And this is what they spent the rest of the afternoon doing...

By last night they were completely exhausted. It's the first time Bradley has asked to go to bed at 8:30 EVER!

Since I know you are all as sucked into the miracle of beans growing in a jar as I am, I thought I'd share our latest growth. It is unbelievable how these things are literally growing noticeably every couple of hours. I've never watched anything grow this fast before. Now we're all just wondering what is going to happen. Obviously if they keep up this pace they will outgrow the jar before long. We're just hoping to see them start growing new beans first. Stay tuned!

Yesterday the homeschool group at my church had the privilege of helping with the Christmas Food Baskets. Our church will provide over 300 needy families with some wonderful packages of food and other useful things this Christmas. Our job yesterday was to assemble the boxes. I was so impressed with all of our kids. They worked so hard to put these boxes together, and I didn't hear any complaints other than being thirsty. It was a great project for them.

Bradley was a pro with the tape gun, and he LOVED having this responsibility!

Bailey spent most of her time slapping stickers on two sides of each box. But part of the time she was transporting boxes down the the deaf chapel hallway. This is what it looked like down there at one point.

These are just a few of the #1 boxes.

Here's our hard workers, ready to head over to Pump it Up for the rest of the party! Things like this remind me why homeschooling really is a blessing to our family. I love that my kids worked so hard to help others. At least for a few hours, Christmas wasn't about them, and that's a really good thing.

Check this out! This is how much our beans have grown since yesterday morning. If this keeps up, we just may find a golden goose!

By the way, my boy Fred kicked some butt at yesterday's debate. It's about time, I say. Too bad only about 12 people saw it.

Now I must vent. I have no specific knowledge of how my e-mail got commandeered by all the right-wing crazy groups (although I can only assume it's because I have contributed to Repulican candidates at various points in the past.) But I get at least 5-8 e-mails a day from "Right vs Left" or "MinutemenHQ" and various groups like this. They go immediately to my junk mail, but they still annoy the heck out of me, because my Outlook display shows me when I have junk and I have to go click on them to make them not be highlighted anymore so I don't see a number in my "junk" folder. I realize I may be showing some technical ignorance here, but I'm going to pretend you're not sitting there thinking there is an easy way for me to fix that and continue my rant.

I also get e-mail from some group called "Christian Response," which just irritates me to no end. As if there is one Christian response and whatever stuff they are selling is it.

But I just got an e-mail from them that blew my mind. I have no idea who "Christian Response" is. None. But they just sent me an e-mail advertising some smear video against Hillary Clinton that is supposedly home videos that have been banned by the media showing her true monstrous personality and criminal activity. I had also received an ad for this same video earlier today from "Right vs Left" or one of the others, and just ignored it as typical hyper-partisan garbage.

But to get this e-mail from a group called "Christian Response"? What is wrong with this picture? This is my whole problem right now with mixing Christianity and politics. Call me crazy, but I don't think Jesus would sanction a mass distribution of hate-inspired, fear-mongering propaganda against anyone, even if she is a Clinton.

Growing Beanstalks

I just thought everyone in blogger land would want to see the fruits of our most recent science experiment. Here it is in Brad's own words:

Or if you prefer a legible copy:

"Last week we planted beans in a jar. If you want to do this expirament you will need:

* a jar

* beans 4-8

* a knife

* a roll of paper towels.

1. Use the knife to cut off a piece of the paper towel like this: (arrow to back, where you can find the diagram)

3. Put the wet smaller piece of paper towel in the jar. (an arrow here, showing the mixed up numbers)

2. Wet the smaller peice of paper towel

4. Put your beans in the jar to, like this: (diagram)

This expirement is so much fun!

The beans, after a few days, will began to grow. The sprouts go up and the roots go down.

As I'm not typically very good at science, you must share my sense of accomplishment at making it fun for my kids, at least this week.

How much more fun could our lives be?

Tuesday was one of those days that made me so happy to be homeschooling. I've lived in Nashville for almost 10 years, and I've always wanted to go to the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. When I saw the commercials this year I made up my mind to go for it. Since we aren't confined by public school times any more, we were able to make a day of it. We still did school in the morning, and then it was time for a field trip!

