Rant

Rant time...

Kids now a days are being tested on every level.  Are they smart enough for preschool?  Have they sat up at 4 months?  Do they read at grade level?  Have they completed AB & C by the time they are 3 years old?

Oh they haven't??  Well, then I'm sorry but your child has failed.  And in return you, the parent, are deemed a failure too.

When did it get this way??  Why so much pressure on our kids to be this or that?  Why do all 4 year olds have to fit in exactly the same box?

Well--let me tell you--the one thing I learned through homeschooling my kids for 15 years is that

KIDS DO NOT ALL ACHIEVE THE SAME GOALS AT THE SAME TIME!

ALL KIDS ARE DIFFERENT!

KIDS LEARN DIFFERENTLY! KIDS HAVE DIFFERENT STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES!

Mommas know their kids.  We are around them so much more than anyone else.  The persons or institution administering the "test"  only sees them for a few minutes.  How can they define a person by just those few minutes?

Why do all 5 year olds need to read at a certain level?  Do all 40 year olds read at the same level?

Kids will excel in some areas and not be that great in other areas.  Aren't we all like that?  Don't we all have our strengths and weaknesses?  Can't we ALL grow in different areas?

Please, parents,  I caution you against measuring yourself and your kids against all these parameters that SOMEONE HAS JUST MADE UP!  Who decided what a 6 year old should be reading like?  Who made up all these "standards"?

We know our kids!  Let's not compare and pressure.  Let's be good mommas and daddies.  Let's love our kids regardless of how well they can jump through someone else's hoops.  Let's love our kids for the joys that they are!  Let's love our kids for who God has made them to be!  

Be encouraged!!  You are doing a great job parents!!  You're kids are doing good too!  

--rant over.......for now.

Summer Goings On

So summer is over..fall is just around the corner, which is hard to believe since it's in the 90s still!

So what have we done all summer? Here's some of what we've be up to .. in no particular order....

Took a weekend vacation to Phoenix on a whim!  So much fun with my hubby!

Went to Denver and Pittsburgh (on 2 separate trips)  to see some life long friends.

Larry got to take some one on one time with each son.  One in Utah, exploring Zion National Park and the surrounding lands of amazingness!  And the other in Virginia, where he got to spend a weekend with our son who took some leave time off base!

On the not-so-fun-note but extremely-interesting note, I got to serve on a jury for a week.  Very interesting how our justice system works.  I'm not saying I agree, but very interesting.  Learned alot about the world that I really didn't care to know.  Maybe another blog post later...

Larry and I got electric bikes that we are loving (when it's not too hot outside!)

I'm getting back to eating a high fat, low carb diet and working really hard on meeting my step goal each day! Losing weight and getting back in shape!

Finished memorized Philippians 1.  Working on Chapter 2. It's quite the brain building feat..but it's good not only for mind but for my soul.

Larry and I are enjoying our little empty nest and our new and growing relationship with our grown kids.

We got to take a wonderful trip to San Diego to attend our son's graduation from Marine Bootcamp!  So happy for him!

We are about to take a cruise out of Puerto Rico!  So excited to spend time with friends and enjoy some relaxation in the sun!

I guess you can say it's like this:  traveling, enjoying, visiting,  memorizing, cruising, growing, walking, graduating, loving!