Release them…..

Tuesdays are a double edged sword for me this year.

I LOVE Tuesday because we have NO AFTER SCHOOL activities.

But….

Daddy doesn’t have to be on the pirate ship till 2 sometimes 6!!!!

And as you can imagine…..

homeschooling with Dad home is NOT EASY.

Well…I take that back.

If dad is home with the intention of HELPING homeschool…we do GREAT. It is always a BLESSING to have a substitute teacher for a minute.  Sometimes I just need a minute to submerge myself in something other than 4 kids doing language arts…AT THE SAME TIME.

On the other hand…..

if dad is doing ANYTHING other than actively helping us with school- they are like caged animals. CLAWING, SCREAMING, BEGGING to get out of that schoolroom and be with HIM.

And yesterday…he was in the yard, doing yard work.

It was too much.

Between my PMS and their total UNCOOPERATION..

I was over it at about 10:30.

I was DONE arguing with MYSELF about how the kids NEEDED to do their schoolwork.

They NEEDED to finish their worksheets.

They NEEDED to READ in our SCIENCE book.LOL

Whatever….I was DONE. I let them go.

I opened the door and they FLEW from the schoolroom all fighting for the lead.

I decided that I would go run errands ..

BY

MYSELF.

But before I did that I was cleaning up outside on the front porch and I noticed something moving in our “lizard habitat”(which is really just an old pickle jar where we put the lizard eggs we find ).

It was a baby lizard.

Like just hatched baby.

Maybe an inch long….It reminded me of the kids a moment earlier BEGGING to get out.

So I called the kids over and showed them the baby.

We open the jar and let the baby go. That is when we noticed the other egg.  Sheba asked me if she could see the other egg for just a moment.

So I gently placed the tiny egg in her tiny hand.

We were all standing there talking about the egg and something amazing happened….

It hatched.

Like, popped his head out and HATCHED right there in Sheba's hand …WHILE WE WERE WATCHING!!!!

It was the most amazing thing.

What a perfect reminder that sometimes…

More can be learned OUTSIDE the classroom then INSIDE the classroom.

If you are willing to LET GO. RELAX. and RELEASE THEM.

LIFE lessons….and 50/50 chances.

As a homeschool parent you always wonder about your kids.

There is always a level of anxiety that goes along with not knowing if they will be able to “navigate” the real world.

And then you have a moment….

A moment that makes everything crystal clear.

A moment that lets you know:

They

will

be

FINE.

I had one of those moments the other day at homeschool co-op.

Our classes start at 1:15 but we all get there at 12:45 to have announcements, show and tell, and a question and answer session which includes CANDY most of the time.

Soooooooooooooo……….

We walked in to the gym of the church and the kids sat down . The kids were ready. They are always excited to get there and see their friends. We had show and tell. Malachi got up and showed off our art project. Sweet.

So, THEN  they sat down and Mrs. Shelley started talking about how last week was constitution day.

Oh No….The questions are  USUALLY questions pertaining to something that is bible related…so the kids do fine.

Remember the BEAVERWOOD story????

But ….

the constitution????

They would probably want candy AFTERWARDS now…crap!

But…to quote Sublime: “ Once in a while you get shown in the light, in the strangest of places if you look at it right!”

She started the questions and asked a few then moved onto the True/False questions.

I sat back and watched.

At first…only the older kids raised their hands, only they knew the answers.

Then….as if to answer all my questions and put my “are my kids SMART enough for the REAL WORLD” questions at ease…

I saw something happen that made me so proud…in a weird way.

A lightbulb went off in Zeeks head.

He realized that with a True/False  question…he had a 50/50 chance.

He raised his hand.

I didn’t even hear the question…but then again – neither did he.

LOL

“True.”

He was right!

I saw the surprise on his face as he jumped up and chose his candy.

He sat back down and JOYFULLY  looked at his friends.

He was so happy and even from the other side of the room I knew he was telling them that he had NO IDEA what the question OR answer was but he GOT SOME CANDY because he GUESSED.

They all looked like he had given them a MAP directly to the candy.

It was HILLARIOUS!

I walked over to him and whispered in his ear, “You have no idea which question you just answered or WHY you got it right do you??? “

He looked at me with the biggest smile on his face and said, “No!!! I just GUESSED!”

I couldn’t  help but be proud.

And when I got back to the other side of the room….

Malachi had his hand up BEFORE she even asked a question.

That is when it was clear to me….

“They will be JUST FINE. “

They might not know much about the constitution and dates…

but-

They have MAJOR survival skills.

Boom!!!!!!!

⁶ We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your^[a] faith; ⁷ if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; ⁸ if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead,^[b] do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.  Romans 12:6

Servitude.

Every year during the summer I search for some sort of service project for our family to da during the year.

One year we raised money for “Nothing but Nets”. It is a charity that raises money to buy mosquito nets for kids in Africa.

One year we collected cereal boxes for women in Haiti.

This year…I decided to bring it closer to HOME.

Home like IN YOUR HEART, home.

Character is more important than MATH to me.

