Category Archives: Guest Post

How To Make An Edible Cell Cake

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What is more fun than doing your science homework and eating it too?
A dear friend of mine, Amber Neal, is homeschooling 3 kids and recently did a fun edible science project with her family.    They are learning about cell structures and functions.  She expanded her kids ability to retain information while learning about the biology of cells by incorporating an edible model of a cell, and using a multisensory approach (including the eyes, ears, hands, nose, and taste buds on the tongue) into the learning equation.   Read on to see what a fun learning adventure they had…….


The Edible Cell

I actually saw the edible cell craft many years ago. I knew of other homeschoolers that had done this, but I never could really work it in to what we were learning. Then I found myself without a science topic to study for our Friday Science time I decided now was the perfect time! This was such a fun experience for us to do together as a family. My son (7) said this was the best science topic ever! 

                        

After looking on several websites for ideas, I finally decided on making a cake and decorating it for our cell study. There are lots of great ideas how you can make an edible cell on the internet. Some people made big cookies, cupcakes, or jello molds for their cell study but in the end we are cake lovers—so cake won out!! This is what we did.


The Setup – Edible Cell Cake

I actually baked the cakes the day before we started. This way they were nice and cool, ready for the day’s assignment. I used some silicon baking pans that I had, but you could use just regular circle (8 or 9 inch) baking pans. Just make sure to use cooking spray or what you like to use to grease your pans well so the cakes will pop out easily. I came out with 4 small square cakes. After they cooled completely I iced them. I made my own icing up and split in into three different bowls. One I colored green for the plant cells. The second bowl of icing I left white for the animals cells. The third smaller bowl I made it a blue/ green color for the cell wall and cell membrane. I went ahead and iced the cakes, thus putting on the cytoplasm and the cell wall (plant) and cell membrane (animal). This made it so much easier for the kids to just jump in and start decorating, and helped control mess too (mom’s favorite thing)!

Another benefit to having them ready was the kids were very excited to get started the next day on Science. Throughout the morning they both kept asking me when it was time for science. I mean really wouldn’t you be excited to learn something if you knew cake was involved?

To go along with the edible cell I had printed out a few cell worksheets from Enchanted Learning www.enchantedlearning.com and put them in the kid’s science notebooks. I included some of the links at the bottom of the post.

When everyone came to the table to start science I had the cells (frosted) sitting in deep pans, their science notebooks opened ready to go, and all the candy I was going to use ready in bowls. Then the fun started!


Learning About Cells
 
Using the worksheets I had printed out, we went through each part of the cells. We started with the plant cell and then ended with the animal cell. Each kid got to decorate both an animal cell and a plant cell. What an assignment right?  We used print outs that I got from Enchanted Learning. The top was the parts of the cell and the bottom part we labeled the cell with what we used to represent each part.

                        

As we talked about each part of the cell and what it did they would stick the designated candy on the cell (cake). Once we did that they would have to write in their notebooks what we used in the appropriate spot. 

                        

You may have also noticed I had my toddler sitting at the table for this learning adventure too. Normally I have a small sensory tray or a busy bag to keep her occupied, but with all the candy out that wasn’t happening that day! Since my normal tactics were not working I gave her a notebook and her special markers (they only come out at school time). She happily drew in her notebook and munched on some candy mix (M&Ms, goldfish, raisins, and pretzels). I am not normally a fan of candy but today was a little different, and in the science the exception was made! 
                                   
After we completed both cells we filled out a Venn diagram comparing the plant cell with the animal cell. I printed this one out from Enchanted Learning as well, but you could just draw one if you wanted to include this for your kids. 

                        

I really recommend doing a Venn diagram. It really helped us to see the differences between the two cells. It also initiated a great discussion on why God would have made the cells different, what plant cells do that animal cells don’t, etc.


The End Process

Here is what our cells ended up looking like. (I had to snap these fast because everyone was ready to enjoy them!) 

                        

Then came the really fun part!! Eating our yummy cells!! 

                        

Each kid made two cells (one plant and one animal). Now having four cakes and only two students decora
ting we decided to share one cake each. I let them pick which one they wanted to eat and which one they would like to share with someone. The toddler was very happy they decided to share as well as their wonderful daddy who was home too. 

                        

Learning is always much more fun when you get to share it with others!

