Fruitful Thursday : Gentleness

I'm happy to report that I have done well in my quest to become more gentle. I'm very much far from perfect, but more and more my response to the children's questions/pleas/temper tantrums is quieter, kinder - gentler. That makes me happy. It makes them feel more valued. And it is what God wants of me. Hallelujah.

Questing to be gentle appealed to me because I thought it would make me a better mom, and on some levels it has. But what has encouraged me the most is the way the kids have responded-each of them differently in different moments. Sometimes, they are more gentle themselves. Other times they would mistake the gentleness for weakness and attempt to take advantage of the situation. And overall they are more appreciative.

It's amazing and beautiful. When I am able to give of myself in a gentle way, rather than a place of pessimism or annoyance then the hugs, thank yous and smiles flow more freely.

Wait a moment and I'll get you more milk instead of I was just up, why did you wait to ask for milk when I sat down?

Please listen to me, Mommy said no instead of No! I said no!

The trash needs to be emptied, please instead of The trash is overflowing, why didn't you take it out earlier?

Little things really do make the difference. A kind smile, a soft answer or a hug.

Love at First Sight

Look what I bought today... For the new house! It was love at first sight. Linked To: Wordless Wednesday at 5 Minutes for Mom

Top Ten Tuesday - Books I Bought and Never Read

What homeschool mom doesn't love books? I love books. Owning true-blue, paper-paged books is a love of mine. I buy lots of books. In fact...I've bought quite a few books that I just HAD TO READ...then didn't or just didn't finish. Please tell me I'm not alone in this. Here they are:

Ten Books I Bought (Paid Good Money For!) and Never Read

1) First Person Plural: My Life as a Multiple by Cameron West

2) Mila 18 by Leon Uris

3) Measure of a Man: A Spiritual Autobiography by Sidney Poitier

4) Women of the Bible: A One Year Devotional Study of Women in Scripture by Ann Spangler

5) Raising Unselfish Children in a Self Absorbed World by Jill Rigby

6) Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski

7) Old Yeller by Fred Gipson

8) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling

9) Thomas Jefferson Education for Teens by Oliver DeMille

10) Eat Right For Your Type by Peter D'adamo

Linked To: Top Ten Tuesday at Oh Amanda

Multitude Monday 1-10

I was plannig on posting something frivilous and funny today. But the day went to fast. Now it's night time. I'm feeling blessed and nostalgic, so I thought I would throw my hat in the Multitude Monday ring.

My "baby" - my firstborn, Fox - turns 15 tomorrow. Fifteen.

And I am thankful.

1. Fifteen years with a blessed child

2. His wit and sense of humor

3. The way he opens doors for his Mama

4. The example he tries to set as a big brother

5. His adventerous spirit

6. That he still wants to live at home for a long time

7. How badly he wants to be like his father

8. His confidence

9. His kind heart

10. His mischevious smile

Weekly Wrap Up - Refreshed

This is it, the last day of our two week Spring break. And what a refreshing break it has been. It's funny, even though I've been free of grammar, math, science and spelling, I've been awfully busy!

Bills, the last of the new house paperwork, chatting with good friends and working out the big boys schedules. Tony spent some time with friends in VA last week and Billy joined them for the weekend, Fox spent Tuesday through Thursday with his great grandparents last week and went straight from there to a tractor pull on Friday which will take up most of the weekend.

So since I don't have anything interesting to share homeschool-wise I figured I'd share a few links from other people who do. That's what we call cheating, kids. Tee hee.

Homeschool Goals I Did NOT Accomplish - See Jamie Blog: Jamie shares the goals she did not get to this year, and whay that's okay. No more beating yourself up because you couldn't fit it all in.

Garden Challenge Q&A - The Homeschool Village: HSV has a wonderful garden challenge coming up. It's a low pressure way to share your gardening successes, failures and homeschool FUN!

Homeschool Mom's Dirty Little Secret #3 - Successful Homeschooling: Carletta shares a fabulous post about anger, an area I definitely struggle with, and helps put it in perspective (and in its place).

Quotations from Artists Notebooking Pages - The Notebooking Fairy: I love the notebooking pages availabe from the Notebooking Fairy. These are such a fun, low stress way to incorporate or add to art.

Linked To: The Weekly Wrap Up at Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers

Fruitful Thursday: What Gentleness is Not

So, I've been preaching to myself. Here's what my internal sermon has been lately.

