Thankful for sleep!

Last night, I slept all night!!!!! It was wonderful and I feel so much better this morning! Jaden has been sick with a bad cough and Weds. night, he woke up at 3 AM coughing and coughing. He did not go back to sleep until the following afternoon! What made it worse is that I was up until midnight the night before completing necessary tasks. So I only slept from 12:15 until 3 AM. I was a total zombie yesterday morning!

I had to call Ivy's piano teacher and say we couldn't come. Mark had to get off work at noon so that he could have Jaden and drive me to Homeschool group where I had to teach my Kindergarten class. I was too exhausted and sleep-deprived to even drive!! Somehow I was able to teach the class without collapsing.

For the past several weeks, I've only been getting 5 or 6 hours of sleep per night at the most since my work keeps me up until midnight most of the nights. So I couldn't afford a night with less than 3 hours! That's why I was so wiped out.

But thankfully, last night, Jaden slept all night and so did I! I even went to bed earlier - around 10 so I got a really good 7 hours of sleep!!! I have come back into the land of the living!

And maybe this weekend, I'll get an extra hour of sleep too!

New glasses for Ivy

Doesn't Ivy look beautiful in her new glasses? I love the frames that she picked out. Joel and I felt a bit jealous at the eye glasses store! Ivy has been wearing glasses ever since she can remember - since she was two years old and can't imagine not wearing them.

We were over-charged $50 and it took several phone calls to get that straightened out, but thankfully the problem was corrected. My uncle is an optician in VA but that is a bit too far to go for glasses unfortunately!

Unit One Completed!

I was so excited on Friday - we finished our very first unit in Tapestry of Grace! We all learned so much over the last nine weeks! We spent a lot of time reviewing our unit on the Books of Moses and talked about all that we had learned. Ivy comopleted her lapbook which was a great way to review. Joel took his unit test and did well too. We didn't do a Unit Celebration per se, but we proudly showed some things to Dad and Grandma. Maybe we'll do a celebration after our next unit.

Yesterday I spent the afternoon taking out the pages of their notebooks from the last unit and printing off all the pages of Unit 2 and putting that in their notebooks. Also printed out all the maps and evaluations and put them in. So we are ready to go today! We have a wonderful library so all our books are in and available to us also.

I am so happy with Tapestry of Grace! What a blessing it has been for our homeschool.

Future City Engineering

What a busy week it was last week! Joel is in a Future City Engineering class preparing for the regional competition in Philadelphia. He's been busy making the parts of his model and reading through information for his research paper. I've been helping him with finding sources - I LOVE research, however it has been very time-consuming and much of it is way over our heads!!! To understand what this is all about, click on the title of this post and it will take you to the future city engineering website!

His paper has to describe a self-sufficient, contained living space that conserves, recycles and reuses it's own water with minimal or no use of municipal water and no water discharge. The idea is to not bring any water in, no water out - just to continually reuse the same water. The technologies of today can solve some of the issues, but not all. He has to delve into the technology that is on the horizon in the future. We have been researching self-sustainable homes that are "outside the grid" however, there is not a lot of detail on the water systems. Obviously, there has to be rain catchment and compost toilets and reuse of "gray water". Thankfully his city is located in Hawaii where there is substantial rain fall. This has been an interesting topic to research!

When he signed up for this class, I had no idea what he (and all of us) were getting into! It is very, very highly centered on technology and math and science. Not our strong points! Joel is being very, very stretched! He's an excellent writer, artist and very creative person - not so into math and science!

But maybe this is changing him a little bit..... for his birthday this year, he wants to go to the Franklin Institue in Philly.... a Science museum of all places!!!!!!!!

19 Days and Counting!

Soon we will be the parents of a teenager! Joel is counting down the days. I remember his early days of sweet babyhood and thinking that the teen years were so far, far off in the distant future. But how quickly the time has gone! He is as tall as me now and wearing 30 inch waist jeans and his voice is even starting to squeak now and then!

Can you believe we are even starting to "look" at colleges? Researching them, thinking about which one would be a good fit for him. I know, we have almost 6 more years... he's only in 7th grade! But because I'm the one responsible for his education, I need to be planning ahead. I want him to have the best prepration possible for those college years so the planning needs to start now.

I always thought he would live at home and go to local Millersville University - commute to classes every day. And if not M.U., we have several other local colleges - Franklin & Marshall College, Elizabethtown College, not to mention the community college. We are literally surrounded by institutions of higher education in this county!

