I have to give Bear Blanket a lot of credit. As a transitional object, he has definitely stepped up to the plate and done a great job. Plus, I think he's pretty cute!

experiments...
and papier-mache.


We showed our love for our country!

I've got my work cut out for me this year. Miss S, my children's violin teacher, has high aspirations for my children this year. Besides the standard recitals, they will be entering into different competitions again.


First, there is Baby Girl's new music to perform in the spring competition. She will be performing Song of the Wind, from Suzuki Violin Book 1, which is a piece she is already very familiar with, but will polish up to the hilt in time for the audition in February. The other piece she will play that day will be a Hungarian Folk Tune, Allegro, by Bella Bartok. Again, she is not finding the piece difficult to memorize, but the challenge is to play it cleanly, nicely, and at the proper tempo.



Next, there is Little Son's music for two different competitions, one for solo and one for concerto, and two different pieces for the all boys' piano trio this year. For the solo competition in the spring, he will be playing Theme and Variations transcribed for the violin, by Guido Papini, and some piece by Beethoven that I don't know the name of because Miss S. provided the music out of a Russian music book - LOL! Anyway, these satisfy the Elementary Level 3 requirements of the competition.


Also, for two different Concerto competitions, he is learning Violin Concerto No. 2, op. 13, first movement, by Friedrich Seitz. Little Son is enthusiastically embracing all these new pieces, as new music definitely rejuvenates his interest (his interest never really wanes all that much anyway.)


Little Son is also playing with a boys' piano trio. He, at age 8, plays violin, a 9 year old boy plays cello, and a 10 year old boy plays piano. They are so cute playing together. Last spring when they performed for a judge, the judge asked them one question at the end: Are you all brothers? Well, they all got a big kick out of that, especially as they are of three different nationalities. But I think they are all adorable (don't tell them I said so!) Anyhow, they are performing their pieces at Elementary Level 2, and they will be: Sonatina in G, moderato, by L. van Beethoven; and Kindertrio in G, op. 35, no. 2, Allegro movement, by Julius Klengel.



So, when I reminded our dear violin teacher that we will miss the next two Monday lessons, due to vacation, she asked where we were going and I told her we would be camping up in Georgia..... which resulted in a faint smile, and the question "You are bringing your violins with you?"

"Why of course, Miss S!...." was my immediate reply.



"...Because, of course, you know, three weeks without lessons and they will forget everything", she politely reminded me in her lovely Russian accent.



So, our kids will be entertaining the other campers for 11 days. Should be interesting! Can I fit two violins, a music stand, and all that music in the van?



Do I have a choice?

Well, as I said I would, I checked out a book from my library: What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause and I have almost read it cover to cover; just a chapter or two left to go. The interesting thing is that my unpleasant symptoms have been gone since the Sunday before I got the book. Hmm. Does this mean that reading this book, or even just thinking about the book, will resolve your symptoms? If it does, I apparently should journal my observations. It is probably useful data.

So, I learned the following from this book. I am not in perimenopause yet, for that is the couple of years prior to menopause, which I don't really expect to hit for another nine years. Rather, I am merely in the premenopause stage, which can last anywhere from 5 to 20 years prior to the Big Event.

Secondly, there is hardly a symptom discussed in the book that cannot be corrected by the proper use of natural progesterone cream. And believe me, there were a lot of symptoms mentioned. Again, I say, "Hmm". This cream, which incidently is sitting on a shelf in the vitamin section of my local Malwart, is truly a miraculous substance, then. However, progesterone cream can be sorely misused, especially if you overdose on the stuff. Which is tempting, if you feel that more of a good thing is better, or if you don't carefully measure out that 1/8th of a teaspoon. If so, this miracle substance is truly a dangerous substance in the wrong hands. Yet there is no warning label on the box. In fact, there is precious little substantial objective information on the box. This, too, goes in the "Hmm" category. After all, it is supposed to be a real hormone I'm applying. That sounds pretty dangerous to have sitting on the vitamin shelf. But, then, so are vitamins.

