Boys 'R' Us

We are only 2 weeks into the school year and I already find myself struggline to “get it all done”.

School, work, daily football practice, bible study, co-op, housework, etc.  There just are not enough hours in each day.

I am trying to continually remind myself of what is really important – what my priorities SHOULD be.  I always have to go back to the fact that heart issues are more important than getting math done.  Most often I tend to work in reverse: focusing on academics so much that I am not leaving enough time to focus on character training and what living out the gospel can look like throughout the challenges of our day.   I read an article once which outlined how one mom determines priorities in her school day.  I re-read it at the beginning of every school year.  This mom prioritized her day like this:
1.)  Eternal Values:  spiritual growth, attitudes, reading
2.)  Practical Living Skills:  math, writing skills, vocational training
3.)  Spare Time Activities:   p.e., art, music
4.)  Total Waste of Time:   TV viewing, fighting

Your list, of course, will look different than hers or mine, but just the activity of making a list was tremendously helpful to me.  Once you make your list you can continuously determine:  “Is this activity worth our time?”, “Are we using priority time on spare time activities?”.

She then goes on to ask:  “As Christian homeschoolers, we all say a godly upbring is the priority.  But day to day, what do our children see us fretting about?  Are we sending a mixed message?”

The entire article blessed me! 
If you would like to read it click here:  The Priorities of School

Enjoy!

I gave my younger boys the assignment of turning singular words into plurals.  They were told to pick 10 words on their own and make a list.  Here’s what I got in return:
                          Singular                                          Plural
                    car                                                 cars
                    fire                                                fires
                    fire cracker                                     fire crackers
                    bottle rocket                                   bottle rockets
                    gun                                                 guns
                    knife                                               knifes
                    air soft                                           air softing
                    paint ball                                         paintballing
                    four wheel                                       four wheeling
                    bb gun                                             bb guns
Despite his misspellings and changing of some into verbs, I just had to smile over his list.  I love learning with my boys!  They can make any assignment interesting and so "GUY – ified"!

One of my boys is playing football on a homeschool football team.  It is almost 2 hours away so we are on the road 5 nights a week.  Sometimes we don’t all go – another mom and I take turns driving, but my son needs something portable to eat every night.  I need ideas for meals that we can take on the go.   I am getting real tired of making Hoagie sub sandwhiches.   Any recipes or ideas you all have would be MUCH appreciated!
Also: I am not having trouble keeping things cold but if I take a hot dinner, I am not sure how to keep it hot, it would need to stay hot (or at least warm) for 4 – 5 hours.  Any ideas?
Thanks for your help!

I love The Old Schoolhouse magazine.  I always find it packed full of insightful articles and helpful tips.  Today I found out they are selling a year subscription for $7.95 as a Labor Day promotion.  I was thrilled and immediately had the idea that this would be a wonderful and affordable way to encourage beginning homeschoolers.

I called our support group president to sell my idea.  I want to pair up those who are willing and have been homeschooling for a while with those who are brand new to this homeschooling adventure.  We will each purchase a gift subscription to The Old Schoolhouse magazine for them.  I think it will be a great way to welcome them to our support group and provide them with additional encouragement and support all year long. 

If you have a support group, why not take advantage of this great low price and implement a similar program?  If your support group has a large budget, maybe they could purchase the subscriptions for your new homeschoolers themselves.   Or, you could do it on your own – If you know of a new homeschooler, send them a gift subscription. I know they will be blessed!
Here’s the link: $7.95 subscription to TOS

I have blogged about reading the Bible this way before, but this week’s studies have reminded me again just how thankful I am to have this fresh new insight into God’s Word.
     We are currently studying Unit 3 of Tapestry of Grace Year 1.  The topic this week is the Assyrians.  We are learning about them as a people group and how they affected the Israelites.  Last week we studied how Israel became divided after the reign of Solomon and became known as the seperate Kingdoms of Judah and Israel – each having their own unique kings, prophets, capitals, triumphs and troubles. 
The Daily Bible tells these stories in chronological order which is a HUGE help to the boys (and me!).  It is hard to explain, but here are some examples of why this Bible makes it SO MUCH EASIER to understand the flow of history:
The boys’ reading assignments were
2 Kings 11-17, Jonah, and Amos

Joash
In 2 Kings we learn about Joash, King of Judah.  He is crowned at the young age of 7 and reigns for 40 years under the guidance of Jehoiada the priest.  2 Kings tells about the reign of Joash – the devastation of the locusts, how he rebuilds the temple, etc. 
     But in The Daily Bible, the story continues . . .  sharing how, once the priest Jehoiada dies, King Joash accepts paganism, abandoning the temple he worked so hard on rebuilding and worshiping idols.
     Had we not been reading from the Daily Bible we might not have known that part of the story because it is actually found in 2 Chronicles, not 2 Kings.  Had we just read 2 Kings we would still get lots of good information but not ALL the information available on Joash and God’s people.
     Chronicles and Kings often overlap.  They tell the story of the same Kings, same time periods, some of the same details but also some different information.  The Daily Bible puts those different parts into one complete whole story to give you the big picture of what is happening and why.

Joel
Early in Joash’s reign, a great disaster befalls Judah – and army of locusts swarms, completely destroying crops and food storages. The prophet Joel seizes the opportunity to use the locust invasion as an example of a future invasion which is to come from the north. 
     If you just read Joel separately you might not appreciate the analogy or fully understand the circumstances.  But here, in The Daily Bible, the prophesies of Joel are interspersed right in the middle of the story of Joash and Judah – right when the people of Judah would have been hearing those words and experiencing the aftermaths of the locust swarm.  The words of Joel have so much more meaning when read in context.

Jonah
2 Kings 14:25 mentions Jonah, but The Daily Bible puts Jonah’s entire story in here, putting it in its historical context.  It makes the story come to life even more than just reading the book of Jonah independently.

The Daily Bible has made learning about the ancients, and God’s Word more alive, understandable and real.  It is not a narrative – it is the actual Scriptures.  Psalms are arranged by theme, Proverbs arranged by topic.  Mine is NIV, but other translations are available as well.
I highly recommend it!  Here is the link if you want to check it out: