The saga of the right brained child continues...(updated)

"I believe in the imagination. . . What I cannot see is infinitely more important than what I can see."
D. Michals

Two weeks ago, our right brained child spent five 10-hour days at horse camp where she got to groom and ride horses, spend time with a vast assortment of animals from the common farm dog to colorful peacocks, and explore the expansive country farm.  She made lots of friends, played on an extensive playground, swam for hours each day, and unleashed her wild imagination.  She once dreamed about spending time on a horse farm like this one, so she says this camp was a dream come true for her.

Photos from Family Fun Day to represent some of her horse camp experiences

Our right brained child lives her life so completely intoxicated by her dreams that she is sometimes oblivious to anything that could bring her down from her cloud.  This camp was much more disorganized than we had expected it to be (for the cost), but she did not mind at all.  On the first day of camp, she fell off the merry-go-round and scraped her leg to the point of making a bloody mess.  After applying the ice pack I had included in her lunch cooler, she was good to go for the rest of the week.  Each day she got to take at least two trail rides.  This child, who has never had formal horseback riding lessons, was given full control of the reins while riding along the trail.  On her first day of camp, a bee spooked her horse, but she held on tightly while laughing (without any fear) at the horse's erratic kicks and jumps.  Our area has been experiencing record heat levels with the heat index reaching 107 degrees that week. Not once did she ever complain about the heat. 

Rein, the horse who protected RBC from bees during a trail ride

While she was at camp, I ventured into her room to put something away as I was tidying the house.  I made the life threatening mistake of opening the drawers in her nightstand.  The bottom drawer is designated only for winter accessories, and the top drawer is supposed to be used for her journals, Bible and other bedtime necessities.  Both drawers were filled to the brim, so I began the process of cleaning them out for her.  In those two small drawers, I found the most eclectic collection imaginable.  There were stickers, pine cones, Sharpies, crayons, knitting needles, silly bands, candy wrappers, play food, seashells, sticks, yarn, jewelry, dress-up clothes, American Girl doll accessories, books, loose paper, arcade tokens, dirty socks, underwear, Barbie dolls, bank statements from her Fat Cat account, Littlest pet shop figures, Webkinz codes, ski goggles, lip gloss, rhinestones, and so much more. While organizing these drawers for her, I came across a pillow case that was filled with dirty clothes, clean clothes, stuffed animals, and various other soft items.

Vintage 1970s pillow case stuffed by RBC

I immediately assumed that she had thrown all the stuff on her floor into this pillow case as a quick clean-up remedy instead of putting the dirty clothes in the laundry room, the clean clothes in her closet and the stuffed animals in the toy box where they belong.  I decided to extend her some grace this time and put the items away for her.  When she came home that evening, I discovered that I had just dismantled her handmade pillow!  Who needs polyester, foam, feathers, or other pillow fillers when you have stuffed animals and clothes on hand? I had wondered why her closet had seemed so bare lately.

Then I found small strips of paper lying around the house.  Each strip had a line drawn down the middle in various colors.  Assuming these torn strips of paper were unimportant, I tossed them into the trash can.  Then I came across four sheets of paper taped together with all those same colors drawn as circles in an oval orbit.  At the top of these sheets, Right Brained Girl had written, "Around the World".  Those slips of paper were actually game cards for this board game she had designed.

Later she approached me while wearing an apron and carrying a pen and notepad.  She had an old name badge lanyard around her neck.  She had a squirt bottle and a toothbrush in the pockets of her apron and announced that she had established a mirror cleaning service using her newly invented cleaning method.  Then she proceeded to clean the bathroom mirror with an old toothbrush (I do not recommend this method!) and gave me an invoice.

On another day, she came to me equipped for a different career endeavor.  She had straps around her waist and a light up globe (dubbed the tickle spot finder by her brother) tucked inside a special loop in her waist strap to serve as her microphone.  Now she aspires to become a singing zip-liner.

While wearing this same equipment, Right Brained Girl delivered flyers for a musical presentation she would be presenting this evening.  According to her flyer, tickets were $15. Popcorn and drinks would be available for an additional $2 and chocolate brownies would be served after the show.  We convinced her to let us watch the show for free.  I suspect that going to see Disney's Alice in Wonderland, Jr. (the musical) with me this past weekend inspired tonight's performance.

During the performance, we notice that her stuffed horse, Brownie, had come downfor the show.  Clearly, Right Brained Girl put a lot of thought into accessorizing this horse. She adorned him with a saddle from one of her model ponies.  Pony tail elastics served as the bit and bridle while her father's lanyard from a previous job served as the horse's lead. 

These examples are only a small sampling of the countless antics that take place on any given day in the life of a right brained child.

Homeschool drop-out

We have been in the process of making some very difficult interrelated decisions. By the end of June of this year, I had purchased all the curriculum we would need for the new school year and had prepared a course of study and schedule for each child's homeschool education.   In addition, I had completed a Classical Conversations practicum to aid me in my lesson planning for the homeschool co-op class that I would be tutoring this year.  Last Friday, I attended a planning session for an additional homeschool PE class that I would be facilitating.  All systems were ready to go until we learned about a new private Christian school opening twenty minutes away from our current home in the opposite direction from where we had been hoping to move.

This new school offers a modified classical approach to education and much of the same curriculum I have using at home.  The school's homeschool style learning environment appeals to me.  However, I do not like the idea of having someone else shepherd the hearts of my children in my place for 6.5 hours per day for four days (Friday classes are optional at this school) each week instead of me.  Plus, I rather enjoy being able to sleep in each morning instead of having to wake up early to get the kids to school on time.  Yet, thoughts of this school kept lingering in my mind.

I know God appointed the man as the leader of the home for a reason, so I earnestly sought my husband's unemotional, level-headed input.  After much prayer, he made a decision that took me completely by surprise.  His decision was to send our daughter to the new private Christian school while I educate our son at home.  My husband is a huge supporter of homeschooling and has seemed quite pleased with the progress our daughter has been making in her studies.  While the academics have gone well, the stress in our home has been increasing.  One of the primary benefits of homeschooling that many families mention is the relationship building that takes place between parent and child and between siblings.  Recently, however, I have sensed growing tension between my daughter and myself.  We are at a point where she needs me to simply be her mom and not her school assignment giver.   She is an incredibly social girl who thrives when around other like-minded people.  So, we are sending her to this private Christian school this year as a trial.

Once that decision had been made, we really wrestled with what to do about our homeschool co-op where I had committed to serve for the upcoming year.  I do not want our children to miss out on the last cycle in the 3-cycle foundations curriculum.  We do not want to lose the wonderful friendships we have established within this group, especially if we end up homeschooling both children next year.  So, we have decided that I will present the cycle 3 material as a supplement at home and both kids will participate in one of the homeschool enrichment tracks at our co-op while I teach PE, but we will not do both morning and afternoon sessions as initially planned.

So, we have not given up on homeschooling entirely.  I will still homeschool our son and supplement our daughter's education on Fridays.   My prayer is that this private school trial will be a positive experience for all of us while giving us more clarity regarding future schooling and housing decisions.

Lessons Learned

There were days last year when I told my husband, "I quit.  I cannot educate this child another day."  Yet, when he told me we would be sending her to private school next year, I broke down and cried.  I realized at that moment how much I did enjoy teaching her at home and having that extra time with her each day.  I thought of all the wonderful memories we had shared together and of my greatly increased passion for learning about all subjects.  I thought about how lonely her brother and I would be without her.  It wasn't until the opportunity to homeschool her was taken from me that I realized how much I had taken the privilege of homeschooling for granted.

I have always been a bit high strung, but some of that has changed since getting married and having children.  My laid back man and my curious children have shown me the importance of  treasuring each moment and cherishing God's creation.   However, when it came to homeschooling a child who thinks and learns in a style so different from my own, I reverted to high stress mode.   Since my daughter processes information very differently than I do, schooling her became more difficult for me.

