It has been 7 years since the attacks on our country.  We are at war.  The children do not understand.  I barely understand.

We are going to focus on the Constitution this month.  I heard that 9/17 was Constitution day.

Our governement needs prayer.  We are in an election year.

Anyway, those oour my current thoughts - scattered as they may be.

Charlotte Mason teaches about studying nature.  We use Anne Comstock's Handbook of Nature Study.  We spend time in nature and exploring.  We feed the birds.  We watch them and listen to them.  We got a new book for Christmas called, Bird Songs.  When we find an interesting bird, we look it up in the book. 

I appreciate God's creation.  I want to share this with my children.  We have had a membership at our local gardens for the past few years.  We enjoy the flowers, especially in the winter.  Today, we went to the gardens to see butterflies.  There were more butterflies this year.  It was great.  It was sunny.  I enjoyed getting sun on my face.  The children enjoyed the variety of butterflies.   We went outside at the gardens and got some fresh air.  It was about 40 degrees but sunny.

 I like combining art and nature study.  The children sketch nature throughout the summer.  I think it is important to for the children to learn about animals and plants that grow around our house and in the gardens. 

I love Easter! I have created traditions which help our family stay focused on the Word and the true meaning of Easter.

One tradition is reading the Easter story. We read children's books and the Bible. One of my favorite books is Benjamin's Box. We read this story together and I have a treasure box that we fill with different items that go with the story like a coin, straw and a nail.

Another tradition is watching Easter movies. I like the Nest movies and my children still enjoy Veggie Tales, Easter Carol.  We watched the Ressurection this year too.

The next tradition is art projects. I have collected crosses, gems and other items from Oriental Trading Co. I let the children be creative with all of these items. They also draw their impression of the Easter story.

My favorite tradition is the Bible verse Hunt. My sister shared this idea with me. I am happy to have a Bible based tradition to celebrate Easter. This year I compiled lots of verses that reference common household items. I will hide the Bible reference in the place listed in the previous quote. The children run around the house. They bring their verse to the front room and we read the Bible together. And then they run out to the next place. I am making this more challenging each year. At the end, they find a present or bag filled with spring goodies. I am going to include my verses here.

Easter Treasure Hunt - NIV

Genesis 25:29 “Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished.”



Matthew 16:19: "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."



Matthew 7:8 "For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened."



Luke 3:11 “John answered, "The man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same."



Mathew 16:7They discussed this among themselves and said, "It is because we didn't bring any bread."



Job 13:25 “Will you torment a windblown leaf?
Will you chase after dry chaff?”



Numbers 20:2 “Now there was no water for the community, and the people gathered in opposition to Moses and Aaron.”



2 Kings 8:15 “But the next day he took a thick cloth, soaked it in water and spread it over the king's face, so that he died. Then Hazael succeeded him as king.”



Genesis 19:26 “But Lot's wife looked back, and she became a pillar of salt.”



Luke 15:8 "Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?”



1 Kings 10:20 “ Twelve lions stood on the six steps, one at either end of each step. Nothing like it had ever been made for any other kingdom.”



Job 38:30  “when the waters become hard as stone,
when the surface of the deep is frozen?”



James 1:10 “But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position, because he will pass away like a wild flower.”



1 Corinthians 13:12 “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”



Mark 1:9 “At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.”



Matthew 2:2 "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews, for we have seen his star in the East.”



John 15:5 “Jesus said, "I am the vine and you are the branches.”

Edith Nesbit is an author of classical literature.  She is very creative.  The books we have read combine fantasy and adventure.  She was born in 1858.  I am entertained by her books.  She brings you into the story and makes you care about the characters.

We are finishing the Railway Children soon.  I read aloud from a free internet site:http://www.classicbookshelf.com/library/e_nesbit/.  Many of her books are available here.

It is interesting how this author mentions God with reverence and respect.  I appreciate that.  She mentions a dead uncle that is in heaven.  Edith Nesbit

My favorite line from today is "Oh," said Bobbie, vaguely, "if everybody thought of everything, there'd be nothing left for anybody else to think about."

My children were laughing.  The children in the story take responsibility for the people around them.  They make decisions about how to help people and they do it.  It is very impressive.  I hope my children would take the leadership to take care of someone who needed help.  I want them to be kind and compassionate to one another.  Ephesians 4:32  They know this verse by memory.  I pray they act accordingly.

I appreciate this story.  My children enjoy the adventures of these children.  After each chapter, they want me to read another and another.  It is such a joy to spend time like this with my children.  They are writing about the story as I Blog about it.

 I have been teaching my 3 children at home since my first was born. When I was going to college to become a teacher, I heard about someone homeschooling.  I loved the idea.  As soon as I heard of it, I knew if I ever was blessed with children, I would explore the option of homeschooling.  I read about alot of the curriculms that were available back then.  I fell in love with Charlotte Masons' ideas.  She wrote about spending time with children and helping them get excited about nature, music, books, God, and mini lessons.  I combined her ideas with the whole language approach that I learned in college.  I developed a great teaching style full of the arts and literature.  I love learning with my children.