My Domestic Church

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2013-05-25T11:30:34-07:00

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2013-05-25T11:30:33-07:00

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2013-05-25T11:30:32-07:00

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5 things to consider before putting your homeschooled student into regular high school.

2013-05-22T16:54:00.000-04:00

I have two kids in homeschool high school, and one kid about to leave eighth grade. I also have two sons who have graduated high school, one from my homeschool and one from a local digital school after being homeschooled for eight years.

When I attend homeschool high school events, I discover that many, many of the student participants ARE NOT HOMESCHOOLED ANY MORE!! They were at one time and they have made many homeschooled friends, but they are now either attending a public or private school or doing their school work through a government funded digital school online, which means they have to follow the rules of the state of Ohio for their education and degree.

My children are keenly aware of this.

Sometimes their parents put them back in school because the parents were afraid that they wouldn't be able to teach high school. Sometimes they put them back in because the parents thought there were better opportunities for their children in the institution of school. Many times they put them in because they want to play sports. I know one mom who has her daughter in a school that will give her an associate degree when she's done with high school.

But what I never hear from these parents is what they gave up to put the students into regular school after homeschooling. And having done both and after comparing and contrasting the results, I think what is given up is worth at least considering!

1. You're breaking up the family. Literally. The best parts of the day the regular schooled students will be away form his or her parents and siblings. And yes I realize the rest of the society already does this and accepts it as normal. But if you've been homeschooling it might be a bit of a shock. No longer will the opinions of the parents and relationships with siblings be the most important part of the high school student's life. Teachers will also get a say and have sway. And so will peers. Having and keeping "friends" will be more important than keeping up relationships with parents and being with siblings. It's just part of the price.

2. Mom and Dad will no longer control the curriculum. Oh, there can be meetings with the teachers and principal and maybe there will be attempts to sway the school board from time to time if things get too out of hand, but for the most part, you won't know what's in the novels that are assigned (because for the most part, they won't be classics that you're familiar with!) and you won't know what's being presented in class that's NOT on the syllabus.

One of my friends was buying a book for her daughter that she needed for a literature class. While waiting in line, she opened the book and started reading about a pretty explicit sex act! She had no clue something like that was going to be covered in class at this particular Catholic School.

But more importantly, if the student comes to something in his or her studies that they find fascinating, there won't be any time or inclination to study it in depth and even if there is, there won't be any credit for it! at least not in this class. What the school, teachers and school board feels is important is what will be presented for study. Everything else will fall by the wayside.

3. Lots of parents give up because they think they can't teach this that or the other thing. Well news flash - there are teachers in schools that can't teach them either. I still remember Mr. Ball, my 9th grade religion teacher that made discussions of theology so dull and boring that I didn't want to take up the topic again until I was in my early 30s. Then there was Mr. Drum the math teacher - not so affectionately known as Mr. Hum Drum.

But my favorite of the unfavorites was a science teacher with a Ph.D. behind his name that giggled when he was trying to explain to me about fruit flies mating and passing on genetics. Seriously. And I'll bet if most of these parents who are so willing to pass on the task of teaching thought back, they could think of some not so stellar performances from their academic background as well. It's not like we're homeschooling back in the 80's! If you need help teaching a subject, there are plenty of ways to find help! This is one of the lamest of excuses these days.

4. Passing on morals and values. My 9th grade son and 8th grade daughter do not know what twerking is. I'd like to leave it that way.

They also know what the church teaches about sexuality and marriage, something even their Catholic high school counterparts seem a bit shaky on. Which is not to say that they'll always stay on the right path, but if they veer off it will be a conscience decision and not a straying due to ignorance.

5. You won't reap the values of all of your hard work to date. The hard part of homeschooling is getting these kids to read, write and get to grade level in math. The rest of it is cake. But we get these kids to master the mechanics of reading and English Grammar, and then we pass them off to someone else to reap the benefits!!

Why?

After all of these years we can finally read the great books and delve into them for analysis and discussions with our own children! Our kids can finally write something that is actually interesting!! and the science and math are actually challenging! Why on earth should I let someone else get my students when it's finally getting to be less of a chore and more of a pleasure? It's like being in a two man relay and letting someone else finish the winning lap and get all the glory. Nope. I've enjoyed crying through Uncle Tom's Cabin and the Call of the Wild and next year I can't wait to do Shakespeare and read my kid's research papers. I'm invested in the curriculum financially, intellectually, spiritually and emotionally - a lot more than I would be if I was just waiting for grades to come out a few times a year.

And that's what I would give up if I gave up homeschooling for the high school years.

A funny homeschooling moment

2013-05-22T13:05:00.001-04:00

For years I have used the Pathway Readers to teach my children how to read. These are delightful little books that focus on family and farm life with stories that have morals applicable to children of any time and place!

The Timberdoodles company describes them this way:

Here the children are expected to obey their parents, respect their teachers, ask forgiveness when they do wrong, and humbly submit to the discipline of those in authority! Yet they still enjoy life!!

Because the Amish don't use electricity, you won't find stories dealing with the latest in films, computers, or TVs. Instead, the stories are centered around farm life, with horse auctions, harvests, and LARGE families.

I have been in love with mine for years and am savoring each story this year since this will be my last time through - at least until the grandchildren are ready for them!

Recently Rosie and I were reading a story in the More Days Go By Reader. Peter and his friend Levi, were going to be late to school because they had gone into Levi's barn to see the new born twin calves. Knowing that they had a few minutes left to make it to school, they were hurrying down a country road when an Amish buggy pulled up behind them and and a gentleman asked them if they wanted a ride to school.

Suddenly Rosie's eyes grew large and serious as she smacked her head and screamed out. "No, don't!! STRANGER DANGER!!!"

Talk about two worlds colliding...

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Prayers for Oklahoma

2013-05-21T09:37:00.001-04:00

My brother-in-law and his family live in Oklahoma City. In reading my sister-in-law's facebook page it appears they made it through okay but they face a lot of challenges in the community and the devastation. My SIL is also a physician's assistant so I know this will impact her this week through her work.

Keeping Oklahoma in our prayers

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7-Quick Takes - the Holy Cow it's next week already- edition

2013-05-20T08:26:00.003-04:00

Join Jen and the other Quicktakers over at the Conversion Diary

1. The punishing month of May continues! Although the weekend was supposed to be somewhat restful, we still had to get up at 7 on Saturday to go get the soccer nets and frames out of Mr. Pete's storage area, take them to the field and set up, then go get our kids ready to play soccer, play soccer until 11, and then take all the nets and frames down.

2. Then blissfully there was nothing until 4. Well 4:15 actually, which is the time I realized Noah was supposed to serve 4:30 mass, ran down stairs to see if he was ready to discover he wasn't even in the house! I did find him and we were able to make the 6 minute drive to church in about 4 to church just as the church bells were ringing, but before the priest et al had left the sacristy to process up for the first hymn!

3. Back on the home front, Izzy was making peanut butter cookies to take to the annual Homeschool Dance! Around 5:30 she came down in her beautiful dress with these ugly black shoes on - because she had lost the mate to her beautiful sandal!! UGGGGHHHH!!!! So I grab Izzy and we run to pick up Noah and then we make a super fast trip to Gabriel Brothers to get her some more shoes that at least look as if they are somewhat in touch with the rest of her outfit!!!!

4. Then Noah has to go home and get dressed for the dance, which started at 6:30 p.m. We made it there by 6:45. And they had a blast.

5. Sunday Morning, Mr. Pete and Rosie had their very last PSR meeting- complete with the rosary. Mr. Pete had to lead the singing and rosary recitation for that since he is the most senior of all PSR teachers with 11 years of service in. Then he had to cantor for mass - and if you were at Pentecost mass yesterday, you might have noticed there was a bit more singing than usual!

6. Then Mr. Pete and I had to perform at a Memorial Service at a local church for all of the hospice patients who had died this past year.

7. And then we collapsed. After getting the groceries, fixing dinner and getting the wall air conditioner in. And I didn't even mention getting Gabe to a soccer game to ref, only to have it cancelled, and then trying to reach my sister to let her know she didn't need to pick him up at the field!!

Luckily next week we only have soccer championships and the prom...

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A Pentecost Craft with an improvement coming later today!

2013-05-19T09:07:00.002-04:00

I am a great crafter! I can craft someone else's idea- and even improve on it! But I am not an original craft thinkerupper. So when I got an original idea last year for Pentecost, I jumped on it!

So here is my post from last year:
I wanted to do something simple but pretty and meaningful for my Pentecost Centerpiece and this is what I came up with.

I took a plain glass bowl and filled it with water and floating candles. I got all of it from Pat Catan's for under $12.

Then I surrounded the bowl with a holy card for each of the apostles and Mary. And let me tell ya- some of those apostles aren't easy to find, particularly St. Bartholomew, St. Simon and Saint James the Lesser. Those I found on the internet and printed them out in color. Izzy reinforced them for me with that craft foam. Then we put them around the bowl, and lit the candles.

