The Battle for the Toy Box Contest!
I entered the Battle for the Toy Box Contest
on the HSB Company Porch.  I hope to win
over $100 worth of, Tales of Glory, Bible-based toys
from one2believe!!

Well, I didn't enter the contest because I can't, but you can!

© Copyright 2005, 2006, 2007 High Desert Hi-Jinks, and Sagerat Scribbles.

Finding pretty, modest clothing is getting harder and harder.  I often shop at thrift stores to get what I need at a decent price.  What I find so disturbing is the trend for a super store to try and appease the modest dressers with one or two pieces of modest apparel.  The problem is that while the skirt may be longer in length and not skin tight with a slit up past my knees, there is nothing to go with it!  No slip to go under that flimsy material, and not a modest top sold in sight.  Not to mention all the large sparkly eye-catchers for crows that are sown on!  I have no desire to wander around looking like a gypsy that's attempting to escape The Birds. 

One tip I have for finding modest dress for your teen age daughters is to shop in the ladies department instead of the teen department.  The teen department caters only to fashion slaves, while the ladies department caters to the working woman as well. 

If you'd like to read about more ideas then check out the interview with Trisha Reschly , co-owner of Adorned with Modesty on the Company Porch!

Oh my!  I tell you this past week not being able to blog was slow and somewhat boring.  Not totally boring mind you, but I found myself sitting here at the computer and longing to say things you care nothing to read about.

I wasn't able to log in, some problem with the proxy server settings or something... Anyway, all fixed now!

Be sure to take a look at this contest on the Company Porch.  JenIg has five sets of two books to give away and it is so incredibly fun and easy to enter!  All you have to do is share what you DON'T want for Christmas.  This contest ends tomorrow so you had better hurry!

Preparations for Christmas have been all the flurry around here.  We've already had one Christmas with Dear Man's family and it was a fun time.  Believe it or not we have three more Christmas gift giving sessions to go.  Sometimes I wish we lived back in Hawaii so we could have only one Christmas.  Dear Man wishes we lived there because it was never cold. 

It's time for me to head on over to post some entries to the Porch.  Come on over and take a look at what's new!

It's hot.  It's muggy.  I don't like it.  End of the whine fest.  If you'll follow me I'll take you to a few places that are sure to fire up your imagination.  We may even stop by a refreshment stand.

Let me tell you why it's so hot here.  There are no trees around my house.  Why?  To make a defensible area around my house in case of wildfire.  That and I don't have A/C.  Now Zaccheus had a tree, and he knew how to use it!  Deborah Wuehler explains how that tree helped Zaccheus get closer to Jesus, and she says it can help you too!

Randi's Sew Crafty ideas have got the hottest things on the Front Porch!  Tell me, where else can you go to find fast, fun and easy projects?  Today's topic is one of the cooler uses of a mason jar I have ever seen.  Why?  You don't have to stand in an inferno of a kitchen watching the jar boil in a pot.  Check out these Mason Jar pin cushions!

Time for that refreshment I was telling you about!  Christine Field offers some summer refreshment tips for special needs parenting.  When everyone is getting hot around the collar, it's time to cool down and take a break! 

That wasn't exactly the kind of refreshment you were hoping for?  Then you have got to stop by Jamin's place and have a piece of lemon pie!  It's to die for!  If I knew that at the end of each sweltering day there would be a piece of that pie, I could make it with only  a few whines.  Jamin' also shares a couple of other Patriotic Recipes that will make you the blast of your July 4th picnic!

If I'm not here on the Front Porch tomorrow, someone, please, send out the fire trucks.  I've burst into flames and can't come near the computer.

It doesn't matter where you live, it doesn't matter what you have to live on, it's all about how you live.  Rich or poor, big house, small hut, you can live for Christ in all circumstances. 

Donna Conner has had to choose how she was going to live; Either hurt and angry, or content with what the Lord had given her.  Donna's desire for another baby consumed her life, until she drank from the cup of contentment.

Sometimes how we live is affected by what we live in.  It's the society we live in that, in a way, dictates the type of home we have.  Don't believe me?  Try building a dung hut in the ritzy part of town.  There will be some law that will prevent you from doing it!  Maggie Hogan tells us how we can learn about geography by the types of houses people live in.

