.Waving my White Flag on the Mommy War.

Before becoming a mommy, I dreamed about what it would be like. I envisioned how I would protect my children and their hearts, and I anticipated having to fight for my children at times. But what I didn't anticipate was who it was that I would often fight against.

Other mommies.

 Yup, that's right, I excitedly became a member of the Mommy Club and then soon fell into the Mommy War.

I am ashamed to admit how much I have participated in this. I would love to say that it was naivety in being a new mom that drove me to engage, but truth be told, I just wanted to do this mommy thing right. And when so much is at stake - the very life and development of another human being - we get pretty defensive about what we have decided is right. The defensiveness quickly escalates to criticisms and judgments and then all out war - just to protect that rightness - and to make sure that we feel good about our choices and look good, too. It's a really ugly manifestation of insecurity in our own decisions. I am kind of exhausted of it, though.

Just shy of ten years of being inside this Mommy Club, I have finally come to the place where I understand that what is right for one family, for one child, is not universally right for every family, for every child. It's just not. There's no cookie-cutter method of parenting. 

I am overwhelmed over the lack of grace we women  - mommies - give each other. It's yucky. It's like a grown-up version of junior high, and that gives me the shivers. There is not a topic that is safe, everything is subject to her disapproval.

To breastfeed or bottle feed
To use breast milk or formula
To work or stay home
To eat natural or not
To cloth diaper or disposable diaper
To home school, private school, or public school
To do Santa Claus, Halloween, the Easter bunny or not
To allow screen time or not and how much
To be a helicopter parent or raise free-range children
To spank or not to spank....

The list could go on for days. The battles are endless. The lines are constantly drawn, and engagement in the war is seen everywhere - on TV, on social media, at the park, at church - everywhere - no place is safe.

Why do we feel so entitled to challenge other mommies on the choices her family has made? I dare say that this superiority (for deep down when we look at the ugly underbelly of the war - superiority is at the root - superiority entwined with insecurity) is destroying the beautiful village feel that somewhere inside the heart of all moms, we need and crave. How can we be a village with other women, when we are constantly defending our choices, and in the defending, criticizing hers? To me, having a village of lifetime friendships with other women, regardless of our parenting styles and choices, sounds so much better then feeling right about my choices, and therefore living in isolation, because our parenting choices will never ever perfectly match her parenting choices.

In the past, I have waxed eloquently (errr maybe just waxed) about some of my own decisions in parenting. I specifically remember the topic of home schooling, and how strongly I once felt about that topic. Don't get me wrong, I do love home schooling, and after taking a year off, have once again chosen that as the method of education for my children. But it is not the best choice for every family. It's really, really not. It was not our best choice this past year. So, we didn't do it. We took a much needed break. We chose private school, and we chose it simply because that is where our oldest son had to attend on his student visa, and in an effort to streamline our chaotic life a bit, we sent our oldest daughter to the same private school. But I don't need to defend that choice. It was the best decision for our family for that time. And if public school had been the best decision, we would not have hesitated to choose that. In that moment, of that decision, I found peace, clarity, and grace. I stopped worrying if, because she was still home schooling her children, and I wasn't, she was a better mommy than I was - I stopped wondering if she was enough while I never would be. Because there is really no such thing. None of us are enough, and that's why we need to show our children that Jesus is enough. Honestly, that will probably look quite different for all of us.

So, I am waving my white flag in this Mommy War. Instead of comparing myself to how she mommies, I will, with God's direction, do what is right - right now - for my family. I will choose to stop defending my choices and criticizing hers. The criticism is just insecurity anyway, and my security doesn't need to come from another mom's approval of how I parent. I want to instead be a beautiful member of that Mommy Club, and notice our unique differences, strengths, goals, dreams, passions, etc. I want to take the time to notice the truth that most mommies are doing what is best for their family right now. It's true, all of us moms have short-comings. We will all make mistakes in this journey of parenting, there is no such thing as a perfect mommy, but most likely, we don't need our mistakes pointed out. We will get there and grow in our parenting. And in between all of the gaps and mess-ups, Jesus fills them in, and He can use us to help fill them in, too, when we wave our white flag and offer grace to one another.