After a lunch at Cracker Barrell, we headed out to Opry Mills. Parking at the mall is free, and within walking distance of both the Grand Ole Opry and the Opryland Hotel. Since we had over an hour to kill, we decided to hit the mall. Our first stop was the Aquarium restaurant. Not to eat, but just to look. That place is amazing!

Here's my little darlings, still young enough to humor their mom taking their picture in the middle of a crowded mall.

When we entered the candy store, my kids went nuts. They acted as if it was the first time they had ever seen candy in their entire life. They were each allowed to pick 1/4 lb., and I thought it would take forever. They finally settled on some loot, and I earned some serious mommy points.

Now it was time to head on over to the show. We met up with some other homeschooling friends, and the excitement was palpable. Our seats were in the balcony, and the kids thought we had the best spot in the house. I love experiencing things like this with them, because they make every moment new.

Although parts of the show were a little hokey, the Rockettes did not disappoint. The precision of their moves is just mesmerizing. I'm so glad we went!

Here's our future Rockettes, working out their kicks in the lobby. I'm so glad my camera takes video, because these clips are classic.

The very best part of the day was when Daddy and Bryant met us after the show. We had dinner at the mall and then walked over to the Opryland Hotel to see the lights. My goal was to get a Christmas card picture, and what you see above is the best it got. I was determined not to get too stressed out about it, because they were all really tired, and I knew getting "that" shot was going to be unlikely.

But we got a lot like this...
and a few like this...

Our final event was to watch the water show. In the Magnolia Garden of the Opryland Hotel there is a place that has about 30 fountains all shooting up out of the ground. Every hour they do a music and light show and the fountains put on an incredible display. My kids LOVE it, and this year Bryant got to truly experience it for the first time. The oohs and ahs were enough to melt anyone's heart, and made any stress up to that point completely worth it.

These are the moments when I can't imagine my life being any other way. May we all have exactly this look on our face at least once this Christmas season!

Someone asked me the other day why I don't like Mike Huckabee. I couldn't pin it down, other than the fact that i just don't think he's everything he is claiming to be. So I spent some time tonight hunting it down a little bit.

First of all, Governor Huckabee claims to be a big tax cutter. His record in Arkansas indicates otherwise. The following is from the Arkansas Times back in May:

"Huckabee said that he had a consistent record of tax cutting and that he had slashed taxes in Arkansas "94 times." His record is this: He signed one big tax cut, a 1997 income tax revision drafted and passed by the other party.

"He supported two other smaller tax cuts that became law. He fought elimination of the sales tax on groceries. He raised taxes far more than he cut them. He raised them so much that treasury surpluses set records his last two years in office."

I'm also concerned about his ideas on immigration. This is from a letter by Gary Bauer, the head of the Campaign for Working Families:

"When he was governor of Arkansas, Huckabee supported legislation allowing illegal immigrants who had attended Arkansas high schools to participate in a scholarship program to attend college. Huckabee lost that debate, and the bill failed.

"He also strongly opposed an effort by State Senator Jim Holt, also an ordained Southern Baptist minister, to end taxpayer subsidies for illegal immigrants in Arkansas and to require proof of citizenship in order to register to vote. Huckabee denounced Holt's legislation as "race baiting" and 'demagoguery.'"

Not only did he call his opponent's bill un-Christian and un-American, but he claimed to drink a different "Jesus juice" than Senator Holt.

That leads to what I think is bothering me the most about this guy, which is exactly what seems to be fueling his momentum. And that is his outspoken claims of Christianity.

Let me explain before I offend. There is nothing I would like more than for the man in the White House to answer to the authority of Jesus Christ. There can be no higher calling. One of the primary reasons I have stuck by President Bush is because I believe that he seeks God in his decision making, and I know he values the same things I value. I want my president to believe in something higher than himself. Otherwise, we might find ourselves having to deal with a Hugo Chavez or Vladimir Putin, or at the very least just another guy in office with no apparent moral authority who risks national security for the sake of his own gratification.

But at the same time, I don't want someone in office who will justify all of his actions as the only appropriate Christian response. We in the body of Christ are a VERY diverse group. God has given His children a myriad of personalities and passions. If we all were exactly the same, not only would it be a very boring faith, but an extremely narrow one as well.

I've often heard someone say, "I just don't understand how you can be a Christian and support so-and-so or such-and-such." I'm quite sure those very words have escaped my lips. But over the past couple of years, my eyes have been opened to the fact that my view of the world is not necessarily always the only way to go.

