God's work in Mexico....

(This video is in English.)

Cheesy Vegetable Potato Soup

I got this recipe many years ago from a pastor's wife. It has become a family favorite. (Well, except for one daughter who has an aversion to cabbage and anything the even thinks might have an onion in it.....)

I am going to share the recipe as written, but I pretty much quit measuring anything in this recipe long ago. You almost can't mess it up.

3 T. butter
1/2 c. sliced celery
1/2 c. sliced onion
1/2 c. sliced carrots
1/2 c. sliced cabbage
3 chicken bouillon cubes (I use powdered bouillon.)
1 quart water
1 c. diced potatoes
8 slices American cheese (or shredded cheddar or a hunk of Velveeta)

Saute onions, celery, carrots, and cabbage in butter until tender.  Add bouillon cubes and water. Bring to a boil and add potatoes. Simmer for about 30 minutes. Turn off and add cheese. Stir until cheese is melted.

Bro. Bob's Points on Parenting

Note: This is an outline of a sermon preached by a dear pastor friend of our Bro. Bob Jennings. When we visited his home (a few states away from us) several years back, I asked his wife for her granola recipe. She jotted it down and gave it to me. When I looked at it I noticed that she had written it on the back of a paper with this outline printed on it. I keep it in my Bible and read it when I'm feeling insufficient or frustrated as a parent.

1. Christian parents are ultimately cast upon the grace of God.
     A. Samuel, 1 Sam. 8:1f
     B. Hezekiah

2. Parenting is a joy, a great blessing. Psalm 127:5, 128:4

3. But parenting is also a challenge with responsibilities. It can be a grief. 1 Kings 1:6

4. The child's self-will must be broken. Proverbs 29:15

5. Reprove firmly, mean what you say. 1 Sam. 2:23, 3:13

6. Reprove with kindness; nobly, not cheaply. Psalm 141:5

7. Beware of hypocrisy. Luke 12:1, 1 Peter 5:3

8. Don't exasperate the children. Col. 3:21

9. Teach the children to be tough, to endure hardship without complaints and even taking it cheerfully. 2 Tim. 2:3

10. Instill a spirit of disciple 2 Tim. 1:7 NAS

11. Teach them to be hard workers. Gen. 24:20

12. Let the child be needed and feel needed. 2 Tim. 4:11

13. Do all you can together as a family. Acts 2:46

14 Father and mother must show deep unity. Psalm 133:1

15. Overall, you are teaching them that it is God with whom they have to do. Psalm 34:11

You can see a video of Bro. Bob preaching a sermon on parenting here.

An Open Letter to Friends and Family

(Another "catch-up" post....I began this one several weeks back, but never finished it up.)

Dear Friends & Family,

As I sit here writing this letter, I am very much aware that there is a tiny little person being formed inside of me. This is the 8th time I've known the joy of discovering that God is busy knitting someone special in my womb. It is the 8th time I've been able to tell my husband the news of a tiny little body growing secretly within. It is the 8th time I will soon find myself outgrowing my clothing, eating much more than normal, feeling super sleepy, finding that smells are many times a bit too strong for me. It is the 8th time I've told you all that I'm going to be a mom....again.

I know that many of you do not understand our true joy at such news. I know that for many of you, the news that yet another baby is going to join our household is, well, just a bit too much. Too much to imagine. Too much to comprehend. Too much to understand. Too much. Or, as some have even vocalized, "too many". <sigh>

I know I cannot change anyone's mind about anything. And that's okay. I'm not really trying to change your mind. I'm not even trying to be understood. I'm okay with being misunderstood. Really all I want to do is point you to the One Who made all this possible in the first place. The One Who called me to this journey. The One Who placed all 8 of those tiny babies inside my womb to grow into a new member of our family. The One Who is the Giver of Life.

The Bible never, ever talks about bearing children as anything other than a blessing. It is never seen as a burden to be endured or even avoided. Bearing children is what we were created to do. It is one of the primary responsibilities... privileges....of womanhood.

We've heard many things over the years from many people....things like "Don't you know what causes that?" "You sure have your hands full!" and even "You people are crazy!"

It seems that one of the biggest misunderstanding people have about our particular situation is that they think we have all these children because we are "trying for another boy". We have one son, followed by six sisters. And while we've always hoped for another boy, we've NEVER been discontent with our girls. And now, we will probably be misunderstood even more......

While we are *thrilled* to be having another boy, this doesn't necessarily mean we're "done" having children. 

“For who has known the mind of the Lord,

    or who has been his counselor?” 

