First Day Jitters

What am I? A 3rd grader about to give an oral report? A high school junior about to give a speech on JFK? Seriously, why is my stomach in knots tonight over something I'm not doing until tomorrow? I should take my kid's advice. Joshua told Allison on Friday "You're definitely getting shots, but don't worry about it 'cause we ain't there yet" while en route to her appointment. *Sigh*

So tomorrow starts a new semester at our homeschool co-op, SHARE. Last semester was the first time we'd ever signed up for it and the kids loved it. I, however, was in the nursery for the entire 3 hours. And while it wasn't bad, it was just a really long time to be hanging out in the nursery with the babies, sometimes just my own baby. So by the end of last semester I thought to myself that I should branch out a little and be a teacher's helper at least one hour. That was the plan. My plan anyway.

Then, I got an e-mail. An e-mail sent to everyone in the group, not just me, saying more teachers were needed for the next semester of SHARE. I thought nothing of it but felt a little tug. I shrugged it off. Another e-mail, a bit of a pull. Still not sold. Another e-mail, a full on push. From the Lord of course, saying "I want you to do this. Teach a class at SHARE." Oh no Lord! You can't mean me! I really don't wanna. I really, really don't wanna. I prayed about it and kept getting the same answer: do it. So I thought about what kind of class He would want me to teach. Katelyn and Joshua kept asking if they could take a cooking class, but the different classes are set up for specific age groups, and the semester before there was nothing in their age group. I thought it might be fun and contacted someone to find out if it was a good idea or not, really, really hoping they'd say "No, we don't think so." That would be the end of it, hooray!

Not so. Not what happened at all. The powers that be thought it was a great idea! Yay me... oh no! So I gave into the Lord and His will and tomorrow will be my first day teaching "Kid's Kitchen Creations" at SHARE. We are making treats that don't need to be cooked: butterscotch haystacks, peanut butter balls, The Best Hamburger Cookies, etc. It's going to be fun and I've given myself over to letting it be, but I still can't get this teenager who hates to get up and lead/speak off my back. Katelyn and Joshua are in my class as well as 7 other children. I'll have a few helpers. It's going to be just fine. I'm just one of those people who doesn't like breaking out of my comfort zone in certain areas and this is feeling very hard at the moment.

So, pray a little prayer for me in the morning. I know all will go well and the Lord will guide me. He equipped me with everything I need to teach my own children, and I know I can do this too. In fact, I'm even looking forward to it.

Yes, My Hands Are Full!

I am a stay-at-home, homeschooling mother of 4 beautiful, amazing kiddos. Katelyn is 7, Joshua is 5, Allison is 4, and Aaron is 2. My husband works a lot and on his days to work he pulls 12 hour shifts. So you can imagine I pretty much have the children with me at all times. I can say with absolute certainty nearly everytime I leave the house and go to a public place I will hear "Wow! You have your hands full!"

Now, this comment is often fine, coming from very nice people who are amazed to see a family as big as mine these days. But sometimes the comment is made in such a way that I feel the commentor pities me, or feels sorry for me in some way. I have found this slightly irritating for quite sometime and never really knew how to respond... until I saw a mini-van not too long ago. You know those stick people families you see everywhere? (I totally have one myself.) Well, this van had a stick person family with a daddy, mommy, and 4 kids just like mine. And under the family it read "Yes, my hands are full... and I love it!" I thought "Yes! Yes! That's exactly what I want to say!"

I have 4 loving, creative, incredibly unique little beings in my life. I birthed each and every one of them and have loved them from the start. The Lord chose to bless me in ways I had never imagined possible. There was a time in my life, after having suffered miscarriages, that I wasn't convinced I'd ever have children of my own. I questioned God, as hard as that is to admit. I questioned everything actually. It was a time of much uncertainty and heartache for me. Yes, my days are overwhelming at times... okay let's face it, quite often! There are days when I think "What am I doing? Staying at home, homeschooling, spending 99% of my time with the kids!" But I love it, I really do. Even the hard times. We are blessed to be a family of 6. So yes, my hands are full... and I really, really do love it!

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