Erica Claggett

@Clutch_DWG @JulieLovesFluff Georgette Heyer is fabulous!

@JulieLovesFluff I knee deep in Georgette Heyer books. These Old Shades got me hooked. Something a little lighter, with inuendo but clean, A Lady's Guide to Mischief and Mayhem,

My daughter asked for me to recommend a love story for her to read and they're all so smutty these days that I'm considering those Amish romance books for lack of better material. Y'all have suggestions? She's 14.

@sometherapist @LydiamamaTerf Praying for you

I haven’t posted about my personal hardships on here in quite some time, as I learned quickly what a bad idea that is. That said, without getting into detail, I’ve solidly entered “needs a miracle” territory. So, if you’re so inclined, would you kindly pray for me to receive a miracle or three? Thanks. 🙏

@Andrewnsnyder It's so strange. I've homeschooled 4 kids for 20 years and put countless miles on my minivan taking kids to park days, co-op, sports practice, theater rehearsal, church, and group field trips. The annual homeschool prom has over 300 kids attend! 😆

These people really think homeschooling means locking kids in a basement until adulthood. In reality, it means you can be more intentional about fostering positive socialization.

@smalltown_wife That’s what I did. 24 years in and 2 to go. I’m starting to think about the transition back to full-time work, but I will miss many things about being home with my kids. It’s been worth every trade-off.

we become homeschooling moms, that’s what

@thegenesisbl0ck I decided to homeschool my kids. 19 years in - 2 to go. There have been plenty of ups and downs but it’s never been boring. 😉

What happens when a woman is intelligent enough to see the long-term value of being a SAHM, but too intellectually restless to reduce that role to housework and washing the dishes alone?

@iowaohiomom @SpiritedSparr0w Yes! As a amateur performer watching my daughter work hard and grow and get better than me, earn an amazing scholarship to a drama school, and thrive is so exciting for me. If I had to choose between performing and watching her perform, she wins every time!

@SpiritedSparr0w Hubs & I skied before kids. Watching your daughter gracefully pass you on an icy slope, seeing your son pause & look to make sure mom's ok back there...An exquisite type of fun that was not possible before kids. Witnessing them become better than me at something? Pure pleasure.

It’s so insane that people feel this way. I’m sorry, but I actually have to hold back about how amazing it is to be sharing things of my life with my child. Just yesterday he found rocks that I collected on a glacier 20 years ago and I’ve kept them all this time not knowing why. And when he found them he said “are these for me??” And I smiled so hard inside and just responded “yes, yes they have been the whole time.” He got his first pair of skis and I put him between my legs as we went down a little slope on our land and I was so overcome with happiness, it’s hard to even describe. And I don’t care at all that I don’t “get in my runs” for the day. Running alongside him as he learns to ride his bike… pure joy. Much more than riding my own bike. It’s true that we still have individual pursuits as a human being, as all human beings do, but you think doing things with your kids makes that thing worse? I’m sorry, this is cope. What you may witness is some hardship and stress, but even 30 minutes in the pool with your kid teaching them to swim is worth the 1 hour it took to get there and every parent knows it. Also, there is this whole modern worldview thing that is very new which tells people that the only things worth pursuing are the things that are easy and pleasurable 100% of the time and this is just not true, unless you never want to grow, learn, or do anything hard and meaningful.

@joel_graff @ImWatson91 @thegenesisbl0ck Every choice has its trade offs - in this case it has been worth every one to be with my girls, direct their education, and allow them the free time to pursue their interests.

My college educated wife did the same for our sons. I’ve always handled the finances and worked. I often find myself wondering why we seem to struggle financially despite my decent paycheck until I remind myself why. My wife’s decision to homeschool our kids has had major benefits that I didn’t have - most of them I couldn’t appreciate until I saw it. I am incredibly grateful we didn’t hand off their education to education professionals, public or private.

Motherhood doesn’t appeal to many women today because it demands selflessness in a culture built on individualism. Being a good mother means willingly deprioritising certain personal wants. The trade-off is richer and more meaningful, but we’ve convinced ourselves that our own “self-care” and “mental health” should never be compromised.

