Soccer begins

Timothy's soccer schedule:

Sat. April 17 10:30 field 6

Sat. April 24 10:30 field 3

Sat. May 1 1:00 field 3

Sat. May 8 8:00 field 6

Sat. May 15 11:45 field 3

Sat. May 22 8:00 Field 6

Marcus' and Lucas' soccer schedule:

Tues. April 20 6:30

Tues. April 27 6:30

Tues. May 4 6:30

Tues. May 11 6:30

Tues. May 18 6:30

Tues. May 25 6:30

Soccer is played at Georgetown Township Port Sheldon Sports Complex

Elephant Guns

People who seek spiritual contentment do not want to be challenged or moved. What I love about my God is that He does not let me stay as I am; he wants me to grow, and like a parent, He rejoices in my growth, and nothing is better than that Hallelujah!

Someone who is pure will not be afraid to offend, or call "a sin", "a sin". Many Christians today do not want to confront sin or stand apart from the world. We are surrounded by sin. But we don't call it that. We are surrounded by the proverbial elephant in the room. Those with true purity are elephant trackers. They carry elephant guns. They do not ignore the signs of an elephant. My husband, thankfully, is such a man.

With the Holy Spirit's guidance, he recently pointed out one of my elephants. I closed my eyes and waited for him to shoot it. But instead, I felt him touch my hand and heard him ask, "Where does your help come from? Who do you trust?" You see, my elephant was self-defeating self pity. So I opened my eyes and found a large elephant gun in my hands. Yep, I had to look my elephant right in the eye and take aim. It wasn't an easy task. This elephant had been following me around for quite awhile. No one else had mentioned it... it wasn't even that big of an elephant but it had to go. So, listen to the elephant trackers in your life, and when they hand you the gun, take it boldly, take aim and fire.

The Continuing Saga of the Pine Cones

We have the largest pine tree in our neighborhood. It’s at least 3 feet in diameter and twice as tall as our house. It makes a huge noise when the wind whips through its branches, and the pine cones rain down everywhere. It’s the pine cones that are the problem.

Mom –“Don’t touch the pine cones. There’s sticky sap on them.” This was not fair of Mama…all those tempting pine cones..Hand sanitizer is the best defense against sap. Just rub a big glob of it on the sap-encrusted foot or hand and voila, sap free…

Mom – “Don’t throw the pine cones at the deer.” There’s a nursing home behind our home and their deer pen is behind our shed.

Mom – “Don’t throw pine cones at the house.”

Mom – “Don’t throw pine cones at the cars.”

Mom –“Don’t throw pine cones at each other.”

Kids –“What can we throw the pine cones at?”

Kids—“Ahhhh! Sap! I need tizer, please!”

Kids—“See how far I can throw this pine cone, isn’t it AMAZING?”

Kids—“Mom, watch me twist this pine cone in half!”

Kids—“Look, I can draw with chalk on the pine cone.”

Kids—“Sorry Mom, I didn’t mean to hit you. You moved at the wrong time.”

Mom—“Let’s pick up ALL the pine cones and throw them away.”

Kids—“bummer.”

Thankfully, God designed men and women differently. We all know this and live with it every day as husband and wife or in watching our parents as we grow up. Still, for some strange reason, we expect our kids to learn the same way. We seem surprised at their differences sometimes. This subject extends far beyond gender, as each individual is a unique creation of God, but I am always being surprised by my children. So here’s a reminder that boys are different than girls.

Boys SEE Differently

“Males have more rods in their eyes versus cones. Rods help us to see distance and speed. Females have more cones than rods. Cones help us to see color and shape. Because of this difference, boys tend to draw verbs with little color variation in their pictures while girls tend to draw nouns with lots of different colors.

When asked to draw a picture, Sally will draw a house with people and flowers and lots of pretty colors. Steve will draw a tornado which is knocking down a house - and his picture will look like a large black swirl.” August 13, 2008 -- Homeschool-Your-Boys.com - Boys Learn Differently Than Girls From Homeschool-Your-Boys Homeschool-Your-Boys.com - FREE Advice on How to Homeschool ...

Allow me to illustrate in these two great pictures from my 8 year old son and 6 year old daughter. See if you can pick who drew what. J

Another beautiful Michigan summer day in Spring. Unseasonably warm at 77 degrees and sunny. My happy yellow daffodils are trumpeting spring's arrival with all their hearts in the flowerbeds. Today we abandoned our books for the park.

