God Speaks

God talks to me at times. Sometimes it is a gentle whisper and sometimes it is a thwonk on the noggin. Today it came as a headache. In the shower this morning I had a strong feeling that instead of going to Bible class today I should spend the time in prayer. I hated thinking that, since I know Hubby works hard on his classes, and I didn't want to offend him by not attending. So by the time we were on the road headed to church I had decided that it was just a strange thought, and I would go to class. About halfway to the building we were stopped at an intersection. We were a couple of cars back in line, and I noticed a man crossing the road. He was very tall and thin, dressed in a long black coat and had a tall walking stick. "That is an odd sight around here," I thought. "I think he is not a person, but a messenger or an angel. Crazy." Just as suddenly as I thought it, my right eye started blacking out and a headache began. I have had times before that I lose sight in an eye. It sort of blacks over; I imagine it is my blood pressure. Today the loss of sight was accompanied by a horrible headache. I went into the Bible class, and stayed through half of it, but I had to leave. I took an Aleve and sat in the dark nursery. "Well, I might as well pray since I am here," I reasoned. I prayed for people I am concerned about, situations that have my attention, and for understanding in a particular problem. I asked God to help me understand why our church is so small. Is it because we are doing something wrong, or is there some other reason? There was a visitor at church today, Rick. He was a nice guy who spoke up in class and talked to others in the congregation between class and worship. After services we had a potluck with the whole church. We had had about 20 people absent today, and in a church of about 50-60 you miss 20 people. Rick stayed for dinner, and afterward he came over to speak to my husband. I was sitting across the table and heard what was said. "I was so surprised by my time here today. I didn't expect to find such a rich place. I know you think you are small, but success isn't measured like that. The world isn't looking for what you have. They want to go where there is a big band or some excitement. The way God measures success is different from the way the world measures. This is such a rich church full of people who know what God is about. It was good to hear the truth spoken today." I couldn't speak because I thought I would cry. My prayer had been answered. ------------- Funny thing was that the sermon today was to figure out your gift and to use it this week. I already know that prayer is my gift. I feel very connected to God when I pray, like we are in a room with only each other and He listens carefully to me. I pray while people are still talking to me. If they ask me to pray, I pray right then. Prayer is my ministry. So why did I not answer the call to pray instead of going to class? I may have saved myself from a horrible headache. Hopefully I will listen next time.

Flying Through the Work

The pear tree in the front yard split again last week. Well, it has likely been two weeks now, but we try not to pay too much attention to that sort of thing; it just makes you feel guilty. Yesterday Hubby sawed the branches down to a more manageable size, and today's chore was to drag it over toward the fire pit. When #1 and I went out to start hauling wood we noticed a small bird in the yard near the tree. Hubby and I had noticed a nest when the branch first fell, but it was in a different branch and the birds seemed dazed, but fine. Evidently this same bird family decided today was the day to leave the nest. The young bird was having a difficult time getting off the ground, and I thought perhaps it was hurt. I sent #2 in after a towel to throw over it and catch it. The mother bird was on the electric wire over the driveway twittering advice and warnings to the baby. We were able to keep Kelly away long enough to get the towel over it and pick it up. The closest I can identify it is that it was a nuthatch or phoebe. It was black, white, and gray with a definite black mask on the face. We put Kelly in the house and let the youngster go in the tall weeds of the irrigation ditch next to the field. Then it was back to work. Hubby and #2 cleared the debris from the yard while #1 mowed. I started cleaning out the work shed. It was a warm, humid day and the work was hot and dusty. I sneezed most of the day, but it was very good to get that off of my to-do list. After #2 finished helping his dad, he came to help me. Once #1 finished mowing the yard, he helped me with the shed and #2 headed to the goat field to mow. #1 didn't appreciate all of the work today. He felt it was unjust since he had school work to complete. Of course the school work was not high on his list yesterday when it should have been completed, nor was it a priority while he watched tv this morning. To add some salt to the situation, I made him go back and fix all of the places he missed in the yard. Then again. And yet again. He is either very blind or very careless. Lately I have felt like that mama bird on the electric wire singing at times and persistently shouting advice and encouragement at other times. #1 wants to fly, but he just isn't there yet. I know he wants to be older and do more, but he is also pulled toward watching cartoons and playing with his little friends. He is stuck on the ground trying to fly while I helplessly watch on the wire. I know I can't protect him from all of the dogs he will encounter, and I know others will try to trap him in their towels. It would be nice to think that all of those people with towels are well-intentioned like I was, but I know it isn't likely. I hope and pray that he learns to fly before he must fly.

