What's a Girl to Do?

Underground bunkers, radiation-resistant suits, 10 million gallon water tanks.  Most of us have seen or heard of examples of extreme paranoia, prepping.  We live on 13 acres, and have a mini-farm, and while we certainly believe in being prepared, we don't have the time, money or the (in)sanity to go all out.  There are things that each of us can do, regardless of where we live, that will help ensure our survival and/or relative comfort when disaster or power outages or whatever else comes.  And they will come, in one form or another.  I know it's hard to think and prepare in advance for a lot of us, and easy to convince ourselves everything will always be okay, but a little time invested in this brings peace of mind knowing that you've done all you can or want to do to help your family through hard times.

You could make up an emergency plastic tub or box and keep it somewhere fairly easy to access.

List 1 (Very Basic of Basics)

1. Flashlights with Extra Batteries

2.  Extra Water    (Especially if on city-water with no well or spring back-up)  We are on a spring, but we have quite a bit extra stored in our cellar, because our spring occasionally freezes up or gets clogged with mud.  We use empty vinegar and juice bottles to store our water.

3.  Extra food     Pre-packaged snacks that have a long shelf life, dry beans and rice for dinners (they have a shelf life of 20+ years if stored properly) and a way to cook them (camp stove, wood stove, gas grill), BPA-free canned goods (Kroger or organic).  You could also buy vegetables and/or meat in bulk and learn to "can" them, or preserve them in jars.  It's really not hard.

4.  A way to stay warm if your heat goes out and you have no backup (fireplace, wood stove)   If you can afford it, seriously consider quality sleeping bags that protect against very cold weather, and some kind of quality warm clothing that will help you stay warm.  There's always the possibility that the electricity could be off for extended periods of time, even days or weeks if the grid ever goes out.

5.  Extra diapers/baby supplies for those with babies just in case you can't get to the store


List 2 (Extended Preparation)

1.  Oil Lamps, extra oil, and wicks for times of extended electricity outage   We have used ours in the last month during an ice storm.  Our electricity was out for an entire day and part of the night.

2.  Generator   This is on our "to get" list for 2014.  I would like a way to at least keep our deep freeze and our hot-water heater running.  I don't relish the idea of having to cook up all the meat in our freezer to save it, especially with no electricity for the stove.  My sister got one with an electric start button backup, which I thought was nifty for women like me who don't enjoy yanking hard on cords to get things started.  You can get a pretty good one in the $300-600 range.  Find one here: http://amzn.to/1e1xRhi

3.  Hand-Cranked Radio     We SO used this during the last ice storm.  Okay, so we just listened to Christmas music and football on it, but it has broadband, so we could stay informed during a disaster or very bad weather.  It also has battery back-up.  Definitely worth the investment.  Here are some reasonably priced ones: 
http://amzn.to/1e1xRhi

While these lists are definitely not all-inclusive, they do make for a very good start in being more prepared for whatever may come.  I don't know about ya'll, but I've been feeling more and more like bad things could happen that we need to be prepared for.  It's an uncertain world at best.

The last thing I would encourage everyone to do in one form or another is GROW YOUR OWN FOOD!  Even if you never preserve or put up any extra, having it fresh in season is invaluable.  So much healthier for you, especially if you use all-natural gardening techniques with no poisons.  Things can be grown in raised beds, in pots on porches and decks, and even on a windowsill in your house.  Some very nutritious herbs do well in pots inside (parsley, basil, cilantro, and more).

You could a very small amount each week and work toward building your emergency stash, and storing water is free.  Make a list of things you would like to do to be prepared, and baby-step it along until you reach all your goals.

Hope this has helped someone be inspired to do something, big or small, towards making their family more prepared for emergency, bad weather, or other disaster.

You could budget as little as $10 a week and work on building your stash, and storing water is free.  Hope this helps or encourages someone to go out and make your home a little more prepared for the future. 

                                                 

5 Ways to Improve Your Health and Life for the New Year - Part 1

Most of us royally fail at keeping resolutions for the new year, me included.  But I have found that actually writing a list of positive changes I would like to make in my life, and then picking one to pray over and work on has actually worked to gradually improve my life.

I call it "Baby Steps", after one of our family's favorite all-time movies - "What About Bob?"  Especially as I get older, I just can't accept living in a rut, doing and being the same way without making a concentrated effort to better myself, health-wise, spiritually, and intellectually.  

As I learn about ways to live a more frugal, healthy, God-filled life, my heart becomes burdened for all of my friends and family with a desire for them to be able to make positive changes as well.  That's what love does.  It desires good things for those you love.  Like God desires good things for us.

I write down my goals for the year in my journal, and also on a page in my budget book where I will see it often.   I may also write down the goal I pick on a little piece of paper and tape it somewhere I can see it often, but not necessarily where every Tom, Dick, and Harry in the house can see it all the time.  I haven't made my list for the coming year yet, but I have been pondering it, and will be sitting down soon to compose it.  I don't call them resolutions, because I feel like it will be destined to fail if I do.

So, having said that, here are 5 positive changes we have made over the last year or couple years that I feel have helped us as individuals, and as a family:

1.  We progressed from not buying white sugar at all, to buying unrefined sugar like Demerera or Sucanat, to switching entirely over to Pure Stevia, and occasionally honey for our sweetener.  Even Amber and Josh have made this change.  White sugar is what I call "death in a bag", and it had to go!  It is easy to research the effects of white sugar on your health.  There is nothing good about it.  Even unrefined sugar causes your blood sugar to spike, which makes you gain weight and also promotes diabetes.  We do indulge sometimes when we are away from home or eating out, but not too much, because it usually makes us feel icky.  Once we stopped buying sugar, ways to cope with the change just happened naturally.  Sugar cravings can be overcome!

2.  Getting rid of our microwave.  This was a little harder to get used to at first.  I couldn't for the life of me figure out how I would melt butter, pop popcorn (microwave popcorn is also "death in a bag"), or defrost frozen food.  HAHA, I am sure my homestead ancestors were laughing at me from the other side.  Once again, when the change was made, and we didn't have a choice, we adapted.  Now it is like second nature, and we don't miss it at all.  Microwaves kill the nutrients in your food, and you absorb the waves when it is on and you are standing close to it.

3.  Not buying margarine, and rarely using food packaged in a can, even if it is BPA-free.  Margarine is basically one molecule away from plastic, and is more or less a non-food in composition.  Deadly for your health.  It had to go.  Kroger- brand canned food are supposed to be BPA-free (BPA is an industrial chemical used to make plastic), and some organic brands say BPA-free, but that doesn't change the fact that most of the food in cans is already over-processed, nutrient-deficient, and probably has preservatives added that aren't good for health.  It does require some extra preparation to go can-free, but even a reduction in their use would help.  The closer to raw that you can eat your fruits and vegetables, the better.  We keep lots and lots of produce available to use for cooking and eating raw.  The expense is still WAY cheaper than doctor's visits and prescriptions, and better than getting as sick in the first place.

4.  Drastically reducing our TV time.  We have one old television in our house.  It has been years since we had satellite or cable.  We progressed from the whole shebang to the Christian programming provided by Dish called Sky-Angel (This was before we moved 3 years ago).  When our "life-long" subscription became obsolete due to technology upgrades, we ditched it all.  We are not completely anti-media.  We have decent movies and series that we like.  We watch them on the Clear-play (clearplay.com) DVD player that Amber saved up for and bought. You can set the level of filter you want.  We have it set to filter out all profanity (it even filters out "Oh my God", which makes us happy), all sex scenes, and some of the gorier violence.  I can't tell you the cleansing effect on our spirits to not always have JUNK of one kind or another entering our ears, minds, and eyes.  I WANT to be sensitized.  I have been de-sensitized, and I didn't like it.  TV crap offends me, and I don't want it not to.  We also listen to (on our Sirius) and watch football when we are at my mom's or brother's house.  We don't prefer most commercials, or scantily-dressed cheerleaders, so we usually switch it to something decent in between.  If there isn't anything on, we mute it during commercials.  We don't mind missing award shows and other things like that where we KNOW the envelope will be pushed and we will see things that don't need to be viewed.  We were quite addicted to media at one time, and now we aren't, so I know it can be done.  Any baby steps for improvement in this area would definitely be beneficial, and you will notice the difference in your mind and spirit as well.