The idea is that the floating candles are like the tongues of fire that hung over the apostles head at Pentecost. Izzy also made me a dove to hang from the chandalier over the bowl tomorrow. I'll have the full effect then, but for a test run, this is what it looked like!

The idea is that the floating candles are like the tongues of fire that hung over the apostles head at Pentecost. Izzy also made me a dove to hang from the chandalier over the bowl tomorrow. I'll have the full effect then, but for a test run, this is what it looked like!

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OK, here was the problem - that curved bowel got too hot with all of those candles in it and sometime during dinner - the bowl burst!!!! and all of the water and candles burst forth from the centerpiece. I guess that is kind of symbolic too for the apostles bursting forth after the Holy Spirit comes to them... but it made for an exciting and messy dinner!

So I have improved on the bowl and on how I displayed the apostles - pictures will be appearing shortly!

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Works for Me Wednesday - iPiccy free photo editing.

2013-05-15T19:07:00.000-04:00

Last April I wrote that I had found a photo editor online to replace Piknik, which was bought up and discontinued by Google. That editor is iPiccy.

I love that it:

Easily allows me to crop my photos.
I can edit the exposure, light and dark effortlessly.
Enlarging is no problem.
It has a lot of very nice special effects and...
I can save directly to Flickr and Facebook from the iPiccy site. Now if only I could go from Flickr or Facebook directly to iPiccy, that would be great! For now I have to upload from the computer.
And it's still free!

So here are some of my creations over the year via iPiccy as saved to my Flickr account.

Works for Me!

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St. Isadore

2013-05-15T00:00:00.000-04:00

One of my favorite saint pictures! Good Saint Isadore who was so good and holy, and such a good worker, that God sent an angel to toil in the field so that St. Isadore could keep going to daily mass! Isadore's employer saw the angel working away and he converted to Christianity. And the story has it that Isadore and his boss started going to mass together.

Isadore's wife is also a saint. They too suffered the sorrow of losing a child, their only child, a son. They were noted however not for how they grieved, but how they incorporated that grief into living a full, holy, and even happy life afterwards.

St. Isadore loved the poor and loved the animals. The miracle of the multiplication of food occurred when Isidore fed a flock of starving birds and on another time when Isidore shared his food with a large group of beggars.

Isadore died on May 15, 1120 at 60 years of age and was canonized in 1622 along with four very notable Spanish saints. The group, known as "the five saints", included St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Teresa of Avila, St. Francis Xavier, St. Phillip Neri, and St. Isidore. His body has been found incorrupt. His memorial is celebrated on May 15th on the Roman Calendar.

My daughter's name is Isadora, so today is her feast day. She is named for her Grandpa Isadore, Mr. Pete's father. He was a delightful man with a wonderful sense of humor and fun. I remember in high school he drove the family station wagon to pick up Pete and his friends wearing a blond Farrah Fawcett wig. Of course everyone pointed and stared but he pretended he had no clue what they were laughing at. Mr. Pete and his friends had no choice but to get in the car with him if they wanted a ride home. Ah... the fun of embarrassing teenagers!

Another time, after we were married, my father-in-law Isadore wore a pair of dark sun glasses to a New Year's Eve party. The glasses lit up when he pressed a button in the pocket of his leisure suit. He spent a good part of the evening flashing his glasses and surprising people. The DJ that evening then found a record about cheap sunglasses and my father-in-law took to the floor, dancing by himself and flashing his sun glasses while the crowd watched and applauded. Boy, that was so fun! I really missed him after he passed on.

Lest you think he was just a jokester, my father-in-law was with General Patton in WWII. He was with him during two campaigns, but was hit by shrapnel in Africa and was out for the rest of the war. That's how he met my mother-in-law. A girl was writing to him, but she had too many soldiers to write to, so she gave Isadore off to my mother-in-law Virginia. Their letters clicked with each other. They met, married and had nine children. The rest is history!

My kids know all of these stories. So in honor of St. Isadore, and of Grandpa Isadore, we are going to plant some flowers today. St. Isadore was a farmer, so that is very appropriate.

Happy Feast Day St. Isadore, Grandpa Isadore, and sweet little Izzy!
Litany to St. Isadore here
Great day to do some planting! Like a Marian Garden

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Simple Woman

2013-05-13T20:09:00.000-04:00

Outside my window...

I am thinking...
about the things I got for Mother's Day -
Noah ran the 5K I asked him to run with great results!

4th in ages 15-19 Noah LaVictoire age 15 over all place - 36 time of 24:27 pace of 7:53 minute miles.

Calvin bought me cheese cake.
Izzy made me a carrot cake - both are favorites of mine!
Sam bought me some golden chicken wings - also a favorite
and my god son bought me two diet cokes and a bagel.

So I got a lot of my favorite foods - which I shared of course!

I am thankful...
for the example of my mother and my grandmother, and that I had the opportunity to be a mother myself!

From the learning rooms...
Last week was very hard! The schedule was packed. The kids and Mr. Pete and I had to travel to Cleveland on Tuesday and Thursday evening for a choir competition. Wednesday night was the normal art class/ drum lesson with a wedding rehearsal thrown in for good measure. Friday was a wedding rehearsal and a wedding right after with a different bride and groom! So it was intense and we took Thursday and Friday off just to regroup.

Gabe and Noah are reading The Grapes of Wrath! 60 % of the way through!
Spelling program per Dr. Holinga for all four kids.
Instacert for History and start American History part 2
American History at Homeschool Connections Recorded Courses. Listening to Michael Medved's recording on World War II
Apologia Science - Physical for Noah, Biology for Gabe, and General for Izzy.
Saxon math for all with math tutor for Gabe and Noah.
Rosetta Stone Latin 3 - for Noah and Gabe
Diane Craft reading program for Izzy. Ms. Craft is coming to Ohio next month and I definitely want to ask her what the next step should be for Izzy's improvement.
By the Shores of Silver Lake.

Pathway readers for Rosie and the Wand for Language arts.
Little House in the Highlands for Rosie

Izzy's dress is a discount store find! I got it for $2 but the zipper was broken. So I taught Izzy how to take out the zipper and put in a new one. I thought she looked really cute in it~

From the kitchen...
Baked chicken with cheesy potatoes and salad.

I am wearing...
Gray pants and pink T-shirt with pink hoodie.

I am creating...
a soccer league apparently. The homeschool Saturday Soccer League has been in existence for many years. Mr. Pete started to help the leaders by striping the fields every week and hauling the nets and goals back and forth to the field. Well, the leaders resigned and an e-mail went out that we were the new leaders!! a prospect that caused me to lose a bit of sleep Sunday night!

I am going...
work out in the morning- probably by getting Noah up and having him run/walk - since we are not going to be able to do that at night next week. Have to work in some abs and arm work though. Last fall my left shoulder was almost frozen - it hurt so much to move! and now since I have been actively working in upper body work with weights it is almost 90%. and absolutely no pain now at all at night.

I am reading...

and

I am wondering...
if I am making the best decision. Calvins' graduation is the same day that Izzy and Noah leave for Franciscan University's youth conference - and I am going as a chaperone. But I wonder if that's the right choice? I really would love to see Calvin graduate and I was ready to - last year!! and then he didn't make the cut. But we have always gone with the kids when they went to Steubenville for the first time - so... I guess I feel conflicted.

I am Hoping...
That now college is over for Sarah, that Calvin can graduate in a few short weeks - one major test away!

(next - time for a ring and a date!)

I am Looking Forward To...
the homeschool dance this week - with Izzy and Noah going!

I am hearing...
the buzz in my left ear and Rosie playing outside with her friends.

A Picture I am Sharing...

One of my favorites from the First Communion photo shoot!

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Our Lady of Fatima

2013-05-13T09:00:00.001-04:00

There are two points to the Fatima story that especially stand out to me.

The first is that the children ask about the soul of their friend Amelia and our Lady told them that Amelia would be in purgatory until the end of time. What could a young person at that time have done that was so terrible as to merit that punishment? I don't know, but I think it is a sobering idea that I need to keep in mind for my own life and to warn my family about.

Secondly, Mary showed the children a vision of hell, one that Sr. Lucia never forgot. Hell exists, despite watered down theology that says it does not.

The Fatima Prayer
O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell.
Lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of thy mercy.

Wonderful links about the feast and creative ways to celebrate it are in my deli.ci.ous file!

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The 40-hour priest

2013-05-10T16:32:00.001-04:00

This story just really touched my heart. Well done Father Scott, well done.

Fr. Scott passed away about 40 hours after his ordination.

Right before his death, he had just finished offering the Mass.

When it was over, he fell asleep and died shortly thereafter.

A Priest for Forty Hours | CatholicVote.org

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Feast of Father Damien

2013-05-10T12:49:00.003-04:00

8. Father Damien - Pater Damiaan - Le Père Damien - Ojciec Damian
Originally uploaded by Rudi Roels
See my links on Diigo for more information about this great saint.

