The day after Hurricane Michael rambled through our town like a bulldozer, we were still in Troy, Alabama. Bay county was locked down, only emergency vehicles were allowed in and out for several days.

As nerve wracking and surreal as it was, we decided to make the best of it. We headed north to a state park near Birmingham to go hiking.

Let’s just say we meandered up there. We stopped to meet friends for a quick lunch before we entered the park. Once in, we proceeded to jump out of the car and take turns racing down the side of road as a police sign diligently measured, and then shouted out, our speed on the screen. 🏃‍♀️ 🏃‍♂️ 🏃‍♀️ 🏃‍♂️

Why? 🤷‍♀️

I don’t know. I guess that’s the kind of silly stuff you do to amuse and distract yourself from reality, after a storm crushes your city, and you can’t go home to inspect the damage yet.

It was actually a lot of fun! After the competition, we proceeded to a park office to get a map and requested recommendations for the best hike to a beautiful overlook.

On the way up the mountain we played, chatted, stopped, and took pictures. We were in no hurry. Then we received two shocking phone calls. 😮

One call from my daughter’s best friend, where she told her she was getting married…tomorrow. (A response to a devastating hurricane.).

The other was a bit more devastating. Our best friends had gone by our home, boarded up broken windows, and cautiously entered to view the damage. My friend, had somehow gotten ahold of a cellphone with service (which was rare), and was calling to let me know that the roof had been ripped off my daughter’s bedroom. 😞

As we processed the new information, and imagined what our home looked like minus the roof, we continued hiking. By now it was late afternoon.

We finally arrived at the pinnacle. It was truly breathtaking! As we stood at the top admiring the multicolored fall foliage, other hikers stopped, chatted, shared our amazing view, then headed back down. 🧡 🍁 🍂

My kids were like, “We’d better get going too Mom. It’s getting late we need to descend the mountain before sunset.” “Okay,” I replied, “I just have to quickly record a Facebook Live video to share this pretty view from our overlook, at Oak Mountain State Park.

These were my famous last words…😳

As we scurried down the mountain, the shadows began to fall, it proceeded to become dusk, then moments later it was completely dark. We were hiking down the steep, rocky path, by the dim light of our phones.

Needless to say, we got lost and had to call a ranger. After we described our location over the phone to the first ranger, he told us, “Keep going you are almost out.” We felt much relief and confidently kept hiking.

We continued on and came to a small creek. None of us remembered crossing a creek before. Hum??? We took a few more steps and saw the back of a huge sign. It was facing from the direction in which we had just come. It loudly proclaimed: Back Country, Experienced Backpackers Only! 🚫🚫‼️

Now we had the chilling confirmation. We were officially lost! 😬

This time my daughter assertively grabbed her phone and called the ranger station again to try to explain our location, describing the sign post we had just read. Unfortunately, it became apparent that it would be necessary for the second ranger to come rescue us and lead us out of the wilderness.

Thank God for the iPhone location finder! 💙🙏

The ranger instructed us to stay put. Then came the scary part. We could hear coyotes howling close by. In the dim light of our cellphones I could see the two guys lock eyes at the sound of their eerie screams. I knew at this point we really weren’t safe! 😩

We stood huddled in a little circle, our backs mostly turned toward the middle. My daughter stayed on the line with the ranger. With our ‘location’ on he was able to find us pretty quickly.

He was a nice guy, young, and funny. He assured us we weren’t the only ones, and began to tell us stories of other hikers lost in the park, as he quickly guided us out.

In all honestly, we weren’t too far off track, but in the dark, and in the woods, I’m sure we wouldn’t have been able to find our way out.

Do these words resonate in your soul as I record them? Sometimes life is sort of like that. 🤔

We are on a path that the Lord laid out for our life, but we get a little distracted, and lose sight of what is important.

Sometimes we literally can’t see the forrest for the trees. We look around us and see chaos, anger, pain, and uncertainty. Then fear creeps into our hearts. It haunts our souls.

That’s how I feel these days….😲

2020 has been anything but peaceful, positive, and filled with purpose.

So, what can we do? Well I guess we can start by calling the ‘Ranger’, calling out to our Heavenly Father seeking peace for our broken souls. Next, we can go back to what we know never fails….Love. ❤️

Somehow, someway, anger, hurt, division, and strife, has drifted into many of our hearts over the past six months.

It doesn’t matter if it started with debate over the virus, lockdowns, and masks, or division over social issues, describing how people should feel, respond, and attempt to live together in unity.

With the upcoming election, politics became king. Suddenly, we could no longer disagree on policy and candidates, now we were expected to hate the opposition.

Instead of looking for similarities and celebrating differences, we started calling everybody out on their differences, and viewing our fellow man as the enemy.

But in our heart of hearts we know we were created for more than shouting out our opinions, to anyone who will listen, on social media, and viciously attacking our neighbor for their dissimilar ideas.

It is okay to try to find our way in this somewhat confusing world. It is understandable when we exit the path, by choice or by mistake. It is not even wrong to get lost, when you are living life on the edge, and seeking adventure.

