Values Driven Family.com

Non-frugal purchase, worth it!

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 21:22:00 +0000

Today we left at about 9:00 AM to run errands at 5 different places. I figured we'd be gone a while, but didn't expect not to arrive home until 2:30!

The grocery store was one of our stops. Since by then I knew we'd be missing lunch at home, we grabbed a few pre-made sandwiches, some cold drinks and...a few individual bags of chips for each of us (it was just me and the three older children).

I wanted to be frugal and get one big bag of chips for 99 cents instead of four small bags of chips for 75 cents each...do the math; I would have saved a couple of dollars. BUT, if we had gotten a big bag of chips we'd have had a half a bag (at least) left over. And then what? I'd probably eat it. (I like chips, LOL). And guess what? I still have quite a few pounds of "baby fat" hanging around. So being not-so-frugal was probably wise.

What about you? Do you have any not-so-frugal expenditures that seem well worth the trade-off?

Inventory Clearance Sale

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 09:23:00 +0000

Earlier this week, we sent out a newsletter about our end-of-season "Inventory Clearance Sale." I thought I would also post about it on our blog, in case there are folks out there who might have missed it via email.

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Inventory Clearance: Books, Beeyoutiful, and CDs

We're settling back in after two convention weekends in a row...CHEK and CHEO both had lots of talks and workshops focusing on family and discipleship--which is right up our alley! As a result, we were blessed by the ministry that happened at our booth with so many of the folks that stopped by to chat. God is certainly good!

NOW...we ramped up for our convention season back in February by stocking up on Beeyoutiful, ordering lots of books, and burning CDs of the products that we normally sell in "digital only" online. However, CHEO is our last convention and we have some items left that we really want to clear out! After moving from a 3,000 square foot house to 1,400 square feet, you can imagine that our storage space is now much more limited. We'd love it if you could help us with this little problem. :)

Since these items are at lower prices than normal (for both products and shipping) and I don't have time or inclination to make up a special Web page or Cart buttons, please just drop us a quick email, letting us know what you'd like to order. We'll send you a Pay Pal invoice for the sale total and ship ASAP after your payment is received. You can send your orders to: sales (at) valuesdrivenfamily.com. Most quantities are limited--so please don't put off sending that email if there's something that you're interested in! If we run out of stock of something you'd like, we'll let you know and give you the option of a partial order fulfillment or canceling the order entirely.

Shipping rates are as follows: $2 flat rate for orders that are CDs only; $4 flat rate for books or book/CD combinations; $7 flat rate for orders that include Beeyoutiful items.

Here's our overstock list:

1. Discounted "Values-Driven Discipleship" manuals--We ran a $12 convention special that proved very popular and we'd love to offer you this price, too! We only have a handful left, but if you've been considering VDD or if you have an ebook copy and would like the tabbed, spiral-bound manual--this is a great price that you probably won't see again!

2. Values-Driven Family/Home Management Bundle Combo--Marc presented the Budgets & Schedules seminar twice at CHEO and we ran a special, $10 for BOTH "The Values-Driven Family" AND the "Home Management Bundle." (These are $15 if purchased separately). The response was phenomenal--so, again, we're extending the special to you!

3. CD copies of "Growing to be Like Jesus" coloring book--$2.00.

4. CD copies of "Muddling through Motherhood" audio seminar package--$3.50.

5. CD copies of "Defeating Depression" audio seminar--$5.00

6. "The Growing Homeschool" with CD seminar and bonus "Homeschool Helper" forms--$8.50

7. Beeyoutiful products (very limited quantities and prices discounted more than our usual 15% off!):

Super Mom tablets, $30.50
Super Dad V-Caps, $20.50
Super Kids (Orange or Multiberry), $15
Bee Strong, $10
Beeyoutiful Balance, $18.00
Cranberry Power Cleanse, $12.00
Tummy Tuneup, $14.00

Again,we appreciate your help in clearing out some of our inventory--all you need to do to place your order is email us at sales (at) valuesdrivenfamily.com!

She's Here! :)

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:56:00 +0000

Jubilee B. Carrier was born on Monday, June 15 at 3:27 PM...6 lbs., 7 oz. and 19 inches long. We are praising God for delivering another blessing into our family!

My water broke at about midnight on Sunday and the doctor wanted me to go into the hospital right away, since my Strep B test had come back positive and I would need IV antibiotics prior to delivery. Usually I labor at home and get to the hospital for the last couple of hours, so being in the hospital right from the beginning (and that on only a couple of hours of sleep) made for a l-o-n-g labor. Contractions started off pretty strong but then kind of petered out for a while, which was discouraging. My body didn't seem to want to cooperate. Eventually we got things going again, but by the time I was ready to deliver I still didn't feel like the contractions were close together enough...between the discouragement and my tiredness I can't say this was my best delivery BUT, God is faithful. Marc was a great encouragement, as always. And of course, in the end, it's all worth it. :)

Here's our crew--they came into the hospital through a downpour! They all love their new baby sister.

One of my Favorite Songs...

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 17:15:00 +0000

An Almost "Normal" Day

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 16:55:00 +0000

Prior to the moving adventure (3+ weeks ago now) we had about 18 days left to go in our school year. So, in spite of the fact that there's still a bit here & there to be done, we're trying to get back to the books a bit and finish out our objectives for the year.

Today we got to do some reading & writing, some painting (since both of the boys got acrylic paint sets from their Grampy for their birthdays), and some of our Indiana state history. Math will hopefully come later, after a little free time and some afternoon jobs.

What I am even more happy about is that the "littles" got back into THEIR routine a bit, too. I finally had few enough distractions that I was able to devote more attention to training (much-needed at this point), AND we got to spend more time just reading books on the couch, which we all love!

I'm finally almost caught up on the laundry, as well, which is a major praise. Way back at the beginning of the move, the washing machine got removed from the old house, but wasn't functional at the new house for about a week--and we make a lot of laundry in a week! So I've been consistently about 4-5 loads behind where I'd like to be. BUT I think we're caught up now.

