tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:11:57 +0000HomeschoolYou CaptureCooking and RecipesMarriageDay to DayPregnancyThankful ThursdayMontessori HomeschoolMarriage MondayHomeschool HighlightsWorks-for-Me Wednesday10 Days of "I Wish I Had Known"Journey to True FriendshipFriendshipRandomnessJoys underfootIn Other WordsWordless WednesdayHonors ReceivedGrowing in FaithSeven Quick Takeshttp://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.com (Christine)Blogger781125blogspot/bEJoshttp://feedburner.google.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-3462524336454116705Fri, 20 Jan 2012 11:49:00 +00002012-01-20T06:52:09.233-05:00 So, the holidays and vacation have thrown me completely off-kilter, and since my home and my wonderful family are more important, and I can't share about fruit I'm not actually bearing, I'm taking the next couple of weeks to get schooling and the housework (seriously, you should see this place!) under control.  I've had lots of great learning experiences lately, so I'll be back on February 1st http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/0Ca1MDihGlI/tending-to-whats-important.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)1http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2012/01/tending-to-whats-important.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-4033274130285642411Mon, 16 Jan 2012 12:55:00 +00002012-01-16T10:20:19.406-05:00 I've been rather quiet here, and on Twitter and Facebook.  For good reason. I've been enjoying my hubby on a small island off of Venezuela called Aruba. It's been rough, I tell you. Kids had tons of fun with grandparents, aunt and uncle and cousins.  Getting spoiled rotten, I assume.  And we sat on sunny beaches, wind whipping our hair, tiki hut and 50 spf keeping us from sunburn.  We read http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/Ky1C1putx-c/tropical-hiatus.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)1http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2012/01/tropical-hiatus.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-7375694991502224044Wed, 04 Jan 2012 01:25:00 +00002012-01-06T21:21:07.119-05:00Growing in Faith 2012 jumped in front of me with thumbs in its ears and tongue sticking out.  It spit raspberries and laughed, waggled its fingers and whooped. Then it ran, taunting, as I tried to catch my breath and follow.  But I had to just rest against a tree and get my bearings.  I'm still not really ready. I know the newness is here.  I have always been a resolution-maker and a word-chooser.  Being an http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/eU12VuTtJrQ/its-here-and-im-not-ready.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2012/01/its-here-and-im-not-ready.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-3420969262606732269Mon, 02 Jan 2012 10:01:00 +00002012-01-06T21:21:07.120-05:00MarriageGrowing in Faith We have these awesome white towels, in two different textures, which were given to us as a wedding gift.  At the time, I kind of thought, "Towels?  Seriously?", but they soon settled comfortably into neatly stacked piles on a shelf in our master bath.  We use them day in and day out, wash them weekly, bleach them occasionally, and still they do the job.  They are the absolute best towels in thehttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/JVm4J7UJpgg/investment.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2012/01/investment.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-8627294302135818180Tue, 20 Dec 2011 10:01:00 +00002011-12-20T09:24:21.868-05:00 May the joy, peace, hope and love of the Savior accompany all of your celebrations. See you in the New Year, friends! http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/3KQUaIu8SCw/musical-christmas-gift.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/12/musical-christmas-gift.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-8860863596716475792Fri, 16 Dec 2011 10:01:00 +00002011-12-16T06:12:12.541-05:00 I've read so many wonderful posts this week that I just needed to share them. Enjoy, and happy weekend! All homeschools should have one common factor: grace, at Educating Laytons Another beautiful post about grace, at Caroline G Joy shares her grace story at Stacey's A post from Maggie Hogan about giving ourselves grace: How NOT to do it all at Christmas Beauty and grace and real from Kris http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/Xp--TGfSm1c/to-take-you-into-weekend.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/12/to-take-you-into-weekend.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-9091209874991685429Thu, 15 Dec 2011 02:26:00 +00002012-01-06T21:21:07.120-05:00Growing in Faith I am a real flesh-and-blood woman. I make real messes, yell real loud, and have real doubts.  I glare real daggers at my husband when he's done something I don't like, I have a real problem with patience, and I often cry real tears of frustration when things don't go as I had planned. And I sometimes think, when I read your blogs, that you are simply not real.  That you don't make messes, http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/y8hJHTn0JBs/open-letter-to-fellow-blogging-women.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)2http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/12/open-letter-to-fellow-blogging-women.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-327621901254079313Tue, 13 Dec 2011 18:32:00 +00002012-01-06T21:21:07.121-05:00Growing in Faith I feel them poking through, and I know I'm in danger of harming someone I love.  Everything in me wants to lash out, to make my hurt, my mood, fade by sending barbs flying.  In these moments I am (irrationally and wrongly) convinced that I can relieve myself of the prickly parts by attacking. It all happens so quickly I can barely contain the impulse. Barely. And "barely" is still an http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/NUSqVMwho60/when-youre-feeling-prickly.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/12/when-youre-feeling-prickly.