I'm an Unschooling mom in Las Vegas, NV. I have all boys! A 14 yr old, a 7 yr old, a 1 yr old and 2 teenage stepsons.
4 of the 5 have some special need or another, and the 5th would be termed "gifted" if he was in school. They all have their own interests and abilities.
Join me as I blog about our Christ-led learning approach...things that work, things that don't, and the antics of family life!
So, my oldest is part of a local Improv group. He is an "agent" and discusses possible plans and gatherings with other like-minded souls.
The group decided they would do a gathering where they would all freeze, in a public setting, for 5 minutes...causing mass confusion. This idea was patterned after the Frozen Grand Central Station Operation.
They decided they would do it at Freemont Street Experience...a covered street that's pedestrian only, with shops, and artists and a light show shown on the inside of the covering every few hours during the night.
The details of the "mission" apparently got leaked on a local radio show and they had massive amounts of people show up to partake.
My son is not shown in the video below...but this is it! He was "frozen" high-fiving his friend. He had a blast! They are gearing up for their next mission, details to remain secret. It won't be another "freeze" they do all sorts of things! Check it out, it's good clean fun!
So, one of my parents projects this visit was to paint Elias' room. Last visit they did Brian's room (now a lovely shade of neon green, with black and gray furnishings and rugs). Elias made it clear he wanted a Spiderman room. For Christmas he got Spiderman border and peel & stick figurines. We picked out the room colors to match! (I'm just lucky he didn't go for red and black) Now, keep in mind, this room was white and bubble gum pink, with a beautiful Ballerina border. Poor boy! He's lived with it for a long time. This is much better!
Here's the border...part red Spidey part Black Spidey
The peel & stick things are cool cause you can add them anywhere! Closets and nightstand both got some.
And here's a new comforter and pillow Elias' grandmother made him. Now both beds have Spidey bedding!
It was a lot of work, but he's SO excited! And he adores his new curtains! Before a street light was coming in through the blinds..now he can sleep like a baby (or so I hope!)
He's been showing everyone the room today...even the baby's speech therapist! He's too cute!
According to the temperature reader in my van, today was 105. That's HOT! We spent the morning at my parent's hotel pool, swimming and relaxing. It was the perfect temp! This was Sebastian's first time swimming this season...and he loved it! He tried to get away from me on the beach entry. Then he kicked his little legs a lot while I was holding him.
Here's Nanny holding up Sebastian, and Elias peeking through. It was rough trying to get good pics without getting splashed!
I always say I don't get pics of myself, well, my mom got one of me! Here I am with little lovely.
He played himself to sleep. Literally. He fell asleep in my arms, in the water and stayed that way for about 1/2 an hour. I love little snuggly creatures! (Even if they do get heavy and leave weird tan marks on you....)
Elias meanwhile was having a blast being thrown by my dad, towards my mom, who would then "get them" by splashing them! He did it over and over and over and over...my dad got tired before he did!
We're going out again tomorrow morning. It should be another hot day!
Finally, I have pics and a report! Brian went to 2 local teen formals last weekend. I only have pics of the 1st night, but that's ok, he wore the same outfit the 2nd night.
The first night the group went to a local Japanese Steakhouse, where they cook the meal in front of you. What fun! Brian loves these types of places, and the food!
After dinner they went back to one of the mom's houses. She had set up a dance floor in her backyard, and linen-covered tables, and desserts. All of the kids got a photo taken, and the girls got a long-stemmed rose. AWWWW!!
Surprise of surprises, Brian got out on the dance floor! Some of the kids had taken a dance class earlier in the month, but it was during Brian's Japanese class. (They did offer a 2nd class, and Brian did get to take that...but it was after the dance!)
Everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves. It was very well planned and everyone behaved wonderfully.
The next night a different local group went out to a fancy restaurant for dinner. It was also very nice, but a little....long. The kids could only order 1 of 3 items; (manicotti, lasangna or ravioli) poor Brian isn't a huge Italian food lover, or pasta lover. Then there was quite a while in between courses, or quite awhile by kid standards anyway. And then a speaker. He just didn't have as much fun. For the experience, though, it was nice.
Brian
Brian, Ruben, Devlin & CJ (aren't they dashing?!?!)
Doing some sort of line dance....
Wow, he's out there! I can't believe it!
We are looking forward to next year's formals! (Well, at least I am!!!)
