Here goes!

I am very reluctant to begin this because anytime I tinker around with technology, it blows up in my face. Everyone says, "Oh, it's easy. Just download......, or just sync this to that....., or plug this to that using your USB cord and ......." It doesn't matter what it is, I can't ever seem to get it to work right. Technology & I are like oil & water. But I thought I'd at least give this a try. So here goes nothing.
I've been getting occasional blogs from friends letting me know what's going on with their gang and have enjoyed keeping up with them. (Yes, I'm one of those people that enjoy receiving a mass letter at the end of the year which summarizes what everyone's been up to for the past year.) Those are better than the cards at Christmas & New Years! I always intended to do a letter like that but can't seem to find the time, so I thought I'd give this a try. Eventually, I hope to figure out how to get pictures (& maybe video) on here. That's a very tall order for me. Don't hold your breath.
Anyway...........here's the latest.
Taylor started 7th grade & Garrett started 4th grade. BreeAnn is still 4 (for 2 more weeks) so she doesn't start Kindergarten until next school year. She goes to the Mother's Day Out at our church. Kids are all diving (yes, Bree, too). Tay & G are taking piano again this year, while Bree is also taking ballet. She begged me all of last year to take ballet so I enrolled her. She's only had 1 class so far so I don't know if she really knows what it's about yet. G's got a ton of school work on homeschool days. This is going to be a very big jump for him in learning to manage his time & to stay on task. UGH!!!!!!! Pray for us both!!!!!!! I need patience & deligence to teach him in a way that is healthy, constructive, & that doesn't tear him down in any way. He needs prayers for concentration, focus, perserverance, etc. Taylor's off to a pretty good start this year. She seems to be fairly organized & on top of her assignments. Hers is no longer homeschool per se. She goes 5 days a week, but it's arranged more like a college block-schedule.
Her schedule is:
Mon. 8:00 - 2:00
Tues. 8:00 - 12:00
Wed. 10:00 - 11:00
Thurs. 8:00 - 12:00
Fri. 8:00 - 1:00
The school has a Bible study curriculum, Bible class, mentoring class (where the upperclassmen mentor the younger students - girls grouped together separately from the boys), and a big emphasis on character development. Academically, emphasis is put on neatness, organization, time management, thoroughness, discussion/participation in class. I am so thrilled that we are blessed enough to have this school and to be able to send her to this school.
Garrett has one of the world's best teachers this year. She is a beautiful Christian woman who is .......... I don't even know where to start. Words don't begin to describe her. She's just absolutely awesome.
I'm having to put in alot of volunteer hours at T & G's schools. They keep tuition "down" by having parents fulfill a contract of volunteering so many hours per school year. Since I don't have a class this semester (fall) I'm trying to get the entire school year's hours in now (about 5-10hrs/wk), b/c I will have a class in the spring. It will be my one-&-only class in the spring & then I'll be gradiated!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yippeeeeeeeeeeee!
Troy & I have been trying to paint the outside of the house. It's been needing it for a long time. We've been hunting for a new place to live. Don't necessarily want a new house, but we need some acreage to put our horses on so I can begin to use horses to do counseling with and I need to have easy access to them (feeding every a.m. and every p.m.) so I need to be able to have them next to home. My realtor tells me there's one that's suppose to be coming on the market around the end of this month. It's in the most perfect location (convenience to everything, close to kid's school where they could walk if needed, still in town, great location for clients to get to). However, it's possible that it may not work out. I know that. It's just a good thing we're not desparate or in a hurry. I'm just anxious to begin doing EAP (Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy).
I guess that's it for this blog.
Hope I don't bore anyone to death.
I'll try to blog regularly or when there's something to report.
TTFN,
Gina