Our God is an Awesome God

A friend of mine sent this quote to me, and I had to include it here since it speaks to what I just posted last week:

It is a wondrous feature of the cosmos, how ideas repeat themselves at vastly different scales: As planets and stars move in grand systems about their orbits, so the electrons move about a nucleus. So too the same pattern is found within the microcosm of the human being—and at every scale of every thing, from every frame of reference. At each level there is a wholeness and a oneness, and yet each breaks down into yet more minute particles creating yet another realm of wholeness—and we have yet to find its end. A perfect harmony of oneness from which comes an infinitude of beings.

The artist has left His signature within His masterpiece, and His imprint within each and every detail.

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands!" ~Psalm 19:1

How vast the universe is...and yet He "created my inmost being; He knit me together in my mother's womb". ~Psalm 139:13

Be Careful What You Say

(This is Belle, born 7 1/2 years ago...she was covered head to toe with black fur!) This morning, the girls and I got to talking about how even people who write encyclopedia articles can be wrong about what they write about...especially if they go against what Scripture teaches on a subject.

In our home, we don't believe that we evolved from primates. So as I "waxed eloquent" in my attempt to teach how magnificently designed and patterned our world and our universe is, I drew on all I could to illustrate my point. I spoke of how looking at the design, pattern and careful assembly of Mimi's quilts shows us that there has to be a quilt-maker. I spoke of looking at great literary works hundreds of pages long, and reasoning that these letters, words, pages and chapters couldn't just become randomly assembled if just given enough time.

Oh, I was on a role! The examples and illustrations were just pouring forth! Belle seemed to be quietly pondering, and Moo was beaming and nodding in agreement. Wow, this is what I want every day to be...filled with obvious, fruitful discussion and teaching! And did I mention how eloquent I thought I was being?!?

And then she said it.

Yes, it was Belle.

A simple statement, but it promptly ended my idyllic moment:

"But I thought you said I looked like a monkey when I was born?"

CC Follies

The girls and I go to our Classical Conversations group each Tuesday from 9 to 1pm. It is meant to be a helpful supplement for homeschool families who are taking a classical route in educating their children.
This year, as I have mentioned in prior posts, I am the tutor of the Apprentice level class. They are the 1st & 2nd graders, and I am so proud of them! They are doing a great job with all their memory work...over the course of the 24 week CC school year, they will have memorized 24 history sentences, 24 science facts, all the U.S. states, capitals and physical features, lots of English grammar, their skip counting math facts through 15, including the squares and cubes!, all of the first 7 verses of the book of John (in English AND Latin), and 160 timeline cards from Creation through to Modern America. *whew!* It is a lot, but kids are such sponges as this age, that it is really going with the grain of their development.

The kids also take a stab at developing their public speaking skills each week. This is my dear Belle, as she makes her presentation to the class.

One of our 2 boys in class is Max...who began his presentation by betting his peers that he could make a hole in his index card big enough for him to crawl through. As you can see, he did it!

Ah, our sweet Rachael...I just love to hear her tell a good story! She is a delight.

Gracie, Anna, Rachael and Hayley race to put 6 weeks of timeline cards in order--there are 8 per week, so they really add up!

Max, Ethan, Gracie and Belle try hard to be the first team done.

I was so hesitant to take on being a tutor....but, boy am I glad that I took the plunge!

Stepford Belle

Steve spent a couple hours tonight out with the girls. Belle came home all excited, stating that she was going to be "extra healthy" and not eat any more sugar (by her whole manner, I suspected that she had already consumed a ton of sugar...just a hunch).
She went on and on about how healthy she was going to be, and how this was going to be the first of many major changes going on in her little life. She was going to "always clean her room....brush 3 times a day...not watch t.v. on the weekends except for 30 minute shows (we don't watch t.v. during the weekdays, I have my kids convinced it shrinks your brain)...pray all the time....the list just went on and on. It was really precious, albeit a little creepy. When she stepped out of the room I asked Steve if he had just come home from Stepford, and asked what had he done with my daughter.

Sometime later Belle came up to me, smiled sweetly and said:

Are you proud of me for growing up?

Yes, but don't grow up too fast...I like you kinda little.

Don't worry. I'll just drink some wine, and that will make me stop growing.

What?

Yeah, I'll drink wine, and it will stop me from growing. Okay, mom?

Yeah. I mean, no....you're too young. That is not allowed until you are 21.

Oh. Okay. When I am 21 I will start to drink wine and it will keep me little.

Okay.

I don't know where she got this one...but I will just let her believe that consuming alcohol stunts one's growth. Is that bad? :)

Fun in the Sukkah

Since we started observing the Biblical Feasts of the LORD, we all hold the Feast of Tabernacles in special standing (see earlier post "What are We Building Now?").

