Hooray - the semester (and year) of our homeschooling co-op has come to a lovely finish!! I love being a part of such an amazing group. The board members are dedicated, passionate women who love the students and believe whole-heartedly in making our co-op excellent. The other families are composed of some of our dearest friends. The kids thrive in their different classes - Rachel and Daniel both scored in the top of their spelling class. I am constantly delighted in the work the students produce for me in my classes.

We had a tea party in our kindergarten class this morning.

All of that said, I am thrilled to shed the responsibility, stress and work of another year at co-op. Whew! In the meantime, I will try hard not to think about the THREE classes I have committed to teaching next semester. There are so many fun ideas I like to explore with the kids, I have a difficult time pacing myself.

Ah, but fall is a long time away and I plan to thoroughly enjoy the spring and summer.

What’s a party without accessories?

Tim took over 300 pictures of our Friends and Family Night where the kindergarteners graduated, the choir performed, the older three took part in a mystery play, and the parents/teachers were honored.

First grade here we come!

Hopefully at least one or two of the pictures turned out.

Kathy
Project 366 - Day 116

Tianne Moon - EnJOY: A Thirst-Quenching Look at Philippians

We watched Session Four from this (DVD study) tonight at Bible study.

Running the Race

I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:14)

Four Things That Can Take Our Eyes off the Goal of Knowing Christ Intimately

1) Basking in the glory of past accomplishments -

When I was in college, I had amazing times with the Lord. It was so powerful!

But have you met with Him TODAY?

Two years ago I was a part of this new ministry at church. It was life changing for so many people.

But how are you serving the Lord TODAY?

If we spend so much time reflecting on the past, we will miss what the Lord wants to do in our present.

Sarah (age 5) sets out to teach Elise (also age 5) how to rollerblade. Oh my!

2) Bowing under the weight of past failures -

God can’t forgive me because I ____________. My sins are too big even for Him.
I can’t seem to stop struggling in this area (fill in blank), so why bother trying?

Isaiah 43:18-19 says: “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.”

The Lord promises to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness (I John 1:9). We don’t need to be so burdened by our past struggles that we can’t move forward.

3) Biding our time waiting -

The Christian walk is an upward climb. If we choose to put our walk in neutral, we will not remain in one place. We either persevere and push onward and upward, or we slide back down.

Elise and Sarah abandon the rollerblades in favor of some other wheels.

4) Being distracted by earthly goals and interests -

Even things that appear outwardly good and positive can distract us from following God and His calling for our life.

Challenging thoughts on running the race. The question was asked:

What does your journey look like right now?
A meandering stroll? A light jog? A nap on the sidelines? An intense race?

And …

What changes can you make TODAY that will help you keep your eyes focused on the heavenly prize?

Thought provoking indeed.

Kathy
Project 366 - Day 112

Some families celebrate Advent as they look forward to Christmas, but our family has always been a little, well, different. Today I took my two girls out for an ice cream cone, in honor of Advent.

It is true that Easter came pretty early this year, but I think we still have a little time before the Christmas season is upon us. I’d hate to miss the summer, for starters.

We were so busy eating, that I didn’t remember to use the camera until the ice cream was almost gone.

No, we were celebrating last Advent, in our inimitable style and tendency to procrastinate. As Kathy mentioned in her Advent Calendar post, each year we offer daily prizes to the kids in daily Advent calendars. One of the prizes they particularly appreciated was a small slip of paper, inscribed with these fateful words:

A Special McDonald’s Outing with Daddy

I found it amusing that the scraps of paper bore Kathy’s handwriting, and that she hadn’t bothered to check with me before she volunteered my services as a prize. Sometimes she panics when she doesn’t have quite enough little prizes for all five of the children, times 25 days.

Truth be told, I absolutely love Christmas, and I greatly enjoy foraging for ice cream with my kids, so it wasn’t much of an imposition.

Rachel has been very faithful on her 5 for $5 goals, avoiding sugar six days a week. But this was the seventh day, and she rested.

The boys redeemed their coupons pretty early-on, but Rachel and Sarah hoarded theirs. Thus the Advent celebration while April showers and flowers abound. I bought the ice cream and we sat companionably, licking the sides of the generous cones to prevent unsightly drippage.

Sarah positively adores her older sister, and with good reason — Rachel is very good to her.

After we finished our cones, Sarah wanted to explore the Playland structure, while Rachel and I looked on, swapping memories. “I remember,” Rachel sighed in reminiscence, “when Sarah was too scared to climb above the second level … and now look at her!”

Indeed, time flies. I remember when Rachel was too small to climb above the first level, and it seems like only yesterday. I am greatly privileged to be the Daddy of such delightful young ladies, and I’m intent on savoring as many moments as I can, before I look around and they’re off “on whatever adventure Aslan brings them”, as C.S. Lewis would say.

Sarah, a true child of the blog, is always willing to pose for the camera.

On the way home, we stopped off at Wal-Mart to buy another one of those cool Jiffy Seedling mini-greenhouses that I mentioned a couple of weeks ago. This time, in honor of my girls, we bought flower seeds.

Tim
Project 366, Day 97

One of the families brought baby chicks to co-op this week. What a treat!

I remember years ago friends brought their horse to Vacation Bible School. Strange, no one seems to have a cow. Anybody own a cow? We had friends with goats and another with llamas. No cows. Is there a deep, meaningful lesson in the lack of pet cows? What would Gary Larson have to say about that?

Kathy

At the park yesterday, Sarah surprised me with her skill on the monkey bars. She was determined to cross them successfully.

It’s hard work, sometimes, being five. Life is sweet though.

Happy Good Friday!

Kathy