There you have it! My confession! At heart I am a curricula junkie! I love homeschool materials! We have tried numerous programs, curricula, subjects, and approaches to homeschooling over the years. As of now we are finishing up what has been my 12th year of homeschooling. I think I am considered a veteran homeschooler by now. About 6 years into our homeschool journey I ran across a curriculum that I absolutely feel in love with and we have used it ever since. We, of course, have made a few adjustments but have stuck with the same program. It works well for us!

Then I run across another curriculum that looks to be wonderful! I think to myself maybe I should try it out but then I remember that every time I try something new I always come back to what I am using now. Sometimes I will add something and then I frustrate myself because I have to much to try and accomplish! I keep reminding myself that sometimes less is more. So what is the cure? Please someone tell me!

There is one idea that has been floating in my head for several years. I often kick this idea around and have even discussed it with my husband. Maybe just maybe I should just write my own, perfectly suited, everything I desire incorporated curriculum! It would be complete with day to day instructions, necessary resources (real books & supplies), planners and scheduling tips, Biblically sound and deep, totally comprehensive, more and more! Maybe I would entitle it Classical Christian Schooling for the Large Family. It is a grand idea and one that is probably biting off much more than I could ever chew. Then once I get excited and worked up and am ready to plunge in, the realization of the time and effort that would go into such a feat overwhelms me! Then the idea diminishes into a dream way back in the corner of my mind until I see another new curricula out there I want to try.

I am hopeless! Or am I? What do you think???

Labels: Curriculum, Homeschooling, Train Up a Child

Labels: Links, Thursday Thirteen

This Weeks Hero Was Suggested By Cindy
Petty Officer 2nd Class Chris Davila
From Sierra Vista, Arizona

On the sixth anniversary of the terrorist attack on the United States, Petty Officer 2nd Class Chris Davila raised an American flag over Camp Korean Village, Iraq, he brought with him from Arizona.

Tuesday, May 6, 2008, Sierra Vista firefighter and emergency medical technician Chris Davila presented that flag to Fire Chief Randy Redmond as fellow firefighters looked on. Monday, May 5, 2008, was Davila's first day back on the job with the department after being gone for nearly nine months, with seven of those months deployed as a Navy Reserve corpsman serving with a Marine unit near the Jordanian and Syrian border area in Iraq.

And, as luck would have it, on his first shift saw him responding to a blaze in Sierra Vista. "Right back to work," he said with a laugh.

You can read the rest of PO 2nd Class Davila's story here.
These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero. We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived.

This post is part of the Wednesday Hero Blogroll. For more information about Wednesday Hero, or if you would like to post it on your site, you can go here.

Labels: Military, Wednesday Heroes

Creation of Adam (detail)
1510 Fresco Cappella Sistina, Vatican

As of late, I have had many conversations with people and have read even more here in blogland. I have noticed an unsettling trend in Christianity of late. Many, many people have begun to take situational ethics and call it relying on the sovereignty of God! Sounds totally unbelievable huh? Amazingly there are so many who do this and do not even realize they have bought into this way of thought.

Many when confronted with scripture after scripture on a teaching they are not TOTALLY comfortable with, begin to offer reasons why they do not think it applies to them, or at least not to the same degree as it does to others, even though they believe it to be truth. They continue to live the way they have been without feeling the need to make any changes (or only tiny adjustments) in their life because if they are not correct in doing so God is sovereign and will intervene.

Did you see that?

1. believe it is truth
2. not comfortable making the change
3. God is sovereign & will intervene if I am wrong

First, if we truly believe something is the plan of God for life then we will follow through with action.

Second, if truth is revealed to us in scripture our action is to adjust our lives to live that truth!

In Titus 2:14 and 1 Peter 2:9 we are called "peculiar". Just for fun, here are some of the synonyms of the word "peculiar":

uncomformable, exceptional; abnormal, abnormous; anomalous, anomalistic; out of order, out of place, out of keeping, out of tune, out of one's element; irregular, arbitrary; teratogenic; lawless, informal, aberrant, stray, wandering, wanton; peculiar, exclusive, unnatural, eccentric, egregious; out of the beaten track, off the beaten track, out of the common, out of the common run; beyond the pale of, out of the pale of; misplaced; funny. (adapted from Roget's Thesaurus)

Thank you Lady of Virtue for the list.

Third, who are we to assume that God will intervene even though we have justified our disobedience? This keeps the individual in control, as if they know better than God. Who needs submission right, after all if God is sovereign He will change things. Even partial obedience is still disobedience. Yes, God can and sometimes does intervene when we are disobedient yet, this is not what we should be resting in. This is saying God bless me in spite of my actions rather than because of my actions. Are we testing God and asking for Him to sovereignly overrule us or are we submitting to his sovereignty? There is a difference. A big difference!

Labels: Christianity

We went for our first ultrasound this morning. For some reason, my doctor seemed concerned about dates. This is the only pregnancy that the ultrasound came up with the exact same date as I already had! This little one is due November 22.

So what do you think? This one is a cutie, huh?!

Labels: children, pregnancy, Quiverfull

"Oh that God would give every mother a vision of the glory and splendor of the work that is given to her when a babe is placed in her bosom to be nursed and trained! Could she have but one glimpse into the future of that life as it reaches on into eternity; could she look into it's soul to see its possibilities; could she be made to understand her own personal responsibility for the training of this child, for the development of its life, and for its destiny,--she would see that in all God's world there is no other work so noble and so worthy of her best powers, and she would commit to no others hands the sacred and holy trust given to her."

---JR Miller, a preacher from the 19th century, from the book Homemaking

Labels: children, Encouragement, Quiverfull, Train Up a Child

For the photo hunt this week we get to share any photo we would like to share. I chose this one because I find it beautiful and refreshing! It is one of our tulips after the rain!

Labels: PhotoHunt

Take a good look, this is a rare thing! My camera shy son has actually been caught on camera!! Today is his seventeenth birthday! Where have the years gone? It was not all that long ago he was interested in trains and legos. Time sure does fly by. Happy birthday son; we love you.

Labels: Family

The May edition of The Heart of the Matter homeschool magazine has been published! You can catch me over there today! Stop by, read, and leave some comments! Have a terrific Thursday.

Main Page

Direct Link to my article on schedules.

Labels: Family, Heart of the Matter, Homeschooling, organization

Wow, can you believe it? After several weeks I finally have a new link to share! Two actually!

We are preparing to study World War II and the Holocaust so I did a search. I came across this site: Cybrary of the Holocaust. They have an education page with links and lesson plans, HERE.

Next, I did a search for a study on Corrie Ten Boom and stumbled upon a free cliff note resource. They have a search engine you can use or you can just look through the alphabetical listing. The site is called Best Notes and the direct link for Corrie Ten Boom's Hiding Place is HERE.

For more Weblink Wednesday visit my friend Valerie.

Labels: Curriculum, Homeschooling, Links, Weblink Wednesday