The premise is you send them your old wedding gown, prom dress, or otherwise beautiful garment and they transform it into a burial outfit for babies who have died.
Involve your kids...let them know about pain in the world, and inspire them to be empathetic and helpful. I am inspired to go Goodwill shopping, yard saleing and to spread the word. What a difference WE can make! Especially during such a hard time in someone's life.
Lately I've really been coming across a lot of blogs of families who have had children with Trisomy 18. Many of these children die soon after entering the world. Their impact is felt though, their lives touch ours....mine, and my children...even though we don't know them. I watch the videos these families create, read their blogs, and cry for them. But I am also moved by how much love they have and how awesome Gos is....these kids truly rest in Jesus' arms now....how much more wonderful can it get?
And here's the most amazing video of a family's journey with their special son.
Faith ~99 Balloons
How hard is it not to be so grateful for our own kids at this point? Be they terrible 2's, be they hormonal teens...they're here. But these parents are just as grateful for the short time they've had their children.
I am truly moved by their grace and by their faith.
Small recap, he was failure to thrive (after thriving for many months) and ended up not taking anything by mouth (oral aversion) for a loooonnnngggg time. So adverse that he even stopped nursing. He has had a G-Tube since Sept. 2007 and was solely fed through it for a long time. Slowly but surely he started feeling better and acting like a "normal baby", exploring with things in his mouth etc. As he started trying more and more foods, we decreased his G-tube feedings.
Our last dr visit I told our GI dr that I think we'll be done with it by the time you see us next! He still hadn't mastered drinking well and was still getting supplemental feeds, but now, 2 months later, he's totally been off the tube at home for close to 2 months! I was very hopeful that today would be the day!
Our Dr is so cool. Plus, he knows me, he knows I've been through this before, he tends to let me do a lot on my own...which is great (usually). He trusts my opinion, trusts my knowledge, and totally partners with me...but today he forgot my "little" problem with stomach contents! He asked me if I just wanted to take the G-tube out at home myself. HECK NO I DON'T!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I almost didn't even want to be in the same room! I sure didn't look! I dread changing that pad.....ewwwwwww. But, now it's done!
See the smiley baby? Bandaged up but no more tubey to play with!
It's actually an exciting time because my parents are coming in to town tomorrow and this will be their first time seeing him since they were here last Sept (during his hospitalization). He's looking so perky and alert and happy...it will be great for them to see him with no tubes!!!
A local (off-strip) Casino was having a Cinco de Mayo festival in their parking lot today. Not that Elias knows/understands/cares about Cinco de Mayo...but a it was a family event, with jump houses, merry-go-round, mariachi bands, etc., so we went with our neighbors.
It was borderline too hot, but there was a breeze here and there, plus some shady spots. The kids had a blast...and that's why we went! So it was worth it. Of course, I lucked out...Brian wasn't interested in going, so I left the baby home for his naptime with big brother! This meant I didn't have to drag a cranky baby around in the heat for something that didn't interest him! YEAH! Plus it was nice for Elias to have me take just him.
Look at this beautiful boy! What a mischievous little smile he is wearing! He was weaving in and out of the palm trees, but I caught him! This was a big slide...he loved it.
Here's Elias and our neighbor friend...they are inseparable. I caught him mid-air..he says this picture is "awesome!!"
My little sweaty angel. They had a soccer team doing face paintings..he wanted Spiderman but that was a little too complicated..they gave him a spider. He went back later on and got another one on the other cheek. They're cute!
I'm never in pictures! I'm always the picture taker! My neighbor grabbed my camera and got this one...ok, I'll post it, you may never see another one!
Fun couple of hours, then back home for air conditioning and ice-cream!
Look, I made a widget!!! I don't really know what one does with it? I guess others can add it to their blogs etc? I was looking for cool things to add to my blog, but made this instead! COOL! I think you can get it from this link: Christian Unschooling Widget
On Friday my husband was able to go with us to a local park and help Elias with his Rocket Fishing Rod ! Elias was very excited to finally get to try it out.
Well, the short and long of it is....my husband was NOT impressed, but Elias thought it was cool. Well, that's what really matters isn't it? When you're 7 you want to watch it ZING out with a loud pop! Elias didn't care if he caught a fish, or if it worked well, it was just cool to play with!
Here are the boys throwing rocks in the lake, The baby totally loved this game! His aim is...well...he can throw with force, but not always in the direction he means to...so DUCK if he's around! Seriously!
