4 hours ago
As you read this, I will be sitting in the general session for my fifth homeschool conference. Even though we have fallen in a good homeschool rhythm over the course of this last school year, being at the conference is as much a breath of fresh air to me as it was the first year I went.
Though a lot of veteran homeschooling moms no longer feel the need to go to conferences, I envision myself continuing to go to our conference every year, and I always recommend to my new homeschooling friends to attend a conference. I thought today I would share a few of the benefits I've gained from attending over the years, in an effort to encourage YOU to check out a homeschool conference! There are alot of good reasons to go!
To Educate Yourself About Homeschooling
While homeschooling doesn't have to be complicated, there are certainly many facets of homeschooling that can be considered. Especially for first-time homeschooling parents, a conference can give you a general idea of what it looks like to homeschool on a daily basis, things you need to do legally to homeschool, and other basics. Even if you are a homeschool veteran, there is still so much to learn about different areas of homeschooling, and how to do it well. Homeschooling is a serious endeavor, and the more you can educate yourself about different methods and options, the more you can gather ideas on how to do it well, the better!
For Encouragement As A Christian Parent
The Christian homeschool conference I go to often covers more than just homeschool topics, because homeschooling as Christian isn't just about academics or the actual bookwork - it's about creating solid relationships within your family, a friendly learning environment at home, training your kids in character and leader, and ultimately glorifying the Lord with your efforts. Every year when I attend our conference, I find myself wishing that all my Christian friends, homeschooled or not, could come and benefit from the encouragement in Christian parenting! It's life-giving to be around so many other families who all love the Lord and are trying to honor Him as they raise their children to love Jesus too. If you are not a homeschooler, I think you would still get a ton of encouragement as a parent from attending a homeschool conference.
You Can Often Get Deals On Your Curriculum Resources
On a more practical note, if you have your eye on a certain curriculum, and you know a vendor for that curriculum will be at a certain homeschool conference, I highly recommend you go check out their booth. Most curriculum companies offer great discounts for attendees of homeschool conferences, and buying from them at the hall also encourages them to return and help fund the conference for the next year. Especially if you are looking at an expensive curriculum (hello, Rightstart Math), the cost of the conference, in addition to all the other conference benefits, can be well worth the discount.
You Can Look At Possible Curricula In Person
Whenever I am talking to a new homeschool friend about choosing curriculum, I recommend that they get their hands on an actual physical copy of the curriculum before they decide. There is something about looking through a book in person that lets you know whether the style is something that will add confusion or calm to your days. If you know someone who owns a certain curriculum you are considering, you can ask them if you can look through it, but the best place to look through a bunch of curriculum at once is at a homeschool conference. I've ruled certain curricula out after looking through books at a conference, and I've also discovered gems that I may not have considered if I hadn't been browsing the conference aisles. The curriculum hall is a great place to gather ideas. Bonus tip: Make a budget beforehand though, because it can be easy to buy TOO much in the curriculum hall!
It's An Opportunity To Make Connections With Other Homeschoolers
When Wyatt was about to enter kindergarten, I knew no one else in my real life who was homeschooling (though I had a few friends a couple years behind me who were planning on it). As a new homeschool mom, I was worried about making friends who were my son's age, and finding other moms who were already homeschooling to bounce ideas off of. I went to the homeschool conference alone, and sat near another young-looking mom with a baby in a stroller. We struck up a conversation and ended up making friends with another first-time mom. The three of us spent the whole day together, and we got together after the conference for playdates. Though life took us different directions and I am no longer in contact with those friends, I am so thankful for the chance to meet other young homeschool moms and gain encouragement and camaraderie with them when I needed it. If you don't know any fellow homeschoolers, I highly recommend checking out a conference, and don't be shy to sit next to another mom that looks like she is alone and strike up a conversation. You never know how those connections may develop.
To Gather Strength For Your Homeschool Journey
Homeschooling, while incredibly worthwhile, can also be a scary and possibly lonely endeavor. Most homeschool moms don't choose homeschooling because it's the easiest option, but because they have a vision for their child's education that is worth the effort it is going to take. Homeschooling conferences can be greatly strengthening for getting started, and refreshing for those who find themselves discouraged. I often find that homeschool conferences remind me of WHY I'm homeschooling, which is something that I can lose sight of during the school year if I'm not careful. Hearing speakers who have gone through their own homeschooling journeys, laughing at our common struggles, and gaining tips for how to overcome the hard days are all a great encouragement, and help me keep my eye on the prize - which is raising my children in the fear and admonition of the Lord, raising them to be leaders and independent thinkers, raising them to stand for what God says is right even when culture says it's wrong. All of that is infinitely more important than just the nuts and bolts of getting through the curriculum (though there is encouragement for that too), and homeschool conferences are bolstering, a challenge and an encouragement, for all my hopes and goals for my children that go beyond academics.