Just remember to always return to what we know we can depend on:

Love Never Fails! ❤️

In the thought provoking words of our 35th president, John F Kennedy, ” Change is the law of life.  And those who look only to the past or the present may miss the future.”  You may have never considered homeschooling before.  You probably are filled with numerous questions and maybe a little trepidation.  Can I really homeschool my high school aged kids?  Can I find the necessary resources? Can I homeschool a year an enter back into the school system?  Can they get into college if I homeshool them?  Can I homeschool through high school successfully?  My answer is Yes!  You can say Yes to High School!

So let me quickly introduce myself.  My name is Gina.  I’m going to share a little bit of my story with you.  I have four kids that I homeschooled over a period of 19 years, and have successfully homeschooled through high school.

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My oldest son graduated from high school and attended Liberty University.  There he met his wife and they are both teachers.  He teaches middle and high school math.  After my daughter graduated, she attended the Gulf Coast State College and got her Physical Therapy Assistant degree.  She was hired within a month of graduation.  My middle son graduated in 2017 and is currently attending Troy University.  He is seeking a degree in sports broadcasting and journalism.  My youngest son just graduated this year.  He will attend Gulf Coast State College in the fall, where he will get his AA in business before moving on to Troy University.

But enough about our family.  I’m going to give you a few tips to get you started homeschooling through high school.  My goal is that you will be encouraged, strenghtened and resolved that if you choose to, you can indeed homeschool through high school.

Since we have always homeschooled, my experience may be slightly different than yours, but I feel we all struggle with the same fear and insecurity when it comes to homeschooling through high school.  When my oldest son, Matthew, was in seventh grade I attended a homeschooling through high school meeting.  I sat and listened to several wonderful women, who had kids older than mine, and who had knowledge and experience I desperately needed.  But instead of leaving that meeting feeling encouraged, I felt overwhelmed and discouraged.

It was just way too much information at once.  My heat was filled with fear.  My brain was overloaded.  I doubted myself and my abilities.  I felt like homeschooling, which had always been creative, fun and doable was now transitioning into something that was super structured, stressful and nearly impossible.  Have you ever been to one of these meetings?  If you have I am sure you can relate to what I am saying.

So now fast forward fourteen years from that meeting.  Today I want to give you three tips which will help you get started and help you to know that you can confidently Say Yes to High School!!

Tip #1 Learn Everything in Bite Size Pieces

How do you eat an elephant?  One bite at a time.

I think this is the biggest mistake we make as homeschooling parents.  We try to learn everything at once and it is just too overwhelming.

Which homeschool program is best?  Should I hire an outside tutor?  Should we do online courses?  What about dual enrollment?  Does my state do it?  Is my child eligible?  What are the requirements? Should my child take the SAT or ACT?  When should they take them?  How many times should they take them?  Do they need volunteer hours?  What about leadership roles?  Should they join clubs?  Can they join through their local public school system?  What about scholarships?  Where do you find them?  When should they apply?  What about the dreaded transcript?  How do I make one?  What should I include on the transcript?  Do they need a resume?

Does hearing this list of questions give you anxiety?  It definitely does me!

This is why when I was sitting in that room full of very awesome and dedicated homeschool mom’s, who wanted to help me succeed, I still felt like a total loser.  I was taking notes like crazy but everything they said said was spinning through my brain.  And my brain was shouting…ummmm no!  You can’t do this!

But don’t you agree if you could learn about just one of those high school topics at a time it would help you feel confident as opposed to overwhelmed?   That is what I want to encourage you to do.  Give yourself a break.  It is enough that you decided to take on this amazing adventure, so give yourself grace in learning all the things.

Tip # 2 Do not compare yourself or your child to other homeschooling families.

This is huge!  Who finds themselves in this boat?  I fall into this boat all the time with homeschooling or just with lief in general.

Each family is different.  Each child is unique.  Each student has both strengths and weaknesses.  They have God-given gifts, talents, dreams and aspirations.  So with that being said each of our homeschooling through high school programs are going to look slightly different.

There is not a one size fits all homeschooling through high school program.  If we compare ourselves to other homeschool families, we are going to feel frustrated and maybe even a little defeated.  Several years ago I did a study with some other homeschooling moms.  It was called Lies Homeschooling Moms Believe, by Todd Wilson.  I highly recommend this quick read,  that is filled with truth and encouragement.

Bottom line: we don’t want to compare ourselves or our children to others.  If we do one of two things will happen.  Either we will look around and realize our kids are more intelligent, better looking, better in sports, harder-working, more confident, more outgoing, better prepared and overall more well-rounded than other kids.  It is at this point we begin to take all the credit and get puffed up.  And we all know that pride comes before the fall.  I believe God truly has a sense of humor.  He gives us children to prove that we aren’t all  that and a bag of chips.

Or the more likely scenario is that we will look around and see all the “perfect homeschooling families”.  Oh you know what I am talking about.  Billy just got a academic scholarship to Yale.  Kimmy is a Junior on the swim team and has already been selected for a swim team at FSU.  Johnny is taking Physics in eighth grade and the baby is already sleeping through the night, diaper trained and reading.

But it is worse than that we see a mom, cool as a cucumber, joyfully toting 6 kids around in a minvan.  When we see “perfect” homeschooling families we mistakenly think that this includes every family except our own.  Behind our smiling facade we know that our homeschool family is far from perfect and we stress out that we will never be as good as….