However, after reading a little article written by our pastor in the current church newsletter, my thinking on where he would go to college has been challenged. I've always homeschooled our children because I definitely did not want them to go to a government (public) school. Yet, I thought any college would be just fine?!! Sadly our culture is moving further and further away from the truth and becoming increasingly opposed to our faith.

Our pastor has recommended 7 Christian liberal arts colleges and has encouraged parents, like us, to consider sending our children to a Christian university where the truth of Scripture and the inerrancy of the Word is interwoven in all facets of learning. Covenant College in Lookout Mountain, Georgia is highly recommended because of it's solidly Biblical focus as well as it's excellent academics. It is under the PCA denomination which our church is part of. Two other reformed churches closer to home are Grove City College and Geneva College, both in western PA. Other colleges he recommends are Gordon College, Taylor University, Cedarville University and Wheaton College. If you want to read his article, click on the link for our church and then click on "calendar and events" and then "Communique" to read the newsletter.

Covenant College does sound like an excellent choice and we have been very impressed by everything we have researched about it. However, and this is a BIG however, it is 11 hours and 4 minutes away!!!!!!!! I'm so glad we have a few more years to think about this! And yes, Joel has a big say in this too. So far, he really likes the idea of going there - although his reasons are a bit more superficial, he loves the Georgia Bulldogs! And of course, I am very partial to the south and so is Mark - we always thought we would retire down in the Smoky Mountains someday. We even honeymooned there 17 years ago.

I'm so glad that God is our Shepherd, like my mom always has said. We are just His sheep. We'll follow where he leads us. And we need to pray for our children that God would direct them to wherever they should go.

Mom, I need an Egyptian costume TOMORROW!

First of all, I don't sew! I have a really nice sewing machine that my mom bought for me several years ago when I hoped to learn how to sew.... but never got around to learning. This urgent plea from my son last Tuesday made me get out that intimidating machine of mine and I tried my best to sew an Egyptian costume for him using a white sheet. Ivy had to help me - she's had lots of experience with her play sewing machine and she was a big help! After getting the machine threaded (which took over half an hour!), the rest was not too difficult, considering I was totally new at sewing!

Our church had a Family Fall Fest on Saturday for the elementary aged children and their families. Twelve countries were represented in the large gym at church with the youth group dressed in costumes from each of the countries. Children were to visit each of the countries and play a game or activity at each one. Joel represented the country of Egypt and that's why he needed a costume. However, it was needed several days early to be approved first by the youth staff - so I had really short notice! But I think it turned out fine. Here he is with Jaden and you can tell Jaden was having a great time!


Joel didn't want his picture taken, but I really wanted to get a picture of this costume that I worked so hard to make!

Help for Spelling!!!

I found a really, really good site that provides help for learning spelling words! It is free - just type in your spelling list and you can choose to have those words taught, tested, or play games with them! I am very excited about using this with Ivy to provide a fun way to practice her spelling words. Check it out!

Our weekend in Havre de Grace

Mark and I had a wonderful, relaxing weekend in Havre de Grace, Maryland! My mom generously gave us two night's lodging at the cozy White House of Havre de Grace! And it wasn't even our anniversary. My mom just wanted to bless us with this and she knows how busy we've been and that we just needed some time away. She kept our children for the weekend at her house and they did some fun things too - like golfing and go karts! Mark and I had the whole guest house to ourselves. We loved this place, complete with a full kitchen, sitting area, beautiful bedroom and bath. Here are some pictures of the house. For more pictures or info. go to http://www.whitehouseofhavredegrace.com/. We highly recommend this cottage for a romantic getaway! It was perfect!

The house was just a block away from the water. Havre de Grace is a beautiful historic town right by the water's edge where the Susquehanna River meets the Chesapeake Bay. We could walk everywhere in town. We enjoyed many little unique shops and antique stores, but most of all we walked along the water on the Promenade, a boardwalk, where we could just relax and take in the beautiful scenery. We had gorgeous weather the whole weekend! It could not have been more perfect - temps in the low 80s and bright blue skies.

This is the oldest continually operated lighthouse in the U.S. We walked down to the lighthouse at night and saw the lights over the water. The Promenade is open until 11 PM so we even enjoyed an evening walk by the Bay last night.

We had such a wonderful time together and it truly was relaxing - just what we needed! No busy schedules, no interruptions, no hurry.

