At first it was coming down but not sticking.
I LOVE this picture! I am wondering if it's too soon to have taken next years Christmas card pic? LOL
Catching snowflakes!
Then it started to stick!
Just gorgeous!
There is just nothing prettier (and more odd) than a palm frond with snow on it! LOL
It was a beautiful and surprising Christmas Eve! This will be the first white Christmas any of my kids have ever had! They are all pretty jazzed!
Thank you God for the ultimate Christmas surprise!
Merry Christmas everyone!
Jamin
The Crime: She had gotten into her big sisters purse, took out her camera and then proceeded to take over one hundred pictures.
The proof was on the camera. Guilty!
Big sisters purse
Camera case
Her feet. Did I mention that she turned three in August of '09?
Her horse
Another horse
The punishment: I blog about it so in years to come I can show her future husband. Bwa ha ha ha ha!
Oh, and she did take pictures of her own hand, but it was too blurry to share.
Welcome to Freebie Friday!
A week from today is Christmas! This time of year, as we turn our thoughts towards the birth of Christ, is the perfect time to share the BEST freebie of all with kids! The free gift of eternal life through Jesus Christ!
Romans 6:23 tells us:
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
And in John 3:16 we learn:
For God so loved the world, that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
and Acts 16:31 tells us
. . . Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved . . .
It is all so simple, and it's FREE! Click here to find freebies that will help you share with children how Jesus died for our sins and offers us eternal life as a free gift.
It's the BEST freebie of all!
I will see you next year!
Happy homeschooling,
Jamin
Why Jesus is Better Than Santa Claus
By Rev. James Spellman of Ohio
*Santa lives at the North Pole... JESUS is everywhere.
*Santa rides in a sleigh... JESUS rides on the wind and walks on the water.
*Santa comes but once a year... JESUS is an ever present help.
*Santa fills your stockings with goodies... JESUS supplies all your needs.
*You have to wait in line to see Santa... JESUS is as close as the mention of His name.
*Santa lets you sit on his lap... JESUS lets you rest in His arms.
*Santa doesn't know your name, all he can say is "Hi little boy or girl, what's your name?"... JESUS knew our name before we did. Not only does He know our name, He knows our address too. He knows our history and future and He even knows how many hairs are on our head.
*Santa has a belly like a bowl full of jelly... JESUS has a heart full of love.
*All Santa can offer is HO HO HO... JESUS offers health, help and hope.
*Santa says "You better not cry"... JESUS says "Cast all your cares on me for I care for you."
*Santa's little helpers make toys... JESUS makes new life, mends wounded hearts, repairs broken homes and builds mansions.
*Santa may make you chuckle but...JESUS gives you a joy that is your strength.
*While Santa puts gifts under your tree... JESUS became our gift and died on the tree.
Its obvious there is really no comparison! Jesus is still the reason for the season. Yes, Jesus is better, he is even better than Santa Claus.
I found this poem over at the 1+1+1=1 blog. It is part of a lovely FREE Christmas Symbols lapbook she has put together! I just LOVE the poem! It completely speaks to how I feel about Christmas in my heart!
Happy Homeschooling,
Jamin
Our family + 1. :^)
The guests...
The cake!
The gifts...
The collapse on the way home!
:^)It was a great day! We started the day with gifts. Then we took him out to brunch. In the afternoon his best friend came over to play. We had the party at dinner time. We never even got to do his birthday treasure hunt because we ran out of time. So he will be really surprised to get to do that today!
I can't believe he is 6! Time goes waaaaayyyyy too fast!
Happy, happy birthday little man! I LOVE YOU!
Mommy
So here is the plan!
Crafts:
1. Patchwork Pillow
2. Bunny Pincushion
3. Quilted Potholder
4. Yarn Doll
5. chromatrope toy and Geography Notebook Pages
6. Midsummers Wreath
Ongoing craft:
Braided Rugs
Snack:
1. Swedish Meatballs
2. Swedish Crackers with Lingonberry Jam
3. Swedish Rice Porridge (Skansk Grot)
4. Rye Bread and homemade butter. (Have girls make the butter in a jar.)
5. Potato Soup
6. Pepparkakor Cookies
Whew, so there is the plan! Now for the shopping and cutting and prepping. Then I am ready to go!