5.  Still working on this one.  We have chosen to live a frugal, sustainable, minimal lifestyle.  We went from home ownership of a 2100 sq foot home in town with porches, decks, hot tub, pool, fenced 1/2 acre yard, and tons of closets to non-home ownership (it is my mother-in-law's house, she now lives with her daughter) of a country home that it probably 1200 square feet or less.  It had one closet when we moved in;  it now has two.  Amber's room is in the attic in true American Girl fashion.  She likes it there.  We had to reduce to fit our stuff in the home.  We have done it several times since.  If we have clothes or shoes that aren't worn much or at all, they go.   Just last week, in an effort to reduce again, I went through my kitchen cabinets and packed away more plates, cups, coffee cups, and other items that we had too many of.  The kids can pick what they want when they leave home.  A lot of things end up going to the thrift store when we reduce.  I am developing an intense dislike for clutter of all kinds, and happily sort through things to get rid of, or save for the kids.  This is good, because we have little room for knick-knacks, and I hate dusting them anyway.  I like not being attached to material possessions, although this doesn't apply to my Kindle.  HAHA.  Reading is a life-long passion that helped replace TV time long ago.  The simple life is for us.

I sincerely hope that some of the changes we have been able to make over the last few years can help someone in some small way.  There are more changes for us in the future, and we will baby step along toward them as well.  Here's to improved health and happiness!

How You May Be "Stimulating" the Child Porn Industry

This is a troubling blog for me to write.  Troubling because I don't understand why some parents do what they do, or why some parents seem to not have a clue about the world in which we live.  Even given the differences in parenting styles and preferences, which I understand and embrace, I don't get it.

This is what I don't understand;  With the increase of pedophilia, even to the point of the APA labeling it a lifestyle choice and not an aberration, with so many sexual perverts lurking EVERYWHERE, male and female, why do parents still dress their daughters, from birth up, in mini-skirts, micro-outfits, sexualized cheerleading outfits, teeny-tiny gymnastic sexy sparkles, Daisy Dukes and wanna-be whore outfits?

Is that how we see our girls, our precious princesses?  Should we just go ahead and shave their heads and stick them on a wrecking ball of their own?  Hey, that would be a cute theme for a preschool birthday party - Miley Mini Me. Come in your birthday suit.  (I almost felt like Matt Walsh for a moment)

Seriously, if anyone reads the news at all, the perverts are literally in every institution, at every sports venue, at Christian retreats and in churches, Sunday Schools, daycare, nursery, the neighbor, mailman, your little girl's friend's dad - the list is endless.  So WHY, oh WHY do we want to flash our cute toddler's thighs, or preschooler's hiney, or any part of whatever age our precious daughters are?  Those child perverts are out there; they are where our daughters are.  And they are lusting and getting their jollies from our stupidity in sexualizing what doesn't need to be sexualized.  

I hope that if the majority of parents actually pictured this scenario, which is quite realistic, that it would make us sick enough to STOP and figure out how to go about redressing our children so that we are not feeding this industry.  Because after these perverts drool over our daughters in their state of undress, they go home, and if we're lucky all they do is get on their computer with their sickness.  But more and more, that luck is running out, and these predators are acting out their sick fantasies on....our daughters, their daughters, somebody's daughters.  

The days of being cute in the Brady Bunch way are over.  It has nothing to do with religion, or being conservative, or being judgmental, or picky.  It has to do with, unless you are a real pimp, getting paid real money to market your product, we don't need to market our daughters as the next Miley - the next twerking, undressed, out of control sex kitten.  Their bodies are sacred.  They should be presented as the lovely creations of God that they are.  We shouldn't want to feed the imaginations of those who find them more attractive then grown women.  Who would literally "bed" our daughters if they could get away with it.   

I see pictures posted of these precious girls - in all their sexy gymnastic outfits, cheerleading get-ups, toddler bikinis, short skirts and low cut tops - already sporting "come get me" smiles with their hips thrust out to the side.  It makes me sad.  I see their beauty - absolute feminine loveliness.  And it makes me sad.  Because I know that there is someone else, right at that moment, looking at the same picture, or one like it, or something a lot not like it but a lot darker, and that person doesn't see a child, an innocent to be treasured.  He sees an object, a fascinating, sexy, object that turns him on.  And I refuse to feed that industry.  I don't care how different it makes me.  My daughters are too precious for that.  My granddaughter is too precious for that.  They are ALL too precious for that. 



 

Our Ozark Shindig Trip: Part 2 For Women - Your marriage: Fueling the Fire - Caliente

     One of the seminars we attended while at the Second Annual Shindig by No Greater Joy (nogreaterjoy.org) was given by Nathan Pearl, grown son of Michael and Debi Pearl, who started the ministry.  He is married to a lovely lady, Zephyr, and they have worked hard at having a happy marriage, with wisdom taught to him by his mother and father, and by watching them love each other all of his life.

