What you can learn from a gallon of lemonade spilled on the kitchen floor
Stacy
James spilled almost an entire gallon of lemonade all over our kitchen floor this morning.  My first reaction was to get upset, because it was a HUGE mess.  There was lemonade in the cabinets and under the fridge, Dripping from the countertop.

He had disobeyed and I had to clean it up.

Isn't that what our Savior did for us?  We sin and He paid the Ultimate price.  It brings me to tears just thinking about how I got a little lesson in perspective today.  Our perspective must remain on the big picture- on Eternity. Our lives are not about this moment, this circumstance, this season in our life. Sure they are hard sometimes, but complaining or looking to the next season won't get us where He wants us to be. It is about bringing glory to HIM, and we can not achieve that in ourselves, but only in close communion with Him. The worries and distractions of this world just take our focus away from the Eternal.
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What are your intentions?
Stacy
Returning home from the True Woman conference last weekend has me thinking. I could have come back from a conference on Biblical Womanhood with a million different lessons, and somehow I'm sure that I still haven't processed it all. But the one that sticks out and keeps coming to mind is intentionality. How intentional am I? The Lord calls us to be intentional with everything we do from ministry at church, our ministry within our homes, and in the relationships we share with others- from those we know well ( and know us well) to the stranger that we meet at the grocery store to the homeless person that stops us on the street. What are our intentions to be? To bring absolute glory to HIM. To think with an Eternal perspective and act on those thoughts.

Two things Nancy Leigh Demoss said on the first night of the conference. She was speaking from Titus 2. So many times those verses are quoted to show what we should be as older and younger women, but this time, Nancy pointed out WHY. "The reality of the Gospel is lived out in our lives and in our relationships."
v. 5 "so that the word of God will not be dishonored."
v.8 "so that the opponent will be put to shame, having nothing bad to say about us."
v.10 "to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive"

WOW.

The second thing that really touched my heart: "All believers should be above reproach, distinctive, not because we purpose to be- but because the GOSPEL transforms." It never has been about us and what we can do. It is what HE can do through us. Will I be intentional about spending time with Him, so that my life will be transformed? Or will I waste the opportunity to live my life as an example of Christ to my children, to my neighbors, to my friends?
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Choosing next year's curriculum
Stacy
We finally took the plunge and bought what will hopefully be our main curriculum for the next 17 years. Sounds crazy? Not really. The curriculum we chose consists of 4 "years", that will increase in difficulty as we spiral through them. We kept coming back to Tapestry of Grace every time we took a step back and looked at other curriculums out there. I believe that it fits my philosophy of teaching in unit studies, and yet gives a very classical, challenging education academically. Most importantly it is wholly based on the Bible. Our first unit is on the Books of Moses, and for 9 weeks we'll be studying Egypt! I'm so excited about everything the children will learn academically through this curriculum, but most importantly, I'm excited about what God will show us about Himself through this series. If you'd like to learn more about Tapestry of Grace, you can check out their website: http://www.tapestryofgrace.com/index.php

We're still using MathUSee www.mathusee.com for math, and we'll be using Apologia astronomy for Science https://apologia.securesites.net/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1&products_id=1
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January update
Stacy
After a busy few months getting our feet wet on our new homeschooling adventure, then traveling for Thanksgiving AND Christmas, I'm finally getting back into the swing of things.

Michael is rolling along in his school work, he makes me SO proud. I'm amazed at the things he can do. He's working through the 1st grade Veritas curriculum, and Alpha Math U See. He's ready anything he can, and nothing warms this mama's heart more than seeing him pick up the Bible on his own and read it without someone asking. He still makes me forget that he's only just turned 6.

James is busy trying to keep up with big brother, and if you took his word for it, he's faster that Michael, stronger, etc. He's our competitive, ALL BOY little guy. He's most likely to start a wrestling match on the floor of our living room, and win it too. I think he'll beam with joy when he turns 5 in just a few weeks. He's working through the VP Kindergarten Curriculum and Primer MUS.


Anna is growing by leaps and bounds and loves to play with everything- boy toys, girl toys, dress-up, role play, you name it- she's into it. I never would have guessed that one 3 year old could wear me out, but she keeps me on my toes all by herself. Don't get me wrong, she has her sweet moments too- when she just wants me to hold her and sing Jesus Loves Me. Melts me like holding my first baby girl for the very first time.
At 18 months old, Ruth is as sweet as can be. She finally started to walk our first night staying in a hotel on our trip to NJ, and loves giving everyone kisses. She has such a sweet, laid back disposition usually, that when she is unhappy and throws a tantrum, its almost hard not to laugh. Her laugh is contagious, and we love to watch her get tickled about something one of the older kids does. Sometimes they do it just to make her laugh, other times its completely spontaneous. Those are my favorite little laughs. Straight from her belly and alllll over her face.
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