Classroom Reveal & First Week of School

Okay, so it's now our 16th week into this school year, and I'm finally posting my classroom reveal and our 1st week of school (blushing).

 

First of all, the classroom reveal....



The Before Picture

This has pretty much been the look of our classroom/computer/etc. room for many years.  For more pictures you can click HERE.  (note: the fluff at the bottom the picture is part of Elsa, our dog -- I guess I should have cropped that, haha).  I sold one daughter's school desk and Jeff had to dismantle the big old desk to get it out of the room.  The room was always nice, but it's time to turn the page to a new chapter in our lives. 

 

The After Pictures

(don't worry, the room is small; this will be a short tour)

The view as you enter our classroom.
   

I had a lot of wishful-uses for this room (office/computer room, school room, craft room, and a guest bedroom, but since the room is only about 8'x10', I had to be realistic with my expectations and just do what I could.  Jeff had only two requirements: (1) that there were at least 2 desks so that on occasion, when he works from home, he has his own desk, and (2) that I didn't make it too girly. :)  He knows me, I love pastels and I love girly, but for his sake, I toned down my wish list.

 

The wallpaper did put up a bit of a fight to remove, but the girls helped and we had it off in a few days.  Next, I chose Benjamin Moore Palladian Blue for the walls (a Pinterest find that changes color as the light changes), getting in my pastel, yet telling Jeff it was blue for boys :).  Actually, most of our house is in warm & woodsy dark Craftsman colors, so this room is a refreshing change.

All the lower desks/cabinets are IKEA.  I love that the printer can now be tucked under and pulled out when needed.  The decorative shelf, now painted antique white, if you will recall use to be sage green and above my coach in the familyroom about 3 years ago; and everything on the shelf, except for the inexpensive Walmart plants, are just things I already had around the house.   

 

 

  The shelf tower is three "Store In Style" cubes stacked (These cubes are hard to come by (aka Crop In Style), I  purchased mine through Oriental Trading, but I don't think they have anymore of the individual cubes left).  I specifically wanted this brand of cubes as they are a good, sturdy cube and they were the only ones that were wide enough to fit the baskets I already had.

 

 

On the opposite wall we brought up my sewing machine cabinet as nobody ever enjoyed sewing in our somewhat chilly, isolated-from-the-family basement.  Yes, I know, the walls are rather bare yet.

And well, the room has a deep & very narrow closet with a file cabinet stuffed full of papers that are mostly important only to me -- mostly school & Bible related.  I did a lot of purging -- it's time to let go of my denial that I just bought way more curriculum than is humanly possible to teach in X-number of years.  Jeff was a sweetie & installed a top shelf to store more stuff, Yea!

 

I still need to recover the chair (I have a blue brushed-denim fabric waiting) and find a curtain or make one.

~~~~
 

And, our first week of school

 

We usually go to our favorite waterpark either just before school starts or shortly after (One of the beauties of homeschooling).  The wave pool is my favorite, but Jeff & I agreed that by the end of 3 days of constantly being jostled around by waves, we were ready to go home (can't be we are getting old, can it???)

 

and we ate at a neat restaurant where our food was served by train.  The ambiance and novelty of the train were wonderful, the food was just average, and the prices were steep, but it was a fun one-time visit.

 

 The morning after our return, we celebrated a new school year by going to our favorite coffee shop (Caribou) since daddy still had one more day off.

 

I always fix a special breakfast or take the girls out for breakfast before we get started.  This year it was Perkins.

 

Even though Amber is graduated, she still enjoys joining us for Hebrew (pictured) and History.

 

 Anna watching a Vision Forum History dvd.  (We are sad of the events that have transpired over the last couple of months with VF, but still appreciate the dvds & cds).

 

Anna practicing piano is very much a part of our school day.

 

 

 MUS Stewardship

 

 Anna doing vocabulary while Amber was working on her business card design.

 

Dorie is always such a good helper when doing school work.  She swishes her tail non-stop and it's always over what we are reading or... in the face. :)

 

 

 Art Class in session.

 

That about wraps up Week One.  If interested, you can find more information on our curriculum choices for each subject by clicking on the "Curriculum" page above. 

 

~~~~

 

Don't worry, I still haven't forgotten, posts on

 

Tour de Chicken Palace

 

and

 

Inductive Bible Study (my way)

 

coming soon. ♥ 



Happy Thanksgiv-Birth-ukkah!

This has truly been a once-in-a-lifetime week for us -- as if the usual stuffing ourselves silly with a tableful of comfort food on Thanksgiving isn't fun enough, festivities in our home have been in high gear with the convergence of Hanukkah and my husband's birthday, thus
Thanksgivbirthukkah!
 