For instance, let's look at the poor. While we are all called to be merciful, there are some Christians whom God has especially bestowed with the gift of mercy. I must confess, it doesn't show up very high on my spiritual gift roster. But a person who is high on mercy will look at the poor in a very different way from someone who isn't. They might theoretically like the idea of "teaching them how to fish," but when they are standing there with the hungry one, they want a fish, and they want it now. They believe you can sort out the rhetoric later. Does that make them less of a Christian because they believe in welfare programs and government subsidies? Of course not. Does it make them a liberal in this particular area? Probably so. But in this example, conservatism may not be the more compassionate choice.

Yes, I get onto liberals constantly. I get angry enough at them to spit on a frequent basis. If you've spent any time reading my blog, you are not surprised by this. But I confess that I generalize about them far too often. I'm usually speaking out of my passions, and that causes the rhetoric to be a little heated sometimes.

But let's look at something like abortion. There are many Christians, including James Dobson, who use abortion as a litmus test for any elected official. I personally think this is a mistake. I think that it is incredibly dangerous for Mr. Dobson to lead a political movement away from the chosen Republican nominee (assuming it's not Huckabee, I guess) based on the fact that he doesn't like their abortion records. We don't have to look back in history very far to see what happens when a major percentage of the voting block goes for a third-party candidate. And the security stakes are just so high.

I don't have time to go off on this tangent right now, but perhaps soon. I'm reading a book right now called "The Myth of a Christian Nation," by Gregory Boyd, and it is about the dangers of mixing Christianity with politics. It is fascinating, and I think well worth the read.

But back to my point. I don't believe we are going to change abortion in this country through the courts. Not the Supreme Court or any other. I believe the only way to reduce abortion in this country is to change hearts and minds. Overturning Roe v Wade won't do anything but send the issue to the states (which would be better, undoubtedly). If overturned, you would very soon see a legal abortion map that looks much like the election map of 2000. Your coastal states would have legal abortion, along with some in the Midwest. People living in fly-over country would have to make travel arrangements in order to terminate their pregnancies legally. Could this ever happen? It's possible, if we end up with a very conservative bench. This TERRIFIES those who consider themselves pro-choice, and it's one of the reasons they have such a vehement hatred for conservatism.

But would outlawing abortion really keep a determined woman from carrying out her plans? Probably not. It might inconvenience her, and could possibly endanger her life if she chooses to go to a back room clinic somewhere.

So what do I think is the answer? Education and the love of Christ. I think my mom, by working for the past couple of decades in a crisis pregnancy center, has done far more to defeat abortion than angry protesters outside a clinic who terrorize the young women going in and cause them even more agony than their choices already have. Showing a pregnant woman her ultrasound goes a million miles farther in encouraging her not to abort her baby than showing her pictures of grotesque aborted fetal tissue and calling her "Baby Killer."

My friend Cheryl is an adoption advocate. She is using her time and energy to help others pursue building their families through adoption. We need more of this. We need adoption to become the most acceptable course of action for an unwanted pregnancy. This will take time and a lot of effort, but it is doable.

Picketing and screaming or simply writing a check to the National Right to Life are really the easy ways to fight abortion. It may not be practical to dream that the climate of our culture could really shift towards life, but isn't it worth dreaming? Isn't it worth praying and working towards in whatever way possible?

I'm out of time, so perhaps I can pick up here another day. I've just really been thinking lately about the whole Christian Right and the shift towards trying to solve the world's problems politically rather than changing hearts. (Incidentally, if you can find a copy of CNN's "God's Christian Warriors" I highly recommend you watch. It's eye-opening.)

We're called to love people. We're called to offer Jesus to a dying world. We're not called to get caught up in anything this world has to offer, including our government.

Don't get me wrong - you know I enjoy politics. I love the game of it. I love my right to vote, and I consider it one of my highest calls as an American. But I need to spend more time pursuing those things which are eternal. What am I called to do as a Christian? To study the Word. To pray. To love. To offer hope in a desperately dry land.

Will you join me?

I miss my blog.

I really wish I had time to write more. I still think. I still opine (just ask my poor husband.) I just can't find the time to sit and write. Something about three kids and homeschooling. And life.

So much to talk about, it's hard to pick just one. So I think I'll start with the most cynical.

