Coffee for Breakfast

It's that time of year...again, except this time will be the last time. I'm planning for our last year of homeschooling. My youngest will be starting her senior year. I have many mixed emotions about this. I've known this day would be arriving. I've scrambled my brain with thoughts of, "What will I do with myself when we graduate her?" amongst other frantic ponderings. This has been my life for 20 years. Twenty. TWENTY!!! I have a hard time wrapping my head around this number. Thankfully, I have put some thought into transitioning into another stage in life. Of course, she will still need me. She graduates at 17. Since I have four other children who are grown ups, and they still need me, I know she will also. I'm not completely sad. I'm only somewhat sad. It's actually exciting. I'm excited to see her mature over the next year. I'm even excited to see myself mature. My plan is to enjoy every last moment of teaching my daughter at home...

A goal I've had for a while is to create a space within my home to truly relax and take a break. I've attempted this at various times in various ways to no avail. Maybe the reason for my unsuccessful attempts was simply the fact of having five children who were homeschooled. This fact can make alone time and space challenging. Of course we had daily rest periods, but a true space of relaxation was not my reality. Through a lot of self discovery and contemplation, I've accepted the fact that I am a true introvert. I love people. Especially my people. I'm the happiest mama in the world when I have the opportunity to have all of my children under one roof. Since they are grown, or almost grown, this is becoming a rare treat. On the other hand though, I've discovered that large groups of people, or a lot of activity exhausts me. For my extroverted counterparts, the above mentioned may energize you. I'm not that person. Activity that involves a lot of other people,...

Daydreamy that is... As my husband and myself are approaching a certain age that is not considered youngsters, we find ourselves thinking hard and often about our future. We feel like now is the time (even though younger would have been better!) to really consider how we would like to live our older years together. We are young enough, and healthy enough, to make our future comfortable...if we work on it NOW. We have some lofty goals to meet. We have moved over fourteen times during our marriage. Most moves were job transfers. Because of the temporary timeline of some of these jobs, we made a decision to rent rather than buy. Renting was necessary until we were in a place we would "settle". Since we have been in our current area for about 5 1/2 years, I guess we are staying. We now find ourselves at a point in life where most of our peers may be paying off their mortgages, or close to it. We find ourselves just beginning. We are finally ready to buy. We have locat...

I was one year old in 1970. This  was the year our most cherished family tradition began for me. Of course I can’t remember that particular  annual family reunion, but several during that decade ar e etched in my heart memories forever.  Each  year the  entire family on my Daddy’s  side, gathered in  the small Texas town of  Stephenville .  My grandmother,  Mamma w , only saw her extended family ,  the third weekend in June, annually. As much as I loved actually attending the reunion ,  part of the excitement for me as a young girl, was the long road trip itself.   Mammaw  always rode wi th us. One of our traditions was that I would always sit in her lap during the  car ride. This was long before the requirement of  seat belts . The most memorable trips included a stops along the way. One year we stopped in  Glenrose , Texas  at Dinosaur Valley. I w ill always treasure the snapshots fr...

  For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another. But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. Gal. 5:13-16 This verse strikes a very raw nerve in me this morning. I wonder if one of those desires of the flesh might be a human feeling of being understood? Do we bicker, argue, and gossip because we feel like no one understands us? I hear it and I say it. "They don't even know me. They couldn't possibly understand my pain. They would understand my reaction if they only knew what I've been through." EXCUSES. I think we all have them. We excuse our own behaviors. We know how our own heart aches. We excuse our own words to others. We know what we were try...

"Do what you can with what you have." These words have been on my mind all week. Especially when I come up with excuses for not doing certain things. "I don't have (fill in the blank) to do this or that." "I'll do it later, when I have more (time, money, etc.)." Or one of the most common... "I'll start (fill in the blank) on Monday." Monday comes and goes, week after week. Time moves forward. I get older with each passing day. One of my favorite verses in the Bible is found in Isaiah 43:19 Behold, I will do a new thing; now it shall spring forth; shall ye not know it? I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert. I want to be a part of this new thing God is doing in my life. I want to be fully aware of His presence working in my life. I want to obey His words to my heart. "Do what you can with what you have." I believe the time is now. No more procrastinating. God says He is doing ...

