the days of our lives

Some days it is just a big old soap opera around here and I feel like the total failure! It is so hard to daily try to meet all the kids needs for love and education and attention without getting overly frustrated, and then to mix in church activity, and extracurriculars, and playdates with friends, and limit the media usage, and let's not forget about visiting family...man, there are seriously not enough hours in a day! Do you ever go to bed and pray for 2 hours because you just pour your heart out about how to be a good wife and mom, and not ruin your family in the process??? I do! But I tell you the honest truth, without the Lord, I would fall to pieces some days! He is my strength and my rock and the one who guides me and reminds me of what my purpose is. He tells me to slow life down and focus on the important. So if the math gets slighted and dinner is late so we can do some essential character training, it is OK. Sometimes after a rough day, we just decompress at home with a walk or a swim or games, or a family devo instead of Wednesday bible classes. I know we shouldn't skip services, but sometimes we need each other's unity and choose to worship that way, instead of going in separate directions for bible classes. The family as a whole loves it. We are all going so many directions that we need that family togetherness.
So, as I get ready for this homeschooling year I am trying to make sure we do not overschedule our life, especially the evenings, and trying to make sure we cover the necessary curriculum for everyone, which can be a real juggling act when you have a preschooler, a first grader about to learn to read, a struggling reader, a mostly independent worker, and a middle schooler that has heavier coursework. But mostly I am striving to make sure we daily praise the Lord, learn His Word, and bring all our behaviors and choices back to Him. I want that lifestyle to permeate everything, and for the family to be central. I want to spend time with these kids doing the things that need to be done and the things they enjoy. This is our only chance to be with them this often and it is flying by at lightspeed. And fitting in everything is such a challenge. Really, it just can't be done--not by me anyway. Something has to give, and we are going to mess up and miss things, probably some really important things. But with the help and guidance of the Lord, I pray everyone will grow up happy and safe and polite and responsible most of all devoted to God.

Six Flags

Ok, so this whole post isn't about Six Flags, but most of it is. Here I am so you can see who does all these odd ramblings....
And here is Emily, our oldest girl, who spents hours with the new 100x pocket microscope and prepared slides. I really need a new one though because the inner lens has a spot and I can't remove it! But for under $15 I won't send it back to Cali.
This Is Elizabeth (and me in the background), after a long, hot, dirty day at Six Flags. Our annual trip with free tickets from reading club. It costs $15 to park, we bring lunch, spend $22 for two very large refillable drink bottles, and it is becoming our tradition for Emily to purchase new flip flops for about $7 as hers always seem to break at Six Flags.....hmmmm. Suspicious!
Elizabeth and Kimberly
Emily, Clay, and Kimberly
Jacob and Jordan
And Kimberly on the way to Six Flags.

In other news we are having a big playdate today at our house. We are also about to celebrate 4 precious years with our baby. Her birthday is Tuesday! And our oldest is going to embark on hunting Education and get a bow. The oldest three are enrolled for fall musical theater and the youngest two are going into gymnastics again. The youngest boy plans to give scouts a try. And we are two weeks from planning classes for our co-op. Life passes by too quickly so hug your kids and tell them every day that you love them. Play with them, read to them, walk with them, train them up in the way they should go, set the example. Use a loving voice as often as possible and cherish every moment. They fly by so quickly never to be recaptured. If you are able to go into your child's room each night and hear them breathe and kiss them, you are blessed beyond imagination! Treasure these days.

NO MORE MUSIC

As much as i liked my music thing on the blog, it was getting annoying to have to constantly mute it to read posts...so I figured, if I am always muting it why even have it on the page to annoy me. maybe other people are sick of having to listen to it, too. Besides, the truth is, while I like music I rarely listen to it. We do a lot, and i mean a lot, of singing around here. And when we listen it is classical, or kid songs, or Acapella, or Christmas music, or KLTY, or Celtic Thunder on PBS. So anyway, you don't have to be bothered by thesongs from this day forward...enjoy the peace and tranquility as you read my ramblings.
Now, off to get the little people to do their chores....................

fasting

well, in a way i am fasting...not in the food sense, though that is a biblical command in certain situations. But i have had a lifelong love of clothing and shoes. And sadly I have indulged often, though it was not necessary--a sin to be sure! But we all have sins and this is by far not my only one, but I want to conquer my sins as much as possible and set a good example for my kids. So i have decided to curb my materialism and go on a year long fast not to buy anything for myself in the way of clothing, shoes, or accessories except necessary underthings or socks if needed, and watches when i lose mine (which i already have done).
Instead i am focusing on being content and using what I have, because let's face it..i don't need any of those things and even if half my stuff wore out, i still wouldn't have a need. That is how blessed we are. I also do not plan to shop for the kids unless there is an actual need, and i promise not to over-purchase.
I am hopeful that after a year long "fast" I will be forever changed in my spending habits.
So what will i do instead? Focus on teaching proverbs to the kids more diligently...chronicle our homeschooling years in a scrapbook....enjoy the lasting parts of life which are people and relationships. And see what other sins I can conquer.
Blessings to you and yours as you daily try to follow God toward our home in heaven!