While the kids ate their cells I read them a book I had gotten from the library about different kinds of cells (muscle, skeleton, etc). I drew out on our white board an easy and quick explanation of how cells divide and become more cells. We talked about the cells and I asked them a few review questions:

What was your favorite part of the animal cell? What did it do?
What was your favorite part of the plant cell? What did it do?
What do you think the funniest looking part of each cell was?

Whenever we do a science topic together I always like to ask the kids – Now that we learned about this, what does this tell you about God? How does this prove there is a God? How does backup what we believe? While I am not looking for long answers that are very in depth (even though I have gotten some) I want them to see that God is in everything and to see how amazing it is that He created this world and everything in it.

This was a really fun science topic for us to do together. The kids talked about this for a couple of days so I was really impressed with how much they really retained from making an edible cell. I think when you make something fun and you actively engage kids in the learning process they tend to remember it better. When I was in public school I learned about the cell from a boring textbook filled with questions with little bubble in answers. It was mind numbing to say the least. I am so happy that my kids will not have that same memory because cells are to fascinating to be boring!


Links

Printouts of animal and plant cells:
I have a membership to Enchanted Learning. It is $20 a year and I have used it way more than enough to get my money’s worth! If you don’t want to buy the membership you can still use this site to gain a lot of your information that can help you draw it out yourself. 
            
            Enchanted Learning ANIMAL CELLS
       
            Enchanted Learning PLANT CELLS

I used this as a guide for what I could use for what part of the cell. You can use whatever you wish or even make the jello 3-D craft. This is the link for that

            Enchanted Learning JELLO CELL CRAFT
 
            (You can also Google edible cell and find other great ideas!)

Books I Used
I only used this book because it was one of the only ones at our library that I liked. I did not read the whole book (the first page is about sperm cells- so I left that part out of our study). 

            Cells Are Us / by Fran Balkwill ; illustrated by Mic Rolph
 
Look at your local library and see what kind of books they have on cells. I was always led to believe you had to read each and every page, just to gain the information that you needed from five pages of the book.  So remember, you don’t always have to read the whole book to get what you need. You can just pick the parts that are relevant to your study at the time. 

                                                                Amber Neal 
                                                               Child of God, Friends with Jesus, 
                                                               Wife to Superman, Mom to 3 Goofy Goobers, and
                                                               Lover of learning!



Thank you Amber for sharing your Edible Cell project with us!

Tasting is a great way to remember concepts. How can you forget that you love the taste of ice cream but you don’t like the taste of liver? How can you forget that you LOVE the taste of chocolate? I don’t think I would ever forget that I do not like the taste or smell of stinky cheese!  The brain remembers things we have eaten, how it looks, tastes, smells, and how we feel about it.  What a great idea it is to associate skills and abilities used while eating with our abilities to remember.

We can incorporate tasting, smelling, and eating while we are learning a subject that normally might seem unrelated. The more senses a child uses in learning information, the more likely it is that he, or she, won’t forget it.
 
Be sure to check out other stories in our Human Body science section (more to come) and especially the Jello Edible Cell we did in learning about the human body!  It was a whole lot of yummy learning fun!

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No Time For Flash Cards
Science Sunday
Raising Homemakers
Sharing Time

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Curriculum Planning Guest Post

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Do you feel overwhelmed with curriculum planning and purchasing for the upcoming school year?



Do you feel like you don’t measure up in your homeschooling, school purchases, scheduling, housekeeping, meal planning, parenting, etc.?



I think many homeschool parents are feeling a little squeeze, trying to get it all done and be ready for the coming school year. 

I don’t know about you, but trying to manage a house full of kids (5) of various ages and with various needs, keep the house running and avoid drowning in a pile of laundry and dishes, locate all the different curriculum for each ones grade level, do the research, pinch the pennies and try to squeeze every last drop out of the budget, squeeze the calendar and the clock, go to this meeting and that meeting, keep up with emails, bills, junk mail, answer the phone, and still spend time being the good helpmate to my husband, and keeping up with my bible reading, prayer time, journaling, etc. not to mention being six months pregnant, has me stressed!  WHEW!!!

A friend in a local homeschool co-op forwarded this story to me, and I laughed so hard I cried.  Her words rang so true.  I was able to take a deep breath, and re-look at things with a fresh perspective.

I contacted the author of the story and asked her to share her timely wisdom with all of you in the hopes it will bless you too. 

Here are some words of wisdom and encouragement from

                                 Julie at Brave Writer


Beating the Homeschooling Blues
(Instead of Singing Them)

You’ve met her. It’s week eleven of the school year and she’s on week three. She can’t bear to let her kids skip a single Saxon problem. She is swimming in writing manuals from last year’s convention…and she hasn’t found time to start reading them yet.




