Just started and already making changes...

So, I hope all of you had a great day today!! I certainly did! I had Jesus, kids and cake (of sorts)! That, my dear friends is an absolute no-fail recipe for making any day great! The coffee is brewing and it's just the nightcap that I need. Gevalia and butter pecan creamer.....Yum! :) 

I read a bit in Revelations this morning and it said that the Lord will bless the reader of that book. I definitely, sincerely hope that the blessing is an understanding of it all! I was intrigued but confrused :/ ... Not confused, but confrused...thoroughly! :) But, the Lord is good all the time and I'm sure that he will give me the wisdom I need, just as He promised!

My kids and I got off to a late start and there was no homeschooling at all today. On the one hand, I love the flexibility. On the other, I know that that can get out of control. As I stated before, the privilege to homeschool them is one that I take very seriously. The children's future hangs in the balance and there is too much on the line. Failure is not an option!

 I decided to use today as an "administrative" day. A day to get organized, to plan out the lesson for the rest of the week, and to gather materials. I also spoke to the children and asked them for an assessment of our homeschool experience thus far. My oldest child stated that she felt that it was boring and lame :O !!!! I was a little offended but quickly checked that and thanked her for her honesty. "You said it would be fun," she quipped. At this point, I asked my middle child the same questions. My middle girl is a people-pleaser. Therefore, I wasn't sure whether to take her answer at face value or not. I probed a little more and decided to apologize to them. I apologized for telling them, in the beginning, that homeschooling would be fun. I think I was trying to compete with what they'd previosuly known school to be and win them over to my side. I'm definitely not saying that fun is never to be had. However, there has to be balance. I gathered that they expected that everyday would be a "party" of some sort. Their expectation?
Ummmmm, NOT balanced! LOL.

I reminded them that I'd been a nurse for the last 10 years...not a homeschool teacher. I explained to them
that I, indeed, wanted this to be a good experience for them. That I wanted to them to learn new things in a fun, exciting, and multi-sensorial way. However, I needed grace and patience from them. Just as I give them the grace and space to grasp new concepts and their applications, I needed the same from them. That sounds good and pleasant, right?

The running script in my mind actually went more like this... 

"Seriously??!! You expect that nouns, pronouns, and plural possessives to bring on circus music and a confetti shower?! Every time?! Cut me some slack, why don't cha?!!!!" 

So, just so you know...I'm proud of myself! I just thought those things. I didn't actually say them! LOL.

In all seriousness, I realize there are some things that I need to add to our lesson plan and some things that I need to remove.  And I'm okay with that. I believe the key to success for us, especially since this is our first pony ride, will be to embrace the things that work and tweak the things that don't. So, I'm praying for God to give me wisdom and understanding. And not only as far as the teaching the curriculum but also with regard to my children. I'm asking to know them through and through. 
I'm asking for an inroad into their hearts and minds. And for the wisdom and revelation of what to do when I'm in there!
<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3