April 25, 2008

Runaway Subduction

If anyone would like some light reading (sense sarcasm here), check out this article on a topic which currently has me fascinated.

http://www.icr.org/research/index/researchp_jb_runawaysubduction/

It's a theory by creationists as to what happened when God caused the flood of Genesis.  I first read about it in a book called "Something From Nothing" by Kurt P. Wise and Sheila A. Richardson, which is an easy-to-read book, and very interesting about all the evidence for creation.

I actually recommend reading the book, especially chapters 10-12, more than the article, unless you're up for a scientific paper and can plow through it all.

April 05, 2008

Just Another Manic Saturday . . .

. . . Wish it was Sunday.  I usually get to really relax on Sunday afternoons.

Today I've been sorting, cleaning, cooking, and shuttling.  M is at a birthday party for a friend, playing on one of those inflatable water slides.  J, not to be left out, is playing in the little kid pool in the backyard.  A joined her at first, but got too cold.  So she's scattering things around the house that I cleaned up this morning.  Oh well, nothing new here.  I made fruit pizza this morning - M was dying to try it after I mentioned it.  I had enough fruit and sauce to make a 2nd one, so made a 2nd crust, and called my neighbor and she gladly accepted.  In return, she left me her 2nd grade daughter, who played with the older two girls for an hour or more, and gave me time to spend with my baby, and time to get some things done!

My husband wants me to send him the text of about 8 obscure Dr. Seuss books so he can make recordings for the girls.  It's a lot of typing.  Dr. Seuss used a lot of exclamation points.  I can relate.  He also used italics and all caps for emphasis on some words.  Have you ever read "The Butter Battle Book"?  It reminds me of the Cold War with Russia.  Could be.  Then there's "The Cat in the Hat Comes Back", during which the Cat in the Hat makes a pink cat ring by bathing in the tub.  He removes the stain in the tub by cleaning it with a dress, removes it from the dress by wiping it on the wall, and so on, until finally the stain is swept and blown by a fan out the window onto the snow.  It's really disgusting if you think about it.  I still have to type "Fox in Socks", "Hooper Humperdink? Not Him", "Horton Hears a Who", "If I Ran the Circus", "If I Ran the Zoo", "Oh Say Can You Say", and "Thidwick the Big-Hearted Moose."  A couple of those I haven't found yet - have to get through inter-library loan.

I requested about 23 books from the local Army library system and the State library system for home school.  We'll be learning about how books are made, fractions, how many days in a week, how many months in a year, Colonial times, the American Revolution, the Civil War, the Presidency, the White House, children around the world, maps, easy science experiments, shadows and light, and musical instruments and their families.  I'm so glad I can teach my own child Kindergarten.  I've already learned a lot myself.  You laugh.  However, I'm enjoying the library books.  There are quite a few interesting things in them I didn't remember or never knew. 

Below are a few pictures from the last week.  The first is my new plumber.  Then the older two girls at gymnastics, followed by the girls participating in "PT at the Park" where they did Mousercise.



April 02, 2008

Small Potatoes

The title is in reference to my children.  I came home from choir practice tonight, and there they were, snuggled in their bean bag chairs in front of the cartoon channel, with sippy cups in their mouths, and lap blankets on.  The sitter said they had previously been actively playing outside, so they weren't completely couch potatoes yet.

Lately, my activist nature has been surging, wanting to merely change the world.  There are a myriad of issues that concern me about the American culture, specifically.  We're so spoiled, and we have taken for granted what our founding fathers and early pioneers of freedom worked so hard to create and preserve.  More importantly, many have either abandoned the foundational truths of Scripture and worship of God Almighty in favor of a lifestyle that brings themselves comfort, convenience and entertainment; or worse yet, they've turned against God altogether.  There's a lot of brokenness in our nation's homes.  Children are growing up in these broken environments, never learning the values and morals that make a citizen great, so they don't learn how to do their part in making the country great, even in their own community.  This is one of a dozen or more issues on my mind.

So someday, I hope to somehow be a change-agent in our culture, pointing people to God and His ways.  It may be through some sort of public speaking, writing, music, or however God leads.  My efforts won't change the whole world, but I hope they will change some lives.

Meanwhile, I've got more pressing things to do, like raising our 3 girls to be God-honoring people themselves, and to find what abilities they have that God gave them to use for His Kingdom.  And, if I say so myself, that is no small potatoes. 

If you know a mother with children at home, you should encourage her with this message.  Moms  are very important, and many moms don't recognize the value in what they do.  I recognize my value in this role, and I pray that God guides my daily choices to help me be a good role-model and a parent who disciplines with grace.