Parting Words

Okay!!! I know it's not Easter yet...but I just finished up some virtual house-keeping! So I wanted to pop-in and say Hi to all of you before tomorrow (Ash Wednesday) comes!!

My blog got a face-lift thanks to the folks at the cutest blog on the block! I'm so HTML clueless!! And even though I liked my blog before with the 3 columns I wanted something with a little bit more of a spring-ish colors!! After all it will be April when I come back!! So now thanks to the cutest blog on the block, I can spice up my blog time to time and give it different back-grounds as the season or mood strikes me. I was able to ask them at cutest blog on the block to help me with the HTML coding (getting 3 columns). So Judy there is hope!!

Oh and I want to thank all of you for your kind words, thoughts, and prayers! Well this concludes my virtual house keeping! I will (virtually) see you all on Easter Monday!

God Bless,
SAHMinIL

Vacations: Lenten Retreats

I've given this a LOT of thought! It isn't easy seeing I will admit I have a little bit of an internet addiction. I've been praying and hoping that this blog (along with my others) would be an inspiration to other. I have for the last few months read articles on how to build readers, followers, how to get visitors to your site.

I have networked my site with others and after MONTHS of working, praying, and me just being me I'm finally starting to see traffic to my sites, I'm getting readers and followers. The traffic/followers may be small right now, but I'm thankful for each and everyone of you: Thank-you to all those that have chosen to be a reader and/or follower of my sites.

It is because of you, my followers/readers, that this decision has been even harder for me. I don't want to loose you, because I LOVE having you here, but yet I feel that this is something that I MUST do. I sincerely hope that you will understand all of this and will be willing to wait for my return.

Lent is a time for conversion. A time to turn closer to Christ! This conversion is suppose to be life changing! For most Catholic-Christians this desire for conversion is expressed by making a sacrifice; by given something up. I have chosen to make my PC time my Lenten sacrifice. This is not because it is a sin to be on the PC, but because as a homeschooling mother I think that this would be a better way for me to reconnect with God. I feel like if I'm not spending my time here on the PC then I could spend it more in prayer, doing more scripture and spiritual readings.

These are things that I should be doing anyways, but feel as if I don't have time for them. I feel as if I don't have time for prayer. I feel as if I don't have time to sit and cuddle up with a book, I feel as I just don't have enough time for those things. sigh--Time! Time! Time! I wish there was just MORE time during the day!

I'm sure most of you understand this need for MORE time. However there is no magic wand, we are not Samantha or Jennie. We can't twitch our noses or nod our heads to either to make more or freeze time. However, what I can do is spend my limited time differently. I've decided that spending my time differently is exactly what I will do. I've decided to take a vacation from my PC, from social networks, from blogs, from the world wide web. I've decided that this vacation from these things will ALLOW me to have the Time for those things that my spirit has been craving: time in prayer, time with scripture, time with spiritual readings, time with God, my creator, my Lord, my savior.

If this move causes me to loose my readers and followers then I'm sorry! I sincerely hope from the bottom of my heart that you remain here. I sincerely hope that you will have patience and wait for my return, while I take this vacation, this Lenten Retreat! Easter Sunday will be here before you know it, and I will be back Easter Monday (April 13, 2009) to share with you my renewed Spirit.

You all will be in my prayers!
Thanks for everything,

God Bless with all my love,
SAHMinIL

First Communion Classes

So today was the first day of First Communion Classes for DS. This is the second stage of the sacrament preparations that he has been doing this year. The first part was the preparation for reconciliation that he did at the end of January.

We are so excited for him. Today for class DS was chosen to talk about Jesus birth. DS told us that he was able to tell the class everything without his book. He even said the teacher asked him to repeat it because of his friends (classmates) weren't listening.

We, the parents, also had to set through a 15 minute presentation. What is communion? Why it's important? What the children are to wear? How we are NOT to use flash or lights while taken pictures during the Mass. etc. We also were given an pamphlet from Catholic Update on the Eucharist. The Catholic Update that received today is just one of the many updates on the Eucharist. Catholic Updates do cover a wide range of topics. To be honest it was a blah, blah, blah moment for me....but I was there because the parents were expected to be there.

