Finances

It's Monday! Sorting through finances is such a dreaded thing for me. we are trying so hard to stay humble and keep all of our finances in line this month. We did not buy any new things to add to Christmas decor so that is nice. Something the sermon said about having a Happy New Year. I want that. I want to have a humble Christmas and I await the new year with less stress in our pocket book. In doing so God knows our financial burdens so I pray that he takes my stress and my worry and allow me to trust him completely. I need to get better at this trusting. Hello....He is God!!!

We got past the being still and we survived : )

After being still and knowing that He is God and in the midst of being obedient, and after much prayer, I am past the scary part of “can I go, what will happen, will there be a place for us??? What if….” But in trusting, he has blessed us. Oh how my heart is happy and joyful that I am learning so much more about Him. Even today I learned new scriptures and I can embed them in my memory to continuously apply His teaching to my life. My girls are doing well. They are still transitioning but we are pleased with their commitment to be a family through change and a family of serving. Lord, I pray that you continuously teach me new ways to share you with this secular world and Lord, I ask that you bring new friendships into our life. It is not easy as you know when one leaves their church. I pray for friendships, fellowship and for continued growth in my children’s walk with you. Praise be to you and show me how to glorify and honor you everyday this week. I say week, because I know this week will be a difficult one with so many deadlines, commitments, final exams, research …..
I had a wonderful day! Thank you for the blessings! --Dave not so good. The cowboys lost. We did go to church twice today and I LOVE that. What a wonderful time of year as we wait.


Lord, why did I question your calling???? Please forgive me. You know why and what you have planned for me and I want to be obedient.

Changes

I haven’t a clue why some things happen. Seems I’m learning more and more that you just never know. You simply just never know.

You get so wrapped up in so many daily rituals that sometimes you just get lost in all of it. For me,
…………because I am so high energy it’s hard to just be still.

This year, I had my fair share of learning experiences. I held on with all my heart and all my faith, but sometimes God has different plans and we just never know what they will be like, or if they will be happy, or if they will hurt. Hurt is one of those things I don’t handle well. I just have this insane idea that everyone is loving, and that we are all going to live happily ever after. “I know”………………. “I know” I am a silly girl. That’s probably why I am in counseling trying to be a part of brokenness. I seem to gravitate towards those more needy, broken, and hurt, ……….even yesterday I came home so excited to tell David, “I met this lady and she has no where to go for Thanksgiving, and her mom died and she’s really sad and can we please please have her over to share Thanksgiving with us, oh please.”…… “and she can go with us to your moms and we can share our family with her” and we will all live happily ever after……….I sometimes crack myself up. I’m such a rare soul and when I tend to love too much, that sometimes means you risk getting hurt somewhere along the lines of miscommunication, because we live in such a world that becomes more and more different than what God had intended.

My life has certainly had some major setbacks, hit some turbulence..... It’s that old saying that mama said “you’ll have days like this”
Through all of this, because I am so familiar with self disclosure, I thought “Ok” “God is preparing me with more self-disclosure” “surely that must be it” he must be getting me ready to understand church and life and the whole interaction of it all. I guess I need to understand the dynamics of this if I want to be an effective Christian Marriage Counselor. It makes sense.

A few things I have learned, is that no matter what I have before me, I am never alone. God has certainly shown me new paths and oh man, have I encountered some personal roadblocks. –But it is with those roadblocks that I am gaining strength to move forward and onward to new directions.
With that said, I am in that “Be still and know” waiting period and I have no answers, no ideas, no clue what, if, how, or where I am headed. All I know is that life for me is at a turning point and we just don’t know where that will take us.

I look back at all the pictures of our time with the youth and what a sweet sweet joy in my heart, to have had many precious years there with such wonderful kids. These were special little blessings, and I will carry these joyous moments with me in my heart. I am so grateful to have been a "Mamarie".... I hope I get to put that on my resume : -)


I’m looking forward to just being a mom, a wife and continue working on becoming a Christian Marriage and Family Therapist. When God calls us, sometimes we think we have better ideas but God convicts you and when taht happens......it is scary. In this new calling that he has placed on me, I pray that I am obedient in trust to the path he is preparing before me.

