I am up to date on my reading through the Bible in 90 days and am now reading through the prophets.
I find the prophets difficult reading. The Israelites have neglected God, and the word of the prophets serves to convict them and warn them of impending disaster. In most obvious cases, we see that the people, as a whole, didn't listen. Kings continued to lead the people in worshiping other gods, and, eventually the Northern and then Southern kingdoms would fall to outside invaders.
But what about those who did believe and try to heed the voice of the prophets? We don't hear so much about them. Were there those few, the faithful, who listened and repented even though the majority of the nation didn't? Most of the prophets talk about the faithful remnant that God would preserve, so we know those folks were there. What was it like for them to live in the time of the kings and the prophets, in the midst of a people who were serving other gods and worshiping idols? Hmm, relevant thoughts for our culture today?
Despite the difficulty of keeping up in the prophets, some of my favorite passages in the Bible can be found in these books. God is constantly showing His faithfulness in the midst of Israel's unfaithfulness.
Isaiah 43:
1But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob,
And He who formed you, O Israel,
"Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have called you by name; you are Mine!
2"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they will not overflow you
When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched,
Nor will the flame burn you.
Isaiah 44:
6"Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the LORD of hosts:
'I am the first and I am the last,
And there is no God besides Me.
7'Who is like Me?
Jeremiah 29:
11'For I know the plans that I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope.
12'Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you.
13'You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.
Jeremiah 31:
3 The LORD appeared to us in the past, saying:
“I have loved you with an everlasting love;
I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Friday, February 25, 2011
Weekly Wrap Up- The Sick Kid Edition (Again)
Hmm, what did we do that was school related?
* We read in Story of the World about Lewis and Clark's journey through the West.
* Kathryne and Charles read two more chapters in Prince Caspian.
* The little girls and I read Make Way for Ducklings and talked about the city of Boston which was especially interesting because we had read about the New England region of the US in our geography book a couple of weeks ago.
* We looked at several artists and paintings in The Art Auction Mystery. We've enjoyed reading through this book this year and studying some famous artists and their works as we attempt to find the fake paintings and solve the mystery.
* Kathryne finally finished Little Women- her current independent guided reading book- and admitted that, while the beginning was promising, she really thought the book was less interesting as it went along, and she was quite disappointed that Jo and Laurie did not end up together (as I was when I first read the book!)
* We continued reading through Alice in Wonderland which no one seems to be enjoying but me. How can you not like Alice in Wonderland?!
* We had at least one day of independent work in which people did math, phonics, Bible reading, handwriting, and AWANA study- all the basics.
* Kathryne and Charles and I finished the last main chapter of Latin for Children Primer A. We now only have two review lessons to complete the book.
So, maybe we accomplished a little in the way of school. On a good note, I'm a little more organized for the coming weeks, and the house is fairly clean right now- which feels nice for the springy weather we're having.
Perhaps next week we'll have a normal week of school (whatever that is).
Getting My Eyes Off of Myself: Sharing a Devotional From Max Lucado
I rarely copy and paste other writers in their entirety, but this devotional from Max Lucado was really for me this morning, and I thought it might be a conviction/encouragement for someone else.
I've had a house full of sick children this week, and that tends to make me a little self-focused, a little "oh poor me." This devotional struck me and encouraged me to get my eyes off of myself and onto Christ, something I always encourage my children to do but, unfortunately, often fail to do myself.
It reminds me of a story I once heard about Martin Luther. I'm not sure if this is a true story or not, but it surely makes me think. Luther was supposedly subject to times of great depression and would often become depressed and in despair. During one of these times, he walked in upon his dear wife Kate lying on the floor weeping wretchedly. "Kate, dear, what is wrong?" He asked.
"God is dead," Kate sobbed in response.
"What?! No He isn't," Luther answered, rather alarmed.
"Then why," asked Kate, looking at her husband, "do you act as if He is?"
When I keep my focus on Who God is, the trouble in my little world surely seems much smaller.
And, here is Max Lucado: (You can subscribe to this and other free devotionals at Christianity.com.)