Next (and this is the overwhelming part), I distinctly remember reading the chapter on diet and nutrition. All I can say is, "Gee Whiz, take me to another planet already!". All dairy foods and meats we eat should be hormone- and antibiotic- free, the animals you eat should be free to roam, and they should enjoy, during their short lives, a healthy wholesome diet of non- contaminated foods that are pesticide, herbicide, and fungicide free. If I do this, I can expect to be safe from toxins. All processed foods are the enemy. Refined carbs and processed sugar are bad news. This includes my beloved pasta. All foods should be just as they are picked off the tree, or harvested from the fields, and of course, should be organic, again having never ever ever been exposed to herbicides, pesticides, or fungicides. Poly-unsaturated fats are bad for you. Hydrogenated oils are bad for you. This stuff is in just about everything on the shelves, you know what I mean? Some monounsaturated fats, like olive oil, are supposed to be okay, but canola oil is a no-no. I learned that I am better off using a little bit of butter than I am in using any margarine or spread. I won't even write here what was said about cow's milk. It is too disgusting to think about again, much less share it on my blog. Fiber is good, but we know this already. Oh, and some of the symptoms we experience, and think are related to our hormonal fluctuations, might really be due to food allergies. Food allergies are very difficult to pinpoint, because the allergic response can be more subtle, delayed in time, and diffuse. So to uncover these food allergies, you have to journal in detail all your food intake, symptoms, and control your diet by eating only a few non-allergenic foods for two weeks, and then gradually adding back others, spacing the introduction of new foods by a day or two, in order to figure all this out.

All this I learned, a week before our scheduled 11 day camping trip, a time when we eat junk foods like no other time!

Can you see why I am finding this overwhelming yet?

The good news is, that for all those toxins that you cannot fully eliminate from your life, there are plenty of high potency multivitamins that can help bridge the gap. Thank goodness for this. And there is a whole world of herbs to explore. What fun.

So, I went to my local supermarket, the one in town that has the lowest prices by far. I looked for the special peanut butters, the organic produce, the organic dairy products, bread products, cereals and meats. Well, I was unable to find substitutes for any of the meats except chicken. Yes, there was the milk, and that will now cost me $6 a gallon. (and I will buy it now, because I don't want my children exposed to any more environmental estrogen than they have to. Baby Girl loves milk.) There are a few vegetables on the shelves that are organic, but not all that many. Mainly broccoli and carrots, big whoop. The eggs were there, and they weren't all that expensive compared to the regular eggs. The organic yogurt was there, but only in a highly sweetened form, which, I suppose, cancels out all the benefits of organic, for a dollar more than what I was buying. I guess I would find more such items at the other supermarket in town, but then each item would be even another dollar more expensive.

The economy has been shaky, and we've been trying to economize. Not the best time to start buying organic.

Knowing me, my symptoms will have to be pretty bad for me to muster up courage to use progesterone cream. As I get older, I get naturally skeptical --- of just about everything. I am skeptical of modern medicine, I am skeptical of naturopathic medicine, I am skeptical of anyone and everything that tells me that my status quo is not good enough and that I need to go out and spend more money on something to restore peace and harmony in my valley. Maybe it is my age, maybe it is the wisdom imparted to me by my parents, but this is the way I feel.

But, I can't continue a life of frozen pizzas, St*uffers dinners, Lean Cuisines, and the occasional chicken, pot roast and cut up vegetables. (oh, and by the way, the vegetables can't be canned. They are supposed to be fresh, and barely cooked, and I've been doing this wrong, too. I have been using frozen, and boiling my vegetables, probably too much to be any good. The writers of the book haven't really offered any opinion about frozen.)

And I am a homeschooling mom. I am not a nutritionist. I barely even get meals planned for the week, much less healthy wholesome ones!

Hold on, folks. There is an end coming to all of this.

So, my solution for now shall be Leanne Ely, the Dinner Diva. This lady has come to my rescue before, and now I need her again. Several years ago, I subscribed to her menu plans, and we did eat wholesome meals, dinners anyway, and they were different every day and we liked them. I printed out and saved the recipes I downloaded from her, and I uncovered them from a stack of papers this weekend. They were meals that used real foods (and some canned foods in the frugal menus) and they were tasty, they expanded our food horizons, and my DH liked most of them. The few I knew he wouldn't like I didn't bother to make. But you see, what she offers me is relief from the stress of having to dream up a meal plan for the week. Many of you bloggy moms are such experts at this, but for me, it is almost an insurmountable mental challenge here in the head of the senior teacher at M*ghty O*k Co*ntry Sch*ol. Psst . . . don't tell anyone, okay?

And I will continue to exercise more. And I will start taking that multivitamin. With these changes, I should more or less restore some balance to my body. And as for the progesterone cream . . . I think I am going to have to journal my symptoms for several more cycles before deciding that I need to add that into the mix.

Thank you, dear reader, for reading this far.

THEME:
Since I’ve been making you work really hard on the previous Memoir themes I decided to take a little break, and do something fun! This week I want to invite you to share a few of your favourite things.