This can be a downward spiral.  When we think everybody else has it all together but we don’t, or they have been homeschooling for years and I just started, we are deceived into thinking “I’m the only one who struggles with…”  We are the only family with challenges.  While this can’t be further from the truth, we will develop a lack of self-confidence.  And believe you me we need to have faith in ourselves and our abilities when we choose to educate our children at home.

Tip #3 Find Your Why!

Years ago, one of my homeschooling mentors said, “For most of us the reason we chose to homeschool in the first place doesn’t change when our students get into high school.  This always stuck with me.

If we started homeschooling:

To avoid the classroom and germs during a pandemic.

To share our faith.

To build strong sibling relationships.

To travel with the family on our own schedule.

To teach specialized studies to our children.

To work with my child’s learning style.

To exercise certain freedoms.

If you have homeschooled your kids up until this point, or if this is the first time you ever considered the idea, I would encourage you to shift your question from should I homeschool through high school to how will I homeschool through high school.

This requires us to find our Why.

What is your oeverall objective?  What is your specific reason for homeschooling your kids?  Each family is different.  Their hopes, dreams, values and aspirations are different.  So their Why is going to be different.

Ask yourself: Why am I homeschooling?

What do I want my child to accomplish in their home education program?  What am I preparing them for?  Think to yourself I only have four years.  What do I want to sow into their lives during those four years of high school?  What are my big rocks that I want to place into the jar of their home education?

At this point most people would probably want to share their best homeschooling victories, but I am going to share my biggest homeschooling mistake.  Why?  Because we can learn from our mistakes and others can learn from them too.

I have had so many parents ask me this question: What classes do my children need to take to graduate from high school?

The answer: each state is different.  Usually your state will have a recommended list of classes that your student needs to complete high school.  In Florida, you can find those recomendations at the Florida Department of Education.                                           (www.fldoe.org/schools/school-choice-options/home-edu/)

No let me share the huge mistake I made with my oldest son, Matthew.  I printed off the list of recommended classes that I got from the state of Florida.  His senior year when he was deciding which college he wanted to attend, I realized my mistake.  When I looked on the websites for Liberty University and Florida State University I discovered that there is a big discrepancy between the minimum requirement necessary for admission to the college and the average student accepted.

Let me explain.  The university may say you only need three years of science and two labs for admittance to their school, but if you look at the average student accepted you may find that most of the students actually had fours years of science and three labs.  Thankfully my son was admitted to all four colleges he applied to, but it was still a real eye opener.  Can you say #missedthebus?

This is my personal recommendation.  If your student has an idea of what they would like to do after high school, look specifically at that particular college, job or program.

1. Look at that college, school, military program, ministry or occupation that they may be interested in.
2.  Don’t ask them for the minimum requirements for admission, acceptance or hiring.  Instead ask them for the statistics on the average student admitted, accepted of hired.

If you know where you are going, as you traverse the journey of homeschooling, then you can work your way backward.  You might need to tweak your goals and objectives along the way, but you will surely have a road map for success.

If you are interested in learning more please check out my Say Yes to High School Course.  This is a three day video training course that will encourage, prepare and empower you to confidently homeschool through high school.

The course includes:

Day 1 Set Your Vector!

This class will help you figure out where you are going, and then help you work your way backward; setting overall objectives and goals for your high school home education program.

Day 2:  Community Service and Leaderships Roles Rock!

This class will help you discover how community service and leadership prepares your student for success in college, employment, scholarships and special opportunities.

Day 3:  Everything Transcripts!

This class will show you how to create  quality transcripts; what to include, what format to use, and how to highlight your students achievements.

When you look at a photo in color you can see vibrant colors and contrast differences. But if you look at that same photo in black and white those differences fade and you can see the beauty of the likenesses.

My heart is broken by the injustice & pain in this world that my brothers and sisters of color suffer. I don’t even claim to fully understand the extent of it. 💔

My heart is broken by the riots and those who have chosen to kill, steal and destroy their neighbors’ businesses, livelihoods and lives. 💔

I don’t have the answers to the nation’s problems, but personally I will seek the Prince of Peace. I will seek Jesus, humble myself and pray, turn from my wicked ways and expect the Lord to heal this land. 💙🙏

As that healing begins I believe it begins with me….

I will choose to look at my neighbors, friends and even strangers through the lens of the black and white photo so I can focus on the beauty of our likenesses, not our differences.

We are all children of God and all have immeasurable value.

I will love the person in front of me. I will take time to listen and understand. I will fight injustice. I will forgive those who hurt me. I will pray for my nation.

…I will love. ❤️

Today a dream came true!! 🦋

My oldest son, Matthew, wrote a short story in 9th grade to complete an assignment in his Challenge B Literature Class.

He wasn’t excited about it and he changed his idea for the story several times before finally completing the assignment.

When all was said and done, he had written a really cute children’s book about a silly butler, who went to great lengths to get the president’s son to go to sleep. 😃

I loved the story, and everyone I shared it with loved it too. 😍

I told Matthew, “I’m going to get this book published.” That was in 2009.

A couple years later. I asked my younger son, Samuel, who liked to draw, to illustrate the book for me.