Art supplies cost too much. Soccer practice conflicts with dinner. Her toddler wrecks the read-aloud time. And the field trip notice on the refrigerator is past the sign up date. Worst of all, she has unsorted laundry on the bed. Woe is she!


And boy is she tired. Exhausted. Hasn’t slept in six years. Hasn’t eaten a full meal in four. Hasn’t had a hair cut in ten. And what’s a manicure, she asks?


Wait, is this you? I know it’s been me at various times along the way.


We all whine and complain from time to time. But when I begin to think, “I could be a much better homeschooling mother if my kids were just in school,” I know I’m in trouble.


What about you? Are you becoming a ‘Joan of Abekka’? ‘Mother Theresa of Calculadders’? Martyrs for the homeschool cause?


Don’t get me wrong. I know you are as committed to your kids as I am to mine. I want those exquisite beings to fulfill their callings, to discover their destinies, to…to…to pass the infernal year-end exams so I don’t feel like a total failure! (Sometimes that’s truer, isn’t it?)


What I need, what our mythic mom needs and what I bet you need, is a fresh perspective and a healthy dose of practical change. Let’s go!



Do Something Today


Do one thing right now.


Sort through the eternal mail pile. Clean out the fridge. Order the new math book. Pray. Jog. Read to your toddler. Look at an art print. Cut your hair. Plan one day of school in advance. Shop for the ingredients to the next science experiment. Just one.


Don’t plan to do it. Don’t call your best friend about it. Don’t wait to consult your hubby. Don’t read a book on the subject.


I wanted saffron yellow walls for my kitchen for months. But which yellow paint? How much should I buy? How would I know if I got the best price in town? What if my husband hated the color? And worst of all, how could I paint my walls yellow with five kids under foot?


Then one day, I had had it. I marched all of us into Home Depot, covered my eyes and picked the color card. I got the paint mixed, paid for it and went home. I painted the wall that afternoon while the toddler was awake! (Nuts, I know, but she wasn’t even the one to spill the bright yellow paint all over the apartment rug—ahem—we don’t really need to know who did that, do we?)


Every morning for the next year, I’d come bounding down the stairs and smile first thing. That wall brightened my dreary little apartment immeasurably and it reminded me of the power of follow-through.



Don’t Do Something Else


Don’t call your girlfriend because you’re bored. Don’t leave the house with lunch plates on the table. Don’t flip through the Hanna Andersson catalog for the eighth time (you know you can’t afford those dresses). Don’t sleep in… again. Don’t get online before breakfast and stay there… until noon.


Pick the most annoying or embarrassing habit and stop it today. You don’t have to promise for eternity. Just today. If you pick one to stop per day, you’ll be amazed at how many changes you can make. At least you’ll make a change each day.


I, for one, would pay lots of money for little hand restraints to ‘just say no’ to that mid-morning call to my best friend. When I stay off the phone in the morning, it’s amazing how much better homeschooling goes. (Though the DTs demand some chocolate as compensation.)



Give Up


That’s right—wave the white flag. You will never be like her. Don’t compare yourself to Miss Perfect.


So what if she does the entire lesson plan for Sonlight every day?Who cares if she can maneuver Cuisinaire rods with one hand while stir frying dinner with the other?


Any woman who can make her own bread, write out daily lesson plans, organize all her math manipulatives into marked bins, and get her hair colored every four weeks is to be applauded not envied. After all, her kids are usually geniuses too. Have you seen their Iowa scores?


So give-up. By that calculation, she’s an Olympic athlete; you’re not. But you’re okay with that when we talk about rhythmic gymnastics. You can be okay with that here too.


Here’s the solution: Do what you can and enjoy what you do.The ones who seem to have it all together are actually just happy. They advertise contentment (which in turn makes the rest of us crazed with guilt). Quit comparing and start enjoying your kids. She does. You can too. They’re the reason we all chose to stay home, remember?



Pick Three


It’s a relief to get out of the homeschool Olympics, isn’t it? Don’t wreck these cautiously emerging good feelings by writing a mission statement either. That’s a sure-fire way to end up with a big pile of laundry on your bed next week.


Instead of thinking generally about what isn’t working, start noticing what is. Pick three reasons it is good to be alive and homeschooling. Then go tell someone.


Recite these every time the dishes are stacked too high in the sink.



