Spending Time with my Husband...ALONE!!!! (MACHE-A Yearly Event.)

  Once a year, my husband and I get to spend a couple of days together...alone!!!  You see, we are a very close-knit family, and we really, genuinely enjoy being in the company of each other.  YES-all of us- even the children!  Don't get me wrong, our life is not perfect (obviously), and of course we can work on each others nerves now and again, but really, for the most part, we just enjoy being together.  But once a year I get my husband all to myself and he gets me!  Now this may seem like a really "lame" husband/wife getaway to some, but it works for us, and for me it is wonderful!  This exciting yearly event we go to is our states homeschool conference.  Yep, that's right, a homeschooling conference!  Not a romantic get-away, not an exciting adventure, but a homeschool conference!  LOL! It may not be your idea of a fun time, but for us, it is time well spent, and time to re-focus on the important things in life. 

  Okay, so I just have to clarify, here.  What I mean by spending time alone, is that we were without our 4 precious children.   In all actuality we were far from alone, being that the homeschooling conference we were at had about 6,000 people there.  So that's what I mean by alone.  :)
 
  I think what makes this time so special to me, is that I spend every day, all day dealing with the ins and outs of home life, the major area of which is homeschooling our 4 children.  I homeschool by myself without help, much input (for the most part), or much direction from my dear husband, but not without his encouragement and blessing, of course.  So this is the ONE time of year when he enters "my world", and I get to talk all about homeschooling with him and get his opinion on things, and TRY and get his input on things, as much as he is willing.  We get to go to sessions about family, homeschooling, parenting, Christian worldview, and on and on.  It really is an important opportunity for us to re-focus us on the most important things in our life like the Lord, family, etc.

  You see, we chose this path as husband and wife, the decision to homeschool, and I guess in the beginning I was a little naive about it, and I thought that everyday was going to just be wonderful!  Well, anyone who has homeschooled for...say...10 minutes knows that that is a fairy-tale view of homeschooling, and in reality homeschooling is GREAT, but it is also very tough, too.  So to get my husband in my major "arena"of focus for 2-3 whole days, and for him to take an interest in the most important part of my day is wonderful!

  Another really fun thing about the conference, is that we have been attending it for so long that we have come to know several of the vendors, and when we go there and we see them, it's like re-connecting with old friends.  Some of the vendors are families that homseschool and work together-side by side- with their children at a family business to help other homeschool families by providing curriculum, books, services, or many other things.  Most of the vendors their also have the conviction to homeschool, and therefore there is this inner web of connectedness to this convention of people...a common string that ties all of us together, and it's really quite an encouraging and uplifting experience.  Also, over the years we have met and connected with so many other homeschoolers on a casual basis that live all over the state of Minnesota, and inevitably we end up running into these people.  It's always fun to get updates on what their families are up to and see how things are going for them.  Speaking of re-connecting, every time we attend the MACHE conference, the Lord works it out so that we get to connect or re-connect with our friends in our everyday life, too.  This year we got to re-connect with some good friends of ours whom we love dearly, but because of schedules and the distance between us, it's not always possible for us connect on a regular basis.  It was really special to re-connect with these people, hang out with them, and have dinner with them -YOU know who you are!!!  :)  

  I didn't take any pictures of the conference, which I should have, but I do have a picture to share of all of the things I found at one of my favorite parts of the conference, which is the used curriculum sale.  This is where you can purchase curriculum from other homeschoolers, at at reduced price.  It really is a great opportunity for us homeschoolers to buy things at a cheaper price as well as talk with other homeschoolers about curriculum, books, why a curriculum worked or did not work for a child, etc.  Here is a picture of some of the fun books I found this year at the used curriculum sale.

  So my favorite thing to find at used curriculum sales is chapter books.  My kids pretty much devour books, and I want them to read things that are going to enrich their lives in some way.  I love finding books about heroes of the faith, missionaries, character building stories, or biographies of historical figures, etc.  Most of these types of books will not be found at your local library.  I didn't find much in the way of actual "curriculum" at this sale, I got there shortly after the sales began (about an hour), and all of the things I was looking for, curriculum wise, either wasn't there or had already been snatched up.  Oh well, that's the risk you run when buying used (but at about half the price, mind you) is that either no one has what you want, or someone already bought it.  But, that's okay, because I have several other used curriculum sales that I am planning on going to this spring/summer to find what I need.  As well, this homeschool conference has a vendor hall that is AMAZING, and you can find just about anything you could ever want for homeschooling, spiritual growth, character training, bible study, and much, much more.

  Well, there you have it, maybe not the most exciting blog post, but it's what's on my heart, and it's how we like to spend our time!  LOL!  I'm feeling very blessed to be able to have this time with my husband, for the opportunity to be able to homeschool, and for the opportunity to re-focus my attention on the Lord, family, and homeschooling.  :)  Also, I'm thankful for my mom, who takes time off of work ever year just so my husband and I can have this time together.  Thanks, mom!  :) 

Happy Homeschooling!
It's a Lacy Life