Fruitbearers

Sisterlisa is hosting a monthly " Share Your Faith Carnival ."  The first one is a homeschooling edition.  She asked readers to share their testimony about how God led them to decide to homeschool.  We have been homeschooling our kids for about 9 years now….more accurately over 14 years now .  Let me explain… Our oldest daughter will turn 15 this July.  We have taught our kids the things of the Lord since birth (we sang to them songs about God and read to them Bible stories, etc.)  My husband and I are very protective  parents ….wanting to protect our kids from the things of the world.  We first heard (before we had kids) about "homeschooling" from my husband’s aunt who homeschooled her 2 girls (using ABeka).   Those girls were sweet and well-behaved.  We were impressed to say the least .  Another incident was when we visited a church, a topic of "homeschooling" somehow came up and...

On Wed. , March 12th, at our co-op, we had an Around the World Geography Fair.  My 9 year old son did Switzerland and my 6 year old son did Japan.  Other countries that were presented include Vietnam, North Korea, France, Germany, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania.  It was a fun learning experience for all. We learned that Swiss cheese (called "Emmentaler" in Switzerland) is left to ferment for over 4 months.  It makes carbon dioxide that forms into bubbles (holes).  In Oregon, there’s a mountain called "Matterhorn" which we believed was named after the Matterhorn in Switzerland (famous for the many climbers who have died trying to climb it).  Did you know that Lindt and Toblerone chocolate are from Switzerland? My 6 year old son enjoyed origami and he also wrote a haiku about Mt. Fuji. Snowy Mt. Fuji Pretty dormant volcano Japan’s tallest peak

Pat at Pat’s Place is hosting a "Bluebird of Happiness" contest .  The deadline is Feb. 29th.  What makes you happy? What makes me happy is seeing my kids doing their best to please God (eg. serving one another, giving money to the poor and the native missionaries in the unreached areas, loving God’s Word, memorizing God’s Word, and applying God’s Word, etc.) " I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth ." 3John 4

I like #7 so I’m going to list Seven Quirky Things about Me (actually, my favorite number is 12 but I don’t want to overdo it because you may never come back here again after seeing how strange unique I am).  Here they are: 1. I am allergic to hazelnuts.  My allergic reaction includes rash and swelling.  Once my swelling got so bad that my husband had to saw (using a little saw) a gold ring off my finger.  Thankfully, he left my finger intact…mission accomplished . 2. I have never been afraid to go to the dentist.  I even enjoy going to the dentist .  I like sitting in a comfy, reclining chair doing nothing except opening my mouth wide.  I spend that time to pray and relax. 3. I love spicy food and I can have spicy food at any meal, including breakfast.  Rice with curry is better than a bowl of cereal for sure ! 4. I rub (play with) my nose when I’m in deep thought.  I don’t know why but maybe my nose kno...

1. My husband got a new job with a new work schedule (getting every other Friday off). 2. We’ve been volunteering/serving with ISI (International Students, Inc.) and hosting game nights for the international students from a local university. 3. My brother finally received his green card and was able to come to America after waiting for over 10 years. 4. We had a fabulous 5 day vacation at Sunriver in Bend. 5. My husband and I celebrated our 16 th anniversary and our "Half-a-Billion Second" Anniversary ! 6. My daughter won a Playstation 2 from mathmovesu.com, 2 $100 Barnes & Noble gift cards from Pixlit.net, and $10 gift certificate to the Old Schoolhouse Store & publication on their next year’s Father’s Day issue from a Tribute to My Dad writing contest . 7. My middle son won a Haiku contest . 8. My youngest son won 1 st prize (a sweater valued at $39.98) at a local Barnes & Noble’s guessing contest and 1 st prize ($25 Target gift card) on a colorin...

We had a white Christmas!  The snow was a very nice surprise.  I don’t know if my kids were more excited about the snow or about the presents . Another surprise is not so nice.  I got Strep throat (just found out today).  However, I am so thankful that I was well enough on Monday to have a wonderful Christmas Eve with my family and others at my mother-in-law’s house.  I kept feeling weaker and totally exhausted by the end of the day (started to have high fever).  The Lord gave me enough strength to enjoy Christmas with my family at home yesterday with lots of bedrest in between.  Today, my throat hurts so bad that I can hardly talk.  Swallowing causes me excruciating pain.  I got antibiotics now so I should be getting better soon.  I am so glad that CHRISTmas is all about CHRIST.  We can rejoice at our Savior’s birth and His redemption even when unpleasant surprises may come our way.   Beca...

Janne at Janne’s Jabberwocky is having a contest which is part of  the HomeschoolEstore ’s 12 Blogs of Christmas Promotion.  Since I already posted about one of my favorite CHRISTmas memories, I will just repost it here .   When my daughter was 8 years old, she made this card at Christmastime. Inside she wrote, "Thank You for giving us the Bible.  I am glad You came to die for my sins.  Thank You so much.  Thank You for always answering my prayers.  Thank You for giving me loving, caring Christian parents.  Thank You for all the wonderful things You’ve given me.  Thank You for all Your love for me."  On the back of the card, she drew (in pencil) a picture of Jesus on the cross.  I just love how she poured her heart into that special card for Jesus!  Very precious to me .