Recovery and Rehab

As you may know, I am currently playing nurse for my mom for a week while she recovers from a total knee replacement.

The good news, and I really mean GREAT news, is that she handled surgery well.  This is big for her, as her past history of surgery has been pretty bad.  This time around they did a spinal instead of using anesthesia, which eliminated most of her issues.  She does not take pain meds well, so she did have to battle some pretty severe reactions to that, but once the nurses figured out the right combination things greatly improved.

The bad news- surgery stinks.  No matter what.

It messes with your body and mind.

So this is where we are at.  Working hard to heal her body and keep her entertained to help her mental state.

Body, hard.  Mind, easy! (you know our family is nutty, so laughter is pretty easy!)

I will not go into details, but she is on a pretty regimented schedule.  Thanks to me.  You are welcome, mom.  Everything is written down and the drill sargent has moved in.  I told her when I left we could facetime during her physical therapy.  She told me no need, she would still be hearing my voice.

hmmmm, no comment.

Physical therapy is hard to do and hard to watch.  Except for the cat.  He enjoyed the show.

Well, then it must have worn him out because he chose to sleep afterwards.

Then he moved for a better view. Yes, on the ice pad.  Yes, on top of the potty chair.  At least it provided laughter!

Plus this cat has decided to protect mom at all costs.  You should see the looks I get from him!

As far as laughter goes, oh how I love my family!  They have popped in a few times and kept us in giggles.  Seriously!

That plus a silly video I shared with mom.  I hate linking stuff but if you go to YouTube and search Sarah help me, you can laugh too!  Go ahead, it is worth it!  Laughter is so good for us!!

Tonight, it is funny movie time!

Thanks for all the prayers and encouragement you have sent our way.  They have been felt and much appreciated.

Blessings,

The Craziness of Life

When my mom made plans to come out and visit us she said she wanted to just live our life.  You know, be here and just participate in whatever we do in our normal life.

Ha! Normal?  Not around here, that's for sure.

I do not know where these past two weeks have gone, but I know she has gotten to participate.

Church.
Military picnic.
Smoothie dates.
Lunches out.
Co op.
Riley's play- twice.
Dinner's out.
Shopping.
Movie with friends.
Feeding friends.
Schooling the boys.
Movie nights.
Old friends' visit.
More shopping!
Storms.
Riley's voice performance.
AWANA.
And yesterday a tornado in Omaha that had our kids stuck in a church hall way for 20 minutes.

Never a dull moment.

The time has flown and as always we are sad to see her go!

Here's hoping we can get her to move here eventually.

THANK YOU mom for spending time with us and putting up with our craziness!  We love you!

Blessings.

Schooling While Sick- Computer Learning!

In case you missed my whining on Facebook, I have been sick for two weeks.  I was in bed for six days of that time, either asleep or coughing.  Pneumonia and bronchitis will do that to 'ya!  It was NOT fun!  Still isn't, but, hey, at least I am out of bed and I think the second round of antibiotics has finally worked.  At least, I hope so.

So what to do when you are a homeschooling mom that is sick in bed?  Those are the days I was, and am, very thankful for computer based programs!  Seriously. 

Here's a confession.  Once upon a time I was one of those moms that scoffed at computer based learning.  I mean, why would you commit to school your child and then put them in front of a TV or computer screen?  Doesn't that defeat the point of you teaching?

Little did I know and lots of apologies do I owe!

I still may not ascribe to full time computer learning for personal reasons, but I have come to appreciate the value and reasons behind it.  If it had not been for some of those very programs, one of my children in particular would have done no school this past two weeks.  That is reality.

Luckily for him (in my opinion, not necessarily his, of course!) some of his school work is on the computer and he is able to do it on his own.  Because of that, I cannot call the past 14 days a complete flop in terms of school.  Other things are another matter! ;)

So what did he do?

History!  If you have not heard me rave about Veritas Press Self Paced History, hear me do so now.  This was one of those review items I did for Schoolhouse Crew that I did not realize would bless us as much as it has.   It is just the best history I have found.  My second grader is able to log in and view the lessons, do the activities and take the tests with no help from me.  I will admit I usually view the lessons with him because I enjoy them as well and have learned a lot from it, but for the past few weeks he has been on his own.  And even completed two lessons on several days!

Math!  This is where IXL has been a huge blessing.  Since it is a review based program, he may not have advanced into a new subject, but he has certainly not fallen behind.  Again, he was able to log in and review math concepts for 15-30 minutes a day. 

