Home

Hello Everyone!

  Here is just something I wrote when I started missing home in Ethiopia. Sometimes it takes a bit of distance to obtain some clarity. You don't always realize how important some things and people are to you until you can't see or talk with them everyday. I was thankful to find this as a bit of a reminder right before Christmas what this season should be about! I hope you all took time to appreciate your home and your family this holiday season! I hope you enjoy!

Home

[09.03.15]

  "Home. Home sweet home. Home is where the heart is. I have heard these quotes my entire life. I have seen them in and on placks hanging in a myriad of houses. Though they may be considered cheesy or cliché, I have found them to be very true!

  While I have enjoyed my time in Ethiopia, there is something extremely sweet about the name Carthage Tennessee. To me, though I may get a bit stir crazy at times, that is home to me. That is where I grew up. That is where my greatest memories were made. That is where my family is. The greatest treasure I can ever hope to have in this world!

  Within the small town of Carthage Tennessee, is a little house, that holds the most important people to me in the whole world. It holds some of the best and worst memories. But through each of these times the people there have grown closer than before. None of us are perfect, but that's a big part of what makes that place home. We have rejoiced together at each success, we have sorrowed together at each loss, we have laughed together, and at each other. So many emotions and memories within those walls! So to me home is not some magical place where everything is perfect and peaceful. Home is where people can be people . Home is a place where you can be yourself. Home is where everyone knows how weird you are, tells you how weird you are, but loves you despite all of your flaws! Through your faults and failures home is a safe haven. Home is not perfect, but perfection isn't what we should strive for, because we will never reach it on our own. Strive to have a relationship with Christ and the closest thing to perfection we can have on this earth will be possible! 

  There is a hope and a joy that comes from being home. It's a good place to recharge. Though I would have loved growing up on the countryside, I would not have changed the home I grew up in for anything! Those creaky floors, those brick walls, those slanted floors, that caramel can imprint on the kitchen ceiling, those rusty old iron rails on the front porch... I could go on and on about the imperfections of the place, but we made memories running and sliding on those slanted floors, running around and climbing those brick walls, sliding down the old stairs on mattresses, laughing as we cleaned up the caramel all over the kitchen, hanging garlands and sitting on the front porch eating lunch on a nice summer's day. I love thinking back to all of the memories I have made in that little humble house! But to be honest the house is just a house. That place would not be worth a dime to me without my family. That is home. Where my family is. Where we can laugh, joke, and poke fun at each other. Where we can be ourselves and know that no matter what we will always be there for one another. That is what home is to me. Home is family. My Family."


    
    I thought it was neat that I already had this written and ready to go and my pastor spoke about the home on Sunday! "Home is a difficult word to define", He stated. Maybe I touched to definition of the word! "Home is not in a place, but in a Person." He said. Oh to be in our eternal home with Christ our Savior! I hope you all have that hope! I'm not sure when that day will be, but can you imagine the glory of that day? Though I long for that home, I am thankful for my temporary home as well! The Lord has been so good to me and I cannot tell you why, except to say what He reminds me of daily! He loves me. He loves me! How could He ever love me? A sinner saved by grace, redundantly returning to that sin He continues to bring me out of! How great Thou art my gracious Father! How can I give Him anything but love? I want to appreciate my Home more. Not only this season, but for the rest of my days!
Another angle we could look at is this: "Home is where the heart is" Yes, I know, it's a bit of a cliché quote, but ask yourself, "Where is my heart?" Your heart can be anywhere or in anything. The heart is a flexible thing in where it can fit into any place you decide to put it. So where is it? It will be revealed in the way you live. Your habits and your conversation will give you away. Is it your job? Your possessions? Your family? Your pets? Or maybe it's something that shouldn't be in your life at all? Maybe it is a habit that is tearing your family apart or numbing you spiritually. Whatever it is, that is personal, but the Lord gave His life so that you might give Him yours! Give him your heart! Saved or lost! If you are lost, I ardently hope you give your heart over to the Lord! If you are saved, well you already have haven't you? But you continually take it back for yourself. I know I am guilty of this from time to time! It is easy to forget to whom you belong when you have a free will, but without free will our relationship with Christ would be mechanical and nothing special. Can you choose Him again? Choose Him daily! If "Home is where the heart is", where is your Home? Is it in Christ? 


I hope you all had a very merry Christmas, and I wish you all a happy new year!    

  Simply,

      Sarah

P.S. Hey guys and gals! I truly appreciate hearing from you guys! Give me some ideas on what to rant about next or even some tips on how I can my blog more enjoyable for you! Thank you for reading!

Holiday Season is Coming!

Hello All!!!

    I don't know about you guys, but as Fall begins to show off her beautiful colors, I get a bit of a bug for the holiday season! I was out shopping yesterday for my maid of honor dress for my sister Bekah's wedding. Thanksgiving and Christmas décor was out and I have caught the bug guys! I'm wanting to go Christmas shopping soon! I actually have already started a bit! I'm probably going to try to be a crafty cheap-O this year! Thrift shops here I come! No joke, some of my favorite Christmas gifts have been from second hand shops! So why not?

