Today I am grateful for.....

~Answered prayer...I have been praying about something for a long time.  This weekend I finally got the fact that I was standing in the way of God answering my prayer in His way.  I kept trying to fix/solve the problem.  Within hours of surrendering it to the Lord, He answered my prayer in a great way. 

~Great husbands.....my is the best!

~Grandparents....We had a fun time with Grandparents at our Keeper's Grandparents luncheon.

~My dog Belle....She is such a great dog and she likes me best!

Sleeping on my leg.

Poor dear, Grace dressed her up! 

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"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free,
in a state of civilization,
it expects what never was and never will be." 
~~ Thomas Jefferson

• The American Revolution
• George Washington
• U.S. Presidents
• The Declaration of Independence
• The US Constitution
• The Great Seal
• Thanksgiving
• The Bill of Rights
• Our National Documents
• Entrepeneurs in American History
• The United States of America's Flag
• The Star-Spangled Banner
• The Gettysburg Address
• The National Motto
• The Statue of Liberty
• The Pledge of Allegiance
• America the Beautiful
• What is An American?

This item was provided free for our review as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew.  We received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion.  Click the TOS Homeschool Crew banner at the top to read more reviews on this product by other Homeschool Crew members.

Today I am grateful for...

~love...faith...and continually answered prayers

~a beautiful teenage daughter who helps willing around our home

~two sisters who play together and claim to be "best friends"

~a husband who diligently prepares our home for winter, he is the best!

~a Friday tea party with loving Grandparents.

~health!  We are all so healthy! Thank you Lord!

I am blessed!

Today I am grateful for~

~full days...filled with grace, love, hope and joy!  Many activities and lots of smiles.

~daughters with tender hearts.  Grace and Elizabeth came home from Awana's wanting to send their favorite stuffed animals in the Operation Christmas Child boxes.  They have a shopping list started for what to send. 

~faithfulness....a faithful God who always their to speak loving words to me.  A spouse that is faithful in so many ways.  Children that are faithful in their learning.  Parents who are faithful and taught me responsibility. 

~a warm home and warm bed...

I am blessed!

As part of the TOS Crew, I received the following two books free from Bright Ideas Press, for review.  The opinions presented in the review are solely mine. 

Why take the time to “Crack the Code” of Classical Music?
     • Music is from the Lord. He created it, and He created us with the ability to both make and appreciate music.
     • “Classical” music is uniquely part of our Western civilization.
     • Research suggests that both listening to and playing classical music aids brain development.
     • Even rudimentary exposure increases one’s level of enjoyment and understanding.

This course provides a close-up look at famous composers, their music, and their times, with special attention to character traits and Christian testimony (or lack thereof). Even the musically challenged will enjoy this course! It’s perfect for grades 4–8 but is easily adaptable for younger and older students. Minimal teacher prep will return maximum enjoyment!

Within the book there are a variety of great learning activities to use within your home.  Some of them include

• 32 Weekly Lessons
• 26 Bios of Famous Composers
• 6 Eras of Music Explained
• Easy-to-Use Comparative Timeline
• Easy-to-Use Maps
• Composer Info-Cards & Game Directions

• Note-taking Pages
• Quizzes
• Answer Keys
• Listening Suggestions
• Intricate Coloring Pages
• Resource Books

Authors:  Maggie S. Hogan and Melissa Craig did extensive research and writing to bring this great resource.  They had music expert, Richard B. Pinkerton edit the book as well.

Cost:

CD-Rom Book
Price: $29.95

 To purchase click here.

 In Our Home:

We've been using this great resource for over a month.  At least twice a week I read through the detailed lesson with the girls.  They take notes on their provided note-taking pages.  Then we fill out a composer card.  The composer card is a place to collect all the facts about each composer.  There are also thinking questions to apply the interesting facts gleaned through the lesson.  Then using the supplied map, we map where the composer was born.  Each composer is divided by style of music and a great history of each music style is provided. 

I like the way everything is self-contained for our Classical Music discussions now.  I don't have to search for the perfect book to read, assemble the notebooking pages and make-up a timeline.  The only thing missing for me from this curriculum is actual music to listen to.  I want my daughters to also be able to recognize the composer's main pieces when they hear them.  It is easy to find CD's or the pieces online though to add to the curriculum. 

This is a picture of the folder that Jennifer has been putting together as we study Classical music.

