Divine Providence while at the beach!

Beautiful turquoise water of the Gulf of Mexico.

I believe God is involved in mankind's affairs. I do not believe that God looks down on us and just shrugs and lets us fend for ourselves. I believe like a parent He is there to guide, protect and intervene when necessary.

We were at the beach for a week this month and while there, I felt clearly that Divine Providence guided our steps. One day we decided to change our original  plans. We were going to take the kids to the local water park, but after checking on the prices and acknowledging our children's age group, we decided it would be too much trouble and money involved for little return. So we told the kids we weren't doing the water park instead we were going to do something much better.

You can imagine the disappointment... However they were excited about the unexpected. And we, the parents, were nervous about meeting those expectations.

On the way down our building, as we entered the elevator, a lovely older lady, seeing us all dressed and together as a family asked, "Are you going shopping?" I told her that we were going for a drive. So she asked if we had been to the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola. "Not yet." I responded quickly thinking about the possibility of maybe we should go there this morning, but still not sure. Would the kids enjoy it?? Would it be too much information for kids under 10 years old? Would the 30 minute drive be too long? Would we find too much traffic?

Checking out all the nature treasures.

As we left that morning at 10 am with plans to go for a ride to show my parents the State RV park and the pier, we had no idea what the day would hold in store for us.

Once we got to the State RV park we found out that the Nature Center had baby alligators and a whole exhibit of local mounted animals on display. We spend an hour in there talking with the employee in charge about RV lifestyle. The kids amazed us with how much they know about animals. I had no idea they knew what taxidermy was. Most of the things they shared with us they learned on their own watching TV shows, educational videos or websites and reading books. There were snakes, turtles, insects, alligator, frogs, cockroaches and lots of preserved dead animals and shells, snake skins and other nature treasures for us to see. The Nature Center offers weekly activities that include educational videos, nature walks and more.

Turtles and more turtles!

We stopped at the gift shop and the grandparents gave the kids a little something. My husband and I decided to travel to Pensacola and try the museum. Mainly because it is FREE admission. We figured we didn't have anything to lose!!!

oh, boy!! were we glad we went. There is so much to see. There are 2 big pavilions full of aircrafts in both of them. There are FREE guided tours at different times, there are simulators of all kinds for the courageous people that like to try them (these are paid rides). There is so much history, geography, engineering, social and cultural content in this Museum.

Look at that red airplane on the wall!

The air crafts are displayed in such a way that will cause you to awe at how amazing they are. The aircrafts hang from the ceiling as well as from the walls. There are also the traditional standing alone ones on the ground. Whoever designed the displays did a great job. The sitting benches for the visitors are old air crafts seats still with the seat belts and furnishings. There are jungle gyms and climbing structures for the children made of  parts of air craft carriers or ships.

Here are some of the other amazing exhibits offered at the Museum for FREE:

The perfect jungle gym for the kids!

*  the frictionless air track demonstrates Newton's three laws of motion;
* wind tunnel - including Bernoulli's Principle.. show how a wing produces lift;
* Space scale - allows you to read your weight on other planets;
* watch demonstrations on four computer-based flight simulators;
* the free-fall race demonstrates Galileo's law of falling bodies with different weighted tennis balls;
* Descartes' divers help us to understand the principle of buoyancy;
* air pressure changes from the Dead Sea to Mt. Everest are shown;
* various propulsion devices;
* watch as "stuff" is removed from the Magdeburg hemispheres.

My troops walking the museum!

There are exhibits from the trip to the Moon, from people who were lost at sea; from dirigibles; of air balloons. You can see the living quarters of the troops that are out at sea; POW living conditions; a former  President's aircraft and so much more. There is even an IMAX at the Museum with at least 4 different features showing each day.

We left the Museum at 4:30pm - their closing time. Everyone was happy to have come. Everyone was refreshed. There was a sense of gratefulness to the men and women that serve this country. Men and women that take their jobs seriously even when just training. We truly enjoyed our trip to the Museum and I know for sure we will be coming back to it again next time we come to this area.

Blue Angels flying low!