Have you ever been to a homeschool conference?
May was a month filled with lots of interesting fiction and weekend trips, a worthwhile way to kick off the summer! Here is what I thought about the books I read. I'm implementing a star system, because I think it's easier to quickly see the bottom line on a book that way!
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir - 4 stars - I have actually never read The Martian, which is Weir's most popular book, but for some reason this one caught my eye. The main character is a microbiologist who ends up being recruited to study a microbe that has started to basically "eat" the sun. Little does he know that he'll be called upon to go on a mission to rescue earth from this destructive little microbe, and make unexpected contact along the way. I started this book and really could not put it down - the unusual plot sucked me right in. I will say that there is ALOT of evolution-based elements to the plot (as someone who believes in creation I find this annoying) and some obnoxious political points thrown in here and there. There was also an awkward conversation about *ahem* about adult things with one of the astronauts. I'm taking off a star for those, but otherwise I found this book to be an imaginative and fun read.
The Mystery Of Mrs. Christie by Marie Benedict - 3 stars - This book started out pretty strong, but the follow-through just wasn't there. In case you didn't know, in real life Agatha Christie disappeared when she was a young wife and mother for about a week in the 1920's. She never talked about where she went or what she did, and to this day no one really knows what happened. How intriguing is that? This book explored a fictional explanation for that disappearance. I thought the idea for this book was really interesting, but the author kind of lost me when Mr. Christie is talking to an inspector and uses the phrase "my truth". That is not something anyone from that time period would be likely to say - "my truth", as opposed to just "the truth", is a thoroughly post-modern phrase that has really only become popular over the last couple decades. After that I noticed other modern attitudes that seemed imposed upon the characters, and I had a hard time taking the book seriously. At the end, when Agatha is explaining why she disappeared, I could tell the author was trying to give a "Poirot" vibe to it, but the monologue lacked the incisive insights about human nature that Agatha Christie used in all her final monologues in her mystery books. The reasoning for the disappearance seemed weak and forced. It was a good try, but in the end this book didn't work for me as an avid Christie reader.
What You Wish For by Katherine Center - 4 stars - In this book, Sam is a teacher at a special school that has just lost it's beloved principal. The new principle arrives, and lo and behold, it's Duncan, a man that Sam had a hopeless crush on at her previous school. But Duncan has changed, and Sam goes on a mission to help him rediscover the guy he used to be. This book was adorable and I enjoyed it very much. The dynamic between the characters was believable and kept me on the edge of my seat. I tend to like the hate-to-love trope in my chic-lit, and this one was done well.
Content Notes: There are a few bad words scattered throughout, a couple kissing scenes that are a little intense, a moment when Sam admires Duncan shirtless, and Sam sleeps in Duncan's room one day after he just had surgery to keep an eye on him, at another point the couple almost sleep together. I'd rate it about PG-13 if it was a movie.
Happiness For Beginners by Katherine Center - 3 stars - I enjoyed the first Katherine Center book so much, I decided to pick up another one. In this book, Duncan's older sister Helen is trying to find herself after her divorce. She ends up on a wilderness survival trip with a bunch of college students and Jake, her little brother's annoying friend - except she finds herself drawn to him unexpectedly - especially when she learns he's been pining for her for years. I very much enjoyed the wilderness setting and plot, which dominated the middle half of the book. Maybe I found myself intrigued by this aspect because, like the main character, I'm in my thirties now and I can imagine how obnoxious it would be to go spend two weeks with college students in the woods.
Content Notes: I can't recommend this one as much as the first Center book because it was more racy than the other one. More references to you-know-what, one pretty intense scene where the main characters almost sleep together, etc. If this was a movie I'd rate it a more racy PG-13. I try not to read and often don't finish books that would be worse than a PG-13 movie, but this one pushed it a little bit.
