Third Sunday of Advent

Tonight we are halfway through the season of Advent. Being just a month, it feels like a pretty quick sprint.

Two weeks ago we lit the first candle, the Prophet's Candle or the Candle of Hope and we considered how even just a little light chases away the darkness.  How we, like the prophets, sit in this middle space between what God has done in sending Christ the first time and what he will do in sending him again.

As we relight the first candle we read another prophecy of Jesus spoken of in Zechariah 9:9

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout in triumph, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
He is just and endowed with salvation,
Humble, and mounted on a donkey,
Even on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Last Sunday we lit the second candle, the Bethlehem Candle or the Candle of Promise and we considered how God's promises were kept in the coming baby in Bethlehem -- the ruler over Israel, the shepherd of his flock, strong and majestic who secures life for us. (Micah 5)

Prophecies aren't just predictions, they're promises from God himself. Jeremiah 3 tells us of one such promise:

5“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord,

when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch,

and he shall reign as king and deal wisely,

and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.

6 In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely.

And this is the name by which he will be called:‘The Lord is our righteousness.’

And now, already, we're halfway through.  In this season when we all have pushed through our own stories -- the end of semesters, the frigid cold, the shock in these last days -- have we also been pushing into the hope and the promises of God in this season? The year is ending and celebrations are impending.  Are we just pushing through, or pushing into?

It's a bit of a balancing act to walk through a season in both a state of reflection and celebration. And we feel that tension tonight. We've had food and drink and conversation. The white elephant gifts and the cookies and desserts are patiently waiting. But first we're reflecting, because without the reflection, the celebration is shallow. We don't do the reception without the wedding; the wedding gives us the substance for the reception. The reflection gives us the reason for the party.

So it seems to be the perfect night to talk about joy and, traditionally, this third candle is the Shepherd's Candle or the Candle of Joy.

Joy is a bit of an unnatural thing. We know the state of our world, of the hearts of people. We see what we do to one another -- and sometimes it seems there's no good reason to feel joy. Yesterday was the one year anniversary of the slaughter of the children in Connecticut. It's only been a year. Friday was the shooting at Arapahoe High School.  In our neighborhood. We are not far from darkness. 

Somehow in order to breathe, to persevere, through the darkness we live in we need something to be the guide. And that's what I think joy is for us. I don't think it ever strays too far beyond reach. In the middle of contentment joy is there out loud, like paint on the walls. But in the middle of trial, it's there, hidden, padding the floor where we lie down in grief. Deep and steady and settled.

Having a sense of joy is somehow attached to our sense of something greater than ourselves. In short, joy is the steady push toward trust in God. Which means that it doesn't always have to be happy, just thankful or hopeful. It isn't something we reasoned into being, it is something we express through faith.

I looked to the scriptures to ask, "Am I far off? Does it seem to say that joy is not happiness, that it is more present than we acknowledge?" And here is what the scriptures told me: Joy is our strength (Neh 8:10), it is God's presence with us (Ps. 16:11), it is an apt answer (Pr. 15:23), it is justice done (Pr. 21:15), it is a gift from God (Ecc 2:26), it is the perfection of beauty (in the city of Jerusalem) (Lam 2:15), it is a fruit of the spirit (Gal. 5:22).

My definition came a little clearer and a little wider.  Yes, it is a steady push toward trust in God, that is our action in pursuing it.  But in feeling joy I have to say that it is a finely sharpened pleasure or trust. I feel joy when I sense that what is right is what is happening.

The shepherds experienced this joy. Luke 2:8-20:

In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord.

The two hours I had to wait on Friday was long. My son called me from inside his school. He was the first to tell me of the shooting, my son who was in a neighboring school now in lock out. While we talked, I was first alarmed and then calmed that I would have all three of them back that day. But I had to wait to make the family right again.

Imagine waiting hundreds of years before things would be made right, before a promise would be fulfilled. Before a voice would be heard crying in a stable. Before my sons were present with me again. When we finally get what we're waiting for, we hug it so tightly and cry tears of joy. Tears of joy is an appropriate response when in a moment of tension, things are made right.

