Medieval Study

 Wow - it's been over 3 years since I did a "school" post!  What?!?!  Where has time gone???  I keep having links pop up on my Facebook memories and I love looking back and remembering these times, so I'm going to try and post occasionally this year - if for nothing else for me to look back!

So to catch everyone up (just in case anyone else does actually read these) Miss Priss is now in first grade; Ladybug is now 4 and I've added one that we're going to call Taz (you know-like Tasmanian devil) since he is all boy and goes through destroying whatever may be in his path!  My oldest two and I participate in a Classical Conversations Community, which I can't say enough good things about!  We just wrapped up a Medieval Study so here's a little recap on some things we did! 

My kids LOVED this study - kings, queens, castles, knights, sword fights- what more could kids want?  As always, we did ALOT of reading!  I read aloud at least 30 minutes a day and have to admit it's my favorite 30 minutes of the day!  We kicked off our study with Time Traveler, which is a book where you pretend to go back in time and visit with 4 different time periods.   We, of course, went to the Medieval period and followed a baron through his castle, a hunting trip, the town, a feast, his children becoming a squire and knight, returning from the Crusades and more!  We also read several books on King Arthur and the Knights of the Round table.  Here are most of the books we read:

We also learned songs and history facts about Charlemagne, William the Conqueror, the Crusades, Eleanor of Aquitaine, Richard Lionheart, Europe, etc.  (Thank you CC!)  There were numerous castle buildings- most complete with keeps, moats and drawbridges. 

We also read and discussed a lot about knights: the way they dressed, their high moral code, and how they became a knight.  We even made our own family Coat of Arms which we used in our family presentation at Classical Conversations.  

Ladybug and Taz also did several activities using the Medieval Pack by 3 Dinosaurs. Miss Priss and I read the Magic Treehouse Non-fiction book Knights and Castles and did some writing activities.

Finally, we took everything we'd learned about medieval customs, food, dress, entertainment, etc. and wrapped it all up with a medieval feast! The kids painted and decorated chalices (although after painting them, I'm not sure how safe they were to drink from-oops!).  However, the girls loved blinging them all up and adding their names! 

Of course we needed to dress the part.  I had a dress I'd used for an old-fashion day at church and the girls had princess dresses.  However, we didn't just happen to have any knight costumes laying around.  So we took some plain t-shirts and added a cross and placed it over a gray shirt and pants.  Voila - Knight Crusaders! 

The girls help me set the table.  We included candlesticks and wooden dishes.  We ate as peasants on bread (called trenches) instead of actual plates.  We did not use any silverware until our pudding and then only spoons.  Our meal consisted of beef tips, potatoes, bread, cheese, fruit, and pudding.  During that time, scraps were just thrown onto the floor and people spit in the floor, allowing the dogs to come and feast too.  My children reminded me of this as we sat down-however, I drew the line with that! 

Miss Priss enjoying some sparkling cranberry juice from her chalice.

Since Medieval feasts were usually followed by entertainment, we then listened to Greensleeves and watched this Youtube video on a Medieval dance.  Of course, we had to try it ourselves!  This was the girls' favorite part of the night!

After our music and dancing, there was one last sword fight, then we ended the night by watching Robin Hood.  

Yes, we are officially that weird homeschooling family, but I'm loving every minute of it!  Now on to the Renaissance and Shakespeare!

One Thing is Needful: Week Eight - Reflections

I can't believe we are already on our last week of this study!  It has been such a joy to walk through this with each of you. 

As I began to reflect back on the study and prepare for this upcoming week, my thoughts went to something I once heard Francis Chan (author of Crazy Love) say.  He says imagine you told your child to go clean their room.  Your child walks away and then returns saying:

I memorized what you said.  I can say it in Greek!  In fact, some of my friends are going to come over tonight and do a little study on what it would look like for me to clean my room.

Yet- they never actually clean the room!  Is that going to work with you?  Are you going to be pleased with that?  No way!  The scenario sounds absurd, yet aren't we often guilty of doing exactly that in our Bible studies? 