My favorite things, my favorite things... That would have to be...

• mountains. All kinds of mountains, but most especially the ones I've seen in western Canada.
• crisp, cool Fall days like I remember them up North. A deep blue sky as a background, contrasting with shimmering bright sunlit golden or red leaves in the foreground. What a feast that was for my eyes, and we don't have that where I live.
• exploring, by foot or car, roads that meander through the woods in places I've never been before. I have a perpetual wander lust.
• pastoral scenes set before me. Rolling hills, barns, cows, wildflowers, dry breezes.
• snuggling with my children whenever I get a chance.
• hugging my DH when he gets home from work.
• fires in the fireplace, especially when that fireplace is surrounded by Christmas decorations.
• driving around to gaze at Christmas lights in local neighborhoods.
• the way the world seems lit up the night after a significant snowfall, the crunchy hush that has fallen over the area, and the steamy breath that escapes my mouth (uh, can you tell that I'd rather not be in Florida yet?)
• Yellowstone National Park.
• sitting on my porch rocking chair watching my children play.
• reading and discussion Scripture with my little people in the morning.
• meeting other homeschool moms, either in person, or online.
• spending time with my closest friends.
• camping in any campground that has hot running water. Setting up our cozy campsite, and then traipsing around the campground checking out everybody else's unique setup.
• early mornings spent while camping.
• reading aloud good literature to my family.
• when the grass is all cut and looks good.
• listening to an incredible violin concerto on stage, DVD, or radio.
• watching and listening to my own kids play their violins on stage. The fruit of all the hard work of the past several months.
• finding an unexpected, friendly email in my inbox.
• celebrating milestones achieved in our homeschool by going out for ice cream.
• getting that new Calvert box from a UPS truck for the next grade level.
• long road trips riding in our van and reading books to the captive audience in the back seat.
• Saturdays.

I thought I would have trouble with this, but once I got started, the images just flowed. What fun!

CBS Sunday morning featured homeschooling this weekend.

In many ways, I appreciated the coverage because at least it didn't portray all homeschoolers as crackpots. Many positive statistics about homeschoolers were cited, and if I were an average person watching this program, I would have found the idea of homeschooling attractive after watching this segment.

However... (and there is always a "however" when discussing media coverage of anything) the coverage is still misguided when it comes to the "S" word (uh, "Socialization" for those non-homeschooling readers of my blog), leaving the question as to whether homeschoolers are properly, or adequately, socialized as largely unanswered in the video clip. Also, there was an implication that public schools are the definitive suppliers of all the socialization our children need. They never ask the questions: how much socialization is too much? isn't there such as thing as poor socialization? or negative socialization? Is all the socialization provided by schools a good thing?

Another criticism I have is that some of the discussion fed into the stereotype of Christians who homeschool as "Bible thumping fanatics". Not exactly a complimentary way of describing many of us, was it?

I enjoyed the coverage about our curriculum of choice, Calvert School.

Overall, I think the segment was a positive portrayal of homeschooling. I feel not only does homeschooling facilitate a better education for our kids, but it has even greater potential for families of color in our country, especially for those whose kids would least benefit from a public school experience. I am glad that an African American family was portrayed here. I think homeschooling holds incredible promise for young people like Tau, who was profiled in this video, and I hope that more minority families will be inspired to embark on a homeschooling journey.

This week's theme is: This week I hope you’ll share something new you’re using, why you’ve decided to use it, and if you have used it how you like it. Make sure to include the publishing information and where you got it from so others can look into if they like.

Actually, we aren't using much new for homeschool this year. In early October, I will be ordering Calvert First Grade for Baby Girl, who is only 11 lessons away from finishing Kindergarten. In January, we will begin Calvert Fourth Grade with Little Son. Except for the fact that Calvert has revised First Grade this year, this is not new for us. Sure, Baby Girl will have new first grade hardback readers, and Little Son will be working with A Child's History of the World, Mighty Men, Famous Legends, Robinson Crusoe, and Island of the Blue Dolphins. Some of these books are Calvert classics. So nothing there has changed, and we are okay with that.