Father Damien has always been a favorite in my family. My oldest son was captivated with his story as a youngster and then chose the name, Damien, for confirmation. It was Father Damien's simple and determined bravery that my son admires so.

When Calvin was preparing for his confirmation, I read Father Damien's story to him. A few things stick out in my mind. Father Damien wanted to go to Hawaii, but he was also very sad to leave his mother behind in Belgium. Their goodbye truly was a goodbye forever. In this day of e-mail, telephone and cell-phones, it is hard to imagine being so out of touch with the son you birthed and fed from your body, and raised from infancy to manhood. I have often wondered what kind of woman Father Damien's mom must have been to raise such a selfless son. And I admit I cried for her, and for the loss she must have felt, intermingled of course with humble pride for her son.

The other story of Father Damien that touches my heart is how he participated in his Catholic faith even when it was not always easy to do so. One time a priest came to Father Damien's island to hear confessions, but the captain of the ship would not even allow Father Damien to board. Father Damien, knowing he need the graces of confession for the difficult work he was doing, humbly sat in a little boat at the side of the bigger ship, and shouted his confession for the priest to hear it. I'm not sure that I would want my sins broadcasted like that. What a humiliation for this holy man to endure. Yet endure he did. He made his confession despite this hardship. Remembering that makes me remember that it's not such a big deal to get to confession on Saturday afternoon, or drive across town to my favorite confessor. At least I have those options, and my sins truly are just between me and God!

More blogs observing Father Damien's feast today.
Find Father Damien on Facebook!
Links to articles about Father Damien
Legacy of Father Damien

Ward Wide Web shared a letter from Robert Lewis Stevenson, defending the good priest after his death!

Science, Religion and Miscellaneous Babble

Gabe dressed as Father Damien for All Saints Day a few years back.

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Links of Interest

2013-05-09T12:11:00.000-04:00

In light of what has happened in Cleveland this week, I thought this speech by Elizabeth Spart was very helpful.

Sad to see this, but 23 years after my own unnecessary prmiary cesarean, unnecessary medical procedures are still determining how women give birth in this country.

The survey revealed several other troublesome trends:

About 40 percent of mothers did not hold their naked babies against their skin soon after birth, though research suggests that strengthens mother-baby bonding and breastfeeding. One quarter of healthy babies spent the first hour of their lives with hospital staff for routine care, not with their mothers.

While breastfeeding offers numerous benefits for the baby and mother, about half of women who said they wanted to exclusively breastfeed experienced ill-advised hospital practices that can undermine the process, like being offered free formula. And six months after giving birth, less than a third of women were exclusively breastfeeding their babies.

Many women reported that they held back from asking questions because they were concerned about being perceived as difficult, they wanted maternity care that differed from what their health care provider wanted, or their provider seemed rushed.

Few women used simple, low-risk, drug-free measures to ease labor pain, like taking hot showers or baths. Women who had taken childbirth education classes were more likely to try such measures.

Most women who had an episiotomy, an incision in the skin around the vagina made during delivery, were not included in the decision to undergo the procedure.

Pro choice reporter changes mind on abortion after covering the Gosnell trial! Look at the expression in his eyes as he speaks - he's almost haunted by it!

Pope Francis continuing the crackdown on wayward nuns! Take that Sr. Chittister!

Given Francis' Jesuit background, some had speculated that he might take a softer approach to dealing with the more liberal wings of the church. But the new pope, like his predecessor, leans theologically conservative, so his commitment to Benedict's hard line shouldn't come as a shock. In the case of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR), that means the continuation of a five-year plan that Benedict set into motion last year aimed at pushing the group back in line with the Vatican's positions on social issues like homosexuality, abortion, euthanasia, and women in the priesthood.

Leaders of the nun's group were informed of Francis' decision at a morning meeting with church officials, according to the Vatican. As part of the ongoing plan, the Vatican has given Archbishop of Seattle Peter Sartain the authority to take the steps he sees as necessary to ensure the group better toes the party line as laid out by the Vatican and echoed by the American contingent of Catholic bishops. Those steps including requiring the nuns to get approval from the archbishop for every speaker they invite to a public event, replace their handbook, and revise their statutes, along with generally ensuring that they don't publicly "disagree with or challenge positions taken by" American bishops or the Vatican.

How Homeschooling Benefited My Life

Homeschooling has given me the time to pursue my own interests in both hobbies and education. I love to read about history, practical how-to’s on a plethora of interests, factual and historical trivia, and all of the mystery and classic books on our extensive home library shelves. I technically might have received an “education,” however inferior, if I had attended public schools, but I have to think, What would I rather be: a child succeeding at a test covering information I may not remember or succeeding at life? Personally, I like succeeding at life!

While being homeschooled I was able to learn at my own pace and in accordance with my abilities. Because I usually comprehended and mastered new information quickly, I could not handle the repetitious and time-consuming assignments of traditional workbooks. Rather, I learned or deduced information on my own for most subjects. When necessary, I stopped to gain better understanding about topics of study.

I escaped most of the negative and harmful influences and pressures that I might have received from “friends” at school. I gained from my parents Godly instruction, character, and morals (whether I wanted to hear them at the time or not), which is what parents are called by God to do, not teachers.

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Talking to my Teenage Daughter about Emergency Birth Control

2013-05-06T19:00:00.000-04:00

A couple of weeks ago Izzy was bemoaning the fact that her monthly period had found her - again. Only this time two weeks earlier than she had expected it. Which was all the more annoying because the time before that she had waited almost 40 days for her period to show up. So I told her that her body was just trying to make up for the last time and that pretty soon it would have things all figured out. That didn't really comfort Izzy, who had planned to wear a pretty yellow dress to go out that day but then opted for black pants as a safer option.

So I asked her, "Iz, would you like to try tampons this time?"

With exasperation in her voice she said, "Mom, I'm just trying to get used to dealing with all of this first!!"

and we both laughed. I sympathized.

In a few weeks Izzy will be 14. Apparently, according to the FDA, next year she will be a "woman" and old enough to go out and purchase "emergency "contraception by herself without the assistance of a physician, and without my input.

To put this in perspective, the little girl who needs my help and guidance in navigating the intricacies of managing her menstrual cycles and figuring out when or if to use tampons will be able to purchase and use powerful hormones on her own in 13 months.

Unbelievable.

I was complaining about this stridently a few months ago on the Huffington Post. "But think of all the poor girls who don't have mothers to guide them!" they said. "Those girls need protection from pregnancy!"

So because some girls don't have parental guidance available to them, we have to make ALL girls susceptible to the pressure and temptations of having potent medications available to them - for the good of all?

Since common sense seems to be missing from the FDA and the Department of Health and Human Services, I've tried to talk to my own daughter about this straight from the heart, about using her head.

And this is basically what I told her:

God designed the intimacy of the sex act for the pleasure of the man and woman and equally for the conception of children. When you have sex you are saying to that other person with your body, I am completely yours and you are completely mine! You can’t say that at 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 years of age. You can’t really say that until you are married.

And yes, I know that when you are in love with a young man it feels as if this will be forever and you may feel as if you want to give that part of yourself to him, but unless you are married you don’t have any promises before God and witnesses of a life together and your sexuality isn’t yours to give and his isn’t yours to take. And further, if you aren’t ready to be a mom you’re not ready to have sex. Because of that total self giving is that the love is so great between the man and a woman that it might actually present itself as a child. And maybe with that idea, the idea that in sexual intercourse the couple are in a complete act of total self donation, that birth control is a lie and abortion really is murder.

Keep out of situations that might put you in a difficult situation. Don’t be in private places alone with a young man, keep control of your senses (drinking and drugs) dress appropriately, and don’t get started with kissing, French kissing, petting. In 1 Corinthians 6:18 St. Paul in his epistle tells us to flee fornication (sex before marriage) That means run away, stay away, not get up as close to the line as you possibly can without falling over. In this way you protect your heart, you protect your body, maybe you are protecting a young man’s error in judgement, and possibly your yet to be conceived children.

But if you do fail – make it right.Get to confession and tell the priest your sins and listen to the spiritual words and advice they give you. Get the graces of the sacrament to help you stand for what you believe and the life that you want to live in Christ.

And last but not least - You need to come to your Dad and me no matter what - because no one loves you and has as much interest in helping you as we do.

not even the FDA.

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The Simple Woman

2013-05-06T00:00:00.000-04:00

Outside my window...

I am thinking...
my feelings are a little hurt...I'll get over it.

I am thankful...
for life's little experiences. I have mostly been successful in my life- mostly. But the failures, when they have happened, have been colossal. Still, I learned from each one of them. At least I tried and found out I was a failure- which is better than spending years wondering if I would have been successful! With failure at least you know the answer to that question and can move on to the next thing without pining for what might have been.

From the learning rooms...

