Guest post by Leah.

Well, I was picking on my mom for not blogging (Four whole days! What was she thinking?), and she said I should write a guest blog. So I did! Here goes!

Lately I've been talking to a Jenny [name changed to protect the innocent:)], a coworker of mine. Jenny and her husband have two children, and for various reasons, they're thinking about having Jenny be a stay-at-home mom and home school the kids. When she told me about this, I said, "You know, I was home schooled all the way through high school and I'm a pretty big fan of it!" Jenny: "Really? Did you ever feel like you were . . . [searching for a nice way to say it] limited by not going to school?" Me: "That depends on how you define limited, I guess."

Jenny basically said the same thing (in a nicer way) people say to me all the time when they find out I was home schooled. How did you have friends? Did you ever feel like you missed out? Did you wish you went to school? Were you angry at your parents because they didn't let you go to school? Didn't you want to be normal? How did you get into college? Was it hard to adjust to a classroom? What about college social life?

Here are my answers, as a bona fide home school graduate, to all of those questions.

Q: How did you have friends?

A: I was a nice person. How do YOU have friends? (This is my standard answer)

     In all seriousness, I made friends at church, and when I was fourteen we started using a home school co-op for music lessons, so I made friends in the orchestra. Yet another perk of getting your child music lessons (I'm a music teacher. I had to make a plug for it). But we also played with the neighbor's kids after they got home from school. "A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly" and all that. :)

Q: Did you ever feel like you missed out?

A: There were times growing up when I wondered what it was like to go to school and be with friends all day. Then the movie Mean Girls came out and cured me of that.

     No, I never really felt like I missed out. Unless by "missing out" you mean missing out on getting teased, missing out on the drugs, smoking, immature dating relationships, sneaking around, and dishonoring parents. If that's what you mean, then yes, I totally missed out, praise God.

Q: Did you ever wish you went to school?

A: I did once, that I remember. But the next morning when I woke up at 8, instead of 5:30 (like most high school girls do), all of a sudden I got really thankful for being home schooled.

Q: Were you angry at your parents because they didn't let you go to school?

A: I don't remember ever feeling angry at my parents for not putting me in school.

     I understand that parents don't want their kids to be angry at them. But with all due respect, you're the parent. Sometimes your kids won't like the choices you make (having to mow the grass when I was a teen comes to mind), but you're the adult and you know better. Do what you know is right for your kid. They'll come around. Especially when they wake up at 8 instead of 5:30. It does wonders for the attitude.

Q: Didn't you want to be normal?

A: Why the heck would I want to be normal?

     Normal for a teen girl means you or a close friend has an eating disorder, and have worried about being fat since age four. FOUR. Normal means you've slept with someone by age 14. Normal means having smoked a cigarette by age 12, and had your first alcoholic drink by age 11. Normal is wearing trashy, immodest clothes to advertise how insecure you are and how easy it'll be to take advantage of you. Normal is yelling at your parents when you don't get the new iPhone ALLLLLL the other kids are getting. Normal? I'll pass.

Q: How did you get into college?

A: I took the SAT and applied. What did you do?

     No offense, but this has got to be the dumbest question ever. There's only one way to get into college. Take a standardized test and then apply. Duh. My mom kept track of my high school courses and sent in a transcript just like other schools, and since I was going to be a music major, I auditioned. In the middle of April I got an acceptance letter. It's not rocket science.

Q: Was it hard to adjust to a classroom?

A: Not really. It was definitely different, but I thought it was pretty easy to adjust. I enjoyed being in class with my friends, but I was always sort of the nerd of the group and I tended to study more than they did. Now that I've worked for a year and I'm in grad school, I can safely say that being the nerd is totally worth it. Plus, in college the nerds are the ones who get begged for tutoring. I can't tell you how many poor little freshmen I helped pass music theory. :)

Q: What about college social life?

A: It was kind of weird being around a bunch of people my age at first. I'd always been in more (dare I say it?) diverse groups. It only took about two days for me to realize this whole college thing could really be a blast. I got involved with a Christian student group, helped found and run a chapter of the Network of enlightened Women (NeW), and worked on good conservatives' political campaigns with the College Republicans. Ironically, they made me the Social Events Chair my junior year. The home schooler. Imagine that.

     Home schooling isn't just an educational choice. It's a lifestyle. It really is what you make of it. Personally, I'd take it every day of the week over being in school. So to answer Jenny's question, no, I was definitely not limited. On the contrary – I had then and have now more freedom than the vast majority of my classroom-schooled peers. I'm incredibly thankful that my parents home schooled me, and I definitely plan to do the same for my children someday.

