Sic 'em Bears

On our way to the very first game in the new Baylor Bear stadium.  You're jealous.  I know.  It's okay.  I would be too.  Really.

Happy Birthday!

Yep, I'm 39.  It's awesome.  Really.  I got to celebrate with some of my dearest friends.  Sushi, wine, and good friends.  I have the best life.  Really.  God is good.

Night Swimming

My dear friend Mirtha invited the kids over to swim one evening and had the best idea.  She filled the pool with all kinds of glow sticks, turned the lights low, and let the kids have at it.  It was so neat and pretty.  The kids thought it was the coolest thing ever.

A Family that Bowls Together…..

Has a TON of fun together!  Over the summer we had a family day and took the kids bowling.  They've been before but it had been a while.  Man, when did bowling get to be so expensive?  We went to 3 different bowling alleys before we found a price (and wait line) we found acceptable.  But we had a ton of fun and I'm sure acquired lots of germs from the balls and bowling shoes but that's what hand sanitizer is for, right?

Happy 11th Birthday Frederick

Frederick's 11th birthday was on June 30th.  Yep, that's how far behind I am on this blog. 

Not So New Pets…..

I can't believe I haven't posted about this until now but we have some "new" pets.  Two beta fish and a turtle.  We've had them for several months now and they've gotten so big!  The first picture is Savannah's fish, Bluetta.  The second picture is Benjamin's fish, Messy.  Finally, there's Shelly the turtle which we found at a pond near our house with cousins Abby and Andrew when they were here.  Looking at the picture of Shelly I see how much she's grown in just a few short months.  She's so tiny in the picture but not so much anymore.  I ask David daily, can we NOW take her back to the pond?

Why I Homeschool

Obviously, I'm not a wordy person.   I don't like books, articles, and blogs that go on and on about something.  Please just make your point and move on.  In high school and college anytime I had to write a report I struggled having to come up with the amount of pages/words required.  I hated reports.  Couldn't stand them.  Why be required to meet a minimum of pages/words when I feel my point was adequately made?  Grrrrrr.

Quite possibly it could be I get aggravated because I feel I'm not good with words - unless you get me started on something I know a lot about…..ahem, Downton Abbey anyone? - ok, just kidding….kind of.  Most introverts aren't wordy unless you get us on something we're really passionate about.  And even then when I REALLY want to speak I have a hard time expressing myself which is REALLY frustrating.

So from time to time when I come across one of the blogs I follow about something I'm passionate about I like to post it.  This article I've copied below is long (and yes, there were times I said to myself "just get on with it" while I was reading) so I've cut some of it out to make it shorter and to meet my "just make your point and move on" requirement.  The blog post below is written by Nicole from Redbeet Mama.  This woman nailed my feelings about homeschool.

*Just a disclaimer here…..this article might make you assume I think everyone should homeschool.  I do not feel that way.  I feel homeschool is what the Lord has called our family to do.  I wholly believe that some kids will not thrive in a homeschooling environment.  Trust me, I know some that wouldn't.  But this decision is working for OUR family and my children (and mommy and daddy) are thriving more than I could've possibly imagined.

P.S.  The part where she says she doesn't homeschool because of the questionable school system is something I disagree on.  That IS one of the reasons we homeschool.

Why I Homeschool

Whenever anyone asks me "Why I homeschool?";  without hesitation I reply "I love the lifestyle."   My eldest daughter is entering the third grade, so this year will be our fourth year at it.  When she was of kindergarten age and all our neighbors were busy preparing their children for school, the big yellow bus, and buying cool lunch boxes and backpacks,  I admit I felt a little awkward because I was sitting back, relaxing and looking up recipes for homemade all-natural playdough, and buying supplies at the thrift store for our mud kitchen.  It felt like I was diving off a high dive. There wasn't a line of people, or friends waiting to dive in with me. It was aspirating and defying. I was diving into the deep unknown and landed in a beautiful, warm ocean.

When the private and public schools students returned back in the Fall on our first year of homeschooling, our morning walk ritual turned into waving to all the kids on the school buses that drove past us as we trotted along. It felt weird, and I wondered how did this make my children feel? Then our attention would quiet  down and we were drawn elsewhere, like the day we spotted a blue heron in the creek behind our house or the time we met Helen, our neighbor, walking her dog Sasha, and invited us to a tour of her beautiful garden. 

School and their buses became a distant memory. 

My eldest child did ask me if she could go to school at the beginning of that first year.  It turns out she really didn't want to go to school, she just wanted to ride on that spectacular yellow bus. Our trip on public transportation cured her of that desire. I also bought an orange punch buggy that we drive around in and it is very hard to feel unhappy in it.  When parents who are on the fence about homeschooling their children because they tell me that their kindy child really wants to go to school and has shown such a strong interest. I chuckle. I bet that kindy child really just wants to climb on that amazing gym structure on the playground, drink from that big kid water fountain, or like my child, ride the big yellow bus. Kindy kids don't really want to go to school, they don't know what school is just yet.  Kindergarten is no longer what it was designed to be. In our school district it is full day with many hours at desks.  I believe that most children, not all, would rather stay with their parents and discover about life at home and be outside and more and more parents are doing it. Homeschooling is no longer taboo. 