Week of February 25
Getting the "I" Out of Your Eye
by Max Lucado
Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. (Phil. 2:3-4 NASB)
Love builds up relationships; selfishness erodes relationships. No wonder Paul is so urgent in his appeal: "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit" (Phil. 2:3 NASB).
But aren't we born selfish? And if so, can we do anything about it? Can we get our eyes off of self? Or, better asked, can we get the little self out of our eyes? According to Scripture, we can.
Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind. (Phil. 2:1-2 NASB)
Paul's sarcasm is thinly veiled. Is there any encouragement? Any consolation? Any fellowship? Then smile!
What's the cure for selfishness?
Get your self out of your eye by getting your eye off your self. Quit staring at that little self, and focus on your great Savior.
A friend who is an Episcopalian minister explains the reason he closes his prayers with the sign of the cross. "The touching of my forehead and chest makes a capital 'I.' The gesture of touching first one shoulder, then the other, cuts the 'I' in half."
Isn't that a work of the Cross? A smaller "I" and a greater Christ? Don't focus on yourself; focus on all that you have in Christ. Focus on the encouragement in Christ, the consolation of Christ, the love of Christ, the fellowship of the Spirit, the affection and compassion of heaven.
If Christ becomes our focus, we won't be like the physician in Arkansas. He misdiagnosed the patient. He declared the woman to be dead. The family was informed, and the husband was grief-stricken. Imagine the surprise of the nurse when she discovered that the woman was alive! "You better tell the family," she urged the doctor.
The embarrassed physician phoned the husband and said, "I need to talk to you about the condition of your wife."
"The condition of my wife?" he asked. "She's dead."
The doctor's pride only allowed him to concede, "Well, she has seen a slight improvement."
Slight improvement? Talk about an understatement! Lazarus is walking out of the tomb, and he calls that a "slight improvement"?
He was so concerned about his image that he missed an opportunity to celebrate. We laugh, but don't we do the same? We've gone from cremation to celebration. We deserve a lava bath, but we've been given a pool of grace.
Yet to look at our faces you'd think our circumstances had made only a "slight improvement." "How's life?" someone asks. And we who've been resurrected from the dead say, "Well, things could be better." Or "Couldn't get a parking place." Or "My parents won't let me move to Hawaii." Or "People won't leave me alone so I can finish my sermon on selfishness."
Honestly. We worry about acid rain in silver linings. Do you think Paul might like to have a word with us? Are you so focused on what you don't have that you are blind to what you do? Have you received any encouragement? Any fellowship? Any consolation? Then don't you have reason for joy?
Come. Come thirsty. Drink deeply from God's goodness.
I've had a house full of sick children this week, and that tends to make me a little self-focused, a little "oh poor me." This devotional struck me and encouraged me to get my eyes off of myself and onto Christ, something I always encourage my children to do but, unfortunately, often fail to do myself.
It reminds me of a story I once heard about Martin Luther. I'm not sure if this is a true story or not, but it surely makes me think. Luther was supposedly subject to times of great depression and would often become depressed and in despair. During one of these times, he walked in upon his dear wife Kate lying on the floor weeping wretchedly. "Kate, dear, what is wrong?" He asked.
"God is dead," Kate sobbed in response.
"What?! No He isn't," Luther answered, rather alarmed.
"Then why," asked Kate, looking at her husband, "do you act as if He is?"
When I keep my focus on Who God is, the trouble in my little world surely seems much smaller.
And, here is Max Lucado: (You can subscribe to this and other free devotionals at Christianity.com.)
Week of February 25
Getting the "I" Out of Your Eye
by Max Lucado
Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. (Phil. 2:3-4 NASB)
Love builds up relationships; selfishness erodes relationships. No wonder Paul is so urgent in his appeal: "Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit" (Phil. 2:3 NASB).
But aren't we born selfish? And if so, can we do anything about it? Can we get our eyes off of self? Or, better asked, can we get the little self out of our eyes? According to Scripture, we can.
Therefore if there is any encouragement in Christ, if there is any consolation of love, if there is any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and compassion, make my joy complete by being of the same mind. (Phil. 2:1-2 NASB)
Paul's sarcasm is thinly veiled. Is there any encouragement? Any consolation? Any fellowship? Then smile!
What's the cure for selfishness?
