A New Season for the lot of us -- lots of new seasonS really OR Where we are after 2011

Well, you may have noticed some pictures are gone from the sidebar. Yup, the Green family is no longer a part of Gilbert Academy, but will forever remain in my heart. I will miss referencing the Little League, as much as The Ax Man will miss The Ant in his daily play. I believe seasons change and my life has brought forward the courage my "adopted daughter" needed to move forward. Neccesity being the "mother of invention" if you know what I mean. Her boys are in descent schools and off to Head Start for the A-bomb. They will continue in my daily prayers. Love doesn't move on, it endures forever. Having their family here stretched me and taught me more that I could have ever taught them. Most of all, I got a test drive in having an adult child. I am grateful for every day, every test, every smile, every moment. May God's speed drive this family towards greatness. May the seeds planted bloom into historic oaks in their spirits. I praise God for the opportunity and honor to serve Him through them. I'll miss you guys. I already do.
As for me, my marriage is in a separation. The first time in 16+ years I have been apart from my husband in this way. This is the first proclamation of that. I'm sick and scared and praying fervently that we will reunite. Please pray for our reconciliation and healing.We both have things to fix. We both need God's grace to get through this. I will be in school full time starting January 9, 2012. 4 classes will test my character in many ways, as I continue on the home schooling journey and work to serve my community. Tough times ahead, but freedom on the horizon when my goals are met, my marriage is healed, and I get past this short term of business. Sometimes, life is harder than other times. This is but a season. This is but a season. This is but a season.
Rockin' Out Guitar Dude will begin classes at the local 4-year university. 1/2 time with me and 1/2 time there. He's excited. Me, too. I am feeling the heart tug as my baby boy is C.l.e.a.r.l.y a young man who doesn't really need his momma much. I thought I was ready, but my heart is crying out for him. I truly understand the sage counsel of "enjoy every moment" because when they pass, they are gone forever and I miss the boy who lived down the hall and has moved into his own room, affectionately called, "The Dorm." I am, though, SO PROUD. While he will remain imperfect, he is one heck of a good boy..um young man...and he makes me look better than I am. I thank God for him. I am a blessed momma.
Bard is in the do-or-die period of school. Something about 14 year old boys gravitates toward lazy. I am pleased to report he is moving past that, so we have a semester to determine when he will follow his brothers footsteps and head to college himself. I look forward to this, but am happy to have some deeper time with this one. If he could see the potential in him that I see; see what God has in store for him; it would be a life changer for the both of us. I am proud of him, too. He just doesn't understand how being in the box can be a good thing. That's a great prayer for him...to appreciate the box. He has joined his brother on the local high school track team. I see great things in store for him, there. It takes a special kind of diligence to run so far for so long. GOD'S SPEED PACKERS!
Lil' Mother is fabulous as always. Growing up too fast for my tastes, she looks like a 16-18 year old and she's only 13. She's tender and beautful and I thank God for her. She continues to do "her" diligently in school and has thrived in sports this year. She and her sister joined the local Christian schools soccer team and are working toward playing softball there, too. She is a fine young lady who is strong in her faith and has taken to sleeping in a bit...it's that 14 thing, I suppose ;)
Darling yet Diva....the name explains it all. This girl wants to be "big" so badly. She is on her way physically, but her body is well behind her attitude. Guuuurrrrllll (roll your neck when you say it). Yeah, she's me all over and ya'll know how painful that can be. She is giving, compassionate, beautiful, and loves being with her friends. This one keeps me on my knees. So much power in that little body, I pray it is ALWAYS used for God's glory.
The Ax Man is starting to grow up....PRAISE GOD! I admit, he's my spoiled baby. Totally my fault. He's 9.5 and regulary acts 7, but the signs of maturity are peaking through the cracks and he is doing very well in school. Seeing that "click" in school indicates the rest is on the way. He is content to play baseball and build legos all day, fitting in school to his good pleasure. He is bored like crazy since the demise of the Little League, but it has been good for him. He appreciates (albeit too late) what he had and it has humbled my spoiled little boy. He's gonna be alright. He still snuggles and begs to sleep with me, which I do not allow, but sure wish I could. Instead, we snuggle on the couch throughout the day. He's a sweet little boy under the tough exterior. That's to be expected, I suppose, as the baby of five dear children.
So, that's been our year. School, more school, higher education, loss, gain, joy and pain. Through it all, Christ remains Christ and that is always enough at the end of the road. May your 2012 be spirit filled. Much love, Blogland friends. Much love. He blesses me, lifts me, loves me over and over and over again.

