Gardening- benefits

Have you ever thought about getting started in gardening? In the midst of my busy schedule, I make time to garden. Food straight from the garden is packed with nutrients and flavor. Gardening is a time of relaxation for me, but more than that- there are many benefits: non- pesticide/organic foods, fresh and nutritious- the longer food sits on the shelf and thousands of miles most foods have traveled depletes much nutrients. It tastes far better. My boys will not consume many vegetables but from the garden they will eat peppers and bell peppers and other vegetables- because it tastes far better. It is a hobby that is worthwhile developing. This year I gave each of my boys a plot to call their own and this is now part of their chores. Through gardening, they are learning patience, a skill they can use for the rest of their lives. We have started out small and gradually our gardening is getting bigger. They are having success growing squash, pickled cucumbers, tomatoes, corn, okra and herbs.

Pfun Run

Few weeks ago my kids ran the Pfun Run. I did not intensely train my kids but we just ran regularly together 4 times a week for almost 6 months. We made it home school p.e. It was difficult training the kids for they did not enjoy the running as much as I did. I have wondered if I should encourage them to run regularly when they are in their teen years instead of during grammar years. Anyway the race is over and I was very proud of their accomplishments. My youngest, Truett- age 8 placed first in the 5k for 9 and under division with the time of around 25minutes 30 seconds. Caleb finished 6th place with time of 24:40 and Grant- my 10 year old with the time of little over 25 minutes under the division of 10- 14 years of age. I have always enjoyed running for I get the most amount of cardio exercise in the shortest amount of time. I hope they will grow up to enjoy it as much as I do.

How i am Raising Fit Kids

I had this up on my Facebook but posting it here with some modifications.

I don't mean to boast- but I realize that my children are very fit and athletic. They all run faster than me and Caleb can even stand and do squats on a stability ball. Caleb learned to bike before age 4- I never taught him how and the other two learned how to bike before age 4 1/2. I knew that my children were fairly athletic, but not how much-until I put them in baseball last year- first organized sports they have been in. The coach immediately put Caleb, my 11y as a short stop and a pitcher. Caleb ended up going to the All star team One and pitched one of his best- winning 11 to 1. Grant advanced well in batting- he now is able to hit almost every ball and known as one of the faster runner. Truett 7y excelled also- his team did not do well and did not enter the championship tournament, but Truett got invited to be part of a team that won the championship. He ended up with 2 baseball uniforms at the end. Caleb often goes to to recreation center and plays with other boys on basket ball teams, but he is able to beat many of them.
I was really surprised how well they did- because I myself am not a superb athlete, never was and never cared for my children to be one. I just wanted to develop an lifestyle of moving / loving sports and exercise. There are somethings I did to promote that. I believe that they are athletic not only because they are gifted but they have had plenty of opportunities to move while growing up. Every spare moment Caleb and Truett are involved in active play. Grant loves to also but not as much as his brothers. Caleb testifies that he would not have his athletic ability if not for what I did for him. I give God thanks for the wisdom He has given me.

1. I tried to make room for the kids to do active play. I keep little furniture in our living room and children's retreat. In Texas, because of the heat it is impossible to go outside and play at times. I know boys have need to play and be active all the time as I reflect on how my brother Sam grew up. I had little living room furniture and hung no pictures on the wall. I let them play ball, basketball, ride scooter, toy bike, rollerskate inside the house (their uncle provided the hard floors). I have room for them to play indoor baseball, and wrestling. I don't mind the noise- I know moving is good for them. Most kids today grow up sedentary and putting themselves at risk for all kinds of diseases.

2. I modeled a love for exercise before my children. During our family vacations, we are always going on a hike- long ones. We recently went on 6 mile hike at Stone Mountain Georgia twice and for my anniversary, 7 1/2 mile hike. Exercising is my relaxation time.

3. I do not over protect the children. I know most parents are afraid to let their children play outside on their own- I can not always be their for them- I have to trust God to take care of them. When Caleb hit 9/10 - I let him go outside play with neighborhood kids- basketball, football, biking. I also let Caleb and his brothers go to the creek by themselves and catch fish and do nature study on their own. They have to walk a very steep hill when coming back home.