Get your self out of your eye by getting your eye off your self. Quit staring at that little self, and focus on your great Savior.
A friend who is an Episcopalian minister explains the reason he closes his prayers with the sign of the cross. "The touching of my forehead and chest makes a capital 'I.' The gesture of touching first one shoulder, then the other, cuts the 'I' in half."
Isn't that a work of the Cross? A smaller "I" and a greater Christ? Don't focus on yourself; focus on all that you have in Christ. Focus on the encouragement in Christ, the consolation of Christ, the love of Christ, the fellowship of the Spirit, the affection and compassion of heaven.
If Christ becomes our focus, we won't be like the physician in Arkansas. He misdiagnosed the patient. He declared the woman to be dead. The family was informed, and the husband was grief-stricken. Imagine the surprise of the nurse when she discovered that the woman was alive! "You better tell the family," she urged the doctor.
The embarrassed physician phoned the husband and said, "I need to talk to you about the condition of your wife."
"The condition of my wife?" he asked. "She's dead."
The doctor's pride only allowed him to concede, "Well, she has seen a slight improvement."
Slight improvement? Talk about an understatement! Lazarus is walking out of the tomb, and he calls that a "slight improvement"?
He was so concerned about his image that he missed an opportunity to celebrate. We laugh, but don't we do the same? We've gone from cremation to celebration. We deserve a lava bath, but we've been given a pool of grace.
Yet to look at our faces you'd think our circumstances had made only a "slight improvement." "How's life?" someone asks. And we who've been resurrected from the dead say, "Well, things could be better." Or "Couldn't get a parking place." Or "My parents won't let me move to Hawaii." Or "People won't leave me alone so I can finish my sermon on selfishness."
Honestly. We worry about acid rain in silver linings. Do you think Paul might like to have a word with us? Are you so focused on what you don't have that you are blind to what you do? Have you received any encouragement? Any fellowship? Any consolation? Then don't you have reason for joy?
Come. Come thirsty. Drink deeply from God's goodness.
You have a ticket to heaven no thief can take,
an eternal home no divorce can break.
an eternal home no divorce can break.
Every sin of your life has been cast to the sea.
Every mistake you've made is nailed to the tree.
Every mistake you've made is nailed to the tree.
You're blood-bought and heaven-made.
A child of God—forever saved.
A child of God—forever saved.
So be grateful, joyful—for isn't it true?
What you don't have is much less than what you do
What you don't have is much less than what you do
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Bible in 90 Days Update- The Prophets
I am up to date reading through the Bible in 90 days. I am currently in Isaiah, having begun the prophets over the weekend.
I breezed through Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon at the end of last week. Ecclesiastes is rather a downer of a book. "Meaningless, meaningless, everything is meaningless." I'm glad I know the rest of the story. :-)
The prophets are much more understandable when read in the big picture with the kings. When you've read about the various kings and how so many of them have turned the people away form God, it is easy to see how the dire predictions of the prophets come in.
I will be reading through the prophets for a while now. Hard to believe I'm already 50 days into my 90 day reading!
I breezed through Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Solomon at the end of last week. Ecclesiastes is rather a downer of a book. "Meaningless, meaningless, everything is meaningless." I'm glad I know the rest of the story. :-)
The prophets are much more understandable when read in the big picture with the kings. When you've read about the various kings and how so many of them have turned the people away form God, it is easy to see how the dire predictions of the prophets come in.
I will be reading through the prophets for a while now. Hard to believe I'm already 50 days into my 90 day reading!
Monday, February 21, 2011
Product Review- Eternal Encouragement ENewsletter
Well, as I enter into my second Gabby Mom's review for Eternal Encouragement (formerly TEACH magazine), I have a disclaimer to make, a confession of sorts:
I do not like Enewsletters!
I'm not sure why. I love my computer. I do almost everything digitally now. But, I am not a fan of enewsletters or digital magazines. Perhaps one problem is that I do not like to click from the newsletter to any other link. If I can sit down and read the newsletter in its entirety, I am okay with it, but throw in some links I have to click back and forth to, and you've lost me. I have some distraction issues.