DS7 was moved by the POWs who were tortured in the war camps in Vietnam and Japan. DD9 was amazed by the air crafts she was able to climb into their cockpits. DD5 had a blast watching her first IMAX movie. Everyone enjoyed the simulators and all the information we learned.

Divine Providence showed us the way!

How has the Lord showed his direction in your life lately?

Blessings, Tereza

Proud to be an American!

The Path of Unschooling

ok, so I am slave driving my family and I am trying to figure this out...

Here is an eye opening article on how children learn Math on their own.

I have my own stories to tell.,,

My DD4.5 is counting her fingers and adding and subtracting. During supper she teaches us how to manipulate numbers and find out the answers to her additions and subtractions. Even DD2 is counting her fingers because she sees her sister do it.

DS6.5 tells me his discoveries when I make him do a worksheet with 20 problems. He adds the tens first instead of the ones. Still he solves them all correctly in 10 minutes, although he still writes some of his numbers on reverse. Most of the time, he does mental math when solving story problems instead of writing the equation down.

DD9 fights me tooth and nail when I make her do Math but she is great at it, when I finally bribe her into actually doing it. Sometimes we fight for 3 hours and then she will finally do her work in 10 minutes!! it frustrates me so.

That happened here at home until 4 weeks ago, now I am done forcing Math down their throats. I am just going to let them learn by themselves and enjoy it!!

 Learning math school style is the way children learn (or don't learn!) a foreign language in school. It's memorization without needing something.

The above statement was another confirmation to this new route. You see, I learned 2 foreign languages without school. I can read, write and speak 2 foreign languages and I never went to school to learn them. I just lived life and learned them. And (gasp) both of them within 6 months!!! and at different times of my life. The first one I was 12 years old and the other when I was 27 years old. So yeah, I think one can learn anything they want, when they want it or need it!!!


So there! Perfect LOVE casts out FEAR!!!

Tereza

PS some fun links below!!! Enjoy!

The Happy Hoop

Walk Slowly Live Wildly - Uschooling: Life of Freedom

SuperHooper dot org 

Real cool Videos of People Hooping

My Aha moment.

I have been hearing things... whispered inside of my heart... coming from the pages of a book... from the mouth of my Lord Jesus... from the innocence of my children... from the green stuff I have been drowned under these past few days... from my hormones... they are changing my heart, my mind and my way of thinking... they are leading me to repentance. That is what this word means: a change of mind.

I just heard another whisper: "the goodness of God leads us to repentance." Yes, the goodness of God. I get overwhelmed sometimes... I wish it was everyday and every moment... If I could just stop long enough to pay attention. I get overwhelmed by His goodness. Oh, my Lord, how sweet you are!!!

The most important thing you have is not a thing, it's a PERSON.

Tereza

My breakthrough

I was reading Barbara Sher. Wondering why the heck I was reading her (knowing that all things work together for good and the Lord leads)? Why I was enjoying the writings and thoughts of this woman with an evolutionist worldview? I have no clue if she is a Bible believing Christian. She doesn't sound like one.

Anyway, I began to think about my dreams and then I prayed....

Dear Lord,

If you want us to go to ... you are going to have to do it! YOU have to make IT happen! I just can't see a way for it to come to pass.



Then it hit me: I was trying to make it happen!! I was trying to figure it out how. I was trying to add the numbers and come up with a game plan. My part is to say YES!, submit and let God. He can do the rest.


Ooooooooooh! I can see adventure in my future. Hold on tight!!!

And there is peace. Finally! :)


Tereza

Instant Gratification

I like instant gratification. I am hungry, I want to eat right now. I tell my children to do something, I want instant obedience with a smile. I don't like waiting, but I am learning. God is teaching me and I am so happy.

Today I had an A-ha! moment. It went like this....

DD8 is asking me for her $6.00 that she earned from doing jobs around the house that I haven't paid her yet. She is complaining and whining that she doesn't have any money now because I "took" all her money. The money she had squirreled away (her own words) for so long.

