conf part 2!

ok. seriously the conf to me came in 2 parts

fri- buy curriculum
fri night-satday- finding myself surrounded with others who share the same mindset as me!= thrilling!

our guest speaker was sally clarkson. who is a smarty pants home schooling lady but most important raised 4 amazing kids who are out there changing the world

after listening to mrs. sally speak i realised that homeschooling fits our family or rather my thoughts, desires and wants for our family (chris too but it's me typing not him ha)

so what is that?  it's not the academics, its the relationship

not once during the entire conf, workshops, updates or chats was the kid's education (academics) discussed.  sure it's important but it's not the foundation

simply put. it's me finding out who i am or rather what god created me to be.  and be it it without looking at others or comparing

so what is that?  i was created for many things, i know i've already done most of them but this season is the most important yet

i am a warrior princess
i am a wife
i am a mom
i am a relationship builder with my kids (kids!!  more than 1..ha!)
i am a home maker
i am a home educator

lets talk about the home educator bec it's very new to me...but what i've discovered is this
i have the chance to train and raise my kids for life, jobs, ministry
i have the chance to reach their hearts!  who are they really? what will they do? how can i help them achieve this?
i have the chance to spend time with them, laying a foundation
i have the chance to inspire them to be what they were created to be
i have the chance to prepare them to go into the world one day and thrive
i have the chance to show them how to live for god
i have a chance to show them how to handle pressure, stress, anxiety, problems...the right way
i have the chance to teach them that they have something to give, to send them off as warriors
i have the chance to create an environment that they can be inspired, challenged, educated, savour, convict, build relationships
i have the chance to create a legacy with my kids
i have the chance to define, create and encourage our own family culture
i have the chance to invest in my kids. spiritually, physically, emotionally, financially

i have been given this chance, for this season and i will never get it back.  how will i use these days? years?

as i type, i feel no pressure just happy that i have been given this chance.  it makes me happy. i know my place and i know where i am going.  i know i am not alone, there are others out there who share my chances and it's wise to surround yourself with those who believe with you

i've been staying quiet about home schooling after hearing some comments that were not so positive.  i realised over the weekend that i can't be held responsible for the feelings of others if they agree or not.  when i talk about home school, i am speaking about us.  no one else. this is best for my family!

i also realised that there is good and bad with this lifestyle

all choices have consequences!

i read this on fri morning and it's so fitting for today!

in the multitude of anxieties within me, your comfort delights my soul....ps 94:19

as i continue on this journey, i tell (cry!!!!) myself in the midst of it all, his comfort delights my soul....that fleshy, icky, bossy, demanding side of me....ha! 0 comments

Posted by mel at 2:07 PM

conference!

nate took this pic of the mommy robin last week, he ran into the house asked to use my camera and snapped it. not bad buddy!

nate all ready in the van to see nan, papa, quinn and charlie

1 min after we checked into our room on friday afternoon.  he needed his rest bec we had to hurry to get to the used book sale!  we set a budget of 300 for curric for nate. i knew what i wanted and i knew most of it was pricey.  i was thrilled that we scored big time at the sale...we got everything under 300!

just as the sale was ending, chris went to the van and i waited in the hallway, next thing i knew boxes and boxes of books were being dumped on the 'free' table!  i grabbed as much as i could that we would use.  most of it was for older kids but man! talk about being in the right place at the right time!  i even scored a math u see algebra for chris to play with....haha....all the books above were FREE!!!

this is what we bought

this is what i am using this yr

math-math u see primer. we bought the dvd, teachers manual and student book new

educating the wholehearted child is for me. haha

canada. basic info book on canada

heath, nutrition and safety, this book is super fun!!!

patternables. my big splurge!  we bought the shapes used and the book new. i am going to scan them onto card stock then laminate them

teach your child to read n 100 lessons with sing, speak and spell. i am not 100% sure how nate is going to thrive when learning to read, phonics? or memorization. so far it's a mix of both so i though i would throw in another curric for him...we shall see

4 square for writing. not sure if he's going to be doing this...

so i bought everything with the thoughts that we would use it next yr and for gr 1.  i plan on letting him set the pace and i will follow. if he's ready, great! if not, great! at least i have somethings to get started

AND i am under budget!  so i can buy a pair of shoes for me and little miss. e

ha!