So, when I was given my Gabby Mom assignment for the month- to review the Eternal Encouragement enews, I was less than thrilled. And a little apprehensive. Because I've been impressed by what I've read and heard from Eternal Encouragement so far, and I think this can be a valuable resource to wives and mothers. So, I read my newsletters with great fear and trembling (not quite but there was some trepidation.)
Eternal Encouragement enewsletter is a free enews from TEACH magazine: http://www.homemakingwithteach.com. I was happy to see that the newsletters did contain the good things I have come to look for from Eternal Encouragement- words of wisdom for wives and moms and tips about marriage and parenting. I was happy to see that the first section of the newsletter had NO links to click. Hooray! I was able to read through Lorrie's opening words and be convicted and encouraged at the same time- just what I've come to appreciate about the ministry of Eternal Encouragement.
But, then, after a few advertisements, I reached the dreaded link. Click here for.... The first link was to a short YouTube video- part of a "Chick Flicks for Mom" series that Lorrie does for the newsletter readers. The video clip shows Lorrie talking in person. That was a nice personal touch. (Even if I did have to follow a link to get there.) Unfortunately, both newsletters that I reviewed had the same Chick Flicks link. However, when I got to the Chick Flicks page, I could scroll down and see the previous clip (that was probably supposed to be attached to my first newsletter.)
The last newsletter item was a Timely Tip. This tip, written by a guest writer, was another link sharing information about marriage and homemaking. And this link was an actual PDF file that opened. This could be good if you wanted to print out these tips and keep them in a home binder. I particularly don't want to wait for PDF files to download when I'm reading a newsletter and I imagine it would be slow for folks with a dial up modem. But, I could see the benefit to making these tips printable.
If you enjoy reading enewsletters, this is a good one. Eternal Encouragement newsletter offers advice, conviction, and encouragement for wives and moms in a short, easy to read each week format. You can sign up easily (and free) on the TEACH magazine website in the upper right hand corner. You can also read other reviews for the newsletters at the Gabby Moms site.
I am reviewing Encouraging Moments as an official member of The Gabby Moms blogging program for Eternal Encouragement magazine. I did not receive compensation for this post and all opinions are solely my own.
I do not like Enewsletters!
I'm not sure why. I love my computer. I do almost everything digitally now. But, I am not a fan of enewsletters or digital magazines. Perhaps one problem is that I do not like to click from the newsletter to any other link. If I can sit down and read the newsletter in its entirety, I am okay with it, but throw in some links I have to click back and forth to, and you've lost me. I have some distraction issues.
So, when I was given my Gabby Mom assignment for the month- to review the Eternal Encouragement enews, I was less than thrilled. And a little apprehensive. Because I've been impressed by what I've read and heard from Eternal Encouragement so far, and I think this can be a valuable resource to wives and mothers. So, I read my newsletters with great fear and trembling (not quite but there was some trepidation.)
Eternal Encouragement enewsletter is a free enews from TEACH magazine: http://www.homemakingwithteach.com. I was happy to see that the newsletters did contain the good things I have come to look for from Eternal Encouragement- words of wisdom for wives and moms and tips about marriage and parenting. I was happy to see that the first section of the newsletter had NO links to click. Hooray! I was able to read through Lorrie's opening words and be convicted and encouraged at the same time- just what I've come to appreciate about the ministry of Eternal Encouragement.
But, then, after a few advertisements, I reached the dreaded link. Click here for.... The first link was to a short YouTube video- part of a "Chick Flicks for Mom" series that Lorrie does for the newsletter readers. The video clip shows Lorrie talking in person. That was a nice personal touch. (Even if I did have to follow a link to get there.) Unfortunately, both newsletters that I reviewed had the same Chick Flicks link. However, when I got to the Chick Flicks page, I could scroll down and see the previous clip (that was probably supposed to be attached to my first newsletter.)
The last newsletter item was a Timely Tip. This tip, written by a guest writer, was another link sharing information about marriage and homemaking. And this link was an actual PDF file that opened. This could be good if you wanted to print out these tips and keep them in a home binder. I particularly don't want to wait for PDF files to download when I'm reading a newsletter and I imagine it would be slow for folks with a dial up modem. But, I could see the benefit to making these tips printable.
