Winter Nature Hike

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February 4, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert 6 Comments

I sure got out of my comfort zone and wrapped up the kids and went on a snowy nature hike.

They were thrilled.

They came prepared, with magnifying glasses, compasses, and their nature journals.

Alex liked looking at the lichen and moss on the trees.

We noticed the different layers of snow and ice on our walk, where the wind and shade affected it.

The girls looked for birds and studied the seeds and buds on the trees.

We spotted a bird’s nest!

The keepers of the nature center help the fallen trees create habitats and keep the paths clear by sawing the logs. We noticed the rings in one.

Look at that view! The ponds and creeks were frozen.

We noticed different kinds of scat near the creeks and the keepers make sure to provide feeding areas for birds with seed.

We spotted lots of deer prints in the snow!

Towards the end of our hike, just as we were getting a little bored and pretty tired, we spotted a small herd of deer, quite close. There were about five does and they’re weren’t worried about us at all.

We collected a few treasures from the ground for our nature box and notebooking. We completed notebooking pages for our journals after we got home and warmed up.

I am so impressed with Tori’s twig drawing. I even got Alex some notebooking pages. He really dislikes drawing, so we did a snowy sensory page.

Check out the Outdoor Challenge.

How do you learn about nature in winter?

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Stop Watching the Wind

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February 2, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert Leave a Comment

We’ve all heard the lesson and seen the lovely images with the call to action about how we have to get out of the boat to follow Jesus.

And many of us do get out of the boat and then get bogged down in life and start to doubt and sink in despair. Some cry out to Jesus but others, too proud to ask, tread water and thrash and flail on our own rather than admit we need any help.

How far are you from Jesus?

Let’s look at how far away Peter was when he feared the wind and cried out to Jesus to save him:

Jesus Walks on the Water
²²Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. ²³After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, ²⁴and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
²⁵Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. ²⁶When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
²⁷But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
²⁸“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
²⁹“Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. ³⁰But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
³¹Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
³²And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. ³³Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
³⁴When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret. ³⁵And when the men of that place recognized Jesus, they sent word to all the surrounding country. People brought all their sick to him ³⁶and begged him to let the sick just touch the edge of his cloak, and all who touched it were healed.
Matthew 14:22-36

I assume Jesus was only an arm’s length away. Certainly, He was close.

Peter looked away from Jesus. He saw the wind. He was afraid. He cried out to Jesus.

Immediately, Jesus reached out his hand and caught him.

Jesus is never far away. He’s always right there, waiting for us to cry out to Him.

And He will immediately catch us.

How often are we in a storm and overwhelmed with watching the wind and waves and rain in fear – and we don’t see Jesus right there in front of us? He’s waiting, watching us, ready to come when we call.

How often are we distracted by emails, tablets, smartphones, husbands, children, chores, friends, church activities, family events, social activities…

And we don’t see Jesus because of all those distractions. He’s waiting, watching us, ready to come when we call.

“You of little faith,” he said, “why do you doubt?”

We often start walking on the water towards Jesus. We begin on the right path, then we get distracted. We get confused. Why do we doubt?

He’s waiting, watching us, ready to come when we call.

Stop watching the wind. Keep your eyes on Jesus.

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eMeals Review

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January 31, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert 2 Comments

I can barely express how thrilled we are with eMeals.

My husband mentioned to me that we have to get on some sort of meal planning schedule because dinner times have been so stressful since the holidays.

eMeals are an answer to prayer! This is so easy and the recipes are absolutely delicious.

eMeals adds some much-needed variety to our meal rotation.

My raving review of the eMeals Clean Eating dinner plan – just one of the 50+ eMeals plans available for only $58/year…

Over 50 Meal Plans Available!

Only $58/year – or $5/month when you sign up for 12 months.

I chose the eMeals Clean Eating Meal Plan.*

It seemed to best fit our eating style. The weekly menu is emailed to me on Wednesdays.