Language Arts!  Again, IXL to the rescue.  Some of the concepts for his grade level have been new to him, but because you have access to all levels he knows he can go back and review 1st grade material as well.  Another program we have used for over a year now is Reading Eggs.  This is more game based and flashy, but CJ loves it and so do I!  His reading soared by leaps and bounds when he first started Reading Eggs and he continues to do well with it.  I love that it covers reading comprehension, sight words, grammar and more.  He is required to do a level a day to "unlock" his 30 minutes of free computer time or a 30 minute movie.

OK, so it may not be a complete day's worth of curriculum, but for a sick mom, it is a small victory!  And the glory of schooling year round is that we are not in a race against the clock or the calendar.

Yay me!  Yay homeschooling!  And yay computer based learning!

What about you....do you have a computer base program you use and love?  I think I am ready to add a few more to our list and we would love to have you share what works for you!  If you have reviewed something you love and use, feel free to leave us the link!

Blessings,


*I am getting no compensation for mentioning these companies.  The opinions expressed are mine alone and based on our family's experiences.

MOM- for you!

Those of you who know my mom know that she is amazing.  No really she is!  I know that God blessed me by making me hers.  Here are just a few reasons why:

...with a two year old in tow (that's me) she crossed the country in a car to start a new life.  Not her choice, it's just what she did.  She gave up parts of her life for years to give me a better one.

...she made our home a welcome haven to friends and family and taught me what it was to love people for who they are and where they are at.

...she let her only child live her dreams, encouaging me always to follow my heart and follow God.

...she has been at the birth of our three oldest, despite the fact that that meant three different states and some last minute travel.  She was the first relative CJ met when we stepped off that plane and into his new life.  Those kiddos think she's their second mom.  CJ says, "Me and Grammy both have black hair!"  Well, there you have it! ;)

...with an uncompleted college degree she has been a bank teller, office manager, dental assistant, CNA, doula and preschool teacher.  She has touched the lives of many others.

...when we moved to Colorado, she decided that would be a good place to live.  So she moved too!  That was our best.assignment.EVER!  Much of which we owe to her.

...she will come running to our rescue at the drop of a hat (or just a text!) to play mom for us.  Trust me, we tried that out in March!

...she raised me in a church-going home, but when my husband and I begin to see that there was more to being a believer than just attending church, she joined us in our quest for knowledge, accepted the Lord as her personal Savior and was baptized with us and our oldest!  Precious memories!

...she takes care of my sweet Grandmother, allowing her to live her senior years in happiness, close to the ones who love her.

She is kind hearted.  She is loving.  She is generous.  She is amazing.  She is loved!

That's my mom!

Happy Mother's Day Mom!

Happy Mother's Day to all the mommies I know and admire!  The world is a better place because of you!

A Decluttered Life

I have been on a new mission...To declutter our home and declutter our lives.  Shhhh...don't tell.  The other 5 that live here may start to notice that things have disappeared and start rummaging through the trash.

First, our home...that part is pretty easy.  Especially if you have a type A daughter who loves to organize and throw things out.  Just mention the word simplify and she is all over it.  As a matter of fact, I might have to go through the trash.  So no room has been safe.  One room at a time, one space at a time, one drawer at a time, we have been throwing away or giving away.  You would think that as a military family we would have scaled down a long time ago.  We did!  But we are now entering our third year in one place, something that we have only done only once before in our military life, and well...stuff happens!  Stuff accumulates!  Stuff takes over!  I did mention to my dear husband that the easy answer was just to move, but for now that is a no go.  (I think he even rolled his eyes at me)  As hard of a task as it has been, for me, not ALP mind you, it is a good thing and one I encourage you to try.  After all,  just how many spatulas do you need, how many books have been read and should be passed on and how many items in your pantry have outlived their expiration dates? umm, just a few random examples, of course.

Second, our lives.  A slightly harder challenge.  I just read this written by Nancy Twigg, "...clutter is anything that complicates your life and stands in the way of simplicity."  hmmmm.... over-commitment,  kids' activities, spending, emotions...you fill in the blank. 

Nancy continues, "Clutter does more than affect us physically and emotionally; it affects us spiritually because it keeps us from following Jesus fully.  We simply cannot make room for Him when so many other things are in the way."  Ouch!

So despite all my effort to declutter the physical things from our home, maybe the priority should simply be to declutter my heart.  To have a heart for Him.  Not stuff.  Not schedules.  Not the things this world says are important.   And in doing so I will be able to spend less time on the craziness of this world and more time on the craziness of His love for us!

Sounds like a simple plan!

"Do no store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy...but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven..."  Matthew 6:20

"How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!" Psalm 36:7

Kid Time!

I passionately love my kiddos.  Bet 'cha knew that!  But here's the thing I have been pondering...do they know that?  You see, when you have four kiddos, or two or three or up for that matter, God in His humor makes them all very different...just to keep you on your toes!  So each of my four sees mom and dad's love a little differently.