This year we are paticipating in something called BOOM BOOM Cards.

Boom Boom Cards promote “underground acts of guerilla goodness”.

It goes like THIS:

There are 26 cards.

You pick them 1 at a time. We are picking 1 per week.

This is the one we picked for this week:

(I started with an EASY one…so we could get the hang of it)

When you perform your “guerilla goodness”, you mark it on the BOOM BOOM sheet and then…

you BOOM someone else by leaving the card with a boom boom note.

Kinda like PAYING IT FORWARD.

I am not sure ANYTHING is more important to me while raising my children than infusing them with an ATTITUDE of GRATITUDE and a SERVANTS HEART.

Be prepared to be BOOM BOOMED!!!!!

Easy Art….

Morphing…..

“But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do.
For I am about to do something new.
See, I have already begun! Do you not see it?” Isaiah 43:18-19

My dad used to say, ”I want to put BRICK on your head so you will stop growing.”

THAT is a statement ONLY understood by someone WAIST DEEP in  a life FILLED with children.

A life SUBMERGED in flag football, ballet, band-aids, mac-n-cheese, chapter books, trampolines, clubhouses, and GROWTH.

It can ONLY be understood by a parent as they see their kids MORPH before their eyes.

It is sometimes PHYSICALLY painful for me to think of the future.

I want it to STOP. NOW.

I want to put the “brick” on my childrens head.

I want them to STOP.

Stop growing.

Stop changing.

Stop morphing.

But….

just like my parents were forced to do….

I am FORCED to watch as my babies change.

I am FORCED to come to terms….

with

the

TRUTH.

I cannot stop this force.

It is predetermined and ancient.

As long as there have been children…I am sure that their parents have been thru this.

It

does

not

make

it

easier.

But…it  is REAL and it is HAPPENING.

NOW.

So…I am TRYING to come to terms with it.

I know that GOD has a plan….no matter how much I want to THINK I am in control. I am not.

Before shot of my baby. She went to the dentist to get her SPACER removed, that she had put in bcs she fell and knocked out her front tooth.  She has had it in for 2 years…to keep the teeth in place till the big teeth started coming in.

After shot: Her OLD “teeth” gone…and the NEW TEETH revealed underneath.

CRAZY.

Cool.

Morphing in front of my eyes.

The TRUTH cannot be denied.

It is happening.

Rich……..

I LOVE it when a situation comes along and presents itself that is a COMPLETELY usable, teachable  life lesson.

I got an invite the other day to a “clothing swap”.

The first thing I thought was …I want to bring the girls.

It was an amazing idea that I thought would be something that just might help mold  my daughters minds into the virtuous women I am TRYING to train them to be.

It goes like this:

Step 1:clean out your closet of  anything that you don’t wear, don’t want or can’t use.

Step 2: Load ALL that GLORIOUS “trash” into your car and drive it  to a friends house…along with a dish, if you PARTY like we do- WITH FOOD!!!

Step 3: LUG all that stuff  from your car to the door of your friends house.YES…ALL 10 BAGS .(Preferably without dropping EVERYTHING you have on the ground when the bag rips…but, ya know…THAT is how we roll.)

ON THE WAY TO Step 3 : STOP in the middle of the street to have your DAUGHTER take a picture of you.  “bag lady”  by Eryka Badu is one of  your FAVORITE songs. LOL

Step 4: Pick a spot in the living room of  your friend's house and let the FUN begin.

There were TONS of clothes and we all took turns going around and holding up or “selling” an item of clothing or two. If anyone wanted it they just say so and they get it. EASY RIGHT????

You would think…..

The REAL fun begins when 2 or more people want it. It then goes in the “fight pile” in the middle of the floor.

If no one wants it ..it goes in the DONATE pile.

So NOONE goes BACK HOME with any of their OLD STUFF.

The girls sat there with their mouths WIDE OPEN most of the time. They were amazed. It was the perfect opportunity to show them that there are still ways to be fashionable and have cute clothes…even without ANY money.

It was a perfect way to show them that someone else's TRASH …can be YOUR treasure. THERE IS NO SHAME in being FRUGAL.

The world will try and convince you that without MONEY…you cant have cool things or fun times.

The world wants you to THINK that without MONEY ….you cant be “as cool” as the girl who DOES have money.

What a blessing it was to be able to SHOW them that what the WORLD tells you is TRUE….can be FAR from the truth..

We may not have money…but we are RICH.

Taming Our “Inner rebels”…

The build up to starting school starts for me about August.

I start throwing in the occasional “School starts in a month” comments.

Partly for THEM…

MOSTLY for ME.

Life is so whimsical during summer.

We wake when we want, sleep when we want, read for LEISURE, play in the pool, spends DAYS at the beach….it is AMAZING.

Maybe it is because I AM the teacher…

Maybe it is because I am the MOM also….

But Summer is a NICE break from ROUTINE.

I have said it once and I will say it again-

I

am

a

REBEL

at

heart.

I rebel against things are good for me even…not a good trait always. It does not always work well with my schedule-needing life.

