Celebrate the Journey with Apologia Live!

Last July, I shared about a luncheon that I attended in Baltimore with the ladies from the Apologia Live Retreats.  It was a great time of fellowship with other homeschool moms (who are in the trenches just like me) and refreshment (for me, personally).  At that time, I mentioned that I would be giving away a ticket to an upcoming Apologia Live event.  And guess what?  Now is the time!

This year’s Apologia Live theme is Celebrate the Journey - - -

Celebrate the Journey of homeschooling, wifehood, and being a mom during the good times, the bad times and yes, even the ugly times.  Join us as we look at the scriptures and seek encouragement from veteran homeschool moms on how to Celebrate the Journey!

Apologia Live invites you to a retreat designed to encourage and support homeschool moms.

Meetings will be held this spring in Baltimore, MD (March 9 – 10) and Atlanta, GA (March 23 – 24).

I have one regular ticket to give away to one of my readers!  This ticket is valued at $115 and includes the Live Event only (6 General Sessions and 2 Prayer Sessions on Friday afternoon and evening, starting at 3:30 pm and running through Saturday at 4:15 pm. The Retreat price also includes lunch on Saturday.)  Hotel reservations and the additional Nuts & Bolts pre-Live session will be the winner’s responsibility.  Winner will have their choice of attending either the Baltimore or Atlanta event. 

If you are looking for refreshment, encouragement, and fellowship, I’d highly encourage attending Apologia Live!  I have never attended before – but I’ve spent time with some of the speakers and know them personally and I’ve been listening to past Live events on cd. 

If you’d like to register on your own, you are more than welcome to do so.  They are offering a great Buy 2,  Get 1 Free Special.

FYI: I plan to attend the event in Baltimore and would love to meet you!

Now, on to the giveaway . . .

I want to keep this simple so we’ll just have one mandatory entry – simply leave a comment to this post telling me why you would like to win this ticket to Apologia Live and which location you will be attending if you win. 

If you’d like more opportunities to win, you can choose from the following list (please leave a separate comment for each on that you do do):

• Visit the Apologia Live Blog and look around.  Come back here and tell me one thing that you learned about the Apologia Live conferences.
• Like Apologia on FB to learn more about the Live events.
• Follow Apologia Live on Twitter.

I will leave this contest open for 2 weeks and will select a winner on Monday, January 16th.

NOTE: The ticket for this giveaway is being provided by Apologia Live. I will also be attending the event for free as a gift to me in exchange for helping to promote the event.  I do not promote anything on my blog that I don’t personally believe in.

How to Have a H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids by Rachael Carman

The Crew year is off to a great start – our very first product to review this year is How to Have a H.E.A.R.T. For Your Kids, a great little book by Rachael Carman, owner (with her husband Davis) of Apologia. 
Several years ago, when the Carmans purchased Apologia, they decided to expand the company’s vision.  Now, in addition to the great science curriculum that we’ve all come to know, love, and trust, Apologia also has a Press division that contains lots of awesome resources to encourage  the homeschooling parent.  The books they have available really excite me – and I can’t wait to read more of them (and will surely be posting about them on my blog in the months to come as well).  But, right now, the focus is on:

How well do you really know your kids? What has God shown you about who they are and who they will become? He has sent these children into your home at this specific time for His glorious purposes. Indeed, you have been invited on the adventure of a lifetime, a journey on which you will see walls fall, seas parted, and giants slain. You don't need special skills or training for this journey—you need only to seek God and hold tight to His mighty hand! As with so many things, the first step to having a heart for your children is knowing your heavenly Father. As you seek daily to share His heart for your children, keep this inspirational book close at hand.

I was impressed with this book upon first glance.  It’s a small (approx. 5x7”) hardbound book and the cover is just so attractive (the picture doesn’t do it justice – you need to see it and hold it in your hands to get the full effect!)  I opened it, started reading the introduction, and thought “now this lady really seems sincere!”
I’ve confessed to not being a huge non-fiction reader – I tend to easily bore with non-fiction and sometimes don’t even finish books.  If I do finish, it usually takes me awhile.  Not so with this book!  I devoured every tidbit of it.  I really enjoyed Rachael’s writing style – she makes the book so personal by sharing candidly from her own heart and experiences. 
I especially liked the way the word “heart” was used as an acrostic.  Each letter plays a very significant role in the book as a whole – without one component, the idea of having a heart for your kids won’t work. 