 

Our Thanksgiving



We usually prepare and pack up half the feast and head to my mother's house on Thanksgiving Day, but being she was just starting to recover from the flu and didn't feel like feasting yet, we postponed that until Saturday and instead had Thanksgiving at home and invited Jeff's parents to join us, thus a table for 6.  Sorry, I was too busy in my element (the kitchen) and didn't take any pictures, but we had all our normal feast...

Turkey Breast
Double Smoked Ham*
Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Sweet Potato Casserole
Dressing
Jello
Tuna Noodle Salad
Green Beans
Rolls & Butter
Pickle Assortment
Pumpkin Pie & Real Whipped Cream
Pumpkin Bars (MIL's) 
Brownies

*Half of us don't eat pork, but I still bake a half a ham to make the men folk (and dog) happy.  And I didn't do cranberries this year as my mom is the only one that really insists on them.

It was nice being able to stay home this year and we had a nice time.  It's always been our tradition to watch the parades & dog show too.  Thankfully I missed it, but I've read about Macy's intentional and shameful Broadway/transvestite performance propaganda.  Personally, I've never liked their Broadway inclusions as they are often immodest (thanks to a  cold snap, I think there was less of that this year) and often sooo worldly, and really don't reflect the mindset of most Midwesterners.  I'd much prefer if they would skip the show biz and just stick with a family-friendly PARADE, you know... bands, balloons, floats, and horses.  I was also disappointed in seeing how much more air time NBC celebs received as opposed to non (like the Duck Dynasty float) -- I blinked and practically missed it.  Thankfully the dog show is always good.

Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto Elohim. ~ Philippians 4:6

Our Hanukkah

As many of you know, we celebrate the Feasts of the Lord as described in Leviticus 23 (and elsewhere in our Bibles) and have been turning from secular and pagan-rooted holidays over the last several years (since about 2005).  I have to confess, the transition has been a longer process than I'd like as ties to tradition run deep, but I do my best.

Hanukkah/Chanukah (Hebrew for Dedication) is not one of the 7 Feasts of the Lord (Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, Pentecost, Trumpets, Atonement, Tabernacles), however, we do find it in the Bible.
In John 10:22-23 we read,

"And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter.  And Yehshua walked in Solomon's porch."

So, even though the Word does not state that we should celebrate Hanukkah, neither is it condemned.  I won't go into a long explanation of what Hanukkah is all about, but if you are interested, a couple of my favorite posts on it are found here:

The Chanukah Story by Norm Franz
and
The Festival of Chanukah by Hebrew for Christians

      Since we stand with Israel and as believers can see all the deep Biblical meaning, history, and prophesy wrapped up in this feast we have chosen to celebrate it as well.  Our family doesn't get too wrapped up in the unbiblical traditions of any of the feasts -- some of it's fun, but rather we focus on looking back to what God has done and looking forward to what is yet to come.  With Hanukkah, we focus on:

1) The miracle of God's deliverance of the Jewish people that were living under the oppression of a pagan/tyrannical king through the Maccabees.  (There's nothings too hard for God!)  Btw, the Temple was desecrated for 3½ years and then there was a rededication; hum, sounds like something else we know will take place in the future.

 2) The cleansing/rededication of the Temple (Shall we rededicate our temples (bodies) for His use.?!)  Jesus did not condemn this festival, but as we read in John 10, He was directing the people to the Good Shepherd -- a right focus!

3) The oil & lighting of the Temple menorah.  The miracle of just enough oil for one day lasting 8 days may just be tradition, a legend by a rabbi, we don't know for sure, but we can still celebrate the True Light of the World.  And as being lights of the World because of Him, we desire to use these 8 days in ways to spread His light -- giving to missions & ministries, packing Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes, etc.

4) When one knows the math and takes our clues from Biblical and historical events, it is strongly believed that Jesus was conceived on Hanukkah.  I don't think it a coincidence that the Light of the world was conceived during the festival of lights (and He who Tabernacled with us was born during the Feast of Tabernacles; NOT December 25th).

5) Comparable with end times described in Revelation & Daniel, Antiochus is a type of the antichrist who desecrated the Temple for 3½ years.  The end-times prophesy of Daniel 9:27 parallels events similar to Hanukkah -- not unlike pagan Antiochus, we see our world spiraling downhill at breakneck speed.  Worldwide immorality and idolatry are the norm.  We must be modern day Maccabees!!!