The wind blew last year's leaves skittering, paper thin and brown, along paths and over ground just beginning to green. The four children climbed an inviting tree, rejoicing over footholds and handholds and what they could see from the heights. Even Mama looked tiny. Finally, in their red-cheeked exhaustion, they came to stand under the tree. But it had no leaves to shade them. Even its buds were still closed up tight. We walked through the woods and along the creek bed, searching out signs of spring other than the sun warming our heads. We spied racing water spiders and the green glow of algae on still creek waters. Three friendly dogs greeted us while their owner clung to their leashes.

We headed back to 9our waiting water bottles and the drive home with windows down and radio cranked to the sound of an audio story. This time --Mrs. Frisbee and the Rats of Nimh. It was a beautiful day.

Good Friday

"Whatever you do, work at it with your whole heart, as though working for God and not man." Colossians 3:23

Work. Work. Work. Some days it's downright tough to do the dishes one more time or do yet another load of laundry or spend time making one more meal. I call it the deep-sigh day. It means I need an attitude adjustment from my spiritual chiropractor. All these deep sighs and unspoken complaints are simply symptoms of me-ism. Yep, focusing on myself again instear of my creator and sustainer. Me-ism = selfishness = sin= repentance = J.O.Y. = Jesus Others You.

That's right, "you" is last. "But what about ME? It's isn't fair. I've had enough; now I want my share. Can't you see?. . . " Another selfish 80s song floats through my brain looking for a home, but I know another, "It's no about me, Jesus, that you should do things my way...it's all about you."

Isn't true worship the humbling of ourselfves? Admitting we were wrong and walking in grace, grace--like wrapping up in a dryer-warmed blanket after a cold walk outdoors.

In Luke, the Roman centurian discovered something. He viewed Christ's horrible death from beginning until the end. Darkness covered the land, the veil was rent in two, and we all know his statement, "Truly this was the son of God!" yet we miss the verse before it. Our pastor pointed to this little remembered phrase in the book of Luke and it seemed to lodge in my heart. The scripture says, "He PRAISED God." It's hard to imagine PRAISE at such a time, but there it is. He PRAISED God.--That one little verb I need for my attitude adjustment.

My life needs to be that praise, tha tacknowledgement, that daily love song, even my dishes, my laundry, and my dinners.

Love Song

Today my powm will be written
Not in words
But in the work I do
To make this house
Shining and welcoming.

Today my poem will be written
Not with pen
But with my mop and broom
With my iron and parin gknife

A love song, yes--
One written with my life.

By Elizabeth B. Rooney

A funny thing happened at the hotel

We had our first family hotel stay. (Did you know if your family is larger than 5-you have to have another room?) It was a local hotel. My aunt and uncle and cousins and kids were visiting from Illinois and they were staying one night at the hotel so we joined them. Our "large" family had to book a suite--where the mysterious middle door opens. Our suite had a little kitchenette and living room with a fold out couch attached to the regular 2 bedroom hotel room. Very unique to me.

A great time was had by all. With seven kids under the age of 9, the pool was a huge attraction. It had a kiddie pool right in it for the little ones and a seperate hot tub for the big ones. :-) Ahh!! (Ryan even got to show off his painted big toe nail that he let Sarah paint bright pink because no one would ever see it.) We swam and ordered pizza and swam some more (yes, we waited 20 minutes-my cousin has lifeguard training). Then we slept all night and swam again in the morning. We said our goodbyes and the kids and I cleaned up, packed up, and headed to the van (Ry was already at work).

As I shut the back door on our luggage, I noticed some scratches accross the back. I followed them. They were all the way around the van, at least twice! Someone had viciously "keyed" our van. I calmly let the hotel know, and my husband, and we called the police to file a report. It was now lunch time, so I pulled out the emergency box of graham crackers for the kids while we waited for the officer. "Do you have any enemies, Ma'am? Perhaps an angry ex?" Perhaps the vandals had you confused with someone else.

We left for home but had to stop to get gas first. When I opened the gas door, a small pile of dead leaves fell out. Something a child would do - no doubt. SOmething clicks in my brain. I ger a flash of everything my boys have destroyed--wallpaper, furniture, toys, walls, closet shelving, towel bars--I bend closer to look at the scratches near the gas door. Yes...there and there again...that looks like the letter "m". Only one boy makes "m"s like that.

