inspiration for homeschool moms

Here is a shorty post by Sarah, daughter of Sally Clarkson.  Sally homeschooled all four of her children, emphasizing good literature and lots of writing.  Her daughter's prose, at age 25, makes wanna-be writers like me swoon.  If you're a homeschool mom, you'll be encouraged by the caliber of Sarah's education.

Wisdom From Oswald Chamber

The following italicized text is from the Oswald Chambers devotional, My Utmost For His Highest.  It is the July 4th entry.

Entry based on Psalm 37.8--"Do not fret--it only causes harm."

Fretting means getting ourselves "out of joint" mentally or spiritually.  It is one thing to say, "Do not fret", but something very different to have such a nature that you find yourself unable to fret.  It's easy to say, "Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him" (37.7) until our own little world is turned upside down and we are forced to live in confusion and agony like so many other people.  Is it possible to "rest in the Lord" then?  If this "Do not" doesn't work there, then it will not work anywhere.  This "Do not" must work during our days of difficulty and uncertainty, as well as our peaceful days, or it will never work.  And if it will not work in your particular case, it will not work for anyone else.  Resting in the Lord is not dependent on your external circumstances at all, but on your relationship with God Himself.

Worrying always results in sin.  We tend to think that a little anxiety and worry are simply an indication of how wise we really are, yet it is actually a much better indication of just how wicked we are.  Fretting rises from our determination to have our own way.  Our Lord never worried and was never anxious, because His purpose was never to accomplish His own plans but to fulfill God's plans.  Fretting is wickedness for a child of God.

Have you been propping up that foolish soul of yours with the idea that your circumstances are too much for God to handle?  Set all your opinions and speculations aside and "abide under the shadow of the Almighty" (Psalm 91:1).  Deliberately tell God that you will not fret about whatever concerns you.  All our fretting and worrying is caused by planning without God.  

I first read this back in 1997--the year I became a Christian.  It transformed my heart and life.  Previously, I was a worrier.  Actually, worrying represented my biggest flaw!  And do you know, I don't even resemble that person anymore?  Praise God!  The Lord truly changes us!  Because we are focused on our many imperfections, we fail to see how many of them God has obliterated.  

No, we'll never be perfect.  That isn't what he's after.  But Praise God for the growth!

I reread this entry as a reminder when I start to feel emotionally exhausted.  Emotional exhaustion can come from the same root cause as worry--wanting our own way!  When we rest in Him--in what he has planned for us--we have peace. Never weariness.  

I hope this entry blesses you as it has me!  

some adventures

Last Thursday, this little guy abruptly switched from a three-week stint with hayfever, to the first day of a bad cold, complete with wheezing and a temperature of 103.6 F.  His doctor, talking to me after hours, asked that I take Paul to urgent care.

On the way to urgent care, Paul vomited in the car, thankfully grabbing the bowl I brought along (just in time).  No-mess vomiting!  My favorite kind!

Urgent care said he was too sick for them to deal with, given that his fever was high even while taking fever reducing meds (Tylenol alternating with ibuprofen).

What?  Too sick?  What does that mean?  Isn't this urgent care, I thought to myself.  The worst-case scenario would be pneumonia, I surmised.

Now, Paul did look horrible and definitely seemed listless. Still, I knew things weren't as serious as they seemed to think.  Just the day before, my guy played football with brother!

But whatever.  I took him to a pediatric emergency room, at their suggestion.  On the way I kept looking at Paul in the rear view mirror, wondering if I had it all wrong.  Did he have meningitis, for Pete's sake?  My instinct told me no.  Weak from fever and vomiting?  Yes.  But nothing unusual, I convinced myself.   Probably a bad cold with wheezing, or the beginning of pneumonia.  He hadn't wheezed since his RSV infection at 4 months of age, so I was surprised at his condition.  The rapid onset was puzzling, to say the least.  No one here has ever had pneumonia.

The ER doctor asked me why the urgent care center hadn't treated Paul.

"Too high a fever while taking medication, is what they suggested."

"Isn't that what they do there?", he asked, chuckling sarcastically.  

"You would think", I answered, smiling.

He was very nice to us, even though he laughed at me when I said Paul nursed for 2.5 years, making him my healthiest child, notwithstanding his hayfever.

"Well, that isn't going to help him when he's six!  That wears off you know!", he said, laughing.

Feeling stupid, I laughed.  No, he wasn't being a jerk.  Just amused by my zeal, I guess.

But people, I really think nursing has lasting benefits.  No, the immediate antibodies don't last, but there are general health benefits, like disease prevention, which do last.