  • Don’t have to schlep my five kids to school by 8:00 a.m.

  • Reading all those great books in our pajamas.

  • Seeing the firsts up close (first step, first letters, first word read, first expository essay)

  • Poetry teatimes!

  • Giving my daughter time to write stories about her bunny.

  • Listening to my seven-year-old read words that I haven’t taught him.
  • Teacher conferences over candlelight with my husband.

Those are some of my favorites. I’m sure that you can think of more. Just pick three.



Break a Rule


Give yourself a break. Paper plates for lunch. Disposable diapers for a week (how about a month—want to be radical, a whole year!) Listen to old James Taylor tunes. Dance through the living room. Put on a little make-up.


In other words, splurge. By definition, a splurge only happens once in a while. But unlike gluttony or indulgence, there’s no guilt.


Homeschool moms simply carry too many causes at once and feel trapped by their “better than God’s laws” rules. The Judeo-Christian God gave Ten Commandments and ‘couponing’ is not on the list. Get it?


So go to an art museum alone (without the co-op). Read a bookyou want to read. Shut the teacher’s manual and take a nature hike. Nourish your mind, spirit, and body and your homeschool will benefit too.


In the end, we must be mothers who love what we do. When we don’t, we risk the vitality and joy of our children’s schooling experience. Their memories of school will be inextricably bound to us. Who do we want them to remember?


We started in on this weird and wonderful lifestyle for good reasons. Instead of complaining, let’s remind each other of the truly heroic job we are doing—spending twenty-four hours a day with our kids because we love them more than anyone else will.


And be proud of you. I am.


–

Happy curriculum shopping! I love you guys. You’re doing awesome work.

Call me (513-307-1405), email me, or reach out to us on our public forums if you’ve got questions.


Ciao,
Julie Bogart

Owner, Creator



Here is a little more about Brave Writer and the support Julie offers homeschool families:



Why Brave Writer Works:




The majority of writing curricula focus on teaching writing formats and the structure of writing. They don’t tell you how to ensure that kids access the words within. Those programs rarely address the critical role of the parent in facilitating that process or even understanding how it works.


Brave Writer focuses on establishing writing voice and the writing process in children and teens first, by helping parents know how to foster the right environment for writing risks. We give parents instruction in how to nurture and draw out the writing voices of their children without causing damage (making writing a chore or treating it like a subject to be drummed out for school or causing resentment, tears and writer’s block).


We offer both parents and kids tools that enable them to revise and edit their work with confidence. As kids get older, Brave Writer introduces writing formats (particularly in late junior high/high school) that take advantage of the cultivated writing voice, their evolving rhetorical thinking, as well as their language arts powers. We promote both substance (insight, thought processes, developed vocabulary, mastery of material) and style (enabling kids to discover the variety of writing voices they have inside to meet the demands of any writing assignment).


The core difference between Brave Writer and other programs is that we teach writing much the way professional writers teach writing. Educators tend to start with a format. They deconstruct a kind of writing (like an essay), create an assignment that will reproduce the structure of the model or the form (five paragraphs, has these components, takes up this much paper), and then expect the student to produce writing that matches that set of expectations without necessarily taking into account what the student wants to express. When this kind of mode is used for teaching writing to young children not yet in touch with their writing voices, kids train themselves to think of how to solve the “puzzle” of the assignment (meeting the expectations of the rubric), rather than tapping into their writing voice and really determining what it is they want to say, and how they want to say it.


Professional writing instruction usually starts with a person—what do you have to say? Let’s get it out as best we can, then we can mess with it and see what can be done to mold it into the kind of form that best suits the material. Brave Writer helps kids discover the power and play of language, and boosts their sense of pride in their work because it most often represents content which is meaningful and important to them.


Thank you Julie for being a guest writer for us today!


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How To Hatch Chickens

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Have you always wondered which came first?  The chicken or the egg?

I think it is facinating to learn about the chicken coming out of the egg.  And I am not the only one who is interested.  My children are facinated with the whole process too.  Hatching chicken eggs is a great experiment to do with your children at any age, young or old. 

Today we are honored with a guest post from Tracie Wallace of North Carolina Mountain Homeschoolers Coop.  We extend a warm welcome, as she shares about hatching chicken eggs and raising chickens.

Tracie has a passion for learning, and a love for teaching.  She and her husband homeschool three children.  She is also the Coordinator for the NCMountain Homeschool Coop and a member of Henderson County Homeschool Association.   