I've been thinking that I need to pack my hospital bag...and bags for the children, since I don't know where they'll be going when the "big day" comes. Part of me is hoping that the act of bag-packing might induce labor. :) But then again, it's so nice to finally have a "normal" day, that it might be nice to have a FEW more before a new baby changes everything!

Progress and photos

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:54:00 +0000

Well, as of Sunday afternoon I had my living room floor totally cleared of moving clutter. THEN, I moved on to my next goal for the day--cleaning out the van. As a result, the living room floor was clear of clutter for about an hour. Then we moved more stuff in from the van, and there it sat, until yesterday afternoon. Now we're "done" again!

Marc did clear off his "working" half of the kitchen table on Sunday, and it remains pretty clean.

I'm posting a few pics, just in case you're interested.

It's your standard manufactured home on an acre... :)

Coming in the back door to the kitchen. You're seeing about half of the kitchen table, the cabinets and appliances to the right, and my computer in the far corner (my new office!).

The living room...with no boxes or miscellaneous "stuff." You can tell we are homeschoolers who like shelving and collect books, etc. The boys' room is off the living room and you can see the girls' room down the hallway to the right.

Light at the End of the Tunnel

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 15:03:00 +0000

I have a couple of piles of boxes still to put away in the living room. Actually, that's not accurate. I mostly have two big piles of miscellaneous "stuff" that isn't really boxed at all. Since we're not moving from very far away (just across the corn field, to be exact), we never bothered to box some of our things; instead, we just loaded them into the trailer and brought them over. So there's a bit of a mess still to go through, BUT almost everything else has found a home.

Marc has been keeping his tools and supplies on half of the kitchen table as he's been working...but now he's approaching the end of his immediate "to-do" list and I'm looking forward to having the table back (and the kitchen a little more de-cluttered) as well. Once things look a little more normal, I'm hoping to post some pics. :)

Going from 3,000 square feet to 1,400 has been an interesting proposition, but we're finding that with a little ingenuity we have a place for everything. As our ten year-old says, "It's smaller, but it's exactly what we need." And praise God, it is!

I enjoyed a little break from house stuff yesterday as I gave a talk at Cindy Rushton's Ultimate Homeschool Expo on the topic of Simplified Biblical Instruction and Character Training for Children. I spoke for about an hour, and the chat/questions went on for TWO HOURS after that--whew! It was a lot of fun for me. Now, back to work. My goal is to get the house in order before this baby arrives...and I have another doctor's appointment tomorrow so won't be making much progress at home, I expect. After being offline for a few days and finally getting our Internet restored yesterday, I'm just now catching up with email/business, so now...back to work!

Still Working...

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Fri, 29 May 2009 14:55:00 +0000

Yesterday Marc got most of the upper kitchen cabinets installed, and hung a huge storage shelf in the master bedroom as well. In CT we had a wonderful basement for storage, and here in IN our "old" house has a great attic space. THIS house, if it is lacking in anything, needs more storage! No attic, no basement, and no outbuildings (yet!) Sooo...the shelf in the master bedroom will come in handy for some interim storage of off-season clothes, off-size clothes (waiting for the next hand-me-down), and whatever else we don't have an official location for.

There is a large pile of boxes and miscellaneous "stuff" in the living room of the new house, just waiting to be put away. I made some progress on that yesterday, but there's still plenty to do. Today, however, we're at the "old" house, shampooing carpets, washing windows, and cleaning up the yard a bit. Later this afternoon I have a doctor's appointment, so won't make much progress with unpacking. I'm sure it will all get done in good time. I just have to be content with looking at the mess for a little while longer. :)

Right now Marc is overseeing the moving and re-installation of our propane tank, and will be attempting to uninstall/re-install our satellite Internet equipment sometime over the weekend. That's something new for him, but if he can do it, we'll save about $450...so thanks in advance for your prayers that all will go smoothly. ;)

The littles have been watching lots of cartoons with Grandpa lately. I managed them along with everything else pretty successfully for the for the first week or so but these past few days everyone has gotten a little tired of no routine, no "stuff" where and when you need it, etc. Grandpa to the rescue! Gotta love the sacrifices that you sometimes have to make during these seasons of life. Oy! I need to go peel them away from the TV and get back to the other house.

UHSE Contest Winner

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Thu, 28 May 2009 16:33:00 +0000

The free ticket contest for the Ultimate Homeschool Expo is now officially closed, as of noon today. The lucky winner is Vicky B.! Wish all of you could have won a membership...this is a truly awesome event. :) Congrats, Vicky!

Thanks to all 98 of you who entered into the raffle. I wanted to respond to everyone personally, whether they won or not. With that many entrants and being in the middle of a move, though,...I just don't think it's going to be possible.

However, don’t forget that you can still purchase your membership for UHSE, which kicks off on Monday. If you choose to do so via our Values-Driven partner link (see the end of this post), we are offering a $5 rebate on your ticket price, which will make the cost only $34.95. Your $5 rebate will be automatically sent via Pay Pal to the email address you use for your registration.

Also, if you purchase a ticket through us, we will enter you in our raffle for some super Beeyoutiful products for natural health and wellness. Items include Red Raspberry Leaf V-Caps, Goat Milk Soap, Tension Tamer, Acidophilus Blast, and Tea Tree Oil. Raffle winners will be drawn the first day of the Expo and notified via email—so if you’re thinking about grabbing a ticket, don’t wait too long!

We are sure you’ll be blessed by your participation in this event. The lineup of speakers is amazing, and the freebies alone from the speakers and vendors always make the ticket price more than worth the investment. Don’t forget, the preview chats are FREE all the rest of this week! You can get details about how to join in for those on the UHSE main page.

If you want to grab a ticket at $5 off, just visit http://tinyurl.com/UHSESave5.

Blog post for UHSE contest is up! :)

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Wed, 27 May 2009 13:43:00 +0000

Okay, I had a blog entry all set up and scheduled to publish yesterday morning for a FREE Ultimate Homeschool Expo ticket...then sent out a little notice about the contest to our subscribers yesterday noon. However, much to my chagrin, the post that was "supposed to" be published was still sitting there as a draft. It had the correct publish date and time...not sure what happened but I think it caused some confusion. So sorry! I am automatically entering anyone who left a comment...so you don't need to send an email if you've already commented on the site. The original entry for the contest is below; direct link is http://valuesdrivenfamily.blogspot.com/2009/05/enter-to-win-free-ticket-to-2009.html.

