The Beautiful Life

Project 52–Week 45

I was over at the Bethany House of Prayer the other day, walking around the land and taking pictures for their new website. Of course, we had lots of kids in tow and Graham insisted on me taking this shot. He’s such a sweetie.

Project 52–Weeks 43 & 44

Week 43: I was taking photos of our house to get it ready to put on the market, and Owen kept getting in all of the photos! See him peeking out from behind the tree?

Week 44: I bought these wonderful letters made by Likely and they came in the mail the other day. The kids LOVED them and we spent a couple of hours playing word games, sorting letters and just carrying the pieces around. Fun, fun!

Project 52–Weeks 41 & 42

He thinks he’s Spiderman. Every single time I take out the camera.

The day’s reading selections for school: Raft (wonderful book!), Heidi, Beehive Reader, Beyond the Great Mountains, A Child’s Calendar. Life is slow, and life is good.

Inspired by Ann and Ann.

Homeschool Mental Health Day

To say it’s been a stressful few weeks is an understatement. We’ve lost loved ones, dealt with job stress, strained relationships, unexpected house repairs, all while God is working on our hearts and preparing us to make some changes. As I write this, my husband is attending an out-of-state funeral for his grandpa, the third grandparent he has lost in two months.

Today, I woke up with a massive to-do list, needing to make preparations for receiving my mother-in-law tonight, homeschool with the kids and get caught up on the things that I let slide over the weekend. Good thing my to-do list is on a dry-erase board!

Instead of struggling out of bed, I went back to sleep. The kids got their own breakfast and let me rest. Nice. After I got up and started laundry, I decided we needed to just take the day off from business as usual. We needed some time for our bodies and minds to recuperate. So without further ado, here is how to have a “mental health day” while still homeschooling.

1. Close the curtains so none of your neighbors sees the chaos in your living room. This step is really easy if you still haven’t opened the curtains from last night. Admire the sunlight streaming through cheap cotton. Science, check.

2. Let your kids go crazy with the playdough. Have them find every tiny plastic toy in your house and dump it on the table. Art, check.

3. While you’ve got out the playdough, encourage 5th-century-barbarian-attack re-enactments with Polly Pockets, knights and some plastic army guys. History, check.

4. Rummage through the refrigerator and see what you can come up with for lunch in under 30 seconds. Decide on pepperoni, cheddar cheese and crackers. Justify it by remembering that these crackers are ORGANIC. Sprint up the stairs with three plates to hungry, waiting children. Watch as children jump up and down with excitement about eating pepperoni on a plate. Physical education, check.

5. Let children eat “lunch” in laundry closet. Give them two flashlights and some blankets and let them go to town. Admire their ability at so quickly figuring out how to fit three people in such a small space. Math, check.

6. Set out small pile of reading material, choosing books with colorful covers, where possible. Take a picture of it, because it looks so pretty all stacked up on the counter. Decide it looks too nice to mess with and read aloud from a couple of library books instead. Reading, check.

7. Survey the mess that is now your house, and decide that you still have 5 hours before anyone can possibly show up at your front door. Pour a cup of hot tea, send the kids off to quiet time and go hide out with a book.

Happiness, check.

Project 52–Week 40

There is just nothing like a steaming mug of hot chocolate on a blustery Autumn afternoon.

Humbled

Today I am feeling humbled; stopped in my tracks. Reading Ann’s words and knowing them to be true, but not wanting to let go of the way things have been. How often have I seen my worth in my long to-do list? My caught-up laundry? My perfectly organized house? Lord, teach me to value the things unseen. Forgive me for making idols out of habits, for rearranging priorities that I had no right to touch. What does it all matter, if I don’t first love? No one is going to be drawn to You because my house is tidy. They are drawn by love. Do I make time for love? Do I make room for it? Do I?

Project 52–Week 39

In the last couple of weeks, I’ve taken up scribing. I’ve been wanting to make His words more a part of my everyday life and, as someone who always has a pen in hand, this simple but powerful act just makes sense. I’ve started with my favorite book, Revelation, and am slowly working my way through, pausing to breathe in His words and carefully scratching them out onto paper. It’s fitting really, since we’ve been talking about scribes in school this past week, and although I don’t write as beautifully as those monks did, the words still shine.

The Ant Teacher

I have no idea what an “ant teacher” is, but I’ve been informed that this is what they look like:

Although Owen claims the picture doesn’t do his costume…I mean uniform justice and believes he looks more “like a puppet.”

Oh to be five and half again…

Project 52–Week 38

We had a last minute change of plans on Friday and the kids wanted something to do, so I got out the craft box. What started as a quick fifteen minute session ended up lasting a couple of days, with multiple requests (and bribes) to do it again soon.

Project 52–Week 37

This week we went apple picking and brought home more apples than we’ll ever be able to eat. I just love Fall!