"And what agreement hath the temple of Elohim with idols? for ye are the temple of the living Elohim; as Elohim hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their Elohim, and they shall be my people.  Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith Yahweh, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith Yahweh Almighty.  II Corinthians 6:16-18.

Our Hanukkah table.
Being the 8 days included Thanksgiving and a birthday, the menu took on various forms -- BBQ Bison Brisket the first night, Roasted Chicken the last, Perkins Restaurant one night (we did candles & played dreidel later), Turkey birthday brats, and Thanksgiving leftovers.

I made Potato Latkes two nights.  I had never tried them before and thought they were good, but didn't understand why some make such a big deal about them.  I like hash browns and these are basically...hash browns.

 

Festival of Lights

I saw the cute floating wick menorah (left) idea in a BH&G magazine and I had to try; and then bought a pretty little ice cube candle holder menorah on eBay.  We also lit the oil lamp (you can see a bit of it bottom left) that David, a Jewish friend bought for us in Israel.  And we played dreidel with chocolate coins and exchanged gifts in lieu of the usual Christmas exchange.  The Shalom Hanukkah table square is a Michael Miller designed fabric that I bought from someone on Etsy that we just love.  I bought 1 yd. and Amber squared it up & sewed the edges for us.   

 

 



  Anna completed the Hanukkah lapbook from Heart of Wisdom which I thought turned out really pretty. 

       Happy Hanukkah!

Birth-a-day

I always like to say Birth-a-day because that is what my German grandma called it.  Anywho, Jeff's birthday (another year younger) was Sunday and that didn't quite go as intended.  We drove a while to our nearest good shopping and I was able to get him some new clothes as planned; I also wanted to buy him a new Bible, but knowing the old Christian bookstore was open Sundays, I forgot to check if the new store was open -- they weren't.  Also, Jeff wanted to go to the new Chick-fil-a, and of course, we forgot that they are closed on Sundays also (Saturday Sabbath does mess one up sometimes).  So then we decided to try the Buffalo Wild Wings next door (never been there before) and haha, oh my.  First off, we didn't realize it was more or less a sports bar, and add to that it was a Sunday and the Vikings were playing.  We certainly were a minority in a sea of purple jerseys.  Let's just say it was an experience.  The wings were good though.

We will shop for the Bible & do Chick-fil-a another day.  But for now, we are in a winter storm and it's snowing to say the least -- expecting perhaps 6 - 10" today.  Awana has been cancelled for tonight.  My dear hubby will be leaving work early (yea!)

Time to go put the Hanukkah decor away, ttfn.

(although the calender says Hanukkah goes through Thursday, we went by the 119 Ministries calender, so we started/end early)

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying,

I am the light of the world:

he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness,

but shall have the light of life. ~ John 8:12

Why We Don't "Do" Halloween

Now that harvest/canning is nearing an end, I'll be able to resume my school/life posts soon, but in the meantime, here is a repost (please excuse the margin mess-up in the transfer)...

 

I did a post last year about Why We Don't "Do" Halloween, which became by far my most viewed post EVER!  So, since it's "that time" again,  I thought I'd  repost with just a few updates (mostly additional images).

May the LORD be glorified!  

Most of the month of October and particularly October 31st is a time of avoidance for our family:

• Our family tries to avoid going to stores where we are bombarded with displays of witches, haunted houses, ghosts, & the like, and sometimes costumed employees.  And where check-out clerks use to ask the girls what they were going to dress as;
• We avoid going out to eat at most restaurants with again costumed wait staff and when the children were little we would avoid all those Happy Meal-type toys that took on a more ghoulish theme.
• And I would cringe when the girls were little and in gymnastics or swimming and it never failed, the instructor always thought she had to go around the group and ask what each child was dressing up as on Halloween.

Not that we think we have to stick our heads in the sand or that we are stuck-up or holier than Thou, far be it!  We just take to heart God's Word when He says:  

 

^{I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me. ~ Psalms 101:3}

 

^{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} 

Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?  And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?  And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.   Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you. ~ II Corinthians 6:14-17

