Against all odds… We have achieved greatness this year.

-through blogging, homeschooling and just surviving in Zimbabwe.

Pushing on through Adversity.

Wow! Time certainly flies when one is busy, inspired and a mother… Achieving a year’s blogging, whilst homeschooling my two children, gives me an enormous sense of accomplishment, even though I am still a long way from my end goal. Living in a third world country, which is experiencing economic meltdown, is extremely challenging and stressful and one is never far from a good, old cry 😭 … Just surviving this year in Zimbabwe has been a huge achievement!

One cannot adequately explain the situation to anyone who has not lived though it. I pray that those living outside of Zimbabwe will never have to go through such adversity. It has been hard trying to keep the stresses away from my children… How much do we actually change under stress, when our emotions, our bodies and our minds suffer daily assaults. Despite the onslaughts against me, I always remember the following wise words: “You are what you talk.”

By looking for the small blessings in each day, I manage to stay positive, in an extremely negative environment.

The end result is that I am always seeing blessings from God, within my circumstances.

7 Ways that we have all Grown through this Year.

1. Growth through Homeschooling.
2. Growth in Confidence.
3. Growth in Enablement.
4. Long Term Growth.
5. My Blog Growth.
6. Growth through the Goal of Helping Others.
7. Growth through Standing on God’s Word.

1.Growth through Homeschooling.

My children take up most of my time and I embrace having two special friends who look at life so enthusiastically. I love every minute of Homeschooling and treasure the privilege I have to be able to do it.

2. Growth in Confidence.

Seeing each child grow in confidence each day -and how their school work develops and improves, gives me the most incredible sense of achievement. I love the constant growth, where each child is able to do more and more schooling on their own. I now have days where I can get in four hours of blogging, whilst the children study.

Having them teach one another is also a great way to strengthen their confidence. Murray John (aged 8) loves to read Paula Joy’s (age 10) spelling words, as she takes her spelling test. Even when he struggles with the bigger words, he gets an enormous sense of satisfaction and achievement from doing it.

One learns from teaching and I like to use this principle, whether in the classroom, or during their sporting activities.

3. Growth in Enablement.

I am a firm believer in enabling my children and I often push them out their comfort zones, to observe what happens. An example of this is asking them to do something, which most children of their age don’t do.

For example, driving a car on their own or riding a dressage test on a horse, not a pony. Each time I push them and expand their comfort zone, they grow as people. However, this can only be done in small doses. One cannot put that kind of pressure on a child every day.

From my years of training horses I have discovered that, like horses, my children develop quicker with small doses of pressure, followed by some low pressure and/or downtime.

4. Long term Growth.

Today’s children need to realize that everything towards their growth and development is for their long term success, and not just for the here and now.

In this modern world we all want instant gratification, so I have to work hard at being patient and teaching my children patience, always encouraging them to look to their long term goals, rather than what is happening today.

In today’s world we are continuously learning, as modern technology grows at a rapid rate and we are all endeavoring to keep up. I like to teach my children that learning is a daily process, which never ends. Learning should not be kept to the classroom…

5. My Blog Growth.

My blog is a slow work in progress, as I am unable to do it daily, due to other commitments. I do, however, keep reminding myself that it will be a slow and steady unfolding. The day will come when I can employ others to help me.

For now it’s like going back to school and building my blog, one block at a time. It’s really like learning a new language and has opened my eyes to a whole new world out there. My children are getting to see, first hand, the hours I put into my blog, just to keep it going and growing. They celebrated the high, when I earned my first dollar,- and the lows when I get stuck trying to program something.

My office is often my mobile phone. I have learnt to type on my phone, as and when I have a moment -and then I email it to myself, for completing and posting. Taking small breaks throughout the day, enables me to write and pray. It helps restore my energy and gives me time to sit and think.. I find that the key is to utilize my time wisely and to set realistic goals.

I am writing this post as I sit in the golf club, waiting for my children to finish their 18 holes of golf. They are playing with a 12 year old friend, Braydon, who is an exceptional golfer. Braydon loves to go out on the course to help my children. -They all pull their own golf club carts and have a wonderful 5 hours of fun! I like to write something whilst I wait for the children to finish a sporting lesson

6. Growth through the Goal of Helping Others.

What I have learnt by blogging this year, inspires me to help and guide others. I am getting to realise one of my life’s goal, which is to be able to share the word of God.

Daily I pray that my blog reaches even one person and changes their lives forever. This is my main goal…

I’ve learnt an enormous amount this past year which gives me such a sense of accomplishment. I have also managed to get my blog posts out to 30,000.00 viewers and hopefully I have touched someone’s life in the process.

7. Growth through Standing on God’s Word.

I stand on The Word which states. “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” God can change your life in one move. – Pray for the move, work for the move and embrace the move.

When I get stuck blogging, or actually with anything, I know that the Lord knows everything and he knows how to solve the problem, so I wait and pray for that one move of God. Trust me, it always comes, just at the right time, as ‘God’s timing is perfect…’

Finding the time to blog is my biggest challenge. I have to try and avoid it consuming me, by setting myself realistic goals. I would never have thought of myself as a writer and neither would my teachers, but- hey!- God had different plans, when He put the blog on my heart.

Hopefully, through my experiences, you can also take the plunge and do what’s on your heart and make your dreams become a reality, whatever they may be… Be strong, stand on The Word and pray for that move of God, that will change your life!

“From the fullness of His grace we have all received one blessing after another.” John 1:16.

Prayer: Heavenly Father I thank you for your grace and knowledge that You instill in each one of us. I ask you for continued wisdom as I journey through life. May Your love touch those who seek you and love you. Thank you for all my gifts, dreams and visions. Please strengthen me and grow me. In Jesus precious name I pray. Amen.

May God bless you in all your continued endeavours!

• Developing Life Skills through a Houseboat Adventure.
• Our Homeschooling Adventures and Activities for Jan-Feb 2024.
• How Horse-shows Grow and Develop Our Children’s Characters.
• Our Fun and Fantastic Cape Town Experience.
• Our Homeschooling Adventures and Activities for Nov-Dec 2023.

Please, if my blog had touched your life in anyway -do write to me and let me know…