Long story short, Momma's instincts proved themselves correct.  Chest x-ray and blood work turned up normal.  No pneumonia or other bacterial infection, and Paul wasn't dehydrated.  They did gave him an anti-nausea drug and IV fluids, to see if he would perk up some.  They weren't comfortable sending him home while he still appeared listless.

My sweetheart was mad, but quietly so.  He wanted a drink so badly, as soon as the fever broke.  They wouldn't let him drink since he had vomited a couple hours before.

All through the IV ordeal, and each time they examined him, he was extremely quiet.  Such a contrast to his brother, who I'm sure would have screamed and cried about the new procedures--wondering if he was dying.

The hours I spent with Paul, alone, taught me more about his personality.  He holds things in.  As his mother, I have to draw him out and try not to let important issues go unspoken.  Those hours were a rare gift, given the size of my family.  Each child receives little one-on-one time.

Leaving my baby was so hard.  This was our longest separation, and my heart and body noticed the two missed nursing sessions.  Thankfully, she fell asleep in our swivel computer chair, while husband held and swayed her.

Finally, five hours after our ordeal began, Paul looked better and they sent him home with albuterol (for the wheezing).  I gave it to him twice only.

Eighteen hours later, my son seemed the picture of health.  I snapped the above football picture this afternoon.

Strange adventure.

We're all still coughing and some of us are weak, but no other wheezing incidents.  I wonder if Paul's condition deteriorated quickly due to the hayfever weakening his immune system before the cold hit?

This little lady runs me ragged.  Oh, the blessing she is!  But boy, she's a handful.  Now, at 16 months old, she climbs out of her booster seat, her playpen, the safety gate, and her crib.  She doesn't actually sleep in her crib, preferring the queen bed in her room instead, with Momma next to her.  We taught her early how to safely get out of the bed.  She looks so cute, coming down the hall after her naps, all by herself!

Anyhow, about the crib--I put her in it when I read to her at night.  I can get through more books that way, since she's so squirrelly.

My only concern about her Houdini ways is this:  How will I safely go to the bathroom and get a shower when husband is gone?  Yikes!  His Census training begins this week, and we'll barely see him as it mixes with his part-time jobs and schooling.

This little Sweetie uttered the dearest prayer at lunchtime.

"Dear Jesus,  I love you today.  I love going outside with Peter and Paul and Mommy and Beth.  I love the leaves.  I love quesadillas.  Amen."

My big guy spends his outside time looking for frogs and insects.  Here he is behind our air conditioning unit, which often hides a frog or two.  And sometimes a harmless snake!

We can't believe the size of this boy!  We're 5'3" and 5'8", and our pediatrician tells us this boy is working toward a height of 6'2"!

We finished our spring cookies today!  You can't tell, but pictured here are two tulips and an egg.

Saturday funnies

I suspect my crew will open a bakery together someday.  The boys have talked about it, and the more we bake, the more convinced I am that their passion will endure.

They received spring cookie cutters in their Easter baskets, which we finally got around to using today.  Our recipe called for using powered sugar to help with the rolling, rather than flour.  Of course they all had to taste it.

Paul announced, "This is the best tasting sugar on the planet!  That's what they say!"

They do?

I caught her "reading" Scripture while enjoying a snack.  She's heard enough Psalms to come up with some Biblical-sounding language, courtesy of King David.  "Oh, my God!  Help me!   I love you Lord!"

That's my mantra often:  "Oh, my God!  Help me!"

You know your life might be getting a little easier when you send your 6- and 8-year-old boys to look up and print a recipe for buttercream frosting....and five minutes later, they hand it over.

"This one is uncomplicated, Mommy."

He's paranoid about raw egg germs, so he carefully chose an eggless recipe.

Kids!  What a blessing!  But the back-breaking cleaning involved in their endeavors?

So not fun.

Here, you'll find a funnier baking story.

The other day I sat down for five minutes to read a quick blog.  I noticed on my sidebar that a favorite blogger just posted five minutes before, but it was a post I had already read, posted on the previous day.  It was then I realized that every time I get back into a post to make corrections, it must show up on someone's sidebar as a new post.  Is that true?  I frequently find errors and make corrections after a post is in published form--I just find more errors and awkward sentences that way.

So anyway, if this blog is on your sidebar, pardon the constant reposting.  I think?

This is grace

This is grace.  Beautiful short video--just over a minute.  I watched it from the John Piper Desiring God blog.  Click on the green sentence.