A City Girl living on a Turkey Farm by Rebekah Walton

Despite the fact that my coworkers and boss (at the movie theater) joke about me having weird ideas about life because I am ''just a farm girl'' and am not living in the real world, I have only living on a Turkey Farm for about two years, and it has not affected my life so much to change my views of the world.

(Previously, I use to live in the city of Seattle for nine years of my life until I moved into the suburbs of Renton for 3 years and then moved to Texas and lived in a campground for six months. After the campground my parents bout a motor home and we lived in that, until some friends offered we stay at their oversized shack on their farm. At that time, although we lived on a farm, we did not really have a farm and we only lived there for three years and then promptly moved to Colorado. In Colorado, we lived in suburbs once again and just two years ago bought a farm. Anyway, I will get back to this part later.)

When I lived in the city of Seattle, I guess I was not exactly the typical city girl you think of. I would listen to audiotapes of Sugar Creek Gang nearly all Saturday or any free time I had that I wasn't playing outside. I loved and still do love that series. Well, as any good fan of that series knows, you cannot get around the fact that all the main characters live on farms, and Bill Collins the main guy (who I had a crush on), talked about his farm life all the time. I wanted to live on a farm, it was my childhood dream, so to finally be able to fulfill it is a dream come true. Now, that does not mean that farm life is all fun and games. Farm life is very hard work and sometimes, you wish you did not have to do the hard work that comes with farm life. But, when you see the cute baby chicks and baby turkeys, see the toms puff up for the first time, look up and see the stars at night, hear the sounds of gobbling turkeys or pick fresh food from your garden(I love our dragon carrots) you realize why you wanted to live on a farm in the first place. I must say I love living on our farm and I am looking forward to having a barn.

Right now, since we have just recently started up our farm we have a limited number of animals and not enough buildings to get all the animals we dream of having. We have 3 cats (soon to get four, our fourth will be a Maine Coon, I can't wait.), 1 dog (she is around 17, we have had her for all years since she was a small puppy), 1 wild rabbit (our lop ear rabbit got accidently released on our farm and we can't find it, but that is another story for another time, our cats caught a wild rabbit and we saved it from them), about 150-200 birds counting chickens and turkeys (on an average day we get three dozen chicken eggs),  and 2 guard llamas (they guard the farm from foxes and neighborhood dogs). I am really hoping we can get ducks, hamsters, a horse or two (Icelandic horses are so cute!), geese, and a  hedgehog pretty soon. But, before that we need a barn, and since most farming communities (excluding Amish) have stopped having barn raising events, building a barn is going to be very hard.

Actually, if you think that is a lot of animals just wait for the number of animals we had in Seattle. We had frogs, salamanders, newts, lizards of all kinds, silk moths and worms, crickets, cats, a dog (the same dog), six chickens, 4-6 bunnies, a squirrel (for a short time), and a cockroach, a and that's all the animals I can remember I am sure we had some I am missing.  In Renton, we had 100 chickens, 6 cats, 1 dog (the same dog), and over 6 bunnies, an a iguana, and many other animals. For a short time in Colorado and Texas we had almost no animals around 3 or 4 (1 dog and 2-3 cats) but, thankfully that has changed. Personally, I love animals and could I constantly want more. When I get my own house it is going to be filled in and out with animals of some kind. The only animals I am against as pets are rats and mice. They should be food you feed to cats, snakes etc.

Yes, this farm girl may not have lived on a farm for long but she loves it and she wished she could live in the country or mountains forever. (I hate the city. I just love living out far away from everyone. My world is so much more awesome.) I even thought about living on a deserted island. You know you can actually buy your own island!

Here is footage of our farm:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCTHZwifmfs&list=PLCfR_J_v5RLtXBoNJvCcxlRDFJGt4ow5q&index=3

Black Privilege....White Privilege? Male Privilege......Female Privilege? by Rebekah Walton

I have never seen this privilege  people are referring to. I had chocolate friends in college and no one was talking about this privilege that us palefaces get. I have never seen a job that had something against anyone either, unless they were prone to commit a crime. I was a minority at my job as a janitor at the Denver Performing Arts Center, I was the only paleface female.

I did not feel excluded or somehow unprivileged at all, I talked to the girls at the job and they were all pretty friendly to me. The guys did sometimes talk but, I usually wasn't doing a shift with them. So, I haven't seen privileges either way.

