Oh Darlin' Don't You Ever Grow Up

It seems like last week that we started this homeschool journey. I was convinced I was going to ruin my Emily. I remember so clearly the day Doug brought her home from Kindergarten, she was crying again.  He matter-of-factly told me, "I unenrolled her from school.  We are going to homeschool." Now, we had talked about homeschooling someday, when life was normal. (At that point I still expected life to get "normal")  Panicked, I stammered, but, but, but... I'm pregnant, we are living with your parents, I, I, I can't do this now. Doug looked at me, smiled and said, "Stacy, it's Kindergarten, shapes, numbers, letters, colors.  I'm pretty sure you know the material." And so began our homeschool journey.

Now here she is all grown up, mostly. 

I'm happy to say she knows all her shapes and colors, letters and numbers.  

She graduated.  SHE DID IT!

 

This whole homeschool Mom package comes with all sorts of crazy emotions on Graduation Day.  Not only am I incredibly proud of my daughter, I'm also incredibly proud of me. 

I DID IT!

 

I successfully homeschooled a child for her entire school career. She has written a novel and continues to love and pursue writing.  She has accumulated dozens of college credits while finishing high school. She reads everything and thinks deeply. 

And then there's the part of me that is far less confident.  Did I do enough? Did I teach her all she needs to know? What did I miss? And why couldn't I help her not struggle with math?

I am so thankful for GRACE! And for a God who fills in the gaps.  And the sweet fruit that has grown from the seeds of perseverance, peace, hope, and love.

Most importantly, she loves.  She loves Jesus.  She loves her parents. She loves her siblings.  She loves others.  Seeing her grow in her relationships is the most important and rewarding part of this journey.  When I see those relationships growing I am exceedingly thankful and proud. 

Emily has so many gifts and talents I cannot wait to see how God uses them.  She is a gift and a blessing to us. I love our chats, our coffee dates, our shopping sprees, and the time we have to spend together. 

Spread your wings and fly, Girlie.  Good things are in store!

What I've Learned on the Road - Guest Post by my Daughter Emily

Today's post is my first Guest Post.  My 17-year-old daughter Emily journaled some of her thoughts about our four months on the road and it's just too good not to share with the world! 

From My Emily:

I haven’t written much about our trip.

Mostly because I’ve been living, in a richer and scarier way than ever before.

Not knowing where I’m going to be living next week is scary. Not knowing what might happen in the next three days is scary. Not knowing my surroundings is scary. Not knowing if my cell phone and wifi will work at my next temporary home is scary. Knowing I won’t hug my best friends for at least six months is scary. Knowing I won’t have a house when I enter the Lone Star State is scary.

I’ve traded those securities for a life full of things I will probably never get a chance to do or see again.

I have jumped in the current of a lake carved by lava thousands of years ago in Firehole Canyon, Wyoming.  I have climbed a mountain (albeit it was a small one, but still!!). I have stood by with huge eyes as a buffalo walked five feet in front of me in Montana.

I have seen purple lightning strike right next to a vivid rainbow in Wyoming's blood-red sky. I have laughed until I cried under the stars of Tennessee with my brother. I have seen an arm of the Milky Way in Wisconsin. I have seen the sun rise over Lake Michigan and swam in its freezing embrace. I have seen mud bubbling out of the earth’s belly and Old Faithful bursting out in astonishing glory in Yellowstone Park. Zip-lined through the Indiana woods, six feet off the ground as branches whipped my legs. 

I have walked through the Creation Museum’s startlingly lifelike version of Eden, a place I have longed for and wondered about my entire life. Hiked through the wooded hills of Indiana. Watched the Nolichucky river rapids sweep over boulders like a crashing, mad stampede. Seen glaciers for the very first time in Montana. Slept under shooting stars in Washington. Bogged for crawdads in Montana. Ate at the original KFC. Stepped into Texan dinosaur footprints that dwarfed my size-10 foot. Seen moonlight shining through Arkansas’ fog. Eaten sweet wild mulberries right off a tree in both Indiana and Tennesee. 
Walked over ground that Laura Ingalls Wilder, one of my heroes, regularly treaded on in De Smet, South Dakota. Screamed on roller coasters I was dragged on at the Mall of America. Ridden a horse (without assistance!) through a Tennessee wood. Driven just feet from the edge of a cliff in Glacier Park. Sat stone-still in the van as huge bighorn sheep rushed past us in the parking lot.

I’ve learned:

·         that you never drink out of still water. Pick clear, quickly-moving water.

·         that purification and lavender oil smell really good combined

·         I don’t *need* Starbucks every week (now it’s much more of a treat than it ever was!)

·         what reasonable propane costs are

·         how to assemble a campground in less than a half hour

that apples and avocados ripen each other very quickly

·         fig bars go amazingly well with coffee

·         hot showers are a luxury and not a necessity

     how to elevate a camper

·         how to set up five beds in ten minutes

·         you don’t have to have a silent environment to write or work

          you don’t NEED to download the new Skillet album the DAY it comes out

·         baking soda and lavender draw out infection

·         how to wash a full dishload by hand in 20 minutes (paper plates are my best friend!)