I calmly bring Marc to that side of the van. I smile. I control my voixe. "Is that your "m"?" I ask.
He smiles, swelling with pride. After all, mama loves his "m"s. "Yes," he says expectantly turning his eyes toward me.
"And what did you use to make your m?"
"Oh, a sharp shiny rock."
"Did you go all around the van?"
"Yes, " he's still smiling a little but he's wavering. Perhaps my fake pleasant tone is fading, "I wanted to make it beautiful for you, Mama."
I hugged him. I was glad his heart was in the fight place, but we need to work on modes of expression here. So now you know, the rest of the story.
:

Weekly (sort of) Wrap Up

1. Science week this week. Tim and Sarah worked on reports on Body Systems. Tim is tackling the Skeletal System and Sarah is doing the muscles (She was quite delighted to learn the heart is a muscle, as her last report was on the heart.) Tim loves games and we found one about bones. ABCya! Skeletal System Game: Learn the Bones! We use the Power Point program and then have the kids present and grade one another on presentation, including points for eye contact, smiling, and knowing their slides well. Mama grades them as well. This week, they also did some of their own typing! (Thanks, Heather, for BBC - Schools - Dance Mat Typing - Home

The weather won on Wednesday. It was so beautiful, sunny and warm for Michigan in March. The boys had story time at the library while Tim and Sarah worked on their writing and daily grams, but that was it for school today. Sarah had dance at 1:30, and while I usually stay at the studio and do school with the boys, we left and went to the park. We played pirates at the playground, threw rocks in the water, watched a swimming duck leaving trails on the pond, and tried to catch a couple seagulls. Tim even dug holes in the sand. After dance, we ran errands, and headed to another park for one more hour of the glorious feeling of sunshine warming up your clothes and hair, and made it home just in time to leave for church.

1. We are also entering Reading Rainbow’s Young Author’s contest this year (k-3^rd. grade). Reading Rainbow Young Writers & Illustrators Contest Sarah created a great story called “bunnies and raspberries” contrasted to Marc’s “The Scary Pirates”, which is also great in its own right.

1. I love it when God winks at me. One of my goals this year is for Tim and Sarah to learn their books of the Bible and that’s also the current focus of Children’s Church. We read the list of books every day and found a song on youtube. YouTube - Bible Books

We listened to Stuart Little by E.B. White (author of Charlotte’s Web) and enjoyed it but found ourselves disappointed in the ending, which didn’t feel like much of an ending at all as Stuart had not yet found his bird friend, Margalow.

Tim is also reading Tom Swift and the Aerial Warship (our 2^nd. Tom Swift book) and Sarah has started Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm.

The week ended with Sarah and I attending the ballet, “The Squire and the Scroll”. It’s based on the book of the same name by Jennie Bishop. Wonderful book about the importance of living by God’s word. Check it out at your library. It has knights, a dragon, a princess, and a quest. Wonderful to see live performance that gives God the Glory.

Packages
By Elizabeth K. Rooney

If I could wrap
a field of butterflies
I'd package them
for you.
I'd put in all the colors
and a lot of sunshine, too.
I'd gather up a summer breeze
and all the fluttering
and wrap them with brown paper
and tie them up with string.

I've only words for wrapping
and only rhymes for string.
With these, beloved of my heart,
I give you everything.

Gentle leading

Crazy Mom has been at it again. This time, she again got right down on her knees and pleaded with God to forgive her mistakes and let His grace fill in all the gaps where she has messed up with the kids. She asked for wisdom, patience and gentle leading. The Lord brought to mind one of her favorite verses from Isaiah, “He gently leads those that have young.”

Boy, did she need that gentle leading. On Tuesday, there were pencil marks on the boys’ wall, but no pencil. She vaguely wondered how long the marks had actually been there and if a pencil would fit in the floor vent. On Wednesday, they had dumped out all their toy baskets and built a “barricade!” so “no one can enter!” No wonder they were playing so good and quietly in their room. ”We did it shushly mom! Isn’t that great?”

“It’s great that you know the word, ‘barricade’”, managed Crazy Mom as she chalked up another chapter in her endeavor to always find the positive. On Thursday, the little girl cried during Science and the boy flatly refused to do his daily gram and sat on his bed for a LONG time.

But Friday was library day and all went well, all had fun, all got books, and crazy mom was once more counting her blessings. “Are my twins really five already?” She wonders one moment, while “Thank goodness they are finally five,” is her very next thought. As the days start to blur into weeks and months and years Crazy Mom will continue to rely on her faith, and she is grateful for coffee, chocolate frosting (yes, out of the container with a spoon), and that gentle leading.

