Tick-Tock

In a house full of people there is almost inevtiably always an appliance running. The purr of the dishwasher, the vroom of the washing machine, the whirring of the clothes dryer; the noise never ceases. Yet, silence, it is what I long for. I love quietness and the still, soft whispers of the wind. As, I sit here reading my book, suddenly, the dishwasher stopped and all became quiet; all, except the tick- tock of the clock. I remember as a child when I would try to fall asleep as a guest in the home of a family who owned a ticking clock. The sound of that "tick" and that "tock" drove me crazy and kept me awake all night tossing and turning, wishing I could smash the clock!

tick-tock, Tick-Tock TIck-TOck, TICk-TOCk, TICK-TOCK...

TIME!

Slipping away!!

The sounds of time! Oh it seems slow and quiet, but really what is time? Time is always chasing us and yet running ahead of us. The pendulaum swings. How do we catch it and how do we slow it down?

I am 43 now. My oldest is 21 and in Germany, my 19 year old is getting married in 3 months, my 17 year old is graduating in 10 weeks, my 15 year old is going to summer camp for a month in July! How did this happen???? Instead of the tick tock of the cuckoo clock keeping me awake, the worries of motherhood turn round and round in the workings of my mind,

Take my hands Lord!

In the midst of that "tick" and that "tock", they grew up! How does a mom prepare for the kids flying out of the nest? How do we handle this huge and seemingly sudden change from diapers to marriage? Why is it that the hands of the clock stay the same, but the hands of a mother constantly change?

I am not sure, but as I sit and listen to the tick-tock of my clock, I am reminded that my life is ticking away and I have but a short time to remain on this earth. What am I going to do with my next 40 years? I am not sure!! But, I am praying and asking God, "What shall I do now?"

I am waiting in the quiet, while the sounds of time are chasing me down, for the whispers of God to show me what is next.

My thoughts about Towers In The Mist by Elizabeth Goudge

Christ Church in England

The setting of this book is at Christ Church, the home of Oxford University in England, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. One of the characters I found to be quite interesting was Sir Walter Raleigh and it intrigued me to read more about his real life and his accomplishments to see how it lined up with his character in the story. It also inspired me to investigate the history of Queen Elizabeth's visit to this church, as it had been established by her father King Henry VIII.  Upon some investigation, the queen did indeed speak to the faculty and students on September 5, 1566 and her speech can be read here.

Christ Church from the South-East side across the meadow

My favorite part about the book is within the pages of the last few chapters. It took me a year to read this book, as I like to read many books simultaneously so as to savor them. The first two thirds of this book were dragging for me, but it was well worth the effort. The profound words of Miss Goudge jumped off the pages in the last few chapters. I truly believe that she is the most exquisite author of beautiful literature. She is able to put ideas into words that make each sentence truly exquisite.

My goal in reading stories is to find the treasure! The treasure of golden nuggets that plant within my soul a truth to ponder that will grow within me a new way of thinking, so that I can become a better person. The golden thread that wound itself around my soul is the idea that peace and inspiration are two of the most important elements of our life on this earth.

Queen Elizabeth was giving her climactic speech to the people of Christ Church. It was an eloquent speech, although the real speech is different, I still enjoyed the spiritual depth and insight that Miss Goudge put into creating this speech. This part in the queen's speech really stopped me dead in my tracks! Through the pen of the author, Queen Elizabeth said:  

"...peace and inspiration are the two gifts of God that we most need in this our pilgrimage. If we have peace in our hearts the disorder and cruelty of of life will not overwhelm us with despair, and if we have even for a short while seen that flash of light from another country that men call inspiration we shall have the courage to attempt, however unsuccessfully, to do our part in quieting the disorder and quelling the cruelty; until we have battled through them and our rest is won....And it is in such houses as this my scholars that we find that peace and inspiration..."

Peace and Inspiration. Is my home a place of peace? Do I intentionally create an atmosphere of peace in my home? Do I intentional create an environment that breeds itself to inspirations? How can I make my home a place where these 2 fundamental facets of life are abundant?