So DS is excited! His first communion will take place on April 4th. Just before Easter that way on Easter Sunday we ALL can (will not DD she still has to wait another year) receive communion. My home parish tries really hard to make sure first communion happens BEFORE Easter so that our new communicants (I think that's the right word) can receive communion on Easter Sunday with their families.

American Idol: Homeschooler

Diane Keith, the editor of Homefires and the author of "Click Schooling" is asking that this information be passed along. If you belong to any blogs or groups, please spread the word.

An 18-year-old, homeschooled singer from Irvine, CA is in American Idol's top 36. Mishavonna Henson performs this coming Wednesday, February 25th - and her family is requesting the homeschool community support her by voting her into the top 12.

Quiz:

Thanks to Judy at Benmakesten I've found this quiz! If you have a moment I encourage you to take it too!!

My Results:

CLASSIC COUNTRY

You take the inspiration for your home from the surrounding countryside. And why not? The country cottage look has been, and continues to be, the epitome of what a family 'home' should stand for: warm, welcoming, cosy and comfortable. There's nothing at all pretentious about this style, just a love of the good, simple pleasures in life.

Living Room

Your living room brings the best of outdoors inside. The living room is usually the hub of the home, and the country look is perennially popular: it's warm and inviting and unpretentious. In its most classic incarnation, the focal point is the fireplace, and this is certainly a style that's all about comfort, hospitality and connecting with nature, the soul and the seasons. On the off-chance that you're drawn to minimalist accessories, you probably accept that in most people's eyes they'll look incongruous in such surroundings. But if the mix works for you, that's all that matters. Neutral wall colours provide a calm, easy background, while 'quiet' textiles and soft furnishings buy you time to decide on what you want in the long term. Make comfort the priority in your living room: it's where you naturally go to watch TV, relax and de-stress.

Bedroom

It's a man's world in the master bedroom. Sleep is fundamentally important to our well being. Clean, fresh air can truly aid sleep, but so, too, does a well-made bed and the best mattress you can afford. Touch is an important issue in the bedroom, from crisp, linen sheets to wool or even sheepskin underfoot. You have quite a masculine - some might say hard - style in your bedroom, using vibrant colours to make a bold statement.

Dining Room

You're a clean slate waiting for a dash of spice. When eating in a separate area to the rest of the home, the dining room needs to be relaxed and inviting as you will no doubt have to move your guests from either the kitchen or living room at some point. Start with the table and seating and think about softening the overall look with cushions and curtains and adding colour with glass and tableware. When it comes to entertaining, the family takes centre stage and you love to make an effort.

Home Office

You have a place for everything and everything has its place. Working from home is an increasingly popular solution to the challenge of bringing up a young family and making ends meet. A dedicated home office - even if it's just the corner of a room - will help keep you focused and separate work from hectic family life. The modernist adage that form should follow function is nowhere better demonstrated than in the home office: keep things simple and add your own sense of style by using a splash of colour or a single, well-chosen decorative piece.

Kids' Room

Let a child's room reflect his or her personality -- not yours! If you have the space for a designated playroom, great. If not, then giving your kids the biggest bedroom can be a smart move, certainly once they're past the toddler stage: it gives them a designated space to play, enabling you to keep the rest of your home more, rather than less, how it used to be. Cheap and cheerful is ideal when it comes to most things in children's rooms: not only do kids grow fast, they also grow out of fads and phases at an amazing rate.

Conclusion

You're living the dream. At home, at least, the rat-race is a distant memory.

My response to this quiz: It's a romantic idea and I would LOVE it, to bad my house doesn't really reflex my dreams. :) I would LOVE to have a dining room, but don't not in this 3 bed, 1 bath 900 square foot home. Although the fire place in the living room would be the focal point if t wasn't for all the shelves that store our schooling supplies. Office made me laugh too...it's a corner of my kitchen sandwich between the corner and the refridgorator. LOL Oh, if I had my dream then this would be it. I don't hate my house. I do try to make it match up to my dreams as much as possible. :)