Gabe and Noah are reading The Grapes of Wrath!
Spelling program per Dr. Holinga for all four kids.
Instacert for History and start American History part 2
American History at Homeschool Connections Recorded Courses. Finished the Great Depression Class. Watched Night and Fog with my high school students.
Apologia Science - Physical for Noah, Biology for Gabe, and General for Izzy.
Saxon math for all with math tutor for Gabe and Noah.
Rosetta Stone Latin 3 - for Noah and Gabe
Diane Craft reading program for Izzy. Ms. Craft is coming to Ohio next month and I definitely want to ask her what the next step should be for Izzy's improvement.
By the Shores of Silver Lake.

Pathway readers for Rosie and the Wand for Language arts.
Little House in the Highlands for Rosie

From the kitchen...
I'm not quite sure yet - I know that I am going to have to plan so very quick and easy dinners for next week. Might be time to start grilling?

I am wearing...
Black pants and pink T-shirt.

I am creating...
a curriculum for next year for Gabe. The boy needs to do somethings with his hands so I'm thinking about having him re-do the kitchen cabinets and walls and creating a course description for it I really think that would be a good experience for him and it would be nice to have an uplifted kitchen! I know he has to take Government next year and I would also like him to do typing.

I am going...
work out in the morning- probably by getting Noah up and having him run/walk - since we are not going to be able to do that at night next week. Have to work in some abs and arm work though. Last fall my left shoulder was almost frozen - it hurt so much to move! and now since I have been actively working in upper body work with weights it is almost 90%. and absolutely no pain now at all at night.

I am reading...

and

I am wondering...

where this picture was shot? It was circulating on facebook last week but I don't know the origin. It's strikingly beautiful. I just love old cemeteries with beautiful statuary.

I am Hoping...
to get the life insurance policy that I applied for finished - forgot how invasive that can be!! But I want to be sure the other kids, especially the younger ones are protected just in case anything ever happened to me.

I am Looking Forward To...
hearing the choir sing in competition on Thursday. Gabe is playing the congas for one piece. Here's a video of it from a few years ago.

I am hearing...
the buzz in my left ear and a fan humming in the window - and Mr. Pete trudging upstairs to show me his new haircut! Very nice Mr. Pete!

A Picture I am Sharing...

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7-Quick Takes

2013-05-04T15:32:00.001-04:00

Join Jen and the other Quicktakers over at the Conversion Diary
1. Sorry for the late blogging this week and I'd like to tell you that next week will be better but...
I don't know why this keeps happening to me, but a couple of times a year one date or one week will just become unusually - almost unbearably busy. A few months ago I looked at my calendar and it was empty, so I agreed to be the church coordinator for two weddings on May 10 and 11. Then, the kid's choir made it into some big competition about an hour from here during that same week. AND the choir Mr. Pete and I perform with scored a performance date. So now the week looks like this: Concert on Sunday, rehearsal for the kids on Tuesday, wedding rehearsal Wednesday, competition on Thursday, wedding rehearsal and wedding on Friday, soccer on Saturday along with Calvin's girlfriend's graduation. Add in homeschooling and yea... I'm stressed!

2. I actually had a young lady write this to me on FB this week (emphasis mine):
God specifically has said to love thy neighbor as you love thyself. It is directly in the ten commandments. And it does not mean tolerate or hold yourself above them or refuse them anything that you yourself have because they are different that you. It simply means love everyone no matter what. And this issue on refusing marriage goes against that commandment. The way i see it, the ten commandments came directly from God and physical proof that they were from him. Within the other passages, they are only written by the word of man. It does not matter if they are considered holy or not, they are still man. Man has a different perspective than a another man does. Not only can the way things are written be taken multiple ways because of personal perspective, if they are not put into specifics they can also be misinterpreted.

Someone took Raiders of the Lost Ark a bit too literally!

I am unaware of where the "physical proof" of the ten commandment tablets currently reside.

Nonetheless this was my reply:

"Love your neighbor as you love yourself" is from Matthew 7:12. It is also sometimes know as the Golden Rule. It isn't specifically in the Ten Commandments, but it is in a way a summation of the moral laws in the ten commandments. We know that Jesus said this because the Gospel writers preserved His words and then the leaders of the Church, men, approved the writings and compiled them into what we now know as Holy Scripture. Whenever we read or follow Sacred Scripture we trust that the men in the early church were lead by the Holy Spirit when preserving the inspired written word. This is a trust in the partnership between God and men/ God and his Church. I can understand not having a trust in things of man - but that is why Christ founded the church, so that we would not have to lean on our own understanding but could follow the traditions and the official translations passed on to us through the ages.

Now, if I love myself, I want is what is good for me, and what will lead me to heaven. Sometimes, that means I need another person to tell me things that I may not necessarily not want to hear. Sometimes the answer to, "Does this make me look fat?" is "Yes!!" said in a loving and compassionate voice of course!

And so it is with moral issues. I may have the capacity to love many more men even in a carnal way, but because of the moral laws of the church, I remain bound to the vows These laws, which may be very difficult to follow and sometimes may seem unfair, are actually for my own good and the good of those around me. And so it is with other moral laws such as abortion, contraception, and marriage.

4. At a later point in the discussion, my young FB friend also said:
yes, older people have seen more and understand a lot of things yet at the same time we have been through our own lives and if you haven't noticed, things change. multiple things evolve.

Gabe and Noah and I have been reading the Grapes of Wrath and having discussions about how people remain pretty much the same, even though time and circumstances change. I can remember when my mom first went into a retirement center, there were cliques and mean "girls" and crushes and all the rest of it!! Sometimes listening to my mom talk about the goings on at the home reminded me of high school! Same sorts of people and problems - just 60 or more years older!!

5. Speaking of reading books together - I can't bear the thought of missing these types of moments by sending my kids to school. How many high schoolers get to read the unabridged classics with their parents and siblings, in their sock feet, on a nice couch, with their faithful dog!

6. Sam went to the prom with his long-time sweetheart. I shot these pics.

7. Lastly, some more first communion pics from last weekend:

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St. Joseph the Worker

2013-05-01T17:06:00.003-04:00

This is one of my favorite pictures of the Holy Family and I think it is very appropriate for today's feast, Joseph the Worker.

During pregnancy, childbirth and then nursing, Mr. Pete stepped in many times to fulfill his role as worker, but then also to allow me to fulfill my role as mother.

I think that is why on the first day of May, a month where we honor Mary, we give a nod to St. Joseph. And that's as it should be. Joseph, blessed spouse and beloved foster father made it easier for Mary to fulfill her role as mother and homemaker. His work as a carpenter sustained the family.

I think I like this picture also because it looks real- Mary has the bleary eyed look of a new nursing mother, and St. Joseph is perspiring and working hard on his carpentry project.

What a wonderful feast in the liturgical year and a good day to remember the husbands and fathers in our own little domestic churches.

See my St. Joseph links on del.icio.us

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7-Quick Takes

2013-04-28T20:42:00.000-04:00

Join Jen and the other Quicktakers over at the Conversion Diary
1. Gabe is going to the prom this year with his girlfriend who attends a local public high school. We debated whether or not to go with a tux or a suit. Gabe made the decision to actually go with a suit. The problem of course was that about six months ago, when I begged him to buy some dress shoes, he would only buy brown shoes - and I found a wonderful pair of size 13, Italian leather, men's dress shoes on e-bay for $25! It was a really good deal - but what goes with brown shoes? So Wednesday night we go to the suit store and the nice saleslady named Cynthia put him in a charcoal suit with a brown belt and a blue with brown tie (blue for his date's dress and brown to tie in the shoes). I think it will work nicely!

2. Rosie made her first communion today. But because I knew the weather was going to be wet and rainy, I manged to take her and her sister out to the park on Friday to get some pictures in her first communion dress!

2. I managed to get some fun ones too!

3. Saturday we spent all morning at the soccer field. Rosie played her heart out. At 11, I heard the peel of the church bells and I knew her classmates were making their first communion - but no one else seemed to notice. And I knew that Rosie only had 24 hours to wait before she could finally make hers too.

4. And while it was Rosie's weekend, the boys actually won their game. Did I ever mention how much I love to watch Gabe's hair when he runs?

5. During the second half of Gabe's game, Rosie and I sneaked away to pick up his suit after alterations. The alterations were free and I got 1/2 off on the shirt and the tie. Although this suit was not cheap, I think it is a nice starter suit and will serve him well for years to come.

6. On Saturday afternoon, Noah, Gabe and I performed with the bell choir for the evening mass. Sunday morning, Noah, Gabe and Izzy had to sing with the parish choir because the choir is singing in a competition in a few weeks and they need the practice. Then of course, Rosie's first communion was at the later morning mass on Sunday - so if you're keeping track- Noah and Gabe attended three masses this weekend! Noah took it in stride - Gabe - not so much.

The rest of Saturday afternoon was spent cleaning the house and making all of the food for Sunday's party after Rosie's first communion.

7. We are reading The Grapes of Wrath in our homeschool high school. Considering everything that has happened this weekend and in the upcoming weeks, this passage about Mrs. Joad really struck a cord with me.

