Tina The Storyteller

So, "school" starts on Tuesday. I'm in the unschooling, year round learning camp, so we don't really have a start and a finish. Though it does seem like the activities for young people are pretty hard core to the fall to spring schedule. I have to also admit that I loved going to school. Back to school time was one of my favorite parts of the year. Even though I was nervous about finding my classes and whether or not I was going to do well in my classes, I loved going to school. It was one of my favorite places. My daughter, she's not like that at all. She has never been one to beg for workbooks or ask for just one more lesson before lunch. It has taken some getting used to. And I may not be fully adapted to my student. When I read all the homeschool mom blogs talking about what they are planning for their year and boxes of curriculum, I get a little nostalgic for my days in school. But then I realize that would not only be a waste of time, but a waste of money ...

Nine years ago today, I met one of the most amazing people the world has ever known. She asked to hear the story of the day she was born. There are a few things I remember pretty vividly, one of which is that I had no idea what to say to her when they placed her in my arms. For nine months, she had been growing inside me, with me having no clue as to whether she was a boy or a girl. All I did know was that she was active, constantly moving, so much so that I wasn't sure if I would be able to get use to her not being inside me playing soccer once she was born. So any way, she took her breath, was announced as a girl and all I could think to say as she lay there in my arms was "Hello, Hannah." It was the start of something amazing. Nine years later, as I put her to bed, I'm just so thankful that she is a part of my life and I will cherish every moment that we have together, even the ones when I think "Is this the same kid that was here a few moments ago?" Sh...

It has been a long summer. We have traveled from one side of the country to the other in the past month and half. It always amazes me how something sounds good on paper but when it is finished you wonder, how did I manage to do that? Or never again! I'm thankful that my mother is so wise, because she delayed a trip that would of had her here to visit with us this week and based on how little I won't to be around myself, I can't imagine that she would have fairy much better. We have Hannah's birthday coming up at the end of the week, too. Because we've been out of town so much, it has been a top planning priority. No party this year, but I have plans to do one for next yer for sure. It's her last year in the single digits. We've had lots of excursions planned for her birthday, but they keep meeting problems. For instance, we were going to go to Dave and Busters but it turns out that the information that I saw on the Internet before was inaccurate and it's...

We celebrate Sabbath in our home. We don't do it well, but we stumble into it every week if we can. Because Joel works on Saturdays and Sundays we celebrate on Friday. I'm amazed sometimes at how things have progressed over the years. When we first started it was very much a liturgical part of it. Now sometimes it just feels like another day of the week. I think that liturgy is meant to help us. When we gave it up for our Sabbath celebration, I think it was because it was hindering us. I'm thinking that we might need to bring it back though. There was some really good stuff in there. We used the words and scripture from a book called A Prayerbook for Husbands and Wives by Ruthanne and Walter Wangerin, Jr. . It's one of my favorite prayer books, highly recommend it for anyone who is married. I love how it uses italics as cues to insert the gender and name of your spouse without being overly complicated about it or vague. Don't you just hate vague prayers? Since i...

I really enjoyed this book. The Prayer Box is the story of a mom that is trying her best to run away from pain that has haunted her her entire life. In a lot of ways, it's like seeing a train wreck about to happen. Tandi has left her controlling, abusive husband and hit the road with her two children. She ends up landing in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Which might seem like an odd place to land, until we discover that this is the one place on earth that she felt safe as a child. The islands take her in and polish the rough edges so that she can stand and accept the beauty of her life. So many times it appears that Tandi is about to run head long into the past that she claims she doesn't want to define her. It is only through the amazing hand of God that she finds a new way. She is charged with cleaning out the home that has been willed to the local church. What she finds are a lifetime of prayers stored in a menagerie of boxes in a closet. Tandi is drawn to the letter...

Hard to believe that it's Thursday already, but it is! Wow! I'm thankful for a whole bunch of things this week, so many that if I would list them all, I'd be here for the rest of the day and into tomorrow. Heck I'd be lucky to be done by the end of the decade. I'm thankful for my husband! He's a real trooper. Love how he not only cares for so many people through the church, but that he cares for our family. Seems like he's always got just a little bit more time to do what needs to be done, which is pretty amazing considering that he's only got the same 24 hours that I have. I'm thankful for my little girl. I enjoyed the time away when she was at camp last week, but we've been having fun this week hanging out together. She's pretty amazing in lots of hard to explain ways, I guess she's mysterious in her lovliness. I hope that others are as impressed with it as I am. I'm thankful for family near and far. I'm looking forwar...

Today is one of those days. I don't know if you have days like this, but basically, it's a day when you don't want to do anything at and nothing really NEEDS to be done but at the same time you can't justify having done nothing all day long. So even though what I would prefer to do is hide in my bedroom and read a book all day, I keep venturing out and doing small things here and there. For instance laundry, that's done. Some shopping for random things like a net for minnow catching, that's done. Or stopping by the park and letting Hannah wade in the creek and try to catch some minnows with said net, did that, too. Going for a run, yup. Find some treasures in other people's garbage, yes, quite literally, a neighbor was throwing away a perfectly good fake tree, how could that not come home with us? Thinking about doing some dishes and sewing, too. I find that on days where I don't want to do anything at all it's good for me to say yes. If someone asks...

We went out and about today. Hannah wanted a new pair of shoes and she wanted to go to the Salvation Army (or Salitories as a friend calls it) to shop for them. She found some that she liked but they were fifty dollars. Seriously? I found a pair of really cute Merrills but I didn't need new shoes so they stayed in the store. Though, I'm still thinking about them, so maybe I'll see if there the next time I go. We also went by Five Below and then into Marshalls for a quick look. I love those maxi dresses on the hanger but honestly, I look like I'm wearing a moomoo. It's not good. I guess I'll stick with capris and tshirts. I did find a really great buy at Marshall's though. It was totally unexpected, Restor-a-finish. I used it in a class in college and have been convinced of its goodness ever since. I think it's exactly why I went in there. Should help get rid of the stickiness I've been dealing with on the table lately. I also got a haircut. I'...

Hi! It has been a busy week for me. Hannah went off to camp last weekend and we picked her up yesterday. It sounds like she had a great week. She went horseback riding, they visited the Detroit Zoo, she did a 500 ft zip line, they sang songs, ate marshmallows, the food was good, and she was excited about going back again next year. Joel and I had our own week at home. He took a couple of half days, we watched movies together, went out to eat, I went shopping, we visited the library, hung out and had a lot of fun. It was a good week and I'm excited about doing it again next year :-) I gave a testimony at our weekly campfire this past Wednesday, too. I talked about how I'm Joel and Hannah's cheerleader. And I realized that being an introverted cheerleader is tough stuff. Mainly because I want everyone to like me, but I don't have enough energy to be the best me all the time. And so I have to be okay with some people judging me based on things that I can't change. I re...