@joel_graff @ImWatson91 @thegenesisbl0ck I’m a college-educated woman who gave up my career to stay home and raise (and homeschool!) 4 daughters. Several times my husband has been asked if he “made me” do it. He usually replies, “That’s funny you think I can make my wife do anything she doesn’t want to do.” 😆

Perfectly fair. But in today’s culture, a woman who wants to be a mother, stay at home, marry a husband who provides financially and finds the idea fulfilling is often publicly derided as being brainwashed for desiring that over her career. There’s a reason Western culture is seeing a drastic decline in birth rates and it’s not unreasonable to think that failing to uphold raising a family as a virtuous goal for anyone (whether male or female) has contributed to it. I’m not blaming feminism to say that. Only saying that a healthy culture cannot survive in the extremes of individualism or collectivism.

@homemakinghunny This is pretty all or nothing thinking. I’ve homeschooled 4 kids and at times I let the dishes wait until morning to play a game with them instead. I didn’t immediately clean up snow gear to enjoy hot chocolate with them. It’s not “don’t do housework” it’s “prioritize the kids.”

So what I’m supposed to just stop cleaning for 10 years? lol

I hate when people say “housework can wait. Enjoy your kids while they’re little.” You either haven’t had children or don’t remember what it’s like because my kids need clean clothing which requires washing, folding and putting away laundry, 3 meals a day not to mention snacks which requires planning, grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning, dishes. My baby’s highchair needs wiped down 3x a day and swept up after. Baby also puts everything in her mouth so the floors need cleaned throughout the day. The bathtub needs to cleaned for the kids to have baths, the toilet needs to be cleaned for the 3 year old who touches it while she’s climbing up onto it plus just generally it needs to be cleaned. This is the most unrealistic thing to say to a mother of young kids. Also, I have no desire to live in a dirty cluttered messy house.

@sometherapist @AsturianCyclone As a fellow intellectual - it can be a stumbling block in its own way. My pride says it should all make sense to me right now. My encouragement would be to honor your questions. Keep searching. Keep asking. The journey is good. God shows up - often in surprising ways.

I’m halfway there with you, but I get tripped up on this: God is offering me that choice, literally right now. I’m supposed to believe he wants my heart and mind, he wants me to follow him and receive salvation and eternal life, not to perish. Okay, great! So then why trip me up intellectually? Why give me the intellect he gave me, one of his gifts to me, and then ask me to suspend disbelief in some really incredible ways, making reasonable faith harder to access? I’m aware my own sin is gonna be a stumbling block. I can accept that that’ll be part of the struggle. But my intellect, which is a good thing and a God given gift, is not inherently sinful and shouldn’t be an obstacle to receiving salvation from a just God.

Genuine question for long time Christians. I'm studying the Old Testament. First I read an NLT study bible, then review + reflect in an ESV journal. I've read through Leviticus so far. So far, I've found at least 3 sins the God of the Old Testament would have had me killed for. Some when I was quite young. There's no age stipulation on punishment by death for disrespecting one's parents, for instance. To put it mildly, I'm having difficulty squaring the wrath of OT God with the mercy of His son Jesus. Frankly, I'm having a hard time liking this God. What to speak of loving or respecting Him. I'm also having difficulty understanding how an omnipotent ruler who governed through fear and intimidation, along the lines of the consequences we see for violating his commands in the OT, could simultaneously be seen as granting humans free will. I also have difficulty imagining how an intelligence brilliant enough to design our DNA and galaxy could be come across as so petty, ill-tempered, and insecure. Finally, when I read the brutality of the OT and then in the next breath see commentary on how merciful, patient, forgiving, and faithful God is, the juxtaposition not only gives me whiplash — it makes me feel somewhat gaslit. I know countless others have expressed similar sentiments. For what it's worth, mine is in earnest. I'm not an atheist trying to trap you. I am a new follower of Jesus Christ, wanting my faith to be authentic, sincere, grounded, thoughtful, and intellectually robust. I've asked several people for their thoughts on this. Not just online — the people next to me in church; the Christians across the aisle from me on the plane. I haven't heard a satisfactory, intuitive, or even intellectually coherent answer yet. I know these are all just people. None have perfect knowledge. But if you can point me in the direction of some truly enlightening commentary, I'd appreciate it. I've read some fantastic books in the apologetic genre, and listened to great podcasts, just none that have broached this subject yet. ***This is NOT an invitation for quarrelsome atheists or others hostile towards faith. It's specifically an invitation to fellow Christians whose motives are sincere and helpful. If that's not you, Reddit is down the hall and to the left. I'll mute or block any accounts that don't respect this request.***