As an aside, thanks for all of your encouragement and comments about the move! Your support is a real blessing. And, NO, we're not going through the process perfectly. I have had my share of frustrations with the pains, tiredness and busyness of doing all of this while being 8 months pregnant, though am trying to be thankful that I'm not trying to do it with a nursing newborn! :) The littles are probably suffering the most, as they need more structure and attention than what they've had. We're trying to keep a good balance, and have had some moments better than others. It's all good. We're almost to the point of seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

Right now, I'm catching up on my email from the failure-to-post fiasco...then will be getting to work on the master bedroom upstairs. After that, the last room that really needs work here (at the "old" house) is the office--yikes! But then we're in pretty good shape to get back on the market.

Marc is at the new house hanging doors. He's also hoping to get to fixing the roof today. And he wants to re-purpose some of our existing furnishings to build me a new computer desk that will fit in the corner of our kitchen, since the one I now have is too big. He's very ambitious, and very tired. I'm thankful for such a handy husband, though. :)

Enter to win a FREE ticket to the 2009 Ultimate Homeschool Expo!

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Tue, 26 May 2009 13:00:00 +0000

We are excited to be a part of this year's Ultimate Homeschool Expo. It's in its third year, and (if it's possible, LOL), we think it gets better every year. There are free preview chats you can join in on all this week--complimentary!--to get a taste of what Expo week will be like. But what amazes us every year is the overwhelming number of FREEBIES donated by speakers and vendors. You get audios, ebooks, product samples, helps for your home and homeschool and so much more--the free stuff alone make the price of your Expo ticket well worth the price!

Well, guess what? You can enter to win a FREE UHSE ticket, valued at $39.95! But, the catch is, this contest is only open until Thursday at 12:00 NOON (EST)--that's about two days. So don't miss your opportunity to enter! All you have to do is send a blank email to submit (at) valuesdrivenfamily (dot) com; of course, replacing the (at) and (dot) with the appropriate symbols. We'll send you an email after the contest closes to let you know whether or not you've won; other than that, your email address is safe with us and won't be used for any other purpose. :)

If you aren't the lucky winner and you want to grab a ticket, we're offering a $5 rebate to anyone who purchases through our partner link: http://tinyurl.com/UHSESave5. You'll also be entered into a raffle to win one of 5 Beeyoutiful all-natural health and wellness products: Red Raspberry Leaf V-Caps, Goat Milk Soap, Tension Tamer, Acidophilus Blast, and Tea Tree Oil. (Beeyoutiful product winners will be chosen and notified on June 1, the first day of the Expo.)

Good luck! :)

Quick Moving Update

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Mon, 25 May 2009 19:19:00 +0000

Well, we're working into week two of moving!

In the new house, Marc has removed/re-located the center island (including sink) over to the side wall so that we could accommodate our 16-person dining room table (yeah!!). We've unexpectedly replaced the valve body in the main bathtub...since I wanted to give the girls a much-needed bath the other day and the water turned on, but...didn't turn back off (oops!). We had no front exterior door (just a sheet of plywood, LOL), so that went in pretty much right away, and almost all of the interior doors had been stripped as well, so those are being worked on, too.

Today we woke up to rain and realized from the dripping overhead that the roof leak in the master bedroom is the next thing to be fixed. There was a tarp over it and we knew it'd have to be done eventually, but apparently (for whatever reason) the tarp hasn't been--or no longer is--doing its job.

Both houses are a bit disorderly...but most of the stuff we "need" is in our new house and we've settled in there quite nicely. We're feeling very blessed!

Now, we've got to whip our "old" house into shape for sale! Tomorrow we're having new carpet installed in the lower level, so Marc did some paint touch-ups on the walls today. I got a lot of the remaining "stuff" from the bedrooms, kitchen, and living room boxed up; not moved yet, but ready to go. The master bedroom is still a wreck, as is the office. But everything else is shaping up pretty well.

Slow and steady wins the race...

Moving...

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Wed, 20 May 2009 16:42:00 +0000

Last Friday we closed on a little house just across the field from our current home. We've been working on it all week, hoping to get moved from here to there within the next couple of weeks or so. Well, today Marc decided that we might as well just take the plunge and bring everything over there! Pending a successful plumbing fix, we've got a few neighbors coming this afternoon to help. I don't think we'll be moving everything today--just the big stuff--but enough that we'll be able to make it "home" over there! There are still a couple of repairs that need to be done, but nothing pressing. So, we press on!

All that's left is to sell the house we're now vacating. :)

Gotta go get busy!

We need your help!

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:32:00 +0000

Happy Friday!

We're busy getting ready for the Fort Wayne Area Homeschoolers convention tomorrow but want to ask you for just a minute of your time to help us out with a brief survey.

We've been getting exceptional feedback from readers about our newest release, "The Values-Driven Life." However, some have commented that a different title would better reflect the content of the book.

Would you help use choose a potential "re-title"? Just visit http://tinyurl.com/ValuesDrivenLife.

Home Management AND Home Ministry

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Tue, 12 May 2009 17:30:00 +0000

One of my more popular talks has been “Muddling through Motherhood,” which is all about how to get out of those seasons where you feel like you’re far from the Lord and thus not as effective and productive as you could be in what He has called you to do. Many women have come back to me to share that one particular comment in that seminar has resonated in them. I said that during one of my “muddling” seasons, I slowly began managing rather than ministering to my children—and that that was one of the biggest ruts that I struggled to get out of. It amazed me how many other moms felt the same way.

Just last week I was blessed to take part in a "preview chat" for Cindy Rushton's upcoming Ultimate Homeschool Expo, and I got to talk about this important topic of balancing both "home management" and "home ministry." I've excerpted and expanded some of the text from my notes to give you an idea of what we talked about, in case you missed it.

