SchoolhouseTeachers.com Yearly Membership Review — A Lightweight Heavy Hitter

Read this SchoolhouseTeachers.com review from a roadschooling family of 10 and get 50% off!

This post contains affiliate links and opinions. Both are harmless.

One of the biggest aspects of my life is homeschooling my eight kids. I am always on the lookout for ways to simplify that process, especially on the road. With that in mind, my children and I have been testing the Yearly Membership of SchoolhouseTeachers.com, an online curricula resource, for a few weeks now. I’m going to yammer on about it for a bit, but first, some background:

As you know, we live in a travel trailer towed by a Chevy Express van. We (we as in my hubby, Steve) tow “home” up mountains and down, around hairpin turns, over harrowing heights. Have you ever seen The Long, Long Trailer with the inimitable Lucille Ball and Dezi Arnaz? Remember the scene where they’re teetering on a mountain top on the brink of disaster because Lovable Lucy overloaded the trailer with rocks?

That’s me–Lovable Lucy. Except instead of a Cuban-American husband, it’s a Filipino-American husband. And instead of rocks, it’s books. And instead of ending up with a box office hit and a big fat check, we ended up with a dead transmission and a big fat bill.

Roadschoolers, ironically, have very little weight allowance for books, which makes schooling a little more challenging. I know–whaaaaa! That’s why we have to get a tad creative with everything from where to store the toilet paper to how to educate eight kids in 240 square feet of space with no weight allowance for los libros, which is Spanish for “the books,” which I had to teach los niños without using los librosNow do I have your sympathy? I didn’t think so.

Enter SchoolhouseTeachers.com!

SchoolhouseTeachers.com is an online curricula resource which offers its members nearly 200 courses plus other perks, and it’s growing like my stomach at a Christmas cookie buffet. The courses are available online through classes, videos, or printable downloads. I’m not going to list every subject you’ll find there because 1) I’m too lazy, and 2) okay, so there is no number 2. Go to the SchoolhouseTeachers.com course list and see for yourself, or see what’s available grade by grade.

Wow, right?! A family could use SchoolhouseTeachers.com as a supplement to their studies or as an entire curriculum. That saves a ton of space and trailer weight, people.

How have we been using SchoolhouseTeachers.com?

I’m so glad you asked, because I’ve been itching to tell you about the Tinkers Club, partly because I love saying “tinkers.” Tinkers tinkers tinkers! (If you say it real fast it sounds like stinkers.) My son (who just turned 10 last week) is loving the Tinkers Club. It’s all about inventing, so he’s gettin’ down and dirty with tools and junque we scrounge up at thrift stores (because, as you know, The Simple Homemaker tries not to keep junk on hand, so, ironically, now we have to hunt for other people’s junk). He is so into it that he was thrilled to receive safety goggles for Christmas–safety goggles, people! And I wasted money on Legos.

We are also just beginning the Charlotte Mason preschool study written by homeschool mom Brittney Jordan. As you know we are not into an intense preschool program, nor am I interested in spending money to teach my child to count. But being child number 7 in a roadschooling family means that someday the you-specific activities and the nature study get pushed to the background in favor of group activities and an 8-mile hike. This ideal program ensures that little Ellie and I (and our many tag-alongs) are doing something in nature together, in books together, and in handicrafts together each week…key word: together. Love it!

This week’s topic is snow, which offers and interesting approach to nature study. I think I still have snow stuck down the back of my neck–family snowball fight not pictured.

Charlotte Mason Preschool Fun Through SchoolhouseTeacher.com. Read this review from a roadschooling family of 10 and get a 50% off discount!

I’m also setting my older children on the task of translating the Spanish Bible stories for Spanish-speaking preschoolers. Why? Because I can, and because they don’t speak Swahili or Latvian, but if yours do, then by all means check out the Latvian and other foreign languages! They don’t have enough Spanish for my liking, but there is Latvian!

Here’s my favorite aspect of SchoolhouseTeachers.com:

My first baby girl was born, like, yesterday, and last week she turned 19. That’s years! Time flies…fast…like a fast flying thingie. We did some pretty fun stuff in school (apparently not enough vocab study if this writer is saying “thingie” and “stuff”), but if I could do it over again, I would have had more lessons that she really wanted to study and fewer that I felt we had to know to appease the social service workers that never showed up at our door.