    My family and I are beginning to prepare for Thanksgiving, and I am excited! My first gluten free Thanksgiving! You think I can do it? Maaaybe... lol! No, I am going to do this! I have found some awesome recipes and I have some awesome gluten free friends that I'm sure will be helpful! Though I'm not much of a cook, I do get excited to try new recipes! As well as nervous... We shall see how it goes! Maybe I'll try to bake a pie again,... lol that was a bit of a fail last year! But then again my friend and I had never tried that crust recipe so it didn't turn out, but this is the year of redemption right? Maaaybe... LOL! We shall see if I even have time to take another swing at it!

    We always have a good thanksgiving with friends and family and I don't think this year will be any exception! As our family grows, It becomes more traditional, festive, and put together because we have more hands to help! We also have more mouths to feed, so hopefully we can keep the stress levels down to a minimum! Especially for my oldest sister Hannah! She is sort of the hostess and the coordinator! Bless her heart, she has her hands full! We will get it done though!

    I hope we can all fix our minds on the true meaning of the season, instead of getting caught up in the hustle and bustle of it all! It is definitely easy to do! Especially with a big family! I catch myself getting stressed about who to buy for and what to cook, or wear to holiday events. But let us not forget Who we are supposed to be giving thanks to! Our Lord, Jesus Christ should be the center of our holiday season. Not a turkey or a Christmas tree smothered in gifts! Though I believe those things have there place, we must keep it all in the right perspective!

   Random thought: I am realizing that I am using a lot of exclamation points and I do apologize. I catch myself doing things like that and I become super paranoid about it, so I thought I'd mention it just in case it was getting on your nerves... You are not alone. I annoy myself sometimes too! lol! There is it again! I really need to stop! HAHA! Nah...

    Total rabbit hole there, but whatever! I will get back to the main subject! Anyways, not only have we been trying to prepare for thanksgiving but also the wedding coming up! I cannot believe my little sis is getting married in the upcoming year! That is just unfathomable to me! and to think that my sister Hannah has two kids is strange to say the least! She is a great wife and mother mind you, and I always expected her to be. It is just weird to think that so much time has passed that we are all at these stages in our lives! The holidays intensify these thoughts of mine. How time flies... Before we know it, we will all probably have grandkids of our own, wondering what in the world happened! It's funny really, how the time we are in seems slow but the time that has passed always seems as if it swiftly slipped away from us.

   I know this is short and simply a bunch of ramblings, but my mind is running too wild to be able to sit and write a long post today! Just a heads up, I am going to take a bit of a break from blogging after the election, so I can fully focus on life and preparations that need to be made for the holidays and my sister's upcoming wedding. Thank you for your understanding!

Simply,
    Sarah

Dear Future... Children

 

  My dear future children,


  How I long for you! I have so many hopes and dreams for you! I hope I can raise you right. I hope you see my love for the LORD in the way that I live. I hope that you grow to love and know the LORD Jesus Christ as I have- and more so! I want to see you do better than I could ever do. I hope the Lord uses me to equip you for your future of serving Him, despite my flaws and weaknesses. I dream that you grow to have love and respect for your father and I. Not because we deserve it, but because it is what the LORD asks of you. I dream you grow into a joyful young lady or gentleman, with a heart overflowing with love and compassion for others. I dream that you have a heart full of beautiful childhood memories.

  I want to play ball in the backyard with you, to teach you to cook, and sew. I would love to cuddle in bed with you in the morning. I will adore watching your eyes light up as I read your favorite stories. To watch as you take your first steps, and hear you speak your first word, will mean so much to me! I dream of us having tickle fights, and playing hide -n- seek through the house. To watch you get dirty from head to toe with the biggest grin on your face will be precious, even if you track it in the house!
To help you get ready for church will be a pleasure, even if you run off half way through! Teaching you character and manners, and then watching as you start using what we have taught you on your own will be a wonderful thing to see.

  I want to teach you from home, as I was home schooled. I think I'm ready for that! I pray I have patience with you as my mom had with me! I hope and dream you grow to have a love for reading, a skill in math, and a respect for history!  I hope I can teach you diligence and determination. I hope you learn to study, not only in school, but the word of GOD! I long to see you quoting scripture on Sunday nights at church. I hope you take that scripture and not only remember it for the rest of your days, but I pray you learn to cherish it and follow it. Let it guide you through everyday of your life!

  I hope you know, you are loved, and you are wanted. Long before you came into this world, I have been praying for you! For you to be a part of my reality, and for your future! At the moment I'm still praying for your father to come along! Maybe one day soon he will- in GOD's timing! I hope you grow with patience! Don't try to speed through life. Don't let the small precious things go unnoticed! Don't forget, even as a child you can do big and mighty things for the LORD, if you only trust and serve Him with your whole heart! Don't waste your childhood and teen years on yourself and foolish things this life offers! I hope your father and I can teach you where true value lies! I hope we can place our pride aside and apologize when we make mistakes, because I'm sure we will. We are only human after all. But, I also dream that you will see that yes, we are in fact, imperfect, and yet you also see we want to do what is best for you in the eyes of the LORD. I pray you never know the taste of bitterness. I pray sorrow never hardens your heart, but makes it all the more tender towards our Father!

  There isn't enough time in the day to say everything I hope to  say to you! There are not enough words to describe the longing I feel to be your mother one day. I am trying to have a patient spirit, but the idea of you is simply so beautiful I long for you more and more everyday! I have a feeling that no matter what, I will love you, because the LORD will have given you to me! I know you won't be perfect, but if the LORD gives me you, that would be one of the greatest honors He could ever give me!

