Frye Fam Happenings

Moving into Part Two of the book, "Civilization for the Tough," the Young's begin with "First Things" first! What do you think is the first thing involved in raising REAL men to be civilized? Deuteronomy 6:4-7 The Young's have dubbed this passage of Scripture "the basic commandment for homeschoolers." I think many homeschoolers use this passage, as well as Deut. 11:18-20 , which I even have had on my homeschool blog for awhile :) To summarize the verses: Teach (these words) diligently to your children, talk of them while you sit, when you walk, when you lie down, when you rise... The foundation of the raising of our children (boys or girls) must begin here. "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength," and with all your mind (which we so often forget!!!) (Matthew 22:37) I am so glad the Young's state this as being first, because even though, as a believer, it seems obvious, it can s

I just want to brag on God... I have posted before about how the Lord has blessed my homeschooling efforts in very obvious ways. Just yesterday, the "Sid the Science Kid" show on PBS Kids was about freezing water...on the day we were going to do an experiment with frozen water. Things like that seem to happen often, and I am continuously amazed (and obviously encouraged!) In the past week, I have been reading about prayer, being convicted of the need to do it more often and with more purpose, and talking to the boys about my shortcomings in faithfully praying with them. Yesterday, we painted the word "PRAY" together and put it up in the kitchen as a reminder to do it more ("without ceasing" as our verse of the week says.) I also (completely randomly) listened to Be Thou My Vision and posted some of the lyrics on the blog as a reminder to myself to seek the Lord's pleasure and not man's approval. I can't even put into words everything God has be

Eli counts perfectly from Anna Frye on Vimeo .

In our discussion of Matthew 23:1-12 at Bible study this morning, I was struck by a couple of things about us as humans. We try so hard to DO and BE for our salvation. We try to jump through hoops and cross things off our "good enough for Jesus" list in order to win His approval. We say that we have been "saved by grace through faith," but most of us certainly don't act like it. We strive for man's approval, and quite frankly, we come by it pretty easily. That tends to lead to our desiring more recognition, and therefore we continue to fall into the " do " and " be " mentality. The problem with all of this is what God's Word has to say... In this passage, Jesus is speaking of the law readers and interpreters. The Scribes and Pharisees took it upon themselves to make sure everyone obeyed the law. However, they often left themselves out of the loop and "lay (the rules/burdens) on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not

6:30 am : Josiah is awake and wanting to nurse. He has been waking up around 6:30 every day lately, and it's slowly killing me. I feed him and get back in bed, although I shouldn't...we have to get up in 30 minutes and the little sleep I get will only be a tease. 7:00 My cell phone alarm goes off. Why are we getting up so early on a SATURDAY?!! 7:30 We have snoozed long enough. Derek gets up to get the boys up and around for breakfast and to get them dressed in their baseball gear. It's going to be another busy Saturday, but once I am dressed and moving around, I am excited about the day. 8:30 We load up in the car and head off to Titus' game. 9:30 T's game is over (his are very short :) ), and we head across town for a Police (Fallen Officers) Fundraiser and motorcycle show. Derek's office has a booth set up there, so the boys and I walk around to look at ALLLLL of the motorcycles (they were EVERYWHERE, and the boys were enjoying themselves immensely!) We w

We have a trampoline... I never thought I would say that! We have had only minor injuries so far, and I'm hoping this contraption does not send us on our first ER run. We play Marco Polo, Ring Around the Rosie, Hide and Seek (don't ask), and break the egg on our trampoline. Three out of five of our current jumpers can do tricks so far (although they are not very impressive tricks, but we're working on that :) ) Much to my surprise ( or not ), the jumping/wrestling/rolling the boys do on this thing does not even begin to wear them out. It's a fact: their energy is endless!!

No one tells you to talk to your kids about losing their first tooth!! Justus: Look, Mom, what happened?! Me: Oh my goodness! You're losing your first baby tooth! Justus: (look of worry on his face) HUH? Me: (wiggling his tooth in the aisle of Walmart and almost passing out at all my memories of having my own teeth pulled) You lose your baby teeth, so your big boy teeth can come in! (Well, that does sound kind of scary, doesn't it? kind of like he's going to be without any teeth!) J: Is it going to hurt? Me: (oh brother, how do I answer this one?) It won't hurt if it just falls out on its own... J: Can I still eat???? Me: Yes, of course you can still eat. You won't lose all of your teeth at once. Do you want me to pull it out? J: (reluctantly nods his head) haha I totally wasn't prepared for any of this. What do I say? What do I do with the tooth? Do we do the Tooth Fairy thing? I'm actually impressed that Justus took all of this with such ease. Knowing hi