It was a beautiful day, just lounging, enjoying the air, running around, feeding geese. Loving the in between cold and hotter-than-you-know-what, weather!
Well, in my last entry I thought the week was crazy, little did I know it was just picking up!
While the big boys got through the stomach bug relatively quickly, poor Sebastian did not. Add the fact that he has a metabolic disorder, and we ended up in the hospital.
It was very ugly. Poor guy wasn't hydrated enough for them to find a good vein, multiple pokes later they finally got one. He was becoming acidodic, a condition they need to keep on top of with kids with metabolic disorders, as it can rapidly spin out of control.
On top of all of this you've got me...previously when my kids were hospitalized, I'm right there, taking notes, doing research, advocating etc. This time...it was a throw up thing...when I say I have a throw up phobia, I don't just mean I don't like it..I mean full blown panic attacks, massive anxiety, heart racing, no eating, etc etc etc. I had dealt with Sebastian and Elias all weekend being sick, by the time we got to the hospital I was no good to anyone. It's rather embarrasing to even admit it, because it's sooo dang irrational. I ended up in the ER our 2nd night there, from so much stress that I ended up throwing up. A nice few drugs later, life looked a little better.
Sadly, now, the stomach bug is hitting just about every family we know...so I am constantly being bombarded with the topic, and some families who don't believe in staying home with sick kids (?!?!) I'm even getting to witness it! It's truly too much in my fragile emotional state. I'm about ready to stay indoors for the next few weeks. It's affecting every aspect of my life right now, all my kids are tired of hearing about it, and I'm tired of thinking about it. ACHHH!!! Frustration!!!!!
If I can get a couple of weeks without the topic, without seeing it, hearing about it, witnessing it, I should be able to tone down the anxiety...so, if you know me, and you have sick kids, keep them home! We don't want more germs and I can't handle the topic anymore!!
So, that's where we are..recovering nicely, but not wanting to get re-infected. I'll try to write more soon!
I haven't been blogging much this week..seems life was hectic for one reason or another!
I was to host a yard sale for our Statewide Homeschool Advocacy Organization, Nevada Homeschool Network, today. So, all week we've been collecting donations. It's very exciting to see all the stuff come in!
We've had our normal therapies...speech 4x a week for Elias, speech for baby, state Early Intervention speech, nutritionist and PT (for baby)...
Played at a friend's house...Brian messed around on her computer (he should come with a warning..."I'll help you but I'll also indoctrinate you on the hazards of Microsoft and Windows"..he's so funny!).
Brian started attending a new local Japanese class...which he loved. Hopefully the mom will run the class longer...this is a short introduction try-out.
Elias had his last gymnastics class....for the moment. Because of his birthday he can not sign up for the class we've been taking any longer....too old! But all of the other classes are in the evenings...ewwww!!! He's debating signing up for a HipHop class (his love is street dancing!) or boy scouts. We'll see. We're going to take a break for a little while...Nanny and Pop Pop are coming in May for the month, so it's a good time to rest!
Had 2 parents meetings for different groups...I lead the mentoring at both which I LOVE but the meetings both in the same week is sometimes good (get it over) but sometimes bad (being gone 2 nights in one week!).
Dealt with major allergies...mostly me, at the beginning of the week.
And then the little guys got sick Thursday night..not sure if food poisening or a tummy bug, but it was not fun. We're still recovering from that!
Needless to say, I had to postpone our yard sale...so I can collect more donations! We'll do that next weekend!
I'm not big on allowing my kids to do sleepovers, but Elias just did his first one. It was so cute! He went to one of his friend's birthday party, and when I got there to pick him up he had big crocodile tears. Some of the boys were sleeping over, could he? Oh, way to break my heart! OK! I am like 1 block away, and the mom is my friend, she knows I don't want my baby crying (if he were to cry!)
About an hour later, my friend calls me, to tell me he "peed himself" and needs new undies. Ok, here's the deal with Elias. He doesn't like water. He never has. He didn't even get INTO a bath tub until he was like 5! IF a drop of water gets on his shirt, he HAS to change, immediately. It's so weird! So, his friends got him laughing so hard he must have dribbled. My friend checked and didnt feel ANYTHING, but he is so hyper sensitive, he might have even THOUGHT he dribbled. LOL! So, she ran over and got a new pair of undies! So funny!