Does anyone out there think it's just a teensy bit possible that the whole escapade at Hillary's headquarters on Friday was staged? Does that make me a conspiracy theorist? I just find the facts a little too irresistable.

The man who did it told his family to watch the news that day. He was drunk. He armed himself with flares. No one got hurt. The whole thing was a 6-hr media circus.

And the headlines and major stories all over Good Morning America this morning? Hillary taking charge during a crisis. They talked all about this being the perfect opportunity for her to show America how she could handle herself during crisis. She cancelled everything as soon as she heard the news and went into full-fledged management mode. She wanted to fly to Rochester to be with the families of the hostages, but wasn't allowed to immediately. She offered to do whatever it took to diffuse the situation, even speaking to the hostage taker. Once it was all over, she was immediately there with the families. Man, she sure has impressed me. I think I might have to vote for her now.

Please just don't spend too much time thinking about the fact that her poll numbers are down and it looks like Obama just might beat her in Iowa. Which is not good when you are the inevitable nominee. Overlook the fact that her biggest competition with Rudy is that everyone in the country got to see him "handle" 9-11. I'm sure she and her image makers hadn't given either one any thought.

But perhaps I am being too cynical. Too Republican. The fact is, I'm not sure there is a candidate out there that I might not at least question whether this was a staged event. Such is the state of our choice in 2008.

Whether it was fake or not, the orgasmic media fest over Hillary's amazing composure under fire is very, very real. And it makes me want to vomit.

It's going to be a long next couple of months until she has this nomination thing cinched up. Although fighting Oprah may prove to be her most formidable opponent yet. At least it'll be fun watching her squirm.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

We've spent the last four days putting up Christmas decorations. What's sad is it feels like we just took them down a couple of months ago. I know we've done a ton of stuff this year, but it somehow feels like a blur.

One of my favorite things about having kids is seeing things through their eyes. Everything about Christmas is exciting and new all over again. Taking Bryant to Lowe's is an experience I will forever cherish. He gets excited just pulling in the parking lot. And when we walk through the doors into that Winter Wonderland of giant blow-up Christmas paraphanalia, he just about jumps out of my arms. "Oh Wow!" he says over and over. It's enough to bring tears to my eyes each and every time.

Bradley said yesterday, "When is Christmas EVER going to get here?!" I so remember feeling that way as a kid. Somehow when we get older, Christmas rushes up on us so quickly, we rarely find the time to actually enjoy it.

So my challenge is to slow down and enjoy. Enjoy the smells, the lights, the beauty of the Christmas story. Share in the enjoyment of children over the agonizingly slow progression of days over the next month. You'll have to fake this agonizingly slow part, of course, but give it a shot.

Revisit the wonder. A Savior is born.

Raingutter Regatta

Last night was the Raingutter Regatta for Bradley's Scout troup. He and Jeff spent many hours this past weekend getting his boat ready. He did all of the artwork himself, and was so proud of his boat. It really looked cool. I loved the sea serpent he put on the sail.

In the school cafeteria, there were five tables set up with raingutters so the boys could race their boats. In the past, they've used straws to blow their boats, but apparently someone forgot them last night so they had to just blow right on the sails. Brad was all prepared for the straw technique, but he figured it out pretty well.

Bradley lost his first race, but won the next one because his opponent got disqualified for helping his boat along a little too much. It's amazing how the mother bear persona rises so quickly in me. It's a boy scout boat race, for Pete's sake, and I'm watching this, yelling (in my head, of course) "He's cheating!" Fortunately, the Boy Scout leader noticed without my pointing it out and they disqualified him. Winning by disqualification didn't bother Bradley a bit. A win is a win.

They even let Bailey give it a try.

The boy that won the overall race had designed a special aerodynamic sail. (I'm sure his dad had nothing to do with that.) Nobody even had a chance to beat him. Seemed to go a little against the spirit of the competition to me, but since the kids didn't seem to be bothered by it, I certainly wasn't going to point it out. That's what my blog is for. :) I bet there will be a whole lot of aerodynamic sails next year, though!

Trophy or not, I'm so proud of what Bradley accomplished. He worked so very hard on his boat. It looked cool. It stayed afloat. He had great sportmanship. What more could you ask for?

I'm just glad I'm not the one who had to clean up.

Two Bama boys, hoping for better luck next year.

