FOUND THESE SIX ARTICLES FROM FOCUS ON THE FAMILY. Thought they were good to share at this time+++
These are good also.
THY WILL BE DONE!!! +JMJ+
Friday, December 4, 2009
Imitation of Christ: meditation of the day-
The Fifty-Eighth Chapter
High Matters and the Hidden Judgments of God Are Not to Be Scrutinized
(part one)
The Voice of Christ
MY CHILD, beware of discussing high matters and God’s hidden judgments—why this person is so forsaken and why that one is favored with so great a grace, or why one man is so afflicted and another so highly exalted. Such things are beyond all human understanding and no reason or disputation can fathom the judgments of God.
When the enemy puts such suggestions in your mind, therefore, or when some curious persons raise questions about them, answer with the prophet: “Thou art just, O Lord, and righteous are Thy judgments”; Ps. 119:137. and this: “The judgments of the Lord are true and wholly righteous.” Ps. 19:9. My judgments are to be feared, not discussed, because they are incomprehensible to the understanding of men.
In like manner, do not inquire or dispute about the merits of the saints, as to which is more holy, or which shall be greater in the kingdom of heaven. Such things often breed strife and useless contentions. They nourish pride and vainglory, whence arise envy and quarrels, when one proudly tries to exalt one saint and the other another. A desire to know and pry into such matters brings forth no fruit. On the contrary, it displeases the saints, because I am the God, not of dissension, but of peace—of that peace which consists in true humility rather than in self-exaltation.
I think what Thomas a Kempis is trying to tell us is to don't be petty over small things. Watch our gossip. I know I tend to justify my gossip in thinking I am just clearing something up or I need to be sure about this...we need to be at peace and not bother with other peoples business.
THY WILL BE DONE!!! +JMJ+
High Matters and the Hidden Judgments of God Are Not to Be Scrutinized
(part one)
The Voice of Christ
MY CHILD, beware of discussing high matters and God’s hidden judgments—why this person is so forsaken and why that one is favored with so great a grace, or why one man is so afflicted and another so highly exalted. Such things are beyond all human understanding and no reason or disputation can fathom the judgments of God.
When the enemy puts such suggestions in your mind, therefore, or when some curious persons raise questions about them, answer with the prophet: “Thou art just, O Lord, and righteous are Thy judgments”; Ps. 119:137. and this: “The judgments of the Lord are true and wholly righteous.” Ps. 19:9. My judgments are to be feared, not discussed, because they are incomprehensible to the understanding of men.
In like manner, do not inquire or dispute about the merits of the saints, as to which is more holy, or which shall be greater in the kingdom of heaven. Such things often breed strife and useless contentions. They nourish pride and vainglory, whence arise envy and quarrels, when one proudly tries to exalt one saint and the other another. A desire to know and pry into such matters brings forth no fruit. On the contrary, it displeases the saints, because I am the God, not of dissension, but of peace—of that peace which consists in true humility rather than in self-exaltation.
I think what Thomas a Kempis is trying to tell us is to don't be petty over small things. Watch our gossip. I know I tend to justify my gossip in thinking I am just clearing something up or I need to be sure about this...we need to be at peace and not bother with other peoples business.
THY WILL BE DONE!!! +JMJ+
Surviving Homeschool Burnout:
This was found from The Homeschool Mom website.
Surviving Homeschool Burnout
Karen M. Gibson
Burnout happens to all homeschoolers at least once, sometimes more than once in our homeschooling journeys. Even those who do not follow a scope and sequence or a particular curriculum can fall victim to burnout. We all have expectations, internal and external, on ourselves and our children and those expectations can easily lead us to question why we are homeschooling and if we should continue to homeschool.
Burnout Symptoms
* Overreacting to situations
* Irritability
* Feeling overwhelmed
* Crying often
* Lack of confidence
* Yelling
* Feeling frustrated
* Exhaustion
* Overeating and/or lack of appetite
* Rosy thoughts of public school
* Chasing down the school bus
Burnout Causes
* Expectations of others (family, friends, even spouses)
* Our own expectations concerning our household, family, homeschool (feeling we have to "prove" we can succeed at homeschooling or that we have to maintain certain housekeeping standards)
* Unreal expectations concerning curriculum or resources that do not fit our children’s learning styles
* Outside activities consuming our lives
* Isolation, not enough outside interaction
* Focusing solely on homeschooling and not other areas of family life
* Parent / Child conflicts (parenting issues)
Burnout Cures
* Setting boundaries with family and friends - let the answering machine pick up during "school hours" and/or put a "school's in session" sign outside the door
* Reducing outside activities
* Finding time for yourself- admitting that you need time away from it all, personal time, personal space. This might be bath at night after your spouse comes home or quiet time during the afternoon or even letting the kids sleep later in the morning to get gain some solitude time
* Finding time for husband and wife together – make dates, let your children realize you are a couple, not just mommy and daddy
* Finding time to just enjoy your children – don’t make every moment a teaching moment. Play with your children, enjoy their company, talk to them and listen to them
* Reducing academic expectations - change resources, take more breaks, do less busy work, don't worry about finishing that textbook by the end of the year, skip over material, slow down, decide whether your children and you really need a schedule
* Cease worrying about "gaps" as yes, you will miss something!
