Feeling Terribly Inadequate

So lately I've been feeling terribly inadequate at most of my life. And yes, I know this is all feeling based and may not reflect accurately how things are. But feelings sometimes are indicative of a need for something to change.

1. Lousy as a housekeeper. Like I'm just never doing enough. I"ll admit I'm not the world's best housekeeper but lately I've been just thinking I'm scum compared to everyone else.

2. Lousy as a homeschooling mother. Not organized enough, not enough room, not teaching enough, not well... doing much of anything right. having my "moments" but just inadequate.

3. Lousy as a rabbit raiser. Having bunnies die due to seasonal changes and feed, and ah....just very dumpy.

4. Lousy as a wife. Ignoring my hubby at night as I try to figure out what I want to do with this that or the other thing. Just content to let him do his thing.

5. Lousy as a income maker. Quit my job, and yes I know that's a good thing, but at the same time means I'm not making money to pay off bills and do this that or the other thing.

My goodness.... I look at this list and I'm realizing that I do feel rather lousy about much of my life. I think perhaps I need to get some perspective.

Did you know that one of my favourite passages in the bible is

1 Peter 2:9-10 (New International Version, ©2010)

⁹ But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. ¹⁰ Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

This is who I really am. I do need to remember this. By the way hun, should I ever die, THIS is what I want the preacher to talk on. This passage and what it means to me and what it should mean to other folks. Because THIS passage God always calls me back to. :)

God has called me to so much more than what I feel I am. He's declared me to be something bigger.

Think perhaps I need to figure out how to live more like that eh?

Yes, I can make some changes in my life that encourage me to think differently and not be so doldrum (did I spell that correctly?) about my life. Hmm... Now to figure out how to do this.

Slow day, good day

Today was a good day overall.

Started off SLOW. I got up late, which meant I did the bunnies late, which meant that everything was held up.

First thing I heard out of Justin's mouth this morning "daddy! Can I play angry birds? DADDY!" he played it while I was out with the bunnies, he played it while I folded laundry, and then I played it. Before we knew it, it was 1100 a.m.

Time to do some schooling, so we did. :)

After all that we went shopping. I had a cheque to deposit so I took care of that and then bought some groceries. Watched a movie with the lad "the spy that lived next door" it's a jackie chan movie and it's fairly decent.

Put the lad to bed. Read three books and told one story before bedtime.

The books were
Dewey: there's a cat in the library




Dewey's Christmas at the library


and a houseful of Christmas



Then I had six rabbits to butcher, three for one order, one for me, and two for a different order. All were growers that stalled on me. Got to 3.4 pounds and said NOPE, not growing any more. I said no sense throwing feed at you if you aren't going to grow. Turned out for the best as I needed the cage space and the smallest of the bunch turned into "I"M GOING TO KILL YOU ALL!" Nasty little thing. Had everyone terrorized. Nice with me, just not nice with his brothers.

Got some work done on the computer and now it is time for me to go to bed.

Cheers! :)

Santa - teaching of him or not

I was reading a blog post this morning about a lady who deliberately taught her children to believe in Santa, partially because she never had the chance to as a child. She watched as her older child struggled with deciding if Santa was real or not, and then made him promise not to tell the truth to his younger siblings. And it bothered her that he knew the truth!

Why would it bother a person that their child KNOWS the truth???

I was never taught about Santa as a child. My mom said "why would I want to lie to you?"

The remains my stance. Why would I want to deliberately lie to my child about the existence of something? Why would I want to set him up to wonder what else I might have lied to him about?

I remember my co-workers being shocked that I didn't teach our son about Santa. "But it's just some harmless fun"! They would say, my response to them then was the same as it is today "it's not harmless fun to lie to your child".

I've talked with our lad about Santa, explaining how some people think that it is fun to believe that Santa brings presents. I've explained how it's funner to really give presents ourselves, trying to guess what someone else might like, and being able to surprise them with a gift that they will truly like and enjoy and possibly even need. Funner than pretending that some fat person who doesn't even really know us gave us a present. Isn't it fun to know that someone who really loves you wants to give you something? Just like God REALLY loved us and he loved us in such a way that he let his son die for us?

People talk about letting their child enjoy the magic of Christmas, and therefore teach them about Santa. I don't get this, don't know that I ever will 'get it'.

Would it not be better, as Christians, that we talk more of the wonder of the season?

GOD sent himself down to earth, as his son, in the form of a baby. A baby with all it's frailties and weaknesses. A baby that would grow up knowing the he would die for us, to bring us back to God.

To me that wonder surpasses any "magic" that a pretend person can bring. I want my boy to see the wonder of Christmas more than the magic of Santa.

hmmm.. today...blustery snow

Had to see Justin's ENT specialist.
had about 20 minutes of decent driving...then had 30 minutes or so of scary driving. We got on the news! :) Our van drove past the channel A news team just as they were filming. :)

ENT said... excellent hearing. One ear is good, the other ear has the tube out of it now just a matter of seeing if it heals up okay. Follow up appointment in six months. If doesn't heal by the time he is 10ish he'll have surgery to repair it.

Then home....went over London. Trip home was easier but not great.

we mucked around in the afternoon just resting from all that driving stress... justin played in the backyard while I took care of the rabbits and packed up two for a trip to get a Christmas tree in London. Trip there went great. No issues at all. Sold BOTH bunnies. :) Had supper at Boston Pizza, got our tree and then headed home. left at 830, arrived home 1000 p.m. Normally takes us 40 minutes. That last 10 k were a driving nightmare. Justin got well scared. I was tense. Jim was quiet and very focused. We got home okay.

It was interesting. Justin was still very tense when we got in the house. His whole body language was tight. He put on some music and within a minute you could just see him go "whoo". And the stress was ALL gone.
"How are you doing buddy"? I asked?
"Oh.. I'm not scared mommy. I'm home and the house doesn't drive". :)

I hugged him and said okay...Time for bed. :) That lad makes me smile you know.

Bethleham Walk

Tonight we went to the Exeter CRC to take part in something called "Bethleham Walk".

I have to say...it was well done.
Justin was intrigued.
Jim enjoyed it.

The teens apparently did the decorating without Adult supervision.
They did a good job.

Justin wanted to go through it a second time, and we did the first couple of rooms again and then I said you know what buddy...we really have to go home as we've a busy day tomorrow.

So off we went, got him into bed. I made some rice krispie squares and puffed wheat squares and eventually made it to bed.

Tomorrow...OPEN HOUSE, 2-4, 7-9, hopefully people will show up. If not... we'll have a quiet afternoon with tons of goodies to use up. :)

Well...Christmas Cards are mostly sent

Yesterday I was feeling restless at bed time so I figured I'd might as well get the Christmas cards done. and yes....I do a Christmas letter. :)

Other than USA and Foreign, most are sent. I've three or four I'm awaiting confirmation on addresses before I send them.

For most of those who live within a two hour drive I also included an invitation to our mostly Annual Open House. It's held on December 11 this year from 2-4, 7-9. hopefully folks will show up.