Now, I can't say we have always had such a diversion to Halloween.  Both Jeff & I grew up thinking Halloween was more or less a harmless fun night.  Our parents, I guess, didn't seem to know or understand what all was behind such a holiday and so we dressed up in costume like everyone else (mine were probably more of the princess variety, as I know my parents didn't allow the scary kind) and went around collecting candy.  For my family (mom, dad & me), we moved a lot, but I recall one time when we lived in a neighborhood that had a lot of young families and for the fun of it, we counted with hash marks the number of trick-or-treaters that came to our door one Halloween that year -- 500!!!  That was a fun year!  So what I'm about to share, I certainly don't judge or condemn anyone for their degree of participation in this yearly ritual and ask that you please provide our family with the same courtesy.  The last thing I want to seem is self-righteous or condemning.  I have no idea who is going to read this, if anyone, and I don't know what your family does on October 31, so really, I'm not pointing fingers at anyone.
With that said however, I just felt I wanted to humbly share why our family doesn't "do" Halloween.  For some, it may seem controversial and narrow. but for our family, it has become an area we feel very strongly about and will not compromise our convictions.  I know there are others of you out there that feel the same way and I hope this encourages and reaffirms your beliefs; and for others perhaps you feel an uneasiness about joining in on the festivities, but didn't realize the extent of the deep darkness behind the holiday; ...or perhaps you are just curious why some of us odd ducks don't join in on the fun of October 31st.

Like many families a generation or so ago, and most families today, Halloween is considered just a make-believe fun holiday.  In fact, I just read that for the first time in history, more is spent on Halloween than Easter and the average family spends $80/yr on costumes, candy, and decorations.  I'm no expert on Halloween (or anything really), but have done a little research on the subject as a way of apologetics.  So lets just address each of the main elements of Halloween and see what God's Word says about it, shall we?

1. Halloween's Pagan Roots:

Not being one who enjoys reinventing the wheel, please go to the following site:

http://belief713.hubpages.com/hub/Why_Do_We_Celebrate_Halloween

I think this site sums it up pretty well.  NOTE:  Do watch the short YouTube videos there, but I wouldn't recommend watching the third video entitled "Halloween Origins" with children in the room, it's pretty frightening.  And the first video on that site is marked private for some reason, so you won't be able to view it, but the rest are good.

But if you don't have time to look up the link now (I hope you can find time later, it's excellent), in a nutshell, Halloween can be traced back to the ancient Druids, who were a highly educated or 'priestly' class of the Celts of the time. The Celts worshiped many false gods, including Samhain, the lord of the dead, on October 31.



Modern Druids at Stonehedge

It was (and is) believed that on October 31st, "the lord of the dead would gather all the souls of the evil dead who had been condemned to enter the bodies of animals. He then decided what animal form they would take for the next year. (The good dead were reincarnated as humans.) The Druids also believed that the punishment of the evil dead could be lightened by sacrifices, prayers, and gifts to Samhain (the god of the dead).