     Our marriages are a fire, some burning bright, and some barely smoldering.  How hot that fire is depends on the quantity and type of  "sticks" that we add to that fire.  There are so many unhealthy attitudes that are dominant in this world regarding how we should conduct ourselves in our marriages, one of them being that we are only responsible for correct behavior if our spouses are also conducting themselves properly.  For Christians, this attitude cannot be backed up with ANYTHING in scripture.  We are to treat others (especially our spouses) with love and kindness regardless of their behavior towards us (with the exception of abuse, in which case we should flee to safety and report our spouses).

     I have found in my own marriage that there is great satisfaction in doing the right thing, as unto the Lord, regardless if my husband is meeting my every need (which husbands never will, that is Jesus' job), or not.  I have actually been practicing Nathan's "fueling the fire" for quite a few years, without making the connection to that particular analogy.

     So, we can add a "desire" stick to the fire by dressing attractively and in a way that our husbands prefer.  The best way to find this out is to either let your husband pick out your outfit (and wear it without complaining) for your dates, or ask him what his favorite outfits are and wear them often.  Why on Earth would I want to dress in a way that pleases myself if the love of my life doesn't even like seeing it on me?   When I am around him, I want his eyes to find pleasure in what they see.  I can also add a "desire" stick to our fire by lavishing physical affection on him, every day, and often.  This doesn't have to mean sex every time.  Loving or heat-filled looks, a touch as we pass, and lots of kisses throughout the day are also ways to fuel his fire.  There are very few men that don't desire this, and we are just the gals to give it to him, and fill that need.  We don't want to leave them with unfulfilled needs because that's when temptation can rear its ugly head.  I can also style and wear my hair the way that he likes.  I only have to look at it in the mirror on occasion; he has to see it all the time when he is around me, and I want it to please him.  Again, if he likes it rather long, and I don't care about that and have it all cut off, I am setting myself up to have a long-haired lady catch his eye.  We should be all that he desires to the best of our abilities.

     If you have been indoctrinated with feminism, you will be highly offended at the previous paragraph.  That's okay, because my mother raised me with a bit of those ideals as well, and I have overcome them with God's help.  We should be humble enough in our marriages to fuel the fire with some effort to please our husbands.  Should they want to please us as well?  Sure.  But that has nothing to do with us doing the right thing.  In Debi Pearl's book, "Created to Be His Help Meet", there was testimony after testimony of women who followed this advice of doing the right thing regardless of the behavior of their husbands, and over time almost all of them saw a change in their husbands as they responded to the proper behavior of their wives.

   By the same measure, we can throw very wet, fire-killing sticks on our fire.  Anger, bitterness, nagging, complaining, laziness, slothful appearance, and neglect can dampen the fire of our marriage.  God wants that fire to burn HOT!  He wants our sex lives to be good;  He wants it all to be good.  Even when times are hard, the flame can burn high and bright.  It is worth the effort, trust me.  I am a former bossy, independent, unsubmissive almost feminist.  Now, years later, and with intentional effort, our fire gets hotter all the time.

Thank you, Nathan, for the fire analogy.  I will never forget it.

Our Trip to the Ozarks: Part 1

Our family, minus Josh, who stayed home to take care of the chickens, dogs, and chores, went to the Second Annual Shindig, hosted by No Greater Joy Ministries (nogreaterjoy.org). This was a 3-day conference full of fellowship with like-minded believers, teaching sessions on family-related matters, and plenty of opportunities for the girls to meet new friends. I plan to blog about some of the teachings that were covered in the seminars. We have studied and listened to Michael Pearl's teachings for years, and there are few scholars we have found that we trust as much as him. The reason for this is that he teaches the Bible, verse by verse, without adding his "opinion of interpretation". He doesn't think of "topics" to preach about to keep his audience enraptured; he faithfully preaches the Word of God, and trusts that it is enough (which it is). (We also like Alister Begg, who also does expository teaching, Nancy Leigh DeMoss for her faithful ministry to teach Godly Womanhood, and Ravi Zacharias). Anyway, we stayed at the Windemere Resort in Roach, MO, a very small town with basically only a post office. It was only around $45 per night for our economy cabin, which had everything we needed to house us comfortably. The other thing that impressed me was that the meal tickets for the cafeteria were only $5 per person, per meal. These meals were very well made (including pot roast with the fixings, pork loin, pasta and fixings), and each meal also had a salad bar and a dessert available. Two thousand people attended the conference, so the only setback was the long lines, but it really didn't take overly long to get your meal. An interesting statistic comparing the two years of the Shindig is family size. The average family size last year was 5.4 and this year it was 6.9. I LOVED seeing the large families and well-behaved, well-trained children (mostly). These families are undeniable proof that correctly instituted biblical child-training works. They had fellowship and games planned each night for the two groups of teens: those under 18, and those over 18. Last year they had 6 marriages of young people result from these supervised gatherings! Most of you know that we don't like the usual method of dating, which almost invariably leads to premarital sex, but we REALLY enjoyed this idea of Godly young men and women getting to know each other in a group setting. Last year's marriage statistics proved it can work! As I have said before, anyone can date and hop from person to person from a young age, but it takes a special heart for God to wait until you are old enough to get married, and then see who God might have in mind for you. Next I hope to share what we learned at some of the classes, so until next time....