Is there a disconnect between our quiet time and our application of God's word in real life?  We can read God's word, study it, memorize, it, look up the Greek meanings and even apply it to hypothetical situations; however, all of this is in vain if we do not DO IT!

But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.  For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:  For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.  But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he begin not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.  (James 1:22-25)

We've looked into God's word and seen who we need to be. We know that He is the key to balancing all the other areas and relationships in our life.  He's not just another area off to the side or the first thing on our to do list to check off.  He's our everything - our ONE thing needful!  Now let's not forget it, or just go our own way, but let's practice it.  (Hopefully, you already are!) 

Let me tell you, just because you are at His feet doesn't mean everything around you is going to change and become easier.  God doesn't promise that everything will be peachy-keen when we surrender to Him.  In fact, contrary to popular belief, He doesn't even promise to not give us more than we can bear.  However, what He does promise is to always be there.  The change isn't going to be on our outside circumstances but on the inside.  It's going to come with our choice we make within the circumstance.

It's all up to us - will we choose the good part?  Will we be Mary sitting at His feet or Martha allowing other distractions to separate us from Christ?  

As we go through this week and reflect on each area of our life, there are three questions we will ask: 

1. What scripture stood out the most from that week? 
2. What does sitting at His feet actually look like in that area of our life? 
3. What do we want to remember most from this week?

Based on these answers, we can form a strategy to carry out His word and be more like Mary.  I'd love to hear your responses as we go throughout this week!  What has God shown you through this study?  What does sitting at His feet actually look like in your day to day life?
 

One Thing Is Needful: Week Seven - Health

I'm excited to have another guest blogger this week!  Tara is a part of our GMG group and she has a gift for motivating others to lead a healthier lifestyle.  Tara is a Beachbody Coach and when she's not working out with her husband or prepping meals, she's chasing around and loving on two precious little girls!  At her house working out and eating healthy is a family affair.  Today she shares with us her journey of becoming the woman God desires her to be on the inside AND outside!

 

As women, we seem to always place other’s physical and sometimes spiritual wellbeing, happiness, wholeness, and health above our own. This decision is one that we feel like we are making out of love towards our family and friends yet can direct our path down a tiresome road that will lead to self neglect, low self esteem, a spiritual drought, poor health, and even depression.

 
It is time we break that cycle! God made you! God wants you to take care of yourself so you can accomplish what no one else can for His kingdom! You are hosting the King of ALL Kings inside your heart! We would spend countless days, weeks, months, even years to prepare our home for a visit from an earthly King. We have a far bigger task than that! Our bodies are the temple of the Lord! He deserves to dwell in a temple made up of physical and spiritual wellbeing, happiness, wholeness, and health!

Just over two years ago, my husband and I began our healthy health and fitness journey. I phrase the description of our journey like I did because I had been on my own journey alone for years...and it was not a healthy one! I had always made health and fitness decisions that were based simply on seeing a certain number on that little black devil in my closet that many other much more lovingly refer to as a scale. My confidence was gained and lost when I felt like the number (which no one except me knew) reflected me being “in shape.”  I grew up with three sisters, all of them taller than me, yet all of them weighed less than I did. I thought my weight should be less than theirs since my height was. I thought I was overweight because the BMI I calculated didn’t take into account my muscle mass. This is where my deepest, darkest secret stemmed from. I became a binge eater. I took caffeine pills. I took laxatives. I dehydrated myself. I did all this because my head was telling me that I was overweight if I weighed more than 125 since I am only 5’2”.

Oh! The times I was sick because of these unhealthy decisions I had made in order to reach that little number I had set in my mind so that I could feel confident! (twice reaching the point of having to have fluids at the hospital) The countless times my personal relationship with my husband was affected because I didn’t feel confident in my own skin! The times I lied to friends and family about why I was not eating when the truth was I had binged on thousands of calories and had chosen to not eat the next day to make up for the binge. The hours I would spend on the treadmill to burn off a certain amount of calories I had consumed. The caffeine pills that caused me to be addicted to caffeine and the laxatives that caused me for a while to become dependent on them because I had abused them as well as my body. The selfish decisions I made in order to become what I had set in my mind to be healthy!

