Thursday Tagging...

I've been tagged by my friend Rhonda.  My mission (since I chose to accept *L*) is to tell 7 things about myself and then tag 7 others..

So here goes:

1. I had a scholarship in mathematics...

2. I have seen every James Bond film and read most of the books...  

3. I am the consumate expert on Cheetos... (especially while pregnant)

4. I play the flute, piccolo, and clarinet...

5. I played softball for years... as a left-handed catcher...

6. I have always wanted to be a pilot...

7. I am a big fan of westerns and love John Wayne!!!

I am a conservative..... as most people know... And it doesn't matter to me what anyone votes as I think everyone is entitled to his/her own view politically... But as Super Tuesday comes closer, I find that I am really getting more concerned as to who will be the nominees... in that I want to feel confident in my vote and empowered in the faith in our democratic system...

I have several friends that like me are placing their support for their candidate on their blogs... I have long had a Mike Huckabee button on mine... My friend Michelle put this voters guide on her blog this morning... I think that it certainly will help others to make a decision as to who they wish to support by who represents their views...I'm joining Michelle in urging everyone not to forget to cast their vote... It is important to take a stand on issues that concern you and to be able to say I supported the nominee that supported my views...

More Books...

Okay... I am excited... Just got a new book in the mail ( I love getting things in the mail...)            

It's by Francine Rivers. I started it sometime ago from the library and didn't get it done due to some things coming up and so I decided to order it.. When I am done, I'll post it on PBS and let someone else enjoy it too...*S*

Valentine Craft...

I have found a great idea for Valentines Day that I am going to make for my kids... I found it online from Seasonal Delights Magazine.  There are plenty of little tuck-ins on which to write messages of love and appreciation, or you can include coupons redeemable for breakfast in bed, a special night out, or homemade cookies!  I am making one for each of the kidlets and one for DH too!! 

You can find more winter / holidays  crafts here.

What I'm reading now...

I, like millions of people, like nothing better than sitting down and reading a good book... It has to be my favorite pastime... I like nothing better than to curl up on the couch, under a quilt and read something... I am not particular in my preference for reading matter and sorta hang on the eclectic side... I tend to quote Andrew Zimmeran on eating: "If something looks good, read it"..*L*

Various authors from Max Lucado, Janet Dailey, Dean Koontz, Steven King, Robert B. Parker, Patricia Cornwell, to Andrew M. Greeley all being some of my favorites.. though lately I have sorta strayed off into the land of "self-help" and "guidance"... Which means the current topic for our house is how to make our homeschooling more productive and continue to be enjoyable..(which this has been on our list of goals, "to create a relaxed, fun, learning environment", since we started). My current reads are:

 

Next on the list to read is " The Unprecessed Child: Living Without School" by Valerie Fitzenreiter... (if anyone has read this, drop me a review and let me know what you thought..

Have a great day!!

FREE USBORNE BOOKS!!!!

Is anyone out there an Usborne Book Groupie besides me? They are fabulous and especially for homeschoolers like us, they are a wonderful resource to keep in our family library...

My friend Valerie is an Usborne Book consultant and she is currently having a contest right now on her blog for a chance to win $10 in free books!! And who doesn't like books, especially FREE ones!???All you have to do is write a post about Usborne books, your favorite, and how you use use it, or what you love about it... and link it back to her website. 

She is accepting entries until Jan. 31... On Feb. 1, she is putting all of the names in a hat and is going to announce the winner on her blog.   Sounds great,  doesn't it?

Now for the part that I like most... After you read this and you decide to enter, just make a note that you heard about the contest from me in your post or on her blog (make sure you drop her a comment to let her know that you are posting about the contest) and I will have the chance to win $10 in free books also by recruiting the most blog entries...

Currently, Valerie has listed some "INTERNET ONLY" sales with some HUGE savings...You can check them out here.

So here are a few of our NEW favorites...     

The kids love them and I like being able to easily tie them into our lesson plans and the ease of use... These are some in our collection, some we use all the time... a few on a daily basis!!

 

DD's favorite right now is her    We recently purchased  and DS loves it... He reads it at bedtime...

So, if you have a favorite, which I am sure you do, share it with everyone and let Valerie know and it might just win you and me some FREE books!!!

What's cookin' at our house this week...

Monday:  Pork Chops, Apple Cornbread Stuffing, Buttered Noodles, Tea,

Tuesday: Tuna Noodle Casserole, Salad, Chocolate Cake for Dessert, Tea

Wednesday: Tomato Soup, Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (church might)

Thursday: Crockpot Chicken Cacciatore

Friday: Kids Meal (kids choice and they help make it) Crispy Chicken Tenders, Parmesean Potato Wedges, Chocolate Cake...

