Do you ever feel LOST?

Do you ever just feel LOST when it comes your child's interests? 

Boy I do! 

In recent years we've gone through Skateboarding, BMX biking, Minecraft, Xbox, Playstation, Painting, and now Photography...

Gone are the days when he would he turned to ME for all the answers. Now I find myself turning to him most days. 

When did these roles change? 

When did Google become my new best friend when it comes to just carrying on a conversation with my son?

Well I am choosing to embrace this season in my life. To stretch myself in areas I never thought I would. You'd think with a boy, I might have had an idea about a few of these, but things are so much more technical these days. It's not JUST riding a bike... 

...it's gears and bearings and grips OH MY!

I encourage you to jump right in there with your children. Get some grease on you hands, paint under your fingernails and learn a few terms that you'll NEVER use in conversation with your peers.

Your kids will love you for it and you'll have spent some truly precious time watching them learn about things they are passionate about if even for just a month or two (as is often the case in my home).

Backseat driving my child's education...

These last few months have been pretty crazy in our home. Most days are spent helping mom get things done, or doing them for me, and homeschooling has really not been on the agenda. But much to my surprise, learning has continued and possibly relished even without my scheduled instruction. I have always heard of unschooling, but the views and opinions on the subject are so widespread and diverse that it has been hard to wrap my mind around it. Having life basically throw us into unschooling has forced me to embrace it and acquire my own opinions about it. That being said, I am still understanding, building and shaping how it works for my family and some days are better than others. 
Even at my most relaxed, Braydon has researched, inquired and grown in so many areas. He has learned how to do laundry from start to finish. He has learned how to cook several items on his own, using a gas stove no less. He has researched the muscles, tendons and such in the shoulder to better understand my condition. He has even spent time scouring the internet on several different topics in order to help me in writing new lapbooks. Despite having complete freedom to choose what he watches on TV, more often than not, he chooses to watch educational shows or documentaries. He has spent countless hours teaching himself about hunting, survival techniques and weapons both new and historical.
Granted, after my arm is feeling better we will begin doing experiments and projects again, but I am so impressed with his ability to take his education into his own hands that I am comfortable allowing him to continue choosing what to and what not to learn.

I encourage you, if you feel like something is lacking in your homeschool, to give unschooling a chance. Just take a few months off of form learning, let you kids be kids and sit back and see what happens. Children are always wanting to understand the ins and outs of things, so let them! Let them play and get interested in what they like, then be ready to help them find their answers. After all, can YOU recite all of the presidents in order of their presidency? Is there a time in your life where you needed that information at your fingertips? I believe most of you would say no and in today's world the answers to these questions are just a few clicks away.
The time we are living in offers unlimited resources to our children, wouldn't you rather they learn how to access this information and research what they need to know, instead of pushing them to memorize these facts while stifling those things they are truly interested in?
There may be days were all they want to do is watch TV or play games, but I assure you most days this will not be the case. I would also tell you to USE these days to your advantage. There is something to be learned in everything they do, be it academic or social, there IS something there! This is will also give you a chance to really get to know your child. Invite them to aid you in what YOU do each day, this could spark a love of something they may never have thought about before. I have realized that this broken arm may have put a kink in MY life but it has lit a fire in my child they may very well lead him to a PhD. Give your child the benefit of the doubt and they just may surprise you.

Gabby Moms 2013

I am so excited to have been chosen to be a 
2013 Gabby Mom for 

Eternal Encouragement Magazine! 

In depth reviews on some terrific 
products coming very soon! 

Check back often! 

Empty Schedule, Full Heart

As I pull into the driveway last night around 8pm, I was reminded of how long it's been since I was out after dark for something other than dinner or a movie.
There was once a time when our nights were filled with sports practices, PTA meetings, grocery runs and things of this nature. Our days were so full of doing life that our evenings had become just overflow of that. We were always running around trying to catch up and never slowing down to enjoy the life we were racing to catch.

