New Camera!

Scott and I have been waiting patiently to get a new camera.  I have been happily using my Iphone and living my life.  

My beloved Sony Cybershot broke last year and I've been living "happily" off my iPhone.  I use my iPhone camera to document our life and it has served our purpose well.  However, my handsome husband and I are about to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary with a a cruise to Alaska this September.   I cannot imagine being there and not being able to zoom in and capture photo's from the glaciers, whales, and wildlife.  This is a once-in-a-lifetime legacy get away and I want to share it with my children and our family for years to come.

I began searching for a good zoom camera not expecting to feel the need to make a purchase, yet.  I was in my "dream" mode when I began looking on my Amazon Prime account.  However,   when the Canon SX-500 came up as best in it's class for point and shoots  with 30X Zoom I was fascinated.  Add that it was 108.00 off retails.  Well, let's say, I just wanted to be a good steward. (grin)

Below are some of my first shots.....I have a lot to learn.  I'm in the "grammar" stage of learning with this new camera.

Off to meet with my old Salt and Light ladies and then meeting with homeschoolers who want to know more about Classical Conversations.  But to keep it real, I need to do math and laundry first!

Headshots!

We finally replaced our camera!  

(It's been broke for almost a year)  

I was playing around with the new setting on my Canon and ended up with headshots of three of my boys and our two little girls......

 

 

Tampa Practicum - Day THREE!

Friday was Jessica's turn to share her vision as Support Manager.  She did such an A-M-A-Z-I-N-G job communicating her heart and her why.  (Why she does what she does)  It always comes back to HIM!  What do you want, Lord?  Help us to walk in your ways without getting in your way.  Jessica had a smile on her face and purpose in her heart.  

FRIDAY'S TOPIC

"Hallelujah"!  We did it.....no, "HE" did it!  



Truly, I cannot wait to dive into all my curriculum, guides, dvd's, and lesson plans.  God is GOOD!

Day three is all about the power conversation plays in helping us to process thoughts and master idea's.  

A wonderful example was taken from something Lynn had us do the day before.  She was modeling how powerful conversation is in math and wanted to apply it to other subjects.  So, she asked us to partner with the person sitting next to us and to talk about The War Between States.  

As I walked up to this precious woman sitting by herself in the front row, she immediately blurts out, "I don't know anything about that war".  I smiled (knowing well the fear she was feeling) and began our conversation by asking her this simple question:

What are basic things you think might have taken place?

• It was a war that took place between the North and the south?
• It was also called, The Civil War?
• Slavery was involved.
• Underground railroad came into action!

Then we stopped and polled the entire audience.  When you took her four facts and added them to someone else's facts you were able to visibly see the power conversation in community adds to the learning process.  

We filled up an entire white board with facts about, The War Between States.  Together we made a great team and learned far more than we would have by ourselves.

We grew in our understanding and in relationship.  This is exactly what happens in Classical Conversations when our children meet together, week-after-week-after-week.

Next came Lynn and her beautiful gift of connecting our hearts to our subject matter.  She inspires me and causes me to think beyond the moment. 

A big take-away for me personally has been that doing hard things draws me closer to the Lord.  

Hear my heart, I don't want to do hard things simply to do hard things, but I do want to do those things which empower and equip us (my family and I) to further God's Kingdom.   

Can I confess to you that one of the things that kept me from Classical Conversations was a fear that these communities were focused on the pursuit of knowledge, more than the pursuit of God.  

I wanted Jesus to be my everything and was afraid that Classical Education would become an idol, chasing after knowledge.  

What I have found to be true is that Classical CHRISTIAN Education (Which is what Classical Conversations helps us walk out) is a pursuit of God like I've never known.  

It's about total dependence on HIM and understanding that I can do the work, but only HE can make the connections.  Apart from Him I count it all useless. 

I will never look at a circle or the number zero again and not think of the completeness, the wholeness of God.  