My pondering continues. I am wondering how to really bring forth the atmosphere of peace and inspiration into my home. I must clean out the clutter of my mind, so that I can eliminate the clutter of things, in order that I might create room for that which brings forth peace and beauty. All things beautiful start with a seed of inspiration and must be planted into soil that has been prepared so it can nourish the seed to sprout and bloom into an idea which springs forth beauty.

From seed to sprout to blossom: beauty must be born from inspiration

"...he paused to look back at the towers and spires so delicately penciled against the glorious dawn sky that curved above them in the semblance of a great circle. He felt a pang of pain to think that he must so soon leave it all, but yet he had at the same time a glorious feeling of permanence. Raleigh at the last had been quite right. Love was an unchanging thing, not at emotion but an element in which the whole world had its being. All the lovely things upon earth, beauty and truth and courage, were faint pictures of it, even as the puddles of rain water at his feet held a faint picture of the fiery sky bending above the earth. And in the mind of man too the flame was caught and held; in his own mind whose strength and vigor made it possible for his eyes to see this picture of a fair city and a golden sky, for his heart to feel for Joyeuce an affection so strong that he dared to call it by the name of that eternal and embracing love."- Elizabeth Goudge, Towers In The Mist

The Whisper of God

Where is the whisper of God? I cannot find his voice behind the dark walls and that surround me day by day, week by week, month by month. I find myself wandering in a dark maze, tripping on junk, stumbling into walls. Lost. Nowhere to rest, nowhere to hide, nowhere to ponder and listen. The noise is constantly chattering, clamoring; screaming from the walls that envelope me and sky that closes in over me.

The whisper of God. I have heard it before. In the sound of the rain and the drops of the sun. The coddling of a nursing babe at my breast. The walks with the trees, the murmurs of rushing water, the ramblings of robins, the brushes with nature. The cool breeze that rushes through my skin, the snow that brushes against my cheeks. The blue moon that lights up the crackling snow at midnight.The sounds of laughter from children. The back door open with muddy feet running in and out. The dog that says "I love you" when you come home. 

Where is the whisper of God? Somewhere I have lost Him. I do not know how to find him in the weeds, the noise, pollution, and walls of buildings. Nature is nowhere to be found in the clattering of suburbia. Lost, I am. Deaf I have become. I want to be with the trees again. The scorching heat, the stifling air, the sound of planes, the lack of beauty. It keeps me at bay. I stay behind my safe walls and hide. Dark in the cell, I have become a prisoner. Locked away, I hide and stare at this mess I have made and this mess I have become. 

Homeschooling and Working Outside The Home: Why?

I have realized that I am fiercely committed to my family. There is nothing, absolutely nothing, more important to me than my husband and my kids. I am devoted and passionate about my relationship and commitment to helping them each become the very best that they can be.

With that said, all of my life goals and decisions are centered around them. You might think that is crazy and insane that my entire life is wrapped up in my family, but honestly, isn't that the point of living? Being a supportive wife and devoted mother is the hardest and most fulfilling role that I could ever imagine. When my life is over on this earth, I want my children and grandchildren to remember me and I want my life to reflect the glory of my Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.

Last year I had to start working in order to help cover costs of college, ballet and piano lessons. I still homeschool 2 of my 4 kids and life is super busy for me. But, I can honestly say that I have learned a lot about myself this past year. I am tired most of the time because I still homeschool, I drive 50 miles a day for ballet lessons and I work 25 hours a week. But, I realized that I am fiercely devoted to my family.

sibling fun

So often, there is a pre-supposition that a working woman is not devoted to her family. I was a stay at home mom for 20 years and I loved it. But, now that I am working outside of the home, I am realizing that many women who work, really are doing it for the sake of their love for their family. The fierce devotion of wanting to give their kids the very best opportunities that they can is often a motivation of a mom who works outside of the home.