How you choose to live isn't just a state of being, or a type of housing, it's also a way of thinking.  Maribel Hernandez explains that the way you think can affect what you are willing to accept as fact.  For instance, if you believe that animals should have all the same rights as humans, the way you live will reflect that.  On the other hand if you don't believe that animals should have all the same rights, then you are closer to truth. It's knowing how to ask questions, sorting through the answers and and arriving at the answer that will have an impact on how you live.

For over 200 years Americans have been living in freedom.  Jamin' shares some websites that can help explain how we arrived at this freedom and how it effects us still today.  It's 4th of July Fun!

For a while I have chosen to live my life a different way.  It may affect how much I blog on here, especially my Front Porch reviews.  I don't know if I will be able to keep up with them or not, but rest assured that I'm not to far away.  I'm still on the Front Porch. 

(By request.  It seemed like a fun challenge!  Sing to the tune of Ol' Dan Tucker.)

Git out the way of the homeschool mother,

She won't let, her children suffer.

While public school children try to stay awake

homeschool children are at the lake.

This homeschool mother has a tip

lapbooking is what makes her flip

Yes her children like it too

Get out the scissors and the glue.

Every homeschool mother needs a list

to make sure things are not missed

When the day's all done her children know

Order is the way to go. 

One homeschool mother will have you figure

how to remember with a memory trigger

Wave your flag children, gather 'round

Our history's foundation is on firm ground.

Here's a homeschool mother that knows of pain,

A child's loss, was her gain.

A perfect parent she is not

Love is all that she's got.

Git out the way of the homeschool mother,

She won't let, her children suffer.

While public school children try to stay awake

homeschool children are at the lake.

(Come on now!  You bloggers can add to this!)

(Okay, everybody sing along to the tune of Thank God I'm a Country Boy.)

Well, life in this homeschool is kinda laid back,

ain't nothin' this homeschool mom she can't hack,

early to rise, late to the sack...

Thank God I'm a homeschool mom!

Jamin' she wants to share with me and you,

some songs she likes and some others too,

some are kind of good and some are kind of ewww....

Thank God she's a homeschool mom!

Well, I got me a fine man, I got me old 'puter

When my children wake up they get nicer not ruder,

Life is more fun when you see it from a scooter.....

Thank God I'm a homeschool mom!

Gena as you know is concerned about our children,

She and Dr. Bruce Shortt have fun with the system,

I'm so glad that my children don't know what they're missin'

Thank God she's a homeschool mom!

While public school children have boring lessons,

Michelle's own children are nest disectin'

Yours can too if you don't mind the messin'....

Thank God she's a homeschool mom!

(Not the best, but hey!  Feel free to fix and add verses!)

Welcome to Front Porch aerobics!  Got your water bottles?  How about loose fitting (yet modest) exercise clothing?  Is everyone ready to start?  Here we go!

Very carefully reach up and touch your head.  No need to bonk yourself, this is a pain free enviornment!  Do you feel anything on your head besides hair?  No?  Then head on over to Randi Hayden's Sew Crafty project of the day.  Headbands!

This next exercise will require some teamwork.  Have one of your children stand in front of you.  Now reach out with your pointer finger and trace letters between their shoulder blades.  Don't over do it!  We don't want any emergency room visits for pulled arm muscles!  Oh, someone has asked which letters to trace, well I'll let Jamin' tell you more about that in her Tip of the Day.

Great!  Time for a hard exercise.  Sit back in your chair, and let your eyes look to the left, look to the right, and look to the rearview mirror.  Amanda Bennett shares some thoughts on what she would have done differently and what she wished she'd known about her homeschool journey.

This last exercise will get your blood pumping!  Kris Price wants everyone to take a look around their homes.  Now stand on your toes and look on top of shelves, and closets.  Now get down on your knees and look under beds and under sinks.  See anything you haven't used in a coon's age?  Toss it!  Getting rid of the clutter never felt so good.

Whew!  I don't know about you but that was a workout!  Why don't you all meet me out on the Front Porch and I'll serve iced tea and cheesecake?  It would be such a shame to not use it, and then have to throw it away.  Besides, Kris might give me a ticket for cluttering up the kitchen with un-needed cheesecakes. 