School Day 2-- Is That All?

Well we are into the second day of school and already it looks like all of the other years. I try so hard, but it is impossible to have a "normal" day. Yesterday went fairly well, but #1 and I had an SGA meeting at 3:00. After that we went to Red Lobster for dinner to celebrate Brother's Day. We rented Percy Jackson from a Red Box and spent the rest of the evening watching that. Today we had Geography Club at 10:00. It went well. This year the parents aren't as involved and we are asking more of the kids. I felt like most of them stepped up to the plate. After Geography we took some friends home. My friend had eye surgery yesterday and wasn't allowed to drive yet. She lives about half an hour away. Now we are finishing up schoolwork, mowing the yard, and finishing the pillowcase that #2 started yesterday. We didn't get to finish because of the SGA meeting. Tomorrow doesn't look much better with my extra kids coming at noon. Se la vie. ----------- Hubby and I had lunch in the kitchen with the boys yesterday. #1 was saying words and #2 would respond with the first word he thought of. Cookies- chocolate. Cake- chocolate. Grandma- chocolate. Pap- cows...that give chocolate milk. Chocolate was his first real word when he was little. I prefer peanutbutter myself. Of course, I'll take it with some chocolate. -------- Coming home from the meeting yesterday I gave #1 "The Talk" yet again. I was very explicit this time since he still didn't have a clue. I told him he has Biology this year with girls and I didn't want him to say something that might embarrass him. So I gave it to him straight, no holds barred. Then I asked him if he had any questions. "Yeah. Am I going to have to do any dissection in this class?" His poor future wife. I told him no there aren't any animal dissections (the teacher is being very creative just for him), and if he ever had any questions he could ask me because I have all of the answers. He responded, "You even have 'I don't know.'" What a smart aleck.

School Bug

Happy Brothers' Day!!! We were planning to go to Red Lobster and then watch movies from Red Box together, but I invited a foreign visitor into my body and have been otherwise engaged. A friend called and invited the boys to a pool party this evening, so at least they aren't all out of the celebration. On top of that, they got to watch tv all afternoon so that they wouldn't be in my hair. It isn't the way I wanted to spend the last day of summer vacation, but it is probably slower than the day I had planned. The refrigerator is frozen, or more exactly the water line to the freezer seems frozen and is causing a loud noise to emanate from the device. So I guess along with the first day of school will be a visit from the repairman. Oh the joys of homeschooling! You learn to juggle when you live this type of life. The boys actually "started" school last week, but with J-1 here, a 4H pool party day, and taking J-1 to Raleigh...well it wasn't a real school week. So tomorrow the big guns shoot. At least for #2. #1 is lucky in that 4 of his classes this year will be part of a co-op and they don't start until Thursday. He will have Algebra 1, Biology 1, Art, and Composition. That means tomorrow he only gets Spanish, French, History, Geography, Grammar, and Religion. Sounds easy!! Good luck to all of my friends starting back to school...MP, JC, and DS. Good luck to all of the teachers and kids, too!