The last three years have taught me so much about myself, my son, our family and what really works for us. More on this in my nest post, but for now I'll just say that I have learned alot! The most important thing that I think I have learned is that this is the only family I will ever have and I will only have them for as long as the Lord lets me. Why would I want to spend my time rushing through each day just to get ahead on the next when I could slow down and learn everything there was to know about these gifts that God has given me?

How did we get so caught up in things that bear such little fruit? Well, we just went with the flow, like many of you, we just did what everyone else was doing. Breaking away from that was one of the hardest things I've ever done. Removing myself from circles that didn't agree with the changes I was making, stepping down from positions I held in groups and clubs, putting God back into the center of our family and changing our view of education for our son. Collectively, all of the changes brought so much joy into our life.

Nowadays we spend our evenings chewing our dinner together as a family as apposed to inhaling it on the way out the door. We enjoy weekends working together around the house or running errands instead of rushing to and from sports games. Most importantly, Braydon and I spend our days together, we have lunch with my husband every single day, and he is learning how to live life at a speed where it can be enjoyed.

I'm so grateful that I made these changes when I did, before it was too late. Before Braydon had already learned the patterns of a crazy, worldly lifestyle that he would carry into adulthood.

When Randy and I got married I didn't understand "family". I thought our job was to grow up, leave our homes, have a career and get married. Children would come or they wouldn't, parent would be visited or they wouldn't. Even after Braydon was born it was several years before I realized what a precious gift family truly is.

I regret the time I missed with my mother-in -law, I regret not having more kids for Braydon to have a large loving family, I regret alot of things... but what I DO NOT regret is changing my life so drastically for the sake of family!

Love your family and don't rush through life. The only thing better than today is eternity with our Father, so slow down and be blessed by today.

I swear I AM NOT praying for patience!!

So, how many times have we all been warned not to pray for patience? I know I've heard it a lot over the years. Well, the funny thing about God is that he tends to dole out lessons in areas where HE thinks we need to grow, not necessarily where we WANT to grow! So whether I'm asking for more patience or not, when He decides I need it, I get it!

The latest thing I'm learning about myself is that I am not a patient person! I'm pretty sure I've always known this, Lord knows my family definitely has, but recently it's been brought to my attention almost on a daily basis!

Being almost completely dependent on those around you doesn't just mean you have to let them help you. It means you have to let them do it their way, on their time, all the while remaining grateful for it. One of our family's favorite movies is The Pacifier. The line I quote most from this movie is this:

"It's my way, no highway option."

This statement rolls all that is Candie up in a neat little package. My way is always the best, most thought out, and easiest to accomplish... so I think. Lately though, I'm learning that just because my way is right for me, doesn't mean it's right for everyone! Funny that I haven't already learned this lesson. After all, isn't that part of the homeschool mother's creed? Our children need teaching to their strengths and interests, they need to be treated as individuals, they need to learn how THEY learn!

Well, doesn't the same apply to everything in life? Could I be harboring a double standard? Well if so, surely I'm right about it, surely I couldn't be mistaken!

NEWS FLASH: God made us all different! Not just red and yellow, black and white, but in everything, in our hearts and our habits!

The people in your life may not put the dishes away where YOU think they should, they may not move as quickly as you would like and they may not do the things you ask in JUST the way you had expected, but the bottom line is that they are doing it!

My family has had to help me get comfortable in the recliner again with all 15 pillows every time I get up to go to the restroom. They have had to bring me that exact item from the exact spot I sent them to, even if my memory was wrong. They have had to fix me glasses of water with a full cup of ice because that's how I like it. And they have done all these things with a smile, something I cannot say for myself. I have been short with them, I have gotten frustrated and I have spat out my orders more times than I care to admit.