·          and many, many other little tips and tricks I never would have had to learn outside of my current lifestyle.

·      

      

 Not to mention the household things I’ve learned. I’ve been using a lot of essential oils, which are now my go-to medicines: mint really helps headaches and girl cramps and PanAway helps with stressed or strained muscles and knots! I’ve learned how to cook large meals on a foot-wide stove or over a fire. When Mom was gone in China for a week, I got a taste of what she goes through every day of her life. 

I think the most difficult things for me to master have all been internal. I never thought of myself as selfish, materialistic, or vain, but when we moved into my moving home, my supposed good virtues got a prompt smack in the face. Learning to get along with ten other people in limited space has required a lot of dying to self, patience, and biting my tongue till it hurts, even if I’m 99% sure I’m right. Letting go of most of my earthly possessions was harder than I thought, but four months later, I’m starting to forget I actually have more stuff in storage (most of which will probably be given away!) Having just a few feet to primp and preen has been embarrassingly rough, actually. I used to spend an excessive amount of time on how I looked, curling or straightening my hair or painting eyeliner wings. Getting over having noisy bunk mates is still being mastered, but I’ve found wearing a smile and staying quiet is in the best interest for everyone.
  

Being cautious and careful with money is a new thing for me. Sure, I might have watched my account back home, but I also had three jobs that ensured I would always be comfortably topped off. Now, most of my money is either for things I actually NEED or an occasional treat. Imagine that!!

I feel as if I was in a comfortable, safe dream, and then was whisked away to a foreign and frightening world that was all the same beautiful and breathtaking, a world that very suddenly ripped off dross and revealed gorgeous gold beneath, however painful it was.

I’m still in the refiner’s fire and am still learning every day, like my brother learning how to walk. My legs are shaky and nervous, but I want to see what else is out there, and walk into the rest of God’s world I haven’t yet laid eyes on. 

Emily, I'm so proud of you.  I'm proud of the way you think of others. I'm proud of the way you have embraced change.  I'm proud of the way you have chosen to see things through new eyes when you could have just chosen to bide your time until we got home.  I'm proud of the growth and maturity I see in you.  Phil 1:6 makes me think of you, "He who began a good work in you will be faithful to carry it on to completion in Christ Jesus."

WHY am I Going to CHINA?

It's one of the most frequent questions that comes up.

In short the answer to this is:

James 1:27

Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: 

to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, 

and to keep oneself unstained from the world.

The deeper answer to the WHY question is:

My heart has been stirred over and over through the years following the adoption journeys of my friends Jen Johnson and Susanna Musser , and the very courageous Katie in Uganda as they have followed the Lord by adopting children with special needs from (or in) foreign countries.  

Their faith, persistence, hope, and compassion are truly inspiring.  If you want to know Jesus, get to know these women. 

The need is great, but our SAVIOR is even greater! He moves in all kinds of ways to accomplish His work in this fallen world, a world where parents die or can't or won't care for their children.  

Not everyone is called to adopt.  But everyone is called to DO SOMETHING.  One of the very clear commands in scripture is to "visit orphans and widows in their distress." and that is what this trip is all about for me. 

What are you doing to fulfill that command? What is God calling you to do? 

Pray? 

Give?

Go? 

Adopt?

There are literally thousands of organizations you can work with to "visit orphans and widows in their distress."  Ask the Lord what HE wants you to do and JUST DO IT! 

If God can send me, a mom of nine children, living in a RV, traveling the U.S. He can send ANYONE! 

It's His work, be a part of it. 

Guess what?! GOD USES THE GRIT!

How does a Rock Tumbler work?

You start with rough stones, add grit, and a bit of moisture.  Then you tumble... over... and over... and over... and over, for a month or more.  

We've been on the road a month!  We've seen so many amazing things in just that time!  We took awhile to unwind, to get sick, to get better, and we've hit our stride somewhat, but now, it seems we are in a bit of a 33 foot Rock Tumbler right now.  The "grit" for me is sleeplessness, mostly and laundry, (clothing IS a result of the Fall, you know!) and the lack of an established schedule.  (I can fix that!)

There is other "grit" for various ones of us, but I'll just share my own grit. 

Guess what?! GOD USES THE GRIT! 

I've been living in Romans 15 for the past few weeks. The words "Encouragement and Endurance" appear over and over. 

Romans 15:1-2, 5 We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.  Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. (5)May the God who gives ENCOURAGEMENT AND ENDURANCE give you a spirit of UNITY among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus so that with one heart and mind you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Our goal and desire in our family is to glorify the Lord and LOVE each other.  While the rough edges are being slowly worn away and the grit of life rubs us "wrong" over and over and over again.  It can all be for His glory as we surrender to him asking Him to show us our own sin and bring us to repentance and holiness.  

*credit to my husband for the rock tumbler analogy!