  I think of the preparations people have to make before having a child. Painting the nursery, buying a crib, clothes, toys, diapers, etc... (We really could go on couldn't we?). But, what can I do now to prepare for you? I can serve the LORD. I can serve others. I can pray and read my bible daily. I can die to self daily, and some days, hourly. I can prepare myself for you, by being the woman God wants me to be right now! To learn to live the way I want to teach you to live! To be the best I can with the LORD leading me every step of the way!

  I pray that you do the same! Be who GOD would have you to be! That is all I want for you! I don't care if you become a doctor or a simple janitor. A missionary or a plumber. A teacher or a mother. As long as you are in GOD's will, it truly doesn't matter! Serve the LORD with gladness , and with your whole heart and I know you will do well in life. I hope and pray and dream that I can equip you to do so!


Simply,
  Your mother,
                  Sarah

Dear Future... Husband

Dear Future Husband,

                
  This letter is going to be a bit different from the others I have written you because this letter will be posted on my blog. I truly enjoy writing! I don't know if there is anything more than a blog in my future of writing, but as long as I can continuing writing, then I will be happy with that!

  I'll say this again for the sake of my blog readers, the whole point of these letters are for you to get to know me as a young person. To get to know the person I am before you. I hope I am succeeding in doing that! On to the actual letter :)

  I feel as if our meeting is still far away and yet somehow I think we may have already met, even if it were just in passing. How can you long for something or someone so much when you haven't ever met? I'm a bit of a dreamer, just to warn you! I get that from my mother, bless her heart! We both have wild imaginations and that can be used for good I know, but at the same time, I must be careful and guard my heart or it will get away from me. Having this imagination, has caused me to have expectations for you. I have a list (yes an actual list, you will learn that I love lists!) of requirements for you. I'm sorry if that is intimidating, but I was taught to know what I want in a husband at a young age. Don't worry though, if you have read all twenty something other letters that I have written to you, then you passed, and I am madly and deeply in love with you! :) At this point in my life, I'm not sure what that is like, to love someone in that way. I guess that makes the wait a lot easier!

  I must say, some people may not think I want to get married because of my casualty in waiting. I'm not one of the girls that complain about the single life... much. Lol I actually have one complaint: People thinking I shouldn't be single! I believe the single life would be much easier if people didn't expect you to get married young. Not that there is anything wrong with that, it simply isn't GOD's plan for everyone. But that post has already been written! (5 Things Single Girls Are Tired Of) I can be impatient sometimes, mind you! I simply don't publicize it by complaining. It is difficult to wait when people around your age and younger are getting married and having kids. I long for the day when I have a family of my own. I truly do! But I see no sense in moping around about something I can't change. Why not enjoy this season of life while I'm in it? This is a time of learning and growing in the LORD. I know I can continue to grow even after marriage, but I can let GOD use this time in my life to prepare me for marriage, for you. Because through serving you, and submitting to you, I will be obeying my Father and doing His will. He hasn't given me that honor yet, but there are ways I can serve others in the now! I don't always do well in serving. That is definitely something I must work on!  

  One of my biggest dreams is to become a mother. As scary as that can be, my biggest fear is probably, not being able to. I won't lie. That maybe a bit bold to say on my blog, but I'm sure I'm not the only one! Being a big fear of mine, I have prayed about it a lot! Just for the record, if the Lord decides to not give us children, yes, I will have a hard time understanding that at first, but we will get through it together! Plus I would love to adopt as well!  I do want seven kids! I hope you like that number! I hope we will be good parents! I hope we can be good examples to our children in every aspect. I know we will make some mistakes, that is inevitable, but I hope we can do well in the big things and learn from our mistakes. I want to earn love and respect from our children and I want them to earn it from us. I want to play games together, and honestly, I would like for technology to be an odd thing to our kids. I don't want YouTube to be a common word in our house. I want them to run to tell us the amazing adventures they had in the backyard. I want to have cookouts with both of our families together in the backyard. I want a unity that people think is impossible these days, because I know it's not impossible with the LORD.

  I hope you have a love for Christ and His work. I hope we can be the kind of couple that reads the word together, and prays together. And I'm not simply talking about at meal time. I want to be the kind of couple that doesn't need any words to enjoy each other’s company. I want to be able to sit in silence with you and stare up at the stars. Long, deep talks about our hopes and dreams are very welcome too! I hope we can go hiking and camping and just enjoy the beauty of God's creation together. I hope you can see the beauty in the small things. I want to go on picnics with you instead of a movie. Though movies can be fun sometimes too :). I want to be adults and be responsible together and then some days be completely childish and playful. I want to cook together, and have food fights, to dance barefoot in the kitchen, to live in the moment together. To serve GOD together. 

  Maybe a lot of that is foolish, but that is what I wish for. I wish for a lifelong friendship that nothing can come between. I hope that isn't simply "wishful thinking". It doesn't have to be perfect, but I want something special. I do have hopes and dreams, but if it’s worth waiting for, I can wait. I'm sure it will be worth it!

  I am praying for you. Know that each letter I write to you, I am praying for you as I write it! Patiently, I will pray, and I will wait.

  Simply,

      Sarah


  P.S. To my blog readers, I hope you enjoy this "series"! Thank you for reading! I appreciate it!!! May God bless you all!