Parentalrights.org - Protecting Children by Empowering Parents -- Mike Farris Shares Great News from Last Week and Shocking UN Efforts to Undermine Youth Morals

Parentalrights.org - Protecting Children by Empowering Parents -- Mike Farris Shares Great News from Last Week and Shocking UN Efforts to Undermine Youth Morals I receive this newsletter via email a few times a month. I have been concerned about the UN's Right of the Child agenda. The US is one of 2 nations left to ratify this horrible act. The listed newsletter above has a link in it to see a brochure that the UN dispersed at a UN Youth Conference in Mexico this past spring. I was stunned. Read it.

Washington, DC

Isn't this a beautiful picture? It was taken from the Washington Monument's platform. It was such a pretty day when we were there. However, it was also pretty hot! We go again in October with 4H, and I am looking forward to it being a bit cooler. Sorry about this being sideways, just turn your head to the side. Or lie down and take a nap. You know you want to! The lawn near the White House was crazy with people playing games and resting. I think it surprised J-1 that we were able to get so close and not see guards. I am sure we (Americans) must have seemed very gauche romping on the White House lawn.

This was our first stop. We just took a picture and then ate lunch at the gardens next to it. We sat outside to eat. That will also be more fun in October. As we were leaving this area, Hubby asked if J-1 knew what the building is. I asked, and yes he did. I wanted to be certain and asked him to tell me. "The White House." No. We had a lesson on government and the Capitol.

Then we went to the real White House and took his picture. He wrote a postcard to his grandmother about his trip to the White House. It was a good day. I really like visiting DC and I am looking forward to our next trip. It was a really long day, and I wouldn't recommend doing it in one day again, but if you have no choice it is a good experience.

We managed 2 museums with fast tours. I especially found this exhibit interesting. This is the first car to go transcontinental in the USA. Having nearly done that last summer, this exhibit was interesting. I am glad we had highways to use. They had to use a wench to pull it out of holes.

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We took J-1 to Raleigh yesterday. We went to Red, Hot and Blue for lunch, and then headed to the science museum. It was really cold in there, so we only stayed about 2 hours. We went across the court to try the history museum. It was also chilly, but not too bad. The exhibits were very nice and I would like to take the boys again this school year. Then we took J-1 to the hotel to drop off with his group.

We had a party for him at church Wednesday evening, and he cried through a lot of it. He asked me if we could have one more Monopoly Night. So after church we had game night. At 10:00 I sent them to bed. At 11:00 I could hear sniffling in his room. I went in and he was crying again. He asked if he could come back to this home some time. I assured him he would be welcome. And then I wondered what I had agreed to... Hubby thinks he is coming back for college!

After the crying I was worried about leaving him at the hotel, but I think he was trying to have a strong face for his friends. He didn't want them to see him cry. He had watery eyes, but he got through it ok. He should be back home now. Today was busy, but a little back in a routine. I managed to go tot he supermarket this evening. With school starting we need some ready foods. Have a good weekend.

