My husband has set up a blog to provide information about how Cheyenne is doing. If you are interested in her progress, just go to http://www.cheyennesworld.com. You might want to scroll down and read the first post first. There is also a link to a short video of Cheyenne. We appreciate all of you who are concerned about and praying for her!

Since I last posted, Cheyenne has had quite a few ups and downs. She had to be put on a ventilator on Wednesday. Her condition began to worsen some on Thursday, and by Thursday night was critical enough that she was transported to Children’s Hospital. The doctor where she was originally thought that there was a technique that might help her, but was not really equipped to try it. Fortunately she has made some progress since moving. She is still in very serious condition, but the doctor is more certain now about exactly what is wrong with her lungs and is treating the problem. Her blood gases are monitored very frequently, and have been good, but she has a long way to go.
Nikki is gaining strength and recovering physically from all she has been through. She is really a trooper! After being on bedrest in the hospital for 7 weeks, then having a caesarean section to deliver a baby, she was moving pretty slowly. She is getting her strength and energy back now, though. The doctor released her earlier than planned the night that Cheyenne was moved so that she could be with her. That has forced her to rush her own recovery, but her only concern right now is her baby.

Please keep praying for Cheyenne, and for the family, too. We appreciate so much all the prayers, and also those who have donated money to help Aaron and Nikki through this difficult time. Aaron has taken as much time as possible off work to be with Nikki and the baby, which means he has not gotten paid very much over the past couple of months. That combined with buying meals, gas money, and parking fees has really put a financial strain on them. They are truly thankful for the generosity of so many who have pitched in to help. If you would like to make a donation, just click on the button below. Most of all, keep praying.

We were blessed with a new niece yesterday! Cheyenne Elizabeth was born at 5:45 PM, weighs 5 lbs. 6 oz., and is 18 3/4″ long. Her dear mother Nikki has had preeclampsia, and was in the hospital for over 7 weeks before the baby was born. When she went to the hospital, the doctors thought they might have to deliver the baby right away. However, she responded well to blood pressure medication and bedrest, and they were able to get the baby to 34 weeks gestation. We are so thankful for all those who have offered prayers on their behalf. Nikki is recovering well. Cheyenne is in the NICU. She is on oxygen and is having some trouble with her breathing. The doctors are optimistic about her condition, though, and think that she will be fine, but she is definitely still in need of prayers.

My brother-in-law Aaron has missed a lot of work in order to be with Nikki at the hospital as much as possible, and he has been doing a lot of driving back and forth. They live about 1 1/2 hours away from the hospital. Because of the pay he has missed and the extra expenses incurred by having to commute and eat out, not to mention the medical bills, we have set up a Paypal address to collect donations to help them out financially. They do have insurance, but they will still have their share to pay. Aaron and Nikki have not asked for this, and do not even know at this point that we are doing it. If any of you would like to help them out with a little money, just click on the button below. Every penny collected will go straight to Aaron and Nikki. Even just a dollar or two will add up and help them out so much!

I am a little behind with this information, but I did want to follow up my previous post by mentioning the homeschooling resolution that is before the State Assembly in California. Assemblyman Joel Anderson has introduced a resolution that shows support of homeschooling and calls on the California State Supreme Court to overturn the appellate court’s decision. You can read the full text of the resolution here.

Assemblyman Anderson and his wife homeschool their three children, the oldest of whom has recently been accepted into the United States Air Force Academy. I suppose she learned a few things through her homeschooled education, considering that they don’t let just anyone into the Air Force Academy. If you live in California, please contact your Assemblymember about supporting this resolution.

If you are interested in what the difference between a bill and a resolution is, there is a good article explaining it on the A to Z Home’s Cool Homeschooling website.

Homeschoolers in California are facing a threat from the judicial system. The SF Gate, the online version of The San Francisco Chronicle, reports that “The Second District Court of Appeal ruled that California law requires parents to send their children to full-time public or private schools or have them taught by credentialed tutors at home.” This ruling means that children can only be homeschooled if they are being taught by a person with teaching credentials. Homeschooling has never been easy in California, and this ruling is an attempt to deem it completely illegal. The Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) is optimistic that the ruling will be overturned by the State Supreme Court, but Michael Smith, HSLDA president, is quoted by the Chronicle as saying, “California is now on the path to being the only state to deny the vast majority of homeschooling parents their fundamental right to teach their own children at home.” The San Francisco Chronicle also reports that Governor Schwarzenegger denounced the ruling, saying, “This outrageous ruling must be overturned by the courts, and if the courts don’t protect parents’ rights then, as elected officials, we will.”