Gentleness is NOT:

Self Serving

Cowardly

Prideful

Uncourageous

Angry

Boastful

Dishonorable

Insecure

Disingenuous

Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. ~ James 1:21

Fun Lunch Idea

Are you bored with your lunch menu? Stuck in a sandwich slump? Leftovers unappealing? Get creative! Combine your sandwiches with your leftovers for something new and exciting...or at the very least something interesting to talk about.

A favorite around here is the spaghetti sandwich.


Butter a hoagie roll, top with leftover spaghetti, cheese and enjoy! You can even toast it so the cheese is gooey or make it on leftover garlic bread for great kick! A few other tried and true ideas to enjoy -

• Corned Beef Cabbage Rolls
• Meatloaf Sandwich
• Hashbrown Burritos
• Porkchop Sandwich
• Taco Salad
• BLTs

What are your favorite lunch time creations?

Linked To:
Works For Me Wednesday at We Are THAT Family
Menu Plan Monday at Organizing Junkie
Mouthwatering Mondays at A Southern Fairytale
Tasty Tuesday at Balancing Beauty and Bedlam
Delicious Dishes at It's A Blog Party

10 Reasons to Become a Breakthrough Intercessor

When I was at Apologia Live I learned of a fantastic organization called Breakthrough, an international ministry of international prayer. I was so impressed by the mission of this organization and I hope you will be too. If you have the time in your schedule to make a prayer commitment I hope you will consider becoming an intercessor. I'm signing up! Here's why you should too.

1. To help others - It is a great way to bless people from all walks of life and many difficult situations.
2. To help yourself- It feels good and you feel better about yourself when you do something for others.
3. You pray anyway - You pray at meals and bedtimes anyway, how about using that time to focus on others.
4. You will only have to pray for 6 people at a time - Your list will not be overwhelming, it will be very manageable.
5. It's a 21 day commitment - You don't have to pray over your list for long periods of time, 21 day segments is all that's asked.
6. You get feedback - If those you're praying for communicate an answer to prayer you will be notified, how encouraging!
7. You can get a new list as often or not as you like - You get to request how often you receive a new list so you can go at your own life's pace.
8. God wants us to pray for others - "As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you." 1 Samuel 12:23 and "Do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Philippians 2:4
9. You get the Breakthrough Intercessor magazine for free - Who wouldn't want an encouraging periodical for free?
10. Setting a good example for your children - They will see that others and prayer are important and worthy of our time and attention.

Linked to Top Ten Tuesday at Oh Amanda.

Be Sure to Encourage Your Homeschool Student

photo credit

Don't forget to encourage your homeschooler this week!

I struggle in this area. I have to continually remind myself to seek out moments to praise my boys. It's so easy to get in the habit of:

That's not correct.

Wipe your mouth.

Ask to be excused from the table.

We went over this yesterday.

What do you mean you can't find your book? You should have put it away.

As the educators of our children, we are in a unique position that calls for us to point out what's "wrong" more than the average parent of a public schooler. And not just because we spend so much time with our children.

We are (thankfully) wholly responsible for their academics, character and manners. There are concepts to teach and papers to grade, burps to raise eyebrows at and virtues to instill.

Correction is part of the package - but if it's done with love and with a large counterbalance of praise, it does not need to have negative effects. I try to use the ratio of 3:1. For every correction or every time I need to point out something wrong, I give three compliments or positive actions.

Be generous with your praise. Tell them good job, way to go, good thinking, you're smart! Give them hugs, rustle their hair or clap for them! Make them a special snack, give them a hand with a chore or take a few moments to play a board game.

Make sure there is positivity in your day.

There are so many ways to show our kids they are precious and appreciated. What is your child's favorite form of praise?

Weekly Wrap Up - Na Na Na-Na-Na

Friday concluded our first week of Spring break - na na na-na-na! ;) Sorry. This was just a really great week after a tremendously stressful few months. Actually, it's been a rather stressful 18 months. But God is good - all the time - even when I'm stressed. So why was this week so great? Well...

1) I'm still on a "homeschool is the greatest thing ever, I can do this, I have so many new ideas" high from the awesomeness that was the Apologia Live event in Baltimore.

2) After being inspired by the conference I came home to, not problems, but the start of two weeks off homeschool - a much needed break for all of us.

3) I got to stay up late and watch old movies I loved like She-Devil and War of the Roses.

4) We closed on a new-to-us house!!!!! I LOVE this house and can hardly wait to move in over the coming weeks.

It is a lovely old home on 8 acres. It's spacious (and we desperately need space!) and just feels like home to me - you know that feeling? It needs a lot of work - it will be a lifetime remodel. And it currently has rental units in part of it, but as the tenants move out we plan to take the whole house back over and restore it to it's formal glory.

