Multitude Monday 5/6/13

This Momma stayed up very late dealing with Paul's first asthma attack. Exhausted and weary of health issues, I desperately need to count blessings today. This morning at the pediatrician's, the doctor informed me that we don't call it asthma until it's chronic; insurance companies don't like to see a chronic disease on health records so doctors have to be careful how they label issues.

So to clarify, Paul had his first wheezing and uncontrollable coughing attack, which goes with the curse of allergies.

My husband was treated for asthma this week also, and Peter needed a couple puffs of his inhaler. I've learned that tree and grass pollen, mixed with a cold virus and a little vigorous basketball, prove a terrible combination for the men in my life. Exercise during cold viruses at any other time of year is fine, but not during allergy season.

In heaven there are no inherited diseases or chronic issues. Today and everyday we can celebrate that.

Giving Thanks Today

Dear Father, thank you for these blessings and graces:

~ Glorious sunshine

~ For the way 4-year-old Beth looked in that pretty spring church dress. A little girl in a pretty dress with white fancy socks.... Why does that image of my daughters always make me feel a mixture of delight and sadness, as though the whole affect is too fleeting for words, because I know how fast times passes? And a little girl's manners are so pretty and pleasing on Sunday morning, to match the dress and fancy socks it seems, doesn't it?

~ Making chocolate chip cookie-bar batter with my Beth after church. Nothing delights that girl more than princess clothes, pretty shoes, and chocolate chip bars. Mary, my other daughter, went through a fleeting princess faze only, being more of a frog- and worm-catching tomboy. Each child under this roof is so unique!

~ New art books eliciting drawing excitement around here, once again.

~ Beth got a Max and Ruby video from the library and Paul, paying some minor attention to it, announced that Ruby is a very bossy sister and how did Max stand it? And where are the parents anyway?

~ Hugs and prayers from friends at church

~ A good sermon

~ Explaining the Ephesians verses about husband and wife roles to my sons, who are going through Ephesians as part of their homeschool load. After our talk, it occured to me how blessed the boys are to be learning such important wisdom so early in life. Sometimes it makes me so sad that I was saved so late in life (age 31), but I can give heartfelt thanks that my children are growing up so differently. While their lives will still come with monumental challenges, the comfort of the Father, the beauty of a bigger picture, an eternal one, will always be there for them. How beautiful is that?

~ A husband comforting a son through the panic of an asthma attack

~ Albuterol with spacer already on hand, making a middle-of-the night ER visit unnecessary.

What's beautiful in your life today, my friend?

 

 

Building Your House

Each spring brings many blessings to our lives and I'm forever grateful for the variety God offers us in the natural world. Every three months He changes the sights, sounds, textures and aromas by bringing us a new season. His many seasonal surprises for us are gifts...heart gifts, grace gifts...to render the human condition less tragic. There's always something to look forward to and that greatly encourages the human heart.

But over the past couple years, I've found that each season change brings new challenges for me as a mother and homemaker and teacher. Greatest among them is distraction. In the spring, for example, the weather and the flowers beckon us outside and as we follow their sweet aroma, we can get off track with other responsibilities. It takes time for new rhythms to develop and take root each season. A family's rhythms will naturally change with the seasons.

This spring, like last spring, I again pulled out my Managers of Their Homes scheduling book, by Steve and Teri Maxwell. As I work through a spring schedule for our family, I'll be sharing bits of wisdom from the authors. All of their materials are scripturally based, something I dearly love about their ministry. Jesus is always Lord.



God has given us a powerful example and analogy of scheduling in the natural world. Everything He has created, from atoms to the universe, has a periodic cycle. There is a timetable God has applied to each part of His creation. This is easily seen in the weather. Year by year, each season comes at its "scheduled" time, bringing with it predicable changes. Here we have a picture of our daily-life schedules. These change, too, as the "seasons" in our families change. Teri Maxwell p. 1, Managers of Their Homes

What does this speak to me? It reminds me that God loves order, not confusion. When we allow our false gods to distract us from needful tasks, our daily lives become battlegrounds for Satan and sin; selfishness and discouragement take root in our homes, poisoning our relationships and damaging our witness.