4. Started a garden at the community garden. It is the children's plot- so I pay them a little for their harvest. When I told them I have to charge them $.50 for driving them there, Grant wanted to start biking there which is 2 1/2 miles away. So we are doing that now. They also have their own plots in our backyard. I want to give them a very practical hobby that they can carry with them for a life time.

5. We have a trampoline, dome climber in our backyard (again provided by generous Uncle).

6. Currently, the boys run 2 1/2 - 3 miles a day with me 4 days a week. they all run faster than me now.

7. We have a limit on TV and videos - no more than 1 hr on the weekends. TV watching, video games is highly correlated with obesity and developing sedentary lifestyle in children.


I don't know what God will do with their athletic skill- but I pray God may be glorified through their gifts. I heard of one man going down to the poor and setting up sports clinic for the kids and then building relationship and sharing God's Word with them as well. Maybe something like this? I don't know. I place them in His hands.

Not all children can be athletic, but can be fit and healthy with help from mom and dad!

Be Lean and Be Energized at PRC

-- thank you to those who showed up for my weight loss/ health improvement seminar. We did not have time for questions and answers so I am considering to have a follow up seminar to better apply what we have talked about and to answer questions. Thank you to my moms' fitness class for suggesting handing out outline- was helpful and helping me out with publicity. I wrote this to the PRC director:


"Thank you LeAnn for letting me speak at PRC. It went very well. 16
showed and first five got their free book. Here are some of the
comments on the evaluation sheet I had them fill out........'wonderful,
good, very good, excellent--Great Job!, good review..., Great,
Excellent info.., super fantastic, very good, good, excellent', and then
the last 3 rated it a 10 ( on a scale of 1 to 10) but no comment"

To those friends who did not make it to the seminar, I hope you can come out to the next one. My former client came and though she does not need to lose weight, told me she benefitted much and gave it a 10 rating. Next time I will have it on a Saturday afternoon, stretch it out to 2 1/2 hr session with a stretch break in between. My heart is to especially help God's people. Should not Lordship of Christ extend into every area of our lives and we ought to glorify God in every aspect of our lives. I hope I can see more home educators there- because my talk is geared more toward you guys than anyone else.

Pfun Run/ Benefits of Running

After doing a continuing education on exercise for children, I am convinced that most children do not get enough of cardio exercise. I know my children are very active but not all the time. So for homeschool p.e. class, we decided to train for the upcoming Pflugerville Fun Run in May. They may opt not to run this race, but all my boys are in training for it. Currently we have been running 2 1/2 miles to 3 miles for 4 days out of the week and will gradually add 1/4 mile every two weeks. I have been running or walking almost daily since my highschool days and cannot stop because of the habits developed early on. What do I like about it? It has taught me discipline, to work hard at whatever is given me even though it might be hard. Running is like that - hard and not enjoyable at times, but you push yourself. I enjoy the fact that I get so much cardio exercise in a very short amount of time. Running has given me incredibly strong legs and bones- no wonder my brother when young use to call my legs, "thunder thighs". That comment hurt me then but I take it as a compliment now. I would encourage parents to give children plenty of opportunity for running, jumping, hopping, skipping especially before puberty starts because bone mass is greatly and mostly influenced around that age by high impact exercise. Recently, I saw pictures of runners' and swimmers' bones. Bone mass is significantly different from a swimmer and a runner. Studies are also clear that high intensity cardio also helps students do better in school. I am sure that being extremely physically active has helped me with the grades when I was in school. Putting children on an organized team does not guarantee that our children will grow up to be physically active. I have wondered that these kids may become team dependent and not exercise unless there is a team available. I know a good number of people like this. Running can take place almost any where at any temperature. My parents never put me on an organized team- though I was in the gymnastic team in 9th grade (self taught) and in the track team 11th and 12th grade. I thank God that I am physically active today and hope to pass these habits to my children.