I've been on a quest (a long drawn out quest) for a healthier lifestyle. I won't pretend to have it conquered. Not even close! On the other hand, we have started to make some positive changes. We are attempting to eliminate all processed foods. This is going very well. I say attempting because we will continue to use things previously purchased. I grocery shop on a very tight budget and can not bring myself to throw some items out. I'm happy to say we don't actually buy very many processed groceries to start with. This change has been fairly easy as long as we are eating at home. The only challenge has been eating out (very seldom) and fast food (daughters, quite often). The choices may be limited at fast food places, but they usually do have a few items that could be considered "healthy". I have chronic thirst. I am known to have something to drink at all times! I know this could signal a health problem or dehydration. (I'm working on it!) The ma...

I'm not sure when it started. If you know Aubree, you know she is a huge animal lover. She loves to watch Animal Planet. She is a self proclaimed expert on all kinds of animal knowledge. She knows breeds, habits, and habitats. Her strategy in animal ownership is to ask and ask and ask... "Can I have a dog?" "Can I have a fish?" "Can I have a bird?" The asking isn't a problem. It's the non-stop asking. She has managed to get a "yes" to quite a few of these requests. The horse obsession was satisfied for a while with learning to draw them accurately, reading lots of books, and watching every horse movie she could find. Actually this is a homeschool mom's dream. Your child shows an interest in something and being the great mom that you are, you turn it into a learning opportunity. But, if you know Aubree, those things will not satisfy her curiosity. She is very determined. Before you know what happened... ...

    I haven't added any photos in quite a while. I spent some time tonight uploading a few to my new computer tonight. I had to "borrow" a few from facebook! lol The top two are of our beautiful granddaughter, Journey Saige. I love her more than words can say. She is absolutely precious!!! The bottom photo is of my three youngest daughters. They are wearing the crochet headbands they had me making this winter. They were quick and fun to make. They even sold a few to their friends. I'm hoping to start using my camera again and hopefully take time to update this blog!

I'm not totally sure what this says about me (or the rest of my family), but it took a move across Texas to help us find a way to regroup. I'm also not sure what this says about us since this isn't the first time a major move has been necessary to jump start a major family regrouping. Perhaps we are a stubborn people...? We are currently reading through A Child's Story Bible by Catherine Vos. In my opinion, this is THE best children's Bible in story form, available. Don't be deceived by the title. Each time we read through it I find new treasures to look up in my King James Version. Little tidbits of detail that I may have overlooked just seem to jump off the pages. I find myself asking, "Does the Bible really say that?" So far, I have not found an inaccuracy. This book is not just for children. I have bought several forms of Bible curriculum for my kids in our last fifteen years of homeschooling. I find myself drawn to this book year after year. ...

Well this month was quite eventful!!! •My new little very first grandbaby girl and I had a week to get acquainted! Her mommy, daddy, and her cute little self visited at my house. Just to let everyone know, she is the most perfect baby... Ever! Gorgeous! Her parents are pretty cute too.;) •My oldest daughter, Courtney, surprised us all with a wedding. Hers. We didn't even know she had a boyfriend until a few weeks ago. Again, gorgeous. She made a beautiful bride. I hope her day was everything she wanted. Twenty-three and as independent as always. I know her biggest dream of a wedding was for it to only be about her and her husband. I think that was accomplished. :) •We have found a new church home in our new hometown. Awesome presence of God! Freedom in worship, unity in spirit, and love. Sunday morning service was like a cool drink of water to quench our thirst for more and like a burning fire to ignite our hearts to follow God's call. It's been too...

Most of the time, it seems to me, disagreements happen because of simple misunderstandings. Other times though, "it goes much deeper than that". (to quote a very misguided individual) Those are the words used to explain a person's wrong actions and attempt to make it sound spiritual at the same time. Well, that's not a new trick. Satan quoted scripture to Jesus after he had fasted for forty days and nights. I didn't just miss that. Did you? Jesus had been fasting. What happens to your body during a fast? I've personally never fasted for forty days but I'm pretty sure my flesh would be pretty weak. So, here comes the enemy, trying to sound "all spiritual", while simultaneously attacking while you are in a weakened condition. Wouldn't a person be able to be used of God in a much deeper way if they only used discernment, and maybe a little common sense? Let's say, for example, you have prayed to be used of God. You have a made up mind to ser...