Snacks this week: Homemade Potato Chips, Rainforest Pizzas (rice cakes with peanut butter, dried tropical fruit, chocolate chips)

Update:

Now, I am going to being making bread this week... Something I rarely do... If anyone has a favorite bread recipe they would love to share (machine or oven) I would love to try it!!

Have a great week!!

 

DS holding my "NEW" nephew....

 

31 Ways to Practice Spelling...

While having the night to myself, I did some internet searching and came across these neat and fun ideas to use while working on "Spelling" ... I think we will try a few of them in the next week, just to change up things and have a little fun... Happy Learning!!

 31 Ways to Practice Spelling

1. ABC Order – Write your words in alphabetical order.
2. Reversed Words – Write your words in alphabetical order – backwards!
3. Rainbow Words – Write each word in three colors.
4. Cheer Your Words – Pretend you are a cheerleader and call out your words!
5. Backwards Words – Write your words forwards, then backwards.
6. Picture Words – Draw a picture and write your words in the picture.
7. Silly Sentences – Use all your words in ten sentences.
8. Pyramid Words – Write your words adding or subtracting one letter each time. The result will be a pyramid shape of words.
9. Ransom Words – Write your words by cutting out letters in a newspaper or magazine and gluing them onto blank paper.
10. Words-in-Words – Write your words and then write at least two words made from the letters in each word.
11. Magazine Words – Use an old magazine or newspaper and find your word. Cut it out and glue it onto blank paper.
12. Story Words  – Write a short story using all your words.
13. 30 second Words  – Write a TV commercial using all of the words from your list.
14. Popsicles – Make your words using Popsicle sticks to make each letter.
15. Secret Agent Words – Number the alphabet from 1 to 26, then convert your words to a number code.
16. Etch-A-Word – Use an Etch-A-Sketch to write your words.
17. Telephone Words – Translate your words into numbers from a telephone keypad.
18. Sound Words – Use a tape records and record your words and their spelling. Then listen to your tape, checking to see that you spelled all the words correctly.
19. Words You Can Eat – Write your words by arranging alphabet pasta or Alphabits cereal.
20. 3D Words – Use modeling clay rolled thinly to make your words.
21. Bathtub Spelling Practice – Using foam letters, make your words by sticking the letter to the side of the tub.
22. Sidewalk Spelling – Use sidewalk chalk to write the words on the sidewalk or driveway.
23. Poker Chip Spelling – Write all the letters of the alphabet on poker chips. Use them to spell your words.
24. Scrabble Spelling – Play a game of Scrabble using the spelling words.
25. Go Fish – Each time you spell a word correctly, eat a Goldfish cracker for each letter in the word.
26. Word Processing Practice – Use the computer to type the words. Use different colors, fonts, and sizes for each word.
27. Spelling Word Finds J – Create a word find
28. Crossword Spelling J -- Create a crossword puzzle with your spelling words using the words’ definitions.
29. Spelling Puzzles – Write each spelling word on an index card. Cut each card in half and mix them up. Then match the two parts of the word.
30. Finger Paint Bag – Pour a little bit of finger paint into a Ziploc bag and close it tight. Lay the bag flat on the table and use a finger to spell the word.
31. Spelling Squares – Write your word on graphing paper, putting one letter in each box.

HOME ALONE....

Yes.. I am home alone... My DS and DH have gone to a "Boy Scout Lock-In"  and my DD is staying the night with her grandmother...

I almost don't know what to do with myself... I've got the movie "Memoirs of a Geisha"  ( I read the book, but never saw the movie), and I think I will take a long, hot bubble bath (which I rarely ever do without DD joining me), pop some popcorn (with extra butter, of course), make some hot chocolate with all the extras (whipped cream, caramel, and chocolate sauce) and just relax...

and then again, I may sit and eat ice cream in lonliness... *L*

Yes, I realize how much I miss my family and how much I really enjoy the noise and the hubbub of them being around...

But for tonite, I will relish the idea of peace and quiet... and gotta go run that tub..

Science Class at the A.M.S.E.

Today we went to class at the A.M.S.E.  It was called "Spaced Out" and was of course about Space...

The kids had a great time... They played several games where they actually got to be the planets, they learned what "equinox" means... They discussed the various Gods that certain planets were named for (ie Mercury, Mars, Venus, Neptune)... they got to look at some really cool maps of the solar system... We discussed "AU"'s and the temp. of the sun... the difference between a rotation and revolution, waxing and waning, what "Mare" are, and the phases of the moon and to use "What's up DOC?" to remember them...