Yesterday I took the kids to Alabama to see their grandparents and other extended family since we won't be there for Thanksgiving. We had a great day, and the kids were so happy to get to go.

Here's Bryant Gene with Grandaddy Gene "Poppa G" Swords. At one point Poppa G spit over the side of the truck into the woods. Bryant, who mimicks everything, is now periodically making a hocking sound and pretending to spit. Cool tricks.
And this is what happens when your kids find the camera and you are otherwise occupied.
Carrie Beth and Bailey, posing for Brad.

It's a shame they never have any fun.

I'm blogging today, primarily because it's been a week. I really don't have much to say. This week has been so, so busy. Don't you hate it when you just plow through a week, never feeling like you have time to sit and reflect on anything?

Today I have very much enjoyed myself. I guess I'm getting in the cooking mood for the holidays, because so far today I have made little cocktail weinies for Bradley because he tried them at Publix the other night and has been begging for them ever since. Who knew grape jelly and chili sauce could be so palatable to an 8-yr-old? I also made a pumpkin dip that I had the other night and have been craving ever since. I think I'll pause and share the recipe, because some of you may need an easy appetizer this week.

2 blocks of cream cheese
1 30-oz can of pumpkin pie mix (not plain pumpkin)
1 lb powdered sugar

Mix and serve with graham cracker strips or ginger snaps. WARNING: This makes a LOT of pumpkin dip, so you may want to try and half it.

Anyway, I also made a very hearty cheesy-beefy-noodley soup for dinner tonight with our buddies. I'm planning to make broccoli cornbread to go with it, and I'm very much looking forward to it. To top it all off, I made peppermint brownies. Not an especially healthy ensemble, but a yummy day nonetheless.

I'm itching to get my Christmas decorations down out of the attic. I wanted to do it today, but since we'll be here all next weekend, I guess it's better to just wait and get them down on Friday. But I can't wait for the house to be all aglow!

I have only bought one Christmas present. Some years I'm very motivated and have almost everything bought by the weekend after Thanksgiving. I'm not feeling like this will be the case this year. The weekdays are just so busy, and on the weekends I just want to sit here like I'm doing right now. Of course, football only has a couple of weeks left, so my Saturdays will be a little more open here shortly. (sniff, sniff)

I'm watching LSU and Ole Miss right now. So far LSU is only ahead 14-7. I imagine this will not last long. Georgia got their act together and beat Kentucky. (But did anybody see that AMAZING interception in the first half? It was the third turnover for GA, and the Kentucky guy literally came out of nowhere and just took it away from him. It was beautiful.) Jeff just told me Alabama is tied with LA-Monroe. And last I heard, Tennessee is getting beat by Vandy. I imagine it's possible for the Vols to pull it out today, but I have a feeling we'll lose to Kentucky next week. I'll be shocked if we make it to the SEC championship. In years past, when all Tennessee had to do to get to the SEC championship was beat Vandy and Kentucky, it would have been a no-brainer. But this has been one of the craziest seasons in college football I can ever remember. When has being in the top 5 ever been such a kiss of death as it has been this year?

As for politics, I have nothing to say. Well, you know that's not true, but I just don't feel like wasting the energy. It's been fun watching Hillary get beat up by the media a little the past few weeks for her flip-flopping, but they've all jumped back on the suck-up express after Thursday night's debate. Let's just face the fact that she will be the Democrat nominee. There is really no question about this. The only question is who the Republicans are going to combat her with.

Will we try to go Giuliani, because we think he has a chance in the blue states, even though that means he's not a conservative? Do we go with Romney, whose positions on issues truly change according to the listening audience? (It worked for the first President Clinton, didn't it?) Do we go with Crazy John, who prides himself on being a maverick, aka, Democrat? Or how about Fred? Could he pull it off or will he ever be able to get people to take him seriously? I just don't know. The prospects are a little dim, which is frankly why it depresses me to think about it too much, so I'm trying not to. Amazing that we'll know in less than 90 days who the nominees will be, and then the games will really begin. Last time I was psyched because I LOVED my guy and I couldn't wait to watch him go for it. This time, not so much. Feels more like the Bob Dole years, in a sad sort of way.

