Two Reminders for when "Spring Fever" Hits

As the "Spring Fever" hit our household, and we all wanted to be doing something rather than schoolwork, there were two things I needed to remind myself of.

#1 REMINDER:  Teaching kids about perseverance is important, for them and for ME!

We must all do things in life we don't like (or want) to do, but giving up when things get hard is not the answer. After all, perseverance produces character. We want to please the Lord with our actions, and that includes not giving up when life is not what we want or expect it to be.

Rom 5:3-4  ...but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. (NIV)

Of course, we ALL need to take breaks! We all need to walk away for a little while to renew our minds and gain a new perspective. But, that is not the issue I am addressing. The point I'm making is that, quitting "because its just too hard" is not a valid reason for quitting.

 

#2 REMINDER:   Being flexible is a key to remaining sane as we persevere.  Flexible with our schedule, flexible with our location, and flexible with our curriculum.

• An example of being flexible with our schedule:  As we have been winding down our school year, my children have become rather "antsy" and in need of a change of pace; but, rather than take an extended amount of time off this close to the end, we only took off  one or two days to do something different. For example, we took a day off a couple of weeks ago to visit family 3 hours away. Then, this past week, to attend a different family reunion. I also took the day off on my birthday! These one-day breaks are helpful in keeping us going.

• An example of being flexible with our location:  I allowed my son to choose where he wanted to do his book work. It didn't really matter to me where he did it, as long as he got it done. For several days, he chose to remove all the stuffed animals from their container and sit inside of that...

Other times, he chose to sit on the stairs...

• An example of being flexible with our curriculum:  This week, we are going to be finishing up our school year, so instead of doing absolutely everything listed in Creation to the Greeks, I decided to combine a few lessons in order to get through the most important parts. 

After this week, we will take two weeks off to do absolutely nothing school related. We will, however, be attending Vacation Bible School for a week, and both kids will be taking swimming lessons the following week. After that, we will continue with doing some schoolwork, but will only focus on Math and Reading throughout most of the Summer. We will also plan some hands-on projects and accomplish some things around the home. As I am able, I will post about some of these projects.

Have an enjoyable Summer!