Yet they're still here, still helping, still taking it. That's not to say they will ALWAYS be here. It's important for me to learn NOW that I should appreciate their help regardless what form it comes in. This is the lesson I think my God is teaching me right now. He wants me to understand that humans are not as forgiving as He is, that there IS a limit to their willingness to help, "under fire" if you will. Not only does He want me to see that He will always be here and will come back blow after blow, but that others may not and it's my job to emulate Him.

That's part of being created in His image. Luckily for me, my immediate caregivers know God's love but will they always remember it? That is something I cannot control but showing my Lord's love and mercy is the beginning to ensuring they won't turn away from Him.

Have you shown His love this week? Let me challenge you to do JUST THAT! And not just to those you think NEED it, but to everyone in your life, especially those who don't always get your best!

Broken Arm ~ Broken Self-Dependence

As I explained in a previous post, I fell and broke my arm a couple of weeks ago. Since then, God has been teaching me alot of things. For those of you who know me, you are aware that I am always on the go. I work several jobs around each other and around my family's needs to allow me to be not only be a SAHM but also to homeschool our son. It's impossible to be this active, crazy busy person without being extremely dependant on yourself, or so I thought. I have spent the last several years building this lifestyle in which I thought I was the only person I could count on to keep going. In recent day however, I have had to start depending on everyone BUT myself. Its amazing how quickly one can go from "doing it all", to not being able to do anything.

So what has this taught me?

Well it has taught me a couple of things... The first and most important is something I already knew but at some point pushed under the rug and chose not to accept. Then late last night in the middle of a "poor little me" melt down my ten year old son reminded me all to quickly that I was in God's hands. That everything was controlled by Him and He would not let me down.

Here I've spent the last 10 days throwing myself the LARGEST pity party known to man and the whole time my God was just sitting back waiting for me to need HIM. Waiting for me to realize that this life of self-dependency will never be a fulfilling one and I will always be hanging onto it with my one good arm. I needed that small reminder from the most precious boy in my life to put me back on track. To help me get my priorities in order once more.

The second thing I have learned is just how lucky I am to have husband and son that I do. I'm also very lucky to have terrific friends who have cooked for us and offered to do anything I need, but my two boys have really had to step up to the plate lately and I could not be more grateful!! While Braydon is at my side for anything I need throughout the day, Randy is working BOTH of our jobs, keeping up the house and the laundry, paying the bills and doing the shopping. I could not have asked for a better helpmate! We all take the same vows when we marry, but so many time I see friends of mine and other women being let down by a spouse that can't see how those vows relate to the needs of his family later in life. I thank God for my husband and the example he has set for our son! Braydon his growing up to be such a strong young man in the Lord and one who is willing to help anyone anytime!

Be sure to stop and tell your family how much they mean to you! I know I haven't done it often enough but that's about to change! Take a minute to thank God for the amazing gifts you DO have and take a break from asking for those you don't.

New Year New Me... well sort of!

Wow, last year was a BANNER year for me! I think I MIGHT have averaged one blog post every three months! Not my most shining effort!  I tend to stew on blogging ideas wanting the post to be PERFECT and then never get around to writing them before they become irrelevant and out dated.  Well this year I hope to change that! My goal this year is to write something at least once a week.
Think I can do it?
Yeah me neither, but I'm gonna try! LOL

Of course, I wouldn't be up to speed in the blogging world if I didn't post about new year organization!  First up on the "Let's Get Organized Agenda" is a new addition to my refrigerator door. As you read through my next few blogs (yes I actually have a PLAN for the first few weeks!) you'll see that I LOVE to copy great ideas. But I am definitely a recreate the wheel kinda gal! I like to take the original idea, research how other people are doing it and them shape it to fit me. Well that's just what I did with this handy little tool! A while back I saw a blog about grocery lists. This super creative lady, who's blog I cannot remember for the life of me, had created an itemized grocery list that contained everything her family generally bought at the grocery store. Then when they ran out of something all they had to do was check it off on the list.She always had a running list of what they needed and then just grabbed it on her way out the door.

