Busyness vs a day of togetherness

I was in the busyness of today, driving children to and from the places they need to be, when I heard a poem on the radio. I was challenged to think about how I spend my days with my children.

I know there is value in organisation, planing, and schedules. Sometimes I think that we bow to these so much we sometimes miss out on some special memories with our children. Schedules need to be our servants and not our masters. As the adage goes plan to do nothing and nothing is what you will accomplish. So I am not advocating throwing out your schedules permanently.  I am saying take a day at least once a month to really appreciate the blessing of where you are and what you have.

It's now that I have teenagers at home that I realise how quickly children grow and just how fast those precious days at home with little people pass by to never be had again.

So I leave you with the poem ♥

Just for Today

by

Sally Meyer

Just for this morning,

I am going to smile when I see your face...
 and laugh when I feel like crying.

Just for this morning,
I will let you wake up softly in your flannel p.j.'s...
 and hold you until you are ready to stir.

Just for this morning,
I will let you choose what you want to wear...
 and I will say how beautiful you are.

Just for this morning,
I will step over the laundry to pick you up...
 and take you to the park to play

Just for this morning,
I will leave the dishes in the sink...
 and let you teach me how to put your puzzle together.

Just for this afternoon,
I will unplug the telephone and keep the computer off...
 and sit with you in the garden
blowing bubbles.

Just for this afternoon,
I will not yell once, not even a tiny grumble when you
scream and whine for the ice cream truck...
and I will buy you one, if he comes by.

Just for this afternoon,
I won't worry about what you are going to be
 when you grow up...
I  will simply love you for the joy you bring me

Just for this afternoon,
I will let you help me make cookies...
and I wont stand over you . . .  trying to 'fix things.'

Just for this afternoon,
I will take you to McDonald's and buy us both a 'Happy Meal'...
so you can have two toys.

Just for this evening,
I will hold you in my arms and

tell you the story of how you were born...
and how much we love you.

Just for this evening,
I will let you splash in the bathtub...
and I won't get angry when you pour water over your sister's
head.

Just for this evening,
I will let you stay up late...
 while we sit on the porch swing
and count all the stars.

Just for this evening,
I will bring you glasses of water...
and snuggle beside you for hours...
 and miss my favorite t.v. show.

And tonight when you are sleeping safe and warm in your bed,
I will think of the mothers and fathers
who mourn for the children they have lost.

I will remember the parents who sit by hospital beds,
watching over the little ones they love.

I will weep for those parents whose children are cold,
hungry and suffering,

and .... this evening,

when I  kneel down to pray,
I will simply be grateful for all that I have

and not ask for anything...

except  just one more day.

© copyright 1999 Sally Meyer

To read more of Sally Meyers Inspirational poems go to: Sally Meyers Poems

Are you getting filled up because you are pouring out ....

As some of you may know I have been at a ladies retreat this past weekend.  One of the questions Reba asked us was:  "Are you getting filled up because you are pouring out ?"
This question really impacted me. It was one of those Ah ha moments.
 I have been feeling very 'flat' of late and life was starting to become flatter by the day. I was generally  living in survival mode.  I should know better since I often ask my circle of homeschool mothers "What are you doing daily to recharge yourselves ?" Yet somehow in the busyness of life I had forgotten to apply to myself what I was encouraging my friends to do.  Even my precious Mother had been asking me.  "When are you going to slow down ???"

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Karen Andreola introduced me to: Mother Culture (Trade Marked and Registered to Karen Andreola) Mothers should cultivate their souls so that in turn they may cultivate the souls of their children.

In Chapter 46 Karen expounds on the how's and why's of Mother Culture. Here is a snippet to whet your appetite for this wonderful resource.