(shan, if u see something u wanna try i can photocopy it for ya)

0 comments

Posted by mel at 12:13 PM

3 d take 3!

here she is at 32 weeks!  this is the best pic we could get of her. she loves to move and cover her face with her feet and hands. she's also quite the chubba.  her cheeks are full and her lips are pouty.  the tec who did the ultrasound said she was a larger baby....yikes....she's also growing out of room and is informing me of this by her punches and kicks, esp at 3 am...yawnnnn....i was up last night from 3-5...i think she's training me early. ha!

i was SO weird and odd to be alone yesterday!  i had a massage which was so wonderful-good!  then ran errands, met chris and went out for dinner. we ate in quiet, uninterrupted conversation. and yet, i miss my doodle boy

i guess it's true once a parent, you will never go back to how it use to be!  2 comments

Posted by mel at 11:39 AM

nate's gift for me!

nate is in hali with my parents for generations.  he left me this.....hahaha! 1 comments

Posted by mel at 8:38 PM

monday's madness!

i met chris for a coffee and we stopped at the park. chris and i were talking and nate was busy by the tree. so i asked him or rather yelled "doodle! whatcha doing?"

his reply? "just killing ants'

oya!

what a busy day!  seriously!  the morning was spent running errands and getting groceries. i  love food day! our fridge is stoked and my belly is full! 

i asked nate what he wanted to do in the afternoon, thinking it's only fair and he was very good this am. he said "go to the splash park and have a picnic lunch"

i sat on the bench and froze, it was a bit cooler than yesterday and nate got soaked!

then we had lunch. him sandwich, yop, healthy chips. me. carrots (yum!) pita bread with hummus (super YUM!) an apple and water. perfect picnic lunch

we have a free loader! but they are so cute i've decided to let them stay. we have a mama and a papa robin!!! they made this wicked nest and have 4 little (could be more can't quite count them) blue eggs!!!  i can't wait until they hatch and we have baby robins!  imagine how they would sound!  nate has been educated with the DO NOT TOUCH and the  more famous LEAVE THEM ALONE lecture and takes it very serious

i told him his job is to leave them alone, this works cause nate is very task orientated!

1 comments

Posted by mel at 4:34 PM

sundayness!

after church, i packed a yummio lunch and we headed off to the park for some family fun

after we ate, the boys napped

nate and i drying off from the splash pad

then a walk in the woods was had

nate on the tank!

what beautiful weather!  wanting to take full advantage of the sunny days before the baby comes, i insisted on a family day with fun. we did have fun. ha!
0 comments

Posted by mel at 6:13 PM

31 weeks and nursery!

me. this morning. 31 weeks baby!  i am up another pound but feel great!

chris and i finished the nursery yesterday, just the minor thing like hanging the black out curtain, the shelves and what not.  here she is. it's very simple and done on a budget...don;t be expecting anything special!

wonderful cross stitch on the wall as you come in, made by a dear friend  for me before i got married and has hung on the wall of both my kids!

as you come in the door. the crib, rug, curtains and rocking chair to the left

the malaria curtain. hahaha.  as i refer to it. it was a princess thing with these tassels hanging from the triangles, i cut them off and glued butterflies instead

nate trying it out. ha.

bringing home outfit. there is a story behind it. it's about 10 yrs old, i bought it when we were believing for nate, i had a boy outfit which nate wore home and dress which little miss e will wear home.  it's extra special because charlie wore it home too, i gave it to my sister for her to wear.  i wanted it to be worn not matter who's child it was. my sister gave it back last week with the flower, i plan on putting the flower on her cap while she's in the hospital, charlie also wore it.  sigh

the back of the nursery, the change table and shelves above it for her shoes. haha.  the top shelf is full of shoes...chris and i made the change table for nate 5 yrs ago....and the dresser was given to me before i was married by the same friend who made the cross stitch...the room is full of memories and such!

so there you go!  nursery is done!  7ish more weeks to go!!! 5 comments

Posted by mel at 5:31 PM