Mystery of Hist. Vol. 2
Music Ace Deluxe
Art Studies
"Cale" Seventh Grade
CQLA Level B
Purposeful Design Spelling
Teaching Textbooks Pre-Algebra
Literature from the Library (Ambleside Online)
Apologia's General Science
Boy Scouts
"Joe" Fourth Grade
Horizons Math 3
CQLA Pre-A
Purposeful Design Spelling
A Reason for Handwriting
Literature from Library (Ambleside Online)
Apologia Zoology 2
Webelos Scout
"Kade" Age Four
Teach Your Child to Read in 100 EZ Lessons
Horizons Math K
Interlock by: Weaver/AOP (Joy, too)
"It is only by introducing the young
to great literature, drama, and music,
and to the excitement
of great science,
that we open to them
the possibilities
that lie within the human spirit--
enable them to see visions
and dream dreams."
Eric Anderson
Currently Reading
Family read-aloud
Huckleberry Finn
Rick and I are reading together
I am reading
The Discarded Image
by: CS Lewis
by:
Our Morning Devotions are:
The Daily Bible
and
Plants Grown Up and
For Instruction in Righteousness
by: Doorposts
Big Truths for Little Kids
Cale and Joe are reading
Animal Farm
Cale is reading:
Land Under the Pole Star
by:
Joe is reading:
Island of the Blue Dolphin
by:
Kade is reading:
Magazines to which we subscribe:
Birds and Blooms
Consumer Reports
Answers
World
Favorite Music
Selah
Steven Curtis Chapman
Chris Tomlin
Gaither Gospel
Dixieland Jazz
Keith Green
Rich Mullins
Quote Collection
"Til sin be bitter,
Christ will not be sweet."
Thomas Watson
"We wish you PEACE
It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work.
It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart."
unknown
"Anyone who says sunshine brings happiness
has never danced in the rain."
unknown
"All I have seen teaches me to
trust the Creator
for all I have not seen."
Emerson
"There is only one way to lead a child down the right path
that is to go that way yourself."
unknown
"We find delight in the beauty and happiness of children that makes the heart too big for the body."
Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Cleaning and scrubbing
can wait 'til tomorrow.
For babies grow up,
we learn to our sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs!
Dust, go to sleep!
I'm rocking my baby,
and babies don't keep!"
unknown
Nov. 6, 2009 - That Red Hair
My children all have blue eyes and fair skin, but they each have different hair colors from dark brown to sunny blonde. When I was pregnant this past summer, I prayed that God would give this baby red hair like her brother, Kade. And look at that........He did! My third boy and my third girl both have gorgeous red hair.
Well, the baby's is more of wispy red hair and fuzz, but anyway.
God cares about such small details as the color of our hair. He even knows how many hairs are on our heads. It's rather amazing when you think about it. He is so big and magnificent and we are so nothing, yet He cares about such a silly thing as what color I hoped my baby's hair would be. He used Faith's red hair to remind me of this gentle love and care recently when I was pushing away from Him.
There is an area of my life that I had taken back from Him. I know he wants ALL of me and I consciously began to refuse to submit in an area. I was miserable, trying to hide from Him. It made me grumpy and depressed to live that way. But He loves me anyway. When I was playing with baby's hair, He whispered to me that He gave her that color in answer to my prayer. His quiet voice persists and asks me to trust Him, to turn it all back over, to let go.
And I have.
And there is peace.
And every time I see that red hair on my little girl I will be reminded of His love and that I can trust Him.
I don't have to be in control.
I am ecstatic. I have connected with a group of buyers to buy food from local farmers. Most of the goodies are free of antibiotics, hormones, preservatives, etc. We even connected with a farmer who has raw cow milk and are trying our first gallon today. We've been drinking raw goat milk for almost two years now, but I've never had raw cow milk. It is totally different from anything I've had before. It's good, though. Hope doesn't know anything different from goat milk. I'm anxious to see if she likes the cow milk, but she has been napping since I got home with it. I am wondering if the meat will taste any different having been grass-fed vs. the feed lot variety from the grocer. I'm really looking forward to cooking our meals this week!
We will have Chicken Cassoulet, Sloppy Joe Pot Pie, Vegetable Chili, Chicken and Potatoes, and a pot roast. I'm considering a pumpkin soup, too. These are nearly all new recipes, so it will be an adventure.