This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,
‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’

Glorifiying and praising God for making good on a promise that had been repeated for centuries is an appropriate response. The singing and the shouts are a fitting reply. The receiving of guests and gifts and banquets and dinners and celebrations are how we welcome that which is now our right reality.

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.’ So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.

Contemplation is an appropriate response to joy. When that which you've trusted in guides you into fulfillment, stepping back and considering how that story emerged is right. And the shepherds' final response was to take their experience back to their home and share their joy with others, because joy isn't something that happens to us but something we carry with us.  And, in the darkness, maybe it's the something greater that actually carries us and tells us that all things will be made right.

But to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.  - 1 Peter 4:13

His glory came in that newborn baby. It's time for Joy.

Blessing:May the God who gives you a hope and a promise, give you joy as you follow him in ever brightening days and may you seek to join him in making all things right and spread his joy in strength and justice and beauty.

Ere Long Gaudete*

When my oldest was small and grew frantic about himself, I would wrap my arms around him and hold him fixed and give him time to agree with stillness.

And when I let go of his arms he breathed free from all the self-imposed frustration over people and expectations and self -- a toe-headed leader in 5T shorts newly able to direct his emotions toward meaningful things.

Today, I felt that relief.  When the snow came again, winter white hug from God, it stilled my soul. I quickly accepted the closeness, content to wane, and halted in order to receive.

There, waiting for me to grab hold again, was joy. 

When I watched the cold blanket fall and the inches build up against the stoop, I submitted to the Almighty agenda.  And I grew straight instead of scattered.  Because when I stick with his presence I stay the course of joy.

I remember, right after our world spun out of orbit, that there was a beautiful day when I had peace that was truly beyond my understanding.  For that one day I felt like a visiting sojourner in a place of contentment and faith and knowing; it was beautiful and light and welcome.  Rightly judged, in the following days I was back in the stampede toward grief and pain.  When I asked a friend to suggest what that day of peace was even about she said, "Sometimes God gives us glimpses of what wholeness will look like later."

Today is that later time.  And it isn't cursory.  I've been sitting on it, testing it, seeing if it's fleeting or fast.  It's actually been a succession of days now. A new way of seeing that I've known before.  When we pray so long for wholeness and lightness and satisfaction it feels a tremendous gift when it gallops back over after months afield in someone else's pasture.  A return of something that was always mine in the first place.  I lay it across my shoulders like the shepherd with a hundred sheep again.

The snow doesn't bring it.  It just reminds me that the joy is here whether I want to live in it or not.  Because we can choose to live outside of joy; to chase it with cheating, snap its hindquarter with the whip of obstinance, spook it with entitlement while it's on a loose rein.  But joy is really ever present even when our attention is given to fear and jealousy -- and people and expectations and self.

"For the one who pleases him, God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy.                              -- Ecclesiastes 2:26

Like all gifts, we receive it. When we open up our hands to joy we get wisdom and knowledge too.  And wisdom says that this is my right way to go: engage the meaningful work in front of me, be present with the small son finally reading, love the new church growing in my living room, light the advent candles, cherish the husband and be still.

I let it fall around me, everywhere, grateful for each flake.  Carefully designed to be my liturgy of joy.

#

*Gaudete, gaudete! Christus est natus                          Rejoice, rejoice! Christ is born
Ex Maria virgine, gaudete!                                            (Out) Of the Virgin Mary — rejoice!
Tempus adest gratiæ                                                  The time of grace has come—
Hoc quod optabamus,                                                  what we have wished for,
Carmina lætitiæ                                                          songs of joy
Devote reddamus.                                                       Let us give back faithfully.


......linking up with shelovesmagazine LinkUP: Joy

First Sunday of Advent

Tonight we begin our Collective.  I have the honor of giving the first words.  It seemed appropriate to leave them here as a marker, a remembrance of a first moment.  There will be moments for dialogue, silence and light. Thanks be to God.