The title doesn't reflect a theme of today's Front Porch articles.  It's just been one of those days for me!  I sit down to write and I'm needed elsewhere, NOW!  So, I finally decided I had just better get this done, I don't want any of you to miss what the Front Porch has to share with you today!

Christine Field has chosen a winner for her Homeschool Spice contest!  This was a contest to see who had the best teaching tip/technique outside of the normal textbooks, and teacher's manuals.  The tip itself is shared with us, and I think I'll be using it!

Jamin's Tip of the Day is a game of Circle Tag.  As always she gives wonderful directions and alternatives on how to play.  Personally I'm up for the freeze tag option.  With this heat I may keel over if I try racing about, especially on blacktop!

Deborah Wuehler asks, "What Do You Crave?"  Right now I'm craving cool.  Deborah reminds us that we need to keep a balance and our eyes on Christ no matter what it is we are seeking in order to better our lives. 

There you have it.  Trust me, you'll be much better going over to the Front Porch than hanging about here. 

Knowledge is power.  Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.  Both are wonderful to quote, but mean nothing if you don't have understanding.  The best way to gain understanding is to ask questions, seek out answers, and know the Lord. 

Maribel Hernandez explains the best way to ask questions, so that you get the best answers.  Check out Engage the Trivium Mind by Questioning Part III.

Jamin has an intriguing way to make a number line and how to have your child use it.  If something isn't working for you then seek another way of doing it! 

Donna Conner has something all of us should know.  Inflamatory Breast Cancer isn't understood or known about by all Dr.'s.  Knowing this information may help save your life. 

Dena Wood shares some fun online educational games.  Summer isn't the time to forget all you have learned, it's merely just a season of a different kind of learning. 

The HSB Baby Shower Contest is gaining entrants as well as gifts!  Check out the update, and then click on over to see what's new.

For those of you that were seeking new information, I hope you found it.  If not, don't give up!  The Front Porch is a wonderful place to ask, seek, and gain knowledge.

Hey!  Take some time to stop by the Front Porch today and read.  There are things to learn, discover, and share.  That's what's so great about writing, and reading.  One person reaching out to another. 

Adoption Options is starting a series on Our Journey Through Foster Care.  Hopefully it will be a story that will interest and benefit others. 

One of the greatest joys I've had as a homeschool parent was watching my children learn to read.  Yes, it had it's very frustrating moments, "Stop at the period.  Breath.  Now start the next sentence."  Jamin shares a fantastic website that has helped one of her children learn to read, in her Tip of the Day. Once you learn to read a whole new world is open to you, in story.

Amber is doing a history quiz.  I've taken it, and I didn't do to bad.  Not great, but at least I haven't embarrassed myself.  Thanks to all the living books that I have read as a child and to my own children.  Stories are the best way to learn history, in my opinion. 

Don't forget to read some blogs.  Each post is a chapter in the book of someone's life. 

Protecting your child should be a parents priority.  Why is it that animals will fight to the death for their young, but humans will toss them the the wolves, claiming that it is the best way to learn to get along with others?  Then when something bad happens they cry wolf and want the village to come do something about it! 

School bullies have always been a part of the public education system.  It's fascinating that the system has found a need to deal with the victims, but not with the bullies themselves.  Gena the Guardian has more about Zero Tolerance or Daily Tolerance?  Funny, in the past the best way to stop a bully was to let him know you weren't going tolerate him or his tactics.  Now, that could get the victim arrested and the bully made out to be the victim. 

Protecting our children doesn't always mean that you step in the way of harm.  A parent teaches their child how to prevent harm happening to them.  A perfect example of this is teaching our children about the effects of the sun on human skin.  Michelle's got the skin-y on the sun and the best science experiment!

God has a perfect design for protector.  It's called a Dad.  Too bad our society has taken active steps against that important role, and forced him to become more like a girl.  Come to think of it, he's expected to act more like a victim!  Don't be a MAN!  That's scaring people!  Father's Day has past for this year, but that doesn't mean you can't thank your Dad for all the things he does for you.  Jamin has a nifty Tip of the Day that will make your Dad smile! 

Tag!  Your It!  The Front Porch is base, the place where you will be protected from becoming It!  Run, run, run to the porch!