We were supposed to go to Reformation Party today, but some of the children have a yucky cold and I didn't want to share that with others. I'm sure my son's cough would raise eyebrows and be truly scary to others on this day of fear. He is feeling okay, but sounds awful. Joy had a bout with a croupy cough last night and gave us a bit of a scare. Joe was so sweet to sit in the steamy bathroom with her and read her stories. It helped his cough, too. I put VapoRub on the bottoms of her feet and she hasn't coughed at all today. We'll see how tonight goes. Faith has the cold, too, but is a trooper and handling it well.
These were taken last weekend at an Egyptian Festival. The kids has fun doing an archaeology dig, learning about mummies, and making papyrus.
Oct. 30, 2009 - Show and Tell Friday.........Baby Days
Happy Friday!
Ever wonder what it is like to be the sixth baby in a family?
Here is a hint..............
One could imagine that she is a wee goddess and those are the offerings of her loyal following.
Of course she is not a goddess, but she most certainly has a fan club and they want her to be happy all the time. They lay all manner of things on top of and near her because those are the things that make them happy. Those sisters can't wait til she is big enough to play, but for now they are ecstatic to be rewarded with this.............
Yes, we are beginning to see smiles around here. They are mighty hard to catch on camera for some reason. Generally they take up her whole face, but this is all I've been able to capture so far.
She really grins at Joy. When she hears Hope nearby, she gets a worried look on her face,
does that tell you anything?
For more Show and Tell posts, hop over to Mary and connect with Mister Linky.
Right now Joe has taken Kade aside and is teaching him how to play the piano. It was Joe's idea. He should be doing his schoolwork, but I am not about to stop him. It is good to see them working together and Joe being nice to Kade for a change. He's even being patient. That would totally not happen if Joe was away at school.
We've been busy with all manner of things the past few weeks. We've had two sets of grandparents come to visit, we have a cold going through the crew now (baby has it too), I got to take photos of another family at the park (fun!), we've moved around some furniture, we've been looking at houses/property, hubby has been camping two weekends this month with the boys, scouting, piano, field trips, etc, etc
Of course we're trying to do school, too.
And in the midst of all that, I'm reading a wonderful book called Not So Fast by Ann Kroeker. The subtitile is Slow Down Solutions for Frenzied Families. I'm loving this book. I'll blog more about it later, 'cause right now I'm too busy! But, it is a good busy.....laundry and loving on my sick babies who are about to wake up.
As I was writing out our lessons on the wipe erase board this week I was aware of one thing that has held me back in homeschooling during the past seven+ years. I have this desire to want things (like spelling lessons) to begin on Monday and end on Friday. Ya know, like you get the new list on Monday, work on it through the week and then test on Friday. Our CQLA is set up kinda that way, too, with copywork on Monday, working on grammar and comp during the week and finishing up with dictation and a final composition on Fridays.
That is all well and good, so how does that hold me back...........if we get off kilter due to illness? I tend to want to wait for a new week to start over rather than begin "day one" on, say, a Wednesday.
The problem with that is if I do it enough, I get way behind on our year and my child is finishing up last year's work long after it should have been done. So, now I find myself at the board forcing myself to write day one work on a day that is not the beginning of the week so we don't get farther behind after an illness like the flu.
I've noticed the same "problem" in a couple of my children.
Yesterday we went on a lovely field trip to a farm. It was like visiting Dr. Doolittle with the variety of animals out there. We didn't get home until after lunchtime at which point I told the boys to start their bookwork. Joe tried to inform me that he cannot begin his work after 12 noon. He has to start it before noon or he simply cannot do it at all. Uh-huh. That did not fly with me and I convinced him that he could indeed begin his work after noon.
Joy is potty training, as I menitoned before. I have been using a timer to help us remember to go potty.
She is hung up on the timer. She thinks she can't go if it doesn't beep. The big problem with that is that sometimes I forget to reset it. She is learning to listen to her body and not the timer this week. It is going pretty well now and Hope is doing quite well, too. Could I possibly have only one baby in diapers soon? I've had two at time in diapers for about the past four years.
Now that I think about it, I have the same problem with my devotional time. Ideally, I think it should be first thing in the morning. It is so hard to have that time with the Lord if it has to fit in later in the day. And, if I'm honest, sometimes I don't even try because I "can't" get up that early or I'm too sleep-deprived right now to make any sense out of reading, etc, etc, etc. I bet the devil has a hey-dey with our "I can'ts" and other hang-ups we have when it steals our time with the Lord and keeps us from doing all that we should.