"Be still and know that I am God"



-Marie

A new calling: A time for a change

Talk about a weeping morning. This week I have been praying about something on my heart and I shared it with my dearest friend but today I asked God to help me as I was in complete worry. God has been churning a calling in me for too long now and although my heart is not physically ready for a change God thinks that it's time.

Now to wait to see what he calls me to do. All I know is wherever he places me and whichever door he opens that it be a place where he plant me in soil of his choosing so that I may glorify him once again. Thank you God for trusting and choosing me.

GCA 2009-2010 has begun : )

God has called and asked; therefore I have chosen to honor that calling. When we first decided to home school, it was a calling that God was moving in me and I was adamant that he was NOT talking to me. The more I prayed through this, the stronger the calling was and now we are teaching all 3 various levels and courses to get SAT exams completed and fulfilled and graduation requirements. My day starts at 7 a.m. when I start my day in prayer with coffee, and then I begin printing out lesson sheets so I am organized. I finally bought me a nice computer program that creates the transcript, tallies up their grades and makes their report cards. Yay, for software!!! I sit in my office working quickly because the kids are up at 9 and usually only JD is eager for school to start. The girls roll around by 9:30 griping but DO take their lessons back upstairs and by 10 a.m. the craziness begins. Michelle is usually my first customer as she hates math so I begin helping her work through solving tedious Algebra problems, then it is Krissy who is waiting too in hand with her set of Algebra problems, then it is JD waiting patiently with his Grammar and by the time I know it, it is 5 p.m. and the cycle just continued. The stack gets bigger on my desk and the teacher tasks just continue. I designed an SAT curriculum this summer for my girls which included 8000 possible SAT words and that alone takes me hours creating and printing and studying myself before I give to them. Then in between all this, there is lunch, and breakfast and dinner we order in most of the time unless Dave is home, then he cooks for us. By 8 p.m. I usually take a break to catch up on some paper work then by the time I realize it, the day has passed me by. Dave is home by 10:30 and we talk till midnight and then I start again, same routine. Somehow, Grad school also gets done in between there. I do cry a lot. It helps me release the overwhelming day. Dave is pretty awesome to just sit with me and I get foot rubs while I cry. This is not a complaint session, it’s just my day in a nutshell and I am honored that God has entrusted me with the academic knowledge instilled in my children. This school year will be a tad bit more consuming as it entails various high school courses all of which require lots of one on one plus JD’s now taking advanced math and Science.

JD:
We will begin this School year with Zoology 1, 2 and 3 and Math 5th grade as he tested out of the 4th. JD is an awesome student. He loves school; he loves learning and moves through everything with a joy and exciting of what is being presented for him. He will also take Grammar, Language Arts, Poetry, Health, History, Art, and is continuing the study of the book of Mathew.

Michelle:
Well, what I can tell you about Michelle. She hates math, she hates Grammar, BUT she loves History, and she enjoys the Bible studies. She is NOT looking forward to Biology and NOT looking forward to Grammar, and NOT wanting to take psychology but she is excited about World Geography, Health and keyboarding. We will be taking French I this year and the curriculum is on its way. Oh and she also has English I, the Literature books plus projects. She chose to take all these classes because she would like to early enroll for college. So she is pushing herself and me to get this done. I am proud of her but at the same time overwhelmed with her decision. I know it can be done but I will continue praying about this goal she has set for herself. She plans to get a PhD possibly in Theology, possibly History. Her aspiration is to teach Theology at the University level.

Krissy:
Wow, we have Advanced Biology so she can CLEP out of it or possibly just pass at the college level, Algebra II, Economics, Government, Jesus and His Followers study and Life management under God, English 4, Psychology and SAT preparations. She does NOT like any of it except Bible and Literature. She is addicted to the Twilight series and she does enjoy texting as an extracurricular activity. I wonder if that can go on her transcript. She’s great at it. Krissy serves in the Preschool ministry at our church and aspires to be a school teacher.

