Finally... I can tell everybody.

After months and months of serious prayer and Jared listening patiently to my endless ramblings, we have decided to homeschool. It may be for a year or it may be until they graduate. I'm sure we'll take it year by year.

All of my curriculum for Will and Jet is bought. I have officially withdrawn both boys from school. Within the next couple of weeks I will start lesson planning.

For those of you that are interested, I'll discuss what curriculum I chose in another post.

But for now, for those of you who think I have lost my mind, I'll list my top ten reasons for homeschooling.

#10. As mentioned in my previous post, my kids are growing up so fast. The years that I have them at home are so short and I truly want to suck in every minute that I can.

#9. Jet would continue to be in Special Ed next year. I have nothing against Special Education and thus far our experience has been really really good. However, I do not want Jet to be 'labeled' Special Ed. I feel that it would a self-fulfilling prophecy.

#8. I have an invested interest in my children's future, obviously. It is important to me that they have an amazing education. I want to know what they're learning, what they're struggling in, what courses we can advance in and places that may need review. I won't have to wait for a parent-teacher conferences to know exactly how they are doing.

#7. The past 2 years have been hairy-scary around my house. Poor Anabella has grown up in her carseat. I am averaging 200 driving miles per week and it was even more when we were going to therapy everyday. I am honest to goodness sick and tired of the daily grind.  I am really excited to have fun with my kids. We are going to go on a field trip once a week and I am so looking forward to making those memories with them.

#6. Freedom. We will actually have total control over our schedule. We don't have to be some where everyday at a certain time. We can go on vacation in September. We can live in tin-buk-tu if we wanted to.

#5. When you homeschool you get to decide what you study. That is one of the things that I am most excited about for Will. For science, we are going to study Zoology. For music, Jared is going to teach him guitar. My curriculum is very eclectic, so I can learn how he learns best. At this young age, I want Will to be excited about learning. I think that in and of itself will take him a long ways.
  
#4. I think that there is eternal value in homeschooling. All of my curriculum is faith based. We will be doing scripture memorization. As their parent, I will ensure that they have solid foundation in scripture. Proverbs 22:6 - Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.

#3. Right now, we really only get to see Will for a couple of hours a day during the week. And during those hours, everybody is tired. We've ran here and there and Will has worked his tail off at school. I am excited to be giving my best to my kids, not my leftovers.

#2. I asked Will why he wanted to be home schooled. He put it best... "I want to spend time with my family. I like my brother and my sister."

#1. This is something that I have felt a prompting from the Holy Spirit to do. We as a family have said "yes" to that still, small and quiet voice (1 Kings 19:12).

So there you have it. Now everybody knows my little secret. Here's to a new adventure.

Confident of His Goodness,
Lela

Get out your flyswatter.

My 6-Year-Old is turning into a man. :(

He lost his first tooth.

The tooth fairy brought him a $2.00 bill. Will said she did that because she is the Twoth Fairy.

He has learned to ride his bike without training wheels.

And he has learned to fart with his armpit (and he does it constantly). I told him he at least needs to put some sort of rhythm to it or something. So, he made up a song about farting, pooping and peeing. The mind of a 6-year-old is so complex.

I'm pretty sure my 2-year-old is cussing. She says, "D*** it." I have no idea where she learned it. We honest to goodness don't say words like that. They don't watch shows that have naughty words in it. It's actually really funny. I have to tell myself not to laugh.

And my sweet 4-year-old is just doing amazing. His gross motor is improving so much. He LOVES soccer now. He goes on the field by himself and smiles and laughs. I'm so very proud of him and am loving watching God move in his little body.

We just celebrated Jared's 31st birthday. It's hard to believe that I've loved him since he was 16. Oh my... time flies.

Confident of His Goodness,
Lela

Pop Goes the Weasel.

One of the reasons it takes me a few weeks in between blog updates is because I drive myself crazy thinking of what I want to write about. Do I want to go deep, do I want to just do a random update on how funny my kids are... blah, blah, blah - you get the picture. Once I think of something that makes me really excited to write about, I'll usually run with it.

So here is where I have landed today.

Of course I love my family and my passion in life are my kids and my husband. I have devoted my entire being to them. That is something that I am really proud of and truly what makes me, me.

However, there are other things in life that I really enjoy. So here are a few of my favorite things...

PUGS

In case, you haven't figured it out yet. I love pugs. I even have entire board in pinterest dedicated to my love for pugs. If I happen to see one, I'll go out of my way to say "hello" and introduce myself. One day, when my kids are grown - I'd like to operate a pug rescue.

STARBUCKS

Need I say more? No.

EASTER

Thank you pinterest for the cake idea. I love Easter. It's my favorite holiday!! 

Besides Easter, I enjoy celebrating just about anything. I get tired of the same 'ole thing everyday and when given an opportunity to party or celebrate (especially our Risen King) - I'm all about it.

GARAGE SALES

I am a total nerd and I love garage sales. I enjoy going to them but more importantly I love having them. I love getting rid of clutter and spending hours organizing my junk - but more importantly - I love that people pay me money for me to have clean closets. I mean - come on - can it get any better?

PAMPERED CHEF

I won this at a Pampered Chef party that I went to last week. Do you have any idea how long I have wanted these bowls? Years!!! I try and host a party every year. I love getting free products. But most importantly, I love cooking with Pampered Chef.

A Good DIY Project

This was my latest DIY project. I whited washed my brick fireplace, applied a glaze, painted the fireplace insert and the mantel. I never can remember to take before pictures. Always too excited to get started. I like the feeling of accomplishment that the finished project gives me.

And lastly - the highlight of my week - something that I always look forward to....

MY LIFE GIVING AND AMAZING CHURCH,

LIFECHURCH OF BARTLESVILLE

I love my family at LifeChurch. I love all the little kids at LifeChurch. I love my Pastors, Mark and Linda. And all the other people there that keep the place running. I love my life group and my new friends that I have made there.

God is doing awesome things at my church and I am so excited to apart of it.

We held 2 services Easter Weekend at the Community Center. We had just under 1900 people in attendance. Somewhere around 200 first time visitors and over 300 people gave or recommitted their lives to Christ. Can you believe it? How awesome is that? Very!!!!!

As always, thank you for reading. I enjoy writing when I have the time and a good idea. :) Hope you enjoy reading.

Confident of His Goodness,

Lela

Noah, was he crazy or what?!

One of the reasons that I didn't blog for several months is because I was knee deep in a study of healing. I was learning so much and taking in so much information - but couldn't form a complete sentence on exactly what it was that God was teaching me. So, one tiny book about healing and countless nights of me reading the word to discover what God had to say about healing - here is where my heart is.

I could talk for hours about why I believe my son will be healed - but it boils down to this piece of scripture.

Hebrews 11:1

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. (NIV)

and my favorite version (NLT)...

Faith is the confidence of what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance of things we cannot see.

I don't know when we will see Jet fully healed. I wish I did, but I don't. My hearts desire is to see my son blossom and to hear his sweet voice. God's word says that if we delight ourselves in the Lord, that He will give us the desires of heart (Psalm 37:4). And you what, I believe His word is the truth and I know that my God will not disappoint.

In all honesty - it is difficult to believe that our son will be healed. But His word says that it has already happened (Isaiah 53:5 - But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed) and even though we can not see it with our eyes - one day we will. One day I will hear Jet's voice. One day, things will not be as challenging as they are for him right now. One day to the amazement of all us - his body will be whole.

I don't believe that Jet's "current condition" is God's perfect will. We live in a fallen world and crap happens. Satan came to kill, steal and destroy. Jesus came to give us life in abundance. However, because our God is so good and because He loves us so much - to all of evil's dismay - He will use Jet's chromosome duplication and cerebral palsy to show all of us that He is still a God that Heals!!! 

Can I hear an Amen!!!???

Confident of His Goodness,

Lela

Merry Christmas... Oh No, wait a second... Happy St. Patrick's Day!

First of all, I'm sorry I bailed on blogging. I found Pinterest and have been stuck there for the past 3 months. Second of all, thank you very kindly to all my friends that asked, "why haven't you been blogging?" That makes me feel very special.

I'll do both of us a favor and not recap the past 3 months. Quite frankly, I don't remember it anyway. Ha!

However, there is something that has been life changing and I will dive deeper in another post. A few weeks before Christmas we had one of our pastors and a few others in our amazing church lay hands on Jet. We are believing that God is going to heal him. Pastor Linda said to be watching for his healing to take place. One of the first areas that has been healed is his gluten intolerance. That's right... Jet has been eating Gluten for a couple of months now. You have no idea how huge this is for our family. It's beyond words.

Let's talk about today.