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-3603100545730885645Fri, 09 Dec 2011 15:37:00 +00002012-01-06T21:24:37.437-05:00Joys underfoot I find myself praying that the Lord will help my children be different,that they will be an example,of love, and compassion and grace. And I hear Him answering today, "You be different, my child. For it is you they see,you they watch with impressionable eyes,and you they seek to imitate. It is you I have chosen to show them my example,in the flesh, day in and day out,so they can then do http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/f5g3Jv59xpY/be-different.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/12/be-different.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-8384572513460796865Wed, 07 Dec 2011 22:12:00 +00002011-12-07T17:12:25.133-05:00 The journey of faith is one that is at once communal and individual.  The older I get, and the more I face trials from within and without, the more I realize that the path we walk with Jesus is varied as well as narrow.  How can we, messy and flawed as we all are, judge another's journey?  My beautiful friend Heather shares a piece of her journey here today.  Welcome her with me... Is there http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/ElZTUJZIbCM/guest-post-leaving-church.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)1http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/12/guest-post-leaving-church.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-8484004191843237456Mon, 05 Dec 2011 10:01:00 +00002012-01-06T21:21:07.122-05:00MarriageGrowing in Faith I promised I would keep it clean and sparkly. My engagement ring- a beautiful princess-cut diamond in a simple gold setting- sat perched on my finger after that chilly December day.  That day I followed rose petals through the woods to find my love, my friend of many years, waiting on one knee with a little velvet box. And as I gazed at the mini-lightning bursts coming out of my beautiful http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/gYHln_LJax8/polish-and-shine.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/12/polish-and-shine.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-1993826825008687064Fri, 02 Dec 2011 11:34:00 +00002011-12-02T06:34:53.620-05:00This is not something I do very often, this writing with abandon for five guided minutes.  I usually work off of my own inspiration only and a prompt is not an easy thing for me.  But today, I felt bold!  I need the practice, and what better way to get it than among community. I know he does it for us. Sometimes he comes home so late that I'm already asleep, no matter how hard I tried to stay http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/RKcAM_4MRnM/five-minute-friday-tired.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/12/five-minute-friday-tired.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-7189467047676217256Thu, 01 Dec 2011 10:01:00 +00002012-01-06T21:21:33.895-05:00Friendship Recently I invited a wonderful friend and her four adorable kids over for the afternoon.  I promised I would not clean first.  For some reason this promise was a challenge for me and it seemed to indicate a shift in friendship from "I'm trying to impress you" to "Here I am in all my messiness".  I almost swept (which I hadn't done in over a week) but I didn't.  Instead, before she came and http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/VakIxFrwkM0/kitchen-friends.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/12/kitchen-friends.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-5750952694152875406Tue, 29 Nov 2011 12:21:00 +00002012-01-06T21:21:07.123-05:00Growing in Faith Hope Joy  Peace Love It's in the air, and tingling in my chest.  It's the waiting, the straining to see ahead, the anticipation of all that we already know He brings.  Each Tuesday in Advent I want to celebrate with my favorite verses on one of these four words.  Small words, each one, but like the Baby we can't wait to celebrate, these are words that hold infinite meaning and are part http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/SlVKGu128_s/top-ten-tuesday-hope.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/top-ten-tuesday-hope.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-6659163217862543065Mon, 28 Nov 2011 10:01:00 +00002012-01-06T21:21:07.123-05:00Growing in Faith I love being the one holding the paper and the pencil. Whether it's mini-golf, yahtzee, or bowling (remember the days when we got to keep score ourselves?), my family always knows to just hand the paper to me.  As a good homeschooler should, I occasionally hand it over to one of my kids so that they can work on their math skills, but I'm usually still itching to do it myself. I'm faster, andhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/w08G_nli_UQ/keeping-score.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/keeping-score.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-476917252741306137Wed, 23 Nov 2011 10:01:00 +00002012-01-06T21:21:07.124-05:00Growing in Faith I hold my pen above the paper, suspended.  I'm trying to think of something to write that is worthy of the occasion.  That number waits expectantly on my paper.  A one followed by three zeros.  I search my heart and look around to find the perfect thing, the perfect gift... It's a simple spiral bound notebook.  Nothing flashy.  An unassuming green single subject collection of 70 pages, and http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/vILqcVyrmz4/why-it-matters.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)1http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/why-it-matters.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-3133448128128254627Tue, 22 Nov 2011 10:01:00 +00002012-01-06T21:21:07.125-05:00Growing in Faith The wind sweeps over me, through me and I just can't hold on I must let go of somethingI bear no fruitleaves turn in on themselves, deadand fall to the groundforgotten pieces of a bright and full seasondespair peeks in at the cornerswaiting for an invitation,or simply for me to turn the other wayso I can't see him tiptoe in he clings to my bare brancheshis many-legged form reaching and http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/sdpXsoJcGYg/what-god-can-do-with-bare-branches.