It is fitting that we are beginning tonight. That we are beginning a community on the day when traditionally the church begins its new year called Advent. The Jewish New Year, the High Holidays Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur were in September.  The secular New Year is coming, and the academic new year is well underway. 

We mark these special days with special celebrations. The Jews celebrate by blowing the shofar and casting off what's left in their pockets. We all celebrate our calendar New Year in Times Square or Paris with champagne and fireworks and kisses at midnight. In August or September we begrudgingly celebrate with new notebooks and routines and maybe coffee to get the brain working.

Tonight we celebrate Advent with light. We are now in a season of darkness. The leaves are fallen, the time change is behind us. We are well into the season of sleep and rest, of hard freezes and snow and are are fast approaching the longest night of the year, just days before Christmas. It is fitting to celebrate Advent with light.

This is a traditional symbol of Advent: a wreath of greenery with four candlesticks surrounding one pillar candle in the center. In the northern hemisphere the wreath is evergreen, which reminds us that we are eternal beings, that we are no longer without life in us. The circle is a symbol of eternal life, God's unending love, or even the long time when people lived in darkness waiting for the coming Messiah, the light of the world.

And then there is the light. In Advent, candle light is our symbol of hope. The use of light reflects what Luke’s gospel says about the advent of Christ:

Luke 1: 78-79 ‘By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.’

Advent means, “coming.” We progressively light the candles, one each week as a way to mark the passage of time while we wait for the advent of Christ at Christmas. We come together in these weeks before Christmas as a way of expressing our anticipation for what God will do, and to give a faith-filled expression that we believe not only did he come the first time as a babe in a manger, as a suffering servant, as a teacher, a savior, a redeemer and risen Lord – but that he will come again to rescue and redeem everything.

Advent finds us caught in that middle place. We have seen the work of God and we are looking forward to that work completed.

The candles in the wreath have meanings that differ depending on the tradition you journey from. The colors may be purple and rose or blue. Ours are white, purely out of preference, because white seems to be a color of hopeful expectation, but maybe it means something different to you. The focus is not on the candles, but on Christ who is our light.

The candles for us won't stray from the traditional meanings: all are geared to unfold the story of redemption through the coming of Jesus. The first is the Prophet's Candle or the Candle of Hope.

“The prophets were people who stood on the borders between heaven and earth, between our present time and God's future time. They came to know God so well (a very painful experience, as some of them discovered) that they could discern the shape of his plan: to rescue the world through the sufferings of his chosen one, his anointed, the Messiah."

“They knew that God had more grace coming – grace that would rescue people from where and what they had been, and would give them a wonderful, glorious new destiny and hope.” (N.T. Wright)

There are over 300 prophecies from the Old Testament that point us to Jesus and that we can actually see him fulfilling in the gospel narratives. Tonight we'll just read one from Isaiah 60:1-6:

1 Arise, shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
2 For behold, darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples;
but the Lord will arise upon you,
and his glory will be seen upon you.
3 And nations shall come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your rising.

4 Lift up your eyes all around, and see;
they all gather together, they come to you;
your sons shall come from afar,
and your daughters shall be carried on the hip.
5 Then you shall see and be radiant;
your heart shall thrill and exult,
because the abundance of the sea shall be turned to you,
the wealth of the nations shall come to you.
6 A multitude of camels shall cover you,
the young camels of Midian and Ephah;
all those from Sheba shall come.
They shall bring gold and frankincense,
and shall bring good news, the praises of the Lord.

Isaiah gives us both of the stories, both the darkness and the light. And he describes – this is what it will look like when the light comes. He had a foot in both worlds and knew this is what we need and this is what it will look like when our needs are met.  But we can't rush right to the light. We wouldn't even want to unless we were made aware of our darkness.

When we come into Advent we are confronted with darkness.
No candles are lit yet.  We are still sitting in it.

What would be exposed in your life if light were to hit it? That you are only concerned with your immediate interests? That you believe you are somehow unfit to carry hope for the future? That you live under a suffocating blanket of doubt regarding faith? That really as close as we are, we’re strangers and you don't really want to know what it means to be a good neighbor? That you tell yourself untruths about your worth and our identity?