 I hope you are able to see now why I described our journey that started two years ago the way I did with the double use of the word ‘health.’ Daniel and I began our journey working out together at home. Through a company I am now a coach with, I was taught how to eat properly to fuel my body with clean foods and work out with a purpose! I no longer spent exhausting hours running to burn calories. I learned that my body needed more substance to my workout, not necessarily more time.

That leads me to the thought of feeding our souls “clean” food and developing healthy spiritual habits that will make our spiritual life stronger. Everything that we allow our mind to be opened to, our brain to ponder on, and our heart to be changed by is what we are feeding our inner being. Each and everything that we do, as insignificant as it may seem, is moving us towards becoming spiritually stronger, weaker, or complacent.

 

“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” Philippians 4:8

 

Clean eating in the physical sense is ‘eschewing processed, packaged convenience foods laden with artificial additives in favor of real, whole foods that are as close to the source of production as possible, so you can live a better, longer life.’ This is honestly much harder to do in the physical sense than it is in the spiritual sense if you ask me and here is why: Though I try to avoid eating processed foods and am teaching my children to eat healthy as well, I do keep some processed food around my house for my girls. (They love their cheese balls and pop tarts...and unfortunately so do I!) These foods are available and convenient. Clean foods take time and effort to prepare. I must take time to prepare for the week ahead by cutting, chopping, baking, grilling, sautéing and portioning or else I will quickly find myself grabbing those convenient foods that aren’t clean.

 

Our spiritual life should honestly be a little more easily managed. We should be diligent in keeping our entire family fed by clean spiritual foods. Unlike unclean physical food, any amount of unclean spiritual food can be eternally life threatening. As a momma I can’t help but think about that for a time we can protect our children and keep them under our wing with little to no outside influences. I monitor everything about my children from what they watch and read, who they play with, what they hear, and what they wear. I feed their soul clean spiritual food with no tolerance for anything unclean. By protecting and keeping their hearts clean, it keeps me doing the same with mine!

 

Drifting my focus to the strengthening aspect of our health, exercise. It has become so much a part of Daniel and my lives that it has become something we need, desire, and feel unfocused without. This sure did not happen overnight! There were weeks of dread, sleep deprivation and half-heartedness when we began waking up extra early to get our day started with exercise.

 

But....then the results started to show! Our efforts were paying off! We both felt better from the inside out. We started to enjoy being sore! We felt invigorated after the strenuous workout.

 

 

 

Daniel and I developed a confidence as well as a stronger connection because of this shared discipline we were now incorporating in our lives. Thirty to forty-five minutes of purposeful hard work first thing in the morning made us stronger and more focused on keeping our body fueled with clean foods throughout the day. We began our day by working hard and did not want to mess up what we had done by eating something that was not good fuel for our body!

 

When we are focused on WHY we started the journey and celebrate each step it becomes a joyful one!

Oh the comparisons between exercise and spiritual strength! We need to spend time sitting at our Lord’s feet! We need to spend time studying His word to gain knowledge and understanding. We need to spend time in prayer to draw closer to Him. We need to open our hearts to hear our Lord’s voice and seek His guidance for our lives. Yes, those things take effort. It takes effort to be a God-fearing woman. It takes discipline. It takes hard work and perseverance. It takes purposefully directing each step we take in order to arrive at the end result that we want to achieve! We will grow weary along the way but it is so important to remember WHY we are on this journey and WHO is walking with us!

 

My journey on each of these paths will be lifelong. I hope I never become complacent in where I am and always remember my WHY!  My family is my WHY!  I want to be a confident and healthy wife to my godsent husband.  I want to be a godly example of a healthy and spiritual woman to my girls.  I can do neither of these things without my Lord!

 

 

I will leave you with this that I can apply to my spiritual as well as my physical life.

 

• Your children are NEVER an excuse but a REASON!
• Don’t compare yourself to others.
• Surround yourself with others with the same goals as you.
• Prioritize by placing things with lifelong and eternal value first.
• Always remember it will make you a better person...YOU ARE WORTH IT!  

One Thing is Needful: Week Six - Home

This weekend I was able to have my GMG group over to paint some "One Thing is Needful" signs to put in our homes as a reminder.  There was no better way to wrap up friend week and begin this week on our home!  I am truly so blessed to have these ladies in my life.  They even completely surprised me by bringing gifts! 

I can't believe we are on the last few weeks of this Bible study!  This week we are looking at how sitting at his feet will impact our home...

My first thoughts of my own house were when I was around 12 or 14.  I went with my Dad to look at some land he and my Granddad were considering purchasing.  I got out of the truck and I remember thinking "This would be the prettiest spot for a house!"  I decided right then that I wanted a yellow house with a porch all the way across it built there.  (I'm telling you, I've always been a planner!) 

Fast forward 15 years later and we were about a month away from having our first child and we started building our yellow house right in that same spot!  I'm not sure what we were thinking building a house at the same time we were welcoming a child into the world but somehow we managed!  (Side note:  I actually think it was a blessing in disguise because I was busy preparing for the baby and my husband was building the house so it kept us from arguing about all the little details!)  When our daughter was about 6 months old we moved into the house.  I remember being so relieved that it was built and done!  All those years of dreaming were becoming a reality!  What I didn't realize at the time was that the hard part was only beginning.  The house was built, now it was time to build our home. 

In this verse, I see two things needed to build a good home:  wisdom and then action.  First of all, to build a good house you need to be a wise woman.  Where do we get wisdom? 

"For the Lord giveth wisdom:  out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding."  Proverbs 2:5-6   

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom:  and the knowledge of the holy is understanding."  Probers 9:10 

"If any lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him."  James 1:5

From sitting at His feet, of course!  Just like in all other areas of our lives, our relationship with God is key to building a good home.  It begins with a fearful respect of Him.   All the characteristics of wisdom will follow after the fear of God.  All we have to do is ask, then listen and discern through prayer and His Word. 

Then comes the time and work we must put into building our home.  My mind goes to the story of the 3 Little Pigs.  I know we all know the story - The first little pig was in a hurry and built a house of straw quickly and then spent the rest of his time playing and relaxing.  The second little pig also hurried and used only sticks.  Then he used the rest of his time to play and relax.  However, the third little pig used the best building material, bricks, and took some extra time and did it right.  When the big, bad wolf came and huffed and puffed - the first two houses fell.  However, the one that was carefully constructed using the best materials, time and effort- stood firm!  The first two little pigs were quite foolish, the third little pig had wisdom. 

Once we've sought God's wisdom we have the best material.  Now it's the time and work from our very own hands that will determine whether we have a strong home that will withstand outside pressures. 

 
We live in a world where there's not much time even spent at home, much less quality time.  If we're going to build a home that will withstand the true challenges and Satan himself, then first of all we have to BE at home.  Then secondly, it's going to take some intentional planning and effort on our part while we are there.  It's in the everyday routines, traditions, and celebrations that a home is built. 

I could be like the first two little pigs and allow the television or tech devices to constantly entertain my children, or I could be like the third little pig and spend some time teaching them God's word, reading, or playing games with them.   I could be like the first two little pigs and pick up supper through the drive thru eating it in the car.  Or I could be like that third little pig and put some effort into preparing supper for my family and sitting around the kitchen table.  I could be like the first two little pigs and casually let a special occasion pass by or I could be like that third little pig and create some family traditions that my children will remember and possibly even carry on to the next generations. 

We may be able to get away with shortcuts for awhile, but it will eventually cost us.  Satan will eventually come by and our house of straw and sticks won't be any match for him.  Before we know it we won't even know our spouses anymore.  Our children will be disconnected from us, preferring to be anywhere but home.  Then it will hit us we trained and conditioned them to do just that. 

