Who's Holding Up Your Arms When You Are Weary?

If you are a home school mom and are getting to the end of your rope at the end of the year, who do you turn to?  Who is your Arron or Hur?

Exodus 17:11 "So it came about when Moses held his hand up, that Israel prevailed, and when he let his hand down, Amalek prevailed." Eventually, Moses became weary, and so Aaron and Hur responded by holding up his arms until the Israelites were able to finally defeat the Amalekites. 

Do you have a group that supports you? A trusted friend to say you can do this?  I encourage you to seek out Godly women, Titus 2 women that will hold you up in prayer, phone/text support, or just getting a quick cup of Joe to get you out.  

If you don't know anyone in real life that will encourage you, there are many home school sites with wonderful support. I just joined Homeschoolscopes on Facebook. What a fun place!
You get to see real women who love to share their hearts, ideas, blogs, and resources. 

2nd Timothy 4:1-8  I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at[a] His appearing and His kingdom:2 Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. 3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. 5 But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.6 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure is at hand. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give to me on that Day, and not to me only but also to all who have loved His appearing.

We need to finish well. With Him all things are possible! God Bless you in your journey.

#homeschoolingforlife  #20yrsandcounting 

End of year Mother's Day project: Mom's Shed. 

At work with the hubs

Today I am keeping my beloved company as he works. We are in beautiful Treasure Island, FL. Someone got a real sweet deal with a fixer upper. It is small but charming right across the dare I say street, it is more like a skinny sidewalk from the beach.

Oh how I would love to be further south and steps from the beach.

I really love living in Florida and I am so thankful to be here.

My hubby works beyond hard to provide for our family and I appreciate when I can go with him and see beautiful houses.

God has given him incredible talent with his hands and he is well loved by everyone he works for. #proudwifeypoo.

I love this man to the core if my being.

As it is the National Day of Prayer, I hope all you wives lift up you husbands with a special prayer today for strength, integrity, honor, wisdom, health, and humility. I pray you all respect your husbands as head if your homes and as God's gift to you all.

Life goes on

Time has come and gone as people in my family have.
I have grieved for a very long time, in my humble opinion. I never thought I would be that person that would get stuck, but there I was stuck in the sadness of losing my mom.

Well God sustained me and I am on my way back to life. I ate myself to a gross version of myself I didn't even recognize. I have lost some of that and I will continue to work on my diet for health sake and my family.

I am looking forward to a great summer. We have just finished another year of our co-op with our group ggmfl.com It was a great time with cooking, p.e., photography, foil lettering, civics, card making and more.

Valentines goodies.

Hello Home School Convention 2014 FPEA

I have had a rough few years of deaths to say the least. We all know that life goes on, and it must no matter how hard the road, or how mushy you feel to be sinking in the sand. I have continued to home school my nephew & son through the last episodes of a series of sadness.

This past school year brings bitter sweet memories. My oldest just graduated law school under the Lords direction. My nephew just graduated high school, and my youngest son is moving onto  middle school.

So off to my state wide convention for inspiration and encouragement I go.

First things first work. The Leaders Forum. My first. It was wonderful to meet and hear from all the moms and dads that work tirelessly to serve in the home school community. To hear that the struggles I face are not unusual. There is a new generation of home schoolers and I have yet to see anything good. Maybe it is the area I live in or I am so ol' school in doing this thing for the Lord and not unto men.  I certainly feel like an alien. Academics are important but it is not the defining end result I am seeking.

I feel like with all the technology out there and ways to communicate, the younger generation just seems to want to be an island unto themselves.  How can I help? How can we relate, and build relationships if we never meet?  Yes I have plenty of online people that I share with, pray for, and the like, but what about our children? Will they still enjoy play dates?  I know what you are thinking, plan it. I do. I do I do. We do.  We just have so few who participate. As I found out, I am not alone.

I am so grateful to the leaders that spoke up, shared, and made me feel welcomed.

The exciting stuff for me was after the Leaders Forum, shopping before the crowds, then the PJ Party with Heidi St John aka The Busy Mom. Oh what fun, filled with yummy treats, laughter, and a good dose of reality. No one is perfect accept Jesus. This no mama drama made sure we heard that.

I was beyond giddy. If you haven't read her books I encourage you to get them. You will be blessed and your marriage and children will be too.