Today Justin and I are going to finish up the trains unit study/lap book that we started yesterday. We are going to play in the snow, do some shopping, go to the library and volunteer with the local bureau for donating Christmas gifts to the needy. Makes one wonder.... do people REALLY need gifts? Gifts are fun, but I don't classify them as a need they are more of a want (as in I want to bring a smile to the face of a child who otherwise might not smile). But being a helpful servant of the Lord...this is a needful thing.. so Justin and I will go and help.

IF we have time today we'll make some Christmas rice krispy squares, and possibly some puffed wheat or cheerio squares as well. I am hopeful that tomorrow we can make it out to London. But might have to wait until Thursday when we're going out there anyways. :) We'll be taking Justin to see a school production of the nutcracker. Hopefully it will be done well. Costs us less than $20 as a family so makes it worthwhile to me.

Think that's all I got today. Cheers!

Milo and Townie

Two of the boys' pets. :)

Interesting House

I saw this and thought.... imagine the comments if you could bring this camping. :)

Pirouline Cookies

wow... I am totally impressed. on TUESDAY I emailed. www.pirouline.com about 2 bags missing from a can of cookies we bought. I expected it would take 6-8 weeks to get a replacement can. TODAY we got a brand new can with four bags in it as a replacement. HOW is that for service! Totally impressed.

Just totally impressed with the customer service of this company.

Only one problem with this speedy service....I have a whole can of cookies...my favourite-tist cookies...and they are sitting right beside me at the desk....

This is the write up from their site on the cookies that I love:

All Natural Made in the USA Certified Kosher Toasted, not baked

Our recipes have taken years of hard work to perfect and are made from only all natural ingredients.

Rolled Wafers

What’s the difference between bread and toast? A whole lot of flavor! One secret to the deliciousness of Pirouline is our unique, proprietary process which slowly toasts each rolled wafer to perfection. Check out the footage from the FOOD NETWORK’s hit television show UNWRAPPED to see for yourself!

Piroulines, with the trademark swirl, are filled with a decedent all natural chocolate cream made from the finest cocoa. Now available in Chocolate Hazelnut and Dark Chocolate, give them a swirl here!

Library Books to Return - November 17

Yes, this is an identical post to the one at my homeschool blog, but I like sharing the books the lad and I read together and this way I can make sure that all my readers can see them. :)

Fox walked alone

what an excellent book. The lad enjoyed this one so much he almost has it completely memorized. it's a noah's ark story.

Scaredy Squirrel

This book was just a fun read about a very silly squirrel. Generated questions of "why does he wash his hands?" "why is he scared so that?"

There's a cow under my bed!

Another silly book that had the boy looking serious and sucking his thumb. Not a lot of comments made, but lots of intense listening.

A Pioneer Thanksgiving.

I got this book out for the craft and game ideas, never did get around to it as it's been a busy three weeks, complete with a cold. Some good stuff in it though, also read one story to the lad which kept him curious and interested.

Wake Up Henry Rooster!

Another just fun read. An easy to read story about a fun loving rooster, inspired lots of crowing by the lad at night when we read it.

Miko, It was me, Mom!

a good read, entertaining. Inspired questions. Talked about burglars, and why some things are bad and other things are right.

Nobody's Nosier than a cat

We have had this book out so many times. A favourite of my cat-loving lad. it's a fun read, you get to watch a cat chase a mouse throughout the book. The lad has it 90% memorized and KNOWS when I miss a page.

A dog for a friend

Requested twice to read by the lad, this book is a quieter book with a surprise in it. Caused a "huh?" from the lad. It's a longer read so not one I chose as a bed time story, more of a day time story book which is when I chose to read it.

Clara and the bossy

The lad surprised me with this one, he chose it several times to read as a night time story. it's a good read about friendships and being yourself.

Camels Always Do.

This is a true stories about camels in Canada. I found it quite interesting, the lad less so. "I don't like camels Mommy" he told me with all seriousness.

Spark the firefighter

Would YOU think of a dragon being a firefighter? I wouldn't. Read the book to find out why. :)

Two Dogs Swimming

This is a make me smile book. Caused the lad to pose questions as well. It's a decent read about two best friend dogs with one small problem.

Speeding up One's Metabolism

E-diets sends me information that I look over. Today's thing on metabolism interested me.

My recommendation:

1. You must be in a slight caloric deficit to lose body fat. You also have to consume enough food to provide energy for your workouts, but again the calories must be just low enough (not too low) to produce fat loss. Unused calories are turned to fat, regardless if they’re from protein, carbohydrate or fat.

2. I recommend that your favorite foods be built into the plan so you stick with it as a lifestyle — but they must be nutritious foods.

3. Your metabolism requires 5-6 smaller meals and snacks through the day to help you to lose body fat.

4. Increase your water intake. Muscles and other tissues are made of approximately 80-percent water. If you limit your water intake, the body will retain water and make you feel bloated. ....Staying hydrated will release some excess water trapped in the body and most likely reduce your weight by a few pounds.

5. Perform cardio interval training – Along with your weight-training workouts, I recommend interval training. Interval training is simply performing short bursts of high-intensity exercise combined with more moderate intensity within the same workout. Studies have shown people who perform interval training twice a week (in addition to two other days of lower-intensity cardio) lose twice as much weight as those who do just a moderate cardio workout. .... Your body will be working harder and will beforced to burn more calories. Try to get two additional days during the week of lower-intensity cardio as well.

6. Breakfast is a must. If time constraint at this time of day is an issue then I recommend a protein shake with some fruit. This will be quick to prepare and easy to consume.

Home from the Royal

So. we're home from the Royal, arrived late-ish last night.
Got the boy to bed at 1030.

Today was gymnastics and our regular day out in London.

Got the lad to bed in good time to give him time to rest and hopefully catch up on some shut eye. :)

Sorted through bags that we got at the Royal, seemed like everyone was giving out reusable bags.
The lad got TONS of notepads and pens of his own, he was VERY happy about that. :)

One of the things I like about the Royal is that with the goodies you get from various booths, you can often "win back" one person's entry into the fair. We got about 10 bags, about 10 lbs of potatoes, and four or five tubs of margarine....that's one entry into the fair. :)

We saw cattle, sheep, goats, chickens, horses, and some display pigs. :)
We visited lots of booths.
The Lad had fun playing in the canola seeds, and partaking in some of the children's activities. I have to admit, they weren't as good this year so that was a bit of sadness.
We entered a fair number of draws which is always fun...hoping that one wins! :)

I picked up a few resources I can use for homeschooling, some I'll do and some I'll pass on. Always a matter of choice.

We went to the Royal on Tuesday and Saturday, Wednesday we went out for dinner and a movie with Don and Deborah. We saw Megamind, the lad was riveted. It was a good time out.

Thursday we more or less just bummed around, made dinner for Don and Deb.

Friday we went to Hamilton to visit with my sister and her youngest daughter before they headed back home out west. Should mention that we also went to the RCA, Ontario Classis, Minister's Dinner. The food was great, did wish though that we had sat at a different table....but the food was good and Art's daughter put on a rather interesting lighted ball display.

