School, Soccer, Fish, and Blessings!

Chandler caught a bunch of minnows in his homemade minnow trap! 

Our school soccer field is right on the ocean bay- its a beautiful spot!

Saw these deer in our driveway! 

Our own children also enjoy the kindergarten room! 

The fish tank! 

Rough moments but sometimes we have to do things we don’t really want to do! Life! 

 We will be starting week #8 of school tomorrow! God has protected us in a mighty way, and He has put a hedge of protection around our church/school property. We pray daily for His continued protection, and I know that many of you pray with us- thank you! 

We thought that last week was going to be the last week of soccer.  But since a team forgot to show up last Tuesday, we have one more game this week! The boys certainly don’t mind that they get to have a few extra soccer practices and another game. And while I am very, very happy that the boys had the opportunity to play, I’m looking forward to being able to come right home after school on Monday, Wednesday and Friday! 

Last Monday we had a home game. The team did not have one of their better playing experiences, and it showed in how they played together. They lost the game, but it was another opportunity to learn something. No soccer game has every been won by one player- work together! On Tuesday we were supposed to have another home game, but the team forgot to show up! Apparently they had forgotten to put the game on their schedule, so they did not show up to play. It was disappointing, for sure, but we got to go home a little early- yay! 

Wednesday was an early release day for the students. We have an early release day once a month where the students are released around lunchtime, and the teachers get an afternoon to have a staff meeting and work on classroom stuff. We always can use more time in our classrooms! Our administrator has three young kids, whom our children adore! All of our children were happy to spend an hour in the kindergarten room eating pizza, playing with the toys, and visiting with each other. I’m so glad that our children enjoy spending time with our administrators children, as that is just an added blessing! Roger was able to pick up our children around 1:30, so that meant that I had the opportunity to do some additional preparing and planning for the school week. I even managed to update one of my bulletin boards- hooray!

Thursday marked the day for an away soccer game. The game was going to be played about an hour from the school, and nearer to a larger city. Since this city has a Sam’s Club, Target and other shopping places, I had planned to leave after my morning kindergarten class to run a few errands before the game. When I mentioned my plans, I was surprised to hear that all five of our children wanted to come with me! Garett told me that he really didn’t want to go shopping too much, but since I was leaving at 11:45am, and the rest of the team was leaving around 2;15pm, he wanted to come with me. That’s a Garett statement right there! The boys asked me if they could invite Austin to come with us on Thursday, so I ended up taking five boys and one little girl with me on errands. The boys were happy to have a friend along, and I am so very thankful that Chandler has Austin in his class. Austin is a good friend to our boys, and it was fun to hear them laugh and visit together as we wandered through Sam’s Club, Walmart, Five Below, and Dick’s Sporting Goods. It was a fun afternoon, and I’m glad I brought them with me. We arrived at the playing field just as the soccer team from school pulled into the parking lot! Perfect timing! The team ended up winning the soccer game on Thursday, so that was exciting for the team. I am very thankful that I’ve been able to be a part of being involved with the team. Due to Covid, we can’t take the team to McDonalds or some fast food place after the game, so my friend, Ashley, and I have made up sack suppers for each away game. Honestly, it’s worked out so well that I think I’d want to continue doing it this way even after Covid. It saves so much time (and money) to just hand a sack supper to each player after the game. The suppers include a sandwich, piece of fruit, bag of chips, dessert and a Gatorade. I’m sure that some players could do with a more substantial supper, but it’ll hold them until they get home! 