How is the Atmosphere in Your Home?

Reprint of a post from almost two years ago......

I heard a sermon given by Lindell Cooley of Grace Church in Nashville about the atmosphere in our homes. The message hit home and has remained in my heart and mind ever since. Each home, Christian or pagan, has an atmosphere. The atmosphere of some homes can be felt more strongly than others, but all have one. For a Christian with discernment, sometimes the chaos and evil in a home can be felt upon entering, if not shortly thereafter. Also, homes that are Godly and orderly can be felt as well.

It is important to actively cultivate the atmosphere in our homes to be peaceful, orderly, calming, and God-honoring. The times that we live in require diligence as Christians. We can invite what the Bible calls "unclean spirits" into our homes by laziness, apathy, or over-busyness. Once this type of atmosphere invades our homes, it is then even more of a spiritual battle to attain unity and peace. It is important to remember that the spiritual is even more real than the carnal (flesh), and certainly more eternal.

The busy things we fill our lives with are sometimes necessary, and I do emphasize sometimes, but are never more important than devoting the time needed to cultivate a Godly spirit within our homes. How can we direct the atmosphere in our homes? I know there are going to be some eye-rolls at this, but it doesn't change the truth of it. I believe one of the number one ways we damage the spiritual atmosphere in our homes is the media, and what we allow to fill our air-waves.

God doesn't change, and His holiness hasn't changed. We are saved freely by grace, but nevertheless that doesn't change a thing about God's character. Yet it never ceases to jolt me what Christians allow their eyes to see and their ears to hear. I guess we figure since even most pastors won't lay down the remote or get off the computer, why should we? Except for one thing. God's standard doesn't and hasn't changed, regardless of what the Church has compromised on. It's not okay, just because the majority says it's okay.

Because what the majority says is okay is rapidly deteriorating. And the spiritual battle is real. We were warned in scripture that the battle we fight is not carnal, against flesh and blood, but against spiritual powers and principalities. Leave this country and go to a tribal area and you will know how real the spiritual realm can be. I say again that just because America is wrapped up in daily living and 10-year goals doesn't mean that is the most important thing about life.

One of the most positive things we could do to improve our spiritual atmosphere, is to switch off the televisions and computers for a time and study God's word together on a daily basis. I read this in one of my books today, and it is worth repeating - "A woman after God's own heart is first and foremost a woman who has in her own heart a deep and abiding passion for God's Word. And her children- NOT the children at her church, not the women at her church, not her friends, neighbors or anyone else- but her own children are to receive the firstfruits of this burning personal passion."

My husband and I will eternally maintain that it is our job as parents to be the primary spiritual trainers and teachers of our children. We don't agree (any longer) with dropping them off at youth group or Sunday School and expecting them to do our job for us.  Honestly, the most rebellious time in two of our children's lives as teens was while they attended a youth group.   God tells parents explicitly in His Word that it is the parents' responsibility to spiritually train our children.

Can we do this with media blasting 24/7? Are we willing to do something about it? Hopefully, the answer to that is a resounding yes, because not only is the most holy God worth it, our children are absolutely worth it. Being careless about what is piped into our homes can invite those powers of darkness in. Adultery, lust, fornication, murder, violence, homosexuality, sorcery and pornography constantly beating the air-waves is like a direct portal for spirits to enter and wreak havoc in our families. God has spoken against all of these things - how can there not be a consequence for allowing it?