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Titus 2:5 tells us “to be busy at home.” This is the practical stuff of home management that we’ve already briefly defined. Of course we can all point to the Proverbs 31 woman as a classic example of one who has it all put together—who meets all of her responsibilities is such a way that she earns the honor of her husband and the praise of her children.

I’ll be honest, effective home management is an art, and bringing it all together is really beyond the scope of this talk and would take so much more than the time I have here! However, I do believe that (particularly as homeschoolers) we need to cut ourselves some slack in this area. I know for me there are many days when the laundry sits in the dryer, not getting folded, our family dinner is hotdogs and French fries with carrot sticks, my “neatening up” of the house involves making strategic piles of papers and books, and it’s obvious that dusting is my lowest priority in housekeeping. However, the reminder of Titus 2:5 actually brings me much comfort in the imperfection of my home management. It doesn’t say that older women should train the younger women to keep a perfect house, or to have everything always in order. It simply says that we should be “busy at home.” And do you know what? On the days when I feel I fall woefully short of the home management ideal, one thing I can say is that I have truly kept busy!

One other thing that I constantly remind myself about this verse, though, is that this woman is supposed to be busy at home. Sometimes we get distracted by the good we see in various community events, even church functions or programs, and (as homeschoolers) especially those extra-curricular activities. But we have to be wise in our choices in all of these areas—because our first call is to be busy at home. Once we have invested there, we can be sure that we have adequately met our responsibilities and ministered to our husband and children; only then will those endeavors outside the home (whether academic, personal, or ministry) be a blessing to us. Otherwise, they are nothing but a distraction that takes away from our true priorities. I want to share with you something I have posted on my refrigerator. I re-read it from time to time, because it’s the perfect reminder of what we’re talking about here. It’s called “The Smell of Parenting,” and it comes from my friend Steve Nelson at Premeditated Parenting. I hope you will take a few minutes at some point to visit his site at www.premeditatedparenting.net--he’s got some great stuff there. (Direct link to this article is http://www.premeditatedparenting.net/93_the_smell_of_parenting.htm) So here’s what Steve has to say on the subject of home management:

The Smell of Parenting

Proverbs 14:4 Where there are no oxen, the manger is clean, but abundant crops come by the strength of the ox. ESV

A novice farmer shows off his clean barn to his neighbor. The ground is spotless, and the manger, or feed trough, looks as clean as new. After shooting the breeze a while the experienced farmer invites his friend to come and see what a barn should look like. The young farmer is a little hurt because he can’t imagine a nicer setup than he has.

They walk over to the neighbor’s farm, all the while discussing the incredible amount of work each of the older farmer’s four oxen can perform. At the barn, hay is strewn everywhere, and the feed trough is covered with dried ox slobber.

“What is that horrible stench?” asks the young man.

“That, my friend, is the smell of money.”

The goal of a farmer is not to have the nicest barn, cleanest trough, or freshest fragrances. His goal is to grow crops and raise animals. To focus on his goal, he lets a few things slide along the way. From sunup to sundown he works hard. He is not lazy or negligent, but he simply has no time to clean troughs and rake out barns. Instead of scooping up every piece of manure, he simply wears rubber boots.

A wise parent will take a similar approach. If every meal must be a culinary delight, every toy in its perfect spot, every shelf dusted, and every floor vacuumed, there will be no time left for parenting. With children comes a certain level of messiness. This is to be managed, but also expected. The goal is to raise the children, not eliminate the messiness. As the farmer embraces the mess of the ox the parent should embrace the clutter of childhood. Far more critical things are happening in our homes than keeping our houses spotless. Much good is being produced in a Christian home.

So, in your home management, what’s your focus? Are you doing the ministry of the home and loving your husband and children first and foremost? Are you centered in your relationship with God such that you are responding to His will for your day? If so, you need not be frustrated with how your home looks. You can be content in that fact that you’ve been busy and have done your best.

For my husband and me, good communication and flexibility are key. I have talked with my husband about what he likes to see done consistently around the house, and I attend to those priorities first. Oddly enough, he’s happy to have a hand towel in the kitchen and bathrooms for when he washes his hands (since it seems that they’re constantly grabbed for spills and not always replaced). He likes things to stay “neat” for the sake of order and in case of unexpected company—being prepared to offer hospitality is important to both of us. But there’s a big difference between “neat” and being able to eat off of the floor! I am blessed that my husband really values the atmosphere of our home over its appearance—he is happier to have the emphasis on home ministry over home management. This may not be true for every household, but this is where communication between a husband and wife as to their values and expectations can be more than helpful in relieving that sense of burden that we ladies can have about being that elusive “Proverbs 31” woman!

Practically speaking, we have a one-toy-at-a-time rule and “quick clean” times during the day when we focus on putting away out-of-place toys, books, and other items that seem to quickly add up. Our twice-daily chore times (half-hours in the morning and late afternoon) are an opportunity for targeted cleaning—and with 5 working-age children, we keep things up well enough. Frankly, maybe not always to the standard I’d like—but the house ends up looking acceptable most of the time.

However, along with good communication, flexibility is also important. Although we do have a certain “schedule” of when different cleaning tasks “should” be done, we often have to re-arrange those times or tasks. Sometimes we skip morning or afternoon chore time because of an appointment or errands, and I have to be content with catching up, in a modified way, during the next work time. Often when we have company, the entire house seems like a wreck when they leave. Well, at those times, we might call a morning off from school the next day and do housework instead! We may do “verbal” or audio schooling of sorts, watch an educational movie after our work is done, or just try to catch up on schoolwork over the next couple of days. Most nights I leave the dinner dishes in the sink so one of the children can wash them the next morning. This used to drive me a little crazy, but waiting on that task helps our evenings as a family to be less busy and more enjoyable.