That's the darkness. That's the need. That is actually what the prophets spent much of their time exposing. They knew the light was coming and they said, “Knowing this, do you still want to hang onto that?”  What would the prophets speak to you?

In the passage in Luke the darkness is chased away by the tender mercies of God.

In the passage from Isaiah the darkness is chased away when a great community of people gather together around the unifying Lord.

What would chase away your darkness? What would light look like for you? [Light the Candle]   Would tender mercies look like a friend who could listen and help you sort out your true self, from your false self? Would it look like being freed from addiction and temptation by the renewing of your mind? Would it look like a progressive movement toward character and away from just trying to be good? Would it look like a chance to be a part of a great community, perhaps this one, that walks together toward the light of Christ? Would it look like drawing more deeply into love, more deeply into trust?

What do you need to hear from God, what do you need Jesus to be to chase away that darkness?

God doesn't leave us in darkness.  While he meets us where we're at and loves us in spite of all things we've said and done and been, he continually moves us into light.  When he created the world, it all began in darkness and because God has always been, he somehow was there existing in that darkness, just as he is with you in yours. 

But he also began by giving light.  And then in the next act of creation he diffused the atmosphere and condensed the water down into ocean so that light could be more clearly seen.  And then on the fourth day he created the sun, moon and stars... a little more light, and a little more and then some more. It doesn't take much to dispel darkness, but God does more than push it aside.  He overcomes it. 

John 1:1-5

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

In John's passage, what chases away the darkness that existed before the creation of the world is the Word, the God that made all things, the God that came to the world as the light of men offering life.  Jesus is what light looks like.

We gather here tonight not to count down the days before Christmas, but to enter into life with Christ. We don't participate in the “coming” of Christ as spectators, but as those who, like the prophets, live with one foot in the world and one in the kingdom of God. We don't come and say, “Come, Lord Jesus and take us straightaway to peace” instead we say, “Come, Lord Jesus and end our darkness.”

You go tonight in the way the prophets did, knowing what God has done, and knowing what he wants to do. You go knowing that God has more grace coming – grace that can rescue you from where you've been and what you've done and grace that will give you a wonderful new destiny and hope.

Community Prayer:

The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. 

Captivated by the darkness, we ignore your glowing ember. 

Intimidated by the glare, we hide from your warmth. 

Confused by the shadows, we misunderstand your vision. 

Compelled by the light, we embrace your promise. 

Jesus, source of light, remind us again that you burn and beckon in our darkness, even here, even now. 

Come, Lord Jesus. End our darkness.

Ending Blessing:

By the tender mercy of our God, may the dawn from on high break upon us, to give light to we who sit in darkness and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Christmas Break

Two nights ago I woke the older two boys up in the middle of the night and invited them outside to watch the eclipse.  We laid huddled together in hats and thick blankets and let the universe do its thing.  We joked about the cold, made up acronyms for each other, looked for constellations and just waited for the first phase to finish. It's amazing how entertaining it was.  Of course, staying up late is a fun treat for all three of us.  We let Dad and S sleep.  To each his own.

We did two days of school this week to finish up our unit study on communication.  One day was spent watching  the Doctor Dolittle musical (we just finished the book).  The next day we finished some art and a book about Helen Keller, finished up a newspaper page, plugged through math and reviewed some timeline cards. We were going to then watch the Miracle Worker, but Christmas break was calling and we wanted to be done.  So we put on Christmas music and read Christmas books and made cookies instead.

It's going to be a quiet Christmas here with just the five of us.  It will be interesting to find out what our own traditions become.  There's no snow in Denver this year but one son is getting a gift that may require a drive up to the mountains to play for a day.  Other than that, I expect to keep going through my reading list.

May you find ways to enjoy what the season has in store for you.