Praying and asking the Lord to help me keep my cool (yes, it takes very little to tick me off!) and to give me wisdom on how to talk to her calmly and gently,  I ask her why did I "take" her money away. So she mumbles "because I damaged my bed." My artistic spirited child decided to use her bunk bed for wood carving. We were in there one day (she sleeps on the top bunk) and I was getting her things off her bed when I saw it. The interior of the rails of her bed were all carved. Like she had a pocket knife or something really sharp, she produced artistic cuts after artistic gaps. I was appalled to say the least. I had a fit!! yeah, I had a fit! And no, she didn't use a pocket knife. She used a plastic ruler.

I told her that I would not allow her to damage her bed. That it cost money and we are supposed to be good stewards of what we have and use. So after deciding NOT to spank her and give her another more appropriate lesson, one that she would remember, I asked her how much money did she have and asked her for all of it to pay for the damage. (It wasn't enough to pay for the bed, but it was enough to make a point.)

It's not the first time that she damages furniture or other things just for the fun of it. And yes, I understand curiosity and experimenting but she is 8 years old, I expect that she works those things out in her head first before attempting something that can surely be destructive.

So anyway... back to the kitchen. I told her I would give her her $6.00 and then she asked if she could do more jobs and get paid. I said "Certainly." But instead of having her follow me around the house asking for the money and adding the cents and dimes, I suggested she make a list of all the things she did and then at the end of the day we could look over the list and I would pay her some money for it.

She had a fit (yes, just like her Momma!! that is why her Momma is trying to do things differently, because I don't want my child having a fit. It's pretty ugly!). She saw a spelling lesson in the suggestion and began complaining about me not helping her, and she couldn't spell, that I would make her sound it out and blah blah blah. Instead of losing it, I asked her politely if we could continue this later. I was busy cooking and doing some food preparations in the kitchen and I have come to realize that in order to not lose my temper with my child I need 100% focus on our exchanges.

Of course, she was upset and insisted. But I remained calm and she complied. So she sat down on the floor and after 5 minutes, apologized and asked if we could try it now. I said "no", that I would call her when I was ready that right that minute I was busy and I couldn't proceed with her request. And then the A-ha moment came!

I saw myself as an adult using something my parents taught me when I was a child. That wisdom or information my parents had imparted to me as a child was precious and in full bloom in my life as an adult. It was like a balm of revelation. The Lord saying: "What you are teaching her is not for right now, it is for later. You plant now and the harvest comes later. You are planting the seeds of Godly character and wisdom so that she can become a Godly woman."

I understood that many times I get angry and upset with my children because I want to see the harvest right now. I saw a farmer in my mind screaming at a seed he had just shoved in the ground. Hollering at the seed because there was no fruit. Oh, my!!! I finally understood.

I am so amazed at the things the Lord Jesus will show me when I talk to Him and ask Him for wisdom. I am gaining victory. I know all things are possible. The Lord has given me a word of lately: PERSEVERANCE. And that verse that talks about what He has begun He will complete is making me REST in Him. So when I persevere is NOT DOING something, but BELIEVING and TRUSTING Him.

Praised be the Lord Jesus!! Merry Christmas!!

Oh, and the picture at the beginning of the post?? is of an amazing cranberry walnut cake. You can find the recipe HERE.

And my DD8 is a sweet child!! She is always quick to forgive and always ready to embrace and love on me. I am so blessed and undeserving of her or the Lord's love. Thank you Jesus!!

Blessings,
Tereza

What are you reading?

A while back I shared how as a homeschooling Mom of 4 I still manage to read and how I do it.

Today I want to share with you the books that are currently part of my reading pile.

- The Bible. I read it everyday when I do devotions with the children. Then I try to read it later by myself or meditate on a few verses during the day.

From my library I snatched a few very interesting books:

- It's my Turn. by Ruth Bell Graham
While Billy Graham carried on his work throughout the world, Ruth Graham carried on her work of bringing up five children. In this book, she provides a charming behind-the-scenes look at the Graham's life. Mrs. Graham is a wise woman and this book is really encouraging me and helping me see the vision and purpose of keeping home.

- No Excuses by Kyle Maynard
the true story of a congenital amputee who became a champion in wrestling and in life.

- Half the Sky - Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide by Nicholas D.Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn  - Stories of women around the world and how liberal organizations are helping them turn their lives around. I thought this book was very bias. In many instances they criticized Christians efforts and organizations because of their Pro-Life position. It was eye opening and helped me have a Biblical point of view of issues.

