Non-spiritual thoughts during Lent

Lent is supposed to bring about spiritual thoughts from sacrifices given to God.

Granted, I'm recovering from a bad cold, but still. All I can think about is THIS!

http://teachingheartmom.blogspot.com/2008/10/candy-birthday-cake.html

When I sent the picture to Dave (who has his birthday 4 days after mine and this year mine falls on Holy Thursday and his on Easter Monday) he said, "Bummer you can't enjoy it until MY birthday!" Oh, he's a funny guy.

Now, one modification I'd like to make is that in the blog, they say to stuff the inside of the cake with styrofoam rings and glue the candy to the outside of the form--- I want the cake stuffed with CANDY. This is all so unspiritual for a mature woman of 40 (almost 41).

Spring is...

...getting to do school under a tree at the first sign of warm weather!

Cleaning Baby

We need all the cleaning help we can GET!

Co-op Planning Meeting

It's time to start planning for next year's co-op. Next week at my house, I'm hosting a planning meeting.

Requirements :
Moms
large Wipe-off board
snacks

Feel free to come late, we'll snack and visit the first half-hour.

The 7pm agenda will be :

• "Druthers and Necessaries" - Review this past year - likes & dislikes
• "The Perfect Co-op" - Brainstorming ideas
• "Sifting the wheat" - Sketching out the best and most do-able ideas
• "And the runners up are..." - Vote for your favorite ideas
• "Do you (state your name) take ...." - Get the first pick of coordinator position and age group
• "Warm, sunny days" - Park Day schedule for this summer

Less than perfect

Women on the Fringe - This was a GREAT article about trying to be a perfect mom and not quite making it.

Anyone who has read my blog knows my struggles. Anyone who has met me knows my weaknesses. I'm the kind of person who wears my sins on my sleeve. I do have one thing in my favor:

I am blessed with a best friend.

My best friend is often not a nice person. My best friend openly admits she doesn't like people -- and it shows. My best friend doesn't decorate her house much at all. She doesn't put her kids in many activities -- it's too much of an effort and doesn't fit their family. She doesn't go out of her way to dress up or wear makeup. She says unkind things about other people, even her children. She complains alot.

My best friend is life-giving to me. She doesn't try to live up to anyone else's standards and loves without bounds and tries and fails and gets up again to try some more. She accepts me for who I am, without bounds. She grows in Christ daily and although she's not where she will be someday as a model of Christian living, she's faaaaar from where she began -- growth is her success, not where she's standing now. Everyone should be blessed with a best friend that is less than perfect -- it's a wonderful way to live!

Ten Books List

This can be a quick one! Don't take too long to think about it! Ten books you've read that will always stick with you! First ten you can recall in no more than 15 minutes!

1. Mr. God, This is Anna by Fynn (God is the realest reality of all no matter what anyone else believes)
2. Understood Betsy by Dorothy Canfield Fisher (As a child I relished how with hard work and responsibility and sensible living as opposed to living by emotions, Betsy finds her place of belonging)
3. Why Wait : What You Need to Know About the Teen Sexuality Crisis by Josh McDowell (As a young single, after I'd made a mess of my life I found the conviction, partially through this book, to make things different with God's grace)
4. The Hiding Place by Corrie ten Boom (God is sovereign even in the worst of times)
5. The Road Less Traveled by M. Scott Peck (This was a gift from my romantic fiance and has emotional significance because of that. It validated that if reality tells you something new, don't be afraid to change the "map" in your head to reflect truth, not life as you used to believe it to be)
6. What's Going on in There? : How the Brain and Mind Develop in the First Five Years of Life by Lise Eliot (The complexity of brain development from a scientist mixed with the miraculous excitement of a mom -- author is a mom/scientist)
7. Catholic Education : Homeward Bound by Kimberly Hahn (As I read this book I kept audibly talking to the book in agreement with what it said about children and their place in our lives)
8. Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder (I read this for the first time as an adult and loved the dignity and responsibility it gave to children)
9. Fertility, Cycles & Nutrition by Marilyn Shannon (For 20 years I was told by doctors there was nothing to help my painful, irregular cycles and severe PMS. In one chapter I turned the pages of my life that no one had ever understood and she HELPED.)
10. The Narnia Series by C.S. Lewis (I read this for the first time in highschool [just the Lion, Witch & Wardrobe] and it didn't do much for me. I read the whole series to my kids a few years ago and WOW!!! I've read parts over and over to myself just for fun. It's a serious escape to reality!)

Well, that was a fun travel back in time!

Homeschooling Highschool

So far...from everything I've read...all I've discovered is that "this is do-able" and preferable and adventageous, etc. I've been spending hours researching curriculae, books, distance schools, links..... and I haven't gotten any farther than ....'yes, we're going to homeschool for highschool.' I'm guessing all the research will all gel into a cohesive whole at some point...but right now nothing's gelling and I'm still researching. I know we've got another year, but I'm basing 8th grade on decisions for highschool - I just don't have anything decided, yet.

Once I figure anything out, I'll let you know...I'm flying blind, here.