Two sweet things: Cupcakes and World Vision

One of the things I love about homeschooling is teaching the practical subjects in addition to academics. In this vein, we are starting a unit study on cooking. After all, a man proficient in cooking is worth far more than rubies. Am I right, ladies? (If you’d like to read the actual verse that I hijacked to suit my own purposes, it’s Proverbs 31:16.)
As a project, the boys are going to sell cupcakes they’ve cooked. The money they raise will purchase items from the World Vision Gift Catalog.

This brings me to another thing I really, really like. World Vision's gift catalog is a great way to involve kids in giving. They can pick various items that, when purchased by your family, go to a need family. This has been really effective for my kids. They like the concrete idea of giving an animal, like chickens, that provides for specific needs instead of just “giving to missions.” Plus, World Vision is a great, trustworthy organization.

The big boys chose one gift each from the catalog. Our ten-year-old picked a share of a deep well. (The well will provide 2,800 gallons of clean water a day to benefit as many as 300 people!) Our eight-year-old selected a goat and two chickens. (The goat provides milk for yogurt and cheese. The chickens provide eggs and more chickens, of course. Any extras can be sold by the family.)

Our goal is to raise $200 (the cost of these particular two gifts) by Thanksgiving. If you’d like to help us, there are a couple of ways to do it. You can contact me about buying cupcakes. (We’ll be selling them one day in October and one day in November.) You can also visit our fundraising website at www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/cupcakes4kids.

Home Study

Our formerly FSU-colored boy’s room has been vacated and now sports light purple walls and sparkly butterflies. The three man-cubs have happily settled back into the routine of being in the same bay. (Sorry, a little terminology left over from our stint in the military.) Definition: Bay (noun)—big, honking space that is good for holding lots of bunk beds. Perfect for a houseful of exuberant boys.

We’ve completed our home study. It was much easier than I imagined. The worker assigned to our case came to our house to point out what we needed. (Like another smoker detector, fire extinguisher, and a small tackle box for locking up our stash of Motrin, Tylenol, and chewable vitamins.) She came back a few weeks later and took photos of our home (interior and exterior) and a host of other things (like the smoke detector and fire extinguisher and tackle box). She never complained or even commented on the slight disarray in the bay. (Please note my sarcasm on the word slight.) Nor did she point out that I’d run out of time to mop the kitchen floor. Plus, she ate the homemade pumpkin bar I offered her. (That’s a true test in my mind. I mean, how many of us would eat food a near-stranger gave you?)

After eight, once weekly, classes and a couple visits from our licensing worker, and filling out enough paper work to make a small elephant’s eyes water, we’re simply waiting for the state to approve our paper work. (Oh, and the health inspector came too—he checked to make sure we don’t have a critter infestation and that our toilets flush…glad to report we passed!) After being approved, we’ll wait (such a fun, glorious word that—note more sarcasm) for a child that meets the criteria we’ve requested. (Each family can specify the age, gender, and needs that will best fit into their home.)

Like I said before, the journey thus far has been far less hassle than I expected. Except for deconstructing the boys’ bunk beds and reassembling them into one room—that was the biggest headache and, of course, backache! Painting the room purple was easy and fun, though, thanks to two amazing ladies who came to help. My hubby glided right through putting together the crib for that room. He’s done it a few times before. (Here’s a side note: the new cribs without drop sides are much easier to put together than the ones we had for our boys. I know that made Hubby happy.)

In all honesty, though, it’s a little strange to have a crib all set up with no baby to lay in it.

So, we find ourselves waiting again. At least now, we’re further down the path.