Chapter 3 - Accept Your Children

 

I am joining a wonderful group of ladies and reading through How to Have a H.E.A.R.T For Your Kids by Rachael Carmen. This past week we read Chapter 3, Accept Your Children.

Accept your children sounds easy right? Well it's not for me, at least not all the time.  Accepting my kids is something I definitely struggle with. And sadly it shouldn't be, because as a child I often felt unaccepted at school and at home. So I know how it feels, how it hurts and how it can ruin your self esteem. Rachel says that, "Genuine acceptance of our kids means a radical change of perspective - a paradigm shift. What is a paradigm shift? Well since I looked it up to get the exact definition I will share it with you. A paradigm shift is a change from one way of thinking to another. It's a revolution, a transformation, a sort of metamorphosis. It does not happen, but rather is driven by agents of change. In the case of our children, "It means seeing our children as gifts from the hand of the living God."

I have written before about how my daughter personality and character is a lot like mine she is my clone, my mini me. I think that is why we butt heads so much and why I am constantly trying to change her personality and character. I think about how hard it was for me growing up and since she is so much like me I don't want her to have to go through any of the things I did. She is fidgety just like me (my nick name used to be worm). She is artistic just like me. She has some OCD habits just like me. She is high strung just like me. She loves animals just like me. She is a caring and compassionate just like me. She has her own fashion sense just like me. She doesn't care what others think just like me. She hates to be teased just like me. She is a planner just like me. She is an auditory/visual learner just like me.

My son on the other hand is very laid back and a lot like my husband, brother and grandfather. He likes to build with blocks, cardboard boxes, Legos, anything really. He loves to play by himself. He teases everyone he comes in contact with. He puts everything in his mouth. He likes to pick at things like paint on the wall, strings on a blanket, his nails/toenails, you name it. He is a kinesthetic learner. 

Two completely different kids with different learning styles, personalities and characters. Rachel says that "When we attempt to rewire our children, we are actually rejecting them, even if we do not verbalize it." WOW, that hit me like a ton of bricks after I read it. One thing I hated growing up and promised myself I would never do to my kids was compare them to others or try to make them into something they are not. And here I am trying to change my daughter. Well NOT any more!!!

The last 12 days have been very interesting, exciting and stressful. As many of you may already know I was watching my friends two kids for 9 days while she was in the hospital recuperating from surgery. Things were quite CRAZY around here. I spent several days driving to and from speech/occupational therapy appointments, the hospital and the store. Also during those 9 days there was one night that I had seven kids sleeping over because of Gwyns birthday party. And there was another day that I watched a  friends two girls (plus the four I already had in my care) while she went to have lunch with a friend. So when Saturday came I was tired and a little stressed. I don't think I have ever had so many kids in and out of my home before.

BUT......something AMAZING happened during those 9 days. My HEART grew by leaps and bounds towards my husband and my children. God spoke to us all through helping out a friend. I realized how very blessed I was to have such wonderful children. Children who knew their mother needed assistance. Children who knew their mother needed them to be on their best behavior. Children who care deeply about others. Children who are very self sufficient. Children who love to learn. Children who don't require special diets or have special needs. And I realized how amazing the man I fell in love with 12 yrs ago really is. He is always there for us and takes such good care of us. He supports me in everything I do and the decisions I make.He encourages the kids to follow their dreams. He never puts me down. Rachel says that "Our journey with our kids is not just about disciplining and training them. It is about our discipline and training." I have come to realize the last 12 days that this is indeed true. Well this momma has been disciplined and trained the last week and a half. And a paradigm shift has taken place!

These last several days I have also witnessed Gwyn not only turn a year older but grow her character. I am amazed at how caring and compassionate she is for a 6 yr old. And her behavior has been impeccable. I haven't YELLED at the kids in 12 days! Rachel says, "Well-disciplined children are not only prepared for God's call and work in their lives, but they are also enjoyable to spend time with," and boy is that the truth. She doesn't need me to change her. I am the one that needs to change. With the help of God I need to accept her and her brother and build them up. I need to pray like Rachel did for Him to reveal His plan and purpose for their lives so I can raise them "in the way [they] should go" (Proverbs 22:6)so they can one day fulfill what He had planned for them.

Rachael, ended the chapter with some questions called, "Heart Check-up"--Page 119. I have actually answered these questions above throughout my post.

1. What are some ways you have experienced rejection in your own life? (Remember, all of these come from the father of lies!)