We build (and by "we", I mean Steve!) our booth, or 'sukkah' as it is known in Hebrew, out on our back deck; and have people over for dinner and/or bible study throughout the week long holiday. Above is Jack and Concetta, a great couple that join us for our weekly fellowship group.

My husband helps Moo find the portion of scripture that she is due to read aloud to the group.

Belle seems to be the only one aware that her sister has the camera.

Belle is especially proud of the paper chain that she made to decorate the sukkah. It has a particularly sweet message about the Lord written on each of the chains...I can't for the life of me remember what it said...but it was precious.

On another evening we had Tim, Laura, Lily and Jonathan out for a meal. It is always great fun to have them over...we always have a good time laughing at Tim's jokes, and my girls just love Jonathan. As for Lily, we all want to eat her up, she's just so cute! Poor Laura was freezing the entire time...hidden in the corner of the sukkah is a little space heater...something I'm pretty sure the children of Israel did without. ;)

Our last and largest gathering was with Mark & Donna, and their four girls Anna, Abigail, Hope & Charity. There is always a whole lot of noise...I mean, fun and games...when all our girls get together. They really enjoy each other.

I got them all to hold still for this picture in Belle's room.

Tip for the Day

When buying a special treat....say...Magic Shell ice cream topping...

don't let your children help you put the groceries away.
The Magic Shell will somehow find itself put away in the refrigerator...

and you will be very sad.

Trust me.

Better Posted Late than Never

Last spring, Steve & the girls started building a medieval castle to go along with what we had been focusing on in our homeschool curriculum. We read the book "Castle Diary: The Journal of Tobias Burgess" to guide us in the various elements of a medieval castle. This is the finished product, and the girls were so pleased with themselves. The TCHE Art & History Fair committee awarded them each a trophy for their work.

Sprouts, Sprouts, Everywhere!

Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food."

Genesis 1:29

Well, here they are--some of my most favorite things in the world right now: my girls and my sprouts. (My hubby wasn't home when I took this picture, or else he would be pictured too--he's my favorite husband!) :)
Anyway, many of you have commented on my sprouting silliness. Some of you even wanted to know more about how to do it...so here goes my quick tutorial.

I started a couple weeks ago with a simple sprouting jar. (A sprouting jar is nothing more than a mason jar, with a lid that has a screen instead of a solid metal disc top. If you don't feel like running around online looking for them, you can find them locally at Fruitful Yield for $9.50)

For my very first batch, I took about a 1/2 cup of dry lentils...they are .99 cents for a 1 pound bag in the store...and I filled the jar 3/4 full of water and soaked them in the sprouting jar overnight.

In the morning, drain them out over the sink, rinse once, and store the jar on the counter on it's side. Sometimes, to ensure all the water drains out, I invert the mason jar in a bowl for a bit.

Some seeds, like alfalfa, need to be rinsed twice a day. I think this is because they can dry out quickly. But lentils and other seeds can be rinsed just once a day. Just keep an eye on them.

Sprouting times can vary, but sprouts are "ready" when the sprout is about 1/2 inch to an inch long. Once they get looking nice and tasty, I throw them in the fridge. This can be as long as 4 or 5 days from the start of the whole process.

I put them in sandwiches, wraps, salads; and I've had lentil sprouts by themselves with red wine vinegar and olive oil. My girls beg me for them prepared this way!

I have always been so gratified with the produce of my garden during the harvest time--the tomatoes are something that my family just goes especially wild over. So I am so happy to see there is something just as yummy that I can grow indoors for my family no matter what the season!

Happy Sprouting!

A Q & A that is Circulating Around Blogs that I Follow--So I gave it a Try:

Moo- 9 yrs. old
1. What is something your mom always says to you?
"Do your work"
2. What makes mom happy?
"When we load the dishwasher and make our beds"
3. What makes mom sad?
"When we don't obey her"
4. How do you make your mom laugh?
"A good enough joke that we tell her"

5. What was your mom like as a child?
"She always wanted to make friends in school, and she was always worried that her Mom and Dad wouldn't be home when she came home from school...she was afraid and worried about what others thought about her" (wow, she really nailed this one!)
6. How old is your mom?
"39" (This is NOT true...I just celebrated the 10th anniversary of my 29th birthday this August)

7. How tall is your mom?
"Five foot something"
8. What is her favorite thing to do?
"Go on the computer and talk on the phone, or take a nap" (honest, I get 1 or 2 naps in a month)
9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
"I don't know...um, stuff that she doesn't do around me"

10. What is your mom really good at?
"Making soups...I like that chicken soup and that lentil soup"
11. What is your mom not very good at?
"Let's see...(45 second pause)...I don't know"

