The Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY, 11th January 2010...

Outside my window... dark; melting snow; some cars passing; street lights


I am thinking... I should go to bed!


I am Remembering... what fun we've had in the snow and how I'm a little sad it's all thawing now...


I am thankful for... God's unending GRACE... it keeps my head above water


From the learning rooms... have changed things a little again, as I want to include some of the other materials on my shelves that I managed to dig out over Christmas!... 2 days of the week for our 'reading' selections for History, Geography, Science, Literature and Natural history/science; and 2 days for the more 'practical' aspects of those with hands-on activities... as well as the 3 Rs of course


From the kitchen... today Baked potatoes, tuna/cheese, salad; Tuesday, heinz spaghetti and sausages, veg; Wednesday, sausages and mash, veg; Thursday, McDonalds?; Friday, spag bol, veg; Saturday, rice, beans, veg; Sunday, something from the freezer


I am wearing... PJs, fleece, slippers


I am creating... have just sorted out and re-organised all my 'creative' supplies.. and one of my goals for the year is to try and squeeze in more time to 'create' lovely things


I am going... to take Spike to see the Clinical Psych again this week...  maybe soon we won't need to see quite so many 'professionals'...


I am reading... Romans


I am hoping... mum and dad make it up to Scotland ok


I am hearing... the yatter of the tv... it's keeping me company tonight... not that there's anything decent to watch!


Around the house... all is quite sane, and feeling fresh after the Christmas decorations have been put away... back into the housework routine again now


One of my favorite things... laughing with the kids


A few plans for the rest of the week...  no plans actually... just taking it a day at a time

A Scripture... "Be still and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah" Psalm 46:10-11

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

love this satellite image of the snow over GB from the past week

Click here to read more from "The Simple Woman Daybooks" posts for today.

Daily Links

Some great links, to sites to feed the mind...

Geography:
The Big Picture
24 Hours in Pictures

Literature:
Word a Day
One Word, So Little Time

History
This Day in History
Today in History
Christian History Timeline

Science
Astronomy Picture of the Day
Daily Nature and Science News
Botany Photo of the Day

Facebook

So, these past couple of days I have leapt into the realm of FaceBook. I'm not entirely sure about it... I've not totally got to grips with it... I'm finding it rather time-consuming (and that will have to stop as I've more important things to be doing!)... and I'm sure I'll be totally bored with it come the end of this week... but I've rubbed "Walls" with friends past and present... and caught up with their lives to a certain degree... and thats been quite good.

I  much prefer Blogging and e-mailing though... maybe I'm just more comfortable with them... FB scares me somewhat as I just do not know what I'm supposed to be doing!... and there are WAY too many things to look at - it confuses my brain! I'm not even going down the route of games on there!

How did all this come about? Well, the kids have been getting their toys to use pretend laptops and on those pretend laptops they have been tapping out messages on FB! Where they got that idea I just don't know... as I've been adamant that I would most definitely NOT go down the FB book route! So, inevitably, the question arose of 'what exactly IS FaceBook, Mum?'... er... not sure actually!... ok since we're all pretty much visual learners, let's try and get a 'page' up on FB so we can actually find out what it is... and that's pretty much how I got into it. The camp is now totally divided... on the one hand there is Bubs egging me on to 'just have another look at your page, Mum and see if anyone else has become your friend'... and on the other there is Spike who, after seeing me attempt to grapple the basics of FB over the last couple of days, is now saying 'not FaceBook AGAIN!' I don't think I'm in either camp... I'm somewhere inbetween - not fed-up with it *yet*, but definitely not wanting to go on it too often!

(There's a link to my FB somewhere toward the bottom right-hand column of this page... in case you wish to join me there... not that I'll be there, but I will pop in from time to time!)

Weekly round-up

A week similar to most I guess!....

Week started with the familiar hard and cold frost... and the snuffles... but we went out for a quick and refreshing walk at the Wyre Forest to set us up for the week... I'm glad we did, because the next day...

...the snow finally came! It fell very quickly and we tried to make the most of it...

Snow Angels!

... in case we didn't get much snow, Bubs put together a wee friend... ok, she didn't have the stamina to make anything bigger!... snowman building soon descended into snowball fighting!

... preparing for battle... (let me say that, by this time, Spike had retired into the house... he's not one for cold fingers and toes...)...