My firstborn...she is a physical touch gal...hug her, she's happy!
My second...she is a gift gal...enough said!
My third...he's a little harder to figure out, but gifts and time seem to work for now.
The four year old...TIME!  Play with me, are you going to play with me, who's going to play with me...you get the idea!

See what I mean...it is enough to make a momma's head spin some days!  Most days!  And it is easy to smile  and send them on their way while I get caught up in the business of the day.  So today I am challenged to purposely spend time with each of them, speaking their language in some small way...which will be big to them.  I can tell them I love them often, but I want them to KNOW it, to feel it to the very center of their core.
Kind of sounds like the Lord...He loves us, but do we know it...to the very center of our core?  Do we make time for Him as He gives us His touch, gifts, time and yes, even blesses us with playtime in our lives?  Let me assure you...He longs to lavish us with all those things and more!

John 3:16 "for God so LOVED the world..." 

So inspire me...leave a note on this blog and tell me... how do you plan to love your children today?  I really want to know!

Homeschooling 4:17

Yep, that was almost the title of this blog.  It got CP's vote.  It goes without saying, he got outvoted...but he does get points for being creative. (He gets points for lots of things actually, but that is definitely a blog for another day!)  The 4 is for our four year old all the way to 17, our oldest!  Now, THAT is a lot of years of school, with many more still to go as my olders like to remind me.

Why do I homeschool?
Do you know how early school kids, and by default, their parents, get up!?  Seriously folks!  That is one of the main reasons I started homeschooling.   I do not do alarms and early mornings well.  (don't judge me yet)  My kiddos would have never gotten to school on time.  The last words poor A heard from my lips every morning when trying to get her to preschool on time was, "Hurry up, we are going to be late!".  I cringed thinking those could be the last words she heard from me if the Lord chose to take me home on the drive back home. 
Wow,  fast forward to now, 14 years later.

Why do I homeschool?
GOD!  Nope, He did not audibly tell me, though I admit I waited for that voice many a tear stained, first few years!  (did I mention that our first few years were challenging?)  But here is what He did do:

Put AMAZING moms in my life that encouraged me, mentored me and loved me through the learning process.

Blessed me with children who really want to be home with their mom and are very forgiving when she messes up!

Gave me the best principle in the world who supports his crazy wife 100%.  And, who refused to come home when she called to tell him the kids were going to the worst public school she could find if he did not come home...NOW!  (did I mention our first few years were challenging?!)

Put in our path wonderfully written curriculum designed to make my job easy!

Met me on my knees more than several time when I was discouraged, tired or or had that lonely, homeschool mom feeling and assured me that He was the ultimate teacher.  I am just along for the ride.

Is it always easy-Nope.
Always fun- Nope.
Always organized- Nope.
Always worth it? YOU BET!
We live together and school together.  Learning as we go.
 Do I think homeschooling is for everyone?  Nope!  But I do know that it is for my family! And I thank the Lord for the privilege to a part of that journey everyday!  One is off to college in six short months.  I will accept that as a small sign of success.

 Homeschool mom or not, enjoy your journey! 

Happy Monday, friends!

Mom in Need

A mom in need...are you one?  I know I am and I know I see many along my journey each day.  And yesterday, I almost missed a God moment to help a fellow mom in need.  Shame on me!  Picture this, and I know you can because we have ALL been there.  Poor mom in the local grocery store parking lot at the end of the day just trying to get home while her, I would guess, about four year old decides now, yes now,would be a great time to have a meltdown.  Did I mention she was trying to push one of those silly carts with the car attached to the front?  (don't you know a mom DID NOT design those things!)  So while he screamed, kicked and cried and she, bless her, was trying to speak calmly and be the good mom we all desire to be, and I knew, just knew, that she could be stuck in that parking lot until the next morning.  And I walked by her.  Loaded my car.  Got in my car and started it up.  Shame on me.  My heart was racing and God's little voice kept saying "do something".  Can I just admit that the Lord probably says that several times a day to me and 9 out of 10 times I think of the right answer and then CHOOSE not to do it?  Today was the 10th time.  Yea God!  Yep, I turned off the car, walked over to her and asked her where I could push her cart for her.  She looked at me with disbelief and said, "Really?  You do not know how much that means to me!" Oh yes, mom in need, I do!  All of us do, right!?  Because we moms in need have all experienced those moments where we just needed a helping hand, a smile or a kind word .  Because many of us have or had four year olds.  Because some days are just easier than others. And because we have seen people look at us with THAT look and choose to walk away without helping.  We have been those people as well.  Shame on us! 
And so today I challenge you to be on the lookout for a mom in need.  Life is difficult and we need to stick together!  Plus, it pleases the Lord.  Works for me...yea GOD!

Proverbs 17:17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity.