Good Friday

It’s Friday, but Sunday’s coming.

It’s Good Friday – and it’s only “good” because of what happened on Sunday. And it’s so easy to fast forward past Friday right to Sunday.

But, we should pause here on Friday. We need to remember Friday.

Friday was the day of Jesus’ physical pain. It was the day when his friends abandoned him. It was when he paid for all of our sin through his death.

Friday is necessary for Sunday to have meaning.

I hate thinking about Friday. About someone taking my sin. Suffering for me.

It’s Friday. Sunday’s coming.

Lagniappe–March 28, 2013

 

1. My Rosie Girl was practically dancing a jog when she went to mail her acceptance of her place in the UWSP music school a couple of days ago. It’s so nice to see her so happy!

2. We watched Les Miserables the other night as a family. Wild Man’s favorite part: In the beginning when Javert tells Valjean that he’s on parole and asks if he knows what that means and Valjean says, “Yes, it means I’m free!”, but then Javert says, emphatically, “NO!” Yes. Wild Man is a strange child.

3. Sassy and Silver are binary cats. They have two modes: on and off. They are either sleeping or they are running around like crazy cats.

4. We had some catnip that I put in socks for the cats to play with, but I think the catnip was really, really old because the cats have been completely ignoring it.

5. Our car (Saturn VUE) died. Completely died. But, some good came out of it. A friend bought it and towed it to his place where he has a winch and can take the dead (as a doornail) engine out of it and put a new engine in. So, his daughter has cleaned the car spotless and is now working on coming up with the money to buy an engine that her dad will put in the car and it will have life once again!

6. In the meantime, we are living with one car for a couple of months. My brother is going to give us his SUV after his in-laws buy a new vehicle. Or something like that. We’re in the middle of musical cars. Eventually, Patrick and Lydia will go to Georgia to get a car. Thanks, Curt!!!

7. The snow and ice around here are finally melting and we have some sunshine!! My mood is definitely lifting! Not much longer before we can put in the screens and open the windows!!

That’s our life right now. What’s up with you?

In Which I Write About Nothing

I have all kinds of deep and profound things to say tonight, but my brain refuses to cooperate. Instead, I’ll write about nothing.

I actually worked at the shop most of the day. Mostly, I worked on the website and our Pinterest boards, but I also managed to put out a blog post. I also did a couple of “yarn shop owner-like” things, like schedule time with a yarn rep.

I also got around to felting some slippers that I’d finished knitting about a month ago. They’re drying on the table in the shop.

Other than that, I’ve done some knitting on a pair of socks.

There you have it. A blog post about nothing.

How’s your day been going?

The Ending of Les Mis

I watched Les Mis on Amazon twice this weekend. I love that musical. I cry every time I see it. But I don’t think it’s ultimately a sad movie. Grace triumphs in the end.

At least that’s how I always saw it. But as I was thinking about it today, I was wondering if it really is a happy ending. Or, at least a just and good ending.

Jean Valjean ends his life with the only family he has known and he is “escorted” to heaven by Fantine. That’s definitely good. Jean Valjean has consistently been a picture of grace. He was given grace by the priest early on in the story and he then gives grace to those around him throughout his life.

What I wonder about is the young people who were fighting for justice. They were all killed. Yes, they are shown at the end of the movie on the “heavenly barricade”, but their sacrifice isn’t shown to have any purpose. Marius goes back to his privileged life and marries Cosette.

We spend a good bit of the movie with the poor people of Paris and see their desire for freedom. Yet, all the young men who were willing to fight are killed by the government. The people didn’t rise up in armed revolt. And, once Marius is removed from the scene, the only glimpse we have at the tavern again is Marius revisiting it to sing “Empty Chairs at Empty Tables” and see some of the women cleaning the street. And then we’re back to upper class Paris.

What happened to the poor people of Paris? Did anything change for them? Did those young men (and one boy and one young woman) die in vain? We aren’t told in the story.

Something seems wrong, though. Marius eschews his upper class heritage to fight for freedom, but he is the only one to survive (although not by his own actions). And he is allowed to go back to his previous life. No one else had that option.

I think that Les Mis has a happy ending for the main characters, but the story is played out against a background that does not include social justice.

Just my two cents’ worth. What do you think?

Depression

So, I have depression. And I have had for several years.

I’d like to say it’s because of my headaches. Does that make a difference? Is depression more acceptable if there’s a “cause”? I’m depressed because I have a headache most of the time. I’m depressed because I can’t work. I’m depressed because . . . .

How about this? I’m depressed because. Just because. Because my neurotransmitters don’t work the way they’re supposed to.

I’d like to think there’s a reason underlying my depression because otherwise I start to think it’s somehow my fault that I get sad and want to cry a lot. I think that if I were a stronger person that I’d be able to “get over it”. Being depressed for no good reason seems like a character flaw.

And I think all those wrong things despite getting a very good education in college, medical school, and beyond that depression is an illness of the brain that can be treated and is not caused by “bad character”.

I’ve never even been to churches that teach that Christians shouldn’t be depressed. (Although I’ve read some articles that suggest that.)

So, yeah, I have depression.

And it’s worse than usual right now despite my medications. This winter feels like it has been longer than usual. We decided to move in the winter (crazy? yes. but lots of other benefits, so we gritted our teeth and moved.) and are just now finishing getting boxes emptied. I’ve been taking my thyroid medication with my iron so that neither one was getting absorbed, so I’ve got low thyroid and iron levels. My treadmill is at the other house so I’m not exercising enough.

So, what do I do?

I get out of bed in the morning. Every. Blasted. Morning.

I get dressed every day (well, except when I have a really bad migraine).

I take my meds.

I have the curtains open, have heavy duty lights by my chair, and take Vitamin D.

I read my Bible.

I see my counselor.

I think really hard about exercising. And occasionally actually use the Wii Fit.

Mostly I keep going. A crying spell here or there. (I watched Les Mis yesterday while I was home alone just for a reason to have a good cry. It was therapeutic.)

That’s it. I’m depressed. I really hope you’re not.

Teenagers and Sex

Evangelicals have been pushing the “purity” message to our teens for the last 30+ years. Whether it’s “True Love Waits” or Daddy-daughter dances, we’ve done all kinds of things to try to help our kids wait till they’re married to become sexually active. And we’ve failed miserably. Evangelical kids are having sex at the same rate as unchurched kids.

I’ve been part of this. I’ve talked to groups of middle school kids about sexually transmitted infections and why they should wait to have sex. I’ve done seminars for parents about why it’s important for them to talk with their kids about sex and waiting till marriage.

And I’ve talked to my own kids. Not just about the mechanics of sex. Although, since they were blessed with an MD for a mom, they get to learn everything in far more detail. I also teach them about sexually transmitted infections and sexual violence, complete with CDC handouts.

Now my son is in a Bible study group for young men about sexual purity. How did he get this old?

Yes, it’s important that we teach kids about this. We want them to wait until they’re married to become sexually active. The physical consequences of premarital sex can be significant.

But, in another way, we’ve singled out this one sin for special treatment. We’ve made it clear to kids that losing their virginity is a BIG sin. One that affects everything else. Some go so far as to say that being sexually experienced will ruin a marriage.

Psalm 51 is my Bible reading for tonight and the reason I chose to write about this. David committed adultery and murder. Psalm 51 was his confession and repentance. In verse 17, he says “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”

Sexual sin is a big deal, but God forgives this sin the same way he forgives any other sin. When we are talking to our teenagers, we need to be honest with them. God doesn’t want their virginity more than anything else. He wants their hearts. And if they sin, he’ll forgive them.

In the years that I was talking with teens about sex, I know that there was a heavy emphasis on behavior and a lot less emphasis on the relationship of the teenagers with God. It’s so easy for us to focus on DOING the right things. That’s generally pretty easy to see and talk about. It’s much harder to talk about what’s going on in our hearts and how our walk with Jesus is going.

And love. Our kids need unconditional love from their parents, but also from other adults. I’m so encouraged that there are other adults in my kids’ lives that really love them and show them the love of Jesus.

So I’m still talking with my kids about healthy and appropriate sexuality, but I’m also encouraging them to walk with Jesus. And I’m trying to help them see that God is a God of love and forgiveness, not a God of “do it right or else”.

What do you think? How are you handling “the talk” with your kids?

Our Week(s) In Review–March 24, 2013

Despite the psychosis of moving, there has been some education going on in our home. The big news is that Rosie Girl got into the MUSIC DEPARTMENT at UWSP!! She’s very excited – and so are PWM and I!!

Here’s what else is going on:

Wild Man

History – The late 1800s, Progressivism, the Gold Standard

Literature – My Heart Lies South

Writing – I told Wild Man to write a couple of paragraphs on one of a couple of different topics. He chose to write about what kind of guitar he prefers. Without my prompting (but a little help from his sister), he wrote a five paragraph essay. I’m so excited that he did this pretty much on his own and I don’t need to teach him how to do this!! He still gets very frustrated with spelling and grammar, but those are easier to teach than writing. I’ll enroll him in WriteAtHome next year, but this year I’ll just have him work on spelling and grammar and do a couple of more papers.

Bible – Using BibleMESH. So far, I really like this program and Wild Man seems to be engaging it.

Math – Plodding away . . .

Music – About a month ago, his percussion group played at Solo and Ensemble and got a perfect score. They couldn’t go to State because their piece was a level B, but they were excited about how well they played. The band did really well a couple of days later at their concert. Wild Man is still leading the worship band on Wednesday nights at church and getting a lot out of it.

Rosie Girl

Literature – Finished Wuthering Heights and is writing a paper comparing it to Jane Eyre.

Social Science – About to start Psychology. She was going to do Social Change, but she wasn’t crazy about the possible topics she’d be reading about, so we’ve decided on Psychology instead.

Math – Almost done with Algebra 2.

Japanese – Rosetta Stone

Music – She’s getting her pieces ready for her senior recital. She’s doing her piano recital with one other girl, so they’re going to do the piece she composed last summer. Rosie Girl will play ocarina and the other girl will play the piano part.

Dance – Rosie Girl is really into Dr. Who these days, so she’s going to do her Senior Dance to the intro from Dr. Who. She has her costume, but she hasn’t started to choreograph yet. Next week, she’s actually going to teach the tap class that she usually demonstrates for since the teacher will be gone that day.

Other – Rosie Girl is in the midst of putting together scholarship applications. Next week is Spring Break, but she’s going to be doing lots of writing and filling out forms. Yay!

What is your family up to these days?

7 Quick Takes Friday–March 22, 2013

 

I’ve been kind of depressed lately, and my counselor reminded me that writing usually helps my mood, so here goes:

1. One reason I’ve been kind of down is that it’s SO. INCREDIBLY. COLD!! The low yesterday was in the single digits. In the middle of March. I realize we live in the Great White North, but it’s supposed to be springtime!! I can only hope that we don’t have anymore snow storms this season.

2. I had my annual labwork done and found out that, while my cholesterol and blood sugar are spectacular, my thyroid and iron were both terrible. It turns out that I was taking my iron supplement at the same time I was taking my thyroid medication. And they interfere with each other’s absorption. DUH!! Sometimes, it’s like med school never even happened. With a TSH of 12, no wonder I’m feeling kind of sad and blue. And a really low ferritin doesn’t help my cause. So, I’m taking my iron at lunchtime to try to get things back on track.

3. I had taken to calling Wild Man my “drummer with the crazy hair” since his curly hair gets so wild. But, now he’s wearing it in a pony tail most days and you almost wouldn’t know that he has long hair.

4. Rosie Girl found out tonight that she was accepted to UW-Stevens Point as a music minor with a piano emphasis. Her hope was to be admitted as a music major for the Bachelor of Arts in Music degree with an emphasis on composition, although they are supposed to offer a composition degree starting next year. In any case, though, she’s in the department so she can go ahead and get started on her music classes and audition again next year to get in as a music major. Yippee!! Now it’s pretty much fun stuff for the rest of the school year!

5. Today, I walked into the dining room to find Rosie Girl teaching Wild Man how to fill out deposit slips and endorse checks. Then, they went across the street to the bank so he could deposit his checks from all the snow shoveling he’s been doing. It’s so nice when they get along! And help each other!

6. We have a buyer for our old house, but we’re waiting for all the paperwork to go through. Then, we have to close on the purchase of this house. And, then, I might can get a dishwasher!

7. Tonight, PWM and I watched Les Miserables on the Roku. I LOVE that movie!

Check out what others are saying at Conversion Diary!!

7 Quick Takes Friday–February 22, 2013

 

1. Will this winter never end?!! We had another 6+ inches of snow last night and today. I’m getting really, really, really tired of all this snow and super-cold weather. On a brighter note, there are no forecast temperatures below zero for next week, although there is some snow forecast again.

2. Speaking of snow storms, I had a rip-roaring migraine that sent me to the ER again last night. It was not fun. We ended up trying three different meds, and I still came home with a headache, albeit a much reduced one. Things are much better today!

3. I played Yahtzee tonight with Wild Man. I had exactly one more point than he did on the top half and one more point than he did on the bottom half, so I won by two points. I didn’t exactly whoop up on him, but I still won. Two points is two points!

4. Sophie has taken to stealing my socks, mostly my homemade wool socks, and leaving them as an offering to the door gods in front of Rosie Girl’s door curtain. For some reason, Rosie Girl’s room doesn’t have a door, so she is using her curtain from the other house hung on a spring tension rod across the door, but Sophie can’t quite seem to figure out how to get through the curtain. So, Sophie leaves these sock offerings hoping that she will appease the gods and get let into Rosie Girl’s room. Strange? Yes.

5. I noticed the other day (after we got the lamps moved into our bedroom) that our bedroom carpet is orange. I really, really dislike the color orange. Once it gets more orange than peach or salmon, I’m into serious negative vibes. But, we have no resources to change it, so I’ll keep the light off as much as possible.

6. My backside is healing nicely from my three falls on the ice last week, although my hips are still pretty sore. It’s kind of cute, though, that PWM and Wild Man are always very quick to make sure I have an escort out to the car. Between my becoming a hermit, my escorts, and my Yak Trax, I should manage to stay upright until spring. I hope.

7. I really miss not having the washer and dryer here in this house yet. PWM is waiting till there’s not as much ice till he asks some other strong guys to help him move the heavy stuff from the other house. Until then, I go over there on weekends to do laundry. I’m also missing having a dishwasher, but we won’t put one in here till the old house sells and we outright buy this one, which may be a couple of months.

What’s up with you? How has your week been? Check out what others are up to at 7 Quick Takes Friday!!!

Lent

Growing up Southern Baptist, I didn’t observe Lent. In fact, I was a little suspicious of the whole Ash Wednesday/Lent thing because it was one of those “Catholic” “rituals” (never mind that several other branches of Christianity observe the church calendar and that Baptists and other Evangelicals have their own set of rituals). I went to college at LSU and, while I didn’t observe Lent, I learned to celebrate Mardi Gras with everyone else!

I’ve been reading and learning more about the church year and I think Evangelicals may be missing out by not observing Lent. Certainly, Easter is the big holiday (“holy day”) for all Christians. Good Friday through Easter memorializes Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection – the events central to our faith.

But, Lent helps us to observe the reason for these events. Why did Jesus need to die? Because of my sin. During the season of Lent, we are reminded of the necessity of Jesus’ sacrifice.

From early in church history, Lent was often a season for new converts to become instructed in the church and to be prepared for baptism on Easter Sunday. What a great symbol – to be baptized on Easter!

Lent is also characterized by fasting, prayer, and almsgiving. I often heard about “giving up something for Lent” when I was growing up. What I didn’t hear was that fasting in some way (“giving something up”) was to be accompanied by the spiritual discipline of prayer. The point is not that we are to be miserable for the few weeks before Easter, but that we are to use this time to develop our relationship with Jesus through the disciplines of fasting (from food or other things) and prayer as well as giving.

The more I learn about observing the church year, the more I like it. I like knowing that I’m participating with over a billion other people across the globe in focusing on my need for a savior over these next several weeks which then culminates in the celebration of Holy Week when we remember the sacrifice and triumph of our savior and the grace he offers to pay for our sin.

I haven’t really thought about how I’ll participate in Lent this year. I may just continue with the daily office readings that I’ve been doing since the beginning of the year. But I know I’ll spend more time in these next 40 days preparing my heart for Easter – not morosely, but in anticipation.

Do you follow the church calendar? What does Lent mean to you?

I Can’t Wait Till Spring!!

Winter in Wisconsin means snow and ice, right? Right. Having lived here for 15 years, I’m quite aware of this fact and I try to be very careful when I’m out and about in the snow and ice. Despite my caution, though, accidents do happen. Sometimes, they happen two days in a row.

I was walking out to the garage yesterday morning so that I could drive Wild Man to school for band. School had been delayed for two hours because of the ice – it rained on Sunday and then froze on the roads at night. You’d think I might have taken note of such a pertinent bit of information.

So, as I mentioned, I was walking to the garage. Here, I should mention that I was wearing Crocs because I didn’t want my son to be late and I didn’t take time to change in to boots. This might not have been the smartest thing I’ve ever done. And the driveway was completely ice.

I stepped across the threshold of the garage and my feet completely gave way and I fell on my butt. Ouch! I spent yesterday sitting on ice packs, gently stretching, and trying to keep from getting too terribly stiff. Nonetheless, I woke up quite stiff and sore this morning.

This afternoon, I was going to walk up to the shop (a block away now that we’ve moved) so that PWM could go get some meds for me. Wild Man told me to go out the front door because he had been diligent about using ice and salt on the sidewalk and it wasn’t nearly as slick as the driveway. I also put on my boots which have treads for plenty of traction.

I held on to the wall by the front steps to keep my balance as I walked down the steps. I stepped onto the icy, yet sanded, sidewalk and fell on my butt. On the bruise from yesterday. Right on Main Street in front of God and everybody.

I got up and made it to the shop without further incident. But, two falls on the ice in two days makes for lots of pain and soreness.

I don’t think I’m going to leave the house again before spring. I’m never fond of ice, but having the entire right side of my body in pain makes me even less fond.

Bring on springtime so I can leave the house again!

Book Reviews–February 11, 2013

5 book reviews for today:

The Family Corleone by Edward Falco – This book is a prequel to The Godfather (by Mario Puzo) and traces the rise of the Corleones from one of many “gangster” families in New York City in the 1930s to the primary crime syndicate family in the New York City area. The book has a strong plot and interesting characters. The story is inherently violent, but there was not gratuitous violence or sex. The audio version was well done. A-

The Cranes Dance by Meg Howrey – Kate Crane is a ballerina in a New York company but has seemingly always been upstaged by her younger sister, Meg. But, now, Meg is back home in Grand Rapids for a “medical issue”. As Kate’s story unfolds, we learn about the world of ballet, but also about the complicated relationship between sisters. I also listened to this book on audio, which I very much enjoyed. A

Deadly Little Secrets: The Minister, His Mistress, and a Heartless Texas Murder by Kathryn Casey – These true crime books are like a guilty pleasure for me. I know that they don’t really add anything of value to my life, but I find them fascinating anyway. I particularly am interested in books about clergy who commit heinous crimes. How did no one see their character flaws before this? How did they get through college and seminary without someone suspecting that all was not right with them? This book told an interesting story of a minister who murdered his wife so he could be with his mistress and the investigation that finally led to a conviction. It’s an intriguing tale. B

The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling – I had heard that this book was amazing and that it was awful. I had no idea what to think when I picked it up. First of all, it is NOT a children’s book!! The language and situations are appropriate for adults and not even for teenagers, to my mind. That being said, it is an excellent book. The story line sounds kind of thin – a member of the town council dies suddenly, leaving a “casual vacancy” on the council that must be filled – but it gets filled in by lots of surrounding drama. The strength of this book is the characters. Rowling does an excellent job of making the characters come alive and making you want to care about them, even the least lovable. I strongly recommend this book. A+

The Story of Cirrus Flux by Matthew Skelton – We read this book aloud as a family a few weeks ago. We chose it because we had listened to Endymion Spring, another book by Matthew Skelton, a few years ago on audio. I prefer Endymion Spring because it is more complex and because of it’s historical roots and being set in the library in Oxford. Cirrus Flux is a good book, though. It is the story of the orphan, Cirrus Flux, an orphan in 19th century London, whose father left him a mysterious artifact that a bunch of adults all seem to want. Oh, yeah, and he gets to ride in a hot air balloon that is powered by a bird whose wings set on fire. There’s cool stuff like that in the book. Overall, a good book. A-

What have you been reading?

 

Weekend Update

I’m kind of starting to feel like this house is home. Kind of. Having boxes everywhere is making me a little crazy, but PWM and the kids are cleaning up right now.

While the East Coast has been getting pummeled by Winter Storm Nemo, we had a much less intense, but icky, nonetheless, storm. Our area had rain and freezing rain. I had a migraine. Very symmetric.

While I was worrying yesterday that my children were going to be warped because I sit around with headaches instead of doing “real” work, PWM was at the shop working, Rosie Girl was working at the cheese shop, and Wild Man was busy clearing ice and snow off the sidewalks at the next door apartments (his new job). Maybe they’ll be OK.

And, in the meantime, I finished Rosie Girl’s socks (pictures soon) and started some slippers for my mother-in-law and a wrap for myself. I’m back up to having entirely too many knitting projects.

I missed church this morning because of the headache and because I’ve also developed some lovely low back pain. I’ve spent my day knitting while intermittently putting a heating pad on my low back. Beyond fun.

We got the living room completely clear of boxes. Whenever we get the piano and sofa in here, we will have one room completely done! Tomorrow, after I plan schoolwork, PWM and I will be organizing the kitchen. Yippee!! Slowly, but surely, we are making this place “home”.

How was your weekend? Anything exciting?

7 Quick Takes Friday or Whatever Day It is

We’re still in the throes of moving. It would go faster if I didn’t feel compelled to get migraines just because there’s a winter storm coming tomorrow . . . But, today, I decided to share 7 things about our new house.

1. We have a real porcelain bathtub. Which is great except that my feet were really chilly for the first couple of minutes of my shower! I guess if I want to have a bath, I need to heat the water really good to get the tub warm as well.

2. We have a wonderful front porch and back deck, but they are both snow-covered right now. I can’t wait for spring!

3. If you walk into our front door, you’ll find a pile of dirty clothes right there. Because we’re classy like that. Actually, it’s because the bathroom with the shower is right by the front door and it’s too small for a clothes hamper. I’ll come up with something eventually.