It was taught that evil spirits roamed the earth on October 31st and villagers had many practices to scare them away. They would light huge fires, dress in grotesque masks and costumes, and make both animal and human (usually infant) sacrifices in hopes of appeasing the gods and keeping their families safe. Sacrifices like these are still made today in many pagan circles, although it is seldom talked about or revealed.

~~~

Now, I'm very careful not to get too carried away with rejecting everything that has pagan roots to the point of being ridiculous because if one goes back far enough, most anything can have some history of the pagans using it for their heathen purposes.  Even many of our English roots, suffixes, and some of the letters of our alphabet have pagan history, but I still use them to speak English if you get what I mean.  But, when it comes to Halloween, there is absolutely nothing Christian about it, nor is it a neutral fun night.  The devil is very clever at making things look fun and wonderful on the outside that are very wrong on the inside -- Halloween is one of those things.

When thou art come into the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the abominations of those nations. There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch. Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer [those that communicate with the dead]. For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee. Thou shalt be perfect with the Lord thy God ~ Deuteronomy 18:9-13

2. Whom Do we Honor on Halloween?

For most of our American holidays, arguably, we honor (show great respect for) someone by setting aside a special day, a holiday, to remember some important person or event.  If one celebrates these holidays in the Christian tradition... they celebrate the birth of Jesus at Christmastime; thank God for His blessings at Thanksgiving; and celebrate our Risen LORD at Easter.  But whom do we honor at Halloween???  In many parts of the world Halloween is a religious holiday -- a holiday when people worship Satan and honor evil.  It's the biggest holiday on Satan's calender!    

  In Exodus 20 (the 10 Commandments), what does it say?  We are to honor the LORD our God and Him only.   In Isaiah 42:8 God says He will not share His glory with another!  And many times over God states that He is a jealous God.

3. What About Trick or Treats?

(Speaking nothing of the health "benefits" of all that candy -- are our children really so sugar deficient come this time of year?  Or does the Bible okay gluttony certain times of the year?).

Going back to Halloween's pagan origins, it all began as ancient cultic ceremonies and witchcraft rituals, honoring and appeasing evil spirits, and communicating with the dead.  People (Celts) worshiped statues and nature (sun, stars) and believed that the spirits of the dead could control the living.  They believed the souls of wicked people who had died (evil spirits) returned on Halloween, roaming villages, going from house to house, and if the families did not appease the evil spirits, they would harm & scare (haunt/torment) those living in that house.  So in order to keep the evil spirits happy, they set out sweets and treats to appease the evil spirits.  So when children Trick or Treat, they are taking part in the playing out of a very real pagan belief, whether they know it or not.  And when people offer treats to the children, they are acting out the tradition of offering sacrifices to evil spirits or Satan, whether they know it or not.  We have always had a rule in our home that it's never okay to emulate evil or to play or be entertained by anything that God calls sin.

I say the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God participants with demons. You cannot drink of the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons too; you cannot have a part in the Lord’s table and the table of demons. ~ I Corinthians 10:20-21 

4. What About Jack-O-Lanterns?

According to one story, Jack-O-Lanterns started from the Irish legend of "Irish Jack", a stingy drunk who tricked the devil into climbing a tree for an apple, but then carved the sign of the cross in the trunk to stop the devil from climbing back down. Jack then forced Satan to promise never to come after his soul, to which the devil reluctantly agreed. When Jack died, he was turned away at the gates of Heaven and was sent to the devil, who also rejected him. Jack was then condemned to wander the earth. As he was leaving hell, Satan pitched a piece of burning coal at him. Jack put the coal inside a turnip and was forced to forever roam with no resting place, holding only his 'Jack o' lantern' for light. The turnip was eventually traded for a pumpkin, and villagers then set the pumpkins & turnips outside their front gates to scare away the evil spirits who might think Jack was there.  Whether one goes by that legend or other thoughts, the whole idea was/is to scare away evil spirits!

  

 Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God. ~ James 4:4

5. What About Costumes?

First indoctrination.

Halloween costumes also originated from a time when costumes were used at pagan festivals often to change the personality of a person to allow for better communication with the Spirit world. The Celtic Druids wore large animal heads at rituals, in an attempt to pull energy sources out of that particular animal.  Costumes are used in Halloween tradition to either ward off evil spirits, blend in with the evil spirits, or appease evil spirits.  Even today, most costumes are often intended to be scary or risque´ -- not wholesome, and pure, and God honoring.  Personally, I don't know anyone who dresses their children in costumes with the pagan intent in mind, however, even if we dress our child in the most adorable costume, it doesn't make Halloween any more righteous. 

 

As you can see, Halloween centers around evil, scary things.  Many costumes picture witches, ghosts, skelatons, and evil creatures that are enemies of God.  God calls witchcraft a sin!  (I Samuel 15:23, II Chronicles 33:6, Micah 5:12, Galatians 5:20).  Jesus does not want us to have anything to do with evil.  If we are His children, how can we please God if we look & act like His enemies?  We want to be like Jesus!

 

 

6. What About The Religious Aspect of October 31st, All Hallow's Eve, and All Saints Day?

 