Tom Stood looking in. Ma was heavy, but not fat; thick with childbearing and work. She wore a loose Mother Hubbard of gray cloth in which there had once been colored flowers, but the color was washed out now, so that the small flowered pattern was only a little lighter gray than the background. The dress came down to her ankles , and her strong, broad, bare feet moved quickly and deftly over the floor. Her think steel-gray hair was gathered in a sparse wispy knot at the back of her head. Strong, freckled arms were bare to the elbow, and her hands were chubby and delicate, like those of a plump little girl. She looked out into the sunshine. Her full face was not soft; it was controlled, kindly. Her hazel eyes seemed to have experienced all possible tragedy and to have mounted pain and suffering like steps into a high calm and a superhuman understanding. She seemed to know, to accept, to welcome her position, the citadel of the family, the strong place that could not be taken. And since old Tom and the children could not know hurt or fear unless she acknowledged hurt an fear, she had practiced denying them in herself. And since, when a joyful thing happened , they looked to see whether joy was on her, it was her habit to build up laughter out of inadequate materials. But better than joy was calm. Imperturbability could be depended upon. And from her great and humble position in the family she had taken dignity and a clean calm beauty. From her position as healer, her hands had grown sure and cool and quiet; from her position as arbiter she had become as remote and faultless in judgment as a goodness. She seemed to know that if she swayed the family shook , and if she ever really deeply wavered or despaired the family would fall, the family will to function would be gone.

The Problem with Catholic Schools is they are Just Barely Catholic!

2013-04-25T21:19:00.001-04:00

I remember being a happy little Catholic girl going to Sunday School classes at St. John's Church in Davison, MI. I'm not sure what text book we used but I remember looking at the pictures and being filled with awe and wonder about God.

God was great - he filled the whole universe, and yet he was in the tiny host of bread. He was everywhere and knew everything including that was in my mind. He knew what I did and what I was going to do. I cried when I heard the story of the crucifixion and I regretted all of my little sins before my first confession. I was learning authentic Catholicism and I felt authentic reverence and devotion.

Once I entered the day school I learned even more - bible history from Adam and Eve all the way through Moses. We read the stories, drew pictures and even had some art projects to enhance the stories we were learning. And I was loving it and looking forward to what we would learn next year.

But that never happened. In fourth grade we didn't pick up after the story of Moses. I don't remember much of anything we learned. It was 1968. I thought maybe we'd pick up the threads in Jr. High and High School but that didn't happen either. We had daily religion class but I couldn't tell you what we learned and there was a general sense in my classmates and me that religion class was a good way to get an A to boost an otherwise less-than-stellar report card.

When I got to High School, religion class was a necessary evil - a required course that filled up my schedule and prevented me from taking Latin, or another honors course. The one highlight that stands out in my high school religion career was reading the Last Temptation of Christ. At least that was something substantial - even if it was heretical.

In 2006 I blogged:I grew up in the 1970s, came of age in the late 70s and lived my early adult life in the 1980s. We had all of the touchy, feely, "spiritual," experiential crapola that passed itself off as religion class masquerading under "the spirit of Vatican II." It didn't make us strong Christians or keep us in our Catholic faith. Instead we subscribed to the Jesus is my buddy, I'm OK, You're OK, lukewarm deadness that went with a faith that we weren't prepared to understand and had no clue about how to defend, let alone live. My sister left the church for a time, many of my classmates left too. I read my alumni news letter and I am not even clear any more if it is a Catholic School any more, if it ever was. I've met more than my share of bitter ex-Catholics on the internet and in real life. It doesn't take more than a few minutes to determine that their Catholic faith died because it wasn't taught logically or intellectually and most of them never saw it lived, not really. Not authentically.

When God brought Mr. Pete and me back to our Catholic church He chose to let us have a taste of the St. Paul experience. We were assailed with the usual questions about Catholicism. You know, the usual, "Why do Catholics worship Mary", "Why do you all your priests Father when the bible says not to," "Where is (fill in the blank) in the bible." We literally stood there with our eyes glazed over and our mouths open because we didn't have a clue. Bombarding us with these questions over and over again was like shooting fish in a barrel - it was too easy to expose us for the ignorant post-Vatican II imbecilic offspring that we were.

But somehow, the Holy Spirit gave us enough common sense to figure out that maybe WE didn't know the answers, but that didn't mean that there weren't logical explanations for why the Catholic Church taught these things. We finally had enough curiosity and motivation to investigate and figure out what they were. It was logical and intellectual teaching that drove us to our knees and brought us back to the faith.
That's what I wanted for my kids. That's why we homeschooled them. but it's more than that. It's having them see their parents go to mass every week, seeing their father teach Sunday School, celebrating the liturgical year with all of the feasting and fasting, learning their prayers, seeing first hand their parents being open to new life and the struggles and joys that go with that. THAT's what makes kids strong in their faith. That's what gives them the strength to hang on and seek out that faith when they are struggling with real life during their adult years.

I wrote this in 2009. The clip doesn't work any more. I think the owner finally figured out that I had used it as an example to berate my former school, (Luke M. Powers Catholic High School) instead of singing its praises.

The results of the reprehensible lack of faith formation has been dire. A man from the class of 1978 wrote this in an e-mail loop discussion:

It seems very clear to me that we humans are designed to have sex. I suspect the reservations against pre-marital sex were originally to protect the offspring and to ensure that they would be cared for by a family rather than a single (i.e. 1/2 the resources) parent. Later - I suspect that having as many children as possible was simply a way to increase a churches membership numbers and maybe the amount of money that people would tithe to the church.

Having sex for enjoyment - without the likelihood of conception is a wonderful thing. I recommend it to all of you as often as possible. I suggest that you might want to free yourself of the ridiculous idea that sex is only for creation - because we all know that that is not truly the case. Besides - most of us are Catholic and may believe this way why? Simply because we were born into a family that was Catholic. No real conscious decision was made by most of us (Marja is a notable exception and while we seldom agree - I admire her for making a conscious decision about her religious affiliation) - and yet some of us will defend (to the death) the notion that by pure chance - they were born into the "true" and correct religion. A one in two thousand chance that some members of all 2000 religions are convinced of. Think about this with an open mind. That is what Powers taught us to do......

Now go have sex - and don't forget the contraceptives....

My own class of 1977 is no better:
From a FB friend -
Fed up with the church. The diocese decided not to rubber stamp the anullment(sic). We are waiting to here(sic) how much longer they want to drag this out, so after 54 years of attending Catholic church, teaching CCD, and volunteering for other things, the church is saying they don't want me anymore if I get married. Time to start looking for another church.

and other former classmates started piping up:
They excommunicated my Aunt for marrying a divorced man. I haven't gone to a Catholic Church in 30 years. They don't even know it. I don't like organized Religion, neither did Jesus. I go to a non-denominational church. Better!

and
The Catholic church has no shortage of reasons to leave it...from child abuse, to financial scandals, to discrimination against women. The good news is the new Pope has shown promise in bringing the church into the 21st century....buts its long overdue. My personal opinion is why would you put aside your own happiness for an organization full of hypocrisy and that clearly is decades behind the times....Life's way too short for that. But you don't have to leave......get married at the courthouse.........or better yet in Vegas! or Hawaii...... I'm pretty sure you won't be the first in the congregation. And if The Church is bold/hypocritical enough to actually say something....then they deserve a one finger salute on the way out the door. As our wise young niece posted yesterday......"In the end, people will judge you anyway. Don't live your life impressing others. Live your life impressing yourself."

Except for a minority of us, my generation was lost to the faith. So I started wondering, if generations of Catholic kids lost the faith after Vatican II, why and how do Catholic Schools still exist? Who was sending their children there?

Funny thing that nostalgia - parents may have lost their faith but they still wanted their kids to have a "Catholic Education" - which is short hand for "Not in the public schools and able to pass their ACTs and SATs and get into a good college." Sports, especially football, is another big reason that the people I have talked to over the years have continued to send their kids to Catholic Schools.

But maybe nostalgia and sports aren't going to be enough to save Catholic schools. Steve Skellmeyer writes on his blog:

Catholic schools are losing 500,000 students every ten years. Given that the system currently enrolls 2 million students, the problem is obvious. If that trend continues, the entire Catholic school system will be gone in four decades. Entirely. Gone.

"Recent studies laud homeschoolers’ academic success, noting their significantly higher ACT-Composite scores as high schoolers and higher grade point averages as college students. Yet surprisingly, the average expenditure for the education of a homeschooled child, per year, is $500 to $600, compared to an average expenditure of $10,000 per child, per year, for public school students." Education News, May 2012

"Per pupil cost is 5% of public school ($500 vs. $10,000) and 10% of Catholic school ($500 vs. $5000). Burgeoning Internet resources and on-line courses will only improve the cost numbers. It is nearly 75% more effective than public school in educational outcome, and 35% more effective than Catholic schools." Kellmeyer, August 2009

Stop throwing money down the rathole of Catholic brick and mortar schools.