Bring me to tears was Cate Frates. A vintage treasure with her session, Take Heat and Be Encouraged! You are Uniquely Chosen and Qualified to Educate Your Children
I was beyond blessed to hear all the things that was true for my first son is still relevant and I am not on the coo coo train because I want the Lord to lead my home and our schooling.

Of course Hal & Melanie Young where fab too, though I didn't get a picture. All of this would have been for naught if my all time fav people were not part of this adventure. I am so glad my husband and sons came to get a lil  R & R. I even got to go to the spa my last night to heal my weary back.

Joseph go to play a lil Man Hunt with his pal Jeremy before I crashed.

His brother was a graduate Sunday afternoon. Congrats to Dan Michael. One more Margo!
Seeing more friends come and go also made the weekend memorable.

Joe and Matthew sporting  Bilbo's sword was fun.

Joe having fun at JM Cremps Booth.

My love in his proud papa law school t shirt at  Sunset Sam's in the Gaylord.

Well if you haven't had enough of us or me by now you can catch me on facebook here I am thewifeypoo. 19 years and counting. Home schooling for life.

Mother's Day is coming, I am reflecting on my Moms passing

One year ago around Mother's Day my moms health changed. I saw her rapid decline just from being dehydrated. I guess that being diabetic didn't help either.

After visits with her Doc, I helped her start to eat better and make better choices. For a while she was doing better.  Her Doc said her blood sugar has never been better.  Great!

So off my mom went, daring to scoot around town without thought.  My mom loved to shop, and talk to people, anyone would suffice.  Her shopping excursions came at a cost, her diet!  She shopped, got tired, and didn't really keep up with eating enough, in my humble opinion.  He thinking was not the same after being dehydrated and now was getting worse. Her decisions and thought process was clouded, fuzzy, and just not rational at times.

I begged her to move in with us last May after being dehydrated and coming out of the rehab, but understandably she wanted to live in her own home.  Is that my fault I didn't make her?  I don't know.  I feel like I should have taken more control, but I didn't because I think people deserve to have dignity when getting old.  They lived for us, helped us and when they are old they just want to be left alone to do what they want.  That is what my mom wanted.

I started to mourn her then and there. Right or wrong, that is what was happening inside of me.

Since my dad died our relationship got better. I had more empathy, I was more loving,  I never rushed her while she shopped. Believe me if you knew my mom you knew I waited for hours. I am not the shopper she was. We could always tell how my mom was really doing whether she wanted to shop or not. That was the Litmus test.

Later in the year she started to go to ladies prayer with me, and for a while she went to church with my friend, then came to my church which also made our relationship stronger, cause the Lord was in the middle of it.

Sadly right before Thanksgiving she dropped scissors on the top of her foot. That may not have been so bad had she not been diabetic. Well it turned bad too fast.

I told her to clean it something you would not thought needed to be told, but we all told her. What she really did no one knows. She told me she rinsed it.  I told her she needed to clean it with soap and water or peroxide.  She told me she did that the next day...

Wed we took off to see Sean at law school. We stopped at Bushnell for her to see my dad's headstone. That is where I saw her boo boo. It was a speck, a dot, nothing anyone would ever think was bad.  Who knew?
We had a nice lunch with Sean. I will treasure that forever. My son always sang to his Grandmother and she ate it up!

This love bond melted my heart.

Back home we went about out stuff. My mom's foot started hurting her more and more. I told her to go to the Dr, she made two appointments then didn't  to either. That is where it all turned bad.  I hadn't been down there for 2 weeks, Joe was sick, whatever I was, my brother had been there so I never thought that speck could get so bad. I was wrong!   When I went after church, I was thinking how could that be?

The first picture, the first time in two weeks since going to Jacksonville. She made my brother put some cream on, I couldn't even was it off, her foot was so tender. I called her Dr office for something for pain.  I still had no idea how bad it could or would get. They said to get her in there asap.
I told her, it they want to put her in rehab again to get antibiotics in her she was going.  So it took a day to get a bed, then off she went.

You may not even believe  how bad it got even with antibiotics.

That was shocking! After a week in rehab, the sent her to the ER for tests. One of which she refused. More time, more Dr visits, more care needed. She came home with me and my life stopped. I learned wound care, I made sure she got all her meds, ate right, and tried to make her as comfy as possible.