"Stress says that the things that we are involved in are important enough to merit our impatience, our lack of grace toward others, or our tight grip of control." (Francis Chan, Crazy Love, pg. 42)

Stress can destroy our most precious relationships.  After the shock of my husband's decision wore off and I had worked through feeling like a complete failure, I began to experience the joy that comes from being set free from the bondage of stress.  My relationship with my daughter improved dramatically, almost overnight, after the burden that I had placed on myself regarding her schooling had been lifted.  To homeschool effectively, parents must maintain proper perspective.  Relationships are ALWAYS far more important that academics.  Successful homeschooling parents know how to RELAX and do so often!

Chan's definition of  "stress" acknowledges the control issues that accompany stress.  I freaked out about sending our daughter to school because I did not want to give up control over her curriculum, her schedule, and her influences.  Then I read this blog post by one of my favorite bloggers which describes the tendency to confuse possession and love.  This post uses the movie, The Fox and the Child, as a parenting analogy.  When we exert too much control over our children, we are like the girl in this movie who tried to make the fox her own possession.  She thought she was acting out of love for the fox when she was actually robbing the fox of its freedom in her attempts to make the fox her own. When she locked the fox in her room with her, he jumped through the glass window in her room in pursuit of freedom and nearly took his own life in the process. 

As parents, we must be careful not to exert so much control over our children that they lose their age appropriate freedoms.  When parents exert too much control, children will rebel.  While control may not be an issue for most homeschooling families, when stress is allowed to take root in the heart instead of the peace of God, then control becomes a problem.  If the process of sending our daughter to a small, private, classical, Christian school that provides a safe, loving, nurturing environment is difficult for me, then I clearly need this private school experience to help me begin loosening my grip.

Now, what will I do with all these books I planned to use this year?

Art Camp

The kids just finished a week of art camp.  I'm so glad a neighbor agreed to send her son to this art camp with my kids so we could carpool because this camp was located in the boonies, ya'll - like even further out than our previous residence!!!  The camp was definitely worth the drive.   Thankfully, there was a coffee shop about 15 minutes away, so I drove there to sip latte (I don't even like coffee) while accessing the shop's Wi-fi during the kids' 3-hour camp sessions.  See, I told you it was worth it.  Ahhh!

To celebrate the end of art camp (4 camps down, 2 more to go for this summer), I thought I would host a little on-line art show.

Portfolio Case

"Jesus is Alive" was the theme of her case.

Southwest Indian Art

Coil pots

Artist Appreciation:  Georgia O'Keeffe

Big Flowers

Composition

They could look at picture of a cat, but they were not allowed to 

look at their drawing until they were finished.

Cat Contours

Crazy Lines: 

They were instructed to draw curvy intersecting black lines and then color in the patterns. 

Then each student looked for forms inside the drawings.

He sees a turtle inside his lines.

She sees a cat, knight and bird in her drawing.

Self Expression

Instructions:  Paint one of your happiest memories.

Echo's painting represents the day he helped Nana plant flowers.

Her painting depicts Christmas 2010 in Oklahoma when she received the Felicity doll as a present.

Their favorite memories involved time spent with their grandmothers.

Drawing with Chalk

Statue of Liberty

Artist Appreciation:  Henri Rousseu

"Night Jungle"  (Crayon resist with black paint)

Art History:  Cave Drawings

Rubbings over sea glass

Limner Portrait (American Primitive Painting)

 According to the kids, in colonial days, Limner portrait painters would paint scenes, clothing, and poses during the winter.  During the other seasons, they would travel from village to village.  Clients would select a partially completed painting, and then the painter would paint the client's face and the favorite item to complete the portrait.

She added her face and a softball to the painting last.

Media Lesson:  Potato Family Portraits

This activity was my favorite.  The kids stamped faces using potato slices.  Echo included our nuclear family plus one grandmother in his painting.  Right Brained Girl included her mother, father, 2 grandparents, and 4 random cousins, but she excluded her brother.  Each child included interesting details.  Echo likes to draw shoulders and belly buttons.  His sister made her grandmother's skin darker than the rest of us.  She made sure that everyone's hair color was true to life and that each person was wearing his or her favorite color.  She also put a bow in the hair of her cousin who ALWAYS wears a matching bow (even in the pool).