What I keep wondering is,why do parents continue to pay tuition when they can get the same result at the local public school FOR FREE? Public school kids are able to go onto higher institutionalized learning, with the same standards and norms of their secular peers regarding premarital sex, contraception, abortion, same sex marriage, with little if any attachment to true Catholic teaching - other than radicalized idea of higher taxes to support social programs under the banner of Social Justice Teaching.

On a personal note, I know of two graduates from a local Catholic High school who were very proudly pregnant before marriage - one is now the icon of America as a single mom. The other threw all old fashioned notions of scandal aside and had the full treatment with baby/wedding shower, white maternity bridal gown and big church wedding.

An even greater majority of the young Catholics on Facebook from my area were happy to put this image in their FB pages last week in support of "marriage equality."

One student I tried to engage in a discussion about what the church teaches and why. After spending quite a time with this individual, giving links to information and further reading, the student pulled out of the discussion and then wrote, " "Some Catholics in this world are completely out of their freaking minds!"

That same student posted this photo on Facebook. All in good fun? perhaps. But it's not exactly the reverence and dignity I would think one would come away with after several years of formal Catholic Education - but then neither are the other values they are tossing away regularly.

I don't know what the answer is. I have friends who struggle to send their kids to these schools. I know homeschoolers who deliberately send their kids to these Catholic schools in high school because they don't feel qualified to teach them. And God knows I have had enough problems with my own children - but I don't pay thousands of dollars over many years in tuition to buy trouble. I assure you, it's available through homeschooling or the public school system for a lot less!

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A Small Sorrow - and a happy first communion day

2013-04-24T09:52:00.000-04:00

Some of the roles I see for myself as Mom is that of Memory Maker, Heritage Creator, and Event Planner! As such, I have tried to make each of my children's Baptisms, First Communions, and Confirmations memorable, meaningful and fun. I have been through six baptisms, and five first communions and confirmations and I think I have done pretty well with each one.

But with Rosie's first communion I feel as if I haven't done enough or that it won't be as memorable as the ones for the other children.

This time, the god parents won't be able to be here, and Calvin has another clinical to do before he finishes his program, my sister can't be there because she has to go to a graduation and grandma won't be there because she has been dead for four years.

It might be that last one that is hurting me the most I guess - this child doesn't have a living grandparent, and my mother won't be here to see her youngest grandchild, her name sake, receive her first holy communion. Mom won't be there to help me get her dressed and to tell her she looks pretty, and to get a picture with her. And I am mourning that so much.

a lot more than I thought I would.

Rosie has no idea about any of this. She is thrilled with her dress, loves her veil and her shoes and is excited about the ceremony - but she is also very excited about meeting Jesus in the Eucharist. She keeps asking me what that will feel like, what it will be like, and if she's ready.

She's ready. That girl says the most sincere prayers of anyone in the family. She's ready.

She also is excited about the cake her sister is baking and decorating for her, and the deviled eggs she asked for because she loves them, the potato salad and sloppy joes we are having for her little "party" (a party that is missing so many important people!)

That's her excitement and reality right now and I am happy for that. I am keeping all the losses to myself.

But then I had a talk with Mr. Pete. I often joke with Mr. Pete because his childhood and early teen years are very, very blurry to him. It's like he lived fully in each moment and didn't think a to save a space in his mind to remember it all. He has no remembrance at all of his first communion.

None except for maybe rushing to church and getting dressed.

And come to think of it, all I remember about my first communion is that my grandma worked for days and days to make me a pretty dress and that she put a blue sash on it in honor of the Blessed Mother. That's it. I don't remember even actually receiving. I do have strong memories of my first confession though! But first communion - not so much. I couldn't tell you who was there or what we did before or after, (although I do know my Dad wasn't there - I would have remembered that!)

And maybe that is how it should be. I want her to feel the happiness, the love, the reverence and to keep that. I will keep my small sorrows to myself. At 7 years old, maybe it should just be a day to be very excited about and then let it disappear into soft, happy, blurry childhood memories.

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Simple Woman

2013-04-22T20:01:00.002-04:00

Outside my window...
Sam and Izzy on the soccer field - Izzy the player and Sam the ref.

I am thinking...
about everything that has to be done for Rosie's first communion this upcoming weekend. We originally were going to wait and have it this summer in the town where she was baptized so that her godparents could attend. But Rosie really, really wanted to receive when her classmates do so she wouldn't be the only one in her PSR class who HAD NOT made her first communion. Unfortunately, her class is going to make it on Saturday - and that is a problem for us. With soccer in the morning for all of the kids (and Mr. Pete and I being in charge of striping the fields and bringing all of the nets and flags) it would have put a lot of pressure on us to get everything done and then get dressed up for a First Communion mass!

Then to make it even more interesting, Gabe, Noah and I are performing with the Bell Choir Saturday night - so it would have been a ridiculously full day!! Instead she is going to make it herself on Sunday, at mass with all of her immediate family there. I think it will be a nice day.

I am thankful ...
for this little girl that I had in my late 40s.

I remember reading something once about the greatest fear of couples was having a baby after 40. What complete and utter nonsense! I had Izzy at 40 and Rosie at 46 and I can't imagine how dull life would be without these two beautiful girls.

From the learning rooms...

Gabe and Noah are reading The Grapes of Wrath!
Spelling program per Dr. Holinga for all four kids.
Instacert for History and start American History part 2
American History at Homeschool Connections Recorded Courses, also started the Great Depression Class. .
Apologia Science - Physical for Noah, Biology for Gabe, and General for Izzy.
Saxon math for all with math tutor for Gabe and Noah.
Rosetta Stone Latin 3 - for Noah and Gabe
Diane Craft reading program for Izzy.
By the Shores of Silver Lake.

Pathway readers for Rosie and the Wand for Language arts.
Little House in the Highlands for Rosie

From the kitchen...
Shepherd's pie tonight. Barbecued pork chops tomorrow. Italian Chicken on Thursday - not sure yet about Thursday and Friday. First communion menu is sloppy joes with deviled eggs and potato salad with Izzy making the cake!

I am wearing...
Black pants and gray oversized T-shirt.

I am creating...
a beautiful first communion memory for my daughter.
I barely remember my first communion. I remember my grandma made my dress and I posed for pictures in front of our statue of the blessed mother (but also in front of our dilapidated above ground swimming pool. I remember the group picture and I also remember think I would feel something magical perhaps after I first received and feeling a little light headed. I also remember my father was not there for that.

I am going...
to work out the rest of the week. I walked three miles yesterday and worked out today. I might have to take off Thursday and Sunday though!

I am reading...

and

I am wondering...
if other families have as much fun during their homeschool day as we do! We always talk about the current events in our homeschool high school. Today I mentioned that Reese Witherspoon had been arrested for talking back to a police officer while he was checking her husband for DUI. Ms. Witherspoon apparently was very belligerent. When I mentioned this to Gabe he responded, "I'd like to see her Legally Blond her way out of this one!"

I am Hoping...
Now that Calvin has passed his paramedic course, that he can go on to successfully complete the program. I am hoping that he will marry his girlfriend and that they can stay in the area - those are my long-term hopes!!

Rubbing me the Wrong Way...
People who ask for controversial advice on Facebook, and then after battle rages for hours, announce they have made their decision. In this instance I am referring to immunizations - and for goodness sake at least do us the courtesy of pretending your doing some informed research - maybe take a day or two to think it over??? It would at least give me the illusion that the links I posted were appreciated and read!

I am Looking Forward To...
Rosie's First Communion.

I am hearing...
the buzzing in my ears, the hum of the computer, and finally kids playing outside!

A Picture I am Sharing...
Soccer season

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How liberals are winning the national debates

2013-04-18T17:41:00.002-04:00

It's hard to be on social media these days, or even to watch t.v., listen to the radio or read the newspaper - if you are a conservative. Sometimes I just have to shut myself away from everything outside of my house and just dive into reading, or housework, or doing something with the kids and forget that I am part of some larger society out there. Because guys... we ain't winning over the hearts and minds of America - far from it. As I have been watching over the past few weeks, it is clear to me that liberal are winning this thing and winning it by hook or by crook, and no one seems to care. Here are some perfect examples.

1. They don't fight fair! A perfect example of this was a recent debate on same sex marriage on CNN featuring Piers Morgan, Suze Orman and Ryan Anderson.

I would assume that if this was going to be a fair and equal debate, that all three of the people involved would be sitting or standing in the same venue as equals. That wasn't the case. While Morgan and Orman are seated at a table on a stage, Mr. Ryan is seated along with the other members of the audience. The message is clear - Morgan and Orman are in the power position and Ryan is going to be subordinate to them. I would also assume that since it is Morgan's show, that he would be acting as a host or moderator for the discussion, but that's not the case either. In fact it becomes clear very early on that he has chosen a side, and he is sitting at the table with Orman who also shares that position.