Romans 11:34 (ESV)

And we will be happy with another one, no matter the gender! 

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A Late Start

(Note: I've been "missing in action" for a few months from this blog....due in part to a little person who will be joining our family around the end of May. :) This is one of my "catch-up" posts. Although it is January when I'm posting, this documents events from September....yes, I'm that far behind....) :)

I've been known to say that the best part of homeschooling is the flexibility. This year has really put that into practice for us. I had grand plans to get started at least "on time" this year, say, around the first of September. But other things happened.....

We decided to finally put down the new flooring in the school room. So instead of pulling out our books for the new school year, I was busy taking everything out of the school room. Of course, with everything out, it was also the perfect time for a new coat of paint. So I painted away before hubby had a chance to get started with the floor.

Furniture removed.

 The girls enjoyed drawing "roads" on the carpet.

 Carpet coming out...

 This is the temporary home of the contents of the school room (aka dining room). 

 Working away....

We had to replace some rotten wood on the door frame. 

 Found our first big snag.....carpenter ants. We had to replace about 8 feet of the beam. Not part of the plan....

 One of the "helpers". :)

This "hole" was a part of our room for about 5 days. We had to turn off the AC during the daytime "working hours" (in 100+ heat!!) and we covered it with a large blanket at night to keep out the mosquitoes. We did turn on the AC at night when the "hole" was covered. Probably not greatly energy efficient, but at least we slept comfortably. :)

Once the "hole" was finished, with the door re-hung (twice actually since it didn't swing properly the first time...), Daddy and helpers started laying the floor.

They worked hard!

And we LOVE the final result!!

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Our School Room

Summer break is drawing quickly to a close and the new school year is almost upon us. It's exciting while at the same time a little scary. I've just really enjoyed these relaxed summer days. :) And this year I have a high school student! Yikes!

In honor of the coming-too-quickly event, I want to share our school room. I've done some organizing to make it a little more convenient.

Here is where we start our school days. We begin by reading a chapter of the Old Testament followed by a chapter of the New Testament. We are reading straight through each Testament. We are currently in 1 Kings and 1 Timothy. :) We then work on memorizing this catechism and read a selection from some book I've chosen. We have completed Everyday Graces: Child's Book Of Good Manners (Foundations) recently. Other books we read include missionary stories, books on manners, character-building stories, etc. We end this time by having each person say what they are thankful for that day.

I then use this table to work with whoever needs me. The little ones also usually stay here for their work while the older 3 move to the dining room, with the girls at the dining room table and Joshua at a desk.

In this closer view you can see my great big white board. I LOVE this board! It is actually a piece of the material used to line shower walls. We purchased it from Home Depot, along with the plastic edging pieces for around $15-$20. Great deal! 

I also have a small bookshelf with our currently used books close at hand and my file cabinets. I use them to file away all the workbooks that I have cut up. Yes, you read that right...cut up. Instead of having my children write in the workbooks, I chop off the spines and make them into loose-leaf pages. We insert these into page protectors and use dry-erase markers or crayons. Much more cost effective than purchasing new workbooks for each child. The only exception to this is the set of Preschool Workbooks (Early Learning Workbooks)I use when my children are around 4. 

You can also see our Markable Map on the wall. It has the US on the other side. We also have a color version of this map. 

Across the room from our table we have the computer corner. This is where the children do their Rosetta Stone Latin American Spanish as well as the games for their Singapore Math . I also have a copier that my husband found for me on one of his thrift store hunts!! I LOVE having this!! He's great like that! :)

In the other corner we have the "baby container" and a bookshelf (there is another one in the opposite corner...when you use Sonlight curriculum, you need a LOT of shelf space!) and 2 rolling carts. Each of my girls has a drawer for storing her things. This includes workbooks and notebooks for the older 4, puzzles for the 2 year old who LOVES puzzles (you can see her in the photo playing with puzzles and baby toys) and a drawer with baby toys for the 1 year old....for when we let her out of jail the baby container. :) Joshua keeps his workbooks and binders in his desk drawers. 

My newest organization project this year was this closet. It doesn't look that great (this is the only part of our house that was never updated!) but I'm really excited about it. I now have a place to put all these supplies and close the door. The best part is that there is a nice bolt at the top of the door to keep little people from grabbing permanent markers and writing on my lovely dry erase board! :)

Well, there you  have it! We are pretty much organized now and ready to start the new year! (I think.....)

How about you? What kind of storage/materials do you have in your schoolroom or school space?



  

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