Ready or not, here comes summer!

Most years we try to finish our school year by Memorial Day or at least the last day of May. Well, this isn't "most years" :) ! I'm still trying to decide how to finish things off with Ethan, but Emma will be finished with all her subjects within two weeks. Since Ethan wasn't really ready for phonics at the beginning of the year, we took our time because the last thing I wanted was to turn him off from reading. Since at this very minute he is sitting at the barstool reading "Fox and His Friends" by himself with only occasionally spelling a word he needs help with, I think it was worth the effort! Years ago I read "Better Late than Early" by Raymond and Dorothy Moore and it has been such a blessing to remember their wisdom and advice with this youngest child, especially.

The farm has taken many, many hours of our time but so far the trees are not just surviving but thriving - God is good!! In addition to the demands of 400 new "babies" we have had friends who've had human babies, several relatives pass away, my MIL taking chemo again, a wedding, and numerous family issues to deal with so I'm (sort of!!) OK with not being finished yet.

Today we spotted the hummingbirds at the feeder and after several questions about their migration, size/type of nest, etc., we sidetracked from usual routine and spent some time on the internet looking at pictures of and reading about hummingbirds. Natural Science!!! We love it!! Nothing better than good old curiosity and observation!

All this to say I think it's OK to not be on the "master schedule" (ahem.. actually MY master schedule is the one that I stress over!) because they are learning, growing, sharing, laughing and loving, whether "school" is out for the summer or not!

The Whole Word of God

"The Word of God well understood and religiously obeyed is the shortest route to spiritual perfection. And we must not select a few favorite passages to the exclusion of others. Nothing less than a whole Bible can make a whole Christian."
- A.W. Tozer

My 6yo is learning to read and he is doing it by reading about what was created on each day of creation. It struck me that even a 6yo can understand that the account in Genesis and the interpretation of "millions of years" just can't be reconciled. He said "But it says right here Mom 'the evening and the morning were the first day' so how can it be millions of years if it's just an evening and a morning?" Then later he said, "Don't plants need the sun to grow? Well, if God made the plants before he made the sun they couldn't live long without it and so it couldn't be millions of years between the plants being made and the sun." There are so many Christians trying to "reconcile" (aka compromise) between scientific theory and the Bible that it breaks my heart. Scientific fact never conflicts with the Bible, only man's theories do. And personally, I'll take the Word of the only One who was here at creation for the order in which He created it versus man's theories any day. For years I tried to reconcile the two, thinking it wasn't "intelligent" to accept the literal creation, that man's theories of radioisotope carbon dating and geological timetables were "proof". This led to my discounting the whole Word of God, even the Glory of the Gospel, and it took me years to come back around to recognizing that any "discrepancies" were only when I placed man's knowledge above that of the Living Lord. No, I cannot answer all of the scientific questions you or I may ask. No, I am not a world-class physicist or chemist or theologian. That's the beauty of the Word of God. Simple enough so that all can understand. Like being born in a stable so that no one could ever feel too lowly, or dying the most painful death imaginable so that no sufferer could feel left out. His marvelous, unfathomable message is made simple enough for anyone who seeks truth to understand the message even if our hearts cannot comprehend His love that produced the message. Even a 6yo beginner reader can understand it. Even me.

For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written:
“ I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”
Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks foolishness, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.
1 Corinthians 1:18-25

Our week

This week we have really enjoyed having the start of summer. We moved J back home from college on Monday, worked in the garden and did yard work while being serenaded by a couple of mockingbirds and a score of killdeer, cleaned one closet (major task!!) and the dust and last of the pollen off of the porches, cleaned out the wood stove ready for next winter, went to the pool, had friends over to visit, and been amazed by nature. First, I saw lady bugs being born on the leaf of one of my tomato plants. Now I've seen lady bugs all my life, and even "battled" them in the upstairs of a house we used to live in when they "invaded" the window sills each spring but I had never imagined being able to see them right as they were born (hatching from pupa and getting their spots within hours). Amazing. Then on Wednesday we saw movement in the purple martin nest. Tiny downy feathers peeping over the edge of the nest. New birds born! Thursday I forgot and went out the front door where a finch had built a tiny nest in my silk flower wreath. I peeped in the nest and saw the perfectly formed eggs that looked exactly like they had the week before and was worried that they had been abandoned. Later in the day I came back around the house and through the door and something moving caught my eye. Inside the nest was the teeniest tiniest homeliest creature I had ever seen! No bigger than my thumb nail was a newly hatched bird. By this morning his/her siblings had cracked through and I just pray the mama bird hasn't forsaken them (I haven't seen her in several days). Tonight as I sat and swung on the back porch in rhythm to the cool breeze after a rather warm day, I heard the whippoorwills off in the woods. My mother's favorite. I think of her every time I hear one and can't help but smile. God is so good to give us so many wonders to watch and hear. So much beauty to see. So much love to share. Great week.