4. Wild Man hit his head on the chandelier in the library. He’s threatening to take it down, but I won’t let him because we don’t have much light in the living room/library area. Unfortunately, even raising it up may not be enough to keep it high enough for him, but it’s on a track, so maybe I can get it back close enough to the desks that he won’t get injured anymore.

5. Rosie Girl now has a “door” to her room. It’s a spring tension rod with her window treatments from the old house, which are gauzy, rainbow colored cloth. It certainly brightens up the upstairs.

6. Almost all of our clothes are currently in the big closet upstairs. The closet has no heat, so we are motivated to choose our clothes very quickly!

7. PWM thinks that home is where his bed is. Rosie Girl thinks that home is where her instruments are. Wild Man says that home is where the electronics are. I think that home is where my family is (although the internet isn’t too bad!).

So, how’s your week been? Check out other blogs at 7 Quick Takes Friday. I’ll bet they don’t have laundry by their front door!

Observations on Moving

We got the keys to our “new” house on Friday and started moving. The house is only 6 blocks from our old house, but we’ve only got about 2/3 of our stuff moved. Here are some observations from the last week.

• Moving in January in Wisconsin is lunacy. Last Friday, the high temperature was below zero! We did most of the moving on Saturday and Sunday when the temps were single digits and low teens. Yippee.
• We have only been able to do minimal moving on Monday and today because of snow. Again, don’t move in the winter in Wisconsin. Right.
• The advantage to moving in winter is that our old house should be on the market as soon as the spring real estate market heats up. At least, that’s what we keep telling ourselves.
• I stopped at the diner on Tuesday morning before working in the shop and the patrons there said they were very happy to see lights on in  our new house. This house is actually pretty old, so people who are from the area are glad to see it occupied again. Pretty neat,
• Our new house is between two apartment complexes, one of which used to the be the town’s hotel. We’re in a small town, but definitely not out in the country.
• The cats had a rough first day adjusting to the new house (well, except for Sassy who is so silly that she just needs to know where her food and litter box are to be happy). Silver and Sophie are still exploring and still freak out when someone opens a door, but it seems to be getting better.
• I’ve discovered the wonders of Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. Between PWM and his mom on Monday and me yesterday, the bathroom downstairs and the kitchen are all nice and clean.
• We got a great fridge at a great price, but it’s a bit too tall for it’s spot in the kitchen. Until PWM can fix the problem, we can’t get into the pantry. Right now, all of our pantry food is on temporary shelves under the bar. Yay. But, I love the fridge – especially the crushed ice!!
• I thought we had done a good job of getting rid of stuff in the weeks before we started moving, but we still have too darn much stuff!
• We start back to homeschool on Monday, even if we are working around boxes!

So, what’s up in your part of the world?

The In-Between Days

Today was one of those days that is really hard for me. I didn’t feel well, but I didn’t have a rip-roaring migraine, either. I was tired, achy, and had a moderate headache (about a 5/10) and felt worse whenever I did anything physical.

These days are hard because I’m not obviously ill like when I have a bad migraine, but I’m not feeling quite up to doing much. So I end up feeling pretty useless most of the day, thinking that I “should” be able to get up and clean something or organize something or (this week) pack something.

When I have a good day, I’m at least emotionally healthy enough to see that my bad and in-between days are unproductive days, but my worth isn’t measured in productivity. On my in-between days, I quite often feel down and moody, so I have trouble thinking clearly and get stuck on a spiral of negativity.

Another problem with in-between days is that they are often precursors to “real” migraines. As I look at the weather coming up tomorrow, I think that may be the case with how I feel today. Yuck.

There’s nothing to do about this except pray and keep telling myself what is true to try to get through the “Oh, I’m so useless” messages.

That’s all. More fun in my headache-filled life.

7 Quick Takes Friday–January 25, 2013

 

1. This week was “get ready to move” week, which was incredibly frustrating! Since we’re only moving down the street, we don’t need to have everything boxed up at the same time. Mostly, we’ve been decluttering. And, the decluttering has been quite successful. The things that still need to be done are the kids’ rooms and the school room.

2. The house inspection was today and was pretty good, except for one questionable problem. We were supposed to start renting on Monday, but now that’s up in the air until the inspection issue is resolved. I hate waiting!

3. In the decluttering, I came across the folders for my and PWM’s college degrees. They were all empty. I later found one degree that was framed, so I assume that the other two are framed as well along with my medical degree. Now I’m curious as to where they are! It’s not like anyone in the yarn shop is going to ask to see them, but I’d like to know!!

4. Rosie Girl got the letter this week with her audition date for the Music Department of the College of Fine Arts at UWSP! She’s working like mad on her audition pieces, and we’re praying it all works out for her to get into the department in her first year (and maybe even get a scholarship).