Life

I saved a life Sunday morning. We were hatching eggs so that our exchange student could experience the excitement of chicks hatching. J-1 is only here for a month, so the day of his arrival I had him collect eggs and place them in the incubator. I am sure he didn't understand what he was doing or why. Then Saturday night the eggs began to hatch. His first remark was, "Let me get my camera!" It is still that kind of a thrill for us, even after several hatchings. We wait to see how many will make it out of their shells. We root for those having a hard time. And sometimes we mourn over those that don't make it. It was one of those having a hard time breaking free that I saved. She had pecked an air hole and struggled all night, but for some reason she just couldn't break loose. I was taking out all of the bad eggs to throw away, and thought I would start cleaning the incubator, when I realized one of the eggs still had movement. All egg hatching directions say not to help the chick out of the shell. The membrane is still attached to the chick, and if it is ripped from the chick it will bleed to death. I decided to help her out anyway, since we would lose her for certain if I didn't. I was shaking from the tension of trying to be gentle enough to not harm her and yet strong enough to break her out. I felt like I was giving birth as I watched her small head appear, the eye slowly open, and heard the quiet chirp of a new life. It was exhilarating! I was the one responsible for saving this little breathing being, and it was amazing! Sadly, the chick became chilled while I started warming the incubator again, and it didn't make it. J-1 was sad and had to be alone for a while. Death as a part of life is something we have become accustomed to around here. Last week my friend Laura was asking her three children what exciting adventures they had had that day. They were seated around the dinner table sharing their days' experiences when five year old Gracie blurted out, "Miss Janelle saved my life today!" "She did?! Wow. How did she do that?" asked Laura, envisioning Gracie's teacher, Miss Janelle, squishing a bug or opening a water bottle for young Gracie. "Well," responded Gracie dramatically, "there was this toy that I really wanted, but I couldn't reach it. So I jumped in the pool after it, but I didn't have my swimmies on. Miss Janelle jumped in with her clothes on and saved my life! She even had her shoes on!!" Gracie is a shoe lover, and this sacrifice of the shoes in order to save her little life had made quite an impression. Life is so precarious. One moment you are about to be thrown out with the garbage, and the next you are gasping for air, breathing in the sights and sounds of a new world. Then as quickly as you came to it, it is gone. A breath that has been breathed, a sight that has been seen, a sound no longer heard. Our spiritual life is so much the same. We see that toy floating out in the crystal clear waters of the pool and we reach for it, never thinking of the danger that holds up that delightful thing we desire. We fall into the pool of destruction and flail our arms and legs screaming for someone to save us from our folly. Thank God that He doesn't take the time to slip off His shoes, but He plunges into the pool to rescue us from our own selfish desires. Jesus knows about life, and he knows about Full Life. "...I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. I am the good shepherd, and the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ...I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me- and I lay down my life for the sheep." John 10:10-15 excerpted. Emily Dickinson said, "To live is so startling it leaves little time for anything else." Life is precious. Life is startling. Life is dangerous. Whether our days are short or long, whether they are spent totally committed to Him or frittered away on worthless toys floating in darkness, whether we admit it or not... We need Jesus to give us Life.

Down On the Farm

I have tried to introduce J-1 to some of the ordinary- and free- things the area has to offer. One night we went to Sunday in the Park to hear a band and watch cloggers. J-1 wants to be a singer when he grows up, and he does seem to be musically talented. He has picked up several songs from the radio and church. I have heard him humming or whistling around the house. He has also been able to experience a little bit of the farm. While we were on vacation in the Smoky's this little guy was born. I think he was overdue as his mother looked enormous and miserable and he came out with horns started and bigger than his two week old cousin. He is timid though and we haven't been able to lay our hands on him. Chicks hatched a couple of days ago, and J-1 also had to experience the death of an animal. A couple of the chicks died. J-1 is a sensitive kid and he had to walk away from us for a while. He is very attached to Kelly and the cats. There is one kitten still alive from the litter of 5 and he is a sweet little darling. We all love holding him.

We have collected tomatoes and cucumbers while J-1 has been here, as well as apples, pears, and blueberries. He watched me can pears a few nights ago and said his grandmother does something like that.

I think his favorite part though is when the kids all go outside to feed. He has been known to come and ask me if it is time for the animals' meal, and then he gets #1 and #2 to go feed. He was upset one night when I said that the goats wouldn't be fed that night. They had plenty of pear peelings and didn't need any grain.

They also like apple cores.

Faye was the winner.

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We started some school work today. The bad part was that it also meant I had to start grading school work. Sigh.

Food

J-1 cooked dinner for us one night. He made many types of food. We had pork and cabbage pancakes, two types of noodles with cold soy sauce for dipping, and sushi rice. I loved the sushi rice. I will be looking for that in our local stores. My boys didn't care for the food, but I ate the noodles several times. J-1 especially likes the sushi rice so I saved that for him. He must be missing his country's food. I know I would be.

We also picked apples and pears while he has been here. I plan to can the pears this afternoon. I am moving a bit slowly, but it will get done. We have worn ourselves out with all of our travel and work. I stayed up past midnight not long ago in order to try and finish some of the history plans I need for #1. My noncollege-aged body is starting to quit.