With SchoolhouseTeachers.com, I feel comfortable am totally excited about letting my children pick a couple of courses at a time that they want to study (after Bible and math are finished). I’m confident that they will be learning something. It may not be the same things I learned in school and promptly forgot as soon as the test was over because I never used it in real life and wasn’t interested in it in the first place, but that’s totally okay! That said, I might “make” my 19-year-old take this for her writing business:

I don’t love everything about SchoolhouseTeachers.com.

For example, I absolutely do not like their cute little drawing of the ark for the preschool flood study. The flood was not cute, and the ark was not cutesie. For the love of all things truth, draw the ark its actual size in proportion to an elephant, so kids could see that a lot of elephants could fit on that behemoth. Kids would have an easier time supporting their beliefs when (not if) they are attacked if they had the truth in their heads. Thousands of people drowning–so not cutesie.

I also don’t like the amount of clicking required to get to the course, but they’re in the process of fixing that, so forget I said anything. In fact, I’m crossing this off right now.

And there will be things you don’t like, which is why it’s totally great that there are nearly 200 courses–pick what you like and leave the rest…like how you pick the M&Ms out of the trail mix and leave the raisins. ‘Fess up. You know you do it.

Technical details for my fellow roadschoolers:

For us travelers, internet connection and data limits are issues. While some of these courses are videos that will consume data, others are made of printable or downloadable lesson plans that can be downloaded at the library or RV park and stored on your computer to be pulled up whenever you want and wherever you are–even boondocking.

The studies do not require that you buy books, but access to a library does help for some additional recommended resources. Obviously, that part is not ideal for the traveler, but, well, read the paragraph about The Long, Long Trailer and you’ll agree with me that not having access to all the books a person would like to have is better than plunging off a mountain peak with your entire rig, family, and collection of rocks books.

Interested? You can get the Yearly Membership to SchoolhouseTeachers.com for 50% off if you use the code CREWFOLLOWER by January 31, 2016.

SchoolhouseTeachers.com
That’s what I think. Click this banner to find out what other homeschoolers think. Click click click. (If you say that real fast, it sounds like “lick.” I need a vacation.)

SchoolhouseTeachers Review 2016
 

Crew Disclaimer

Homemade Hot Cocoa Recipe

I don’t drink cocoa, because it gives me gas. I’m glad we cleared the air on that sensitive topic.

Snicker.

Moving on.

The thing I love about homemade hot cocoa is that it’s simple to put in the dairy or non-dairy products and sweeteners that you wish to meet everybody’s needs and preferences. Blah blah blah. What I really like is that it tastes so stinkin’ awesome!

Simply Delicious Hot Cocoa Recipes with Dairy-Free Alternatives

I’m giving you a basic recipe which is great as it is, because I’m all about simple, or it can be spruced up or adjusted. It’s your job to alter it to your needs and liking.

Homemade Hot Cocoa

Ingredients:

  • 1/3 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/3 to 3/4 cup sugar (to your liking) (I tend toward 1/2 cup, but most will choose more. My daughter uses honey.)
  • 1 pinch salt (optional–I use it because I look cool tossing a pinch of salt into a beverage)
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 3 cups milk (any kind–we use whole, coconut, or almond)
  • 1 cup cream or half-n-half (or an extra cup of milk)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)

Optional add-ins:

  • whipped cream
  • chocolate chips of any variety
  • cinnamon or cinnamon sticks
  • marshmallows
  • peppermint sticks or candy canes
  • coffee or espresso
  • peanut butter

Directions:

  1. Mix all dry ingredients together.
  2. Boil the water in a heavy saucepan.
  3. Dissolve the dry ingredients in the boiling water by whisking over medium heat for about two minutes–keep it to a simmer.
  4. Add the milk and heat it until it’s hot, whisking continually. Do not boil. Pay close attention, because milk burns faster than I lose my train of thought.
  5. Remove the deliciousness from the heat.
  6. Add the cream or half-n-half and the vanilla.
  7. Divide the sweet deliciousness between four mugs, unless your cocoa drinkers are little, in which case it might stretch into six or eight, especially if you fill half a mug with marshmallows.
  8. Add more cream to cool if needed…or just wait.