5. With the move coming up, I’m dreaming of how to decorate the new house without actually spending any money (or much money). Pinterest is my new best friend!

6. As much as I want to get this move over with, I’m glad we didn’t have to do it this week in the below zero temperatures. Of course, it’s going to be snowing this week. Yay.

7. Speaking of below zero temps, PWM’s mom from Florida is here to help with the move. Poor woman. But, she did live in Fairbanks, AK, when PWM was in 3rd and 4th grade, so she’s dealt with cold weather before – even if it was a long time ago. I still feel bad for her. It’s in the 70s in Florida this week.

How are you this week? See what others are up to at 7 Quick Takes Friday!

Reviews–January 20, 2003

Books, books, books!! I do love me some books! Regular books on paper are my favorite, but audio is good, too. I have a Kindle but don’t use it too often, but I’m not philosophically opposed to it.

Our library system is having a reading program for adults to encourage us to write reviews for their system, so I’ll be cross-posting my reviews over there.

Agenda 21 – My dad gave me this Glenn Beck book for Christmas. It’s the story of a dystopian society that has come about as the results of the hardcore environmental movement’s agenda. The descriptive elements were good and the characters weren’t too badly developed. My issue was mainly with the plot. There was a developed plot and climax, but it wasn’t very strong. And the climax felt like the real beginning of the book. This is definitely an “issue” book. The authors want to show you the possible result of extreme environmentalism. The epilogue goes in to detail about the actual documents from the 1970s on which the story is based. I have a hard time getting too excited about it since the only significant changes the environmental lobby has gotten us to make have been to change out our light bulbs and get some of us to drive hybrid cars. I don’t think we’re in imminent danger of being forced to live in communes under the authority of faceless bureaucrats. B-

House Atreides – This is one of three prequels to the Dune series of books. It is named for the Atreides family, but there is also a great deal of plot about the Corrino and Harrkonen houses. This book (and the other three in the series) introduces us to the main characters in Dune (which I still haven’t read all the way through). The primary plot lines in this book center around the young Duke Leto and his year-long education on the planet Ix, which comes to an end when Ix is invaded and overrun by an Empire-sponsored house in a plot to make synthetic spice. In the meantime, House Corrino and House Harkkonen are involved in their own scheming and plans. A

House Harkkonen – Second of the three Dune prequels, this continues the story of the universe created by Frank Herbert. The plots and schemes of the Atreides, Corrino, and Harrkonen houses continue unabated with emphasis on the extended Harrkonen family (where DID Raban and Feyd Rautha come from, anyway?). Another good read (although I listened on audio, which was quite well done). A

House Corrino – Third of the three Dune prequels, this book focuses on the activities of House Corrino, the Imperial family. Along the way, we also learn more about Gurney Halak, Thufir Hawat, Duncan Idaho, and the Houses Atreides and Corrino. Another well-paced and interesting book with high quality audio. A

Accelerated by Bronwwen Hruska – I finished this book in two days. It’s really good. This is the story of an upper class New York school and it’s need for boys to fit in so badly that they convince parents and doctors to overmedicate these kids with stimulants. The plot is strong and engaging. The characters are well-drawn. The book drew me in and kept me interested until the end. A

Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver – I loved this book, but I’m not sure how to describe it. One day, a young mom finds that the nearby woods, that her father-in-law wants to have clear-cut, have been chosen as the over-wintering site for the monarch butterflies since their traditional site in Mexico has been made unusable due to global warming changes. The aftermath of this (very fictional) event involves the woman’s family, church, and town, in ways that no one could have imagined. This book clearly wants to send a message about global warming, but I didn’t feel like I was being beat over the head with the message. It was a story about relationships with global warming issues as background. A+

A Year of Biblical Womanhood by Rachel Held Evans – The popular blogger has written another book, this one a documentation of her year of trying to live according to “biblical womanhood”. First, this book is not a theology book. If you want an in-depth discussion of the various issues about women in the Bible, you’ll need to look elsewhere. Second, Evans tries to take an even hand toward the issues she chooses to tackle, but her bias towards a more “liberal” position is evident. That’s OK, but you need to know that it’s there. That being said, I really enjoyed this book. Evans chooses 12 different attitudes that women are to embody to explore each month. Within that month, she delves into more practical things. We get to laugh at her attempts to sew and make challah as well as scratch our heads about the ancient Israelite rules regarding menstruating women. When she gets serious about interpreting scripture, she is charitable towards those with whom she disagrees. Overall, a very good book. A

So, get to a library and get reading!

Overwhelmed!