What are the chances? Note the picture on the computer screen (yes, it's a TV screen). My slideshow was running. The picture of the two babies in the highchairs are my Marc and Luke on their first birthday, eating cake. Meanwhile, in the foreground, Ryan is carrying Marc and Luke's fifth birthday cake! I couldn't have planned this photo better, and I love it! Thanks, God, for winking at me again.

Texas Highlights

Finally, for those of you interested, the highlights of our Texas Trip:
1. The bad news is that I am a “severely affected” female carrier of XLRP. The part of my eyes where my vision loss is most severe are the best parts for driving. Genetic counselor seemed happy I had given up night driving and also strongly suggested that I only drive in ideal conditions in the middle of the day. (Only 7 short years and the Tim-taxi can drive). It was also very cool to see a 3d image of my laser-scanned retina on the computer. Technology is so amazing. The good news is that my three cousins are “mild, no symptoms, and no symptoms.” Retina Foundation of the Southwest - Dallas, Texas

2. More good news is that on the research front, great strides are being made, and the future possibility of gene replacement therapy as treatment is very exciting. The gene that carries XLRP has also been isolated and that holds the promise of genetic testing for families sometime in the future.
Other highlights:
1. Who shot JFK? Lone gunman or conspiracy? We went to “The 6th. floor”. It’s the 6th floor of the book depository building where Oswald shot the president. You can look down onto Dealey Plaza and parking is behind “the grassy knoll”. The 6th. floor is now a museum with a really cool audio tour. For you history buffs visiting Dallas, this one’s for you.
2. The Phantom of the Opera. Yes, I’ve finally seen “the Phantom”. Fabulous music. I love live theater.

Things Kids Say

These are Marc's eyes. He has been saying some interesting things these days. Here are a few tidbits for your amusement. Marcisms:

"Mom! You are making the kitchen smell all dinnery! yum...."
"Why does my body tell me to stop running and get all tired when I just want to go?"
"Why do we need night time?"
"I wish we had battlestations, Mom!"
"Why don't we have any armor?"
During Bible, we are learning Luke 1:37 "Nothing is impossible with God" and Mark wants to know, "why don't we have a Mark verse? There's a Mark in the Bible you know!"

Lucism:
While waiting for dance class, there is a room full of moms just for Lucas to entertain. He overheard one mom mention her husband, Tim. He went right over and joined the conversation, putting his hand on her shoulder, "That's my brother's name."
"That's my husband's name," she replied. Lucas immediately turned to the other mom in the conversation and asked, "What's your husband's name?" "My husband's name is Mark, " she answered. "That's my other brother's name!" he exclaimed, smiling widely. He immediately turned to the woman seated in the next chair. "What's your husband's name?" he inquired. "His name is Vince," she answered. "Oh," he intoned, obviously disappointed. Not to be deterred, he moved to the next woman and repeated his question. As he made his way around the crowded room, the original two ladies turned to me, "what is his name?" "It's Lucas," I answered. "I don't think he's going to find one," she said.

"Could you please die over there? This is MY space."
"Mom, why don't you call me "your majesty" today?"

Here's a couple Sarahisms too.
"Do not argue or complain about anything. PHILISTINES 2:14"
"Look, Mom, I can melt snow with my bare hands!"

Do you find yourself joining in with the fantasies sometimes?

Momisms:

"Even the King has to wash his hands."
"All knights will remain seated while eating lunch."
"Your mission, should you choose to accept it, will be to retrieve the mail today."
"If this room is not clean, a disaster beyond your imagination will occur!" (Oops, I saw the Phantom in Dallas--guess that was my own fantasy imposing upon reality).

God is winking at me again

God has been so gracious to me. (Perhaps He knows me best and that I do like to have cheerleaders in my life to motivate me. I am not motivated by criticism, but rather devastated.)

I have only ever encountered positive feedback about homeschooling. Even complete strangers have said, “That is great!” (Granted, I’m not one of those homeschoolers who feels everyone should homeschool or that public school kids are somehow “less” educated than mine.) Sometimes I hear people explain how they are persecuted by friends, family, or complete strangers for their homeschooling choices, and I am amazed.