I know you’re asking “Why water? Can’t I just boil the milk? Can’t I just stir the powders into the milk? Can’t I just use the packets from Swiss Miss?”

Because a very hot liquid will dissolve the sugar. No, because it might curdle or burn. Yes, but it might be a little gritty. If you like Swiss Miss, drink Swiss Miss–it’s certainly easier, and you just can’t argue with tiny little marshmallows with their tiny marshmallow cuteness.

Related Recipes:

  • This Tres Leche Cocoa looks fantabulous! Oh, yummity yum yum yum!
  • Allergic to dairy? How about this oh-so-scrumptious Almond Hot Cocoa!
  • If you’re allergic to dairy and nuts, here’s a recipe for Coconut Milk Hot Chocolate. It is sweetened with honey, but you can use the sweetener of your choice, because America is great like that.
  • If you’re not allergic to anything or you’re allergic to everything and you want to die in complete bliss, you have to try this Whipped Hot Chocolate recipe.

Homeschool Helps:

For your science studies, answer the ever-fascinating question, “Where does chocolate come from?

For your home economics class, learn this relevant skill which I hope you don’t need today: How to remove burned milk from a saucepan.

Here’s the boring printable version.

Homemade Hot Cocoa Recipe
Recipe Type: Beverage
Author: Christy, The Simple Homemaker
Prep time:
Total time:
Serves: 4 cups
This basic recipe can be adjusted to fit anybody’s needs or preferences. Don’t be afraid to experiment..a lot.
Ingredients
  • Main ingredients:
  • 1/3 cup cocoa powder
  • 1/3 to 3/4 cup sugar or other sweetener (to your liking)
  • 1 pinch salt (optional)
  • 1/3 cup water
  • 3 cups milk (any kind–we use whole, coconut, or almond)
  • 1 cup cream or half-n-half (or an extra cup of milk)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
  • Optional add-ins:
  • whipped cream
  • chocolate chips of any variety
  • cinnamon or cinnamon sticks
  • marshmallows
  • peppermint sticks or candy canes
  • coffee or espresso
  • peanut butter
Instructions
  1. Mix all dry ingredients together.
  2. Boil the water in a heavy saucepan.
  3. Dissolve the dry ingredients in the boiling water by whisking over medium heat for about two minutes–keep it to a simmer.
  4. Add the milk and heat it until it’s hot, whisking continually. Do not boil. Pay close attention, because milk burns faster than I lose my train of thought.
  5. Remove the deliciousness from the heat.
  6. Add the cream or half-n-half and the vanilla.
  7. Divide the sweet deliciousness between four mugs, unless your cocoa drinkers are little, in which case it might stretch into six or eight, especially if you fill half a mug with marshmallows.
  8. Add more cream to cool if needed…or just wait.

 

364 Days to Overwhelming Gratitude

My favorite holiday is so close I can almost smell it–creamy mashed potatoes with oodles of butter, my mom’s fresh potato rolls with oodles of butter, my daughter’s homemade stuffing with oodles of butter. Except this year, I can’t eat butter. Our baby has an allergy–we can’t figure out the culprit, but for now Mama is on an elimination diet which means Thanksgiving dinner is going to look more like turkey and green beans–no butter.

And that’s okay. I’m still super excited for Thanksgiving.

Why? Because it’s not about the food. It’s not even about the pie if you can believe I’m saying that. It’s about the thanks.

364 Days to Overwhelming Gratitude


Which brings us to Thanksgiving pet peeve number one:

Random Citizen: “I’m thankful for this and that and that and this.”

Great, but who gets your thanks, Random Citizen? The air? The fates? The universe? They don’t want your thanks and they certainly don’t deserve it. God does.

You knew there’d be a Thanksgiving pet peeve number two:

Even though I am running 26 Days of Thanksgiving in Photos on my Facebook page, I don’t like those “gimmicks.”

Why not? They’re great! You’re such a humbug. That’s why you named your son Ebenezer.

Chill–good grief. I don’t like them because they end. We focus on Thanksgiving for a day, perhaps a month, and then it bluntly ends like this sentence. Done. Bam. No more.

It’s time to reconcile both of those pet peeves.

