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How cool is this?!?! Rosetta Stone is the fastest way to learn a language and has been the #1 foreign language curriculum among homeschoolers for a while — and you can WIN the *all new* version 3 Rosetta Stone Homeschool LATIN program… FOR FREE! This is the first year you can get Latin in the brand new Version III update. This is a $259 program (and believe me it’s worth every penny!) To win this most excellent Latin program copy these paragraphs and post them in (or as) your next blog post, and/OR link to the contest from your facebook page and/OR email the information to your homeschool support group – Then go to the original page http://Jeneralities.com and leave a comment saying that you’ve posted about, or have linked to, the contest. Please make sure the link works to get back to the original contest page when you post. And good luck! |
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I finally got around to taking pictures of the Christmas Lapbbooks A & L did. Better late than never The lapbooks were created using the majority of HOAC's Christmas Cheer. We had to improvise on some activities (like Snow Hopscotch!) since we live in FL! Overall, they had a great time doing the projects. For the cover, we made a wreath from Abeka Art Projects. The top page inside is a painting made with reindeer antlers (really a twig but they had fun). On the two flaps are: snow picture (drawing then paint over it with epsom salt), snowman puppets, Christmas Tree book ( we decorated with foam decorations), and the Colors of Christmas game cards. The middle page has our reindeer puppet, the Gingerbread family, How Many Reindeer booklet, T is for.... fold, and our booklist (The Gingerbread Boy, Hansel & Gretel, Bright Christmas: An Angel Remembers, Holly Reindeer and Colored Lights, and If You Take a Mouse to the Movies).
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December is a month of birthday celebrations for our family. A turned 6 on 12\8 and L turned 8 on 12\15. My grandfather's birthday is also 12\15 and he turned 92. We took the girls camping at Ft. Wilderness (Disney World) for a few days. We didn't go to any of the theme parks, but did surprise them with dinner with Cinderella Princess A and Princess L with Prince Charming
We came home on Wednesday morning, then the girls and I headed to my mom & dad's on Friday morning. We celebrated birthdays again with Ninny & PopPops (my mom & dad) and Grandma & Grandpa. Three birthday cakes in 7 days didn't help my diet any A & L with Great Grandpa & Great Grandma
Now we are preparing for Our Savior's birthday. As A would say, we have 3 more sleeps than it's Jesus' birthday. We have finished our Christmas lapbook - just need to assemble it. I will try to post pictures when we're done |
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WOOHOO!! The girls (and I The Pumpkin Lapbook was made while they stayed with Ninny & Pop Pops (my mom & dad) while hubby and I went on an anniversary vacation.
Then they worked on their Thanksgiving Lapbooks
Cover
We did: Thanksgiving How Many book, Thank you Lord for...., T for turkey cut out, leaf rubbing, turkey made with real feathers, and our book\video list
Lift up the turkey and we have: Pilgrim's Thank you God book, turkey matching, The First Thanksgiving question worksheet (read the book then they wrote their answers to the questions I typed up), and Psalms 100:4 Now that Thanksgiving is over, we'll start on our Christmas lapbook I'm excited to say, that as of today, I'M FINISHED CHRISTMAS SHOPPING!!!! A's birthday is 12\8 and L's is 12\15. If I wait to shop,I'm running around at the last minute buying what is left on the shelves (learned that the hard way!).
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In my previous post, I mentioned that we'd be starting school early since there wasn't anything happening and I was getting bored. Well......I learned a vaulable lesson - be careful what you post! Shortly after writing that, hubby asked me to start praying about moving to another house. He's mentioned that before....pretty much every time gas goes up in price So we started to pray for God to open & close doors if it was His Will for us to move. God sure likes to remind us that HE is in control Moral of the story - don't write a blog entry on not having anything to do! |
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Not that I don't have anything else to do today
Math - difference between big & little How mommy animals take care of their young
Participated in a group choir
We did a Yoga class for beginners D & M developed an interest on photography
Played soccer for PE
Studied proper nutrition in Health
And learned about our sense of touch in science "um....is it a ........"
We have taken a few weeks off, but since we didn't have any plans for the summer, I decided to start school early. Here is M's reaction to that news:
I hope you enjoyed our Year in Review
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Wow! I can't believe June is here already! L received her second implant in Feb. with activation on March 10. You can watch a part of her activation here: http://youtube.com/watch?v=MJtTR_2Zp3g She turned right to me when I said her name. A graduated from Pre-K! She's can't understand that school is over and she won't be going back tomorrow. She had a fit when I cleaned out her cubby. Every day, she'll ask if she's going to school today. We will keep her home next year and homeschool her. I think it will be great for L to have A home and learning along with her. I plan on doing lapbook projects with them - I can make A's a little more challenging than L's to keep her on her toes. D is a senior M will be a freshman this year. I'll probably have my hands full keeping him challenged! If he's bored with something, he just doesn't do it As for me..... I'm doing better with my resolutions My next goal is to keep this blog more updated |
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How does one get Cabin Fever in sunny Florida?? L had her second cochlear implant I have to share a great story - we have been working hard with L on the concept of 1 & 2. While playing Candyland last week, I would say whatever card was drawn..... 1 green, 2 yellow, etc. It was L's turn and when she drew her card, she looked at it and said (YES!!!!! SHE SAID!!!) "who re" as she held up 2 fingers I, like the majority of the population, made some New Year's Resolutions. Don't ask me why because I never keep them
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A testament to God’s perfect timing. At the same time and same city, another little girl was turning two years old. She wasn’t able to hear the celebration around her for she lived in a world of silence. Fast forward one year to December 2003 – the little baby quietly celebrated her first birthday surrounded by other children waiting for their mommies & daddies to come for them. The other little girl just turned three, but her family was also about to make a heart wrenching decision. A few days later, on December 24th, the family went for a ride to the local train station. I could just imagine the excitement she felt, as she anxiously thought about her trip, while sitting on the bench where she was told to wait. Soon, that excitement turned to fear when she discovered that her family was gone. She couldn’t even cry out for them as she never spoke a word. She too was found and taken to the local orphanage.
