Recommended Reading

God Won't Vote This Year
by Dave Zanotti

Exerpt:

In America, we each have the right to participate in the process of shaping the government. That right is a gift the Founders believed came from God the Creator. We have exactly the kind of elected officials we put into office by our actions. The Bible teaches God governs in the affairs of men. God can veto the results of an election anytime He wishes but there is little evidence in America history that God has ever chosen to do so. Granted, a few vetoes from the Almighty along the way might have saved the nation oa freat deal of grief. The people of americal have the God-ordained right to government based upon the consent of the governed. And like ancient Isreal, we the people are resonsible for the consequences of our collective decision.

Therefore, we cannot blame God if the candidates running ar not to our liking. we cannot blame God if the lesser or the greater of two evils is elected. Gos is not voting this year, next year, or in the years to come. He gave us the right to do that for our selves. In the long term and in the short term we get exactly the kind of government we choose. (pp 58-59)

www.godwontvote.com

My thought: God is not a citizen of the USA and therefore not eligible to register and vote. Cute play on words though. Those of us who are citizens ought to cherish the right and opportunity to vote for our representatives. Once elected, we need to continuously communicate with these representatives so they can do just that, REPRESENT. If they don't know what their constituents' thoughts, beliefs, wants, etc., are, how will they make decisions regarding legislation.

Back to school - NOT

Our back to school started Monday, September 1. Yeah, I know, that's a holiday but we did a lot of organization stuff and a few math problems and memorized some poetry. Easy stuff. The first week went really well and I am very thankful that I have the opportunity to experience learning with Bradley.

The FREEDOM of homeschooling is one of those things you may not understand until you do it. Organized schools, whether public or private, cover families with RULES. Whether you have a student at your house or not, most citizens don't realize how much of their life schedule is dicatated by school schedules. Not to mention how every taxpayer pays for government schools whether they ever use it or not. In NC, those of us who participate in non-public education pay twice. We pay taxes, and then we either pay private school tuition or we pay for curriculum, co-ops, labs, etc.

With one week under my belt, I am moving forward and adding a subject this week "Analytical Grammar." Interesting curriculum. Written by a school teacher, we study grammar for 10 weeks and then do "refresher/reminder" work once every two weeks for the remainder of the year. I'm really looking forward to 10 weeks of grammar and then being able to move on from that. I'll let you know how it goes.

Where have you been?

Wow! It's been a while since I've blogged. I thought this summer would be calm and I would have much free time to do some things I've been wanting to do. Instead, it was worse busy than before school finished.

Just recently I attended a family reunion in Bryson City, a birthday/slumber party with Bradley in Maggie Valley, and I joined the Y. I have managed to continue doing an exercise class two or three times each week but I haven't finished reading anything. I haven't rode my bicycle or took a walk or spent any down time.

This past weekend and next week I am preparing for homeschool year number 3. I've ordered a new Grammar curriculum, made decisions about which Tapestry of Grace year to use this year and which books and other items I need to order. I've also contacted a family friend who can proctor me in my homeschool and be an accountability person for Bradley. Since she is in fifth grade now, I need to start keeping track of her grades. School starts September 1 so maybe life will return to ???Normal??? If I even know what that is anymore.

Ethical Announcement

I am notorious for borrowing photos and such from other websites. I mean for what other reason is there a website called Google Images anyway? But not just Google Images but "private" websites. I usually try to give credit for these things but occasionally there's something that slips through un-cited. I just want to make that clear that I am not always responsible for the photos on my site. I don't consider it stealing if my computer will let me do it with a couple of key strokes.

DON'T watch this....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjcZNR6MiRE&feature=related



So, now that you've watched it, what do you think?

Quote and thought

All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. - Edmund Burke



Someone said this would be a good slogan for Barak Obama's campaign.
Think about it...It took me a minute also.

My Shooting Star

Bradley spent last week in a gymnastics camp at The Shooting Stars gym in Hickory. Vladimir and Ilena are the coaches/owners. There were a total of FIVE gymnasts present for the camp which meant that Bradley shared her three hours of practice with one other Level 5 gymnast. It was like a three hour private lesson with Vladimir and Ilena. We are very thankful that Hannah was there! I've posted a couple of the videos so you can see what Bradley was doing. Vladimire was training her Level 6 on bars.

Today is the 10th anniversary of meeting the coolest person I know...

Today is Bradley's 10th birthday. It's hard to believe it's been ten years.

