Bridging

As of tonight Carson is a first-year Webelo Scout. The bridging celebration was great; the good food and good friends made the 108 degree heat more bearable for sure! Carson's entire den, with the exception of one boy who is still undecided, has made the decision to stay with the program and continue on to the next step in scouting together. I am especially happy about this because Carson and the other boys get along so well and his leaders and the other parents are just good people that Craig and I have fun hanging out with. Hopefully the one boy ultimately decides to continue on as well- we would miss he and his family otherwise!

As a Bear Cub Scout Carson earned his Bobcat patch (this was his first year of scouting), his Bear rank patch, the Leave No Trace Awareness Award, the Cub Scout Outdoor Activity Award, a total of 8 arrow points (the first one gold and then seven subsequent silvers), 34 belt loops and 12 pins in addition to several other participation patches for events like Scouting for Food, the Pinewood Derby, and Cub Scout Expo. For anyone who is familiar with scouting you know these are awesome numbers!

Congratulations to our son, you should be proud of your hard work and accomplishments! We are so excited to see what this next year will bring!

Social Slate

Social activities for Carson have been at the forefront of my mind and the focus of most of my laptop time this past week. I have learned about SOOO many options available for him! Aside from the field trips, co-op classes, and PE days with Joyful Journey Homeschool Group here's what's up for consideration:

Cubscouts is a MUST! He will be bridging to a Webelo tonight, and I am very excited for all of the new adventures this year will bring him and our family! Pack 500 is where we will be staying as he likes the friends he's made there, and this association will allow us to continue to develop those friendships. Also, I am the pack treasurer and you know I can't very well abandon that post- I'm a service addict, I think.

Another friend of mine, Heather McDonald, is a homeschooler but is not affiliated with JJourney, but rather Las Vegas Home School Group, a homeschooling support group, or playgroup as she calls it. They have fun activities like ice skating, parties, and a No-girls-allowed Boys Club!

My friend Joy Stalians, mother of a fellow den member of Carson's, has the inside scoop on chess club and tournaments and has agreed to let me know when they get going again for the fall. Carson began playing chess in Chess Club during first grade. He has only played with his dad and online so far, so I'm excited for his first tournament experience!

JJourney also gets phenominal rates for swim lessons @ Water Wings Swim School. Lessons will begin in January and go through April or May.

My freind and fellow JJourney member, Christine Taylor, has her son taking MMA classes (Mixed Martial Arts) from Rodrigo Artilheiro of Extreme Couture. He does the classes at Calvary Chapel Spring Valley.

A former co-worker of mine from INO 204, Amy Manness, has her children involved in theater through Rainbow Company Theater. I am considering getting Carson involved in this because he LOVES to perform.

This is all that I have found so far through connections that I already have, however, I'm still open to other suggestions. My greatest focus in the area of socialization is to make sure that Carson is 1. doing things he loves to do and can become passionate about the more he becomes involved in it, and 2. interacting with different groups of people from different backgrounds and with different interests. The purpose of this would be to recreate the exposure to diversity that you assuredly get within the public school system. It is important to me that Carson be rooted in his own culture and beliefs, but know how to interact with others from all backgrounds, cultures, and belief systems in the hopes that he will choose to be an apologetic to Christ.

Decision Made

After many hours of thought, prayer, consideration, weighing options, listing pros and cons, and talking with MANY different people about it, I have decided to opt Carson out of public education and homeschool him. In reality, I am SO excited for what is to come for him! I am currently propped on my king-size bed surrounded by curriculum books, bibles (different translations), curriculum catalog, accordian files, notebooks, sticky notes.... and I know my pencil is here somewhere! I have already decided what curriculum I will use for each subject, but am wading through it preparing myself for what is to come. I'm making a list of things I need to buy (some supplies and more curriculum programs), and searching the internet for the greatest deal- of course!

Here's what's in store for Carson for the 4th grade: For his core he will be following the My Father's World curriculum, a Christian-based program that encompasses Bible, Reading, Geography, and Science (although he loves science, so we will be supplementing with Apologia's Exploring Creation with Zoology 3: Land Animals of the Sixth Day). We will be using Math U See for Mathematics, and The Phonics Road to Reading & Writing for Spelling, Grammar, Writing, and more Reading as well as using Rosetta Stone's language development program for Spanish. We will be joining Joyful Journey Homeschool group, a group of like-minded Christian parents and children, and I cannot wait for the annual school year planning retreat in a couple of weeks! For socialization (as I'm sure some of you are really concerned about right now) we will meet with the homeschool group (about 40+ kids) twice weekly for group classes (to be planned at the retreat) and for Physical Education and feild trip Fridays! Additionally, Carson will continue his involvement in Cub Scouts as he advances in rank to a Webelo. I have opted to keep him in Pack 500, the pack from the area we used to live in, in the Northwest, which we'll travel to 4-7 times per month. Additionally, our homeschool group gets fantastic rates on swim lessons (once/week from about January through Aprilish?), and he is currently considering what classes he would like to take at the community center up the road from our house (although Thai Kwon Do is at the forefront of his mind at the moment)! So, lots of learning to be had (at his own pace and from the level that he is at I'll add :) ) and lots of opportunity for being the wonderfully social 9-year old we all know him to be!

