A Time For Every Season....

The boys made Roxaboxen and had to come up with transportation and money for their new town. Abby played along too! It was her  favorite unit study yet! I manage struggle to get Drew to focus  2x a day for 20 minutes  - the rest of the day is for learning through play! Studying the Life Cycle of the Hummingbird Hawk Moth. We also have caterpillars that will change into Butterfly's. We're going to compare and contrast butterfly's to moths! Nana got out all her tapes and Drew enjoyed many hours listening to all of the songs and books on tape! Learning about weight and balance. Daddy made a teeter totter and taught them about balance and force! Abby has  been getting in on our Science Museum trips! Learning about pirates? No, just working on Drew's lazy eye.    Thanks to Papa Tractor, Drew is sporting a new camo patch! Spent a few mornings at the Science Museum! We've been learning about the Venus Fly Trap - looks a...

Homeschooling has been an adventure! It was NOTHING like I had imagined, yet our  family has grown closer in ways I never dreamed were possible. Our days have become a routine of integrating learning into everyday life. Here are some lessons I've learned during our first  three quarters of home learning: Schedules are great for telling you what to do when you can't remember, but life rarely goes by what is on the agenda!  Don't take myself so seriously Have fun learning, you'll be amazed at  how much you've retained. Homeschooling has taught me way more than it has taught my children. Closeness within our family is more important than anything I could teach, it is within that closeness that learning develops and lasts - like learning how to solve conflict, learning how to say "I'm sorry please forgive me!" When you homeschool, your children are always there -embrace it!  Set aside 1-2 hours when everyone is quiet! Don't compare ...

"See that I am God.  See that I am in everything.  See that I do everything.  See that I have never stopped ordering my works,  nor ever shall, eternally.  See that I lead everything on to the conclusion I ordained for it, before time began,  by the same power, wisdom and love with which I made it.  How can something be amiss?"  ~ Julian of Norwich ~  836. Spring is finally here, the flowers and weeds are blossoming and that means lots of time outside in the evenings playing as a family. It also means lots of vitamin D, less messes inside the house, long bike rides and fun with water!  837. A sister & brother moment captured in a JPEG. Little girls just soften little boys, I didn't grow up with a brother so when I see my boys enamored by their little sister, it makes stop and thank the Lord for sending us the blessing of both genders. They are so different, yet complement each other so remarkable well. ...

 First  Second Third No Children Were Injured In the Photographing of these pictures.

Forcing the boys to hug after some not so nice attitudes towards each other! Spring Clothes means Spring pictures in the garden!

After church on Sunday we had our first Family Sabbath - inspired by the Sally Clarkson conference I went to last month. It was a wonderful time together - instead of cleaning up the messy house, I overlooked the chaos and " civilized the home " with tea and scones and what Charlotte Mason would call a "living book." We read Teddy's Button and ate scones and drank our tea. It was wonderful! Gabe & Abby lasted about 30 minutes and then headed off to nap-land, but Drew was all ears! The book took a little over and hour to read, plus time to answer some deep Drew questions. Teddy's Button is a great book to read  to boys 5 and older. The book feeds on little  boys desires for adventure and addresses the fact that we are our own worst enemy. Teddy even names his fleshly self and the book shows how he wrestles with making good and bad choices and that just because we make good choices it doesn't mean situations will work out the way we would like. T...

818. Chasing butterflies with my boys. 819. Fresh mulch in my flower beds, sore muscles from lifting & pouring  all those  bags. 820. Weekend To Remember 2011 - wonderful speakers, wonderful friends and family to enjoy the marriage  checkup with. We did miss our friends the Tyson's this year though. 821. Grateful for my husband who shares the gospel with others in a non=threatening way. I just love how he uses our marriage as a platform to build upon God's power in the lives of those who love Him. 822. Our wonderful team of couples at church, I just love all of them and their openness to share their stresses, struggles, and sins. 823. Little  boy learning how to follow through on tasks, the sweet words of "yes mam," and the many reminders to focus on the task. 824. A little boy and his dog, Drew and Max have fallen in love and it is so sweet to see the hugs and concern Drew is giving to his little dog. 825. 29 books for $2.90 at the Community Stor...