Pastor Andrew Schroer who shepherds a friendly bilingual Christian church out in a li’l ol’ western town in Texas wrote a devotional journal called 364 Days of Thanksgiving. In it, Andy encourages us to:

  1. 364 Days of ThanksgivingBe thankful every day.
  2. Address our thanks to God.

I love it when something single-handedly (or single-pagedly) decimates my pet peeves, don’t you? Of course you do. It gets better.

364 Days of Thanksgiving is also a journal, providing space for you to write down one thing to be thankful for each day–even I can handle that. The trick is it has to be something different, so you can’t do this:

  • Day 1–cookies
  • Day 2–cookies
  • Day 3–cookies
  • Day 4–cookies
  • Day 5–cookies
  • Day 6–cookies

I’m not sure if you can do this:

  • Day 1–chocolate chip cookies without nuts
  • Day 2–chocolate chip cookies with nuts
  • Day 3–cookies after church
  • Day 4–Great Grandma’s molasses cookies
  • Day 5–getting the last cookie in the jar before Steve does
  • Day 6–secretly enjoying the cookie I hid in my sock drawer after everyone else went to bed

Probably not.

What about day 365? Dickens said we Americans had it backward (he actually said backwards with an S, being British) when we gripe all year and thank one day. He says we should thank 364 days and gripe one day. Andy one-ups good ol’ Dickens: on day 365 you sit down with the last cookie from your sock drawer and read over the entire journal showing how God (not the universe) has blessed you.

Do you see what’s happening here? By focusing on gratitude for an entire year, you become more grateful and more aware of your blessings. Instead of griping over the lack of oodles of butter, you rejoice over the potatoes. Gratitude becomes a habit, and you become a grateful dry potato eater instead of a disgruntled butter lover. It’s a beautiful transformation!

Andrew Schroer and his Beautiful Bride
Andy with his stunning bride, Clariza

While I might possibly still have your attention, know this: 364 Days of Thanksgiving is not filled with blank pages awaiting your thanks. Andy fills it with encouragement and the great stories (parables, really) that his parishioners expect to hear when he steps up to the pulpit.

Now, if you’re following along on our Twelve Weeks of a Simple Christmas missions, you could finish a huge chunk of your Christmas list with just this book. No lie…because I don’t lie…except that one time which is none of your business but which really makes me grateful for Jesus and forgiveness.

Buy 364 Days of Thanksgiving for your Kindle or in hold-it-in-your-hand-and-smell-the-pages format at Amazon (affiliate link) or as an ebook or hardcover book here. You can also find a related Bible study for groups and a sermon series for pastor’s here in both CD and downloadable formats.

You won’t be sorry; in fact, 364 days from now you’ll be overwhelmingly grateful.

 

We Have a Baby and He Has a Name!

Meet our baby.

His birthday.
Our baby on his birthday–still a puffy little nameless raisin, but we love ‘im!

The Lord protected our little one through a 41-week pregnancy (mostly) on the road and a scare at 24 weeks. He carried mama and baby safely through delivery on August 3, and now we’re all together–all ten of us…and the dog and a kitten.

Getting ready to go home.
Getting ready to go home.

Those of you who follow us on Facebook as The Travel Bags, Stephen Bautista Music, or The Simple Homemaker, or on Instagram as The Travel Bags have been nagging asking us for a name.

I have HOW MANY siblings?
I have HOW MANY siblings?

He has a name at long last.

The Littlest Bagasao
The littlest Bagasao

His name is Judah Ebenezer Robert Bagasao.

Hi, People. Nice to meet you.
Hi, People. Nice to meet you.

Judah means “to praise.” Our lives as music missionaries and as Christians are (or should be) acts of continual praise. Praise God for this healthy baby, for sustaining our mission, for holding our family together. Praise God for the bumps in the road, even the big ones like Crohn’s disease and losing loved ones. On a personal note, our traveling music mission shares the Word through our musical praise of an amazing God.

Judah at 10 Days
Judah at 10 days–It’s good to have a name.

Ebenezer is a Biblical place-name meaning “stone of help.” God is and has been our rock. When we started this music mission with $500 to our name, a sick child, and a singer with stage fright, He was the steady one we could depend on. When we face a new trial, a new baby, a new decision, we know that no matter what happens, God–our stalwart rock–will help us through until we see Him face to face.

