A glimpse into our windows

Wouldn't you just love to be a fly on our wallpaper for one day?

I remember well before I was a mother of so many, perhaps just with 4 or 5 children, and I watched the mothers with more children with great interest. I wanted to know if they were like me; did they have days that were struggles, how did they get their children to behave so well, etc.

One family in church in particular used to interest me. The children always sat so attentively during service, and I often felt I could never talk to the mother because she was so much farther ahead than me.

Then one Sunday in the hot days of summer I noticed her little toddler was standing up on a chair wearing snow boots--and I just had to chuckle! The mother really was just like me, with children who lost their shoes just before church, so they had to wear anything they could find (her husband was a doctor--no shortage of money to buy footwear).

So here I will share with you just how the rubber meets the road at our house.

Someone recently asked me how I am able to have time to "kiss the boo-boo of my toddler" while homeschooling and everything else in my life.

First I have to say that it isn't easy. I don't just lilt out of bed and waft lightly through the house, drinking tea and eating bon-bons whilst my children laugh delicately and smile constantly.

My husband, dearest and most sleepless man I know, wakes me up gently with a hug about 4:30 AM. He goes and starts his bath while I lay in bed and pray and nurse the baby, trying to decide if I really can roll off of my soft, wonderful mattress.

Sometimes the baby takes a bath with her daddy--how she adores him. He has a special way he bathes her, making her feel secure. It is these moments that keep him happy during the work day. We both ooh and gooh over her while she is being dressed.

Then I wander down the hallway to wake the other children--usually about 5:30. They don't automatically jump out of bed and come to attention--it takes a few attempts before they make an appearance down the hallway to get their "personal hygiene" done. We bathe the little girls in the morning every-other day, their clothes being kept in our huge closet.

After almost everyone is ready for the day, we all sit in our huge master bedroom and watch a little show together while everyone wakes up. Lately we have been watching The Waltons. I sometimes sit on my bed and blog while everyone else is otherwise engaged. At a specific time, Daddy shuts down the TV and he reads to us, sometimes the Bible, lately a chapter from Tozer's book, "Man, The Dwelling Place of God". Then it's kisses and hugs and Daddy is on his way to work.

The children and I sit around and talk together, each taking turns holding the baby ones, sometimes we philosophize a little, and all they have to do is to get me off onto certain topics and the discussion can go on and on...

...but this is important, too, isn't it? We usually rope ourselves in in time to get some stretches in, especially for those of us who have posture problems. Then I send the children off to make beds and come back with their chore clipboards. Special instructions are given for the one who makes breakfast, and then we're all off to start the day.

While everyone else has their specific assignments, I am all over the place. I make sure the babies are dressed and clean, including hair. I am trying to get the 8 and 9-year-olds to brush their long hair, but I usually have to help them as well.

Along the way I have to get myself ready, deal with bickering, bad attitudes and emergencies, and any business I may have, such as paying bills, etc.

As soon as everything in the house is "ship-shape", which means after I have inspected all areas and like what I see (this can take as long as it takes--the children understand this is the foundation for our whole day, it means a lot that we get it right), we start our "table time"--concentrated academics at our dining room table.

The little ones color or use cheap water color sets while I take care of the older kids. Bible searches, copy work, dictation are all a part of what we do each day. We also have a timed math test using Calculadders, which I bought about 18 years ago, and I have used it over and over, not always as timed tests, but as a wonderful resource much worth the money. I have other plans as well.

Right now Monday and Tuesday are our Language Arts days, Wednesdays are our Math/Geography/Science/History days. Thursday is our "create" day--no plans, just time to fill with creating and exploring. I sometimes use this time for sewing, lately it has been to revamp my home binder.

At a certain point I have the older children take turns reading aloud to the babies to keep them practiced at reading out loud and give attention to the little ones. Everyone gets attention from me in one form or another.

I don't try and teach my children everything they need to know; I give them the tools for learning without killing their own desires and inclinations, and encourage them along the way. A lot of their education is done during the other parts of the day, especially since we don't have video games, etc. to distract them, they tend to read dictionaries, encyclopedias and the like just "for fun".

Sometimes an older sibling will drop by just when we are finishing. I try and keep everything going, but the kids just love the extra attention they receive.

Daddy calls off-and-on during the day, wants to know what's going on, reminds me of things I need to take care of (I can get scatter-brained and forget the little details such as remembering to get the trash out!) and reminding me just how much he loves us all.