Sunday we attended morning service, had a delightful dinner with extended family. When Don lay down to rest after preaching our boy had a good time taking care of him. Keeping him all snuggled with his stuffies and playing music for him and telling stories. It was fun to watch and listen to.

HOPEFULLY Don and Deb will come up this way in April. :)

November 11, 2010 - A Lesson

I have not verified if this is true or not, but a good lesson I think it is.

A lesson that should be taught in all schools . . And colleges. Back in September, on the first day of school, Martha Cothren, a social studies school teacher at Robinson High School , did something not to be forgotten. On the first day of school, with the permission of the school superintendent, the principal and the building supervisor, she removed all of the desks out of her classroom. When the first period kids entered the room they discovered that there were no desks. 'Ms.. Cothren, where're our desks?' She replied, 'You can't have a desk until you tell me how you earn the right to sit at a desk.' They thought, 'Well, maybe it's our grades.' 'No,' she said. 'Maybe it's our behavior.' She told them, 'No, it's not even your behavior.' And so, they came and went, the first period, second period, third period. Still no desks in the classroom. By early afternoon television news crews had started gathering in Ms.Cothren's classroom to report about this crazy teacher who had taken all the desks out of her room. The final period of the day came and as the puzzled students found seats on the floor of the deskless classroom, Martha Cothren said, 'Throughout the day no one has been able to tell me just what he/she has done to earn the right to sit at the desks that are ordinarily found in this classroom. Now I am going to tell you.' At this point, Martha Cothren went over to the door of her classroom and opened it. Twenty-seven (27) War Veterans, all in uniforms, walked into that classroom, each one carrying a school desk. The Vets began placing the school desks in rows, and then they would walk over and stand alongside the wall... By the time the last soldier had set the final desk in place those kids started to understand, perhaps for the first time in their lives, just how the right to sit at those desks had been earned.. Martha said, 'You didn't earn the right to sit at these desks. These heroes did it for you. They placed the desks here for you. Now, it's up to you to sit in them. It is your responsibility to learn, to be good students, to be good citizens. They paid the price so that you could have the freedom to get an education. Don't ever forget it.' By the way, this is a true story. Please consider passing this along so others won't forget that the freedoms we have in this great country were earned by War Veterans.

Yesterday's activities

1. I learned how to make a box out of 2 x 4's. made it too big, but it does the job. :) I made two boxes, connected them with 2x4's and then put wood on the sides. I now have a mostly done entrance for the rabbitry. 6 feet tall. It will be better than the four foot hole I crawled in through last year, and better than the 2 foot hole I have between tarps this year. :) hopefully the way I have it set up will work better this year. Time will tell. NOW... if it all blows away in the first big storm we get in the year, I'll be rather unimpressed....

2. Jim painted one half of the living room, and then we moved furniture around. The colour is like a very light orangey-brown. It's very subtle. We like it. :) The TV, big couch, Jim's chair, the exercise bike, coffee table and the DVD racks are in the far end of the living room, and my computer and all the homeschool stuff and the love seat are in the road side of the living room. A quite different set up. will be less cosy in some ways if company visits, but it will be quite manageable I think. Hopefully easier to keep tidy whilst homeschooling. :)

AND this morning.....

Justin got us all up because he was very upset that I set up his private house without him. NOT a good start to the day. :) But ah well...it's all a learning experience right?

Christian Carnival - November 3, 2010

Basically, due to time constraints, doing this as minimalistic as possible. Doing this in reverse order received.

NIV 2011

The NIV 2011 is now online. My general sense after looking over their preface is that it's an improvement over the TNIV, and most of the changes in the TNIV were improvements over the NIV. Here are a few observations:

Five Sacred Crossings by Craig J. Hazen

Book Review
I have to admit that when I picked up Craig J. Hazen’s book, Five Sacred Crossings: A Novel Approach to a Reasonable Faith, I was asking myself, is this going to be more “novel” or more “reason”? He wrote it as fiction, but really now, how many novels have subtitles? Would he let the story be a story?

A Nation of Blue Tangs

Well, we’re becoming a nation of Dories. Now I’ll admit I don’t have the best short term memory in the world —I often say my mind is like a steel sieve, only the big chunks stick— but there is something distressing about the move to 15 second commercials, just like there was something distressing about the move to 30 second commercials.

Veritas pro Christo et Ecclesia?

Michael Coogan, an OT lecturer at Harvard Divinity School, has recently written an opinion article ostensibly exposing some “shocking” values espoused by the Bible. While Coogan makes some valid points in this short essay, for the most part, I found his analysis to be a mixed bag at best.

Reformation Day Was On Halloween
Can't pull a clip from this one. :)

Cholera Outbreak

Life can be pretty surreal sometimes. I got word of the cholera outbreak through facebook Thursday night from a friend. Friday morning SP assembled a team to travel to the affected area to assess the situation.

The Power of Forgiveness

But something we learned about was very recent history. RobAnne and I were lying in bed watching the news in the early morning, and they had a ten-minute piece on the power of forgiveness. It’s the story of two families who forgave people who did horrible things to them:

Order of worship from the Letters to the Corinthians

Last summer I mentioned a long-term project of mine: orders of worship in which every word closely tracks Scripture. The goal goes beyond quoting Scripture throughout the service; the goal is to let each portion of Scripture shape how we worship. Because this order of worship is from the letters to the Corinthians, it has several open calls for participation from the congregation as Paul described in his writings to them.

What is Surety?

I first learned about surety when I took the Crown Financial Ministries small group study class. Not many people have heard of the term before, but it’s definitely a Biblical financial principle that’s important to understand. One of the Crown daily devotions this week explains this principle.

Let’s Talk About Love

There’s been a lot of discussion around here (perhaps mostly one-way!) about Love. Love Guitar this and Love Guitar that.

Just what is this Love thing I keep yammering on about, anyway?

Expounding the text, or *EXPLODING* it

So you can imagine how much I like to “hear” him preach, figuratively speaking, as I read transcripts of his sermons. In this sermon, he accuses a commentator (some say John Gill) of exploding 1 Timothy 2:4 in the process of attempting to expound it. Spurgeon also makes a great point in this paragraph about the danger of an excessive concern with intellectual inconsistency.

Are Your Acquaintances Helping or Hurting Your Finances?

Here's an interesting verse from Proverbs 13:20:

He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.

Let me put a personal finance spin on this:

He who associates with and listens to those who are doing well financially becomes wealthy. But someone who follows the advice of those who can't handle their money is destined for the poor house.

Are You An Opportunity Seizer or an Excuse Maker?