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/what-god-can-do-with-bare-branches.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-7698896119651782305Sat, 19 Nov 2011 18:31:00 +00002011-11-19T13:31:13.404-05:00 Since I am so technologically-challenged, I opted for the "write-everyone's-name-on-a-hot-pink-slip-of-paper-and-choose-from-a-hat" format of winner selection.   My oldest asked what I was doing... ...so I let him choose. And he chose Allie with her comment on post #10!  Congrats, Allie! Allie, please email me at fruitinseason@yahoo.com. Thanks to all who read and commented!  I so enjoyed http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/G1eLilx5AUI/10-days-giveaway-winner.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/10-days-giveaway-winner.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-484296019496433964Fri, 18 Nov 2011 10:01:00 +00002011-11-18T05:01:00.332-05:00Homeschool10 Days of "I Wish I Had Known" I've spent a lot of time these last two weeks pondering the things I would do differently if I had it to do over again.  Homeschooling is nothing if not a profound journey of mistakes, growth and change.  There's no getting around the fact that homeschooling is hard work.  It's a life of sacrifice and frustration and humility. Yet it is also a life of rich rewards. I want to end this http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/2v5FllTF3y4/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-10.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)1http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-10.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-8609552947376587689Thu, 17 Nov 2011 10:01:00 +00002011-11-17T06:38:12.496-05:00Homeschool10 Days of "I Wish I Had Known" {Click the button on the sidebar for the whole series} As I've written this series, it has occurred to me that many of my "a-ha" learning experiences have morphed out of my desires and expectations (both pro and con) from the very beginning of my homeschool journey.  One in particular has been a challenge and a surprise to me. Probably at the top of our list of reasons we wanted to homeschool inhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/3RExZPZO2rA/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-9.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-9.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-2085840070126023601Wed, 16 Nov 2011 10:01:00 +00002011-11-16T21:02:00.535-05:00Homeschool10 Days of "I Wish I Had Known" {Click the sidebar button to find the rest of the series} When you think of a school schedule, what does it look like? September through June?  8am to 4pm?  Two weeks off for Christmas? If you went through public or private traditional school, your default will be what you know.  Add that to the regulations in some states (180 days, 900 hours, marking and providing attendance sheets...) and it http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/UMVtTSxXbGc/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-8.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-8.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-8817826264292745051Tue, 15 Nov 2011 10:01:00 +00002011-11-16T21:02:00.536-05:00Homeschool10 Days of "I Wish I Had Known" {Click the sidebar button to find the whole series} I am an all-or-nothing type of gal.  I am absolutely, positively blessed to be married to a man who is my "steady", my "even", my "calm", 'cause to tell you the truth, my emotions and moods would leave me in a heap some days if I didn't have him to hold me up. What does this have to do with homeschooling, you ask? Good question!  Let me tell http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/SvqPn08w5S4/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-7.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-7.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-1075194358060387323Mon, 14 Nov 2011 10:01:00 +00002011-11-14T11:28:23.476-05:00Homeschool10 Days of "I Wish I Had Known" Welcome!  If you're just joining me for the series here's a look back at the posts from last week.  You can also click on the sidebar button to find them all in one place. Introduction The Schoolroom Just Relax Days Off The Curriculum Today's bit of hard-earned wisdom is this: Instead of spending energy trying to convince the naysayers, spend it cultivating relationships of support. When we http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/pDeqH5qc-i8/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-6.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-6.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-1653049154028129346Fri, 11 Nov 2011 10:01:00 +00002011-11-11T09:53:06.515-05:00Homeschool10 Days of "I Wish I Had Known" Have you experienced the nearly-divine beauty of the Rainbow Resource annual catalog? One of my favorite things to do in my early years of homeschooling was to grab a highlighter, sit with this heaven-sent gift when it arrived in the mail, and flip through every. single. page.  There were so many possibilities!  And I was certain that as I searched through the the vast array of choices I wouldhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/yf8uZyIqx7E/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-5.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)0http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-5.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32543471.post-6476052003936232217Thu, 10 Nov 2011 10:01:00 +00002011-11-11T09:53:06.516-05:00Homeschool10 Days of "I Wish I Had Known" I am going to give you permission in this post. It will not be long. It will certainly not be profound. But it will be true.  And you will thank me. PMS is a good enough reason to take a day off.   And so is a messy house, a broken dishwasher, an unexpected day off of work for Daddy, a gorgeous day that begs to be spent outside, suitcases that sit out waiting to be packed for an upcoming http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/bEJos/~3/0NvPyx_7KDQ/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-4.htmlnoreply@blogger.com (Christine)1http://fruitinseason.blogspot.com/2011/11/10-days-of-i-wish-i-had-known-day-4.html