When They Grow Up

 

In one sense it is so hard seeing your children grow up. Yet in another it is quite wonderful to see them spread their wings and fly. My oldest moved out almost two years ago and I have missed him every day. Even though he worked a full time job and was normally only home from dinner and to sleep I still got to get a peek into his daily life and share it with him. Now he has taken that next big step in life and bought his own home. He did this all on his own with no help from us. I couldn't be prouder.

 

Yesterday I took my mother and Grace to see the house for the first time. I think they were impressed because quite frankly he has a bigger house than ours.

 

These are his room mates which all seem to be very nice young men. One has been his best friend since high school. They had all the parents over for a little cook out to celebrate the new house. As proud as I am of him, I still miss my little boy and him being at home. I guess I will always feel that way.

Weekly Wrap Up - Performances, Moving, and Projects

 

Well not much to report this week on the school front. Our lives have kind of been consumed with the King and I, moving my parents into their new home, and trying to get some rest. Our first real performance was last night. Truly so much more fun to perform than the many hours of doing it over and over in practice.

 

This week we had the opportunity to save a little baby bird. Hubby came home to find him on the ground stunned and unable to fly. We brought him inside and put him in our older cage. The next morning we released him and away he went.

 

Another project on the horizon. Moving my parents also means downsizing their belongings. Many of the items we wish to keep in the family. This cedar chest was in my bedroom until I got married and left home. I stored all the items I bought leading up to my wedding for our new home. Now after 27 years I get it back. My plans are to turn it into a window seat under the window in the back of this picture. I will paint it a brighter color and add cushions.

 

Yesterday we stopped by our local art store and discovered a great sale going on. Grace's favorite choice of medium for her art projects are high quality markers. First choice are copics but those bad boys run about 8 dollars each. Next choice runs around 3 dollar a piece. The sale was buy 40 markers and make a set to get 40 percent off. With an art show coming up in October this couldn't have come at a better time.

 

We are currently working on three review products - Dave Raymond's American History, Ubersmart Facts, and an online Raising a Bearded Dragon program. I will have a review post ready next week for the American History product. Hoping to have more pictures soon from the play. We will be starting school back on August 11th - so not ready.

So Much Turmoil in the World - Don't be Anxious

All the average person needs to do is watch the news, read a newspaper article, or simply look at the front page of an Internet source and you can see all the turmoil currently going on in the world. It seems one awful event after another continues to happen. For any individual that leans toward anxiety all this information can be crippling. Planes being shot down, countries going to war, possible pandemics spreading globally, economic collapses - this is scary stuff! Is anybody else out there anxious about it all? As much as I try not to my first inclination is to always worry or fret of the current issues going on in our world today. Once my initial reaction passes though I  try to bring my mind back to two verses in the Bible that have always helped me when anxiety and stress try to take over.

Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life.

Matthew 6:27

 

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Matthew 6:34

 

Let us not worry because truly God has got this!

 





Squeal!! It's Showtime!

Last night waiting backstage to go on

 

After 2 1/2 months of long hours and grueling practices the time has finally arrived. Tonight we perform for our first real audience. We are ready. This will be my first time since childhood performing anything. Of course by this point Grace is an old pro. Also today our local newspaper will have a big article about the production with pictures. From what I understand lots of the seats are already sold for the 8 show run. If you would like to purchase tickets please do so ASAP on their website through the theatre ticket office.

One of our many dress rehearsals

Exercise or the Lack There Of

For two years I have taken my exercise time very seriously. Up until a year and a half ago that meant various activities 5-6 times a week. Over the past six months other factors in life have taken over and exercise went down to 4 times a week, then three times a week, and now has virtually become non-existent. The biggest factor is contributed to the King and I play me and Grace are participating in. It has literally taken over our lives. Most nights find us at the theatre for 3-5 hours each night. The next morning we are spent and sleeping in to catch up on rest. Then it is too hot outside to walk, etc. and not enough time in the afternoon to drive to the gym - work out - then drive back home before heading to the theatre yet again.