I’ve found that very often, my feelings about my home management affect my relationships with my husband and children. If I am displeased with how the house looks, I can get into nagging the kids. I grumble to myself that they just don’t pick up after themselves—and will they ever get it?—and wish that my husband would sometimes help with “x” (which honestly, he very often does)…but when I have a negative attitude in this area, it often skews my thinking and then results in wrong reactions. My attitude about home management can sometimes have a negative effect on my home ministry—and that is something that I am careful to keep an eye on! That’s where the self-control of keeping my feelings—and my tongue—in check often comes in handy. Having a picture-perfect home is not worth the sacrifice to relationships—mine with my husband and children, or theirs with the Lord.

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If you want to take advantage of UHSE this year AND save $5, wait until Cindy Rushton's partner program is open and purchase through us! I've also decided to raffle off a few Beeyoutiful products for those of you who take advantage of our affiliate link to get your ticket. :)

They found the source of the swine flu

noreply@blogger.com (Marc Carrier) — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 12:50:00 +0000

All kidding aside--all I can say is PRAISE GOD we homeschool and work from home! What a nightmare for all those affected by this pandemic. I feel much safer with me and my children at home. I also can't imagine the burden of all the parents who have to take their vacation to watch their children. Homeschooling is the best!

Think about it. If your child is sick or has been exposed to sick people, parents exposed to those children still have to go to work--and often have to send their children to day care centers--which, quite often, can be little viral factories. Thank God that we are able to homeschool instead of sending our children to the great petri dish called public education. The entire system itself is set up for pandemic. We are thankful for our circumstances and are praying for other families, for our nation, and for all those affected by this illness.

Definition of Success

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 17:46:00 +0000

My husband recently related to me a conversation between two of our friends. One man asked another, "What's your definition of success: finishing a small number of projects, or starting lots of things and not bringing them to completion?"

Seems like a silly question. After all, we all want to be "finishers," don't we? I suppose I've always considered myself a finisher. I have goal sheets full of projects and love to check things off of my "to-do" list. However, I have to admit that right now all of my projects are in various stages of completion. Some may never get done. So what is my definition of success? I guess that's a valid question.

Let's take, for example, homeschooling. We started a unit study on grains several weeks ago. Got through two sections and now it's sitting on my desk in favor of other endeavors. I'm sure we'll get back to it, but I can't say I have a time line on it. Likewise, we've begun several different books as read-alouds but not all of them have been finished. Maybe never will...at least not in the near future. Why does this happen? My answer is two-fold: first, our interests shift and change, and what seems exciting and even needful at one point may not remain a priority. Second, life is busy, we often get distracted, and sometimes it's just easier to move on to something else.

I like the idea of bringing projects to completion, really I do. I think that self-discipline (which comes from making onesself complete things that have been begun) is a positive character trait and I don't want my children (or myself) to be lacking in it. However, there are often other lessons learned from "not finishing" that are just as valuable. For example, when we jump from one half-finished project to another, often it's because we get distracted by things like ministry opportunities, teachable moments, and family times. Which of these are more important to pursue? And if it's a case of shifting interests, well, isn't it also important to have the freedom to investigate and learn things that are of intrinsic interest, rather than stay with something that no longer has "life" in it?

So I would say that sometimes I'm a good starter, and at other times I'm a finisher. In the same way, sometimes I insist that my children bring projects to completion while at other times they have the freedom and flexibility to "not finish." What about you?

Sin no more

noreply@blogger.com (Marc Carrier) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 14:05:00 +0000

I have an encouragement.

The Lord has been taking me on a journey to the truth.

I have always been unsettled with the great disparity between the teachings of Christ and the apostles and the practices of the modern evangelical church. Within the church is a grace-based mentality that encourages disobedience and teaches sanctification as a life-long process that is “spirit-led” and clearly quite ineffective. As a result, most cultural Christians look no different than non-Christians in most ways. I have always questioned the salvation of such folks as a result of the litany of verses that describe what a born-again Christian should look like—holy and obedient, full of love, joy and peace—hmmm, something is not adding up, you see.

In response to this, I have been studying church history, and discovering the practices of the early church and kingdom saints in our lineage. There has always been a kingdom-sect who practiced obedience and unrestrained commitment. Among them are many who see the litany of verses associating love and obedience and freedom from sin and rebirth and righteousness and authentic faith, leading many to conclude that works are indeed a measure of ones “authentic” faith and that you cannot separate works from salvation. The result, it takes a lot of effort to be saved. This indeed reconciles Christ’s commands with Pauline doctrine yet leads to two difficult-to-accept conclusions. One, most “Christians” are not saved, and are greatly deceived. This one can be accepted if you fall into the obedient and holy crowd, and Jesus did say the gate was narrow. The next is this: where is the joy and peace—life more abundantly, the freedom purchased by Christ. Hmmm, it is elusive—and religion is the result.

The tail end of the journey: We have been listening to a great teaching series by Michael Pearl (http://shop.nogreaterjoy.org/product_info.php/cPath/4_22/products_id/151) called “Sin no More.” We have always been curious about it, and just recently purchased it. I have to say, this has been an incredible series. It reconciles ALL these matters. I won’t be able to do it justice without writing several pages, but want to encourage you to consider purchasing it or I can teach on the subject for 15-20 minutes at the next regional meeting (for you locals). It is a very good teaching—I can’t emphasize it enough.

The thesis: salvation is by faith through grace—and so is sanctification. Rebirth and dying to self, partaking in Christ’s death and resurrection will result in a new mind that will render sin powerless over you—leading to obedience, holiness, and righteousness. Literally, sin has no hold. I know what you are thinking, You’ve read all these verses too. They are right there in Scripture. However, this is NOT a life-long process as we have been taught. It is an instantaneous process. Hear me out—what I say IS in Scripture, and I know you are thinking it just does not reconcile with your reality—because like us, you struggle with sin. What I am telling you is that your sanctification (like ours) was incomplete, because we assumed it was indeed a life-long process, and as a result, did not lay hold of our newness of self because we lacked faith in it. As a result, we worked for our holiness and righteousness—resulting in religion and joy elusive.