I have very supportive family and friends, and have not had to face this struggle (yet). In fact, I feel God sends complete strangers to encourage me. Case in point: The children and I were walking across the parking lot to the mall entrance on Friday. It was quite a walk but a pleasant day and I was talking about the signs and lights in the parking lot with Sarah and keeping the boys close, and as we neared the entrance, a woman kept step with us for a few moments and commented, “You can always tell the homeschool moms,” she began. I smiled and she continued, “not that your kids aren’t in school at this time of day, but that you guys are ALWAYS talking and teaching your kids.”
I laughed, “The world is a classroom.”
“That’s great,” she replied, “keep at it. Some parents don’t teach their kids anything,” and off she went.
It was just a moment, a little wisp of encouragement, and it made me walk a little taller as we headed indoors. Thank you, Lord, for your encouragement.

I didn’t get as much school accomplished as I intended. (I seem to write this every week—perhaps I need to review my goals so I am actually achieving them.) Coughing kids this week didn’t help things either.

Highlight: Tim and Sarah read chapter books all by themselves! We have some Magic Tree House books, which despite the “magic” have great history lessons and accompanying study guides. Random House Kids Magic Tree House
(Our local bookstore also did a class for homeschoolers based on this series a couple years ago..I keep hoping they’ll bring it back). Anyway, we have about four of these books on the bookshelves, and the kids came down and told me they each were reading one. That’s great, kids. I tucked them into bed so I could watch the Olympics. At 10:00, Tim came downstairs with his book. “Mom, guess what! I finished the WHOLE book!” He was so excited and I was so surprised and proud, that I had to pretend it was only 8:30. We’ve also listened to these on audio from the library.

We use Accelerated Achievement Accelerated Achievement
as our base curriculum and add to it as necessary. It’s nice to have a baseline. They use McGuffey readers http://www.mcguffeyreaders.com/important.htm
and next week, Sarah will finish the 2nd. grade reader and Tim will finish the 3rd. grade reader. I am very proud of them both. I love to hear them read their lessons out loud. Some days I am just amazed that they can read. I now have Tim asking if he can read over my shoulder. “Mom, can I please read what you are typing?”
For Science (Tuesdays and Thursdays), we put our reports into PowerPoint. That way, they can present to Dad.

For my kindergartners, we are tracing letters 3 days a week, doing phonics, and lots of counting. I also need to incorporate daily games for these guys too. I find it best to do school with them in the early morning, starting with a book and related lesson of some sort. I really enjoyed Before Five in a RowFive in A Row Literature-Based Studies with Tim and Sarah and I am just finishing it with Marc and Luc. I love anything that’s literature based.
Friday morning is “Library Day” each week, and all four of my kids fill up all four of the kids computers at the library.

Ryan and I are headed to Texas next week so I can take part in the following study (this can get pretty technical and is not my usual blog fare, but for those who may be interested, here it is.) I am excited about going and being part of this and a little apprehensive about leaving my kiddos. Please pray for all of us and our children's designated caregivers: Aleesha, Tiffanie, Kristin and Scott, and my parents. Thanks so much for your willingness to help us out. (We leave on Wed. and return on Sat.)

-Linked Retinitis Pigmentosa Carrier Phenotyping Project: The Search for Modifying Factors for Disease Severity