One of the things I share at Practicum is how I didn't want to do this years speaker training when I found out the subject was math.  I had explained to Lynn that I was not a math person.  Lynn (patiently and lovingly) shared with me that I was the perfect person to represent this subject matter because, as I had aha's I could share them with others just like me.  I remember feeling pressure because I really didn't believe I was going to have aha's.  Actually, I didn't even want to have aha's.  I didn't understand what the big deal was.  I just needed enough math to get me through life, right?  

It is truly with tears overflowing that I sit here this morning thanking the Lord for this beautiful friend of mine who loved me and believed in me (and more importantly believed in the ONE who made me) enough to give me the push to go.  

This wasn't as much about falling madly in love with math.  This was about falling madly in love with the maker of math, Jesus Christ.  

It was a lesson in God's redemption and His love for His children.  It was learning how to make Phil 4:13 come to life....I CAN do ALL things THROUGH CHRIST who strengthens me.  

If anyone had ever told me that God would use math to draw my heart to the HIM I would have laughed out loud, literally.  But it's true.  It's not about math, but the process of going to Him in everything....math, food, money, debt, parenting, for understanding, wisdom, and knowledge.  

By wisdom a house is built,
    and through understanding it is established;
 through knowledge its rooms are filled
    with rare and beautiful treasures. - Proverbs 24:2-4

Oh how I love Him!

MATH FUN

Lynn invited Laura, one of our lovely tutors to come up and share how we teach the four math laws to even our youngest children.  There was singing, dancing, chanting, and laughing.  She was incredible!

Check out the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxtLn-0OSHU

(Permission was granted before sharing;)

Lynn also had the audience participate in partnering to work through math conversationally!

They would then share what they learned.

DIRECTORS

Day three was also about introducing the directors of the different programs in Hillsborough and Pinellas.  They were such a GREAT group.  

 

 

FRIENDS

Oh how I love these women.  It was such a JOY to be reunited with them after our summer break.  

They make my heart happy!

Kathy, is affectionately known as our "book lady".  She travels the state and diligently works our bookstore.  I just love her and her precious daughter.  She exudes the heart of a servant and encourager.  Just seeing her brings peace into the chaos of a large event.  Thank you, Kathy Brown for all you do!  XXOO

ESSENTIALS TRAINING

You've heard me talk about my mornings, but let me share what my afternoons were like.  I was privileged to sit under Tracie White as she trained our Essentials group from Pinellas.  She did such a beautiful job.  

Here is a perfect example of how she would break the ice and get us ready for three hours of Essentials Tutor Training.  Because it was day three she asked if any of us could relate to the picture next to her.   

Yes, we work hard and we play hard and we give God all the glory!!!!  

 

Tampa Practicum - Day TWO!

 

God is SO good!  Day two was a blast and a blessing.  My biggest prayer going into this practicum was that the Lord would renew and revive my heart before I ever stepped up to say one word.  I love Classical Conversations and what it has done for our family.  It's redeeming my education and my love of learning!  It's also giving me the accountability I so desperately need.  My fear was that I would become dulled down or complacent with the information.  My concern was that I would not represent the Lord as passionately in this fourth and final practicum.

  As you can see above......HE DID EXCEEDINGLY MORE THAN I COULD EVER ASK!

I'm so glad I had the concern, because it caused me to desperately cling to the cross of everlasting truth!  My heart is so on fire for HIM, for them, and for what HE is going to do this next new school year in my own home.  He is GOOD!  As I spend time with Him each morning and fill up on HIS life-changing, supernatural, everlasting, all empowering Word, HE IS FAITHFUL!  Faithful to stoke my fire and to make it BRAND NEW!  

I've loved all the practicums, but I've loved the timing of this one most.  Why?  Because it's launching us into our new school year, rather than closing it out.  I've loved it so much that we've made our Pinellas Practicum next July.  What a wonderful way to begin your new school year. 

 Day two was Deanna's turn to share her Support Manager vision with our audience.  She was so cute. Her heart for the Lord is transparent and her love for Leigh's vision of growth was contagious.  I'm so thankful that I get the change to know her better this next year.  It's fun serving with others.  The Lord truly does knit our hearts together as we work towards the same goal!