I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment, so I thought maybe writing my clear my head a bit. And then I’ll knit (of course!).

This next week, we’ll be decluttering. The entire house. Ack! If we don’t want to move it to the new house, we will get rid of it in some fashion. This is a wonderful thing to do, but doing it in only one week is a bit . . . crazy. My mother-in-law is here to help, which is excellent.

In two weeks, we will actually be moving. Since we’re only moving 6 blocks away, we’re going to take the whole week to pack boxes, move them, and unpack them, and start over. At the end of the week, we’ll get the furniture moved over. I’m praying that moving things gradually, a room at a time, after decluttering, will be the least stressful way of doing things. I hope.

The week after that, we will clean the old house from top to bottom to get it ready to sell. I see lots of vacuuming, mopping, and general cleaning in my future.

And the week after that will be when we get settled into our new house in earnest.

I’m still overwhelmed, but breaking it down makes it look a little more manageable. And my word for the year is “Walk”, so I’ll just take one step at a time.

Our Week In Review–January 19, 2013

Things this week went really well until Thursday night when I got a rip-roaring migraine. I felt really rotten until this morning Despite that, Friday was the day when we accepted the counter-offer on the house that we’re purchasing. The kids are learning quite a bit in this house buying/selling process since we’re trying to keep them in the loop with everything that we’re doing. It also helps to have their buy-in as we make these big changes. Starting next week, we will be trying to get schoolwork done as well as decluttering and packing so we can move in two weeks and have this house ready to go on the market. Yikes! But, first, here’s what has happened over the last couple of weeks.

Wild Man

I’ve changed Wild Man to a block scheduling format. Every day, he does Math, Grammar, and Spelling (well, if I’m up to helping him with spelling). Bible, History, Literature, Writing, and Science are spaced out so that he does two subjects each day and each of them twice a week. Overall this is working really well. I still have to work to keep him focused. If I go up to the shop for several hours, I will probably come back to find that he spent a good bit of that time practicing guitar and is shocked to find that I was gone for more than fifteen minutes. Clearly, he needs some supervision, but, we’re making progress.

History – Studying the Civil War. He read The Boys’ War and learned about life for teenager who served both the Union and the Confederacy. We’ve been watching “The Abolitionists” on PBS which has also been helpful. One day, Wild Man asked, “Mom, was the Civil War over states’ rights or slavery?” Wow! What a question! (Especially from a kid who doesn’t usually engage history.) Rosie Girl was downstairs, so we had a good discussion of which factors we thought played a part in driving the nation toward war.

Literature – I know we have Dragon Gate in this house somewhere, but I just can’t find it. Right now, he’s enjoying some Percy Jackson books, so I’m just happy that he’s reading.

Science – In the last few weeks, he’s read about wetlands and grasslands.

Bible – I think BibleMesh is a good fit for Wild Man. He watches the videos and reads the articles. We’re still working through the section on Jesus.

Writing – His paragraph writing is pretty good. The last two paragraphs were given to me with minimal problems in grammar or punctuation. I’m planning to try a WriteAtHome workshop for the end of the year. He hasn’t written anything as long as a report yet, but I think we’ll try that soon. The WriteAtHome could be a good fit for him since they tend to work with kids at whatever level they’re at.

Math – Wild Man was frustrated that his ALEKS assessment didn’t show much improvement, so I’ve been sitting down to watch him go through his lessons and found that he hasn’t really been understanding things as well as he should. And, it turns out that I can teach math (at least Algebra 1) better than I thought! I think he’ll be seeing more progress now with just a bit more interaction with me during his math lesson.

Music – He’s working on some pieces for Solo and Ensemble as well as his usual stuff for band. He is really enjoying Youth Band as well as playing some with the adult worship band. This weekend, he is leading worship for the kids’ service.

Rosie Girl

Social Sciences – When she finished reading The Godless Constitution, she’ll be done with American Government. I have a Sociology course on DVD on reserve from the library along with a couple of books for her Sociology credit.

Japanese – Her final Japanese credit will be from working on Rosetta Stone, which she’s enjoying.

Math – She’s plugging away at Algebra 2. She even did some last night with PWM after doing a fair amount during the day. She’s also doing Dave Ramsey Personal Finance and learning a lot about managing money.

Literature – She continues with British Literature. She was thrilled when she realized that she got to read Emma!

Music – Her big music thing is that she’s working on her piano pieces for her college audition. She’s also been doing some arranging and composition on her own.

College prep – She’s been getting info about residence halls and meal plans from UWSP. ACK! It’s really real.

That’s what’s been going on in our homeschooling world. What’s up with you?! Check out Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers to read what other homeschoolers have been doing!