school's is just around the corner

The kids asked yesterday, "why are all the school supplies out in the middle of summer?" I was honest and said,,"Because school starts in about a month and folks need a few paycheck periods to pay for the supplies and uniforms." (BTW, it occurs to me that they PS system spends about $5k to $9K per child each year with taxes and that would be about $25K to $45K for my kids in PS, but I only spend $2K or less on all five and still pay the taxes so I think i am really saving the gov't a lot of money!)
Lucky for us, all we pay are the school taxes, of which we partake of $0. We spend on our curriculum and co-op classes and field trips, and each year around this time I start spending on new organizational items. It is my thing, I guess. Our formal dining room is an extension of the living room and that is our "school room" though we rarely work in there. Still, that is where the main computer and extra table and supplies are located. So this year I packed up the plastic folding white table which was SO nasty, and replaced it with a small 4 chair dining set I got off craigslist. The chairs aren't in great shape on the seats, but it will be great for the kids to use, and for youth devos and family get togethers. Besides, we still have the folding table out in the garage and some metal folding chairs, though several have bitten the dust lately. Now, I also have an old bookcase built long ago (has old square nails) by a great grandfather, and a small cabinet from Target that has doors falling off and a skinny shelf from Canton with heart cutouts. Today i am ridding the house of the heart shelf and the flimsy Target cabinet, and ordering a nice dark wood 36 by 72 bookcase with some nice storage baskets. Not only will this and the new dining set look nicer, they will actually free up some of our space. I also have a 9 cube cubby in the kitchen and an old refinished church pew in the kitchen that has kids school storage baskets under the seat. We keep planning stuff in the kitchen island, and do a lot of instructing at the kitchen table, but the kids work wherever they want, even the backyard. I also have steel shelving in the garage for those curriculum things that I am rotating the kids through, like math levels, LA levels, and project kits. They also hold all the school supplies I purchase, until they are needed. In the living room we have 2 bookshelves, one that is 72 inches and one that is 48 inches, both full of books. We are book junkies and read constantly! If anyone were to come into my home and accuse me of homeschooling, the evidence would be overwhelming, same with being a Christian. There are bibles, posted verses, study books, reference guides and kids stories everywhere!
But I digress....i am loving the organizational stuff. It will make momma a more calm teacher. Ok, i'm done!

July

Catchy title, huh!Well, i am tired and not into punctuation today or creativity. been getting ready to wrap my mind around the upcoming school year. I will officially have a middle schooler. Do you realize how that changes life? School becomes more intense and precise records for transcripts have to be kept up, while trying to maintian a relaxed atmosphere teaching other , younger kids. Requires some thought and prayer for sure! But I can do it! And it will work well. Also been working on summer organizing and repainting. Got some sewing to do, and some co-op planning to work on, but co-op is so much simpler since we reorganized last summer and split from CHEFS. Before that we had made the whole process a nightmare, though we thought it was making things simple--really it wasn't. Now it is! And is so much fun!
In other news it is HOT!!!! still want to go to Six Flags but dread going due to the nasty sweaty smells, heat, and crowds. Three of my least favorite things. Wish i was back at the beach house! if only the whole family, church and homeschool group were there, it would be perfection to me! I think we are vacationing in the mountains next year. Not thrilled about that, but Clay likes it. I am fine just viewing that and deserts through photos. But that is just me. I am a beach or historical east coast girl. But it's not all about me. so anyhow, just trying to stay cool, keep life family and God focused and serve others with joy and truth. have a good month!

Life in June

Jacob and Elizabeth had a joint birthday at the park. the girls had nailpolish and the boys had nerf fights. Lots of friends came and so did family. It was a very fun day, followed by a trip to the Hunt County Fair. We did cupcakes this year instead of cake. I think it worked better.

Elizabeth had fun with her friends and cousins.

Jacob and his friends had tons of fun too!

Then Jacob left for a week to go to his first church youth group camp. It was hard on all of us for him to be gone, but Jordan stepped up and took on some mowing for his brother. Way to go little man!

Then Elizabeth got a haircut and Emily discovered some new rollers. She likes the curls but has so much hair with so little body that it just won't stay for long.

And one day we decided to browse some thift stores in Garland with grandma, but just as we got ready to leave, a cloud rolled in unexpectedly and brought us a lovely funnel cloud! Not what we like to see, for sure!

Here is a pre-party pic of the birthday kids--Jacob turned 12 and Elizabeth turned 8---and I just want to say that time goes by too quickly! But aren't they great!!!

And here are three of the kids doing one of their favorite things--playing board games!

We also had a fabulous Superhero themed VBS, and saw Toy Story 3, and went swimming a lot and bowling a few times. Stacy came into town for a week and it was great seeing her and the whole Friday Friends team. Maybe in july we will be back on track with summer school and home projects. Today we got a new tv cabinet for the playroom, picked out paint for the kitchen and the girls room, hung a pet net and pet chain for the girls' stuffed animals, and fixed the door on the dvd cabinet. Now I have PILE of sewing to tackle, and a little planning for friday school to take care of, a shelf unit to find and hang for the boys' lego, and some blinds and curtains to hang before getting set up for fall semester, which by the way is coming on too quickly......