Mom's Prayer

I was reading this at Sprittibee's blog and wanted to post it here, ENJOY!!!


Oh, God, my Father in Heaven, please make me a better parent. Help me to understand my children, to listen patiently to what they have to say, and to respond to their questions kindly. Help me to look not only to my interests, but also to theirs. Help me to see in them the gifts that you have placed, to nurture those gifts and add to them skills and experience. Keep me from interrupting them, talking back to them, and contradicting them. Let their words be precious to my ears. Make me as courteous to them as I would have them be to me. Prevent me from uttering words that are careless and do not lift them up. Fill my mouth with sound instruction and encouragement.

May I grant them all of their wishes that are reasonable and have the courage and strength to always withhold a privilege or gift which I know will do them harm - no matter what anyone else thinks. Let me test all things against the laws of Your Word. Let me give light to your Word in every circumstance, talking about it all the day long so that their entire world-view is wrapped up in your promises and truth. Let me base my decisions in love and be consistent in my parenting according to your precepts. Let them see me give you first place in my life and let them see me faithfully devote myself to the study of your Word and prayer.

Reduce, I pray, the meanness in me. May I cease to nag; and when I am out of sorts, help me, O Lord, to hold my tongue. Blind me to the little errors of my children and help me to see the good things they do. Give me a ready word for honest praise. Let me fall in love with them every day all over again. Help me appreciate the giggles and wiggles that you have placed in them instead of seeing them as an annoyance. Oh, that I could find joy in their laughter and not be so serious and distracted by the anxieties of life that I miss the short time I have to play with them and pick them up. Let me hold and kiss them each day.

Help me to treat my children as those of their own age. Let me not expect from them the restraint and judgment of an adult. Allow me not to rob them of the opportunity to wait upon themselves, to think for themselves, to discover for themselves, and to make their own decisions whenever possible. Help me to foster an environment of learning and a full knowledge of your Word. Lead me on straight paths in choosing what I teach to my children and help me be a thorough educator, never forsaking the building of their relationship with you or the character you desire in them for academics only.

Forgive my children any sins they commit - bring them to the surface so they may be dealt with early on. Forbid that I should ever punish them for my selfish satisfaction or out of anger. Give me the courage to confess my sins against my children and ask them for forgiveness when I know I have done wrong. May I not vainly hurt the feelings of my children. Forbid that I should laugh at their mistakes, or resort to shame and ridicule as punishment. Let me not tempt my children to lie or steal. Guide me hour by hour that I may demonstrate by all I say and do that honesty produces happiness. Let me be used by You to guide them into Your arms by my life.

Make me so fair and just, so considerate, companionable, and gentle - that they will have a genuine esteem for me. Fit me to be loved and imitated by my children as a Proverbs 31 woman. Let your Son shine in my heart as a beacon for them. Bless them and the future mates they will marry, protect them from physical harm and the spiritual wickedness that seeks to devour them in this world. Keep their minds, souls, hearts and bodies pure before you. Give them a heart that seeks to obey and please You. Let them desire to know You. Let their earthly father and I be the example of love and loyalty that they need to feel secure and know what to seek out in a relationship when they are grown. Oh, Father, give me the calm, poise, grace, wisdom and self-control that I need to ensure that they see You in my life.

Help me to display order, good stewardship, responsibility and patience in such a way that it will become part of who they are as well. May I bless you in honor for your trust in me to raise them. Let them grow to be oaks of righteousness - plantings of the Lord for the display of your splendor. Let goodness and mercy follow them through their whole lives. May they be bound to You forever, Amen.

Summer Time Blues

Well not much has been going on here, I thought our rebate check was going to be mailed out the 9th of May, NOT!!!! Our check won't be here until the middle of July :0( so we are awaiting it patiently so we can buy a new pool for the kids. They are so bored right now with the slip n slide.....
We took baby Nickie to the hosptial Sunday night with his mouth covered in white and crying...he has the "THRUSH" and its so painful. We got some Nystatin for it and today it looks horrible....praying he will feel better soon!!!

Pray for Steven Curtis Chapman's Family

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The 5-year-old daughter of contemporary Christian music star Steven Curtis Chapman was struck and killed Wednesday by a sport utility vehicle driven by her brother, authorities said.

The girl, Maria, was hit in a driveway on the family residence Wednesday afternoon by a Toyota Land Cruiser driven by her teenage brother, said Laura McPherson, a spokesman for the Tennessee Highway Patrol.

McPherson said no charges are expected.

"It looks like a tragic accident," she said.