Here a tip, there a tip, everywhere a tip, tip, that old Front Porch has a tip, H, S, H, S, B!

Cleaning the house isn't fun, nor is it easy.  Until life truly becomes a paperless society, and everyone prefers living with plastic furniture, my tip of hosing down the house will have to wait. Until then, Kris Price has several time saving tips that will have your house cleaned in no time!

Whether you school year round or take the summer off, it's still the perfect season for learning.  Amanda shares some of her summertime learning tips that are fun for the children.  These aren't your run of the mill tips, no sir!  Amanda's ideas are practical, and easy enough to practice. 

Let's not forget the Tip of the Day!  Fishing!  What I like best about this kind of fishing is that there are no fish to clean, no scales all over everything, and you don't have to sit in the mosquito infested outdoors if you don't want to.  Jamin explains how to play, Phonics Go Fish.

Here's an inside tip for you... are you going to have a baby?  Is your name on the HSB Baby Calendar?  If not, then you need to get over there and put it on!  Trust me!  Would I lie to you?  There's a Baby Shower Contest, and that calendar plays an important role.

Nancy Baetz is home from the conference!  While she had a wonderful time, and learned quite a bit, the number one thing she's learned is that there is no place like home.  Still, Nancy wants to hear your tips and ideas for home school support groups.  Go on over and tip her for all the hard work she's done!

Tippedy doo da, Tippedy ay!  My o' my what a bloggerful day!  Plenty of articles comin' your way, Tippedy doo da, Tippedy ay!

We can't spend all of our time sitting around on the Front Porch, or inside the house. It's summer and today's articles offers some wonderful ways to expand our horizons!

Before we get started, we need to do some planning.  Leaving the house unprepared is bad way to start the day.  How long will we be gone?  Will we need food?  How will we carry everything with us?  Randi shows us another super simple Sew Crafty project, back packs! 

Great!  Now we are ready to leave the porch and do..... what?  We want this outing to mean something, we want it to count, we want it remembered!  The times remembered are usually the ones where we give.  Deborah Wuehler has a list of ideas that may take us out of our comfort zone, but bring us into a closer relationship with those that Christ loves and with Christ Himself.  It will be an Eternal Summer!

We made our plans, and we had a destination.  We woke up that morning only to find that something has gone wrong!  Rain, a car that won't start, a sick child.  Now what?  Jamin's Tip of the Day will still have us step, step, steppin' into fun learning!  The ABC Stomp will stomp the blues away.

What are we waiting for?  Everybody step off that porch and let's get started on a fun filled summer! 

Wait!  I can't find my keys! 

When you join a club, a church, or a group, you can't just sit there at each meeting and do nothing.  Well, I suppose you could, but why then did you bother to join?  The answer to that is often, "I need support."  Good!  Guess what?  So does everyone else at those functions!  They need your support.  Today's Front Porch articles explain three different ways for you to take part in what ever social gathering you venture into.

Maribel Hernandez suggests you start with questions.  Of course, Maribel is talking about teaching the trivium, and how to get your young child thinking for himself.  Still, these are good for you to know as well!  I know someone who never asks questions and is constantly in the dark.  It drives me crazy! 

"I don't know why so and so is doing that." she whines.

"Did you ask?" I question. 

"No." she answers.

"!"  Just how then do you expect to know and understand? 

I like what Donna Conner has to suggest today.  Find your joy!  For this you're going to need to do a little self examination.  You have to know what you like to do, and what you most definitely do not like.  Once you know that and you find yourself socializing with a collective, you can jump right in and say, "I'll do that!"  You'd better, because if you don't, you'll find yourself doing what you don't like to do.  Nothing kills your joy faster than being mad because you got stuck with something you don't like to do.  Buck up kiddo!  Next time around you won't be so slow on your feet!

Maggie Hogan is always creative and today is no exception.  You don't have to leave home to get connected with all sorts of people from all over the globe.  The Flat Stanley Project is an excellent way to learn geography and to help others who want to learn as well.

Last, but not least, is Blogger of the Week.  This feature helps all of us here at HSB to get to know another homeschoolblogger.  In a unique way, we all need each other and have support to offer. 