Adding Epiphany to our Plate

Since I didn’t grow up in a liturgical church setting I had little exposure to the Western church calendar and all the celebrations that surround it. As my own little family has learned about Advent, Lent and Holy Week we have tried to observe them in ways that make them meaningful in our context. Our annual traditions grow closer to the intent all the time though our methods can, admittedly, be a bit quirky.

Several years ago I was stumped over the meaning that Epiphany could hold for my family. Epiphany, on January 6th, is a traditional Christian celebration that marks the 12th day of Christmas and observes the arrival of the wise men to the house where young Jesus was staying. It also commemorates the introduction of Jesus to the Gentiles; the kings were not Jews but were visitors from the East. At the core, it’s an open invitation for all people, who seek the Christ, to find him.

As I looked into it I found that some family traditions included a special cake, a house blessing, annual reflections on how God was at work, the completion of the crèche or homemade boxes lined with hay in which to receive small gifts. These were all very appealing, but didn’t quite hit the spot for us as we navigated this day for the first time.

I wanted to interpret this day for my boys in a way that made it special without turning it into another gift-giving opportunity. The ideas of seeking and finding and of going on a resolute journey stood out to me. These seemed like tangible things for young boys to take hold of.

Our tradition for Epiphany now looks like this: On January 6th, we read the story from Matthew 2 and finish our nativity scene by adding the wise men while removing the shepherds. And then, as we have done every year since, we go Geocaching.

While this may seem like a toss out of left field, my children love the activity. It gives them the chance to plug a destination (coordinates) into our handheld GPS and follow the directions until we come close to the cache (a hidden treasure box of trinkets). This is when the real search begins as the cache can be very well hidden within that last 10 feet. There is rejoicing when we find it and we tear into it excitedly, writing our names in the log and exchanging the trinkets we brought for a charm we find inside. There are so many teachable little moments in this activity. It’s not a perfect metaphor, but for young, kinesthetic learners, it’s a hit.

The holidays have so many extra dressings that tend to weigh me down. This off-the-beaten-path activity lets our family peel away the extraneous and looks afresh at the core, the gift of hope given to us through Jesus. If you want to try geocaching with your own family you can get started at www.geocaching.com. Let your own epiphanic journey begin.

Christmas...almost.

I just had to move that last post down a bit, lest you think I'd turned into a homeschooling naysayer. Nope, just experiencing a dose of reality.

I can feel Christmas break moving in now. The past two mornings have felt like possibility rather than pointlessness and we are relaxed. Whew.

So, now what?

• We're going to go check out the Christmas Wonderland at the Bass Pro Shop (?) in Denver today and maybe a living nativity tonight.
• We have one more day of school to do tomorrow so we can put to bed our unit. We'll actually spend a good chunk of it watching the movie version of our read aloud, Journey to the Center of the Earth. (Which seems like a better idea than watching Elf like my son did during his Friday classes this week.)
  
• We're going to see a ballet version of The Grinch Who Stole Christmas on Tuesday.
• I'm contemplating taking the boys to An Interactive Christmas Carol on Wednesday.
• We were looking forward to a Christmas with just the five of us but, instead, company will be here on Wednesday night. The boys will like that surprise.
• I'm looking for tickets to go to Portland in February. It will be nice to see some friends and my parents again. If I do this now, I can put the "plane tickets" in the boys' stockings and surprise them.
• I'm finishing up making something for my husband today and some other gifts for local friends.
  

Christmas break, seriously, could not have come at a better time.

Less is More

The day after Thanksgiving, while consumers take part in Black Friday, there is also a quiet counter-cultural observance called Make Something Day. Rather than participating in mob mentality in order to get a $10 microwave (Do you really know someone who needs one? Really?), stay home and make some things to give for Christmas. Here are some of the things we made last year:

1. The Exploding Box. This is a fun take on a photo album. It's a 3 layer box (12 flaps in all...perfect for a photo a month) with a lid. When you lift the lid the box expands so your recipient can immediately catch up with what you've done all year. We made a couple of these for friends and family far away. Google "exploding box instructions" and you'll find several sites to inspire your own version.