I know that this decision is leaving some of you scratching your heads right about now, so let me just say this: I love you and I'm already aware of your opinions regarding homeschooling, and although I value you, you are not the sole weight in my consideration. As I stated in the beginning, much consideration for the needs of my profoundly gifted son, much weighing of the pros and cons related to lifestyle, time, money, social exposure, etc, and much quiet prayer were spent prior to coming to this decision.

The CCSD has failed to provide the level of education my son needs, and it is shameful like denying a special needs child their remedial education services would be. Our nation has it backward: catering to the less-than-status-quo while the remainder are left to their own accord. Carson was "so bored!" for the majority of his classroom time for the past 3 years. He stated as a first grader, "Going to school is a waste of my glorious days."

While in the car on our way home he would tell of his typical school day: "We waited for everyone to get ready for the day, then the teacher taught and I understood and just tuned her out while she explained it again so I could do my work. When I was done though, I got bored because most of the rest of the class was doing their work, and the rest of them were still trying to get it while the teacher explained it AGAIN! I didn't have anything else to do then, so I just took out my markers and stuff and started drawing until it was time to go to lunch. After lunch we had a little bit of recess then went to library, and then in the afternoon I went to GATE. Oh, here's the papers I have to do for [additional] homework because I missed them while I was in GATE [doing other awesome studies because I'm a smart kid who is rewarded for his good job and effort with.... more work]. Momma, can I have a snack when we get home?"

I grew tired of hearing this same story, knowing he wasn't reaching his potential, and I know that he will be all but bored with what I have planned for him now- although recess at the park across the street from our house is on the agenda, as are library days... and maybe even doing school in the park! The possibilities are seemingly endless, and I am EXCITED for each and every adventure, challenge, and opportunity this decision will bring to us! Perhaps we could start early and have our first day at the pool... I could take his materials in a backpack, pack a lunch in the cooler, and we could sit by the pool and do school, taking "recesses" in the pool- I could call it PoolSchool! :)

A New Consideration

I registered Carson for the fourth grade at Bonner Elementary School across the street from our new house on the Friday after school let out for the 2010-11 school year. I gave completed all of the forms required, provided proof of address, and even wrote a formal request that Carson be evaluated for the Pofoundly Gifted Program allowed for under federal law, but seemingly, Clark County School District's secret red-headed step-child. If Carson qualifies for this program, he will, for the rest of his life in the public education system, for special accomodations regarding his curriculum (much like those accomodations required for a special needs child). Cason will be observed in the classroom and on the playground, he'll undergo academic testing including I.Q. testing, and will be evaluated by a CCSD psychologist who will ultimately have the decision as to whether or not my son, the one you all know to be extremely intelligent and advanced, will "qualify" for this federal program. Sounds great, right?

Not so much to me. I know that CCSD is BROKE. They have no money for funding of standard curriculum, let alone that for things considered extra-curricular. Last spring when I visited different schools in the Summerlin area, trying to decide which one would be the best for Carson, so that we could move into their zone, I inquired about this program. Most of the people I spoke with in the front offices immediately began talking to me about the GATE program, a pull-out style, supplementary program offered to qualified CCSD students beginning in grade 3. Carson was in GATE at Kitty Ward last year and did very well, but it is NOT the same as the Profoundly Gifted Program that noone seems willing to even acknowledge. Pulling my child out of his regular class for a collaborative class of supplementary learning (he has to make up all work missed in his regular class on his own time) is NOT the same as differentiating his curriculum so that he can study the same topics but with greater depth, accounting for his ability to comprehend and apply much quicker than his average peer. When Carson was tested for GATE at the beginning of 3rd grade, he scored in the 99th percentile! That means he is 99th out of 100 of those tested- and they only test those kids that could qualify!

So.... with all this weighing on my mind, I enrolled him in Bonner, hoping for the best, and after a brief consideration of returning to homeschooling. I want him to have all the social experiences of attending a school. But how badly do I want them?

