Homeschool lessons from home improvement projects

You can learn and teach in virtually any setting.  But from all this DIY construction we are doing, our kids have gotten to learn some very important lessons.
1. What is Tetanus.
2. What colorful language not to repeat.
3. That the Chinese consider the cricket good luck so mom does not need to chase down and remove every single one from the house.
4. What is cartilage and why Mom's knees creak so much.
5. There is a fast way to do things (Mom's) and a "right" way to do things (Dad's)
6. What is that weird thing we dug up? Cicadas, earth worms, coal...

And the lessons are just continuing!

Things I am going to miss- ONE Community Church

I've been thinking more and more about the way it used to be.  We used to worship with our small group of villagers/ family members/ tribespeople/ whatever  and we had to see these people all the time.  If someone made you angry, you just simply had to face them.  If they did something you disagreed with you couldn't just un-friend them.  You would still see them everyday. 

Two Sundays have past since we've moved here and we haven't visited a single church in Goodland.

Not that Goodland has none.  In fact I think they have 8 or 9.  3 are on the same intersection all staring each other down.   

But we've been visiting and out of town, so haven't been around to go.  And I guess I feel a little nervous about it.  

It is crazy how many denominations there are!  The fact that Jesus died for everyone seems pretty all inclusive.  He wasn't up there on the cross saying "Father, forgive them... but not that guy, he drinks a little much... and that lady gets too wild in worship... oh yeah and not her either, she believes in evolution...and that guy handles snakes, definitively not him..."

Isn't that kinda what we do though?  We all have reasons and arguments for choosing who we will and who we won't worship the creator of the universe with.  We aren't talking big questions here like, um, is Christ your personal saviour.  We are more worried about the song choice and how often they discuss tithing.

Bushmen community at Gope, Central Kalahari Game Reserve, Botswana

And worship was a natural part of that.  I think if you took a bushman of the Kalahari today and told him about how we have created hundreds of slightly different ways to worship God, he would laugh.  

Worshiping together doesn't mean you agree on everything, heck it doesn't even mean you like each other.  It just means you both acknowledge the Creator; you want to praise Him, and you know there is something special about worshiping with others.

ONE Community Church, 5th birthday

All that being said, ONE community church was the church where my husband came to God, it was the first church our children went to, and I loved it.  The worship was great, the messages pushed you to go out and be God's hands and feet.  How do you find another church "home?"

Really, any suggestions?

We're Here!

We made it to Kansas!
Actually we made it 2 days ago, but as you can imagine, we've been busy.

Our current "living room," chilling & watching a movie

We set up different areas upstairs where the store will be.  Since we won't be doing any renovations up here, all our stuff can stay like this for a while.

Now it feels okay, but there have been some hard moments.  Like when we looked at the 20 foot moving van and said "We can not fit everything in that!!"

Then, after we drove for two days and opened up said truck and said "We can not get all that out!"

When we finally got it all out, and piled in a lump in the middle of our new home, my thought was "We are crazy.  What made me think we could do this?  We should have just gotten a house and been normal!  How do we get ourselves into these things?"

But...  then there were other moments.  Walking to the park with the kids and playing.  Watching Evelyn look around the things the church left like an explorer to a new world.

And my exploring an old book I found with all the church business beginning with its founding meeting in 1920.  There are records of the church board meetings, tithing records (through the Great Depression), membership records and even a baptism list.

Sticky-noted was a page where the board decided to build a new church because their old one was burned down.  They got the land by trading their lot for 4 lots one of their member's owned.

 I intend to scan all the pages, and then see if the local genealogical society wants the book.  For me, the best part is that my grandfather's father was the same denomination this church was back in the day.

My grandpa would always say he was so glad when his dad became Christian because then he got Sundays off.  I miss his humor these days, and his strong back and broad shoulders.

This adventure is crazy so far.  Moments may be crazy or overwhelming.  But I am glad we are here.

Strangely, I keep thinking of a quote "Called to fight, asked to yield. Like any true warrior, under his general's orders."  (T. L. Higley).  I can not and am not supposed to do this under my own steam.  I have to step out in faith, but then fall back on God.  So my first lesson I get to really internalize from this is I CAN"T DO THIS,  AND THAT'S OK.