Here’s just one meal we’ve tried and it was a huge hit with my family.

The kids really loved the marinade on the pork and I could marinate everything with that mixture now.

So, of course I didn’t have everything on hand. I did this so backwards.

A shopping list comes with the weekly email of 7 delicious and easy dinner recipes.

And another great thing?

The plans can correspond to grocery store sales!

ALDI
Costco
Kroger
Publix
Safeway
Target
Walmart
Whole Foods

You can also add on eMeals plans for breakfasts, lunches, and desserts for an additional charge of only $3-4/month.

I got a container of arugula/spinach and made the dressing.

My husband LOVED the dressing. It was a bit tangy for me.

Just lemon juice, dijon mustard, and EVOO. I can add stuff or reduce the lemon or combine it with orange juice next time.

I made carrots with oranges.

The recipe called for just OJ, but I improvised a bit.

They were delectable. And pretty!

I had these pork steaks in the freezer and the recipe called for a tenderloin. Whatever works, right?

These were The Best Pork Chops Ever, according to my family.

Definitely in the meal rotation. Frequently.

Maple syrup, tomato paste, soy sauce, Worcestershire, and some spices.

Can’t give away all the secrets!

We’re really excited to have something so simple to help us get out of the dinner rut and streamline dinnertime.

These meals are fresh, colorful, tasty, and all natural. We love it so far.

I love the versatility of the meal plan. I don’t have to absolutely follow the plan. I can mix it up a bit. Most of my family don’t care for seafood, but I really do. I have enough recipes stored away that we have lots of variety for our dinners now.

Now that I’ve done all my shopping this pay period, we’re excited to try some other meals over the next few weeks!

There’s even an iPhone app for eMeals: Meal Planning at your fingertips…

Healthy Meal Plans to Match your Active Lifestyle. Choose one now!

How to cancel eMeals:

View eMeals Terms of Service here.

Go to My Meal Plans page in your account.
Scroll to the bottom of the page to Manage Account.
Click View Payment History.
Click Cancel Next Renewal which is located directly below the plan you would like to cancel.
Select your cancellation reason.
Click Discontinue My Plan
You will be directed to a verification page letting you know that your subscription has been successfully canceled.

If your free trial isn’t canceled by day 14, you will be billed on day 15 for the term selected at sign up. If you do not cancel your trial by the 14th day, you are eligible for a full refund for 14 days after a charge is processed. Requests for a refund must be made by phone at 855-328-2674.

Now with Grocery Delivery options!
Try eMeals plus grocery delivery with Shipt
Try eMeals plus grocery pickup with Walmart
Try eMeals plus grocery delivery with Amazon Fresh
Try eMeals plus grocery delivery with Instacart

*Clean Eating typically refers to whole foods, unprocessed, simple real foods as close as farm to table as possible. Not to be confused with Biblical clean and unclean eating laws in Leviticus. Thanks!

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Is it Time for THE TALK?

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January 30, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert 2 Comments

A good beginning is this 3-part Christian and Biblical series to discussing sex with your children:

The Talk: 7 Lessons to Introduce Your Child to Biblical Sexuality

Changes: 7 Biblical Lessons to Make Sense of Puberty

Relationships: 11 Lessons to Give Kids a Greater Understanding of Biblical Sexuality

A Christian Parent’s Guide to Having The Talk

I am saddened by how many of our peers learned about sex and I want better for my children. Too many of us learned shame or embarrassment or slang or the way of the world before being saved or because our guardians were too uncomfortable to discuss it well.

This study is comprehensive and accurate. I plan to use it as a jumping off point to have an ongoing conversation with my children.

Because it’s so much than just teaching the right names for the parts and how they fit together and wait till you’re married, ok!

I want my children to understand more than that and how intimacy is so much more than physical. And it can be oh, so damaging to young people who make poor decisions.

I want my kids to be prepared.

So, this Bible study is great to get started.

This series of biblical studies is designed to help parents to talk meaningfully with children about sex.