An analogy: our old self is a beat up Dodge. We, presuming “by the Spirit” work on one area at a time over a long time, restoring a quarter panel, tuning up the engine, putting on new tires…and so on, with the hope one day to have a fully restored Dodge. However, at any given time, we have one panel the wrong color, and there is always wear and tear because we drive it—an exhaust system, brakes, small dents and scratches—and we never arrive. Yet Scripture says we are ALREADY seated in the heavenlies with Christ—that our victory over sin is here—in past tense. We believe by faith in our salvation, because it can never contradict our experience. Yet, we doubt our sanctification because it contradicts our experience. So we work one part at a time—in our own strength, all the while—and look more like the cars that don’t have Christ than the resurrected cars.

Here is the truth: The old Dodge is picked up by the magnet and dropped in the crusher. It is turned into a foot-sized cube and tossed. Christ pulls up in His stretched limo and says “hop in, from now on you’re riding with me.” We spend all our time fixing the old self and fail to die to self and live in Christ. We fail to partake and abide in Him. Get it?

The truth is here. What I share is designed to get your experience to line up with the Word—so that you can walk in freedom from sin, and experience life more abundantly. I am bubbling with freedom right now. It is incredible. But on the outside things may not look much different. My strong will power and depth of Scripture knowledge have rendered me somewhat effective at obedience—yet this is simply a mirage—a poor refection of what Christ offers. There is still bondage. And for those (most folks) who have less will power, biblical knowledge offers nothing but discouragement because we never measure up. What Christ offers is freedom—a freedom that actually results in immediate sanctification. Stop thinking “no way,” you’ll psyche yourself out—just believe and you’ll understand what I am saying is true. Your experience will indeed line up with the Word, and your joy will be complete. Then you will have a contagious joy that naturally results in kingdom expansion.

Shalom and agape,

Marc

We'll be in Cincinnati this weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Marc Carrier) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 15:41:00 +0000

We will be at the homeschool expo in Cincinnati the next few days. Hope to see some of you there.

Shalom,

Marc

Self esteem

noreply@blogger.com (Marc Carrier) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 17:43:00 +0000

It’s just ironic how our children are taught that they are the result of a cosmic accident, emanating from primordial slime-to-apes—ultimately, just smart water that will go out like a light bulb one day—and then reaffirm their self-worth with self-esteem propaganda that flies in the face of our very essence and nature before an awesome God.

Recognizing who we are in relation to a loving, and all-powerful God, having been created in His image, but bound to a body of sin and death, is what helps us maintain a humility that God rewards.

"Man is a mere phantom as he goes to and fro: He bustles about, but only in vain; he heaps up wealth, not knowing who will get it. But now, Lord, what do I look for? My hope is in you." (Psalm 39:6-7)

Let them LEAN on you!

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 16:10:00 +0000

We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves at the recent convention in St. Louis; met some awesome folks, enjoyed good fellowship, and were happy to see some of you there as well. (A special thanks to Phyllis Wheeler of Motherboard Books, and her gracious family, for hosting us on Thursday and Friday nights!)

One of you whom we met was Laurie, and I had to mention her by name because she stopped by our table every day! We even got to meet her husband, which was super except that now I’ve forgotten his name (sorry!). I know that Laurie’s husband was at Marc’s seminar on Budgets and Schedules, and both of them attended my talk on Friday—“Babies, Toddlers, and Preschoolers, Oh My! Successfully Integrating Little Ones into Your Homeschool.” Though I touched upon many different topics during that hour, Laurie’s husband thought up a really neat acronym to sum up the heart of what I had said in regards to our little ones, our relationship with them, and their needs. I was so tickled by it that I just had to share! Perhaps it will help you to remember some of the things that you can consistently do to help your children feel loved. This is so foundational to successful parenting that we will all benefit from the reminder—no matter what the ages of our children. So here goes:

Your children need to be able to L.E.A.N. on you. Here are some of the foundational things that they require: Love, Encouragement, Attention, and Nurture. Though I talked about these four things specifically in relation to our littlest ones in the context of homeschooling, I’m going to expand on those thoughts here.

Love: The area of my greatest weakness is the whole First Corinthians verse about love being “patient and kind” and “not self-seeking.” I have to admit, I am too easily frustrated with the constant activity, the mess, the interruptions, and the sheer volume of children who all want my attention. Not to mention, I do sometimes get selfish about my time and am apt to follow my own agenda when really I need to be more involved and more responsive to the children. I am a work in progress on this score, so I’m preaching to myself here, too. Every day I try my best…and some days are better than others. However, I’m always willing to confess my shortcomings when they are evident, and make sure that my kids know that I am working on truly being “loving” of them in the way that God wants me to.

Children need to know that they are loved, and our actions truly do speak louder than our words. I’m sure I’m not the only Mom who is glad to let my kids go run around in the yard for an hour or so in the afternoon; the quiet in the house is sooo nice! On the other hand, sometimes I rush them out and I know that they probably get the impression that I really don’t want them inside with me! However, that’s the exact opposite of what the Lord wants me to convey to my kids. He wants me to let them know that they are always welcome to be a part of whatever I am doing. And occasionally I need to be involved in what they are doing—I want to show them that I enjoy being a part of their world. My husband is better at this than I am; he’s the “fun guy” and I suppose I am more functional. So I really have to play doll house with my girls “on purpose” and look and listen when my boys are telling me about their latest project (even if, just maybe, they know more about electrical wiring than I do!)

Displays of affection are never out of place, from a pat on the back to a ruffling of hair or of course a hug and kiss. A private wink at just the right time always is sure to return a smile, and your own smile is a sure way to let your kids know you love them.

But of course we need to use words, too. I try to tell my kids that I love them often and remind them of reasons why they are special to me. They also need to know that God made them as unique individuals and has a special plan and purpose for them. Most importantly, we can remind them of God’s love by pointing them back to the reality and truth of the Gospel and that, “while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Encouragement: To pick on myself here again, I am one of those people who has a tendency to be critical…you know, glass half-empty. That’s just one more thing that I constantly try to be aware of and improve upon. Instead of focusing on what the children “didn’t” do, or pick out the ways they fell short (whether in their attitudes and behaviors, school work, or quality of work during their daily chores), I purpose to point out where they did well and what they have done that has been pleasing to God.