J-1 received a package in the mail today from his mom. What a nice mom she is too. She sent summer school work for him. He will be doing that next week while my boys begin their geography presentations. School is the lot of children all over the world no matter what time of year it is.

(Dis)Advantage

I went to the podiatrist yesterday. I like him. He seems very genuine and honest. I may have discovered why. I asked him why he chose podiatry out of all the medical fields. He then told me that he had originally been a teacher (How could I not like him?). He really enjoyed teaching, but there wasn't enough money in it. He was having trouble meeting his mortgage and other bills, and that was before he had a family. Granted that was a long time ago, and teachers in NC get paid better than they used to, BUT. He said it really disturbed him last year when the legislature decided that teachers should be paid less so that the state could meet its budget. Out of the people that should not have had to give up money it was the teachers. "They don't seem to understand how important the teachers are, " he remarked. I thought about that for quite a while. I certainly agree that teachers get taken advantage of quite a bit. They are very important to our society, and yet we don't give them the recognition they deserve. That seems to happen in other circumstances as well. Those we need the most are the ones we overlook and take advantage of. My husband is extremely important to me, but if something has to be pushed aside, it will be him. If I am irritable and need to explode, he will be the target. If I am running ragged, he will be the one ignored while I go on to other things. The one I need the most is the one that gets taken advantage of. Sadly that happens in my spiritual life as well. God, the most important being in all Creation, can be placed on the side burner while I go on with what is urgent. He will still be there when I have time for Him. What an awful thing to admit, but it is true. I can tell myself that once summer is over and I am back in a routine I will give God more time, but in all honesty shouldn't He be the one that gets what little time I have? Am I sacrificing to Him if I don't even give Him more than worship time and Bible class? I have taken advantage of God and His availability. Shame on me.

The Dangers of Vacation

There are common dangers on a vacation. You gain weight from too much food and not enough movement. You forget what is on your to-do list when you return from vacation. You have a flat or get lost. If you are with a large group you may have trouble getting along. But going to the Smoky Mountains brings danger all of its own. You probably can't tell, but that is a bear in the tree. Look left center, belly is toward the center with legs planted on center limb. We were under it. We had gone to Cade's Cove to drive around the loop at dusk and hopefully see some bears and other wildlife. We were not disappointed. We got out of the van to see what was the excitement stopping traffic, and here was this bear in the tree. He was eating leaves out of the top. That is the closest I have come to a bear in the wild.

Of course there is danger in the hiking as well. My family and my mother-in-law went early to Cade's Cove so that we could stop along the way to hike a bit. We hiked up to Laurel Falls. It is 1.3 miles straight up. Not fun on a hot and humid day. But once you are there it is worth it. See the danger sign on the completely open rock? Now look at the next picture of who planted himself in that precarious area. I wasn't feeling too good about it.

Downtown Gatlinburg probably offers some dangers as well in the form of pickpockets or thieves, but at least the bears are safer. Monday we head to Washington, DC. I wonder what dangers await us there?

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NC also offers dangerous Krispy Kreme Donuts. I had a treat today after getting a lot of work done for school. It will start very SOON!!! But not before we head to the beach one last time tomorrow.

Just a quick note

I also downloaded a different memory card from the camera that broke a while back. This picture was on it from District Presentations. I just wanted to say look at the difference in height of these kids. Their ages range from 10-14. The little girl on your left is the 14 year old. The HUGE giant in the middle is 13. I'll be special ordering clothes soon. Good night and enjoy the rain on your roof.

Vacation

It is a tradition for the kids to gem mine while we are in Gatlinburg. They like hunting through the dirt and rocks to find gems. Then they bring them home and fill my house with them. Lovely. #2 has decided to try tumbling them to see if it improves the value. He tried selling them to a friend today and the friend offered 50 cents. #2 was offended, but I thought it sounded like a deal. He just doesn't see them as rocks like I do, and apparently as the friend did.