She was the center, while I still had to home school Joe, answer the phone for dear hubby, take care of our ol dog, and our house.  Yes Christmas was upon us.

Christmas Eve I thought my FIL looked so good and my mom looked so weak,  My uncle her brother died the day after.
My FIL died Jan 31st, our dog two days later, then March came.

My mom was bad. She had been getting dizzy and sleeping lots, she didn't want to eat much and didn't want to take her meds any more. The wound need a  surgical debridement.

This is the next day when Home Care came. Looks good in a weird way. Not, the surgeon told me the infection was almost to the bone.  Should he have taken her foot? Again I don't know. He Doc said she would not have survived it.  Mom also didn't want to loose her foot.


Still got worse from there. They found a mass on her lung. Hello, this was much on the plate.
She spoke of dying more and more. Her blood sugar took a dive one day, I thought she had a stroke. I fed her watermelon for an hour till she was okay.

The last pic of her. That rubber is a drain, the surgeon took out her tendon that had been exposed while I was doing all that wound care.

When she could not make it to do further tests for lung because we could not regulate her sugar, and she was declining so fast her Doc called in Hospice at home, my heart sunk. What did this really mean?  My mom would surely die sooner than later? How could all this happen this way?

So with the help of Hospice 3 days I kept on the best I could. Have I mentioned I have had a bad back most of my adult life and when my son got a reclining couch we hauled it up to his 2nd floor apt?  So yes, my body was broken!

I got a hospital bed, that helped my back, I got a tray table for dinner, and a  bed pan. We got new meds. I had to learn how to give her insulin. I will not go into the messy details of how bad it got on that last day at home, but I was so thankful our friends Dee & Sue had been over to visit with her and they helped me beyond words. It was not enough though. The night came, just me and Jesus. Her blood sugar was way high, I called the nurse and she called the Hospice facility after she saw the wreck I had been changing sheets and cleaning my mom all day & night.  I could not do it another day. My limit had come. The nurse got here about 12:30 am and they took my mom at 3:30 after we cleaned her up and changed the bed for the last time.  When I went to bed my husband had not even know all I had been though and had done. My heart was racing, I couldn't sleep I was so wound up. I just cried.  That woke dear hubby, and he held me. I don't know when but I finally feel asleep.

The next afternoon was the beginning of the end.

All clean up, a new bed in a beautiful place, but not yet the beauty to behold that was coming.

My goofy lil guy making the most of it all. I am so grateful he had all this time with his Grandma.

Sean was finished with one class and had two more when I called him and told him Grandma was asking for him. He left without breath of hesitation. He got there that night and made her day!

Deana made it the next day with Angie (thankfully) Billy and his family and Ed were all there having good memories, and my mom said "don't ever stop these conversations." 

I was playing some worship music, but Sean the crooner said to put on a certain song and when I did she lit up.
I wish I had a pic of Ed with Ma, but I will always have Angie saying when she saw them looking into each others eyes it chocked her up, cause she could see how much they loved each other.  That was the truth! She was his mom for 25yrs, Ed's mom died when he was 24 ish.

My moms childhood friend Elinor came to visit, as you can see it was a tear jerking time for me. It was a short visit, but I am thankful.

My pastor and his wife came, my mother in law came. I let my cousins know, my last aunt, some of my moms friends. She was very loved.

There is Deana & Angie friends forever! The way it should be. Two beautiful women I am blessed to have in my life.

Children are a heritage from the Lord, no matter where your walk with Him is, while there is life there is hope.

When everyone left it was me and Ma, then Mon our friend Julie, our pastors wife came and sang to my mom in the spirit, it was sweet and healing. My mother in law also came up. The most influential women in my life. I was honored.
They left and I thought something changed in her breathing but my heart was pumped and racing so I went home for what seemed like only minutes when the best nurse called and told me it was time.  Me and Eddie rushed to get there and I got to tell my mom all the things that you want to tell the most important person in your life for your whole life. I felt like my mouth kept going on and on. Ed thought she passed but I knew she hadn't. I told him to get Shirley and she confirmed she was still with me, I continued to pour out my love and thankfulness to her for everything but my last and what I am most thankful for is here giving me Jesus. Again, it is well with my soul.