She said several members of the Chapman family witnessed the accident, which happened in Williamson County just south of Nashville.

The brother apparently did not see the little girl, McPherson said. She did not have the name or exact age of the brother, only that he is an older teenager.

The girl died later at Vanderbilt Medical Center, hospital spokeswoman Laurie Holloway said.

Chapman, originally from Paducah, Ky., and his wife have promoted international adoption and have three daughters from China, including Maria.

Chapman has won five Grammy awards and 51 Dove awards from the Gospel Music Association.

The singer's Web site said that Chapman and his wife, Mary Beth, were persuaded by their oldest daughter to adopt a girl from China. The experience led the family to adopt two more children and create Shaohannah's Hope, a foundation and ministry to financially assist thousands of couples in adoption.

The Chapmans did missionary work at Chinese orphanages in 2006 and 2007, according to the Web site.

"After our first trip to China, my wife and I knew our lives were changing — our eyes and hearts were opening to how big God really is, and we have wanted to experience more of that," Chapman says on the Web site. "We've really wondered whether or not we should just go to China and stay there. But I don't think so. I believe God is saying, 'I want you to go, get your heart broken, your eyes opened, and then take this story back to the church in America and around the world."'

Chapman also has released a book about being a father entitled "Cinderella: The Love of Daddy and his Princess."

Dr Jeckyl or Mr Hyde?

Okay, Im really fuming right now.....I am posting a website to read about this dr who is performing sex change operation's on children as young as 7 yrs old. It's already a shock about the recent ban lift on gay marriages but this is just horrible, Christian's in America "WAKE UP" out of your placebo and we have to pray and seek God like never before....


http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,356592,00.html

Holy, Holy, Holy

Just wanted to post this, I love this song by Paul Wilbur its so awesome!!!

I saw this and had to post it here, enjoy!!!

Why are you crying, Mom?

"Why are you crying?" he asked his Mom. "Because I'm a
woman" she told him. "I don't understand," he said. His
Mom just hugged him and said, "And you never will"........

Later the little boy asked his father, "Why does mother
seem to cry for no reason? "All women cry for no reason"
was all his dad could say........

The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering
why women cry...

Finally he put in a call to GOD; when GOD got on the phone
the man said, "GOD, why do women cry so easily?"
and GOD said.......

When I made woman, she had to be special. I made her
shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the World;
yet, gentle enough to give comfort....

I gave her an inner strength to endure childbirth and the
rejection that many times comes from her children......

I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going when
everyone else gives up and take care of her family through
sickness and fatigue without complaining......

I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances, even when her child has hurt her
very badly...

This same sensitivity helps her to make a child's boo-boo
feel better and shares in their teenagers anxieties and
fears.......

I gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults
and fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart.....

I gave her wisdom to know that a good husband never hurts
his wife, but, sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfalteringly.....

I gave her tears to shed. They are hers to use whenever she
needs them. They are her secret strength. They make her
more like ME.....
Author Unknown

Habit Cough?

Today we went to the allergy dr for a 2 month check up for ds-12 and a follow-up appt for ds-9, the dr is referring ds-9 to an ENT for x-rays and a check up to make sure that he doesn't have something else going on, then he will be sending him to a speech therapist for bio feedback......for a "HABIT COUGH", never heard of it but its some sort if tick , and it just gets worse. He has had this cough now for 3 weeks and it's continuous and driving us all crazy!!!
On the lighter note ds-12 is doing great and it rained today so hopefully it will wash some of the pollen away.....below is a description of a "Habit Cough"....


HABIT COUGH IN CHILDREN

A habit cough is a cough that occurs in the absence of any underlying disease. It is very common, affecting boys and girls equally. Habit cough most frequently affects school age children, usually those in later primary school or early high school.

Features
A habit cough is usually loud, harsh, honking or barking. It may follow a viral illness, but can go on for weeks, months or even, in extreme cases, years.

It can occur many times in a minute, and often becomes more severe when other people are around and if the cough is the subject of the conversation. Even though the habit cough can sound ferocious, the child is usually quite comfortable between coughing bouts. Classically, a habit cough only occurs when the child is awake. It does not occur during sleep.

Habit cough is not associated with shortness of breath or wheeze. If these symptoms develop, it is more likely the cough relates to an underlying disease.

Diagnosis
Your doctor can diagnose habit cough by confirming the presence of the above-mentioned features and excluding any underlying medical conditions that could be causing the problem. This will require a physical examination, and possibly also lung function tests, a blood test and a chest X-ray.