The one bright spot is that Congress has an approval rating of 11%. This is way lower than the President's, although his is certainly less than stellar. I heard someone say the other day that O.J. Simpson's approval rating was 16% in a 1995 poll. Congress is less popular than OJ at the height of the murder scandal. That's saying something, I think. Unfortunately, the ones truly being hurt by this political battle over the war are the troops. The Democrats are refusing to fund them w/o time limits for withdrawal. The President is refusing to give them this kind of power.

In this latest bill, Pelosi demanded a 15-day waiting period before any American unit could be moved into Iraq, which would completely hamstring those people on the ground who actually KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING and are fighting this war. Can we say Vietnam? The Democrats have tried to compare Iraq to Vietnam in many different ways, and in this way they are right on target. If we allow the war to be run by politicians, we will lose. There is no plainer way to state it. You'd think this would be the lesson learned 30 years ago, but apparently not by a long shot.

So, I guess that's all I have to say about that. I really don't want to get worked up. I just want to sit. And so I shall.

LSU is still only up by a touchdown. They are currently ranked No. 1. That's not been a good place to be so far this season. We shall see...

I have to share what our kids did for about four hours today. As background, Bradley is an official Cub Scout this year, and at the meeting on Tuesday night they learned how to hammer nails into wood, and all the boys made their very own tool boxes. It was really pretty cool.

So today Brad asked his daddy if he could hammer some wood, now that he has experience. Jeff said, Sure, why not?

So he and Bailey gathered up some wood and started hammering. In a little while, McKenzie and RileyGrace showed up, and soon it was a veritable wood-working frenzy in the garage. They built a little bed for one of the stuffed animals. At one point, I came out and they literally had a structure going up, with walls and a roof beam.

This structure soon ended up in my front yard, and a lemonade stand was born.

As you can see, it wasn't long before they had gotten the attention of several neighbors. Amazing how many kids show up when lemonade is available. It doesn't hurt to live in a neighborhood where kids outnumber grownups by about 30% either.

At one point I counted no less than 12 kids in my front yard. They were just hanging out, having some lemonade. It was so cute, I just about couldn't stand it.

These four have been raised together. They had no chance but to be friends, because they are thrown together so often. But the fact is that they seek each other out constantly, and I love it. They can have fun doing just about anything together.

I think we've got many years to enjoy watching them grow up together. Who knows what adventures the future holds?

Especially with these two...

No words could ever do this picture justice. But this is an accurate snapshot of my day today.

It's almost midnight, and I really don't have time to be blogging. I should go to bed, shouldn't I? I'm not one of these people who makes a habit of staying up late, so I won't be all I can be tomorrow if I don't get some sleep. Usually the Andy Griffith whistle is my Pavlov's bell. I hear it and I'm out like a light. But I had some work to finish tonight, so here I sit on my couch and all is quiet in the house. Seems like a good time to blog. However, I'll attempt to keep it short. :)

I've mentioned several times recently that my Bible study group has been doing a study on the life of Jesus. It's one I've done before, but it was six years ago, so it has been really great to do again. There are lots of things in this study that have had me thinking. One is about all the people that Jesus encountered that were possessed by demons. Why was it so common back then? Was there really this huge increase in demonic activity simply because the Christ had come to earth, Satan's territory, and he wasn't all that welcome here? Or is demon posession a more common ailment than we like to think?

What has me thinking about this tonight is the recent school shooting in Finland, of all places. This is not a country where gun violence is commonplace. The country is literally in shock over this student taking the lives of several classmates and a principal. He was apparently smiling and laughing throughout the grim ordeal. I'm thinking that in order to do something so evil, you must be possessed by demons. Violence is a hallmark of Satan, and he truly delights in the shedding of blood. Certainly we can't imagine Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris not being possessed. Or more recently, Cho Seung-Hui. Or Saddam Hussein. Or Osama bin Ladin. These are extreme, obvious cases of Satanic activity.

I live a pretty sheltered life. But I'm sure if I began to hang out in the types of places where my Jesus would be hanging out if He came today, even in my own small town, I'd probably encounter all kinds of things that would shock me, enrage me and make me extremely uncomfortable. But as He said, He came for those very ones that needed Him the most.

Speaking of my sheltered life, from time to time I reflect on how easy my life has been. It's a scary thing to write down if you carry any superstitious tendencies. But I was talking with a close friend the other day about how I've never truly experienced deep pain. I've experienced death, but not of anyone so close to me that I literally felt a part of me had died. I've experienced a shattered heel (very painful indeed, but I'm not speaking physically here.) That did force me to rely on others for help, but it isn't the kind of thing that sent me into a depression. It just happened, and I dealt with it. I've experienced rejection, but never on a level that made me want to crawl in a hole and never come out. My life has been good.