Happy Homeschooling,
Jamin
There was one activity we did that I know the girls really liked. I think it's in book 4 where they take the blankets they have woven to the market and sell them. I wanted the girls to get an idea what it was like to have to trade on the barter system. So I brought a bunch off odd things to represent other things and had them trade. We broke the girls up into 4 groups. One group had paper cups that represented sheep. One group had paper napkins that represented blankets. One group had a mix of things. Mirrors, jewelry, crafts. (Whatever I had in my craft cupboard!) and the last group had money. The girls had to go around and trade with each other and try to get a good "deal". They had to decide how many blankets a sheep was worth and how many craft items were worth a blanket. Etc. The object was to end up with something from each group. After the finished we talked about their experience. Was it easier for the group that had money? (I had gotten some BIG coins at the dollar store designed to be hung on a schoolroom wall.) How did they decide the value of the different items? It was interesting to see their thoughts and hear their ideas.
The crafts we did for the last 3 weeks of Josefina were:
coiled pots, whisk brooms and memory books We also made geography notebooks and weavings.
Coiled Pot
These are made with air dry clay. Super simple. Just make coils and roll them into a pot! These were lots of fun. I also provided glass beads for the girls to decorate their pots with.Whisk Broom
For this craft I cut up the larger brooms I got at the dollar store to make the smaller ones! LOL Our finished brooms were the type of brooms (right side) that Josefina would have used not only to sweep the floor but to comb her hair too! The girls had fun combing each others hair when they finished these.Memory Book
In one of the books when Josefina's aunt comes to visit she tells them about the memory book she keeps to help her remember their mama who died a year earlier. To make our book we used brown craft paper for the cover. The girls colored a picture on it and then we crumpled them up to make them look old. We folded over white paper for the inside and held it all together with yarn.Here are the girls coloring their memory books.
The Geography Notebooks are something we did the same night we made the brooms.
Since the brooms took about 2 minutes to make we had extra time. So I printed out a map to mark where Josefina lived and then some worksheets about New Mexico. We will add pages for each of the girls as we study them.
Weaving was an ongoing project we worked on a little every night. Not only did the girls work on their cardboard weavings, but I also had a small lap loom for them to try out.
My daughter giving the lap loom a try.
The lap loom was a hit!
The girls had a lot of fun with the cardboard weavings too.
My daughters finished project now hangs proudly in our new schoolroom!
So that is what I remember about Josefina! LOL I have learned my lesson for sure, I have to blog as I go! If only there was more time in the day!
Happy Homeschooling,
Jamin
To read all my American Girl posts click HERE.
Bingo...
I made custom cards here: http://print-bingo.com Top Game
This one I printed out here: http://www.daniellesplace.com/HTML/freeChristmasLesson.htmlTo play you pass the top around the circle, each person taking a turn spinning it. When it is your turn to spin you get to pick up the word that the top stops on. The object to to get all 4 words...CALL HIS NAME IMMANUEL. I printed out the Bible verse to remind them that Immanuel means "God with us." The first person to get all 4 words yells out GOD WITH US!
We have 40 kids signed up for the party. So we will have them in 4 groups of 10. They will travel through 4 stations. At two stations they will make ornaments and at two they will play a game.
We are looking forward to it! This is a fun way to remember that "Jesus is the reason for the season!"
Happy Homeschooling,
Jamin
Angel Ornament
The directions to make the angel above are here:http://www.christiancrafters.com/craft_angel_clip.html
(I used a little piece of silver pipe cleaner for the halo on my version.)
Candy Cane Ornament
Here is what is written on the Candy Cane one. The Candy Cane
“J” is for Jesus the one and only son of God whose birth we celebrate at Christmas. He came as an act of love to save us from our sins.
The white base color of the candy cane reminds us that he was pure and completely without sin.
The red stripes remind us of the blood He shed to save us from our sins.
The candy is bent into a cane to remind us that Jesus is the Good Shepherd. Turn it over and it becomes a "J" for Jesus!
A simple piece of candy, yet it is so much more. A reminder of our Lord and Saviour!
:^)
Happy Homeschooling,
Jamin