I just happened to come across a post by another blogger who discusses her feelings about the guilt she has felt in trying to do it all. We've all been there, many times. It's a wonderful post that I think all women should read and she also references Sis. Beck.
Check it out http://diapersanddivinity.com/2009/09/22/guilt-the-motherload/
If you haven't read my other blog then let me share with you that I am on a quest to live my life as God intended esp. in regards to food. Natural and wholesome, not man-made from some lab experiment. In my research today on sugar I read on Wikipedia about the process that sugar cane goes through to reach my table as refined sugar. Let me just say, I was totally appalled! Just like everything else chemicals (not surprisingly) are added to get the sugar refined and white. This includes brown sugar (stuff used in cookies). To my amazement though I also read about raw sugar. Here's the basic process. The juices are extracted through pressing from the sugar cane. Lime is added to purify the juice, then the juice is sent through a water evaporation machine (no chemicals needed) and then spun around in another machine (again no chemicals involved). The final product is raw sugar. This sugar looks like light brown crystals (not the cookie kind). There you have it. Sugar with no chemical added. You can read all about the process of sugar here. After a little more research I was again surprised that raw sugar actually has some health benefits that refined sugars don't. You can read about that here. As always, please do further research on your own so you can be sure that you are satisfied with your findings and feel confident to apply them to your life if it be your choosing. I for one, will be switching to raw sugar.
I've learned an important lesson this week on being aware of false prophets. We are taught to turn to the scriptures, the prophets and apostles, old and new, and Heavenly Father for guidance and answers to our questions. Not someone who has a really cool blog, or someone we know who seems to know everything, or our neighbor down the street. I ended up getting caught up in someone's blog in a search for answers to fulfill my curiosity. I left that blog feeling lower than dirt and that I would never be good enough. Sadly, I kinda took that to heart and spent a few days feeling super frustrated because of all my weaknesses. Well, last night I was reading an ensign article given by Elder Ballard in 1999 and came across this quote, "Some Latter-day Saints may not be aware of it, but there are “false prophets” rising within and without the Church. They believe they have had revelations, that they know something the First Presidency and the Twelve Apostles don’t know. We need to be very careful of such people. Members who are ever approached by anyone claiming special authority or revelation from God outside the sustained priesthood authority should turn and run from them as fast as they can. The Savior said that in the last days even the very elect could be pulled away from the truth by such false prophets." So the part highlighted in red is the trap I got myself into. After reading the article, I realized what had happened. Later on that night I read in the scriptures and a church manual and found the answer to my question. I ended that moment full of hope and eagnerness and wanting to do my best. So I learned my huge lesson on who false prophets are and how easy it is to be led astray. Writing this now I have been able to see how the first experience was of Satan (feeling horrible) and the second was of God (feeling uplifted and full of hope). All good things come from God.
Things have been so crazy this last month. We moved to a new home (well, for us anyway) three weeks ago so I haven't posted anything for awhile. You know, I thought I would take a break from homeschooling for two weeks while I packed and start up again two days after we moved in. Boy, was I kidding myself! Three weeks later and I'm finally starting to work on it again. I've learned the hard way that I'm not immune from the upheavals in life. Oh well, the cool thing though is that all the lessons on packing, unpacking, organizing, cleaning, ect. count towards home school. In those moments I've incorporated math, problem solving, life skills, and creativity. So I guess I was homeschooling all along, just not in the way I imagined it.
Here's something you can try that I saw on another blog. I'm curious so let me know if you passed the test or not.
