Porch Season

*1*

Spring heralds the beginning of  Porch Season around here.  We live in an almost 90 year old 4 x 4 farmhouse, with an enclosed front porch. It faces south with 3 walls of windows. The wood floors are painted such a deep green it's almost blue and the walls linen. We have chimes and couches and plants on it. One whole wall is cubbies, built to match our kitchen cabinets with 3 very deep drawers that form a bench. It's also the staging place for the re-build projects we have going on, or I'd post pictures. Soon. Someday soon.
Anyway, we spend hours and hours and hours on our porch. Reading, reading out loud, eating dinner, talking, napping, thinking. It's a great place, our porch. From the vantage point of the porch we have seen 'coons, woodchucks, skunks, deer and all manner of bird life. In the summer you can hear the chuck-chuck, chucking of pheasants in the evening and hear the river rushing when it's full. It is now officially porch season.

*2*

School this week: Math, Science, Grammar, Writing, Greek and Latin, Pre-law, Copywriting. Think we covered it all. We also got a few more chapters of History of the Medieval World read out loud and continued memorizing the orange VP cards (the Middle Ages). After going through them the kids are all taking 2-3 to read and then I'm quizzing them on what they've read. While VP is clearly reformed, and we are not, they are such a terrific resource. Flower finished memorizing The Captain's Daughter and started in on The Charge of the Light Brigade. The boys continue to love their Landry Academy on-line classes. Pre-law is gearing up for  mock trial. It's gonna be good.

Our homeschooling friend M.B.H. won the state spelling bee last week and she is on her way to Washington!! Woohoo! Way to go Miss. M!!

*3*

Reading this week- the boys revisited Artemis Fowl (I have mixed feelings about Artemis). Flower and I are taking turns reading AG's Samantha series to each other. Feeche is still wading through King's On Writing. I have been knocking off Piccoult books: House Rules (loved the first person pov explanation of Asperger's Syndrome), and this week Plain Truth. I also finished Potok's Davita's Harp. Beautiful and touching, like most of his work. You can read my review here. I'm also, chapter by chapter, making my way through Petersen's The Pastor. It's a bunch of essays about his pastoral formation. He's a great word-smither, but some times I get the same feeling I did while reading Niequist's book, Bittersweet. Great word-crafting without a whole lot of point to what he's saying.

*4*

thehouseofwindows.com

The upstairs bathroom has taken first place spot on "things that need to get done asap." It is now drywalled with special water proof drywall stuff, and the corner bead is on the window (glass cubes- very cool), and two shampoo wells my very amazing husband designed. Next up is a mesh, then water proofing stuff, etc. We also have life-size pieces of paper ready to finalize the design. We are thinking 2 stripes of clear glass beads (to match the block windows) with the 12" square tile on a diagonal. Thanking God that my husband is not only smart and funny (despite the punning), but is also incredibly creative and loves working with his hands.

*5*

We are already making plans for late spring and summer. Feeche will be traveling again and his first round of flying the friendly skies takes place next month. Challenge,  directed by our friend, A.F. Maj (ret.) Bruce Stansbury, is something you should think about if you have a teen boy who loves adventure and physical challenge. TeenPact National Convention is also on the calendar. In May we'll all venture south to attend Miss. R's graduation. Booyah!

*6*

KB received her official acceptance letter to DWU's R.N. program. She is thrilled. She'll be graduating the very beginning of May from the cosmetology program she's been in since last March, is glad she'll have a few months between programs and is ready for next things!

*7*

One of my very favorite prayers; the Prayer of St. Patrick. With gratitude, I bind unto myself today, each and every day, the strong Name of the Trinity.

I bind unto myself today
The strong Name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.

I bind this day to me for ever.
By power of faith, Christ's incarnation;
His baptism in the Jordan river;
His death on Cross for my salvation;
His bursting from the spicèd tomb;
His riding up the heavenly way;
His coming at the day of doom;*
I bind unto myself today.

I bind unto myself the power
Of the great love of the cherubim;
The sweet 'well done' in judgment hour,
The service of the seraphim,
Confessors' faith, Apostles' word,
The Patriarchs' prayers, the Prophets' scrolls,
All good deeds done unto the Lord,
And purity of virgin souls.

I bind unto myself today
The virtues of the starlit heaven,
The glorious sun's life-giving ray,
The whiteness of the moon at even,
The flashing of the lightning free,
The whirling wind's tempestuous shocks,
The stable earth, the deep salt sea,
Around the old eternal rocks.

I bind unto myself today
The power of God to hold and lead,
His eye to watch, His might to stay,
His ear to hearken to my need.
The wisdom of my God to teach,
His hand to guide, His shield to ward,
The word of God to give me speech,
His heavenly host to be my guard.

Against the demon snares of sin,
The vice that gives temptation force,
The natural lusts that war within,
The hostile men that mar my course;
Or few or many, far or nigh,
In every place and in all hours,
Against their fierce hostility,
I bind to me these holy powers.

Against all Satan's spells and wiles,
Against false words of heresy,
Against the knowledge that defiles,
Against the heart's idolatry,
Against the wizard's evil craft,
Against the death wound and the burning,
The choking wave and the poisoned shaft,
Protect me, Christ, till Thy returning.

Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

I bind unto myself the Name,
The strong Name of the Trinity;
By invocation of the same.
The Three in One, and One in Three,
Of Whom all nature hath creation,
Eternal Father, Spirit, Word:
Praise to the Lord of my salvation,
Salvation is of Christ the Lord.

(from the Prayer Foundation)