  To my single friends out there, we are all in this together! Enjoy this season of life while you can! Feeling impatient? Write your frustrations down! I know writing may not be the thing for you, but do something! Don't simply sit around feeling useless! Make yourself useful! And hey! You can always pray about it! The LORD knows your heart, and He is the one that can help you through these times, so go to Him in prayer!

5 Things Single Girls Are Tired Of

Everyone has been single at one time in their life. Kudos to those that always have been and don't mind! Even if you mind, that's okay, but be patient! I believe the most annoying thing about being single are the rumors and plain ol' stupid things people say! Okay I'm getting ahead of myself, aren't I?

Match making

"What do you think about him???" "He's cute isn't he???" "Why don't you come to ___? He might be there!"
When you are single, it seems everyone is a potential "Mr. Right". Do not try to set me up with someone! Do not try to get us to notice one another. If its meant to be it will happen without your help! Better chance of it happening in GOD's timing if you stay out of it.

The dreaded Holiday conversations
"Soooo,... are you seeing anyone yet?" "Are you interested in someone?" "Any boy drama?" Excuse me while I go dig a hole to crawl in...

Teasing
"OooOoo! You like him don't you?? Don't you!" No. "Yes you do I can see it in your face!" Uuuugh...
Teasing is fine if it isn't all of the time! But when teasing gets to the point it makes friends uncomfortable around each other, it needs to stop!

Advice
"If you would do ___ you would already have a boyfriend!" "Guys don't like that!" "You should tell him how you feel!" Just don't go there...
I wish I could say this were only people in relationships that say these things, but that would be a lie. You know nothing! Please say nothing! Unless I ask for your advice, STAY OUT OF IT!

Gossip & Assumptions
"I think they would be so cute together!" "They are totally an item!" "Did you see how he/she looked at him/her at the wedding yesterday?" Actually I was lusting after the chocolate foundation behind him...
I'll be honest and say I may be a bit guilty of this one! Trying to read into the future. But don't assume and then talk and about your assumptions as if they are fact!

"Do you like him?" No! Why? "You just seem to hang out with him a lot." We're friends, friends they usually hang out right?
Of course you only have a guy friend because you have feelings for him right? NOOO!!!! I don't have to like every guy that I hang out with! I don't even have to be crushing on one of guys I hang out with! This is so frustrating! Don't assume! I am not searching for a husband. I am in no hurry to run away and get married. Yes, I would love to have a family one day, but I'm not an old maid yet! I'm barely twenty for crying out loud! Stop pushing something I am not sure I'm ready for yet! PLUS, IT'S NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!

I must say the most annoying thing on this list is people telling you what you can do to "fix" your condition of "singleness"! Or rumors! Do you not realize you are not helping me when you try to push such things by talking? I have lost friends over stupid rumors! Mostly guys too! and it had to do with some "girl/guy gossip about me and them that wasn't true! I hate that! Please just stop! Rumors ruin precious friendships and also can make something happen that simply isn't meant to be! Yes, I am a girl but I don't have to get married right out of high school and I don't have to race to find a good guy before I turn into a pumpkin at age 22! That's about how some girls act! Slow down! Enjoy being single! Enjoy having girls and guys as friends! Don't push anything. Be still and wait on the LORD to work it all out! I get so irritated with this subject, and it is one reason I guess a lot of people think I don't want to get married! It is not that I don't want to get married! That is definitely not the case! I would love to settle down with a good Christian young man and have seven kids (Seriously want 4 to 7 kids... I know I may be crazy, but I love big families!), and some may say I'm crazy to not be in a hurry because I want so many kids. Not to boast about how spiritual I am because I truly not very spiritual, but that is simply one thing I have been able to trust the LORD with, without much trouble at all. Yes, there have been times of impatience! but for the most part I have had peace about waiting. Plus, I don't want to mess it up! I know I would! So simply and wholly trust the LORD! With your relationships and with mine! Please! Pray for me, and don't ruin my friendships with your silly matchmaking! Ahem. Thank you!

Thank you again as always for reading! What should I rant about next? What are your thoughts on todays post? Let me know!

Simply,
     Sarah

Homeschooling

I don't know exactly how to start this post to be honest! This post may be a bit different than what you guys are used to reading on my blog! Because well, I have two lists instead of one... (Sorry guys! Maybe I have a problem?)

I had so many mixed feelings about homeschooling at first, but I am sincerely thankful that I didn't have to endure pubic school!

Some people are completely against homeschooling. But I, on the other hand, think it was the one greatest decisions my parents made. No, I don't have a 4.0, but I do have 3.7 so that's okay. I'm not great at Math, but I'm good at English and Literature. I have a love for history. I am not trying to brag in any way, I'm trying to make a point! I'm human. Just like public or private schoolers! I have my weaknesses and my strong points. I will admit homeschooling may not be for everyone, but it was definitely the right thing for me!

Like I said, I had mixed feelings about homeschooling. I wasn't always proud to be a homeschooler! My reasons were all quite petty! I thought if I went to pubic school I would have more friends, and better grades, but I would not have lasted long in pubic school! I would've been begging my mom to take me back out, or I would've gotten myself into huge trouble! I think it would've been the latter because of my pride! My parents saved me from ever having to make those bad decisions that would have ruined my Christian testimony.

After all of that, Yes, I have two more lists for you! Haha! Let me know if you get tired of my lists, I'll try to stop!