Books I have recently purchased and been reading through:

The Mission of Motherhood and The Ministry of Motherhood both books by Sally Clarkson.

Future Men by Douglas Wilson

Visionary Womanhood Gatherings E-Book   by Natalie Klejwa

No Ordinary Child: Unlocking the Leader Within Your Child by Denise mira

Family Driven Faith by Voddie Baucham Jr.

As I shared in the post I linked at the beginning of this post I really believe the Lord speaks to me through books I read. I feel He is strenghtening me and showing me my purpose as a Mother and the vision He has for my family and children.

What are you reading? What is the Lord showing you at this time?

Be blessed,

Tereza

God rewards Patience.

I have been meditating on the Word of God a lot lately. I got this sudden hunger to know and live more of it in my life and to see it prosper in my children and husband's lives as well.

I found this article on PATIENCE. I had never heard that God rewarded patience. I didn't realize how blunt and straightforward the Word of God was when talking about perseverance and patience.

I mean, I knew patience was an important tool to the Christian life but as I read this article it was like a light bulb went on.

How are you feeding your heart lately? Eat and chew on the Word of God everyday. Have faith. :)

Blessings,
Tereza

Against the current.

Have you ever needed anything and did nothing about it? Maybe you had a desire for something or you had a financial need ?

Once I really needed a job.... the type of situation where if I didn't work I wouldn't eat. Not just a job to afford extra stuff but a job to provide for my basic needs. Well, the world tells you to GO GET it. The Lord tells you to REST in Him.

I remember that I went out to interviews, sent my resume to head hunters and looked at the newspaper ads every weekend. But what I remember the most was my Dad nagging me to go find a job. I remember telling him that I had done everything I could do, now I had to wait and rest in God. That was very foreign to my Dad. But it happened just like that.

I got a job where I least expected, not through the sources or places I had visited and not through my own effort. It was all God's doing. It doesn't always happen like that. But for me, God has taught me through resting and waiting in Him. MOST of everything that I have achieved with success or my greatest needs came from Him while I was just RESTING.

Do you get an image of a lazy bum on a hammock at the beach just swinging with the breeze when you think of  RESTNG in the LORD? I do!!! LOL but you see I am such a Type A personality that anything that has to do with waiting is really outside my nature.

However after 18 years walking with the Lord I have learned NOT to FIGHT for what I want. I just WAIT and if it is supposed to be MINE it will be.

I am in that place again... waiting to see what will happen.

This morning we received a call, asking what we had decided. There were other people coming into the game. We could lose it. We told the person we couldn't decide right then. We didn't have the power to. We were still waiting.

It's crazy like that to have someone else decide your destiny.

There were a few times when I decided my own destiny and the outcome was soooo bad! It caused such stress - financially, emotionally, spiritually. So, no. I have given that to the Lord, He can decide my destiny. His Word says: "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Hey, He knows best. He can take care of me!!!

This morning my DH went so far as to say on the phone "if it's sold from our us, then be it." I have had it sold from under me before. Not once, but twice. But God gave it back to me, both times. I didn't do anything but answer the phone call that restored it back to me. :) Praise the Lord!

Can you imagine being sent to a country you don't know? Having someone else by the house of your dreams?

My husband likes to say "the land of know not." Oh, what an adventure!! I love to walk with my Lord... who knows what is in store for us? God does!!!!

I am waiting Jesus! Waiting in you, resting on you, trusting you, knowing you got me covered. and all things work together for good. :)

Who are you trusting on today? Blessings,

Tereza

PS If you would like to see my latest video with some of the cards I sent to OperationWRiteHome go HERE.

Reconnecting with an old lover...

For the past six months or so I began again doing something that I discovered when I was around 10 years old. I became an avid reader!! yes, my old lover is my love of books. When I was a child I really liked the adventure and mystery books. As a teenager who did not know the Lord Jesus, I got caught into the teen romance novels and vampire fiction books. As an young adult, I loved psychology and human behavior focused books. During a time of intense search for God, I became a bit mystic and I read a lot on New Age books, and the life of the saints. As a newborn Christian I read the Bible and books on the Bible, books on the life of Jesus, on the Christian walk, marriage and the purpose of life.