2. A Perpetual Calendar. I learned this idea at an independent workshop I took a few years ago. It utilizes a clear 8 1/2 x 11 expanding pocket with tie closure and features 12 pockets in which I slipped lists for every day of every month. My sister-in-law can keep track of birthdays, anniversaries and memorials that she wants to acknowledge throughout the year. I even made some matching cards to get her started. She can tuck the cards into the folder so she has them at the ready to mail.


3. Gift Card Cozies. This is an easy way to recycle t.p. tubes. Fold them flat, glue one end shut, paint them and let dry. Cut a piece of cardstock to fit inside and affix the gift card to it. Decorate and done.


4. Wood Creations. This was the project my 6 year old made for his 2 year old brother (with a lot of help from Grandpa). It's a multitone drum. S loved it. Even the drumsticks are homemade using dowels and super balls. (Make sure you glue those balls on tight!)

5.  Place Card Holders. Grandma likes to dress her table up for all the holidays. Since the boys and I were learning about simple machines right before Christmas, we bought a coping saw and cut out pumpkins and acorns so she could set a proper Thanksgiving table. They cut them out over a period of a couple weeks and then painted them. I cut slits in the top to hold the name cards for her guests.


6. Sewing Projects. It's kind of a crack up but my boys actually love to sew. We had four new white placemats that I knew would never survive our family meals (let alone the fact that there are five of us). So we re-used them for Grandma #2. The boys cut Christmas shapes out of felt, I brought my DMC floss out to the light of day and they each stitched two placemats. Simple and cute.



The day after Thanksgiving, Make Something Day, I enjoyed the company of my friend who was creating her own bath salts while I finished up an Exploding Box. Take the time for conversation and creation this year. Here are some sites for your inspiration:

http://www.makesomethingday.org/
http://www.marthastewart.com/photogallery/christmas-workshop-week-1
http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/green/
http://www.eco-artware.com/crafts/archive.php
http://makeitdo.wordpress.com/
http://www.make-stuff.com/hollidays/christmasindex.html
http://www.buynothingchristmas.org/index.html
http://www.adventconspiracy.org

Christmas Aftermath

I don't actually know if it's the time of year (rainy season), the let down from Christmas or the fact that we're strapped for cash and can't go out much, but keeping the negative energy at bay in our house has become my full-time job. We go through this just about every year. My oldest child in particular has a very difficult time with the holidays and as much as we try to make it special but very subdued coming out of it with grace is still a work in progress.

My oldest goes through these cycles every year of being highly frustratable, explosive and inflexible. I've talked about it before. I do recognize them as cycles so I now know that this will not be the tone of our family life forever. I have also noticed that these downward cycles are a lot shorter than they were several years ago. Though this year seems particularly hard. I also know the major triggers -- Christmas is one (and so is his brother's birthday which is coming up in a couple weeks). When he feels this way it usually is just a wait and see process. He needs to be the one to get himself out of it and when he does it's just a total transformation from one day to the next.

This week we have just a few social outings/classes/things but not many. I could pack the calandar full (read: swoop in and try to save my oldest from his burning discontent by drowning him in playdates), but in this particular state of mind extra interactions will likely end up being a disaster and then he'll feel worse. Been there done that.

So, we press on with the things that need to happen. We keep the schedule as regular as we can. School continues (I bite my tongue harder and more often). We talk to him more. We remind him what the next "right" step is when it's obvious he can't come up with it on his own. We assure him that he is loved no matter what. And we wait.

I wish Christmas really was a quiet day about a baby in a manger... the one who came to save us from ourselves.

Five Things I'm Loving Right Now.

There are some great things happening for us right now and it's hard to focus on school especially with Christmas on the approach. In this last week before we break for Christmas we're just working on finishing things up so we can have two weeks off. I'd be crazy to think the kids are learning anything new right now. So, we're doing some fun review.

5. Love this animated, interactive website. http://edheads.org/
We're working through the simple machines module this week, but you can also learn about the weather and even knee surgery (!).



