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resolved2worship
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Name: A.A.W
Birthday: 9/9/1977
Interests: my husband and kids, outdoors, nature, hiking, swimming, running, sports, art, music, photography, dancing, fashion, reading, writing, history, travel, creating things, baking desserts, date nights...
Occupation: WIFE AND MOM and lots of other
Message: message me
Website: visit my website
Member Since:
10/6/2006
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| We live in a cyberworld of facebooking. Tweets. Comments. My desire is that my blog be counter-cyber culture. No full sidebars. No obligation to comment. I desire that this be a simple sanctuary of memories, a place to be real, a place of thanksgiving, a place where I am resolved2worship no matter the circumstances. Quiet encouragement. A haven of praise. A place that glorifies His name. |
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The children are doing homework up a storm as it storms outside. I thought it so funny the other day when I was alerted to a thread online talking about resolved2worship and homeschoolers like us not being able to pass GED/testing and such.
The following is being typed with a great deal of excitement, friendliness, humor, and a smile on my face - just in case you were wondering the demeanor behind this post~  For those many women who have messaged about the topic of education and I have yet to respond to, please be so kind to allow this to be my response.
I don't plan on my kids taking the General Educational Development (GED) test anyway - I think we'll just take the SAT, starting about the time they're 14, and move right along to universities. 
Of course there are some homeschooling families who aren't really into making education a priority, but seriously, they are few and far between. There are families who don't homeschool who don't make education a priority either. It's always interesting how we lump people all together isn't it?
Just because I met a 5th grade kid who goes to public school who couldn't read as good as my homeschooled first grader doesn't mean all public school 5th graders can't read. Just because I met a 3rd grade homeschooler who can quote the chemical elements chart in his sleep doesn't mean all homeschoolers are that brainy. Or crazy.
Because we're capable of schooling in three hours a day as opposed to the six hours that our local schools do, does not mean we don't produce smart children or that we believe playing a few hours at the river will make up for a science class. Take a look at the statistics, homeschooling consistently produces smart, well educated children.
No, my children aren't the smartest in the world. No, I'm not the smartest teacher in the world. Some of my children will probably opt to go a different route than tradition college. Some will be at college before other children their age. I've got children who love to learn and are good, hard working students. I couldn't ask for more.
Isn't that what we're after anyway? What does it matter that they may roller blade through the house while they study their spelling lists as long as they are learning spelling! Well, how they learn isn't near as important to me as THAT THEY LEARN AND LOVE IT and that they become educated, hard working individuals that make the world a better place around them.
Yes, there are subjects I'm not good at teaching. Ah! But that's why I don't teach them all their classes either! There are amazing co-ops to join (which we do) where classes are taught by wonderful certified school teachers. On top of that, I have a mother who has more teaching years under her belt than most could claim and she LIKES to help teach my children!
(Okay, I know, that is entirely unfair to have a mom who helps teach and yes, it has a huge influence on my education selection for my children. )
Please, homeschool bashers, get educated on the statistics about homeschooled children. No, it doesn't always work for everyone. No, it's not for everyone. Yes, there are some people who make it look bad. There are some people in every style of education who can make their particular style look bad.
We're grateful for the freedom our nation offers to pick what method of education we would like to use with our children. I think this freedom should remain and should be encouraged. It makes this nation a better place and more well rounded and interesting.
We've done our research, our investigation, talked with public and private school teachers and had our visits to public and private schools. Between Robert and I, we were educated in both public, private and homeschooled settings. We know the pros and cons to all. And there ARE pros and cons to all.
We've chosen to educate our children by teaching them ourselves - Robert didn't get his masters in education for nothing - and through tutors, and small class room co-ops. Our children are happy, and love to learn. Our education choices may change as the years go by but I would encourage that each family select what is right for their family, and then leave it to others to select what is right for their's without voicing uneducated opinions about other's choices.
Oh, and don't get cliquish. Just because you public school, or homeschool, or private school - REACH OUT past your education choice and meet other folks who educate their children different than you even if they seem weird!
That being said, Happy School Year Everyone! (At least to those who don't homeschool their smart homeschoolers through the summer months!)