12. What does your mom do for her job?
"Clean the house and take care of us"
13. What is your mom's favorite food?
"bean sprouts...she wouldn't give us any..."
14. What makes you proud of your mom?
"I love her as a mom, and I could never trade for another mom...she's loving a lot of the times...yeah"

15. What do you and your mom do together?
"school"
16. How are you and your mom different?
"to her, she thinks some things are naughty..and I see it in a different way"

17. How do you know your mom loves you?
"she tells me so, and once when I was naughty and started to cry she hugged me and said she loved me"


Belle- 7 yrs. old
1. What is something your mom always says to you?
"when I say I love her, she says I love you too"
2. What makes mom happy?
"when I'm obedient and I do stuff right away...and when I make stuff for her"
3. What makes mom sad?
"when I disobey her and I, like, say, like, 'you ALWAYS do that to me!' She doesn't like that."
4. How does your mom make you laugh?
"when she makes jokes"

5. What was your mom like as a child?
"um, she liked her mom"
6. How old is your mom?
"39"

7. How tall is your mom?
"Five point something"
8. What is her favorite thing to do?
"take a nap and watch the news" (okay...news watching is daily...but honest...I only nap a couple times a month! Geesh!)
9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
"take stuff out of my room" (Man! I thought I was being stealthy!)

10. What is your mom really good at?
"loving me"
11. What is your mom not very good at?
"not loving me"

12. What does your mom do for her job?
"cares for me and protects me"
13. What is your mom's favorite food?
"sprouts and,...I don't know"
14. What makes you proud of your mom?
"I just love her"

15. What do you and your mom do together?
"she puts me to bed and cares for me, she would never go against me"
16. How are you and your mom different?
"teeth" (For the record...we BOTH have them)

17. How do you know your mom loves you?
"because she said it"

Charlie

I love our little dog, Charlie. He is a Shih Tzu (pronounced shee tzoo...there are NO short 'i's in shih tzu!!) and adding him to our little family was a source of much angst. We figured that we had such a good and easy thing going as our family of four, we didn't want to rock the boat by adding an unnecessary complication like a dog, you know? Well, he has turned out to be a joy. Is he a good watch dog? No. Can he hunt? No. Does he know a lot of tricks? No. Is he smart? Not especially. Is he low maintenance as far as grooming goes? Nope. He is just another little soulish presence in our home that follows us around and is always looking for company. He is entirely dependent on us for his well-being, offers not too much in return...except that feeling we have that some helpless little creature is counting on us to take care of him...So imagine our surprise when we realize how much we love this little, useless, helpless, sometimes stinky brown fluff-ball.

I highly recommend getting one of your own. :)

What Are We Building Now?

The Feast of Tabernacles

Thought for the Week
The Apostle John uses a verb form of the same Greek word that is used to translate the Hebrew word for "booth" (sukkah) when he wrote, "And the Word became flesh, and dwelt [tabernacled] among us." (John 1:14) He tabernacled among us, and He will tabernacle among us again in the messianic future. The celebration of the Festival of Booths (Sukkot) celebrates the Messiah who once tabernacled among us, now tabernacles within us, and in the future will again tabernacle among us.

Commentary
The last appointment on God's Leviticus 23 calendar is the Feast of Booths, a seven-day harvest celebration. The Hebrew name of the festival is Sukkot, a word that means "shelters, stables or huts." These temporary, tent-like structures are often translated as "tabernacles" in our English Bibles. The festival is so named because Israel is commanded to annually build such dwelling places as a reminder of the post-exodus years when they lived in huts and booths, following God in the wilderness. 1 Sukkot is a time of joy and celebration, a time to celebrate the harvest and revel in God's goodness.

Many beautiful traditions are attached to the annual Festival of Booths. For example, it is traditional to invite guests into one's booth for a festive meal each night of Sukkot. Among the list of invitees are some auspicious names: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron and David. Each are specially invited to come into the booth and pull up a chair at the table. Obviously, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron and David are unlikely to actually attend the meal, since they are all dead. That, however, is the point of the ritual. The Feast of Booths anticipates the Messianic Age, when the dead will be raised to life again and we will all sit at the table with the aforementioned in the kingdom of heaven.

When Messiah comes, He will bring in the final harvest of God's kingdom and institute an age of peace and prosperity upon the earth. The prophets relate that day to the festival of Sukkot, a day when every man will sit beneath his own vine and fig tree.2 Isaiah 4:6 tells us that God will spread a tabernacle of glory over Jerusalem.

According to the prophets, the Feast of Booths celebrates a time when all nations will ascend to Jerusalem bearing tribute to King Messiah and celebrating the festival. In that day, all nations will ascend to His throne in Jerusalem in order to celebrate the Festival of Booths (Tabernacles). Obviously, this is a very important festival for disciples of Messiah today.