Well this was great for us except that by the time I was done creating my list is had to be printed on LEGAL PAPER! I mean really... we're a family of three! That HUGE grocery list was a little ridiculous. Not to mention that it would take me DAYS to get around to printing out a new list when it was time.

Enter my fabulous smashing together of ideas!! I found a terrific way to make homemade notepads from a fellow blogger, Skip to my Lou. (This time I remembered to grab a link so I could give credit where credit is due.)
I then began the process of shrinking my grocery list down to a manageable size that was still legible and Viola! I now have this handy little grocery list notepad that hangs on my fridge but now it fits nicely in my purse!

P.S. I also learned that there is no better motivation to spruce up an area in the your home than to put pictures of it on your blog!

What are the symptoms?

Sitting at dinner tonight with my hubby and son, the conversation turns to my mother who has been away on a cruise for the last week. As I explain to my husband that while she had a good time, I think she's a little homesick. To which Braydon questions "What happens when you get homesick? I mean like where do you feel bad?" And it occurred to me that my child has never had to be homesick in all of his 9 1/2 years! The thought of that brings a smile to my face. I love that we are so close and spend so much time together that he has never been away long enough to "miss" us.
Don't get me wrong, he's been on the occasional overnight-er and wanted to come home before the morning, but never has he gone away alone or had to be left behind for a number of days. Right now, where I am in my life, I can't imagine leaving him behind while we went away. I wouldn't want him to miss out on anything that we might see or do! Having him with us, even though at times I think I could drink a vat of Calgon, just makes every experience that much better!!
I am so blessed to have such an amazing little boy in my life! I thank God for entrusting him to me for such a time as this, until we return to our Father. What an awesome feeling to know you are caring for one of God's children. If you are a parent, be it biological or adoptive, stop and think for a minute just what that means...
God has put you in charge of one of his most prized possessions! He felt you capable and committed enough to care for His special gems! Be grateful! Not just for your child but for a God that knows you so completely that he sent you a precious gift that fit you so perfectly and that only YOU could give the love God intends!!
A dear friend reminded me tonight how special this time is... right now! Whether you are the mother of older children, a sweet newborn or somewhere in between; this time is priceless! Cherish it, thank God for it and always show your children what it means to you!

"Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate."                                                           ~Psalm 127:3-5

Alot Can Happen In A Month!

Wow, I knew I was busy, but a whole month since my last post? Sheesh! I gotta get on the ball here!! Well here's a recap of all the great things God has done in my life in the last 31 days... and boy has He been busy! 

We have completed the Ultimate Back To School Blast and are gearing up for the Ultimate Special Needs Blast. I got all of this years curriculum lined out and even got a couple of weeks planned (which is good since we start in 10 minus SIX DAYS!!!). We kicked off the new school year for the youth group and Randy and I serving as Lifeguards (youth coaches)! We are both so excited to be working with the amazing group of kids!!! Plus Kay is in the youth so that's going to be a pretty neat experience for us!! Randy has started work on the Permian Basin Fair and we'll probably only see him in passing for the next couple of weeks. And we're about to embark on an awesome experience through our church called The Tabernacle Experience. 

This is a life-size interactive Tabernacle of The Wilderness. I am so excited to be a part of this! If you are within driving distance, I urge you to make a trip to visit this exhibit. It will be open Friday, September 30th through Sunday, October 9th from 9 am to 8 pm everyday. And if you're a homeschooling mom I think this would be a great opportunity for your kids! We don't have many "field trip" destinations around here and this is a an excellent chance for them to witness something they can't see anywhere else!! 

“When the cloud lifted from over the sacred tent, the people of Israel followed it. And where the cloud settled, the people of Israel camped. In this way, they traveled at the Lord’s command and stopped wherever he told them to. So they camped or traveled at the Lord’s command, and they did whatever the Lord told them.” Numbers 10

How many of us follow God's lead the way the people of Israel did? Do you seek the Lord's guidance in everything? I'm afraid for some of us this is all too rare a concept! I encourage you to grab your Bible and LISTEN to what the Father is asking of you! LISTEN to what he wants to reveal! And LISTEN to where he wants you to go!! 