During this visit, the sweetest little girl with pony tails sticking straight up on her head captured my heart.
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Let's see if I can get through this post! I've started this entry three times now and was never able to finish it Our school year is moving along. We went on our annual trip to Gatlinburg\Pigeon Forge for Thanksgiving. the trip was.......interesting! It was the first family vacation since L joined us. All six (seven if you count our 12 y\o toy poodle) piled into our Honda Mini-van and headed north. Everything was going fine for - the first 30 minutes!! D decided he was going to practice being a back seat driver and we quickly discovered Dad doesn't play that game "are we there yet?" "No, honey, we have a ways to go yet." "But I'm hungry. Very, very hungry." "A, you have your milk to drink and snack to eat in your hands." "I have to go potty!" "We'll stop in a little bit." "How long is a little bit?" By this time, hubby is wishing he had some valium and I'm wishing I had some ear plugs! Overall, vacation was fun. L & A experienced a lot of things for the first time, including our tradition of eating a footlong corndog on the sdewalk in Gatlinburg As usual, this post has been interrupted.....grrrrrr. Maybe I'll have the chance to do a post one day, some day (hopefully!). |
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Things are looking a lot brighter around here! Thank you Jesus!! L is doing so much better with her school work D is plugging along with his hs course load. He's 16, has the teenage mouth, but he is such a great brother\son\grandson\great-grandson. I took him to Gainesville to help my dad unload a trailer full of my grandparent's belongings (they recently moved them down from Ohio to live with them). He never once complained or asked for anything in return. D would watch baseball & football with his Great-Grandfather and have a good time. He can carry on a conversation about sports, politics, wars, etc.... His sister's adore him and do things for him that they can't (or won't!) do for me. One day, I was trying to work with L on something and she just couldn't get it. I was getting pretty frustrated when D said, "She knows you're upset. Let me work with her." Not only was she able to distinguish between 1 & 2 items, but he had her doing colors too! M is..........being M A continues to love her preschool. She is 4 1\2 going on 16! She knows everything but is at the age of asking "why?" ALL of the time. Then she confirms the answer with you! Guess we have another auditory learner on our hands. I want to thank EVERYONE for all of the encouraging comments you leave for me! I appreciate you taking time out of your busy days to visit and respond. I entered to win the writing instruction program |
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I have been checking out a lot of other blogs lately to try and get the hang of this. In doing so, I have come across some great info (just haven't come across on how to make my blog more interesting yet!). I also discovered that I haven't discussed our style of homeschooling yet. Here we go......... We started out schooling at home with school desks and the whole classroom thing. That lasted for about two years This year, D is doing: Teaching Textbooks for Alg. 2, BJU US History, Apologia's Human Body, 150 Great Books & Movies As Literature, CLP's English, Spanish 2, Political Philosophies by Bluestocking Guide (semester 1), SAT and College Prep Course for the Christian Student (semester 2) and Words of Wisdom - a study of Job, Psalms, & Proverbs. M is using: BJU Pre-Algebra, CLP's English, 150 Great Books & Movies as Literature, Drive Thru History with extra projects from Dinah Zike's Big Book of US History, Apologia's Biology 1 and Words of Wisdom - a study of Job, Psalms, and Proverbs. With L, I use a hodge podge of various websites (Enchanted Learning, first-school, soft school, ect). I would LOVE to get her to the point of lap books. I think the hands-on would be good for her. Speaking of L, she responds to her name now - Praise God!!!!!!!! She is not quite 6 months old hearing age. She "babbles" up a storm and is being more vocal. L & A took swim lessons last week and did great. Day one, L was crying and A cried on day 2. By day 3, they were both swimming under water and loving it So, this is all probably way more than you wanted to know! |
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Being a homeschool family, it was only natural to bring L home to school, too. I prayed about what to do - send her to 1) hearing impaired K-5 class with the ps 2) mainstream in a small Chrisitan school 3) LD K-5 class or 4) homeschool. I kept hearing "homeschool". I thought "all right, God! We can do this." You know all of the times when you think - Gee, did I hear God right? Is THIS what He wanted me to do? Well, I'm at the point D is doing awesome this year Welcome to our crazy homeschool days! |
WOOHOO!!!! L finally got the idea with her ape picture! I was beginning to wonder if I would need to call in reinforcements - AKA Daddy A little background on L - she was abandoned around age 3 (birthdate\age is a guess) and lived in an orphanage in China until we brought her home at 5 1\2. She is profoundly deaf and didn't have a formal language until we got her. She received a cochlear implant in March so is 4-5 months old hearing age. The problem?? She is so used to just smiling at someone to do or have anything that she isn't used to actually "working". She would scribble all over a picture and get a "good job". The first few days of school have been a .......ummmmm...... little tense Once she realized that she needed to actually take her time and do it right, she's done great. We worked on learning to write the number 2, making an apple tree (cutting, pasting, letter A) and the first day of Creation today. It probably sounds like I was harder on her than I actually was, but she is very behind in her skills and needs to try and catch up. She has 6 years to make up. If anyone has suggestions or recommendations, I'd love to hear them ![]() |