For those who don't know, and that's probably everyone, I am a blog stalker. I absolutely love to learn from other people's experiences. So, I was hanging out at Modern Molly Mormon and found a post titled Impure Thoughts. I love the take the writer took on this subject. How many times have we thought to ourselves 'I'm just not good enough. So and so has a cleaner house, nicer cars, cuter clothes, is more pretty than me, a better organizer, cook, homemaker, ect.' I know I do, more than I want to admit. For years since becoming a mom this has creeped up into my thoughts. At times I compare myself to pretty much everyone I've ever known. Then I get down really hard on myself and think that I will never amount to anything no matter how hard I try. Thankfully, this doesn't happen too often. I tend to forget who is behind my feelings of self-doubt and inadequacy. It is Satan. Misery loves company. I was reminded that today by reading this lovely post. The writer sums it up so well. Our Heavenly Father teaches us by encouraging us, and yes, sometimes even chastises us, but then tells us how much he loves us. Satan on the other hand tells us that we're worth nothing, we're not needed and we'll always fall short. Don't listen to him. We are children of God. He loves us and wants so much for us to live with Him again. He's here to guide us, lift us up when we're down and teach us all we need to know to make it home to Him. He tells us we're worth more than gold, completely priceless, and He wants to bless us more than we can take if we would only come to Him and follow Him. No matter what our weaknesses are He will always love us, for we are His. Read this post and it will remind you of who you are and that no one can take your place.
OK, I know I don't post all that often, but I have a valid excuse (in my opinion anyway). I haven't shared this with anyone (but my honey) so here it goes. I CANNOT handle having more than one project at a time. Let me give you an example. I have a few friends I hang out with and would like to hang out with. The problem is if I commit to hanging out with one I just can't commit to anyone else. Having more than two hang outs scheduled in a month stresses me out. I feel so bad because I don't see my friends as often as I would like. I have no clue how to solve this problem. I can't handle more than a few scheduled activities a month. Why? I have no clue. If anyone has been through this please enlighten me. I'd love to be able to have lots to do without all the stress and pressure involved. Did I mention I can't handle pressure either. It's pathetic, I know! So how does this relate to my blogs, you ask? Well, on top of my two blogs I have Facebook, my genealogy, my children, my husband, my home, doctor's appointments, dentist appointments, ect. My cup is way overflowing. I guess it's all just a matter of perspective, but I don't know how to get past this. So, I have a million other things to do besides blog. There you have it. I'm not neglecting it, I just can't handle posting all the time. By the way, I love all my friends and I'd hang out every week if I could hack it. I promise I'm working on it. Know that I love you all and your not forgotten.
I came across this talk a few days ago and boy, did it open my eyes. This was written by Bishop Andrus in 2004 and is only a small portion of his talk. This is the part that stood out to me the most and kindled in a fire in my heart. I encourage you to read it as it will help us all to be better people in the kingdom of our God.
http://acadac.net/old-website/talks/financ.htm
"DC 104:12-13 That every man may give an account unto me of the stewardship which is appointed unto him. For it is expedient that I, the Lord, should make every man accountable, as a steward over earthly blessings, which I have made and prepared for my creatures.
We, then, are the Lord's stewards over the resources of the earth. We will be held accountable for how we manage the Lord's resources. Are we sloppy or rigorous? Do we manage money, or does money manage us? Are we stingey or generous? Are we frugal or wasteful? These are all good questions we need to ask ourselves as we prepare for the final exam of life.
Luke 16:10-13 He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
We cannot be good stewards of the Lord's resources if we think those resources are ours. We cannot serve both God and ourselves at the same time. We cannot serve God if our aim is the accumulation of wealth.
When we think of our financial resources as a temporary stewardship--and as a test of our character--we will be humbled at Our Father's graciousness and grateful everyday for the opportunity to prove our faithfulness. These resources have been assigned to us for our temporary use in getting ourselves and others back to the Celestial Kingdom."
This talk helped me realize that if I don't take care of the things He has given me on this earth and entrusted me with (i.e. my home and kids) to the best of my ability, why would he give me the riches of heaven. Wow, what a humbling experience. Everything I have from my dishes to my clothes and my children have come from Heavenly Father. I want more than anything to pass this test of life and so far I haven't done too well. Now, we're not here to be perfect, but I can do so much better than I have. Since reading this, I have had the desire to take better care of my home and the things within it instead of treating it as naught. Also, to remember where all things have come from and that truly they are not mine. I know our Father loves us and wants to bless us. I want Him to be able to trust me and I pray I can be a better steward over the things he has given me that I may be worthy one day of the riches of heaven.