This year we tried Splash Country. It is a water park adjacent to Dollywood. The kids were disappointed by the long lines. It is the price you pay for vacationing in the summer. I like the opportunities of homeschool vacations in the fall and spring. J-1 said the water park was his favorite part of the vacation.

My sister-in-law and I took the kids riding in the National Park. For kids who hadn't ridden much, didn't speak the language, and really had no clue what they were doing, they did well. The guide was very patient with the group and we had a good time. I would have enjoyed it more if the horse weren't so big. I think that was part of the reason I was jostled so and got such a bad headache.

We enjoyed walking downtown at night. That was one summer difference you don't get in the other seasons. During the summer season there are entertainers every couple of blocks to stop and listen to or watch. One night a family of harmonica players stopped to join a guitarist. They were just walking by and decided to play along. The guitarist let them join in and the impromptu performance was a treat.

We were able to spend some time in the great outdoors, which was my favorite part of the trip. I wish we had had more time for lazing about in the park. This particular spot was enjoyed immensely by the children. They swam in the river all day. That night we met up with some family in the area and they told us there have been a lot of copperhead sitings in that area this summer. We did find a couple of snakes, but we didn't get close enough to discover their names. ------------

I just downloaded 239 pictures, so I guess you will be getting more as the days go by. The last couple of days have been busy with our visitor. Yesterday we picked blueberries, went to a free movie, and shopped. I took the van to Sam's Club to have the tires balanced and ended up with a bigger dilemma. The wheels needed aligned terribly and the back tires had worn through on the inside tread. So today I headed to the shop to get an alignment. This afternoon we went bowling and took J-1 to a karate lesson. Time is flying. Only 2 weeks left with our new son.

Rested?

Last night I was Fonzie's mother. I was letting him stay at a friend's house, and the other two kids were disturbed by that. Hubby was trying to hang a street sign across the road so that I could see what the street was named. I was upset that all I had to serve for breakfast were cookies. Along with that was mixed in trying to rescue all of my children from bears and some strange cats that kept returning. What a dream! We are back from vacation, but as my dream implies, I am far from rested. Having J-1 with us has turned out to be more stressful for me than I thought. He is an easy kid, don't get me wrong, but I feel like I need to be the hostess all of the time. However, I came home from vacation to a boatload of work that needs completed. So here I am trying to treat all of my children fairly, get a good meal on the table, save us from dangers, and remember where I live. I guess all of that shows up in my subconscious. Vacation went relatively well. I took all the kids on a horse back ride for an hour and paid for it for a day. It stoved my back and I ended up with a headache that wouldn't go away. I guess that made the vacation relaxing since I spent the next day in bed sleeping. J-1 did well being thrown into a large group of people that did't speak Japanese. He became very attached to my nephew, who is two years old, and cried when we had to leave. I think it was part sheer exhaustion since he hadn't displayed any jet lag symptoms. Sunday we rested, and yesterday he learned that we do also work around here. We spent the whole morning doing yard work. It was a hot, humid morning, and of course he didn't know there was a light at the end of the tunnel. He disappeared after a while and I found him in his room. I told him we don't go outside after lunch, and he worked much better after that. J-1 made dinner for us last night. Cold noodles in a cold dipping sauce. The cookbook said it was for a hot summer day, and it hit it right on the mark. We also had pork and cabbage pancakes that were good, though not to the kids, and rice with a sushi sauce mixed in. I really liked the rice. My boys didn't eat much and it made me think they would be very hungry by the time they got back to the USA if they were the exchange students. J-1 has eaten very well while he has been here. He doesn't care much for our breakfasts but he does well with the other meals. Today we head to a 4H meeting and #2 will be giving a presentation about survival skills in the wilderness. J-1 will be presenting the tea ceremony. Perhaps he ought to talk about survival skills in a strange environment.