Lunch can be simple or complicated, depending on what we are in the mood for. We make pasta with sauce, or PBJ's--the kids and I take turns cooking it. The little ones run around in circles during this time--they think our main floor is an indoor track, or play in the basement play room, if the weather is bad. Otherwise they try and play outside.

Noise is part of our lives everyday. We don't really notice until someone else comes over who isn't used to it.

But there is a time for quiet--after the kitchen has been cleaned and, hopefully, I have thought about what I am to make for dinner (I try and have a plan, but sometimes forget, or the plans have to be changed). Everyone has time for reading, writing, or sleeping for 1 1/2-2 hours every afternoon. This is my time to cuddle the baby and the toddler, and after they are asleep I spend time with Jesus, reading the Word, etc. I play a CD of recorded water over a brook or thunder storms on my stereo to create a veil over the outside world during this time--the little children are trained to fall asleep to these sounds. The older children sometimes go on nature hikes close to our house while the little ones rest.

Somewhere along the way I am sitting shotgun while my son drives himself to work--I am teaching him how to drive in small increments.

Our activities after quiet-time are varied, sometimes an extra chore around the house, sometimes errands, sometimes activities outside. Always we are fixing dinner (we also eat and clean up before his arrival--he comes home a little late due to the long drive), always we are making sure the house is clean and orderly for Daddy's return.

Daddy comes home, the little kids greet and hug him, then our time with him in the evening begins. Everyone spends time with the family; no teen-aged isolation allowed.

Bedtime takes about 1 hour, with teeth-brushing, cuddles, kisses, etc. Daddy's clothes, lunch, etc. are readied for the next morning.

This is our lives right now--it is constantly in flux, never in concrete.

Our times are in His hands...

Devoted love or distracted togetherness

My daughter delights in her children. If they have a need, she finds a way to meet it. Lately folks around her have determined such mothering is not enough, declaring all preschoolers need "structure", and this one element cannot be had at home through the efforts of loving parents, it can only be obtained through "preschool".

I say hogwash!

Preschool never exists in societies of man unless those in power need to foist some new sort of thinking on a resistant population.

During the time of the iron curtain, footage of a certain group of toddlers in the Soviet Union was circulated. The tots were viewed potty-training at the same time, in neat little uniforms led by portly matrons also in neat, but huge, uniforms. They learned to walk, eat and talk as a group. It was touted as being the height of efficiency, and meant to intimidate Americans into wondering how we could ever think to compete against such a machine in which even the children were obedient little robots.

As new and innovative as it seemed at the time, these sorts of callous and unsympathetic systems are not at all novel. The Spartans used them to gain the edge in battle by training children, both boys and girls alike, to be hardened warriors from infancy.

The Prussians of the Revolutionary War period also utilized some of these methods, as did the infamous Nazis.

It makes sense, doesn't it, that if one would want to gain control over a large population of people, one would have to get them early-on, before other thoughts and mores had taken hold?

In order to get people to follow, you must get them to trust, and what better way to get people to trust than to get them to think of the government, in the form of institutions such as schooling, as another sort of parent, one who will take care of them and shelter them and catch them when they "fall through the cracks" (how many times have we heard this phrase when speaking of some new government program?).

Another daughter happens to teach in such an institution. She is biding her time until she can have her own children by working with the offspring of others. She tells me how contrived the lessons are; she knows from experience here at home just how naturally a tiny person can learn basic skills by everyday life in a loving, attentive and protective environment. Her stories are heart-wrenching; children who cry for their mothers, who are often dropped off and picked up by the baby-sitter. She essentially steals the affection from their natural parents--and it grieves her. Little ones hang on her and tell her, "You love me so much better than my mommy"...

Societies which attempt to claim the hearts and minds of children are never benevolent, always malevolent, violent, exploitive, tyrannical. They ultimately self-destruct.

It amazes me just how many in this "land of the free and home of the brave" are falling for the soft-sell; of being suckered into believing we actually need such programs in order to raise good children. It sickens me to realize how many in churches believe the same thing.

What has come over us to make us actually believe a stranger who barely knows a child's name can, or should, be able to train that child better than the very parents that God provided for these defenseless little ones?

