This weekend, I am thrilled to be attending my first ever out-of-state homeschool conference! I’ve wanted to for years, and with the recent release of Pajama School, this year seemed like the right time. So Noelle and I left Derby Wednesday morning and arrived at the home of some friends by early evening. Here’s a recap of our first day in pictures:
This is the view we woke up to this morning. Glorious, isn’t it?!
Noelle puts the finishing touches on our table display. You have to be creative when you only have one book to sell!
We had a few hours this afternoon once we finished setting up until the vendor hall opened, so I looked over the workshop schedule and picked a few from the very extensive and interesting list of possibilities. The first one we attended was a panel session with James and Stacy McDonald, Vicki Lewis, and “Little Bear” Wheeler on “Preparing Daughters for Marriage.” There were a variety of thoughts and ideas presented, but the overall theme seemed to rest on the importance of parents, especially fathers, gaining and protecting the hearts of their daughters.
Next we joined the crowd in a packed room to hear “Little Bear” Wheeler’s session: “Warning! Public Schools aren’t for Christians.” This is his last conference, since he has decided to retire from his evangelism ministry and devote his time to pastoring a church. This message was given without any notes, and was very heartfelt and moving. “Little Bear” referenced Psalm 14:1, “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God” and drew the application that because our schools have removed God, children who are in the government-run school system are being educated by fools. He also shared that he believes that our current administration will outlaw homeschooling within the next four years, and exhorted us to be prepared for the attacks that will come.
The view from our corner booth right before the exhibit hall opened this evening. There are a lot of great vendors with a wealth of wonderful books and other materials. I’ve started making my mental list and will be doing my part to keep them in business. 🙂 I’ve already had a great time meeting other vendors and talking with conference attendees as they stop by the booth, and look forward to more of that in the next two days. Whether we break even or not, I trust this will be a helpful learning experience and that the Lord will bring blessing as He so chooses.