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I want to be a wise woman. I do not want to be foolish and whittle away my time with laziness, and unfortunately, I’ve found myself fallen into this trap.
Homeschool
My homeschooling has been majorly lacking structure and it needs a bit of revamping. I started using Tapestry of Grace with my eldest and we’ve been through the entire thing once (4-year, Classical education course) and we are back again at Year 1. I’m struggling to afford all the books required and then having a harder time trying to find the right titles in the library. They often do not carry them.
So, I feel stuck. I can’t run a history curriculum without the books, so where does that leave me?
It was at that point I decided to turn Story of the World into our primary curriculum for history while using Tapestry of Grace as more of a supplement. That has worked well for a while–especially for my 7-year old. But my 10 year old has outgrown that year 1 book and needs something more challenging.
Which brings me back to square one.
So, where do I go from here? How can I be wise with my time and resources to make the most of our homeschool and what we have? Do I absolutely need to follow a curriculum and it’s time frame? Or can I jump around and still offer an excellent education for my children?
Homemaking
Keeping the house clean and keeping up with meals has become increasingly difficult as our family has grown. I also like to try different methods just to keep things fresh. Come on people, you know cleaning house can get boring and mundane. A girls gotta do something to keep the motivation going.
So, I inquired about Large Family Logistics on my Facebook page and it was pretty much unanimous that the book was worth the read, other than a couple of people who have never read it.
So, the book came in the mail and it’s filled with not only encouragement, but lots and lots of practical tips on how to simplify cleaning. So far, I’m loving it and it is challenging me to step it up a notch and really “own” my home.
Marriage
My marriage hasn’t always been the epitome of a honeymoon, but for the most part, my husband and I do very well in our marriage, typically only dealing with slight miscommunication tiffs. But nothing major. However, I do find things are getting more complex and I really want to be more intentional about protecting our marriage through prayer and selflessness.
I adore my husband, though my fleshly desires don’t always portray that. Marriage requires a consistent amount of apology, repentance and forgiveness—and so it will always be. The goal is to not lose heart and not give up. We’re a team, and both sides are going to make mistakes. God has taught me about a deeper love and it has helped me really understand 1 Peter 4:8, “Love covers a multitude of sins.”
I pray that every person would be able to experience that kind of love, because it is a miracle worker in marriages. Only God could shape our hearts in such a way.
Relationship With Christ
I have been less than intentional about spending time in the Word and in prayer, and my relationship with Jesus is suffering for it. I still love Him greatly! But I don’t have that deep connection with Him right now like I do when I spend regular time with Him. My mornings of getting up have been nothing but a battle. I am amazed at how something so {seemingly} small can cause so many problems! Satan does not want my relationship with God to go deeper. He wants to keep me distracted and lazy.
This information alone should help me pray that God would fight my battle so I can simply meet with Him.
I want this blog to help hold me accountable – that’s always been it’s underlying purpose. Writing on each of these subjects regularly requires that I am intentional about pouring into each one.
And today is a new day! So I’ll start there.
What about you? Do you need a reboot in one, or all, of these roles?
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Hi Christin, you just touched on every area in my life where I need a reboot and to be purposeful in. Please do continue ro blog on these topics. I will be following along and may blog about them as well so that I too can be intentional in these areas of life.
Christin, thanks for writing this article.
I’m ashamed to admit, I’ve allowed myself to lose my passion for learning and continuing to receive encouragement on these very matters. My head knows all of it (or that’s what I tell myself, how arrogant right?) so I rarely read an article on homemaking, homeschooling, marriage, etc. (I do read more on marriage these days, guess I’m not as burned out on that subject.)
But something about reading this today sparked in me a realization that by not paying attention to articles like this, I’m pushing away whatever passion I had left. The fact is, I’m still a homemaker, a homeschooler, a wife, and a child of God. I can either focus on those things and reap the reward from being passionate, or I can live a life of mediocrity.
I’m going to pray that God will show me where He wants my passions to be and that He would give me those passions, and remove that feeling of complacency and even burn out. I’m sick of mediocre!
Beth, strangely, I have fallen into that same trap. And just because I *know* it, doesn’t mean I live it. I want to read about marriage and homemaking and homeschooling as a beautiful gift, not as a burden. It truly is a gift and a privilege. I don’t need to be perfect, I just need to keep being intentional.
Thanks for sharing your heart here, Beth. I am grateful for you.
For once we’re in a good place with school, but the rest of those could use some work in my house. It’s entirely too easy to justify where I’m lacking but the bottom line is choices. I have choices to make for where I spend my time and energy and I don’t always make the wise choice.
Awesome post…I have always had the lazy bug BUT never realized it might be satan trying to hold me back….THANK YOU for putting it out there. I also like your paragraph on Marriage, I copied it to read off to my husband when he gets home from work!!
Yes I need to get myself in gear in all but marriage (since I’m a single momma). Thanks for this reminder and encouragement!
Christin, praying that God would meet you right where you are today! And that you would feel his comfort and grace!
I’ve had the lazy issue coming into play in my life lately. I don’t homeschool and I only have one child but still found myself overwhelmed with work and making dinners each night while keeping the house clean and being there for my husband when he gets home. I found that I had to stop looking at the clock so much and running myself on such a strict schedule. It has helped so much. I’m spending more time in the Word, gradually. Soon I’ll get back there and you will too. Cut back on any unecessary things and keep praying for help. He’s bound to show you what you need to do when you’re depending on Him to get you through. Praying for you.
I can relate! We have 6 kids and we just moved to a new state and i’m having trouble getting into the swing of a normal routine and I have to before we start home schooling all of them in the fall. It’s nice to know i’m not alone…thanks for sharing!