just finished...Victim of Grace

nothing sweeter than a sunny summerish morning to savor these words...(coffee not pictured)

Just finished this gem--Victim of Grace by Robin Jones Gunn. I can't say for sure if I'd love it as much had I not grown up physically and spiritually with Robin's books. This was her story, painted with the same mastery of words that have touched so many lives. I cried, I laughed, I looked back with understanding and forward with hope. I was reminded how intimately God is involved in our lives.

I'll share one story. Robin dreamed of being a missionary. She wanted more than anything to travel to Africa and she applied for a laundry supervisor position at a Kenyan-based mission organization. She was turned down and she was crushed.

Years down the road she could see with clarity that God's dream for her was to use her words, her stories, as the missionaries. His plan was different yet so much better.

Robin did travel to Kenya one day. Adventuring with a Kenyan friend, they drove by a river and saw two women washing clothes in a river. Robin stopped, and she asked one of the women if she could wash clothes for her. The woman agreed (I would guess bemusedly), and this is what Robin wrote after she left the river:

Robin's friend said, "'It was not what you were created to do, was it?"

'No, it wasn't. I can say with full assurance that being a laundry supervisor was not God's will for my life,' I [Robin] smiled back at her.

We ambled on down the rutted road for a stretch, and all I could think was how passionately I wished that every woman could put her hands into the bucket of her unanswered prayers. What a powerful thing it was to hear the affirming echo in my heart that God's ways are perfect. He has plans for us that are bigger than any dream or whim we could ever wish for ourselves."

Sometimes, I think we can see God's fingerprints in our lives better through someone else's story. Whether that be a biography, autobiography, or fiction. This is true for me. I would heartily recommend this book. If we are going to be a victim, let us be victims of grace.

The word grace has surfaced around me as of late. Bubbling and bursting, not to be ignored. God has much to untangle in my performance driven, perfectionistic heart, but I want to feel His grace. Really feel it, know it, soak in it.

Grace.

Grace.

Grace.

Victim of Grace nudged me in the direction I need to walk. Thanks, Robin.

this year's homeschool successes (and praises!)

Well, I have weathered the end of year vortex...mostly. I have odds and ends and frazzled threads to tie up, but [deep breath] our schedule is shifting, lightening in a soul-refreshing way. I have been evaluating how the year has gone. This could be why the word "FAIL" reverberates in my head a little too often. More on this another time, but for now, a few thoughts.

Schooling three different grades is hard. Before I knew what was happening, I was already being pulled under the bus. So, there is that. 

However, I still LOVE homeschooling. Most definitely a success and a praise. It is a good fit for me and our family.

I check with D often, but he continually assures me that he loves homeschool. D became self-paced and independent in his school this year. He'd already done this quite well, but this year he had a syllabus for each subject. I created his checklists, but he followed his assignments, kept up with the pace and on his own volition put in extra work to follow the schedules outlined for him. It was amazing to see. He started playing and has become quite proficient in classical guitar, played on a soccer league with his dad, helped coach a first grade soccer team, and is looking forward to being on the VBS music team this summer.

He's just a great kid, love him to death. He loves a challenge, so we're creating some lofty goals for him this summer. Still in the brain-storming process with this, but I was inspired by reading Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris.

My baby koala chillin' in a tree (she camouflaged herself by painting her face with chalk...).

As for my princess kindergartner, well, fortunately, I don't stress too much about kindergarten. As I've said before, Belle's kindred spirit/alter ego happens to be Tigger. And can I just say that I don't remember any character from the Hundred-Acre-Wood ever getting Tigger to sit down to learn anything. She has been known to say, "It's so hard to relax myself!" Understatement.

I love anything with their handprints.

Belle learned a lot even in her Waldorf-esque kindergarten experience. She listened to Classical Kids and Colin, became best friends with the Kratt brothers, signed with Alex and Leah, began reading, worked sums, jumped into whatever her brother and sister were doing, and did kinesthetic activities of all sorts (some approved, some not.) I heard, "I'm doing an experiment!" quite often. Most of the time I reacted well. We'll be doing school throughout the summer as I'll have some more time freed up. 

I will miss the image of Belle walking down the hallway at their homeschool enrichment program with her backpack dwarfing her. Priceless.
 

Zoo field trip!

My biggest biggest praise/success story for this year? Cece loves school. Sounds ho-hum boring? Nope, it's amazing. A year ago this would not have been her answer. She struggled, she was emotional, she battled us, she didn't like to read, and it was just not fun. We didn't know at that point that she had dyslexia. (A big thank you to my mom and her fabulous posse of teacher friends (I call them the Fab Five), for being instrumental in getting us on the right track with our sweet daughter.))

I was definitely more relaxed this year. We did all sorts of things, but the theme was audio, audio and more audio. Audio textbooks and a whole lot of good, quality literature on CDs or mp3s. Some of her favorites? A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Sarah, Plain, and Tall (and the rest in the series) by Patricia MacLachlan, Tuesdays in the Castle by Jessica Day George, Goose Girl by Shannon Hale, and Savvy by Ingrid Law. She listened to over 40 books this year, so she could add many others to her favorites.

For fun? Ballet is her thing. Cece switched from gymnastics to classical ballet and loves it. She can still be found dismounting off picnic tables in the park and randomly performing other gymnastic feats. With the struggles she's had in school, she has been gifted with natural athletic ability. I'm so often thankful that she has something that is hers and that comes so naturally.

grinding maize...studying the Mayans

Our goal for Cece: steady progress. This does not mean fast. She's still grappling with aspects of her third grade math, random facts are torturous, her spelling resembles Chaucer's Middle English, but in everything, she's getting there. Steady. Sweet. Joyful.

She loves school. This can't be measured with a report card. I'm so thankful.

The evaluation process will continue throughout the summer and into the fall. It's the nature of homeschool, an ever changing machination of learning and home and life. Most of the time, the best piece of advice I can take comes from Isabelle. "Relax myself!"

I thought this penguin looked a little bit tense. Relax!

May is the new December

I sit here watching Return of the Jedi with my son. May the FOURTH be with you! (Well, obviously, I'm doing some other things too.) I do love the Ewoks and it was his special request for today. We went to start it and realized our VCR decided it was time to become carnivorous. Thankfully it did not eat our Star Wars VHS tape, just a couple of others. We had to borrow a VCR from our neighbor who by chance had his old, discarded one collecting dust in his basement. It made D's night.

Anyway, it is good to sit. My brain has not been functioning well. Noted by a complete lack of blog postings and productivity in general. So much to do that I become paralyzed (binge-watching ensues). The end of the year is so stinkin' crazy.

Teacher gifts! Not pictured is the living space surrounding these bags. DISASTER.

It's end of the year everything. Papers. Tests. Records. Performances. Thank yous. Gifts. Summer planning. And a general backlog of clutter from the year.

I'll make it, we'll make it. I'll look forward to a clearer mind in a couple of weeks...somewhat clearer anyhow!

Best wishes to all who are braving the May vortex. You may or may not see me here. May the FOURTH/FORCE be with you! Sorry, couldn't resist.