We unofficially started our school year last week by working on our math workbooks. This week we added a few more subjects- Science and Spanish so far.

I realized that the one educational website I subscribed to was already expired before I had a chance to retrieve some things for this year. Ugh. I had taken a few weeks of full-time work to help out our finances but that set me back about a month of preparing and other tasks and things I need to do during the week. Was it worth it? I don’t know.

I still have a lot of planning and organizing to do but I need to move forward. Seems like I have big plans for us to have a summer and then other things get in the way and we miss out yet another year of it. Now school is upon us again and we have not had a chance to play or be carefree. Sometimes I feel guilty that I have not allowed us to have that time and instead have traded it for working and doing other tedious tasks all the time.

I guess for now I will move forward and do what I can.

A sticker on the copy of Max Lucado’s book, You Can Be Everything God Wants You to Be, states that is it the “Perfect Gift for the Graduate.” I recently finished reading this book and discovered that not only would it make a great book for a graduate but for everyone else searching for a new career or focus for their lives. The author guides the reader into seeking what God created him/her for in this life. As a reader you will be directed to God’s Word as well as read stories of others and examples that will help you to discover what God has created you to be.

I found this book to be easy to read yet a very powerful and thought-provoking tool. It does not give you a cookie-cutter answer to your questions but reveals to you what God’s Word says about each of our lives and helps to direct you in asking and searching for the answers that are unique to you. Max Lucado not only cites Biblical truths but provides life stories in order to support the advice and guidance he offers in this book.

I received a free copy of this book from Thomas Nelson Publishers in exchange for an honest review through BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. All opinions are my own.

Save $5 per ticket! Register between August 16 and midnight August 22, and you’ll pay only $19.99. Plus you’ll receive over $200 in free E-Books.

You’ll be inspired by speakers including: Zan Tyler, Dr. Jay Wile, Jeannie Fulbright,Carol Barnier, Diana Waring, Todd Wilson, Davis Carman, Kim Kautzer, Lee Binz, and many more!

A special teen track is planned–the entire family will definitely want to listen to these special sessions. We’ve also planned a special focus on a topic that touches every homeschool–writing. Plus, an array of other topics that will inform and inspire you throughout your homeschooling years.

Don’t forget, MP3 copies of each session comes with your LIVE event ticket.

Two special preconference shows on August 24 and September 21 with Dr.
Jay Wile, Jeannie Fulbright, and Kim Kautzer!

Register starting 12:01 a.m. on Monday, August 16.

The theme this fall is “Celebrate Homeschooling!” We’re going to celebrate the unique blessings of homeschooling, the beginning of another school year, our families, and the freedom to tailor our children’s education to best meet their needs.

If you cannot make the Live event, then the October Expo To Go is just your ticket! You’ll reserve MP3s from all of the workshops. This week only, pay just $14.95!

You can visit either of these links to get more information.
http://www.SchoolhouseExpo.com
or
http://bit.ly/aWHFiL

Disclosure: I am receiving the expo to go ticket in exchange for promoting it on my blog.

Have you ever gone into the office supply store or other stores hoping to find the right planner to use for your homeschooling? I know starting my first year of homeschooling I was all excited and walked into store after store looking for a way to plan and organize my school year. All I found year after year were planners geared strictly for public and private school teachers. The planners I saw were of no use to me. I gave up looking for what I wanted and went to the internet and downloaded forms that others had created and made some myself. Still I never was satisfied with what I had to use. A few years ago I got acquainted with TOS magazine’s Schoolhouse Store online. I browsed through the various homeschool resources they had to offer and there it was! — their Schoolhouse Planner made just for homeschoolers.

I recently saw a question on a blog that asked the question, “What brings you joy?” Now I first had to consider the many definitions of the word, “joy.” Most defined it as an intense type of happiness. I thought about that and considered that meaning and realized that you could be void of happiness and still have joy. I know this personally because the last 7 or so years my life have been mostly downward swirls of anything but happiness. Happiness is kind of a shallow type of emotion that easily comes and goes like the wind. I think many people just use joy and happiness interchangeably. So if joy really is different than merely an intense form of happiness, then what is it? I then reflected on various other definitions I had remembered about joy as well as read from Biblical verses concerning joy. They all focused on joy being something that could not be forced on yourself or manufactured. It is not an act of your will or something that can be forced upon you. Instead it is a spontaneous state of warmth that comes from your heart. It is not a weak and flimsy emotion but one that is strong and firm withstanding all circumstance and state of mind and being. The Bible itself states that joy can exist in the middle of great pain and trouble.

Now that I considered what joy was I then looked at my life to see what was within it and at myself to see what brought me joy. First of all and most important is my relationship with God. Throughout anything I know that He is always there and will never leave me. Even when all others desert me and things are not the way I wish them to be, I know that this is something that is solid and true and that withstands all else around me and even that which comes within me. I also am blessed to have a family that even through times when nothing seems to be right and our relationships falter, we are all still there and together. I am also filled with joy because my children, though we have little to offer them and we don’t buy them love like I see so many parents do with their kids, they just are glad that we are together. I guess that brings me back to the question of what brings me joy. It cannot not be things that can easily come and go and that we can merely toss aside moment to moment. Joy comes through the true relationships we have in life. The one that connects us to God as well as the ones within our family. Yes there are times when those relationships seem to disappoint and have ups and downs but the core existence of it is still there and that is where true joy comes from.