I think that we can  really play a part in trying to end these silly Mommy Wars, and link arms and spread grace inside of the Mommy Club. Let's be a different generation. Let's not divide ourselves - the world does a good enough job at that already. Let's be a safe, beautiful place for each of us to be the mommy God created us to be. I don't want to be offended by her, or judge her, or size myself up by her. I just want to be part of a sisterhood that encourages and champions her wherever she is in her journey. We are in this together - we all answer to the same name, Mommy. We are all her.

.5 Little Ways to Connect With your Teen Right Now.

Years ago this used to be a typical mommy blog with photos and recipes and cute little anecdotes about my children. But then it morphed as I morphed into something not altogether different, but different enough that it began to take a new shape, and is now not at all a typical mommy blog. Throughout the changes in my life, which are mirrored here in this little space, I have not lost my passion for being a mom. It is something that I absolutely love. I love it so much, that God has had to do a big work in my heart to show me ways where I was loving it a little too much. There were times when I was wrapping my identity in this parenting gig, and where my tight hold on my children could be considered control. I have had to surrender, and allow God to painfully show me areas where I have tried to increase my role in my kids life and be God for them instead of Mommy. That has been a hard lesson to learn, because I fiercely love these four babies given to me. I desire so much for their lives. But so does God, and He loves them perfectly, and infinitely more and better than I ever could. So while there are things that I have had to release in parenting, there are other things that still remain. One big thing is intentionality.

I simply cannot mother well without being intentional about it. I strive for that, and I miss the mark often allowing exhaustion, frustration, and my own humanness to get in the way. But it is something I pray for and work towards with Jesus working in me. Since becoming a mom to a teenager, I have learned that the intentionality with him has to be kicked up a notch more than even with my littles. I have to make a conscious, daily effort to connect with him in meaningful ways. Teens are a completely different breed than babies, toddlers, and school-aged kiddos. Most of them won't just plop in our lap spilling the content of their day, life, and heart freely out for us. We have to work for that - we have to be intentional. It takes hard work and thought to connect with these kids on the brink of adulthood and the great big world open to them. Relationship building isn't easy, and it is sometimes messy, but it is so necessary. Even though our teens are growing up, maturing, and stretching their wings, they still need us in so many ways. Our job is not finished yet.

I am admittedly new at this, and some of you may have already successfully navigated the teen years with your child. You are a goldmine for us in the trenches, and I would love to hear from you in the comments. But for right now, in my 18 short months of being a mom to a teenager, this is what is working for me.

5 Little Ways to Connect With your Teen Right Now:

1. Say I Love You (and mean it) every single day. When our children are adorable little, chubby babies, it is easy to smother them with hugs, kisses, and multiple daily doses of I love yous. But as they grow and change into a teenager who sometimes snarks, who stands taller than you, and makes you reevaluate everything you thought you knew about parenting, the daily affection and the words I love you may come slower. But I think they are still needed. I believe that this is one of the most beautiful messages that we can give our teens every day, before we send them out the door into a world that sometimes isn't pretty. Let them know that they are loved, cherished, and valuable to their family, to this world, and to God who lovingly placed that value onto them. Before school send them out with an I love you, write it on their facebook wall, send it to them in a text, put a note on his bed or in her lunch, and before you hang up the phone say I love you. Don't miss an opportunity to be intentional about saying these important words. They will make a difference, and they will be noticed.

2. Take time to listen before bed. For some reason I have found that those moments when my son has crawled into bed and is ready for sleep becomes the best time for him to talk. Perhaps it is simply his ploy to stay up a few minutes later, but regardless I will snatch onto them! This time has become invaluable for our relationship, but it takes real intentionality on my part. Sitting on his bed at 10 or 11:00 at night and listening well to his heart, is a little different than sitting on my daughter's bed at 7:00 at night. I am usually exhausted and ready to crawl into my own bed, but those moments of time have become sweet and well-worth the effort. Teens, just like adults, want someone who will listen to them, hear what they are saying, and value their words. If they do not find that in us, they will find it someone else. I am also learning to quiet my own voice during this time and let him talk. Sometimes that is really all he wants - not my opinions, my preaching, my remedies, just my empathy and listening ear.