If you enjoy reading enewsletters, this is a good one. Eternal Encouragement newsletter offers advice, conviction, and encouragement for wives and moms in a short, easy to read each week format. You can sign up easily (and free) on the TEACH magazine website in the upper right hand corner. You can also read other reviews for the newsletters at the Gabby Moms site.
I am reviewing Encouraging Moments as an official member of The Gabby Moms blogging program for Eternal Encouragement magazine. I did not receive compensation for this post and all opinions are solely my own.
Menu Plan Monday
I found another online menu planning site. I have been using All Recipes for quite a while now to look up and store recipes in my own recipe box. Now All Recipes has a menu planning option. For a fee, you can become an All Recipes subscriber for access to the menu planner. I paid $22.95 for a two year membership.
This was especially convenient for me because I already have so many recipes stored at All Recipes. Now all I have to do is drag and drop those recipes into the week's planner and save or print my list including a shopping list. There is also a space for me to write in a meal or add a recipe that is not already in my recipe box. They also have hundreds of premade menus to choose from that can be used as is or substituted using the drag and drop feature.
Shopping lists aren't so important to me because I buy with coupons, so I buy the things on sale and then plan the menu from what I have, not the other way around. But, it is nice to have that feature if I want to use one of the premade menus for the week. I've already found at least one kid-friendly menu that I'm going to use one week.
So, while I still haven't found any site that will actually cook and serve my meals (as well as do the dishes), I definitely think this is my favorite menu planning site so far!
Monday- Country style steak and gravy; mashed potatoes; corn
Tuesday- Chicken pot pie
Wednesday- Eat at church
Thursday- Top your own pasta; fruit; salad
Friday- Eat with friends at a birthday party
Saturday- Baked spaghetti
For more menu plans, visit, I'm an Organizing Junkie.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Weekly Wrap Up- The Maybe It Is Spring Edition
Monday- We had a science time to make up because we missed last week when our hostess for the week was sick. So, we gathered and discussed fossils and made our own out of play do and plaster of paris. From science, we headed to the church to have lunch with daddy and kill some time before a Valentines party. Monday afternoon we gathered with other homeschool friends to play games, eat food, do crafts, and pass out Valentines!
Tuesday- The big kids had Junior Master Gardner in the morning, so the little girls and I headed to the library and then out to enjoy the sunshine at the park. Unfortunately, the sun wasn't quite as warm as it looked, so I wimped out after about 30 minutes, and we had to head indoors!
Wednesday- a mostly normal day of school. The big kids are still reading through Prince Caspian, and the little girls and I finished up The Magic Schoolbus Space Explorers this week.
Thursday- Every so often, Jason's mom takes the four children for the day and I head off by myself. Thursday they stayed with her while I went up to the mall and hit a few of the really good end of season sales.
Friday- Today we had another fairly normal day of school and then headed out to eat lunch with my mom and go to the park. It was in the 70s today and was so beautiful!
I'll leave you with some of my favorite things about homeschooling: Seeing my kids all day every day and not having to send them away for part of the day is such a blessing. I love these guys!
For more weekly wrap-ups, check out Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Bible in 90 Days Update- Skimming Through the Psalms
I am caught up currently with my reading through the Bible in 90 days, and I am reading through the book of Psalms.
I must admit that Psalms is my very least favorite book to read through in this way. Psalms are poetry. Poetry is not my favorite reading genre, but when I do read poetry, I prefer to read small bits at a time and process them. just as it would be difficult for me to take a whole poetry anthology and read it through in a matter of days, so it is difficult for me to read through the entire Psalms in a few days.
I do enjoy Psalms because phrases from my favorite worship songs are always popping out at me. Many of the psalms were written to be songs, and modern worship music uses those phrases again and again. So, reading the Psalms makes me want to sing.
I believe I have one more day of reading in Psalms, and I'll be headed to Proverbs. We are almost halfway through the 90 days of reading. So far, I haven't had to make up a day of reading. I've stayed on track the whole way. Having the Bible in 90 Days on my Kindle has help tremendously because I can pick it up and put it down easily until I finish each day's section.
