Cultivated Little Women

• Aug. 1, 2006 - poison ivy fruit?

We were produce shopping the other day and this idea struck me: Why not buy one piece of exoctic fruit and let the girls try it, then look up online where it came from and find it on the map and see if we learn anything interesting.

So I bought a nice ripe mango, we cut it up last night for snack and I thought it was very good, my girls thought it was disgusting! In fact, my five year old said it tasted like plastic. Needless to say, I ate the whole thing all by myself and at one point my tongue and lips felt a little tingly. Well, I looked mango up on wikipedia.org to find out where mangoes came from. I soon learned that they are in the POISON IVY family!!!! I took two Benedryl ASAP, then I continued reading and found out that usually only the skin and the sap cause an allergic reaction, but I wasn’t taking any chances.

Oh well, you can’t win them all. I am not so easily disheartened.....next week we’re trying starfruit.... after I look up the information.

By the way, the mango originated in India, but the one we ate was from Mexico.

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• Jul. 29, 2006 - Quick Update about my Cousin's Surgery

In case anyone read my post from July 25, about my cousin, here is a quick update.

Jacob had the surgery on Wednesday, they took out a lollipop size tumor from his neck and the good news is that they checked around and it appears to be contained. The bad news is that he has to start chemo and radiation soon and he also will be away from his three children for several weeks.

Thanks for keeping him in your prayers.

• Jul. 29, 2006 - 6 Reasons Why I love the Rescue Mission's Thrift Stores......

6. Some of the profits go toward sheltering battered women and children, some go to helping/feeding the homeless/jobless, and they preach the gospel to those they help.

5. The cashiers are almost always more friendly than they are in any other store I

go to.

4. They ususally are NOT crowded, and I really don't like crowds.

3. The smell doesn't bother me that much.

2. If they didn't exist my children would have to walk around naked.

1. Each trip feels like a treasure hunt, and I usually walk away feeling victorious and thankful for God's provision.

I went to a new RM Thrift Store on Thursday, it just opened in my area, and I just have to share my victory with you! Drumroll please..........

I found the following books:

Rebecca of Sunybrook Farm

The Courage of Sarah Noble

The Velveteen Rabbit (illustrated)

The World of Pooh (illustrated)

How could I not feel victorious when such great literature cost me only one dollar!!!

• Jul. 26, 2006 - Beautiful Music.......A Mommy's Narration

Monday night we went to a free concert at our local public library. The Syracuse Symphony Orchestra’s string quartet performed for just over and hour and it was a wonderful experience. We were one of the first few people in the room and so we were seated front and center. We were literally less than 6 feet away from the musicians.

The musicians were much more personable than I expected, and exhibited a great sense of humor. They played some music that we recognized like Mozart, Handel, and Pachelbel. They also played some we didn’t recognize by Boccherinni and Dvorak. One of my absolute favorite pieces of classical music is Pachelbel’s Cannon in D and they played it! The way the live music filled that small room (max capacity was 50) was heavenly. It was so deeply moving that it brought tears to my eyes, especially as I thought of how much more beautiful the music will be in heaven.

I learned that a string quartet is made up of two violins, one cello and one viola, which is larger than a violin........I always thought it was smaller for some reason. I learned that in all of North America there are only 33 cities that have a symphony orchestra and mine is one of them. It was such a beautiful experience and I am so thankful that we were able to experience it for free. Both my girls are very musically sensitive and I’ve been looking for an opportunity like this for years, it was well worth the wait!

As you know, I’ve been reading A Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola and she very thoroughly explains how to use narration instead of testing for comprehension. Although I’ve actually been using narration for the past two years in my classical curriculum, my understanding of the subject has been refined through my reading of her book. I also have been challenged to apply it to more subjects. So after the concert on the ride home I asked the girls what they liked best and I found out that they really were paying attention pretty well. I know they were getting a little antsy by the end of it, especially since we usually dance while our classical music is playing at home. We found out that next month a neighboring library will have a Celtic group of musicians performing an outside concert. The girls can’t wait because they’ll be able to dance at that one....and get in touch with their Celtic heritage!

• Jul. 25, 2006 - Poem by Julia Field

Last week I took out a children’s book of poetry from the library called Poetry For Mothers selected by Myra Cohn Livingston. I thought one of them especially adorable and I wanted to share it with anyone that stops by.

Mom is Wow!