The Talk: 7 Lessons to Introduce Your Child to Biblical Sexuality

7 lessons cover all the basics to help teach your children about sexuality.

I’m going through it with Tori and Katie and my young son, Alex, listens in to some of it.

I realize they’re already ashamed of the correct words.

Who told them they were naked? Who taught them shame?

It’s definitely time to correct that and teach them the right way.

The lessons in The Talk include:

Opening Thought
Scripture Reading
Talking Points
Questions for Your Child
Links to Free Videos
Visual Charts to View and Discuss
Prayer to End Each Lesson

And a Glossary of Terms at the end.

It’s more than just a script.

This is a Biblical guide to help Christian parents explain sex to our children before the world gets to them and twists the values they should have.

Purchase The Talk: 7 Lessons to Introduce Your Child to Biblical Sexuality now!

Changes: 7 Biblical Lessons to Make Sense of Puberty is the 2nd installment in the series of three books for parents to teach children about sexuality!

Acne. Pubic hair. Breasts. Squeaky voices. Menstruation. Nocturnal emissions. Make no mistake, puberty can feel like an awkward time in a child’s life. But with the right perspective, children can be taught to anticipate puberty as a blessing. Changes is a series of 7 studies, anchored in the Scriptures, that helps parents talk meaningfully with children about the mental, emotional, and physical changes puberty brings. Changes was written for parents to read with children ages 8 to 12 years old. The study supplies children with a Bible-based understanding of puberty in a language they can understand.

Changes is a series of 7 studies, anchored in the Scriptures, that helps parents talk meaningfully with children about the mental, emotional, and physical changes puberty brings.

Lesson 1 looks at the adolescent years of Jesus, talking about how the culture in which Jesus lived recognized puberty as an important phase of physical and spiritual development. The goal is to help kids see these changes as something good.
Lesson 2 looks at the process of change in the human body throughout all of life. Puberty is just one of several significant phases.
Lesson 3 addresses the mental and emotional changes of puberty, as well as the internal catalyst for change in our bodies: hormones.
Lesson 4 looks at the overall physical changes common to both boys and girls.
Lesson 5 deals with the changes that take place in girls during puberty, such as fat deposits, breast development, and menstruation.
Lesson 6 is about changes that take place in boys during puberty, such as muscular growth, facial hair, voice changes, testicular growth, and ejaculation.
Lesson 7 will delve into physical attraction. Our kids need to understand both its goodness and power during this age.

It’s important for me to be proactive to teach my children what changes their bodies will be soon undergoing, both physically, mentally, and emotionally.

I want them to be prepared. I encourage them to ask questions. It’s my goal to keep conversation open throughout puberty and the teen years when it’s so crucial to counter the influence of the world.

Again, the Gilkersons offer a resource with Book 2 Changes, a great guide to begin ongoing Biblical conversations with our children about puberty. I want these conversations to be comfortable, not shameful and embarrassing.

I wish these books had been around a few years ago when my eldest child was going through these changes. I wish I had been able to understand these concepts when I was an adolescent!

*Now available!*

Book 3 – Relationships: 7 Lessons to Give Kids a Greater Understanding of Biblical Sexuality

Relationships was written for parents to read with their kids ages 11-14 years old. This study will help prepare your teen for sexual temptations that they are sure to encounter and give them a greater understanding of biblical sexuality. As Christian parents, it is of utmost importance that we’re guiding our teems through the sometimes overwhelming sexual desires and temptations they experience. Relationships is a series of 11 Bible studies that provide a foundational understanding of how to navigate sexual temptations and desires in a godly manner.