It appears to be a 2 against 1 situation right from the get to.
55 seconds into it Morgan is interogating Anderson. He doubles down at 1:06 and 1:20.
2:54 - false comparison between prisoners and Suze Orman, done deliberately to humiliate Mr. Anderson.
3:23 - if there was any doubt before that Morgan was going to be a moderator - it's all gone at this point.

The rest of the debate falls apart from there complete with condescension toward's Mr. Morgan at
5:33 and 5:40

part 2 is here.

Orman patronizing Anderson at about 1:58
appeal to the majority logical fallacy starting at around 3 minutes.

Oh, and I love Morgan lecturing Anderson (in his thick English accent) about what is and isn't American.

bleh...

2. Liberals run the news and they are now deciding what to cover and what not to cover depending on how it affects their agenda. Liberal commentator, Mark Lamont-Hill admits as much below.

3. Liberals are not afraid to bully, while telling everyone else not too! From the Prez calling senators cowards, to folks on facebook calling anti-SSM friends "Bigots" it's all an attempt to stop the dissent and get us all on board for the free sex, anti-child, anti-gun, heavy tax burdened big-government states of America. The home of the debt ridden and land of the fearful.

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The Simple Woman

2013-04-16T19:24:00.002-04:00

Outside my window...

I am thinking...
about the people of Boston, the victims of the attack and the rescuers and medical personal that helped them, and praying for peace and understanding.

I am thankful ...
that a high school classmate of mine who participated in the marathon was safe and unharmed in the explosions.

From the learning rooms...

Gabe and Noah are starting The Grapes of Wrath as of today!
Spelling program per Dr. Holinga for all four kids.
Instacert for History and start American History part 2
American History at Homeschool Connections Recorded Courses, also started the Great Depression Class. .
Apologia Science - Physical for Noah, Biology for Gabe, and General for Izzy.
Saxon math for all with math tutor for Gabe and Noah.
Rosetta Stone Latin 3 - for Noah and Gabe
Diane Craft reading program for Izzy.
By the Shores of Silver Lake.

Pathway readers for Rosie and the Wand for Language arts.
Little House in the Highlands for Rosie

I also had the boys watch a version of Our Town last week as part of our American Literature course. I always think it is better to watch a play than to read it!

From the kitchen...
I am a little off my schedule because we were asked to eat at a friend's house last night! very unusual for us to be guests during the week! So tonight I made spaghetti, keeping it simple after being graciously hosed last night! I am planning Italian Chicken for tomorrow and maybe meatloaf on Thursday.

I am wearing...
Gray workout pants and a gray T-shirt

I am creating...
Some blog posts for later in the week. I also hope to teach Izzy how to take out a zipper and put a new one in! I found a very cute dress for her to wear when she is with the choir- it is white on top and black on the bottom, but the side zipper is broken - so this will give her some good experience!

I am going...
to work out the rest of the week. I would also like to be using my new (used)camera by Thursday - hopefully.

I am reading...

I am wondering...
There was a place in the third act of Our Town, that the narrator says:

'\ know as well as I do that the dead don't stay interested in
us living people for very long. Gradually, gradually, they lose
hold of the earth ... and the ambitions they had ... and the
pleasures they had ... and the things they suffered ... and the
people they loved.
Yiet weaned away from earth-that's the way I_put it,-
weaned away.
And they stay here while the earth part of 'em burns away,
burns out; and all that time they slowly get indifferent to
what's goin' on in Grover's Corners.
\ They're waitin'. They're waitin' for something that they feel is
, comin'. Something important, and great. Aren't they waitin'
, for the eternal part in them to come out clear?

I have felt that in my own life.

Before I knew my baby had died, I remember waking up one night knowing that I did not have a connection to my baby - that somehow his connection to me and mine to him was not right. That was even before I knew he had died inside of me.

When my mother died, I could feel her presence with me everywhere. It was very strong and I was very comforted by it. I even felt so lucky that my mother was still with me, even though she had died. But now four years later, I don't feel her presence as much. Just sometimes, but it isn't as intense as it used to be either. It's strange.

The movie reminded me of that.

I am Hoping...
That Calvin passes a big test he is taking this evening. This is the test that knocked him out of the paramedic program last year.

I am Looking Forward to...
Rosie's first communion!

I am hearing...
the buzzing in my ears, the hum of the computer.

A Video I am Sharing...
A little performance I did on Sunday!

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7-Quick Takes

2013-04-15T10:25:00.000-04:00

Join Jen and the other Quicktakers over at the Conversion Diary
1. I had a busy week trying to get back into a schedule after spring break - which is a good reminder to me about why I do not want to take a long summer break! I know a lot of my homeschool friends are winding down for the year but I don't like to feel pressured, and besides, I have a lot of other fun things planned for the kids - and closing down for a long unproductive summer break is not one of them!

2. A couple of weeks ago I took Gabe down to a local charter school and got ready to sign him up. We had been butting heads about how late he sleeps, and not getting his school work done, and just about anything else we could fight over. This particular charter school didn't seem to have a problem with his coming from a homeschool background and so I was hoping this would be a good fit.

And then I started hearing more and more about this Core Curriculum and what it's impact on education is going to be, and I decided that I just couldn't go through with it. But more importantly, Gabe started looking up information about Core Curriculum and decided that HE couldn't go through with it either!

And ever since he has been making a lot more effort on his school work. So in a round about way, it's been a big success.

3. The interesting thing about Gabe is that he can think things through, but he has a difficult time translating his thought onto paper. He just took the soccer ref course for the third time and once again did not pass the exam, although he came really close this time. The examiner took him aside and gave him some questions verbally and Gabe gave extremely detailed and correct answers! It appeared to the examiner that the problem with the written exam is that Gabe is over thinking each option and then running out of time on the test -(which is probably why I need to test him more just so he has test-taking practice!) Anyway, after passing the exam orally with the examiner, Gabe got his patch for 2013 and will be reffing games this spring. Kind of the hard way to do it, but it worked.

4. My camera died! and I feel as if I lost an arm or something. This was the expensive Pentax I bought with money I got after my mom passed away. Luckily I found the exact same camera on eBay last week for half the price I paid for this one! So I bought it and I am sending mine off for repairs. Hopefully if all goes well, I will have two good cameras in a few weeks.

5. Rosie is making her first communion in a couple of weeks. I found her a lovely dress at Gabriel Brothers for under $20 (couldn't make it for that!) and I bought a nice veil on eBay. Rosie is a big fan of the old show, The Nanny, starring Fran Drescher, and when she saw the episode where Fran gets married, she wanted a veil just like that one!

I think I came pretty close! Of course Rosie doesn't have that much hair to put into a big buffant hairdo! But she will have a nice ballerina bun with her hair slicked back and I'm sure she won't notice the difference.

Meanwhile I can't believe my baby girl is making her first communion...

6. When I was a little girl, my Mom told me that I had Indian blood from my Father's side. For a while she told me it was Apache .Then later she said it wasn't - so I wasn't even sure if I had any Native American blood at all! But through the wonders of Ancestry.com I found the answers for myself!

The full Indian in my background is my great-frandfather:

Juan Ponciano Valentin Lujan (1841 - )

is your great grandfather

Lucia Lujan (1880 - 1959)

daughter of Juan Ponciano Valentin Lujan

Pedro E. (1915 - 2005)

son of Lucia Lujan

Elena

You are the daughter of Pedro E -

He was a Taos Pueblo Indian and his death was recorded on this official record. Died at age 85 of a strangulated hernia!

7. Then through the wonders of FindaGrave.com - I found his grave site. And I said a little prayer for him.

I appreciate the mountains and sun at the top of the grave stone. That type of art work is so important in New Mexico.

The inscription reads, Que Descanse En Paz (May He Rest In Peace)

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This will never happen under the Core Curriculum

2013-04-11T09:03:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the light blogging this week - coming back to a regular schedule after a week off for spring break is always a big jarring the first few days back. And also since I am not a professional blogger, I don't feel the responsibility to blog every day if my other responsibilities are calling me. When this blog starts feeling more like a (very low paying) job - I'll be done!

The debate over Core Curriculum has had my mind swimming over the past week or so. My state of Ohio is set to be in full compliance by the end of next year. And even though we are homeschoolers and have opted out of most standardized testing, I know that this will affect my kids when they take the ACT and SAT exams. So in a round about way, this does indeed affect all of us.

My curriculum tends is deeply literature based.

