This was written several years ago. We now have 10 children with the youngest being almost 3.

Our first day of school wasn’t the greatest day I had ever had by any means. I was so frustrated with my kids that I could scream. Wait a minute… I did scream! Anyway, my problem was that I had some expectations of what I thought our first day back to school would be like & some of my children did not live up to those expectations. Have you been there?

One of those children who didn’t cooperate was my youngest of five boys, Zachary. He is 3 ½ years old and thinks he is 10. Do you have one of those? My problem with him was that I had spent so much time planning & scheduling for the older kids that I had forgotten about his activities. I had stuff that I had bought, but forgot about it. So we had Zachary going through everyone’s stuff and causing chaos. When I finally realized the problem, I got out his clay and before I knew it I had 6 kids at the table playing with clay…quietly.

We have homeschooled 10 years and I have had at least one toddler or preschooler every year. So I have collected a few ideas that I want to share with you.

What do you have at home? I like to take inventory at home before I start shopping. Here are some things that my little guys can do with homemade items.

Ø Cut up magazine’s, construction paper or old wrapping paper.

Ø Glue what they cut to card stock or more paper. Use glue sticks.

Ø Rice or beans in a bowl. Fill up cups of different sizes & pour back into tub.

Ø Homemade playdough

o Recipe2 tsp. Cream of Tartar1 c. flour½ c. salt1 tbsp. Oil1 c. waterColor the dough with Kool-AidCook together for a few minutes until it balls up. Knead. Store in an airtight container.

Ø Draw or scribble on small white board. (watch that markers don’t end up on furniture or walls J)

Ø Play in kitchen sink with water & tear free bubbles or just measuring cups. Lay towels on floor first to reduce mess.

Ø Board books. I like these for my really young ones that still handle books rough.

Ø Duplo blocks ®

Ø Dress up clothes

Plan ahead. I can’t expect Zachary to come up with his own activities on his own. Well, he will but they are usually pretty destructive. J I have found some things on the web. Below are a few website that I have found helpful. It is also helpful to yourself if you know ahead of time what activities you have ready. Place them in a special place. Tubs or baskets are handy. Make a list if that helps so that you can refer to it quickly.

Pre-K websiteshttp://www.letteroftheweek.com

This is a site where you can find lesson plans for your babies up to 4 yrs. It is free. You just print out what you want, follow her suggestions for books to read & songs to sing & you have a Pre-K curriculum.

http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Forest/2468/

This had a lot of ideas of what to do with 2 yr olds. Some can be pretty messy though, which is what 2 yr olds love anyway!

http://www.preschooleducation.com/

This is loaded with free stuff to print off.

http://www.akidsheart.com/

These are Bible activities for all ages, but have activities for preschoolers also.

Be prepared by keeping safe supplies ready.

• Safety scissors
• Non-toxic crayons
• Paper (card stock, construction and copy paper)
• Glue sticks (my kids like the kind that goes on purple, but dries clear)

And anything else you can think of.

Schedule time for your younger ones before you start school. They are still very needy and need your attention. Try reading or playing for 30 minutes or so with your toddler or preschooler before you start lessons with your older kids. If you fill their love tank then they are less likely to disturb you. When you do find them disturbing others pull them into you lap. Sometimes that is all they need. Be sensitive to their needs. It is really easy to get so wrapped up in your older one’s lessons that we forget about the younger ones. They get loud and disruptive & we get frustrated. Take a minute and try to understand why they are being so disruptive. Usually it is time for a break anyway so take one & spend it with your toddler.

I shared about my really bad first day of school. Well, there is a happy ending. The rest of our week was wonderful; I made sure Zachary had something to do and that my other kids kept busy also. Idle time makes for trouble! Also, I lessened my expectations & took another look at our schedule to see what needed fixing. I’m really looking forward to Monday!

Peeling off the Layers

Philippians 1:6 says“…being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”

I decided one summer I would redo the boys’ bathroom. The wallpaper was coming off in places so I decided that I would strip the paper off & paint it. My summer was almost over when I finally decided it was time to strip and paint. I got my kids involved and we had a blast making a huge mess. As I was peeling off the layers I thought," this is me". I, like the wall, look really good in certain areas, but there are those places that I hope others don't see. I hate when people would come over, because the boys’ bathroom was also the guest bathroom and it looked horrible. The paper had come loose in a few places so my little ones took that as an invitation & peeled away. In other areas it was peeling off with no-ones help. It was embarrassing to me for anyone to see it. I don't like for people to see what I am like inside sometimes. I’m prideful, arrogant, selfish, and jealous and many more I'm sure. I want people to see my wallpaper not the real me. We kept peeling the paper and one of my sons said, “Look mom there’s an ugly wall in there! Are we going to paint this?"

As I finished taking all of the paper off the wall this verse came to my mind. "I'm like these walls aren’t I Lord," I prayed. "I have so many layers of filth that you are trying to peel away. You have begun such an amazing work in my life but my "wallpaper" keeps getting in the way of the beautiful picture of me that you are painting." If we truly desire to become the masterpiece that God has intended for us then we welcome the layers of wallpaper to come off, as painful as it may be. My son was right about the wall underneath the paper. It was plain & kind of ugly, so are we without our "wallpaper" until the Lord begins painting His masterpiece do we really begin to look beautiful. I'm not done with that bathroom yet, but I hope that it will look better after I get done, than it did before I started. I’ll finish the bathroom, but the Lord will never be finished with me while I am still on this earth. I pray that while I am living that my life will reflect Christ and people will see the beautiful masterpiece that He is creating in me, but I also look forward to the day when He has completed His work in me.