He illustrated it, and it was perfect! I told Samuel, “I’m going to get this book published.” That was in 2011.

A year later I took the book into a local office store and had them but it in a nice binder. The girl behind the counter loved it too and I proudly told her, “I’m going to get this book published.” That was in 2012.

The illustrated manuscript sat on our homeschooling shelf for several years. Everytime I would rediscover it, I’d pull it out, read it, smile, and think to myself, “I’m going to get this book published.”

My best friend wrote an amazing, yet gut wrenching, heartfelt book in 2016. She was visiting my house and I showed her Matthew’s book. Of course she loved it! I told her, “I’m going to get this book published.” To which she replied, “I will help you.” 😇

The next summer I visited my friend in Ohio. I brought the illustrated manuscript with me. I had just sold a property and finally had a few extra dollars to work with. My friend hired someone to format the book for me. I was beyond excited and proclaimed, “I’m going to get this awesome book published!” That was in 2017.

There were a few glitches along the way. Every time the publishing company sent me a proof, I was unhappy with the illustrations. 😞

We were working on these but life just kept on trekking. I resolved, “One way or another, I’m going to get this book published.” That was in 2018.

Then we had a Cat 5 hurricane…..

Two weeks ago I received the illustrated manuscript in the mail from my friend. I decided to try just one more time, and maybe even compromise on the illustrations if I had to. I was determined, “I’m going to get this book published.” 🧐

Meanwhile the publishing company had changed names over the past couple years, so I had to transfer the book over to the new company. I submitted it and ordered a proof.

I sat on pins and needles waiting for my copy of the proof to arrive….. 😬😬😬

The proof was perfect!!! 🎉

I knew in my heart this journey was nearing a end, “I’m going to get this crazy, amazing book published!”

On Monday I submitted the book for publishing. It was supposed to be live within 72 hours.

But….

I received an email that something was wrong with the title page. I was at a loss. I contacted my friend for help. I gritted my teeth and said out loud with firm voice, “I’m gowing to get this book published.” 🤨

Friday night as a last ditch effort I decided to submit the book for publishing one final time….

Today I woke up to “Congratulations your book has been published.” 🤗 😍 🤩

Ten years. It took ten years to get this book published. But today my dream became a reality.

If you are still with me….all of this to say: Never give up on your dreams. No matter how big or how small. No matter what challenges stand in your way. No matter if your are equipped to face the challenges or not. No matter if other people don’t understand or believe in your dream. No matter if not another human being even supports your dream. Just never give up!! 💪

If it is a dream God placed in your heart – you have no other choice than to go for it!

I finally got the book published! Today, May 18, 2019, my dream came true! ❤️

I’m super proud of you, Matthew! Many kids hearts will be filled with joy as they read it. 💙

Samuel, thank you for letting me use your original illustrations. They are adorable! 💛

Check it out! The Granville brothers are live on Amazon!!!!!

👇

The Adventures of Tom Wilson (The President’s Butler): The Night The President’s Son Wouldn’t Go To Sleep https://www.amazon.com/dp/1976049881/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_7Pd4Cb4X6Y0CW

Twenty-three years ago I found myself in a hospital on the Air Force base that was being remodeled. You would be in your room and could hear the lady down the hall giving birth. 😮 🤭

The only way you could call the nurse was with a little bell like you would find in a post office. 🛎 Ding!

The problem was the nurse would know the general direction the from which the bell rang, but could only locate the patient by poking her head in each door until she found the ringer. 🛎

It was a crazy way to welcome this baby girl into the world. 👶 🎀

From day one Laura Jean was a happy and content baby. Laid back, easy going and she even slept 5 hours through the night right out of the hospital. Yesss!! Score one for mom who already had a 21 month old!

As a toddler she was fearless, she climbed out of her crib and stood on tables long before she even took her first steps at a year old.

When Laura Jean was four years old, she took her first ballet class. This was the beginning of her lifelong passion for dance. 💖

Also, when she was four she decided she wanted the training wheels off of her bike, because her brother, who was almost two years older, had just learned to ride without his. Her dad said, “No, you are too little.” But no wasn’t the answer for this determined little girl. She grabbed her brother’s bike and rode back and forth across the grass that afternoon until she mastered it.

When Laura turned ten years old she loved American Girl dolls. She had two dolls; Laura, the look alike doll, and Kirsten, the pioneer doll. So my best friend and I took our girls to the American Girl Store in Chicago. The store had a doll beauty salon, hospital, and museum. The highlight was a tea party with birthday cake for the girls and dolls. It was an amazing trip and a dream come true for a ten year old girl.

When Laura Jean was 13, she taught her first ballet class. She was homeschooled, but took classes at a classical home education program one day a week with other homeschoolers. She started the class on her lunch hour for 2-5 year olds. It was too sweet! 💗

The following year she branched out on her own, and offered a homeschool ballet class for 4-10 year olds at a friend’s church. She totally ran the entire business from advertising, registering students, writing up lesson plans, choreographing performances and so on. I only helped by collecting tuition and providing crowd control.

During Laura’s teen years everything revolved around ballet. She loved it so much and spent her summers attending ballet intensives. She attended Karen Napier’s Audience of One. (AOO). First she was a student teacher, by her last year of high school she was a paid teacher, and still teaches there to this day.