But we were very happy to see our children and be home again tonight.

The joy of shopping with a toddler

If you saw a woman running fast all over the entire Sears store today - without shoes on, just socks.... well, that was me! I was chasing Jaden who thought it was very, very funny. He is faster than me. Especially in the slippery places. Why no shoes? Well I just had socks on my feet because I had been busy trying on shoes when the little guy disappeared.

And yes, I did get some great pairs of shoes! One nice brown pair of shoes regularly $45 on clearance for 4.99 and another pair of black shoes greatly reduced to 9.99. I love bargains like that! I needed shoes badly because my black shoes hurt my feet so much in church that immediately after getting home on Sunday, I put them right into the trash can!

It was our second day in a row at Sears. Yesterday, we bought socks! I think we'll stay away from there for awhile.

More Grace, More Love

On Weds. nights at church, I'm in a women's Bible study called "Dueteronomy: More Grace, More Love: Living in Covenant with God" by George Robertson. Our study for tonight focuses on Deuteronomy 3:12-29. It was a good study for me and gave me much to think about. In the study guide, Robertson wrote:

"God dignifies us by giving us meaningful responsibility and holding us accountable for it.... Difficult responsibilities and the potential for failure must drive us to Christ for more grace. Difficult experiences must drive us to greater love for God."

I love my busy job of homeschooling our children and all the responsibilities that I have that keep me busy. Sometimes I do feel exhausted, but I firmly believe that it is His calling for me to do what I do.

This study reminded me that on difficult days, during times of tremendous, overwhelming responsibility, God is giving me this work to bring me to Him! He will supply the grace I need for each day, each week. And the difficult times drive me to a greater love for Him and for others.

My weeks are full to the brim and my responsibilities are great, and I am so thankful for His grace which is greater still!

Here is a "typical" week for me:

Monday: Go to Homeschool group at 8:45-12:00, Assist in the 5th Grade Archeology Class, participate in the Mom's Prayer & Share time, Assist in the 5 and 6 year olds Gym class,
Teach my 7th grader and 5th grader in the afternoon, Plan the homeschool week

Tuesday: a full day of homeschooling, Lesson plan for Thursday's Kindergarten class

Weds: a full day of homeschooling, Supper at church, Ivy to Junior Choir Practice and GEMS club, Women's Bible Study, Joel to Youth Group, Mark to choir practice, Jaden to nursery class

Thurs: Ivy to piano lesson, Read to and care for piano teacher's 3 young children, Go to Homeschool Group for the afternoon 12:30-3:40, Teach the Kindergarten class, Assist in nursery for 2 hours with Jaden.

Friday: a full day of homeschooling, Home Fellowship Group Bible study in evening

Too top it all off, caring for a very active two year old keeps me busy non-stop! That is a constant, on-going responsibility while I do everything else!!!!! And through-out the week there are errands to run, several trips to libraries (we almost live at the library!), doctor appointments, and soon I'll be chauffering Joel to and from the theatre almost every day during the rehearsal period and then 2-3 times a week during the show run. Also, our home is a hang-out for all the children in the neighborhood so there are always kids in our house and in the yard after school hours!

Do I have "leisure time"? Not usually. Every now and then around midnight, I may read a chapter of a book before I fall asleep. I rarely sit on the couch. I never watch TV. My days are full and scheduled and almost always hurried.... but life is good. And the responsibilities that He has given me have made me lean on Him daily. I know that I need His grace. And I know that it is a loving Heavenly Father who gives me the responsibilities that I have, even the difficulties!

Blessings from above

God loves to lavish His children with blessings! I never cease to be amazed at the different ways that He faithfully provides with much more than we even need, more than we ever ask.

Here is one example of a way that He has blessed us recently. I really have wanted to buy a Latin curriculum for our children since I have read how important Latin is in learning vocabulary and grammar and how it is a great foundation for studying languages in high school. After buying Tapestry of Grace and Apologia science books and other books for this year, there was no way that we could afford to buy Latin books. I mentioned to Mark that although it was something I really wanted for our children, we would just have to wait. Well, guess what!!!! Just a few weeks after that conversation with Mark, another mom in our Monday morning Homeschool group sent out an email to everyone that she had several packages of Latin curriculum complete with textbooks, and student activity books - brand new, excellent condition and ALL FREE for the taking! A local classical Christian school had extra or didn't need them for some reason and gave them to her to give out to homeschooling families!!!! So I got books and activity workbooks for both Joel and Ivy for two years of Latin! For free! We haven't started yet, but I'm in the process of planning out the schedule and we'll begin soon. What a wonderful blessing that was!