Ten years ago there was formula and diapers, and I had to change her clothes several time a day. Now there is leotards and tape and she still changes her clothes several times a day.

She still objects to taking a bath and doesn't see the point in sleep, but we've managed to make it work. A lot has changed in those ten years but Bradley is wonderful and being 10 is fun!!!

My New Neighbor

This is my new neighbor. Forrest Benson Tyner. He was born June 13, 2008. He and I "hung out" yesterday for a few minutes. He's really cool. Doesn't talk much yet but he's a good a listener!!!

...and his mom looks really great too!!!

Cool Shot

This is from Dr. Tackett's blog Truth Observed. There's a link to his blog in the right column.

He caught a bumble bee taking a sip in the humming bird feeder. I just thought this was a great shot and wanted to share.

Dude,

I have a Dell Computer and a couple of weeks ago while I was working dilligently I rested my hand on the keyboard. When I moved my hand again, somehow my nail had gotten under the ENTER key and it snapped right off. I had all the parts and could get it back together but it was wobbly and wouldn't stay.

After a couple of weeks of this frustration because I hit the enter key a lot, I decided to see what Dell could do about it. Tuesday night while at gymnastics practice, I did an online chat with a Dell techie, his name was Luis. I explained to Luis what had happened and he said he would send me a new keyboard. He said it would come Tuesday. I was so excited.

Low and behold on Wednesday, the very next day, before noon, voila! a box from Dell appears at work and there is my new keyboard. Wow, that's impressive customer service and delivery. Less than 24 hours after I notified them of my need, they deliver.

I took the new keyboard to Justin who works next door for Applied Solutions. Guess what? He fixed my ENTER key. No new keyboard needed. So I have an extra keyboard just in case an obsure key I never use wants to come off.

Another funny part of this story. Hannah told me that on Thursday, after getting the messages off the answering machine at work, there were two messages from Dell that they were having problems with my order and that I wouldn't get my replacement part as originally scheduled. Well, yeah, I know that and I don't really need it either, I've got Justin. Sometimes I wonder about large corporations.

Can't wait for this one to come out

This is by Susan Wise Bauer. She has a blog at http://susanwisebauer.com/blog/?p=179

where you can read about book publishing and other aspects of the life of a college professor/homeschool mom/writer.

I don't think her maiden name is a coincidence.

Blog on Intelligent Design

Check out Dr. McGowan's (that's MD, not PhD) blog on intelligent design. There's some good stuff in there.

http://www.aproundtable.org/blog/index2.cfm?AUTHOR_ID=1

Bumper Sticker I saw at lunch today

Come the rapture, we will have the planet to ourselves.

Quote for the day

History is written by the victors. - Winston Churchill

True, but what happens when the victors are evil?

I thought this was so funny...

Kung Fu Guinea Pig

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Co8maEPe0J0

Favorite Things

Below I have listed 10 of my favorite things.

Color: Blue
Flower: Daisy
Season: Fall
Scent: Ocean
Food: Italian
Beverage: Water
Children's Book: The Cricket in Times Square
Place for vacation: Carribean
Sport to watch: Football
Movie: The Hunt for Red October

Now, post yours in a comment.

David's New Website

David, the trainer, you know, the guy that pulled a bus. He has another webiste and is starting exercise classes in Hendersonville. The website is:

www.realstrengthbootcamp.com

No More Excuses...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=obdd31Q9PqA

Yesterday, I started back taking the Fit -n- Fun exercise classes at High Flight Gym. I was dreading it because I had not done this class in several weeks due to hurting my shoulder, a head cold, and the gym being closed for a week. The 'WOD' (workout of the day) was a good one for me to get back in on. It included crunches, dips, and running. Of course, I had left my running shoes at home so I did suicide runs in the gym while the others ran their lap outside. There were four rounds of this with decreasing reps each round but a lap is a lap. I'm not too sore today, yet... I usually get more sore after about 24 hours so I'm trying to take the Arnica Montana and Ibuprophen to keep the pain down. Hopefully, I will have some time later today to do a work out at home which will help with the level of soreness tomorrow.

If you are interested and live in the area, the Fit -n- Fun classes are a modified cross-fit class. This is a high intensity workout that is different every day so you never get bored. There are classes at 8:00 am each day and the evening classes are at 5:30 or 6:30 depending on the day. Come join me!!!

www.highflightgym.com

Piggie Wisdom

Charlotte says,
"I'll have some carrots please!"

Charlotte also says,
"It's a great day to be alive."

Charlotte's favorite TV show is Wonder Pets.