          Basically, I have a pretty great life. But it started at home. My parents are still the biggest influence in my life, and I wouldn't trade that for anything. After all, they're the ones who taught me about Jesus. And He makes all the difference in the world.

    

Leah

Saturday confessions 12.

1. This will be the shortest Saturday confessions post in the history of mankind because I forgot about it and now I have to leave the house in ten minutes.

2. Part of one of my jobs is writing a monthly newsletter. Every month I leave it until about six days before the end of the month and then panic. So far my strategy has not backfired, but I know one of these days it's going to bite me.

3. I call all my kids and all of their friends "darlin." Sometimes I almost slip and call someone inappropriate that. That's also going to bite me someday.

4. I used a neti pot for the first time today and it was the strangest feeling. But I've been trying to get rid of a sinus infection for almost a month now, and after ten days of antibiotic, it's still there. I'll let you know if it works.

Be thankful ~

The stress of pressure.

I am not a fan of the pressure. I work my brains out trying not to get myself in a pressureful (to use my niece's made-up word) corner, but every once in a while things build up faster than I can get through them (that's the way it is in publishing), and I'm up against it. And guess what: I write under pressure, and then stand back and marvel at how quickly I get it done. And then the next day I am convinced once again that I just can't work under pressure.

This is Pete. We call him "the brainless wonder" because it's a wonder he can function at all with as little brainpower as he apparently has. What he lacks in smarts he makes up for in jowls and hair.

Pete hates pressure too, only in his case, it's the barometric kind. He senses a drop in atmospheric pressure and begins the freak-out process because he knows there's thunder coming. Then we have the requisite pacing, panting, and drooling. A few weeks ago I heard him outside my bedroom door at 1:30 a.m. in the middle of a meltdown, so I got my bathrobe on, opened the door, and slid through a puddle of dog slobber. I may or may not have said some less-than-kind things to my panic-stricken dog and shooed him back to his crate to ride out the storm. Remember the book, Marly & Me? That's Pete.

Pete in sun-shiny high pressure:

Pete in there's-a-storm-a-comin' low pressure:

Maybe I should deal with my pressure like he deals with his.

Be thankful ~

More on Pitaiyo.

Pitaiyo on Sunday afternoon was killer. I thought I'd go to the gym that afternoon because I hadn't done anything the day before, and in my twisted mind, if I take more than one day off, I'll gain 5 pounds and lose half my muscle. So I went, thinking, "It's just Pitaiyo. How bad can it be?"


I will never learn.

Have I already told you that Pitaiyo is a combination of Pilates, Tai Chi, and yoga? Pilates works the core, Tai Chi makes you sweat, and the yoga calms your mind while your muscles are screaming.

The Tai part is pretty easy, and the yo part wasn't too awful. I was hanging in there until close to the end, when the instructor demonstrated Warrior 3. I know it doesn't look bad, but I'm telling you this is the most unnatural position to try to get your body into. However, because you are face-down, your nose makes a handy spot for dripping sweat onto your mat.

If you really want to see what it looks like, go here. I've tried four times to paste the photo and the ole blog just won't take it today.

Anyway, I lived through the tai and yo portions. Then we got to the Pi part and I thought I would die trying to do a reverse bridge with leg lifts. So I learned my lesson and will hereafter forevermore refrain from Sunday afternoon Pitaiyo.

Maybe. I reserve the right to change my mind because apparently I enjoy suffering.

Monday was uneventful. Tuesday I went to the gym and then Abbie and I went to donate blood. I gave my pint while listening to the flurry of activity behind me, where someone had passed out because he had his legs crossed. Then Abbie and I went shopping and I bought a cute dress. I actually found two, but decided one was enough. I have no idea why.

And now here we are at Wednesday, getting ready to go to the gym. It's a Strive day, so I'm happy to say there's no yo.

Be thankful ~

Saturday confessions 11. (Warning: Hunter photos ahead.)

Look at me, getting this out there before bedtime on Saturday (or worse, on Sunday)! But only because I saw Melissa's link on Twitter this morning.

1. I've been a little obsessed with taking photos of Man-squared's muscles lately. When the light is just right, you can really see the definition in those arms. He's just like his daddy.

2. Speaking of Man-squared, he killed one of the groundhogs that have been vandalizing our garden yesterday. I walked out on the deck to throw a towel over the railing and saw it sticking its head out of the hole. So I quietly came back in and told MS to get his gun. When he went out, he saw a different one peeking out from under the woodpile where it makes its home. He aimed through the rail slats and shot it. I'll spare you the details, but it was a pretty amazing shot, knowing that a groundhog's ear is about the size of your pinky fingernail.