You know what else I love about this house? The history! (I'm such a geek). I have not yet verified the information, but the previous owner told me that the original part of the house was built before the Revolutionary War. There was an addition in the rear added in the mid 1800's and the addition to the left was added recently. But can you imagine, if those walls could talk? The lives lived, babies born and those who passed in that house. I love feeling so connected to the past!

So again, forgive me if I'm in an irritatingly good mood.

Linked to The Weekly Wrap Up at Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers

Gentleness

Why is it so easy to lost our tempers but difficult to be gentle? So easy to be harsh and abrasive yet so difficult to be humble

Because anything worth having is worth fighting for? Possibly.

For me, I think it's more that one of my greatest sins is pride. If I were not so prideful I would not be so quick to be offended, judgemental or self seeking - to react in anger instead of acting in gentleness.

Why the pride? What false pretense am I trying to convince others about myself? What am I trying to prove to myself? That I'm enough? That I'm strong, secure and capable

I'm not. That security lies in Him alone.



Linked to A Woman of Noble Character at My Heart's Desire

Apologia Live - Review

For those of you who wanted to go to Apologia Live in Baltimore, MD last weekend and were unable to, you may not want to read this post for fear of becoming insanely jealous :)

I attended Apologia Live, and ladies let me tell you. It was a phenomenal weekend full of wisdom, grace, music and laughter. If you can make it to their events in Chicago (Oct. 7-8) and Austin (Oct. 21-22) I highly recommend it. They offer great group rates - so get some homeschool friends together and go. Go! You won't regret it.

First let me tell you what Apologia Live is not. It is not about...

• Apologia curriculum. Sure they have their books for sale, and that is handy for Apologia users like me, but they are not pushing their products or mentioning Apologia in every session.
• Putting you in a homeschool box. Whether you do "school at home" or unschool, it doesn't matter.
• Science. They talked about other things really!
• Telling you what you're doing wrong. We came together as flawed mothers whose desire was to bless our families with the gifts we do have.
• Telling you how to homeschool. This conference was about heart, not methods or philosophy.

Left to right: speaker Elizabeth Smith, speaker Sherri Seligson, worship leader Anne MacCallum, speaker Rachel Carman. Not pictured is speaker Debra Bell.

Now let me tell you what Apologia Live is. Their theme this year is "Before the Throne" and this weekend was a heart of the matter, lift you up, hallelujah chorus, on your knees, praise be to Him weekend! I was encouraged, inspired, refreshed and blessed. I truly felt before the throne, wrapped in grace at God's feet. Every speaker was on point, sharing the goodness of God's message for our homeschools. Jesus' name was invoked in every session.

There were workshops, praise and worship sessions and time for prayer. In fact one of my favorite moments of the weekend was when Sherri Seligson prayed a Psalm over the ladies at my table.

I really can not say enough about Apologia Live, it felt like the life raft I've so desperately needed during these winter blahs. But if that's not enough...there was food y'all, lots of it. And snacks! We were well taken care of.

Now I know reading all that makes you want to go to Apologia Live next year - and I have great news for you. If you register for Apologia Live 2012 by this Sunday, March 20, tickets will only be $90!

And don't forget to join Apologia on Facebook TONIGHT, 8-9pm EST for a Facebook party. Ask your homeschool questions and get answers from their panel!

An Important Issue

I wasn't going to blog today. It's been a long day and I am exhausted. But I came across a post/guest post at See Jamie Blog. It about protecting our children from pornography -an issue not to be ignored.

I know to many porn is just "fun" but to a child, viewing pornography at a young age can set the stage for unhealthy relationships, obsession and unrealistic body images and expectations. We need to protect our children. I hope you'll read:

Let's Fight This Beast!

Just a Tiny Owl Review and SALE!

It's the little things that make a house a home. And I recently received something beautiful to help make my new house a home. A mixed media print from Just a Tiny Owl Etsy shop featuring the work of Angie who you probably know from The Homeschool Classroom and Many Little Blessings. Isn't it dear?


If you cannot see the print, it is from my favorite poem by Edgar Allen Poe, Annabel Lee.

It was many and many a year ago in a kingdom by the sea
That a maiden there lived who you may know by the name of Annabel Lee
And this maiden she lived
With no other thought than
To love and be loved by me

*Big romantic sigh* I love the innocent, whimsical feel of this piece.

Angie has many mixed media pieces to choose from. Each is lovingly created with a variety of tools and mediums like acrylic paint, stamps and ink, modge podge and more. Every painting also has an inspirational phrase to touch your heart or lift your spirit. You may purchase the original artwork or a print, so there is something for every budget!

