What's with the Attitude?

I am really having a hard time with my 7 yo son. His attitude is so difficult right now. He complains about doing everything and this is really making my life hard right now. It is affecting my daughter too because we do many subjects together. He stops our reading with complaining and when asked to do a notebooking page he will say his hand hurts too bad to finish. This week has been the worst. He had me in tears on Tuesday, I just couldn't take it anymore.

I want to be a good mom to him. I just don't know how much more of this I can take. The only thing I know to do is to pray for the situation...I mean really pray. I am also going to start punishing him by giving him extra chores to do when he just refuses to mind during school for absolutely no reason. I have asked my husband to help me out. We decided that during school time he is the principal. If Evan can't send him to the principal (dad), and then dad will decide what is wrong, and what, if any, the punishment should be. This way I don't have to completely stop school work with my daughter to deal with my son.

We are going to try this out and see how it works. I desperately need something to give with him. He really is such a sweet boy with a good heart. I definitely believe that he wants to behave, he is just going through something right now.

Continue Reading...

Choosing Curriculum

I must admit I am struggling a bit right now with choosing our curriculum for next year. I am a little torn about what to use for history. I am still going back and forth between using "My Father's World" again or changing over to "TOG." I am leaning more toward My Father's World because I have been using it and I really like it. Also, I think it is a lot cheaper than TOG( if you buy all of the books for reading).

Also, we will be finishing up My Father's World first grade in two months. We have been using this for our bible studies. I have been searching for a replacement bible study to use once we finish up in March. Well, I found what we will start using. It looks really awesome and I think it will provide Juliet with a chance to do some independent study. I really like that fact. She is getting older now and we still do everything except spelling together. I want her to have something she does kind of on her own and I think this will be perfect. We will start using Explorer's bible study: Discovery Genesis and Keepers of the faith character traits study (still deciding on which character trait to study). We will of course review everything together, but she will do the reading and the questions on her own.

I think Evan will start using the Explorers bible study for first grade too.

So much to think about. I feel like this year is going by so fast and I want to be prepared for next year... early.


I am still undecided about grammar too. I really don't like the fact that Shirley Grammar takes so much time to do. It seems to be a really good curriculum but it just takes so much of our time. If I do change it I will probably switch to something like easy grammar.

I will stick with math on the level, we really like it. Science is pretty much unit studies for us right now. I ordered Considering God's Creation and am excited about looking it over. We have also used Noeo science and apologia, but we haven't stuck with a single curriculum through the entire year. We just skip around and use what we like from each of them. We will probably keep to this same system

Writing is definitely staying the same! We use Institute for excellence in writing and I wouldn't change it for the world. I am excited about starting it with Evan next year.

I still have a lot to think about. Thank goodness I still have time to decide.

Continue Reading...

The Little Things

Dear Lord,

while sitting here today I can think of so many things that are wrong in my life. I am so disappointed with myself this week, and I am disappointed in others to. But I believe that somehow all of this is working together for my good, and I know that you're very close to me through it all.

Today I am thankful to you dear Lord for the little things in my life, even though some of these little things annoy me sometimes!

Thank you for the scrambling feet of little kittens, 4 of them, tearing up my house and knocking down things on my dresser. I know one day I will look back on this time and recall it with smiles and laughter.

Thank you for a mornings that I don't get up on time, instead I get to snuggle up with my husband a few hours longer than I should.

Thank you for healthy children, who try and make breakfast for themselves, and succeed in both cooking and tearing down my kitchen.

Thank you Lord for my messy floors, they remind me that this home is mine, clean or not.

Thank you for tears and restlessness, they draw me closer to you and reveal to me how dependent on you I really am. They tear down my walls of pride and make all of my intentions become transparent.

Thank you for all of the broken things I have, physical and spiritual, mental and emotional, because they all point to you, my unwavering foundation.

Thank you for all of the rain, I now have more frogs in my yard than I ever imagined possible. Since frogs are my favorite animal, I take this as a loving gesture from you.

Thank you for all the messes my husband makes, it reminds me that there once was a time when he didn't work from home and just how lucky we really are.

Thank you today for all the little things I have, beautiful and ugly, because you are in control of them all.

Continue Reading...

Our Children Belong To God

I was reading someone's blog today and saw this. It touched my heart and I wanted to share it with you. To me, this is a reminder that our children truly belong to the Lord, and it is our responsibility to allow the Lord's will for our children to be fulfilled in their lives, instead of what we desire for them.

And a woman who held a babe against her bosom said, “Speak to us of Children.”

And he said:

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts.
For they have their own thoughts.

You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit,
not even in your dreams.

You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.

Let your bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as he loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.

– Kahlil Gibran, “Children”

Continue Reading...

Our Children Belong To God

I was reading someone's blog today and saw this. It touched my heart and I wanted to share it with you. To me, this is a reminder that our children truly belong to the Lord, and it is our responsibility to allow the Lord's will for our children to be fulfilled in their lives, instead of what we desire for them.

And a woman who held a babe against her bosom said, “Speak to us of Children.”

And he said:

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts.
For they have their own thoughts.

You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit,
not even in your dreams.

You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.

Let your bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as he loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.

– Kahlil Gibran, “Children”

Continue Reading...