Jet and Will both had their first soccer games. And it was such a bittersweet afternoon. Will did awesome, of course. He had a tremendous amount of fun and we all had a lot of fun cheering him on from the side lines.

Jet's practices have been difficult on so many levels. Once again, too deep to go there this very minute.
I knew the game would be hard for him because he's NEVER been in that type of situation. The coach and I had a discussion about what I thought the first game would like for Jet and I honestly told him that I had no idea because this was so new for him.

He was terrified. He didn't know what to do. He was crying. He was confused. It was awful and heartbreaking to say the very least. Will tried telling him he'd do okay. Anabella was bringing him his water bottle to try to make his tears go away. And then finally, God showed His Grace once again. The coach from the opposite team said "come on in with him." Thank you so very much coach that I don't know. You made a very difficult situation bearable. I didn't want to go in with him, so I sent my first born in with him.

I can not put into words how proud of Will I was. He held his hand and took him up and down the field. He showed restraint in not kicking the ball when it landed right in front of him but encouraged his brother to kick the ball. He let go of his hand to give him independence when he found it necessary, but took it back when his brother wasn't sure which direction to go.

Will showed a tremendous depth of character today. He saved the day!!! I love you Will.

Confident of His Goodness,

Lela

A moment of Truth.

Jet, I know the plans I have for you. I have Plans to Prosper you and not to Harm you. Plans to give you a Hope and a Future.  ~  Jesus (Jeremiah 29:11)

That is a promise for Jet from Jesus. I am clinging close to that verse at this moment in time. I titled my blog Confident of His Goodness because I am confident that I will see God's goodness in the midst of heartache. 

One thing that I will promise you as a follower of my blog, is that - I will always be transparent. Sometimes, I am in good spirits and the presence of the Holy Spirit if felt all around me and I am bathing in Peace. And then there are times, that I am really really sad. And to be honest, now is one of those days when I am really really sad.

First of all - I know things could be worse and are for a lot of families. I know that. But I also know, that things could be better.

Jet just turned 4 and it was a bitter-sweet birthday. I am happy that I have a healthy 4-year-old to love on. But - if you would have asked me 3 even 2 years ago where Jet would be on his 4th birthday, I would have have told you "caught up to his peers or at least getting really close." And the fact of the matter is, that's not where Jet is. Not even close. And that hurts.

Please pray for Jet this year. Please pray that this will be his year to blossom. Please pray for me. My heart aches for Jet. As a mama,  you want to be able to "fix" things and there are some things that just can't be "fixed". 

I am praying for a miracle this year. A year that says "only God could have done that" - not therapy, not a special diet, not school - only God. Will you join me in praying that for Jet?

Happy Birthday Will and Jet!!!

Will is an amazing little boy. He really is. His heart is so tender. He is sweet from the core. He is ornery and strong willed (I learned that on December 4, 2005 after 100 million hours of labor). He loves the idea of hunting. He enjoys art and is very creative. He likes stuffed animals and guns. He is THE BEST big brother EVER. He is going to be a great dad one of these days.
Happy 6th Birthday Will.

Will had asked for a remote control helicopter. This one is 14+, but he does a really good job flying it.

Will made his own Angry Bird Birthday Cake. 

Will also wanted a Pee-Wee Penguin Pillow Pet to match his "Daddy Penguin Pillow Pet" and a Bomb Angry Bird. He loves Angry Birds if you haven't noticed.

Singing Happy Birthday to Will. Once again, Jet's favorite moment in the Birthday Party.

Jet loved his Birthday. He was sooooooo excited. He went through Ani's and Will's birthdays and FINALLY it was his and he was thrilled to say the least.
Jet is the sweetest and happiest boy that you will ever meet. He loves Curious George and Mickey Mouse. He enjoys all kinds of music from Wheels on the bus to Jason Aldean. If I let him he would play iPad or Computer Games all day. He loves to make people smile and he gives the best hugs. He loves his brother and sister so much.
Happy 4th Birthday Jet.

Nana and Da (my parents) got Jet this farm set from Atwoods. He loved it!!! Oh my goodness, you should have seen his reaction to it. Priceless. Will also thought it was a pretty cool gift (notice open mouth, "AHHHHH".)

He was so happy that it was finally his Birthday.

To say that I am blessed to be the mom of these two boys is an under statement. I love them with all that I am.

Confident of His Goodness,
Lela