It used to be generally understood that the only fit parents for a child were the biological, or adopted, ones. Institutions were the sad replacements formed out of necessity for orphans, reserved only for unfortunates. Blue-bloods utilized boarding schools, not out of concern for their children, but out of convenience and to feel as though they could buy what only love can give.

God gave the first children to parents, and has never done anything different, even with His own dear Son, born into the earth through a woman, given to a man to father and care for well into adulthood. He describes Himself as a Father to the fatherless and gives admonition to members of the New Covenant in terms of familial relationships.

As far as "structure" is concerned, it should be part of any family. Knowing when everyone rises, when breakfast is served, when it is time to go to bed. But little children need a little elbow-room. They need time to be able to feel comfortable in their own skins, Not having everything scripted and planned for them every minute of the day is important, more important than knowing their colors at the age of 2!

Patterns of thinking are being developed in the minds of tiny ones. Having the opportunity to explore, within safe boundaries, without being dictated to allows the natural genius to develop.

More importantly, children who gain their identity from a loving family from early ages grow up to be warm, giving individuals, able to reach out to others from the strength of knowing who they are and what they are about, instead of constantly wondering if they are being "correct" according to someone else's estimation of them.

Institutionalization will do things to the mind; it will get us constantly looking around and comparing, it will keep us off-balance and unable to shake the feeling someone is watching and evaluating us besides God, that the opinions of others, be they in Washington or Hollywood or the group at work or even at church, are more important than those of God Almighty, until they entirely lose themselves to the vain philosophies of man.

I often envy my own children. They do not suffer the angst over these things I sometimes do. They live and act because it is simply "right", not because of anyone else's suggestion, and do not look for anyone else's approval. The little bits of these character traits I sometimes exhibit were hard won--only through a constant struggle and conflict in the private chambers of my mind can I (by faith) break free!

I personally do not wish that sort of life on my own children. I want to hold them and speak into them and learn alongside them who they are. I don't want them to have the pattern of others imprinted on their minds before they have a chance to discover the unique pattern God has given to each, sheltered in the safety of life under my careful and watchful eyes.

Drenching love

I remember well the few months I attended school in Hawaii as a young girl. My mother would meet me after class, my little sister in the stroller tagging along as we waded through the streets after a warm winter rain, the type you could stand in and feel as though you were in a comfortable shower.

How very different from my home state, often sitting in the dry coldness of a sun without warmth waiting for class to begin, my knees gathered up under my skirt to keep them from the penetrating cold.

In the Southwest we live in a climate that is categorized as being "semi-arid". When there is a drought, as in years not too far past, rainfall is scarce; weeks may go by in the hot summer without a drop of rain. A daughter of mine visited relatives in the Northeast and couldn't help but spend time sitting on a bench in the yard during rain storms, allowing the water to soak her clothes and drip down her long eye lashes.

I don't realize how much my love and affection means to my children, until I remember times in my own childhood when it seemed expressions of affection were rationed out to me like water in the middle of a desert. My heart was blistered and pealing from my extreme thirst for a reassuring hug.

Above all, childhood should be a time when love is abundantly flowing, like standing beneath a waterfall in the tropics.

Of course none of us mean to do it--we get busy, life gets complicated, or we go through a season of illness, etc.

But if love were food, and we could observe how well our children were being fed by it, we might be shocked at how malnourished they truly are.

It was what impressed me about my husband. He knew how to express his love and attention, not just to me, but to the little children we came across in our courting. He could make a little girl feel like a princess, and so he did with me, and so he does with each little girl we have in our house.

Of course, a person can be affectionate without being full of love--it is a way to manipulate and control, masking the malevolent or narcissistic true intent. Wounds like these are the worst to recover from.

Conversely, when love for a child is without any expectation of return, when it arises from self-abandonment and deep concern, and is filled with delight, then it is life-giving and more necessary than anything else we could possibly give.

Sometimes we check ourselves and see that we are coming up short--we have been missing opportunities to shower our children with love, and we kick ourselves a bit. But love like this is not natural as much as it is cultivated. We are not like God, who is Love. We are sinful people with selfish desires. Our love must come from His source, and our mind, will, and emotions need to be brought under the Spirit's control.

Love cannot be kept in a bucket, it must ebb and flow through us like water through a hose or faucet. It must first come from heaven the source of all love. I never understood love like this until I was changed, renewed in my spirit because of the sacrifice of One who is most beautiful and holy, the Lord Jesus. He, who is Love, freely allowed God's love to flow in torrents through His sacrifice and embrace all the "...weary and heavy-laidened..." of the world.

