A Firm Foundation

Reason #563 to Homeschool...

2012-02-15T08:31:00.003-06:00

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/02/14/preschoolers-homemade-lunch-replaced-with-nuggets/A Hoke County preschooler was fed chicken nuggets for lunch because a state worker felt that her homemade lunch did not have enough nutritional value, according to a report by the Carolina Journal.The West Hoke Elementary School student was in her classroom when a state agent who was inspecting lunch boxes

Godly Conduct

2011-11-04T16:07:00.006-05:00

Draw a line.Establish a border.Separate a lifestyle.Godly conduct is about getting God's heart on every issue.Do all things as unto Him.Source: James MacDonald(Oh, and that loud thud you just heard? That was the collective sound of the jaws of my blog readers hitting the ground over the shock of a blog post from me after five months of silence!)

Ten Years Ago This Month

2011-06-20T01:34:00.002-05:00

Ten years ago this month, our niece and nephew moved in with us, and our family has never been the same. :) For ten years, I have tried to fulfill the "mom" role in their lives. I've tried to teach them about fashion. I've tried to teach them about modesty and about biblical manhood/womanhood. I've tried to make dental hygiene a priority. I've tried to encourage them to stand out in a

31 Days to Clean... Day Five

2011-06-10T18:55:00.000-05:00

You can find all previous "31 Days to Clean" posts here! Today's Mary Challenge: Come up with a list of priorities that make sense for you and your family (I suggest rating them, 1-5, to evaluate how you're doing). I have yet to do this one! I put it off that day in order to wait until I had enough time to really put some thought into it, and now I just keep forgetting to go back and spend

31 Days to Clean... Day Four

2011-06-10T17:04:00.001-05:00

You can find all previous "31 Days to Clean" posts here! Day Four's lesson was about creating a home where people feel free to just relax and "put their feet up." My favorite thought of this lesson was: "Cleaning isn't just about scrubbing floors, making beds, and clearing out clutter (although those are good things), it's also about creating an environment that encourages people to feel welcomed

31 Days to Clean...Day Three

2011-06-10T11:44:00.001-05:00

You can find all previous "31 Days to Clean" posts here! Today is my seventh day of working through the book 31 Days to Clean: Having a Martha House the Mary Way. It's really been a helpful book! Although I made a decision to focus on the Mary challenges, rather than both the Mary challenges and the Martha challenges. I have bigger fish to fry during this month off of school; namely, a couple of

31 Days to Clean... Day Two

2011-06-05T15:40:00.003-05:00

You can find all previous "31 Days to Clean" posts here! Today's Mary Challenge: Start looking at your domain as something to make come alive! What can you do today to bring life to your home, your children, your husband, and your sphere of influence? Hmmmm. Well, this doesn't have much to do with the cleanliness or organization of my home, but for me I think my answer has to be relationships

31 Days to Clean... Day One

2011-06-04T23:55:00.004-05:00

I recently received a free copy of the e-book 31 Days to Clean: Having a Martha House the Mary Way. I realized the other day that this was perfect timing, because the kids and I finished our school year yesterday, and we have exactly 31 days until our next year of school starts! (We do nine weeks on and four weeks off, year round.) So my hope is that by the time we start back to school, I will

I Interrupt This Historical Announcement...

2011-05-01T23:07:00.000-05:00

A semi-humorous story in the midst of the serious situation of Osama Bin Laden's death... As posted on my Facebook: What a difference one little letter makes! I woke my husband up a little while ago and accidentally announced to him that the United States had killed Obama!! Aaakk!!! And to think I'm homeschooling these poor children. :)

Free E-Book... Today Only!

2011-04-27T21:27:00.000-05:00

I'm so excited about this e-book! Today only, if you post about it on your blog, you can receive a free copy. I keep meaning to order it... and forgetting. Finally, my procrastination pays off! Don't worry... if you don't have a blog, or don't get a chance to post this to your blog before midnight (eastern) tonight, you can buy your own copy of this e-book for just $4.99. Totally worth it, in

Idols

2011-04-26T21:51:00.000-05:00

I've posted this before, but I keep thinking about this tonight... so I decided to repost it. If you're willing to sin in order to get something... or sin in order to keep something... or sin because you don't get something... that thing has become an idol in your life. ~paraphrase of a quote from Idols of the Heart by Elyse Fitzpatrick (which I have not read)~

In Our Classroom: Virtue

2011-04-21T15:52:00.002-05:00

The kids and I have just started working through a unit study based on The Book of Virtue. Here are some things on the subject of virtue that we learned last week. I am learning as much and probably more than they are in this study! The "I Wills" of Virtue I will do what is right and encourage others to do the same. I will guard my eyes, ears, words and thoughts. I will learn to stand alone. I

Truer Words Have Never Been Spoken!

2011-04-18T19:30:00.000-05:00

My "nephson" and I were in a store today and we walked by a rack of t-shirts. I read one out loud to him saying, "Beer is now cheaper than gas." To which he replied, "And gets you nowhere."

A Blogging Miracle

2011-02-21T11:17:00.000-06:00

Just thought I'd point out the miracle that has occurred... This month, I have posted FIVE times on this blog, and THREE times on my recipe blog! I hope you were sitting down for that shocking piece of information.