By Julia Field

Mothers are finders and keepers

They are comforters of weepers

They are lullers-abye for sleepers

Mothers are good-manners makers

They are temperature takers

They are the best of birthday bakers

Mom is Wow!

Mothers are sick-bed sit besiders

They are hiding place providers

They are pin-the-tail guiders

Mothers are prayer makers in the nights

They are enders of quarrels and fights

They are teachers of duties and rights.

Mom is Wow!

• Jul. 25, 2006 - Very Serious Prayer Request

This is a part of an email I received yesterday....

I go in for another operation on Wed, the 26th. And I see a radiation therapist and chemo therapist tomorrow for the plan of action after the surgery. I am having a modified neck dissection performed. The surgeon will be removing some lymph nodes from the right side of my neck. I have one in my neck now that can be seen without looking to hard. Looks like I have a lolly pop in my neck :) It gets sore sometimes but I still BELIEVE GOD FOR MY HEALING. This is just part of my making into the real man I am to be. To heal others sometimes we need to go through a healing of our own. I'm coming out of this one for the Glory of God and with a mighty testimony.

That was from my 30 year old cousin, Jacob. If you saw him you would say he couldn't possibly be sick, he looks healthy, he doesn't smoke or drink. He has a desire to go into ministry full time preaching the gospel. He has a wife, twin toddlers and a step son that he used to homeschool. Please keep him and his family in prayer and if you feel led to share this request with others, my whole family would appreciate it!

Phil 4:6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

• Jul. 20, 2006 - My Inspiration and My Epiphany

The inspiration.....

KindredSpiritMom was inspired by ejoyce to write down what her and her kids have done so far this summer and then she challenged others to do the same so here it goes:

What we’ve learned/ experienced so far this summer:

~The girls saw their first fireflies at night, we caught one to look at it up close, we accidentally killed it, and then we got a book from the library about them and learned that the reason they "blink" is because they are sending signals to attract a mate.

~They are both in the process of learning how to swim and becoming more comfortable in the water.

~We’ve gone to the beach and experimented with sand and water.

~We’ve splashed in puddles and played in the rain.

~We’ve seen beautiful fireworks.

~We've gone to the library every single week.

~We've read at least 30 books.

~We learned that the Disney version of Pocohantas is not the true story.

~We’ve found treasures(clothes, books and the desk) at the Salvation Army store.

~We’ve met several new people while looking for a new church.

~My oldest just learned how to ride her bike without training wheels.

~My oldest learned how make several lunch meals with very little assistance.

~My very sensitive youngest has shown great improvement at being able to laugh at herself.

~We went to the zoo and saw a demonstration about male elephants and another demonstration about birds of prey.

~We’ve listened to Yo-Yo Ma, Chopin, and Andrea Bocelli as well as our normal Christian music.

~We’ve made and experimented with rubbery goo.

~We’ve made and used bath paint.

~We’ve added to new things to our day: (1)a kindness jar to cultivate kindness and (2) snuggling in Mom and Dad’s bed in the evening and listening to an audio book (we’re doing Black Beauty right now which also happens to fit in perfectly with our emphasis on the virtue of kindness)

~We’ve been learning about different breeds of dogs and we saw our first ever-in person-real life- Newfoundland dog, which I am in love with.

~We’ve used math manipulative to do sorting and fractions.

~We’ve found many different varieties of wild flowers including daisies, lilies, cat tails, buttercups and Queen Anne’s lace.

Here come's the Epiphany....

My plan was to do our classical structured homeschooling for 36 weeks, just like the public schools and then tell the girls they had the summer off but really we'd be "unschooling." Well, as I made this list it hit me: I COULD BE GETTING CREDIT FOR THIS WITH THE SCHOOL DISTRICT AND RELAX OUR SCHEDULE AT THE SAME TIME!!!!! I've also been reading A Charlotte Mason Companion by K. Andreola and I've been reading articles from the Heart of Wisdom website so my classical agenda is in the process of getting a make-over. So from now on we will be doing school year round, just don't tell my kids!!!!!

• Jul. 17, 2006 - Rubbery Goo

Here’s something we made today. My 8 year old, my 5 year old and my 21 month old nephew-with constant supervision- had a lot of fun making and playing with Rubbery Goo! I learned how to make this while I worked as a daycare teacher many years ago.

