Minivan Moments

Last year, when I signed up as a member of the 2009-2010 The Old Schoolhouse Homeschool Crew , I opted to review items that were not specifically homeschooling resources.  Because of this, I was given the opportunity to review a product by Beeyoutiful .  Each member got to make selections and requests, so we got quite a variety of goodies to try.  Check out other reviews and products by clicking here . I received Beeyoutiful Balance , which is a natural progesterone 'cream.'  As a woman embarking on the Peri-menopausal Journey, I was ecstatic to have this opportunity to try something that I had obsessed wondered about!  I have many annoying common symptoms of being on the Peri-menopausal Journey, but my doctors aren't concerned.  Of course, if you aren't the one forgetting to take a shower, snapping at your children, coping with irregular menstrual cycles, and feeling overly tired, I supposed you may not care... but since I AM, I kinda DO. Okay, eno...

Well, this has been a beautifully busy Mother's Day for me!  My husband and children got me a garden, and i got to plant all the herbs and veggies i have been wanting to plant, as well as all the potted seedlings i started last month.  And thanks to Home Depot, i finally planted Stevia plants!! I got 2 apple trees and a hummingbird feeder, too.  The back yard took on a whole new look!  I also took the ripped-up grass from where the garden went ( okay, grass is a bit strong; clover is a better fit! ) and patched up the bare spots in the front yard that our dogs blessed us with last fall.  That is messy work, people!!  My nails may never be clean again.... After having breakfast and dinner made for me, i finished the day with my delicious beef and barley soup and French bread, and i got to sprinkle my new fresh parsley in it - right out of my garden!! Now, the house is getting quiet, and this Mommy is getting tired.  I hope each of you had a great ...

We beg for rain; our grass is brown. Water restrictions begin in our town. We start to worry and wonder, it's true: With spring so dry, what'll summer do? Then the news says rain is coming our way. We can't help it: we shout "Hurray!" An end to the drought that we worried would be A ray of hope, we're beginning to see. But when the rains come, they keep coming all day, The rain doesn't stop; it won't go away! And after two days of this unending rain, The community sure is feeling the strain! The rivers are up, the streets are now oceans. The parks are all ponds, and houses are coastin'! I watched a school building float by like a boat! I saw people's houses with newly-filled moats! "The 100-year flood," they are saying in town. And then they tell us how many people have drowned. What a sight! What a state! What a terrible thing! How could any imagine what those rains would bring? Our family is fine; our neighborhood's high At...

When I was given access to Lesson Planet for the purposes of reviewing their website, I was certain this was an answer to prayer!  Who doesn't want the most information for the best price?  We know there is a ton of information 'out there' on the internet that is free (or just about), but it can be time-consuming to find it all... and let's face it, time does often equal money. That's where Lesson Planet comes in: they offer an ad-free zone full of lesson plans, worksheets, and links to educational information that is geared for educators.  At this point in the process, I was hooked... but I have to be honest: actually using the site didn't measure up to my expectations.  For some parents/educators, this site would offer a great variety of lesson plans, worksheets, and teaching topics in a short amount of time.  For me, a fairly accomplished "Googler" (is that a word??), Lesson Planet didn't really offer much more than I had already been findi...

When you watch someone you love struggling with his flesh, you can be pretty sure the breakdown is coming.  It is through the breakdown that people often have the breakthrough. However, watching someone you love have a breakdown can be heart-wrenching!  We women, especially, want to hold, comfort, reassure... but they don't need us.  They need God.  Sometimes, we get in God's way. My mission these days is to get out of God's way and let the breakdowns happen.  They might be small and many, or they might be big and few.  Whatever God requires.  And... i find... it begins... in childhood . Watching my son come to terms with his own breakdown in order to let him have his breakthrough is painful.  But... the goal is adulthood.... So, i have to ask myself, "is this current pain worth less pain later?"  The answer is a resounding "yes!" Madelyn Swift, author of Discipline for Life and speaker on the subject of behavior training, taught me ...

i am a bug. i'm on Life 's windshield. i have broken wings, but i am alive . i have been bruised, but i can move . Being able to move means i can make a decision. Possibly the biggest decision i will ever make.... Do i try to get off the windshield? Or do i hope Life doesn't turn on the wipers? i wish i could tell you which decision is the right one.  i cannot even tell that for myself right now. What i do know is this: ~ i am never alone, for God is with me . ~ i never suffer in vain, for God has a plan . ~ i will not be asked to do anything i cannot bear, though it may sometimes seem that way. ~ i will be alright... as long as i follow the sound of my Creator's voice. Are you one of the bugs on the windshield with me?  Do you need to hear from God? Father, in all that i am, in all that i have been, i surrender.  i am nothing without you, and i repent fully of all the days i thought i could rely upon myself.  i ask total forgiveness tonight fo...

When we found out we would have the opportunity to review something from Super Star Speech , I thought, "well, I guess we'll sit this one out." We have no speech problems or delays in our home (and 3 of us are even tongue-tied!).  Blessed, for sure!! Well, it turns out there are GAMES made by the same folks, so we got to try those instead!  Yay! We got a download of Super Star Games that contained 11 print-and-play games.  The topics were things like insects, continents, planets,  inventors, plus others. We played a couple of the games since some of them were above my kiddos' level (not that they couldn't be interesting and fun just because we didn't know the subject matter... I just didn't print those because I thought they would be too hard).  The kids really liked them!  They wanted to play again as soon as a game was over, and there was a lot of laughing and 'Oh, man!" to be heard.  My first-grader was really trying, even though he had ...