Recently I have been reading on Christians personal accounts on their life struggles.  Gayle's book really touched my heart. I am a firm believer that marriage is a covenant relationship. That basically means that we share the joys and failures of each other. We don't give up on each other but we strife to stay together and uphold each other in the day of victory and the day of shame. I strongly recommend her book because her life lessons go beyond homosexuality, in fact, it has more to do with forgiveness, restoration and faith than anything else.

One of the amazing surprises in the book is how Gayle shares of  how God is listening to our daily prayers and in the most unexpected ways He answers them. 

I will, in future posts, share other books that have recently impacted my life.

Now, as a Mom of 4 homeschooled children, reading can be a challenge. I love to curl up with a good book and read for hours on end. When the opportunity presents itself and the book is really good, I am known to sit and read and only get up when the book is finished. It's a sad moment for me, indeed, when the last page is finally read!

So you can imagine, homeschooling 4 children, nursing one and running a household, how and when does a Mom read?

Well... here is my confession.... I read while:

1) in the bathroom... sometimes I forget I am still there after 10-15 minutes. Usually the screaming of the children brings me back to reality;
2) in bed while nursing and putting a baby to sleep. I wait until the baby is sleeping and then pull the book from under the pillow and read until she lets go of the breast and I can get up;
3) in the car. When we go on trips, I always carry one or 2 books I am currently reading. My husband drives the van, the children sit back and enjoy an audiobook or music CD and I read! :)
4) at home, when everyone is busy doing something but the house is peaceful and I need a break. I let the laundry slide, we buy carry out for dinner and I read.
5) 2 or more books at once. That's right! I read many books at once. I usually grab what I am yearning for at that moment. Reading more than one book keeps me reading even if that one book is kind of dragging at the moment, or the subject is no longer interesting to me. That way I can always come back to that book if it appeals to me again.

I have found that reading has helped me relax and reconnect with my God. Many at times, the Lord will minister to me while I am reading a book. He will reveal to me the solutions to issues with the children or situations at our home. He will speak to me in the most personal and profound way.

For me to read a book is so very personal. It's an intimate thing to uncover someone's thoughts and perspective of life. I see authors as brave people that put their thoughts in black ink on white pages. My childhood dream is to become a writer. I have a long way to go, but maybe someday. :)

Do you like to read? How do you make time for it in your busy life? What book has recently impacted you?


I have some amazing books I have recently read FOR SALE here.

Be blessed,

Tereza

Happy New Year!

Last night was awesome. Nothing major... we ate left overs, played with the children, I got to make a bunch of new cards for OperationWriteHome and play with some really cool stamps. I began reading "Uncle Sam's Plantation: How Big Government Enslaves America's Poor and What We Can Do About It, Revised and Updated Edition".

In the midst of all, I heard Jesus say to me "Whatever you need, I am." How cool is that? :)

Are you making New Year's resolutions? I haven't made any in years, actually since I've been married. I don't feel the need to. They never occur to me anymore. Funny, huh?

Now, if you are a resolutions type of person and losing weight is one of them, I will share in another post what has helped me lose 20 pounds.

Have a great year...this will be an awesome one!! Write that down!!! :)

Be blessed,

Tereza 

Prayer 12-28-2010

Dear Jesus,

Help me to encourage my children today. Help me to be positive, to point out their strengths and not their flaws. Help me to see them as you do - with all the potential to realize their dreams, to become who you have designed them to be.

Today as I read Elizabeth's post it gave me peace to just be me. It reminded me not to compare myself to others and vice versa. It made me realize that many a times I am so very judgmental and think that I know better than everybody else. I thank you that you are in control, that as you are working in my life, you are working in everyone's lives around me.

I thank you for letting me see that. I want to affirm that you are working in my children lives, you are working in my family's lives. That the good work that you started you will complete!!! And that they will stay the course and will not stray from it.

Thank you Jesus for your Grace. Thank you!!!!! :)

PS I love to see you smile. :)

Amen.