Knowing where to start for homeschooling can seem like such a daunting task. It's a lot easier than it seems if you take this process step by step. First, before you do anything you need to check the homeschooling laws for your state. States require anything from nothing to everything. A great website to check out for this is www.hslda.org. This is the home school Legal Defense Association website. They have the laws listed for every state. Once you've done this you then need to do some research online of the many different styles of homeschooling. This will give you an idea of teaching methods that go along with your personality and views. My teaching method is eclectic. I pull a little bit of other methods and create my own according to my children's needs. Once in a while I like to do some unit studies esp. with geography and science. I also like to use textbooks for social studies and science (which I'm currently using). Also, because my daughter went to a public school for Kindergarten and a few weeks of first grade she enjoys doing workbooks so we use those for the rest of the subjects. Some people refer to workbooks as "busy work", but it all depends on how you use it. The public schools tend to use workbooks to pass the time. I, on the other hand, use them to teach my daughter what is on those pages. I don't give them to her to pass time and just leave her to herself. So don't feel guilty using workbooks if that's what you prefer. Some are definitely better than others so I advise you to use amazon.com for previewing any workbooks before you buy them. Once you decide what method you will be using you can read articles and visit website and forums to get some ideas of how others use that method in their homeschooling. Then you can find books, supplies, or anything else you want to use to purchase. I recommend research, research, research. Don't just buy the first thing you see that you like esp. if it's boxed curriculum. This tends to be the most expensive option so you want to make sure you like the majority of what you'll be getting in that package. One major thing to remember is homeschooling is only as expensive as you make it. It's almost always cheaper to make your own curriculum than to buy one already made. I calculated the cost of using only ink and paper to print pages off the web, but discovered it is more than twice as expensive as buying workbooks and used textbooks. So make sure you do some cost comparison as well. You will also need to decide on a schedule. Some people like block schedules just like the schools, others like to alternate subjects every other day and still others like to do every subject every day. I like to do every subject every day otherwise I feel like I missed out on teaching her something, but that's just my preference. You can also add in vacation days, take sick days, school year round, or take summer off. I like to use the six weeks on, one week off approach as it gives me a break so I don't get burned out. Read articles on burn out since it happens a lot so you can know better how to prevent it. You also need to keep records of your schooling even if it's not required in your state. It will make your life tons easier and you can keep track of your progress. Once you feel you have gathered the information you need you can start the homeschooling process. Please don't feel that you have to know everything before you start. All you need to know are the laws for your state and what method you would like to use. If you live in a state that requires you to keep records make sure you have the proper forms and have all of your books and other materials before you begin. If you are in a more relaxed state like Arizona you can begin after taking the proper legal steps while you figure out everything else. Keep in mind that your style of homeschooling will change often as you figure out what works and what doesn't. Even when it's working for a while it will end up not working and you'll have to change styles again. This is normal, don't worry about it. The biggest things to remember out of all this are to homeschool properly according to your state laws and to research, research. I know all of this is a mouthful, but with proper preparation you'll be able to have a smooth beginning to your homeschooling adventures. Doing your research will only take a few weeks depending on how much time you spend studying. You will not be perfect and that's o.k. Life is a learning experience. Before you know it, this will all be second nature for you. Most importantly, don't forget to pray. Ask for guidance and understanding. Allow Heavenly Father to lead you in the path he would have you go. Your family will be blessed beyond measure and will be drawn closer together. There will be hard times, struggles, trials, and tears, but the blessings will be numerous. Heavenly Father will not ask something of us without providing a way. I'm thankful that I've been guided to this path and for the blessings I and my family have received because of it.