When we order our lives according to what God wants us to accomplish, we experience peace and our homes have a sweet, godly aroma...the aroma of righteousness, not the stench of sin.

We live in an era of distraction. In an era of me-first. A willingness to get up each morning and commit the day to the Lord, with the help of a prayed-about schedule, will keep us insulated from the idol trap.

1 Timothy 5:14
"I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully."

Let's guide our homes, my friends, for the glory of God.

If you've tried scheduling and failed in the past, let me give you a tip from my own experience. The failure rests squarely on the mother, in the form of sin.  As the guide of the house, we must have the strength and integrity to just do the next thing. Not get distracted by the phone or our e-mail or the news, or our scrapbooking or gardening. We can schedule some down time for our interests, but until that segment comes, we must endeavor to do the next thing, to the glory of God.

In our Smart Phone- and Facebook- and Twitter-obsessed society, the person who can keep on going will triumph. We've become slaves to the idol of recognition. We want to be recognized, celebrated, so we stay attached to devices that will give us another "hit" of recognition, as though it were a drug. And in fact, studies show that checking statuses on social media stimulates our pleasure center, causing us to do it again and again.

Maybe your idol is something different, but regardless, one thing is sure. You have one. Satan assures that we all have them...some of us more than others, depending on our time in the Word and in prayer.

Just say no; not me. Let's diligently do the next thing and sing praises to the Lord, squashing Satan's voice.

Homeschool Mother's Journal (May 3, 2013)

In my life this week…
The four kids are recovering from colds and mom and dad are beginning them (spring allergies complicate the health landscape). William Wordsworth made his way into my life this week. I ordered several art books from Homeschool Classifieds and the woman selling them had long lists of additional $.50 and $1.00 books for sale. One of the books I picked out was a compilation of the top 29 Wordsworth poems. His work represents true brilliance in words and thought. I actually took it into the bathroom with me twice and found it a welcome break from mundane household tasks.(When your youngest is 4 years old you can finally read about 2 pages in the bathroom before someone comes knocking).

What I'm thinking about...
Overwhelmed by the amount of work mothers do with no break even on the weekends, I began to think about what God wants in terms of workload. Does He agree with all work and no play for mothers? When I play I get behind and when I get behind we all get stressed, so it doesn't pay to play. Are you with me?

It occurred to me once again that a big part of my job as a mother and homemaker is training the children to pull their weight (not just make their bed). A veteran homeschooling mother said to me several years ago that if I didn't train my children to clean up their messes, than the teenage years would be no different for me, in terms of work. Certainly it's true that my kids need to see me engaged in relationships, not just in tasks.

When things are going smoothly here, I do well with the training. When I'm stressed however, I forget to fully involve the children. My emotional state compels me to isolate myself rather than engage them. The Lord helped me see this unfortunate pattern today.

A good reason to be a consistent manager is that a household in which one person does all the work is not healthy or desirable for anyone involved. A mother should be happy and grateful to have a family to serve, but should she be a martyr? Doesn't our worst come out when we aren't physically and mentally resting enough? (I don't work hard because I want a perfect house. No, our house is never picture worthy. I strive for containing the chaos most days and on Bible study day, having everything in its place with dusted surfaces and vacuumed and mopped floors.)

Side note on my husband: He's gone from 7 to 7 Mon - Fri.and another 5 hours on Saturday, so I don't expect anything from him. But he does help with the kids at night and before the dishwasher broke he helped load it.

In our homeschool this week…
We finished our Sonlight Core E books early so I ordered some from old Core E lists and some from the new Core E list, one of which was Half Magic by Edward Eager. We'll definitely be reading all that Edward Eager wrote. The boys thoroughly enjoyed this hilarious book and needed the lighter reading after Bruchko. Four siblings find a magic coin that allows them different adventures, including going back in time to the days of Camelot. Each adventure is short and laugh-out-loud funny. A great read aloud for the whole family, though it's listed as a reader.

I'm reading Cheaper By the Dozen by Frank Gilbreath aloud to the boys, one of the old Core E read alouds I ordered. It's also hilarious but my 4- and 6-year-old girls aren't into it. I plan on reading another Little House book to them.