Cons to Homeschooling

1. Extra- Circular Activities
Though it is definitely possible to be involved in sports or plays, etc. as a homeschooler, it isn't something you think much about. I placed this on my "cons" list because I would have tried out for a girls basketball team and maybe a couple of plays, if I was pubic schooled. I know I probably could have found a way to, but being a homeschooler, a lot of people in pubic school, don't like to let us "outsiders" get involved in their extra circulars! But it isn't like I would've become a famous actress or basketball player if I had gotten involved in high school... LOL
2. Misunderstandings
People that have a bad idea of what homeschooling is truly like, make it harder for homeschoolers! It is a simple fact! They make it harder for us to get involved in extra circulars and they give us a bad name! When they truly don't understand how everything works! Some people even try to make pubic school look glamorous thinking our parents may want to throw out the whole homeschool idea and do what everyone else is doing!
3. Questions
I don't care how many times you were told this lie, but there is such a thing as a stupid question! Not all questions that we are asked are stupid but some definitely are! Such as:
"Do you have friends?" There are other places to meet new people! Such as camps, church, and sports (Yes we do get involved in sports, I was simply making a point earlier).
"Do you actually do school?" Of course we do school!
"If you're homeschooled can you go to college?" Anyone can go to college if you are determined enough!
"Do you even take tests?" Did I say we do school?
"Can you ___ yet?" Whether it is read, add, or count to whatever number, once a kid hits a certain age, it is not appropriate to ask this. It is demeaning to assume that simply because we are homeschooled, we are dumb!
4. Personal "Flaws"
One big thing a lot of people consider a con is a lack of social life and social growth. So I simply had to put it on the list! Many people may think I am quite because I was homeschooled, and if that is the case, look at my sisters! Not all of them are quiet! Some are even quite loud at times! I am an introvert and a few of my sisters are extroverts! We even have a ambivert! In all seriousness, I am naturally an introvert and that has nothing to do with being homeschooled!
5. No sick days, or snow days
Obviously this depends on your parents! As long as I wasn't throwing up and I could see, I would do school! But if we had snow then most likely we would makeup for it later! We may have done some math and reading but then we would go outside for a bit of P.E.!

Pros to Homeschooling

1. No Bullies
Pubic schools have a huge problem with bullies now days it seems! Being homeschooled, the closest thing to a bully in my childhood, was a brother figure I had. He was always pulling pranks on us, not a whole lot on me, to be honest. He was nice to me for some reason! And by nice, I mean he left me in a field or threw food at me instead of shooting me with a BB gun or shooting bottle rockets at me! He would do all of the above to my sisters and then some! But I didn't have to deal with bullies at all growing up, that was it! And believe me, I was a weird kid (still am! #noshame! lol), and I would have been bullied in pubic school!
2. No Horrible Teachers
I didn't have horrible teachers! Maybe a bit of a grouchy teacher ( yes, my mom is human, she had some bad days every now and then when... Mostly our fault when she did though... Sorry Mother!) Actually the only bad teachers or classes I remember having were virtual teachers! You know the ones on the TV screen you can skip through all of the rambling and get straight to the lesson? Yeah, those teachers, I didn't like too much. But hey! I put that fast forward button to good use! Saved me a good five to fifteen minutes each day!
3. No School Lunch "Horror" Stories
You always hear about how awful school lunches are, and to me as a homeschooler the horror stories that I was told about school lunches were simply that, stories! and well we homeschoolers had PB&J and [off brand] Pringles for lunch! Who can complain about that? The only bad lunches we had were the times we had to make our own, and to be honest, they weren't that bad either!
4. No Homework
Well this isn't entirely true! We did have homework! It was all homework! But when we were done we were completely done! So that was nice!
5. Friends
No, I didn't have "school-friends" until later in my high school years when I went to a homeschool tutorial group (which were some of the best days of my life!), where I met some really great people that I believe I will be friends with for a long, long time! I also have friends from church, and church camp, and my church's missions conference! I have plenty of friends! And friends from all over the world! The friends I do have are all trying to please God and serve Him! They are encouraging, and most of them are, or were homeschooled as well! So you don't have to worry about my social life! Believe me I stay busy! 
6. More Time
As homeschoolers, we do have more time, because if we comprehend something, we can move on and we don't have to be held back by others who have a hard time in that area. There is no use in going over something five times if you got it completely the first time! I remember in the first grade I cried because I wasn't done before my mom had lunch on the table! Kids in pubic school don't even know that is possible to do! Without the unnecessary lectures, we had so much more time!  
Also, this could go another way! If we need more time to grasp a concept that is difficult for us, then we can take that time! That is why I took two years to learn how to read! Because I could, and we didn't have to sweep it under the carpet so I could move on! When I moved on to third grade, my mom read my instructions to me so I could focus on that subject without getting frustrated, because I was behind in another subject, and then when reading came time along I went back to first grade in that subject, and took the time to understand the complicated rules of English. By seventh grade I was in a college reading level, because we took the extra time we had to overcome one of my weaknesses! If I had been in pubic school at that time, I would probably not be a good reader today!
7. Flexibility
This should probably be under more time, but it is a bit different. I love that being homeschooled gives you more room to be flexible with your time! I never had to plan things around school! I would almost always plans school around other things! I would double up my work for a week or so, so I could go on a vacation, or a sleepover, or whatever! I got the chance to experience much more that way; which was totally awesome!
8. Senior Year/College
Having extra time, we had the chance to double up and have a good chunk of our senior year to do whatever we wanted! Whether that was yearbook at the homeschool tutorial, or become a volunteer, take a missions trip, or shadow someone in your possible future career, or go on a spur of the moment road trip, the opportunities were endless! One big thing I think everyone looking to go to college should look into, and I wish I had done, is duel enrollment! That will be so helpful in the future! As a homeschooler you could spend your whole senior year only worrying about duel enrollment, because if you want and you are diligent you can be done with all of your high school credits by then!
9. Field Trips
...were awesome! I remember so many trips we went on and we learned so much! I remember going to a dairy farm, science museum, visiting the recue squad, and Andrew Jackson's Hermitage. We had a lot of fun! A lot of things we did turned into learning experiences, thanks to my mom and our "brother" Jason! We went to Florida and we ended up at Dinosaur Adventure Land! I was loving all of that! We went to a Christian book store and bought some cassette tapes (yes, it was a long time ago! lol). The sound was so distorted because they had become magnetized sitting close to the magnets! So we talked about what happens when electronics such as computers (and apparently cassette tapes as well!) get set near magnets or on a magnetized surface! (Again, this was a long time ago, and we don't have to worry about this anymore with our updated technology!) We had a lot of fun on field trips! We grew up in church with a good group of homeschooled kids and we went together on quite a few field trips! We still talk about all the fun we had as homeschoolers to this day!
10. School in Your Pajamas
Yes! The cliché is true! I did do school in my pajamas and my hello kitty house slippers! I am guilty! I would snuggle up on the couch with a huge blanket and read, or on a sunny day I would get dressed and I would lay on the trampoline and do my studies! Life was grand!