Hundreds of years ago, Rome passed a law that everyone had to accept Christianity as the new state religion.  Most became Christians because they had to, not because they wanted to.  Instead of giving up their pagan beliefs and the worship of many gods, they added these to Christianity.  When the rulers of Rome tried to stop Halloween parties, the people revolted.  They saw nothing wrong with mixing their many false beliefs with the the worship of Jesus.  Jesus was just another god to their collection.  So the Roman rulers moved a Roman Catholic holiday, All Saints Day, to November 1st and gave October 31st the name Halloween, which means Holy Evening.  Then they told the people to pray for the dead on Halloween instead of praying to other gods. (Note: The Roman Catholic Church officiated the solemnity of all saints and also called All Hallows or Hallowmas as a solemnity celebrated on November 1st in honor of all the saints, known and unknown.  All Hallow's Eve mean the "eve of all holy" because it's the night before All Saints' Day. All Saints' Day is specifically a Catholic feast day celebrated on November 1st.)  So basically, All Hallow's Eve and All Saints Day are a holiday of the Roman Catholic Church (not of the Bible).  Halloween takes place on the day before and was always a religious holiday, but it was never a Christian holiday.  It still isn't!  Changing the name of something doesn't change what it is, it's still a pagan holiday.  I don't ever recall anyone celebrating Halloween because it glorifies God.

 

Holiday of the Roman Catholic Church

A Holy Day to the LORD???
It's not in the Bible!

One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.   He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks. ~ Romans 14: 5-6

7. What About Attending A Church's Harvest Celebration, Family Fun Night, Church Carnival, Or Some Other Church Alternative On October 31st?

First of all, I don't see anything wrong with attending a church's Harvest Celebration, but I question why some churches think they have to have it on October 31st?  Usually harvest is long over by the end of October (at least it is here in Minnesota).  I would think if it is truly a "harvest" theme, it would be better held around Thanksgiving or better yet, at Sukkot.  I've also heard about some churches that have called their October 31st celebration a "harvest" celebration, but when families arrived there, they found it nothing but a Halloween party, complete with haunted house.  Or why would a city or suburban church even hold a typical agricultural-based event anyway?   If a church is really working that hard to distance itself from Halloween, enough to throw a distinct celebration, why are we linking ourselves to it by having it on the same night?  When we pull out of the driveway, do our neighbors know we are going to church to honor and glorify God or might they presume we are headed to a Halloween party?  Might it hinder our testimony if what we are doing requires an explanation?  The Bible clearly insturcts us to:

"Abstain from all appearance of evil." ~ I Thessalonians 5:22 

Personally, I believe God cares very much about the methodology of our orthadoxy and orthapraxy.  That is to say, he cares about the method in which a church does things.  Is it Biblical?  What saith the Scriptures?  Are there any verses or examples found in Scripture that support what we are doing?  A church event on the devil's holiday so that we Christians might not feel left out of secular fun just doesn’t sit well with me.  It really sounds like an updated version of what the Roman Catholic Church did hundreds of years ago to appease the pagans that were forced to be "Christians".  Another argument I hear is often times churches put on events to attract the unchurched or bring others in to a non-theatening environment "to see what the church is all about".  About what?  The church of fun & games???  A Christian Club Med???   Is that really what the church is all about?  And how many new attenders/members/Godly/growing Christians did this event attract?  And most importantly, did Jesus do that? 

Is it really that hard to treat October 31st just like we do any other non-holiday?  Would we be guilty of child neglect if we did?  Many people (including many Christians) will argue that Halloween is "no big deal".  They feel that by completely rejecting the holiday and refusing to celebrate it in any way, places their family as being 'over the top' - over-reacting.  For our family, the question lies in, "whom does this holiday glorify?".  The roots of Halloween are wickedly pagan, the past and present-day associations are directly connected to Satanism.

We are without excuse

Let's face it. When most of us were little, we didn't realize there was really anything wrong with Halloween -- yes, we probably knew (or not) that we shouldn't dress up as witches if we grew up in a Christian home, but neither us nor our parents knew the details of Halloween's darkness. Information was not as easily attainable as it is today with personal computers and instant internet access. So really, as today's Christians, we are without excuse. Even though one probably won't hear about it from the pulpit (shame on churches), information is readily available. All's one has to do is Google "Halloween Pagan", "Halloween Christian", "Why We Don't Do Halloween", or similar searches and one can find a whole slew of articles on the history of Halloween and why Christians should not be participates of this pagan holiday. Even many secular websites question why Christians continue to celebrate "the devil's holiday".

Those of us who now know the truth about Halloween are accountable for the information we have received and must answer to God someday.  We have been intrusted by our LORD with the nurture, protection, and spiritual training of the children He has blessed us with.  Dispite any human reasoning, good intentions and fond memories are no justification for ignoring God's Truth.  If we know the Truth, we are accountable; and if we choose to close our eyes & ears to the Truth, we are accountable before God for that as well.  What you do with this information is between you and God, but for our family, we found it was time to draw the line in the sand and say, "As for me and my house, we will serve [and honor, and glorify] the LORD!"

 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. ~ Ephesians 5:11

 

Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the Lord.   And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.   And the people answered and said, God forbid that we should forsake the Lord, to serve other gods; ~ Joshua 24:14-16