2. Are there characteristics of your children you find difficult to accept? If so what are they? Pray about these specifically and ask to see God's perspective about these areas of your children's lives.

3. Area there things about your children you're personally embarrassed about? If so, what are they? Pray about these specifically and ask to see God's perspective about these areas of your children's lives.  For me it is mostly the disobedience and talking back that embarrass me.

Favorite quote(s): 
-Pg 109 "Is the character flaw you see in your child an imitation of our own sinfulness?"
-Pg 111 "It means accepting and enjoying each one a as a providential gift and blessing from a Holy God, trusting that He will continue the good work He began by sending them to you and carry it through to completion (Philippians 1:6).
-Pg 113 "When parenting seems hard or downright impossible, and you're certain you've messed things up beyond repair, don't forget that you serve the great Redeemer and all of that stuff in your life that you  regard as junk can and will be used by God for good (Romans 8:28).
-Pg 115 " God is using this opportunity not just to prepare my children for His calling, but also to break me, mold me, and use me as an instrument of righteousness for His name's sake-if I will let Him."
-Pg 116 "I love you. These are the words by which children first begin to build trust. These are the words that best communicate a parents' acceptance of the child. But as important as those three words are, there are three words that are more important: God loves you."

Do you accept your children? I cannot wait to read everyone's posts. Thanks for stopping by.

Family Time Fitness Review and Giveaway

Well the giveaway is over but Family Time Fitness has generously offered my readers a coupon code good for $20 off their Fitness 4 Homeschool Curriculum purchase. BUT it gets better because right now the Fitness 4 Homeschool Curriculum is on sale for $79. So for JUST $59 you can have access to a lifetime homeschool PE curriculum. The Coupon Code is KCM20 enter it during check out. This code expires on February 29, 2012. 

We won a copy of the Activity Workbook (Vol 1) Physical Education K-1 st several months ago on a twitter party. While re-evaluating our lesson plans for 2012 I decided we needed to incorporate some physical education into our days. So for the past 4 weeks the kids and I (yup me too) have been working through the workbook. All workbooks are delivered in electronic pdf format so you only need to make one purchase and print as many as you need if you have multiple children. I chose to only print up one workbook for my kids since Rowyn is not really writing much yet. After I printed our workbook I three hole punched it and put it in a binder (I have a binder addiction). For each age group K-1st, 2nd-3rd, 4th-5th there are 4 workbook volumes.

First we do the warm ups which are so much fun. There are exercises like popcorn, angel arms, superman and ball chops.After the warm ups we do about 2 of the workbook pages which include vocabulary, definitions, handwriting practice, flash cards, matching, and coloring pages. The worksheets for the older age groups include vocabulary, definitions, crossword puzzles, word searches, quizzes and more. After we do the worksheets its time for our cool down. Cool down exercises include leg slides, bowing pose, roll like a ball and butterfly pose. There are links to videos for each of the exercises so you and your kids know exactly how to do them. The entire process only takes us about 20 minutes.

Since we live in an apartment we don't have the convenience of a yard that the kids can go out to play in whenever they need to burn energy. So it is nice to have a PE curriculum that the kids can do indoors and that doesn't require much room. And as simple as the exercises may seem they DO tire you out and work every muscle in your body. Lately we have been doing our workbook first thing in the morning. Which I have noticed helps the kids focus better. They are not as fidgety and their attitudes seem better. I love that these workbooks introduce the kids not only to exercising but also terms used in physical education, nutrition and health. There is so much more to PE and Family Time Fitness knows that and that is what they provide! There is certainly something for everyone (even parents) and every type of learner in this curriculum.

Right now the workbooks are on sale for $4.77 for the individual workbooks or $17.77 for 4 volumes. And right now 2 lucky readers are going to be able to enter to win a workbook.
Want even more? Something for the entire family? Then check out the Fitness4 Homeschool Physical Education Curriculum which is on sale for $99 right now. I am a little jealous actually because we do not have this yet and 4 lucky readers are going to be able to win the curriculum on my blog. This program contains 260 planned lessons. The Fitness 4 Homeschool Curriculum includes a startup guide, PDF lesson plans, video demonstrations, assessment tools, reminder emails, lifetime curriculum and video updates, access to online webinars and certificates of completion. This program comes with lifetime access to all program updates or revisions as well.