Rainy homeschool day

Sibling fun in Germany

I do challenge young moms that while your kids are young, do whatever you can to stay home.  Downsize and live on very little in order to stay home with them. When our kids were young, we rented a 2 bedroom duplex and lived close enough to a grocery store that I could walk since we only had one car. The bond and relationship that I was able to build with my kids will last forever and to this day I have a great relationship with all my kids and three of them are GIRLS ages 14, 17 and 19. How many moms of 3 teen girls can say that it is a joy? I attribute this to staying home with them, and not putting them in activities that kept us apart during the dinner hours. We did not start our kids in activities until they were older and I think that was a very good decision.

Me and my three girls

On a funny note, I am an events coordinator for a locally owned wine boutique. YES, when you have teens and you are a homeschool mom, drinking wine is a nice reward for the end of a hard week! For that matter, wine at the end of the week is good for anyone! Keep Calm, And Drink More Wine!

Reading To Your Children

Today it occurred to me that God has revealed himself to us through literature! Of course, it is not the only way we have revelation of His nature and reality, but His Word is a very significant gift that He has given to us. How wonderful that He created us to love stories, because we are part of the true story that He has written since the beginning of time. We are each characters in the story of life, as God created it!

God Spoke into existence the whole of creation. The first chapters of Genesis tell us that each day God SPOKE and it came into being! How amazing that a spoken word is how we were formed.

Words are powerful. God created us to speak and to be spoken to as creatures who can build relationships and bonds with one another! God has a relationship with His creation whether you believe it or not. Man is the creature to whom he has reached out to with His word!

"In the beginning was the WORD, and the WORD was with God and the WORD was God." -  John 1:1

"The Word became flesh and dwelt among us." - John 1:14 

"For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword" - Hebrews 4:12 

"Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God." - Matt 4:4   

"Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!” - Luke 11:28  

"So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ." - Romans 10:17 

For many years I have held the conviction that one of the most effective methods of teaching is to read aloud to our children. There are scores of studies and books published on how incredible reading out loud to your children is. It is the most powerful and effective method for teaching kids to learn. They have to learn to sit still, imagine, think, listen and order their thoughts. 

Reading out loud also encourages our kids to hear good words and connect with good and bad characters. In a sense they build a connection, or a relationship with these characters! When you read a good story, don't you begin to feel connected with the characters? You feel like you know them, and for a few moments you believe they are REAL. 

Why is that?

I believe it is because God created us to connect with words and stories. We are each a character within the story of life! God gave us His word (The Bible) so that we could learn about him and relate with him. 

So what is my point?

First, that it is critical to read out loud! Read the Bible, but also read other great literature! There are miriads of classics to choose from. Don't settle for the new junk, read the classics (click here for amazing books lists). They are classics for a reason! Reading out loud is effective and it is obvious from some of the Bible verses above, that hearing the spoken word is very powerful indeed. That applies not only to scripture, but even other pieces of literature! Again, studies have proven the power of reading to your children,

Secondly, Reading stories helps to build the imagination towards virtue. God created us to hear stories! He created us to have an imagination as part of our foundation for walking in faith without seeing! 

"This faith comes from hearing the Word of God" according to Romans 10:17

"Faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see."

Hebrews 11:1

In the book titled Rallying the Really Human Things, Vigen Guroian asserts "The human imagination reaches out and seizes likenesses and analogies that establish relation and unity in a world of meaning. ....Imagination....is not an instinct but an attribute and and expression of our freedom, passion and reason." He goes on to say that "Imagination furnishes and supplies to religion and morality 'those larger ideas' and images which human beings need in order to envision an encompassing meaning and purpose for their lives." (pp. 53, 54)

In this book, Guroian argues that we all have been born with an imagination that has been bestowed upon us by our creator, Jesus Christ. The cultivation of our imaginations plays a critical role in our development of character, virtue, worldview and ultimately our faith. He attests that the development of a moral imagination is properly cultivated by reading fairytales and good literature to children. "Children want to explore just what it might be like to finally turn out 'whole' and all right, to be a good child, a good parent, or the best of rulers." 

For decades Guroian taught a college class called "Religion in Children's Literature". He discovered that most of his students had been depraved of the classics. "They were not introduced to most of the stories and books on the syllabus and their natural sense of wonder was starved." Books that he claims are "good for the soul. Books like Peter Pan, The Secret Garden, and The Wind in the Willows..." 