The purpose of this project is to detect genetic factors that influence the clinical consequences of mutations in genes causing X-linked retinitis pigmentosa (RP). Mutations in X-linked RP genes can lead to strikingly different clinical outcomes, even among individuals with the same mutation in the same family. While clinical variation is often seen among males, the most striking differences are seen among females. Phenotypes in “carrier” females can range from no detectible symptoms, to early onset, rapid progression of disease. Finding the factors that account for these differences will improve our understanding of the disease process. Of more importance, though, identifying these factors may suggest ways to slow or arrest the loss of vision in affected individuals. That is, if we can understand what makes individuals with X-linked mutations either asymptomatic or mildly affected, we may be able to use this information to treat patients with more severe symptoms.
The major focus of this project is the X-linked RP gene RPGR (retinitis pigmentosa GTPase regulator) and the clinical consequence of interest is the disease severity in female carriers of RPGR mutations. Mutations in RPGR account for 80% of cases of X-linked RP and affect more than 10,000 Americans. Further, studies suggest that approximately 30% of isolated RP is caused by mutations in RPGR, making mutations in RPGR the most common cause of RP. Males with a mutation in an X-linked gene such as RPGR are almost always affected, because males have only one X-chromosome, but female carriers of an X-linked mutation are often unaffected since females have two X-chromosomes and the second chromosome may provide protection from the mutation. However, many females who carry an RPGR mutation have clinical symptoms of RP, ranging from undetectable or very mild in some cases to severe loss of vision in others.
The project has several key aims. The first aim is to identify, enroll and characterize the families and patients with RPGR mutations. This will be done by Drs. David Birch, Dennis Hoffman, and Dianna Wheaton at the Retina Foundation of the Southwest in Dallas. The goal is to enroll as many individuals with mutations in each family as possible, to evaluate each individual with a panel of tests including advanced retinal imaging, to determine the range of clinical expression associated with each RPGR mutation, and to collect blood and DNA samples for genetic testing. Thus, one outcome of the project will be a comprehensive genotype-phenotype characterization of RPGR mutations.
The second aim is to test the hypothesis that genetic modifying factors may play a role in altering disease severity. We plan to approach this in two ways. First, we plan to investigate the role of two genes that interact with RPGR to determine if slight genetic variations within these genes can affect the behavior of RPGR. Secondly, we plan to test a large class of random genetic variants by microarry analysis in a genome-wide association study.
Finally, the third aim is to extend these studies to clinical variation in males with RPGR mutations.
The detection of factors modifying inherited diseases is a relatively new field of investigation. Completion of the project should substantially expand our understanding of the clinical consequences of mutations causing X-linked RP, and may identify new targets for treatment and prevention of retinal disease.

Things Kids Say

“When I grow up, I want to have five kids,” says Marc, holding up five fingers, “two boys and two girls.”
“When I grow up, I’m going to marry you, Mom.” –Marc
“Little Bo Beep SAT on her sheep,” says Sarah, giggling.
“And she always knew where to find them,” added Tim.
“Can I have another five birthday?” Lucas inquires.
“No, but you can have a six birthday next year,” answers Mama.
“Can I have another five birthday tomorrow?”
“Jamey, do you want to go outside with me? Deal or No Deal?” asks Marc.
“No Deal,” answers Jamey. (Jamey is our little friend who visits a couple days a week).
Sarah is finding all the states on her map that begin with N and saying them out loud,
“North Dakota, New Mexico….Nevada….New Hamster.”

Postcards from the Past

As homeschool parents who seize every opportunity to teach, and view the world as our classroom, we have added some learning ideas around our home. We have a clear tablecloth on our table over a map of the United States. We also have the times tables, the planets, and very large write-n-wipe A, B, C, D, and E, but this story is about the map.

I love to hear people’s comments about the map, not about the map as a tablecloth, but their stories about the places they’ve visited or lived.

Someone left her purse behind while traveling through Texas. Someone lived in Arizona and fell in love for the first time as a young girl. Someone else traveled to northwest Iowa every summer of her childhood. Someone else traveled to Minnesota every summer of her childhood. Someone was born in Florida. Someone wants to visit California some day. Someone has been to Mexico, but not Canada. Someone took his senior trip to Washington, D.C. Someone has been to Toronto. Someone toured a missile silo out west. Someone saw the Grand Canyon. Someone’s been to Vegas.

Listening to these stories is a little bit like receiving postcards from the past, and I like it. I have printed up blank maps for my children. They can color the states they have been to or driven through. Tim’s map includes five states, including California while Sarah’s has Kentucky and Ohio, and Marc and Luc each have the same four states. What would your map look like? http://www.nationalatlas.gov/asp/popups.asp?imgFile=../printable/images/preview/outline/states(u).gif&imgw=588&imgh=450

Five Things (that I love to wear in winter) and a shrug

1. Soft jeans-nothing better than my well-worn blues, one stretch away from a hole in the knee.

2. Bathrobe – warm and fuzzy from neck to ankles, this is what I wrap up in for Bible Before Breakfast.

3. Supersocks – comfy, warm, and handknitted by Mom, they go over the regular socks and

keep the toes toasty.

4. Clogs- knitted, soft slippers with leather bottoms; they go over the super socks (we have COLD floors).

5. Make-up – this means I am either off to church, or friends are coming over.

6. (Yes, there’s six; I saved the best for last). The Shrug

What’s my shrug? Oh, my shrug is wonderful. My shrug is what I wear around the house when I’m cold (basically, all winter). My shrug is burgundy, white and black. It’s plaid, and flannel, and a little ripped. It’s quilted and it’s missing at least two buttons. It’s actually a shirt of Ryan’s (the man who is rarely cold and has no practical use for a quilted flannel shirt). So it’s mine. It’s been mine for about 14 years now. I LOVE my shrug. Some mornings I heat it up in the dryer before wearing it. The shrug is not allowed out in public, for obvious reasons, but at home, I wear the shrug, proudly, happily, and cozy warm, ahhh….