Our Family

Artist Appreciation:  Claude Monet

Monet painting practice

"Rain" and "Sailboat" in the style of Monet

Scratch and Paint

 They turned their paint brushes upside down and scratched patterns into the wet paint to texturize.

Tropical Rainbow Turtle

Just for Fun

Bear in chair

Caterpillar (by Echo)

Top kid quotes for the week ending 7/16/11

7/11/2011

Echo:  "Mom, how come Dad's stuff doesn't get put into the penalty box like my toys do when I leave them out?

Echo and Mort

After I had spent almost an hour teaching Echo a U.S. history lesson, he asked me, "Mom, is this story real or make believe?

7/11/2011

During an art lesson together, we talked about the importance of using your imagination when creating art.  So, I asked our son, "Do you have an imagination?"

He replied, "I have a little one, but my sister has a HUGE imagination."

Yes, she does, and that is why her blog name will now become Right Brained Girl, or RBG for short.

Right Brained Girl

7/13/2011

Echo rode in the car with me for two hours in the thunder storm to fetch Right Brained Girl from horse camp. The wild lightning and loud thunder didn't bother him, but he did complain that "the storm sure is wasting a whole lot of water."

 7/14/2011

I love the random questions Echo asks me throughout each day. This morning he asked me, "Why can't Superman be real?"  On the way to a homeschooling meeting, he asked, "Will we eat food in Heaven?"

~~~~~

Echo pays close attention to the routes I take while he is riding in the car.  One day this week, I got stuck at a stoplight that often fails to recognize when a car is in the left turn lane.  After waiting through several cycles, I usually end up moving over into the right turn lane, turning right, making a u-turn, and traveling a mile back to get through that light.  While driving home from the meeting yesterday, I took a different route, but it looked a lot like the previous one with a stoplight at the end of a highway exit ramp.  So, Echo said, "Mom, I thought you said you would never ever drive home this way again."


7/16/2011
During dinner, I was joking with our son about how a friend of mine thinks her daughter should marry him some day.  Then Right Brained Girl says, "Mom, I think you should let him marry whoever he chooses!"

Meet Echo

Even though our son still insists that we call him "Joey", I think I will choose "Echo" as his blog name.  That boy repeats everything he hears.  When we are all sitting together as a family at the dinner table, if I say something, he will turn to his sister and repeat what I just said verbatim as if she didn't hear me the first time.  At roller hockey practice, he usually repeats whatever I have said to him that day to his team mates, their parents, the coach, the custodian, and anyone else in ear shot. Friends and family, be careful what you say around him!

Yesterday, my husband tried to explain King Saul's ruling in 1 Kings 3 regarding the argument between the two mothers over which one stole the other woman's baby.  After hearing his father's explanation of this passage,our 4-year-old kept repeating, "Cut the baby in half". Echo repeated this phrase in reference to the slice of pizza he wanted to share with his sister, but the Biblical allusion was just too disturbing for me.

When he isn't repeating, he's often persuading.  For example, just this morning, he asked for some applesauce.  I suggested that he first eat some watermelon or a peach since those foods will not remain fresh much longer. He responded, "But if we wait too long to open the applesauce, the lid may get stuck."   I suppose he was thinking about the honey jar lid that often gets harder to open over time.  He always seems to have a defense for any refusal.  That boy may do well some day as an attorney or salesman.

He has been sick this past week, yet I think a candid snapshot I took of him today portrays him well at this stage of his life.



Echo at 4 years, 8 months



He still loves to wear his super hero pajamas even though he is outgrowing them. He is still very interested in super heroes and wants to ensure that good always triumphs over evil.  He told me this morning that he REALLY wishes that Superman was real.

He is still very attached to his baby blanket (aka Bubba).   In the photo above, Echo is holding Bubba very lovingly.  Just like Bubba, our boy is cute and cuddly, gets LOTS of snuggle time, and usually has a charming grin on his face.

In the photo, Echo is wearing my running shoes.  Echo still has me so wrapped around his finger that I would gladly give him any of my most cherished possessions...perhaps even my running shoes.

The shoes are much too big for him.  Echo is always trying to fill bigger shoes.  He communicates in a manner that sounds much more like an adult than a child.  He tells us several times a week that he wishes he was old enough to be a daddy.   Ever since he has learned to count, he has been counting how many more days or years he has to wait until he will be old enough to get married and have children.  Yes, those shoes are much too big for my baby.

 