* Focus on learning styles and interests, rather than the textbooks and grade levels
* Connect with other homeschool parents, swap stories, compare notes … very few actual have that "perfect homeschool" that we all picture ... it just does not exist!
* Consider another way to cover a subject that is causing stress - swap with another parent to teach a particular subject or ask your spouse to take over in that area, find a tutor (online or in real life), enroll in the dual-enrollment program at your college or a cyber-program
* Reduce your household expectations, hire someone to clean or enlisting your family’s help (children and spouse)
* More outside activity - exercise for both you and children
* Having a park day or special day every so often to just enjoy, no schoolwork!
* Raise independent learners
* Make meal time easier - plan meals in advance, find quick and easy meals, use your crockpot
* Getting enough rest – easier said than done. Maybe trade babysitting time with a friend or neighbor or hire a mother’s helper to come in and watch your young children while you nap.
* Eat well, take your vitamins, and exercise, even if all you do is go for an early morning walk before everyone wakes up.
* Pursue your own interests – you will worry less and also renew your own batteries by doing something solely for yourself. In addition, your children may discover a new area of interest for themselves
* Parent / Child conflicts - review your expectations, are they age appropriate?
* Involve your children more in their education, in the choosing resources and subjects to study, thereby empowering your children and building their self-confidence and abilities
Homeschool burnout is survivable. Once you recognize that you are in the throes of a burnout, often all it takes is a few proactive steps to begin the journey to recovery. We need to recognize that often homeschooling burnout is not really about homeschooling at all, but about life and family and not taking care of ourselves. After all, how can we expect to nurture our families if we do not nurture ourselves at the same time?
2008 Addendum
I highly recommend homeschooling pioneers Dr. Raymond Moore and Dorothy Moore’s books as both prevention and remedy for homeschool burnout. While the Moore’s write from a Christian perspective (they were missionaries), their books do not preach and non-Christians or those wishing a secular approach will find the information well worth the occasional mention of religion. The Moore’s advocate delayed academics, allowing children to play and enjoy childhood, and also stress the importance of family life and service to others, among other things. For more information on the Moore Formula, visit The Moore Foundation.
Here are the Moore books I most often recommend:
1. Home School Burnout: What It Is. What Causes It. And How to Overcome It - No longer in print, but used copies are available. A classic. Here is part of the description from the dust jacket of my copy:
This book has been written as a reassurance to all parents of the undeniable value of home-based education. By means of real-life examples and new, continually reaffirming research, the Moore’s will take readers “back” to the undisputable “why’s” of home schooling.
Then they systematically guide parents through the reasons why many disassemble their home schools. Why they – and their kids – burn out. And in explaining this, the Moore’s carefully escort parents back to their own sound reasons for deciding to home school, reassuring them to stay with it. For the good of both them and their children.
As with all the Moore’s books, Home School Burnout is thoroughly documented. At the same time, with compassion, it encourages parents back from desperation and frustration to sanity and realism.
2. Better Late Than Early: A New Approach to Your Child’s Education
3. Home Grown Kids: A Practical Handbook for Teaching Your Children at Home
4. The Successful Homeschool Family Handbook: A Creative and Stress-Free Approach to Homeschooling. Part of the description from the back cover:
With a realistic look at the problems homeschooling parents face, this comprehensive handbook offers practical strategies that help you
* Choose a curriculum that really works for you and your children
* Avoid student resentment and parent burnout
* Target your child’s interest and motivation to make learning fun
* Help your child excel in educational goals, including standardized tests
* Understand how a child’s developmental stages contribute to learning
* See the big picture of family and society in the learning process
This creative approach to homeschooling puts the family first, without sacrificing educational quality. Based on extensive research and use, The Successful Homeschool Family Handbook offers a creative alternative to the regular classroom approach.
Copyright 2004, Addendum Copyright 2008
THY WILL BE DONE!!! +JMJ+
Surviving Homeschool Burnout
Karen M. Gibson
Burnout happens to all homeschoolers at least once, sometimes more than once in our homeschooling journeys. Even those who do not follow a scope and sequence or a particular curriculum can fall victim to burnout. We all have expectations, internal and external, on ourselves and our children and those expectations can easily lead us to question why we are homeschooling and if we should continue to homeschool.