3. Use Social Media as a Tool to Connect. We live in a day and age that is driven by technology. While we have boundaries set up in our home, and with our teen, we have chosen not to altogether escape it. So instead, I use it to build our relationship. I follow and friend my son wherever he is on social media (I think this is just plain good practice anyway), and I intentionally interact with him in those places. If you are friends with my son on facebook, you will see that his timeline is filled up with his mama. And I am okay with that (and he is too). My teen also happens to be a words of affirmation kid. He craves this and it is one of the ways he feels the most loved, which works well for me in that my best tool is writing. But even if you are not a writer, touching base throughout the day over social media can be a very easy and powerful tool to building your relationship with your teen. It doesn't all have to be serious either, Habi and I have a lot of fun teasing each other on instagram. And that brings me to my next point....

4. Have FUN together. I love having a teenager, because life is just more fun. My littles are amazing and silly, but the humor is so much different with a teen. We laugh and tease one another and have inside jokes with each other, and it all builds into the relationship.We go on coffee dates together or find something to play together. All families are different, and of course, your family will have to set the tone and decide what kind of teasing is appropriate. Perhaps what we find fun, you may find disrespectful and visa versa. Do what works for you, and find the balance that you need, but don't neglect the richness of laughter, joking and having fun with your teen. Maximize those moments and allow spontaneous fun to happen in your home.

5. Focus on the Positive. I know that raising a teen can be so stressful and hard. Believe me I have solidarity with you in yearning to reach my child's heart and see him mature and grow into a beautiful adult. I know that there are many days where I focus so much on the changes and maturing that needs to occur, but when I step back and look at the whole of my son, I can see some incredible positives. Affirm those positives in your teen - even the little ones. Positive affirmation and calling out the great character traits in our teens is huge and will make a big difference in our relationship. Let compliments generously roll off your tongue - look for ways to build your child up. With my boy, when I can do this in front of people, he just beams and swells with appreciation. So I take every opportunity to loudly recognize the positives that I see in him.

These are just a few simple ways that I am connecting with my teen right now. I am sure that there are countless other ways that I may not yet practice. I would love to interact with you in the comments about what works for you. This is definitely not a exhaustive list, but one that may get us started in being intentional with our teens.

.School's Out for Summer.

Here's something you should know about me - I have unrealistic expectations - for everything. It's a big fault of mine. I am an all or nothing girl. Go big or go home. Do it well or forget about doing it at all. I make everything a huge project and go over-the-top in trying to make things special. I look forward to summer all year long, and I plan and organize and make lists and imagine in my head creative, fun, and perfect activities for the whole summer. And in my head everything is so smooth and lovely and seamless. This summer, I need to be extra creative, because Jim does not have a job, I do not have a job, and we do not have money to spend on a ton of activities.

But I still set the bar high and my expectations still were through the roof.

Typically my expectations are ridiculous and are filled with statements like this summer we are going to wake up every single morning at 6:00 and exercise as a family, and then enjoy green smoothies. The children will participate in chores and some educational activities during the morning hours while I tidy the house and do laundry. We will go to the library every single week, and we will surprise the children with fun, crazy adventures. We will be known as the crazy, cool parents, and we will have a water balloon fight every night, and the house will never get wet or messy.  We will go for a family walk every single evening, sit on on our porch and sip lemon-aid and snuggle on a blanket watching the stars come out.  

Every single is where I get derailed, because usually after about three days of trying to live up to my ludicrous expectations, I have thrown the towel in, and it's a free-for-all that looks nothing like my perfectly laid plans. I know that this is the pattern, and yet I planned out a bucket list again for the summer (I did plan this before Jim lost his job, so some of it is really quite ridiculous now).