Well, that is all about to change. In two weeks all the performances and dress rehearsals will be over. We can get back on track with visits to the gym and Zumba classes as well as walking at night after dinner once the temps cool off. Of course I had one other calamity that befall me a couple of weeks ago. I sat a chair on my toe and I think it was cracked or broken. I was unable to wear shoes other than flip flops the entire time and it is still sore in sneakers.

So my promise to myself and everyone else is that in two weeks exercise will once again take a very prominent role in my life. I have to get back in shape. I always feel better and not so exhausted all the time.

Advantages to Reviewing Products

In my case this post will revolve around reviewing educational products. I have been blessed for the past two and a half years to be involved with the TOS Review Crew. This partnership has in turn blessed our family with a multitude of educational products. I was given the products for free for my honest opinion after using the product for a certain amount of time in our home. Many of these products I would never have purchased either because we were already using a product that made us happy, maybe the product was out of our price range, or I had not ever heard of the vendor/product.

Working with the Crew is just like having a job. Each product we are picked to review has to be used appropriately, a review written, posted to my blog, and shared in different social medias. Once you are chosen to work with the Crew it is a year long commitment. As with any endeavor there are advantages and disadvantages that go along with the territory. I would like to concentrate on the advantages because quite frankly it is hard to think of hardly any disadvantages other than time out of your life to accomplish the reviews.

• Free products. Each year is a little different, but so far this year our family has been blessed with over 10 free products and the year isn't even over yet. Last year we reviewed close to 30 products. This year I was a little more cautious in the amount of reviews I took on. So this means over the past two years 40 products have traveled through our home - some only during the review period and others we continue to use to this day. None cost us anything but time. This is a great way to supplement your homeschool curriculum throughout the year. Sometimes you even luck upon products that can be put on the shelf and used again the next year.
• Meeting wonderful people from all over the country even the world. I have had the chance to meet not only the people I work with through the TOS Crew but also different vendors and companies.
• More exposure to my blog. All reviews are posted in several different areas which exposes your blog to more readers. It is a great way to grown your followers and again meet many more people.
• Educate myself. Over the past couple of years there are things I have had to learn to make it all work. Blogger, other social media platforms, writing, marketing, solving computer issues, and so much more.

I say all this because soon you could also have the opportunity to join up with the TOS Review Crew. In a few months an application will be made available for you to fill out if interested in joining. There are a few things you can be doing now to have a better chance of being picked. If you do not have a blog that would be the first order of business. You will also need to grow your number of followers quickly as they do have a minimum numbers of followers required in more than one social media platform. This is a huge commitment so you will need to pray about it. I promise to post the link to the application when it becomes available.

Weekend Family Projects

Today working on clearing more of the backyard
 

 

My parents have a contract on their house and hopefully will close on August 8th. We are moving them into my sister's house. She has lots of space where my parents will have their own living quarters, kind of like a mother-in-law suite only bigger. The downstairs already has two large bedrooms, bathroom, and living space. We are adding a small kitchenette and laundry room. Seriously they will have at least 1200 square feet down there for themselves and two dogs and a cat to live. Many things have had to happen to make this work. Currently we are clearing out all of my sisters things that were downstairs to put in storage to make room for my parents possessions. We also have to clear out a portion of the back yard to make a fenced in area for my mother's dogs. Another big item on the checklist is laying concrete to go down and around the house to offer easy access for my father who is not very mobile. Lots of sweat, tears, time, and money to make it all happen. I will post pics of the project as we go along and once mom and dad are moved in. This was an inevitable situation that we all knew would need to happen. My dad's health has gone down hill over the past year. He doesn't drive anymore or leave the house much. My mom is exhausted from the continuous care of a yard, house, and my dad. Dad also falls sometimes and one of us goes over to help my mom get him back on his feet (currently walks with a walker or in a wheelchair for longer distances). Now at least at night someone will be home to help if the need arises and mom will have just more people in general around for company, etc.

Dining and living space