Cultivating this moral imagination is so important that if one does not purpose to cultivate it by the reading of great literary works and the speaking good words, one is in danger of the imagination becoming infested with corruptions and weeds. Where the correct food has not been fed to the imagination, starvation or rubbish will settle in, and the mind will fall away from virtue and truth. 

"What does the spirit eat? God's Word is the ultimate food of the spirit, but all words are food. Proverbs says they are a healing tree, a sword or a fire. Words have great power to nurture, to hurt, or to be like a medicinal balm upon the soul. We all speak many words every day, and billions of words over a lifetme. In this day of junk food of the spirit where trashy, vacuous, silly, and even obscene words are multiplying, we should be training ourselves to give life to the spirits of those around us through good words."- Barbara Mouser, Five Aspects of Woman; Lifegiver Created Lecture

Just as the spoken WORD of God brought us into being, so too does the spoken WORD of God sustain and create within us a healthy imagination. Not only should we read the Bible to our kids, but stories too! Reading stories will help to cultivate their imagination and stretch their minds to understand the reality of the human soul. It will help them to connect with the reality of Scripture and God's exstence. It will build their faith in a world that is real, but outside of our human capacity to "see". 

Let me close with this quote. "IMAGINE the possibility that a man might come along who does not die a permanent death but returns to life. One man did just this, and on the basis of his act and the church's memory of it, many succeeding generations of human beings have claimed the same truth for their own lives. The truth is not a postulate of pure reason, but it is an act of the religious imagination." 

Do you want your children to have an imagination that is so well cultivated, that they can have the faith of Hebrews 11:1, The faith in what we do not see? I implore you to devote yourself to the reading of great stories to your children.

Random Reasons why I LOVE Facebook!

Why I like Facebook:

1. Connect with friends
2. Meeting up with friends from out of town when they post that they are coming to Dallas
3. Movie and book suggestions from friends' posts
4. Filtered news that I trust, based on pages I "like"
5. Seeing photos of my kids
6. Finding out what my kids are up to
7. Posting photos for my family that is in Ohio
8. Laughter! I love the posts that make me laugh
9. Cool video clips
10. Education (from posts of cool videos to ideas from other perspectives)
11. Seeing photos of people I love
12. Meeting new people! I have friends whom I met through other friends, and I have never met them in person, but now they are my friends!
13. Encouragement
14. To post random thoughts
15. To encourage others
16. To stalk people
17. To find out prayer requests
18. To find out coupon deals from companies I "like"
19. Decorating and organizing ideas
20. Memes to post and blog posting for my Ready Set Clean FB fan page ( I have 260+ fans now)
21. To vent my political rants
22. To wish my friend's happy birthdays and anniversaries without having to "remember"
23. To write on my kids' and my hubby's wall when I am thinking of them
24. To make other people laugh or smile
25. Convenient way to instant chat to set up appointments and lunch dates

Les Miserables and The Gospel of Jesus Christ

For years I have loved the motion picture, Les Miserables starring Liam Neeson and Geoffrey Rush from 1998. The screenplay and acting is superbly moving and clearly demonstrates the golden thread of the gospel of Jesus Christ, as I am sure Victor Hugo intended. I still strongly recommend this film, but...

Today I was astounded when I sat in a theatre and witnessed the most amazing musical on the "big screen" as a motion picture. Several times I had to reach for a tissue as I sat weeping. The acting on this new version was simply remarkable. For the first time I think I heard I Dreamed A Dream, the way it was intended to be portrayed.

Anne Hathaway will never be able to outdo herself. I think she hit something on the other side of eternity and we were able to witness on film a supernatural moment when reality shakes us to our core. As disturbing as the scene is at that moment, the reality of wickedness must be portrayed for us to really grasp the gravity of our need for a savior! Yes, we live in a world full of fallen men and it really is That ugly!

That moment  when Anne Hathaway's soul was stark naked for us to witness despair which words cannot describe;  I do believe that moment on the screen was akin to that horrible moment when Meryl Streep struck a chord in her masterpiece moment as a mom with a choice. That horrible moment in Sophie's Choice, Meryl Streep's acting hit a raw moment where reality and acting collide and explode creating within the human soul a connection that cannot be explained.

