A few of my thoughts and our summer nature adventures...

This summer felt like a whirlwind of warm days spent collecting bugs, butterflies, frogs, and even more exciting: new experiences.  Stormy nights brought lightning storms to delight or stir our souls to wonder and contemplation - depending on what work God was doing in our hearts at the time. It has been for us a season of intentional enjoyment of life and of one another - and also of unexpected disappointments and wrestling with deep questions. To sum up my thoughts on our summer, I would say it has been a lesson in being; of accepting the moment that I am in...and living there.

I don't want to speed things up or slow them down. I want to learn to be in the moment I am given and do the best I can with it. Sometimes that moment is best spent just breathing in the fresh air and feeling the kiss of sun on my skin as I watch my children explore the nature in our yard. Other moments are best spent busy washing dishes, preparing meals or folding laundry with a thankful heart. Still other moments are to be spent in stillness, laughter, concentration, kindness, patience, or grace. I don't always, or even often, truly know exactly what I should be doing with my time. I fumble. I waste. I wish I had been wiser as I consider my yesterdays. I imagine I will forever be learning in this area. But when it all boils down, what is valuable and lasting is how well I have loved; how well I have loved God and how well I have loved the people that God has placed in my path in life. In comparison, nothing else is of any great significance.

If I provide my children the best possible education, but have not modeled love for them, I have truly failed in my role and position both as a parent and as a teacher. Let's not loose sight, Moms & Dads, of what is truly important as we school our children. Knowledge is a useful tool in the hands of the wise and upright in character; likewise, it can be a weapon of destruction in the hand of a careless fool. Our moments spent enjoying them, loving them, determining to be patient, and gentle and kind with them - those moments are investing not only in their development of character - but of our own.

Here are a few photos from our summer. A highlight of these months was our visit to a butterfly room at a science museum. We all loved the enchanting experience and returned home dreaming together of how we could create our own butterfly sanctuary.

From then on we have been learning about caterpillars and butterflies, chasing butterflies through the yard, raising caterpillars and watching in wonder as they venture through metamorphosis and emerge in color and flight.

We have more recently discovered dragonflies, which are much faster than butterflies and more difficult to capture and observe.

Frogs have played happily in our water table with us on a summer day or two [until they'd had plenty enough attention and escaped quickly into a nearby bush]. 

My daughter has grown especially fond of worms and collects them often, loving each and every one of them dearly, then returning the sweetly smothered creatures to our garden.

Grasshoppers are plentiful in our yard and so much fun to catch.








Slugs are easy to find, though not as delightful. They are, however, fun to watch from time to time: their shape and movement is so unique.

 

Our latest [and most vile, in my opinion] "guest" to our bug home is a large praying mantis. I don't have a picture of him here, because I am truly afraid of him. [The one pictured above was far friendlier toward us.]

He is vicious. I cannot bear to watch him eat, although my son is always very impressed by the whole event. I even like spiders a little more after having witnessed this insect devour a meal. I was going to post a video, but I couldn't handle watching it myself. So if you are curious, read up on it - or do a search on YouTube [but really, don't - it's awful].

We also planted and harvested a garden with zucchini, peas, carrots, green beans, and a handful of pumpkins that are deepening in their brilliant orange color.

 

We watched the spectacular meteor shower last month and spent many lovely nights listening to cool rain fall hard as the lightning lit up the sky and thunder crashed in symphony. I stand amazed at the power of our God.

It really was a beautiful summer filled with lots of adventures, both life-altering and of seemingly little significance. But perhaps the most adventuresome of it all has simply been living those little [and big] moments side-by-side, together as a family and loving one another through it all.

This is truly the focus I need to have as we continue into our school year. There are times when I feel overwhelmed as I look at what is yet to be accomplished. I need to just focus on the moment before me. There are times when I am so frustrated with a child who refuses to comply. I need to keep perspective of what lessons I am truly teaching by my response to that situation. Life is an experience of learning, isn't it? And whether we homeschool intentionally or not, we learn at home. Children learn from their parents. The question isn't whether we are teaching them, the real question is: "What?"

Hey - speaking of the question "what?"...
What is this??
Does anyone know? We found it hanging from the gable of our porch.