3. My dog is stupid, but you already know that. After the groundhog was shot, we sent Pete down to investigate, hoping he would get the scent and learn to go after them himself. He ran down to it and sniffed a few times.

Then he started barking, like that would increase the amount of dead. Or maybe he wanted to play.

Even my Yorkie learned to kill a mouse. I fear there's no hope for Pete.

4. Now it's Saturday morning and I've already been to the commissary and put all the food away, with help from Abbie and Noelle (she of the big, brown eyes). The rest of my day will be spent working and doing laundry, and then going to a graduation party.

Be thankful ~

Karen

Last weekend's major event, very late.

If you've been here any amount of time, you know we have a truck in the driveway that is either red or purple, depending on your gender (the girls call it purple, the boys, red).

This truck has been sitting for a few years waiting for a new motor, and since both Man-squared and Mike were here last weekend and Man-squared found out that once it has a new motor it will be HIS truck (how's that for motivation?), they decided it was time to get the old motor out.

Man-squared is on this side, Mike is buried in the leaves on the other side, and that blue thing in front is an engine hoist.

First try. Something's still bolted.

Second try. Even with all that muscle, it's not coming out. (Adam, he has his daddy's arms.)

Making a plan for try #3.

Success!

Ben had to settle for being the brains behind the brawn. Man-squared is just showing off his lats.

Ta-da!

At some point a new motor will go in, we hope as easily as this one came out.

Be thankful ~

Karen

Signs of the times.

Two sisters go shopping together and what do they get? Photos of incorrect signs for their mama.

This one from Leah:

And I think the plural should be scraves.

And this one from Deb:

I can just picture them fighting over who gets to take a picture of the sign and send it to Mom . . .

Be thankful ~

Karen

Sweet Shot Tuesday.

Man-squared pulling the motor out of his truck.

As always, it's the subject rather than the photography skills that make me love this photo.

Be thankful ~

Karen

Saturday confessions 10. Only for me it's 9.

1. It's 8:30 pm and I'm tired and want to take a shower and get in bed with a book, but like every other Saturday of my life, I forgot to write this post until now. So here I am.

2. I did my first Pitaiyo class today (that's a combination of Pilates, Tai Chi, and Yoga) after being told over and over (by you-know-who) how great it is. I was also told it was a good workout and would make me sweat. There were extenuating circumstances in today's class, but it was still pretty good and did make me sweat a little. I wouldn't trade Pilates for it, but I might do it once a week just for the stretching.

3. My brother showed up here this afternoon and we had a good time talking and laughing. He speaks my dog's love language. I did not take a picture but I should have.

4. I drove Abbie's truck for the first time today and might have felt a little of my redneck side coming out.

5. The boys finally got the motor out of the truck I affectionately call purple today, but I've promised Man-squared I will start calling it red. He's going to get it someday and doesn't want to be driving a purple truck. So it's red.

6. I forgot to buy batteries for my wireless mouse today so I'm using the trackpad. I'm tired of it. So I'm going to shower and take cough medicine and go to bed. Good night.

Be thankful ~

Karen

It's in the genes.

A few weeks ago, Man-squared left the house one morning and I didn't see him for most of the day. I don't usually worry about him; he's a good boy (boy?) and quite responsible.

When he came home that evening, here's the report I got.

A few days earlier, he had been talking to his youth pastor's wife (who has a toddler and is pregnant with #2), and she was lamenting the lack of a garden in her backyard. She's always wanted to grow vegetables and learn to can them, but she and her husband have no experience with such things and just didn't know where to begin. And that gave Man-squared an idea.

You already know he's no stranger to hard work.

When he left the house that day, he took with him our tiller and a few other tools. He stopped at Lowes to buy some plants and a 50-foot hose, and then went to the YP's house and got to work. He tilled a spot in the yard, planted the tomatoes, squash, and whatever else, and watered them well, all while training the dog to stay out of the garden.

YP and his wife never knew he was there, but they have their garden now.

The reason this event is significant (and my mother is probably tearing up now) is that my grandfather (her daddy) used to do the same thing. He would go to somebody's house, plant a bunch of bulbs in the fall, and never tell anyone he'd been there. In the spring, up would pop beautiful flowers, and people would wonder where they came from. Or we would come home from school one day to find a bushel basket of peaches on the porch, or a 50-pound bag of potatoes. He just did these things without ever telling anyone. He went about doing good.

And though Man-squared never met his great-grandfather and grew up in a completely different lifestyle, I can say without a doubt that, even three generations removed, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Be thankful ~

Karen

One score and seven years ago . . .