As disturbing as Les Miserables can be at moments, the redemption of grace and mercy are still greater. The golden thread of the blood of Jesus Christ being shed for us all is the glory of this story and this new musical rendition carried that key note throughout the chorus of the score. The Logos Incarnate is the key note on which the symphony is played.

Crossing the Finish Line!

I did not cry when my first bird flew out of the nest.

On Tuesday morning, my first born boarded a plane to fly out of the nest. I anticipated many tears, but instead felt peace and happiness.

As the day progressed, I had moments of sadness that he would not be at the dinner table with us, or goofing around with his sisters, but when sadness filled my heart, I purposed to be thankful. I realized that my journey had come to an end and I had crossed the finish line.

As a homeschooler, I chose to give up "alone" time that most other moms look forward to each day from 9-3. Most of the time I am thankful and love having my kids home, but there are plenty of days when I wish for alone time! Those are the days that I have to put on my mental running shoes and trudge up a hard hill and remember that I am running with my kids in a race. I am their greatest cheerleader. At some point I will cross a finish line with my kids, and then I have let them finish the rest of "their" race without me.

On Tuesday, August 14 I crossed my finish line. I did it! I ran with my son; encouraged him, nourished him, and educated him. My part of the race has been completed! Hallelujah! I am so happy that I had the privilege to homeschool him for 8 years.

I remember when he was 10 years old and he declared "Mom, I want you to homeschool me." Bewildered, I asked "Why? Don't you like your school anymore? Won't you miss your friends?" After a few moments of pondering Calvin said "I just want to be home with you."

That conversation is precious to me and will always be a part of me. I recall thinking to myself that he would not "want to be home with me" for very long, so I better take it while I can get it! I jumped on the homeschooling bandwagon and began homeschooling him in the 5th grade.

Calvin and me at  Texas Homeschool Coalition's PHC Scholarship awards

I purposed to give him the best education that I could, with the little that I knew or understood about homeschooling, but we did it and made it! Calvin took 15 credit hours as dual enrollment classes through a distance learning program with Patrick Henry College and graduated from homeschool with a GPA of 3.89. I am thrilled that I was able to be a huge part of Calvin's education and by sending him off to a great college, I can "pat myself on the back" too and know that I was a part of him crossing that finish line. I feel like I graduated too.

For all you mom's who fear homeschooling the high school years, just know that it is so worth it.
You will gather gems along the journey and carry a treasure in your heart that otherwise would have never been yours. If you are interested in homeschooling or need encouragement to homeschool the high school years, begin that journey by praying and researching homeschooling philosophies. Find the philosophy that resonates with you and it will guide you towards "how" to make it happen! It will be one of the best decisions you have ever made!

Why I Homeschool, Part 1

I attended public school from 1978-1988. Like most of you, I did fine and so assumed that if public school was good enough for me, it was good enough for my kids!

BUT.....

HMMMMM.....

Let's think about this. Was I really fine? Did it affect my "Christian values" that my parents tried to instill in me? Did I really get an education?

Today I am going to address how attending public school affected my Christian values.

My parents raised me in a traditional Christian home and taught me good moral values. For the most part, I was a "good" kid. I did not party, smoke, drink, have sex, etc. But, when I was sixteen I did sneak a few beers and cigarettes. I also began to question "How do I REALLY KNOW that Jesus is THE way to God?"My best friend in jr.high was a gay kid and as that issue began to became a reality that I had to deal with, my faith began to shake. It shook for 5 years and I was beginning to walk away from the Christian faith.

Let's face it! The school system has our kids when they are at their "BEST". As moms, we get them back home when they are at their worst! They are crying, tired and just worn out from school all day! It is really hard to instill Christian values into your kids, after 4PM. Not only that, you have to spend that time "de-programing" them from all the "liberal" education they get at a public school. They are learning what the government wants them to learn.

The government is shaping our kids when our kids are at their prime! We get them and try to shape them and train them in the way of the LORD, when they are tired and have homework and extra curricular activities. Then, we look around today and wonder "Why are so many young people walking away from God?"

