Christmas Spice Tea and homeschooling

AHHHH! I got a very, very nice surprise from my Mother-in-law recently. She went shopping while visiting family in St. Louis and found a little shop that sold gourmet tea. She bought me three different kinds...oh, delight! My favorite of the three is Christmas Spice, how yummy and very fragrant too! Since it is loose tea, she also bought me this adorable little tea infuser that looks like a little silver tea pot. I have never been a very girly girl. And you will find me in tennis shoes and jeans most days, but it feels so delightful to drink a fresh cup of gourmet brewed tea! I feel special.... (can we break out into song now?)

Of course, every time I brew a cup, both girls decide that they HAVE to have some tea as well. Mallory actually likes the stuff, (flavored tea) which is surprising since her tastes are so limited. Sarah swears she likes it and always makes me brew her a cup but never drinks the thing. I guess she needs to be like mom and big sis, right? Tonight she just ate the candy cane that we used as a stirrer. Maybe I'll slip her the cheap stuff since she won't drink it anyway, she'll never know right? It will be our little secret!

Actually, Sarah's leaving her cup of tea untouched got me thinking. I haven't always drank hot tea. Though I have always dreamed of living in 18Th century England, so maybe there was some dormant tea desire inside of me. I actually discovered that I liked flavored tea at a church event. It was, of all things, a Lady's Tea! And there was nothing else to drink, except water. While I LOVE water, I didn't want to offend the table at large that seemed to be really enjoying their tea adventure, so I poured myself a cup... and the rest is history.

This makes me wonder tonight... how many other things are there that I haven't tried but might like? Would I like caviar? How about para sailing? Wanna try goat farming?... okay, it's late I can't think of much tonight... but this train of thought led me to this: As identity directed homeschoolers, are we exposing our kids to a variety of things? Will they find their passion in life? One of Marc and my goals is to help our kids discover something that they would love to do. Something that God designed them for, and lead them that way in life. We would like to think that they won't be part of the millions of Americans who hate their jobs one day. Hopefully we have learned the lessons of life enough that we can help them aim for better (by better I don't mean more money, though that would be nice.. but I do mean an enjoyment of how they spend their days) . But how do we do this, help them discover things that they love to do, when our world is limited to those things we know.

I guess this is one of those things that we have to trust the Lord in. Didn't he create these kids and design them for a purpose?

I think it is also something that we need to be proactive in: Grasping opportunities when they present themselves. This is where the richness of people in our lives can come in....It is important for my girls to know that their Aunt finished college and got a degree, that she is a great mom AND has a successful career, that that road is available to them too. It is also important for them to know that their mom finds contentment at home and that that road too is available to them. They can speak with the engineer at church and see what that field is like. They can also see the types of jobs that wouldn't fit their personality. While on vacation we passed some construction workers who were working on road maintenance. It was very cold and these guys appeared uncomfortable. One of the kids noticed this and started a discussion about not wanting that job when they grew older.... AH, the conversations that followed THAT observation!

So, I guess to sum up my thoughts I would have to say that I pray that I recognize opportunities for my kids to "try some tea" and see if they like it. I don't want to miss opportunities to provide them with experiences that will impact their future. Although I feel limited in my ability to do so, I also recognize that God is unlimited, and I am thankful for that.