I am happy to be getting back to Muffin Tin Monday.  This weeks theme is Christmas books.

We read The Biggest Snowman Ever for our Muffin Tin Monday activity.

I decided that it would be fun for the kids to make marshmallow snowmen for their muffin tin treat.  I only used what we had on hand.  It would have been nicer to use white frosting.  However, my southern children never see enough snow to cover the dirt so all snow gets muddy quick. The "mud" on the snowmen seemed normal to them.  LOL!

Clockwise~Chocolate kisses, big marshmallows, toothpicks, sprinkles, frosting, mini marshmallows.

Blessings,

Dawn

(to join the fun head on over to Carol's by clicking the graphic)

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 From the Heart:  

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Ohhhh it feels sooooooooo good to be putting up a Weekly Wrapup !  It has been sense August 22 sense I have writen one.   My life is getting a bit more managable.  My craft faire is done and went really well.  I will still show pics but I have to get them from my 1ds' cell phone.  Now what is on my heart ?  I have been wanting to get my home to be running more like a smooth ship.  Is that possible ???  I am starting to wonder, lol.  This winter break I am going to TRY to read Simply Charlotte Mason's "Laying Down The Rails" a Charlotte Mason Habits Handbook and Sue Patricks's "Workbox System".  I am not a very organised person and I am praying these will help.  The other book I want to order is" How to Organise (just about) Anything" by Peter Walsh and his DVD "It's All Too Much".   I am praying that if I  apply these  I will start getting things under control !

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I have been keeping my head just bearly above the water with the basics but I know my little homeschool can be so much more life giving.    I am praying that with the help of the Lord we are going to be there in 2010.

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On the Homefront:  

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We are seed cleaning time and I am refocusing on our studies.

In The Garden:

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The garden is put to bed and we are cleaning seeds for 2010 seed sales.

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In the School Room:

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On Sunday the boys are in a play " The Prince and the Pauper".  This paticular play has the slant of the King is God and the Prince and the Pauper are Jesus and how he came to earth to save us and one day we will be brought home to the Kingdom (heaven).  It is a wonderful play !

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We are refocusing and reading lots.  I am trying to get my boys to write more.  This is not a natural thing for them and I am trying to get to a space where it is more natural for sure !  Going to find natural ways for the boys to express themselves in writing.

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Nature Study:

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This is one area I am going to get going again.

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In The Craft Corner: 

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 I am crocheting fingerless gloves and want to get back to knitting socks.  The boys are making wonderful paper snowflakes, making a boat from popcicle sticks, getting ready to sew up felt pencil holders, and flannel pj bottoms. The other goal I have is for the boys and I is to learn how to sew up ripped jean knees.

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In the Kitchen: 

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Going to be making all kinds of goodies.  Fudge, gingerbread people, short bread, sugar cookies,  and more.  We will get to taste a little but most is saved for New Years Eve Family get together. 

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Weightloss Wednesday:

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This week I hope to get back on schedule with my Walk Away the Pounds with Leslie Sansone

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Mother Culture:( for definition go HERE ) 

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 I mentioned in "From The Heart " what I am reading.  Other than that I am reading the bible to enrich and give tools for my life.

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 Things are still trying to set aside 15 minutes a day to read.   As the flylady says .... you can do anything for 15 minutes.  So I just need to set my timer. [0=

When we were becoming foster parents years ago, one of the social workers told the class that, if we loved the holidays. we may want to reconsider being foster parents.  I thought that was the strangest statement.  She went on to explain that Christmas stirred up all kinds of birth family memories and troubles in the child and then the child would act out.  In my naivety, I thought that love and a really magical Christmas would wipe all those concerns away.  Shortly after we became foster parents, we got our third placement, a little girl (20 months old) who was cute as a button.  She was a Christmas baby (born just three days after Christmas)!  We did the holidays up in a huge way that year!  All the trimmings!  Because we had two foster children that year, we were given many gifts through a foster angel tree as well as by our family that were excited that we finally had our long awaited babies.  There was a sea of gifts that took up half the room.

The magic of Christmas scared our little girl.  She became even wilder than usual.  The next two years were a bit more toned down but much the same.  Our dd acted out more and more.  We would "lose" her around Thanksgiving and not get back a reasonable child until February.  As the years passed and our dd was adopted, things continued to be very difficult around the holidays. We started to drastically play down all holidays and hide from the mall, TV and people and their joy at Christmas time. Sometimes we postponed her birthday for weeks, hoping that we could get her behavior under control enough to celebrate her birthday in peace.   We became prisoners to her drama and chaos and began to dread the holidays.  My Mother and I would start planning how to survive Christmas in September each year.  It was a sad time indeed.

Last year when Goldilocks was nearly 8 years old, I felt that we had to establish a gentle routine for Christmas that allowed the rest of us to enjoy Christmas and left room for Goldilocks to enjoy or avoid, depending on her ability to participate on any given day.  Instead of hiding from Christmas, we would embrace it, starting with celebrating each day of Advent in December.  It was a radical move.   Somewhere on the Internet I saw the idea of opening a Christmas book each day of Advent and reading the story to the children.  I loved the idea.  I added the idea of a special activity that the kids could do each night.  I thought it would allow us to enjoy Advent but also not be different from our regular routine.  We have storytime every night of the year, and the activity would be considered school time with Daddy (something the kids love).  The same routine, just different packaging.  To our relief, it has worked wonderfully.  Advent books have given us many lessons.  It has allowed Goldilocks to get used to the process of waiting for the surprise (now daily instead of waitng weeks for the big event).  She has learned to deal with the disappointment on a small scale of it being a story she did not care for. She has learned that a flat package is not going to hold a live unicorn!  It sounds funny, but this truly has been a problem that has caused major meltdowns in the past.  Because there is something to open each night, the UPS man stopping often at our home with packages that must wait is not causing endless crying.  She is getting used to secrets being okay and even fun when the parents are in control of them. Every night, she is learning the true meaning of the season: compassion, sharing, learning about Jesus, family togetherness, magical wonder, peace and joy.

The days are still rougher than usual.  Goldilocks is on a slippery slope.  She is having trouble getting through each day.  Her behavior is getting pretty hard to deal with.  Even her one-on-one worker and my friend who helps with her for a few hours a week are having a very hard time controlling her.  But my family is enjoying the season in between Goldilocks's blow outs, and sometimes she is enjoying it, too.

Some pics from Advent ~

Setting up the nativity after hearing The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey.

Trying tamales after reading Too Many Tamales.

The kids made marshmallow snowmen after listening to The Biggest Snowman Ever.

Blessings,

Dawn

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