Well, is it any wonder?

Here is something to consider. The education system in America was transformed in the early part of 1900s by a man named John Dewey. He was a staunch supporter of Darwin and fought to get evolution in the publics schools. Dewey's goal was to create industrial "robotic" workers. The schools have bells, just like the factories did. He created this system, which de-values the human being and creates the person to fit into a box (system). This does not allow for your child to thrive and become ALL that they can.

I realized one day that my children were NOT thriving and becoming all that they could be. I knew that I could do better than the "system" if I just brought them home and read really good books to them and began to teach them basic math and how to read and write. I could do better than a workbook (created by the government) for crying out loud!!! And so can YOU!!!! YES YOU CAN!!!! No I am not a saint because I homeschool! I am a sinner who needs Jesus, just like all of you. Homeschooling is challenging, but I have given my kids the opportunity to become ALL that God wants them to be. Homeschooling does not limit and stifle kids; it releases them to become the complete and beautiful human being that God intended them to be. Isn't that what you really want for your kids?

If you are Christian, consider this 2 minute video. 

Their souls are at stake!

My "Almost" Kitchen Disaster

Thanks to my sweet sixteen year old daughter who came to my rescue, our kitchen situation is now under control and the gluten-free brownies are safe and securely baking in the oven.

It all started when I decided to make hard boiled eggs and brownies at the same time. While the eggs were in their pot on the stove top, I quickly removed a new carton of eggs from the refrigerator. "QUICKLY" was where my disaster began to form. I dropped the carton and tried to catch it with my foot, which I bruised on the bottom of the refrigerator door. Of course we all know that my foot could never have caught the carton of eggs, but that was how I reacted.

With a throbbing foot, I was able to rescue 7 eggs from pouring out of their shells all over my kitchen floor. These are costly eggs from a local farm, so there is NO WAY I am going to let them go to waste. I began to fry them in a pan while at the same time gingerly adding 2 eggs (without the shells) into the brownie mix that was waiting in its mixing bowl.

In order to save time, I decided to use my grandmothers old-fashioned hand mixer for the brownies. I learned that one must never attempt to mix boxed brownies with an old fashioned hand mixer. My daughter started to laugh at me and said "Mom, no wonder you never make brownies and you always ask us to do it!" I started laughing and then realized the my fried eggs were starting to burn. I was able to rescue them and get them put away for tomorrow.

Meanwhile my hardboiled eggs were still cooking. So, tomorrow I will find out if they have green yolks!

Treasures in our garden

Today we found 2 treasures in our garden. Mr. Caterpillar munching on one of our 12 basil plants. We moved him to a wax myrtle tree, which is where he is in the photo.

We also got our FIRST TEXAS tomato!! Never have I had a tomato in my yard. I have tried 3 times to grow tomatoes. This is our first one ever!!!

Who Is this Man??

This morning the girls and I were reading about Flemish artist, Jan Van Eyck. Upon viewing The Man With The Red Turban we all laughed when we realized that the subject of this portrait looks like a famous British actor whom we love, Charles Dance.

What do you think? Did Van Eyck have visions of Charles Dance or is Charles Dance trying to resemble The Man With the Red Turbin? LOL

Movies we have enjoyed featuring Charles Dance:

Bleak House

Foyle's War episode: The White Feather

The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickelby

Murder Rooms: Mysteries of the Real Sherlock Holmes

Rebecca

Michael Collins

Why I LOVE Right Start Math!

Cutting out Regular Polygons from Paper: Book D, Lesson 13

If you homeschool and are not using Right Start Math, you are missing a real treat. YES.... I said it! Math can be a treat! I have been 7 years in this struggle with math curriculum after math curriculum, drudgery upon drudgery, grumble upon grumble.

Sound familiar?

I found Right Start Math when my 11 1/2 year old daughter was one LONG year into struggling with memorizing her multiplication tables and could not master any math concepts. I started her on Level D and she is almost done a year and a half later! I am happy to say she has mastered everything that she has learned.