Rubbery Goo (It’s more fun and not as messy as you might think)

Mix in bowl # 1

1 cup water

1 cup white school glue

add just a few drops of food coloring if desired

Mix in bowl #2

1 1/3 cup water

4 teaspoons Borax laundry booster

~Pour bowl #1 into bowl #2

~swirl mixture #1 around in mixture #2 with your hand a few times

~the glue mixture will bond together.....pull it out and give a piece of it to each child

~have them squeeze and knead it around in their hands until it isn’t so slimy

~this can be stored in a ziploc baggie

• Jul. 17, 2006 - Just a quick entry...

Remember the desk I purchased from the Salvation Army? Well, I received an email from the company and it appears that my desk is aprroximately 86 years old. The information wasn't as clear as I hoped for, so I can't say it with absolutely certainty, but most likely it's from 1920.

On a totally unrelated subject: I watched the morning news today, which I usually stay away from because it's either depressing and/or contaminated with a secular world view. Everything I saw was very disconserting and I now have this overwhelming urge to read the book of Revelation again.

Ephesians 5:15-16:

"See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil."

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• Jul. 12, 2006 - RX for the Rainy Day Blues

I’m the type of person who is very much affected by the weather. I really love thunder and lightning storms. I love windy days. I love sunny skies with or without the clouds. What I don’t love is GREY SKIES especially day after day of not seeing any sun. I remember right after my second baby girl was born, it was February and for 11 days straight we did not see the sun, nothing but grey skies. I was extremely hormonal, my husband had just gotten laid off of work, we had hardly any money coming in, and now there was no sun. One afternoon I can remember looking out the window at that oppressive blanket of grey in the sky and I told the Lord that I felt as if I would die if I didn’t see some sunshine soon. When the sun finally did return it really lifted my spirits.

When I woke up at 5:30 this morning it was raining and muggy. It has rained steadily all day and has been exceedingly dark and depressing. My nephew left early this afternoon and I decided to take the girls out for a puddle walk. Wow! I have taken my girls out to splash in the puddles before but it was never this much fun! I guess because it had been raining for so long and because we’ve already had a lot of rain this season the puddles were HUGE! A few of them were on grassy areas and they were at least 3 inches deep. We had so much fun! It was a great Rx for the rainy day blues. I highly recommend walking through grassy puddles with bare feet, very refreshing!

• Jul. 5, 2006 - Answered Prayer

I have been looking for an old-fashioned school desk for sometime and Monday at the Salvation army I saw the perfect one. It was so old it had an ink well in the lift up top. The wood finish is still nice, although the metal isn't so much. The problem was I had already dropped my hubby off at work and there was no way I could get this thing in my trunk with out help, and the Salvation Army won't help you...... for liability reasons I'm sure. They also won't let you pay for it and leave it. So I prayed and asked God to let it stay there just for me until my husband could get it this morning. Thank you Jesus he answered my prayer! And thank you to my manly man who had to carry that very heavy desk quite a ways on his nearly-recovered broken foot!

Now, I know what your thinking. Why would I want a school desk? Well, first of all I'm not trying to replicate the government school in my home school. The real reason I wanted a desk can be summed up in one word: handwriting.

My daughter had trouble writing when she had to sit at our kitchen table, it was just up too high. Laying on the floor made the problem even worse. I made a temporary solution my having her sit on the couch and use a kitchen chair as a writing surface but her legs were getting too long and were now in the way. Handwriting is labour intensive enough without having all that to deal with! So now we have a sturdy, old, adjustable desk for the girls to share and they get to keep all their coloring books and stuff in which they love. Also, I emailed the company that made the desk because I'm curious to know how old it is.

I'll let you know if I find anything out!

Ps 34:8

O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.

• Jul. 2, 2006 - My Bathroom Confession

Friday morning, my dh took my dd's to the store, I had just put my nephew down for his nap when nature called. I took a book with me that I just started reading called, Romancing Your Child's Heart. I had finished my business but was still on the pot reading because I couldn't put this book down. The author had quoted something form C. S. Lewis' The Last Battle, which evoked a single tear out of each eye. In that sweet, tender moment on the pot, I whispered a heartfelt prayer to my Lord and decided to finish my bathroom business so that I could continue reading on the couch. Unfortunately, my ever tempermental toilet had other plans for me.