Hope everyone is off to a good start. Or at least haven't fallen flat on your face in agony. Thanksgiving vacation is coming yet! To all you moms who wave goodbye to your little ones each morning, my hat goes off to you, I personally would cry buckets. And to all you moms who school your kids there at home, oh my goodness. I cry buckets with that too.
Thank goodness for Labor Day ~ A Monday holiday right as school is just getting in the swing of things. Before we all came down with some kind of weird sickness Sunday evening, we stole away, driving through one little all American town after another to get out to nowhere USA. We spent Saturday having a great family day on the river where we used the entire day to educate out children in river biology. Haha, just kidding.
We jumped off rope swings instead.
 
(hiking back from the river with a tired baby girl.)
Yes, that is my son in the middle of the air.
Poor boy. Poor floaters. None were hurt. All in good spirits. But the relaxed river floaters were completely soaked. Shelton landed half on the woman's float and half in the water. She was laughing, so I was relieved.
 
a. ann~ | | |
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click here:
Little Recap Of Summer 2010
(*Christian took on the narration (Morgan joining him at times) for our recap of this past summer 2010. I love Christian's spontaneous narration and his eight year old boy silliness coming through. The quality isn't the best, but if you listen close you can make out what's being said. )
a. ann~ | | |
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A sign of fall coming...
Building water ways through the river for lego boats~
Fishing~
Shelton
Christian
Scott
Itty fishing with her stick~
Her birthday was at the beginning of the month but we just had her cake this past weekend.
 
Shelton's first game - he's the guy out in the front.
Shelton ~ scrimmage games and first game.
Easy to spot his smile~
Christian for a tackle
Long, hard, hot practice but happy.
Bubbie eating homemade pops 'cause he doesn't have to do school like the other boys~
Doing his homework before he can go to football practice. . .
 
Sometimes he asks for help~
There was a hint of fall in the air when we went to the river this week. We found several leaves floating in the water and the children said the water felt cooler than usual. Football practices and scrimmages haven't been quite so hot either. The last two nights on the field there has been a breeze as the sun goes down.
I've taken a little bit of time this week to try to work the house into something more practical. I removed the living room, if you could even call it that. In other words, my furniture was just sitting in that part of the house/building and getting no use because there is no air in there. It seemed purposeless.
So I removed the furniture and replaced it with blue gym mats that Robert got years ago from someone getting rid of them. What was once the living room is just going to be a tumble area now. After all, it's hard enough to keep the kids from doing it all over the furniture anyway. Why not just remove the furniture and have a place to flip, play, tumble, wrestle, and build forts?
Suddenly, the area that was "too hot" is getting used quite frequently. I've had some brain storms in regards to "family housing" this week - of course due to my own circumstances, but seriously, I'm raising a lot of children here and what is the purpose of just making it look pretty and perfect where they can't enjoy it these years while they're home? So why shouldn't the living room be a play room instead?
I noticed one afternoon this week that the children had taken the blue gym mats that were spread from wall to wall and placed them on top of each other, forming a couch of sorts. They brought all their pillows down from upstairs and had turned the mats into seating. They had pushed the coffee table back into the room and were using it as a stage and half were putting on a play while the other half of the children were watching from the blue gym mat couch.
As much as I love beauty and order and it's ingrained in the very heart of me. . . I am finding I am letting it go once again to find more happiness is seeing them love living here ~ together as a family ~ making the most of life in our circumstances.
How much better to watch Christian doing back hand springs in the "living room" and Morgan getting her cartwheel down and the boys playing and laughing as they wrestle, and the little ones building forts out of the mats. . . instead of pretty furniture just collecting dust. I'm keeping Robert's and my room and the kitchen my place to look pretty and be my haven of "order and beauty."
Perspectives change. For now, this is mine. And I'm loving it as much as they are. Life is too short and kids grow too fast to get caught up in the stuff that doesn't matter. And if you stop by, you might have to chat with me on a blue gym mat in a rather warm area, but I promise, it won't be a boring experience. You can flip off the "furniture" if you want, and I won't be at all offended. We serve lemonade and if it spills, that's okay. The boys serve it up cold, blended with ice in the blender. They make tons of it, from fresh lemon juice.
If your glass happens to shatter for whatever reason, I'm cool with that. An average of four glasses a week break at our house. We have hand stand competitions you can join or if you prefer acting, there is always a role available. If you would like to feed praying mantis to large zipper spiders, ask Bubbie. He will take you on tour and explain the process in detail.
At least that part of the visit would be outside our house.
"Life is like a coin. You can spend it any way you wish, but you only spend it once." ~Lillian Dickson
"You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands." Isaiah 55:12 -
People are more important than things.
a. ann~ | | |
| A new dawn. It's something like 7am but I'm sure I won't get this posted until later. I'm blurry eyed and Christian and I fight allergies together side by side. I'm glad for an eight year old boy here who still wants to sit in my lap. He's getting heavy but he doesn't know it.
We were missing Gracie together this morning.
Yesterday was so tough. It still seems like Gracie should be here. She was such a wonderful creature of habit. So loyal to us all, down to the little babies. I'm not sure who loved her most around here. Robert, who always told me he was not a dog person, adored her as much as the rest of us.
I would love to write all the memories we have of her. But I think I will let them just remain in our heart and minds. I know she was just a dog. But she was our dog and she knew and lived it well. She truly was a little gift to us all from God.
There is a little (actually BIG.) miracle that surrounds her death and it's one I don't want to forget. God truly came through even to the end with giving us Gracie. As she lay there on the side of our drive, torn all up, but still breathing, two people stopped to help: A man who lived up the road a bit, and then a little later, a woman pulled over and stopped.
The man was so helpful and kind and concerned.
The woman's husband was a vet and she immediately called her husband and led Robert and Shelton to the clinic.
Robert and Shelton prayed on the way that God would provide for Gracie's vet bills. Whether she lived or died, the whole accident wasn't in the budget. But we knew we just couldn't leave Gracie. We all wanted to see if she could be saved. We couldn't give up on her so easily.
Gracie died about two hours after being hit. The vet said she could have survived her other injuries (hard to believe - she looked so bad) but it was her heart - it was jarred too much and well, without going into details, they tried to save her but couldn't.
But here is where the miracle comes in. The man who stopped on the side of the road, well, he followed Robert to the vet. He went to the desk and told them he wanted to cover all of Gracie's expenses even if she went into surgery.
We never knew what the vet bill was. The man covered it.
The lady whose husband was the vet made us a mold of Gracie's footprints.
There is a lot of things the kids and I thought of yesterday afternoon that we could learn from Gracie. We already miss her welcoming us each time we return home. We miss the little jingle of her collar and her eating the left overs that fall from the table. We miss how she knew how to play soccer (for real! she was amazing!). And how she always followed Robert to the end of the drive each morning he left, though she never followed me to the end of the drive ~ She would always sit under the large tree as if to say she was staying to protect while I was away.
We talked last night at dinner about getting another dog. I'm not sure any of us are quite ready. A house trained, a no fence yard trained, baby and children trained, never runs away, soccer playing, no jumping, short haired less shedding, medium sized, good watch dog yet so gentle with us isn't something easy to replace.
Thank you, God, for the strangers who cared. My heart is so grateful.
Thanks, Angie, for caring for the kids and texting the info on another dog available.
Thanks, mom, dad and Amanda, for the special note and cookies for the kids yesterday afternoon.
a. ann | | |
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This morning I woke to the screams, "Gracie has been hit by a car!"
It's been a long tear filled morning. We rushed her to the vet. Shelton carried her all the way - she was still breathing but wide open -- just horrible. They couldn't save her.
We will miss Gracie very, very much. This has been much more difficult on the children than I imagined. And for me too.
Robert and Bubbie (Gracie was his best "girl.") have gone to bury her at the property.
She was the best dog I have ever seen in my life. I have never seen a dog so gentle who truly *seemed* to love the children and Robert and I so much. She has been a big part of our family since she arrived that day the children saved every last penny to buy her from the shelter. Her name fit her perfectly.
a. ann | | |
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