I recently read of a man who turned down a dinner invitation from the president of an international organization. His excuse? “I just don’t have time…I recently purchased some investment property and I need to go look it over.” Lame? You bet. Especially when he later realized the opportunities that he passed up:

Christians: Artistic and Entertaining

The 7th Annual Evening of Arts & Entertainment certainly offered a unique experience. I first heard about Arts & Entertainment Ministries back in the summer of 2006 when Joel Pelsue spoke at one of David Bahnsen’s Southern California Center for Christian Studies conferences here in Orange County. But as schedules go, I didn’t have a chance to attend the organization’s annual event until this year, meaning earlier this month. It was definitely a lot smaller and more intimate than I expected. But it was nice to have the opportunity to leisurely browse the gallery art and actually have conversations with many of the featured artists.

Bring it to Him

The Book of Hebrews explains Christs’ role so eloquently!

Are you Free to Believe?

Open Doors is currently active in lobbying the United Nations in Geneva over the Defamation of Religions resolution. You can find out more about their campaign by heading to the website Free to Believe.

45 lessons life taught me - Regina Brett

Snopes says this is accurate. :) with the exception of age. Turned 50 in 2006.

Written by Regina Brett, 90 years old, of the Plain Dealer, Cleveland, Ohio.

To celebrate growing older, I once wrote the 45 lessons life taught me. It is the most requested column I've ever written.

My odometer rolled over to 90 in August, so here is the column once more.

1. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.

2. When in doubt, just take the next small step.

3. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.

4. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends and parents will. Stay in touch.

5. Pay off your credit cards every month.

6. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.

7. Cry with someone. It's more healing than crying alone.

8. It's OK to get angry with God. He can take it.

9. Save for retirement starting with your first pay check.

10. When it comes to chocolate, resistance is futile.

11. Make peace with your past so it won't screw up the present.

12. It's okay to let your children see you cry.

13. Don't compare your life to others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

14. If a relationship has to be a secret, you shouldn't be in it.

15. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. But don't worry; God never blinks.

16. Take a deep breath. It calms the mind.

17. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful.

18. Whatever doesn't kill you really does make you stronger.

19. It's never too late to have a happy childhood. But the second one is up to you and no one else.

20. When it comes to going after what you love in life, don't take no for an answer.

21. Burn the candles; use the nice sheets, and wear the fancy lingerie. Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special.

22. Over prepare, and then go with the flow.

23. Be eccentric now. Don't wait for old age to wear purple.

24. The most important sex organ is the brain.

25. No one is in charge of your happiness but you.

26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words 'In five years, will this matter?'

27. Always choose life.

28. Forgive everyone everything.

29. What other people think of you is none of your business.

30. Time heals almost everything. Give time time.

31 However good or bad a situation is - it will change.

32. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.

33. Believe in miracles.

34. God loves you because of who God is, not because of anything you did or didn't do.

35 Don't audit life. Show up and make the most of it now.

36. Growing old beats the alternative -- dying young.

37. Your children get only one childhood.

38. All that truly matters in the end is that you loved.

39. Get outside every day. Miracles are waiting everywhere.

40. If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab ours back.

41. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.

42. The best is yet to come...

43. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.

44 Yield.

45. Life isn't tied with a bow, but it's still a gift.

Vicks Vapour-Rub on Feet

They can't prove it works, they don't understand why it works, but for some people it works a charm.
I figure...it can't hurt you... so what's the harm in trying it? :)

_VICKS VapoRub

During a lecture on Essential Oils, they told us how the foot soles can absorb oils. Their example: Put garlic on
your feet and within 20 minutes you can 'taste' it.

Some of us have used Vicks VapoRub for years for everything from chapped lips to sore toes and many body
parts in between. But I've never heard of this. And don't laugh, it works 100% of the time, although the scientists
who discovered it aren't sure why. To stop night time coughing in a child (or adult as we found out personally),
put Vicks VapoRub generously on the soles of your feet, cover with socks, and the heavy, deep coughing will stop in about 5 minutes and stay stopped for many, many hours of relief. Works 100% of the time and is more effective in children than even very strong prescription cough medicines. In addition it is extremely soothing and comforting and they will sleep soundly

Just happened to tune in A.M. Radio and picked up this guy talking about why cough medicines in kids often do more harm than good, due to the chemicals in them This method of using Vicks VapoRub on the soles of the feet was found to be more effective than prescribed medicines for children at bed time. In addition it seems to have a soothing and calming effect on sick children who then went on to sleep soundly.

My wife tried it on herself when she had a very deep constant and persistent cough a few weeks ago and it worked 100%! She said that it felt like a warm blanket had enveloped her, coughing stopped in a few minutes.So she went from; every few seconds uncontrollable coughing, she slept cough-free for hours every night she used it.)

Today was a good day

Sold some bunnies, bought some new ones.

Visited the dutch relations who were visiting at Mom and Dad's for their anniversary.

Went home, unpacked bunnies, saw how REALLY fuzzy my new buck was and said wow...that's fuzzier than I expected. go figure that one!

Then home to do experiments with the lad.

We did a fair number of them. The biggest hit being experimenting with different ways to put out a fire.

Then tonight I did my download n go review.

Homeschool cleaning

I'm a bit fed up with having things here, there and yon so today said to myself...enough with this, let's tidy and clean and see what we can figure out for making things a bit better.

WE have a clean floor...the rest of the house... well..isn't. :) but things are indeed a bit better. found a ton of lost pens, crayons, pencils etc...and they are organized. Brought some stuff upstairs and brought some of the same stuff back downstairs... it feels right now like it's a lost cause.. BUT I do know I want to do homeschool on the MAIN floor of the house, and not upstairs.

Jim wants to rearrange the living room/dining room so some of the reorganizing will simply have to wait, I just want to make things a bit more doable.

Time will tell what we figure out I suppose. I'm feeling a bit "ack" right now though as I've tons of things unfinished and I don't know where to put it all and AH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank goodness the lad is five and homeschooling is doing kindergarten and he can learn and play and help his mommy and that even counts. :) Today he did three pages in one of his books and learned "STOP DROP and ROLL" as well as "STAY LOW and GO (away from the fire)" and we talked about fire safety. He got all worried that we'd get a fire and Tagu would lose his tail and that Mr.O would get lost so we had to work through all that (aka....we'd get Tagu a new tail and we'd fix Mr. O if we could.)

Overall.... a decent day

have to admit, could have done without the sore back, but overall...a good day.

This morning we worked on the letter A lapbook after finishing up his big picture he painted yesterday. When it was dry (after lunch) we hung it up in his bedroom. He looks forward to showing it to Gramma on Sunday.

After lunch we went to the library where we read books and played with the train table. We took home almost all the books we went with, and then took home almost as many again. :) LOTS of reading we can do again this week. It's rather interesting...Justin is trying hard to read books along with me...but only if he thinks I'm not really noticing. :) He's a silly lad at times.

After the library we came home where he played and I worked on dishes and finishing up the laundry. Talked with my mom on the phone for a while.

Had a good supper and watched America's funniest videos together for a while.

In the evening Jim had a bible study, so I put the lad to bed and then played some kingdoms of camelot and then got materials ready for tomorrow.

Overall a good day.

Need washing?

This was sent to me in an email this morning. True or not I don't know, but I thought it made for a nice story.