Treatment
Firstly, it is important to recognise that despite the disruptive nature of the cough, and its harsh sound, habit cough is not a dangerous condition, and your child in fact is healthy. Sometimes the simple reassurance that the cough is not serious and will go away helps resolve the symptoms.

The use of cough lollies or a sip of water can also help suppress the urge to cough. It is important to give positive reinforcement in the form of praise and positive comments when there is any evidence that the cough is diminishing.

Habit cough is generally a manifestation of a perceived stress or anxiety. Your child might be able to isolate this stress by identifying situations in which the cough gets worse. For example, bullying in the schoolyard and travelling to and from school is a common trigger of habit cough.

If your child is not improving, your doctor may suggest referral to a child psychologist or similar health professional.

Allergies

The past 2 weeks we have all had allergy attacks, I had to take ds-9 to the allergy dr Monday- which is about 100 miles from our home. He still has an sinus infection and inflamation from his asthma. We already did the steroid thing, now he/we are taking our Flonase, Flovent and asthma meds hoping he/we will be getting over this soon. Noah is still coughing , hopefully this will pass soon.
We live in the country on 14 acres so we have all the trees, pollen, and ragweed to deal with and lately it feels like March with the wind and now their planting and stirring all the sand up here, hoping it's done soon so we can spend the summer outdoors and in the pool.

Please pray for this Homeschooling family...

Please pray for this family, Josephine's husband was killed Sunday May 11th ( Mother's Day) she is a homeschool Mom who lives in North West Alabama with her family. Here is her website: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/dixiecajuns/530801/ Please stop by to leave her a comment or prayer or whatever the Lord puts on your heart.

Why God Made Mother's.........

These are answers from a 2nd grade class of school children......too cute!!!!

Why did God make mothers?

1. She’s the only one who knows where the scotch tape is.

2. Mostly to clean the house.

3. To help us out of there when we were getting born.


How did God make mothers?

1. He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.

2. Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.

3. God made my mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts.


What ingredients are mothers made of?

1. God makes mothers out of clouds and angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of mean.

2. They had to get their start from men’s bones. Then they mostly use string, I think.


Why did God give you your mother and not some other mom?

1. We’re related.

2. God knew she likes me a lot more than other people’s moms like me.


What kind of little girl was your mother?

1. My mom has always been my mom and none of that other stuff.

2. I don’t know because I wasn’t there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.

3. They say she used to be nice.


What did your mother need to know about dad before she married him?

1. His last name.

2. She had to know his background. Like is he a crook? Does he get drunk on beer?

3. Does he make at least $800 a year? Did he say NO to drugs and YES to chores?


Why did your mother marry your dad?

1. My dad makes the best spaghetti in the world. And my mom eats a lot.

2. She got too old to do anything else with him.

3. My grandma says that mom didn’t have her thinking cap on.


Who’s the boss at your house?

1. Mom doesn’t want to be boss, but she has to because Dad’s such a goof ball.

2. Mom. You can tell by room inspection. She sees the stuff under the bed.

3. I guess Mom is, but only because she has a lot more to do than dad.


What’s the difference between mothers and fathers?

1. Moms work at work and work at home. Dads just go to work at work.

2. Moms know how to talk to teachers without scaring them.

3. Dads are taller and stronger, but moms have all the real power ’cause that’s who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your friend’s.

4. Moms have magic; they make you feel better without medicine.


What does your mother do in her spare time?

1. Moms don’t do spare time.

2. To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.


What would it take to make your mother perfect?

1. On the inside she’s already perfect. Outside, I think some kind of plastic surgery.

2. Diet - You know…her hair. Maybe blue.


If you could change one thing about your mother, what would it be?

1. She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I’d get rid of that.

2. I’d make my mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who did it and not me.

3. I would like for her to get rid of those invisible eyes on her back.

Hearing God 101

This is an article written by Barbara Shelton, you can go to her site and read the entire article.

I believe there are a few different methods ~ or tools ~ that God uses to
teach us how to hear His voice. Of course, there are two very foundational
elements to this, and they are both contained in this verse:
"If today you hear His voice, harden not your heart."
It starts with God calling. God is calling us. This is all through the word:
"Come let us reason together…
Come to Me all who labor and are heavy-laden… and learn from Me...
Come to Me with your ears wide open…"
And then the other element, of course, is us listening! If we hear Him calling
us ~ and, by the way, He always is ~ then we
need to choose to listen! Even if we don't think
we can hear Him very well. We start by
obeying!
Would you like some ideas and tips for
learning how to increase your ability to hear
God? ….. Here are ten things God has used in
my life to help or to teach me how to hear His
voice…
1) Read God's Word. Of course, you have
to READ it for this one to work. "Thy word
have I hid in my heart." Notice WHO is doing
the hiding. YOU. This one is up to YOU. God will give you the interest and
desire, if you lack either, and if you want ~ and ask ~ Him to give it to you,
and He will give you the self-discipline, if you lack ~ and ask Him ~ for that.
But YOU have to actually DO it.