When she was a young teen she met Shawn Bornemann, (aka Shawn Black) who was a retired prima ballerina turned homeschool mom. Shawn Black had danced in the world renown American Ballet Theatre in NYC with Baryshnikov and other famous dancers. Shawn had more influence in Laura’s life than any other person except for her mom. (aka me) She trained with Laura Jean, took her to summer intensives, choreographed dances for her and shared her passion for beautiful classical ballet.

When Laura graduated from high school she received two different local scholarships, one from Tyndall Federal Credit Union & the other from the St Andrews Civic Club. This was awesome because money was tight, and I wasn’t sure how I would be able to put her through college. Thankfully, she saved a good portion from teaching dance and along with Pell Grants we were able to make college a reality. 👩‍🎓

She knew from the beginning that she was interested in some sort of medical field. She had it narrowed down to two occupations and through volunteering at the local hospitals she chose the Physical Therapy Assistant (PTA) program at GCSC. 👩‍⚕️

While Laura Jean was in college, she continued to teach ballet with AOO, and she worked at Target. That is where she met her fiancée, Jacob. They were just friends for the first year, then he won her heart and they began dating. 😍

Which brings me to today. Today my daughter turned 23. She is currently in her last seven weeks of clinicals for the PTA program. She will graduate in May. She still loves dance and still teaches for AOO. She just got engaged three weeks ago, and will be married within the next year.

The cool thing is Laura Jean is the real deal. She is still fearless, loves life and shares that passion with others. She is smart, thoughtful, funny, kind, silly and full of joy & laughter. But don’t let the ridiculousness, she gets from her mom, fool you, she still has the same steadfast determination to accomplish her dreams and goals, as she did as a four year old riding her brorher’s bike across the lawn. She still has the creativity and ingenuity to open new doors of opportunity, as that 13 year old who began her own ballet class. She has been my very best friend since she was a young adult, and soon she will marry her very best friend for a happily ever after. ❤️

I can’t wait to see what the future holds. I know it will be incredible and filled with many lively adventures. Beacause in the words of one of her favorite movies, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”

Happy Birthday Laura Jean!! I love you!! 💕

i originally wrote this word of encouragement, in 2010, to encourage other homeschool families during this funky time of year, after the excitement of Christmas holidays, but still not nearly close enough to Spring Break. 

 A lot has changed for me since 2010.  Nine years ago, I had a sophomore in high school, an 8th grader, a 5th grader and a 2nd grader.  Now my oldest son has graduated from college, is married, and is a teacher and a basketball coach.  My daughter, who is recently engaged, graduates with her PTA degree in May.  My middle son is at Troy University seeking a sports journalism degree.  He will be walking from Troy to Panama City Beach next week to raise money for Jeep Sullivan’s Outdoor Adventures for Wounded Warriors.  And my youngest son, a junior in high school, is dual enrolled in a couple classes at GCSC and I teach the rest at home.  He loves basketball and plays for Deane Bozeman High School.  He is currently running track for Bozeman and starting a new job at Chick Fil A this week. 

Even though much has changed, I would still share this same piece of encouragement nine years later.  I still face many homeschool challenges, most of which revolve around time management issues as I balance, the roles of mom, homemaker, teacher, small business owner and friend.  This time of the school year still drags its stubborn feet incessantly.  Can’t Spring Break just hurry up and get here?!  On top of that, my three kids who are still in college all have different spring breaks.  

Due to Hurricane Michael this has been an already challenging year.  We started in August with an excellent school plan, two classes at the college, two classes with Arete Collaborative Academy and two classes at home.  We were ready and our hearts were filled with joy.  After the hurricane, we were homeless, and I just sort of shut down.  I had a hard time making decisions, teaching my son, battling fear, running my household and keeping up with a somewhat normal schedule.  My favorite response to my kids, who needed my strength, was, “I don’t know”.  Finally after all these months, things are just now beginning to rebound for me, and we have been in a new home since Christmas.  

With that being said, I know a lot of you are still displaced, dealing with all kinds of things that never invade a normal school day; contractors, insurance agents, mediators, rentals,  repairs so forth and so on the story goes.  So more than ever please give yourself grace.  Remember, homeschooling isn’t a sprint.  It is a heck of a long marathon. So stay the course and stick to the raft.

 

February 8, 2010 · 

Stick to the Raft!!