As well, I try to encourage them in the Biblical sense, according to Hebrews 3:13. We are told to “encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness.” I believe that one of our most important roles as parents is to exhort our children with God’s Word and show them how to live, both by our words and our best example, so that they will go forward in their walk with God and not be easily entangled by sin.

In our home, we also encourage our children to encourage each other. When one of the children makes a disparaging remark about another, like, “You didn’t do a very good job cleaning up your room,” we’ll intervene and say, “You know what, God wants us to encourage each other. Your brother did his best work but of course he is younger than you, so it might not be the same as what you are capable of. So instead, why don’t you say, ‘Hey, you worked really hard. You only missed a couple of things—let me help you finish up!’” This process often takes a lot of consistent modeling and encouragement on our part, but it is always nice to hear the children lifting each other up and complimenting each other because we have made that consistent investment of time in character training.

Attention: Sometimes it’s hard to give my children individual attention, since life gets busy and there are many of them. However, it is important! Even if I am in the midst of schooling the older children, I try to keep my little ones accessible so that they know I am “there” for them. Even if I’m technically doing something else, visual attention helps, as well as the ability to provide immediate direction (or re-direction) as needed.

I make sure to look at my children when they are talking to me…although I’m sure there are times when I’m guilty of absently replying, “uh-huh…” as I continue what I was doing, totally oblivious to what they’ve said. It also makes them feel valued when I ask questions about what they’ve said or show excitement by sharing their news with someone else in the family.

We try to make sure we do things individually with each child as well, though it doesn’t happen as often as we would like. Sometimes it’s just simple things, like playing a game of tic-tac-toe or checkers, snuggling on the couch with a book, or having one of the children be my meal-preparation helper so we can talk while we work.

The most important thing I need to keep in mind when it comes to giving my kids adequate attention is just to try to enjoy everyday moments with them. Sometimes it’s easy to get in the mode of “managing” rather than “ministering” to their needs, so I try to make sure to maintain eye contact, smile more frequently, make time for conversation, and look for opportunities to connect with the children no matter what we are doing. It’s okay that life is busy sometimes, as long as we are busy together. I find that it’s when I try to distract the kids with a video too many, or send them off to play by themselves for too long, that they seek attention through misbehavior. I think often of the proverb, “A child left to himself disgraces his mother.” Unfortunately, it’s true! However, proactively giving our kids the attention they need helps keep everybody on the right track.

Nurture: It’s hard to talk about nurture without reiterating some of what has been said already. However, nurture is slightly different. Dictionary.com defines nurture as “to feed and protect,” as well as “to bring up; train; educate.” So for me, nurture has two distinct elements. One is to make sure that my children’s physical needs are met. My little ones get small snacks mid-morning and mid-afternoon even if the older kids no longer need them. I offer water or watered-down juice regularly for proper hydration, try to balance quiet and active times, insure that the little ones get their afternoon naps, and make sure that everyone gets a good nights’ sleep.

Beyond that, spiritual nurture is key. We consistently bring God’s Word into our family’s everyday experiences and try to model living a life that is pleasing to God. When we fall short (which we often do), we admit that with all humility and point our children once again to Jesus, who will never let us down. We are faithful to our twice-daily family devotions and make sure that the kids have their individual quiet times as well. Although these “doings” don’t guarantee that we will all “be” the people that God wants us to be, we believe that we are laying important foundations and developing habits that will lead to godliness, as God works in our children’s hearts to help them desire and seek after Him.

These thoughts most certainly reflect things that you already know; but, again, we all (myself included!) only benefit from an occasional reminder. Our children, and their eternal walk with the Lord, are too important for us to drop the ball in these vital areas. We as parents have moments of disobedience, moments of selfishness, and times when we get discouraged and want to give up. However, we need to press on in this vital calling that God has placed before us. With that in mind, consider how you can help your children LEAN on you today, by providing them with the Love, Encouragement, Attention, and Nurture that they need.

relevance

noreply@blogger.com (Marc Carrier) — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 13:00:00 +0000

I received a great article on relevance and ministry. This was my comment to the article.

We struggle to become culturally relevant with the noble intent to reach more folks for Christ, yet fail to recognize that Christ and the Apostles never made such attempts. Inasmuch as Christ engages gentiles and Paul "was all things to all people" in efforts to engage the people they ministered to, the practices and standards of the Church were never altered. Paul made clear in his epistles that the practices he modeled and taught were applicable to "all the churches."

As a results, our noble efforts have completely backfired. Instead of Christ's Kingdom reshaping our world, the world has reshaped the Church. Look at divorce. When society thought it taboo, the church did too. Now society shifted, we see that divorce rates among professing Christians actually exceed atheists. We also see racism and slavery. The church was re;relative silent on these subjects, lagging behind the world's condemnation of such ills.

In all these things, our western mindset drives us to plan and institutionalize our way to fix the symptoms (social ills), yet Christ NEVER said to engage the culture in this way. His Kingdom is a different kind of kingdom--one of the heart. His solution was simple--"make disciples teaching them to obey ALL His commands." He knew the world would be changed if we followed His simple, yet clear instructions. The Church has become IRRELEVANT at impacting our society because of our basic disobedience. If we would do what He said, and not focus on the myriad of attempts to solve society's problems our own way, we would have the impact we all so desire. Yet in our pride and arrogance (again, with noble intent), we think we know better than our King. I pray we repent and return to the simplicity of the Lord's teachings so that we can become as relevant as the early church was--the few folks without money, buildings, seminary training, and our deep theology, completely turned their world upside down.

Marc Carrier
www.valuesdrivenlife.com
www.valuesdrivenpublishing.com

Hope to see you at one of our upcoming Midwest Conventions!

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 15:31:00 +0000

We're in the midst of packing and preparing for our first homeschool convention of the season, and wanted to drop you a quick note to let you know that we will be touring several mid-west cities for the homeschool convention season this Spring. If you'll be at any of these events, be sure to find our booth so that we can finally meet some of you face to face!

