Goals

I thought I would update you all on me.
This past month I attended a four week self-employment seminar through LDS Employment. It has been great. We were taught how to create and follow through with a business plan. (Thank you, Elder Carlson!)

I have discovered that I love the research involved in creating a plan. Hopefully I will get better at the implementation of the plan!

I began going to the class so that I could be more help to Bryan as he searches out options for his future, but I was immediately reminded of my own "dreams".

On a very back burner in my overstuffed homeschool mom brain is the dream of creating a private school which teaches the Leadership Education Model. For those of you unfamiliar with this philosophy check out George Wythe University or The Center for Social Leadership.

I feel strongly that in order for our nation to remain free and strong we must educate ourselves and our children to become statesmen. There is a real need to raise up the rising generation prepared to accomplish great things.

My heart goes out to families who do not have the opportunity or the confidence to homeschool, especially in areas like ours with very poorly performing public schools. So, I have put myself on a five year plan to prepare myself in my own education and in gathering others with the same vision who can help me in this important endeavor. (ok, I admit, I wouldn't mind having a break from my own kids!)

The first step of my plan is to finish the 5 pillars of Statesmanship training offered by George Wythe University. It is a program of reading the classics and receiving mentoring by others who have trod the path themselves. I have two more books to read for the first level. My goal is to finish the second level by this time next year.

I am currently debating with myself whether or not to pursue a Bachelors in Statesmanship from GWU also. I would love to do that and receive a minor in Political Science.
So now you know one of my "dreams" that I am trying to turn into a goal!

What are your goals? One year? Five years? Ten years?

My New Etsy Shop!

Hey Everybody!
I have followed in the footsteps of my little sister, Selissa, owner of Forever and a Day, and opened my own Etsy shop! Happenchance!
Etsy is an awesome place to find unique handmade gifts for all ages and interests.
So far I have for sale, aprons, pillows, cell phone snugglies, and scrabble tile jewelry.
I will have a lot more jewelry soon!
Have fun on Etsy and tell all your friends!!

Autumn School Days

Our house has been busy with little people schooling away to their hearts content. O.K. That is a lie. Most of them are not at all content about it. However, as this is a novel year, in that I have been feeling quite sane, we have been accomplishing alot!
Emilie can read several words and is excited to read her first short story today! Sarah is progressing amazingly in her reading and is suprising herself daily with the realization that she can decipher more words than she thought. Joseph is as always curious about the natural world and not so much about grammar, but he perserveres.
Aliyah is best at sneeking away to build some sort of sculpture instead of doing anything that involves writing. Unless she gets to write her tales of horses and cowboys which are nearing epic length. Jolie is fast approaching the designation of scholar. She is the one I can count on to finish all her work cheerfully even if I have to leave the house on errands. She especially loves the fascinating world of the human body this year, and has proven that she can draw by turning in several diagrams of the brain and skeletal system so far.

Jacob most enjoys hard, sweaty boy work. He has been learning to roof houses and build motorcycles. He would rather chop wood than do any school work but as he is in the 9th grade he must make room for a variety of learning. Right now he is focusing on math, ancient history, and logic. Focusing might be too strong a word.

I have made myself busy with the organization of a homeschool cooperative. That means I have, with the help of my awesome friend Dee, created an association of 16 families who meet monthly to provide academic and enrichment classes to a combined 60 children. This semester we offer three classes plus choir to each of 5 age groups.
I am teaching American Heritage to the middle/high schoolers. I love it! We expect to continue to grow in size over the next year. I feel blessed to be able to help provide this resource to all the families involved. I know Heavenly Father has really blessed us in this project.

I am sure you are wondering about Bryan and his career! So far no job has panned out. He feels that he is being drawn back into the self employment world. I am all for it! Some of our happiest family years were when he worked for himself. We get to see him more often! For now he has had continual work in construction. It is hard work and he comes home exhausted, but it pays the bills! The plan is to work on his ideas for businesses throught the winter and have some grand and wonderful something going in the Spring. Pray for him to be led to the right business for him.

Pairs

My mother always told me to have my children in pairs. For safety reasons.

I think she meant sanity.

Haven't you noticed that two children together aren't exactly safe but they do keep each other busy which leads to a greater level of sanity on the part of the mother?