"Is it a wonder she feels overspent?  She wears herself out. In her efforts to be dietitian, laundress, nurse, hostess, teacher, taxi driver, wife, mother, and mistress, she forgets that she needs a little time for herself.  And it is then that she stops growing spiritually and mentally,  Physically she feels ragged and drags through the day until without being able to mark the hour it befan, she lives with depression. Her mind is in a drifting fog when she wants it to think clearly and efficiently. With the distractions of her multi-faceted duties she is unable to follow a train of thought. She considers herself hompelessly behind in everything.  Her feet are in the quagmire. It takes an incredible amount of effort to keep up appearances, to wear a winsome countenance.  The last straw is the guilt she feels that she is "lukewarm" in the Lord. If I hadn't experienced these symptoms myself I wouldn't be writing this chapter.  Therefore I can validate the need for Mother Culture." - Karen Andreola

This was the third homeschool book I ever invested in.  It is one of my favourite treasure troves.  I often pick this book up. Whenever I need some clarification on how something works or the practicle application of a certain aspect of homeschooling such as the how and why of Narration this is the book I turn to.  Karen has done such a wonderful job in opening her home and allowing us in to see how to do something and why she is doing it.  The book is full of beautiful line drawings from a bygone era which evokes a feeling and appreciation for the wonderful opportunity I have as a Mother who has the awesome priviledge of staying home full time and educating my children.

You can read more about Mother Culture Here or if you would like to read Karen's blog you can go to http://momentswithmotherculture.blogspot.com/

A Charlotte Mason Companion is available from www.bookdepository.co.uk, www.fishpond.com.au , and for a look inside you can go to www.amazon.com

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A few years into my homeschool journey I met Diana Waring at a homeschool conference in Christchurch, New Zealand. 

Diana has written a wonderful book titled: Beyond Survival.  As you can see from the state of the cover of my book it is a well loved book in my home. 

This book contains many wondeful chapters to equip you on your homeschool journey.  It is divided into three parts: The Preparation, The Journey and The Abundance.  Within these you will find information on learning and teaching styles, Learning together, Creating an atmosphere, The tools, The Materials, to name but a few. 

For a look at the table of Contents go Here

If you would like to read Cathy Duffy's  foreword you can go Here

This book is available from www.dianawaring.com and  www.bookdepository.co.uk .

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I have just received
The Ministry of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson in the mail.  What a wonderful book.  I am really looking forward to reading this treasure.

Here is what it says on the back:  Because Motherhood Isn't Just a Job. It's a Calling. 

A mother's day is packed with a multitude of tasks that require energy and time: preparing meals, wahsing clothes, straightening and cleaning the house, and carinf for chidlren. These jobs all are necessary and crucially important. But in the dailyness of providing for a child's physical, emotional, and social needs, vital opportunities for spiritual nurturing and training can be overlooked.

Rather than letting the demands of life determine your parenting priorities, you can focus your energy on what matters most. In this encouraging and empowering book you'll learn how to .......

• make life's mundane and nitty-gritty moments work for you and not against you.
• incorporate character-building as a natual part of life
• teach your child in the same way Jesus taught the disciples
• pass on crucial fits that will serve your family for a lifetime.

This book is available from www.koorong.com.au,   www.bookdepository.co.uk,  or www.fishpond.com.au

For those of you wanting to read Sally's blog you can find her at I take Joy and on Facebook.

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Currently Good Morning Girls is using this book for their Book Club  and working their way through it week by week.  You can download a weekly S.O.A.P (Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer point) page to use alongside the book from Here.  or you can join the Facebook group Here

I found a wonderful blog page at www.noordinarymomentsblog.com and for those of you who are keen to partake in a forum while reading the book you can find one at  Homeschool Creations Community

I am looking forward to 'getting filled up' over the next few weeks.   :)  Till next time my friends take care

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Why the english language is hard to learn

I was reading a home school news letter and thought I would share this for fun.  I hope you enjoy these as much as I did. 

The bandage was wound around the wound.
The farm was used to produce produce.
The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
We must polish the Polish furniture.
He could lead if he would get the lead out.
The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.
Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present.
A bass was painted on the head of the bass drum.
When shot at, the dove dove into the bushes.
I did not object to the object.
The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.
They were too close to the door to close it.
The buck does strange things when the does are present.
A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.
To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
The wind was too strong for us to wind the sail.
After a number of injections my jaw got number.
Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.
I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?

Education

I've been on this journey for fourteen years now and decided to research the current and past definitions for the word education. I am astonished by how much a word can change in a relatively small amount of time. In the space of 183 years the definition has become: 

•  the act or process of imparting or acquiring particular knowledge or skills, as for a profession.
•  the act or process of imparting or acquiring general knowledge, developing the powers of reasoning and judgment, and generally of preparing oneself or others intellectually for mature life.
•  a degree, level, or kind of schooling

Back in Websters Dictionary of 1828 the definition was as follows:

•  The bringing up, as of a child, instruction; formation of manners. Education comprehends all that series of instruction and discipline which is intended to enlighten the understanding, correct the temper, and form the manners and habits of youth, and fit them for usefulness in their future stations. To give children a good education in manners, arts and science, is important; to give them a religious education is indispensable; and an immense responsibility rests on parents and guardians who neglect these duties

This little exercise has reminded me of my responsibility as a parent, gaurdian and teacher of my children.  I must confess I have become rather complacent and comfortable in my little rut here in my little corner no longer reaching, growing, asking, evaluating.  I think it's time I began to grow again.


One of the first books I ever read on the topic of Homeschooling is:
For the Children's Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay (first published in 1984).  This book I am pleased to say is back in print and available from
The Book Depository, Amazon and Christian Book.com
Susan challenged some of the fundamental beliefs I had and the suprising thing is I was not even aware I had them until I read the book.  For the Children's Sake has six chapters and is 158 pages. I was introduced to Charlotte Mason in this book and really loved the idea of twaddle free books. 

The idea of real books as a basis of education really apealed and still appeals to me today, and thus began my search for a curriculum that contained 'living' books.  Books that would touch our lives for years to come, books that were not dead, books that were real and did not leave us treading water going nowhere.  My goal this week is to read this book again and see what it was that impacted me so profoundly all those years ago.

Fourteen years ago I had no internet available to me, but I had the greatest resource available to me, I had enthusiastic homeschool moms and excellent books to read. 

Those were the only sources of information available to me and snail mail.  Oh the joy of receiving a thick envelope in the mail with a new catalogue.  I do so miss the feel and smell of real paper, the delight of opening an envelope that did not contain an invoice and the pleasure of a quiet cup of tea and my newly arrived homeschool resource book.  I still have a few of these books and will blog more about where you can obtain these wonderful treasures from later .

Till later my friends when I will expand upon  For the Children's sake.

Welcome to my newest adventure

Welcome to my Blog. 
Recently I was reminiscing with a homeschool friend about how we used to share books we found at the library or some new curriculum we had stumbled accross or a new way of teaching something we were struggling to get accross to our students.  After my chat with her I was wondering how I could still share my discoveries but make them more accessable to all my friends since I have friends in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.  As I pondered this 'problem' I thought why not Blog and share the link ?  So out of the blue announced to my husband I think I'm going to start a Blog :)  So here we are.

A name for my blog?  Hadn't thought of that :(  What oh what could I use ?  We threw up some names in the air but none quiet fit and then I remembered one of my favourite sayings:  Every bed of roses has it's thorns.  This is one of my life sayings.  I love to Home Educate but it certainly has it's prickley moments,  I love being a Mom at home with my family but that too has it's moments which aren't pleasant,  I love my husband and I love the Lord Jesus. 

As I looked at life I realised that all of life is like a rose.  Beautiful to look at,  beautiful to experience but watch out that beauty is protected by thorns.  Anything worth while, is worth protecting.

I hope to share about the many wonderful things I discover and do as I start a new on this journey with my youngest son Mr N who will be six in two weeks time. 

Miss J and Mr T are both doing tertiary studies now and I have enjoyed my home school journey of the last 12 years with them and hope to discover many more wonderful books and ideas in the next 12 years.

In the next couple of weeks I hope to share with you some of my favourite homeschool links,  books that have helped me on my journey, books I find and books I've used over the years and what we are up to.

I am contemplating starting a Notebook with Mr N and hope to share some of those ideas too.

I will be adding links and bling so come back and share my journey :)