Need Washing?

A little girl had been shopping with her Mom in Wal-Mart. She must have been 6 years old, this beautiful red haired, freckle faced image of innocence.

It was pouring outside. The kind of rain that gushes over the top of rain gutters, so much in a hurry to hit the earth it has no time to flow down the spout. We all stood there, under the awning, just inside the door of the Wal-Mart. We waited, some patiently, others irritated because nature messed up their hurried day.

I am always mesmerized by rainfall. I got lost in the sound and sight of the heavens washing away the dirt and dust of the world. Memories of running, splashing so carefree as a child came pouring in as a welcome reprieve from the worries of my day.

Her little voice was so sweet as it broke the hypnotic trance we were all caught in, 'Mom let's run through the rain,' she said.

'What?' Mom asked.

'Let's run through the rain!' She repeated.

'No, honey, we'll wait until it slows down a bit,' Mom replied.

This young child waited a minute and repeated: 'Mom, let's run through the rain.'

'We'll get soaked if we do,' Mom said.

'No, we won't, Mom. That's not what you said this morning,' the young girl said as she tugged at her Mom's arm.

'This morning? When did I say we could run through the rain and not get wet?'

'Don't you remember? When you were talking to Daddy about his cancer, you said, ' If God can get us through this, He can get us through anything! '

Mom paused and thought for a moment about what she would say.

Now some would laugh it off and scold her for being silly. Some might even ignore what was said. But this was a moment of affirmation in a young child's life. A time when innocent trust can be nurtured so that it will bloom into faith.

'Honey, you are absolutely right. Let's run through the rain. If God let's us get wet, well maybe we just need washing,' Mom said.

Then off they ran and they got soaked.

Lies Homeschooling Moms Believe

So Jim was given this book by one of the people at HOPE.

He suggested I read it.

So I am.

It's called Lies Homeschooling Moms Believe.
it's not available on amazon or I would link to it there. But I did find it at this place, familyman ministries.

9 lies, 6 truths it looks an interesting read. :)

The Author in talking about his wife says

Daily, doubt gnaws at her heart, nibbling away at her confidence. Accusations flood her quiet thought....she questions her abilities, the results, and her motives. ...... But she's not alone. Even as I type away, close to a million homeschooling moms sit in their homeschools feeling much the same way as my wife. They too are bombarded by thoughts and feelings of failing their children, their husbands, and God.

THAT leaves me wanting to read more. Because THAT describes me. :)

Rainy Day Plans get changed

Our original plans...go to the ilderton fall fair and parade.

It was raining this morning when I got up.
Took me FOREVER to get the bunnies done... and by the time I was done I was chilled through and through.

NO desire whatsoever to stand outside in the rain for a parade, as fun as the ilderton parade always is. so our plans to leave at 930 to drop off critters at Robin's for her to take to the sale tomorrow and then go to the parade changed.

We instead left at 1100ish, dropped them off, went to gramma's for a short visit. The lad stayed behind as Jim and I headed out to run some errands and just spend some together time.

We had a lovely day, got a lot done, talked a fair bit about this that and whatever. The lad had a lovely time at grammas and a rainy day didn't seem so overbearing afterall. :)

Our day today....

Focus...Cleaning the back bathroom and the kitchen and clearing out some of the stuff in the gardens.

We got her done! :)

we also picked a whack of ground cherries, hot peppers, carrots, beets and jalapenos.

Also took time to practice what we learned that tigers do...
We took cat classes.

Little cat learned to stalk prey.
Little cat learned to pounce on prey AFTER running really really fast after it.
Little cat remembered what big cats eat.. buffalo, deer, leopards,etc. and that little cats eat grasshoppers and mice. :)
Little cat learned to play with mommy cat.
Little cat learned to defend himself.. and the importance of protecting his tummy.
Little cat had a WHOLE lot of fun.

Taught by my son....

So here I am...have a sore gut most of the day and all I want to do is sleep or read or just kinda "be".

So at night I did what I normally do and I asked Justin how his day was, and I apologized for not playing with him because my tummy was sore.

"Mommy, when my tummy feels like that I just ask God to make it better it better and he does".

Me feeling like an idiot and amazed at my lad.

"you're right buddy, I should do that. Mommy didn't even think about doing that. Mommy needs to ask God to make her tummy better."

and so we did...

It's not better yet, but my attitude is. :)
Feeling a bit humbled too.

You Can't Rush a Cat

Did you know that you can't rush a cat?

This delightful book is a blue spruce book. And my boyo just loves it. :) he's even got the line down "you just can't rush a cat granddaddy".

So just why am I blogging it?

well the lass in the book sings some songs to the cat and I wanted to look them up and this gives me a place to blog them.

The owl and the pussycat went to sea

The Owl and the Pussycat went to sea
In a beautiful pea green boat
They took some honey, and plenty of money
Wrapped up in a five pound note
The Owl looked up to the stars above
And sang to a small guitar
O lovely Pussy, O Pussy my love
What a beautiful Pussy you are
You are, you are!
What a beautiful Pussy you are

Pussy said to the Owl, You elegant fowl
How charmingly sweet you sing
O let us be married, too long we have tarried
But what shall we do for a ring?
They sailed away, for a year and a day
To the land where the Bong-tree grows
And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood
With a ring at the end of his nose
His nose, his nose
With a ring at the end of his nose

Dear pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling
Your ring? Said the Piggy, I will.
So they took it away, and were married next day
By the Turkey who lives on the hill
They dined on mince, and slices of quince
Which they ate with a runcible spoon
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand
They danced by the light of the moon
The moon, the moon
They danced by the light of the moon

Pussycat, pussycat where have you been

Pussycat, pussycat, where have you been?
I've been to London to visit the Queen.
Pussycat, pussycat, what did you there?
I frightened a little mouse under her chair.

ding dong bell pussy's in the well

Ding dong bell
Pussy's in the well
Who put her in?
Little Johnny Flynn
Who pulled her out?
Little Tommy Stout
What a naughty boy was that
Try to drown poor Pussycat,
Who ne'er did any harm
But killed all the mice
In the Farmer's barn!

Today's Activities

Got to bed late on Monday, so got up a bit later this morning.

before I went out to take care of the bunnies, the lad got up, so I got handy manny on for him and went to do the bunnies, where I discovered one of my kits died overnight...total bummer that. back into the house to see that my hubby was up, tired from lack of sleep.

Threw some sort of breakfast together and talked with mom on the phone for a minute.

Worked through day one of the Terrific Tigers unit study from Download N Go. We had fun doing this. Watched loads of videos and did a bunch of stuff on-line including this cool tiger puzzle that Justin did twice. :)

Did laundry, taught the boy how to pull a fitted cover down over a mattress, and he also learned how to clean a bathtub! :) He had the fun part of bathing the tub clean and then having a bunch of hair bottles end up in the water with him to scrub, and then rinsed it out really well for me. What an excellent young helper he can be.