That's a scary picture but exactly what we see in most houses today.  Instead of a wise women building homes we see more  foolish women tearing them down.  I desire more for my family.  I want our home to be a place where we experience time together.  Where they feel loved and cared for at all times.  I want my family to find everything they need within our home to prepare them for whatever they may face when they go out.   Then I want it to be a place they look forward to returning. 

As we sit at His feet this week, seek wisdom and guidance.  Then as we go throughout the day choose the good part and put that wisdom to use with our own hands!  Whether it's using a calmer voice, playing music, lighting a candle, diffusing oils, or opening up your home to other guests; let's use this week to be more intentional in building our homes, not tearing them down.  Let's be that third little pig and make building strong homes a priority!

One Thing is Needful: Week Five - Friends and Community

I had just gotten married and moved away from home for the first time.  I'd moved from Alabama to Louisiana and the only person I knew there was my husband.  We’d been living in Louisiana about 3 months when we visited a church and we were invited back to a deacon’s house for lunch.    We had a wonderful lunch with some precious people.  The next week I received a thank you note from the deacon’s wife thanking US for having lunch with THEM!  Inside the note she had this quote:

I loved it and still have the card today.  That simple gesture of inviting us over for lunch that day, completely changed my life for the next five years (and even beyond).  The families we had lunch with that day became some very close friends.  As a matter of fact, over the next five years they became our family!  I couldn’t imagine the time I spent in Louisiana without them.    

Fast forward about twelve years and six kids later and here we are at the beach this past summer with some of them!  I've often thought what if she hadn't taken the time and effort to open up her home and her family to us - strangers at that time.  How different our lives might have been!

 

I believe God puts friends in our lives at certain times to fulfill a purpose.  As I began to write this post, I looked back and can see how God placed certain people in my life.  During my school years, He gave me several friends a few of whom I still stay in touch.  Then as I was married and moved to Louisiana, the families I mentioned above were placed in our path.  Then came time to start our family and God placed directly in my path another friend He knew I needed during these crazy years!  

 

God doesn't intend for us to have to walk through this life alone.  He gives us friends to strengthen, encourage, and help us, and just to have some fun along the way! 

"A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly:  and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother."  Proverbs 13:24

 

Christ wants to be our friend AND he wants us to have friends.  Our relationships with our friends are once again directly related to our friendship with Christ.   We're going to be looking at some scripture this week and discussing what type of friend Jesus was: loving, compassionate, humble, supporting, and willing to sacrifice, even to the point of death.  There is no better friend than Christ himself.  When we are as close to him as possible, then we have what we need to be a better friend to those around us.

 

Sometimes being a good friend means being selfless and laying aside some of our own desires to make time for those around us.  Especially, in the season of life where I am, it's easy to get so caught up in my immediate family and miss what's going on around me.  I love my husband and of course he is one of my dearest friends, but there are some things I'd just rather talk to a girl friend about!  I love my kids too, but one day they'll be grown and have their own friends and then where will that leave me? 

 

As we go throughout this week may we look at the ones God has placed in our paths.  Maybe they are old friends in which we need to reconnect.  Maybe they are new friends, we don't even know yet but God has placed them in our path for a purpose this very week.  May we draw closer to Him, slow down, and take the time to be friendly. 

 

 

One Thing is Needful: Week Four - Family

Confession:  I'm rather intimidated by the Proverbs 31 woman.  I mean, who wouldn't be?  She rises early and stays up late, she is strong and works with her own hands to provide for her family, she goes the distance to prepare their food, she thinks ahead and is prepared. She's strong, honorable, wise, kind, charitable...and the list goes on and on.  But perhaps nothing intimidates me more than the 28th verse: 

"Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her."   Proverbs 31:28

It's not even all the "stuff" she did but what her husband and children had to say at the end of it all!  Those that knew her best, those that lived with her day in and day out - once they were grown they called her blessed and praised her. 
 