Roger has had a few more days off this past week due to weather and scheduling. I asked him if he was working at all this week, and he replied that he was working his “normal” work load of four days a week. It’s been since June 29th that Roger has had a four-day week, so no wonder we wondered if he was working! Last Sunday Roger was able to come to church with us which was the first time since mid-June. I think it was one of the first times that he wasn’t wearing a work uniform or going out to the airport since the end of June! It’s been a long summer (actually a long year!) but now that the float plane is done for the season, we may be able to get a sense of some type of “normalcy” again. We were/are happy to make sacrifices for the good of the company, and we will continue to do so. It was also nice to have Roger around a bit more. Because of the work schedule this week, Roger was able to go on a hike with the junior high boys on Friday afternoon. I never thought we’d be the kid with a child that didn’t want to go on a hike, but we had one this past week. Chandler did not want to go on the hike. I know it was largely due to personality differences, but guess what? Difficult people are everywhere and at every stage of our lives. Roger and I had several discussions with him about the hike, but at the end of the day we had to force him to go, tell him that he was to have a good attitude, and he was to do his best to work with the people that were challenging to him. I was in tears as much as Chandler, but Roger and I both knew that we needed to make him go. And since God worked out the details that Roger could go on the hike, that was even better! I think both Chandler and Garett ended up having a good time, and it was a good experience for the junior high boys to climb a mountain on Friday afternoon! 

The school board recently hired another person to help out at the school. This person does maintenance, tutors students, helps with lunch and recess duty, and so much more. This man is a member of our church, and he has been such a blessing to our boys. Mr. Waugh has worked in a Christian School in the past and also with junior high boys. Mr. Waugh helps with students that may need additional learning help, and Garett is one of those students that will benefit from that. Wyatt asked me this week what he needed to do to get to have a conversation with Mr. Waugh! I was like what?! Wyatt replied that he liked Mr. Waugh, and he would like to have some one-on-one time with Mr. Waugh too. (Wyatt’s grades indicated that he is doing just fine in school!) It was a blessing to hear though that our other boys like and appreciate Mr. Waugh, and they treasure their time with him. I am so thankful that God brought Mr. Waugh to the school. We’ve been needing some more positive male presence in the school, and we are rejoicing in what God continues to do. 

Chandler caught me some minnows for the fish tank, and the kindergarten class is thrilled with their fish! So far, we’ve kept them all alive, and that free fish tank has been such a blessing! I love how God provides little things along the paths of our lives to encourage us, strengthen us, and bless us. What an amazing God we serve! 

Yes, we’ve been busy with school, church and family activities. We’ve also been in fervent prayer for our nation, as I trust you have been also! Much of our nation is living in fear, confusion and chaos. I am so thankful that as believers we can leave all of that at the foot of the cross! God promises that He will raise us up on wings as eagles. He promises that he will hold us in the cleft of the Rock. He promises that He holds tomorrow! Let us pray, fast and ask God to work in a mighty way! 

Unexpected Blessings, Discouragements, and our Faithful God!

                                   Soccer Fun! (Photo credit: Emma Philbrook) 

Fun with the 3D pen! 

                                                   Another beautiful spot in Maine! Our away soccer field on Saturday. 

                     Garett is the soccer goalie. (Photo credit: Emma Philbrook) 

 One more week of soccer season! The three older boys have really enjoyed playing, and Travis is happy to come to practices and play whenever he gets the opportunity. The boys have really improved in the past few weeks, and I am so thankful for this opportunity for them. They tied a game last Monday, they won a game on Thursday; the lost a game on Saturday, and also lost a game on Columbus Day. However, what I do see in the team is a marked improvement in sportsmanship, consideration of others, and a lot less whining and complaining....praise the Lord! The team has learned a lot about the game of soccer and working together. I am so thankful for the coach and all his work with the team. 

We had a long weekend last weekend, as we had Friday as a teachers inservice day and then Monday was Columbus Day. However, it was a crazy busy weekend with an away soccer game on Saturday, church on Sunday and another soccer game on Monday. Roger was working on Saturday, so I ended up taking all the kids with me to the soccer game. I drove the church van, and my friend Ashley drove her van with a bunch of my kids and hers also. I hadn’t planned on going to the game, but then someone was needed to drive the church van, and there I was! We left at 9:00am, and we were back in the church parking lot by 3:30pm. Whew!! We had enough players for Saturday’s game, but we were missing a few kids. We only had two subs for the bench, and then one of our players wasn’t feeling well. Our coach asked the other team if they would mind if Travis played on our team even though he’s only in fourth grade. They said he could play, and that made Travis’s day! He was thrilled!! He did really well, and played the whole second half of the game. The team hung in there though, and we lost 4-2. But it was a game well played! 