We had planned to drive the library, but decided it was such a nice day so we walked instead. Good exercise. Got out one tiger book from the library and then played trains for 45 minutes. We had hoped to visit one of the seniors on the way home but we forgot and went to the dollar store for a drink instead. We enjoyed our drink sitting out back of the dollar store and reading books. Very nice to do that with a lad.

Home to work on more laundry and to make supper. I did sausage with potatoes and corn, and the lad did potatoes, corn, tomatoes and cheese since he is not real up on sausage yet. I only did sausage because I'm emptying the freezer of all meat products before I start buying more. They need to be used up! soon I'll be doing the same with the veggie and fruit freezer. I want it empty by spring. Pt the lad to bed and then vegged on the computer for a while since Jim was at a meeting. he came back in good spirits. :) we talked a while and then watched NCIS: Los Angelos together. As Justin would say "this has been a good day, I liked all of it."

Checkers

On a quiet Sunday afternoon I decided to teach a five year old how to play checkers.

We had fun. Played two games.

I won one, he won the other (granted, I 'made mistakes'). But we had fun, and he learned how to play a game by the rules, this is sometimes a difficult concept for him.

We sandwiched a walk in-between.

Door's Open London

For more on what Justin learned go here.

We had a really good time going out for the day to Doors Open London. We got off to be bit of later start then anticipated, but we managed to cover four of the five that I thought we could do.

We went to the agricultural center, the train club, the HMCS Provost and the Secrets of Radar Museum.

The agriculture center it was fascinating learning about what they are doing in their search to find better ways of handling pests and disease in crops. I learned that was TWO of my potatoes had this year was potato scab which is found quite literally all over the world and they are working on figuring out what causes it to be a problem at times and when it isn't. Justin touched a horn worm. Boy..they are big, and I've never seen one on my tomatoes (yeah!) The making steam was just sheer fun AND we got to listen to bugs eating...sounded just like Justin eating an apple. (that made him giggle). :)

The train club was just huge. Absolutely fascinating seeing all those trains zooming around.

HMCS Provost was for the most part a bit boring for the lad but he found it a hoot running around the upper deck. It was so big and open. I learned how to make a figure 8 knot. Justin and I got a mirror for trying the monkey fist rope toss into a kisby ring. And here's a video on how to make a monkey's Fist knot.


Secrets of Radar Museum. Just a small museum it was interesting walking through it. We found radar points on a big board, and Justin matched pictures to old planes. But what he enjoyed the most was when we looked at various voltmeters and parts that belong to radar stations and I told him what they all were. Rather fun that.

Blue Spruce books

I asked our town librarian the other day if she could recommend books for our lad to read.

She said she couldn't recommend a particular book as there are so many good ones out there, but that we should read some of the Blue Spruce books. Here are some titles to some Blue Spruce books.

From what I understand, Blue Spruce books are some of the best of Canadian authors in Children's literature.
I do know that of the few we brought home today from the library our lad has enjoyed them immensely. They are a good read for adult and child. :)

Here's a list of the nominees for 2010.

Today we brought home eight, I"ll have to list them for you sometime, but the lad wants to read them a bit more first. :) Cheers!

Sept 13, 2010

Today we took J to Gymnastics for the first time. It was a bit of a rush to get out of the house on time (sleeping in doesn't help). Took some mice along with me. There is a guy in London who will take my mice whenever I have some so that makes it nice. :) Anyways, the lad had fun at Gymnastics despite being very uncertain about the whole deal. He said he'd like to go again. :)

Afterwards we went took the lad for lunch as he was apparently starving. :) And then off to gramma's. After gramma's Jim and I went to Costco where I had a hotdog and we did a spot of shopping. Off to the western fair afterwards. We had fun.

- watched versatility in western riding. That was fun...especially when the calf got away from the cowboys.
- the raptor show put on by the canadian raptor conservatory. We had a great horned owl fly just 2 inches from our heads. :)
- Double Vision. a magician act done by twins. it was a bit goofy oddball...but had some excellent magic as well.
- Horse racing. :) Ah, I love watching the ponies run AND I haven't lost my touch at picking the winners.
- and then we browsed. Really enjoyed watching the potter at work. I hope to do that with the lad sometime.

Then home, put lad to bed, check on bunnies (totally freaked them out - silly things) and do some computer stuff. A good day.

the lad laughed

NGBTS picnic and other stuff

Today we attended the NGBTS picnic hosted by KLC and A Different Drum from London. NGBTS stands for Not Going Back to School, it's a picnic for homeschoolers.

We had a scavenger hunt which our lad thoroughly enjoyed. :) I really liked how they had this one set up. It went beyond the normal find this find that and bring in all this stuff. It worked with all the five senses... can you hear, can you smell, can you see, can you touch, can you read, can you find. Justin had a lot of fun with it too. He even tried to catch a squirrel to put in his pocket. :)

We picked up some new books. Okay...these were "new to us" book. Most were on science experiments or teaching books. There was a lady there who had five cases of books and apparently has another 90 cases in her home yet. In one of the books the lad found an experiment that he desperately wanted to do IMMEDIATELY! To read how that went, go here. oh the book was this one (101 great science experiments):

After having a picnic lunch and chatting with a lady we met at the HOPE picnic and a couple other people we ended up not going the play area for a play time, but instead ran some errands and went home.

The lad experimented, we had supper and the two of us went to pick grass for the bunnies and had fun with the "pink cats" that like to sneak up a body (and then one needs to hide in the corn field). Only the mommy pink cats are dangerous. The baby ones are fun and like to follow you like friendly cats, and the old ones with purple around their eyes are safe and like to say hi, and be petted. (active imaginations the lad and I have). :)

Then time for bed and book reading and conversation.
Overall a good day.

Discovered when we got home that hubby dear expected we'd be in London late today, whereas I expected to get home by 5/530. So I was delighted with how the day went whereas Jim wasn't quite so. Shoot... what can a person do but learn to communicate these things more clearly......It's always a learning process. :)

Sketch Tuesday - something that grows on trees

This is Justin's first sketch that we've submitted to Sketch Tuesdays. :)

We were to sketch something that grew on trees.
Justin chose to do crabapples. The top one is very mouldy. (yes, I forgot to rotate the pic).

We have a crabapple tree out front that Jim grew from a wee seed. It gets nice crabapples, it also gets a lot of not nice (as Justin would say, mouldy) crabapples. :)

In case you wonder what the black circles are... those are the branches that the Crabapples grow on.

Robots

I have a little boy who is totally fascinated by this website I found.

Build a Toy Robot.

Paris Fair

Next week the paris fair is on.

I'm wondering if we'll make it out.

Splash N' Boots is playing.....

here's the brochure so you can check out the details.

We HOPE to take the lad to the wiggles

they are coming to the john labatt centre in October, we hope to go.
Depends if tickets are an arm and a leg or not.

The wiggles.

Time to Return Books

these are the books that Our boy borrowed over the last six weeks:

Little Lions

this book was a huge favourite. Just loved this book. It's a simple read, good contrasts, and caused questions to be asked. Good book.

