Home? School? Homeschool?

I am really trying to figure out what to do. DH and I have homeschooled the two oldest girls for past 5 years. Now, DS is turning 5 and should start school this next school year. A huge part of me really wants to homeschool him, but another part of me wants him to go to school for the "basics". I don't want him to pick up all the bad habits and attitudes though. I am concerned about his social skills but don't want him to be "publically socialized". I know this answer would be so much easier if I was a SAHM, but for now, that is not feasible. DH's boss filed bankruptcy last week and the future of his job is very uncertain. My job is not guaranteed either, but if I lose the teaching job I can always go back to nursing.

For those of you who have "been there, done that", what would you do in this situation? Just for the record, the older girls did a more self directed program and they were in public school until 5th and 6th grades. DH was responsible for the schooling of the girls and I feel like we did them a dis-service because of that (DH is not very disciplined when it comes to school).

I would appreciate any advice, either way.

Are you ready for a fresh start? I sure am!!

FRESH START 2009

Conference Call Series

Thursdays in February

9:30 pm Eastern Time

Week One Thursday, February 5, 2009

"Who Are You and What Do You Want?" With Special Guest Jan Loy

1-712-580-6300 passcode 877080#

I hope you will join in on the call!! Feel free to contact me with any questions!!

My "Boys"

Have you ever wanted to give up on someone or something because everyone else had? I felt that way for awhile tonight, yet I didn't completely give up. I'm talking about my Atlanta Thrashers hockey team. Tonight we played the New York Islanders and the first 2 periods, we didn't score a single goal! In the first period, they scored 4. The ending was a little better as we scored 3 goals in the third period. They had another goal too. Needless to say, they (New York) took the win for the night with an ending score of 3-5. I STILL REFUSE TO GIVE UP ON MY BOYS!!!

Poor Guy!!

When you think you're having a bad day, just remember this guy!! Enjoy!

Living Healthy and Well

I am really trying my best this year to live as healthy as I can. This is not just my physical health, but also spiritual, emotional, mental, and social. One thing I'm doing to help my physical health is to take Advocare supplements. Advocare is a nutritionally based company out of Dallas, Texas that specializes in providing the top of the line products to their consumers. Many of the Olympic athletes who participated in the Beijing games this past summer are current users of Advocare products.

One of my favorite products are Max 3, which are your regular daily vitamins, plus some additional supplements to give you energy (ephedra free!) and appetite control. I also use Rehydrate, which is great after a work-out or blood donation, Clear Mood (keeps me naturally happy!), and Carb-Ease which helps to control my carbohydrate intake. As a nurse, I feel these products are 100% safe because of the research behind them. We have some of the cream of the crop in physicians who approve every single product before it goes to market. Not only that, they are resources that Advisors in Advocare can call and speak to should a particular question arise that has not been addressed in print. I trust this company with my life!

Spiritually, I'm trying really hard to put more focus into my Bible studies and prayer life. So many things have occurred in the past month that have brought me to my knees and I realize that life is so much easier with Christ at my side. With that being said, I'd appreciate your prayers! I know prayers work and have experienced the power of prayer on many occassions.

I know that with these two previously mentioned focuses, the rest of my life will fall into play where it should.

Should you have any questions about Advocare or my spiritual beliefs, please feel free to let me know!! I'd love to discuss it!

My Bookshelf on GoodReads

my 'read' shelf:

Out Of Her Hands by Megan DiMaria

This is the first book by Megan DiMaria that I have read and let me say it won't be the last!

This is the story of Linda and Jerry Revere. They live in a quaint town in Colorado with their children Emma and Nick. Life is going great with Linda happily employed at a photo studio and Jerry's teaching job. The kids are doing well in school and everything is perfect. Or so it seems.

What I love about this book is that Linda and Jerry are your traditional christian family. Things look good on the outside but on the inside, life is very different. Linda finds out her best friend Debbie is moving to the other side of the country, there are rumors going around about Nick, and Linda just doesn't know how to cope. Jerry is a very supportive husband who always seems to know what to say to calm Linda down. Together, with their faith and each other, they face are able to face life's little (or not so little) issues that come along.

I felt at times that this book was meant for me at this time. There are so many things in this book that I could strongly identify with. I will definately be checking out more of Megan DiMaria's books!

The Scalpel and the Silver Bear: The First Navajo Woman Surgeon Combines Western Medicine and Traditional Healing by Lori Alvord

This was a really good book! I started reading it because it was on a reading list published by my Career Tech Student Organization for a competition.

This is a very fast reading book about a young Navajo woman named Lori who becomes a surgeon. This was a pretty big deal because typically the medical field does not recognize the cultures, customs, and ceremonies of the Navajo. Add to that, Lori is female. She overcomes many obstacles, becoming accepted at Dartmouth, and then becoming a respected surgeon in her field.

Lori's goal was to mix modern medicine with Navajo medicine to reach the members of her tribe and surrounding areas. She manages to do this by becoming a patient herself (not by choice!) and aligning herself with other Navajo medical professionals. It's not until she feels she needs a medicine man that this need becomes ever more clear to her.

I found this book to be very inspiring. I hope I can take something from this book to add to my own nursing practice. I also feel that I have learned more of my heritage in terms of Native American practices. I am not Navajo but of Cherokee descent.

The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks

As many others have mentioned, this is the typical Nicholas Sparks book. However, I believe it to be one of my favorites!

Logan has been discharged from the Marines after 3 harrowing trips to Iraq. Each time, he unfortunately left a few of his buddies behind. There is a running joke that Logan has made a deal with a higher power because he is in the thick of danger yet is never injured. Could it be the picture?

Beth is a quiet, southern lady who is content in her life as a single mom, school teacher, and caregiver to Nana. Beth spends her time taking care of the kennels while Nana is recovering from her stroke. Beth loves the animals, her son, and Nana and will do anything to keep life on an even keel. Until *he* shows up...

She doesn't want to hire a long-haired hippie who has walked all the way to North Carolina from Colorado. Why is he here? What is a college educated man doing wanting a minimum paying job out in the middle of nowhere?

This is great read. If you're lucky, you'll figure out the twists and turns that Sparks takes you down as you learn about Logan, Beth, Ben, Nana, and others. I wasn't so lucky and found the ending to be a bit of a surprise.

Twilight Series

"Twilight": WOW, I could not put this book down!!! I read it in about 7 hours from beginning to end. I do believe that this series is better than any Harry Potter book (and I'm a big fan!). I am excited about the movie coming out, but of course it probably won't be nearly as good as the book. Needless to say, I'm in love with a vampire!!!

"New Moon": I read this book in about 8 hours. I could (and probably will) read it again and again. I don't want to spoil it for you, but this is one of my all-time favorite books now. I am salivating while waiting to finish the others.

I'm also wondering where MY Edward is...

"Eclipse": This book had me from word one. Again, it is a fast read and keeps you begging for more. I lost a little respect for Jacob and Edward in this book, but I know I can't always have it the way I want.

Definately a must read and read again!

"Breaking Dawn": Wow...totally taken aback by how this book came together. It was in a good way though. I don't want to spoil anything, so all I can say is....THIS IS A MUST READ!

Welcome to My Own Little Corner of the World

This is my first attempt at a book blog, but here it goes. I love to read, although I don't always have time to enjoy a good read everyday. My favorites are historical fiction (love Ann Rinaldi!), Christian novels, mystery, and others. I'm not a huge fan of smutty romance novels although I've been known to read one here and there. If you have any great book recommendations, please feel free to pass them along! I've got quite a long list of "to-read" books, but I can be persuaded to add a few more!