Like marathon running, when you become a parent you're in it for the long haul. It's not a 5K. It's not even a 42.2K. It's a lifetime of determination, energy, and sweat. But unlike marathon running, with parenting there is more than one finish line, and every time a child hugs you, tells you he loves you, or has his own personal wins - you become a winner as well :-)

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Excerpt from The ABC's of Homeschooling:

"The best teacher is the one who suggests rather than dogmatizes, and inspires his listener with the wish to teach himself. . ." Edward Bulwer Lytton

By listening closely to your children you can create a love of learning. By creating in your child a love of learning you are giving the child all the tools he needs to become a successful adult. You may question this last statement. All the tools he needs to become a successful adult? Yes, by creating a love of learning the child will teach himself about anything he is interested in. During the journey of learning about the things we love we also learn many other fascinating facts that have nothing to do with the chosen subject.

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A wonderful treat on New Year's day is waking up to a blanket of fresh white snow covering the earth. It beckons and begs the soul to create something. A snowman, an igloo, a trail... When venturing outside and making in tracks in fresh snow, one soon sees that other creatures have already left their marks. Birds with tiny Y tracks barely scratch the surface. Deer whose hooves make deep, delicate hearts in places. What kind of marks do you make? Are your tracks deep and grooved from boots with traction? Or do you wear snowshoes and barely scratch the surface?

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Looking back a hundred years or more to past Christmases drums up pictures of the perfect Christmas. Warm fires burning brightly, with real pine and cedar decorating their mantles. Handmade gifts wrapped and placed under the tree with utmost care and love. Toasty kitchens with wonderful smells wafting from the stove. Men in tall hats and ladies in fluffy dresses. We don't have to go back to Victorian times for Christmases in the past to make us look back wistfully.

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We are all familiar with the story of the first Thansgiving with Squanto (also known as Tisquantum - meaning "rage of the Manitou") and the Pilgrims. It is fun to envision and act out different scenarios with big silver belts, tall hats, and feathers. But it is truly impossible for any of us to imagine just how grateful they were for a bountiful harvest and a warm hearth, because these are things that most of us take for granted.

Today, Thanksgiving Day, like many other holidays, has changed its meaning in mainstream.

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