It’s that time of year again, when the “homeschool blues” creep into your heart and life.  It is the middle of February, the excitement of the Christmas season has long since passed, you are looking at your lesson plans wondering how you will ever “catch up”.  Your goals, some of which you just newly made in the New Year, are becoming strangely dim.  First, let me assure you-you are not alone!  We all doubt our qualifications and ability to teach from time to time. We ask ourselves, “Would my kids be better off being taught by an academic institution, rather than by me, their own God given parent?”  We look at our own messy house, our needy toddler, our bickering children, our daunting “to do” list, our books yet  unread, our vision of peace and joy, which seemingly is crumbling down around us, and we cry out, “Is this really worth it?!”  I have a few words of encouragement for you today: Stick to the Raft!! 
Several years ago, we read a Lamplighter book, Stick to the Raft, which was originally written in 1877.  It is a story of a young man’s journey of faith.  A poor boy is honored for his hard work and honesty, when misfortune invades his life, and his faith is tested.  I want to share an excellent quote from this book. “It’s my dead mother’s idea, sir.  Soon after father gave himself to the Lord he had to take a raft to a neighboring village, and when he started, mother told him to stick to it, and explained that she wanted him to hold on to a Raft which would bear him at all times.  She meant the Lord Jesus Christ.”  It is a delightful book, with a wonderful message of hope.  Today I share that hope with you: Stick to the Raft! 
Remember homeschool mom (dad), what you are doing has eternal value.  It doesn’t matter if you don’t finish your assignments by the first of June.  However, it does matter that you stand steadfast;  knowing in your heart that nobody has the burden for your child(ren) that you have.  When they were born, God placed that burden in your heart.  That burden drives your desire to help them succeed in every area of their lives.  You know their strengths and weaknesses, the good, the bad and the ugly. You can tailor their academic study, life skills development, character training, and spiritual growth to each individual child.  Don’t’ forget that the time that you spend with your children, as you teach them at home, is an incredible gift from God.  Again, I encourage you: Stick to the Raft! 
In warfare, an army is much more effective when they know their enemy and what they are up against.  The same holds true with educating our children at home.  If we know that the “homeschool blues” creep into our lives this time of year, we can be prepared to battle, and come out on the other side victorious.  There are several practical ways we can combat our enemy.  First, let us make no comparisons with other homeschool families, with public or private school families, or even between our own children, and what we have accomplished in the past.  God has a specific plan for your family, including each individual child, during this precious season of life.  We need to keep our eyes on Him.  Second, delve into God’s Word, to seek the strength, hope, and encouragement that you need today.  Discover how the Lord instructs you to teach, train and direct your children.  Third, call a fellow homeschool mom (dad) and encourage her (him).  Amazing things can happen when we take our focus off of ourselves and make a concerted effort to bless someone else.  Lastly, pray and seek the Lord for yourself.  He knows what your children need most and will give you the wisdom to accomplish what He desires in their lives during this particular school year.  His grace is sufficient.  It will empower you meet the challenges head on, and His mercy will sustain you as you faithfully obey His leading.  But most importantly…….. Stick to the Raft! 

I have had the absolute best job in the world for the past 24 years!  Being a mom has filled my heart with joy and given me an awesome sense of accomplishment as I’ve watched my babies grow into awesome young men and women, who love God and love others.  Humans that I adore and enjoy spending time with. 😃

 The past 18 years I have had the priceless privilege to be a homeschool mom.  It has been the most fulfilling job ever!  I grew as my kids grew.  I struggled through trials as my kids struggled through their own.  I overcame hardships as my kids overcame hardships.  We did school together, but even more importantly we did life together.  My character was shaped and defined as theirs were being molded. 

Some people spend their whole lives trying to figure out what they are supposed to be doing on this big, blue marble that we call home.  It isn’t always an easy task.  But through all of these years of homeschooling I have felt totally in God’s will, and knew in my heart that I was living out my purpose here on earth. 

Some people believe the pay for a homeschool parent is lame, but I have found the pay to be invaluable, because it was paid out in precious time spent together, in the joy of learning challenges and victories, and in beautiful relationships that were built in the trenches and will last a lifetime. ❤️

This multifaceted occupation that has been my whole life for the past 18 years will come to an end a year and a half from now.  I am so thankful to God for this perfect job, the blessing of being able to stay home with my kids and the faith, strength and tenacity to homeschool them.  But as much as I’ve loved my job, it is time for me to start looking forward. 👀

So, what kind of job do I want???????  

-One that will allow me the freedom to continue to spend time with my kids (and hopefully grandkids someday soon).

-One that I am passionate about.

-One where I can help people.

-One where I can meet new people & develop new friendships.

-One where I can continually grow and become a better me.

-One where I can travel and see new things.

-One that I believe is important and can make a positive change in this world.

When I first picked up this little bottle, I thought I was soothing my knees after a rigourous day of exercise.  I never expected it would open the door to a new job.. but surprisingly it has.  

When my dad died of lung cancer in March 2017, I didn’t know that a passion would begin to rise up and beat within my heart; a desire to educate and help others obtain a better life through using these little bottles of oil, seeking a healthier diet, striving to exercise and pursuing all-natural, chemical free products. I am excited to share my passion with my friends, family, neighbors, and even people I have not yet met. 