~~~

And now a few practical tips on what a family can do on Halloween

First of all, it's best to never even start celebrating Halloween.  When our first born was yet a baby, my husband and I agreed that we wouldn't do Halloween (or Santa, or the Easter Bunny for that matter).  However, there's nothing like the present to make changes.  Pray about it and as a family sit down and humbly make confession and explain the changes that will be made and why. 

 

When our girls were young, I found at a Christian bookstore, the book, "Mommy, Why Don't We Celebrate Halloween?"  by Linda Hacon Winwood, and read that to them every Halloween.  The girls never questioned why we didn't do Halloween, they knew, and easily accepted it.  This year we will be reading and viewing the YouTube videos from the link I gave you (under #1 above).

Some years we have gotten together with other friends that we knew didn't do Halloween as well and would have a potluck supper, sing worship songs, talk, & laugh (a lot) around a campfire.  Very fun Christian fellowship!

Most years we do nothing special and treat it as any other day.  This year friends are coming to visit (who don't do halloween) in the afternoon and then this evening we will enjoy a very quiet family night.  We are planning to cook out on our firepit.  Perhaps play some board games or watch a dvd (non-halloween related) and just enjoy eachother's company.  We live at the end of a quiet dead end road and never have any trick-or-treaters visit, thankfully, however, we keep the front lights off not to encourage any newcomers either.  To us, it's just another day and we never feel deprived or like we are missing out.  This is the day that the LORD has made and we will rejoice and be glad in it.  (and never give place to the devil).

May the LORD be Glorified!

2013-14 School Schedule & Curriculum Choices

 

It's hard to believe that we are now into our 15th year of homeschooling here at Prairie Hill Farm.  The memories are sweet and we cherish each day with our two Blessings! 

Amber, Jeff, Jane, Anna

We graduated our oldest in May of 2012, who is about to open her Etsy shop of selling her own vintage-inspired creations; and when not working on the biz, she is leading a girls Bible study, an Awana leader, volunteering at the nursing home, playing violin for weddings, and still helping out around the farm.  Oh, and she still enjoys joining us in Hebrew study and sometimes history.

  Our baby is now in 11th grade (grades are somewhat arbitrary here) and also helps lead in Awana, volunteers at the nursing home, plays piano, and helps with the farm.  She is our animal lover extraordinaire, and it's fun a challenge to try to find additional studies to help her on her way to have a career with animals that doesn't compromise our young-earth creationist and holistic beliefs.

I already know this is going to be lengthy, just skip what you like.  I like to keep a record of everything to print out for our records so I don't forget as I'm very eclectic and always pulling together the best of the best for us. 

 

 

Our Educational Philosophy & Teaching Approach: (for anyone new to my blog)

 

Biblical

We firmly believe that the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom and base ALL of our learning upon Sola Scriptura (Latin, "by Scripture alone"). Therefore, we look first to see what the Scriptures, God's Holy Word, say about any and all subjects, issues, and doctrines rather than the mere philosophy of fallible man. Our entire school day, as well as our 24/7 living, is saturated in God's Word.

And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up, ~ Deuteronomy 6: 5-7

Hebraic and Providential 

Our homeschool style is more of a Lifestyle of Learning – incorporating all of life in our learning process. And although we maintain high academic standards, more important than academic knowledge is the development of Godly wisdom and to walk in a manner pleasing to our LORD; therefore we use a Biblical (Hebraic) approach to education with God and His Word paramount. We teach the totality of Scripture! HIStory is taught chronologically and providentially. Science is studied in the order of the days of Creation, centered on God’s Word and God’s World. We do a lot of lapbooking, timelines, interactive notebooking, mapping, hands-on, and field trips as well as an occasional unit study or workbook.

he said unto them, Set your hearts unto all the words which I testify among you this day, which ye shall command your children to observe to do, all the words of this law. For it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life: and through this thing ye shall prolong your days in the land, whither ye go over Jordan to possess it. ~ Deuteronomy 32:46-47

The Schedule:  

 

Our 2013 - 2014 School Schedule

Click to enlarge

 

Our schedule has pretty much kept the same look throughout the years, with only the curriculum changing each year.  I don't put in any "times" for my own sanity, but we are usually at it right after 7 a.m. barn chores and breakfast, so around 8 or 9 a.m..  This year we started on Thursday, September 5th as we had an extended Labor Day weekend mini-vacation.  I should have waited until October 1 to start as harvest/canning/freezing is in full swing (late due to our late spring), but we love school and my daughter was anxious. 

 

You will note that we don't have a separate subject for "Bible".  This is because most all our subjects are saturated in Bible and we all have our own personal quiet times as well as family devotions most evenings plus extra Bible study time on Shabbat (the Sabbath).

 

 



So here we go with this year's curriculum choices (in the order of how they appear on the schedule).... 

 

*Note: I buy almost all my books used, so even though the links might show some pretty pricey books, you might be able to snatch them up for a song like I did.  My favorite go-to places are Amazon, Homeschool Classifieds, and Ebay.



 

The Curriculum:  

 

Note: I ALWAYS buy way too much curriculum, but the beauty with homeschooling is we can continue throughout the summer or just pick up where we left off next year.  This year we look forward to incorporating a lot of dvds and mp3's into our lessons by people who are smarter and far more eloquent than I.   On the down side of this is that Anna will not be able to rush through school like she is accustom -- after all, you can't speed up an hour-long dvd and it still make sense.     