I must admit that Psalms is my very least favorite book to read through in this way. Psalms are poetry. Poetry is not my favorite reading genre, but when I do read poetry, I prefer to read small bits at a time and process them. just as it would be difficult for me to take a whole poetry anthology and read it through in a matter of days, so it is difficult for me to read through the entire Psalms in a few days.
I do enjoy Psalms because phrases from my favorite worship songs are always popping out at me. Many of the psalms were written to be songs, and modern worship music uses those phrases again and again. So, reading the Psalms makes me want to sing.
I believe I have one more day of reading in Psalms, and I'll be headed to Proverbs. We are almost halfway through the 90 days of reading. So far, I haven't had to make up a day of reading. I've stayed on track the whole way. Having the Bible in 90 Days on my Kindle has help tremendously because I can pick it up and put it down easily until I finish each day's section.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Menu Plan Monday
Tuesday: Taco Pie; fruit and yogurt
Wednesday: Dinner at Church
Thursday: Free food at Earth Fare- I'm going to be out and about!
Friday: Country style steak; mashed potatoes; green beans
Saturday and Sunday will probably be leftovers, possibly homemade pizza. It is shaping up to be a BUSY week!
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Weekly Wrap Up- The Not at Home Ever Edition
Monday- Supposed to be science day. Rushed through the morning to get school finished but found out at lunch time our hostess for the day was ill. The children were VERY disappointed and requested that we have the other science family over to our house just to visit and play. I agreed, looking forward to a visit myself. Charles asked me to please not corrupt their playtime with unwanted science experiments, so I'm not sure I could count that as school time. PE maybe?
Tuesday- Our only "normal" day in the week. We were actually at home and did school according to a normal schedule.
The older children are up to Prince Caspian in Further Up and Further In and are reading this one independently and using a study guide I found at the C.S. Lewis Foundation website. There are many great free resources there!
The little girls and I are reading The Magic Schoolbus: Space Explorers and doing a mini astronomy unit.
Wednesday- We went up to Charlotte to the children's theater. The little girls and I watched If You Take a Mouse to School while the big kids explored the library with Grandmama. We ate lunch out and then headed home for a very short rest before church activities.
Thursday- This was another hurry up and finish school day because we had a chance in the afternoon to go and play with friends that we hadn't seen in quite a while. Some school work done and lots of fun visiting!
Friday- Again, we started our morning, finished up school as much as we could and headed out for a field trip I had planned at the children's museum. Unfortunately, we were the only ones from the group that showed up, but we had a nice time and ran into a friend that we visited with.
Today, I took the girls to a mother daughter tea party at chick-fil-a. We had a nice brunch and craft time.
Next week is shaping up to be rather busy also. I think we're changing our name to the Courtney Carschool.
For more weekly wrap-ups, check out Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers.
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
A New Review- Time 4 Learning
I've been invited to try Time4Learning for one month in exchange for a candid review. My opinion will be entirely my own, so be sure to come back and read about my experience. Time4Learning is an online educational program that can be used in many ways including as a homeschooling curriculum or afterschool tutorial. Find out how to write your own curriculum review for Time4Learning.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Bible in 90 Days Update-Day 36
We are over 1/3 of the way through the Bible in 90 Days! I am caught up with my reading and just read Esther and began the book of Job today.
Esther is one of my favorite books of the Bible. I love the inspiring story of Esther, the young queen who risked her life to save her people. I think the romantic in me likes to imagine that the king really did love her when she found favor with him, and he worked with her to save the Jews.
Job is one of those puzzling books. The Bible is a history- a story of God's work in and through His people throughout history and the promise of what is to come in the future. So, where does Job fit in? Most scholars believe it was written before the books of law. But it certainly isn't a book of history. It is most often grouped with the poetical books, but it isn't exactly what I would consider poetry- not like Psalms, Proverbs, and the others. It is more like a little aside- a story of one man's personal struggle and his response. While I am not sure exactly how it fits in to the big picture, it is clearly an important record of Job's trials, his response, and the lessons he learned. I'd like to do a little more in depth study of the book- perhaps after my 90 days reading.