The Polar Bear Expedition by James Carl Nelson - 4 stars - This is perhaps the saddest book about World War One that I've read so far. This book tells the story of American soldiers who were sent to Russia toward the end of World War One, and then left there for two years...for reasons that no one ever told them. When I read The Last Of The Doughboys by Richard Rubin, one of the veterans interviewed in that book was one of these men of the Polar Bear Expedition, and even when pressed he refused to talk about his experiences in Russia. You know when they won't talk about it at all, it had to be terrible. About 200 soldiers died there in Russia fighting the Bolsheviks, and many of the men returned home still not knowing why they were sent there in the first place. The book explores why this chapter of WW1 happened, and emphasizes at the end how these brave men should be remembered (the poem in the last chapter made me actually cry). Because it sometimes gets bogged down in names/dates, I am giving it just 4 stars, but I am 100% glad I read this book.
Company K by William March - 4 stars - This is another WW1 book that I read because the author of The Last Of The Doughboys recommended it (are you sick of hearing about The Last Of The Doughboys yet? It's my favorite WW1 book). William March actually fought in WW1, and then returned home and wrote this book about a fictional company and their experiences in the war. Each chapter is basically a short story about a wartime situation, and for that reason this book is a quick read. It is not an easy read though, because some of these stories are awful and haunting. There are grisly portrayals of men dying. We see many of the surviving men losing their compassion, religion, or humanity, while others make it through and go on to be successful after the war. This book really gives a full, non-sugar coated perspective of what it would actually be like to live through such a terrible conflict. I think if you are studying WW1, this is worthwhile reading to give a full perspective of the human experience in that war, but if you are sensitive to descriptive violence you probably should skip this.
The God Who Is There by Francis Schaeffer - 5 stars - I started this book at the same time that I started Another Gospel by Alisa Childers, but it took me longer to get through because it's so meaty. Schaeffer is a brilliant guy, and very philosophical, so sometimes I had to really focus to get the point of what he was saying (philosophy is not my strong suit), but it was so worth it. This book traces the fall of culture from above what Schaffer calls "the line of despair" to below it. The despair he is talking about it when men give up all hope of knowing absolute truth, or of that truth even existing, and if they are consistent in their worldview, they are left with nothing but meaninglessness. He traces the history of the progression of this despair through different aspects of culture, starting with philosophy and going through art, music, general culture, and finally trickling down to theology. If you are finding yourself flabbergasted by the rise of progressive Christianity (as was described so well by Alisa Childers in her book), then this is the book you want to understand how we got here. The last half of the book is dedicated to encouraging Christians in how to approach the modern man, who has no grounds for absolute truth even existing. Schaeffer explains how in conversations with a person who is stuck in this mindset, we need to go back further and set the groundwork so there is something to build upon in explaining the gospel. This book was SO GOOD, and incredibly relevant considering it was written in the 1960's. Highly recommend it, just stick with it when it gets tough and I promise it's worth it.
And that's it for May! I am finding myself reading a lot of non-fiction in June, which is not the typical summer reading fare, but it's what I've been in the mood for. I should have some good recommendations coming up I think!
What are you all reading as we start the summer?
"I disagree."
I took a deep breath at these words that have never failed to increase my heart rate, whether I'm hearing or saying them. What followed was the first real friendship conflict in my adult life, with a person I cared very much about. She tried to convince me of her point, and I tried to convince her of mine. Later on the phone, we were at an impasse. And I took another deep breath and said "You know, it's okay if we disagree. We don't have to agree on everything to be friends."
It's a lesson that has been reinforced over the many years since then, and I've had more and more friends who have shown me how to disagree well. Dennis Prager also taught me something about disagreements between friends with his refrain about the goal of discussions, which he says should be clarity, not agreement (example).
Certainly there are times when a correction may be required between brothers and sisters in Christ on issues that can be obviously cleared up by the word of God, the Bible, as the standard to which believers should conform their minds and lives. But in general, I think "clarity over agreement" is a rule to live by when dealing with more nuanced disagreements. When I keep that principle in mind, it is much easier to be gentle and thoughtful in my responses, to speak the truth according to how I understand it in God's word with love. It also allows me to be more open to hearing out someone else's perspective, while clarifying my own thought processes on the subject.
As I think about the topic of disagreements, I'm also reminded of the Bible verse which says "faithful are the wounds of a friend" (Proverbs 27:6). I don't think this verse is saying that every wound by someone you think is a friend will be faithful - indeed we are fallen human beings, and we too often approach disagreements with pride and self-righteousness. But I think what this verse is saying, to both the person being confronted and the one doing the confronting, is to approach these discussions with the goal of wounding faithfully.