I am steadily becoming excited about what the future holds.  I am carefully allowing myself to see something beyond homeschooling.  Will this new job be as awesome and fulfilling as my previous one?  That would be really hard to imagine.  But I am beginning to look to the future with hope instead of fear, joy instead of sadness, and expectation instead of dread.  So that in itself is a major victory for me. 💪

I hope my passion for a healthy lifestyle will be contagious and change many lives for the better.  I hope no one else I love will ever have to suffer through the battle with cancer.  I hope my kids will be encouraged by watching me do all the things that I have taught them over the past 18 years; learning new things, making new friends, leaning on faith, facing new challenges, stepping out of my comfort zone, never giving up on my dreams, and not being afraid to fail.   I hope most of all my kids will be proud of the woman I am becoming as I step out in faith and into this next stage in my life. 🦋

I started slow.  How do you even stand up on this thing?!  I tried again…and again…finally I got it!  Not fast, but I could maneuver around the living room couch and then the loveseat. Just lean forward that makes it go.  This isn’t so bad…it’s kind of fun.  I repeated the scenario several times then I headed for the kitchen.  I’ll make a quick trip around the island and back to the couch.  Wait!  There are carpets on the floor…no problem.  That was my last thought before I fell off the hover board on my behind, then as if in slow motion fell back on both elbows, which crushed loudly into the wooden floor.  Ouch!!  I jumped up.  I’m fine.  Yep…I’m fine.  No problem here.

We started cleaning up the mess from the birthday party.  All I could think is wow my arms hurt.  Sure, I’ll hold the toddler while we clean up.  Man, she feels heavy today.  I can carry up the food from downstairs.  Boy, this crock pot weighs a ton and I can’t even carry it out away from my body.  I’ll go home and put some ice on my wrists.  Ouch!  It really hurts to turn the steering wheel.  Home at last.  Once that ice is on, it will feel better…  Oh my goodness, I can’t   even turn this doorknob!

This was my self-talk for basically 24 hours, until I realized I couldn’t hold a glass of water with out extreme pain.  Finally, I gave in and call the nurse’s hotline, who promptly instructed me to go straight to the ER.  After a visit to the orthopedic doctor a couple days later and realizing one of my elbows was broken, I continued planning for my trip to Indy, which was just days away.  My instructions included no lifting of more than 5 pounds on the bad arm.  I bought a couple little braces to support my forearms and got in the car for the 13-14 hour drive.  Mental note to self: people over forty don’t need to be hover boarding.

While we were in Indiana we emptied cabinets and carried heavy stuff up from the basement all week long.  I made sure to use my arm that wasn’t broken.  The funny thing was as the week progressed that arm hurt worse than the one with the broken elbow.  I’m just over working it….I’m sure that’s all.  After we returned home I went in for my follow up appointment.  As the doctor was showing me my x-rays of both broken elbows, I asked, “I thought only the right one was broken.  That is what the P.A. told me last time.  “Nope.  They are both broken.  Let me show you,” he replied.   Say what?!

Have you ever put your faith in someone, something, some diagnosis, decree or proclamation, but ignored how you felt on the inside?  Have you ever trusted what you could see with your eyes, but disbelieved how you felt on the inside?  Have you ever looked to a family member, a friend or a professional, but disregarded how you felt on the inside?  Have you ever been told you are crazy, you don’t know what you are talking about or it really doesn’t matter, so you doubted how you felt on the inside?

When I was carrying all of those heavy boxes up the stairs at my mom’s house, with my “good arm”, I knew something wasn’t right.  My increased pain was a telltale sign, but I trusted the P.A.’s assessment over my own feelings of increased pain.  Why do we do that?!  Why do we give value to someone else’s evaluation, but ignore our own feelings?

Many times, we are instructed not to trust our feelings; that they will deceive us, but the Lord gave us feelings, inclinations, perceptions, sensitivities and insights for a reason.  Whether it is pain from an injury or illness we cannot see on the outside, or a “bad feeling” about someone we just don’t want around our children, or an overwhelming feeling of compassion for a complete stranger, we need to listen to our feelings; that still small voice within our heart.

So how do we do that?  First, we need to trust ourselves.  If we feel a certain way, we need to follow up on that feeling.  Even if we don’t immediately act upon it, we should pray about it, or consult with a trustworthy family member, mentor or friend.  Second, we need to trust the Lord, who lives in us.  Does what we feel line up with God’s Word?  Do our feelings guide us toward goodness and love, or toward mercilessness and evil?

If you have a feeling you should call a friend.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should help a homeless person.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should speak up.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should be quiet and listen.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should speak less and hug more.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should stop bullying.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should send a card.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should donate money.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should get a second opinion.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should protect your children from someone or something.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should tell a friend your secret.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should exercise, get more rest and make better food choices.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should end an unhealthy relationship.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should show mercy.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should accept yourself for who you are.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should forgive others.  Do it.  If you have a feeling you should love like Jesus.  Do it.

We can trust ourselves, our Heavenly Father and the feelings, insights and intuition He has given us.  Helen Keller reminds us, “The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched – they must be felt with the heart.”

In his book The Secret of Staying in Love, author, John Joseph Powell, profoundly proclaims, “It is an absolute human certainty that no one can know his own beauty or perceive a sense of his own worth until it has been reflected back to him in the mirror of another loving, caring human being.”  Be present.  That is a relatively new phrase that is being thrown around a lot.  But what does it really mean?  Who really benefits?  What are we missing if we are not present? I would assert….Life.

You have heard the old adage, things are not always as they seem.  A person’s perception of the facts is sometimes more important than the actual facts.

When I was in middle and high school I had a best friend, Holly, we did everything together.  Holly was tall, thin with wavy dark brown hair and hazel green eyes.  I was short, little, with straight blondish hair and blue eyes.  We looked nothing alike and yet had everything in common.