We did begin something new for Bible discussion and catechism. We have recently begun working through Training Hearts, Teaching Minds by Starr Meade, P&R Publishing Co., Phillipsburg, NJ, 2000. I like the layout and tone of this book, as it makes Christian truths very concrete for kids (and for me as well). It systematically moves through the Westminster Shorter Catechism, providing six short lessons per week on each question and answer. Children may memorize the answers as well. We are beginning to do this, too, as memorization does not seem to be much of a problem with the children these days. But they do have plenty to memorize with AWANA, so we might not continue to require catechism memorization. This book will take over two years to get through. So far we really like it, and it is the spine of our family devotions, when they do occur (sigh), in the evenings.
Another thing that has changed is that we added a new subject in our homeschool this year: P.E., as in Physical Education. I have already blogged about this big change to our homeschool, back in August in this post.
So, I can't add much to that except provide an update. We had the first real session of P.E. yesterday. The kids enjoyed it. They made new friends immediately. They saw some children they already knew, and we met a family with five internationally adopted children, four from China, one from Vietnam. Little Son became friends from the outset with the boys from Vietnam and China, and he was all smiles when he learned later that one of the boys was born in his birth country. So that was pretty neat.

The P.E. Class (see website here ) meets one afternoon a week, for three hours. They cover several different sports and track and field events throughout the year. Each month is four different sports, covered in four half hour segments through which your child's group rotates during the session. After two segments, there is a break, and all the kids assemble together under the pavilion for snack, Bible discussion, and quiet time with God, a few minutes where the children get to pray silently. There is much discussion during this time between the coaches and the group about issues of character, fairness, sportsmanlike behavior, obedience to God and parents, etc. Then, the kids participate in two more sessions, and then go home. This month, the sports are volleyball, flag football, frisbee golf, and kickball. Each month, the sports are different, according to the season and the climate, outdoor temperature, and the park facilities. For example, in December, the park is going to seed their fields, so the class will focus on tennis that month. Skills are taught according to the children's ages and skill level. All are positively encouraged, especially those who are less coordinated. Nobody is left to feel badly about their performance.
All I can say is, I sure wish P.E. had been like this when I was a kid.
Anyway, we are thrilled with the program so far, except it has been an adjustment getting our lessons done to allow this to take up an additional afternoon each week. The children love it. They are both on the same team.
I get such a kick out of hearing the two children in the back seat of the car after P.E. and AWANA. They compare notes, and it is really cute to listen to them tell each other the highlights of their day. After all, they spend 98% of their lives together, but that remaining 2% is very significant fuel for lively conversation!

. . . is not being very kind to me. I brought up this topic at my homeschool fellowship group last night. An interesting (and humorous) discussion ensued.

Looking back over the years, I have detected patterns regarding my health and sense of well-being, ever since I was a teenager. Patterns that had days when I felt myself and felt good, and days when I felt, well, cr*ppy, for lack of a better term. I just came out of a full week of feeling that way. But increasingly, it has been occurring to me that there is an indisputable correlation between the bad days, and where I am in my cycle. Hmmm. I am 45 right now. The correlation is definitely there. The ups and downs seem to be greater in magnitude than they used to be (or else I am just more aware of them). Maybe I have been in that pre- (or peri-) menopausal stage for awhile. It sure would answer a lot of questions.

The good days -- well, there is not much to say, there. On those days (such as today) I feel generally good, robust, fairly energetic (that's relative), and what I would consider "feeling myself". These are days when my body is not calling out for attention.

The bad days -- the best way to describe those are, ummm, days when my body feels frail and fragile. Yeah, that's it. On the bad days, I have much less energy, and even feel at times as if I have a mild virus. On those days, my pain threshold feels like it has been lowered (or is it raised?) so that I am aware of lots of generalized body aches and pains, stiffness of joints, etc. On those days, I feel especially chilled in cooler places, like restaurants and supermarkets, much more than normal. Those are days when a dull headache builds in intensity over the hours, and doesn't respond well to OTC meds. On those days, I can't remember anybody's name, and can't retrieve words to memory, and this can be rather embarrassing. On those days, I can't concentrate on my reading to save my life, even though I love to read. Occasionally on those days (though thankfully not often) I feel some mild depression. On those days, I have to have something sweet on hand to combat the trembly feeling of low blood sugar, especially in the late morning and around midday (often during church). NOTE: I do not have the hot flashes or anything like that yet.

But like I said, on the good days (I think they are the progesterone days, especially during the luteal phase of the cycle) everything is fine and okay. I am a happy camper on those days.

On the bad days, camping is the last thing I want to do. I think about how nice it would be to just sit in a recliner. Sigh..

Can anybody relate??