And another blessing - today at our Monday morning homeschool group, one of the moms in my Prayer and Share group talked about how she and her kids measured out Noah's ark recently.... and I said "You must be using Tapestry of Grace!!!!!!!!" and yes, she is! And not only that, she has been for years, going through all 4 year plans and now is in Year 1 and the same week we are doing!!!!! Plus, she is an area consultant and loves to help newbies like me with any questions, etc. She is only the third person I know personally in this area who is using Tapestry of Grace so I was really happy to find this out! She is also Ivy's Archeology class teacher! How wonderful to have someone to bounce ideas off of and share TOG with!

And yet another blessing - this past weekend was a very large consignment sale that was held at a local Farm and Home Center. I was able to be a consigner and I took almost 100 clothing items on hangers to be sold! I'm not sure how much money I made, but should get a check in the mail soon. Anyway, I was able to buy everything I needed for Jaden for fall/winter all at fantastic prices - as well as several things for his birthday in December! I bought the big kids some clothing too but it was mostly smaller sizes there. What a blessing that was for me to get such a huge amount of clothing at such a discount. I love bargain shopping!

I hope this post today has encouraged you to look for blessings - sometimes they do come unexpectedly. God is good and He loves to surprise us. Count your blessings...name them one by one! And it will surprise you what the Lord has done!

Joel got a contract!

Joel will be back at the theatre, playing the roles of Judah's son, Nathan (inn keeper's son) and Gideon (shepherd boy) in the "Miracle of Christmas" show at Sight and Sound's Millennium Theatre. He is so excited! We were worried he would be too big to play the role, but they wanted him back again. This is the 7th show that he's been contracted for at Sight and Sound since he started back in 2003 at age 7.

I remember so well the first time we saw the "Miracle of Christmas" show back in 2000 when Joel was 5 years old. It was our first time at a show at Sight and Sound and we were amazed! Joel sat there totally transfixed and I remember telling Mark that Joel would be in that show someday!

Then just 2 years later, Joel auditioned at the theatre and got the role of Isaac for the "Abraham and Sarah" show and then "Ruth", "Miracle of Christmas", "Ruth" again, "Psalms of David" and most recently "Abraham and Sarah" again.

He was in "Miracle of Christmas" for the 2005 season which was the time that Jaden was born. I remember sitting there watching the show the day that Jaden was due to be born! So this show is extra special to us and I'm so glad he gets to be in it again.

Please come see the show! You will be so glad you did!

It's been a whole week since I wrote on here! Yes, we've been very busy but also my heart has been too heavy to write. Last weekend, we became aware of a very sad situation involving a couple we know and it has been difficult for me to process it. I keep being reminded that there is nothing too broken for God to fix. Nothing is impossible with Him! He loves to heal and restore so I will pray for healing for them. Have you ever gone through a time when you are overwhelmed with the knowledge of the sin and problems in this world? This week has been a time like that for me. But thanks be to God who sits on the throne! I know that He is sovereign and He is still working.

I'm in a Bible study on Weds. nights and we are studying the book of Dueteronomy. What an excellent, encouraging study it has been. I encourage you to read through that book and look for all the evidences of God's grace! You will be surprised, I think. Sometimes people mistakenly think that grace is a New Testament concept. But His grace is throughout the Old Testament because our wonderful heavenly Father does not change. He is the same, yesterday, today and forever. And what a great comfort that is!

Thursday Homeschool Group Days

Today was our second week of classes for our Thursday Homeschool Group. We have been with this group for 7 years! There are about 75 families with approximately 250students and we use the entire large building of a local church. Our children have participated in many elective classes over the years in several different subject areas, mostly history, art and science. Also gym and fitness classes as well as choir/music classes have been part of their weekly schedules. Field trips, learning fairs, and choir concerts are important events every year there too.

This year, Joel is in the Future City Engineering Class which he really, really enjoys! This class will be creating a city of the future with recycled materials with the help of Sim City software and a guest engineer. They will be competing and showcasing their city at the regional competition in Philadelphia in February. Last year, our homeschool group sent a team there for the first time and they did very well! They were the only homeschooled team represented and they were one of the top teams, winning prizes as well as cash! They are hoping to achieve that level and possibly higher this year.