I woke up tentatively excited this morning, for our first day of summer break. Let's just say that it did not meet my expectations. (Big surprise) My Jamesy has pica disorder - it is common in children with Autism. It is becoming more pronounced lately, as well as his compulsions. I am not sure if this is because of all of the changes in our life or not related at all. There is no way to know. Regardless, this morning alone, Jamesy had taken large bites out of Jim's deodorant, eaten an entire bar of soap, and then managed to find a vial of Betadine, and possibly ingested that as well. That one warranted a call to poison control. (He is fine.) I am just emotionally spent and physically exhausted (Jamesy is also only sleeping a few hours a night - thanks again to Autism.) So my excitement for the summer was waning on day number one by 1:30 in the afternoon.

As I was upstairs making tabouli for dinner tonight (and perhaps sobbing to God to please find a way for me to get a little break), Habi, who is sensitive and intuitive to my feelings and moods was downstairs putting Jamesy to nap. Only I did not know that. When I went downstairs, ready to put Jamesy down myself, I found this, and my heart melted.

We managed to still have fun today. I saw smiles on all four of my children's faces. We enjoyed the sun warm on our faces. My kiddos got dirty and stinky - a sure sign that fun was had. Habi and I worked together on some ESL/phonics work, and all-in-all we survived the first day of summer. And that, regardless of a silly bucket list is enough.

My expectations were not met, and they never will be, because this is our one, messy, beautiful life, and it is REAL and not scripted - as much as I try to make it so. Taking a deep breath and embracing it all. We only have one here and now.

.What It's {really} Like.

We chose him. I saw his photo, and I knew he was mine. I've shared before that knowing what we know now, we still would have chosen him. We knew that he had special needs (I pray someday a new better word is created for this.), and we knew that the extent of those needs was unknown. But he was and is our son.

We chose him understanding this.

So because of that, I sometimes feel as if I cannot admit to how hard it can be living out this reality. I am nervous that the people who never supported our decision to adopt in the first place, will have ammunition to throw in our faces. I wish I didn't care and that it didn't hurt, but it does. So I only share bits and pieces of the hard, and then I feel guilty for even that. I want to live transparently and truthfully.

And truthfully many days, my world is filled with hard, pain, intensity, and guilt.

Everything changed the moment we brought Jameson home. It does with every new child brought into a home, but with Jamesy the change was drastic and intensified. Although Jamesy was no longer blind, it seemed every few months we were receiving a new diagnosis for him. His latest diagnosis came this fall, and it made so many pieces to our sweet Jamesy puzzle fall into place. So many things about him make sense now. Autism. While the diagnosis remains unofficial, he was evaluated this fall by a child Psychiatrist, who given the outcomes of his tests, solidly believes he is definitely on the spectrum - he came out right in the middle of the spectrum for everything. He cannot get the official diagnosis until he is seen by a specialist (we have an appointment for 2 years from now - that's small town living for you).

The past, almost three years, have been hard. The hardest of my entire life, and the loneliest. I thought the adoption journey was lonely, but I had no idea what this parenting journey would bring. I thought that after Jamesy got home things would settle, and that I would just be one of "the moms" again. But I stopped being able to relate somewhere along the way. Perhaps it was because my little guy was missing milestones left and right, and I was fighting to get help for him. I began to feel very alone as a mom. My Jamesy was different. He came to us, different from us, and the majority of our world, in appearances, and now it was more and more obvious that he was different in every way. For a long time I thought it was attachment, and that maybe I had not done enough to cocoon him in the beginning and help him learn to bond and attach, and I felt deep, painful, guilt. Maybe those hours (hours where I had to miss out on spending time with my Cadi and Scotty) spent every afternoon, every night in the rocking chair, rocking his screaming, writhing, little body weren't enough. Maybe I should have done more. I felt guilt for the moments that he would scream out at night, and my eyes would squeeze tightly shut in exhaustion at the thought of having to get up and go to him again. Maybe he somehow knew that there were moments that I would have given anything to pull the covers back up over my head. Maybe if I had caught the seizures when we first brought him home, and pushed the doctors to do tests, maybe then his brain would not be so shambled, and he would have begun talking on time. Maybe because I was so busy homeschooling Cadi, and entertaining Scotty, and praying my heart out for Habi to survive the streets, I didn't work hard enough with Jamesy, and maybe that is why he was so far behind. Maybe a year was too early to leave him and get away for a bit with my husband. All these thoughts have plagued me, and the guilt has hung heavy on my shoulders. It's all from the enemy, and while I know that, it is still hard to shake it off and grab hold of the truth.

