One of my blogger and homeschool friends came up with a great way to start off her school year. Seeing that I was lacking a great way to start mine, I borrowed some of her ideas
Tomorrow, our oldest heads off for public school for the first time. We are very excited for him. So today, we officially kicked off our school year, for homeschool and public school, together.
We started with the borrowed idea of having a time capsule. So, as the boys sat at our round table for nearly two hours, they filled out four blank pages with the following information:
What are three things you are good at?
A self-portrait.
What do you dream about doing?
What will you do this year to improve in one area?
The answers were varied in thoughtfulness and creativity. Some were completed with words and some with pictures. You just never know what you're going to get with an assignment like this. I decided not to interfere with their creative processes and was pleasantly surprised by most of their ideas (and as you will see, a little concerned about a few!) So, in random order (to keep their anonymity) here are the answers I got to the above questions:
What are three things you are good at? Soccer, climbing, thinking up ideas, art, reading, math, sports, camping.
A self-portrait. Oh, I wish I could show you these. The boys had so much fun and really worked hard on them.
What do you dream about doing? Designing things for the Army, Becoming a Regional Service Manager, Being a Wizard (What?), Making Shoes, and Racing Cars.
What will you do this year to improve in one area? read more (YAY, he thought this up on his own!!), riting (boy, did he hit the nail on the head with that one!), brotherly love (Thank you, Jesus!), laying on the floor to do my math (hmm, maybe that will make all the difference! Pun intended.)
After completing all the answers, we rolled up the papers and stuck them in our "time capsule"--a modified cardboard Sensodyne toothpaste box--to be opened on our last day of school.
Oh, yes, and during this process two of my boys decided to change their names. Brenner would like to be called by his middle name, Isaiah. Parker would like to be called Bubba--which is the name of a friend I had in high school. (After my high school reunion last year, the boys asked me lots of questions about who I saw. I mentioned seeing Bubba--who no longer goes by that name, but it's hard to think of him as anything else. Well, apparently the boys loved the name and have debated for awhile as to who among them should be called Bubba. I guess Parker won). We'll see how long that lasts.
We wrapped up our morning by brainstorming ideas for our daily schedule, our classroom rules, our chore rotation, quick lunch/snack ideas, and field trips. During the field trip discussion, ideas like "a trip to Disney World, to the Grand Canyon, and to Kansas to see their cousins," kept coming up. I had to remind them that a field trip is a day trip, not a destination vacation.
May God's hand continue to be upon us this school year. Teaching us, prodding us, growing us, speaking to us, and showing us how to live this life for Him!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Monday, August 9, 2010
Parents Encouraging Parents
It was through this blog that I discovered my love of writing. The jumbled thoughts inside my head line up and make more sense when I put them down. Though I don't blog as much as I used to, it's still therapeutic for me.
This summer a friend from church asked if I would consider writing some articles for the "Parents Encouraging Parents" section of her website, WeGrowMinistries.com. http://wegrowministries.com/
I decided to give it a try. Why not? So, let me know what you think. And if you have a moment, check out my friend's website.
Here is my first one:
When Rhonda Haslett, creator of WeGrowMinistries.com, asked if I would consider writing some articles in the "Parents Encouraging Parents" section of her ministry website, I was initially very honored and excited. Then, on my way home from church, panic set in.
"Who am I to encourage other parents? What could I say that would be helpful, or inspirational or encouraging, for that matter? I'm probably not a good example to follow, anyway? What's the use?"
Before the car turned into our neighborhood, I had dashed any hopes of producing one shred of encouragement...ever. The other five passengers in the car, which included my husband and four sons, were oblivious to the battle that had engulfed my mind during that twenty minute ride home from church. I consciously noted each bad choice I made throughout the rest of the day...which added to the reasons why I COULD NOT write encouraging articles to other parents. In fact, by the end of the day, it was official. I was the worst parent that had ever walked on this earth.
As a parent, can you relate to the battle that can take place within your soul? Do you desire to be Christ-like and to demonstrate the love of God to your children, yet feel like maybe God made a mistake when He choose you for this awesome role of parenting?
Did I handle that discipline issue the right way?
Have I failed in training my child to be a good steward...to be responsible...to show respect....to be kind...to know and to love God?
Why do I always have to tell him the same thing over and over and over and over and over again?
I promised myself I wouldn't react with anger today, and yet I just yelled at my child before I even got out of bed!
Can I just buy a T-shirt for the boy that reads, "Really, my parents are trying, but I have a free will AND I'm willing to use it!"
Argh! Parenthood has its challenges.
Honestly, I've wondered often in the last month if Rhonda picked the wrong mom. The idea of encouraging other parents may be difficult, especially when there are many days in a week when I'm the one who needs the encouragement. I mess up everyday as a parent. Every single day.
I suppose that is the beauty of "Parents Encouraging Parents." We are regular, ordinary parents just like you. We have not perfected parenthood, but we are willing to be transparent in both our failures and our successes. We are willing to learn and to grow and to apply God's Word to our lives. As we share what God is teaching us, we pray that you are encouraged along the way.
May each of us grow to become parents after God's own heart!
*************
But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. Hebrews 3:13
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work {including parenthood}. 2 Timothy 3:16
This summer a friend from church asked if I would consider writing some articles for the "Parents Encouraging Parents" section of her website, WeGrowMinistries.com. http://wegrowministries.com/
I decided to give it a try. Why not? So, let me know what you think. And if you have a moment, check out my friend's website.
Here is my first one:
When Rhonda Haslett, creator of WeGrowMinistries.com, asked if I would consider writing some articles in the "Parents Encouraging Parents" section of her ministry website, I was initially very honored and excited. Then, on my way home from church, panic set in.
"Who am I to encourage other parents? What could I say that would be helpful, or inspirational or encouraging, for that matter? I'm probably not a good example to follow, anyway? What's the use?"
Before the car turned into our neighborhood, I had dashed any hopes of producing one shred of encouragement...ever. The other five passengers in the car, which included my husband and four sons, were oblivious to the battle that had engulfed my mind during that twenty minute ride home from church. I consciously noted each bad choice I made throughout the rest of the day...which added to the reasons why I COULD NOT write encouraging articles to other parents. In fact, by the end of the day, it was official. I was the worst parent that had ever walked on this earth.
As a parent, can you relate to the battle that can take place within your soul? Do you desire to be Christ-like and to demonstrate the love of God to your children, yet feel like maybe God made a mistake when He choose you for this awesome role of parenting?
Did I handle that discipline issue the right way?
Have I failed in training my child to be a good steward...to be responsible...to show respect....to be kind...to know and to love God?
Why do I always have to tell him the same thing over and over and over and over and over again?
I promised myself I wouldn't react with anger today, and yet I just yelled at my child before I even got out of bed!
Can I just buy a T-shirt for the boy that reads, "Really, my parents are trying, but I have a free will AND I'm willing to use it!"
Argh! Parenthood has its challenges.
Honestly, I've wondered often in the last month if Rhonda picked the wrong mom. The idea of encouraging other parents may be difficult, especially when there are many days in a week when I'm the one who needs the encouragement. I mess up everyday as a parent. Every single day.
I suppose that is the beauty of "Parents Encouraging Parents." We are regular, ordinary parents just like you. We have not perfected parenthood, but we are willing to be transparent in both our failures and our successes. We are willing to learn and to grow and to apply God's Word to our lives. As we share what God is teaching us, we pray that you are encouraged along the way.
May each of us grow to become parents after God's own heart!
*************
But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness. Hebrews 3:13
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work {including parenthood}. 2 Timothy 3:16
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