Books. Books. And more Books!

Okay, we are probably a little over the top, but when we start packing for a month, our first thoughts are- which books to take? We need school books, devotional books, fiction/fun books, bibles, books to study up on different topics that interest us, journals, read alouds, cookbooks, and some that I am sure that I have left out. Our family enjoys reading! Bennett read when he was two years old (not by any doing or teaching by me-he just did it!), and he has never looked back. He recently read the entire new Eragon book in one day! (Me wonders what kind of retention he could possibly have?!) To put it mildly, we all Love to read. Take a look at our collections in our retreat house- oh and did I mention that when we went to the Library today, they were having a used book sale?? Yep, now we have more books!! We may need a moving truck to get back home!

Sabbatical

sabbatical (from the Latin sabbaticus, from the Greek sabbatikos, from Hebrew shabbathon, i.e., Sabbath) is a rest from work, a hiatus. Our family is blessed! My husband is the pastor of a wonderful, loving, and godly congregation who gifts us with a sabbatical every two years. We have been at the church now for three years, so it is about time that we took advantage of this perk!
Tomorrow we leave for our month of spiritual retreat and rest. A family in our church has offered us their mountain home in Blowing Rock NC for the month of January, so we will be in a beautiful place hoping for snow! We are so excited about having our batteries recharged and being able to seek God and His will for our upcoming year.
We will update you from the road- though we will have to drive for an internet connection. I pray that as your year begins, that you will be able to take some time to seek His face as well!
Grace and Peace!!

He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,

he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness
for his name's sake. Psalm 23:2-3

It's foggy outside. So thick and dark that you can only see a few feet ahead. I remember the first time I watched the fog roll into our backyard off of the ocean in Maine- I thought something was on fire. It was thick, swirly and dark. My South Carolina upbringing had never seen anything like it. Today, it's more familiar, not just outside my house, but in my heart as well. Swirly, confusing, dark- it feels like I could lose my way. But for one thing- Jesus. He is the light that calls me forward. I don't have to be able to see any further ahead than the footstep that I am on. He leads me, and He knows where we are going. I must not lose sight of Him in the circumstances that swirl all around me. Just as Peter began to sink into the sea when he took his eyes off of Jesus, I would be lost and not know which way is forward. Praise be to Him who leads us well, who loves us well, who takes us by the hand and shows us only what we need to see when we need to see it. Jeremiah 29:11 says "For I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future." So, His way is so much better than my own. His future so much better than anything I could ever dream up. He knows and even PLANS my future! How blessed are we to serve a sovereign King who loves us that much!

Happy New Year! 2009!!

WOW! It's already 2009! I don't usually make resolutions, but I do stop and take stock of the year past and think and pray about the year ahead. I pray that you find your joy and peace in Jesus this year- no matter the storm, no matter the circumstance, no matter the day!

Chicks!

Our chicks are here! We went to the post office to pick them up- yes, we really did! They are two weeks old now and are beginning to lose their baby fuzz and get real feathers. It has been fascinating to watch them grow so quickly. 25 in all- so here come the eggs!!

I am hoping to start my year of homeschooling this week. After a year in a more traditionally structured school (though only 3 days a week), we are coming home for the next year. I am excited but nervous at the same time! I have spent several months listening to different people who have opinions about how I should school my children. I have also read and read blogs and web sites and done so much research and planning that my head is spinning. The problem with this is I am setting myself up for discontentment and anxiousness- enough other opinions to sew discord in my heart. There is no one who can tell me exactly how it should go- everyone has different circumstances, so when I compare my situation to others, it sets a marker that I may not be able to reach or even want to reach. The only absolute is to seek the face of my God and have Him to lead me through this journey. That sounds very abstract, especially to this concrete and practical brain! But, I know that if I commit all that I do to Him, He will make my paths straight. Now that's an opinion and standard that I can attain! As I begin homeschooling again, I pray that He will remain the center of our school but most importantly our hearts so that we can teach and learn with utmost confidence- knowing that He is the principal of our school and He will lead the way!

Me blog?

I have hesitated to blog so far. I feel guilty not doing it- everyone else is! I just wonder if there is anything that I can say that anyone else would really want to read!! This said, I hope that this blog will inspire you to greater heights at home and in your homeschool, after all, if I can do it, anyone can!!