Then they played with a topological box for Mars... and discussed how it would take 9 months to get  Mars and then we would have to stay there for 4 years because of the revolutions of the Earth to Mars...

Here are a few websites that you can look at for more infomation...  

www.space.com

and google: Astronomy Picture of the day...

The Beauty of Winter I Am Longing For...

Pine Wood Derby...

Here are some pictures of DH and DS working on DS's Pinewood Derby Car for BoyScouts...

 

BBbRRRrrrrr....

"Oh, the weather outside is frightful"... I mean literally... We've have had freezing rain this morning and continued low temperatures...The Hwy. Patrol is implementing their inclement weather protocol already....

The kids and I are happy to just be able to stay at home this morning, sitting on the couch in the playroom covered up with a comforter and reading... Drinking hot cocoa and with the only decision to make is about moving upstairs to sit by the fireplace... *S*

I count my wonderful blessings on a morning like this, knowing that we are able to keep our 2 most prized possessions at home where they belong and not have to worry about getting out...

Our Monday...

Today we did a lessons and activities on Martin Luther King Jr that I found  here. We read several books on him from the library  (our favorite was by Rookie Read-about Holidays) and watched a movie from Holidays for Children on him and his works...

My kids were saddened by learning about segregation... They really didn't understand why it was excepted and why people wanted to do something like that... It really made my heart swell to see that they don't see color as a difference in people... It is so wonderful to hear that from little ones...
We used the example of the brown egg and the white egg and that when you crack them, the inside yolk and white is the same... (then we ate them for breakfast)...

We did several worksheets from about.com and then we made the "DREAM" mobile... We talked about the famous "I have a Dream" speech and how important it is to our society today. And then we worked on this poem for our copywork:

Wouldn't it be terrible? Wouldn't it be sad?
If just one single color was the color that we had?
If everything was purple? Or red? Or blue? Or green?
If yellow, pink, or orange was all that could be seen?
Can you just imagine how dull the world would be
If just one single color was all that we could see?

 

What's cookin' at our house this week...

Monday: Dinner with my sister and her family

Tuesday: Chili (yum... it is going to be so cold according to the forcast)

Wednesday: Chicken Parmesean with Rotini

Thursday: Loaded Baked Potatoes, salad, and rolls

Friday: Chicken Taco Foil Bake (a Kraft recipe)

A new way to learn Math....

I was surfing the net  (surely not playing on the internet, yes...I was!! *L* ) and I came across this website. 

It is a "Math Blog" and has some great ways to learn math using decks of cards... From addition to subtraction to multiplcation... and how cheap can that be, plus the kids love a variation in the usual day...

 So next time you are at the Dollar Tree, pick up a few extra decks and see what you can come up with...

Happy Learning!!

What we have been doing...

So far, we have gotten quite a bit done that I had set out to do with our list...We have gotten about half of our winter unit done...It's been alot of fun and informative as well... I have ordered a book from  Amazon called "The Big Snow" , which I hope comes this week so we can incorporate it in our unit this month...I also got "Mr. Popper's Penguins" to use...I found a free unit stdy to go along with it here. We are also gonna try and watch "March of the Penguins"  and National Geographics' "20 years with the penguins"  which the kids got for Christmas...

Tonight we watched the "Backyardigans" movie on Nickleodeon... It was pretty neat... I wished I had taped it as it would have been fun to watch later on when we were doing our unit on "Knights"... *L*  Oh well, i I could only figure out the VCR...*L*

Then, we sat down and worked on DS's  "Crystal Growing Kit".  So, for an hour after we placed the chemicals and the starter stone together, he came in and out of the school room watching...Trying to not miss a single bit of the growth...I hated to remind him it would be a week before we had crystal growth... *S* But he was so excited to watch it... Not bad for a $6 kit...

Well, I have to run for now... So much to plan and get going for the rest of this week... I worked this weekend and it always throws my Monday off after my work weekend... (I don't know why, I guess it's just a change in our regular schedule)...

Happy Learning!!

January's Little Hands Art group...

Today we had a lesson on Claude Monet... It was very enjoyable and informative...

Mrs. Linda did the lesson and she had several books with examples of his art work and comparisons of his work to others... Like the comparison with Renoir you can see here. It is of the La Grenouillere, or "Frog Pond"....

The kids got to do their own versions of his work.. Using black construction paper, brown and green crayons and white tempura paint, the kidlets created "Winter landscapes" by drawing with the crayons, trees mountains, and such and topping them with new fallen snow with the paint... It turned our really well...

You can find out more on Monet for kids here.

Happy Learning!!!

Our first day back at Co-op

Today was our first day back at co-op and it was a bit hectic... I am teaching  classes (Beginning Phonics and Countries of the World) and helping in the "Contenders for the Faith" club... The kidlets each have a full day of classes...