Joel is also in Yearbook class which is a bit harder for him because he doesn't have a laptop computer to take with him or alot of computer expertise and neither does his mother! Its way over my head. But he is very creative and wonderful with writing so hopefully he'll be able to contribute that way.

Ivy is taking a painting class and I can't wait to see her projects at the end of the semester! We are getting her a set of paints to practice with at home too. She is also in the 4th through 6th grade Choir and is taking gym and fitness classes.

For her fitness class this year, she is going through CPR and First Aid training so she will be certified in both. That should help her acquire some babysitting jobs! And for gym class, she'll be playing volleyball this fall. Not her favorite thing, and she said she would rather play football!

My job at this group is to teach the Kindergarten class. I love that so much! I put together a unit on Robert Louis Stevenson's "A Child's Garden of Verses" and each week I read a poem or two to the class and we do activities, games, and/or crafts centered around that poem. It is so much fun! What could be better than poetry and kindergartners!

Today I read my favorite "The Land of Counterpane" and "Block City." After enjoying the poems and discussing them, the children made their own block cities on paper with colorful shapes and glue. They also played with pattern blocks and a pattern block puzzle. Last week, we did "My Shadow" and did lots of shadow activities and best of all, traced our shadows on the pavement outside.

Jaden goes to the nursery while I'm teaching the class. The rest of the time, he and I spend in the playground or walking around together. Its a nice couple hours with just my little one.

On Monday, we will begin our first week at our Monday Homeschool Group that meets at our church! There are 50 families in that group and this will be our first year with them. I'll probably write all about that next week, as well as the results of Joel's theatre audition on Monday!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone! Be sure to go to the movie!

Go to the Movies this weekend!

I want to encourage everyone to go see "Fireproof" this weekend! It is premeiring in 750 theatres around the country so chances are there is one near you. This is the third movie made by Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia. They also made Flyweel (one of my favorite movies ever!) and Facing the Giants, a great movie especially enjoyed by my football loving son!

It is important that we all support this movie which was made to honor Christ and communicate Biblical values. This is the kind of movie we want to see more of! The opening weekend is VERY crucial because its success determines how long the movie will run in theatres and a good opening weekend will give the message to the theatres that we want movies like this! It also makes it possible for the producers to make more movies! They are counting on us and need our support too.

So I'm joining with Dr. Dobson in encouraging everyone who can to GO to the theatre this weekend and show your support! Enjoy the movie and tell others!

For more info. about this movie, go to www.fireproofthemovie.com or click on the Fireproof movie box above to watch video clips of the movie and more!

Ivy's piano recital

Ivy did a beautiful job today at her very first piano recital! She began taking lessons about 10 months ago and she has progressed very nicely. She was a little bit nervous before the recital and I looked down and saw Jaden's arm around her! It was so cute! He seemed to know that she needed some encouragement!





Ivy played a fast song called "Tap Dance" and a slower song called "Sing, Bird Sing!" She played beautifully. Here she is after her recital with her piano teacher.

Mark has been working very long hours at work due to increased demands and a re-structuring in the company. Even after working 10-12 hours a day, he's had to go into the office on Saturdays too and sometimes doing work at home at night. To show appreciation for me holding down the fort here, a few steps away from the funny farm, he bought me these beautiful pink roses yesterday! AND he did ALL the laundry!!!!!! What a wonderful husband I have!

A Sad good-bye at the theatre

Yesterday was Joel's last performance for this season. In the post below, I had the wrong info. and corrected it. Joel actually performed 90 shows this year in "Abraham and Sarah" and it began in April. Time flies! He hated to say good-bye to everyone last night because some people he may not see again. Here is a picture of him with two other young actors with whom he has worked with in several shows over the past few years.

The End of the Show

This picture of Joel was taken tonight at Sight and Sound's Millennium Theatre in front of the display advertising the "Abraham and Sarah" show. So here is Ishmael himself standing in front of a wax Isaac and Sarah. The wax Abraham was in the scene too but not in this picture. It is a very nice display!

Tomorrow is Closing Day for the 2008 season of the "Abraham and Sarah" show at Sight and Sound's Living Waters Theatre. Joel performed in 90 shows since Opening Day in April! It will be a bittersweet day tomorrow as he performs the role of Ishmael two last times - the 1:00 and 4:15 shows. Of course, he could be back again next year - IF he doesn't grow too tall!