Socialization seems to be the first concern about homeschooling. There is no need to worry about socialization. Socialization is not sticking your child in a classroom with  twenty other children and one teacher for eight hours a day. Socialization starts at home. Learning to be a healthy, happy, contributing member of the family is socialization…and at its very best. Yes, we also have friends. Of course we do. 

I want to preserve childhood as much as I want to preserve family life. I am raising children who will know what it takes and how to enjoy caring for their families. I want my girls to know that they can do it all just not all at once. There is a season for each one of our ambitions as women, motherhood being the most important. This is a  very short season of our lives and not only do I want to be present for it, I want to be calm and enjoy it. Homeschooling provides that for me. It gives my family the time to create and live the lifestyle that my husband and I desire.  

My family doesn't homeschool out of necessity or because of the questionable school system.   I feel blessed that I can stay home and we can manage on one salary. I am aware that it is not a reality for many families.  We homeschool because we believe in preserving our children's childhood. We homeschool because we enjoy a slow, homestead-family life and I love my role as Mother.  I also believe that I can give my children a better education than I received, and a very compassionate connection to our earth and all living things. School can teach kids to sharpen the brains,   I am more interested in softening their hearts.   

I am not stressed or overloaded but by no means is homeschooling entirely a causal swim in the ocean. We have really awesome days and really crappy days. Just like everyone else. Maintaining a nice, constant in and out breath is the key to our happiness.  

This slow, intentional life that we have created for ourselves and our children would be lost if we sent our them to school. When curious people reply with their "I could never homeschool", I beat them to the punch and I say "I could never do it any other way."  Unless of course our needs change. This lifestyle works really well for us. 

The water feels good.

The Most Important Request of All…..

Tonight, August 7, 2014, as I was reading Savannah the story of Easter (not the Easter bunny version…..ahem) Savannah asked if she could have one of the stickers of Jesus from the book to put on her heart while she slept so she could feel closer to Him.  So we did.  Then as we were finishing up the story she stops me and asks if I could pray for her for Jesus to come into her heart.  So we did.  All the glory to God.  She also asked to be baptized during this conversation.  :)

Happy 10 Year Anniversary!

Since David's new position allows him to work from just about anywhere, we decided to live the slow life for a while and spend 30 days in the Hill Country.  Ingram, Texas to be exact.  It was blissful!!

This was at our favorite restaurant there.  We became regulars and we got to know the staff.  

During our stay, the Kerrville Folk Festival was going on.  Here's the kids' favorite band, Trout Fishing in America.  

We got to know some people from the area and they had a son about the same age of Ben.  They came over for brunch once and went sliding down the Ingram Dam with us.  Unfortunately, they were Aggies…..

Long time friends, Don Alexander and his daughter Abbey were in town for the festival so we got to see them a lot.  Here's Don doing what he does best. 

Ben with his friend.

David sliding down the Ingram Dam.

Ben next…...

Savannah's favorite thing to do at the festival was to get her face painted.  

Good friend Abbey.

Abbey and the kiddos.

So this cat became our pet while we were there.  Saw her EVERY day.  Savannah named her Grayie.

The kids used zip lock bags to catch fish in the river.  Yes, it actually worked.  Here's Ben's fish he caught.  They both sat hunched over for over an hour trying to catch these things.  Proof that persistence and patience pays off!!!

Took a day trip to Luchenbach, TX with Don while David had to work…..poor David.  He was a little jealous.  Here's one of the roosters the kids had a blast chasing around.  Well, until angry customers told them to stop.  Bah humbug.

David and the kids picked these wildflowers from around our yard.  Love them!

Due to it's unbelievable size, this centipede was almost picked up bare handed by ME thinking it was one of the kids toys…..but then it moved.  Whew, close one!

The was a nature museum that we visited a few times and it had a great pathway behind it along the river.  The kids loved taking bread to feed the ducks and squirrels……they would eat the food right from your hand, even the squirrels.

This is at our favorite restaurant in Fredericksburg.  It's the Fredericksburg Brewing Company.

More river time near our house. 

Grayie's favorite spot was in a chair in the bed of David's truck.  She would spend hours there!

We got to celebrate David's birthday on our vacation.  The kids wanted to put guns on his cake.  All we found were mini water guns.  Turned out to be perfect! 

Savannah was having trouble on a trail we had taken while we were waiting for a bat show to begin.  Her sweet brother was there to help her!

Unfortunately I ended up getting poison ivy at the end of the trip.  Took 2 weeks to go away.  Went up my face and covered a lot of my right arm.  Yuck!  At least it happened at the end!