Welcome 2012

Oh, friends. It's been a full year. I have witnessed new marriage and broken marriage. Life and death. New babies and children sent to heaven before their parents. Personal triumphs and epic failures. The changing of lifes seasons that brought tears of joy and sorrow. Through it all, one thing remains constant: Jesus is Lord and I am blessed.
While blogging time is limited, I had to drop in and share this song because It couldn't be closer to the truth.
I pray that each of you can say the same as you strive for the just the right prescription in 2012. Love to you all. HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Week in Review 8/29/11--9/2/11 Grammar School Highlights version ;)

Just thought I'd share one thing from each subject this week for brevity and something new :)
Grammar school science continued with our flight study. Here are some narrations. My Ker did his best narration yet! This weeks lesson came from Apologia's/Fulbright's Flying Creature of the Fifth Day.

AtG: Birds run and flap their wings to take off. Birds use their wings to steer. They can also use their turns to do sharp turns. Birds flap their wings really fast and keep them straight out to glide. Birds go around and around when soaring.

The Ant:

       Some birds, when they take off, they run a little bit and then jump and start flapping their wings. Hawks don’t go on the ground that much, so they go on a cliff or tree branch and jump off, flap their wings and take off. They need air pressure to take off, so when they go to fly, they face where the air is coming it hits their wings and uses the shape of the airfoil.

          When a bird is flying, it uses its wings to steer, but when it goes to make a sharp turn, it uses its tail like a rudder. It can flap one wing faster than the other one and it can tilt.

          Birds flap their wings to get up in the air. Gliding is when they flap their wings, then stop flapping to save energy. Soaring is when heat waves (thermals) come up and lift the bird, carrying it through the air; birds don’t have to flap. 

Ax Man:

When the bird takes off it faces the wind because it wants to use air pressure for lift. Some birds are faster at take off because they have to be careful of predators. Some birds, like swans, have to run around the pond to create air pressure. Smaller birds, since they’re not as heavy, can jump up and go flying into the air. Hawks usually don’t land on the ground, so they go on tree branches and jump into the air because they’re so high.

          Birds steer by tilting side to side. They use their tail like a rudder for sharp turns. Sometimes, they flap one wing faster than the other to turn a certain way.

          Birds glide because they flap their wings hard and take a break by keeping their wings straight out, using a little energy. Soaring is when birds use the heat waves (thermals) to move around. Vultures, when they’re circling around are on heat waves and are looking for food. The difference between soaring and gliding is when they’re soaring, they’re riding on thermals and when they’re gliding, they use flapping as their power. 

Here are some pictures from our flyer fun.  

Art was brief this week, as there was a lot of copywork, so we will continue with a "master piece" next week.

The Phonics Road brought more spelling words, adverbs, and more prepositions, with the usual dictation and sentence parsing. The boys are really doing a great job of remembering all they've learned and are writing so much in science and history. I LOVE, love, love, oh yes, love PR! I also showed my kiddos how Robert Fulton was mentioned in my American Government text book. They thought it was pretty cool that good ole Bob, who is an amazing boy in their story, was studied in a college class.

History carried on with WWI. We did lots of outlining this week, as we read through
Where the Poppies Grow, DK EyewitnessBooks Presidents, Key Battles of World War I.  
The boys did a great job mapping and giving me great details to the story. They did quite well on their "tests" this week, too.

We're working on mental math with the Ant, still making 5's and practicing addition with AtG, and loads of division for Ax Man.

Great news for the boys, co-op is ON and since we'll have a second car soon, we'll be enjoying much theatre, PE, park day, and all together good times. I look forward to some little kid fun!

Tithing as Worship

Of all my years in believing in God, some were walked well, others not so much, and in that time, I've known many men of God. None (Save My Husband) have helped me grow so much in so little time as my pastor, Rev. Bernard Smith. He is a scribe first, in my honest opinion, then a teacher and pastor. He LOVES the word of God. He's a good match for me, because I LOVE the word of God, too. I'm a teacher; I just can't help but devour the richest meal ever written. He has taught me about tithing in a way I never understood: as worship, and helped me to understand deeply that, "Obedience is better than sacrifice." I admit, I have never understood tithing as worship. I just didn't get it. I thought, "Why on Earth would God give me money to handle my business, but then take it back as...worship? Huh?" So, this entry is in appreciation for the Pastor who loves like none I've ever known and to his wife who does the same. She is a remarkable women -- she has to be -- and wants to be. Her humble and meek spirit quietly bless me every.single.day. I am grateful for your example, First Lady, and I hope my rambling honor you well.
Anyone who knows me can attest that time and talent are no real sacrifice for me. I enjoy serving and I particularly like to serve where my strengths lie. Perhaps, this is why I now understand how tithing is worship and why, for me, it matters. I sacrifice time to serve in my strengths and while it requires obedience, it requires more sacrifice of little matters, than obedience. I gladly give my time and talent to the Lord -- in plain language, it's no big deal. That's how I know, "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." Matthew 11:30 is TRUTH. It's also being confirmed through tithing as worship.