Bubba and Echo 3 years ago



Keeping it real as I wrestle with what is good, better, and best

It seems that I am always eager to give an answer to anyone who asks me for Biblical counsel.  My perspective is usually clear when I'm looking at the circumstances of someone else.  However, when the decision is mine to make and involves my life and my children, I feel as if blinders have been super-glued to my face.  I stumble along what seems to be a long and winding path that is actually no more than a circle bringing me back to the same dazed spot where I began.

After three years of having our house come on and off the MLS, each time with the asking price even lower, we are now debating dropping the price yet again.  My real estate agent noted that if our sovereign God's plan is for us to remain here right now, then even if we drop the price $300,000 in faith that His will be done, He will not present us with a buyer.   Some of the coping strategies I have learned through this long house ordeal are summarized in an article entitled "Housing market downturn:  How sellers cope with falling market values" here.

One of the many reasons we would like to move is so we can have access to more schooling options for our children.  However, after homeschooling for the past few years, I have become very picky about many aspects of our kids' education.  Now I have a bias towards certain curricula and teaching methods.  I am now a hard-core fan of classical education, but public schools are traditional while only two private schools in the area offer classical education.  One classical school charges more for elementary grade tuition than many colleges, and the other has an infinitely long waiting list due to siblings filling up the limited number of opening each year.

I love the flexibility and independent thinking that homeschooling promotes.  However, I also sense that some positive peer pressure regarding completing school work in a timely and excellent manner could be very beneficial for our daughter.  I also wish that we could incorporate more of the elective courses more easily at one location instead of driving across several cities for various extracurricular activities.   I sense that our extremely extroverted children could use more daily interaction with students of all ages.

I also feel like the isolation I am experiencing personally as a home educator is making it harder to bear spiritual fruit.  When I look back on my life and consider all the times that the door has opened for me to share the gospel or offer encouragement, it has almost always taken place at the gym or during a run with friends.  As a homeschooling mom living at our current residence, I do not have the time to join a gym, and there aren't any nearby by with childcare.  Instead of looking back, I guess I should be looking ahead to where God is working now and meet Him there. 

While all these thoughts were running through my mind, I learned about a new school opening near our home.  Read all about it here.   This private Christian school uses the classical model and incorporates many of my top curriculum choices.  Each classroom looks more like a homeschooling environment while offering the social interaction, elective courses, and exciting seasonal activities typically offered by private and public schools.  This school has plenty of openings and the tuition is among the lowest I have seen.   The school operates Monday through Thursday each week leaving Friday open for enrichment classes, supplementation at home, or participation in the wonderful co-op where I have committed to serve this upcoming school year.  However, the school is just beginning so the first year of operation is likely to be rocky.  I had thought about waiting another year before enrolling our kids for a trial period in this school, but that would mean another year of uncertainty regarding selling the house.


Is this new school one of the reasons God has kept our house from selling, or is the school something good but not God's best for our particular family?  Should I at least try it out for a semester and then decide what to do about the house?  If I go that route, then I will have a boatload of nice new text books to sell and detailed school schedule and lesson plans that I will no longer need.  If we move, then this school will not be an option since it would be so far away.

Interestingly, my devotion this morning for July 14 included these words:

Keep walking with Me along the path I have chosen for you.....
....The journey is arduous at time, and you are weak.  Someday you will dance lightfooted on the high peaks; but for now, your walk is often plodding and heavy.  All I require of you is to take the next stop, clinging to My hand for strength and direction.  Though the path is difficult and the scenery dull at the moment, there are sparkling surprises just around the bend.  Stay on the path I have selected for you. 