Both girls plan to work in our practice when I am self employed with my PhD in Counseling. Michelle will handle the insurance and bookkeeping and Krissy will help with calls, scheduling, etc…

I am proud of all 3 children even though they yell at me, complain about the work, disagree with how I teach and gripe about the tedious lessons that they claim are being taught at a college level… (The violin plays softly), I am honored and I cherish every moment as we begin a new home school year at Godines Christian Academy.

Thank you God for providing the finances and time so that I may continue to home school our children. We do have some struggles along the way, but faith has shown that each and every time, we make it and every year we start again knowing that God will pull us through even the hardest of days.

-Marie

fun day

I just had to write about this special day that God has blessed me with. Often time I get so caught up in the curriculum and the learning that I fail to enjoy the simplicity and the joys that come with homeschooling. We have just had a whole day of Art and exercise. Tomorrow is another day and we will start off from where we left off today. The thing about homeschooling is that if we didn’t finish the day’s work we just try again tomorrow. Even I did nothing but enjoy the day with them. I will pay tonight at class but I am praying that God will stick up for me. Fun day!!!

Good morning Lord

Good morning Lord,

Thank you for this day. My kids finally woke up on time. Dave helped with the discipline of the girls last night. Sometimes they need to be redirected. Often! But Lord you allowed him to hear my concerns and hopefully we are good to go for at least another week. What a beautiful day it is. I am exhausted Lord but I will get through this day for I know it is a day given to me to honor you.

Amen.

praying

--Just coming out of a very difficult storm, but finally starting to see clarity. Not sure how to get my thoughts out without becoming a burden so I will just continue to pray and comfort in the Lord. My heart is sad. I pray for guidance and I pray for healing. I also pray for strength and for forgiveness.

My prayer today

I am so behind with all my life and days just seem to get shorter by the week. My weeks have become days and months become weeks. I ask God everyday for patience for love for guidance and for grace because I know I cannot do this alone. Homeschooling three kids has been so difficult especially with Grad school, counseling, Youth, my church life and home life. Finding a balance is a difficult task but I know the balance gets shifted one way or another. Problem is it gets shifted more towards my church and home life which for me is awesome. I am blessed by that but then the reality of deadlines has to put a damper on my bliss.

Today I began with a great spirit in hopes to assign the kids a weeks worth of assignments which I did, but then it was time to cook, chores, bills, bible study which by the way I am behind 3 days and trying to catch up today as it is due tomorrow. Between homeschooling, cleaning, Grad school, exams, assignments, and now a Library research study, I am so overwhelmed. Every week it just gets a bit busier. Just one more thing added to my plate.

I did take a moment to read with JD, study outdoors with him, make the kids crispy treats, and fancy gourmet hot dogs, but look it is now 7 p.m. and I am just now getting started on the me stuff.

I had a set back after testing Krissy for a practice SAT and realizing we needed to work harder. So, I took a moment to analyze each question with her and assigned her some new words to define and comprehend.

Lord, please hear me and know that I need you to somehow grant me strength to home school the kids, finish the deadlines for this week, listen to a friend in need, support one of our youth through a difficult time, study your word, and make a trip to the Library to do my research that is due Thursday and submit my exam tonight as well as complete my Experiential activity, plus the assigned homework for Psychometrics. I know crying doesn’t help but right now tears is all I got coming out and my body is tired and with Dave home only three days, life is so difficult with just me and I really need you.


Amen

so much to do so little time

The To-Do list:

I need to get my revision in soon for publication. I was hoping to see my article in print next month but might be March. I am so behind.

Move on Friday the 16th

paint the walls

transfer services

change address

school the kids

purchase a new computer

redecorate

class on Tuesday and Thursday at TAMUCC

and the list goes on................

Not feeling so healthy

So this has been a week all its own. With all the packing for the move into our new home, at the end of the day, I am just flopped over, dead tired. We started homeschooling the kids again from the break on Monday of this week. It took me three long days to plan lessons, get organized for all 3 kids. Wow! Glad I did it.