But recognizing the problem is half the battle and knowing our weaknesses helps us to be strong.
Oct. 16, 2009 - Show and Tell Friday.........Bithday Girl
For Today's Show and Tell we have a birthday at our house this week. For those of you who have been reading this blog for awhile, you may remember when this little toot was born. My how time flies!
Yes, our little Hope is two years old. She is at such a fun age.
She is talking better than most of her siblings were at this age. It's not always perfect English, but I understand her. When she says "yes" she says "dahs." It's cute, really.
Last night in the van Daddy said, "Something is stinky in here." Hope said, "Boys are stinky." LOL
She is also potty training and doing well with it. I tried the "wait and they'll do it themselves" approach to potty training with Joy. It hasn't worked for her. She is almost four now and I have just decided to buckle down and train both girls as once. But, I digress....
Hope is such a sweetie. She loves her baby dolls and takes such good care of them. If someone is hurt or crying, she will go over and pat their back and say, "K, is K" (It's okay)
She loves to sing and dance in her own little way and keeps us entertained. Two year olds are so much fun to have around.
Because I am so lazy and late with this post, to go see other Show and Tell posts click on the CanadaGirl link in the left sidebar.
On Thursdays I receive a new menu online from Cooking Traditional Foods. It contains a week's worth of dinner menus, a shopping list, and a weekly calendar to remind me when to defrost things for the next day, etc.
Sometimes I like being told what to do. Menu planning is one time that I often just want someone to tell me what to make and it is good. Many times, we will use the menu mailer just like it is, but I will often use it as a springboard or change the days around a bit to fit our schedule better or to accomodate our food allergies. (Most of the recipes are gluten-free)
Anyhow, I've been using the CTF menu mailers for about six months or so now and most all of the recipes have been a big hit with our family. They have been easy to make and generally friendly to the budget.
I have dared to try new things and have been pleasantly surprised that my children (and husband) like some of the ingredients that I've introduced. I recently made a meal that used a lot of bell peppers and everyone loved it, even me....and I have never been a big bell pepper fan. It has been added to our favorite meals list along with many others from the menu mailer.
My biggest problem with the mailers is the need for a new binder to hold all the new recipes I've collected. Three inch rings are necessary, thankfully I can find binders for cheap at the local thrift store.
I print out the menus/recipes each week and then slip them into page protectors in the binder. When I cook something, I pull out the whole page and stick it on the fridge while I prep the meal. Then, if it is one that we really, really love, I will use a dry erase marker and make a note on the page protector.
Anyhow, you can get a sample menu for free here. Look around the site if you are interested in eating a more whole foods/traditional diet. The forum there has tons of info and is very interesting to read.
Highway Happenings
General Family Life KidCraze
Things the Kids Say and Do Baby Boulevard
Pregnancy and Baby News Meandering Path
Random Thoughts Rest Stop
From My Quiet Time Learning Lane
Homeschooling Out in the Field
Field Trips Idea Interstate
Holiday and Random Ideas to Share Tag Trails
Tags I've Completed
Books We Like:
Little Kid Books
Books for Ages 7 down Big Kid Books
Books for Ages 8 and Up Science and Nature Books
Science and Nature Books Historical Books
Books We Like for History Grown-Up Books
Books for Mom, Dad, and Teens
I have connected with a group of buyers to buy food from local farmers. Most of the goodies are free of antibiotics, hormones, preservatives, etc. We even connected with a farmer who has raw cow milk and are trying our first gallon today. We've been drinking raw goat milk for almost two years now, but I've never had raw cow milk. It is totally different from anything I've had before. It's good, though. Hope doesn't know anything different from goat milk. I'm anxious to see if she likes the cow milk, but she has been napping since I got home with it. I am wondering if the meat will taste any different having been grass-fed vs. the feed lot variety from the grocer. I'm really looking forward to cooking our meals this week!
), I got to take photos of another family at the park (fun!), we've moved around some furniture, we've been looking at houses/property, hubby has been camping two weekends this month with the boys, scouting, piano, field trips, etc, etc 
But, it is a good busy.....laundry and loving on my sick babies who are about to wake up.