Relationships is a great guide for all the hard questions and difficult topics:

Lesson 1 looks at the original goodness of sexuality and marriage relationships as God created them.
Lesson 2 addresses how sin has brought about sexual brokenness into the world, including our propensity to lust.
Lesson 3 exposes the varieties of sexual and relational temptations in the world: from masturbation to pornography use to homosexual activities.
Lesson 4 covers three biblical strategies for avoiding and overcoming lust.
Lesson 5 discusses how we should guard our hearts from sexual and relational idolatry.
Lesson 6 talks about how we need to make a covenant with our eyes to avoid temptation.
Lesson 7 talks about the importance of fleeing sexually tempting situations.
Lesson 8 addresses the biblical strategy of pursuing intimacy with God and cultivating gratitude for wholesome pleasures.
Lesson 9 discusses the importance of being wise in our opposite-sex friendships.
Lesson 10 addresses the value of accountability relationships.
Lesson 11 gives students and their parents a picture of the life-transforming grace of God for sexual sinners.

I love the whole Sex Ed Series!

Also, Luke and Trisha Gilkerson have created Having The Talk Biblical Sex Ed Training for Parents Video Course.

It’s important to have multiple talks as kids grow up and develop and interact with others.

It should be an ongoing conversation about sexuality and relationships.

Linking up: What Joy is Mine, The Modest Mom, Donna Riedland, The Practical Mom, Life of Faith, Making Our Life Matter, Curly Crafty Mom, Rich Faith Rising, Time Warp Wife, F Dean Hackett, Living Montessori Now, ABC Creative Learning, Simple Life of a Fire Wife, The Quintessential Mommy, VMG206, Sweet Things, Marilyns Treats,

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Cleaning Laminate Flooring

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January 30, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert Leave a Comment

Did you know laminate flooring comes in wood or tile/stone? I love the looks and ease of it. When we buy a house after the Air Force has finished moving us around, I will look into this!

Laminate flooring is extremely popular in today’s décor world, and for many good reasons! Not only is laminate flooring a beautiful and less expensive alternative to hardwood flooring, but laminate flooring is also extremely durable and easy to maintain. It is always recommended to check your manufacturer recommendations before using cleaners on your laminate floor.

Below are a few helpful tips to keep your laminate flooring beautiful and shining:

Avoid soap based detergents.
Avoid “mop and shine” products, as they can dull the film on your laminate flooring, causing permanent damage.
Never use abrasive cleaners or any material that can scratch your floor.
Never use wax or polish on your laminate floor.
You can vacuum your laminate flooring with the wand attachment.
Regular cleaning with a dust mop is highly recommended.
Spills should be wiped up immediately with a cloth or sponge.
Damp cloths and mops can be used, but it’s important to not over saturate your floor.
Use only recommended laminate floor cleaning products.

Laminate flooring is a great addition to any home, and can last a lifetime with very little maintenance. If you’re considering installing laminate flooring, consider visiting your local Flooring America and speaking to their flooring professionals.

I love to clean my floors with my spray mop and its Velcro pad using warm water and essential oils such as Thieves or Citrus.

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Celebrating Chinese New Year

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January 29, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert 2 Comments

Chinese New Year celebrations traditionally end after 15 days, starting on Chinese New Year’s Eve and continuing till the Lantern Festival.

This new year usually coincides with the spring equinox.

We usually try to celebrate the first evening with crafts and yummy food – either takeout or homemade.

Each Chinese year is associated with an animal sign according to the Chinese zodiac cycle, which features 12 animal signs in the order Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, Pig.

Chinese New Year traditions include: putting up decorations, offering sacrifices to ancestors, eating reunion dinner with family on New Year’s Eve, giving red money envelopes and other gifts, firecrackers and fireworks, and watching lion and dragon dances.

Lucky food is served during the 16-day festival season, especially on the New Year’s Eve family reunion dinner. Fish is a must as it sounds like “surplus” in Chinese and symbolizes abundance. Dumplings shaped like Chinese silver ingots are shared as a sign of the family unit and prosperity. People eat Niángāo (glutinous rice cake) to symbolize a higher income or position as it sounds like “year high.”

Don’t lose the luck!