2) Prayer. This is two-way conversing ~ where we TALK with God, and
practice LISTENING to Him. (And that "listening" part, of course, is what
we're working on honing here.) "Pour out your longings before Him, for He
can help." (Psalms 62:8) Just as with the conversations we have with
people, there are a few different angles to prayer. They are:
~ Giving Thanks - "I will enter His gates with thanksgiving in my heart..."
Having a thankful heart actually opens up the way to getting into God's
presence. It makes sense... When I have gone to a lot of trouble to give
someone a gift (and I've done NOTHING compared to what GOD has done for
us!), and the recipient thanks me for it, my heart immediately opens up to
them! This pre-supposes that one's heart is already right with God. If it
isn't, then the next angle is necessary, and should be taken care of first...
"If today you
hear His
voice, harden
not your
heart."

~ Repentance - In the Lord's Prayer it says: "Forgive us our sins..." Be
specific as the Holy Spirit reminds you of what you need to ask forgiveness
for. Consider this verse: "Who shall stand in God's holy place? He who has
clean hands and a pure heart."
~ Petition - This is probably the most common form of prayer. Even non-
Christians do it! This is because our human nature is inclined to ~ and adept
at ~ ASKING for things! Here's how you can pray another portion of the
Lord's Prayer: "Give us [me] this day our [my] daily bread" ~ which is
whatever needs You, Lord, see that I have spiritually, emotionally, physically,
health-wise, time-wise, etc." We also pray for family, friends – saved and
unsaved – the Body of Christ, etc. as Jesus prayed in the garden: "Keep
them from the evil one... May God's joy be fulfilled in them... Keep them in
God's Name... Sanctify them in the Truth." Pray favorite Scripture verses
over them.
(These ideas are borrowed from my "Commune With Me" Guide." -
http://www.homeschooloasis.com/commune_with_me_guide.htm)

3) Worship. This could be considered another
aspect of "Prayer," but it's so important that it merits
its own separate listing. Worship involves focusing
on GOD, not on us. True worship involves both
SPIRIT and TRUTH. True worship is getting our eyes
OFF of ourselves and ONTO God. And there is
something transforming about this!
"But we know this, that when we He
appears, we will be like Him, for we will
see Him as He really is." (I John 3:2-3)
Notice it is the very looking at God that changes
us?!?!?!?!? The converse of this is that it's actually a
principle that holds true in a negative way. The more
we look at ~ and listen to ~ worldly music,
television, books, etc. the more we will become like
those. So even our seemingly "neutral" choices
greatly affect our ability to hear God!

4) Obedience. Think of your own children for a
moment… How likely is it that you will be inclined to
tell your child something else to do if they haven't followed through on the
last thing you asked them to do? John 4:34 reads:
"My food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to
accomplish His work." (John 4:34)
Doing God's
will is not
only very
satisfying, it
is also FOOD
~ and is
nourishment
to our "spirit
man" ~
which
includes our
spiritual
eardrums!
6
Doing God's will is not only very satisfying, it is also FOOD ~ and is
nourishment to our "spirit man" ~ which includes our spiritual eardrums!

5) Mentoring/Discipling/Study/Reading. Reading books is actually
"mentoring" on a one-way basis. When you
read a book, you are actually studying under
the person who wrote it. Discipling is
mentoring on a two-way basis. Unfortunately,
though, we have a great need for mentors.
You can be in a church or support group
without one person who understands where
you're at with homeschooling or your walk
with God. This is not a pride thing; it is a pure
and simple matter of "like-mindedness." If you
do not have a person in your life with whom
you can mentor ~ and it can go both ways ~
then God will provide what you need in
another way. It may be that He doesn't even
want you to have contact with people. After
Paul was knocked off his horse with the
blinding light, it says that he "did not confer
with flesh and blood" for quite some time.