Magic Thinks Big

This was another favourite. Magic is a real cat! Simple book. Made the boy laugh at times, and at other times ask questions. Decent book.

Stick

Not a book to read while a child is playing, this book needs to be viewed. made a boy child laugh. :) Just a fun book to read for parent and child.

Little bunny's cool tool set

Nice book, the lad read this one over and over and over, and even acted it out in his play time. Easy one for parents to read as well.

The Third story cat

Silly cat! mommy, look at that cat! :)
a nice book to read, good pictures that fit the words of the story well. Lots to see and look at and a good read as well. Kudos all round. Another favourite.

Sneakers, the Seaside Cat.

Excellent Illustrations, a book that taught the boy about the sea without being overly factual. Thoroughly enjoyed this book and thought it funny that a cat could be scared of a bird. And well ...that crab! :) read it, enjoy it, have your child ask questions and learn as well. A favourite here.

Little Bunny's Preschool Countdown

This book was enjoyed as well, just not as much as the tool box one. Good graphics that fit the story, and well thought out how to present a preschooler's uncertainty about school.

Tiger

Yes, we got tiger out again. A favourite of our boy. A young tabby cat who wants to act like a tiger. Good book.

The bouncy baby bunny

"mommy, why did that stinky skunk not listen to the bunnies?"
Joan Bowden writes a good story here, it was thoroughly enjoyed by the lad and was a frequent choice for bed time reading, and sometimes day time reading as well. :)

The Whisperer

yes, we got this book out for the umpteenth time! Not as much a favourite this time around, but it had to compete against little bunny, tiger and sneakers! :) A good book, a good read for parent and child.

V for Vanishing

The lad wasn't a fan of this book. he liked a couple of the pages, but never willingly chose this book to read.

Lovely Day today

First off...I SLEPT IN!!! yes, rather unheard of...but yes indeedy...I slept in. :)

Then we got the bunnies done, Jim even cleaned out a camping thing that I've been meaning to get to but didn't.

Ate a quick breakfast.

Then off to Teo and Sieka's for a church picnic. Good time had by all. Good food followed by swimming.

To London to go to Tiger Direct. We got sidetracked by a children's festival held at a high school. Jumping in a bouncey thing, reading a fun book, setting off pop bottle rockets, taking part in a potatoe sack race, and then hitting a pinata. The pinata part was rather poorly organized as some little children got hurt in the mad rush to get candy.

Then off to Tiger Direct so that Jim could get a new monitor. They had external hard drives on sale so we got one of those as well.

Then home to do some homeschooling and have supper and relax a bit. (well.. okay...dishes need to be done yet). but overall we'll be able to relax a bit.

Today's Satisfaction

Many of you know that I have a part-time job on Fridays. I work at Subway. I normally work 11-2:30 but that's changed recently. My hours are a bit more varied on Fridays and I'm never sure how late I'll work and sometimes I"m let go at 2 (which I would rather not have).

ANYWAYS, That tends to make Friday mornings busy at home with me just doing this that and the other thing before I go to work, but today Justin REALLY wanted to play with me, and said you know what buddy? why don't we do some school. And... so we did some school. he did some counting and he did some mazes that we found on-line. And we even left the browser window open so Daddy could find a maze to do as well. It was a good time together.

Then I had to leave for work and... today was a fun day at work. I teased the girls, they teased me and it was all good fun. We chatted, we worked and life was good. Worked until 4. We're training new staff now since many of the students have left to go to College/university. Always and interesting time doing that.

After work I did a mystery shop and then had to do the report when I got home. Watched a bit of a movie with the lad and dad. and then we sliced beans. I had picked up six quarts of broad beans at the Farmer's Market on Thursday evening and do them up tonight. All three of us took turns slicing them. Did them in the living room as that was the only place the slicer would work. jim and Justin had supper followed by Justin and I picking grass for the bunnies (and having a friendly chat with our neighbour). Had snack, and then a boy went to bed. After he went to bed I processed up the beans and.. I SHOULD be in bed by midnight!

Tomorrow we have a church picnic to attend. Jim made a cucumber salad. I'll need to figure something out for a dessert... maybe some two bite banana brownies. Justin likes those.... (as well as his parents) (grin).

anywho.... see you all another time. :)

Camping is going well

We're camped at Fanshawe Conservation area. we started off at site 511 and moved to 510. Proved to be providential of God that we decided to stay in London rather than go up to Brant as it gave Jim a chance to do the funeral service for a beloved saint from our church.

We are Happy to welcome to guests so fill free to stop in.

Justin has become a better swimmer and is learning to brush his own teeth without the hassles of "you do it mommy" that I get at home.

He loves the splash pad...and I have to admit...I like it too! :) It's been a good time for us and we still have most of a week to go!

Question asked tonight.

Justin learned that a couple of children will not be coming over tomorrow like he had hoped.

The little girl got pneumonia.

he asked: mommy... why did God let her get pneumonia?

my response: I don't know buggy, I just don't know.


Anyone else have an answer?

after numerous going up and down stairs worrying and wondering about this....this is justin's answer. Do you think God allowed her to get pneumonia so that she would believe him in? that she would believe in him and not some other guy and then die? He loves her too much to let her die right mommy?

Things I Enjoy

I enjoy teaching my boy some of the fun things I like. For instance.....

Tonight we picked peas fresh out of the garden.

He learned to tell the "just right ones" from the not "just right ones". He learned to spit out the ones that are over ripe, and to completely chow down on the ones that were great. He learned that if you pick them too early that bunnies like them, but people really don't and that even the bunnies don't like them if they over ripe.

He even learned how to crack them himself. :)

We had fun, the peas... well...they were delish! :)

Plans for the day

We are going to head out to the kids expo in London today.
We are very much hoping the rain does not show up!

Should be fun.

This week has been filled with busyness it seems.
Monday. Jim's day off so in London
Tuesday - doctor's appointment
Wednesday - Stayed home, did laundry and a bunch of other things.
Thursday - off to Kitchener for the day
Friday - I worked and then we went to the park
and today... off the London again.

Next week... well that looks to be just as busy. :)

Doctor visit

Had an ENT visit today for our boy.

Good news.

Right ear is completely healed. No more need to use protection on that ear.

Left ear has the tube out and still needs protection when swimming and what not. The tube should come out one of these days.

NO MORE NOSE SPRAY at night. WOOT WOOT!!!!

Christian Carnival is Here Again.

Doctrine for Everybody: Modes and Spheres of Revelation by The Bible Archive.

In this post I want to discuss how God’s revelation operates.

Revelation has two spheres and two modes: a broad sphere and a narrow sphere; a general mode and a special mode.

The Last Sandwich by Jevlir Caravansary.
This was a good post. Can't clip from it. Go read it!

Church Growth 101 by Disciples Journal.
Couldn't really pull a clip from this one either. Go read it!

“Haiti Is Still Happening” by Thinking Christian.
The title is self-explanatory. If you want to help, go there for a link!

Amending for Their Sins by Parableman.