Jake and Jo have always been a pretty chummy pair.

Liyah is happy to team up with Jo on some occasions and with Sephi on others.

He in turn is equally content being silly with either Liyah or Rose.

Rose will entertain herself with anyone as long as she is in charge.

Emi is her usual victim.

And so our little Gid, who is not so little anymore, has found himself the odd man out.

We have decided to rectify the situation.....

Beginning February 17th, Gideon will have someone special to play with. His very own pair, partner, chum, slave, victim.
Baby #8!

P.S. It is unknown as to whether Gid's new playmate will be a girl or a boy. Gid is very determined to have a brother. Mom is not so sure. We'll keep you updated!

My awesome sister...

is having a baby boy! She is the crocheting queen! Check out her blog. She has the most beautiful creations for babies and adults. Her new adult shrug is gorgeous! Sis, you are soooo talented.

Update (expect one monthly)

Bryan did not get the job in Oregon. Wah. He immediately (after months of urging from his ever attentive, paranoid, grocery budgeting wife)went to LDS Employment Services down in Independence. His reluctance was well founded as they have been thoroughly unhelpful to professionals in the past. However, much has changed and Bryan has been getting excellent assistance from three very well informed and capable businessman missionaries on all aspects of the job search.
He has been very busy since, creating new resumes and job hunting. He has also gotten a couple construction jobs in the area to pay the bills.
The house we own in town is about to be SOLD. That hopefully will be completed by the end of the month.
All in All things are looking up and we are hopeful that he will have a job offer somewhere withing the next couple of months.
I am beginning to go into my annual crazy mode of preparing for the new school year. The feelings of panic are magnified by the fact that we have a HIGH SCHOOLER!!!!
I have had much much help with the planning through HSLDA.org and BYU independent Study. Our grand plan is to prepare our children for admittance into BYU. Even if they don't go, they have to be capable of going or they will be shot!
This year as Jacob begins 9th grade, Jolie will move to 8th, Aliyah is in 6th, Joseph in 4th, Sarah is a very excited 2nd grader, Emilie is in official kindergarten (though she has been doing Kindergarten work since her birthday) and Gideon is excited to be truly starting Pre-school!
So far I have decided to use Five in A Row as a basic curriculum for the three little ones. It is alot of fun. We will be gathering all kinds of things for the older kids but hope to follow the principles found in Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver DeMille. EVERYONE SHOULD READ THIS BOOK!
Have a happy summer!

Update

Wilford Woodruff, the great latter day historian, would be quite disappointed that I have failed to chronicle the interesting happenings of the last month and a half. But all I can do is strive to do better.
know I say this every post it seems but we have been working harder than we ever have on any house!

Since March we have completely finished the kitchen, all the tile, a new bathroom, changed a bedroom to a library, created a pantry,installed new interior doors,trim, flooring, caulking, painting. Bryan has spent several days in the roasting hot attic running new wiring and rearranging the old. We now have electricity almost everywhere! He and Jake spent two days drywalling a new bedroom and most of the new basement walls.

During all this the lawn mower broke three or four times. The main sink faucet in the kitchen began leaking at weird unexplainable intervals, and I just had to change the kitchen color from red to a much more lighthearted green.

The motivation for the non-stop painting and fixing and building and fixing and fixing is this, One of three things will happen in our future.

One, Bryan will get an amazing job here and will not be around again to fix my house and I will go crazy and be unable to adequately home school my children or cook good nutritious meals. (Bryan knows that if I don't have a pretty kitchen, he'll have to do the cooking.)

Two,Bryan will get an amazing job elsewhere and we will have to sell our house and it will need to be done for that to happen.

Three,(which is not really an option and we hope Heavenly Father has much more pleasant plans in store for us)There will be no job and we will lose everything we own including the beautiful house and we will all live together in a cardboard box (where Bryan will do the cooking.)

So far, it looks like option two might be the most likely. Bry has been interviewing with MasterBrand Cabinets in Grants Pass, Oregon. He will be flying out to have a final interview this Thursday. I will withhold comments on our opinions of living in that beautiful gorgeous heaven on earth to spare the feelings of our friends and family who might be reading this post in agony over the thought of our leaving them.
We probably will not know about the job until the end of next week.

We are living by faith that God has great things in store for our family. He has never let us down before.