My decision has been weighing on me a lot lately, and so when his classroom assignment for his new school failed to come in the mail this past month, and I kept getting phone calls from the automated dialer at his old school, I began to suspect that his records were not transferred to his new school, and therefore, he is not yet registered there. I'm wondering, is the Lord trying to tell my thick-headed self something here? Then, my friend text messages me, inviting me to the homeschool group open house last Tuesday evening. I can't believe she is inviting me even though she already knows I registered Carson for public school. She later tells me that it was something she did because God had impressed it upon her heart to do. Hmmm...

I plan on not attending and just blowing her off- in fact, I don't even have our car to get there if I want to. At the last minute I call another friend (whose schedule is usually SOOO busy you can't imagine) and ask her if I can ride along with her, oh, and I need her husband to watch Carson while I go because Craig is at work. Like a perfectly orchestrated piece of music, she is already near my house and comes to pick us up within 5 minutes. We go back to her house where dinner and dessert are already plated for the two of us, as we have 30 min to eat dinner and get to the meeting. I am amazed.

At the meeting I hear a lot of good stuff. I get to know the My Father's World, Christian curriculum this group uses for their core, get all my questions answered, and even learn that someone has a curriculum set I can borrow to help keep costs down. All I need to purchase are the consumables, which are then circled for me in a curriculum catalog. I even talk with another on-the-fence working mom, this one single, about how we will be able to manage doing this while working. She discusses helping me find a higher paying job so that I don't have to work as many hours. I am wowed.

Over the past few days I have given Carson a couple of subject-specific placement tests (that I tell him aren't tests; "Just answer each question the best that you can," I tell him.) He has assesed to the mid-fourth grade in math and the sixth month of fifth grade in spelling. He and I have a frank discussion about what these scores mean. He is convinced, like me, that we should be homeschooling.... if we only consider the academic angles. However, there are social angles to attending school also. Which leads me, circumvent, to the question I asked in the beginning. To what degree of importance do I hold the social aspect of learning in school compared to that of the more obvious academic aspect?

The back-and-forth within me continues as I consider our options, and as the timeclock to final committment counts down. Please pray for me, that I will make the right decision for my son, that he be put on the path in life the Lord intends for him.

Your thoughts?

Fasting

My heart is sad, hopeful, faithful, and breaking all in one today. I have been fasting for my friend Anita's sister-in-law, something I've never done for anyone before, but in knowing her story, felt compelled to do in service for her to Him. She is battling for her life against Aplastic Anemia, which ironically, was an immune system reaction in response to her being pregnant with her first child. This is not the kind of anemia that can be made better by taking an iron supplement, and since it didn't go away after the birth of her son, Kellan, on March 22nd of this year, the treatment is dire, and the prognosis 50-50 for survival factoring in her age. For the past nine days Andrya has undergone chemotherapy in preparation for a bone marrow transplant which took place today.

Andrya does not know Jesus as her savior, and neither does her husband, Ryan, who is currently enlisted in the United States Navy and stationed in Hawaii. Andrya is in need of 24-hour care, and Kellan's need for care is obvious for anyone of us who has had a four-month old infant. Because of Ryan's commitment to serve our country he is unable to provide this care himself, and subsequently, Andrya and Kellan have recently had to move in with Ryan's and Anita's parents in Kansas City, Missouri. They, along with my beautiful friend, will be providing this care.

The next 100 days of Andrea's life are critical. They will determine whether or not the transplant is successful and Andrya will get to be the one to raise Kellan, or if Ryan will become a widower. Because of the suppression of her immune system, and that required to allow the transplant to take, Andrya must live in a sterile environment, and is unable to even hold Kellan. My motherly heart is breaking for her inability to hold and soothe her baby, as doing so would risk infection that could kill her.

Thousands of miles from the love of her life, her husband, Ryan, Andrya is living with her in-laws, fully-reliant on their care for both herself and for her infant son, whom she cannot have physical contact with, enduring horrifically-painful procedures which bring blinding headaches and mouth sores, but are her only chance at survival.

I am moved to tears as I tell her story, and pray with all that I have in me that the Lord will show His mercy on her, allowing her to see her son grow as I get to see mine, something I feel today like I am taking for granted. I pray that Andrya will open the door to her heart as the Lord continues to knock- patiently, lovingly. I pray for His grace upon Anita and her parents as they painfully watch Andrya fight for her life, only being able to help her by lovingly praying and caring for she and Kellan.

I am putting together a ladies night where I will host a card-making session in Andrya's honor. We will snack, enjoy our friendships, pray for Andrya, Ryan and the entire DeGhelder family, and make homemade cards which I will send to Andrya throughout what I hope is her successful recovery. My goal in doing this is to bombard Andrya with Christ's love in hopes that she will come to accept Jesus as her Lord and Savior. The most compelling reason for my involvement in this is to bring someone who is mortally ill to Christ, that if His plan is for her to leave her husband and baby son behind, she will not suffer eternally, but live instead in the God's kingdom.