I usually counsel people to choose the road that requires the most faith and gives more glory to God.  Every road before me seems to require some measure of faith, but the homeschooling road is by all means the most difficult (for me anyway -  but I'm sure many homeschooling moms would say it is by far the easiest), so I think I need to stay on that path for now. 

Psalm 37:23-24 (NIV)

 ²³ The LORD makes firm the steps
   of the one who delights in him;
²⁴ though he may stumble, he will not fall,
   for the LORD upholds him with his hand.

The Lord delights when we are passionate about following Him and His path for us no matter how arduous. His path, while difficult at times, is also meant to bring us great joy. Nothing brings more peace and joy than being in the center of His will.  Sometimes, however, the path isn't made clear.  Instead, we must merely take the next step in faith without knowing where the path will lead.

Heavenly Father, You possess all wisdom. You know our kids perfectly and love them infinitely.  Please help me say "no" to what is good so that I can say "yes" to whatever is your best for our family. 

Just another day in the life of a mom

This post could be alternately entitled, "Sometimes a mom needs to vent a little."
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I awoke with excruciating pains running down my neck, shoulders, and back.

Our son, who experienced his first ever fever yesterday (102.5 degrees F), felt something in his throat this morning. Instead of coughing it up into the toilet, he decided to spit puddles of phlegm all over his room.  I did not discover these puddles until I stepped into them with my bare feet while pulling the germ covered sheets off his bed for a sanitizing wash.

Due to his sickness, I had to cancel some long anticipated play dates with friends I rarely get to see.

Our dishwasher flooded the kitchen this morning.

Our half bath toilet also stopped working properly.

Since my husband had a music ministry commitment this evening, I had to go get our daughter from horse camp instead of having him pick her up on his way home.  Due to rush hour, torrential rains, an electrical storm, and stop lights that were not working properly, that trip took over two hours.

The rain created quite the off-road adventure as I took my vehicle with its brand new tires and new alignment over the muddy, hilly, bumpy, winding, unpaved (no gravel either) rural 1-mile trail to the farm hosting the camp.

Our daughter has been experiencing her dream come true at this outdoor camp all day every day this week with a large variety of stinky animals.  The heat index has reached 107 degrees this week.  Only two Porta-John toilets are provided (no running water) to service the 40+ campers.  Yes, she has loved every minute of camp.  She arrived home tonight completely exhausted.  She was so tired that I almost had to wrestle her into the shower.

After she had finally showered and I had begun washing the three outfits, cowgirl boots, swimsuits, shoes and towels that she had dirtied today, she sat down for supper and immediately spilled a full glass of milk.  She cried over that spilled milk, too.  Meanwhile something nasty leaked all over the refrigerator so I had to pull everything out and clean every nook, cranny, and refrigerated item.

While cleaning the fridge and wiping up the milk, I administered medicine and begged my sick boy to eat something - anything - since he had refused to eat all day.

Then, right in the midst of all that chaos, a detective rang the doorbell.

Thankfully, this kind detective had come here to buy golf balls (my side business).  After completing his transaction, he entertained my kids by showing them his shiny badge and his car's flashing lights. 

Every kid loves a shiny badge

Now I need to go put sheets on the beds, finish scrubbing farm mud off the floors, and tuck in my precious kiddos.

Just another day in the life of a mom.......made sweeter because a kind detective took the time to put smiles back on the faces of sick and weary children.....and their mother.

Addendum:
After the kids were asleep, I returned to the kitchen to wash dishes.  When I went to put the bagels away after packing breakfast, snacks, and lunch for our daughter's next day at camp, I found a fly inside the bagel bag chowing down.  I mushed the fly, so my lovely day concluded with bug guts all over my newly opened bag of Bruegger's bagels.

Top Kid Quotes for the Week (7/10/11)

7/6/2011 

While cooking with the kids, I told them, "Now we need to add chili powder, onion powder, and garlic powder." My 4-year old replied, "I'll tell you what I need. I need some GUNPOWDER!" 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 While I was checking out at Harris Teeter with the kids, the 4-year old pointed to the Education Lottery ticket dispenser and asked, "Mom, why do so many stores have those gambling machines everywhere?" 