He made it overnight just fine...in fact, maybe a little too fine! I got up in the morning, and because I leave my AIM running all the time, there was an Instant Message from my friend, labeled 1:21 AM, "They're still up"
OMG!!! The day's going to be a wash! That's alright, he was having so much fun!!
Then around lunch time my friend calls me, she went out to run an errand, and left the kids with her husband at home. She says, "Call the house and talk to your son." I'm thinking, crap, what'd he do!?! She assured me nothing was wrong, but I was still nervous!!!
So I call, and he had lost a tooth! We didn't even know it was loose!! He bit into an apple and it started coming out! Then he asked the dad to pull it out! For the record, that's major. He has only let his Daddy pull out ONE tooth! Once, he let this one front tooth HANG for so long, it was all crooked and nasty, we were calling him "Snaggle-tooth". It was horrific! Truly.
What a big adventure. Now he wants to sleep over every night! Too funny. My baby/big boy! He's so wonderful.
In case you didn't notice...we're playing with a new look! Allison, over at Mission Field Designs is helping me create "a look" ! Very exciting! While I know old style HTML, the newer CSS and others are beyond my scope. And, Brian knows them well, but hates fiddling with images. Oh, I'm so excited to have a cohesive look, matching header, and more !Yeah! Keep coming back to check it out, hopefully you'll love it too!
I happened upon this Blog Post and thought it SOOOO thought- provoking and so Where I Am (or, where I try to be, and need to be!!), that I had to share! Hope it is meaningful to you.
n the spirit of that great theologian, Jeff Foxworthy, I present to you some rambling thoughts in my head, all completed by the phrase “you might be misrepresenting God”…
If your message is not filled with hope, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you tell people that they need to come to you to understand the message of scripture, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that “being real” means talking more about the wind and waves in your life than about the One who calms the storm, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that people who don’t attend a Sunday morning meeting are outside of God’s covering and protection, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that sickness, financial problems, hurricanes, broken bones, auto accidents, and terrorist attacks are all tools of God “to teach you something”, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that a person can’t live above their circumstances and walk in peace and victory, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that someone is not being real unless they tell you they’re struggling with some huge temptation, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that the only legitimate types of prayer for a Christian are prayers of lament, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you tell someone who is experiencing the peace and joy of the Lord to “hang on, your turn is coming”, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you believe that only “properly authorized leaders” are capable of serving communion or baptizing others, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you believe that Christianity is best represented by a set of propositional statements and/or a systematic theology, you might be misrepresenting God.
If your message does not lead to freedom, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that the Father doesn’t speak to his children in various ways, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that America is “God’s chosen country” and that everything America’s foreign policy represents is ordained by God, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that the Republican party is “God’s party, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that religion and Christianity are compatible, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that you can only “cooperate” in ministry and missions with people who have been baptized by a pastor in your same denomination, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that true Christianity is only represented by a particular denomination or systematic theology, you might be misrepresenting God.
If your belief in Christ does not manifest itself in living the life that Christ commanded us to live, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that you are more capable of articulating what someone else believes than that very person is capable of doing, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you believe that sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, freedom to the captives, and walking to the lame were only for first-century “verification of the message”, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that the only legitimate way to articulate one’s belief in God is found in a 4th-century statement, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that our main responsibility in relationship to God is to study the Bible, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that “everyone needs to have a pastor”, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you believe that leaving the institutional church is what the writer of Hebrews meant when he wrote, “Do not forsake the assembling of yourselves together”, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that a relationship with God means that you will accept or reject certain styles of music, certain hairstyles, certain beverages, or hanging out with certain people, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you think that Jesus turned water into mere grape juice, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you believe that a particular translation of the bible is the only inspired version, you might be misrepresenting God.
If you believe that one’s beliefs about baptism, bible translation, rapture timing, tongues, or a particular interpretation of Genesis 1-2 are absolute essentials to salvation and/or fellowship, you might be misrepresenting God.
I'm thinking, WHAT DID THAT KID DO TO MY COMPUTER?!?!
Ok, I restart my computer. Everything will be fine.
My mouse won't work! Why wont it move?!?! Darn thing, whole computer's falling apart!
I pick up my mouse and notice a piece of post it is stuck on the bottom, un-enabling it to move. Ok..my desk is sort of paperfilled, stupid cats must have gotten on my desk (they're not supposed to, but overnight who KNOWS what they do!) NOW it'll work.