I am trying to educate myself on this topic now, since I suspect it ain't gonna get any better any time soon. I have reserved What Your Doctor May Not Tell You about Premenopause by John R. Lee, M.D. from the library, and hope to pick it up soon. Aren't there any books out there on Homeschooling Your Kids While Approaching Menopause? If not, there ought to be. I find that this is actually a spiritual issue. It can really work against my motivation to be the good mom and wife and "mommy-teacher" that I want to be. It is a channel through which the evil one will try to attack. This is one area where I see my dependence on the Lord becoming more critical with each passing year. Wow. I really didn't see this coming.

Does anybody have any insight to this situation?

This week please post what your planned homeschool routine is. The theme banner should give you some ideas on how to do that. I had fun making that and adding in real info (except for the times! lol).

When you’re done posting your routines please share your prayers for this school year, and then sign the linky so others can visit.

Our routine for weekdays is roughly as follows. This is a goal for the day, and doesn't hold together as I intend many days, but I'll never give up trying!

6:15 I'm up when DH is getting ready for work. I take this time to chat with DH, read, check email, today's news, and sometimes sit on the front porch listening to the roosters with my mug of java and read and/or pray.

7:40 Read and discuss Scripture with whichever child is up to the idea at this time. This is usually just Little Son. Baby Girl is not a morning person.

8:00 Everybody is up and doing morning responsibilities

8:40 Breakfast

9:00 Begin school lessons. Work with Little Son on Calvert for about 2 hours, then cut him loose to finish his independent work. The independent work can take anywhere from 2 to 4 hours depending on everybody's frame of mind.

~ 11:00 Begin lessons with Baby Girl. This has been taking one hour, but when we start Calvert First Grade, it will expand to about 2 or 2-1/2 hours.

Somewhere between 1:00 and 2:00 Break for Lunch

2:00 Correct Little Son's independent work and have him make changes as needed. Then, free time for everybody, or playing time / swimming pool time. Free time has been known not to materialize, however, until as late as 4:00 depending on how long Little Son's independent work takes.

3:00 "official" one hour quiet time for mommy. Sometimes Baby Girl still takes a nap before dinner time.

4:00 catch up on house chores, laundry, or whatever wasn't accomplished in the morning. Sometimes, just play chess or go outside with one or more children.

5:00 begin dinner

6:00 or so, eat dinner, depending on when DH gets home.

7:00 - 8:00 cleanup, odds and ends, work through violin practice with both children. I just haven't had the heart to get this accomplished with the children any earlier in the day. ** long deep sigh **

8:30 - 9:00 free time with Daddy, family read aloud time, catechism time, and sometimes (about once a week) a N*tflix video.

9:30 - 10:00 Kids in bed (yes - this late!) After this is time for DH and I.

Now there are several outside activities that come into this schedule, altering our Monday through Wednesday schedule.

Monday: Violinathon. Leave home at 1:00 for private lessons with Miss S at 1:45. Leave her home and drive to music school for Baby Girl's group class at 3:30, then Little Son's 4:00 ensemble / trio / music theory class. Return home by around 6:00. This is usually a very mentally and physically taxing afternoon pour moi.

Tuesday: "Saints" P.E. class. Leave home at 12:15. Kids enjoy P.E. class until 4, arrive back home around 4:45. This is when I have some free time to spend either at the park where my kids will be, or doing an errand. I look forward to this!!

Wednesday: Kids eat supper at 5:00 and I drive them to AWANA by 5:45. This leaves a couple of hours for DH and I to either eat fast food out, or eat at home quietly together.

Once a month our homeschool fellowship group schedules an outing together - either a field trip or a craft day hosted at our home.

My prayer for this upcoming academic year is that the Lord will preserve and grow the heart of this teacher-mom so that my focus is where God wants it to be, where it should be, at all times. I pray for passion, self-discipline, vision, and strength as my children grow into more advanced academics and an increase in workload!

Little Son has been reading Rascal, by Sterling North. A book about a boy who befriends a raccoon. He interrupted the reading of this book to sneak in a few Hardy Boys books, but I encouraged him to finish Rascal because Calvert is requiring a book report this week, and I thought it would be a good book to write about.

Well, yesterday evening, he approached me in the kitchen, placing the book on the counter, and told me he had just finished it. I looked at his face, and it contained boatloads of emotion. "The ending was sad", he added.

"What was sad about it?" I asked.

"He released him..", and then Little Son caught his voice in a half sob, so I held him close to me in a long, tight hug.

"Did he do the right thing?" I asked. "Wasn't it the right thing to release him back into the wild?"

"Yes.." and Little Son looked up at me, with tears wicking away from the side of both of his eyes. "He went with the female raccoon."