His grace doesn't protect us from the immediate consequences of sin, bad choices, or negligence. It grieves my heart so much that feeding our fleshly appetites for entertainment overrides our concern for the spiritual. How many in the Church today could even turn off all media for an extended period of time? Or how many would, is a better question... How important is wholeheartedly following God to us? Are we willing to fight for the atmosphere in our homes, which will then affect the whole of our family life? Do we love our children enough to not allow unrestricted access to the internet and television? Do we pay for our children to have internet on their phones?

Odds are increasingly great that they have viewed and will continue to view pornography. Do we pay for them to have satellite tv in their rooms? Odds are great that they have watched and will continue to watch sexually explicit programs when we aren't around. Will we fight for our families, or just hand them over to satan on a platter? If we aren't diligent with these things, we seriously might as well broadcast pornography in broad daylight and sit down and watch it with them.

This is not an age for assuming the innocence and good choices of our children; if we aren't making extreme efforts to thwart evil (including fervent prayer), satan will get them. He may not win their souls, but he will wreak hell in their lives and drag them down as far as he can. It's not just the tv that affects the atmosphere in our homes. The music we play or allow our children to listen to, the video games we allow them to play or play ourselves, the books we read, the sensuous magazines we look at or allow them to look at (even ones you can buy at the check-out counter), the movies we go see or rent, all affect the spiritual realm in our homes and lives.

 I have been there, being careless with what my eyes viewed and my ears heard, and that of my family. I have experienced the difference between a home where discernment is exercised hourly, daily, and one where discernment is thrown out the window for the sake of selfish, carnal satisfaction, or even laziness. The road to discipline in this area has been gradual, but steady, and I can tell you, I wouldn't go back to not caring for all the money in the world. I can feel the pleasure the Father has in the fact that our family is willing to make changes in these areas for the sake of our spiritual health, and ultimately, for Him and His holiness.

 It will be a lifetime commitment of prayer, discernment and willingness to take a stand, go against the tide, say no to our flesh when it collides with His standards, and remembering that all the activities and entertainment, all the busyness, even daily schedules should be for the ultimately eternal - if they aren't, they simply aren't worth the investment of time, or the risk they pose to the atmosphere of our homes.

America is all about her rights. Well, we have a right to a spiritually peaceful, content, God-honoring home. But it doesn't just happen. And it won't happen even with regular church attendance, Bible-studies, and all the worship CDs in the world if we are being careless in other areas, which invite the darkness in. Evil times require due diligence. When Jesus, our Unseen Guest, walks through our homes, we should want Him to feel like He belongs there, not like a stranger in a foreign land. Our homes, our families, and our very Holy God are worth the effort to make this happen.

Swimming Upstream: Living a counter-cultural life

It's been awhile since I have blogged, so I have a lot of thoughts built up in my head. I have a daughter,son-in-law and grandson in Africa and a daughter volunteering her time at Above Rubies about an hour and fifteen minutes from home, so the house is a lot quieter these days, with just Amber (13) and Josh (12) here with me during the day. I guess the point of this post is to share about our lives with its challenges and immense joys, and to say that the challenge of "swimming upstream" against the norms of our day can be discouraging at times, but that the life it has produced is well worth the effort and sometimes persecution.

I believe that daily routines are important in providing security to children, so our days during the school week (we homeschool) look much the same. They have a schedule for breakfast during the week which they are responsible for making (ex. Monday-oatmeal, Tuesday-eggs and biscuits or toast, Wednesday-Peanut butter and toast, etc) They clean up their mess in the kitchen. We do morning devotions, then I read to them recreationally for awhile. This time of giving myself and my time to them in this way is so sweet and rewarding, even on those days when Joshua has the fidgets and sighs several times during the process. After this, I usually have them do a chore outside of some kind, so that they have a break before bookwork. Lunch comes either before or during bookwork, depending on how early we get started.

One of the joys of homeschooling is that I can use whatever books or curriculum that I choose, and I can skip the garbage (such as teaching evolution as truth, perverted sex-ed, and relative truth). One of the other joys is that I can throw the whole schedule out if we have something else we need to get accomplished. We school all throughout the year, so we actually end up putting in more days than public school kids do, even with the days we choose to take off. I don't follow the breaks, holidays or schedules of the public school (because I don't have to!). I figure we are well-qualified to decide what days we want to take off without outside input. Before we moved, this resulted in a glorious family 2-week vacation each October at a beautiful campground about an hour from our (old) house. The only people present were quiet retired couples whom you hardly knew were there. This suited our family fine, as most of us don't prefer crowds at all.

