i just wanna be lazy!

being a good mama is hard work! i am almost 6 years into my parenting journey and i want to stop using trial and error to raise my kids. God is the most amazing Father, so i've been looking to His Book for answers to my questions.
2 verses that have challenged me lately are...
proverbs 29:15 "The rod of correction imparts wisdom, but a child left to himself disgraces his mother."
my response: 1. in what way must one spank to impart wisdom? (i'm over the to spank or not to spank question and on to the how do i best show them love) and, 2. can't i just be lazy??? do i really have to get up as early as they do (so they are not left to themselves)? you can see by the time of this post that i'm not an "early to bed" person... this may be reflected in my lack of health, wealth, and wisdom. hmmm...
the other verse - Psalm 51:12 "Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me."
i can have fun and laugh with my family and friends. but these last days have been trying and i have been upheld by my Lord Jesus. true joy comes only from Him.
i am encouraged by... Psalm 63, Romans 14:17-19 and Psalm 119:114-117
so the Bible says to use correction, supervision, and JOY. i know that's not all, but that's where i'll start.

more bars in more places...

just not in our house! (but i'll keep my complaints about our cell service to a minimum. i do get a breath of fresh air everytime i have to use my phone out in our yard!)

today we were doing math with shaded number lines - talking about whole numbers, odd & even, etc.

j says, "i like when we put the correct numbers by the strips". k says, "i like putting mine by the numbers too". (next time i'll ask k first so we can get some original thoughts from him).

the S word

"you're homeschooling??? but what about SOCIALIZATION?" (that would be the "S-word")

well. let me tell you. our photo for today is proof that we "socialize" (dictionary.com says that means we "take part in social activities") here you see k and kj on the see-saw with their friends at the park where we meet up every other week.

now regarding socialization... looking at dictionary.com again we find the definition says "the adoption of the behavior patterns of the surrounding culture".

this is where s and i have thought, prayed, studied, etc and made a choice on behalf of our children. we have chosen to mold our children by shaping their environment or "surrounding culture" so that the "behavior patterns" that they "adopt" are those that we feel will honor our Lord Jesus Christ above all else. our calling is to train our kids in the Lord because they are really His. they have been entrusted to us for a time and we do not take lightly this trust, this responsibility.

are we keeping our kids in a bubble? well, we live in a normal neighborhood, shop at normal stores, and go on "field trips" to normal places that are all open to the public. we hear colorful language, see behaviors that we don't want to emulate, and we interact with unknown kids in non-controlled environments.

our desire is to temper what goes in to their little minds, all the while training them so that in time they may venture out on their own and not be easily swayed by the "powers of this dark world" (ephesians 6).

on a more academic level... a child's worldview becomes more solidified around age 8 or 9. consequently, we are doing our part to give j, k, kj, and si a solid foundation so that they are equipped to lead a more effective life.

my little angels

today i took my 4 little angels to angel stadium to see a baseball game! (without scott! - we made it to the 7th inning stretch. :) the photo with scott is from 2 weeks ago - that was fun! today was just a different kind of fun...

i believe that for today, our observations of the subjects of interest and the discussion of the statistical analysis of their performance can be called "doing math" and since we also executed the same physical maneuvers in our yard, i'd call that "p.e."

caterpillars and butterflies

the kids have been studying caterpillars and butterflies. they've caught 3 butterflies with their butterfly nets! they've also caught 2 caterpillars, a worm, a grasshopper (with which they scared our neighbor) and 2 snails... yuck! we've been reading through the creation story and singing the creation song from miss pattycake which all goes along with what they're learning at CBS. at our art class we made a collage of a caterpillar stamped from cucumber slices, a painted symmetrical butterfly, and a print of a "cocoon" (really a chrysalis). it's been a fun week of bugs!

in the beginning

i've finally given in. i blog.

okay. this is the beginning and it should be amazing and have something profound written, but, alas, i have nothing incredibly deep to give.

mañana.