A new blog!

I've thought about doing this for a while.  We have a family blog but I seem to only update it for the kids birthdays since Facebook came along.  I love reading crafty blogs especially since I can find them much easier with Pinterest.  So, I thought I'd give it a try to have my own place for posting some of the fun stuff I've made.  But first, a little of the reason why I've embraced "beautiful things". 

I always said I would never homeschool my kids and yet that's where I find myself.  Insert concerns about social skills, lack of accountability, etc.  When I was teaching full time in a Christian school, our headmaster had us read the book Recovering the Lost Tools of Learning by Douglas Wilson.  I was wowed by the ideas of a classical education.  It was so different than the way I had been taught & was teaching.  It was a natural place for me to go when we decided to homeschool our kids.  I heard someone say that homeschooling redeems two educations.... yours & your childrens'.  That has been the case for me.  I have re-learned so much over the past two years.  I have always loved history so it's been neat to see how dates & events intertwine when I'm reading.  I could give so many more examples but this blog is really about crafting, so I need to get back to the topic at hand.

One of the books that I started reading (but still haven't finished) is Total Truth by Nancy Pearcey.  I never highlight in books but there was so much good stuff in there that I couldn't help myself.  One of the reasons we homeschool is to give our children a decidedly Christian worldview.  This book talks a about how there is truth.... not many truths but one ultimate source of truth.  As our creator, God made us in His image meaning we have similar qualities.  As an example, He is a creator and He has given us the desire to create new things.  It explains the ingenuity of man to go from farming with hand tools and eventually to tractors & even hydroponics.  We're always looking for ways to do things better & more efficiently.  God made things beautiful and we desire that as well.  In our modern worldview, we get stuck in the land of "usefulness" instead of enjoying & encouraging beauty.  As I read that book, I was convicted that the things I saw as important.... taking care of my children, cooking good food, keeping house, & making my home pretty were valid things.  They were part of who God created me to be and part of His purpose & character.  It was eye opening & freeing.  So, I've embraced "pretty".  Sure, when I'm crafy I don't get to the sweeping, mopping, vacuuming, laundry, etc. for a bit but that's okay.  There's time for that later.