On a paper or exam last semester (I don't remember which), a student described someone who might "prepare for death by amending for their sins". My first guess as to the student's intent was that they meant "atoning for their sins". But why choose this word to confuse with "atoning"? I suspected maybe it had to do with making amends, something that seemed to me to be foreign to the idea of atonement, which (according to biblical teaching as I understand it) isn't accomplished by you. You don't atone for your sins. It's something that has to be done on your behalf, whereas making amends is something you do for someone else.

Mission Jacmel, Haiti ? Day 7, The Last Day? by And She Went Out...

The last day of the trip arrived more quickly than any of us would have liked. But then this always happens. Every time I go on a short term trip, I am left wanting more. I was made for the mission field. I was made for more. I was made to stay longer.

Money Can Be The Root of All Evil by Canadian Personal Finance Blog.

Money is not the root of all evil as most folks erroneously like to quote of this passage, the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, but sometimes it is easier to shorten the passage to fit your argument I assume.

10 Biggest Churches in the U.S. by Christian Colleges and Universities.

This is undoubtedly the era of the megachurch, that assembly of believers that’s grown far beyond what used to be normal levels. Often meeting in stadiums or sprawling campuses, the biggest churches in the U.S. are known for their size, popular profile, and economic impact on the local community. They also reflect a growing diversity of people and worship methods, combining online resources and multiple locations to maximize their size. Here are the ten biggest churches at the end of 2009 (figures courtesy of Outreach magazine):

What's the "glue" that holds a couple together? by IN HIM WE LIVE AND MOVE AND HAVE OUR BEING

As I ruminate on statistics such as this, I puzzle over a phrase I've heard more and more over the past several years: The marriage is over.

The marriage is over.

I wonder what, precisely, that means to the people using that expression?

Interesting Question About Sin by Crossroads: Where Faith and Inquiry Meet.

Here's an interesting dilemma that I've thought quite alot about in the past few years. Today on the radio, I heard a Christian program on which the host said,

God hates sin. But you aren't sin; you have sin.

Valuables: real and imaginary. by Rely on God in your personal development. This post was difficult to get a clip from. Go read it. :)

So "TEOTWAWKI" wasn't a character from the movie Avatar? by Heart, Mind, Soul, and Strength

I recently met the acronym TEOTWAWKI: The End Of The World As We Know It. Kind of sad that it has its own acronym, isn't it?

But I came across it on some websites that were part of my research as I've taken up hobbyist-level gardening, and have been reading up on sustainability, re-using seeds (no hybrids!) and so forth. It's also the beginnings of hurricane season and I live in hurricane country, so I've been making sure my disaster preparedness plans are all set for the upcoming year. But these days, if you google "disaster preparedness plans", you generally find people worrying about something more interesting than hurricane season.

Consumerism and Spirituality by RodneyOlsen.Net

Am I the only one who feels a little uncomfortable when people joke about retail therapy?

Did anyone else feel uneasy about the masses lining up for days to get their hands on an iPad as soon as they went on sale?

Is our happiness really dependant on the power to buy items that will soon be outdated or superseded?

Some Say, “God is in Control”: We Ask, “In Control of What?" by The END TIMES Hoax

Is God really in control, or is this just another mindless cliché that serves as a tool of obfuscation to those disinclined to accept personal responsibility for what happens to them or to those disinclined to look a little deeper into what they see going on in the world around them?

Where Do We Go Now? by Catholic Quarter
I could not literally copy and paste anything from this page, so you'll need to check it out yourself. :)

Reimagining Atheism by who am i?

In the latest newsletter from Stand to Reason,

Greg Koukl points out a fairly recent development in the ongoing debate regarding the existence of God:

Atheists no longer believe there is no God, apparently. Instead, they merely lack belief in the divine. They are not un-believers. They are simply non-believers. And non-belief is not a claim, so it requires no defense.

My daring adventure by Brown-eyed amazon

There’s something paralyzing about having the freedom to do absolutely anything.

Human Machines, Free Will, and Moral Evil by Chaos & Old Night

There’s a popular view on love and free will that I regularly encounter. It goes something like this: In order for love to be genuine, the agent has to have the ability to choose not to love. Unless there is freedom of one’s will to either love someone or hate them, it isn’t really love. I’ll call this the Genuine Love Principle.

Go read that post to see where the author takes it.

Why Should You Be a Christian and an Entrepreneur by christian entrepreneur

You should be a Christian entrepreneur. Did you ever wonder why some Christian is poor and some rich? We also see non-Christian rich and poor. Why is that? I conclude that religion obviously does not determine your wealth status. Then what determines your poor or rich condition?

The Life Of Moses by Christian Personal Finance

Moses’ life is divided into three distinct forty years segments: forty years in Egypt in the household of Pharaoh, forty years in the land of Midian tending sheep and forty years leading the Israelite nation on a journey from slavery in Egypt to freedom in Canaan.

Whatever phase of life you are in, you can learn much from Moses.

App Review: iPad Bible HD by iPad Weekly

The folks at LifeChurch.TV and YouVersion have developed a version of the Christian Bible fit for the iPad called “Bible HD”

15 Bookmarkable Infographics About the Bible & Christianity by Masters in Divinity

One of the most interesting and helpful ways to organize information is through the use of infographics. An infographic organizes information in a way that allows you to process it, and learn it. If you are interested in divinity subjects, infographics about Christianity and the Bible can be very helpful. Learn about different Biblical subjects, and visualize various events throughout Christian history. You don’t need to be theology major to be interested, either. Inforgraphics can be a fun and interesting way to be informed and augment your scripture study. Here are 15 infographics about the Bible and Christianity to consider bookmarking:

Perversion of the Faith by Chasing the Wind

We continue with a study of Leviticus this week and we’re going to focus on the things God commanded the Israelites to avoid in order to live holy lives. Last week and this week, the Lord spoke through Moses to give the ancient Israelites the Law, rules and regulations the Hebrews were to live by. Are we bound by these same rules, are we under Old Testament Law? And if not, are we completely free to disregard the laws in Leviticus?

The Seven Pillars of Financial Success, Pillar 3: Beware of Debt by Free Money Finance

The Bible discusses the keys to personal finance success quite plainly. If you read the book of Proverbs in particular, you'll see that the path to financial success isn't that difficult or extensive. In fact, the wisdom to be prosperous can be found in a few simple steps.

Christian Living Now Means A Closer Walk With God? by Christian Living Now

Christian websites traditionally promote Christian values. Today there is a tendency to become more commercial with ads and sales pitch than an emphasis on spirituality. I have been concerned that we should not slowly go down the path of the temple merchants that Jesus drove away. Religious objects and rituals can easily take the place of God himself in our journey. Since Christian websites today have a greater role in representing Christianity we need to be outspoken.

Social Experiment by Fish and Cans.

THE SITUATION
In Washington , DC , at a Metro Station, on a cold January morning in 2007, this man with a violin
played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, approximately 2,000 people went
through the station, most of them on their way to work.