I have an amazing husband, three gorgeous kids, a church I love, friends that I would do anything for, and vice versa, a loving family, nice house, etc., etc. I have a job I love and a boss that I am deeply, spiritually connected to.

I'm not saying these things because I want something bad to happen. I absolutely don't. I know God has protected me from many horrible things. For instance, when Bailey was 2 years old, we were in a really bad car accident. As we were leaving for our destination 30 minutes prior to the wreck, I heard God tell me to look at Bailey's car seat. What I discovered was that although she was buckled into her car seat, the seat itself had not been fastened in. We had driven all the way to Georgia like that earlier in the day, and were about to drive all the way back to Tennessee. That was God, without a doubt in my mind. Had she not been buckled in when we t-boned a car going 65 miles an hour, I can't even allow myself to think about what could have happened.

Just a couple of weeks ago, the Lord protected me and the kids from a horrible, fatal car crash on I-65. How many other times have I been protected and didn't even realize it? Surely it must be thousands.

There always seem to be those people in life who can't catch a break. It seems like they are hit with one catastrophe after another, until you are crying out to God for them, "Enough is enough! How much more can a person take?" And you wonder, why is all this happening to them? Then the survivor's guilt kicks in and you wonder, when is it going to be my turn? And you start waiting for the shoe to fall.

Yes, I have failed in my attempt to keep this short. But part of what got me thinking about all of this tonight was sitting behind a sweet, precious lady at choir practice. Her name is Carol, and she has brain cancer. She was supposed to go to Thailand with us in June, but was diagnosed just a month before the trip and was obviously unable to travel with all the treatment she was going through.

Tonight we were rehearsing a song called, "Lord, I Run to You," by Tommy Walker. Some of the lyrics say, "Lord, I run to you. No one else will do. Lord, you said we'd face trouble, pain and tears. But to be of good cheer, be of good cheer. For you have overcome the world."

I sat there behind Carol, who was holding the sheet music in one hand, and had the other lifted high in praise to her God. Carol, who is walking with a cane. Carol, who is wearing a scarf over her head to hide the loss of hair. She is facing unimaginable pain and fear, and yet knows exactly where her help comes from. Thank you, Jesus.

I am not suffering from "my life's too good"-itis. I'm perfectly content to go on with no major waves of pain. I just wish I could be sure that my faith would stand firm in the face of such trials. I pray that it would. I pray that God opens my eyes to the suffering going on all around me, and makes me a willing vessel to minister to those in need. Right now my days are so consumed with the busyness of daily living, I fear that I'm missing out on opportunities that are right in front of me.

All this to say, if you are in pain, I hope you have the power of the Holy Spirit working inside you. He can help you be of good cheer, for He has overcome the world. Run to Him.

Is anyone else watching Sunday Night Football on NBC right now? I am completely dumbfounded by their apparent week-long campaign called "Green Is Universal."

In an effort to raise awareness for global warming, they have turned off all the lights in the studio and are shooting in the dark by candlelight. It is the most absurdly pathetic thing I have seen yet in this mind-blowing anti-humanity hysteria.

And aren't they being a little hypocritical? I mean, why not just play the football game in the dark? How many watts are they burning out there right now? Or should we just ban all night games altogether? Monday Night Football producers would certainly understand, I'm sure. It's all about saving the planet, right boys?

Will someone please STOP THE INSANITY!!!!!

Happy Halloween!

Bradley asked me yesterday if I celebrate Halloween. I told him I celebrate candy.

Hope you had a trick-or-treatin' good time! :)

For some reason I am still unable to upload my Halloween photos. Whenever that issue gets resolved, I'll post my little cuties. Bryant was a monkey (could there be a more appropriate costume?), Bailey was a cheerleader from High School Musical, and Bradley was Superman. They were all too, too cute.

This week I have been plagued with doubt over my decision to homeschool. As we've gotten a few weeks into it, it's hard to remember all the things that drove me to pull them out in the first place. Something about the grass always being greener on the other side.

Last night I asked one of my neighbors who I'm good friends with if I am now the neighborhood weirdo. She paused entirely too long before answering that people were just shocked. It is a calling, she said, and none of us have ever experienced anything like that.