I love my Jameson so much my heart hurts to look at him sometimes. He is beautiful and funny and so, so smart. Someday the world will see how smart he is, and until then I will be his biggest fan. Jamesy has brought big joy into our home and so much laughter. He is vibrant and adorable and ours. His giggles send the whole family running to see what's so funny. His smile is magnetic, and he draws people into his world even when he is not easily drawn into theirs. He is affectionate and he is teaching me so much about the heart of God. I do not regret one moment of mommying him. He is so much a part of our family, that it is impossible to imagine our life without him. I look at him, and I forget that it was not I who birthed him.

Yet there remains excruciating moments, like when I watch a friend's baby -over 2 years younger then mine - do things that my Jamesy still cannot do. Or when I hear my nephew, who is a year younger, carry on a full, articulate conversation. It's in those moments that my heart breaks, and I feel as if I cannot breathe. It is in those moments when I see my baby's reality, and fear for his future digs its icy fingers into my heart. As hard as many of my days are, I know Jamesy's are hard too. Every thing is work for him. What we take for granted and comes so easily to so many of us is hard, hard work for my boy. And that hurts his mommy's heart. But I know that this is building perseverance and character in him, and in me.

My reality is that the past three years have been hard. I have gone through denial, anger, guilt, sadness, and probably even a touch of depression. There are days when I feel trapped in my home, and the only release I have is social media. So I go to it, just to know that there is an outside world beyond these four walls - sometimes to make myself find the beauty in the here and now, and sometimes to vent just to hear from others that I am really not alone. There are moments, as an introvert, where I feel such a need to get away from it all - just to breathe and refresh. I am just now starting to deal with some of my feelings in all of this and process the hurt and the fears and the horrible guilt. My husband has been my rock, and he has listened to me cry and scream and battle these thoughts, and all the while he is battling his own.

Through this all, I do feel hope. Hope that this is not it. Hope that God has beautiful plans for our family - for our Jamesy. Hope for Jamesy's future. Hope that somehow all of the pain is being worked into something more beautiful then I could imagine and something way bigger then ourselves. Hope that I am truly not alone, and every step of the way I am being gently guided. Hope that though I will never be strong enough for this, Jesus is so perfected in all my weaknesses, and He never asked for my strength. He asked me to be willing, and even now at the end of the day, I am still willing.

Though I share this transparently, I don't do it for sympathy or for my readers to feel sorry for me - I'm not looking for pity. I do it for those of you who feel isolated, fearful, guilty, tired, abandoned, etc. I want you to know that you are not alone. I am not alone. Jesus is near.

.Grace for Those Mommying Days - You Know the Ones.

If you are a mommy you have had one or will have one. It's inevitable that you will have mornings where you wake up empty and spent from a long night of little sleep. Coffee does little to recharge you and a fog takes over your head. You know the days I am talking about, when you do not think you can change one more diaper, or pick up one more block, or help with one more homework assignment. The days when you feel like your head will implode when you are asked again where this is and that is. The moment when you realize you have read his favorite book 2000 times and you think you cannot possibly mumble through it for the 2001st time, and forget the character voices and the animated narration because they. aren't. happening. I'm talking about the days where you think that surely someone else could sweep into your home and do it all better. When you look to your right and to your left and see her mothering better and her and her. You see that mom over there, the one that has it all together. For the days that you want to curl back in bed and throw the covers over your head because you have failed so many times before breakfast has ever even hit the cereal bowl.

You've had one of those days, right?

Me too. And, especially for those days, it is time to give ourselves a little grace.