Basically, being homeschooled was awesome! The Pros obviously outweigh the Cons!  I wouldn't have changed that for anything! I think I am better off for it. Thanks Mother and Daddy! :)

Hope you guys enjoyed my view on homeschooling! Please if you guys have some ideas of what I should rant about next, let me know! I would love to hear them!
Thank you, as always, for reading! And I will post again in two weeks! (Remember, I will not be posting on the 14th of next week, I will be out of town! Thank you all for understanding!)

Simply,
   Sarah

Homeschool word count: 29

You Might Have Come From a House Full of Girls If...

The past three weeks haven't been as light hearted as the first two weeks of my blog, so I'm going to try to get back to a bit of that sarcasm that we all know I have a hard time finding... umm... LOL!!! Well it runs in the family! Speaking of family, That is exactly what I will be ranting about today!
The thing about living in a house full of girls, in my house particularly, is a lot of people end up pitying my dad because he is the only guy in the entire household. But as we often tell people, " It's his fault! He is the one that prayed for this!" And he did! He is guilty as charged! Everyone was shocked to hear he didn't crave for little boys as most father-to-bes would. He wanted girls and a lot! He prayed and well, here we are today! For those of you that don't know, there are five of us girls excluding my mom. My oldest sister has a little girl of her own, and is finally breaking the tradition of girls with a little boy on the way! We are all elated to say the least! Anyway, I don't know what you guys think about lists but just in case you didn't know, I love lists, so...

1. You have a ton of hair brushes but can't find one!

Ugh this is annoying! Especially when you are the only one that actually keeps up with your hair brushes that you have received each year for Christmas from the time you were 10 or 11 years old. Seriously, I had that purple one, but then who knows? Seriously??? Who knows? I want it back!
2. You have Missing items

Okay, #1 could go for any hair product or décor! Or clothes or shoes or makeup or jewelry...well anything!  Let's be real!
3. You trade... Maybe too much

This is a big trend at my house! Trading clothes, and not being able to find your own, but having a whole load of your sisters' happens more often than you would think! A lot of fights can start simply by putting on a shirt that isn't yours without asking- I know this sounds petty but it can be grounds for war! Unless you ask (once and only once. and don't beg if we say no) then it's totally cool! You girls know what I'm talking about! Lol
4. You get asked a lot of favors

It may not be anything huge, but you will be asked to curl someone's hair, do someone's makeup, critic someone's outfit, paint someone's nails, or do the dishes or some other chore because they have recently done their own nails lol! But you will have some favors asked of you!
5. Gossip is only gossip if you aren't at home.
We all know this is not fact, but we sisters do tend to tell each other things that we wouldn't talk to other people about. We don't mean anything by it, but we have shared almost everything since birth and when you live together there isn't much else to talk about when they already know just about everything there is to know about you! No, I don't tell my siblings all of your dirty secrets friends! I'm just telling you, sisters tend to gossip if we aren't careful. Usually it's petty stuff such as Kolby and Hudson doing awesome backflips at the park, very rarely do we talk about big stuff that could hurt your street cred ok? Okay... this may not be entirely true, because if you break a girl's heart, and she has sisters, you will be properly prosecuted! It may be a simple shunning, or it could mean the total ruining of your street cred! It all depends on the situation. Either way you better watch out!
6. Cats fights are legendary!
Honestly, cat fights don't happen much at my house, but that doesn't mean they haven't happened! We didn't swing at each other all of the time, well,... yeah, we did. But it was usually out of playfulness and there weren't many times it turned into an actually fight though. But when it happened you would've thought we were in the wrestling championship with all of the fans screaming our names! By the time most of our fights ended we were all roaring in laughter at our own foolishness! Most of the time...
7. Make-up is sacred
Most girls will spend good money on good makeup. That is a simple fact. But when that good makeup, that perfect eye shadow that you recently bought falls to the tile floor in the bathroom because someone knocked it over with a hairbrush or can of hairspray or whatever... and it shattered into a million tiny pieces and disintegrates into a powder so fine it can't even be swept up... Man that is when the LORD will really test a girl's patience! Haha! It is funny but we all know its true!

