In the thick of it....

It has been one of those weeks for me.

Trials abound, tempers flare, patience is nowhere to be found.
The baby cries and clings to my leg while trying to teach ~N~ how to divide decimals. I pick her up and try to interest her in a toy, while I ask myself how other homeschool moms do it. This is our third year of homeschooling, and it sometimes seems like our first!

I guess its just our first year of homeschooling with a baby around. I've been diligently planning each week's work every Sunday afternoon. I sit down at the kitchen table and plan out each child's assignments. Then during the week, we consult the plan and work through each day's lessons. Most of the time, this works for us. We usually accomplish the things I have planned. But on days like today, even though we made it through the list, I doubt myself and wonder if my kids really learned anything. They assure me they are learning. But it is harder to find the time to grade their work, to talk with them about what they are doing, and to still get dinner on the table. Nevermind the chocolate chip cookies for dessert.

I think what I really miss is the homeschool co-op we were a part of in Virginia. One morning a week, we gathered at our church and split up for classes. It was a great time to encourage and be encouraged, to get out of the house awhile, to fellowship with other like-minded moms. I also miss libraries! An outing to the library would be great right about now!

No matter how frustrating our days may be, I know our family is in the center of God's will. We are doing the thing that He has called us to do. Not every day can be sunny and bright, for "into each life some rain must fall." It was the Lord's perfect timing for me that today's "Streams in the Desert" reading dealt with the very struggles I am facing:

The greatest things are always hedged about by the hardest things, and we, too, shall find mountains and forests and chariots of iron. Hardship is the price of coronation. The very hardships that you are enduring in your life today are given by the Master for the explicit purpose of enabling you to win your crown. Do not wait for some ideal situation, some romantic difficulty, some far-away emergency; but RISE TO MEET THE ACTUAL CONDITIONS WHICH THE PROVIDENCE OF GOD HAS PLACED AROUND YOU TODAY. {emphasis mine}

Longfellow says..."Behind the clouds is the sun still shining..."

I hope to see the sun shining....
...Soon!