Looking Longingly at my Greenhouse

Even though the calendar says March 20, living in Alaska means there’s usually still snow on the ground.  The days are longer and there is definitely more sunshine but no green poking out anywhere.  It could be another month or more before we see green.  The trees don’t show their tiny patient buds until well into May. Temperature have been in the 40’s for the last several days and we are loosing snow rapidly.  Isaac opened the door this afternoon and said, “It feels like Summer out there.”   It is not exactly balmy but the new approaching season is imminent. This picture of my greenhouse was taken just this morning.  I have been looking at it longingly for several days.  It won’t be long now!  Happy Spring!

 

 

A great skiing Day

  Yesterday, My husband took the two boys skiing and I had the entire day to myself.  I had grand plans of making soap while they were gone but while running an errand, a quick stop at the thrift store turned into an all day affair.  It was awfully fun though so there are no regrets. I ended up buying a sweet little table that will be great for my sewing machine.  It’s needs a little cleaning, but I’m thrilled.

I had to put some pictures of the boys skiing on the blog even though I wasn’t present.  They were able to do both cross-country and down-hill skiing.  They’ve only been down-hill skiing a few times but seemed to take to it like two Alaskan born guys should. 

 

 

I was told the only time they fell down was when this video was taken.  It’s pretty funny though.  They were all nice and sore today.

Homeschool Days

    I have been homeschooling now for more than 28 years.  The joy and privilege of watching my children learn and develop is ingrained in my character.   I believe that teaching and training children begins the day they are born.  The first thing you teach them is that when they call out in the night you’ll be there.  When their tummies are hungry, you’re there to provide warm nourishing milk and when their diapers are messy, you’ll give them dry clean clothes to wear.  They learn the sound of your voice and they learn to trust and know that you love them.  This precious foundation is fundamental to our children’s spiritual and mental health for the rest of their lives.

    On Wednesdays a couple of friends come over with their children and we work on homeschool projects together.  The last several weeks has been creative writing (something I need to learn as well) and it has been a delight to watch the children’s imaginations soar.  We are using a program called “Excellence in Writing”.

The children start by taking a paragraph out of any book, pick three key words from each sentence and then rewrite the sentences in their own words.

We are also having the children take their keyword outlines and give an oral presentation.  It is still in the beginner phase but we have been thrilled with the results.  It has increased all of our confidence in writing.

Today we had each of the children write their own stories using the outline that we came up with together.

We have fun together too.  They were dying to go out and play in the snow.  So we let them go.  I guess you would call that recess.  It was a good day!

Shout joyfully to the Lord, all the earth.
Serve the Lord with gladness;
Come before Him with joyful singing.
Know that the Lord Himself is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Psalm 100:1-3

Memories of March

Yesterday, the ill-tempered winds bellowed aggressively across the Valley shouting, "It's March!" It was the kind of day that made me thankful that I could stay home. I do like being at home. My quick trip to the store could wait another day or two. This morning, all is still again. There is no movement in the trees but snow is whirling around in such an inconstant manner that it can't seem to decide which direction to fall. Looking out my large windows gave me the feeling of living in a snow globe. Again, I'm glad to be home. The boys came in several times while shoveling the deck saying, "It's cold, Mom!" That's March in Alaska.
While going about my daily chores I couldn't help but think about the many memories of March. On March 11th, at the age of 18, I met my husband-to-be at an evening Bible study on campus at the Ohio State University. Little did I know that night would change my life forever. On March 15th, three years later, my sweetheart and I were married. (Thirty years ago this month!) Three years ago, on March 15, Robert's exuberant, high-spirited Italian mother passed away while our family was gathered in her home. Just eleven days earlier, March 4th, She had been baptized into Christ. Her passing became a bitter-sweet experience for all of us. On March 20th, 1981, I felt the movement of my firstborn child in my womb. A memory I'll cherishes forever. And most importantly, on March 30, 1970 (40 years ago this month), I was baptized into Christ. I'm sure, as the month glides by, I'll think of some more March memories. March is truly a month of milestones in my life.

My first blog

I have been wanting, for some time now, to start my own blog. I have been inspired by many others, including my daughter's writings of her daily adventures. My only real problem is that I am not a writer. Getting my thoughts from my brain to a blank page is an incredible challenge. I'm intimidated by the very thought of it. But, alas, here I go. The new adventure has begun. This is my very first blog. Thanks for joining me.