Tracie has a B.S. in Biology and did graduate course work in Spanish and French.   She is the Vice-Chair for Henderson County Extension Advisory Board.  She has been a part of 4-H for four years with her children, and the leader of the 4-H Wildcats club for three years.  Tracie started raising chickens three years ago with the 4-H Embryology program.  She says her love for chickens started as a science experiment with her children, and grew in to a life’s passion.




All About Hatching Chickens



                                                                            by Tracie Wallace

Hatching chickens has become an art at my house and it is addictive. There is nothing more amazing than watching that small miracle occur, and seeing a fluffy new friend emerge from the shell.

                                                




To hatch chickens, I recommend that you have a forced air incubator, with a fan.  If you only have a still air incubator, there are different specifications for temperatures using those.  You should set your incubator up at least 24 hours in advance of setting eggs.  You want to make sure that it is clean and maintains a temperature of 99.5 degrees F for several hours.  

                                

Before you set the eggs, mark one side with an “o” and the other with an “x”, and use a pencil only.  This will help you keep track of which side should go up or down when you turn them.  You set your eggs and keep them still for 24 hours.  Then after the first day you will rotate them 3 times a day.  I usually make a simple spread sheet with boxes for the dates and times that the eggs are rotated.

                                




The eggs will incubate for 21 days. Sometimes they may hatch early or late.  You will rotate until day 19 and then stop rotating them and let them sit still for the rest of the time.  I use a hygrometer to measure the humidity in the incubator.  I keep the humidity at 50-60% until the last 4 days, then I add water in jars to drive it up during the hatch.  The increase in humidity keeps the inside of the eggs moist while the chicks are hatching. This is important because drying can cause them to give up during the hatch.  If they get too much humidity prior to the hatch, they can get mushy chick syndrome where their gut is distended and bloated and the umbilicus will not heal properly.

                                 



Several days before the anticipated hatch, set up a brooder box.  For this I use a 80 gallon plastic storage tub.  I fill the bottom with newspaper, and then I add a layer of  Diatomaceous Earth (DE) on the news paper and then put a few inches of shavings on top.  You do not want to use fine shavings because the chicks will eat it instead of food and it isn’t good for a developing gut. I place a couple layers of paper towels down on top of the shavings.  The purpose for this is so that I can see that the chicks gut is working and they are putting something out. The first fecal matter will be green in color this is from the nutrients in the egg, then it will go to a clear liquid and then on to more normal looking materials as they eat.



For food, I use a high protein chick starter with 19% ground finely.  I get this locally at Southern States.  After two weeks, I go to a coarser grain, still a chick starter at Community Mill or TSC.  The DuMor will cause more odor, not sure why but it does.  You will want a small waterer also. In the ring of the water, place clean marbles.  The young chicks fall asleep randomly and if this happens while drinking, the marbles will keep them from submerging their beaks in the water and drowning.   

Place a light with a 90 Watt bulb just above the box and keep the temperature between 95-99 degrees F for the first week.  Then, each week raise the light enough to lower the temp by 5 degrees each week, until it is room temperature. At some point to keep the light closer to the box, you can change the light bulb to a lower wattage.

                                 




I clean my boxes weekly to keep down odor and germs.  By placing newspaper under the shavings, you can roll the shavings up to clear the box and reset it all.  I use DE each time, but I remove the paper towels after the first two days just after the hatch.  You can use small wooden blocks under the food and water containers to keep some shavings out, but as they learn to scratch this will be an ongoing cleaning effort.




The purpose for the DE is three-fold.  It is made of fossilized diatoms from the earth, usually mined around chalk/clay.  If ingested, it is a natural de-wormer, anti-parasitic agent.  If they dust bathe in it, it serves to get rid of chicken mites, which are natural on chickens and they are not harmful and do not bite humans. Third, the DE helps to sustain the odor in the brooder box and makes it a little more tolerable.




Back to the hatch -once the chicks start pipping, or breaking through the egg, they usually emerge and complete the hatch within 24 hours of breaking the surface.  They will rest after initial break through and before “zipping” the egg open.  This is amazing to watch and in a good hatch, you miss a lot of it because it goes quickly.  If a chicken starts pipping and does not continue, it can die because the down fluff will dry to the egg membrane and it will be painful to move in the egg.  