On Monday we had another soccer game, but this one was on our home field. We played this team last week, and we tied the game with three overtime periods. However, we didn’t manage to pull that off on Monday, but the team still gave it their best effort. One of our players had forgotten her soccer cleats, but Travis had brought along mine (just in case he got to play again), so that worked out for one of our players to borrow my cleats. Last Monday when we played this team, one of the boys had on shorts that were about to fall off. I had borrowed a chair from my friend, Hannah, and I ended up taking the draw string out of the camp chair bag to use for a way to tighten the shorts. Oh yes, improvisation is sometimes the name of the game! 

One of our children is still very much struggling with school. A lot of it has to do with classroom dynamics, personalities, and life situations. This child comes to school because he has really enjoyed playing soccer, so I am praying that God brings along something else that he would really, really enjoy. This particular child has often been discouraged lately, and it’s hard to know sometimes what to do as a parent. I’m telling you that parenting is the hardest job, I’ll ever do! I had planned to coordinate  a Teacher/parent conference, but God just plopped an opportunity to talk to his teacher in my lap this morning. God knew that I needed to talk to this child’s teacher, and it was a good conversation. I cried....nothing new there, but I could see tears in the eyes of the teacher. I was reminded again of how much this child’s teacher also cares for the students in her classroom. We are so very blessed to have this experience to enroll our children in a private Christian school. It’s not without its struggles, but God is so faithful! 

Our governor came out with her “stage four” guidelines for our state during the Coronavirus. While our numbers clearly do not dictate a need for mandatory masks, she has now decided that private schools also need to mask their students. I about became unglued as I read through the article. Fourth Amendment anyone?! Hippa Privacy Act?! Oh, it’s been a week, that’s for sure! I again fall back into the protection of my Father’s arms and rest in the confidence that He is unchanging!  

God also provided a few unexpected blessings this week. Last week, when we went over to a friends house, Chandler was given a turtle. He’s been keeping it in an animal cracker container, but he really needed a tank for his turtle. We didn’t want to spend too much money, so we’ve kinda just be waiting to see what pops up. Well, Roger happened to spot two free fish tanks beside the road a few days ago!! The aquarium has lights, rocks, fake plants...everything! Chandler has a tank for his turtle, and it looks like the kindergarten classroom will be getting a pet fish!! God is so good! 

Several months ago (before Covid), the boys were at a birthday party. The child received a 3D pen for a gift, and my kids were in awe of all that this cool pen could do. We looked it up online, but the pen costs like $50.00! No way! Not even for a birthday gift! The boys put it out of their minds, but this week I popped into Goodwill to look for some books for my classroom. I found a 3D pen in the box, with a lot of extras included. And it cost $5.00! The boys have been having so much fun with that pen, and it was such a fun surprise! We looked up the retail value of the pen and the extras, and it costs $85.00 on Amazon! Now God totally did not have to provide the fish tank or the 3D pen, but He did! He’s such a good, good Father to His children! We are so blessed! 

Fall!

 These weeks have been passing by so quickly! I feel like we blink, and the week is over. We are so very thankful that we have been able to have in person school this year. For the most part, our children are all happy to be in school. One of our children is struggling, but God has been faithful through it all. 

The older boys are really enjoying playing on the soccer team, and Chandler told me that he wished that we had soccer practice or a game every day. Um....I don’t! Don’t get me wrong, I’m thrilled with the soccer team, but it sure does wreck havoc on meal planning, packing lunches, and other after school things! But I’m not complaining as it’s only for a few weeks, and it has been great for the boys to have this opportunity. 

We had a ministry meeting at our house last Thursday night, and I made chili supper for about 19 people. It’s good to gather as a group of ministry helpers and coordinators every once in a while just to make sure we are all moving in the same direction. Youth group has been hard for Roger to commit to this past summer just with all the changes within his job. But through it all, the teens have been faithful, and we are excited about the fall. Rogers job should be slowing down some as they’ll be wrapping up the float plane season. Roger is one of the most faithful and dependable people that I know. He definitely doesn’t do it all like I would do it (thank goodness!) but he leads by quiet example. I know the summer has been long and hard for him, but he’s rarely complained, and he continues to do the next right thing. 