Don’t sweep up on New Year’s Day, otherwise you’ll ‘sweep all your luck away’.
Don’t eat porridge for breakfast, otherwise you’ll ‘become poor in the upcoming year’.
Don’t wash your clothes and hair (on New Year’s Day), otherwise you’ll ‘wash fortune away’.

So thrilled about how these Dragon Puppets turned out for Chinese New Year!

Dragon Puppets:

Paper bag
Construction paper for head
Construction paper for eyes and nostrils
Streamers for the tail
Glitter and Sequins (optional)

What to do:

Fold sheet of construction paper in half and glue to top of paper bag (where it folds up) to make the head of the puppet
Attach streamers under the back of construction paper head for the tail
Cut out eyes and nostrils in desired shapes – semi-circles for eyes and teardrops for nostrils
Draw lines for mouth and nose with dark marker
Glue eyes and nostrils
Draw on eyeballs in dragon shape
Draw on eyebrows and facial expression (optional)
Glue on glitter and/or sequins to make pretty patterns (optional)

(I think it would be fun to attach an accordion tongue with a strip of red construction paper so it pops out of the fold…)

Kate preferred to make hers look like a lizard.

Tori asked me to draw cool eyebrows on her dragon.

Alex used TONS of glue stick. Then he asked me draw his dragon face and I really like how it turned out and his compliments made my day. Then he pretended to fly around with it.

We’re preparing to celebrate Chinese New Year with lots of red and gold, horse pictures and crafts, yummy food…and I searched my files and found pictures of the Chinese New Year celebration we attended when we lived in Hawaii.

And I get a clean house out of it after I told the kids that tradition. Score!

We cleaned out the library of all the Chinese New Year storybooks. Liz really likes having Big Sister Storytime. Karen Katz is a favorite author. Love her illustrations!

Resources:

Mask crafts from Better than Mummy
Learn more of the Chinese language with Mango Homeschool
As my kids get older, we watch movies in Chinese and about Chinese culture and history
Eat Chinese Food: We’ll explore flavors, colors, shapes, and the aesthetic beauty of Cantonese cooking. My kids love Chinese food and we like to try new recipes and techniques. Our Asian turkey wraps are always a hit! I need to break out my bamboo steamer and try to make some steamed dumplings…Also easy recipes are lo mein and fried rice. Slow cooker Asian ribs are a crowd pleaser.
The Five Chinese Brothers by Claire Huchet Bishop
Moonbeams, Dumplings & Dragon Boats: A Treasury of Chinese Holiday Tales, Activities & Recipes by Nina Simonds
Lunar New Year by Hannah Eliot
Goldy Luck and the Three Pandas by Natasha Yim
How to Catch a Dragon by Adam Wallace
Lanterns and Firecrackers by Jonny Zucker
Hiss! Pop! Boom!: Celebrating Chinese New Year by Tricia Morrissey
My First Chinese New Year by Karen Katz
Bringing In the New Year by Grace Lin
Dragon Dance: A Chinese New Year Lift-the-Flap Book by Joan Holub

I will try my hardest not to watch Mulan. Seriously.

Gong hei fat choy 恭喜发财

Xīnnián kuàilè 新年快乐

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Crystal Unit Study

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January 27, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert 5 Comments

We’re loving the lessons in Apologia Exploring Creation with Chemistry and Physics!

Snow

We’ve been blessed (ahem) with an abundance of snow…that refuses to melt and go away.

Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Psalm 51:7

We went on a snowy nature hike to view the snow formations.

We saw icy snow, fluffy soft snow, ice, and the pond was frozen! We saw the patterns in the snowdrifts from the wind. We haven’t been able to view too many snowflakes this year, but we have pictures and we’ve seen the crystal formations in the ice on our sidewalks and windows.

Salt

The kids were really fascinated by salt.

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot…” Matthew 5:13

We went to Dad’s lab to use the cool microscope! (ah, the benefits of having a lab officer husband!)

We viewed table salt, salt we found at the Great Salt Lake (in the yellow bucket), raw sugar, and pepper.