I could hardly bring myself to sacrifice money. We have so little and my children benefit from electricity and water. They often have need of material things like socks and shoes. How could I sacrifice their needs and well being to tithe? Selfishly, the times there is an extra dollar or two, I'd rather enjoy a $1 movie and candy bar because it's a rare treat (my justification, not  a whole or honest truth) The answer to "how" is, I can't. If I don't have it to give, then I can't give it, but here's what I've learned. God provides ALL our needs. My kids have never gone without any of those things, despite my $0 checking account balance. Where cash does not flow, family and friends are tools of currency for the Lord; so why on Earth was I unwilling to offer a couple bucks to the offering? Why was I robbing God?
At first, I would not receive that I was robbing God because I gave so much to Him in other areas, then I really, truly HEARD...."All things come of thee, oh Lord. And OF THY OWN have we given unto thee." It's funny how you can recite something so many times, in vain, and not even realize your vanity. FINALLY, it came to life in my dense skull and I got it.....it's not like any of my strengths are mine to hold and it's not like any of the money I have is mine because I've earned or deserve it. It's all from Him. It's all for Him.  If I believe this, if I live this, if I offer this as truth to those who know me, then why was I coveting God's money?
Oh....robbing God. Yup, I said it. I had always been taught that verse in Malachi 3:10, ""Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse...." But somehow, I missed this part, "so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this," says the LORD of hosts, "if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows. (emphasis added to bring out 3 distinct points)

You see, I spent some time, as a young adult, in a church that heavily preached prosperity. You know the kind.....God will make you rich. YUP. I said that, too. The kind of church that basically promoted lots of materialism as a measure of your faithfulness. Yuck. While I appreciate the Lord would have His people prosper, I do defy that prosperity lies in financial and material wealth alone. I believe, out of that principle, and my personal stubborness and rebellion to such thought, I was turned off to tithing. I really wanted to be sure my relationship with Christ had nothing to do with money. It turns out, my end has had more to do with it than I understood. 
I studied tithing in the Old Testament. A different reality than our world, for certain. Much more communal, so I gave myself permission to be a receiver of tithes and offerings, in my impoverished state. I knew that the purpose of tithing, in a Joseph and grain sense, was a part of the body's provision to the people. The community of Christ. Since I was and am generally broke, I was content to let those with thicker wallets be the hands and feet of God's money. I was content to operate in my strengths, in all honestly not sacrificing money for the church...also not walking obediently for God, as I was not bringing any money to the storehouse.  Then, this comes to life through a tiny little church, with very little money, "...so that there may be food in My house..."
You see, for the first time in my life, I am a member of a church where I am not at or near the top of the poorest families list. In fact, I'm in a church that is almost the opposite of my long term church experience. There are fewer families in the Haves than the Have-Nots. For the first time in my life, I see people with greater spiritual prosperity than I, yet less financial resources.
I am humbled.
Remember me...I was content to let those with thicker wallets be the hands and feet of God's money.
I had accepted poverty. I had decided God would not make me financially prosperous because I had determined my place. Wow. My place was set in my 20's. How foolish I was. As if the Creator of the heavens and earth can be limited to two mere decades to establish a person's place in His kingdom. Wow. My youth and arrogance have gotten me in so much trouble, so many times!
Now I need to be those feet, even though my wallet is no thicker.
I went to my pastor and told him I wanted to tithe, but did not have any money to do so. His teachings in Acts 4:32-35 taught me about the Christian church and  

"All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. There were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need. " 

Could I share what I had and reduce the need in my church body? Even while I sometimes had personal need? I found a resounding, yes! in my heart. 
My husband, in truth without malice, is the financial authority in our home. He makes decisions of how our money is spent. His determination is we can hardly manage our bills and sometimes need benevolence, therefore we have none to give. I appreciate his perspective. So,  I prayed and promised. Moreso, I changed.  You know, birthday money, a little typing or babysitting job where you get a couple bucks. Yes, I've tithed on less than $10 and was grateful there's a place to tithe "Pennies from Heaven" in my church. I tell you this, not to elevate myself, but instead to elevate Christ. Recognizing that even in my state of affairs, my affairs were prosperous beyond those of others. I have so.very.much.And if I'm honest, there is something, somewhere I can give.
Then I continually hear,  

"and test me now in this." 