Grace for Those Mommying Days:

1. I will grasp the truth that the moment I became Mommy, I traded in my perfect house for an authentic, lived in, loved on home.
2. My success as a mommy is not wrapped up in clean dishes, clean clothes, or clean children, rather in children who are secure in the love of their mommy and her Jesus.
3. God gave these children to me, knowing that they were perfectly created to expose my weaknesses - the very weaknesses that God's power is perfected through.
4. I will remember that this life is a vapor when my child is making her 100th excuse at bedtime, and I will hold her a little closer knowing today is a gift and tomorrow is not promised.
5. I will get on the floor and tickle and laugh and build block castles; I will forget the telephone, the computer, and the to-do list momentarily, for I know that childhood is a season and someday I will miss this.
6. I will purpose to see Jesus in the middle of the mess and share Him tangibly with each child - this season of soft-tender hearts is brief.
7. My apologies will come quickly when I lose my temper, mess up, and fall short; children need to see that Mommy is human and humble and values how she treats them.
8. I will  invite my children to laugh and be silly and dance and be wild, because this one beautiful life should be lived with crazy joy.
9. I will embrace the moment, looking past the chaos, and reflecting on the beauty in the here and now.
10. I will always, always, always say I love you and mean it.

[Printable here.]

Go on Mommy, give yourself grace. Jesus already has.

.She.

She asked for a tea party so innocently, urgently, and sweetly. How could I say no? Her brothers were napping. It was the perfect time for tea.

She said saucers were a must. I agreed.

She sipped the tea, pinky in the air. I asked her where she learned her tea manners. She replied from my American Girl books.

Of course. I smiled. The books are a constant in her hand. She devours them chapter by chapter over and over.

She giggled and chattered and radiated beauty and light from her eyes.

She is sunshine and girly-ness, a welcome complement to her rough and tumble brothers.

She speaks in a sing-songy voice, and as I sipped my sweet pomegranate tea I willed the moment to freeze for just a moment. I breathed her in and marveled in who she is and who she is becoming.

She is growing up so quickly.

May she never outgrow tea parties.

.Masked in the Ordinary.

It is in the ordinary.



The little and simple, everyday moments.



The ones that blow by - too often unnoticed.



But when I do pause and take notice of these moments.



It is then that I see them for what they truly are.





Ordinary - yes, deserved - no, blessings - privileges even - that take my breath away and make me whisper again.



Really, God? This? This is the life you have given me? With these children? This is how my days tick away for this season? It's all too wonderful. Honestly, this is a breath-taking gift. I just need to recognize the gift, because this gift is so often masked in the ordinary.

.Because.

They are only little once. The time to make the most of it is now.

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.Ten Things No One Shared With Me Before Becoming a Mommy.

10. That cleaning goldfish crackers ground into the carpet would be a daily thing.

9. That I would not be able to sleep at night until I had checked on, kissed, and tucked in each of my children - even though I had done it just a few hours before.

8. That I may as well wear my swimsuit to give my children a bath, because I end up soaked every. time.

7. That some of my best moments are spent on the couch with children all over me as I read and read and read story books.

6. That every time I make my from scratch macaroni and cheese, my children will raise their eyebrows and sigh about it not being from a box.

5. That my camera would get so much use, and that I would have so little time to do anything with those photos.

4. That I would want to teach my children at home, and that I would delight in it.

3. That some days the house will be a mess, dinner will be cereal, the children and I will all wear sweats, and the world will not stop.

2. That chubby hands that reach out for mine and sticky kisses, just for me, could make my heart burst.

1. That life would be this crazy, this loud, this chaotic and busy, and most of all this wonderful.

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.I Have Been.

Welcoming fall with arms flung wide. Fall is my favorite season (until winter comes, and then until spring comes....you get the idea. So thankful to live in a state that embraces the seasons.)

Baking these

and this

and these.

Teaching my Cadi (and learning myself) about the human body and Christopher Columbus, and what it means to have and show compassion the way Jesus did and does.



Lighting pumpkin scented candles and dreaming of crisp weather, vibrant trees, and Macintosh apples.

Laughing at and with my two little boys, who fill our home with sunshine and mischief.





Falling more and more in love with Jim, as we hang on for dear life through this roller coaster ride that makes up our moments.



Reading, reading, reading, to my children, with my children, by myself. Searching out God's Word to try to grasp what it really means to live each moment with Christ in me.

Cooking this.

Missing Ethiopia and aching to be back there. (Jealous my husband leaves very soon to go back.)

Rejoicing that Jamesy's hormone work-up came back normal, and that he does not have to have his hormones checked again for several months!