Just a couple of random pics

Bubs decided to label our new map with the names of people we know in different parts of the world...

... and decided it was important to photograph her most favourite meal... Heinz spaghetti and sausages!

Then, of course, we had to do some of this... lots of walking and no car this week... ah, well, looks like I was doing the walking, and the kids were, um, sitting!

Ah, here's some walking... and, look, the Canal is frozen!

... sledding... swinging... and investigating the frozen, snowy paddling pool in the park.

And then a lovely hot cuppa, with candlelight to take the edge off the darkening skies...

New Year Thoughts

New Year is a good time to think, assess, contemplate... be still... listen...

My musings led me along this line of thought... Simplicity... God in all... that's my desire for the year ahead...

"In returning [to Me] and resting [in Me] you shall be saved; in quietness and in [trusting] confidence shall be your strength." Isaiah 30:15 (Amplified Bible)

"Let be and be still, and know [recognise and understand] that I am God." Psalm 46:10 (Amplified Bible)

"Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am gentle [meek] and humble [lowly] in heart, and you will find rest [relief and ease and refreshment and recreation and blessed quiet] for your souls. For My yoke is wholesome [useful, good - not harsh, hard, sharp, or pressing, but comfortable, gracious, and pleasant], and My burden is light and easy to be borne." Matthew 11:29-30 (Amplified Bible)

This post on one of my favourite Blogs really resonated with me and her heart seeks similar things. I also found this post on another of my favourtie Blogs really helpful (click the link at the end of her entry to see the full article) in the striding out into the coming year.

...A heart that seeks God finds Him...

Weekly round-up

Hugely quiet week... weather wasn't very conducive to going out walking... but we managed to visit some friends and saw family... and the kids spent time with Stephen... and I pottered around the house sorting books and shelves and clearing away 'piles' in a decluttering effort...

... the obligatory trip to McDonalds!...

... lovely Fellowship time of games and food on New Years Eve...

The kids... 2009!

...and so, one year ends... and another begins... seamlessly sewn together by the ticking of the clock...

New Years Day fun with family... T and Bubs jamming on their 'guitars'...

...T and Spike pretending to go to bed!

Taking Stephen back to Birmingham, on the train... where he'll get a connection to Devon

Having fun... playing with Playmobil and cars in the bath

One of my New Year goals... to read through the Bible again... this year I've opted to use this Chronological version.

SEN

I didn't actually think it would happen... so imagine my surprise to receive in this week a letter from the Council stating that they are going to provide Spike with a Statement of Special Educational Needs (SEN)! Maybe the application hit a good time - maybe they hadn't given out their quota of SENs for the year and we just slipped in there neatly? Or maybe it went through because the Lord wanted it to?

It throws up more thoughts/conerns/worries and the such in my mind than I thought it would! I really DO want Spike to be able to get any and all the help he needs to progress with his speech/language/communication issues... it just seems such a shame that it is almost impossible to get help through the Community these days, that all help is funnelled through the schools... I could BUY the help... but that option is far out of my reach. I know that he WILL get there 'in the end' - he has proven that so very many times. Once he has processed everything in HIS time, then he's ready to 'perform'. He has struggled for so long now with the /ch/ sound ('chocolate' has been 'clocklate') and the letter 'w' (which has been 'dublee'), and we have gone over and over and over how to say them... and now, suddenly, I hear him correcting himself "Clocklate? No! It's CHocolate isn't it?" and "Dublee dublee dublee dot... listen mum, I can say doubleyou doubleyou doubleyou dot..." (ok, maybe very laboured speech, but what a wonderful improvement!) Fab! He's surprised me no end of times as he's gone from no speech, to unintelligible speech, to some sounds, to many sounds, to nearly all the sounds, to speaking more grammatically correct sentences and so on...

So, now that I'm potentially being offered the help that Spike needs... why am I hesitating? Why am I thinking more than usual? Why has it startled me? Well, I guess I really DIDN'T think the council would issue the Statement - they seem so hard to come by; and because I know that School isn't the only option for Education, it's harder to just go with the flow.  I love Home Educating, and it seems to suit Spike... Is this school option right for him? I just don't know! What should I do? I just don't know! We will wait and see if he gets a place at the Communication Centre at the school near us, and take it from there. For now? I need to learn to rest some more in the Lord, and to seek His counsel.