Homeschool Memoires Meme #30: Get Up and Go!

March 21, 2009 > No Comments

You know those days. We all have them. You struggle to get phonics done. You struggle through math. You’re moving about the speed of a slug stuck on something sticky, and the kids aren’t moving at all. They keep falling out of their chairs. They keep whining.

And at some point, you decide to chuck it. This just isn’t working for you today…

Field trips are great, but sometimes you need somewhere to disappear to, if only for an hour. So what do you do when everyone is stir crazy? Where do you go? Tell us in this meme!

Well, I don’t think this post will be much different than any other homeschooler, but will give you a peek into the life we ♥…

Most of my readers know that we’ve recently moved back home to our small town after being away for about 6 months…And we are enjoying rediscovering our favorite places again. My husband is thankfully off by 2:00 pm every day so often we are able to bring Dad along when it’s time for an escape!

Here are some of our haunts:

· Our very own backyard! We have several acres of woods to explore, a large, paved parking lot to ride bikes and during the spring & summer we have a garden where there is always weeds to pull! Fun!!!

· The library is also a great place to turn the kids loose. We all disappear to our favorite spots and the smaller kids play with the toys in the children’s area or find a book to read. The older children look up books on topics they are interested in, choose way too many to take home J, then they find a comfy spot to sit and read.

· A local paved walking trail. We adults and Baby can stay on the pavement and the 4 older children run and explore the woods along the path. A GREAT place to run off some energy and walk away a few lbs!

· Coffee time as a family! My Dearest and I try to have coffee every afternoon just to visit…it’s our daily date. Sometimes we’ll run to the coffee shop a mile away and run an errand together, but usually we have coffee time in our den while the children play in the playroom or outside. But there are times that we just take the whole family for decaf Mochas & then go for a drive. Great times…

I guess these are our most favorite escapes, but certainly not all. I’ve discovered as I’ve gotten older that the Lord watches over us and He will often prepare a break just when we need it…Often when we try to plan and organize things just don’t go according to what we had envisioned…you know the saying “The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry.” But better yet remember what the Scripture says:

He maketh me to lie down in green pastures:
He leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul:
Psalms 23:2, 3

So, while it’s a good thing to sometimes just get away, certainly nothing wrong with it, let’s not forget to go to the Lord. Cast all your burdens on Him and I have personally seen Him make a time for rest for my family and me. And where I sometimes enjoyed the breaks I made happen, His breaks were far better!

If you have favorite places you’d like to blog about visit the Homeschool Memoires and add your post to Mr. Linky.

P.S. In case any of my readers think that we actually “run to the coffee shop,” I thought I had better clarify. We in reality drive our mini-van to get coffee. While I DO need the exercise, I have no plans to *run* to the coffee shop lest I make a laughing stock out of myself. Now Dearest, he could do it and if he should ever so desire, I will meet him there having driven the van