Please check back with me here or on Facebook for the date and time for this event, and if you are out-of-town and want to help, please contact me for options other than taking a road-trip to Vegas (although you know I'd love that too)!

If you are a prayerful person, saved by the Lord Jesus Christ, please inculde these people in your prayers. If you are prayerful and not saved (as I have lived out the majority of my life) pray for yourself along with this family. If you are neither saved nor prayerful, consider your own mortality and pray for salvation. I love each of you more than I've probably ever told you, and the thought of death coming for you before you are in His grace brings panic to body's core like watching a car nearly run down my son in a crosswalk after school a couple of months ago did. Thank you all so much for taking the time to follow our blog and keep up with what's going on in our lives. Your friendship and love is everything to us.

Halfway to Manhood

Carson- 6 weeks

Bittersweet. That is how I am feeling about Carson turning 9 yesterday. I am blessed to be his mom, to watch him grow, to see the awesome man he will be developing. I am sad because it is half over. My job is 50% complete, and before I know it, he will be off on his own, making his own life's adventures. I LOVE my time with him, and cherish even the seemingly insignificant moments we have together. I thoroughly enjoy our long conversations in the car about everything from super heroes to global politics; my son is intelligent an well-rounded. I cannot for the life of me recall what I used to do with all of my time before he came into my life, and I surely have never felt such instant and unconditional love for someone as I did when I held him in my arms for the first time 9 years ago yesterday. For my sweet, half-grown son I pray: Lord, bless my son with wisdom to seek council in You, faith in the path that You put before him, strength to follow it, courage to stand against anyone who would try to dissuade him from it, and love for him to give others for Your glory. Amen. Happy 9th birthday, Carson! Mommy and Daddy love you!

A Gravy Boat Kind of Love

My favorite sister came over yesterday after she got off work before going home to her family late last night just to help me put some things together in our house. We got some things in Carson's room and in the common bathroom hung up, and managed to put more things away in my kitchen, making it almost fit for company. She has such a great eye for placement and accessorizing, decorating and organizing! In addition to all the great ideas she gave me, I got some advice and encouragement on how to stay focused on my tasks and to not allow myself to become distracted by other things that need doing- something I struggle with when there is an overwhelming number of things to get done!

When my grandmother passed away over 10 years ago now, I was given a few of her things for my home, one of which was a beautiful white gravy boat. I love it's classicly elegant design, and was able to enjoy it's use on special occaisions for a few years before my keen-eyed hubby noticed a loooong hairline crack in it on Thanksgiving almost four years ago. He informed me that we couldn't continue using it, or the temperature of it's contents would make the cracking worse. I was sad that I couldn't include her gravy boat in the entourage of platters and serveware I put out for the meal, and thinking it ruined, I cried.

Craig comforted and hugged me, promising that we would get it fixed. (God I love that man!) After wiping my tears we found another dish for the gravy, ate our Thanksgiving dinner, and carefully put the gravy boat somewhere it would be safe from disturbance, by itself on the top shelf of a cabinet, until we would take it somewhere for repair.

There the gravy boat stayed undisturbed for nearly four years until my mom came over to help me pack for our latest move. We were packing my plates, platters, and serveware when my mom suggested I put the gravy boat in a box with some other things. I explained to her that it was cracked and shouldn't be packed with anything else- I wanted it double bubble-wrapped and packed securely into it's own small box. My mom placated me, wrapping it twice lovingly and gently placing it into a samll box, even packing more bubble wrap around it in the crevices of the box. She labeled the box "G.G.B. FRAGILE" on all sides with our fat moving marker so that everyone in the family would know to be extra careful with that box because it contained "Grandma's Gravy Boat". The box rode in the car with me for the drive to the new house. Ridiculous? Yes, but sometimes that's me- over the top. I didn't want anything more to happen to it!

Last night my sister asked what was in that box and when I told her, she informed me that there is no way to fix it and that I need to just throw it out. I got teary-eyed again, and she told me,"I know how you feel. I broke one of her dishes too, and I even cried about it after I did it, but it's not your grandma, it's a gravy boat," and while I agreed with her and put it next to the trash can to be taken out, this morning I am feeling gravy boat remorse. I'm starting to consider how I will feel if I throw it away and then learn that it could have been repaired. Afterall, I remember the day she broke her dish, and I remember Michael and my mom comforting her, with the same words, like Craig had comforted me. BUT.... her dish was actually broken in two, and mine has just a hairline crack. (Listen to me justify my inability to let it go). Maybe mine CAN be repaired! Does anyone know? I need to ask around and do a little research before I decide to throw it away.