So I have to spend time on my face, shutting the door to my secret place with the Almighty. There He, as the Divine Physician, performs heart surgery, and I soon come to realize those things which are in need of repair in my doings with others, and in my thinking and feeling as well. And as I meditate in His Word I find more of what I need to fix and align my soul so I am free from my fleshly hindrances and once again able (by faith) to operate in true affection.

Being offended in my husband, children, neighbor or relative, can interrupt that supernatural flow of God's love.

Being too caught up in the "cares of this life" is another way I can let opportunities slip away--I must remind myself that the greatest influence I possess in the affairs of this world are right here in my own sphere, with the very people I see each and every day.

Worry can work on me, with the fear to produce anger and irritability. Concerns about money, or perhaps someone I love who is suffering in some way, can rob me of my ability to kiss the boo-boo of my toddler or listen patiently to the trials of my 12-year-old. Undo care keeps me from appreciating the glow of sunlight on the blond, fuzzy head of my baby and distracts me from the laughter and celebration of life all around me.

Too much reading, or computer time, or crafting, or talking on the phone can ensure that I do not have time to rain expressions of my benevolence on my own family.

And when I don't take care of my body--not taking the time or discipline for proper sleep, exercise or norishment--then I am unable to offer much of anything to anyone else.

I can also become a complainer, grumbling in my own unthankfulness. Speaking out positive, thankful words most helps me then--"I love cleaning my house", "I love changing diapers, it gives me a chance for some one-on-one with my baby", "I love washing the dishes, it is relaxing and gives me time to think", "I love sitting next to you, Sweet Little Boy, and reading the same story for the 4th time this week", etc.

If we find ourselves walking around, navel-gazing and thinking, "No one loves or appreciates me", this is the precise moment we most need to express these very things to someone else. The words of St. Francis of Assisi are very helpful here--"It is in giving that we now receive". The paradox of the Gospel is that we are healed when we help others to heal. The love we lacked as children, we receive when we give to our own children freely, and there are repairs to the brokeness of our own psyche that occur when we abandon our desires for the needs of others.

I like the words of that old 70's song, "Shower the people you love with love, show them the way you feel".

What things are in the way of our love today?

We must let them go, lay them at His wounded feet.

The chore lists are fixed

Last night we were finally able to fix the chore lists on Google Docs--we apologize again for any frustration or inconvenience!

Mommy's toolbox--cleaning how-to chore lists

This last week was spent "tightening up" in preparation for this season of more intensified academics. I finally took the time to spell out methods of cleaning, mostly by the use of detailed lists.

I have used myriads of different chore systems before, and I can foresee myself using myriads in the future--it is just the nature of the job, the children, and myself that things need to be changed (what can I say, I am a "domestic engineer", and aren't all engineers born to change things?).

After all the work it took to type these things out, I thought it might help someone else, so I will share them here.

*If you are in a different place in life or different situation, please do not allow yourself to become pressured or discouraged by reading these.

Clean a bedroom

Clean the master bedroom

Laundry duty

Kitchen duty

Family room

Front room

Clean a bathroom

I have discovered that my children needed a more specific understanding of just what cleaning entails, not just general directions such as "clean your room". To be honest, sometimes I even become flummoxed when posed with an absolute mess--where do I start?

Time is often wasted with basic things, one being the search for simple cleaning supplies like rags, spray bottles, etc.

Also, there is often a communication problem between parent and child; what do I really mean, and what does my child really understand from what I told him. A clean room from a child's perspective is quite different from an adult's perspective--these things need to be spelled out more clearly, enabling a child to feel more secure and that correction is just, and a parent to feel less frustration.

With my lists, which were put to the test last week, with input from the children every day as to ways to improve them, we have been experiencing a much cleaner house with less frustration and less time spent--these are all gifts of gold to my homeschooling mother's soul!

I don't believe these lists are general enough for someone else to use, but they just might enable someone else to be able to formulate their own.

Blessings!

Mommy's Toolbox--What's worth viewing/reading?

Along with my last post, I would like to recommend a few books and movies. Of course, everyone differs in their level of sensitivity, and a perfect book or show does not exist this side of heaven except for the Bible.