We had a special evening tonight - we went to see "In the Beginning" at the Millennium theatre! It was a perfect ending to our school week's study of creation. What a beautiful show it was. It was even better than when we saw it last year. Jaden loved it too - although he thought he would be seeing Noah and the ark! (We measured Noah's ark earlier in the day today!) He said "There's all the animals, but where's the boat??!!!"

Both times that I have seen "In the Beginning", I cannot help crying when Adam and Eve are created. It is so very moving and emotional. It was so thrilling when God breathed the breath of life into each of them! If you haven't seen this show, you still have a chance - it runs through next month and then will be returning again next year. I still like "Abraham and Sarah" the best, but this one isn't far behind.

For more info. on these shows or others coming up at Sight and Sound Theatres, click on the link to the right on this page under "My favorite links."

Measuring Noah's Ark

Today we finished week 4 in our TOG year 1. Our theme this week was Creation through Noah's ark. What an interesting week! Today, we went to a park with several soccer fields and lots of open space so that we could measure the actual size of the ark. WOW! It was huge! I thought I had a good picture in my mind of how big it was, but it was much larger than I thought.

Picture Joel, Ivy, and I each holding an 18 inch of twine (one cubit). We stood next to each other with our twine strings touching. We put a lid of a rubbermaid container at our starting spot. The person on the end moved to the other end and so we counted all the way to 300 cubits to measure the length of the ark! It took a LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG time and I know we looked VERY odd and peculiar! We had a small crowd of people watching us from a distance wondering about such weird homeschoolers and what in the world we were doing!

We then put down another lid to mark the corner and measured 50 cubits for the width. By then Jaden about had it with us! "Stop counting!!!" "No more counting please!!!!! I want to go to the playground!!!!!!" This was a very long activity - litterally. It takes a long time to do this and it's a long area to cover! Of course, we could have used another method to measure out 450 feet (300 cubits) by 75 feet (50 cubits) but the point was to do it cubit by cubit. And it made us understand how it would have taken over a hundred years for Noah to build that thing! The total square feet of the 3 floors of the ark would be about four and a half football fields!

In the picture above, maybe you can strain your eyes to see two tiny little specks of red in the distance. Those are actually Joel and Ivy standing at each of the side corners of the "ark". I was standing oposite Joel at the other side of the "ark" when I took the picture.

This is from Jaden

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Everyone needs a good laugh sometimes!

This is so funny! I watched this today on another TOG blog site (Williams Academy) and laughed and laughed! I remember watching this many years ago and it is just as funny today! Maybe I shouldn't let Ivy see this - she is already scared to death of dentists!
Enjoy!

Jaden in Egypt?

We had a great afternoon today at the park with our Hempfield Homeschool group! It was lots of fun for our kids to reconnect with their friends again. Joel and a bunch of the older boys played football (of course!) and Ivy had a great time with all her friends. I took pictures of Ivy and her friends - but she wouldn't let me post them here!

Jaden especially liked the sand area with the little pyramids to play in! We just finished a mini-unit on Ancient Egypt so he's been hearing a lot about pyramids, pharoahs and mummies! I think he thought he really was in Egypt!

Having Fun with Science

We really like our Apologia science! Ivy likes "Exploring Creation with Botany." Today she learned about non-vascular plants. We found a patch of moss in the yard that she looked at with her magnifying glass.

Jaden had to investigate too! He likes to do whatever his older siblings are doing.

We brought some pieces of the moss inside as well as some of the white fungi to look at under the microscope. Our kids were given one of those microscopes you plug into your TV and it is fantastic! The detail is very, very good and we love all seeing it on a big screen. We highly recommend it! We could see tiny "leaves" and stems in the moss, but they aren't really leaves - we learned that moss has no tubes carrying water. Instead it is like a sponge, soaking up water to all its parts.

Joel did another experiment today in his Apologia General Science. He boiled some red cabbage leaves and added vinegar to the empty bottle. Then filled a balloon with baking soda and attached it to the neck of the bottle and the balloon filled up. Also the cabbage water changed colors from blue to pink to purple. Pretty cool!

Salt dough map

Ivy painted her salt dough map today - the colors look different in the picture for some reason. It really was more green! She did a good job showing some different geological features in her map of her imaginary island country! This was our first hands-on project with Tapestry of Grace.