DS is taking: Fun Time Crafts

                       Contenders for the Faith

                       Human Body and Senses

                       Animal Science

                      Piano Lessons

DD is taking: Fun Time with Mrs. Cecilia..(which she loves, they dance, sing, and learn little rhymes)

                       Ballet

                       Puppets

                       Countries of the World

Then we are off to Karate at 4pm... So a really full day...

Which brings me to the thought... We are "HOME" schoolers, how come we are never at home???

*LOL*

 

More bargains to share...

Ok... The bargain of my week happens to be "The Kids Fun-Filled Question and Answer Book" by Jane Parker Resnick and Tony Tallarico. It is 185 pgs. of all kinds of wonderful answers to the kind of questions kids ask... Like "what is virtual reality?" or "How do plants eat?" or "What is Deja'Vu?" and I really liked "can penguins tell each other apart?".....

Anyway, I happened to pick this one and 5 others up along with a geography game with all its pieces and cards intact...WOOHOO!!!! for $2.18... now that was a bargain!! 

Scheduling...

Every semester I try and write an overview of what we will be doing for the upcoming period... So far, I really haven't even started for this term, and we are "officially"  starting back to school Monday... It looks as if I will be spending Saturday afternoon and Sunday working on plans...

So, here is a rough draft that I have come up with so far...

We will continue to use Abeka for our math and language arts while supplementing with Follett Spelling2 and World of Language 2...

For science, we are using some Sonlight and some great books I have picked up with experiments...

For history, we are still doing the Story of the World... 

And then we are gonna do a few units along the way and some books from HSS and FIAR... (this is the best part of my kids day, they love the cuddle and read time) My kids like to do this stuff even on the weekends... which means they really enjoy it... (My 4yo dd asks to do school all the time)...

Topics to cover:

Winter (using a free unit study) and read the Big Snow (HSS)

Creation  (using some books and units from HSS & FIAR to go along with it)

We are doing this also in the Contenders class at our co-op with Dinosaurs...

the Great Kapok Tree

Night of the Moonjellies

Pocket Full of Cricket

Madeline (for DD)

Mike Mulligan and a unit on Knights and castles (for DS)

Looking at it in print makes it seem like too much even though we only use portions of it all and are sorta eclectic in our approach... But hopefully it will be fun for both of them and fun for me as well...

If you have a schedule for the next semester and units that you are going to do, I'd love to hear about them...

Have a great day and good luck in the New Year...

My Resolutions for 2008

Every year, I come up with a long list of things that I would like to accomplish in the upcoming year... and usually I am able to get a few things done, but always have many left uncompleted...

This year, I decided to make my list and then weed out the ones that were truly low on the list...

Prior to having children, I always listed lose weight, exercise more, and other things that I thought were important... But as I have gotten older (and I'd like to think wiser) I realize that it is all God's plan and he is the captain of the ship and I am just need to trust in him for directions on the path of my life...As a homeschool mom to 2, I think the area I want to work on most (and feel the need to) is to become closer to God and be able to be a leader and teacher of God's word to my children.

I would like to spend more one-on-one time with my children and to have more patience and just remember that they are children and that nothing is perfect nor will ever be and to praise and rejoice over the abilities and blessings they have received. I want to develop an even deeper bond with them and for the love and respect we share to grow even greater than it is now (if that is possible)...

I want to make the right choices for them and to be Christ-led in all of our decisions involving our home, our school, our lives...

and I want to be thankful daily for all the blessings of the coming year... and to not take for granted what God has given me in allowing me to be a mom, the blessing of being home with my children, and a wonderful husband who loves and supports us... and most of all, for the greatest gift, in my salvation....

 

This verse was included in a bible study I did a couple of years ago..

:"...you do not know what will happen tomorrow... You ought to say, `If the Lord wills..."

(James 4:14-15) It's not wrong to plan ahead and goal set, because these are biblical principals, but it becomes a misdeed when the Lord is not consulted and to make plans apart from the Lord is to presume upon God and assume we know the future...

What is life? You are but a vapor here for a short time and then gone.. and my resolution for 2008 is, "If it's the Lord's will, then it will be done." 

 

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Recipe for a Happy New Year
Author Unknown

To leave the old with a burst of song
To recall the rights and forgive the wrong;
To forgive the thing that binds you fast
To the vain regrets of the year that's past;

To have the strength to let go your hold
Of the non-worthwhile of the days grown old;
To dare to go forth with a purpose true;
To the unknown task of the year that's new,

To help your brother along the road
To do his work and lift his load;
To add your gift to the world's good cheer,
Is to have and to give a Happy New Year