I used to think my kids HAD to have separate rooms. This necessity in American culture is rubbish. Having ones own room is fine, but I think every kid should at one point in their life HAVE to share a room. What a fantastic lesson in sharing and can even prepare them for marriage in a way. I have to say, I have not always been happy about sharing a room with my hubby. :)
My kids always had their own room, but for the past 6 months they have shared one. Sometimes it's a challenge but it always works out.
Benefits to sharing:
1- They learn to search out a private space rather than assuming its a right to be given one
2- The family learns to become minimalist because you can only fit so many clothes in one closet
3- Children who squabble all day end up sleeping like this......
Now I do have to say that if we get a bigger sized house my children ( I have only two....so far) will probably get their own rooms, but that is ONLY because they are opposite gender and my oldest is 8 and gets really tired of her brother walking in on her changing-----gasp! :)
sharing a room
Pajama day
OK I know this is a little silly to some, but some days I JUST LOVE being a homeschool mom. Sure there are those days where I think to myself I have lost my mind to take this wonderful enormous task on, but most days I am just plain grateful. Today was one of those days. I had a lot to do today, but I got started schooling early (which always helps)and before I knew it, it was noon, I was baking bread and realized we ALL were still in our Pajamas. I declared a full on Pajama day and got our stuff done and totally neglected things like putting on clothes or brushing hair. I however was so busy keeping the house clean (we had to show the house TWICE today) That I stayed in my PJ's till 5pm. There you have it ladies, proof (as if you needed any more) that I am far from perfect. Here are some cute pics of my cute kids in their PJ's.
(p.s yes my son is making a silly face, and yes I do reward with cheeze its from time to time)
new plan
Round and round and round they go, where they will move nobody knows!!!!
I laugh as I type that. I have been singing that song for three days straight. I have gone way past having any control. Just the way God likes it huh? So Washington is out, Oklahoma is in. LOOOOOOOOOONNNNNGGGGGG story on how that came about, but now we will be moving to western Oklahoma for a six month contract. While waiting and praying we will hope to hear back from some of our "better" opportunities that Hubby has sent his Resume to. We like this plan A LOT better. So I am content. At the end of that six months, only the Lord himself knows where we will go. We don't know where we will live in 6 months, but at least for now, we have an idea of where we are headed to next month. I love what God says in Isaiah about knowing better than we when it comes to plans....""I am the LORD your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go."
No more grumbling like the Israelites in the desert. I will go where you lead Lord. You are good.
His Peace...
OK, so I haven't posted because....(sigh) my life is boring. Well not really. By boring I mean nothing new, fun or exciting to post. I have been cleaning, and ummmm cleaning, and, well lets see, cleaning some more! The good news about all this is I have been overwhelmed. Why is that a good thing, you ask? Well let me tell you. God sometimes speaks the most incredible truths into your life during these, "boring" stressful times. I was super stressed the other day, thinking about the big move, and all my cool stuff I am going to miss that's here, and all the dreaded cleaning, to get ready to sell. I sat down for my time of prayer and devotional journal, when I read a cool thing by one of my favorite authors. She said "If you knew you were going to die tonight , what treasure would you leave your loved ones? Something valuable to you, I'm sure. Just before His crucifixion, Christ said :'Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let you hearts be troubled and do not be afraid' (John 14:27). In this verse Jesus left something immensely valuable----peace.
.........For reasons pertaining to eternal glory, Christ may not instantly remove your pain, your thorn, or your sickness, but beloved, regardless of the trial, you can receive His peace. It is your legacy. Your inheritance. Your right. You need not remain in turmoil. Nothing breaks His heart more than our refusal to be at peace in Him. Christ offers you peace. Today and everyday. Claim it now"
After reading that I realized, the only reason I do not have peace is because I am refusing it. NOT because God has not offered it. I can choose to have His peace through these transitions in my life, or not. God you are so good! To even speak to such a pitiful display of a follower like myself is beyond my understanding.
back online!
Dear Wonderful Blog World,
The other day we lost internet in a power outage. This morning my hubby finally got it all figured out and now I am back online. OH how I have missed you sweet blog world! Sweet sweet blog world, never stay so far away again!
love your devoted follower,
Valerie
These are the best of times, these are the worst of times.
First off, I am on a total High right now all due to this blog, go there and read why. LOVE HER!
I am also having a wonderful time tonight because my house is almost completely clean and tidy and ready for the real estate agent tomorrow. It has been a lot of work, but was a little easier tonight since I hired a young homeschooled girl from my church to come help me. She needed money and I needed help, it was a match made in heaven! We worked hard and enjoyed the fellowship. Speaking of working hard, here are some pictures of the kids helping me remove the wallpaper border from their room. Nothing like a good spatula and eager hands to help!
Now for the harder times. I am overwhelmed. Too many unknowns for this fearful gal. I don't like not knowing things. When will we be leaving? Where will we live? Can we take our pets? Will Jake like the job? Will the kids be OK? Will the homeschooling restrictions in Washington affect us? Will we be in a safe neighborhood? Is this going to be a hard trial? Will we ever find a family oriented God fearing church like the one we have now?
Do I sound whiny and distrusting of my Heavenly Father? YES? I probably am. One particular sin that is in my nature is that of whining. I hate that I do that. I have never had such a hard time with a move before. I am, a take things as they come, kick back girl. That is until about 3 years ago, when I let the stresses that were in my marriage and life at the time, overwhelm me. I developed some very bad habits during that time,like WHINING and DISTRUST! I can only laugh as I write this, knowing that the first step to overcoming something is to be able to admit you do it. Boy do I admit it. The Holy Spirit is so good at pointing these things out. I will repent of this tonight and hopefully hand it all over and allow the soothing ointment of Peace, that surpasses all understanding, to take over. Thanks for letting me type that out. I always think cleared after a good blog.
Quiverfull.....?
OK seriously, what is with that word? I love being "Quiverfull", but not a big fan of how that sounds. Labels are hard sometimes. I have never liked labels, probably because more often than not, what I was labeled was negative. In the secular world I was labeled, "punk", "easy", "drunk", "white trash pregnant teen". And although some of those labels rightly described my behavior, they were not who I was. I was created in the image of my maker, and loved dearly by Him. I just hadn't realized it yet. However now that I am a Christian, I have new labels. "Fundamentalist, legalistic, no T.V., Quiverfull, homeschooling, stay at home mom". And once again, although all these do describe part of my behavior, they are not Who I am. I am created in the image of God,and a child of Him who loved me and gave himself up for me. First off, let me say, I am not legalistic. I believe in God's grace fully, and I love that we live under the grace of the New Testament, and not the Law of the old. However I also love God's word, and His word has a lot to say about living and faith, and what it should look like. I take that seriously. I figure if Jesus took the time to talk about how we should live, then we should listen to His wisdom.
So some of you may ask "what in the world does 'Quiverull' mean?" Well my answer to that is another label I have been given......"college drop out" :)
SOOOOOOO since I did drop out of college, I will link you to a blog that is far more eloquent and well spoken than mine will ever be. She describes being Quiverfull in four separate posts and ALL are worth reading. I think if you disagree with being Quiverfull then it is still good to know why some people choose to live and believe this way, so that we can love one another in our differences, through understanding. Click here
I highly suggest reading it. Remember there are four posts (so far).