"Well, maybe they will have baby raccoons and come back to visit often,", I hopefully suggested.

Little Son replied, "I like to think they will come back every year and he can be friends with their babies, too." His face brightened.

"That's a good way to think about it," I commented.

And Little Son was satisfied. I love that he was so profoundly moved by this book. It was a sweet moment for mommy and son.

On this Labor Day, I hope my friends and readers have been having a pleasant break from their daily routine. We have enjoyed this day, as we have had a mixture of routine (violin lesson) and special (DH's birthday dinner out and DH home from work!) events.

My children surprised their violin teacher today with a handmade birthday card for her, and a plumbago plant for her to plant in her back yard. She seemed sterner than usual during the first half of the lesson, and somewhat lacking in patience. But after about 50 minutes, when the children suddenly presented her with a card and gift, her face lit up, and she wanted to know how they knew about her birthday. She gripped Little Son's arm, and earnestly thanked him, with a big smile. And the rest of the lesson time was definitely more light hearted for all. It warmed my heart to see the effect their simple gift had on Miss S.

There is much abuzz on the blogs I read regarding John McCain's choice of vice presidential candidate. Apparently the choice of Sarah Palin is rather controversial, even among social conservatives. I have decided that my blog is not going to be a place for me to express my political opinions. I have never made new friends from discussing politics. Besides, I have never been one to feel comfortable publicly discussing politics, anyway. Politics are freely discussed in our home between my DH and myself, and with a few close friends, but I have decided I am not going to share my opinion of the GOP ticket.

However, I will say this. I feel that we are at a critical crossroads in our country, and that the upcoming Presidential election is an extremely important and weighty one. I would urge everyone to be in prayer for the future of our country and our leadership. The world is a complicated place, and we need the wisdom of God in our leaders. God works His plan in history through all people, and has always worked his will through sinners, big and small. Just look at Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph's brothers, Pharoah, Moses, Saul, David, Solomon and the list goes on. God has no problem working His plan through weak, frail, and faulty human beings, and nothing is going to stop that now.

My blog shall be a place of peace, rest, introspection, thanksgiving, spiritual growth, and sharing of my life as a stay- at- home- adoptive- homeschooling- violin- mom of two. So, on that note...

I am happy to say that September is here, and whereas Labor Day signals the unofficial end of summer for most of you, it merely signals six more weeks of brutal summer heat and humidity for us where we live. In truth, this is my least favorite month, because for me, September holds the built-in tantalization of the season to come - Fall, but provides no evidence of its nearby arrival. September, rather, is the month where I find myself frequently analyzing 5-day hurricane cone maps. It is the month where the spiders and webs around our house seem bigger than ever; the weeds higher than ever, in more cracks than ever. It is the month where "Love[bugs]is in the air", literally, and they have been known to simply plaster the front of the house, even getting inside all the entrances. If you are fortunate enough not to know what lovebugs are, check out this Wiki article .

So I need to be patient at this point. I have endured three full months of heat and humidity, and I just have to hang on for six more weeks. October 15th is the magic day: the day when the break in the heat seems to occur. As I write, there are three named storms, and three tropical waves near the Cape Verde islands, one of which is very likely to develop into something more. I am sorry for the victims of Gustav, and I truly grieve at the burden that these storms place on our country -- the government, the economy, and the insurance system. Would that these storms could simply go away out to sea! But I have to admit that I am relieved when our state is spared. Even now, there are residents of my village whose homes are still partly under water due to Tropical Storm Fay and the heavy rains we have had even since Fay. We really need a break already. This has been the wettest summer since I've been a resident of this state, and the mosquitoes are thriving here to prove it!

But there are many good things to be thankful for this September. We are planning our annual family vacation, camping in Georgia, and that will begin in late September. We celebrate my DH's birthday on Wednesday! Some new activities are kicking up, among them a homeschool P.E. program that the children are set to begin tomorrow, and we are all excited about that. Sunday School is starting again next weekend, and that is a good thing. I am merely a teacher's assistant for a class of 4 and 5 year olds, but it is always refreshing to begin Christian education with little ones after being away from it for the summer. Wednesday begins AWANA again, an organization that is loved by all in our family. And tomorrow is a very special treat for us. We are going to see a performance of Romeo and Juliet set to Prokofiev's music with a symphony orchestra and ballet company from Ukraine, as well as some local talent. It is a free event for homeschoolers, and we are excited to take a day off from lessons to experience this.

So I am thankful for the good blessing bestowed on my family this September!