Burnout Symptoms
* Overreacting to situations
* Irritability
* Feeling overwhelmed
* Crying often
* Lack of confidence
* Yelling
* Feeling frustrated
* Exhaustion
* Overeating and/or lack of appetite
* Rosy thoughts of public school
* Chasing down the school bus
Burnout Causes
* Expectations of others (family, friends, even spouses)
* Our own expectations concerning our household, family, homeschool (feeling we have to "prove" we can succeed at homeschooling or that we have to maintain certain housekeeping standards)
* Unreal expectations concerning curriculum or resources that do not fit our children’s learning styles
* Outside activities consuming our lives
* Isolation, not enough outside interaction
* Focusing solely on homeschooling and not other areas of family life
* Parent / Child conflicts (parenting issues)
Burnout Cures
* Setting boundaries with family and friends - let the answering machine pick up during "school hours" and/or put a "school's in session" sign outside the door
* Reducing outside activities
* Finding time for yourself- admitting that you need time away from it all, personal time, personal space. This might be bath at night after your spouse comes home or quiet time during the afternoon or even letting the kids sleep later in the morning to get gain some solitude time
* Finding time for husband and wife together – make dates, let your children realize you are a couple, not just mommy and daddy
* Finding time to just enjoy your children – don’t make every moment a teaching moment. Play with your children, enjoy their company, talk to them and listen to them
* Reducing academic expectations - change resources, take more breaks, do less busy work, don't worry about finishing that textbook by the end of the year, skip over material, slow down, decide whether your children and you really need a schedule
* Cease worrying about "gaps" as yes, you will miss something!
* Focus on learning styles and interests, rather than the textbooks and grade levels
* Connect with other homeschool parents, swap stories, compare notes … very few actual have that "perfect homeschool" that we all picture ... it just does not exist!
* Consider another way to cover a subject that is causing stress - swap with another parent to teach a particular subject or ask your spouse to take over in that area, find a tutor (online or in real life), enroll in the dual-enrollment program at your college or a cyber-program
* Reduce your household expectations, hire someone to clean or enlisting your family’s help (children and spouse)
* More outside activity - exercise for both you and children
* Having a park day or special day every so often to just enjoy, no schoolwork!
* Raise independent learners
* Make meal time easier - plan meals in advance, find quick and easy meals, use your crockpot
* Getting enough rest – easier said than done. Maybe trade babysitting time with a friend or neighbor or hire a mother’s helper to come in and watch your young children while you nap.
* Eat well, take your vitamins, and exercise, even if all you do is go for an early morning walk before everyone wakes up.
* Pursue your own interests – you will worry less and also renew your own batteries by doing something solely for yourself. In addition, your children may discover a new area of interest for themselves
* Parent / Child conflicts - review your expectations, are they age appropriate?
* Involve your children more in their education, in the choosing resources and subjects to study, thereby empowering your children and building their self-confidence and abilities
Homeschool burnout is survivable. Once you recognize that you are in the throes of a burnout, often all it takes is a few proactive steps to begin the journey to recovery. We need to recognize that often homeschooling burnout is not really about homeschooling at all, but about life and family and not taking care of ourselves. After all, how can we expect to nurture our families if we do not nurture ourselves at the same time?
2008 Addendum
I highly recommend homeschooling pioneers Dr. Raymond Moore and Dorothy Moore’s books as both prevention and remedy for homeschool burnout. While the Moore’s write from a Christian perspective (they were missionaries), their books do not preach and non-Christians or those wishing a secular approach will find the information well worth the occasional mention of religion. The Moore’s advocate delayed academics, allowing children to play and enjoy childhood, and also stress the importance of family life and service to others, among other things. For more information on the Moore Formula, visit The Moore Foundation.
Here are the Moore books I most often recommend:
1. Home School Burnout: What It Is. What Causes It. And How to Overcome It - No longer in print, but used copies are available. A classic. Here is part of the description from the dust jacket of my copy:
This book has been written as a reassurance to all parents of the undeniable value of home-based education. By means of real-life examples and new, continually reaffirming research, the Moore’s will take readers “back” to the undisputable “why’s” of home schooling.
Then they systematically guide parents through the reasons why many disassemble their home schools. Why they – and their kids – burn out. And in explaining this, the Moore’s carefully escort parents back to their own sound reasons for deciding to home school, reassuring them to stay with it. For the good of both them and their children.
As with all the Moore’s books, Home School Burnout is thoroughly documented. At the same time, with compassion, it encourages parents back from desperation and frustration to sanity and realism.