4. Loved the snow in Portland this week. It amazes me that the city doesn't plow it's streets though! What is up with that? With more snow in the forecast I guess we'll just hang out at home until we completely run out of milk and bananas.





3. Love the Jesse Tree that we're doing in lieu of the advent wreath this year. It entails a short story to read each day and a felt ornament to hang on our "tree" (this thing is full of family history). It does not entail arguing over who gets to light a candle and dealing with the wiggles. Just right before bed or after dinner. We're a couple days behind tho...

We're using this book as our guide and we borrowed a lot of felt ornament ideas from here.


2. Loved our playdate with Anna, Jaden and Jonah Olson yesterday. Our boys had a great time playing together and I just loved talking about life and ministry and kids with Anna. I'm also very impressed that they were willing to venture out on the icy roads! It helped the cabin fever for all of us, I think.


1. Love the potential that lies thick in the air these days. 2009 is going to rock.

Homeschoolers for Heifer International

I found out about this too late to participate with my boys, but we are going and buying! The event is a chance for homeschoolers from all different locations, styles, and philosophies to come together, share their talents and contribute to a good cause. I have two friends who will be participating and donating their proceeds.

Portland Homeschoolers Children’s Market

A fun festival of child-created, child-run booths offering services, activities, food and wares to other home schoolers and their family and friends!

Friday, December 12th
2pm - 5pm
Liberty Hall, 311 N. Ivy, Portland

With a performance by The Vibrations a local homeschooling family band!

Please come and join us for this fun event. There will be many gifts, edibles, and activities that appeal to guests of all ages and all budgets!

Carnival Games -- Holiday Ornaments -- Baked Goods -- Raffles -- Arts and Crafts -- Jewelry -- Face Painting -- Live Music -- Handmade and Altered Toys -- Gifts for All Ages

Free Admission! Portion of all proceeds go to charity.

Please join us! Bring your friends and family!

I Should be Making Cookies Right Now

Subtitle: How This Homeschooler Does Christmas

The short answer -- it's never the same way twice. Inasmuch as I believe in constantly tweaking the educational process, I believe in doing the same to the Christmas season.

1. Advent at home. We have done simple crafts after lighting the candles, read the scriptures for the week and attempted discussion while the kids did a coloring page, completely gave up on the advent wreath altogether one year and this year we are embarking on telling the whole story of Jesus in the Bible through the Jesse Tree.

2. Worship. This is a consistent part of our season, but I love that it's never the same from year to year. Even the time of the Christmas Eve service changes up -- though the kids and I love the midnight time the best.

3. Parties. Some years there have been more than I could handle. Some years there was only one. This year it's just two and they are on the same day. I have to find some white elephant gifts...

4. Presents. We have always just bought the kids three gifts. (There's the stockings too but that tends to be a cumulative effort with at least one set of grandparents.) This year's different in that we're trying to make a few more. Tomorrow I'm hosting "Make Something Day" for the first time and I hope my creative friends inspire me to make some cool things.

4. Service. We've distributed toys with the Salvation Army for about five years now in different locations using several different methods. This year I think we'll be doing some bell-ringing! We do it on a school day and it COUNTS.

5. Schedule. I have had years where I plowed ahead in school with the kids M-F all the way up until Christmas. Some years were not so heavy with school, but were peppered with other activities. This year we're taking off Fridays from Thanksgiving until after New Year's.

6. Celebration. Sometimes it's at our house. Sometimes it's at my parents. Sometimes Chip's mother comes up. Sometimes we hand out hoodies to homeless. Sometimes we eat Rosemary Pork Roast. Sometimes we eat Mema's Ham. Sometimes we have extra guests over. You get the idea.

I know there are families who thrive on tradition. As comforting as that sounds, it's not the way we do things. I simply find too much freedom in flexibility. If something's not working for the family or if the message is getting skewed we can switch things up and not feel like God is some small-minded bookkeeper who is only pleased if his birthday comes off in a certain pattern. He didn't even tell us to celebrate it in the first place. Which is an interesting idea all on it's own.