Here's our most recent family picture: 

 
 Not bad, huh?  Everyone's smiling, looking in the direction of the camera, which really is a miracle in itself.  Now here's what our family actually looks like on a day to day basis:
 

 

Believe it or not, I'm not standing in the middle of a cotton field, clothes nicely coordinated with smiles on all of our faces.  We're in the middle of a beautiful, yet a little (sometimes a lot) messy house.  I don't have on any make-up, my hair is clipped up on top of my head.  I have one daughter running around in her leotard constantly flipping and jumping.  My other daughter has my lipstick smeared all over her face and wearing every piece of jewelry I own.  My son is in some mess and no matter what time of day it is, his shoes are on so he can be ready to run and create the next mess!  Maybe one of us is smiling, but chances are there's also one of us crying, one of us screaming, one of us laughing, and one of us trying to block it all out! 

And let me tell you in the middle of all this chaos, my children aren't calling me holy or sacred!  In fact, all I'm getting are calls of "Mom, I need you!"  or "Mom, look what Cooper is in now!"  But it's my response to those calls, the everyday moments that will determine the end result.  Nothing would be worse than to get to the end of this chaos and realize I missed the good part!  When this chapter of our life has ended and these little munchkins are ready to go out on their own, what will they and my husband have to say about me?   When Curt and I are sitting on the front porch reflecting on this time in the trenches- what will be the end result? 
 
Did I pour everything I had into our family?  Did I send Curt off to work feeling prepared for the day?  Did he look forward to coming home in the afternoon because that was his place of rest?  Did I pour all the love I could into my children so that they show compassion to others?  Did I prepare them to be the spouse that their future husband/wife needs?  Did I prepare them to be the parents they should be to my grandchildren?   

If we as Christians plan on being Christ's hand and feet to anyone on this earth - then it should begin in our own home and families.  I have no doubt that my greatest mission field is my own home.  God entrusted these little people and this wonderful man to me.  And as we all know, with great privilege comes great responsibility.  Yes, it's a FULL time job.  No, it's NOT an easy one.  But it is a worthwhile one.  In these everyday moments I am building lives and affecting eternity! 

 
So when we're at the breakfast table and someone spills milk, may I realize it's God providing me a way to teach mercy.
 
When I'm trying to finish my to-do list for the day and I feel someone poke me with a book wanting to sit down and read, may I show them that people are more important than any to-do list.
 
When I really just want to check Facebook one more time, may I look into those faces that really matter.
 
When I'm folding my umpteenth load of laundry for the week, may I pause and thank God for the ones that wear them.
 
When I've tried teaching how to tie a shoe 6 different ways, may I try one more time!
 
When I do lose my control may I have the humbleness to ask for forgiveness-because yes, it will happen and they need to see that too.
 
When I don't see things eye to eye with my husband and want to "put him in his place" may I remember that we are one so whatever place I put him in that's where I'll be too! 
 
When I'm too tired at the end of the day to make bath time fun, may I suck it up and break out the bath paints!
 
Satan wants my family and he would like nothing more than to distract me from what really matters.  To throw up little things to take away from my time with them or to use something trivial to separate me from the peace of God.  There's only one way that the Proverbs 31 woman was able to accomplish so much and only one way I will be able to as well - by staying at the feet of Jesus, soaking in all I can from him to pour out into the lives of others, beginning right in front of me.

Nope - My husband's not singing my praises and my children aren't calling me blessed - yet.  But our family is a work in progress and I have no doubt that if I keep at it diligently they will!  I hope that at the end of this mission both my husband and children say, much liked the Proverbs 31 family did:

"I knew her better than anyone else.  I saw her through the good, the bad, and the ugly.  And through it all she gave me all she had.  She made life fun!  She comforted me and was always a soft place to land.  She taught me to believe even when it didn't seem possible.  She gave me grace even when I didn't deserve it.  She loved me like Jesus."

Then, they will take that love, grace, peace, and joy and pass it on to the next generation.  All those cuddles in the middle of the night, cleaned up messes, calmness when I wanted to just scream and being fun when I just wanted to sleep, will outlast just these small moments and span into an eternity. 

This week as we go through our day to day rituals, let's not overlook those God has entrusted in our care.  Let's open our eyes to our mission field before us and serve them with our whole hearts!  Let it begin at home and let it begin with me.