And remember to teach your child how to hear Him too!

I am so excited to get to travel through this intimate experience with my own child!

  "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.  Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates" Deuteronomy 6:4-7

Well, that about wraps up the month of August! 

I hope you are all having a great start to your school year!!

Is that a snake????

Ever stop to think about the things we encountered as children that were just a part of life? I don't very often, but his morning something happened that made me do just that!
Braydon comes running in from the backyard, concerned about a sound he heard near our trees. He described it as sounding like a rattlesnake that just kept getting louder and louder then stopped. His poor little heart had skipped a beat because her thought we actually might has a rattler in the yard. I knew immediately what he heard and I'm sure most of you do too.
Yep! It was a locust! LOL
It had never occurred to me that he had never seen or heard a locust.
When I was a kid they were as common as ladybugs or ants. I even remember nap time on Sunday afternoons when they were so loud I could hear then INSIDE the house!
Once again, God has afforded me an opportunity to teach my child about his AMAZING creations AND tell him a little bit about my past.

A garden for fairies... a gift for me.

Last night Braydon and I planted a Fairy Garden. I'm sure you're thinking that's kinda silly or childish but I have to say it was tons of fun! It was actually MY project but he jumped right in with both feet and before I knew it he had taken over the entire planning and I found that the only thing left for me was the LABOR!! SHEESH!

It did give us an opportunity to research container plants together. So once again I learned that homeschool happens anytime and anywhere! I am still that mom that's trying to do schedule each and every lesson and make sure all things tie into each other nicely covering all subjects and all areas.

How lucky are we to have such a patient Father? You'd figure by now he'd have given up on me as a homeschool mom and lost all hope for Braydon (with me as his teacher) to become a functioning member of society. Instead, He takes my hand, one more time, and gently guides me back to the path He has laid out for me. The path that is PERFECT for ME! The path that is created for no other BUT ME! The path that I turn from from daily thinking I can do it on my own.

Be grateful for His patience! Be accepting of His guidance! And be aware of the times when He loves you enough to take your hand, one more time!

God Bless!

Are you FEARLESS???

The caption reads: "Just before it happened, I overheard the three most dreaded words a mother could hear: 'Hey, watch this!'"

This is how I feel on MOST days! Knock on wood, we haven't had to make a trip to the ER yet but I am sure it is inevitable. My child, like most, is without fear! He gets up every morning with new ideas of how to give me a nervous breakdown and test his own physical limits. Do you remember those days? When you just KNEW you could jump off of your house with an umbrella and slowly float to the ground unharmed like Mary Poppins? Or that you could actually DIG your own in-ground swimming pool in your back yard? Ok, maybe these were just MY crazy childhood examples of limitless imagination, but we all had them! We never stood back and thought through the possible ramifications of our actions or the damage we could do to ourselves, our friends or our parent's property. We were FEARLESS!

Well, as we grow we not only gain height, weight, maturity, knowledge, responsibilities and all the other things that separate us from our youth but we gain something else... something that separates us from so much more! What is it your ask?? FEAR! Fear is one of Satan's strongest weapons! He uses it to plant seeds of self doubt which prevents us from realizing our full potential in Christ's kingdom! Fear holds us back from building relationships, fear causes us to think we don't have the abilities to do what others do and most importantly, fear makes us believe that God could never forgive the things we've done.

As a mother I want to encourage you today to remind your child to hold on to that fearlessness! To believe that they really can do ANYTHING through Christ! It is our responsibility as Christian parents to do everything in our power to build our children up as often as we can so that they won't become timid fearful adults! I promise you, for ever moment you spend building them up, the world around you is working double time tearing them down!