That means avoiding sarcastic jabs. That means seeking the good of your friend when you confront them, not seeking to be right. And that means that just because a friend may say "I disagree", it doesn't mean they are intending to hurt you. Indeed, if your friend is a true friend, the momentary pain brought by their challenge is likely meant as a faithful wound, for your good. And approaching confrontation from the perspective of striving to be faithful, and giving a friend that benefit of a doubt that this is their intention, can ultimately sharpen both of you. If it's handled rightly.
That's the trick, isn't it. Handling disagreement rightly. So difficult to do, but worthy of the effort of practicing at getting it right.
Stop.
This post is a participation in Five Minute Friday, which I would like to start practicing more regularly! I almost didn't write it, because disagreement - who wants to write about that? But I guess the point is to challenge and stretch myself a little, so I'm aiming to be back next week with another installment, even if it's another topic I don't want to write about.
As I mentioned a while back, every year we have to weigh our budget against possible destinations and time restraints with my husband's job. This year we had to worry about time constraints even more than normal - Derek actually got a new job this spring, and he had to start from scratch on building up vacation time. Next year we should have a chunk of time to work with again, but this year he is only able to take off a day here and there.
Because of all that, instead of going on one week-long trip this year, we have decided to do several smaller weekend trips. In the end, this will likely work out better anyway since many of the destinations we considered are not places where we necessarily want to spend a whole week!
Over the last couple weekends we took our first two mini-trips. The first was a planned field trip/camping trip to a historic fort, and the second weekend was a last-minute road trip to Utah over Memorial Day weekend (once we found out Derek would be able to take an extra day off). In Utah we visited three national parks, and I plan to write a post about my tips for visiting Utah national parks with kids. But for now, here are a few pretty pictures.
Visit To Bent's Fort
Our first weekend road trip taught us an important lesson - do not try to start a long drive after work on a Friday night. We had grand plans to make it to a certain destination and set up our tent before dark - well, that did not happen, and by the time we arrived it was nearly 10:00 PM in the middle of a lightening storm. We ended up springing for a hotel instead.
The next day we made it to the campground and set up our tent, and then made the trek out to Bent's Fort, which is a historic reproduction of an old west trading fort. I have to say, the kids were completely fascinated by the fort. They paid such close attention to all the details and history, and said it was one of their favorite field trips ever. If you ever have a chance to go, it's a great stop for kids! I think the general store that sold old-timey odds and ends added to the magic, and we ended up getting the girls some pioneer girl bonnets, a powder horn for Clyde which he has been exceedingly proud of, and a fire starter kit and arrowhead for Wyatt.
(On the top level of the fort.)
(Looking through a fort window.)
(Saying the junior ranger pledge. This guy stayed in character the whole time. I was very impressed with the commitment of all the employees in enacting their historical parts!)
(Bird watching near the fort. I was mad at myself later for not getting a view of the outside of the fort for the blog - sorry guys.)
This was the first camping trip where we did mostly our own cooking (instead of eating meals out), and I'm happy to report it was a success!
(Playground near our campsite.)
(Checking out the lake.)
Utah National Park Trip
Our next weekend trip was to Utah to check out some of the national parks down there. I am working on another post with more details of our visit and tips, so I'll keep it short here.
First we went to Zion National Park, on perhaps the busiest day of the year, which was perhaps a mistake! The trails were completely packed, but I still couldn't help being impressed with the grandeur of all the cliffs and canyon walls. I'd like to go back sometimes when it's not so crazy-busy and visit some other locations within the park. Because of the amount of time it took to navigate into the park, we only got to check out one trail in the day we were there.
Our next park was Bryce Canyon, and I have to say, I liked it better than Zion just because it was less of a zoo, and we were able to drive into the park ourselves (more on that in my next post on this subject). The views were honestly breathtaking, and almost more beautiful to me than the Grand Canyon (though it's been a while since we were in Arizona - I reserve the right to change my mind).
(Guys, look at this trail that went down into the canyon! We didn't go that far down, because we had kids and time constraints.)
(We found a waterfall, which was perhaps my favorite part of Bryce.)
Lastly, we made a spontaneous detour to attempt to check out Capitol Reef National Park on the way home. It ended up being a three-hour detour with a disappointing payoff - only because of the fact that I really wanted to see the arch, and it took us a while to figure out that we had to hike two miles to see it! We didn't have time to do that, so that was a disappointment. I wouldn't go back to this one unless I had time to explore it properly, but like all the other parks we visited, the areas we did get to see where impressive and beautiful.
So that's part one and two of our vacation in pieces this year. As I said, I'll be back with more details of our visits to each park, and what I would do differently next time!
I am happy to report that this post is brought to you by the pretty, windowed portico in my library.
For the past year our library has been limiting us to 30 minutes per visit, with the self-assigned mask-police following us around making sure our noses are covered. In other words, the library has not been pleasant for a while, and over the last year I frequently just sat in the parking lot and called the number to have the librarian deliver books to my car instead of putting up with that nonsense. But our state has dropped it's mask mandate, the library has dropped theirs and now I'm sitting at a desk covered in dappled light, admiring the view of the woods, and drinking a white mocha while I type this. Where are the kids? Vacation Bible School, another thing that we didn't get to do last year. Cheers to normalcy!
We actually finished school three weeks ago, but for some reason we decided to jump right into back-to-back spontaneous weekend trips. I'll share more in another post this week, but we visited a historic fort and three national parks over the course of two long weekends (one of which included tent camping). And we did all this right before the busiest month of the year, June, which is typically packed with family birthdays, Father's Day, the homeschool conference, VBS, and this year we also scheduled in two more weekend trips.
Basically, I'm tired. Thrilled that things are nearly completely back to normal, but tired.
This week, the first quiet week we've had since we closed the books, I am anticipating lots of time for the following:
Reading. May really should have been a better reading month with all that weekend-tripping, but my vacation days never work out very well for reading. I'm the kind of person that goes away from home to do and see things I normally wouldn't - I don't want to sit in a chair and read! I can do that at home. I also have a horrible time reading in my car, unless we happen to be driving across a flat state. Mountainous roads? Forget it. I'll be too sick to eat anything in approximately 30 minutes. So during my one quiet week in June, you can bet I'll be working on some books. First up is Wait Till Next Year by Doris Kearns Goodwin.
Blogging. Where have I even been the last couple months, guys? I have a lot of posts bursting to get out. You'll probably get several this week.
Planting flowers. This last weekend was technically an off weekend, but I spent Saturday and Sunday catching up on the necessary shopping - first for groceries on Saturday, which takes forever because I do once-a-month shopping. And then on Sunday for a summer wardrobe for Gwen (I already bought Wyatt's, and the rest of the kids get hand-me-downs with a couple new pieces each).
As an aside, I was about to go into our normal discount clothing store, but they had a huge sign and window display insisting that any kid above the height of their (short) mannequin was required to wear a mask. That's more than even our state or the CDC ever required, and sorry, but I am DONE with dealing with all that. I turned back around and we went to JCPenny. instead, which conveniently, was having a pretty good sale.
Anyway, on the way home we stopped and bought this year's flowers for my pots and for the weird little strip of dirt by our front door, which I feel needs some plants. I happen to kill plants really easily, so I'm not sure how it's going to go with our front-door dirt, but I'm going to try. If it wasn't for Derek watering all the flowers I plant each year, this would be a colossal waste of money, but I know I can count on him. I'd like to get everything planted this week.
Planning for the homeschool conference. Our homeschool conference is on this year, hooray! I need to sit down with a curriculum catalog and come up with a homeschool budget so I don't go overboard, which is very easy to do in the curriculum hall.
Possibly drill on grammar terms. This year is the first year Wyatt has to do testing. Our state/umbrella school requires testing or an evaluation ever other year after 3rd grade, and we are due. I feel pretty confident that we prepared enough for him to do well, except perhaps in the area of grammatical terms, which I'm not sure will even be on the test (but we’re going to practice a bit anyway). When did you all start learning grammar terms (you know, adjectives, adverbs, etc.)? Because from my personal experience, I don't remember covering grammar at all during my years as a student in public school (1st-3rd grade), and then I was totally overwhelmed with my 4th grade English book when we started homeschooling, because I had no idea what it was talking about. So in comparison, I feel like it'll be fine?
Thanks for visiting and reading my ramblings, even when I get overwhelmed and don't touch this blog for weeks. Sometimes it's difficult to find energy to sit down and write, but I am always storing up things I want to share on here. Especially since getting off Instagram, I know those of you who take time to read here instead are the best kind of online pals.
Hopefully coming up in the next week or two...
-Travel Photos
-May Book Recap
-Reasons You Should Go To A Homeschool Conference
-Podcasts I'm Enjoying
-Top Book Recommendations For Homeschool Moms
-Any other topics that come to mind (suggestions welcome!)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
