Schoolin' and Quiltin'.

Boy it was a cold blustery day in Las Vegas

today.  When that cold wind blows, it makes

me all the more glad that my Lukey and I

are cuddled up next to each other on the

bench . . . He is busy with his studies and

I am either studying myself or sewin' on

a project or two.  

Today when Luke took his a little break,

I had a moment to score on some fabric

for my next quilt project at 40% off.

Pretty.sweet.deal.

With all that our little family has 

been through, I am so very grateful that

we have the opportunity to homeschool

our kiddos!!  It most definitely helps in

the healing process!

We count our many blessings and are

so grateful for our family and friends.

Loving that as we begin our weekend,

we have our support team!!! 

Time in the Word . . . All the Difference in the World.

Hands down, I must say, that our most 

favorite part of the day in our homeschooling

routine is our time spent in the Word.  I

can attest to the fact that EVERYTHING is

different about our day if we do not devote

time to this each and every schoolday.

Luke and I are diligent and it is rare that 

we skip or miss a day.  We have learned,

through many hard knocks, that it is 

better to push something else rather than

miss our time together in the word.  It is

so exciting to nudge each other in church

when our pastor is recanting a Bible

fact or story . . . each remembering the

time that we discovered this together.

Currently, we are studying the book of

Samuel.  I do so love this book as it

describes how out of obedience Hannah

receives her precious gift Samuel and as

Samuel becomes judge and appoints

Saul and David as kings of Israel.

Yep, homeschooling is has been such

a blessing to our family in so many,

many ways, but growing in the Lord

together is one of my favoritist memories

of our journey together.  I thank our

Lord each and every day that I have

had the opportunity to spend this precious

commodity of time with our four 

wonderful boys.

1 Samuel 16:7 . . .The Lord does not look

at the things human beings look at.  People

look at the outward appearance, but the

Lord looks at the heart.

BP . . . Under Control.

 Our Dad in the hospital . . . not a problem!

Tietjens are busy.peeps!!!  CHRISTmas

is coming!  I took my sewing machine

and quilts to the hospital to get them

done!!!!

 Luke and I packed up our homeschool

and took.it.to.the.streets.  Tons of

work was accomplished as we worked

diligently in our Dad's hospital room.

 Support system, you.got.it!

 Cards and well wishes . . . pouring in.

Yep, the Lord prevailed today as

our Dad's blood pressure was

beginning to get under control.

By the end of the night it was

holding steady at 147/87.  We will

take that in a "heartbeat".  As a visionary

and a planner, one thing that I have

learned through all of this is to 

take it one.step.at.a.time, loosen

up, and to be flexible.

A big victory for the Lord today, we

are thrilled that our Dad will be

heading home tomorrow, we are

thankful that we have the chance

for another great day as a family

tomorrow.

Onward.comrades.

Recess. Snacks. Studying.

What goes better with homeschooling

than yummy, yummy snacks for

recess?!?  One of the biggest perks

of homeschooling is the snacks.

I do so love my boys.  I love baking.

What a great combination.  

Day 2 was amazing!  Luke and I

are already in a rhythm . . . just like

worn out shoes.  We really work

well together.  All of the boys are

on such different schedules.  The

kitchen is always hopping.  The 

front door is always opening and

closing.  Boys are buzzing up and

down the stairs.  Yep, I.love.it.

Prayers please!!  Our Dad's BIG PET/CT

scan is on Friday.  Many decisions 

will be made based on the results of

these tests.  We are also having a host

of other tests also, but the PET/CT is

the biggie.  Of course, we are having

our test on the Friday before Labor Day

weekend, so we will have to wait until

Tuesday morning for the results.  Many

including myself have VERY positive

thoughts about the results . . . 

Back to School Night 2012.

Almost as big as CHRISTmas is

our annual Back to School Night!!

Tonight was no different . . . 

This year was fiesta themed at the

Gorditos!!  Yeehaw!!

How can a teacher begin a new

school year without a yummy

tostado salad . . . 

Back to School Night is the night

that we lay down the law renew our

commitment to homeschooling, look

over our brand spankin' new books,

smell our sharpened pencils . . .

in order to begin the first day with a

bang!!!  I love, love, love Back to

School Night!!!

Back to School Night ALWAYS ends

with snacks . . . 

A big shout out to Danny.  We were

privileged to attend his White Coat

ceremony in preparation for his

D.O. studies!!!  Woot! Woot!!

Here's to a MARVELOUS school 

year!!! 

Gettin' Ready.

Church tomorrow. Family dinner. Prayers.

Hittin' the sack early. Followed by the

first day of the new school year.

As long as I have been homeschooling

and teaching a bazillion kindergartners, 

I still get the first day of school

jitters.  They begin now.  I want to

make certain that I am totally 

prepared and ready to serve my

children well in the position as their

teacher.  I do not take it lightly!  I am

so very grateful for the opportunity

that I have had for so many, many

years.  I cannot believe that it will

only be Luke and I again this year.

Zach will be attending UNLV and

Sam will be attending CSN.

Pencils sharpened. We are ready!

Away we go!!

48 hours.

Yesiree, we are on our last 48 hours of

freedom vacation.  School begins

with a big shock for our crew on Monday.

We have been talking and praying about

the first day of school for the past couple

of weeks and I do believe that we are 

more excited than we let on.  We are a

group that thrives on routine and schedules.

Staying up until 4:00 or 4:30 morning

is getting pretty insane, as is the

breakfast that lingers until about 1:00 

or 2:00 each afternoon as the guys

stumble jump out of bed with excitement

to greet yet another exciting day of

summer vacation.  Luke and I are

especially excited to finish a Bible

curriculum that takes three years to 

complete . . . we are going to put the

finishing touches on it this year.  The

boys were giving me the lowdown tonight

as to how they will be spending their

last couple of savored days to wind

down summer.  We had talked about the

prospect of winding down, yep . . .

that lasted about six hours.  Enough 

for the boys to shower up and pack 

another backpack . . . 

Summer.we.love.it.

Gettin' Ready.

Once the Fourth of July is over, I start

getting super excited for the next school

year.  School supplies have started to slowly

trickle into our home over the past couple

of weeks.  By the end of next week, we

will be in go mode as we get ready to

begin our 26th year of homeschooling.

What a blessing . . . I have a bazillion

memories of homeschooling our crew.

It seems totally crazy that I will just have

Luke by my side for the next 180

school days.  He and I will both be

hard at the books this year as we set

goals for another exciting school year

together! Eighth grade!  Holy cow!!

How in the world did that happen?!?

I love, love, love school supplies and

cannot wait to finish our school

shopping!!