This is a short week of school as we have Friday and next Monday off due to Columbus Day. Our children are happy to have a few days off of school, but they do have a soccer game on Saturday and on Monday. I’ll be having a teacher inservice day, which will include a few meetings and then some time in our classrooms...very thankful for that! Somehow I envisioned a lot more time than I have these days, so I’ll be happy for any extra time I can spend preparing and planning for teaching kindergarten. These littles are so special to me, and I really want to help them develop a love for learning and to know that God loves them. Some mornings are exhausting, but the time sure is short! 

The team had a soccer game yesterday, and my friend, Hannah, graciously took Emma and Travis after school. Roger was able to get away for the game, and it was a good game. The kids played really hard, and they managed to hold the tie game at 2-2. After three overtime periods of (5 minutes each) the game was declared a tie. While the boys would’ve enjoyed a win, they were very happy to have a tie game. It’s amazing to me how much the boys have learned and developed in the last few weeks. I am very thankful for the opportunities to watch them play, and it’s fun seeing three of the four boys on the field together. Garett played much better in the goalie position, and while every shot on the goal made me nervous, he did a good job. 

We would appreciate your continued prayers for our family, our school, and our church. 2020 has been a challenging year, but I hope and pray that you have seen the faithfulness of God in your life as we have in ours. 

Dates, Flights, and Soccer Games!

 “God created, God created,  night and day. Night and day, that was the on the first day, that was on the first day. It was good. It was good” to the tune of Frere Jacques song. We’ve been learning about Creation in kindergarten, and it’s interesting to me because that has currently carried over into my music classes. I’m teaching 5-8th grade music this year, and my main focus to start off the school year is studying what the Bible says about music. Hmm....if God created ALL of creation to proclaim His glory, how great our responsibility to glorify Him must be! I’ve started a hymn study with my  music classes. Did you know that Charles Wesley is credited with writing the most hymns? He wrote over 8,800 hymns in his lifetime. That’s a lot of hymns!! Anyways, it’s been a good study for me too....hopefully, my students will learn to enjoy it also. 

Soccer, soccer, soccer! Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the team is out on the field after school practicing. Our older boys are really enjoying the opportunity to be a part of the team, and they’ve learned a lot! Garett has been playing in the goalie position. He has his size going for him, but he just needs to increase his aggression towards the ball. If you know anything about Garett, aggression is not part of his personality! Chandler plays mid-center, and Wyatt is playing right wing. They work hard in practice every time, and I’ve enjoyed helping out with the practices as well. It’s exercise, and that is good for me too! 

We had our second game of the season yesterday, and we lost. Sadness! We played very well the first half, but kinda became tired and fatigued in the second half. The final score was 1-6. While it was disappointing to lose, a lot of lessons can be learned. It’s interesting to note that the same players that were blaming each other in practice for bad passes, mess ups, etc, were the same ones in the game -still blame shifting! Edification! That is a big word that we are trying to teach the team. I will say that I am very, very thankful for the boys soccer coach. A dad from our school stepped up into the coaching role, when he realized that we wouldn’t be able to have a team unless someone coached. His own children are too young to play, but yet he is willing to coach the team. I was not impressed with the coach of the other team we played yesterday. All of my boys made the comment on the way home, that they were very thankful that their coach didn’t act like that. You know what? I’d 1000 times rather have a coach for my boys that might not be the worlds best coach but is willing to invest in their lives and point them to Jesus than to have a coach that knows all the rules of the game but is not a good example! The truth of the matter is that actions and words do matter! So, all that to say that Roger and I are very thankful for the man that has stepped into the role of being the head coach for the team this year. 