Living life to the full, falling in bed exhausted, realizing that mommying and homeschooling are the hardest jobs I have ever loved.

Waiting for God to show us what is next. Preparing my heart for anything.

.Week One Recap.

This is mainly for my own memory keepsake, but perhaps if you homeschool or are interested in homeschooling this will be interesting to you. I really hope to keep this up every week. I have always been faithful about taking photos throughout the school year, but I would really love to try to journal my way through it this year.

We finished our first week of first grade. The week was good, busy, exhausting, and fulfilling. First grade is a lot more intense than kindergarten was. I still try to take a gentle approach, but Cadi is a sponge and I want to take advantage of this period right now. So I push, and she takes it very well, and seems to really enjoy it. Jim keeps saying that Cadi will love and thrive in Classical Conversations (which start next Monday) because she loves to be challenged. I think he is right.

I am still struggling to juggle the boys while Cadi and I do school. My limits were tested this week, and it was only Christ in me that I was able to give grace and patience. I fell into bed every night as exhausted as if I had taught a full classroom of children. I am still trying to creatively brainstorm for my little boys. I have just been begging God each morning to give me creativity.



We have found a really good rhythm for our days. I wake before anyone else in the family and sneak downstairs to spend some quiet time with God in His word and in earnest prayer. I am studying the fruit of the Spirit right now, and God is really impressing upon my heart how to truly live in the Spirit and how to let the Spirit live through me. I was left breathless some mornings understanding this privilege I have been given to be used as a vessel by GOD.

In the quiet of morning, I prepare breakfast, coffee, set the table, and laid out our Bible lesson (which Daddy teaches at breakfast), then I wake the children and Jim, and we all enjoy a slow, thoughtful time over breakfast each morning. This worked beautifully. Not too much of a change from last year - just refined a bit. Jim then gets ready for work and leaves, and Cadi begins her chore pack (which I can explain in a future post if there is interest. This is her second year using it, and I love it!), I dress the boys, and then I begin my morning chores while the boys play. Cadi finishes her chorepack and then does a half hour of independent reading. She has to read one chapter from a chapter book and then she can read picture books. I noticed the boys joined her looking at books several days last week, and I love that. If I finish my chores than I grab a book and read as well. I think it is really important for my children to see Jim and I reading.

We then start our school day starting with Math then moving on to Phonics, Reading, Grammar, Spelling, History/Science/Health (depending on the day), Handwriting, and once Classical Conversations starts we will also set aside a time to review our memory work for that.

We are busy and move right along. The morning flies by, and I am hoping to be done by lunch everyday. This week we had a few days where we did school after lunch until 2:00, but I do not think that will be the norm. Our day ends with our family gathered together again and Jim sharing from the Word.



So far my favorite parts of our curriculum is the spelling and history that we chose. It is so much fun to watch Cadi grasp spelling in fun ways without having to drill words at all. And the history is taught in such a beautiful story form - I actually learned a ton this week right along with Cadi! I am amazed at the progress that Cadi has made since last year - her attention span has increased, her fine motor skills have developed more, her understanding has soared, her reading skills leave me speechless.



There were hard parts to my week, but God's strength was evident in my weakness. As tomorrow begins our second week I am so thankful for this journey God has us on, and I count it such a privilege to be able to teach my daughter at home this year.





PS Nothing to do with homeschooling really, but I caved to Pinterest. I actually joined early this summer after receiving an invite from a bloggy friend, but then got talked out of doing anything with it by facebook friends. Everyone said it was a waste of time. I do not have time to waste. However, I have been getting increasingly frustrated with my mess of bookmarks/favorites. I also did not want to risk losing them all like I had when our computer crashed this past winter. So I looked into Pinterest again. It. Is. Amazing. I have no regrets for caving. I am basically using it to plug all of my bookmarks in. It organizes them into categories using a visual for each link. It is so pretty! One could spend hours on there and waste time. I am trying to use is just for my bookmarks (I have about 3/4 of mine on Pinterest, and am working away at it as I have time.), although I have found a few cool things that I just had to repin. You can check out my Pinterest here, and think about joining yourself if you have not already caved.