Weekly Wrap Up (or tri-weekly )

Actually accomplished some school EVERY single day this week. This does not always happen, for various reasons, including appointments, running errands, or visiting Grandma.

We start every day with Bible with all four kids. It takes 10 to 20 minutes. We sing a song or two (or three), we read a Bible story from The Bible in Pictures for Little Eyes by Kenneth Taylor. It always has great comprehension questions. Songs included “Joshua fought the battle of Jericho” (thank you, Tammy, for this CD), “My God is so BIG!” and the ever popular “B-I-B-L-E! that’s the book for me.” Then we all pray and say the pledge to the Bible. Then Marc and Luc are free to go, and the older two say their Bible verses from memory. We are also starting to learn books of the OT. (Who Judges Ruth? Joshua, Judges, Ruth).

We use 2nd./3rd. grade Daily Grams from the Easy Grammar program (which I used to teach when I tutored). Each page ends with a sentence combining exercise. Ex: Mary wants a pet. I want a pet, too. = Mary and I want a pet. Sometimes we turn these into really fun verbal stories. Mary REALLY wants a turtle, but I’m holding out for a kitten. We ended up getting a gerbil and naming it “Kurtle”, although Dad wanted to call it “snakefood”.

Science happens Tuesday and Thursday. We started reports on body systems. We watched a DK video about the “human machine”. (While these videos tend to be evolutionistic, they do have great info, and the kids get to tell me how the narrator got it wrong.) We also used the book “My Body” by Rayston and Hewitt, which has simple experiements (like dropping a pencil between open fingers and seeing if you can grasp it or if it falls down), and easy to read pages, so my kids did their own research on this one. Tim is doing the brain, and Sarah is doing the heart.

This week was good. All four kids attend the local CRC church on Wednesday nights, where Tim is in Cadets (he got to use a sander this week and had that predictable power tool gleam in his eye.). Sarah is in GEMS, the girl program, and loves it. She has an orphan card, and we pray for Hope, an orphan girl from Zambia every night. M and L have YOkids (young ones) and they have a blast in there, playing toys, doing a craft and snack. They also have gym nights, and movie nights, and they met a firefighter and learned about fire safety this year.
Those are our highlights this week. We do reading, writing, and math every day also.

The Adventures of Crazy Mom (Fellow Crazy Moms pictured here also).

When we last left our heroine, she was babbling incoherently into a thrice-heated cup of coffee while locked in the bathroom. Small children knocked, then pounded, making some sort of vague demand about tying balloons, but Crazy mom was oblivious to all.

But that was last time. Today, Crazy Mom is up to all new incredible stunts. Thankfully, Crazy Mom loves, adores, worships, and serves Jesus. Contrary to some beliefs, this does not make for an easy perfect live but can actually make life more challenging! Thankfully, there are benes. (you know, benefits), like her stalwart belief in John 3:16 and that Philippians 4:13 credo. She only exists as Crazy Mom through this faith in Christ.

Today, Crazy Mom was able to resist yelling at the children (except when they tore the living room curtain down after being told to “calm down” at least twice. Crazy Mom realized anew how much she needs God’s grace and forgiveness. She apologized for yelling. They apologized for their sin. All ended well.)

Crazy Mom was also able to convince two four year olds that “yes, indeedy, they did know how to clean up and that insisting to the contrary was not only unproductive, uncooperative, unkind, but also untrue and wrong.” Crazy Mom did tend to go on a little long as the lecture finally ended along the lines of “obey right away, all the way, and with a good heart.” Crazy Mom did that deep sigh thing she does, breathing in with the whisper“less of me” and breathing out “more of Jesus.”

Crazy Mom found herself in need of God’s grace as the day continued. She punished one twin for the other twin’s error and didn’t follow up in the “no more TV today.” promise because she needed a shower and TV keeps the troops stationary. She flatly refused to read a book because she was “making dinner” and yelled at the older two for goofing off while they were supposedly doing the dishes, “we are only making it fun, Mom!” Deep sigh thing again.
As the day ended and Crazy Mom felt the despair of her mistakes creeping in on her, she again turned to that Bible she loves and believed that God’s grace is sufficient and God will provide a way.

