The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

From the Roman Missal Preface of the Assumption:

"Today the virgin Mother of God is taken up into heaven to be the beginning and the pattern of the Church in its perfection, and a sign of hope and comfort for your people on their pilgrim way."

We are a pilgrim people, always searching along that path towards Heaven, and we need hope and comfort.  Thank you Lord, for your most holy Mother.

Walking Away

I came across something on Facebook last night that said:

"Give yourself permission to immediately walk away from anything that gives you bad vibes.  There is no need to explain or make sense of it.  Just trust what you feel."  Sonia Choquette

I find in my own life that I really don't have much of a problem walking away from something that gives me bad vibes.  My immediate reaction to that type of situation is to run in the opposite direction.  Most times I really can't even explain it, I just know that I need to leave.

What I do find that I have a problem with is immediately walking away from good things.  That might sound odd at first, but I'm sure you can relate. 

How many emails, phone calls and personal invitations do you get to join this group or that activity or help at this event, etc.?  There are so many good things to do out there that a person could go mad. Some of these opportunities are ones that I know my family should do - they are the easy ones to discern.

Other times, like earlier this week, I find myself committing to something that really is a good opportunity for one or all of my children or our whole family, but yet deep down I know I should probably be walking away.  Unfortunately I have a hard time saying no.  

Here's how it usually plays out:  I commit to the activity.  I immediately begin having concerns about how we are going to either afford it or make the time to get to it.  These concerns are temporarily buried as I think of all the positive things that will come out of this activity.  Then I am immediately overwhelmed with anxiety about how this is all going to work out.  

My husband, of course, can very easily tell me to just go back to the person or group, apologize and tell them we can't do it.  I, on the other hand, feel immensely guilty for backing out and feel the need to explain and justify myself until the other person passes out.

Why do I get myself into this position in the first place?  Because I like to do things!  I like for my kids to be involved in things.  I like to be around people.  So my knee jerk reaction is to say yes to everything and then go home and realize that it really isn't feasible.  Oh to be able to hold my tongue and think about it awhile before I commit!  Oh to not feel guilty for saying no to really good things!  Save me Lord from myself :)

 

Wordless Wednesday

Thoughts on Homeschooling Your First Child

A mom of a two year old asked on my CHR facebook page whether or not other people felt apprehensive when they began homeschooling.  This is a very common feeling when someone is thinking of beginning the somewhat daunting task of educating your children.

I remember that when we decided to homeschool our oldest daughter she was just approaching kindergarten.  I don't remember being apprehensive then; that came later on when I added more students and realized the enormity of the situation.  When we first started I'd say I was exuberant and ready to teach her everything there was to learn.

It wasn't until I was homeschooling a few kids that I realized the kindergartner didn't have to know all of the things I thought they should know.  I realized with time and experience that these first couple years should be spent getting the kids excited about learning the basics instead of trying to pound "school" into their heads.  

Upon realizing this, that is when the apprehensiveness showed up.  What had I done wrong?  How could I go forward differently with the older kids and how could I change things for the newer students?  This eventually led us down a much more relaxed atmosphere in our homeschool.  Relaxed in the sense that I now realize that kids learn differently and at much different rates; that you can't expect them all to read marvelously at a young age - or even an older age; that they will all learn what needs to be learned when they are ready to learn it.

So my advice to moms with young children is this:  Spend time with your kids when they are younger, 3 - 6 or so, doing fun types of learning.  Learn letters and numbers and reading and science by doing activities, taking field trips and reading lots of good books together.  Let your child let you know when they are ready to read...they might be 4 or they might be 8.  Trying to force someone to learn to read when they are just not ready is the same as trying to potty train a toddler that just doesn't get it.  You both end up frustrated and nothing gets accomplished.

Try not to be apprehensive, either!  You have 12 years to get it right and believe me it won't take that long to figure it all out.  Be flexible and open and willing to change things if they just aren't working.  If you can do that, then this monumental task we call homeschooling will be just fine.  It might be hard and there will be days when you think you've had it, but just take a step back and PRAY hard and God will guide you through it!

 

Rain, Glorious Rain!

 It finally rained here on Saturday.  It rained for almost an hour straight, which has been unheard of around these parts this summer.  It was such a beautiful sight that the kids had to go out and celebrate.  Of course, we had planned to spend the afternoon at the beach, but that's okay, we'll take the rain instead.

7 Quick Takes August 3, 2012

--- 1 ---

This week has been busy, busy, busy around here!  Six of my children (and myself in the photographer's role) have been participating in Catholic Kids Camp which is a four day event that three young ladies we know have put together every year for the past five years.  It's like VBS, but super-sized.  When these sisters do things, they do them over the top!  It has been a great time.

 

--- 2 ---

Every day there's a craft, songs, a skit

 

a mystery activity, , games, lessons and tons of fun.  

 

--- 3 ---

 The theme this year is traveling to Jerusalem through the mysteries of the rosary.  Each day there is a themed snack.  Guess which set of mysteries this snack belongs to?

 

--- 4 ---

We did go to Chick-fil-A on Wednesday evening, too.  We got there around 7:15 and got our food around 9:00.  Some of us opted to stand in line and others went to the car to try the drive-thru.  The drive-thru won out, while our place in line looked like it might have at least another hour wait.  We all jumped in the van, got our food and sat in an adjacent parking lot to finally eat.

--- 5 ---

Here is what the crowd looked like while we were there. 

  -- 6 ---

It was a neat experience.  A ton of happy people waiting in line to get some food.  At one point a worker from the store came out and brought food to a family that had a severely handicapped daughter so that they didn't have to wait in the heat.  Big cheers for that one.  Then a U-Haul pulled up to deliver more supplies.  People from the crowd formed a line to get the items from the truck to the restaurant.  More cheers from the crowd.  It is just neat to spend time with complete strangers in such a joyful and peaceful atmosphere.
 

--- 7 ---

 I've had a great response so far to my free shipping offer on my book "A Plan for Joy in the Home".  Check out this post for all the details.  Have a great weekend!

For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!

 

A Plan for Joy Free Shipping Announcement

It's August, the month where, for most of us, summer comes to an end (even though it feels as if it just started) and school time begins.  It's time to plan and order and ORGANIZE!  Organize your books, your school room, your supplies and your DAY!

 

For that reason I'm announcing FREE SHIPPING on my book "A Plan for Joy in the Home" for the entire month of August.  It's not too late to get organized before the school year begins.  Take some time now to plan out your day and avoid the frustration and aggravation from the get-go.

I'd like to point out that my book is not just a book that tells you that you SHOULD organize your life...you already know that!  What I do in "A Plan for Joy" is show you HOW to organize your life.  We walk through the entire process and by the time you finish, you've got a pretty good idea of how your day should run.  Realize I said, should...there are never any guarantees that it will always go that way.

To find out more and to take advantage of this offer, just go to the website, www.aplanforjoyinthehome.com, look around and place your order.  Please feel free to share this with other homeschoolers you know who need help bringing some order to their day.

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