The table salt is processed so it formed almost perfect cuboids with few impurities, but the salt from the Great Salt Lake was all jagged and had lots of impurities, as did the raw sugar. The pepper was too opaque to see real well.

Our Sunday School teacher taught on covenant and salt a couple weeks ago and she mentioned a great experiential lesson about making pickles, so we plan to buy some cucumbers and discuss how the salt changes them into a new creation – along with Matthew 5:13.

Gems

We looked at pictures of different precious stones online and in books and viewed the few rings, earrings, and pendants I have with magnifying glasses to see the facets.

I would love to take a field trip to a jewelry store or mine, but that will have to wait. I don’t feel comfortable taking them to a jewelry store I don’t know and the local mines are closed for the season. So, we’ll plan on that later.

Blessed are those who find wisdom,
those who gain understanding,
for she is more profitable than silver
and yields better returns than gold.
She is more precious than rubies;
nothing you desire can compare with her. Proverbs 3:13-15
Choose my instruction instead of silver,
knowledge rather than choice gold,
for wisdom is more precious than rubies,
and nothing you desire can compare with her. Proverbs 8:10-11
Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies. Proverbs 31:10

The girls really loved my grandmother’s ruby ring. I thought it a perfect teaching prop for the Bible lessons in Proverbs too.

The girls learned the 4 C’s: cut, color, clarity, and carat. They loved learning about the different grades of jewels.

They love the Junior Notebooking Journals that make assessment easy for me.

They drew jewels and the salt images from the microscope viewing in their notebooks. They love science!

We have some other fun experiments in the works this week – rock candy, salt flowers, borax crystals.

Linking up at Living and Learning at Home, Chesnut Grove Academy, Suzy Homeschooler, Kids Activities Blog

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Preschool Listening Skills

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January 24, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert 3 Comments

I’m not really all that metacognitive about teaching my kids listening skills. I’m sure it works better some days than others despite the fact that I don’t actively incorporate this into our school time.

I recently have had some lightbulb moments when I noticed my son was learning on his own how to listen actively.

I want to to practice Listening Skills in our homeschool.

And I love his interpersonal skills. He often reprimands me, but kindly: “Look at me, Mama!” and then he tells me or shows me what he wants. This is a great skill that my husband and I should really have mastered with four kids. In this age of rampant ADHD and behavioral disorders, many parents and teachers would rather treat the symptoms instead of solving the problems that cause these disorders, whether imaginary or real chemical deficiencies.

I am learning to be a better listener with my children. I know they require my undivided attention and deserve my respect when they speak to me. By looking directly at my kids while they speak, I am teaching them to respect others who are speaking – and that’s a great life skill.

I am so pleased that my children are learning to listen so well and I vow to be more diligent to keep them active and attentive listeners as we continue to practice these skills.

Preschool Listening Skills with Games, Nature Study, and Learning

My three-year-old son, Alex, really did well with listening to directions with Funnix Reading and Math this week. I love how it offers clear directives and teaches listening and following directions just as much as reading and math skills. He has his little pointer and follows what the “teacher” tells him. It’s like a dialogue and he did wonderfully for his first lesson. We’re also thoroughly enjoying All About Reading Level 1!

Alex and his six-year-old sister, Kate, played so sweetly together with the light box and rainbow blocks. They usually power struggle with each other, but they took turns and listened to each other well. I was a proud mama.

We practiced being quiet and listening to the birds, wind sounds, and the crunchy snow beneath our boots on our snowy nature walk. He whispered so he didn’t scare the birds and deer we saw on our hike. He pointed out lichen and leaves and the frozen pond to me with dancing eyes.

More fun ways to work on listening skills:

Simon Says games
Directed coloring pages (Alex likes the ones from 1+1+1=1)
Narration with or without props (like puppets!) – we also like to discuss and review body parts at bathtime with bath puppets.
Following directions with chores
Helping in the kitchen (with kid-sized tools!)
Q&A after Bible lessons
Montessori sound matches and studies
Music, instruments, and composer studies (we like to discuss the high and low notes, fast and slow tempo, and different instrument sounds)
Looking speakers or teachers in the eyes and repeating what is said so it is understood and then completing the direction
Go on a Letter Walk and point out things that begin with a certain letter

Do you have any tips to improve preschool listening skills in your kids?

Essential Oils to help with attention:

Vetiver
Cedarwood
Lavender
Brain Power
Frankincense

ProSchool Membership - Productive Homeschooling

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5 Days of Homeschooling Essentials {Day 5: Let Go}

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January 24, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert 4 Comments

Sure, we need to plan.

We need to know ourselves, our strengths and weaknesses.

We need to know our enemy.

We need supplies.

And sometimes we need to let go.

We live our lives so tight-fisted that it cramps our fingers to open them. To stand palms open is uncomfortable for us. We want to grasp, hold tight.

I never know what to do with my hands. It’s awkward.

It’s in my nature to be a control freak. I began homeschooling to have control over what my daughter learned and how. It’s against my very grain to relinquish control to a tutor for outside lessons. She’s had a few piano teachers because music isn’t my thing. But I realize that my kids need to learn from others too. Many people have lessons I can’t teach and God will bring lovely people into their lives to help them learn in ways I can’t understand.

I want my kids to learn to be independent. Isn’t that success? Adulthood? But I also want them to know I’m always here, waiting, watching, praying. With open hands.

And, mamas, as those babies grow up and out, remember what you poured in, and let go.

Let go.

A little at a time.

Let those birdies fly.

They will flutter back and forth to the safety of the nest, and then try, try again, swooping and scraping. But eventually, they will soar.

And it’s in those proud mama moments when we listen to that quiet whisper of God’s reassurance that our babies will be alright and they are! They really are! He holds them in His palm, loosely. And we can always be right here, waiting for those triumphant returns to the nest to share in the joys and sorrows.

It’s a huge responsibility to help create a child’s memories. Be intentional and present for your babes. Don’t wait. Do it now. All that other stuff can wait.

The whole series:

Day 1: Planning

Day 2: Know Yourself

Day 3: Know Your Enemy

Day 4: Supplies

Day 5: Let Go

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5 Days of Homeschooling Essentials {Day 4: Supplies}

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January 23, 2014 By Jennifer Lambert 6 Comments

Sure, we need to plan.

We need to know our strengths and weaknesses.

We need to know our enemy.

We need supplies. But more than paper and pencils, books and crayons.

We need God. We need God’s Word. We need prayer.

He is our ultimate supplier.

Select a verse from the Bible as a foundation for your homeschool, for your family, for your marriage. Tie it into your mission statement, visions, goals.

I recommend the book Lead Your Family Like Jesus to help you work out all that. It’s really brilliant and it helped my husband join me in leading our family by setting those goals.

How can you get supplied?

pray
Bible study
Scripture memorization
sing or listen to Christian music and hymns, or even classical
read the Word
listen to the Word online, on CD, podcasts, or sermons (or have kids read aloud!)
set Bible verses to music or get some fun CDs that do that already (Seeds Family Worship, Hide Em In Your Heart, and Songs for Saplings are favorites)
watch Christian videos on Netflix or DVD (What’s in the Bible?, Veggie Tales, Nest, Friends and Heroes)
fellowship with other like-minded Christians

Mamas, make sure you’re well-supplied.

I know it’s hard to wake up early and go to bed late. I know it takes so much energy and emotion to care for our families and homeschools. If we don’t care for ourselves, we won’t be able to continue. Make sure you care for yourself spiritually too.

Be in the Word and show your kids that it’s important. Have family Bible time where you study, read, pray, and worship together. If your husband isn’t interested or available, do it anyway. Make it a part of your homeschool day. Pray, pray, pray for your husbands, yourself, your marriage, your children, your homeschool, your kids’ future spouses and babies.