My last job was working at a theatre, there was no excluding of anyone or creating privileges for anyone else, no matter what shade of color they might be or what gender. Now, over 30 years ago (actually way more than that) sure my mom was excluded because she was female in high school from a drafting class. But, one that was a long time ago and that was just her school. Not every school even thirty or so years ago had that probably. My mom tended to get the bad teachers in school and or a principal (when she was teaching) who did not think anymore than one computer was needed in a computer class, even though they had 30 students or so.

I have never seen male privilege  really in action at all. I would like to know where it is in action, because my mom majored in Physics (the only girl  in a group full of guys, that's where she met Dad). and in college she did not experience any of this supposed favoritism towards men. For those of you that think boyscouts is male privilege, it's not, it's just a place where boys can have some guy bonding time and actually make friends without having girls around to distract them. Both of my brothers were in Boyscouts and they had really great friends. If you feel excluded as a girl, join Venturing, I did. We even get to go to Philmont as a Venturer and you get a card that says you belong to the Boyscouts of America. So, you can technically say, I am a Boyscout. Venturing has some pretty high ranks and their top rank is harder than Eagle. (Not that I made any ranks while I was in it, I have heard this from other boyscouts, our venturing crew did not really worry about ranks we just had fun, hiking and climbing).

I would argue that if there is any prejudices going around, it's a prejudice against homeschoolers. I am homeschooled and I found a few obstacles in my way. When I thought I wanted to join the Marines (bad decision (for me) I know, thank goodness I have a smart Dad), I had to take a math test. I was told because I was homeschooled I had to get a higher grade than public school kids. (I got a higher grade and passed that test by the way).

Also, I have met people who hate homeschooling, I had a college teacher like this, we did not get along. Most tests that homeschoolers have to take end of the year more extensive than public school kids. They require more from us because we were homeschooled, why?

Now, a lot of people are going to argue that some colleges offer special scholarships for homeschoolers, and they are right some colleges do. Others may argue we tend to be smarter so of course we would be tested correctly according to our average grade. And of course, this is true but this is also an insult to public schooled kids.

But, saying that is like saying all public schooled kids are stupid. Now, maybe they are, but, that is no reason to embarrass the public school kids and require everyone to get a higher grade than them. (Just joking guys, I have public school friends). This is prejudice against homeschoolers for learning more in school.

[Now, the facts truly show that homeschoolers in general just tend to test better than the public schooled ones. Why is this? Well, we are made to learn the info while others (the kids who were not left behind because of the No Child Left Behind Act) barely learned how to read and were pushed through highschool. So, what am I saying? Well, some kids need more time than others and we should not just push them through at a unruly speed so that spend 12 years learning nothing.]

But, all that to say a point I have never seen privileges either way, Male, Female, or any shade of color privilege.

Links to resources:
http://www.nheri.org/research/research-facts-on-homeschooling.html
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/aug/30/home-schooling-outstanding-results-national-tests/

Ken Ham- Dinosaurs, Genesis & the Gospel by Rebekah Walton

This is a summary, not a review of what Ken Ham in his speech called:Dinosaurs, Genesis & the Gospel at the Chec conference. He usually does this speech for kids, although this one was slightly edited from his kids speech, less audience interaction.


There are seven ages of dinosaurs and they are:
Formed
Fearless
Fallen
Flood
Faded
Found -AD 1800 to present
Fiction  -now

The history of dinosaurs
Dinosaurs were created on Day 6- because the large land animals were created on Day 6. The term Dinosaur only refers to the land animals, flying and water ones are not dinosaurs. So, there are no such thing as flying dinosaurs or water dinosaurs. Dinosaurs lived with Adam and Eve. We were created on Day 6 but we were created differently then animals. The average size a dinosaur was the size of a sheep. Elephants are bigger than the T-Rex was. If someone says the dinosaurs were formed billions of years ago or the big bang happened billions of years ago and that is how the earth came about, ask them this question: Where you there? (very politely and in a kind way, of course.)

 Bible Verses that mention these dinosaurs and the flying kind and water types: Isaiah 30:6, Job 40: 1, 19, 20, 21, and Job 40: 15-19.

People  and animals use to be Vegetarians according to Genesis 1: 29-30. But in Genesis 9:3- God gives us all things to eat. Which means we can eat a hotdog because a hotdog is all things.


