I found this  humorous  piece at  Gramma’s Thoughts.  My friend who recently had her 8th child seems to have the happiest babies.  Maybe this is because she does not jump at their every whimper.  Enjoy!

Yes, parenthood changes everything. But parenthood also changes with each baby. Here, some of the ways having a second and third child differs from having your first:

Your Clothes
-1st baby: You begin wearing maternity clothes as soon as your OB/GYN confirms your pregnancy.
-2nd baby: You wear your regular clothes for as long as possible.
-3rd baby: Your maternity clothes ARE your regular clothes.

The Baby’s Name
-1st baby: You pour over baby-name books and practice pronouncing and writing combinations of all your favorites.
-2nd baby: Someone has to name his or her kid after your great-aunt Mavis, right? It might as well be you.
-3rd baby: You open a name book, close your eyes, and see where your finger points.

Preparing for the Birth
-1st baby: You practice your breathing religiously.
-2nd baby: You don’t bother practicing because you remember that last time, breathing didn’t do a thing.
-3rd baby: You ask for an epidural in your 8th month.

The Layette
-1st baby: You pre-wash your newborn’s clothes, color-coordinate them, and fold them neatly in the baby’s little bureau.
-2nd baby: You check to make sure that the clothes are clean and discard only the ones with the darkest stains.
-3rd baby: Boys can wear pink, can’t they?  Read more...

Elizabeth Elliot’s words “Just do the next thing” still ring in my ears even after many years.  “And if you don’t know what to do, do the thing in front of you,” she reminds us.   In my world the “next thing” is often to simply  clean the kitchen, prepare dinner or get the laundry started. For the homeschool mom the next thing is often a reading or math lesson.  At times, it may be something more meaningful like a profound discussion or worldview lesson. These talks are often the best part of homeschooling because we have the opportunity to pass down our values and worldview to our precious children.  We are mentoring the next generation. How amazing is that!  Today my boys and I talked about the meaning behind the wonderful hymn Down From His Glory.

Instead of holding down a “real” job  we homemakers do manage to keep busy doing the next thing…everyday. Instead of giving our time to a company, office job or personal career our investment is in our home and family.  Our time is devoted to teaching our children and building a happy family life.

A list to reference can be  helpful when overwhelmed by all the details of a daily life. I hope you enjoy reading over this list.  Perhaps your list would look completely different than mine.  I’m curious…what would you have on your list?  ~Anne

A .  Adore God (Worship Him in all you do)  Read more...

It is  strange how one may live for years never knowing about a certain great person, and then upon becoming aware of him, realizing everyone else seems to have already known about him!  I was talking to my boys science teacher about the pediatric brain surgeon,  Benjamin Carson, and asked if he had ever seen the film about his life, “The Gifted Hands.”  He mentioned that he had read the biography of his life.  Others who I talked to said that their homeschooled children had read about him years ago. Why hadn’t anyone told me about this remarkable role model?

I first became aware of Dr. Carson  when I saw him on television  speaking at the Presidential Prayer breakfast.  My ears perked up and I fixated upon him as he spoke just a few feet away from our President.  Did he actually have the audacity to stand up to political correctness, boldly sharing his thoughts about the national debt and Obamacare? This is simply not done now-a-days.  Folks shy away from sharing their real thoughts about what is going on in our country because if their opinion is different from that of the elitists in academia, Hollywood, and main stream media they will face ridicule.  Sadly, our America has become a nation of copy-cats instead of free-thinkers.  Read more...

1 Corinthians 13

King James Version (KJV)

13 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.

2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.

3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.

4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,

5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;

6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;

7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.

9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.

10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.

11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.  Read more...

This notion that the children belong to the state, that their education must be provided for by the state … is inimical at every step to liberty.” – J. Gresham Machen

Bill Flax~Forbes Magazine

The swelling legions of homeschoolers poke a subtle rebuke at America’s ever expanding nanny state. Under both parties, Washington has systematically invaded private spheres and co-opted public services historically performed by local bodies. But a spontaneous groundswell of freedom minded folks has continued America’s rich inheritance of rugged individualism.

The God-fearing, flag-waiving, gun-toting homeschool crowd embodies the American spirit of mutual self-reliance. You won’t encounter a more neighborly bunch. Their children thrive without government “help.” Their support networks blossom sans the state’s sanction. Meanwhile, taxpayers waste a fortune securing abysmal academic results. In 2012, SAT scores fell to their lowest level since tracking began. As spending soars, assessment scores plummet.

The modern homeschool movement comes largely by Christians aghast over an academic establishment overrun by progressives. Schools long ago became laboratories for instilling statism and distilling politically correct groupthink. Values clarification anyone? With public education increasingly geared toward multicultural agitation against America’s godly heritage, many parents resolved to safeguard the hearts, souls and minds of their young.

At least 1.5 million students receive home-based academic instruction. The ranks of homeschoolers are rising rapidly across every social strata, faith and ethnicity. While many families lack sufficient means for someone to stay home, it’s not generally those affluent enough to afford exclusive parochial education. The highest homeschool participation appears in households with incomes ranging from $25,000 to $75,000. The homeschool community reflects a cross-section of Americans; the children of truck drivers and lawyers, whites and blacks, rich and poor, Christians and unbelievers.  Read more...