I'm ready for my closeup

I have been "interviewed" by Sandy. Here are the "Official Interview Game" Rules:

1. If you want to participate, leave a comment below saying "interview me."
2. I will respond by asking you five questions - each person's will be different.
3. You will update your journal/blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview others in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.

These are some great questions, so here goes!

1. I know you teach your children at home, can you tell us what led to that decision and how you think your children's life experience differs than one going to public school? We really made the decision before we ever had kids. Hubby did a report on homeschooling when he was in college, so we had quite a few conversations about the benefits. Plus, he knew people at school who had been homeschooled all the way through high school and they were some of the smartest and most well-adjusted people on campus. On my side of the equation, I and my brother both had some very negative experiences in public school. Mine mostly involved other students, his involved the teachers and the students. I would never willingly put my kids in situations like that, where people are constantly beating them down and calling them stupid (yes, my brother had teachers call him stupid). Even in a Christian school, my bro had problems. So homeschooling seemed like a great alternative. I think my kids are very secure in their identities, and will be more so as time goes by. They definitely get more "free time" than kids in regular school - it only takes 2 or 3 hours to do their lessons and then they're done - no homework, either! I also love the maintaining of innocence. I'm not saying they're naive, but they don't have other kids telling them about things that I'm not ready for them to know. I want hubby and I to be the ones to teach them about the world and how it works. I'm not saying I want to shelter them - just the opposite, I want them to know the facts. Okay, I guess I've said enough about that!

2. How did you become a Christian and how has it changed your life? Well, I remember accepting an invitation to come forward during a special service at my church. I was 6. Now, that's pretty young, so I can't say I remember what life was like before. But I often think how different my life would be if I hadn't made that decision. Hubby wouldn't have married me, for one! I am constantly amazed at how God works in my life. I can look back and see events, like pieces of a puzzle, which didn't make sense at the time, but which fit together perfectly into a picture of great blessings. My life verse is Romans 8:28: "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose." Any time I feel down about something, I just remember that verse. It has always been true for me and it always will be.

3. How did you meet your husband?And how did you know he was "the one?" (I liked this question from Marie) We met at church. We had both been going to the same church for several years, but I never noticed him (I really think God deliberately kept me from seeing him until I was "ready"). I was 15, and there was a concert at church. I saw this guy helping move tables and I thought, "Who is that?" Then I discovered that he was buddies with a guy friend of mine (who wanted to be more than friends, but I didn't know it). So I asked his name, looked up his phone number, and called him. We spent hours and hours on the phone almost every night and I was thrilled to discover he wasn't just a handsome face, LOL! I kept thinking, I could marry this guy. Then one night, we were driving to a store to pick up sodas for my parents, and I looked over at him and this still, small voice said "You're going to marry him." I was only 15, so it freaked me out a little, but I knew it was true. And sure enough, six years later we got married!

4. Tell us about your goals from when you were a child and if you have fulfilled any of them. Let's see, I wanted to be an actress. I have acted in school and campus plays, but that's it. I love it, though, and am thinking about trying out for community theater sometime. I wanted to be a writer. I'd say, mission accomplished, sort of. I have written for pay, and I've written for free. I wrote and self-published a Star Trek novel when I was 16, which I then sold 200 copies of at Star Trek conventions. And of course, I keep in practice by writing here every day! I wanted to get married and have children. Done, done, done, done, and done!

5. If there were anything you could change about your life this instant, what would it be? Likewise, are you content with the way things are now? I would create a job or business that hubby and I could do together from home and that was something we both loved to do. It would be wonderful if he could stay home all the time. Other than that, I am very content. We just moved into a house I love a little over a year ago, I have four beautiful sons, a wonderful marriage, a great pastor at a great church, I get to stay home and teach my boys. Yes, I would say over all, I am extremely blessed.

Thanks for the wonderful questions, Sandy! It's always fun to talk about myself! Haha.