I'm wondering... is there anyone out there who would like to help me?  I need gifts for an HSB Baby Shower Contest!  I already have a few, but would sure like to have more.  Not sure?  Ask me.  You'd better volunteer for what you like to do before I assign you to send something.  Please be creative, but no Flat Stanley's!  Come on, this is your chance to get connected with fellow homeschoolbloggers!

How many of the friends you have are someone you met through another friend?  I think most of mine are.  Come on over to the Front Porch and meet a few of my friends!

Amber is my friend that does the Tip of the Day.  However, her computer is sick, so my friend Nancy is stepping in for her.  Nancy's friend Eyecorn gave her a suggestion that came from one of her friends.  The Encourage Your Husband Challenge is something every man will appreciate!

My friend Dena is a busy woman.  She has a business of her own to run as well as one for TOS.  She receives a lot of e-mail and some of it is from someone who wants to share something about themselves or the product they sell.  Wings of the Morning was one that Dena thought her friends might enjoy.  Who knows, maybe we will become friends with the people on this journey!

When you have made the decision to adopt it can be good to tell all your friends.  They  just might know of a baby that needs a good home.  Still, sometimes getting the word out can spread to the wrong people, and they will try and take advantage of you.  Adoption Options knows of a company that is friends with adoptive parents but puts scammers on the run. 

As homeschool moms we need the company of other like minded homeschool moms.  My friend Nancy wants to share one such friend of hers with you.  Unschoolers are so misunderstood and need all the friends they can get!

It's friends that make life bearable.  I'm so glad that the Lord requires us to spend time with our brothers and sisters in Christ.  These friends lift me up every day and remind me to keep my relationship with the Lord strong.  He isn't just my friend, He is my Savior!  Take time to introduce Him to one of your friends.

Every child knows the five second rule.  If you drop food on the ground you have five seconds in which to pick it up for it to still be safe to eat.  Unless of course it lands on something distasteful or the American flag. 

For some parents this is a disgusting rule and they don't allow their children to eat anything that has fallen to floor.  In which case they must also be meticulous hand wash enforcement officers.  I like my children to wash their hands before they eat, but this isn't always possible, and I don't stand there every time they wash their hands making sure they have scrubbed for surgery.  Michelle shares a nifty idea on how to teach your children about clean hands and germs so they can do this for themselves. 

Not everything that touches the ground has a five second rule.  The American flag should never be allowed to touch the ground, as a sign of respect.  Let's dispell an old myth right here though; If your flag does touch the ground, pick it up and clean it if necessary, then display it in it's proper position once again.  Want to know more about the flag and it's birthday?  Amber's Tip of the Day will help lead the way!

If you see a flag today give it a salute!  Just be sure your hands are clean.  I'd hate for anyone to get some weird eye disease because their hands were dirty and stuck their finger in their eye in the process.  Take time to visit the Front Porch today as well.  It's good clean fun!

Our lives are so busy that it can be hard to keep in touch with the people we care about, our hobbies, and reality!  I think today's Front Porch articles will help you keep everything in perspective!

I said above that it can be hard to keep in touch with hobbies.  ???  The last time I rubber stamped for my own creative enjoyment was about 10 years ago.  I've pulled them out for quick projects, mainly to do something with the children, but not to sit and play with the various ways to put a card together.  I don't even know the latest how to's.  Amy Osborn explains how online magazines can be a quick and easy resource for keeping in touch with hobbies like knitting.  You know the best thing about them?  They don't sit on a shelf collecting dust and you don't have to debate whether or not you should throw it away! 

Keeping in touch involves two tools: Yes and No.  We need to know when to say yes to friends, family and our children.  We need to know when to say no to our peers.  Outside projects and activities that take us away from what's really important don't enrich our lives if we lose our children's hearts and souls in the process.  Kris Price lists some ideas on how to manage multi-tasking.  When to say yes and when to say no.

When it comes to keeping in touch there isn't anyone who can do it better than Jill Novak!  She is offering a free "class" on how to write a letter to your father for your children.  This is one project I plan to have my children onboard for!

Once you have that letter written you'll need a good place to keep it.  Why not in a handy gift?  Amber's Tip of the Day will have you making boxes that will keep your father's treasures safe and in one place.  What a great way to get your husband in touch with organization!  (Just kidding, JUST KIDDING!)