Here is our current itinerary:

This week we will be at the Greater St. Louis Area Home Educators 2009 Expo, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday March 26-28^th. At this conference Marc will be doing a Home Management workshop covering budgets and schedules--and for the first time we'll be offering a new product called The Values Driven Family Home Management Bundle. At this convention, I will presenting Babies, Toddlers, and Preschoolers, Oh My!: Successfully Integrating Little Ones into Your Homeschool. For more information about this convention, visit http://www.stlhomeschoolexpo.com/.

Next week, April 3 and 4^th, we will be attending the Indianapolis conference featuring Doug Phillips from Vision Forum and Ken Ham from Answers in Genesis as keynote speakers. For more information visit http://www.inhomeeducators.org/events/conference/index.cfm.

Later inApril (16-18^th), we will be exhibiting at the Cincinnati conference.For more information, visit http://www.CincinnatiHomeschoolConvention.com.

On May15-16^th, we will at the Fort Wayne, Indiana conference.(www.fwahs.org.)

In June, Marc will be solo for a couple conferences because our #7 is due to be born (it's a girl!) Please pray that all goes smoothly. Marc will be the keynote speaker at the CHEK convention in Louisville, KY on June 19-20. His two keynote addresses are entitled Why Homeschool?: Embracing the Eternal Significance of the Mundane and More is Caught than Taught: From Faithfulness to Fruitfulness. The Men's Breakfast address is entitled Fathers and Faith: Dads Hold the Key to Multi-generational Faithfulness. His Saturday workshop is Pick Your Destination: Proactive Planning to Achieve the Desired Results. To learn more visit www.chek.org.

The following week, Marc will be attending the CHEO conference in Columbus, OH (25-27^th).At this conference, Marc will be giving four workshops. I will share the details on the workshops when we get closer to June. For more information,visit www.cheohome.org.

Marc is also considering attending the CHEF Conference & Curriculum Fair in St.Louis on June 22 and 23^rd. We would love your feedback as to whether or not you think we should attend (it will be a busy couple weeks for us as it is). However, if we get enough feedback from our readers/supporters, we will consider it. Doug Phillips from Vision Forum will be keynoting there as well. For more information, visit www.chef-missouri.com.

Shelley emailed me this morning to let me know that there are still 18 spots left in her online cooking class that opened yesterday. In case you missed the complimentary video, I thought I would re-post it, along with a reminder to go ahead and visit Shelley's site at OneRoastVegetable.com to sign up for the class if you were interested.

Hope to see you at one of our upcoming conventions! (We would love you meet you--and you can get our Values-Driven products, as well as discounted Beeyoutiful products, with no shipping charges!)

Keep Singing

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 13:00:00 +0000

Keep Singing
Mercy Me

I was listening to this song yesterday and was struck by how well it expressed how I have felt during those periods of depression and discouragement that I have gone through in the past. Thankfully, and by God's grace, it has been a while since I have experienced a series of "rainy days"; however, the importance of PRAISE in the process of victory is (like the song says) essential.

That's one of many things that I talk about in my "Defeating Depression" audio seminar series, which (together with "Muddlin g through Motherho od") is ON SALE for the next three days. It's a "2 for 1 March Madness Sale," and you can get both audios plus a ton of bonus downloads--AND a FREE audio to download just for checking out the sale. Only $10, only three days!

Oh, and I did need to (finally) choose a winner for the "Real Moms, Real Jesus" book giveaway. Random.org tells me that it is commenter number #10, which is Amy--Congratulations, Amy! :)

Our Kids aren't Perfect...but, they're (almost) Normal

noreply@blogger.com (Cindy) — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 18:40:00 +0000

Before I get to my thoughts, I want to remind you to comment for your chance to win a copy of Jill Savage's "Real Moms, Real Jesus." I'll be closing comments later tonight. :)

Now, my thoughts...

Are you like me--do you sometimes (maybe too often?) wish that your kids were "perfect"? You know, like other people's kids? Sometimes I think that if we're doing it "right," our kids are gonna look like the Duggars. Neat, clean, and even well-pressed; each one playing an instrument; great school routine; picture-perfect family relationships. I know that even THEY aren't always like that, but that's how they are in my head. Or what about Mike and Debi Pearl's kids, when they were little? I can only imagine that if one of them jumped out of a half-rolled-down car window on command, they were pretty obedient. Although I would love to believe that my kids would do that, most days I'm not so sure. And frankly, having these thoughts in my head as comparisons gets me in trouble more often than I'd like to admit.

We all know that we shouldn't compare ourselves to others. Unfortunately, it's pretty hard "not" to, sometimes. And other times, it's not the comparison factor that bothers me, it's just the fact that MY life would be "easier" if my children were perfect. If they did everything I said, right when I said it, with a cheerful attitude, ALL THE TIME. I could actually keep going with my schedule and my plans--without those seemingly constant interruptions for encouragement, correction, discipline, and discipleship in the Word.

But having a picture-perfect life (even for my own convenience, which I admit is really appealing), has one problem--at least only one that I can see. The Bible tells us that it is through trials that we are made perfect in Christ. We mature through testing and draw closer to God in our imperfections. We become aware more and more of our need for His grace, we rely on His love, we look for His leading. In having those "perfect" kids that I sometimes want, I (and they) would miss out on "working out our salvation with fear and trembling." (Sigh.) It's worth it, isn't it??

Last night we got together with a couple from our fellowship who have grandchildren slightly younger than our own kids. The husband made a comment that I've been thinking about all day...something like, our kids are just like their grandkids, and other kids in general. (I could only assume he was referring to...lots of energy, oftentimes loud, busy all the time, sometimes foolish...?) BUT with one difference--that when our kids are told to stop doing something, they stop. When they are asked to do something, they do it.

Sometimes "I" don't see that. I feel like I'm more inconsistent than I'd like to be, and I suppose my expectations of my children are sometimes unrealistic. So it was nice to get a confirmation that we're on the right track. And in the final analysis, I think I am glad that other people don't see our kids as being "perfect." 'Cause if they were, I think we would all be missing out. I'm glad that we're all "real people," following Jesus together. And I'm glad today for His grace for those those times when none of us are "perfect."