Esther is one of my favorite books of the Bible. I love the inspiring story of Esther, the young queen who risked her life to save her people. I think the romantic in me likes to imagine that the king really did love her when she found favor with him, and he worked with her to save the Jews.
Job is one of those puzzling books. The Bible is a history- a story of God's work in and through His people throughout history and the promise of what is to come in the future. So, where does Job fit in? Most scholars believe it was written before the books of law. But it certainly isn't a book of history. It is most often grouped with the poetical books, but it isn't exactly what I would consider poetry- not like Psalms, Proverbs, and the others. It is more like a little aside- a story of one man's personal struggle and his response. While I am not sure exactly how it fits in to the big picture, it is clearly an important record of Job's trials, his response, and the lessons he learned. I'd like to do a little more in depth study of the book- perhaps after my 90 days reading.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Menu Plan Monday
This is a busy week, so I am making use of my crockpot!
Monday- Slow Cooker Chicken and Dumplings; green beans
Tuesday- Roast beef in the crockpot with onion soup mix; corn; crescent rolls
Wednesday- Dinner at church
Thursday- Country style steak, mashed potatoes, gravy, peas
Friday- Sloppy Joes with Manwich; fruit and yogurt
Saturday- Leftovers and sandwiches
Friday, February 4, 2011
Weekly Wrap Up- A Sick Week Edition
Well, we started out our week with Jason going to the doctor to be tested for the flu. It turned out his test was negative, BUT he definitely had bronchitis/upper respiratory infection. And Rachel woke up Monday not feeling well. Jason ended up staying home from work through Wednesday, and when Daddy is home, we just don't get as much done. So, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, we had a lighter school schedule. Thankfully, we really did get some things done, and yesterday and today were pretty "normal" days.
One highlight of the week was watching The Narnia Code with the big kids. We finished reading The Horse and His Boy on Tuesday, so we took Wednesday and Thursday and watch The Narnia Code.
The Narnia Code is a BBC presentation based on Planet Narnia, a scholarly work by Michael Ward claiming to have found a new "code" in interpreting The Chronicles of Narnia. Ward also published a book called The Narnia Code which is supposed to be an easier read for the lay person. I am a BIG Narnia fan, and the older children have heard the books read aloud many times. I love thinking about the Biblical symbolism in the book and am especially enjoying discussing with the kids now as they are getting older and understanding more and more. So, I especially enjoyed hearing about more possible symbolism in the books. I'm planning to read Planet Narnia on my own now. One of the best things about homeschooling: learning new things myself!
Another highlight in our homeschool this week, Ashlyne (1st grade) made a 100 on a Saxon math test where she actually answered the problems AND read almost all of the problems herself. Ashlyne has been a slower, more reluctant reader; so this is a HUGE step for her. Often, she will not even attempt to read directions on her own because she thinks she can't do it. Another wonderful thing about homeschooling: being able to learn at your own pace.
Charles and I went to a library program yesterday called Game Day. The librarian read sports books and then the kids played various games and answered sports trivia questions. Charles had hoped to take another homeschooled friend, but his friend couldn't come, so I went with him instead. I stayed throughout the whole program even though most of the parents left because he wanted me to stay. Yet another great thing about homeschooling: your kids actually want you to hang out with them.
Next week may be a busy one. We have two field trip days planned and science time. The weatherman is calling for snow, though, so we'll see how things go.
For more weekly wrap-ups, check out Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers.
One highlight of the week was watching The Narnia Code with the big kids. We finished reading The Horse and His Boy on Tuesday, so we took Wednesday and Thursday and watch The Narnia Code.
The Narnia Code is a BBC presentation based on Planet Narnia, a scholarly work by Michael Ward claiming to have found a new "code" in interpreting The Chronicles of Narnia. Ward also published a book called The Narnia Code which is supposed to be an easier read for the lay person. I am a BIG Narnia fan, and the older children have heard the books read aloud many times. I love thinking about the Biblical symbolism in the book and am especially enjoying discussing with the kids now as they are getting older and understanding more and more. So, I especially enjoyed hearing about more possible symbolism in the books. I'm planning to read Planet Narnia on my own now. One of the best things about homeschooling: learning new things myself!