TV series:

Davey and Goliath--(clay animation) boy and his dog deal with life issues from a Christian perspective--done in the early 60's. Please don't bother with the newer release movie--not at all the same spirit or world-view.

Have Gun Will Travel--Richard Boone plays, Paladin, a "man-for-hire", who travels the West helping others with problems/needs, and has a very similar code of conduct that aligns with the John Wayne approach to life.

The Waltons--an intimate look into large family life during the years of the Great Depression--watch for the attitudes of the girls in the family--we have to use them as object lessons of how not to act from time to time. Overall very wholesome.

Route 66--two young men in the early 60's driving through the country on the then known "mother road" called route 66 (pre-Interstate era). These men travel mostly for adventure but often are compelled to assist and understand the people they meet wherever they are--a few episodes have more adult themes, but most are very good.

Rawhide--started in 1959, this show has very strong right and wrong--good and bad spot on themes. Gil Favor, the trail boss, is the main character who gives a very realisic rendition of life in the old west on the Chisholm Trail. The focus is about a perpetual cattle drive with adventures and mishaps of all sorts--portrays the difficulties of leading/following in different situations. This was Clint Eastwood's first TV introduction, he plays the cattle drover, Roudy Yates.

Combat--done in the mid-1960's with Vic Morrow as the tuff and commanding Sgt. Saunders who leads his platoon of war hardened enlisted men through all sorts of life and death episodes during World War II. There are many excellent lessons here for young men.

Leave it to Beaver--almost everyone's favorite--this is pretty familiar to most folks, Hugh Boumont, played Ward, the father in the series. Boumont was a Methodist minister and helped with the development of the shows content. We all remember Jerry Mathers as "the Beaver". Lot's of excellent family interaction with a strong right and wrong code of ethics.

The Andy Griffith Show--done also in the early 1960's. Andy Griffith is a believer, he plays the role of Andy Taylor, a small town sheriff and everyone enjoys Barney (Don Knotts) who plays his well meaning but often accident prone, high strung deputy. Great family entertainment. The show has a homey feel and is very funny.

Here Come the Brides--a much lesser know series of the late 60's, the story of logging camp operator, Jason Bolt (Robert Brown), and his younger brothers, Jeremy (Bobby Sherman) and Joshua (David Soul). Set in Seattle in the 1870s, "Here Come The Brides" followed the tale of how the Bolt brothers were in danger of losing their timberland at Bridal Veil Mountain because their men were in near revolt over the lack of "marriageable" women in Seattle. This series lasted just two short seasons but has a lot of morality when dealing with courting, etc. compared to what's on TV today. Unfortunately portrays drinking as being "harmless".

The Time Tunnel--Also a late 1960's fun sort of Sci-fi TV show about "Two American scientists who are lost in the swirling maze of past and future ages, during the first experiments on America's greatest and most secret project, the Time Tunnel. Tony Newman (James Darren) and Doug Phillips (Robert Colbert) now tumble helplessly toward a new fantastic adventure, somewhere along the infinite corridors of time." --has a little bit of evolution, but also deals with Bible events as being facts not myths or stories.

Macgyver--the main character, played by Richard Dean Anderson, is a trouble-shooter who innovatively adapts to his surroundings in order to circumvent difficulties he/others are faced wtih. Macgyver is a genuinely nice guy--no outrageous romance or gore, although his character expresses a bit of a liberally idealistic view on life. Great family entertainment.

Rolie Polie Olie-- I love the positive portrayal of the family in this one--the Dad and Mom are involved with their children, unlike most modern cartoons.

Movies:

The March of the Wooden Soldiers with Laurel and Hardy--our little kids love this movie, full of Mother Goose characters, songs, good plot and funny antics of the comedic team. Innocent and engaging.

The Bishop's Wife (the one with Cary Grant and David Niven)--my husband likes this one because it portrays God's interest in man's everyday affairs.

The Robe--Very excellent story of the crucifixion Christ and early church. The main characters are: Richard Burton, Victor Mature and Jean Simmons.

Chisum (John Wayne)--this one deals with Christian witness and redemption. My husband believes that more boys should grow up with strong hero types like John Wayne today.

Nicholas Nickleby (2002)--moving adaptation of Dickens novel--my boys love the honorable manliness of the main character.

Mrs. Miniver--the strength of character of a wife in war torn England during Second World War. Very inspirational.