What a glorious day when I can stand before him with no layers of wallpaper, only as His masterpiece.

Confessions of a Bad Year

I am very active in my homeschool community. One of my ministries to moms for the past several years has been to help those who are just starting to homeschool. I have really loved talking to them and guiding them through their first year. I love the excitement in their voices when they tell me about a really good day they had & how surprised they were when their kids actually wanted to "do school".

This past year was hard for me though. I continued to mentor and teach the moms, when deep inside I have felt that I had no business telling them anything. I guess I felt a lot like a hypocrite. I had to try extra hard to get excited about curriculum and why this works for some & that doesn't work for others. Our school year, I felt, was horrible. We weren't getting much of anything done it seemed. It was my 10th year & really felt like I had no idea what I was doing!! My oldest is high school age and yet she was falling between the cracks in a really big way, at least that is how I feel. She is dyslexic and needed a lot of my attention that I did not give her. I needed her to do some of her work on her own and she didn't. She is the oldest of 9 and I am expecting the next one anytime now. Everyone kept telling me, "Wait until they get older then they are more independant." Not her!! I feel guilty for getting frustrated with her, but I still do. "Just do the work!" I want to tell her. I try really hard not to compare her with her younger siblings that are more on target, but I know I still do. I also have a son who is almost 13 & still can't read very well. His younger brothers help him read stuff. This is driving me crazy, because he just really doesn't seem to care. He has missed many opportunities of service at our church because he can't read. I have heard from many moms who have sons who really didn't learn to read until they were close to 14 years old. I didn't want my son to be one of those. He is behind in everything else because he can't read.

I really wish I could just erase this past year. This week is our last week of school. Since I am about to have a baby we just kept going through the summer so that we could take a nice break after I had the baby. I'm afraid to let them stop though. My 2 older ones are going to keep doing math a few times a week so they don't fall to far behind, but will my dyslexic daughter do it with out me reminding her constantly? I don't know. I'm afraid if we stop school then we may never get it started again. Mainly because I don't want to. I need the break. I know that, it is obvious since I am writing like this. If any other mom came to me & told me this stuff I would tell her that she was burned out & needed a break. I know that I am not totally alone in this, I just have never admitted it. I'm the one that helps those who are feeling this a way to pull out of it. The stresses of mommyhood are huge right now and adding teacher to it is just too much. I guess this teacher needs to take her well deserved break & just be mommy. I have noticed in the past that my kids have actully learned a lot during our breaks. Several mastered reading, one began writing stories on her own & still writes without ever being told. Another proudly memorized poetry and scripture. I just had to get out of the way & let the relaxed schooling happen. Another copied the Shakespeare play, "The Tempest" and is now a huge fan of Shakespeare. I guess that is what we are in need of...me to get out of the way.

Thanks, I feel better!!

About Dana

I am a mom of 11 children, but before that I was a wife to Scott. We were married in 1990 & were thrilled that the Lord began blessing us with children very soon.

I was 19 when I had our first baby. I knew nothing, but thought I knew it all.

5 years later, I had 5 kids. I was in complete survival mode. I don't remember much about those days except making sure the kids took a nap everyday so I could have some time to myself or get the house cleaned up. My time with the Lord was so rare. I knew I needed to spend time reading the Bible & praying everyday, but I thought God would understand why I didn't since he gave me these kids. My faith & trust in God grew very small, but my faith in myself grew very big.

I have learned that when God wants you to do something, he has a way of getting you to the point in which you can do it and do it very well. This happened to me. He wanted to use me to share with others about his love for them, but because my heart was in the horrible & and selfish shape it was, he wouldn't use me. So He decided to break my heart and slowly piece it back together.
In 1999, I was in a car accident with my 6 children and was 9 weeks pregnant. I lost control on a rock road, rolling 3 or 4 times landing upside down. Our suburban was totaled, but we all survived. In the months after that accident I sank into a deep depression as I believed that I tried to kill my kids that day. The enemy had a powerful hold on my mind. After many months I slowly began to recognize my condition as depression. Finally after 18 months of living in spiritual and emotional darkness, the Lord began to work in me. I was truly a new creature. My journey has been long and difficult & is still going on. He is not done with me yet! But fear and depression is not a daily part of my life anymore...Praise the Lord!

In the midst of my healing I read a scripture that really seem to jump out at me and it seemed like the Lord was speaking directly to me. Isaiah 61:1-3 says,

"The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me
to preach the good news. He has sent me to bind up the broken hearted, to
proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who grieve in Zion- to bestow on
them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning
and a garment of praise in stead of despair. They will be called oaks of
righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor."

I accept this verse & claim it as my charge from the Lord. Now, the desire to encourage & minister to mothers is a passion and reality for me. He has placed many friends in my path that I have had the pleasure of visiting and sharing my heart with. He speaks to me through his scripture and gives me words to write that I could never write before. He gives me words to say that I could never have said on my own.

I am still a work in progress as we all are. I don't have all the answers and never will. My kids aren't raised yet, we are still training and praying that we are doing it right. God has blessed Scott & I with 10 kids so far. We don't know if he will bless us with more or not, but we feel so blessed with the ones we have. He uses my kids daily to reveal more of his truth, because I have to seek his wisdom or I will fall flat on my face.

Dana & Scott

He is teaching me daily that I have a choice in my circumstances. I can either praise him or cry. I can either reflect him in my reaction to my circumstances or I won't. It is my choice. I can be blessed with his joy or I won't. It is my choice, no one can make it for me.

I pray daily that he will use me and to bring comfort to the many hurting hearts I will encounter. As mothers we face challenges every day & can't do it alone. I need the Lord just to get out of bed each morning.