She tucked the precious hoodlums in, read them stories, kissed and hugged them, and prayed with them, genuinely thanking God for the responsibility and awesome privilege of being called Mom.

Maybe “Mom” to some, but to others who know her well, she is known as “Crazy Mom”. Tune in next time as Crazy Mom attempts library day, and the birthday party for two.

God, in His infinite wisdom, gave children only two commandments:
1. Honor your father and mother (Exodus 20:12a) ATTITUDE
2. Obey your parents (Ephesians 6:1) ACTIONS
Matthew 18 points out that we are all children of God. So these children’s commandments apply to us as well. Our children will see us honor and obey God in our lives, especially if we share how we are honoring and obeying God. They need to hear and see our actions. We are not perfect parents, but we need to be an arrow pointing them to God.

I think sometimes we spend so much time trying to be "perfect parents" instead of being real parents. Do I share all my struggles with my eight-year-old son? Certainly not. But I do want him to see me go to God for forgiveness when I make mistakes. I do want to share why we all, even parents, need God's grace in our lives.

A good deed does not go unnoticed, but it should.
A good deed always has strings attached, but it shouldn’t.
A good deed should never expect return, yet it does.

Few among us have mastered the art of true generosity. To give and hold nothing back. To give and expect nothing in return. Fewer still can recognize it. We look for and create the ulterior motive. Is no one truly magnanimous? Society no longer even recognizes the word, and yet, every now and again, we see it.

There are soldiers still sacrificing their lives for others. (Did you know that the “red” in the American flag represents the blood shed for our freedom?) There are mothers who feed and care for the severely handicapped until they are no longer able. There are those who foster the angry teenage orphan without expecting anything in return.
Not me, God, thankfully not me. Why not you? Are you willing? Why not die to yourself-your desires-and pursue God, yes, pursue God and see what happens…..who will you love in His name?

Choices-Choose this day whom you will serve

The proverbial “Spiritual Buffet” has many offerings but it is based on the faulty premise that man is basically good. And if man is basically good, what need is there for a savior? If you walk down the spiritual buffet, picking the parts you like, (Kindness is a fruit of the spirit), and rejecting the things you don’t (homosexuality is a sin), you have just invented your own spirituality. It’s one where you feel loved and comfortable, and yet, it seems to be missing something.

Look carefully at the small table there at the end of the buffet. Do you see it? Yes, the one with the red tablecloth. No, it’s not empty. Walk further down. There, the simple carpenter’s wooden cup, and the small sign. Can you read it without tears? It states, “Can you drink the cup I will drink?”

The Heart of Hannah

You know the Biblical story of Hannah, don’t you? She was heartbroken because she couldn’t have children. The other wife with the kids tormented her. The well-meaning husband asked, “Aren’t I better than ten sons?” Year after year it went. The passage does not say how many years, and I have pondered on this many times. Perhaps we just need to know it was year after year. Until the year they were again at Shiloh for the annual sacrifice, and again, Hannah was so sad in her heart, she couldn’t even eat. (See I Samuel 1).

This time, however, she stood up and went to the temple. She had business with God. I do not think this was the first time Hannah pleaded with the Lord for a child, but I do think this time was different. Hannah had a change of heart. She no longer wanted this child for herself, or for her husband, Elkanah, or even to spite her tormenter, Penninah. She wanted this child for God. So she could give him back to temple service. She didn’t bargain; she didn’t ask for any more children to be hers. It was a simple ‘if, then’ request. ‘If you give me a child, then I will give him to you.’ She recognized that God was in ultimate control and it was up to Him.

At first, the priest did not understand the distraught woman in his temple. He assumed she had been drinking, but when he realized the sincerity of her heart, he told her to go in peace.
The last part of this passage amazes me. It says, when she went away, she no longer had a sad face. God hadn’t promised her anything, she wasn’t suddenly pregnant, she had no idea about her future, but she no longer had a sad face. Why? She had surrendered it to God, completely, and now she could carry peace.

I spent many years studying this passage, trying to figure out Hannah’s formula for conception, wondering why God had closed her womb, as the passage states. I finally had to set aside all my own questions, and trust God completely, whether my future included children or not. I am still learning to trust Him, each and every day. There are many things I have had to surrender in order to “go in peace,” and peace is so much better than a sad face.
Go in peace.