So I spent the rest of the night fretting inside my head that everybody thinks I'm weird. I know if you are a man reading this, that's much less easy to understand than if you are a woman, but just trust me.

My mom reminded me last night that it really doesn't matter what anyone else thinks, because I didn't start this to please others. I did this because I felt really strongly that the Lord was telling me to. And if He called me to it three weeks ago, I don't think that He would suddenly just change His mind. So I decided that I needed to revisit that aspect and realized that most of what was bothering me had to do with what other people think.

I look around at people in the grocery stores who see me with these obviously school-aged kids and wonder if they are wondering about us. When I send my kids outside to release some energy and they are running around screaming like wild banshees, I wonder what my neighbors are thinking. I wonder what all the ladies at my former bus stop are thinking. In reality, I know that it's most likely none of them are thinking about me at all, at least not more than in passing. I know everyone is far too busy with their own lives to spend time thinking about mine. But it's just whispers from the Enemy, trying to get me to question and doubt. And it works.

So last night the Lord woke me up around 12:30 (using Bryant as the venue) and gave me about 30 minutes of rocking him to think. He reminded me of all the reasons why I'm homeschooling, and what has come out of it so far.

Here are a few:
1) Almost every morning I've had time to get up and actually spend some time with God before the morning rush, which is actually only rushed now on Tuesdays, when we all have to get up and get out of here by about 8:15. Every other day I can let the kids sleep as late as they want. This allows for MUCH better moods in the morning, and much more rested kids.

2) Each day, my kids are actively engaging in Scripture. In the past three weeks, they have memorized Psalm 1. Bradley reads to us out of the book of Mark each morning. And since I'm currently doing a Bible study on the life of Jesus, I'm able to comment and question him on the stories by pulling from the things I've been learning myself. We've had some really great discussions.

3) Bradley has started underlining passages of Scripture in his Bible. There isn't really any rhyme or reason to what he underlines. He's just imitating what he's seen others do. I'm totally fine with that. He's learning that you can be interactive with Scripture. I think it's great.

4) He's also doing an inductive Bible study for kids from Kay Arthur on the book of Jonah. It is so neat. It's written from the perspective of teaching him how to be an investigative reporter and write the story of Jonah. So he's doing all the who, what, where, when and whys, and learning how to apply that to the Bible. It's really fun, and it covers the writing portion of his language arts, all while teaching him the details of the story of Jonah.

5) Bailey's reading has improved dramatically. She struggles so much more than Bradley did, but we are finding things that work for her. I'm loving the time with her in my lap really working hard to sound out her stories. At times I start to get so impatient, and this patience that can only come from the Lord just washes over me. It is so sweet.

6) Bradley is reading several chapters a day of good literature. They are all stories with fascinating characters and stories that teach valuable character lessons. He never complains about his reading assignments (well - never may be strong, but it's very minimal.) At times he actually reads farther than he has to because he's so into it. This is one of my favorite things by far.

7) My kids are learning to enjoy being with each other. Yes, they still fight occasionally. But because they are together all day and serving as each other's primary playmate, they are getting along so much better than they were when they saw each other far less. It's quite a phenomenon.

8) Bradley is taking piano and has ample time to practice each day. He is hungry for it and doing incredibly well. I can't wait for the house to be filled with sounds of him playing.

9) They are both taking swimming at the rec center for p.e. I love that they are getting this training in the four basic strokes so they can be competitive swimmers if they want to be, but at the very least have a sport that they can do for the rest of their lives. My granddaddy swam until he was 90 years old. I love that they are building this foundation that we just wouldn't have had time for when they were in school.

10) NO HOMEWORK!!! :)

These are the main ones that have come to mind. But it all boils down to the fact that I'm able to teach them what I want them to learn, and at a pace that is perfectly suited to each of them. I'm learning that Bailey understands much more mathematically than I ever knew. I'm learning that it's okay to not start school until 10:00 a.m. if Bryant is needing extra attention that day. Flexibility hasn't ever been a strong suit of mine, so this is definitely stretching a new character point in me.

Bottom line: I love my kids. Right now I think this is what's best for them. None of the other stuff matters. As my good friend Kristen says, I don't think I'm going to see them to adulthood and look back thinking, I sure do wish I had spent less time with them when they were growing up.