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Unfortunately, I'm not talking about three kids down for the night A loves her new school and wants to know every morning if she's going to school. They have snack when I drop her off at 9:00, lunch at 11:30 with pick-up at 12:00. I WOULD love a school like that D is doing well. We're using Teaching Textbooks for Alg 2 and he really likes it. He got a 100% on his first try!! Keep up the good work! L is........... used to her teacher last year just doing whatever L wanted! Well, Momma doesn't play that game! We did the same coloring sheet 3 times before she got it - A a with an ape - A was to be colored black, a was brown. She just couldn't get it! We also did our writing practice, fine motor skill excercise, and played Memory with numbers. We also work a lot on our hearing & speech. Hopefully, once she is understanding what she hears, instructions will be easier. I've added "Following Instructions" as a subject! If anyone has suggestions for a hearing impaired child, I'd greatly appreciate you sharing |
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As I was working in our new homeschool room yesterday, I looked out the window and saw a family of deer grazing in our backyard. Momma was standing watch as the babies munched on the grass, not straying too far away from her. Earlier, she had them stay in a big shady area near our property line while she went about her morning "chores". As I sat there enjoying their presence, I got thinking..... how does she do it?? Her children were being so good, obeying her without a second thought. How did she convince them to stay under the tree until she returned? I sure wished I could have asked her what her secret was as my "peacefulness" was broken by two little Chinese girls storming into the room As soon as I can figure out how to add pictures to my blog, I'll post one of the deer |
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Well, another school year is approaching and I'm ready (I think!!). A little bit about our family first. Hubby and I have been married for almost 18 years (in October). We have two biological sons (D is 16, M is 13) and two daughters from China. I brought L home in Sept. 2006 at 5 1\2. She is deaf and received a cochlear implant in March, 2007. A is 4 and we adopted her Nov. 2004. She was a cleft baby. Our homeschool journey began when we moved next door to a homeschool family. We (the boys and I) approached hubby about homeschooling. "Absolutly not", "No way, no how!" were his responses. "Well, let's pray about it" I told the boys. A few weeks later, hubby was willing to give it a try!! So our journey began. The funny thing is, whenever I feel like throwing in the towel, hubby says "Absolutly not", "No way, no how!" With the addition of the girls, we have added onto our home. Our new "classroom" is finished and I'm moving in! I have this week to pack up the shelves of books and closets of art supplies, then un-pack and organize the room. This year will also add the challenge of homeschooling L and teaching her to hear. A will be going to Pre-K at our church in the mornings then home in the afternoon. Add a junior (with a teen attitude) and an eighth grader (that doesn't understand why he needs to know this stuff!!) and that makes up our Crazy Homeschool Days! |










. We spent one day walking around Downtown Disney (can you say Ghiradelli 



) completed their first two lapbooks!! They had a great time working on the projects. The more they have to cut and paste, the more fun they have. That is until they have to pick up 100 little scraps of paper off of the floor. 



We came to the conclusion that we might as well stay where we are and make less trips into town. God had other plans! I found a house that was a short sale so hubby went and took a tour. He called me after and said the house would never work for us - 2 story with all bedrooms up except one small one (we said we'd never have an upstairs master again!), needed quite a bit of TLC, gas community (I've never cooked with gas before) and with it being a short sale it usually takes 2-3 months to get the offer approved. I wanted to be moved by Labor Day so we could start school (this was the beginning of August). We made a ridiculous offer on Friday (8\7) and were told the bank would give us an answer in 5 business days (yea, right!). On Monday (8\10), the bank called and accepted our offer
. So, in a matter of 3 weeks, we: made an offer, had it accepted, remodeled a 5 bedroom house, and moved a homeschool family of 6! Prior to that, I didn't have a single thing packed. I was able to be pretty well settled AND started school by Labor Day
, but I wanted to take the time and post our Year in Review. 









When we left the orphanage, she was standing at the top of the stairs waving bye. Oh, how I hated to leave her there. I made a silent vow to her, as tears fell down my cheeks, that I would be back for her one day.
L doesn't even know which hand to write with or how to write on the paper - let alone write anything that you can make out. WHAT HAVE I DONE???????