8. You critic the cook and get away with it!
I myself, love to bake, but cooking a meal, is simply something I don't enjoy. I will be honest and say I have grown to enjoy it more than I used to, but then again, I used to absolutely despise all things considered cooking! I hated it. Maybe I'm weird, but I did. Still do sometimes. I'm not exactly great at it. I can cook, but I consider myself a bad cook because, well, come on, my oldest sister was born to cook! She cooked our supper almost every night for years! And she liked to make it fancy too! 
Anyway, I'm not great, but my sisters can tell me that! And they will tell me that!  We critic each others cooking abilities all of the time. What should I do differently? What did I do wrong? Why is it flat? Why is this hard as a rock? LOL! In all seriousness, we can honestly tell each other how to better ourselves in the kitchen, and I think that's cool. Even though it may not be fun all of the time!
9. You have not-so-nice nicknames... And love them!
If I told you some of the nicknames we call each other, some of you would be horrified! No, no! Haha! No cursing is involved in the creating of these endearing nicknames. We don't call each other anything inappropriate! Well, my mom would probably beg to differ! lol!  But it is all in fun, and love! When someone takes the time to think of something more creative than "meanie-head" as a young child, its great! I don't know how we have come up with some of the names we have but they are hysterical! If you ever get the chance to hear them, try not to be shocked at how unladylike we real humans are when we are at home! I will not tell you the nicknames as we don't need that judgment... and those are for the house only!
10. You interrupt... A LOT
When you live with girls, this is one thing a lot of people misunderstand about you! You truly don't intend to be rude, but you interrupt a lot! Not because you were never taught it was rude, but because at my house at least, we have learned to talk at each other. We can talk to someone and comprehend what the other person is saying at the same time! So a normal conversation seems very slow and we tend to forget that is not how normal conversation works! Yes, we know we need to work on that...
11. You talk a lot... or not much at all
No, there is no in between! I fall under the "not much at all" most of the time, to the surprise of my readers I'm sure! But you either talk a lot because you can talk over everyone else, or you don't talk much, because it is tiring trying to find a place to add your comment when they don't ever take a breath!
12. Chocolate!!!
Someone in your house will always have a stash of chocolate hidden away somewhere! In my house that person is me. Don't touch my chocolate, don't ask for my chocolate, don't think about my chocolate! LOL I hate being this way, but to be honest I do get a bit frustrated when everyone will start with the same amount of chocolate after Christmas or valentines or whatever, and everyone (but me, that is) will horse it all down in a matter of minutes! Being the person that always thinks ahead, I store mine away for those days that I absolutely have to have some chocolate! It bothers me when they horse theirs down then come ask me for some of mine! I am childishly stingy when it comes to my chocolate, I know! I'm sorry, but that is how it is my friends! Maybe I should work on that too...
13. Hair is a precious thing
Well this goes for most any girl (and some guys to be honest), but when tragedy strikes, boy it is rough! If you dye your hair often then you know the horrible things that can happen! Especially when you do it from home! Thank goodness my mom's friend actually does know what she's doing! But there have still been some scary times when the red wasn't quite the red the box portrayed it to be! Maybe,... no, definitely more on the orange side! Or when your younger sister cuts her bangs off! Or the same sister cuts her hair AGAIN to the scalp in the back! Oh my word! Or even when she just can't sit still while getting it cut, and it has to go shorter and shorter, and shorter because its crooked! UGH GIRL! Or that moment of panic when a rubber band gets stuck in your hair and your sisters think you may have to cut it out! You know all of your sisters were cringing!
14. Hair is a precious thing... SOMETIMES (But not in this paragraph of horror!)
Oh my word, if you are a guy and you grew up with nothing but shaved heads in your house, then you will never understand what you are missing out on! Seriously, this is not a positive for those that had to endure all of the hair! Coming from a house of girls, you will remember the nasty, horrible side of having a lot of girls with long hair in the same house! The struggle is real! Let me tell you! Having backed up pipes at least once to twice a year, Cleaning out more hair than lint from the dryer, sweeping and finding more hair than anything (cleaning out the broom after every two minutes of sweeping) You seriously don't want to move any furniture! How about in the kitchen? Ugh, washing dishes and hair is weaved into the rags that were just washed and dried. Always getting that extra bit of "protein" in your diet when your sister cooks...
Yes, we clean and do chores, but keeping up with house work such as sweeping in a house full of girls can be, well, a chore! Sometimes hair simply isn't fun! Most guys will never know the struggle of long hair and why girls joke about cutting it all off! (*insert hilariously shocked facial expressions most guys give us when we say this!* I seriously wish I had a picture!)
15. You know girls aren't always "girly"
Against all beliefs not all girls are completely girly through and through! Not all girls are afraid of mud and outside work! Some actually enjoy it! Some of my best memories (if not most of my memories) from childhood, were outside on a hot summer's day playing in the dirt! We all loved playing like we lived in the wild west, and I always wanted to be an Indian with a bow and arrow I made from sticks and rubber bands. We were "cool" enough to have real arrowheads we found buried under our house, so we had "real arrows"! Another pastime of ours growing up, were putting on plays and rodeos for our mom and dad. And also wrestling matches! Now those were something to see! haha! I also had (maybe still have) an obsession with dinosaurs! I had a whole tote dedicated to my dinosaurs, and the lid wouldn't fit because I had so many! I honestly would've rather played with my dinosaurs than with my dolls! But we all had dolls, and absolutely loved to play house and especially dress up!
So obviously, we weren't as girly as every girl in the movies! We were girly, but we were all kind of "girly-tomboys"! We were the kind of girls that would dress up in gloves and poofy dresses and tutus and run outside barefooted to play in the mud all at once! The good ol' days :)