Right Start Math has a yahoo support group. I sometimes found myself getting discouraged when I read that there were 9 year olds in level D. But, I kept pressing on confident that this was the right program for our daughter. I am only sad that I did not begin this program 8 years ago when I first began homeschooling.

It does require a little more involvement from the teacher than some other popular homeschool math programs, but the joy in helping her, without tears, was well worth my time and effort. I also learned  many new concepts and ways to "think" and process how to do math. We had great conversations each day and many of the exercises and warm ups are to build critical thinking skills. There is no need for an extra "critical thinking" curriculum; it is woven very nicely into Right Start Math.

This program has many fun geometry and metric activities that most of the other math programs do not have. This program will build them with a strong foundation in measuring and using rulers. The fraction lessons are fabulous!  I could go on and on and on about all the great activities, but I will suffice to say, if you are thinking about switching an older ( pre-teen) from an elementary math program because they are just NOT getting it....DO IT. Right Start Math is the BEST hands on VISUAL math curriculum available. It really covers all the learning styles and will work for any student.

Using the cut out shapes to measure in Tenths of a centimeter, and find the perimeter
 Book D, Lesson 134

Picture and Art Study: Art Appreciation for kids

I love using the Charlotte Mason method for picture study. It is so simple and yet, it makes such a profound impact on the students. My girls are teens, and we just recently started picture study. I have been using AmblesideOnline for our picture study, but recently discovered a very EASY and affordable way to to do picture study.

Simply Charlotte Mason has put together six wonderful artist studies. We just finished studying Giotto. It sparked some good dialogue and we learned about frescos, and learned to tell the difference between Byzantine and Medieval art techniques.

I highly recommend this curriculum, even if you do not homeschool. This is a simple way to introduce your children to art appreciation.

My final farewell to Facebook & Confessions of a FB addict!

This past summer I took a one month sabbatical from Facebook. Oh how I missed it for a few days. I quickly realized how much I had come to rely on Facebook to satisfy my longing for time with good friends. I was deeply moved to tears and realized I had better change my need for deeper friendships. 

I met with friends for lunch and coffee and filled my calendar for the next week. I had such a good time catching up face to face with my good friends.

Over the course of the following weeks I did not miss Facebook at all. My time was filled with many other things that I needed to focus on. I could not believe that I did not miss it at all.

After about 6 weeks of being OFF facebook, I decided to log back on. My husband travels a lot and I got lonely and decided to give it a go again. I loved it. 

I love seeing photos of my niece and nephew.

I love stalking people. 

I love commenting 2 times in a row. 

I love getting ideas from friends.

I love emailing photos from my iphone. 

I love posting a new status every few hours. 

Let's face it. Facebook is FUN! My good friend was back and I was having fun.

I quickly realized that I was indeed a Facebook junkie. I made a few comments that should have never been made and had a few fights with family members on private messages. I realized that life without Facebook had been refreshing and nice. I did not miss it at all (except for the first week). I made the final decision and promise to my husband that I would permanently delete my Facebook account at Midnight at the turn of the New Year.

So here I am!

In less than 2 hours it will be 2012 in Dallas. I am frantically saving and downloading all my Facebook history. I am posting farewells and gathering addresses and phone numbers from friends I re-connected with. 

Goodbye Facebook. It is an emotional moment for me and I seriously think that when I hit that final "DELETE" forever button I will shed a few tears. 

With the ushering in of 2012, I am finishing my second reading of The Scent of Water by Elizabeth Goudge; "What is the Scent of Water? Renewal. The goodness of God coming down like dew". 

This past weekend my husband I cut down 2 trees in our yard. This book, The Scent of Water, is taken from the scripture in the book of Job that says:

"There is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease. Though the root thereof wax old in the earth, and the stock thereof die in the ground; yet through the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth boughts like a plant."

I look forward to a year of Spiritual Renewal in 2012 and I do not think it an accident that I just read this quote from Goudge's book at the close of 2011 and I just cut down 2 trees this past weekend and I had committed to God and my family to delete my Facebook account. 

Here's a toast to "Renewal" in 2012.