There are many facets to this court ruling and its implications that could be addressed. First of all, the case originated as a child welfare case. A father was accused by his oldest child of being abusive. The parents homeschool their children. An attorney representing the younger two children went to court to force the parents to send the children to school. I do not know whether the father in this case was really abusive or not. However, do we take away the rights of all parents because some parents are abusive? If that were the case, why don’t we just take babies when they are born and send them all to group homes where the state can make sure they aren’t abused? I am sure that there are parents who homeschool who do a poor job of it, but do not punish all homeschoolers because of the incompetent few.

That thought leads me to another point about this court ruling. The idea presented is that the government has mandated that children be educated, and so the government is the only entity that can provide and control the education that children receive. Note this statement from the case ruling itself:

Article IX, section 1 of California’s Constitution states: “A general diffusion of knowledge and intelligence being essential to the preservation of the rights and liberties of the people, the Legislature shall encourage by all suitable means the promotion of intellectual, scientific, moral, and agricultural improvement.”

“In obedience to the constitutional mandate to bring about a general diffusion of knowledge and intelligence, the Legislature, over the years, enacted a series of laws. A primary purpose of the educational system is to train school children in good citizenship, patriotism and loyalty to the state and the nation as a means of protecting the public welfare.”

So, is the only way to encourage intellectual, scientific, moral, and agricultural improvement to send children to school? Most people seem to think that the government has to be in control for it to be quality education. Is a parent’s only choice to send a child into a classroom with way too many kids for one teacher to handle, to be taught the theories of the big bang and general evolution, and to spend the majority of their time with people who are not their parents and do not share our values?

My purpose is not to criticize all schools or all public education. I went to public schools, and received a good education. It is wonderful that our government guarantees children the right to a free and appropriate public education. However, this education is being turned into a forced mandate that only the government can control. If this mindset continues and permeates our society, how long will it be until we are just sending our kids to the government to be indoctrinated as is done in communist China? Speaking of communism, look at this report in The Sacramento Bee about SB 1322 introduced by a California State Senator:

The bill would allow school districts to let communist groups use school property for meetings; prohibit schools or community colleges from firing employees who turned out to be commies; overturn a current law that forbids teaching communism in a favorable light; and end requirements that public employees swear they won’t become commies or join groups advocating the violent overthrow of the U.S. government.

How does that fit in with teaching “good citizenship, patriotism and loyalty to the state and the nation”?

Homeschoolers include a wide variety of people. There are Christians, pagans, atheists, agnostics, and people of a myriad of beliefs who homeschool. I don’t agree with how everyone homeschools or with what all homeschoolers teach. What I do support is their right as parents to teach their children and to control their education. I believe all parents should consider the education of their children to be a serious responsibility, and should choose the education that is best for them. It is not the job of a court to tell parents how to teach their kids.

I just wonder how Abraham Lincoln made it without the state of California to oversee his education.

We had apple cinnamon pancakes recently. This was my second attempt at these. The first time, I tried a recipe from scratch that I found, but the pancakes did not turn out well. The taste was pretty good, but they were too thin and the texture was not good. I decided to just stick with my Bisquick pancakes, and add in some apple and cinnamon to flavor them. They turned out great! I served them for supper with bacon and cheesy scrambled eggs. We like pancakes for a quick supper sometimes. Here is the exact recipe:

1 cup milk

2 eggs

2 cups Bisquick

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 medium apples, peeled, cored, and quartered

Put all ingredients into a blender, and use the mix setting to combine. This will mix your batter and chop your apples at the same time. Then pour batter by scant 1/4 cups onto hot greased skillet or griddle. Cook until the top bubbles, then flip over and cook on the other side until browned.

We eat pancakes with some butter and warm maple syrup on top. Sometimes my kids like them cut into strips, and they dip the strips into a bowl of syrup.

Here is a tip for cooking bacon, too. You can lay the strips out on a cookie sheet and bake them in the oven on 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes. Just keep checking it to get it to the doneness that you like. This is an easy way to cook your bacon while you are preparing other things. I also cover the cookie sheet with foil for easier clean up.