Good morning :)

I look forward to a productive and fun day of home schooling 2day; it is overly warm for October here still (80 degrees!) but it is damp and gray outside, so that should help quelch the "iwannagooutsideiwannagooutsideiwannagooutside" virus, for a few hours at least :)

Today, we are going to go through our regular subjects ~bible, arithmatic,language arts,science, history,geography,logic and language~ and then choose one of our once-a-week subjects~civics,PA history, fire prevention&safety,health,art or music.

Today may well be music, since we have started reading about Willaim Hendels The Nutrackerand Tyler especially wants to go and see this play performed live at the theatre. We will be going, Lord willing, to be able to see this play live in Lancaster,where the Ballet Theater of Lancaster will present THE NUTCRAKER at the Fine Arts Center, Lancaster Mennonite High School.(Tickets are available by calling (717)672-0826. Or visit www.ballettheateroflancaster.org if your interested in going, too.)So, we are a family that likes to learn a lot about things before we see them in person, such as studying up on a place of interest and then visiting there, or reading the book before we see the movie. This always adds in more learning than just taking in a show, and the finale show serves as the carrot on a stick,er, reward to keep the kids going till the end ;)

We will have to come online and have Tyler do a little write-up about the play after we see it. I saw it years ago as a child in NY, but there's nothing like seeing something through your childs eyes ;)

We will also read aloud from Classic Myths to read aloud: The great stories of Greek & Roman mythology by Willaim f. Russell ($3 on Amazon.com.) In Foreign Languages, we are studying Greek. This is an offshoot of that study, and a way to incorporate Greek studies into Language Arts... we like to do that around here... look at a subject from many angles; cultures are not static and our learning is not static.
We have discovered that there is so much more to studying a language,like Greek,than just studying the language~ the words that the people speak, and how they speak them. There is thier cultures history,society,arts and food. There are places to visit and stories to hear. It is all very interesting. And fun ;)

So anyways, we are reading some of those stories to hear about the Greek culture today. To tie this study into Bible studies, later on this afternoon, we are also going to study the Hellinic and Greek cultures propensity to highly esteem scholarly pursuits and mans wisdom, while holding in a lesser regard spiritual pursuits. CB preached on Sunday about 2 Timothy 3:12-4:5, in a sermon he entiteled The Centrality of the Word, about how believers must stay true to the word of God, not giving into our subjective sense of what God is/would say to us, or our feelings, but to God's word alone, and he tied in how the Greek culture into this as an example, interestingly enough as this is what Ty and I are studying ;) by telling us about how they traditionally valued scholarship over strictly keeping to the Word,having itchy ears(v.3)and making teachings to suit their own passions... this will,of course, be taught to show the error of the Greeks way in this ~ how false teaching can work like a little leven altering the whole bunch of dough, the whole of the church, and how the word of God needs to be regarded as the Truth; it is not a journey or a quest as CB said on Sunday, but it is the truth, the destination....

Now how is that for homeschooling for the glory of God? I am not pride filled about this, but happy about this blessing to be able to do schooling this way... to glorify God. And I know that it does, because His word says so. Thank you God for allowing us to home school, for your wonderful world and peoples to learn about, for our pastor C.B. Eder, who is faithful to teach us the unadulterated gospel every week,and for my childrens hearts covered over in grace and so willing to glorify You in all that they do!

Please join us tomorrow as we share about our studies of Daniel Boone, American Frontiersman who was born in Birdsboro,PA and in the next few days as we visit his homestead, now preserved as an historical site available for visitors like us.

God bless you and your home schooling journeys, and hope you have a great day! :) XOXO'S <3 Stacey