The Core Curriculum seems as if it is going to be watering down the exposure to good literature:

Loss of Classic LiteratureWhy do Common Core’s architects believe that reading more nonfiction and “informational” texts in English classes (and in other high school classes) will improve students’ college readiness?
Their belief seems to be based on what they see as the logical implication of the fact that college students read more informational than literary texts. However, there is absolutely no empirical research to suggest that college readiness is promoted by informational or nonfiction reading in high school English classes (or in mathematics and science classes).
In fact, the history of the secondary English curriculum in 20th-century America suggests that the decline in readiness for college reading stems in large part from an increasingly incoherent, less challenging literature curriculum from the 1960s onward. This decline has been propelled by the fragmentation of the year-long English course into semester electives, the conversion of junior high schools into middle schools, and the assignment of easier, shorter, and contemporary texts—often in the name of multiculturalism.
From about the 1900s—the beginning of uniform college entrance requirements via the college boards—until the 1960s, a challenging, literature-heavy English curriculum was understood to be precisely what pre-college students needed. Nonetheless, undeterred by the lack of evidence to support their sales pitch, Common Core’s architects divided all of the ELA reading standards into two groups: 10 standards for informational reading and nine for literary reading at every grade level.
This misplaced stress on informational texts (no matter how much is literary nonfiction) reflects the limited expertise of Common Core’s architects and sponsoring organizations in curriculum and in teachers’ training. This division of reading standards was clearly not developed or approved by English teachers and humanities scholars, because it makes English teachers responsible for something they have not been trained to teach and will not be trained to teach unless the entire undergraduate English major and preparatory programs in English education are changed.
Common Core’s damage to the English curriculum is already taking shape. Anecdotal reports from high school English teachers indicate that the amount of informational or nonfiction reading they are being told to do in their classroom is 50 percent or more of their reading instructional time—and that they will have time only for excerpts from novels, plays, or epic poems if they want students to read more than very short stories and poems.
Long-Term ConsequencesA diminished emphasis on literature in the secondary grades makes it unlikely that American students will study a meaningful range of culturally and historically significant literary works before graduation. It also prevents students from acquiring a rich understanding and use of the English language. Perhaps of greatest concern, it may lead to a decreased capacity for analytical thinking.

As a home educator, I find this to be very concerning, because most of our teachable moments have come about through the reading of great books.

Two such moments have happened this past week. Yesterday, my high school boys and I were reading Gift of the Magi, by O.Henry. This is the story of a young married couple that sacrifice their most precious possessions in order to buy Christmas presents for each other - the twist is that the gifts they give were to supplement or enhance the possessions that they no longer possess! After the reading I tried to impress upon the boys the great moral of sacrifice and love this couple had for each other... but my practical boys who have definitely lived through the financial ups and downs of our household, weren't having it!! The moral they got was, the importance of planning ahead for the holidays and making your goals together!! It's not that the boys are against self-sacrifice - what seemed to irk them was unnecessary and wasted self-sacrifice! It was a great discussion.

The second moment happened with my lovely 13-year-old daughter Izzy. Izzy and I made it a goal to read through the Little House Books this year. We started off with Little House in the Big Woods and are now up to On the Shores of Silver Lake.

I have found that when we read a series of books like this, we develop a relationship with the characters. It is as if we have watched Laura grow up from a little girl younger than Rosie is now, to a young lady who is now Izzy's age! We have seen Pa and Ma's struggles and we have discussed aspects of their lives as a married couple and as parents. We have cheered for them and we have had to put the book down and take a break because some of their hardships were heartbreaking or terrifying. And so it was as we started on the Shores of Silver Lake. This book opens with a much darker atmosphere than the other books. The home that is always so tidy and well kept is in deep disarray, everyone is recovering from scarlet fever except Laura and Pa, and Mary has tragically lost her vision to the disease. The first few pages are quite sobering after the comforting ending of the previous book On the Banks of Plumb Creek.

The Ma and Pa Ingals seem changed too. There is a new baby, little Grace, but she hasn't seemed to bring delight into the family. The years of struggling to survive in this place has taken its toll along with the illness and Mary's condition. Everyone is older, and even the faithful companion, Jack the family dog, is a shadow of his former self. Laura, who has been so busy trying to run the household and care for her weakened family and her blind sister, knows she has been neglecting her dog - and she knows her dog is still loving and loyal to her despite the oversights. Laura does make an effort to fix up Jack's little bed for him like she used to and he carefully steps into his bedding and does his three circles before plopping down awkwardly, and going to sleep. The next morning the stalwart little dog is cold and dead in his bed just where he fell asleep the night before.

And Izzy started sobbing. And then I started sobbing. And in a minute we were holding each other in our arms and crying over the death of this little dog that died over 100 years ago, far, far away from here. A dog that we never even set eyes on - except that we knew him. We remembered his antics and his bravery in the Little Woods, and we remembered his triumphant arrival in Indian Country after nearly drowning in the river, and we remembered all the help he gave Laura as they settled on The Banks of Plumb Creek. We knew him. And we know Laura and our grief was also for her and the aching emptiness that comes with the death of a good pet.

I think of these things and I am so grateful that I have had these opportunities with my children - to talk about great stories in the pages of literature - and the opportunity to experience the range of the human experience from people who lived in a different time and place - yet not so different from our own experience. And I wonder how a "Core Curriculum" is going to emulate any of that? What kind of emotion will reading manuals and technical books evoke from our students? The thought of it evokes boredom to my mind. It's a shame. I wouldn't have missed these experiences with my children for anything in the world - and as I look over the books planned for the rest of the year and the summer I look forward to even more such moments with my children. But what about the other children...? What a loss for them.

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7-Quick Takes

2013-04-07T17:03:00.000-04:00

Join Jen and the other Quicktakers over at the Conversion Diary

1. It was 30 degrees yesterday morning. It is 70 degrees today. I can't make up my mind weather I should put the screens in the windows or not. Looks like it will be warm all week and then into the 40s by Saturday - and of course the kids play soccer on Saturday so that makes it even more interesting!

2. Father V. had a wonderful homily today for Divine Mercy Sunday. It was along the lines of how to talk to someone (like and adult child) who we feel is living in a sinful way and endangering their immortal soul. He gave good examples from his own life and emphasized saying it once, being clear, and keeping the bonds of love open. I have more or less tried doing that with Calvin. I am very clear, and we still have good communication and strong bonds of love - however, I have repeated myself on more than one occasion and after hearing Father's talk I feel pretty satisfied that I have done what I can do and feel secure in that.

3. With my adult child that lives at home I have also tried to be loving and calm, straight forward and clear while speaking the truth. I've decided that in addition to that, I am also going to charge rent. An adult child that wants to act like a responsible son needs to abide by house rules. If he simply wants to be a tenant then there is a charge for that. I think it's a great deal too! $60/week which includes keeping his stuff here, use of the facilities including water, electric, free wi fi, and laundry, and also use of the car (which is still titled to us) and insurance! I don't think he could live anywhere else as economically. I also pointed out that since he is no longer a full time student and we cannot deduct him or get the child credit, then it's time to start contributing financially - and I feel very good about it!

4. Our Parochial Vicar also said something that resonated with me today. He was going over the Spiritual Works of Mercy which are:

» Admonish sinners

» Instruct the ignorant

» Counsel the doubtful

» Comfort the sorrowful

» Bear wrongs patiently

» Forgive injuries

» Pray for the living and the dead

I have no trouble with the first three, I feel called to do #4, and I pray for the living and the dead every day. But I have a hard time bearing wrongs patiently and of course with forgiveness. Listening to the prayers of the Divine Mercy and reading the literature I know that is what God does for me all the time! So this is something more to work on - patience and forgiveness.

5. It dawned on me today that Rosie will be making her first communion in a few weeks - and my mom won't be there. And it makes me so sad to think about that. She was always there for the other kids - and even flew up from New Mexico to be at Calvin's first communion. Rosie's godparents can't come either and my sister has to go to a graduation. It's rough to be the youngest kid with no grandparents. Mr. Pete says she won't know it's a big deal unless I make her think it is - and he's right. So far the only person feeling loss over this is me - and I want her to feel so special and loved on her first communion day.

6. I finally figured out this week that after all these years of tinnitus, I do indeed have some hearing loss. Mr. Pete and I went to practice this week and the church had the usual pool of water surrounded by beautiful spring flowers. As I was looking at the beautiful decorations, I mentioned to Mr. Pete that I thought it was a shame that they didn't have the water fountain going as well. He looked at me funny - because there hidden behind the flowers was indeed a bubbling fountain making a gentle stream sound. It was strange that once I knew it was there, I could hear it. But before that, I could not hear it at all.

7. With the Walking Dead over for the year, I found another series to get attached to - Call the Midwife!

From their website:

Call the Midwife, written by Heidi Thomas and based on the best-selling memoirs of the late Jennifer Worth, returns for a second season. Nonnatus House opens its doors to warmly welcome the audience back into 1950s East End London and continues to follow Poplar’s community of exceptional midwives and nursing nuns.

Season 2 stays true to the show's roots — viewers can expect to see more births, babies and bicycling, plus blossoming romance from an unexpected quarter.

What I enjoy about the program is that it shows natural childbirth handled by wise and experienced midwives! For my 13 year old daughter, who won't have a chance to see me giving birth again, the births in this show have been educational - as have some of the experiences of the mothers and the midwives. The lives of the Anglican Sisters is also a good topic for us to talk over together. I finished the first season on Netflix- Season two just started and the second episode is this evening.

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