Big News

The struggle: public school vs. home school

The background: My husband is a public school teacher of junior high social studies. We were both raised in public school. We both have our reservations about public school. We both had our reservations about home schooling. We are SURROUNDED by tons of people who home school.

The investigation and observation: I like to ask questions. I have been trying to seek out this whole home schooling thing but it has seemed almost like a club and I don't feel like I'm part of it. Anyway....I still asked a few questions and the answers I got were mostly about curriculum. Which I wasn't excited about. I don't see much of an excitment to learn or about learning. I mostly hear about all the homework everyone has and a general dislike of school-now I don't know if that is everyone, that is just what I have seen. So I was wondering if, in home schooling the object is to get my kids to pass the test and answer the question correctly, shouldn't I just send them to public school where they teach the same thing?

The unexpected encouragment: I went to California with my family for a weekend. I went to a conference called the Mom Heart Conference. I was just looking for refreshment. I was looking for insight. I was looking for meat. And the big thing that the Lord taught me that weekend was about sabboth rest and actually resting. My body and my brain...which was a foreign idea to me. How do I rest my brain? The idea was that we need a day to rest our brain and give that day to Him by not worrying or thinking about what needs to be done. I still haven't acheived that but anyway, back to the story. I came home with some amazing books. I love to read (thanks to Robert), and I love to learn about things that I'm passionate about. Especially my family. So I got a book called Educating the Whole Hearted Child. When I looked through the table of contents before I bought it I knew that it was going to be perfect! The Lord had already been instilling these ideas in my head for a while and I was excited to see what someone had to say on it!

So Robert and I have decided that we are going to home educate our family. Because it is right. Because the Lord has given us the job of teaching our family about Him. Because He instituted the family, not the public school.

This book has been so much fun to read. It has an amazing chapter on discipling your children and ways to do that. It has a model for fully educating your children using real books to inspire them. It's just so rich with information. I'm so glad that there is a way to do this without only using curriculm as a guide. If you are burned out on using only curriculum...I would highly recommend this book for ideas! It's wonderful and encouraging. I feel like I can actually do this. Like this is the job that the Lord has given me and he has equipped me to do it.

So I am thankful for CA and for the affirmation it gave to both Robert and I in this process to decide! The Lord truly worked everything out!

I am a SLUGGARD!!

Or a reformed sluggard.

The great thing about scheduling a quiet time for my is that it is actually getting done....most of the time!

And the even greater thing is that the Lord just teaches me awesome things through that.

Ok, back to being a sluggard....have you ever read Proverbs 6:6-11??

Here it is:

Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise.
Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest.
How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep?
A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,
and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.

I AM A SLUGGARD!!!
I should mention that I LOVE sleep. I have always loved sleep. I thought that if I didn't get my 8 or 9 hours, I would die. Or at least be a zombie all day. Well with having babies my 8 or 9 hours has somehow turned into 9 or 10 hours and somewhere along the way sleep started to be hard and I would wake up with a headache and I didn't know why....wasn't I sleeping enough? Then the Lord showed me this scripture and I felt like He was telling me that I was valuing MY sleep more than...gulp...my time with him. More than....time with my children. More than....actually getting my life in order. (God is a God of order) And I was losing the battle with myself. I was believing that I was a bad wife and a bad mother because I just couldn't do it!

So, I decided that something had to change. I decided that I would just aim for 7 hours of sleep. I'm not sure why. That is just what came to me. So I did it. And I felt AMAZING!!! I don't get it perfectly on but it's not 10 hours! And I'm getting my daily routines down pretty well. I set my alarm every night and work from there. It seems like such a simple thing when I think about it now, but it has been a tough one to get to.

And when I sleep....I'm sleeping like a baby :-)

Fly Lady Update

Ok so it's been over a month and this is hard work!!!! I mean, the system isn't really hard in theory.....but getting a daily routine down is hard work. I know that sounds ridiculous but it's true. I have definitly made progress though. I think my hardest obsticle has been waking up at the same time every day. I know that isn't really mentioned but it's important to me and the way my brain functions.

Ok...here is what I have so far for my daily routines (which I am not totally great at yet....but improving)

1. Wake Up
2. Get dressed to lace up shoes
3. Swish and Swipe
4. Quiet time; read Bible and pray
5. Change laundry
6. Start dish water
7. Make Bed
8. Make breakfast
Never done in any particular order....just done!

Night Routine
1. Lay out clothes for tomorrow
2. Change laundry
3. Brush Teeth

I can say that I have noticed a huge change in my thinking and attitude having these things done everyday. I actually have time to work on my problem clutter areas and I wouldn't be ashamed to show you my house if you stopped by (I might skip the office!) I just LOVE having structure and have longed for it for a while, I just didn't know how to get there :-)

The New Plan

My house was beautiful on Friday (well...minus the office and play room). I can't even describe to you what it looks like today. By Saturday it was already becoming a disaster, but I had used up all my energy on Friday trying to get it all done. It's a miserable way to take care of a home. I think on Saturday I finally was at my wits end and gave in to the idea of using FLY Lady. I have a couple of friends who use this organization. So I did it. I signed up. And then I was looking around at the site and starting liking it. I'm really excited about the Control Journal. I'm type A when it comes to paperwork and organizing things in my brain. With the house work I just don't know how to do it and so it drives me crazy! So I decided that today would be my first day and it worked out perfectly that it is the first day of the month. Today also turned out to be a day that I wouldn't like to repeat.

This is what I got accomplished today. Somehow.
Got dressed. (almost impossible because I couldn't find my second tennis shoe. It ended up being where it was supposed to be hidden under a t-shirt that is not supposed to be there!)
Put my hair up in a pony.
Brushed my teeth.
Made my bed.
Put a load of laundry in the washer.
Did Kelly's Zone 1: Mission #1.
Spent a couple of minutes clearing off a hot spot.
Picked up some dirty children's clothes and put them in the basket.
Layed out some clothes for tomorrow.
Brushed my teeth.

For me and my usual habits, this isn't very much. But I wasn't home much today either. I was gone for 7 hours of the day.

So.....wish me luck and pray for dedication on this new journey. I truely desire to build and maintain a home that is pleasant to be in. And one that I don't despise.

Krystle