We were very young, much thinner, and with thicker hair, and on the hottest day in New Jersey history, we got married in a church with no air conditioning, and then had an outdoor reception under a big tent in the sunny yard.

I'll spare you the photos because we were all covered in sweat, and the piped hearts on the side of the cake were sliding down as we cut it. Ask anyone who was there what they remember about our wedding and they'll say, "The heat." No joke, it was 105° on that record-setting day in 1984.

Twenty-seven years, five homeschooled children, and a career in the Navy later, we're still here with a vastly better understanding of what it means to say, "For better, for worse; for richer, for poorer; in sickness and in health . . ."

Be thankful ~

Karen

Babygirl gets a truck.

Abbie (aka Babygirl) has wanted a small truck ever since she drove a friend's out in the country. She envisions herself driving with the windows down, elbow hanging out, maybe a toothpick in her mouth. She's a redneck at heart.

So after not much searching on Craigslist, Babygirl's daddy found the perfect truck for her.

And it even came with the toothpick!

Be thankful ~

Karen

What remains of the weekend post.

The last three photos from yesterday.

First cousins, once removed. Go ahead and ask me to explain cousin relations. I'm one of the very few people I know who understands it.

My mom with her second great-grandson, Button.

My dad, reading the first great-grandson a story. What you don't see here is that Bean commentated through the whole book. Every animal is "bunny!" and every man is "Daddy!"

Be thankful ~

Karen

Sweet Shot Tuesday.

I have actually used my camera this week, so I have a sweet shot!

You can see more of Sweet Shot Tuesday at Life With My 3 Boybarians.

Be thankful ~

Karen

Weekend recap.

Good gravy, last week was busy! It started on Tuesday when Deb & David and the babies came, and are they ever precious!

Bean, who just turned two years old, loved playing in the sink while I was doing dishes. As soon as I turned the water on, he would run to the dining room to push a chair into the kitchen.

Button is now five weeks old. He doesn't do much other than eat, sleep, poop, and look cute. But he smells sweet like a newborn and cuddles really well. And pukes on my shoulder.

Friday, Mike and Leah came home and the whole family was under one roof. I love when that happens, and the older they get, the harder it is to get together. We managed to get a family photo, but it needs to go through PhotoShop before it gets posted here.

Saturday was the wedding they all came home for. Abbie, Leah, and Elijah were in the wedding. Deb and I got to go back to the room where all eight (eight!) bridesmaids and the bride were getting ready.

For the recessional, Elijah escorted both sisters down the aisle. Fortunately, they didn't look like this.

It was more like this.

Then came the picture taking, and that's hard on a bridesmaid. She had to take a nap on the bride.

Finally, Brooke and her handsome Marine are married!

Then Sunday the grandparents and aunt, uncle, and one cousin came to visit and we had even more fun. We have great photos of the babies with the great-grandparents, but my computer is declaring mutiny and I can't get them uploaded here. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe this is a sign I should shut up now.

So the weekend has wrapped up, D&D and the babies went home today, Leah is back in South Carolina, and I went to the doctor today to get an antibiotic for the sinus infection that has plagued me since last Monday.

And now I'm declaring my own mutiny and going to bed. Good night.

Be thankful ~

Karen

Pre-weekend doings.

All of my babies are home!

Well, not home, actually, but in the general vicinity. Abbie and Man-squared live here. Deb and David and the grandbabies have been here since Tuesday. We knew Leah was coming for a wedding three of the kids are in this weekend.

All week, Abbie's been talking about getting a family photo while everyone's here, and I just couldn't make myself get excited about it, knowing Mike wouldn't be in it. It's so hard when they all grow up and leave home. It's just about impossible to get them all together at one time.

So tonight I was standing at the stove cooking dinner when a pair of long arms from an obviously tall person wrapped around me and someone said in my ear, "Hi, Mama." I twisted my glasses right off my face hugging him!

Apparently, the entire family knew he was coming—all except me.

So some of them are at the wedding rehearsal and the rest of us had dinner and made pumpkin bread so Mike could have it fresh out of the oven. Tomorrow is the wedding, and then Sunday my parents and brother and his family will be here. I love having my family all together!

In the midst of all this I have had a sore throat all week, but managed to get to the gym yesterday and today. Somehow I'm maintaining my goal weight. But then my driver's license renewal form came in the mail today, and I saw that it lists me as 5 pounds less than that, so I guess that's my new goal. *sigh* No rest for the weary. But while the family is here, I'll eat and we'll have fun, and I'll worry about weight later.

I really do have grandbaby pictures, but haven't had time to get them up here. Maybe tomorrow.

Be thankful ~

Karen