googled 'map of Columbus' first voyage'. Won s'taht ykcaw! Pin It Now!

Blogger Friend Assignment #103

Memory Verse: 1 Timothy 4:15 (NIV)
Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress.

Intro: It keeps going, and going, and going…. (Marketing credit: Energizer)

Housekeeping: that household mess, it keeps going and going and going. It’s a perpetual chore that we diligently need to keep going on to stay on top it. We all have different ways of keeping ourselves energized.

Assignment: How do you keep energized so you can get it all done? bouncy music? treat it like a workout? Do you use a schedule?, a housekeeping binder system? luck of the draw system?.. or is this an area where you need encouragement? Do you need God’s help to keep order and beauty in your dwelling place? Take this week to tell us how You diligently keep going with your housekeeping chores.

Oh, I am far past needing encouragement in this area. I need serious, SERIOUS prayer! Housekeeping is not a talent that I possess. Especially housekeeping while homeschooling and raising six children under eight. I am constantly pushing this to the back burner.

My goal is to have morning chores, afternoon chores, and after dinner chores. In the morning the kids have a morning routine which includes making their beds and cleaning their rooms. I'd like to make my bed at this time as well, though more often than not, I am nursing the baby and/or fixing breakfast at this time. My daughter is supposed to put laundry in and out of the washer/dryer two times a day and fold the clean clothes. I still have to oversee all of this and more often than not the clean clothes lay unfolded in a laundry basket. I do clean the kitchen after every meal, but often let the dishes pile till the evening. (Our dishwasher doesn't work so we have to wash all dishes by hand.) In all honesty, most evenings my husband is the one who washes the dishes and puts the clothes away...if they get put away at all. I'm desperate for the help, but I hate that he has to come home from a long day at work to a house full of work.

I've always saved Saturday as the day to do our really deep cleaning (mopping, windows/mirrors, dusting woodwork, tubs/toilets, etc.). This works well except for the Saturdays we have something planned. About once a month everything builds up so much that I explode and go into frenzy cleaning mode. All the kids are enlisted, which usually means they are given Mr. Clean Magic Erasers and ordered to scrub every visible surface. This happened on Tuesday of this week. All schoolwork stopped and we considered it a day of Home-Ec. I'd love to post pictures of all we accomplished, and we really did accomplish a lot of cleaning...but it's Friday now, so there's no evidence of cleanliness or order left. Pin It Now!

Try it, You'll Like it.

Memory Verse: Psalms 26:2 NIV
Test me, O LORD, and try me, examine my heart and my mind.

Assignment: This week I want you to do something for someone else. Do you have a neighbor that needs you? Do you know an elderly person or single mom that could use you? What about the homeless? Pack even one single sack lunch and give it to someone in need. Do you know someone in blogland that is struggling right now and could use a note from you about how much you care? Pray about this. Let God put on your heart the perfect thing for you to do for another. Now, here is the kicker…I DO NOT want you to post about what you do. Whatever you choose to do is between you and God. Our rewards are in heaven, not here on earth, Mathew 6:1. I want you to post about how doing this “act” made you feel. Was stepping out of your comfort zone in this area as hard as you thought it might be? Could you see the gratefulness in their eyes? Hear it in their voice? Tell it from their typing? Do you think you might make doing things like this a more regular part of your time? If this is an area that you are already active in, tell us how you feel this has impacted your life.

When I was growing up, my number one fear was that of humiliation. I made it a goal in my life to never put myself in any "potentially embarrassing situation". I was content with being a wallflower.

As a result, I rarely took chances, participated in NO group sports, and remained out of the spotlight.

I became a Christian in 2000. I was passionate about my faith and began to share it with my close friends and family. God gave me courage to speak up, but I truly hadn't moved out of my comfort zone yet.

I realized that this was an area God wanted me to work on about 5 years ago. We go to a very large church and were attending a Sunday evening worship service one night. This event is a high energy worship experience put on by the college age ministry. As we entered the sanctuary, we were stopped and asked to fill out a simple survey.

I was enjoying the service sitting way in the back - I mean, really, who wants to sit in the front?! Our youth minister came out to preach. He spoke about how the Holy Spirit is like a river. If you are on a white water raft, you will be pulled along by the river's current this way and that. This is a wild and exciting ride (so I've been told), but it can also be quite frightening. After all, you are no longer in control.

Then the preacher did something totally unexpected. He brought out the white basket that we had all slipped our surveys in. He announced that he would be drawing a name and asking them to come on stage to receive a $50 gift certificate. Everyone clapped excitedly...except me. There was no way I wanted to go up there! No exaggeration, there were nearly 1000 people in there! Then the preacher said no, actually the person who's name was drawn would need to come to the stage to sing "Amazing Grace". He encouraged us to not be afraid, but to be pulled along by God's leading. And then he did it. He pulled my name. He pronounced it wrong (everyone does...it's Shanna, rhymes with banana, in case you're wondering), but he pulled my name.