A Solemn Anniversary

Where were you 7 years ago at 9 in the morning? I will always remember that day... a beautiful Tuesday morning. Joel was 5 and Ivy was 4 years old and we had just begun our school day. As our usual custom, we began the day with Bible reading and singing a hymn. On that particular morning, I read Psalm 23 and we sang the hymn "God Leads His Dear Children Along."

We were interrupted by a phone call - my mom called and told me that a plane had just crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City. I assumed it was a terrible accident involving a small plane. However shortly after that, I and the rest of the world realized the magnitude of that event.

We watched the TV, we cried, prayed and talked about this. I didn't want to scare my children who were so young. So we went for a walk around our neighborhood. It was so quiet... no planes flying overhead. So quiet, so calm, so peaceful yet I knew that that day was anything but peaceful. It was a very frightening time. Yet throughout that day, my mind continuously was full of Scripture verses, I knew that we can trust in our loving heavenly Father. He is sovereign over all. He was there.

Later, the significance of our Bible reading and our hymn that morning just amazed me! God gave us that Scripture and that beautiful hymn that morning for a reason. I will always be reminded of September 11, 2001 whenever I hear or sing that hymn.

To commemorate that day, this morning my children and I again read Psalm 23 and we sang together "God Leads His Dear Children Along" just like we did 7 years ago.

"In shady green pastures, so rich and so sweet,

God leads His dear children along.

Where the water's cool flow bathes the weary one's feet,

God leads His dear children along.

Some thro' the waters,

some thro' the flood,

Some thro' the fire,

But all thro' the blood.

Some thro' great sorrow,

But God gives a song

In the night season

And all the day long.

Sometimes on the mount where the sun shines so bright,

God leads His dear children along.

Sometimes in the valley, in darkest of night

God leads His dear children along.

Though sorrows befall us and Satan oppose,

God leads His dear children along.

Through grace we can conquer, defeat all our foes;

God leads His dear children along."

Text and Music by G.A.Young

Welcome to the world, Ethan William!!!

Tonight around 6:00, my cousin Nathan and his wife Ruth welcomed their first child, Ethan William into the world! His great-grandpa Green in heaven must be so proud - today would have been his birthday! Ethan weighed 9 pounds, 12 ounces! And today was the due date! Ruth and Ethan are doing well. He has long dark hair and I just can't wait to see him! Please be in prayer for this new baby and for Nathan and Ruth as they enter this wonderful new stage of life!

Why I am a Young Earth Creationist

As a Christian and believer in God's holy inspired Word, of course I believe in creation. It is very easy and reasonable to be a creationist. And I think most people who would be reading my blog would also be creationists so I'm not going to belabor the point! It is interesting however, the many kinds of creationists there are - "old earth" creationists, "Biblical framework" creationists and "young earth creationists" like me who believe in a literal 24 hour/day 6 day week of creation. I'm sure there are other kinds of "creationists" too who combine evolution and creation and everybody also knows about the "Intelligent Design" position.

Back to my topic, Why I am a young earth creationist? First of all, the literal reading of Genesis chapter one refers to 6 days, repeating the phrase "and there was evening and there was morning" which was a Hebrew understanding of a literal day. And it makes perfect sense to me that it would be 6 literal days.

Yet, I also know that sometimes the literal interpretation is not intended and parts of the Bible are figurative. Like in Revelation - the dragon and many of the creatures are figurative and not meant to be taken literally.

So why do I think a literal interpretation is intended here? One reason is the emphasis on God's Word speaking things into existence. Repeatedly we read "And God said..... and there was." God made everything out of nothing - the earth was formless and void and dark. God created things just by speaking. When you do that, you don't need millions of years!

For example, I believe that God made full-grown plants and trees - yes even big oak trees with rings inside of them indicating that they would be many years old! He made the animals mature and grown. And it is generally agreed that Adam and Eve were created as adults, fully developed and grown-up looking. Why couldn't God have also made animals, plants, trees, and stars mature and "aged" looking?

I also believe that God was very pleased with His creation and called it all good. The sin that resulted in the curse hadn't fallen on creation until Adam and Eve sinned. Once they sinned, that perfect environment was changed and death came into the world. I do not believe that animals existed very long before the curse because I believe that there was no death until sin entered the world. I know that can be debated, yet I would find it very hard to believe that death existed before sin.

Also one of Adam's responsibilities was to name all the animals and I believe that the animals were safe and not predators. I believe that Adam and Eve could live safely with those animals in the garden - before sin and death entered the world.

