While visiting the discarded books for sale at our local library,  my dear husband often ferrets out the best old books for bedtime reading. He is currently reading a historical story about the history of clipper ships called,  Clipper Ship Days-the Golden Age of American Sailing Ships. This book  by John Jennings was written in 1952.  These publications written in the 50’s and before, although not necessarily “Christian,” are filled with old fashioned goodness and patriotism and this makes for very peaceful dreams. 🙂   The following passage is the  forward called….A Word to Begin With

America has come to be one of the greatest nations on earth for many reasons. Above all our people are free, and they have the strength and energy and independence that freedom gives. Americans name their own presidents and elect their own congress; and the men and women whom they choose must govern as the American people demand or be discharged-for that is really what being voted out of office means.
But quite apart from our democratic system, there are many other things that have helped our country to grow and become great. For one thing, America is a vast land, with plenty of room for all men who would share in its benefits, so long as they will also share in the duties and obligations that being an American demands. That makes America great in itself. But there are also the seven seas to sail, and all the rest of the world around us, waiting to be shown that Americans are no mere upstarts among the family of nations. Yankee ingenuity and pluck and daring; the know-how and ability of American to learn a lesson from their own experiences as well as the experiences of others, have helped to prove our strength and make America supreme.

Okay….on a lighter note, I hope you enjoy the homeschool blues from Tim Hawkins. 🙂

This sweet poem by Edgar Guest makes me wish my boys were still little. We are continuing “read-aloud” time….I’m just not ready to give it up…but my boys are too big to sit on my or my husbands lap. 🙁

Best way to read a book I know
Is get a lad of six or so,
And curl him up upon my knee
Deep in a big arm chair, where we
Can catch the warmth of blazing coals,
And then let two contented souls
Melt into one, old age and youth,
Sharing adventure’s marvelous truth.

I read a page, and then we sit
And talk it over, bit by bit;
Just how the pirates looked, and why
They flung a black flag to the sky.
We pass no paragraph without
First knowing what it’s all about,
And when the author starts a fight
We join the forces that are right.

We’re deep in Treasure Island, and
From Spy Glass Hill we’ve viewed the land;
Through thickets dense we’ve followed Jim
And shared the doubts that came to him.
We’ve heard Cap. Smollett arguing there
With Long John Silver, gaunt and spare,
And mastering our many fears
We’ve battled with those buccaneers.

Best way to read a book I’ve found
Is have a little boy around
And take him up upon your knee;
Then talk about the tale, till he
Lives it and feels it, just as you,
And shares the great adventure, too.
Books have a deep and lasting joy
For him who reads them to his boy.

My dear friend and homeschooling mentor wrote up this piece in hopes that folks would choose to continue their homeschool journey into highschool. I hope you will find it helpful. 

I love home schooling high school. What I have to share is long, but I sincerely hope it will be helpful info as you make decisions for your family. There is so much to talk about on this subject.

I have been homeschooling for 15 years, and have graduated one son, who is now 19 and attending our junior college, with plans to transfer to a local university to finish his accounting degree. ( I also have 2 younger ones, coming up behind him.) What an incredible journey it has been… this homeschooling high school. I remember how intimidating it was, as I stood on that threshold, right where you are now. But God is so faithful, and He will guide you each step, as you continue to be faithful to His calling on your life to home educate and disciple your children, all the way to the finish line. This season of high school is the harvest season for all the time we have devoted to the basics. At the same time, I believe it is a very important time of discipleship and a most rewarding time as a parent. It will set the stage for your relationship with that child, as a young adult.  Read more...

Listen to Milton Friedman discuss our loss of freedoms.

Matt Barber calls upon pastors to confront assaults on culture, faith.

The secular left has mastered use of the Internet to further its extremist goals. In fact, President Obama’s web-based “Organizing for America” propaganda machine may have given him the 2008 election.

Let’s beat them at their own game.

To that end, I have a strange request. I’m asking each God-fearing, freedom-loving American who reads this column to forward it, post it, tweet it, print it out and give it to every pastor, priest or cleric you know. If you don’t know any, give it to someone who does.

Why? I agree with Barack Obama that November 2012 represents the most important election of our lifetimes – perhaps our history. Of course, that’s where my agreement with Mr. Obama both begins and abruptly ends.

Here’s the operable question: Do we want America “fundamentally transformed” to mirror the secular-socialist ideals of the radical leftist currently “occupying” the White House?

In Barack Obama’s America, individual freedom is trampled beneath jackboots as a matter of course. It’s already happening at an unprecedented rate.

One need only look to the HHS mandate forcing Christian groups – both Catholic and Protestant – to violate, under penalty of law, biblical prohibitions against abortion homicide.

Or consider recent attempts by multiple elected officials, all Democrats, to shutdown Chick-fil-A – a private, Christian-owned business – simply because its leadership holds the biblical view of marriage.

Is this George Washington’s America, or Joseph Stalin’s Russia?  Read more...

Have you ever heard the saying, “God laughs at appointment calendars?”  I’m not sure about this quote….but  the proverbs teach us that although we may make our plans; the final results are in God’s hands. Recently, I’ve told some of my homeschool buddies that I hesitate to even mark my calendar because life often changes things…life interrupts our appointment calendars.  Anymore,  I tell folks “Lord willing and the creek don’t rise,” we will do such and such.

With that being said, I thought I’d share my fall schedule    including the links in case you want to check them out as well.  These are my plans for the next school year: “Lord willing and the creek don’t rise.”  🙂

For our Math  curriculum we purchased Math Relief by Mr. Firebaugh. We will be studying Algebra I…yes I will be studying too. 🙂 For History we will use Mystery of History plus historical fiction added in. I am looking forward to studying history chronologically and including biblical events as well.  For Language Arts we will use A Beka (Themes in Literature), continue writing assignments using IEW (institute for excellence in writing), as well as Daily Grams (Jr high, High level)  Read more...