 If an animal has sharp teeth that does not mean the animal eats meat it just means they have sharp teeth. There are many examples of this including Panda Bears, Fruit Bats and Gorillas. They all have sharp teeth but they do not eat meat.


Noah's Ark was a real boat that Noah built. The ark had more than enough room for all the animals and was not like a giant bathtub. Noah did not have to get all the varities of animals on the ark, he just had to get all the families of animals on the ark because all the varities come from particular family animal groups. There is one family of dogs. There are only about a thousand kinds of animals, only a thousand family groups. So, Noah had to only take about 2 to 3 thousand animals on the ark. There are 50 kinds of dinosaurs, or families of dinosaurs.


Noah's ark is also a picture of Jesus. Jesus is the doorway and God closed the door to the ark.

Also since there was a world wide flood you would expect to see: Billions of dead things buried in rock layers laid down by water all over the earth.

Now to the answer you were all waiting for. What happened to the dinosaurs? They died.

Could the dinosaurs not be extinct we just haven't found them yet? It is possible the plants Wollemi Pines which everyone thought was extinct and was found in fossils with dinosaurs was found not to be extinct.


Here is the basic summary of his speech.

Bill Ward-Family Discipline by Rebekah Walton

This is not a review on his speech that was made at the CHEC conference called Family Discipline: The Greatest Commandment, but more of an overview of what he said. If I am able to later I will put up a posts that includes all the speeches I taped. There will be links to the audio. 

The notes for this speech is attached below: Go to the link and download them.
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/a9i4cgkdu5gj7u0/BlF1G8kCC_
You should either print the notes or zoom in to read them.

Kevin Swanson-Making a Man by Rebekah Walton

This is not a review on his speech called making a man but more of an overview of what he said. If I am able to later I will put up a posts that includes all the speeches I taped. There will be links to the audio. But for now here is what he basically said.


Young men are able to escape easily nowadays from doing hard work. They checking out of life. We have a problem on our hands. Why do homeschooling moms come home so they can prepare their daughters to leave the home? The answer is: To meet a man and most men / boys  won't leave home till 30. A lot of men are not grown up by 30.
There are three main things we need our men/boys to be or have:

1. Faith-Begin this way
2. Material providers for the home.
3. Spiritual leaders

The non accountability age in the USA is from 15-25 for men.

We have to do something with boys so that non accountability is no longer from 15-25. These Bible verses give us a vision of what men are suppose to be like: 2 Samuel 23:15-Picture of strength-These men were resilient. The Bible also gives us a vision of Faith. 1 Timothy 2:5. Faith is the way we live. Do not do anything without Faith.

We are also told that men are suppose to have Ruling power or Dominion. Genesis 1. God wants our boys to be raised up for Dominion. The job they are suppose to have. Train your boys to work-have them work as a child. Make sure they work at times with their dad.



 If you expect your boys to not work for 18 years and then get a job after that you are expecting too much. They need to have a job now, so that it will be a lifestyle for them. Books, Work, and Worship are needed everyday. Work is so important. Our boys desperately need accountability. They need to be humble and willing to do any kind of work. What we have been doing for the last 5 generations has not worked so do not do it.


In order to be spiritual leaders men need to be engaged in worship everyday. God wants them to work, worship and be spiritual leaders. Husbands need to be the ones answering their wives questions about the truth. You need to start them learning the Bible when they are really young. 1 Corinthians-Sacrifical leaders for their wives and kids. Do not send them off to their own apartment to pay for their own needs, because this will teach them to be selfish, and to only care about themselves. Men need to spend more time with their sons. Investing in nurturing faith and character into our men. Teach your sons what is in the proverbs. Do not forget Mentorship, they need a lot of that when they go off on their own.

Homeschool Conference in Colorado (CHEC Conference) by Rebekah Walton

Our family went to the Homeschool Conference this year in Colorado. (Yes, if you didn't know already, I was homeschooled. Now, I go to college.) They had a great many cool workshops and our family went to some of the most interesting ones. The next few posts I will describe what the workshops I went to discuss.

Some of the teachers of the workshops that you will hear about in the next posts are: Ken Ham ( a lot of Ken Ham), Marsha Washburn, Vicki Lewis, Dianne Craft, STOA Colorado, Classical Conversations, Mrs. Bradley, Mr. Kevin Swanson, and Mr. Bill Ward. Some of these I have notes for, some I do not. The notes if I have them will be included in the post, in case you want those. Also, some of those workshops were recorded and I will leave a link in the post.