Eliana Charis (God has answered us with grace) and Judah Ebenezer Robert (Praise our Stone of Help)
Eliana Charis (God has answered us with grace) and Judah Ebenezer Robert (Praise our Stone of Help)

As far as Ebenezer’s popular namesake from Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol, you really must read the book to fully understand this. Known to most of you as merely a “scrooge,” Ebenezer makes a miraculously dramatic transformation at the end of the book, becoming an amazingly generous, loving, involved, joy-filled man, a servant to all. His is the quintessential story of redemption and grace. Isn’t that every true Christian’s story, too? I know it’s ours. Our dark, selfish natures are transformed through Christ.

A Christmas Carol was also the family read-aloud we were enjoying when we first learned about our baby, and Eb is the nickname he bore all those months while we waited to see his little face. We couldn’t imagine changing his name after all that time.

Tummy time with two of his girls.
Tummy time with two of his girls.

Robert is my (Christy’s) grandfather’s name.

Elisabeth, Christy, Grandpa dancing
Elisabeth, Christy, and Grandpa dancing. We miss you, Grandpa!

Grandpa was like a father to me when mine was out of the picture. He was a very special man to our whole family. Losing him last year hurt, but he shared his faith with his family, and I know we will be reunited again, thanks to our mutual Stone of Help, our Savior Jesus. His was not a feel-good faith; it was the real thing. He let his faith shine through his generous and caring spirit and, at times, through his Jesus-in-the-courtyard style anger at the atrocities of this world. Robert means “shining,” but to us it also means a very special, God-fearing, irreplaceable man who let his faith shine, which is what we pray Judah will be and do as well.

Great Grandma ("Bobert's" wife) and Little Bobert
Great Grandma (“Bobert’s” wife) and Little Bobert

While some of you know us as the Bautistas, meaning “baptizer,” our legal name is Bagasao, meaning “sower of seed” or “spreader of wise words.” Both Bautista and Bagasao are a call to obey God’s Great Commission–sharing the Word with all the world and baptizing in His name. Judah was baptized shortly after his birth, and he will be raised to know and share the wise life-giving words of Scripture.

Pastor Sauer and Stephen baptizing our then nameless baby, but God knew his name.
Pastor Sauer and Stephen baptizing our then nameless baby, but God knew his name.

Judah Ebenezer Robert Bagasao — Praise our Stone of Help

I'm three and I'll be your babysitter this morning. (Cue newborn panic.)
I’m three and I’ll be your babysitter this morning. (Cue newborn panic.)

Praise our Stone of Help as we fulfill His call to shine our faith into all the world. It’s a big calling for such a little guy and his family, but all things are possible with our Stone of Help.

Ten for the Road
Ten for the Road–SO much joy!

What do we call him?

Hannah and Judah
Hannah (meaning Grace) and Judah (meaning Praise)–our bookends.

Some of us call him Little Bobert (after a pet name for Grandpa).

Marissa has done the big sister thing a time or six.
Marissa has done the big sister thing a time or six. Still, she’s absolutely enamored with this little fella.

Some of us call him Judah Ben-Bob (after Judah Ben-Hur–a favorite book).

Uh, Ma, this baby is hungry.
Uh, Ma, this baby is hungry.

Some of us even call him Judah–imagine that!

Boy Club inaugurates its newest member.
Boy Club inaugurates its newest member.

Most of us still call him Eb.

Emily Rose (our flower) and Little Eb (our stone)
Emily Rose (our flower) and Little Eb (our stone)

 Praise our Stone of Help!

Christy’s Simple Tips: How to De-Core Iceberg Lettuce

Christy's Simple Tips: How to De-Core Iceberg Lettuce



I thought everybody knew this technique, so I never thought to mention it. About two years ago my grandmother told me to watch the neat trick my uncle had just taught her, and she showed me the iceberg coring method my own mother–her own daughter–had been using my whole life.

Apparently, not everyone knows this. But you will.

How to De-Core Iceberg Lettuce

  1. Take the iceberg lettuce in your hand.
  2. Locate the core.
  3. Slam the core down on a hard surface, like a counter–not like your head.
  4. It will loosen so you can slide it out.

Super duper simple!

Oh, palm the lettuce like this or with both hands on the sides:

Christy's Simple Tips: How to De-Core Iceberg Lettuce

Don’t hold it with one hand on the bottom by the core. Ouch.

Christy's Simple Tips: How to De-Core Iceberg Lettuce

This simple tip comes straight from Mom down on the ol’ homestead. Thanks Mom! Love you! OX

Special thanks to Elisabeth for coring this head of lettuce for all you. You have lovely hands, Elisabeth. Go practice your piano.

To see your favorite simple tips featured on The Simple Homemaker (including a link to the page of your choice), please submit it through my contact page or send an email (pictures are optional) to TheSimpleHomemaker at gmail dot com with SIMPLE TIP in the subject.

What We Can Learn From Josh Duggar’s Downfall

What We Can Learn From Josh Duggar's Downfall

You’ve probably heard about the Duggar controversy. If not, I’ll tell you only that Josh Duggar committed a serious crime as a teen, it was dealt with extensively, and the family moved on. As often happens with the idiotic decisions we make in our youth (because we’ve all made them), his actions are now coming back to haunt and hurt him and his family.

Before we begin, let’s establish these understandings:

  1. Josh Duggar was completely and heinously wrong in what he did, and I feel tremendously for the victims and the parents, none of whom deserved this grief.
  2. I respect the family, but I’m not a Duggar-worshipper or even a follower.
  3. This article is not about the Duggars. It is about what we can learn from this experience. If you’re only here to tell me you’re sick of hearing people excuse his behavior, go back to number 1. If you’re only here to get mad and say that he should be removed from society until the day he dies and then hung by his toes from the mast of the Black Pearl and sunk to the bottom of the bottomless pit, you’re only here to vent your rage instead of reading for meaning, and you need to go back to school.
  4. See number 1.

I tend to stay away from overt controversy on this blog and, frankly, it’s none of my business, but I’m bringing this up because we can learn two things from this debacle that can help us as we build up our homes and relationships. These two things are about (1) people worship and (2) forgiveness and consequences.

(1) People Worship

We’ve all done it. We say things like this:

  • “If only my family were like theirs (the Dugggars or someone else’s).”
  • “Maybe if I were as godly a mother as she is, my kids wouldn’t fight so much.”
  • “If my husband were a better example, my boys would behave better.”
  • “I’m a failure; why can’t I be more like ______________?”
  • “I wish I were as patient as my sister/friend/mother.”
  • “Her kids are so much nicer, better educated, and more sociable than mine.”

Sound familiar?

The fact is the families you are comparing yourself to have their own problems. Sure, some of them have stronger marriages, more sociable children, scholastically superior accomplishments, more understanding husbands, more patient mothers. Maybe those are traits you long for in your own home and you’re pining. Be aware that what you see is not the whole story.

Those families have issues that you don’t know about. It could be something dark, like in the unfortunate case of the oft-worshiped Duggars, or maybe infidelity, abuse, alcoholism, or pornography. It could be something like an over-working husband, a distant marriage, a shopaholic wife, malcontent, disrespectful children, debt, screen addiction, gossip addiction, chasms between parents and children, eating disorders, questionable friends–whatever!

No human being or mortal family is perfect–no human being or mortal family is worthy of our worship. None. They will all fall from the pedestal of worship we place them on.

Just like the Duggars. Just like my family. Just like you.

Don’t worship people.

(2) Forgiveness and Consequences

Spend 15 minutes reading the comments on any Duggar article since the revelation, and you’ll see a handful of logical responses. The rest are polarized.

Pole number 1: Duggar fans are anxious to forgive and forget–an admirable trait. They are horrified that the family they loved (and possibly worshiped) has a dark spot in their past and has plunged from their high pedestal. They are hurting, but forgiving. They respect the parents for dealing boldly and humbly with the sin as soon as it was confessed, even voluntarily (from my understanding) involving the police and seeking rehabilitation for Josh and counseling for all involved.

They don’t want Josh to suffer any further consequences for what he did when he was a dumb kid, because they say his actions and life since reveal that he repented. They say it should be like it never happened.

The problem with that view is that it did happen.

Pole number 2: Duggar critics are still slobbering at the mouth claiming the sole purpose of the Duggars was to suppress women and reproduce for their own personal financial benefit…because a women who enjoys being intimate with her husband is obviously brainwashed and having lots of children makes you rich. Ahem. They think people who live by faith and welcome the blessings God sends their way are Santa-believing freaks. They’ve been waiting anxiously for the Duggars to fall, and they are reveling in what they see as a victory and a huge smear on the Christian church and faith.

They are not about to forgive, regardless that this issue occurred when Josh (now 27) was 14. They don’t acknowledge that it was dealt with years ago in numerous ways, and that the family is continuing to be straightforward, humble, and responsible. They want Josh and his parents to feel every single consequence of the actions of his teen years again. They want him to pay and to keep paying, even if that means hurting his victims again by dragging this whole thing through the mud. They want to inflict pain because pain was inflicted.

The problem with that view is that repentance, forgiveness, and healing have already occurred–where does it end?

Where do I stand?

In the middle.

As Mike Huckabee says, “Josh’s actions are, in his own words, ‘inexcusable,’ but not unforgivable.”  I believe in complete forgiveness of the penitent sinner, just as God has forgiven us through Christ. Being a mere mortal, I’m not good at forgiveness, because it’s hard, but I firmly believe in it–honestly, I do, even though if the victim were my child, I would have had a hard time not wanting Josh Duggar to feel serious pain…quite possibly somehow related to the front grid of my Chevy Express van. I would not, however, have acted on that impulse, but would have sought proper punishment, forgiveness, and healing, just like his family did over a decade ago.

I also believe in moving on as best we can. We must forgive and live, especially for the sake of the victims. Josh has shown (from what we can see) repentance and change over the past 13 years, so this grotesque action as a dumb kid should not completely define him forever. Don’t you love it when someone takes something you did, say, 20 years ago and defines you by it, regardless of your penitence and growth since that time? Yeah, that’s my favorite.

There’s more. Unfortunately, we can never make life return to how it would be if a sin never happened–not on this side of heaven. Even forgiven, we must live with the earthly consequences of our actions. Josh hurt people. That affected them; it changed them forever. It affected and changed him, too. There’s no amount of forgiveness that can make those consequences completely go away in man’s eyes, and we do have to accept that when we have caused pain. When the hurt caused by Josh the dumb kid rises up again, Josh the responsible adult must deal with it, however many times he has to drop on his knees and beg forgiveness from those he hurt. Just like me, just like you–no excuses.

What can we learn from those opposing poles?

When someone does us wrong, forgive. It isn’t easy. It may have to be repeated, since we humans tend to un-forgive. Just keep forgiving and move on as best you can–easier said than done, I know, especially if one of your own is the victim. Turn to Christ for the strength.

When we do someone wrong, understand that we must accept the consequences like a man (or like a woman, but “like a man” sounds better), humbly, honestly, and without trying to pass the buck. It’s called personal responsibility, even if what we did was when we were young and foolish idiotic.

Own up, forgive, move on, don’t get a national television show, help the victims heal, and be prepared for the consequences to slap you in the face from time to time.

Oh, and don’t be a stupid kid–too late? Yeah, for me, too.

In summary

–Don’t worship people; nobody is perfect…or even close. Everybody falls at some point.

–Forgive others, forgive yourself, embrace Christ’s forgiveness, and own up to the consequences of your actions, even when those consequences come from those unwilling or unable to forgive.

Here is a better article about this whole thing, particularly if a little voice in the back of your head is asking, “Would this have been such a big issue if they weren’t such vocal Christians?”

Four More Random Lessons From the Duggar Issue

1. Why dig up what happened with a stupid 14-year-old more than a dozen years ago, unless, of course, it’s to intentionally cause harm? Lesson: don’t dig up the past in your personal relationships.

2. The Duggars are receiving criticism for “covering up” this incident. Just because they didn’t advertise this issue to the public does not mean they hid it or buried it. They dealt with it when Josh first confessed over a decade ago, they have since, and they are again–certainly not perfectly, because they are human, which is why we don’t worship people. They even voluntarily turned their own son into the police–would you do that? Lesson: practice personal accountability.

3. Third, you think I’m forgetting the victims and protecting the perpetrator, don’t you, just because I wouldn’t actually run him down with my van? How do the victims feel about this? Well, we could ask them if only their parents would further tarnish the girls’ reputations and plaster their names all over social media and the news. But they’re not. They did what they felt was best to protect their girls over a decade ago–certainly not perfectly, because, blast it all, they didn’t get any less human since the last paragraph. They sought counseling, removed the perpetrator until he had been properly “rehabilitated,” and protected the girls’ names. Despite the critics and media ripping open old wounds, the Duggar parents are still doing whatever they can to protect their girls today by keeping their names out of it. Wouldn’t you? Read this truth about the victims. Lesson: do whatever you can to protect your kids–even more than the Duggars did.

4. As Christians, especially those in a position of authority or in the spotlight, we are called to live a “higher” life. We must be above reproach. People are watching like hawks to find fault with us. They will find it, because we’re human, but we can make it as difficult as possible by living the kind of life Christians are called to, and not just when the world is looking, but all the time. That’s a big calling. Lesson: walk the walk.

What are your respectful thoughts?

Clearing Up Some Misunderstandings About My Sabbatical

Some readers were confused about what I meant by "taking a break." This should clarify it.

Now that I’m back from my sabbat and I’ve shared all I learned from my experience, I can open my big fat mouth again address a misunderstanding that was conveyed directly before I left regarding my time off.

Basically, the comment in question said, “It must be nice to have the money and luxury to take six months off and do nothing…not feeding the kids or taking care of the home. That doesn’t sound very responsible.” I didn’t know if I should cry or laugh my head off…so I sneezed…with my legs crossed…because I’ve had seven babies bouncing on this ol’ bladder. Keepin’ it real.

If others of you thought I shipped off the fruit of my loin and spent six months on the beach with meals being brought to me by cabana boys because I’m filthy rich and I didn’t have to lift a finger for half a year, know this:

1) We are traveling music missionaries who are subsidized by NOBODY. We lost all our investments, our savings, and our business in the 2008 crash. We don’t have money; we serve the Lord and He gives us our daily bread. We have no benefits, no employer-subsidized retirement plan, no employer-subsidized dental or health care, no paid vacation, no salary. We have us and our ability to keep going. Starving artist, starving writer, starving musician–there is a reason those expressions exist.

2) I took six months off THE BLOG, not off of life. I still homeschooled, cooked, planned menus, shopped for grocery bargains, worked for the mission, mothered, wifed, traveled the country, wrote a book, cleaned, didn’t get manicures, didn’t get haircuts, didn’t buy new clothes, and wrote articles for pay to help out the finances, which the blog doesn’t reliably do. (That “for pay” only goes with the articles, not all the other hats this mama wears.) I don’t have–nor do I want–the luxury of taking six months off of all those other activities!

3) Shhhhh. Relax. Simmer down as my Pappy used to say. The gist of my post and my sabbat is that, for a short time, I was giving up something that was not a necessity to leave room for more important things, to catch up on some items, and to rest and recharge. I never implied in any way that I or you should give up all responsibilities for six months and be lazy. 

4) And the burning question I would really like to ask people who comment without TRULY reading the post is this: Don’t I hear your mother calling? Okay, so the real question is this: Is my writing THAT unclear that you would think, after all I say about family first, that I want you to disregard your family’s needs for six months and be a bum? If that is what I communicated, then I need to give up as a writer…like, yesterday. Seriously, am I that bad? I need to know the truth.

Another concern some readers had about my sabbat was that I was merely shifting my blog time to my book-writing time. This is a legitimate concern, but let me lay it to rest. Writing is my thing–I can be highly productive in a short amount of time. What consumes my time with the blog is the technical aspect–all the thingies and doo-jabs that go along with images, promotion, uploading, linking, plug-ins, advertisers, affiliates, fixing everything that breaks when I merely touch an electronic device, and blah blah blah blech! Technology is totally and entirely not my thing.

When writing my book, all I had to do was write and hit “save.” The whole process was smooth like butter. Mmmmm…butter. And it took considerably less time than blogging–considerably less. So, no, writing the book was a time-saver, not a time-replacer.

Are we all copacetic with my sabbat now? And is my writing really that bad?

copacetic: adjective, slang. fine, completely satisfactory, okay. (origin: 1915-20 Americanism)