 

 The boys are also reading The Story of Inventions for history, which I found on e-bay, listed as an older Core E book (Core E teaches history from 1850 -1950). My boys are grateful to have this book. Publisher synopsis: Great inventions, historical biographies, strong morals, and the godly character traits necessary for success are highlighted in this collection of stories. From the steam engine and the printing press to television and computers, a wide range of inventions is covered in short chapters that include reading comprehension questions. For older elementary students. 354 pages, softcover from Christian Liberty Press.



For science they finished up the Usborne Complete Book of the Microscope and will start See & Explore: Space, Stars, Planets and Spacecraft. We love, love, love Sonlight Science!


My girls continue to enjoy their Sing, Spell, Read, Write K-1 combo reading program. Mom still loves it too--something I can't always say after using something two months (this was an excellent curriculum choice).

I'm not using any other formal learning program with them, other than a K math book. We have plenty of social studies and science and art trade books on hand to share with them.

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…
 Trust good-quality books to impart knowledge, spark the imagination, and put your children on a lifetime learning path. Don't worry about assigning worksheets to prove that you did something in science or social studies. Seek out and trust good literature. Just because a child didn't produce something doesn't mean her mind didn't expand and make important connections. The more worksheets you assign your kids, the less time they'll have to fill their heads with real knowledge. 

Believing this is a bigger leap if you haven't been an avid reader yourself, and especially if you haven't been a non-fiction reader. My boys have been as interested in their non-fiction selections as in their fiction.

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…
The kids skipped church last Sunday because of colds, but they were better by Wednesday and thoroughly enjoyed AWANA's last hurrah (a carnival-like fair). We have an awards assembly next Wednesday but then no more AWANA until September.

I was politely encouraged to help with Vacation Bible School at this AWANA church, working with the preschoolers again. (I worked with Cubbies for AWANA). Preschoolers are exhausting and they aren't good listeners yet, but I do love the funny things they say. I'm sure I'll enjoy the VBS preschool experience.

I did learn something about how preschoolers learn while working with the Cubbies this year. I don't have a background in early childhood education but I didn't need it to discover that preschoolers need to play to learn. As parents we read that all the time, including warnings not to choose an academic preschool. Now I know first hand that it's true. They don't have the listening skills to sit and drink in what a teacher is saying about a topic, but when they can use their hands to discover and manipulate, they learn.

Even Bible stories are better taught with things they can manipulate, rather than with just a storybook. I watched 13 preschoolers squirm their way through every oral and visual lesson, not gleaning much at all. Around 5.5 years old they seem more capable of learning through hearing and seeing and need less doing (except those who go on to have a tactile-kinesthetic learning style).

My favorite thing this week was…
...reading aloud to my kids and watching spring truly arrive. Color is everywhere. Also, watching my 4-year-old daughter play dress up and carry around hardbound chapter books. She will be quite the scholar I think. Always wants to carry a chapter book with her everywhere we go, and she keeps asking me if she's ready to read yet. Her Sing, Spell, Read, Write phonics song tells her if she learns the sounds, she'll be ready to read. She's learned them all rapidly thanks to this excellent program, but I've found over the years that going from learning sounds to blending sounds isn't always a quick transition. Each of my children has been unique in this.

My kiddos favorite thing this week was… 
AWANA fair, and catching frogs and crayfish and snakes. Peter, the oldest, also researched snakes quite a bit this week and Paul researched the states on our new 2010 World Book DVD ROM (purchased to go with Sonlight Core F for next year). Paul is very interested in everything about America.

Things I’m working on… 
I'm finally done with the spring clothing switch after one month of having a disheveled, clothes-filled living room. We kept transferring it all into the master bedroom before our Saturday Children's Bible Studies (3 to 4 kids now attend), but otherwise the clothes and storage boxes took up space in our living room so I could work on the project as I had time.

My kids love this house and never want to move, and yes, we do have nice living spaces. But there's no garage or basement and too little storage space makes my homemaking life a little different than what other women experience. I try to remind myself of that frequently when feelings of failure set in.

Next week we'll begin to tag all our Sonlight books. We have Core D & E (American History parts 1 and 2) and Core F books (Eastern Hemisphere) that need a small colored spine sticker so they'll be kept together in the shelves.

I’m cooking…
They probably put in this feature for the gourmet cooks in the bunch, but I stick to the same basic 10 - 12 dishes. Sorry it's so boring to read this. Only one of my kids isn't picky and I buy a lot of lean ground turkey to make different things. On taco night everyone eats everything so we have tacos weekly, as you might have noticed if you ever get down this far in the reading. Hopefully hubby will get the grill up and running soon.

Dinner this week so far: crockpot chicken, pizza, sloppy joes, tacos, baked ziti

I’m grateful for…
~ finding 2 jean skirts and a cotton dress at thrift stores so I can look and feel more feminine

~ the women I work with in children's ministry

~ that four seasons really exist in Ohio (not so where I lived in So.Cal for years)

~ my husband's hugs and appreciation

~ the Lord speaking to me about how to make things go smoother

~ the Lord giving me mental and spiritual rest as I pray

~ having a house that the kids love. Believe me, it's modest...we only owe $84,000 if that gives you any idea...but it's home to them and that makes me happy. It's much more than our Compassion children have to call home and I'm glad my kids realize that. Perspective is everything and helps tremendously with true gratitude. We need only as much as God gives and wanting more is really ingratitude. We can trust Him in all things, including in how many and of what quality our possessions are. Trusting him in this means we can stop wishing for more or better...and just smile and give thanks for what's before us. And not only that, but when extra comes in we can give it away!

I’m praying for…
...beyond the usual supplication prayers I'm praying especially for my husband, who needs encouragement from the Lord.

A photo, video, link, or quote to share (silly, serious or both!)…quote found in this Desiring God blog post

Many people describe marriage as the laboratory where our spiritual growth is fostered and developed. I find it to be equally true of parenting as well. God has used parenting in my life to refine and change me in ways I had not anticipated. He’s given me a child who requires more than I was trained to handle so that I would depend on him and not my own strength. I’ve also learned things about myself I never knew and have seen things in my heart I never wanted to see. I’ve come face to face with sins I didn’t know were buried deep inside, sins like impatience, selfishness, irritability, and discontent. While uncomfortable and sometimes downright painful, the sanctifying work of parenthood has been necessary and good. (Christina Fox)

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Thank you for visiting Glory to God and have a blessed weekend, friends!

Oh. My. Goodness.

 

Oh. my.

The last four hours have been over the top. I sit here typing with the hope that in writing out my stress I will feel lighter--enough to fall asleep eventually--and that God will impart some wisdom and bring verses to mind that will soothe my mothering soul.

I had it in my mind today that I would do all the teacher-directed schooling tasks early and then devote the rest of the day, until dinner prep, to finishing up the spring clothing switch. The Goodwill bags have been gotten into so often by my four year old that they had gaping holes and needed to be gone through again, lest she put something in there I still needed.

Then I had to put the finishing touches on a hand-me-down box of clothes for a family of six at the AWANA church, as well as wash seven loads of clothes because I'd gotten behind and didn't want to leave anything out of the hand-me-down box that might be useful for this family.

My clothing switch dragged on and on because spring couldn't decide if it really wanted to arrive. Temps kept flip flopping so I had to keep sweatshirts and sweaters in the closets and drawers, prolonging the process.

Today I decided all the short-sleeved shirts and shorts were going in, and if we freeze, we freeze. Keeping a bare minimum of warm clothing around, I told myself I just couldn't take seeing clothes everywhere another day.

The truth is we have too many clothes, but our large yard doesn't drain well so mud is part of the landscape...especially in the spring and fall. It isn't unusual for the kids to have two changes a day, or more for the little one, so multiple outfits are a must.

And then there were the three letters I was working on with Bible coloring sheets for our Compassion children. I usually write them online every 14 days, which is quite convenient, but once a month I try to send something to color, or a drawing lesson copied from art books.

Peter had plans today too. He got four subjects done and then set about making bee traps. He cut used water bottles in half and put apple slices in them. Then he made two homemade ant farms. In the afternoon, Lexie--his partner in all things bug and snake and frog--got home from school and helped him with his nature-observing schemes.

A neighbor, working in her yard, suddenly screamed, startling the kids.

They all went to the chain-link fence, concerned.

"Oh, just a snake", she assured, rather embarrassed.

Lexie jumped over the fence, telling her, "I'll get it!"