 

Biblical Hebrew
 

This is a continuation of their (Amber joins us) Hebrew studies over the last couple of years, first using Zola's Introduction to Hebrew.  The girls continue to love learning God's pure language and this year it has grown closer to a unit study with a short lesson from me and an accompanying workbook, dvd, and cd (songs).  

 

Biblical Hebrew

 

Once they have completed the year's lessons, they will move on to the curriculum's Jonah Copybook: An Interlinear Hebrew Translation Workbook where they will translate the entire book of Jonah using the Copybook and Hebrew Bible.

 

Hebrew Lit. 

As part of the Biblical Hebrew "unit study", we will also be reading aloud the following:

Sofer: The Story of a Torah Scroll by Eric Ray

The World Jesus Knew by Anne Punton

Listening to the Language of the Bible by Lois Tverberg, Bruce Okkeman

Stones of Witness: Images of the Holy Land by Stewart Custer 

History of Christianity and the Christian Church

 

We begin with Genesis and move chronologically until modern times in America.  (This may take 2 years to complete).  I know the below list of curriculum looks rather intimidating, but I am listing everything I plan on using just so I don't leave anything out.  Most of these are not used on a daily basis and many don't begin until later in our studies or will end after we are done with Holy Land/Ancient times.  Amber wants to join us on these great lessons as well.

 

History of the World 2006 Mega-Conference with BC/AD  by Vision Forum (10 dvds & 40 mp3
     lectures & study guide)

The History of Christianity and Western Civilization by VF (over 50 mp3 & dvd lectures)  

Drive Thru History Holy Land (Volumes 1 - 4/ 12-episode dvds)

Drive Thru History Ancient History XL Series (12-episode dvds)

100 Most Important Events in Christian History by Curtis, Lang, Peterson

Trial and Triumph: Stories from Church History by Richard M. Hannula
DK The Story of Christianity by Michael Collins & Matthew A. Price
History of the Christian Church (Sonlight 220 Parent Guide) selected portions only
From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya: A Biographical History of Christian Missions by Ruth A. Tucker
Reformation Time Line by Rose Publishing
Drive Thru History American History Series (Episodes 1-12)
Drive Thru History Foundations of Character study guide & dvd
Homeschool In The Woods: Old Testament Lapbook (started yrs. ago & we will finally finish and put
    inserts in our history notebook instead of a lapbook)
History Through the Ages: Record of Time (Timeline book - I am printing out my own online images)

Trail Guide to Bible Geography and Bible Lands Activity Maps from Geography Matters

Hammond Atlas of the Bible Lands (out of print, but worth the hunt)

...and other online sources in case this isn't enough, ha. (I've already found some and I'm wondering if I can fit them in (I know, crazy talk).

Music

Amber

Amber has taken violin lessons for 13 yrs. and still takes lessons even now, only every other week.  She enjoys playing for ministry and special events or weddings.




Anna

Anna has moved from violin, to guitar (& still plays for ministry and fun), but now devotes her time to her first love (musically speaking) of piano.  Although she has taken piano for only about a year, she has quite an ear for it and is to the point where she could teach beginner piano (if she wanted to).

 

 

Vocabulary & Typing 

    

High School Vocabulary (2 words/wk from a list I have from Inga Cannon)
Vocabulary Cartoons.com (1/day - 3 days/wk) will finish in 25 wks.
Scholastic Dictionary of Idioms by Marvin Terban (3/day - 3 days/wk) will finish in 9 wks.
Words on the Vine by Claudia Vurnakes (3 pgs/wk) It is geared for 5-8th grade, but many high school
    teachers use it too.  Fun.  Good stuff! 
Bible-based, Self-paced Computer Typing Curriculum by Jackie Newbrough (out of print)

Math  (12th Grade courses)

 

Math U See Stewardship

Landmark's Freedom Baptist Curriculum Business Math

 

I'm combining two great curriculum.  I like MUS for it's common sense practical teaching and because Mr. Steve Demme includes a devotional with each lesson and is pretty like-minded with our family.  I like LFBC because they delve into the spiritual and moral aspects of some math issues; for example, they not only teach about taxes, but address the issues of whether Americans should even have a "Social Security".  Love that!

 

Science

Apologia Zoology III
E-Training for Dogs  (can receive CEUs for course work)
... and possibly other online college-level courses in zoology

Art

See the Light Art Class by Pat Knepley 1 day/wk         
 (a 9-volume dvd Christian art class by a master artist) 

 

Tada!  That about covers it!

Stay tuned for our classroom makeover reveal and First Day of School photos.