“This post is part of SOYJOY‘s What brings you joy contest. Learn more here.”

Ok my kids are off to my in-laws this week to attend and help out with their church’s VBS program. I am trying to work on things around the house with them out of the way. I have so much to do and never seem to have enough time to do it or the money that I need either.

I work at a seasonal temporary job grading public school achievement and graduation tests for a company that gets contracts to do them. Next week I am going to be working full time for a few weeks which will be tough for me since I normally only work part time in the evenings. So I have a lot of planning to do to keep things moving over the next few weeks.

Of course I do this job off and on through the year to get money to save up to help out when my DH does not have as much work and consequently less income for us but this year all my money has been taken away by things breaking down and needing fixed or replaced. All at once we have had to replace our stove, water heater and now my truck needs a new air compressor. I guess it is good that I have some money for them . Well not all since the last thing will have to wait and since the heat and humidity are incredibly bad this year I don’t know how long I can survive without AC in my truck.

I am kind of always in the midst of one of life’s storms but these coming weeks hold the threat of an intensity in them. Hopefully things will run smoother than I imagine they will be. I keep trying to hold on to God’s promise that He will be here with us in the midst of our storms. I think the only quiet right now comes from not having kids around me during the day.

With needing to get ready for homeschooling this coming year I am finding that I again have less time and less time to do things with the kids. Seems like summer goes so fast as it is.

Ok I guess I needed to grumble a bit since I normally don’t do the stream of consciousness thing on my blog much. I apologize for putting it out there but sometimes a little bit of that is good among friends.

As I sit here and finish my coffee and plan I am sending a prayer out to those of you who visit and read my blog because I know there are troubles and things on your mind as well. I know God knows who you are and what your needs are so that I know He listens when I say please Lord keep these dear readers in your care and help them through their own personal storms in life. If you do not know Him as your own personal Savior I pray that you would come to know Him and make the decision to ask Him to be your Savior and to follow Him. All you need to do is know that you are a sinner and that He sent His only Son to die on the cross in your place so that you can be cleansed of your sins and will be able to come to God blameless in His sight. Ask Him for forgiveness and thank Him for doing so. Ask Him to be your Lord and Savior and to come into your life. If you do so with honesty and truly believing in Him then you are now a child of God and one of His own. Please find a local church to attend so that you can have fellowship with other believers and so that you can grow in your walk with Him. Feel free to let me know if you have any questions or want to talk. I normally don’t put this out there and I think I may setup an area for this on my blog because I felt compelled to say this today. Maybe because God knew there was someone who needed to hear this from me. Maybe it was you?

Well to everyone, Have a wonderful day!

This week I am one of the featured bloggers! How cool is that? Please join me in visiting all the others for this week.

1. Closing Time
2. One Blessed Mamma
3. El Cloud Homeschool: Busy Minds, Busy Hands, Busy Feet
4. Alive in Spirit- Ok you are already here so no need for a link.
5. Ozark Rumblings
6. Army of 5
7. Fenced In Family
8. Debbie’s Digest
9. Footprints in the Butter
10. Got Chai?

I have read several sections of books on the fruits of the spirit but none have been like what I read in The Fruitful Life by Jerry Bridges.

First all all this book is more of a guide on how to apply Galatians 5: 22-23 to your life rather than just simply telling you about the fruits of the spirit. Each chapter contains information that will enable you to apply these teachings in a real way to your own life in order to become more of what God has intended for each of us. Each section also has a set of questions at the end in order to help you to focus and reflect on what you have just read and to bring things more in perspective for you. This also makes it ideal for either an individual study or to use with a group. We have all been exposed to what the fruits of the spirit are and have had discussions on what each one means, but if you are like me, none have gone that extra step to guide you into applying the fruits to your own life as does the book The Fruitful Life. If you are truly looking for ways to enrich your personal relationship with God then this book is one that will help lead you on that path.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from NavPress Publishers as part of their Blogger Review Program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR., Part 255:”Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Our TOS Crew has had a blog walk going on and I apologize for not posting them earlier when it started. Things have been busy and now that they are slowing kind of down for the moment I through I’d share last week’s blogs with you.

1. Deanna’s Corner
2. Light, Liberty, and Learning
3. Bunny Trails
4. Flowers N Plaid Homeschool
5. Gadow Ohana
6. His Wonderful Works
7. Expand
8. Confessions of a Homeschooler
9. The Sojourner
10. A Full Heart

Well the TOS Homeschool Crew year has officially started for 2010-11. This year I have been blessed to have been asked back as well as to become a First Mate (FM). Each of us FMs have several crew members assigned to us in order to form a mini crew.

This year I have the pleasure to have several wonderful ladies on my mini-crew. We have named ourselves the Treasure Seekers which I feel appropriate since we receive many homeschool products and services through the crew year that are truly treasures for us as homeschoolers.

Announcing the Treasure Seekers crew:

Brandy’s Blog: Kingdom Academy
Jamie’s Blog: Pecan Prairie
Lynn’s Blog: No Place Liek Home
Tonya’s Blog: Live the Adventure