2. Better Late Than Early: A New Approach to Your Child’s Education
3. Home Grown Kids: A Practical Handbook for Teaching Your Children at Home
4. The Successful Homeschool Family Handbook: A Creative and Stress-Free Approach to Homeschooling. Part of the description from the back cover:
With a realistic look at the problems homeschooling parents face, this comprehensive handbook offers practical strategies that help you
* Choose a curriculum that really works for you and your children
* Avoid student resentment and parent burnout
* Target your child’s interest and motivation to make learning fun
* Help your child excel in educational goals, including standardized tests
* Understand how a child’s developmental stages contribute to learning
* See the big picture of family and society in the learning process
This creative approach to homeschooling puts the family first, without sacrificing educational quality. Based on extensive research and use, The Successful Homeschool Family Handbook offers a creative alternative to the regular classroom approach.
Copyright 2004, Addendum Copyright 2008
THY WILL BE DONE!!! +JMJ+
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Imitation of Christ: Meditation of the Day-
The Fifty-Seventh Chapter
A Man Should Not Be Too Downcast When He Falls Into Defects
The Voice of Christ
MY CHILD, patience and humility in adversity are more pleasing to Me than much consolation and devotion when things are going well.
Why are you saddened by some little thing said against you? Even if it had been more you ought not to have been affected. But now let it pass. It is not the first, nor is it anything new, and if you live long it will not be the last.
You are manly enough so long as you meet no opposition. You give good advice to others, and you know how to strengthen them with words, but when unexpected tribulation comes to your door, you fail both in counsel and in strength. Consider your great weakness, then, which you experience so often in small matters. Yet when these and like trials happen, they happen for your good.
Put it out of your heart as best you know how, and if it has touched you, still do not let it cast you down or confuse you for long. Bear it patiently at least, if you cannot bear it cheerfully. Even though you bear it unwillingly, and are indignant at it, restrain yourself and let no ill-ordered words pass your lips at which the weak might be scandalized. The storm that is now aroused will soon be quieted and your inward grief will be sweetened by returning grace. “I yet live,” says the Lord, “ready to help you and to console you more and more, if you trust in Me and call devoutly upon Me.”
Remain tranquil and prepare to bear still greater trials. All is not lost even though you be troubled oftener or tempted more grievously. You are a man, not God. You are flesh, not an angel. How can you possibly expect to remain always in the same state of virtue when the angels in heaven and the first man in paradise failed to do so? I am He Who rescues the afflicted and brings to My divinity those who know their own weakness.
The Disciple
Blessed be Your words, O Lord, sweeter to my mouth than honey and the honeycomb. What would I do in such great trials and anxieties, if You did not strengthen me with Your holy words? If I may but attain to the haven of salvation, what does it matter what or how much I suffer? Grant me a good end. Grant me a happy passage out of this world. Remember me, my God, and lead me by the right way into Your kingdom.
Dear Lord, Help me with the little things like not nagging my teenagers and having patience with my tired little ones. Give me a compassionate and charitable heart to be kind to those that drive me crazy, the person who is so different than me. Let me be more like You to those I encounter+
THY WILL BE DONE!!! +JMJ+
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
TOY REVIEW TUESDAY: join in...
OK...so it is Christmas time and we are all trying to scramble around and find the perfect gifts for our families!!! Well, let me tell you...THERE IS NO PERFECT GIFT!!! I have searched and searched for over 20 years to find it and it isn't there.
The closest thing to perfect is another sibling for the little darlings to play with, learn from,fight, debate, serve, help, adore, listen to, ignore, share, discuss, cuddle, and love, to say a few.
Perfect would be spending our lifetime getting those we love to heaven!!!
THY WILL BE DONE!!! +JMJ+
HAPPY BIRTHDAY 4 YEAR OLD!!!
my little diva
two Sharons
when you became a big sister
hugging your sweet Josh
the girls
the proud big sister againMay God keep you close to Him always!!! Thanks for adding spice to our lives!!!
THY WILL BE DONE!!! +JMJ+
IMITATION OF CHRIST: meditation of the day-
Imitation of CHRIST (it has been awhile) part three:
The Disciple
The Disciple
Lord Jesus, as You have said, so be it, and what You have promised, let it be my lot to win. I have received the cross, from Your hand I have received it. I will carry it, carry it even unto death as You have laid it upon me. Truly, the life of a good religious man is a cross, but it leads to paradise. We have begun—we may not go back, nor may we leave off.
Take courage, brethren, let us go forward together and Jesus will be with us. For Jesus’ sake we have taken this cross. For Jesus’ sake let us persevere with it. He will be our help as He is also our leader and guide. Behold, our King goes before us and will fight for us. Let us follow like men. Let no man fear any terrors. Let us be prepared to meet death valiantly in battle. Let us not suffer our glory to be blemished by fleeing from the Cross.
Lord help me persevere through suffering. Guide me closer to you. Help me prepare my heart this advent TO BE READY TO CELEBRATE YOUR BIRTH.
THY WILL BE DONE!!! +JMJ+
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