My husband looked at me with a funny grin like, Are you going to bolt? and before I knew it, almost in slow motion, I said, "Oh...my...God." Now, I know this sounds like I was using the Lord's name in vain. But I wasn't. From the very depths of my soul, I was crying out to Him.

And that's when I realized it. He was going to make me go up there. Not the preacher...but God. God was going to make me go up there. So I decided I would.

About this time, oblivious to me sitting way in the back, the preacher said, "No, I'm just kidding. She doesn't really need to come up here."

I believe I was changed that night. God began to teach me to let go of my fear of being embarrassed, because it was holding me back from what He had planned. Don't get me wrong, I still shake in my boots when I feel God tugging at my heart to say something or do something for someone that is out of the ordinary. But it never fails...if I don't do it, I feel disappointed, like I missed out on something. And when I do, I feel SO blessed.

We were asked to share a picture of our hands. I drew this in my art journal a couple of years ago...



This is what I wrote with it:

In my wildest imagination, I can imagine You, my Maker, forming man from the dust. Mixing it with water to make clay. Rolling the clay into a tiny ball and then pressing it firmly with the palm of Your hand. With Your fingernail You cut into the clay - one, two, three, four slits. You roll the slender slivers between Your thumb and forefinger. As You work, Your fingerprints leave delicate lines in the hand that You are forming. This hand that You've made, I raise to You in everlasting praise.

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made." -Psalm 139: 13-14 Pin It Now!

Relief

Memory Verse: Psalms 55:22 - Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee; He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.

Assignment: This would be a good week to tell about your worst struggles with a lifestyle of homeschooling. Tell about something you’ve struggled with and how God’s mercies gave us the strength to get past it. Also, share any curriculum/homeschool methods that have been a relief to you, i.e., a particular Teacher’s Manual or Homeschooling method that’s been easier for your family. Talk about how you felt when the burden was lifted and Oh, What a Relief it is!

I wrote about our struggles with teaching G7 to read back in May and I'll share that again here...

My Cup Runneth Over Today

Hubby was off today and took the girls on a daddy date, so I had the opportunity for a relaxing time with the boys. I purchased a "Read and Learn with Classic Stories Grade 1" published by McGraw-Hill over the weekend for $3 at a yardsale. There are six classic stories all with several pages of follow up fun worksheets for each story.

G7 is just coming out of 1st grade. He is doing well reading words in isolation, but has struggled with reading fluently. I have been certain that he just needs practice, but have yet to be very successful in including reading practice in our day. Instead, we have been quite bogged down by just surviving the end of the school year. Penmanship and spelling words and even family reading was on the schedule, but reading practice was not. Well, praise God that schedule is now fulfilled and no longer in operation!

I thought I might show my yardsale find to G7 and encourage him to read the first story. I was actually expecting it to be a little painful, as each of the stories are about 35 pages long. Plus, these are not the "one sentence per page" picture books. Each page has about a paragraph of text. Nonetheless, to say that I was "pleasantly surprised" by how well he did is an extreme understatement!

He read through the entire story without stopping or complaining. He actually sped through it quite quickly, reading words that I never would have imagined he could read without my help. And best of all, he loved it! After nearly 20 minutes of reading, he actually asked if he could read the next story! I encouraged him to do some of the worksheets first, which he skipped to the table to do and then completed 7 of them.

It is my goal for this upcoming school year to be the year when my children learn to love the written word. How grateful I am that I am already seeing it! Truly God is going before me preparing my children's hearts and minds. I thought about titling this blog "Success is Sweet", but couldn't. The success is not mine. It belongs solely to my seven year old and the One who created him. I have been blessed to be a part of it!

Here is a picture I took of G7 reading his Bible this morning.


Is there any sight sweeter than this?

We have chosen lots of literature rich curriculum this year. My absolute favorite is Beautiful Feet Books' Early American History for primary grades. We bought the entire package which came with 20 books! I love sitting with all my little ones and reading these stories and I love the history notebooks that they are creating!

I'd love to read about how God has given you victory through homeschool trials. If you post about it, be sure to visit BFS and leave your link. Then let me know, so I can read it too!! Pin It Now!

BFS is having a Back to School Giveaway!

I've just enrolled in the 2008-2009 Blogger Friend School and I'm looking forward to a fun year of blogging with other homeschool moms! To kick off the schoolyear, BFS is offering a Back to School Giveaway. They are giving away a nature journal and two nature books! How fun! And even though I REALLY wanna win, I thought I'd share it with you. So head on over and sign up!!! Pin It Now!