I realize that the young earth theory of creation clashes with the dating of the world. However, I believe that God created this world fully mature. The stars, very distant and millions of light years away, can be seen by us today because He desired us to see them. They declare His glory!!!! Since He made them out of nothing, He was fully able to create them to be seen by us even though it would normally take millions of years for their light to reach us allowing us to see them. For me that is a very simple thing for the Creator of the stars to do! The distance of the stars does not require us to believe in an old earth!

And I also realize that the sun and moon were not created until Day 4. So some wonder, how could there be literal days without the sun? It is my belief that God created the day and night in Day 1 and that the sun was put in place according to that time table that God already established. Not the other way around. God made the sun to determine the time in our day according to His plan and purpose. I don't think our 24 hour day began in Day 4 with the sun!

Also, it is interesting to note that the vegetation, plants bearing seed, and fruit trees bearing fruit were created the day before the sun. I don't believe that fruit trees, plants, flowers, and vegetables were growing very long before the sun was created. Yes there was already light, but not the sun when these plants were created and growing.

What about the grand canyon? For me, that is very easy to explain since I also believe there was a literal flood covering the world! I think we don't realize how much that flood changed the world. The flood changed everything! That great catastrophic event changed the world in ways that it would appear to have changed over millions of years. It has affected the carbon dating and all human analysis of the age of the earth, which I believe was created mature to begin with.

Did you know that there are cowboy boots that have changed into petrified rock? Obviously cowboy boots aren't that old, yet they would appear to be very old due to the extreme conditions they underwent. There are many discrepancies when humans try to date things and scientists don't agree over the dating of the world.

Are there intelectual people, scholarly people, scientists with advanced degrees who actually believe in a literal 7 day creation? YES! Dr. Jay Wile, author of the Apologia science curriculum and the book Reasonable Faith believes in the young earth creation theory, as do many others.

I also realize that evangelical, Bible believing Christians can and do disagree about this. One's salvation does not hinge on this! I also know that I could be wrong, although I strongly think I'm right! God is all-powerful and He made all of His creation "very good", out of nothing, and I believe He made it all perfect, fully mature and in 6 days by speaking the words and it was so.

On Being Presbyterian

One year ago, the first Sunday of September, we visited Westminster Presbyterian Church for the very first time. We liked it so well, we went every Sunday after that! We became "full fledged Presbyterians" last November when we joined the church after attending a 12 week membership class and meeting with the pastor and elders.

Looking back, we are very thankful for God's leading us there. We have learned so much, grown so much and have come to love and appreciate the ministry and the people. We have been stretched, challenged, and inspired to study and examine and even question things that we had always thought... like baptism, covenant theology, Calvinism, eschatology and creation.

Being Presbyterian was different for us, but we are becoming more and more Presbyterian in many ways! I can almost say the Apostle's Creed from memory! I still have to hold my hymnal open to the front cover, but one week soon I'll be able to say it without peeking! Mark and the kids were much quicker at memorizing it than I am! After all, its been a year!!! I figure that I have too many other things in my brain so adding more is harder for me!

And the hymns are gradually becoming more familiar. Presbyterians sing different hymns than other churches, believe it or not! Mark is involved in the Matins Choir, Ivy is in Junior choir, Joel will be singing specials. And Jaden loves singing in Sunday School!

I am looking forward to a new year of Women's Bible study starting this week. We'll be going through the book of Dueteronomy. Joel is excited about being in the Junior High youth group and Ivy will have another year in GEMS club for girls. Mark and I also enjoy our home fellowship group which will be meeting again twice a month.

We no longer feel "new" to the church. We have become very connected and yes, even transformed (or rather reformed) in many ways as we have become Presbyterians!

Take Me Out to the Ball Game!

Friends of ours who recently moved into our neighborhood invited a few neighbor families to a Lancaster Barnstormers game in a Skybox! It was lots of fun - Ivy had a blast with the other girls in the Skybox room - they weren't real interested in the game!

Joel and Mark were more interested in the game and they sat out in the balcony seats to watch the Barnstormers beat the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. They had great seats looking over home plate.

Can you see them? I took the picture above from the other side of the ballbark with the zoom.

There was plenty of food in the Skybox for everyone - hot dogs, burgers, etc. What a nice treat!

Several of the moms took the kids to the Bumper Boats, a new attraction at the ballpark. Ivy, Tammy, and Kirsten got soaking wet! Thankfully it was a hot day so the water felt nice. What a great afternoon!