Wait a minute. Who am I to test, God? Yet, in this instance, He says, ""and test me now in this." My pastor has helped me to learn what it means to test the Lord, without disrespect...it's more of what I would call, open your will to the promises of God.  How can God operate and fulfill his promises, the precious things he wants so desperately to give his people, if His people are not open to the promise? He is unable because of my disobedience. If I was not bringing anything to the storehouse, how could he, "open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows?" If I don't fulfill the first part of the verse, "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse;" I can't expect Him to fulfill His part of the verse. That's why I needed to claim the promises of God --- not to receive the promise, but to be Obedient. Obedience is better than sacrifice because it opens the floodgates. Sacrifice drizzles out a few drops and allows a taste of the promise. Obedience IS BETTER than sacrifice -- it leaves God and man fulfilled.

So, how does worship  come into play here? Well, worship is no sacrifice for me. I LOVE, love, L.O.V.E. to worship. Honestly, I could spend all day in prayer and song. I would have made a descent nun :) I could worship and serve orphans happily! So, to incorporate tithing into worship was not in my radar, then it happened. Shortly after my pledge to the Lord and my commitment to obedience in this area, I am now able to tithe weekly with a little babysitting income. The first week I was able to pay all tithes and even share testimony of such at church. I cried like a baby. It strange how the Lord can give you strength to carry on and when the burden is lifted spiritually, it is also cleansed from your body and mind. I have rarely wanted to dance so much, to sing so much, to shout THANK YOU, LORD as I did while putting that little white envelope in the little white church. It turns out, my tithe is part of my witness to God's fulfillment of His word --- how about that! It turns out, that my little tiny bit of paycheck, and my littlier tiny bit of offering isn't about "how much" at all...except for how much He loves us.
It's worth repeating, Obedience IS BETTER than sacrifice -- it leaves God and man fulfilled. My obedience is tithing has opened His willingness to fulfill his promise. His loving kindness brings about worship, keeping me obedient there, too. Tithing also fulfills, the two great commandments as found in Mark, Chapter 12, 

“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.^e 30Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’^f 31The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^g There is no commandment greater than these.”

32“Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

I am loving my neighbors and church family as I love myself: deeming them receivers of "my" money. I am serving the lost beyond personal contact, for the glory of Christ's church, which are more important than my sacrifice. I am pointing to God and announcing His greatness as I witness to the True Prosperity He brings. His faithfulness endures forever! 
Tithing is really not about money. I'm glad I learned that...it only took me 23 years of walking with God :) I only hope that I remain faithful and in doing so, my obedience allows my pleasure in glorifying God through continued worship of all kinds, in word and deed and cash! Be blessed!

Bishop Paul S. Morton   Be Blessed

Be Blessed my brother,
Be blessed my sister,
Be blessed wherever this life leads you,
Let me encourage you,
Let me speak life to you,
You can depend on God to see you through,
You can depend on me to pray for you

You might be hurting,
You might be crying,
You might be worrying and frustrated to,
Let me encourage you let me speak life to you
You can can depend on God to see you through,
You can depend on me to pray for you
[ Lyrics from: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/b/bishop_paul_s_morton/be_blessed.html ]
Pray I'm gonna keep on prayin,
Pray I'm gonna keep on prayin for you,
Pray I'm gonna keep on prayin,
Pray I'm gonna keep on prayin for you
You can depend on God to see you thru,
You can depend on me to pray for you

Bridge:
I see you in the future.
And you look better,
I see you walking in favor and prosperity too,
Let me encourage you,
Let me speak life to you,
You can depend on God to see you through,
You can depend on me to pray for you

I pray for you,
You pray for me,
And watch God change things,
Repeat 1x

I pray for you,
You pray for me and watch God change things
Repeat 6x

Week in Review 8/22---8/26, 2011

Ker
Sharing in history and science as below :)
Our reading lessons are coming along nicely. We're in Week 5 of The Phonics Road Level 1. AtG did a great job of spelling words correctly and is picking up speed in his reading endeavors. He is currently reading, My A Book, by Jane Belk Moncure. His handwriting is lovely. We'll be focusing on consonant teams during our flashcard practice since he has the general letters down.
In math, AtG can identify ways to make tens and is practicing making fives. He also completes 46 addition problems a day, via the Holey Card.

Upper Grammar
Pretty smooth week this week. We carried on in our WWI studies. We're just getting into the beginning. We're reading Where the Poppies Grow, DK WyewitnessBooks Presidents, Key Battles of World War I and An Age of Extremes for grammar kids. We found our lost SOTW :) but I'm still not sure how I'll use it, as the boys don't love or miss. it. We shall see.
Instead of a diarama, we decided to make a trench in a small section of the backyard. I ordered these fun soldiers and we got to work!  

AtG was master of the sandbags.

The Ant knows about tunnel digging now. Good thing since he's the Ant.

Ax Man creating a well rounded tunnel.

Toby likes to dig, be outside and get dirty --- just like the rest of the Little League.

Dogboards were used as walk-ways, ladders, and make-shift bridges.

Battle in the trenches.

Coiled barbed wire (before playtime was allowed).

Our sandbags were huge AND red, but they got the point across!

Brothers in every sort of battle and play. They spent the afternoon in the dirt.

AtG wanted to be sure we had a mound of barbed wire. He apparently remembered it from the book and thought it was crucial -- you should have seen his face. Priceless!

We are moving along nicely in our first expedition of "tests." Not that I care about the scores, it's just something to get them used to independent study with measurable accountability. They each did fine on vocabulary and map tests today. Speaking of maps, we started "The Great State Race." Think Holey Cards but with the states instead. The Ant is currently in the lead with 39 memorized. They also did fine on a 1914-European map, including all water bodies. Lookin' pretty good so far. They are doing a fine job of independent and computer practice.

Ax Man finished Albert Einstein.

We skipped science this week on purpose. We had a couple of outings and appointments and I started back to college this week, so I adjusted for some easier days. It was a nice, small break in week 4 of our studies. Instead, we did some simple Netlix science and watched a video on tornadoes and watched the Wizard of Oz. We enjoyed the book and the movie. We also watched the hurricane travel about. That was a nice, organic intro. to the topic, as we will focus on weather for our next unit in science.

We moved forward in the Phonics Road Level 3. We studied adverbs, homographs and antonyms; we reviewed 60 level 2 words; and in literature, we had a very light week of reading in Bob Fulton, enjoying a special focus on PA via an acrostic poem of "LANCASTER." We also did a lot of dictation this week and practiced our sentence parsing.

Middle School
In their usual flare, the girls got busy this week in TOG. They read a good bit from The Complete Idiot's Guide to 20th Century History, The Usborne introduction to the First World War, Stories for Young People: O. Henry, A Night to Remember, The Gift of Music and The Century for Young People. They began a display board on WWI and continued their President's Cards.

Anatomy this week brought about bones and the skeletal system.

Regular lessons move forward in math (decimals, conversions) (exponents and distributive/associate properties).

Loads of dictation for DyD, and some serious note-taking and summary practice for Lil' Mother.

DyD made pumpkin snacks with AtG.

Both girls ENJOYED the baby!

High School
Continued reading in America in teh 1900s and 1910s, World War I by HP Wilmott, Imperialism: A History in Documents, A Poetry handbook, Words of Deliht, The Story of Painting, The Story of Architecture, Pygmalion, and Modern Revivalism. Also much note taking and online lectures from a college class on Modern History. They are also doing WWI Display Board projects.

Math brought negative numbers for Bard, a new FLVS Geometry Class and continued Algebra 2 as graphs in quadratic functions for RoGD. He'll be accelerating through Geometry so he can be ready for the College Entrance exams at the local college, where we hope he'll test into College Algebra.

In science, we continue our Biology Honors as we get forward a good bit. Bard is particularly enjoying this. As we're in a DNA place, we'll be watching Jurassic Park for some DNA splicing entertainment.


Crossover
The whole family has Veritas Cards 1-5 memorized. It's pretty effective when you actually do it everyday :P

We all watched The Wizard of Oz, The Call of the Wild (the girls finished the book), and IMAX Hawaii to go along with the annexation of HA during this time in history.

We did Art, lesson 3 on lines. We focused on shapes and did a still life. Here's a link to my Artistic Tuesday post.

Latin moves forward. No details to share b/c I need to have a meeting first  :)

College
American Government introduced types of government, with a focus on forms of Democracy and the American Political Culture.

Field Biology of FL introduced Earth's geology and the history of FL birth and settlement.

Other
Soccer coaches' meeting on Mon.
West Point information meeting on Tues.
Church Wed.
Class and rest on a rainy Thursday
Special church service for my pastor Friday
Soccer registration on the way Sat.
Church on Sun.
YUP! A busy week.

Artisic Tuesday Shapes

Today we learned about geometric and symmetrical shapes. Then, we drew a still life from 5 objects we found around the house. Our drawings were then colored in with water colors.
 

Ax Man's Point of View

Ax  Man's artwork.

Momma's point of view.

AtG just worked on drawing shapes.

Brothers and their artwork.