But it's still not...it's moving, but very weird, like with a trail of arrows falling it. And nothing I click on is working. I have to like double click on hit Open In A New Window. What the heck did the boy do to my computer? What program did he have to download on MY computer now? He's never allowed on my computer again! WHy is he on mine anyway, he's got his own!
Restart stupid thing, see if it's any better.
SOMEHOW I get to my mail, but like half the letters are missing in my titles and subject lines. And I still cant open a message without opening a new window.
I give up, someone better go get that boy out of bed to tell me what silly program he downloaded and get it OFF MY COMPUTER!
Of course, the whole time I'm screaming WHAT THE HECK?!?! WHAT?!?! MAN! WHAT THE HECKKKKKKKKKK.
These are all my thoughts through this very frustrating 15/20 minutes of wasted time! I HATE wasting time!
Dear beautiful son walks in with a smile, very unlike a child who has just been hauled out of bed and knows he has done something wrong....sits at my computer and basically says, "it's a screensaver, April Fool's".
Little S*&^ !!! Duh! It never crossed my mind! He is a prankster of the uber kind! Look at what all he did!!
switched the mouse button preferences
turned on mouse trails
switched keyboard layout to Dvorak (so anything I type, its the wrong letters!)
Added the Total Confusion Combo Pack firefox extenstion (ohmygosh you have to read what all this does! It's INCREDIBLE! You still have time today to add it to your loved one's computer!! I didn't keep it installed long enough to think I was crazy, thankfully!
Elias had his heart set on going to Chuck E. Cheese for his birthday. Well, I'm not up for the crowds of the weekend...and since we homeschool and so do most of our friends...we decided to go on a Tuesday even though his birthday was today. (Daddy has off on tuesdays!)
We had the place to ourselves! I didn't reserve a party, we just brought our own cake and plates, favors etc and bought tokens and pizza for everyone. It was SOOOO DEAD, it was beautiful!! The kids had a blast
Even the babies had fun!
Just as we were leaving they turned on all of the "noisy stuff" and the kids had a blast looking at "Chuck E."
Then his real birthday was today. We knew it was going to be quiet..Daddy had to work, so he just invited over a friend. Grandma called this morning and wanted to take him to a movie, she ended up taking Elias and his friend! It worked great for Elias. Then his friend came back and we sang Happy Birthday, opened a couple of presents from family back East, and played his new video games!
What a goof!
The hardest toy to find in stock right now! Good job Uncle Dougie!
All in all he's had a great birthday experience this year! What a lovely boy he is!
Here's a letter I wrote years ago when I was hosting chats for AOL, in their Homeschool Forum. I hand it out all the time to new families and it's posted on various websites as a helpful tool. Please feel free to pass it along!
Congratulations on considering homeschooling!
Here are some words of wisdom.
1. Know and understand your state laws. It is LEGAL to homeschool. Each state has their own laws or court interpretations, some under homeschooling, some under private school laws. A great help in understanding your state laws is.....Local Support Groups! You can find many support groups on Ann Zeise's A to Z Home's Cool website.
3. Take the time to learn how your children learn best. This is a benefit that homeschooling offers us...to tailor our children's education to fit THEM! There are 3 primary styles of learning: Visual Learners (seeing), Auditory Learners(hearing), and Kinesthetic/Tactile Learners (doing). A great book on learning styles is called In Their Own Way by Thomas Armstrong ...read anything by him! Also check out books by Cynthia Tobias and Still Teaching Ourselves by Agnes Leistico.
Some websites are: Learning Styles What's Your Learning Style?
4. Know that there are many different styles of homeschooling....there is NO right or wrong way to go about it. It is about what is RIGHT FOR YOUR CHILD and you!!
Here are some "terms".....
- Deschooling- a period of time after a child has been in public school to get out of the mode of 'school' . You may find that if you try to go right into homeschooling you will have a battle on your hands.. so if you take time to have some fun, go to museums, out to lunch etc.. things you could NOT do during 'school' before.. it might help. The loose rule of thumb is...for every year spent in schools, they will need a month to readjust...to relearn that learning can be fun!!! To love it again.
- Curriculum based homeschooling- it is just as it sounds, you buy a prepackaged curriculum that comes with all the 'bells and whistles'. There is such a wide variety to pick from. Rainbow Resource Center has a very wide selection. The Elijah Company has a pretty good writeup on different kinds.