6) Die to Self. There is some "old" stuff in you ~ in your thinking, your
heart, your belief system, your attitudes ~ that God just plain wants to deal
a death blow to, but "old" seldom dies a quick, easy death! It takes time. You
may need to allow God to take you through a season of drawing close to Him
for the purpose of letting Him do the needed work (surgery) in your heart.
And THAT is the exact purpose behind my Season of Re-education and
Renewing of the Mind
(http://www.homeschooloasis.com/barb_sheltons_homeschool_course_intro.
htm)!

7) Rest in the Lord. This is a hard one for those who are the "take
charge" type, yet it's where the most power lies, and where the most work
will be done in us! A perfect example (and the very first one we have from a
human) is: How did Adam "hear God" on who he should marry? He went to
SLEEP! He didn't look at all! He just slept, and "while he was sleeping God
formed the woman... and brought her to him." This "resting" also involves
just "resting our case" before the Lord ~ so that He is free(er) to have His
way.

8) Delight yourself in the Lord. How does THIS one help hone your
ability to hear God?!?! It is where our HEART gets lined up with God's
HEART. And it is in this alignment that we are the most receptive to ~ and
able to hear ~God's voice. Our worldly desires not only distract us, they also
dull our ability to hear God, because they pull our attention and focus away
from Him.
There is some
"old" stuff in you
~ in your
thinking, your
heart, your belief
system, your
attitudes ~ that
God just plain
wants to deal a
death blow to…

(Are you beginning to see how much of "hearing God" has to do with
"clearing the path" ~ so that He has a place to access our hearts and lives?!?
Or we could use the analogy of "clearing the runway so He has a place to
land. )

9) Walk in and by the Spirit. This has to do with not only what we DO
and SAY, but how we RESPOND and THINK. It is our connectedness to the
Holy Spirit that affects that first response, not just repenting over and over
for the same thing. Yes, repenting is good, but walking in and by the Holy
Spirit changes us from the inside out. We need to grow up into the full
stature of the Lord, not just stay on milk all our lives. (See Marilyn
Howshall's article "Walking by the Spirit"
(http://www.homeschooloasis.com/art_walking_by_spirit_mh.htm) for much
more in-depth study of this!)

10) Adverse Circumstances. I can pretty much guess that this is the
LEAST favorite means of learning to hear God, yet it is one of the most
effective! Of course, this isn't something we
DO, it's something we YIELD to, and walk with
God through. Because this one is SO important,
and yet probably the most misunderstood and
least talked about in Christianity today, I'm
going to camp here for a bit… How you see and
respond to this could actually be the very thing
that will bring a breakthrough in your ability to
hear God…
The idea of God allowing suffering or bringing
"negative judgment" upon our lives raises
questions that go far beyond the realm of
homeschooling. It is not a popular topic within
the church today, as suffering is often associated with God's judgment, and
we much prefer to live in "grace," me included! But we need to remember
this:
"Know then in your heart that, as a man disciplines his
son, the Lord your God disciplines you." (Deut.8:5)
There are times that an erring child will do as he/she wishes, and the parent
will allow him or her to suffer the natural consequences of their choice(s)…
But there are other times when this isn't appropriate, and specific action –
which I'm sure my child would interpret as "negative judgment" – is
necessary. It is actually grace that I do this because allowing the error to
continue uncorrected would result down the road in much more serious
consequences than merely my "negative judgment" now.

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions...

The past few weeks I have scanned over hundreds of books, for our new homeschooling year. And I have prayed and trusted the Lord to help me and what we have come up with this Fall is Language from Queens Homeschool and My Father's World US History . We're also staying with Math U See, my kids love it, and we're also ordering Diana Waring's - cd's " What in the Worlds Going On Here? and the lapbook cd's for Apologia's Exploring Botany, they have them at Rainbow Resource.

We're still working on dd-16 high school curriculum, when I get it done I will post it here.

Sweetly Broken

I was listening to this song, and wanted to post it here. Lately, all I want to do is listen to worship music... this song really touched me.




Jeremy Riddle - Sweetly Broken
From the album Sweetly Broken

To the cross I look, to the cross I cling
Of its suffering I do drink
Of its work I do sing

For on it my Savior both bruised and crushed
Showed that God is love
And God is just

Chorus:
At the cross You beckon me
You draw me gently to my knees, and I am
Lost for words, so lost in love,
I’m sweetly broken, wholly surrendered

What a priceless gift, undeserved life
Have I been given
Through Christ crucified

You’ve called me out of death
You’ve called me into life
And I was under Your wrath
Now through the cross I’m reconciled

Chorus:

In awe of the cross I must confess
How wondrous Your redeeming love and
How great is Your faithfulness

(2x’s)
Chorus: