Thank God for Modern Conveniences

I'm so grateful for air conditioning. Having ours go out yesterday morning made me realize that! I packed up the kids and took off to my mom's house. Since the unit won't be fixed until today we had a hot, muggy night upon returning home. So of course we had the fans blowing which made me wake up with a headache. I'm grateful for Tylenol. And having all the windows open to let the cooler evening and morning air in is making my allergies flare up. I'm grateful for Zyrtec. Thank You, Lord, for reminding me how blessed I am to live in the U.S. in the 21st century with all our modern conveniences!

For The Record

Our first day of school is only 5 short days away! Lately I've been wanting to sit down and really think about why I am going to homeschool my children. It all started with a sincere desire very early this year. Although I didn't have any concrete reason such as "I won't allow my children in public schools" (which is not what I believe anyway), I still felt called by the Lord to do it. Since then, I've sought God's wisdom and direction and He's given me several concrete reasons to move forth with this desire. For the record and future reflection (maybe those days when I'm not so jazzed and neither are the kids) here are my reasons:

• To give my children a biblical worldview. In other words I want to show them God's reality in all aspects of life. God is real, He exists, He created us with a purpose, He loves us, and He has given us the Bible which contains His truth. In fact, because God has created the whole world, all truth is His truth and we should give Him due credit.

• To be with them. I don't want their childhoods to pass by and not be present enough for them. May my influence be for God's glory and their benefits for life.

• To take seriously the commandments to parents given in Deuteronomy 6:5-7. "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise."

• To allow for tons of life-learning.

• To create a love for learning and equip them with the skills and resources to self-educate.

• To teach (or re-teach) as fast or slow as my children need in order to truly learn.

So I finally have a chance to blog a little. Last Monday I had my surgery. Everything went well and I'm up and around like before, just sore and being careful to not lift too much. I was taken good care of by Jose and my mom. Even though I was frustrated with having to lay around and not do anything last week, I had a chance to get some reading done that I've been wanting to dig into. I read:

"Shepherding A Child's Heart" by Paul Tripp...I enjoyed reading through this. At times some of the content was very challenging to me, but overall I agree with the main points the author makes about raising children.

"Because He Loves Me" by Elyse Fitzpatrick...EXCELLENT!!! A MUST READ!!!! I heard Elyse speak at two conferences in the last 4 months and the Lord has gifted her, no, annointed her to teach His Word and convey His love in a transforming way. This book was an exhaustive reiteration of what she taught at those two conferences. I did have to read it with a dictionary in hand and I learned some new vocabulary along the way. The two parts to the book talk about how God's love transforms our identity and how God's love transforms our daily lives. She drives home the fact that it is only our appreciation for the gospel and God's love that can motivate genuine obedience. She couples the imperatives (gospel declarations about who we are in Christ) and indicatives (gospel obligations to live a holy life) in the Bible and insists they must not be separated from one another. This will be a definite re-read for me.

"The Excellent Wife" by Martha Peace...A wonderful book for wives who desire to fill their role the way God intends. It was very convicting but also encouraging to be the wife who (1) glorifies God and (2) "does my husband good and not harm all the days of my life" (Prov. 31:12).

Now I'm reading through "The Knowledge of the Holy" by A.W. Tozer. I have to read this one slowly because its too profound for my pea brain. Each chapter, or page rather, is so much to chew on so I'm just doing a little at a time. I'm also studying through "The 7 Laws of the Learner" by Bruce Wilkinson as recommended by my husband. It is excellent and since I'll become my daughter's teacher in less than 2 weeks (aaa!) I want to be equipped as much as possible.

I think that covers all my reading in the last couple of weeks. My family is having an exciting August. My dad has been doing a lot of work to his new house which he moves into this coming weekend. I feel bad that I haven't been able to help since having my surgery. I'm sure the house looks great and I can't wait to get out there to see the finished product. My dad also had the opportunity to travel to France and England. He had a great time seeing all the sights in person and brought us back some fun souveniors and lots of great photos. I would post them, but I'm having trouble, so I'll have to keep working on that. Jeff (my brother) bought his first home! Its a brand new condo and its so great. He's been busy with installing window coverings, shopping, and assembling new furniture. We're excited for him and proud of him buying this new place. My mom has been so busy between staying here a few nights and doing my household duties (she's an old pro) as well as helping Jeff with his new place and shopping with him.

This past Monday morning was very exciting for us. I sent Jose off to his seminary orientation! It lasts all week, but thankfully he spent last night home and will be home again tonight. When he called me on Monday evening he had so much he wanted to tell me. All the speakers and flood of information has both challenged and highly motivated him. We're so thankful the Lord is allowing him to start even just 1 day a week. Last night we were invited back to the seminary for a dessert reception for the new students and their wives. It was so wonderful to meet all these other students and wives. The seminary really makes the effort the include the wives in the whole seminary experience and minister and train them for a life of ministry as well as the men. When Jose had called me on Monday he said he wants me to attend the sem wives ministry on Wednesday nights. Yay!! This is something I wanted and have been praying for since he was accepted in the spring. Somehow we'll work it out. It is still our prayer that the Lord will provide the opportunity for us to move much closer and allow Jose to attend the seminary full time. We'll keep praying!

So we have a lot going on. Next week Jose officially starts school followed by us starting homeschooling, possibly serving in the Children's ministry on Sun. evenings, a small group women's study for me on Thursdays, as well as Sem Wives on Wednesdays. I'm also looking for an extra-cirricular activity for my girls once school begins. But I'm ready! And I'm also ready to be flexible and adjust our lives should the Lord lead us to.

"The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps." -Proverbs 16:9

1 year Anniversary

I can't believe its been one year since I started blogging! Its been a lot of fun to look back over the last year of journaling. I've been blessed with fellow bloggers and I truly wish ALL of my friends and family blogged, too. Its a great way to stay connected (hint, hint Friends and Family). :)

For Mrs. R.

Here is a picture of my current hair as commented on by
Mrs. R.. :)

Yesterday I took a trip to Target for our last few school supplies and while checking out, the cashier asked if Annie (she was with me) was starting school this year. And I replied, "Yes, actually we're going to start homeschooling this year." I was anticipating some opposition but instead was met with ,"Oh, I'm homeschooled. I'll be a senior this year." I don't like judging people, especially by outward appearances. This girl just totally surprised me because she had 2 lip rings, crazy makeup, and crazy hair. She said she had been homeschooled all her life and is totally for it. She would do it with her own kids if she had any. Once again I was pleasantly surprised when it came to a homeschool conversation.

Classroom

Yay!!! We finished putting together our classroom for the upcoming school year. It has a dry erase board, bulletin board, world map, U.S. map, days of the week, a globe, craft supplies, books, puzzles, and a border of the alphabet. All we need is an American flag for the finishing touch. I can't wait to start school! I have skeleton lesson plans done for the first couple of months and 2 field trips planned. The leader of the homeschool ministry at church called this morning to welcome us to the group and let us know we're official! All I need is a long skirt and to put my hair in a nice neat bun. Just kidding. Actually yesterday I went to get my hair done (something I don't do often enough). I chopped it to my chin and after 7 years of have zero artificial color I finally put some Honey Blonde highlights in.

Here are a few pictures of our classroom/dining room.

Does My Daughter Have A Sixth Sense?

I sure think so. Bekah had a dentist appointment scheduled for 8am this morning. We did not tell her about it because she is so very frightened of the dentist. She already has had dental work done and is somewhat traumatized. But I think she somehow sensed our plans for the morning because she woke up with a tummy ache. About an hour later she was revisited by her morning OJ. Well, the appt. had to get canceled. She continued getting sick for a few hours, took a nap, and woke up a brand new person. She's been eating and drinking and playing with Annie. She had to have known about that appointment.

Thoroughly Impressed

I am so impressed with Spray N Wash and the Clorox Bleach pen. On Tuesday Jose had some bright red blood stains on his pristine white dress shirt and after 1 wash cycle of Spray N Wash, Tide, and Bleach then another wash cycle involving the Clorox Bleach pen and Tide the shirt became spotless once again. Oh, how did he get those blood stains there? Poor Annie. When Jose came home from work she wanted to hide and pop out to surprise him. She hid in the kitchen and apparently when she popped out, she somehow smacked the back of her head on a sharp kitchen counter corner (hmmm, maybe marble countertops with rounded edges are a necessity). Nobody saw what happened, but we heard it and of course 10 seconds later the silent breathless cry became very loud. We just thought she bumped her head like kids do. So Jose picked her up and within a few seconds blood was all over his hand, her hand, and his shirt. Thankfully Jeff and Amie were here so they stayed with Bekah until my mom could come take over while we hurriedly drove Annie to the ER. She calmed down by the time we got there and after getting her cleaned up the doctor said it was just a shallow puncture, not even enough for a stitch or staple (oh thank you, Lord!!). So Annie is A-OK and Jose's shirt survived as well. :)