For those of you that take the summer off from school, you may find that your son will lost touch with the multiplication tables by the time school starts again in the fall.  Amanda Bennett explains how to keep in touch with learning without your child even knowing it.

I have to get going, I have a few things I need to get in touch with, like breakfast. 

Some day go by like a blur of racing turtles.  Slow, boring, and the biggest excitement is when somebody flips over and can't right themselves.  (Usually because they are too listless to care.)

Today's Front Porch topics will help perk up any languishing minds.

Matching socks is a boring chore.  Children dawdle over it.  Mothers ignore them for as long as possible, until they realize that their husbands have begun to use the pile on the end of the couch as a pillow.  Amber's Tip of the Day will have your children begging to put those socks away.  Not in record time, but at least the job will be done and it won't tax your remaining strength.  Play sock games!

My children love to go through the scrap box and see if there is anything they could possibly make.  The girls tend toward dresses for their dolls, while Boy 1 likes to make me hacky sack type pincushions.  (I have several of these gifts that I have lovingly saved to give to his wife!)  Digging through the scrap box is a rainy day activity, and when creativity is not running as deep as the river of Whine.  Randi Hayden has a fun idea for those scrap pieces of material, as well as a fun way to communicate with friends and family.  Check out Sew Crafty!

This is the last week of Christine Fields idea contest.  The subject today is Math.  Now that is an area I could use the most creative tips!  Talk about turtles!  My children move so slow through their math you could go shopping and come back to see them staring at the same problem.    I've been known to check their pulse and breathing.  This is one subject that the creativity well ideas go blah before the sell by date. 

You often hear from mothers who are having problems with their children.  The prayers that a mother offers are usually prayers of frustration and disgust.  "Why won't he listen?"  "If You don't do something to change her heart soon Lord she's going to wind up in prison!"  Now we could all stand around pointing fingers, but that really isn't going to solve anything.  Deborah Wuehler reminds us to pray for our children, and over our children.  That's an idea worth checking out like a good library book; Check it out and renew it, over and over again. 

Like my mother always said as we set off on a long trip, "And we're off!  Like a herd of turtles." 

While looking at today's line up of articles over on the Front Porch, two things jumped out at me:  school subjects and authors.  Both of which you of course find at homeschool conventions.  It has been ages since I have been to a curriculum fair and this brought back fond memories for me!

So, step right up to Maribel Hernandez's table!  It looks exciting, especially for classical homeschoolers.  The Ancient History of Women could be a touchy subject for some homeschoolers, but never fear!  Maribel looks at all things from a Biblical Worldview and she explains how to look at this subject from that same light.  Not sure Maribel really looks at all things this way?  Then be sure to click on the link at the bottom of her article that will take you to her website, APMForumulators, medicine from a classical and Biblical Worldview!

That table getting too crowded for you?  Move on to Donna Conner's table.  Donna is discussing spelling with the people swarmed around her.  Wait a minute!  Why is Donna talking about spelling?  She's the author of Homeschooling Only One, which you can see displayed on the table.  Donna is telling everyone that Spelling Power can benefit even the single child homeschool.

Already using Spelling Power?  Let's try the Bright Ideas Press table.  Maggie Hogan is the author of  Hands-On Geography.  Right now she is explaining how you can study geography and missionaries at the same time.  I like that concept.  I'll catch up with you in a moment, I want to hear more about this...

Hey look!  There's Amber!  What is she doing?  That funny girl is handing out flyers, let's go get one. 

Tip of the Day

Moira has started (hobby).  She spends hours on the (noun) and leaves her (plural noun) unfed.  All Moira does is (verb).  Day after day.  She even has a new (article of clothing) with her username on it.  Moira is (verb ending in -ed) with her new hobby.  She talks about (plural noun) as if she has actually met them.  Moira's (a person) thinks she is (adjective).

That's right, Amber's Tip of the Day is all about Mad Libs! 

There's the The Old Schoolhouse table!  Kate of TOSOnline has found a splendiforous website and she is sharing it with all who stop by.  It's free! 

Wow!   What a day.  I didn't even spend any money.  Ya know, there would be only one more thing that would make this convention even better.  If I could have brunch with JenIg!