How many children get to usher their parents to heaven?  God saw fit to allow me to be blessed to be with my parents as they took their last breaths on Earth, before their eternal lives begin.

Thank you Father for my parents.
Mommy, I know you will have the best Mother's Day with your King.

I pray you are bold and have sweetness with your loved ones as you are lead by the Holy one to introduce them to the One who gave everything that they may live forever, and it would be well with your soul as it is mine, no matter how sad, joy comes.

A Time of Celebrating

A couple of weeks ago we celebrated our 23rd anniversary together.  I have to say I have had a swell of emotions. Remembering my parents 20th  Joining the ranks of other committed couples headed for a lifetime together. 

Special events make you look back, take stock, wonder what the future holds. I was doing lots of thinking  that night.  We went on a dinner cruise. (It was on my bucket list).  On board there was a wedding, an eighty ninth birthday, another anniversary couple and us quietly taking it all in with our 9yr old son.  

The food was so so, the music not too loud, the gulf breeze beautiful and the fireworks fun. 
Looking into the eyes of my husband and son priceless.  How do you thank G*d for something beyond all hope, dreams being lived?  It could only have been better if my son Sean was there. 

Marriage is work. We may be unequally yoked, but we have a good marriage because of what the Lord has done in it, through each of us.  We each have different strengths and talents and I think for the most part we compliment on another. 

We have each others back, through it all, till the end of our days.  ...If  G*d is for us, who can be against us? Romans 8:31

Thanks Mom & Dad I know it was hard and not perfect, but I am proud my parents were married till death.
Thank you Lord for the gift of my husband Eddie.  My love & respect for this man is deep & wide.

I pray you all appreciate your spouses through the good bad & ugly times in life.  I pray you seek the Lord in your marriage and keep the bond & vow with the Lord that you may bless your spouse.
I pray for kindness and tender hearts for you all, In Yeshua /Jesus .

A New Year in Schooling

Fourth grade. What an exciting time in life! Young enough to enjoy and old enough to try more things.  Delayed learning can be hard when you are waiting for you little one to catch on, but oh the joy to see those sparks!

This year, as always when I ask Joe what does he want to learn about, he rattled of WW1, WWll, weapons of this age, civil war, revolution war, and stars.  This is not surprising as my boys are gun lovin, bad guy, alien, and zombie killing kind of boys and their father is always watching Morgan Freeman's Though the Worm Hole or other such space shows.

So we started our adventure. We have already taken a field trip to the FL Holocaust Muse am, which I could not take pictures. However, after that sad place we went to a tea house which we had lots of laughs with our friends trying on different hats.

We also started our co-op classes and we are doing a mini unit on animals which what young-ling doesn't love? Our friend has been kind enough to host it at her house where there are chickens, goats, horses, cats and dogs. A dream for my son.

We visited Winter the Dolphin at the Clearwater Marine Center. The whole family came for that.

There's Winter! What a hot day, but it was good to have Grandma, Eddie & Sean with us.  Time is fleeting. I missed my dad that day as he loved to do things like this with us.

No back to school kick off would be complete without a trip to MOSI, our local science and industry museum.

Joseph also started piano this year. All I can say it's about time the piano Ed got from Miss Cheryl is finally being used the right way.

Lastly to this post all is not just fun and games, there are chores. If a man doesn't work he doesn't eat the bible says. Joe has taken on a few more this year and is becoming a helpful lil guy.  I need all the help I can get!

You may be thinking but come on where is the real school?  This is life, it is learning as we go.  It may not be what you think it should be or how you think it should get done, but every child is different and brings different challenges. Joe is no exception.  He is full of questions and full of laughter.
Here he is doing his math program, Teaching Textbooks. Mom loves this.  He is for the first time motivated to take charge of his day. He reads his daily bible first, then gets right to his math.

Next journey this year is for Sean.  He is officially a 2L.  That's a second year law student. It was heaven for me to have him home this summer, but as always way too short for the Mama.
This is the morning he left before the tears came rolling.  I am praying my daughter in love who ever she is can deal with me loving him so much and doesn't take him out of state! Not my will though Lord, whatever you choose.

It is really hard to take a good picture of yourself with a cell phone. Just sayin.