So if one of your family's New Years Resolutions was to get healthier in 2012 then this curriculum is just what you need!

Now time for the giveaways:
Only the first entry is mandatory. Other entries are optional and give you extra chances. This giveaway is not affiliated with Facebook in any way. The winners will be post on the blog and will be emailed. Winners must reply within 48 hrs with their name, address, phone number, and email address or another winner will be chosen. Prizes will be emailed to you directly by Family Time Fitness. A total of 6 prizes will be given away. Make sure you check back after the giveaway ends because Family Time Fitness will be offering my readers a discount code to those who did not win a prize (code will be posted at the top of this post after the giveaway ends). 

Please wait a moment for Rafflecopter to load....


a Rafflecopter giveaway

*Disclaimer - I was asked by Family Time Fitness to host a giveaway. I already had a copy of the workbook from a previous giveaway I won. I was not compensated for my review and all opinions are our own! Many of the links found on my side bars and in my blog posts are affiliate links. As a result, I might get paid money and I will most likely spend the money on homeschool supplies.

A week in the life of homeschoolers - Week 26

Week 26: 
Since we were plus two kids last week we didn't get much homeschool done. A dear friend was in the hospital having major surgery so we took care of her two kids (who are also homeschooled). The week was filled with lots of driving around to speech/OT appointments and visits to the hospital. But I still managed to sneak in a little bit of learning. Tuesday we had our Lego library club and the theme was Star Wars. All of the kids had a great time. Wednesday all of the kids sat down and did a couple of worksheets.  Friday Gwyn attempted to do her All About Money online class from Founders Academy on Friday but got distracted by her friends (thank goodness its recorded so we can go back and watch it later). And on Saturday Grandma and Grandpa came over to give Gwyn her birthday present...a new bike! I see lots of bike rides in our future. We also took the kids out to dinner at Panda Express to reward them for their great behavior and to celebrate the Chinese New Year. We used the coupons we received in our Chinese New Year package from Panda Express (see picture and info below). Gwyn has also continued working on her reading and has advanced onto books 5 and 6 in series 1 of Bob Books.

FREE Resources: 

We hope to have our real button done soon!

Starting next Friday my friend Jen from Gricefully Homeschooling and I will be starting FreeBee Fridays with Kathy's Cluttered Mind and Gricefully Homeschooling.

This will be a weekly link-up where, you too, can share all the homeschool freebies you found or received in the past week.

Here are a few of the FreeBEEs to get you started:
-Math Freebies - worksheets, games and more
-Free Ebook from Money Town Kids - Why do we give?
-Harrys Big Adventure - Insect lessons
-Groundhog Day graphing
-Bats Live - webcast, lesson plans and more

 
1) Panda Express Chinese New Year Learn With Me Program (this is expired but if you remember check back for it next year it is a very neat program), 2) Natural Inquirer, 3) OSA Foundation Fiber Optics and Lasers, 4) Federal Reserve Publications (you can even order large quantities if you have a homeschool group you want to share with), 5) Truth About Drugs from Foundation for a Drug Free World (great for older kids),

And we received a copy of  Jake and Jasper to review. We should have this review up later this week.

Here is Jen's list of FreeBEEs.

So, be ready home school bloggers, we are hoping to get this launched by next Friday {if possible}. Get your posts of FreeBEEs ready...

Also, be sure to follow the Host and Co-Host on Facebook and Twitter:

Gricefully Homeschooling on Facebook Gricefully Homeschooling on Twitter

Kathy's Cluttered Mind on Facebook

Kathy's Cluttered Mind on Twitter

Books and DVDs we checked out from the library:Sadly we did not get our usual library run done. But we did score some FREE books and we picked up
Changes for Felicity which is the next book we will be reading for Gwyns American Girl Book Club.

The library was giving these advanced reading/uncorrected proofs away! Check with your library to see if this is something they offer.

New ideas have been added to my board. These are some of the things we are doing for our January units. Check out my other boards on Pinterest for ABC, 123, Art, etc ideas.

This is our January YouTube playlist keep checking back because I will be adding videos each week. It includes the various videos we will be using throughout January.

I hope you find these resources useful. If you ever have any questions feel free to leave me a comment or email me. Also be sure to follow my FB page where I post Freebie things daily.

Thanks for stopping by.

*Disclaimer - Many of the links found on my side bars and in my blog posts are affiliate links. As a result, I might get paid money and I will most likely spend the money on homeschool supplies.