H – Have a Heart for the Things of God
E – Enrich Your Marriage
A – Accept Your Kids
R – Release Them to God
T – Teach Them the Truth

There’s a chapter for each letter listed above, as well as a lengthy introduction and an epilogue that will encourage you to put the book’s ideas into practice in your own life and family.  Definitely well worth reading, especially for the homeschool mom, but I’d recommend it to anyone!

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I had the honor of meeting and sharing lunch with Rachael a few weeks ago.  I got to hear her talk about her passions – not just in the writing of this book, but for the Apologia Live Retreats as well.  (I’m looking forward to attending one of these retreats in the spring – and will be giving away a free ticket to one of my readers as well!)  Anyway, I was thrilled to have Rachael sign my copy of the book and very much enjoyed spending time with her and getting to know her better. 

If you have a chance to read one of Rachel’s books (you can read more about her first book – Sound Bites from Heaven – here) or to attend an Apologia Live event, I’d encourage you to do so!  Who knows?  Maybe I’ll see you there!

Everybody needs encouragement!

I  try to be pretty transparent on my blog. Sometimes you’ll find me talking about things that bother me, or things that I want or dream about. But, some things are hard to put into words even if you are trying to be real. Some  things are matters of the heart and are hard to translate into real words.

Yesterday, Ashley and I headed to Baltimore to spend our afternoon with some fellow bloggers and some ladies from Apologia Live Retreats. As I was sitting there, eating lunch and fellowshipping with these ladies around a big table, it struck me how much I needed that. I have to admit – sometimes I feel like an island.  While I’m a homeschool mom with LOTS of connections (through my position with The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine and the Homeschool Crew) – I really don’t have any close connections (geographically).

It was so good to just sit there and chat with ladies who share similar interests with me. I left there feeling very refreshed and encouraged.  (And with some great reading materials from Apologia Press – enough to keep me busy for quite awhile!)

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When I go to homeschool conventions each spring, I meet so many homeschool moms.  They’re all on a mad dash to buy up all the curriculum and resources that they need for their kids for the coming school year.  I know that most of them are on a budget.  I am too.  But I always try to encourage them to spend a little bit of that budget on themselves.  Why? Because homeschool moms need encouragement! 

And, this weekend, I found the perfect way for me to get some encouragement, some refreshment, and some friendship (which I really, really need!) – I’m going to the Apologia Live Retreat in Baltimore in March! 

And guess what?  You can too!  I have one free ticket to give away on my blog (to the retreat of your choice).  I’ll be posting more about that – and the retreats in general – in the months to come. 

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But, for now, I just wanted to encourage you – as a homeschool mom – to take some time for yourself (even if it means spending a little bit of money every once in awhile).  It’s important!  And sometimes a pedicure or a new haircut aren’t enough!

So, be sure to check back on my blog for upcoming details on Apologia Live.  I’m really excited to share them with you!

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ETA: Here’s a picture of the group of us from Saturday’s luncheon.  I’ve included blog links so you can stop by and visit my friends (some I’ve known for awhile, others are new friends!)  Who knows?  Maybe we’ll be hanging out together at a future Apologia Live Retreat!  That would so ROCK!

Front row (L-R):
Brandi (Living Sola Gratia), Liz Corson (Apologia), Rachael Carman (Apologia)

Second row (L-R):
Kym (This Blog Needs A Title…), Loretta (Books ‘n Other Stuff), ME (Heidi’s RRR),
Kelly (Believe), Peggy Smith (MACHE), Sharon Abbott (MACHE)
Cheryl  (SomewhatCrunchyMama), Michelle Eichhorn (Apologia)

Oh, and yes, I’m wearing pink.  I NEVER wear pink.  I so don’t know what came over me when I bought that shirt!