Last week, Roger and I got away for a quick date! Whew! I didn’t even know we knew that word! It’s been at least since March that we’ve been able to get away for a lunch together. Roger had a long time friend that was visiting in the Down East area of Maine. Roger and I were able to sneak up to see Kyle and his girlfriend. Roger flew the plane, we landed in Bar Harbor, met our friends, had a quick late lunch, and then Roger had to be back with the airplane. It was a fast and quick afternoon, but we were thrilled to get away. I’m thankful for my friend, Hannah, who took my tribe after school to her house for the afternoon. Roger and I had originally hoped to leave around noon, but it was closer to two pm before we were headed to Bar Harbor. It was a beautiful day for a flight, and we had a great time together. Roger and I were able to get coffee and take a walk together before we needed to pick up the kids, and it was just a much needed afternoon together. 

School....it’s another thing we do these days! Every single day I pray for Gods protection on our school, our church, the property, the families, and the students. We’ve needed prayer all of our lives, but this year it is especially important to keep praying for Gods protection. It’s a miracle that we are actually able to go to school, and several schools in our states are doing various stages of remote learning, scattered days in school, some have opened and then shut, and the level of fear and panic is high! Please pray with us for God’s protection, Divine wisdom, and direction and discernment. He is worthy of our praise, honor and glory! He is so faithful! 

We are wrapping up week number four of school, and I am really enjoying teaching kindergarten. I’ll be the first to admit that rainy days are not my favorite, but we haven’t had too many of those! I love seeing the faces of my students in the mornings, and they've been very fun to work with this year. I want to teach them to read, but also to love learning. They have a lot of years of school ahead of them, and I want to help them enjoy learning. I’d also appreciate your prayers for me as I teach them to read and write, but also teach them about God and His Word. 

Life is not all roses. Ha! If you’ve read my blog for very long, you’ll pick up the fact that I share ups and downs in our lives. We’ve been battling with difficult life experiences with one of our children. School has been hard for him this year, not academically per se, but just school experiences. This particular child told me last Saturday that he hated school (we don’t use the word hate in our family, so that In and of itself speaks volumes). He told me that he didn’t think it mattered if he obeyed and why would he want to because generally it’s not the well behaved kids that get the attention! Well, after I picked up my jaw from off the floor, we had a discussion. At first we were both upset and it was a go-no where conversation. But once I started listening to what he was saying, reading his facial expressions, and filling in the spots between the lines, we were able to move forward. We had a long discussion about character, integrity, and matters of the heart. He told me that he knew that he wanted some recognition for doing the right thing, but deep down he knew that he needed to do right no matter what other choices others were making. YES! Character is doing the right thing regardless of who’s watching or if you’ll get a “pat on the back”. Integrity is being honest even when no one is looking or even expecting you to show integrity. It was a long, messy, teary, emotional conversation, but we both came away loving each other and  desiring to communicate better with each other. I’m sure there will be other conversations along the way, but I’ll never regret the moments spent with my children praying over difficult situations with them. This particular child seems to always find himself in a classroom where there are other children that rub him the wrong way. I wanted him to have an easy year...I wanted an  easy year. But the truth of the matter is that God is going to do great and mighty things through this child when he is submitted to God’s will. Gods refining fire is not just something that happens to experienced Christians. God is working in the hearts and lives of our children also. I don’t always like the ways that God chooses, but I do know that God love our children even more than we do. 

Our governor extended us into another state of emergency. Honestly, it’s so ludicrous, but what do I know?! It’s only our seventh one! Yes, the 7th one! At some point in time, regardless of whether you’re a democratic or a republican you have to ask yourself...is this about money- perhaps federal funds?  And maybe not about the needs of the American people? Many, many Maine businesses have gone under in the last few months, and the sad part is that they won’t be replaced by other small businesses. The economic hardship that is on our state is evident all around us. For the first time in 19 years, our school won’t be holding its annual fundraising auction. We just simply can’t go asking businesses for donations for our auction when so many of them are barely getting by! So, if you know anyone who wants to donate a sum of money to a wonderful Christian school, just let me know!  

God has been so faithful to us, our family and the school. We can’t see the big picture, but I know that to be in the center of Gods will today, we will just do the next right thing. We will continue to be faithful, endeavor to have real and deep conversations with those around us, love people, and stay focused on our Heavenly Father. 

Travis spent hours trying to fix his shoe sole. He ended up taking off the sole and making slippers. 😬🤦🏼‍♀️