I remember the first day I met her.  It was eighth grade and I had a boyfriend; my first boyfriend.  I remember sitting in the classroom and seeing my super cool boyfriend cruise by the door, a moment later I saw Holly saunter by.  “Hum… who was That?!”, I wondered with jealously.  A few days later Holly walked up to me and told me that my boyfriend wanted to break up with me.  I casually replied, “Okay”, shrugged my shoulders, and walked off.  From that day on Holly and I became besties. How could I become best friends with “that girl” who stole my very first boyfriend?  Easy, because she never did. Later she told me, “Why would I want to date a guy that you couldn’t care less if he broke up with you?!”

Friendship is a powerful force.  I would venture to say it is one of the most powerful forces in the universe.  God created us to be in fellowship with one another.  Fellowship with Him.  Fellowship with our family.  Fellowship with our friends.  Fellowship with acquaintances.  Fellowship with human beings.  We are made to interact with other human beings.

The phone in the palm of our hand opens a window to a whole new world, but if we are not careful, it also slams the door to humanity; the present, the here and now.

I suspect we have all felt slighted by somebody on their phone, computer or tablet.  I also know we have all been the offenders with these same devices, and I might add one more, the TV.  There is nothing wrong with any of these electronic devices, it is how we use them that matters most.

There is scientific evidence that when we receive notifications or alerts on our cell phones that dopamine is released in our brain.  Dopamine is the hormone which is responsible for our “fight or flight” response.  So, you get the picture, when we are on our phones day and night our bodies respond like they are in a continual state of stress and fear.  Add to that the dangerous chemicals we are exposed to every day, and you can see that our brains are over stimulated, our adrenal glands are way over-worked, our bodies are constantly living at a super high stress level. The human body isn’t designed to function this way.

But I don’t want to focus on the body’s natural response to our love affair with our smart phones, I want to focus on human beings.  Remember when I said a person’s perception of the facts sometimes outweighs the facts themselves?  The obvious inference in this statement is that our intent is not what truly matters.  It is how the other person perceives our intent that matters.

Husband, will you turn off the football game and listen to her words?  Wife, will you lay down your cell phone long enough to focus on what he means.  Parents, does saying I love you to young children as you type, supersede their need for hugs?  Teens and parents alike, do you really care if you don’t bother to look up and acknowledge one another?  Friends, will you always still be standing there after I send this one last quick text?  Acquaintances, could we have been friends if I cared more about you than what Susie was wearing in her prom photos on Instagram?  The human being in the line at Walmart, do you really have any inherent value or worth at all?  I don’t know. I didn’t speak to you. I never even looked up.

My friends can we lay down our devices long enough to reflect the beauty in others?  Will we choose to interact with others the way that we are created to do?  Will we choose to differentiate between the here and now and our constant dopamine addiction?  Will we choose to really live?  It is going to take a cognitive choice.  Today, I just have two words: Be Present!

In the delightful words of Helen Keller, “The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched – they must be felt with the heart.”  As far back as I can remember, my Aunt Judy has been a significant part of my life.  Always sweet.  Always encouraging.  Always thoughtful.  She has brought so much joy to my life and to the lives of my family.  When I grow up I want to be just like her for three reasons, she has maintained a high level of physical fitness, she has persevered through many struggles, and she has persisted in kindness and inspiration of others.

When I grow up I want to be just like my Aunt Judy because she has maintained a high level of physical fitness.  She has continued exercising well up into her 70’s and 80’s, and she looks amazing.  She is a beast.  From aerobics classes, to walking, to keeping up with her granddaughters, Aunt Judy inspires me to challenge myself, never give up and to keep moving every day.

When I grow up I want to be just like my Aunt Judy because she has persevered through many struggles.  Though I wasn’t around yet, she has told me she struggled as a young woman.  She was out on her own at a young age and had to overcome many obstacles.  She is also a breast cancer survivor.  She valiantly fought the battle and won!  Aunt Judy – 1.  Breast Cancer – a big fat 0.  My life has been filled with challenges too, and my Aunt Judy’s response has motivated me to believe in myself, trust my decisions and keep fighting.

When I grow up I want to be just like my Aunt Judy because she has persisted in kindness and inspiration of others. Of all of her many, beautiful attributes her kind personality and sweet spirit literally stir the hearts of others to see goodness in this broken world. Her sweet words resonate in my ears, and the ears of my children, “Hi honey.  How are you?  I love you to the moon and back.”  Or the thoughtful little text messages filled with kind words and lots of little hearts.  I tear up when I think of how many people my aunt inspires every single day, and I pray that the Lord will help me love deeply and intensely like my Aunt Judy.

When I grow up I want to be just like my Aunt Judy because she has maintained a high level of physical fitness, she has persevered through many struggles, and she has persisted in kindness and inspiration of others.  If you know her, you love her.  It is as simple as that.  Her life is a testimony that the “good guys win” and that after the rain, the rainbow remains.  If I could sum up the impact she has had on my life over the years, I would have to say, I have always felt loved.  In the uplifting and thought-provoking words of Audrey Hepburn, “The beauty of a woman must be seen from in her eyes, because it is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides.”  Thank you, Aunt Judy, for keeping that doorway open and flooding my life with love.