Busy, busy...

Getting harder to blog with the weather so nice! Today I finished planting the seeds in my flower beds; I had planted most of the garden last weekend before we got some great rains. I also transplanted a few more tomato plants and weeded a corner area that needs something? planted but it gets so much sun and is on a slope but beside a walk so I don't want "prickleys" or anything tall, would like perenniel so I don't have to replant, if it stays green in the winter would be great but preferably something with color (who says I'm not picky!!) Any suggestions out there? Pansies are beautiful there in the spring but get scorched by June.
I planted my hanging baskets from seed this year so we will see how well they do (I kept seeds from my favorites last year).
Oh, in addition to the martins returning to the porch this morning I saw something "weird" looking inside the wreath on the front door and when I investigated closer, saw that a small bird (sparrow?) had built a little nest in the wreath and there were 2 babies peeping out at me! I guess they like silk flowers as well as real ones!
I'll try to get a pic of it when my son returns my camera.
Have a beautiful spring day and remember as you see the new growth everywhere that the most amazing spring growth is the new heart Jesus can make bloom!

Fun with children

Last night I attended my first ever "car-cert". My 6yo decided he wanted to put on a "show" for all of us with his remote control cars/trucks he got for Christmas and birthday so he invited us to come see it. "It's like a concert with drums, Mom, but with cars so it's a 'car-cert' ". Too good!! (Notice which musical instrument he used to describe a concert?!)

Today we were cleaning rocks, limbs and bits of trash from about 3 acres of the field and the same child came screaming to me that he was being "attacked." He had just stepped in a fire ant hill about 30 minutes earlier and barely made a sound - "I think something's stinging me Mom" (he calmly says with about 20+ red ants biting away) so I wondered what in the world had "attacked" him. He took me back to the spot and said, "See, right there, a crazy bird" and sure enough a killdeer (who blended in perfectly with the ground around her) came squawking and strutting her feathers and threatening to peck me - even using her "broken wing" trick a couple of times. I knew immediately we were near her nest and sure enough it didn't take us but a few minutes to spot 4 beautiful gray-speckled eggs less than a foot away from her. My children were intrigued by the camouflage of both the mother and her eggs as well as her willingness to "attack" humans multiple times her size in order to protect her eggs. We marked the area with a stake and caution tape so that when hubby plows tomorrow he can leave her undisturbed (and so we can keep track of the progress of the eggs which cannot even be seen a few feet away). Hopefully in about 4 weeks (or less if the eggs have been there a while) we will be lucky enough to catch sight of those fast-running babies!

On the front porch we have seen the purple martins return to their nest they made last year and would love to know if the couple "courting" there is the same one as last year or one of the offspring. We love watching their flying, hearing their "songs" (OK, more like screeches), watching them lay and care for the eggs and then babies but by the end of the summer I am really tired of having to constantly wash off the bird droppings all over the porch. But such is a mother's life... :) - just enjoy tending to the eggs and little ones (and washing the porch off) because before you want to think about they have flown the nest.....

Anyway, enjoy the spring! (Tomorrow, Lord and weather willing, we will begin planting the vegetable garden including transplanting most of my seed beds - then I will really know spring is here!).

Booookkkssss!!!!

Bookahaolic that I am I just snagged four books at a great price and got to see an old friend to boot! She posted the books for sale on a homeschool loop we are both on and we met mid-way today. She teaches piano, just graduated her daughter last spring and they have a great horse boarding and training facility. And what books did I get? Some great creation books that have been on my "wish" list for quite a while - "D is for Dinosaur" (book and video tape)
"Life Before Birth"
"Dry Bones and Other Fossils"

and my favorite - "Dinosaurs by Design" !

The Case for Creation

My latest "read" is "The Case for Creation" by Lee Strobel. Now if you've ever read any of his books you know he is a master of balancing fact and interesting stories. As a trained journalist, he knows how to draw you in and yet as an inquisitive writer he knows to support his story with the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. "The Case for Creation" is just as good, and in my humble opinion, in some ways better, than his other books. I think every adult (young ones especially) should read it, whether they are inundated with the philosophy of evolution or not. On my scale of 1(worst) to 100, I give his book a 90 (I know, I know, I rate too many books above 50 - maybe I'll get a lousy one soon :) !).
I'll let you know what the other family members rate it after they are finished.
Happy Reading!