This was fun to remember the pros and cons of having all sisters! I wouldn't trade it for anything! Though we don't always see eye to eye, and they know how to push my buttons better than anyone else, I love all of my sisters! I am so glad GOD placed me in a house full of girls, and though I don't have brothers in the house, GOD has given me "brothers" that I have grown up with and we had a blast! Some have grown apart, but there are those that have been there since, well it seems like forever! and they are still around! I don't know what life would be like without them! Maybe I need write a post about my "brothers"! Boy, do I have some stories!
As always, let me know your thoughts on this post in the comments below and I'll write again next Tuesday!
Heads up! I will not be posting on the 14th of June. I will be away at a technology free church camp so won't have a chance. Thank you for understanding!


Simply,
    Sarah

3 Of My Mother's Biggest Mistakes In My Eyes

First off, before you start judging me for how horrible of a daughter I must be, read the full post! Since Mother's day was Sunday, I thought I would write a special post simply for/about my own mother. This is not what you think Mom! Don't judge a post by its title! I promise! Just don't be mad, until you finish this article. whew, okay here it goes!

1. Guilt

I don't know about all the mothers out there, but my mom has a problem with feeling guilty. She sometimes feels as though she didn't do good enough as a parent. Or she could've done something better. She feels as though she has missed some big mark on the "great mother scale" that i feel all mothers seem to use to down themselves for "not being up to par". This is a huge mistake. My mother has been a great mother! I don't express that enough to her. That scale she seems to measure herself by seems impossible for any one human to meet! But this is one way i know she cares about how well we are growing up. She continues to try to do better, to be better, though i already think she is a pretty awesome mom!

2. Miscalculation of strength

My mom remembers her weaknesses, and sometimes I'm sure she thinks that's how we see her as well. While my mother remembers hard times with regret, we remember how she not only helped us through those times but carried us through them! I can remember times when my mom was worried about many things, but we always knew "Mom's got this". Even through tears and raw (and i do mean raw!!!) emotions, my mom is strong. Much stronger than she gives herself credit for. She has faced things that many people don't know about. Surely some things even I don't know about!

 3. Memories 

My mom also has a problem with understanding the full amount of things we remember about our childhoods. Again, she remembers places where she feels she lacked in giving us great childhood memories. Oh my word, the stories i could tell! I think back to my childhood, I remember laughter and fun and school days being something to look forward to! Yes, we homeschoolers had bad days in school too, but let me tell you a story. I started trying to learn to read at age six, and for whatever reason ( probably how i have over-analyzed everything from birth), it didn't click for me until age eight. Two very long years of  both of us crying over sight words and the alphabet, my mom thought she had to be doing something wrong. But what I remember about those dreary days is that she never just gave up on me. For two years she changed curriculum several times trying to find the best way for me to "get it". She encouraged me to continue trying and told me how smart i was for the weird questions i asked. Never once do i remember her telling me that it was my fault i couldn't get it or that i was slower than my other sisters. That encouraging spirit through those times has stuck with me all these years. Another thing i remember about school, was her huge effort to make it fun! At the time we probably wouldn't have admitted it, but she did make it fun! I remember learning about the many queens of england, and the medieval time period. I remember bejeweling styrofoam balls for the top of our "Queen Elizabeth scepters". I remember learning about the pilgrims and indians. We made headdresses and put face paint on and made our own bows and arrows out of sticks and rubber bands ( we were so cool). We literally sang through English and Math! I could go on and on about how she fed our imagination in school. I think I could tell more exciting childhood stories than most kids. My childhood was awesome!

I write all of this to say this: My Mother is amazing! I wouldn't trade her for anything! No, we don't always see eye to eye on everything (I am pretty hard-headed)! But I do love and respect her. I admire her love, her kindness for others, her strength, her ambition, and her childlike way of dreaming. I always laugh when I catch her dreaming, because I believe that is a trait she has strongly passed on to all of us girls! I think that is a great thing! I love my mom more than words can say. No words or gifts are adequate for the amazing person my mom is! I know I don't say it enough but, thank you for all you do! And I love you Mother! ;)

We are in a time where good mothers are starting become hard to find! So thank you so much to the good mothers out there that truly do put in an effort to be the best they can be!  

I would truly love to hear what you think your mother's most inspiring trait is! Let me know in the comments! And feel free to send this link to your mother! Yes, I know mother's day is over, but is one day really enough? Mother's are who form this nation, and the world! Don't take your mother for granted!  As always thanks for reading! Until next week!

Simply,
       Sarah