If you want something a little less whimsical Angie also offers photographs from her Through the Viewfinder Series. These photos are taken with a digital camera, through an old fashioned view finder. They are printed with a classic, vintage look.

I also have this beauty! If you read my blog regularly you may know that I fell in love with my husband while watching him work on old tractors, much as this one, at his grandfather's farm. So I already have an emotional attachment to this photo.

Don't forget the motivational word art. Wouldn't these be perfect for a teen's room or an office wall? Adorable!

And if the whimsical paintings, TTV photos or word art don't appeal to you then there is something wrong with you there are also lovely prayer prints. I am not Catholic but this one caught my eye - the heartfelt words on soft pastels are so sweet and lovely.

I hope you'll check out Just a Tiny Owl - you're sure to find something you must have on your wall. Angie is very talented and generous. As a special gift to my readers she is offering

40% off your purchase when you use the code ASCM40 at checkout!! (Only until 03/21/11 - so hurry!)

*I received pieces from Just a Tiny Owl in exchange for a review. The opinions are 100% honest and my own.

Let The Break Commence

Today is the last day of homeschool before our 2 week spring break and I couldn't be more ecstatic! Please excuse me while I do a happy dance. I am so behind in grading and planning it is pathetic and I am hoping to use this time to catch up as much as possible. (that's the plan anyway...)

Billy only gets one week of vacation thanks to the stunt he pulled last month. I think having to miss a week of break will teach him a valuable lesson, plus give us some valuable one on one time that will help him get caught up.

Not much has been going on here school wise - we've been limping through the last two weeks. But we made it!! So I guess I'll just share the random exciting things that have been going on.

• Spring break starts this afternoon!!!!! (In case you missed it ;))
• We will be settling on a new-to-us house in a week!! (a bigger house and boy could we use the room!)
• I am leaving for Baltimore this afternoon for the Apologia Live Conference (there is still time to register!)
• The babysitters and dog sitter is in place and Shane will be accomanying me to Baltimore. This is the first time we've gone away together without children SINCE OUR HONEYMOON eleven years ago!!!!

So as you can imagine, I am in a very good mood today, spring break, a get away and a new house. Life is good and I want to shout about it!

Have a blessed weekend! Be sure to come back next week when I will share a great art review and my time at Apologia Live.

Linked To: The Weekly Wrap Up at Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers

Fruitful Thursday - Gentleness

Though I still wouldn't consider myself gentle, I have become more gentle through the years. I imagine part of it is age, part of it is wisdom, and part of it has been hard work on my part. More and more I'm finding the key to gentleness to be quiet. Quieting myself when I want to yell or defend myself.

The quiet words of the wise are more to be heeded than the shouts of a ruler of fools. Ecclesiastes 9:17

How many arguments have been started because I was not quiet? How many problems escalated because of a harsh response rather than a gentle one?

How many feelings have been hurt due to a thoughtless joke rather than quiet encouragement?

Too many.

So I am still striving to quiet myself and be gentle even in the moments, especially in the moments, when I am quick to anger or despair. My mantra is helping greatly!

Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. ~ Philippians 4:5

Future of Blogging??

photo credit

So - I was chatting with my Dad this morning. I was really excited while telling him that I would be attending the Apologia Homeschooling Conference this weekend in Baltimore (there is still time to register!) and that I was hoping to get a sponsor to the Savvy Blogging Summit in July, not to mention the Relevant Conference in October. And how did he respond? I guess the same way any protective parent would.

He told me I "might want to reconsider investing too much in blogging" because he had heard on the news that blogging is going "out" thanks to microblogging with Twitter and Facebook.

Now let me say, financially I haven't invested much at all in blogging. The only thing I've paid for is a domain name and two conferences - and those conferences grew me as a person, not just a blogger, so they were well worth the investment.

But it got me to thinking. Is blogging a fad?

Is it on it's way out or is this just the beginning of new media? Will it fall by the wayside or continue to be a staple in news and advertisement like newspapers and television?

I think blogging will stand the test of time, it may change and evolve through the years as such things do...but I don't think it's going anywhere?

I'd love to hear what you think! What do you feel is the future of blogging?

Top Ten Dairy Free Candies

Easter will be here soon - on April 24th. I can almost taste the sugar already, stores are filling displays full of pastel colored goodies. It's a fun chocolatey time, but if you have dairy allergies, not so much. Bram and I are allergic to dairy, but even though we can't have Hershey bars, Almond Joys, Kit Kats, Twix (man I mis Twix!) there are a lot of other delicious non dariy candies out there. Here are some of my favorites. *Always read the ingredient labels as recipes can change without warning.