Written from a Christian perspective, Hands-On Geography will get you excited about teaching an oft-forgotten subject. Includes specific instructions for many activities, games, and projects designed to be appealing to kids and easy for parents. An easy, yet thorough, introduction to a very important subject. Grades K – 5.

 Written by Maggie S. Hogan.

This is a large paperback book stuffed with wonderful Geogrpahy resources.  The beginning chapter has information about the National Geography Bee. 

Also present in this book are directions for six homemade geography games for the early elementary years. Fun stuff that uses items you already have in your home to reinforce geography.

 Included in this book is an extensive section of outline maps to copy.  Then Maggie S. Hogan has a large chapter on ways to use these maps called "Maps Galore".  Things like sticker geography, jigsaw maps and booking maps to name a few.  There are sixteen projects in that chapter.

 Jennifer did the chapter on Joseph's Journey, this is a detailed map and geography questionnaire to enhance her learning as we studied Joseph's life.

A chapter on nature geography was filled with tools on how to include nature in your geography study.  A great guide to making your own field guide is on my to-do-list for the spring.  We will be using her helpful pages on studying birds that live in our area this winter. 

This is a valuable resource that is well worth the cost of $14.95

Orderhere.

Maggie S. Hogan has written an extensive amount of great Homeschooling curriculum. 

Please click the logo to read reviews of her other products.

One Mother of Boys Tells Her Story

When I was expecting my first child, I was sure I was having a girl. Thirteen years ago, it wasn’t as common for people to find out the gender of the baby, so we did not know what we were having before the birth.  It was truly a surprise when our firstborn child was a son.  It was an even bigger surprise when he didn’t want to sleep and he was fussy and needed almost constant stimulation to keep him contented.  As he grew into toddler age (which began at ten months old when he learned to—not walk—run), I continued to be confused about the best way to handle this very energetic little person.  Training and discipline were constant in those days.  I was exhausted all the time in those early years.  By the time he hit five or six years old, however, I began to see glimpses of hope that all the time invested in training was starting to bear a bit of fruit.  He began displaying some signs of self-control and was able to sit quietly for increasingly longer periods.  It was such a relief to my inexperienced mother’s heart to see that maybe it really was possible to get through to this little guy.  At thirteen, he is now becoming a young man who would make any mother proud.  He is intelligent, visionary, artistic, well-read and articulate.  The training, teaching, discipline and guidance have not stopped, though the fruit shows a little sooner these days and I can now see proof that it is worth the investment of time, struggles, and tears.  Most importantly, he wants to love, serve, and honor God with his life.  We’re not there yet, but we’re headed in the right direction.  This young man is going to make a difference for Christ's Kingdom.

My second son is the opposite of his brother in personality.  As a baby, he was laid back and content.  I found it easy to keep him happy and occupied.  He was an active toddler, but not to the same frenzied extent as his brother.  As he grew, I began to realize that it wasn’t me.  I wasn’t doing a horrible job and maybe I wouldn’t even ruin my children’s lives as a result of them being more than I could handle.  However, son number two was definitely all boy.  He just approached it in a different way.  My favorite picture of him from his babyhood is from the time he got into the pantry cabinet.  There he was, a silly grin on his face as he sat in the midst of an entire box of cornmeal, as well as some flour, sugar, and whatever else he had happened to come across in his quest to conquer the uncharted territory (the pantry) before him.  Years later, he is now a boy who thrives on work.  But he is not content to do just any kind of work—he wants to do real work that has a real purpose.  At nine years old, he can work as hard and as long as many men.

My newest little man is now a twenty month old ball of fire.  Nothing stands in this boy’s way.  He sees any challenge, whether it be scaling the back of the couch or building a tower of blocks, and will not stop until he reaches its successful completion.  He is a world-class climber who learned how to get up onto the kitchen counter at nine months old.  At this point, the entire family has been trained to never leave a cup of liquid or a pen anywhere on any surface in any room of the house.  I now find myself in that familiar place of exhaustion I had when my first son was little, but now I know these days will pass all too quickly.  I am also much more confident in my mothering skills and since I haven’t ruined any of my other children yet, this one will likely be okay too.  If I could only teach him not to sing “Holy, Holy, Holy” at the top of his lungs in the middle of a church service….

My boys are a source of joy and hope and I absolutely love being their mother.  I can’t think of a better way to spend my days than trying to keep up with them.

This post is part two in my series on the adventure of raising boys.