Girls Will Be Boys

2011-02-19T21:04:00.004-06:00

Wow. In light of my pastor's recent blog post about unisex fashion, which in turn inspired a friend's post, this headline JUMPED out at me. Girl Wrestler Wins After Boy Won't Compete Against Her An excerpt from the article (you can read the complete article here): --- High school wrestling star Joel Northrup had his eye on the Iowa state championship – until he found out he'd have to compete

Forty by 40: Update #2

2011-02-07T12:27:00.001-06:00

In light of the suffering that a family that we dearly love is going through right now, this post feels somewhat frivolous. However, I do want to try and maintain some sense of accountability when it comes to my weight loss goal, so... here is my second Forty by 40 update. (I missed updating last week.) Total weight lost in week two: 0.5 pounds Total exercise completed in week two: 28

A Winter Wonderland... Part Three

2011-02-02T11:46:00.000-06:00

Parts one and two can be found here and here. Well, the "blizzard" has come and gone. I still haven't heard whether or not it ended up meeting the criteria for being called a blizzard, but WOW! That was a fun snowstorm to watch. From the comfort of my own home, that is. I don't like driving in the snow to begin with, and trying to drive with that lack of visibility would NOT be fun. It's

A Winter Wonderland... Part Two

2011-02-01T19:57:00.002-06:00

Part One of this post can be found here. I'm continuing this post in an attempt to meet my pastor's photo challenge, although I have no idea how many inches of snow we have gotten! It's been such a hoot today to watch all the snow falling and blowing all over the backyard ("snowing sideways" is how I would describe it), and to see our picnic table remain basically untouched. So funny! And so

A Winter Wonderland... Part One

2011-02-01T15:45:00.000-06:00

We are in the midst of heavy snow right now, and under a blizzard watch until tomorrow morning, with a prediction of 5 to 25 inches depending upon the part of the city. What the prediction is for my part of the city, I really can't tell! But the bottom line is: Snow, and lots of it. I have no idea how much snow we have here, because it's basically been snowing sideways all day. Our yard is

Forty by 40: Update #1

2011-01-24T10:18:00.000-06:00

Week one of my "Forty by 40" challenge has come and gone... and I have survived. Actually, 5.5 pounds of me didn't survive. But that's the point, right? :) I am following the Weight Watchers PointsPlus program. It's the newest Weight Watchers plan, and wow, am I ever happy with the new changes to the program! If you're not familiar with Weight Watchers at all, none of this will make sense to

Forty by 40

2011-01-21T13:28:00.002-06:00

I interrupt this Frugal Friday to bring you a public service announcement. Although I am "39 and holding"... and would love to permanently keep that title, the truth is that I will be (gasp) 40 in six months. And on that note, I hereby commit myself to "forty by 40." My goal is to lose 40 pounds by July 9th. About ten years ago, my (then) workplace had a "Weight Watchers at Work" program,

What Happened to Modesty?

2011-01-20T22:19:00.000-06:00

While searching tonight for various things online, I came across the book Christian Modesty: The Public Undressing of America. I haven't yet read the book, and so I can't vouch for it, but it looks VERY interesting. Here's how it's described on Amazon: The Church is being destroyed by sacred cows. A "sacred cow" is an untouchable subject that we are not supposed to discuss. To do so impinges

Open for Discussion: To Help or Not to Help...

2011-01-15T02:07:00.001-06:00

I would love to have some "reader participation" on this one. For those who don't already know, I have several extended family members who have difficult lives, and in turn make life somewhat difficult for me. They don't purposely make things difficult for me, but one thing I've learned in life is that sins have far-reaching effects, and so oftentimes I get a bit caught up in the tangled webs

22 Years Ago Today!

2011-01-11T02:27:00.007-06:00

Twenty two years ago today, my life changed forever. I became a mother. It strikes me more and more every year how long my son has been a part of my life. I lived for 17 years without him, and now have lived for 22 years with him. I knew him in my teens, my twenties, and my thirties (and sooner than I would care to admit, I will know him in my forties!). I am so thankful that God allowed me

Ten Things That Happened in 2010

2011-01-01T12:28:00.004-06:00

**1/4/11... I can't believe I forgot to mention the kids' baptism in this list! So I'm cheating and adding it here in this note. :) ** Here are ten big things that happened in 2010. Some are more exciting than others... but here we go! :) 1. In January, my son turned 21. Sniff sniff. (And in ten days, he will turn 22!) 2. On January 24, K&G's dad drank his last two beers... and has

REVERT (verb) 1:To go back to a previous state;

2010-12-18T13:23:00.000-06:00

This week, the kids and I ran into our former pastor at Walmart. No, not THAT former pastor... but the one who replaced him. It was amazing how I instantly reverted back to the person I was when I was a member of his church. As soon as he saw us, he walked over and hugged me. I hugged him back. I didn't even think twice about it. After talking to him for a few minutes and then going our

Frugal Friday!

2010-12-03T10:12:00.004-06:00

Just when my three blog readers had given up on Frugal Friday, it rises from the ashes like a phoenix! Ok, well maybe not. But I received this email offer today and I thought it was too good to not share. :) For today only, WholesomeChildhood is offering a bundle of 13 pdf cooking books for $5.99. It's available to the first 500 customers only. I'm ordering it, and I think several of my two

Wow.

2010-12-02T22:47:00.000-06:00

I saw this obituary a few years ago and have never forgotten it. (I've changed the names.)John Doe, 67, of Kansas City, KS, died Friday, March 23, 2007 at KU Medical Center. An Agnostic Infidel gone to a place he didn't believe exists. John was born November 21, 1939 in Sutherland, NE to John and Jane Doe. He graduated from Hershey High School in 1958 and the University of Nebraska with a B.S.

Five Years Ago...

2010-11-25T00:19:00.005-06:00