Here come's the confession part: My name is Jennifer and I use too much toilet paper! I flushed, and everything went down, but when the clean water started filling the bowl it didn't stop at the designated spot. It kept coming up...... I quickly grabbed the plunger and with all my might tried to stop this from overflowing onto the floor. However, this backfired and every plunge seemed to pull out more water. I knew the dreaded overflow was imminent and my first concern was my book which I tossed into the hallway. My second concern was my floor length skirt that I was wearing and my third concern was the bathroom rug.

So there I was, with my skirt pulled up, sandwhiched between my knees, trying to kick my bathroom rug away from the toilet; at the same time throwing everything on top of the toilet into the sink so I could lift up the lid, and stop this nightmare. I did save the book and my skirt, but by the time I stopped the water I had a half inch puddle around the toilet and the rug I'm sad to say, didn't make it.

The good new is that we live in an apartment bulding and calling maintenance is free!

• Jun. 29, 2006 - Fun Activity: two fun activities in one

Fun Activity: 2 for 1 deal (my girls love these)

Suggested ages: 3-10

Materials needed:

1 can Barbasol men’s shaving cream (I get it at the dollar store)

large paintbrush-one per child

non-staining, non-toxic, liquid coloring OR food coloring

paper or regular dinner plate (one for each child)

plastic bowl or cup

paper -as much or as little as you like

plastic straw or safe utensil or toothpick

paper towel

Activity #1: Designer Paper

~Fill the plate with shaving cream.

~Scatter a few drops, of one or more of the liquid colors, around the shaving cream.

~Using the straw, stir the colors, just enough to make swirls of color until it gives you a marbleized look.

~Lightly place the paper over the shaving cream and gently press down.

~Peel it up and carefully wipe off the excess shaving cream with the paper towel, this will transfer the color and give you beautiful stationary

~You should be able get 6-10 papers colored

~In a few minutes the paper will be completely dry and you can use it for stationary or to make cards with

Activity#2: Bath Time Paint

~Scrape leftover shaving cream into plastic bowl.

~Add more coloring and more shaving cream.

~Throw the kids in the tub, give them the paintbrush and the bowl, and let them paint on the tub walls or themselves.

~You can have them practice letters, spelling, math or just let them play like I do

WARNING: If you use the food coloring it may stain certain tub/shower surfaces, especially the grouting. Also, I can’t take any credit for these activities, I got them from the All Time Greatest Book of Kid Concoctions by John and Danita Thomas.

• Jun. 27, 2006 - Quote from William Kirby

"The Bible was not intended to make us philosophers,

but to make us wise unto salvation.

But it does not follow,

because we seek religious truth principally in the Bible,

that we can derive none from the study of natural objects."

Okay, I have to admit, I had to read that one a couple times before I fully got it, but once I got it, I immediately wanted to know more about this man. Now before I tell you where I found this quote I have to say that I love, love, love my TOS magazine and the ONLY complaint I have about it it that it only comes four times a year! But I recently found a website for homeschoolers called www.HomeSchoolEnrichment.com, which also puts out a magazine by the same name. While I was on their website, I signed up for one free magazine and it came to day and it was EXCELLENT. One of their regular columns is called Profiles in Christianity and Science and Rev. William Kirby was featured in this article. Rev. Kirby is known as the "father of entomology" and was born in 1759 in Great Britain.

• Jun. 26, 2006 - 100 Things (80-100)

81. I make really good cheesecake

82. I make really good chicken soup

83. I make really good christmas cookies

84. I want to learn how to sew clothes

85. I want to learn HTML

86. I want to learn to be more organized

87. I want to learn how to be a better mom, wife and servant of Christ

88. I want to support the ministry of Voice of the Martyrs consistently

89. I want to end this list because I’d rather be reading your blog

90. Some people think my hubby looks like Denzel Washington, but I think he’s much better looking than Denzel

91. He is very much a visionary and someday he will preach the gospel all over the world

92. He hopes that Jesus comes back before the girls are old enough to get married

93. Since we’ve been married, we have only had one incident of racial prejudice

94. A landlord lied to us and said that the apartment we wanted was already rented before we even introduced ourselves, when just hours before over the phone he

told me that no one had even looked at the apartment yet

95. We are blessed to live in an area where there are so many inter-racial families

96. When discussing my children’s race I don’t like the term mulatto, I prefer bi-racial or multi-racial (I like to count the Native American)

97. With my kids, we say that daddy is dark brown, they are light brown and I am really, really light brown

98. My oldest daughter used to think that daddy was called black because his hair was black, and if you asked her what he was she would say black, and then she would say, "and my mommy is blonde":)