We just had a garter snake around for four days...something Peter caught in our backyard. Surprisingly, it was tame as could be and all the neighbor kids enjoyed it. It seemed to revel in the attention, I tell you.

Naturally, they assumed every garter snake was like their Skippy, whom Peter had to let go.

Without going into more detail, let me just say that the snake bit Peter as he and Lexie tried to remove it from the neighbor's yard. It was nearing dinnertime by now and I had to stop everything and research what to do.

On top of that, Lexie wouldn't leave the snake alone. I envisioned her getting bit as well and her grandparents knocking on my door and shouting at me.

Not that Peter cared in the least about getting bit, since it didn't hurt much and he knew garter snakes to be harmless. But he also knew by my rather-stressed countenance that I wasn't convinced we could treat it like a scratch.

Lexie continued to pursue the snake alone, despite my warnings out the back window that her mother probably wouldn't like her snake-hunting ways.

She can be maddening; she doesn't listen well and she gets as obsessed as Peter does--perhaps even more so.
 
As I applied first aid, in the kitchen, to Peter's bite, Lexie managed to catch the snake and put it in one of our empty tanks. I was not happy with the neighbor, who in no way tried to stop Lexie, even after Peter suffered a bite. She just stood there, at a distance, much amused by the whole thing, still hoping to do her gardening without the garter as company.

I finally convinced Lexie to go home, telling her Peter was in for the night...for snake-bite observation. (And tomorrow he'll need a tetanus booster). Sensing I wasn't letting her in no matter how much she pressed, she told me she would come and get her snake tomorrow, to put it in her sanctuary.

Yes, she comes up with things like that all the time. Amusing, endearing and maddening all at the same time.

I read some more and decided Peter was in no imminent danger, and by this time dinner prep was late.

Meanwhile, another crisis of a different kind. The 2010 World Book Encyclopedia DVD ROM I bought for school gave Paul fits about loading on the new Windows 7 computer we bought. (Windows XP is far easier to load software onto). Paul was working on this project during the whole snake fiasco and he'd gotten as far as he could because the same error message kept coming up.

Turns out it loaded quickly onto our 10-year-old XP computer...the same one that is making groaning sounds and is about to die. It even outlasted our 7-year-old computer, which died last month.

I began to make dinner, not believing how stressful the day had been.

Then the children broke the playroom blinds. They won't keep their hands off the blinds............!

So now, as I type, I'm hoping for a release of some sort. Children can be so difficult, stubborn, destructive, annoying.

Maddening.

When I discovered the broken blinds, I flipped out, telling them I was out of anything resembling patience and Daddy would have to take care of them for the rest of the night.

I. was. done.

I wanted to drive anywhere that wasn't here...away from this laundry and this snake bite and these neighborhood kids and these blinds and these worthless computers. I love my children and they are my life...but tonight I didn't want anything to do with them.

Until I spent time, hands busy in the soapy sink, washing dishes and contemplating mothering.

Husband got home at seven and took over with the kiddos...after letting the snake go. (I'll hear it from that Lexie girl tomorrow.)

Meanwhile, back in my suds I spoke to my Father.

Oh, Lord. This is so hard. This mothering. How do I do it well? How do I do it gently? How do I do it skillfully? Lovingly? Will they ever listen and keep their hands off things that break easily? Will they always be so destructive and maddening?

He didn't answer exactly.

But my heart did melt. That was something. My mind and soul filled with love again, and once again I wanted everything to do with these four curious, beautiful, maddening children.

I don't know what tomorrow will bring exactly, but I doubt it will be any more relaxing than today, what with the usual whining and terror about immunizations (Mary needs them too).

I'm looking for a renewal of patience, humor, calmness. What Scripture is needed most right now, Lord?

Matthew 19:26
Jesus looked at them and said, "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
 
 Psalm 51:10
Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.

2 Chronicles 15:4
But in their distress they turned to the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought him, and he was found by them.

Lamentations 3:25
The LORD is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;

Isaiah 12:2
Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The LORD, the LORD, is my strength and my song; he has become my salvation."

Psalm 57:1
Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in you my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed.

And your day, dear reader friend, went far smoother I hope?



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Need Strength?

Isaiah 40:28-31 Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.