   

I have assisted hatches but it takes skill and patience.  If you do it wrong, the chick will die from blood loss.  There is a membrane around the chick, just like a human, only a chicken draws that membrane into it’s umbilicus as it hatches for nourishment.  If you rupture those vessels before they are dried, the chick could die from blood loss.  Once they hatch, wait until they are somewhat dry to place them in the brooder box and try to have at least two in there at a time.  They are flock animals and do tend to feel more comfortable in a group rather than alone.




  

A good healthy hatch is almost effortless and fun to watch.  After three days, the flight feathers will start to appear and you can guess at the gender.  Roos will generally have straight lined feathers, same length , and their tails are slow to emerge.  Hens will have flight feathers alternating in length and their tails will be a few days behind these flight feathers.  Hens tend to feather quickly.  Hold your chicks daily, as often as possible.  Once they feel loved, like any pet, they will tolerate being held as adults and be a lot friendlier.




I have hatched Orpingtons, Wyandottes, and Silkies.  I chose these for temperament and tolerance to weather conditions where I live.  Good luck on your chicken journey, hope you have a clucking good time!



Have you tried hatching chicken eggs or raising chickens with your children?  Leave us a comment, and share your experience with us.  

Do you have egg or baby chick crafts you would like to share?  Leave us a comment too.  Thank you.

Don’t forget to read our other posts about eggs and chickens here.


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Answering The Critics

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Guest Post from Cheryl Long at Treasures From A Shoe Box.

Cheryl is a homeschooling mom of 10 children and 2 grandchildren.  She has been married 22+ years and says “Life is wonderful, when you have a purpose and follow the Lord’s plan!” 

Please stop by her website to get to know her and her wonderful life.

Thankyou Cheryl for sharing your heart with us.

                    Answering The Critics

                   



We’ve probably heard them all: the occasional negative comments, sometimes snide remarks regarding our family size. Whether they come from friends and family or from complete strangers, the message is the same; why don’t you STOP having children?! Here are our standard answers to the specific questions/comments:



Haven’t you figured out yet what causes it?

We’re not completely sure, but we think it might have something to do with sneezing

.

“Sneezing?!”



Yes, sneezing. You see, every time my husband sneezes, someone always says, “God bless you!” And He does!



Don’t you think your husband should get fixed?

Why? It is obvious to me that he isn’t broken!  (Insert coy grin)



Don’t you think you’ve got your hands full already?

I will have more hands to help!



I think you need a hobby!

I have one, thank you! (Said with a wink)



Aren’t you concerned that having babies is damaging your body?

Pregnancy is actually very healthy for women. During pregnancy the ovaries get a nine month vacation.



How do you handle all those kids? I am going crazy with just one (or two)!

Having ten children is seriously easier than having two or three. They are playmates, helpers to one another (and to me), and good friends. Chores divided amongst many makes the work go quicker. And is WAY more fun!



Don’t you think having more children is unfair to your older ones?

Absolutely not! Our older children are some of the most responsible, diligent, capable people we know! Our daughters are learning to manage their future homes and how to care for infants and children. Plus, all the children learn character that might be more difficult to teach in a smaller family. Things such as self-sacrifice, sharing, putting others first. They learn that the world does not revolve around them.



Are you trying to start your own baseball team?

No. Actually, our goal is to raise up an army! (An army of soldiers for the Lord.)



Are you done?!

This one always cracks me up. The implication is that we surely must be done at ten because eleven would just be W A Y too many! *smile. I always answer that we are open to all the blessings the Lord would send to us and honestly, I would love to have another baby.



It never fails; every Sunday as we make the fifty minute drive to church on the highway, a car will pass by, with a wide-eyed, open-mouthed passenger blatantly pointing and counting the heads in our fifteen passenger van. Our children smile politely and wave.



Some people are genuinely interested in understanding why we would intentionally have a large family, while most are simply curious.  Thanks to the popularity of the Duggar’s weekly program, 19 and Counting, many people have become more accepting of large families. In fact, we are frequently asked if we know them, or are trying to be like them. *smile!



With each child since announcing our sixth, we have experienced condemnation from some family members and a few friends. It is a mixture of emotions; to be blessed that the Lord would see fit to trust us with yet another child, only to be scolded by those whom we would like to rejoice with us.  In the midst of dealing with various conflicts regarding our decision to allow the Lord to determine our family size, we came to the conclusion that though we love our families and friends dearly, we must not waver in our commitment to the Lord. It is His evaluation of our lives that counts. Though we are sad for those who are critical, their opinions do not dampen our joy. We welcome each baby as a gift from the Lord.


                                                         

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