Nevertheless…

All year long I TRY and follow a schedule.

kinda.

I mean…I MAKE a schedule.

Then I make an ATTEMPT to fit in as much as HUMANLY possible.

So when summer is over….I ALWAYS feel like it

was

not

long

enough

EVER.

But…I have gotten used to the feeling and have learned to “put on my big girl panties” and JUST DO IT.

I just put one foot in front of the other….and take it step-by-step.

I rub my eyes the whole time thinking, “Really??? Is this happening??? ALREADY????”

So yesterday morning  was day 1.

It was amazing…we went over the rules of the “classroom”.

We practiced writing and made our tin cans for our desks.

We had a snack and made an obstacle course outside.

The kids really had a great time.

They were stoked to be “back at it”.

And to be honest…so was I.

My inner rebel was sufficed by a summer of salt air and heat.

My inner rebel was satisfied by mountains and chlorine.

I found myself smiling at the end of the day yesterday.

The kids were in bed by 9 pm last night…SLEEPING, not complaining.

I think their inner rebels were also satisfied.

Happy to be back to some sort of routine and schedule…

COLLECTIVELY having to TAME our “inner rebels”  ONLY a little bit.

T- minus 2 days….

“You haven’t STARTED school yet???'”

“WOW!!! You REALLY haven’t started school yet?”

Once September hits….these questions are all we hear.

I understand it is USUALLY out of concern…

BUT, sometimes-

it’s judgmental.

People think that my kids aren’t getting a “good education” because their school year doesn't start until mid-September.

They think that my kids won’t be as SOCIALIZED…because this year we went on a last minute vacation…instead of staying home to start school.

I personally LOVE to see the look on a persons face as we walk into a store at 2pm on a Wednesday.

I love to see the “concern” on their faces…it is like my own personal joke.

Because I GUARANTEE…they will be thinking about US and our REBEL WAYS long after we have left the store and moved onto our next “educational experience”.

Maybe it is because I am rebellious at heart…

Maybe it is because I have learned to not care about what other people think….

Maybe it is because I KNOW they are LEARNING….even when they are not….at a desk.

But…just in case anyone was wondering…

we start school on MONDAY.

hahahahahaha

NC/Tenn I-Vibes Tour

Hundreds and hundreds of miles we traveled.

5 kids+ 10 adults + 1 veggie bus + music equipment =

1 CRAZY TRIP…..

Life lessons, camping, bugs, dirt, love, and music, family, Pb&J’s and LOVE ….

It was a vacation we won’t ever forget.

Se for yourself:

Birthday Baby!

Thru the water you appeared to me.

6 years ago today.

6 years of love and joy you have given us.

You are a child of God with the fiery spirit.

You stand up for yourself ..ALWAYS.

But …you are also ALWAYS willing to HELP.

Courageous, loving, and giving…you are my HEART.

I will love you always baby girl.

May you have a life FULL of laughter and trials.

May you make mistakes..and learn from them all, sometimes learning  from SOMEONE ELSE.

I promise you:

I will stand beside you…no matter what.

I will love and protect you…for eternity.

I will guide you the best I can..and I will try and make you proud.

We love you forever and always, baby girl.

HAPPY Birthday!!!!

A moment…..

There are moment in life that literally take my breathe away.

Moments when I feel like I couldn’t LOVE more.

Today I had one of those precious moments.

I stopped in the dance studio to check on Shasha and Sheba.

On Thursdays I drop  BOTH of them off at 4pm..because Sheba has Tap/Jazz at that time. Shasha has started just going to the studio with her sister because she LIKES to.

Last year I gve her the job of watching over her sister and making sure she got into her classes.

but….

It has been a weird transition for ME over the last year.

The kids are starting to “venture off” into their lives.

Zeek gets dropped off at the library sometimes for GAME DAY or Shasha gets dropped off at the studio.

Its new to me….I struggle with it, because I’m so used to being around them.

I am used to being ATTACHED to them. I spend every waking hour they have WITH THEM….so- as we have entered into this new part of life…

I struggle.

Sometimes I drive away and wonder, “Are they going to be good? Have I taught them enough to be LEFT in a space where they can BE???Will they SHINE or STUMBLE?”

Well, today….

Shasha SHINED.

When I popped in to see her Modern class…I was amazed at how GREAT she was at this style of dance.

I’m not gonna lie….I was SWOLLEN with pride. She might as well have won the NOBEL PRIZE. I was stoked.

Then when class was over she RAN over to me BEAMING.

She was so happy because one of her teachers had asked her to be an assistant to one of the younger classes.

She will actuallybe helping with SHEBAS tap/jazz class.

AMAZING!!!

It was such a moment for us.

I  leaned down to whisper in her ear…"I am sooo proud of you. You must have been acting pretty good here at the studio for them to ask you that.”

I was fighting tears….OMG.

I will never forget the look on her face after I whispered in her ear.

She was PROUD of herself….she felt PRIDE.

I

will

never

forget

THAT

moment.

EVER.