My fingers are itching to sew. With all the new babies all around me, my creative side wants to make every cute thing I see. I've managed to do a little but that is how much time I have...little. It's just one of those busy seasons in life. Not the sports season kind of busy (yet) but the season of life kind of busy. My list-making self also has a ton of homemade Christmas gift ideas that will more than likely not happen. I love the holidays but this year they will be a little different. Not a bad kind of different. Just different. We have spent almost twenty years forming our family traditions. I love the way we spend Thanksgiving. Usually, with the exception of only a couple of years, we are all together. The seven of us enjoy our traditional Thanksgiving dinner and spending the day together. Most years we enjoy watching my husband put up our Christmas tree. He is very picky and doesn't let us help. Lol This task has involved anything from power tools to well, whatever he...

Sometimes we take off on an unplanned spontaneous trip. It starts as just a little side road. It seems our curiosity can sometimes get the better of us. These trips can be likened to a thrill ride at an amusement park. Then, as abruptly as a theme park roller coaster, this little adventure comes to a screeching halt. As fun as it seemed at the moment, it ends with gut-wrenching regret as we hurl the contents of our empty life upon the sidewalk. This thrill ends with a solemn vow to ourselves to never make that mistake again. Upon a closer look we notice that rickety roller coaster. The rust of a few too many rides makes us question what on earth seemed so appealing about that ride? Come to think of it, where are all it's former riders? One look around reveals the ugly truth. There is no one. Unless you count the few surviving victims that hide in the darkness of the surrounding woods. Then, as undeniable as a knife in the back, we see that this ride has a name. The billboard was i...

After spending time with the Lord this morning and writing 17 pages! in my journal, I have decided to delete yesterday's post. That was my heart yesterday but not at all the direction God is taking me. I'm so thankful for His loving correction and for His hand upon my family during a difficult time. Not matter how strong the opposition God is God. His promises stand true and His word will not come back void. I love you Jesus!

I'm walking in one of those shifty places at the moment, just trying to find some firm footing. It's one of those spots that I'm grasping at the correct way to handle. It has never bothered me to do things differently than others. My choices in life are sometimes a little unconventional. I'm certainly not the only person I know who homeschools, but I was when we started. I'm certainly not the only woman who has given birth at home. Women have been doing so since the beginning. On the other hand, it wasn't something all my friends were doing. They all thought I had lost my mind. Trusting God sounds so simple. It is and it's not. I know what He has promised. I see Him working before my very eyes. I know that He can make something beautiful from ashes. He has shown me time and time again. If you ask me to trust God with you for something He has promised, I will. I'll believe with an unshakable faith. For you. Why do I sometimes find it hard when it's fo...

My earlier post came about because of a recent bible study. I was studying the book of Ruth last week. I love Ruth. This time though, I studied from Naomi's point of view. Here are some notes from my journal. Oh Naomi, how much more closely I can relate to you right now than Ruth. I've always liked the book of Ruth...from Ruth's perspective. Looking at this story from a different point of view has been eye-opening. First of all, when life came tumbling down around her, Naomi did two things that are not acceptable in church circles. She changed her name from 'Pleasantness' to 'Bitterness', and she blamed God. (Naomi answered the people, "Don't call me Naomi [pleasant]. Call me Mara [bitter], because the Almighty has made my life very sad. When I left, I had all I wanted, but now, the LORD has brought me home with nothing...) BUT, God was about to move in her life in ways she had never dreamed! God had already set in motion His plan of redemption. The...

I spent some time this morning looking up the meaning of some names. It was a very interesting search. I believe there is alot of truth in a person's name. There are many places in the bible that God gave people and places specific names with a purpose. I used baby name books when naming my children, but honestly I didn't choose their names by meaning. I just chose names I liked. Even if I didn't use wisdom in my choices I still believe God put his strong influence in the decision making process. My children's names very much fit their personalities. Courtney Ann = from the court; gracious Shelby Dean = sheltered; leader Kaitlyn Noel = pure; joy Kyla Cheyenne = lovely; tribal name (aka lovely wild Indian) Aubree Grace = noble, bright; grace of God (aka elf ruler) While searching I also looked up my husband's name. Randy Eugene = handsome; well born and mine.. Ruler; gracious Sounds like my family. Sometimes there seems like 'too many chiefs and not enough india...

25 And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. 26 And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. 27 And you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed. 28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophecy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: 29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit. 30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, fire, and pillars of smoke. 31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD co...