Also my heart thing is sort of back again. Sort of afraid to tell David, but it started back up a few weeks ago. Back to the same old chest pains, hard to breathe, blood pressure is up. BUT between homeschooling the kids, Grad school, and running our household, at the end of the day I am just so overwhelmed and exhausted that I can't even sleep because the insomnia keeps awake. I'm doing my best to keep myself calm so my blood pressure doesn't get so high. It is probably just the move, the schooling, Grad school, being super woman and a lack of sleep. I pray that this chest pain just stop. It really scares me.

Hello 2009

Happy New Year to our special friends!

It is just so hard to believe that 2009 is here, and a new year is beginning. We have certainly had a year filled with changes, new experiences, and we feel blessed that God has taught us so much in just one year. What a blessing for us a family, to experience God’s revelations and plans for our life. Throughout 2008 we said good bye to some very dear and special friends, but we also welcomed new and cherished friends into our lives. Those of you who live far from us are still in our hearts, and we just cannot wait to take a trip as a family for a visit.
This year we began homeschooling all three of the kids. -JD first, then Michelle which was a surprise then Krissy an even bigger surprise. Now we are AOCSA: Alpha and Omega Christian Scholars Academy.

Michelle took her PSAT and scored quite well for an 8th grader. She is hoping to finish the 8th grade quickly and move on to the ninth soon. Krissy is also doing extremely well. She received honors Status in, The National Society of High School Scholars. We were excited that they accepted our school as a transfer school for the society.

JD is glad that he does not have to take the TAKS test. His hobbies still include, dinosaurs, astronomy, reptiles, and he especially loves research projects. All in all, we stay very busy homeschooling all 3 kids, and it is indeed a blessing that I can do this for them. No matter how exhausted I am at the end of the day, I feel encouraged that David is home at 5:45 to fix all that needs fixing, me included. He is such an amazing person. He provides so that I can school the kids full time while in Grad school, which by the way is kicking my hiney. None the less I am excited to be one step closer to counseling couples. Recently I wrote a paper and it was chosen for publication. So,--Grad school is going well, hard but it is exciting. I do not know when I will receive Licensing, but I do know that the journey of counseling others is fulfilling for me. To be able to reach out to others when their worlds are so broken is quite an amazing opportunity for me, and I am so blessed that God has called on me to serve this way.

A little about Dave: He is still working a full time job, a part time job on three days out of the week, and he is the Principal of AOCSA. We are so grateful for how hard he works in order to put me through Grad school, and allow me to stay at home and school the kids. He also along with me continues to serve at Real Life Fellowship with the Youth.

In November we received word that the home we had lived in for the past 3 years was being put on the market. We finally found a great, amazing, and beautiful home on Sun valley. The house is so cute, and is just like our old house back in Alice with all the little extras and vintage personality. We get to move into the new home middle of January, that is, if the Realtor gets the carpet put in, and the painting done by then. We LOVE the house so much that we will try it, and if all goes well, we will definitely try and make an offer to buy the home. Keep us in prayer!
Krissy & Michelle are sharing the upstairs because it is so big that they can both share comfortably. Downstairs is 3 bedrooms, one for Dave & I with lots of cuteness, a room for JD, and the 3rd bedroom we will use as the office for homeschooling, computer, etc…

So as you can see it has been a great 2008, but we are so excited about the year 2009. Between home school, grad school, Counseling, serving at the church, a new place to call home, this year has already shown to be a great blessing to our family. We are too excited about moving day and all that this year has to offer us.
On behalf of the Godines family, we wish you all a very blessed and Happy New Year. You can always reach us by many methods as both Dave & I have face books, you can twitter us, email us, message us or look at our family blog.
We love you all! We are excited about the new church in Flour Bluff. It is amazing!!! The Godines family is busy, busy, busy. JD continues Science interests, Michelle History interests and Krissy is busy socializing. All 3 of our kids keep us quite entertained, exhausted, and you should here my slang. They have taught me more slang than I probably need to know. These are my favorite Krissy sayings: “You’re a freak of nature” and "Dude mom, you're not even cool"