Nancy Drew (2002)--a surprisingly innocent portrayal of this beloved mystery novel character. Nancy Drew, played by Maggie Lawson, is kind of old-fashioned and very courteous-- actually influences her rebellious peers. Our kids really enjoyed this story of a young sleuth.


Books:

Ballantyne adventure series--our son bought 20 of these from Vision Forum for Christmas after he had read a bunch of them online. They combine adventure with Christian values and even stories of redemption. He wrote about 100 titles, so there are many hours of reading enjoyment here.

An Old Fashioned Girl, Louisa May Alcot--this is a great book for young ladies, full of encouragement for a girl to keep to her values, no matter how out of place she may feel. Little Women, and the subsequent sequels, good novels, and not as liberal as the recent movie adaptations.

Jane Austen novels--good reading for girls, some romance, but with grace and good sense.

Freckles, Gene Stratton Porter--a story of courage and hope with kindness, faithfulness and loyalty mixed in.

Ben Hur--the book and movies are both great, the book being much more involved, as is usual.

Dickens novels--A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, etc.


Some "classics" I would avoid:

Earnest Hemmingway novels--dark, boring and depressing.

Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm--feminist, full of self-centeredness and negative view of farmlife and motherhood.

Jack London--socialist writer with an obvious agenda.

Bronte sisters--dark and brooding novels with no good purpose.

Tom Sawyer--although this is considered a classic, the attitude of the character, Tom, is not something I would want to encourage in my boys.


This list is incomplete (I can't even remember all of the good/bad shows or books at this sitting). I am hoping others will jump in with their recommendations/warnings as I am always looking for good things to watch and read. We have discovered that parents can be their own media programers instead of surrendering that responsibility to someone in Hollywood. Awaiting your good show/book suggestions.

Mommy's Toolbox--Be careful little eyes what you see...

I found some wonderful guidelines written before common sense was extinct for parents concerning what their children were reading. It occured to me these would also apply today to what children are viewing. I would like to attempt to adapt them to both:

Read your children's books yourself, or better yet have them read them to you. Sit and watch the movies they watch, or at least preview them beforehand. Ask yourself some questions while reading and/or viewing,

"Does this book/movie lay stress on villainy, deception, or treachery?"

"Are all the incidents wholesome, probable, and true to life?"

"Are the events portrayed from a fatalistic, dark viewpoint?"

"Does it show young people contemptuous toward their elders and successfully opposing them?"

"Do the young characters in this movie/book show respect for teachers and others in authority?"

"Are these characters the kind of people you wish your children to associate with and emulate?"

"Does this book/movie speak of or show pranks, practical jokes and pieces of thoughtless and cruel mischief as though they were funny and worthy of imitation?"

"Does this book/movie portray fathers as being either blithering idiots, cruel ogres, or disinterested phantoms? Does it give the impression mothers are better able to rule in the home? Does it give confusing signals about the equal but different roles of the sexes?"

"Is the English good and is the story/script written in good style?"

"Does the book/movie challenge young minds, or is it dumbed-down?"

The tendency of these past decades has been to use books and media as baby-minders, and we assume that just because something looks "cute" and kidsy, it will also be beneficial. It all depends on what our goals are, of course; what types of fruit do we wish to see in our children? We must be careful of what powerful seeds we allow to be planted through written, visual or audial media in their lives.

Remember Philippians 4:8!

January Jubilee in Jesus!

I love this time of year--I get to slow down and listen; listen to God, listen to my husband, listen to my children. There are no presents to wrap, no big dinners to cook.

I have time to reflect and enjoy, time to rest and plan.

This is also my favorite time to homeschool. Since we are not tied to any certain curriculum, we have more fun than ever in the quietness of winter--more trips to the library, more focussing in on learning about anything and everything. Long hours enjoying one novel after the other. Crafting and playing games are also mixed in--in generous amounts.

Blessings to you as you begin this new year--expect God to meet you at each new challenge, expect that He wants the best for you. The devil wants us to be afraid of the coming months, of the economy, the government and everything else. This is not God--it is not His will for us to live this way.

Take each day and enjoy it--live in the refuge He is--the strong tower, the "bullwark never failing".

Re-read Psalm 91 and make it your habit to run into Him and hide, and watch Him unfold His wonderful plan for you and your family--even if tragedy should knock at our doors, He is working everything for our good.

Blessings to all and trusting with you for a very Happy New Year in Him!