"I planted the seed in your hearts, and Apollos watered it, but it was GOD who made it grow.  It's not important who does the planting, or who does the watering.  What's important is that God makes the seed grow.  The one who plants and the one who waters work together with the same purpose. - 1 Corinthians 3:6-8

 

Lynn, truly inspired our heart as she shared her passion for growing in understanding.  Yesterday, she led by example as she worked through difficult math problems that she was not completely understanding.  Why did she do this?  To show that, as we humble ourselves in the Lord, as we have conversations with others, as we seek Him with all of our hearts, GOD is the one that helps us grasp those concepts that our flesh wants to give up on.  

 

Lynn has taught me that doing hard things has such purpose.  My flesh loves to do what I love to do, but my spirit rejoices as I do those things that I don't necessarily want to do and push through.  On the other side is an indwelling of JOY that I would have never experienced if I had allowed my flesh and emotions (desires) to dictate my life.

 On day two one of the things we've begun doing is bringing up our tutors to read through the tutor creed.  In a nutshell, the tutor creed (Very loosely paraphrased below)  is the heart of leadership within community:

• Lead by being a humble learner yourself
• Exert resourcefulness
• Help empower parents in their role as their child's teacher
• Encourage your families
• Work with (not in place of) your parents

This was just a glimpse, there are actually seven points to the creed.  Why do I love this portion of our morning program?  Because it ties the hearts of parents and tutors.  It reminds all of us of the great privilege we've been given to parent and educate our children.  We only get one shot and we can never do it over again.  We want to make every single second count.  Our kids are growing up so fast.  Being in community reminds us of why we're doing what we're doing.

Below is a snapshot of my favorite moment.  Testimonies from the audience!  Let me clarify that the testimonies are not of man, but of how the Lord is speaking to them.  This precious woman of God humbly shared how Lynn's testimony of sitting with our children while they do school (even when we have so many other things to get done) convicted her heart not to push away, but to pull them alongside. 

 

Tampa Practicum - Day ONE

Mary, Lynn, and Jessica!

Jessica is doing a G-R-E-A-T job running the Tampa Practicum.  (Especially when you consider that she is about to give birth in just a few weeks) 

Day one is always scary and exciting.  You don't know your audience yet (They don't know you, either)  It's scary because it takes a few minutes to make the connection and fun because my #1 strength theme according to my Strength Finder 2.0 test results is WOO. (Winning Others Over)  


What does Winning over an audience mean?  It's when the Lord allows this great group of moms and dads to see your genuine love for HIM and for each of them!  It's also that moment when you can just sense that their hearts are connecting with yours.  You go from being with a lot of strangers to lingering with friends.

I begin the morning and my good friend Lynn brings it home.  Day one is all about understanding these important truths:

• We are not called to be June Cleaver
• We only get one shot at raising our children and we want to make every second count
• Homeschooling and parenting can become idols if we don't watch our hearts
• We must seek God first, every.single.day
• We can't give away what we don't own ourselves
• We are not trying to duplicate modern education, but walk out a Classical Christian Education
• Grammar stage of learning is for birth through 12-14 and it's all about drilling

Lynn inspires your heart as she walks through how important it is to begin learning math right where you're at.  She beautifully and practically talks about starting over.  She shows us how to go back to find out where we missed important foundational grammar and understanding.  

Lynn's time is to practically walk out how moms & dads can begin the journey of redeeming their own education.  It makes you excited to look at math in a whole new light.  

The picture above shows my good friends Tonya and Rita encouraging moms in our audience.  I always love pulling my friends into conversation.  Tonya has become so precious to my heart, and her mama Rita has always been such a strong tower of wisdom.  What a blessing to look up and see their smiling faces in the audience.  They graciously shared encouragement and practical tips for moms wanting idea's on how to balance school work with house work.  Tonya is the most organized woman I've ever met. (Well, she and my friend Kim Coley)

(Note that I did not try to answer that question;)

 We were so glad to have Christa at the Tampa Practicum.  She is attending Essentials training (as am I) in the afternoons.  Christa selflessly and diligently put together our power point presentation.  What a blessing and gift that is not to have this one item on our plate of responsibility.

Okay, time to get off my computer and begin getting ready for day two...... 

Stay Tuned!