I don't think he really wants to hear my answer to that question.

7/8/2011

On Friday, our right-brained child walked up to me and announced, "Mom, you look like a cow!"  

I am hoping she was referring to the black and white top I was wearing (pictured below and used as the background in the collage) for Cow Appreciation Day.  

7/9/2011 

Me:  Would you rather go with me to a fun carnival with inflatables, pony rides, snow cones, and games or stay home with Dad?

Kids:  STAY HOME WITH DAD!

Our children are wise beyond their years if they already know that the company one keeps is far more important than the venue itself.  After spending all day every day with me, they are ready for Daddy time on the weekends.  Thankfully, their dad, needing some quiet time alone, convinced them that they would have more fun with me, and they certainly did!  I need to dedicate another full blog post to that event. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That night I served the family my favorite type of pizza with spicy chicken and feta toppings.  The kids had never tasted this type of pizza before and were chugging water to get the spicy bites down.  Out of the blue, our 4-year old announced, "This pizza tastes like strawberry ice-cream to me."  

Apparently, his tastes buds are more askew than those of a pregnant lady.

UPDATED updates & a few thoughts about Google search

I finally found a few moments to create a custom header and tweak the layout for this blog. Special thanks to Blink of an Eye Photography for taking the photographs shown in the header.

I also added a new feature beneath each post in which readers can rate the blog post as "amusing", "inspiring" or "dull".  Ratings are anonymous, so please feel free to check the box you think is most appropriate.  Please help me be more mindful of what types of content readers (who don't leave comments) would like to see more of on this blog . Thanks!

You will also note underneath each post three suggested blog posts that "you may also like".  These suggestions are provided by some secret algorithm that I assume looks for posts with similar keywords.  I'm not sure how helpful it will be, but I thought it might be fun to test for awhile. 

 
I've been struggling to find the courage to write a series of articles regarding a controversial subject, pool modesty.  We do not belong to a community pool, so it wasn't until we took our recent cruise that I realized just how skimpy swimwear has become.  I remember the struggles I had as a young woman during the swim season.  I felt so self-conscious when I tried to wear the 2-piece swim suits that were so popular that I often kept myself covered in a towel or T-shirt.  And those swimsuits would be considered modest compared to current fashion trends. I wish I had known then what I know now regarding modesty issues, especially with regard to how it affects men.

I have recently discovered the wealth of information provided by Google Analytics pertaining to my Christian Living column.  Perhaps the most amusing tool provided by Google Analytics is a list of keywords typed into Google that send people to my articles.   For example, three page visits came from a Google search for "Is Barry Manilow gay?".  Two page visits came from people looking for information about Jimmy Buffet while two more visits came from people searching for "Oscar fashions best and worst".  Searches for "North Carolina's top rank junior golfers",  "Andy Rooney on prayer", "parking in Boston during Saturdays","Sergeant Bilko" and  "Casey Anthony and dad affair woman suicide attempt" also brought people to my articles.  Having access to such random information, while amusing, could be dangerous for someone as analytical as myself.  What could I have possibly said in my articles that could relate to any of these keywords?

Whatever keywords are used to lead people to my articles, my earnest prayer is that God will send the people to my articles who could most benefit from them.  My heart's desire for these articles (and the reason I invest so much time into writing them) is that someone will be touched by God's amazing grace and move one step closer to Him.

Isaiah 55:11
so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.

Decision time SOS

I have a Groupon for a 16x20 canvas portrait that I need to use very soon.  However, I am terrible at making aesthetic decisions.  I have narrowed down the choices and am now asking for input.  Thanks for your help!

Option 1

Standard family portrait but kids don't look very happy

 Option 2

Artsy & candid but will I regret not being able to see the kids faces?

 Option 3

My daughter's choice: Should I lighten it for canvas print?

Option 4

Artsy & candid & captures kids' personalities

 Option 5

Artsy and fun, but our daughter's head is cut off and may not work for canvas