Free Holiday Idea Book for Thankgiving and Christmas. Unwrap our beautiful holiday gift  for you! The staff and friends of The Old Schoolhouse® have come together to share their favorite family traditions, recipes, and more with you. It's your FREE gift . . .   Get ready to . . . Wrap your family in a ribbon of thankfulness and joy and season your holiday with laughter, love, and togetherness. Start planning now for a wondrous holiday season with . . .   The TOS 2009 Digital Holiday Supplement WOW . . . a gorgeous Holiday/Christmas Digital Magazine filled with a fabulous lineup of planning, recipe, gift, and craft ideas you'll love.  If you're looking for inspiration to get your holiday spirit revived for the upcoming season of festivities, you've come to the right place. TOS has put together a gorgeous, full-color, digital magazine filled to the virtual brim with traditions-in-the-making. "This is TOS's gift to the homeschooling community, and anyone is welcome to it. The 2009 Digital Holiday Supplement will fulfill your yearnings for fresh and original additions to your long-treasured, family customs, and maintain Christ's honored position first, and foremost, in your celebrations." -Gena Suarez, publisher of The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine. Don't forget, this holiday idea book is free--no strings attached. Feel free to share it with your friends, homeschool support group, family, church group, blog visitors, customers, newsletter subscribers, and anyone who would enjoy making memories of an unforgettable Thanksgiving and Christmas.. Download Directions: Open and browse the Holiday Digital Supplement. In the top toolbar, click the Download link. A dialogue box will appear. You will want to use the first option that is listed. It will have a small PDF icon to the right and the file size-35 MB. The radial button next to "All Pages" should be darkened. If it is not, click on it to darken. Click the "Download PDF" button in this first section. A download dialogue box will appear with options to "open with" or "Save" the PDF. Click on SAVE. Please do NOT try to open the PDF before downloading. Click on OK. You will be prompted to select the directory on your hard drive where you wish to store the Holiday Digital Supplement PDF. Make a notation of the directory you select. Click SAVE. This is a 35 MB file and many people will be accessing it, please allow extra time for the download-especially if you have dial-up Internet service.

• Post A Comment!

Oct. 26, 2009 - A Truly Divine Appointment

I wish I had been a fly on the course when this event took place. Let me explain . . .

I have a very dear friend who lives and homeschools in the city of Detroit. Her neighborhood is rough and her circumstances are difficult; yet through it all she manages to smile and trust the Lord to help her do the work necessary to raise five children without the support of her husband. Her children range from 12 to 19 in age.

The oldest two young men are both homeschool graduates and attend a local college. To help pay for their studies they tirelessly work as caddies at an exclusive golf course. My friend sent me this exchange her son Josh had with the golfer he recently assisted around the course.

Let me set the scene for you . . . Josh meets his golfer. They shake hands and begin the loop of 18-holes (3-4 hours) together. Golfer expresses how impressed his is with Josh and comments on how well versed Josh is (says Josh is able to give intelligent opinions on many subjects golfer initiated, speaks English not Ebonics, wears trousers that fit and such)

GOLFER: So what school do you go to? (eagerly awaiting an answer)

JOSH: I recently completed my high school studies and just graduated one month ago.

GOLFER: Really? Which DPS (Detroit Public School)?

JOSH: The Mitchell Academy! (proudly spoken)

GOLFER: a look of bewilderment . . .

JOSH: Smiling proudly. I am home educated.

The golfer begins coughing and (for a black man) turned white as a sheet.

Who was the GOLFER? None other that Robert Bobb, Detroit Public Schools' emergency financial manager who is trying to encourage every Detroit resident to denounce charter, private and home schools and return to DPS. Even though Josh knew his name, he still had no clue what this man did for a living. Josh then offers his golfer bottled water to calm is choking cough.

The Detroit Public Schools is currently seeking more money to fix the schools. It's a public works project that's never works. Currently DPS spends over $11,000 per student yet they have the worst graduation rate in the country. Young men like Josh are living proof that it isn't money that is the problem. It is a government system that creates a poverty of spirit and a vicious cycle that Robert Bobb and many others perpetuate to protect their power. However, parents have the ultimate power if they would use it.

My courageous friend bucked the government's system of dependency and despair. Like her son, she is proof that a dedicated mother can break the cycle and raise GREAT kids who positively impact their community and the world. Bravo to you both!

-Spunky

Cross-posted, with permission, from SpunkyHomeSchool

• Post A Comment!

Oct. 25, 2009 - who knows what week it is!!!LOL!!

Well, I am writing this before I fillin for a nanny. Daddy has been "taking charge" of homeschooling now that I am at the ministry office on normal office hours, more or less. So, in reality, that means that not a whole lot is being done.

Should that bother me? should it not? my kids are home almost all day with their daddy.....something that many kids don't have the priviledge of (and having 3 boys, that is great they have their daddy around all day).........daddy has been teaching them their Chinese lessons and occasional math. Well, for "work" wise, that is about it....so are then called unschoolers? That bugs me for some reason.....I am a textbook person, not trying to keep up to par with peers ,but I like to know where I have been and where I need to go.

I do have a question for my 3 readers out there:-).....history.....this bugs me....we live in Taiwan and only go to the USA once every 4 years.....should I not bother too much with history and just use our time in the USA to "catch up " on it? they do take the IOWA tests, does history matter that much?

Also, I am thinking of just working out something with dh that they do mostly Chinese now, and after dinner (whether they like it or not), I do spelling and reading/grammar so I know they are getting it.......oh....this bilingual stuff is hard.....I am not going to give up on it though, they need it and I KNOW one day they will appreciate it!!!!

suggestions?

• Post A Comment!

Oct. 20, 2009 - Our Son.... Noah

Our baby, Noah  Dewey Shepard Tanquary, was born on the 6th of October at 11:07 PM after my water broke unexpectantly!  I was so glad Aaron was home at the time.... our family lives 9 hours away so this was my biggest worry but everything worked out great and the children were with us the whole time during labor and the boys stepped out for the 5 minutes of delivery!!! It really was wonderful and I had a very easy delivery and after only 4 hours from my water breaking and hardly any pain, Noah entered the world and appeared to be perfectly healthy....however, within an hour they discovered he was having trouble breathing and so they rushed him to the NICU.... He had respiratory distress syndrome and was septic....how scary!!! after 12 long days we were able to bring him home.... he is doing really well now...breast feeding has proved to be more than difficult because they fed him bottles (I pumped) while he was in the NICU because he had central lines in his belly button and they told us we couldn't hold him since they could be easily pulled out! It was such a hard time...but we made it through!! And now all he wants is to be held and I am more than happy to accommodate him!! :^)

 

• Post A Comment!

<- Last Page • Next Page ->