As a homeschool mother I encourage you to remember that YOU were the very person God chose to love, guide, educate, and train your child. Don't take this mission lightly! It is the most important thing you will ever do in your life!!

Fear creeps in and fills the cracks of our insecurities, building them up and giving them strength. Teach your children to rely on their Father for strength and to pray without ceasing!! A solid and consistent pray life will become the manna that gives them life and they will thank you for it!

~"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."~ Philippians 4:13

God took my half-hearted effort and gave me something GREAT!

Have you ever gone into something half-hearted? Thinking you'd be happy getting even a little out of if, not really expecting much at all? Well, that's what happened with me this year with the Ultimate Homeschool Expo. I had heard a bits and pieces about the expo in different circles, but being a new homeschool mom I didn't really know alot about it. As I mentioned in an earlier post, Randy and I had hoped to attend a convention this year for some direction and to see what some of the vendors had to offer as well as have the opportunity to hear/talk to speakers who have been in the homeschool community for several years. But as with most things lately, the money just was not there and we couldn't afford to travel to a large convention this year. Of course, as usual, we failed to rely on the fact that God had already worked things out for us before we even knew we needed Him to. FIVE YEARS before we needed Him to actually!!!
That's how long ago some amazing people began the Ultimate Homeschool Expo. When I originally heard about the expo I thought maybe I would buy a ticket as a supplement to another convention I planned to attend until money got tight and then the the $25.00 ticket to the UHSE started to look like my only option. So we decided we would buy the ticket and if it wasn't very beneficial we were only out 25 bucks! Besides, there were some freebies I would get so I thought maybe it would at least be a wash...

Little did I know, I was in for the surprise of my life! I have been so blessed by this expo! The freebies were great, but the real treasure was in the live and bonus audios! The live audio are offered with an open chat room as well. So not only are you able to listen to the speaker, but you get to meet, discuss and grow relationships with other parents that you would never have the time to do at a live convention. Plus, whatever you miss in the session while you're chatting it up with your new pals, you can listen to later as all live sessions are recorded and then uploaded to the membership site!

The host and owner of the expo Felice Gerwitz moderates the chat room and takes questions then at the end of the session relays all of those questions to the speaker and he/she answers them RIGHT THERE! Try to get that at a live convention! The speakers may have time for "a few" questions but here you actually get discussion. If you're still confused or your question wasn't completely answered just chat that in and Felice will dig a little deeper with the speaker!

I never thought about how chaotic a live convention would really be and how hard it would be to cultivate any relationships outside of those you had before you got there, but stop for a moment and think about it... I liken it to shopping on Christmas Eve. Everyone is rushing around trying not to miss that one thing they're looking for. Ironically enough, just like with Christmas isn't sharing our faith and growing God's kingdom what we're SUPPOSED to be doing? And yet, we're always hurrying around, no time for one another. Well I can honestly say that during expo week I could not wait until each session time so I could chat with my new sisters in Christ! We shared stories, both good and bad, prayed for and with one another and blessed each other with encouragement beyond measure! My cup truly overflows!

And TOPICS! Wow! There was such a wide range of topics that at first I wasn't sure where I wanted to start! Did I want parenting encouragement? Curriculum Guidance? Character Education and Leadership Direction for my Child? Stuff that was beyond my kiddo in age but would apply to my older niece? Help for my husband to be a leader in our home? My options were just endless! Thankfully they are all downloadable! Can you imagine going to a convention with only yourself and possibly your husband and trying to catch EVERY session you wanted to hear, some of them overlapping in times? I'm exhausted just thinking about it! As I said before I have been greatly blessed by this expo.

And you could be too! If you are interested, homeschool parent or not, in some really helpful and encouraging sessions on raising children in God's image while setting your own godly example I urge you to not just take my word for it... go check it out yourself! The membership site is still available and I promise you will not be disappointed!

Here's the link, go take a look!

https://www.secureinfossl.com/affProgram/Ultimate-Homeschool-Expo-2011/52019