November 25, 2013
10:11am
It's been a little while since you last posted. How are things going?
Let me begin by apologizing to my readers. I haven't posted for about two weeks. I'm in the middle of typing up a big post about the financial opportunities (or inopportunities) for homeschoolers; ya know: tax breaks, scholarships, etc. Little did I realize, my research would be extensive. I have to go back to grade-school and recall MLA and APA formats and stuff just to ensure I cite all of my sources. Sheesh! Prayfully, I'll have that up within the next week. It's a LOT of information to share, but I think it'll be worth it.
So, Jay and I have been at this homeschooling stuff for nearly three months. We're at the point where we've fully integrated lessons into our everyday home lives. We're learning to utilize our time wisely and how to turn everything into a learning experience. Now that Jay is attending speech therapy on Tuesdays and Thursdays, we are able to get out more and interact with others. Speaking of speech therapy, Jay is doing very well. His speech language teacher is a very nice young lady (I say that like I'm 20 years older than her. Lol She's young, though.) She seems to have a passion for helping children. Jay has learned so much and we can already detect a difference in his speech already! That's more than I can say about the two years of in-school therapy that Jay received during pre-k and kindergarten! The center is privately-run, independent of the local school district. They offer all kinds of services to special-needs children. One aspect that I really enjoy is how all the children interact so well together. No child is above another. Everyone interacts with each other, regardless of race, creed, color, or disability. It's refreshing for me, because Jay was always a friendly boy. Because of his speech impediment, lots of children would tease him whenever he'd try to have a conversation with them. Witnessing these special needs children is such an incredibly blessing, because I get to see love and kindness in its purest form. I tell ya, if you struggle with the second Commandment, just look at children. Children, though are born sinners that you don't have to teach them to misbehave, understand love without all of the complicated mess adults tend to bring in. There's so much to learn from those little people if adults would just shut up for once and stop acting like we know everything.
More and more, Jay is becoming an incredibly verbose child. He is very opinionated and has a lot to contribute to a conversation. We also noticed that he will not tolerate yelling or arguing. Stephan and I, like any other married couple, have our disagreements and heated debates. We try our hardest not to have these discussions in front of the children. But, typical of a child, Jay's ears perk up and zero in on adult business. If he doesn't like the tone of voice that we are using, he'll interject and say something like "God doesn't like arguing!" or "Mommy/Daddy, be nice to Daddy/Mommy!" As "cute" as that may be, the boy needs to understand his place as a child. We'll let him know that we are having an adult conversation that does not include him, but we'll also tell him that we love each other very much and only want the best for the household. I'm very big on children remaining in their place. Any adult contented topics are off-limits in the Berry house when it comes to the kids. We don't mind having intellectual conversations with Jay (and, trust me, the boy displays a keener intellect than most adults I know.) But, there are boundaries. Too many adults allow for their children to cross those boundaries. I was not raised that way, nor are my children being raised that way.
We do assert of level of frankness with Jay. For example, body parts. There's no "wee wee" or "pee pee" or whatever childish name adults come up with to try to shield their children from whatever. We identify genitalia as they should be. We teach them about sexual abuse (in a way a six-year-old can understand). If a situation ever occur where they were abused by an adult (Lord forbid!) or witnessed another child being abused, they will know that it is a bad thing, it's not their fault, and they must tell Mommy and Daddy immediately! We talk about bullying, cheating, lying, stealing, you name it. We talk about how all of these things are dishonoring to God and how important it is to be honest and to do the right thing in accordance to what the Word of God says. We can't afford to shield our kids from what this world is about. But, don't worry. We are not just teaching them about all the bad stuff. We teach them about how hard work pays off, the fruit of the Holy Spirit, and so many other wonderful things about God's blessings. Jay seems to be picking it up really well. Stephan and I are learning a lot, too, along the way. Sometimes, I get ahead of myself and try to deliver too much information to Jay, which leads to him becoming overwhelmed. Sometimes, I don't tell him enough, which frustrates me when my expectations are not met. Sometimes, what I do tell him is not appropriate, and my dear husband is always there to hold me accountable.
As this journey continues, God is revealing so much to me about this role He has me in. It gets scary at times, because I think I'm failing. Yet, He always has a way of reassuring me. He forgives me for my mistakes and places me back on the path He has designed for me. What a wonderful God. :-)
More and more, Jay is becoming an incredibly verbose child. He is very opinionated and has a lot to contribute to a conversation. We also noticed that he will not tolerate yelling or arguing. Stephan and I, like any other married couple, have our disagreements and heated debates. We try our hardest not to have these discussions in front of the children. But, typical of a child, Jay's ears perk up and zero in on adult business. If he doesn't like the tone of voice that we are using, he'll interject and say something like "God doesn't like arguing!" or "Mommy/Daddy, be nice to Daddy/Mommy!" As "cute" as that may be, the boy needs to understand his place as a child. We'll let him know that we are having an adult conversation that does not include him, but we'll also tell him that we love each other very much and only want the best for the household. I'm very big on children remaining in their place. Any adult contented topics are off-limits in the Berry house when it comes to the kids. We don't mind having intellectual conversations with Jay (and, trust me, the boy displays a keener intellect than most adults I know.) But, there are boundaries. Too many adults allow for their children to cross those boundaries. I was not raised that way, nor are my children being raised that way.
We do assert of level of frankness with Jay. For example, body parts. There's no "wee wee" or "pee pee" or whatever childish name adults come up with to try to shield their children from whatever. We identify genitalia as they should be. We teach them about sexual abuse (in a way a six-year-old can understand). If a situation ever occur where they were abused by an adult (Lord forbid!) or witnessed another child being abused, they will know that it is a bad thing, it's not their fault, and they must tell Mommy and Daddy immediately! We talk about bullying, cheating, lying, stealing, you name it. We talk about how all of these things are dishonoring to God and how important it is to be honest and to do the right thing in accordance to what the Word of God says. We can't afford to shield our kids from what this world is about. But, don't worry. We are not just teaching them about all the bad stuff. We teach them about how hard work pays off, the fruit of the Holy Spirit, and so many other wonderful things about God's blessings. Jay seems to be picking it up really well. Stephan and I are learning a lot, too, along the way. Sometimes, I get ahead of myself and try to deliver too much information to Jay, which leads to him becoming overwhelmed. Sometimes, I don't tell him enough, which frustrates me when my expectations are not met. Sometimes, what I do tell him is not appropriate, and my dear husband is always there to hold me accountable.
As this journey continues, God is revealing so much to me about this role He has me in. It gets scary at times, because I think I'm failing. Yet, He always has a way of reassuring me. He forgives me for my mistakes and places me back on the path He has designed for me. What a wonderful God. :-)
Dad teaching Jay about the components of a standard desktop PC,
Homemade snickerdoodle cookies. Just because I felt like it.
Turkey Jerky and Mommy.
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