*clicking the photos will take you to the photo source/credit




1. Zoe's Chocolate! If you are anywhere near Frederick, MD this place is worth the trip for their dark chocolate. (swoon!)







2. Jolly Ranchers







3. Wonka products - just about any of them are dairy free. Nerds, Fun Dips, Pixy Stix, Laffy Taffy and more.

4. Circus Peanuts








5. Sour Patch Kids

6. Jelly Beans









7. Gummies - you name it, bears, worms, cola bottles, peach rings, orange slices etc.







8. Dum Dum Pops









9. Original Dark Peanut Chews (the red ones only)

10. Peeps - the omipresent marshmallow chicks and bunnies

Menu Plan - Meatless Options

Do you plan your weekly meals? I do! I used to have a loose plan - I'd go to the store thinking corned beef would be good this week and roast chicken too! But lately my "planning" has been actual planning. We've been saving every possible penny for a down payment on a new-to-us home (we settle this month!) so I've cut out all impulse buys (not as easy as I thought) and have diligently gone to the grocery store with a weekly menu plan and itemized list.

And I've also gotten back to more meatless or low-meat meals. Did you know I used to be a vegetarian? Yep, I was. Here's what this week of meals will look like for us.

Breakfast

~Homemade Pancakes
~Homemade Waffles

~Homemade Apple Cinnamon Muffins

~Oatmeal

~Cereal

Lunch

~Leftovers

~Sandwiches

~Soup

~Loaded Nachos

Dinner

~Homemade Pizza

~Bacon and Onion Pasta

~Split Pea Soup

~Dirty Rice

~Loaded Baked Potatoes

~Roast Chicken

I only need 6 dinners this week because I am spending Friday night in Baltimore for the Apologia Live Conference. Shane is coming with me! This is the first time since our honeymoon 11 years ago that we are going away without the kids!! Par-tay!

Linked To: Menu Plan Monday at OrgJunkie

Meet Me In Baltimore For Apologia Live!!!

Are you a homeschooler in or around Baltimore? Come to the Apologia Live Conference for a weekend of refreshment - and let's meet up!

Thanks to Apologia - my favorite science curriculum and sponsors of The 2:1 Conference - I will be attending Apologia Live Before The Throne, a conference for homeschooling moms to "reflect and regroup". I am so excited to be going, this is just what I need when I need it. Are you ready to beat the winter homeschool blahs with a stick? I know I am.

Apologia Live offers a fantastic line up of speakers, workshops, prayer and worship sessions. It promises to be a weekend of encouragement. But don't take my word for it, here's what Apologia has to say~

The Apologia Live Retreat for Homeschool Moms is the perfect opportunity to reflect and regroup. This is a Christ-centered event where you will be reminded that Scripture teaches us to stand firm in the faith, to endure trials with joy, to persevere to the end, to hold tight to the truth of God's Word, and to stay Before the Throne.

My soul heaves a big happy sigh every time I read that. I'm ready. Are you?

Apologia Live will be held March 11-12 in Baltimore MD at the Westin Hotel. Tickets are on sale now and group rates are available. So gather up some homeschool girlfriends for a weekend you don't want to miss. Let me know you'll be there so we can meet!

Is Baltimore too far? There will also be Apologia Live events in Chicago IL and Austin TX in October. I will be sure to share more information about those events soon!

So, will I see you in Baltimore?

Fruitful Thursday - Gentleness

Oh. My. I thought this whole Fruitful Thursday thing would get easier...but next up is gentleness. Definitely not my forte. I can be loud. And harsh. Growing up, I was the mouthy one in the family...sometimes I still am.

It's not that I don't want to be gentle, I do. When I think of the woman I want to be the image of Audrey Hepburn comes to mind. Quiet, elegant, soft spoken, graceful, regal, sophisticated, gentle.

photo credit

That's so not who I am. Yet. Each year I get a little closer. Everyday I have little internal battles to quell my

Impulsiveness

Temper

Judgement

Pride

Competitiveness

All of these thwart my attempts at gentleness - at being the wife, mother and woman I want to be. So I've decided to adopt a mantra for those times when I struggle with gentleness.

Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. ~ Philippians 4:5

Do you have a mantra or favorite verse to remind you to be gentle? I need all the help I can get.

If Confucius Homeschooled He'd Say...

Children will never feel hunger, unless there is school work to be done.

Is it just me or do your kids suddenly feel like they're STARVING when it's time to do school work but won't ask for a morsel if they have the day off?