99. If we had the money I would love to adopt children of all nationalities. I especially have a soft spot in my heart for Asian babies

100. I don’t like when people say, "God is color-blind, he doesn’t see skin color". I know that they are just trying to point out that God’s concern is the condition of our hearts, but in my mind, that implies that He must overlook our physical racial differences or that we should overlook them. God loves variety, and His expression of that is beautiful, He should be praised for it! He is too ingenious and too creative to be otherwise; all of creation points to that, why would His most important creation be any less

• Jun. 25, 2006 - 100 Things (61-80)

61. It snowed on my wedding day

62. At our wedding, my youngest sister and my hubby’s twin sister’s, left the receiving line sobbing so hard they couldn’t talk

63. Our wedding photographers were a husband and wife team

64. We didn’t notice at the wedding that only the wife was there

65. After the pictures were picked up we found out that her husband had died just days before our wedding and she never said a word

66. She told my grandma that it was actually cathartic to be there

67. My husband sang to me at our wedding and I didn’t even cry, what kind of monster am I?

68. I have a three year old long-haired cat named Daphne.

69. I was told that she is a pastel-tortishell, she’s silvery-gray, with a little white and tan

70. She thinks she’s a baby and loves to be held like one

71. My husband is jealous of her if I pay attention to her while he’s home

72. She plays tag with my oldest daughter as if she were her sibling

73. Once when I was around 9, I tried to sell all my toys on my front lawn to raise money to buy a dog

74. But my mom is allergic to them so it didn’t do any good

75. When I was 17 my sister bought a guinea pig and he was the best guinea pig ever,

except when he ate his own poop

76. When my oldest was 5 we bought her a guinea pig and she named him Cosmo

77. But we only kept him for a couple days because I became severely allergic and I ended up in the doctor’s office with asthmatic bronchitis

78. My hair is naturally dark blonde, but I dye it golden blonde

79. I have warts on my left foot that I’m trying to get rid of with vinegar

80. I still get acne....UGH!

• Jun. 24, 2006 - 100 Things (41-60)

41. I admire my oldest daughter because she makes friends easily, she has a great singing voice and taught herself how to harmonize, she is an awesome helper, and she is very encouraging and sympathetic to others. The best thing she ever said to me was, "Mommy, you are NOT fat!"

42. I admire my youngest daughter because her personality reminds me of me when I was little except that she is much funnier than I. She’s painfully shy, but thoughtful, observant and sensitive to the Holy Spirit. The best thing she ever said to me was, "That song just makes me fall in love with Jesus"

43. I admire my husband because he isn’t afraid to pray out loud in front of the girls or myself. He wants Jesus more than anything in this world. He is humble, faithful, and he makes me very proud to be his wife

44. At the age of 29 I started to have symptoms of pre-mature menopause and even though my mom, my aunt and my grandma all had it, my doctor didn’t take me seriously, she thought I was just depressed and wanted to put me on anti- depressants.

45. That led my strong dislike for traditional doctors and set me on a journey to find out what was going on with my body

46. God led me to some interesting books, the first of which was What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About PreMenopause: Balance Your Hormones and Your Life from Thirty to Fifty by John R. Lee which I highly recommend, especially if you are having a hard time getting pregnant or have any gyn problems

47. That book led me to Adrenal Fatigue by James L. Wilson, which I’d recommend to anyone who wants more energy

48. Then I was introduced to Mercola.com and I learned about the dangers of eating grains and sugars

49. Then I learned about Dr. Jordan Rubins and I bought his book The Maker’s Diet and I learned about the importance of probiotics

50. And if I had an extra $500 laying around every month I would do everything Dr. Rubins recommended, but I don’t, so I just do what I can

51. I do need to start exercising

52. I do need to lose at least 30 pounds

53. I do need to consume less sugar

54. I do need to get rid of my poisonous amalgam fillings

55. Supplements I take when possible: fish oil, probiotics, zinc, spirulina and progesterone cream

56. One of my best friends I have known since middle school (almost 19 years). She is a blogger too (happyhousewife) and she is the one who is responsible for #15 on my list because she let me borrow one and told me about the other

57. She taught me how to play tennis

58. I got sun poisoning once because we were in her pool all day after taking final exams

59. We always have a blast when we get together, especially when it involves eating, she is a great cook and we love to recipe swap

60. She was my maid of honor in my wedding