What are you switching up this year?

Thanks for stopping by, Christmas Break.

Time goes waaay too fast. I'm not ready for the week quite yet. Was up until 1 a.m. getting my ducks in a row last night and will probably do the same tonight, though I hope not because a tired mama is not the best mama.

We'll be tackling How People Grow for the next four weeks.
The Bible Base for our unit is Luke 2:52

• We'll integrate all the gospels together, but for the most part we'll be dealing with Jesus' baptism, temptation, calling the disciples, early Judean ministry, the Samaritan woman, preaching in Galilee and Judea and cleansing the temple.
  

Science: Human body (skin, skeletal, muscular, digestive, respiratory, circulatory, urinary, endocrine, and nervous systems)

Social Studies: Decision making skills (lots of games we can play for this one), making friends, manners and customs.

Math: J- More multiplication with products up to 10,000. B- telling time to the quarter hour, adding and subtracting numbers up to 60, money and fraction reviews.

Language Arts: J - Responding to a scripture journal, using good reasoning, and writing a persuasive paragraph. B- grade 1 phonics activities, drawing pictures related to our study.

Reading: J - Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. B - Continue to work through Phonics for the New Reader by Harriet Fields and reading his phonics readers.

Vocab: J's words for the week -- physical, skeleton, muscle, breathe, nutrition, vitamin, protein, spiritual, mental, social. B's words for the week -- grow, skin, bone, food, lung, leg, arm, head, water, body.

Memory Verses (for the whole unit this time): 2 Peter 1: 3-8

Topical Studies: Nutrition, Meal planning and preparation, critical thinking puzzles, and something to do with friendship that I haven't fleshed out yet.

The boys are at each other today. They were supposed to play with a friend but one decided to tell an untruth about the fact that the other wasn't invited, etc. So, they are both home, and walking around bored as if they didn't just get the world on a stick for Christmas. As if I didn't just spend 5 hours yesterday cleaning and organizing their room so they can FIND all the pieces to all the things they already owned.

So, we will begin tomorrow a.m. -- ready or not. Because kids need structure and they need to sit and read together again, and they need to know what is going to happen next. At least mine do.

Christmas Break Plans

Warning: Rambling ahead

We are taking two weeks off and I love that Christmas came at the beginning of it, so we could incorporate our holiday preparation into our studies… and now we can breathe a bit.

I am in the middle of planning the next three units in order to get us to Easter when we’ll take another two-week break. We are going to be studying Growth for the next four weeks… physical (bodies and nutrition), mental (decision making and problem solving), spiritual (hopefully trying some new Bible study tactics), and social (manners and friendships). It’s really slow going because there is so much wrapped up in this topic.

In February we’ll do a unit on the miracles of Jesus and I’m really looking forward to it. We’ll explore the principles behind the miracles, not to take the mystery out of them, but to gain more understanding and perhaps instill a greater sense of awe in all of us. So, we’ll be looking at nature (water, fish, weather, blindness, fig trees, ears, etc.), distance, disease (all those healings…) death (and resuscitation!), and the spirit world (all those demon possessions). Looking at that list makes me think it’s going to be a crazy ride.

I can’t recall what the next unit will be after that. I obviously still have some work to do.

I’m also starting to think through the next class I’ll teach at our co-op. Waaaayy too many options here. I love teaching academic stuff with a lot of tactile methods, but I also need something that won’t tax me in preparation time. I’m usually up far too late on Thursday nights before class the next day. Some ideas: dinosaurs, ancient Rome, journaling, world religions…nothing’s really screaming at me. Give me suggestions.

Tomorrow, we’ll have a field trip to OMSI. We haven’t been for a while and we received a membership for Christmas. I’m hoping the holiday light show at the planetarium is worth going to. We’ll find out. Next week the older boys are going to Winter Break Basketball Camp here in town Wednesday through Friday. That will count toward p.e. attendance as well. (In WA we have to account for 180 days of schooling, so I get those days in anyway I can, even when we are on break).

Just 10 days left. I’d better get on it.