AAAAAAAAAAAAAnd I'm finally back to reading this book! :) When I opened it up to chapter 6 and read the title, "Racing to Win," I knew I would be able to relate to the things I was about to read. Well, not relate as far as understanding what the big deal is in every.single.thing being a RACE...but at least understanding that, for whatever reason, it IS a big deal to boys. Since, apparently, God made our sons "normal" in this way, I definitely want to know how to steer their desire the way of the righteous! The Young's point out 2 important things to remember as our sons wade through the various races and competitions of their boyhood: Proverbs 6:16-19 lists "one who sows discord among brethren" among the seven abominations of the Lord. 'Nuff said, right??? The desire to compete will definitely lead to someone winning the competition, and therefore, bragging might ensue. We must teach our sons that any gifts, talents, or strengths they display

This weekend, our pastor convicted me of something I already knew. In fact, I've even confessed this thing to my husband. Have I confessed it to God, though? No, not that I can remember. That's the part I was convicted about. Even though I knew I had this sin in my life, I hadn't asked for forgiveness. I hadn't asked the Lord to give me victory in this area, and I hadn't pursued repentance. Until now... What am I guilty of? I idolize my children . It's kind of odd to "say it out loud." It just seems like, as a mom, idolizing our children is surely an impossibility. Don't they drive us so crazy that there's NO WAY they could be held that highly in our hearts and minds? I mean IDOLS??...seriously?? Or maybe it seems a little weird to call the people we spend every waking (and sleeping, let's be honest) minute of every day with "idols," because OF COURSE we naturally think about them all the time, do everything for them, and LIVE for

Titus, Four years ago, you were born. Sweet, tiny little baby boy. Our second born son. We were so thankful God brought you into our family. Two years ago, we were praising the Lord for allowing us to keep you. You fell into a swimming pool when no one was around, but (Hallelujah!) God prompted Daddy and I to go outside looking for you. He saved your life, and we never want you to grow up not knowing about that. Your days have been numbered by your heavenly Father. You have a purpose, He has a plan for you, and we feel so blessed to be a part of that. Today, according to you :) (even though you're only 26 lbs.) you are officially a big boy. You are already displaying more confidence and taking on more responsibility. My prayer for you is that you would be strong and courageous. God is always with you, He will never leave you...that is His promise. He is strong and mighty even when we are not, and I pray that you will know that fully even at four years old. God is using you in our

SPIDAMAN!!!

Almost one year ago... Our T iger-loving, I ntelligent T hree-year-old is U p and S miling at all of this attention We love you, Titus! We are so thankful God blessed our family with your sweet, funny, full-of-life presence :) Happy Birthday!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You are many things, and we are glad you are YOU!

Titus was taking a nap when we went outside to play today. Justus went inside to get some water for the plants, heard Titus, and invited him to come play with us. At first, he needed time to warm up to the bright sun. It didn't take him very long to get busy taking turns with the watering can. And soon after, he was making his little brother laugh...and making me smile :) We sure do love this kid! (That would be Derek you see in the background of the last picture... at it again with another project, paving the driveway!!! We sure do love our hard working Daddy and husband, too!)

In 2001 , we met on the beautiful Chesapeake Bay. We spent morning, noon, and night together, becoming friends, watching the sun rise and set, and falling in love. You swept me off my feet. In 2002 , you asked my dad if you could marry me...he said no. You asked again, and he said no. Finally, he said yes, and you asked me to marry you. You were patient, submissive, and honorable. In 2003 , we got married. We moved in to our first apartment together and made countless memories. We went to the dollar movies for 50 cent Tuesdays, because that's how cheap we were :) We ate frozen meals (chicken pot pies, hot pockets, and Steak 'Ums, to name a few!) We laid in bed at night and watched "Friends" and "Everybody Loves Raymond." You weathered my gallbladder storm faithfully, lovingly, and with compassion. In 2004 , we decided I would stop taking birth control. One month later, we conceived our first child. You surprised me with balloons, a card, and flowers to celeb

Check out this crazy boy:) ...Intense, huh?!! haha

In honor of Titus' birthday this Sunday, I'll be posting re-runs of Titus posts this week. Enjoy!! Let's start at the beginning. Remember, I didn't start blogging until Titus was almost 2. Here's a post from almost exactly two years ago!! Wow.. Wow. I can't believe it:) Two years ago today, Titus was born. I hung streamers in Titus' doorway last night (a family tradition), and Justus and I went into his room this morning singing "Happy Birthday to You!!" He wasn't too enthused...He sucked his thumb, twirled his hair, and listened and then asked for his oatmeal and milk once we finished singing. After breakfast, though, I gave all 3 boys a bath, and Mimi called to sing to him. He LOVED it this time and had a huge smile on his face. Justus and I have been talking all day about it being Titus' birthday, and by lunch, he was singing "Happy Birthday" to himself. hahaha Titus is such a happy kid. He loves to smile and laugh,