After bookwork is free-time, during which they have a small list of items to complete at some point before bedtime. This usually gives them at least a couple of hours per day to play or do whatever they want. The joy of homeschooling is that their schoolwork IS their homework, so they aren't doing double work every day. Right before Jeff heads to bed, he leads our evening devotions (which I LOVE), and then we have a time of intercessory prayer for the needs on our lists. We each pray out loud for whatever is on our hearts. I can't express strongly enough how important this devotional and prayer time has been. The spiritual power of gathering as a family to devote time to prayer and study of His Word is felt strongly in the room, and I would encourage ALL Christ-honoring families to incorporate some form of this into their families. Uniting as a family in this way will reap eternal rewards; I sense this is true, so we always try to make time for this important part of our day. And it does require self-discipline, because any family can find at least 10 other things they could be doing instead of devotions and prayer, but once the habit is established, it is simply precious, precious time that I crave like water. I just want our lives to reflect that we are serious about God and His word. I don't want to fall into the shallow, follow-the-crowd, God-on-Sunday-and-Wednesday only crowd. There are martyrs the world over suffering because they were bold enough to stand up for their faith. They are very serious about their faith and following Jesus; that's the kind of faith I want.

This lifestyle we have cultivated definitely goes against the grain of society, and we like it that way, although at times it can be very lonely, and very hard. We don't feel like we have to keep up with the Jones', possession-wise, entertainment-wise, fad-diet/exercise plan-wise, or any other wise. On the other hand, we also don't charge into every fad in the Christian world, because fads in theology and church-related things blow through just as strongly as in the secular world. We have let God have control of our lives, and He has led us down some paths I never thought I would be on. For example, we went from the typical family with cable tv, rushing to see most of the new movies put out, buying our kids all the new Disney and kid-related movies, to down-sizing to having only Sky-angel (a satellite branch of Dish network that is Christian-oriented programming), and now we have no cable, no Sky-Angel, and no television. What I find ironic, and counter to everything that Jesus taught, is that most people think this is a bad thing! Like filling our minds with drivel and perversion is a right we should exercise, and exercise often.

That's not to say we never watch anything, or that our kids don't ever watch anything, because we do on occasion. We have two portable DVD players plus the computer on which we can watch something when we choose to, but those things we allow ourselves to watch has decreased as the movies have gotten more explicit. We also have taken a stand on anything with an occult-based theme, so that knocks out a bunch more choices. Basically, Jeff and I watch Monk (and there are a couple of episodes of that we don't allow ourselves), and the kids will occasionally watch something from their remaining selection of movies. Most of Amber and Josh's media entertainment consists of their complete collection of Adventures in Odyssey tapes. It's not that we don't understand or have never felt the pull of television and movie addiction, because we have. It's just that we have chosen what we feel is a better way. Just because we want it, or might enjoy it, doesn't make it a good thing. It really is okay to sometimes say no to our flesh for the glory of God and the betterment of our persons.

Jeff and I like it that we no longer feel the burning need to run and see the latest movie, or waste much of our time sitting in front of the screen, and we don't have to run out and buy the kids every new movie that comes out. We take our role seriously of protecting their eyes and ears until we feel they are mature enough to make those wise choices themselves. The innocence reflected in their eyes is worth all of the effort of resisting the times. That is not to say that we haven't had quite explicit conversations with them regarding the issues of their times. They know about homosexuality and what God has to say about it. They know what they need to know about sex, and what God's design for it is. We protect them from the constant bombardment of inaccurate and perverse interpretations of these issues, but we don't protect them from the issues themselves, because God's word deals with these things very clearly.

There is no sure-fire guarantee that our children will make Godly choices as they grow up, but I think that being proactive in all that we do is a good deposit into their futures. And they are worth it. They are worth some self-denial on our parts to give them something even better. A Godly teacher put it something like this, "Forsake the good, for the sake of the best."

I believe my job is to pour myself completely into my family; to honor, respect and love my husband as the head of our home; to teach my children daily about the most important things in life. I don't find that it insults my individuality at all to seek after these things. In fact, I have found the only fulfillment I have ever experienced in this life. Above all, I want to be a woman in whom Jesus can someday say, "Well-done, good and faithful servant." I live to hear those words.