Sukkot is the great festival, the culmination of all the appointed times. Sukkot is to the other festivals what the Sabbath is to the other six days of the week. As such it is a fitting foreshadowing of that great celebration of creation when the entire world will live in peace and brotherhood under the reign and rule of the righteous Messiah King. Just as the weekly Sabbath foreshadows the millennium, Sukkot also looks forward to that great age. Therefore, the festival of Sukkot, like all the festivals, foreshadows Messiah.

Endnotes 1. Leviticus 23:42-432. Micah 4:4; Zechariah 3:10
(taken from FFOZ edrash)

Our Day of Rest

I love this picture! We observe the weekly Sabbath, and so along with being our day of gathering, worship and studying of the scriptures, it always includes naptime--sometimes to the chagrin of our girls! If it were up to them, they would never stop...sleep...or rest. But something about snuggling with Mom or Dad slows them down just enough to quickly fall asleep. These are the moments that I hope we all remember forever.

I am so thankful that our Heavenly Father made this day for us--it is truly for our good!

Yeshua Jesus--Our Perfect High Priest

Although there is no Temple in Jerusalem today, the annual observance of Yom Kippur is still an important spiritual discipline and a commandment.

The apostles teach that believers constitute a collective Temple of the Holy Spirit.

The concentrated day of fasting, confession, repentance and petition for forgiveness is like the annual purification of the Temple that happened on Yom Kippur when the high priest went into the holy of holies.

This does not mean that we do not regularly confess our sins and repent.

Nor does it mean that our sins are not forgiven by the blood of Messiah.

It simply means that, once a year, it is a good idea to take inventory,

straighten things up and scrub down the soul.

That's what the Day of Atonement is all about.

(Taken from FFOZ blog 10/8/08)

Ha!

Me: Belle, look at your spelling list, and study the meanings and spellings of each word.

E: Okay Mom.

(10 seconds pass)

E: Done, Mom.

Me: You studied ALL the words, how to spell them AND their meanings?

E: Yep.

Me: Really? (said in an obvious doubtful tone)

E: Really!

Me: Okay, then you tell me, what is the meaning of the word "seizure"?

E: Oh, that's easy. I like when you make that yummy seizure salad.

Me: What?

Ahhh...the unexpected hilarity of homeschooling.

It's That Time Again

It's time to light the corn stove! This is always an exciting time in the Grant home. Three years ago we decided to go with a corn burning stove to save some money on our Nicor bill during the winter season. So now, we don't even turn our heat on during the winter except for a few of the bitter days that are extra windy. The girls love it, because they get to huddle in front of it in the morning...I remember doing the same kind of thing growing up. Well, instead of a stove or a fireplace it was the bathroom vent...I used to position myself in my long dress pjs right over the vent on cold mornings...not as picturesque, but it worked for me! Anyway, today marks the start of our corn stove season. If you come over and stand on our back deck, you can smell cooked corn--honest! It smells yummy!

My Poor Baby Girl

Every year at this time, I ask myself the same question: "Is she sick, or is it allergies?". Whichever is the case, the minute that my eldest gets a cold or the start of allergies, it goes straight to one of her eyes. Never both...always just one...and she looks like she she just got socked in the eyeball. It is so sad. :( Fortunately, it never lasts more than a week. Three days and counting...

One of Those Days

I'm having one of those days...so I rushed to the computer to distract myself...and came across a picture that depicts how I'm feeling. Why teaching division makes me feel like I'm going to crawl out of my skin and/or explode, I just don't know. But I am deep breathing right now. Inhale through the nose...out through the mouth....

The B-Word

Somewhere recently I read the quote:

"Bureaucracy is the epoxy that greases the wheels of government".

Check out the text of the economic bailout:

http://senateconservatives.files.wordpress.com/2008/10/bailouttext.pdf

Job Benefits

Almost a year ago, my husband started a new job as the construction manager of a marina community in Ottawa, Illinois. When we first drove by the site, they were just moving tons of dirt around. Because I lack 'vision' for these things, I just couldn't understand why my husband was so excited about the project. Well...now I know. Ten months later, it is a beautiful site that is really coming along, and is postured to become a very special place for people who love to boat or live on the water. One of the greatest benefits so far for our family, is that we have been able to go boating more in the last summer than in all of our 13 years of marriage!

Then & Now

If you are brave enough to sift through the clutter on my refrigerator, you will find this picture of my eldest and her best friend L.G. . This was taken almost 8 years ago, and the two are still pals. I can't believe how fast the years have gone by, and how much they have grown and changed....and yet, you can tell they are the same girls!

This is the two of them below, this year at swim lessons. A lot has happened in the last 8 years...M. finally grew some hair on her head (it took 3 years!), teeth came and went and came again, and younger sisters came on the scene to share life (and toys) with!