@allie__voss I met my husband in college and my education has been great for homeschooling my kids!

This is why it’s weird telling women to “just get married” and “don’t go to college” You have to have something to do even if being a wife and a mom is your plan A! Going to college and working is a perfectly good pursuit (and makes finding a spouse easier) in the meantime

@sappholives83 I have a kettle with temperature settings and I make almost everything at 185 F - it brews well and I don’t have to wait 30 minutes to drink it. Exception is green tea at 165 F to avoid bitterness.

People who drink hot tea — does it really matter that much if I’m not using boiling water to make it?

@federoffm @MegEBrock My parents never attended a wedding during my childhood with me. 🤷🏻‍♀️

@MegEBrock Nope. I was there. There were no “child free” weddings in the 80’s & 90’s because the very idea would’ve been thought of as hopelessly self-centered and absurd. Of course children are supposed to be at weddings. They are one of the reasons you get married.

A little late to the debate but I’ve been thinking about the modern idea of “child free” weddings and this is my take: “Child free” weddings weren’t a thing in the 80’s and 90’s because we were a more respectful and less entitled society. Everyone understood weddings are serious, stressful, elegant and expensive events for adults to attend. It was understood they are not an environment for children. Couples didn’t need to specify their wedding was “child free” because it was assumed. Parents knew they had to get a babysitter. And everyone won. Couples didn’t have to stress over kids screaming during the ceremony. Kids were happier at home. Parents got a fun, kid-free evening. No one questioned this and we were better for it. I said what I said.

@jan_murray I was part of a math competition in high school and a female teacher drove me to the event and we stayed overnight in a hotel room. Never occurred to anyone to mind. Lovely woman and a fun trip. Rest of our team was boys and one of their dads drove them, I think.

My daughter doesn’t believe me when I tell her this - but in the early 90s, before “safeguarding” was even a word, I once stayed overnight at a teacher’s house. In fact, two teachers - a married music/chemistry teacher couple from my school. I had a clash with two A-level papers and someone decided the obvious solution was for me to stay at theirs overnight. Dinner in the garden. My music teacher in her housecoat and rollers the next morning. A slightly cringeworthy lift to school with them. Lovely people - and no harm done. But different times eh?

@ATalmudist My husband and I really liked this movie. Well done sir!

Guns & Moses — the indie thriller everyone is talking about. With a 96% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, this small-town rabbi’s fight for justice will keep you on the edge of your seat. Watch now on Amazon!

@MrsCMFrancis It's so silly. Even my kids who weren't late readers took a while to get into chapter books. They are all fine readers now and I assign classic literature in high school - and not just excerpts, the whole book!😄

I have to say, watching my mutuals show up to defend me in a crazy person’s quote-tweet is my fav thing 🥰

@MrsCMFrancis I homeschool 4 kids. Two were late readers - around age 8. One was so determined to try to guess the words that I bought a book called Toe by Toe that was mostly nonsense words to make her sound things out. Those kids are now 19 and 15 and reading just fine. Hang in there Mama!

Teaching my 7yr old to read has been the ultimate trial of my homeschool career so far 🫠🫠🫠🫠

Every. Time.

With few exceptions: It doesn't get easier. You won't have more time. Things won't slow down. This isn't just a season. Either you take joy where you are, or you won't.

@__debi__t That sounds very stressful. I will pray.