- Eclectic homeschooling- An eclectic curriculum is where you pick and choose resources, books, textbooks, ect. for each subject to be taught from different curriculum publishers. So rather than purchasing your entire curriculum (prepackaged) from the same publisher or provider you build your own curriculum from a variety of publishers/resources. For example: A 1st grade English curriculum might use Hooked on Phonics , Pathway Readers , Spelling Power , and Writing Strands, all from different publishers. Similarly, you could choose Making Math Meaningful, Math-U-See, or Saxon Math for your 1st grade Math Curriculum based on how your child learns. And then read aloud the Little House in the Big Woods series by Laura Ingals Wilder for your Social Studies: History, Geography, Economics, and Goverment curriculum, all in one set of books!!! You are still using books and workbooks but from different sources that meet your child's interests and needs.
- Unschooling- Child led learning; Natural learning; Delight-led learning; Spirit-led learning. The child is given back his own education. Learning is happening all the time. The parent is always on the lookout for that 'teachable moment'. It is a lot easier to do than it sounds. If the child wants to learn about the Civil War, that is what is studied etc. We use whatever resources work!! Life is the most popular!! Here's a hint: Unschooling is what you have done since birth. It is the way you helped them walk, and talk, and learn the alphabet...When they were ready, in fun happy ways, with you there helping and supporting!! Find some unschoolers to talk to…it is very interesting!
- Unit Studies- Unit studies is like…you are studying horses. You do your math with horses, (age appropriate.. like counting them, percentage of white and brown, etc) your history of horses, biology of horses, etc. You study one thing that encompasses everything. Many people use this when they have many different levels in the household... it is easy to provide for all grade levels. Also, it works well with special needs children because you can focus on what they want to learn about.
5. Love your kids :) Hug them, learn with them, have fun!
This week a tragedy struck a friend's family...her mother in law had a heart attack, followed by her husband having a heart attack, followed by his father suddenly dying that same night, followed by a triple bypass surgery the next day for the husband. Can you say WHEW?!?
One of my gifts is organization and the ability to DO. I can easily take action, I can lead, I see what needs to get done and I do it. We have another friend who is much the same, so she and I have "taken charge". We've sat with our friend during the surgery, we've put out calls for donations for various needs the family has, we're coordinating all the donations and kids getting places, and just being there for our friend.
I'm a DOER.
One of our other friends was lamenting to me the fact that I'm such a DOER and shes not. God knows I love her, but its the truth, she's a dawdler, a talker, a hugger, a s--l-o-w----p-o---k--e with little to no organizational skills. She'll admit it!That's not the point though.
She was sad and feeling not as useful as me. In her self esteem of not feeling adequate, she builds me up to HIGH places, when I'm just HUMAN! I'm just being me and DOING, because that's me!
So, in a conversation with her today she suggested that I do something, which I quickly dismissed as not my business, not really necessary etc etc.
Lo and behold, not a half an hour later it was made evident to me through a hysterical phone conversation with our friend who's family is being so affected, that I need to BRING UP doing what was suggested AND DO IT.
And I DID.
But let me tell you. I'm not a fast thinker on my feet. I need things planned out. I need plans a, b and c, and options to choose from if one does not work.
On my own I would NOT have suggested what I did. It just wouldn't have even come to me!
But, God used my friend who was feeling low to bring it to me when she did and I could use it accordingly.
I called my friend up and told her I felt God had used her, but maybe it wasn't the way she had been hoping. I think we all have gifts, but if we're so busy looking at other people's gifts, and lamenting that they aren't our gift, we might not SEE our own gifts!
If you're one of these people, know that God uses you how HE wants to. It may not be how YOU want to, but He will use you if you are open to it!
Look at this beautiful boy! What a mischievous little smile he is wearing! He was weaving in and out of the palm trees, but I caught him! This was a big slide...he loved it.
Here's Elias and our neighbor friend...they are inseparable. I caught him mid-air..he says this picture is "awesome!!"
My little sweaty angel. They had a soccer team doing face paintings..he wanted Spiderman but that was a little too complicated..they gave him a spider. He went back later on and got another one on the other cheek. They're cute!
I'm never in pictures! I'm always the picture taker! My neighbor grabbed my camera and got this one...ok, I'll post it, you may never see another one! 
n the spirit of that great theologian, Jeff Foxworthy, I present to you some rambling thoughts in my head, all completed by the phrase “you might be misrepresenting God”…
