Weekly Wrap-Up for the week ending on August 12, 2018

 

So this week was the week our youngest son attended our church’s service camp.  The youth arrived at the church Tuesday morning complete with clothes, sleeping bags, pillows, Bibles, and whatever else they may need for the week.  They spent their days doing things at, for and with the Youth Group.  They ate all their meals at the church and then had various evening activities including going to play laser tag one night and swimming another night.  At the end of the activities, the girls went to the home of one of the adult leader’s family, while the boys were divided among two different homes.  Our son really enjoyed himself.

This was also a week where very little book work was done, but I have been working on planning our new school year.  Our 15-year-old daughter will be entering 10th grade.  Here is what I have planned for her to do:

• CTC Math
• Picta Dicta
• Grammar Planet
• American Literature
• TruthQuest History
• Biology/Nature Study
• Violin
• Art
• Bible Study with me
• Latin

Our 17-year-old son will be doing:

• CTC Math
• Bible Study
• Picta Dicta
• Grammar Planet
• Literature
• Exploring World History by Notgrass
• Chemistry/Marine Biology
• Latin or Japanese
• Bible Lessons
• Photography

Our son is taking responsibility for his own schedule and is inputting them into Homeschool Planet himself.  I am in the process of entering my daughter’s lessons myself.  However, it seems like interruptions sometimes happen and distractions are bad.  But I am fairly happy with our choices.

Wednesday morning, I received a phone call from one of the ladies at our church.  She wanted to know if I could come to help her prepare some pears for canning.  I found out another lady from the church was coming as well.  So I spent about an hour or so of my time helping peel, core, wash the pears along with a few other tasks.  Then as our reward, I was given pears to bring home for our family to “put up” or can.  Originally I wanted to can pear slices.  However, our oldest son decided we needed to make pear preserves like his paternal grandmother did/does.  So he called for instructions and this afternoon, my three sons and I worked to peel, cut and core the pears.  My oldest and youngest son both work independently.  However, my second son decided we should have some kind of assembly line going.  So he peeled the pears, and then I cut them into slices and cored them.  All in all, it went very well considering we had almost 30 pounds of pears to do. I really enjoyed working with my sons.

For dinner, we decided to have a whole roasted chicken along with stuffing.  After the work we did today, a fairly easy dinner like that was appreciated.

Upcoming Reviews & Crew Activities:

• God Schooling: How God Intended Children to Learn by Julie Polanco
• Branch Out World
• Back to School Crew Blog Hop
• GrammarPlanet

 

So what is going on in your world?  I would love to hear from you.

If you would like to read what other members of the Home School Review Crew are writing about this week, click here or on the graphic below.

Book Review – Survival Guide for the Soul by Ken Shigematsu

 

 

As a person who loves to read, I enjoy having the opportunity to help authors by being part of their book launch teams.  I recently had the opportunity to participate in the book launch team for Survival Guide for the Soul: How to Flourish Spiritually in a World that Pressures Us to Achieve by Ken Shigematsu.  I have to say this book lived up to my expectations.

Ken Shigematsu is the senior pastor of the Tenth Church in Vancouver, British Columbia.  Prior to entering the ministry, he worked for the Sony Corporation in Tokyo, Japan.  His grueling work schedule at Sony caused him to investigate personal disciplines to help bring order to his life from those of his samurai ancestors to St. Benedict’s rule Christian communities.

Survival Guide for the Soul: How to Flourish Spiritually in a World that Pressures Us to Achieve is Ken’s second book.  His first book, God in My Everything: How an Ancient Rhythm Helps Busy People Enjoy God was published in 2013.  This latest book examines what prevents us from flourishing in our spiritual lives in order to accomplish more in the eyes of society.

I love how he discusses the  Striving Adam versus the Soulful Adam – referring back to Adam of Adam and Eve.  The Striving Adam is that part of us that wants to accomplish more and more.  It is the part of us that is driven to accomplish lofty dreams and ambitions regardless of what it might cost.  The Soulful Adam is that part of us that desires a connection to God and wants to draw closer to Him.

Ken Shigematsu draws on a variety of sources including Scripture, church history, psychology, and neuroscience, as well as a rich variety of stories from his own life in order to demonstrate how the gospel redeems our desires and reorders our lives.

This book is perfect for anyone who desires a closer walk and relationship with God, especially in the midst of the pressures of daily living.

One of my favorite quotes from the book is found on page 49 of the book:

This book truly captured my attention and kept me focused on the message.  I wanted to read more.  This book truly caused me to think about the ramifications of a driven life versus a life lived at drawing closer to Jesus Christ and God.  The message is clear.  The style is engaging.  The words are powerful.  So if you are looking for a book about how to have a closer relationship with Jesus Christ is the midst of a world that believes power and success in the workplace are more important, this is the book for you.  I definitely recommend you check it out for yourself.