Another highlight in our homeschool this week, Ashlyne (1st grade) made a 100 on a Saxon math test where she actually answered the problems AND read almost all of the problems herself. Ashlyne has been a slower, more reluctant reader; so this is a HUGE step for her. Often, she will not even attempt to read directions on her own because she thinks she can't do it. Another wonderful thing about homeschooling: being able to learn at your own pace.
Charles and I went to a library program yesterday called Game Day. The librarian read sports books and then the kids played various games and answered sports trivia questions. Charles had hoped to take another homeschooled friend, but his friend couldn't come, so I went with him instead. I stayed throughout the whole program even though most of the parents left because he wanted me to stay. Yet another great thing about homeschooling: your kids actually want you to hang out with them.
Next week may be a busy one. We have two field trip days planned and science time. The weatherman is calling for snow, though, so we'll see how things go.
For more weekly wrap-ups, check out Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Month in Review- January
Here's what's been going on this month:
Personally- I am reading through the Bible in 90 days. I am all caught up and reading now through Chronicles. I am reading and blogging with Mom's Toolbox again.
I am also reading and reading and reviewing on my Good Reads blog. I've committed to a challenge this year- 52 books in 52 weeks. It sounds like quite a bit to read a book a week, but, in fact, I do it quite frequently. And, sometimes I read more than that!
I also became a member of The Gabby Moms this year and this month I reviewed my first product from TEACH magazine- True Treasures. You can check out my review here.
Family- We celebrated Charles's birthday on January 12. It is amazing to me that I now have two children who are double digits!
As a family, we also had a mini vacation this month. We spent last Monday at Great Wolf Lodge in Concord, NC. We love Great Wolf. This was actually our fourth visit. Normally, families pay for an overnight room, and this includes water park passes for all the members. But, because part of the water park was closed when we went in September, we got free day passes for all of us to go back.
School- We got into a regular routine after Christmas finally. We are in our third quarter, and I have decided to change our quarters, so that we will still do some school in the summer; but we will take off most of June and July and then start back with our new year in August. I am making our third quarter from December to March and our fourth quarter from April to July. I am planning to finish up most work by May and do a fun unit in June and July amidst vacations and camps and VBS.
A couple of weeks ago, we took a trip to Discovery Place, our local science museum. One of my favorite things about homeschooling is our ability to go places and do hands on things that encourage natural learning.
We had a few sort of snow days this month also. I don't give the kids whole days off of school when it snows, but we did have quite a bit of snow, and I gave them some lighter school - especially while Jason was home.
I am keeping a daily record of our school work at my Courtney Homeschool Blog.
This month we are looking forward to the Super Bowl, exchanging valentines, a few fun field trips, and, hopefully NO MORE SNOW!
Personally- I am reading through the Bible in 90 days. I am all caught up and reading now through Chronicles. I am reading and blogging with Mom's Toolbox again.
I am also reading and reading and reviewing on my Good Reads blog. I've committed to a challenge this year- 52 books in 52 weeks. It sounds like quite a bit to read a book a week, but, in fact, I do it quite frequently. And, sometimes I read more than that!
I also became a member of The Gabby Moms this year and this month I reviewed my first product from TEACH magazine- True Treasures. You can check out my review here.
Family- We celebrated Charles's birthday on January 12. It is amazing to me that I now have two children who are double digits!
School- We got into a regular routine after Christmas finally. We are in our third quarter, and I have decided to change our quarters, so that we will still do some school in the summer; but we will take off most of June and July and then start back with our new year in August. I am making our third quarter from December to March and our fourth quarter from April to July. I am planning to finish up most work by May and do a fun unit in June and July amidst vacations and camps and VBS.
A couple of weeks ago, we took a trip to Discovery Place, our local science museum. One of my favorite things about homeschooling is our ability to go places and do hands on things that encourage natural learning.
We had a few sort of snow days this month also. I don't give the kids whole days off of school when it snows, but we did have quite a bit of snow, and I gave them some lighter school - especially while Jason was home.
I am keeping a daily record of our school work at my Courtney Homeschool Blog.
This month we are looking forward to the Super Bowl, exchanging valentines, a few fun field trips, and, hopefully NO MORE SNOW!
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