Posted in AO2

Balance!  We are in a comfortable nitch in our school schedule.  With our AO2 books we cover 2 books/readings a day...  Mostly I read.  Lovebug insisted on reading Understood Betsy! 

On the horizon I can see this balance thrown way off!!  How to juggle all the AO1 schedule with Ladybug... and AO3 with Lovebug... hummmm.....

We are starting the upgrade...  with encouragement from Kathy we are jumping ahead with this new balance.  Lovebug picked three of her books to read solo.  Today she read Seabird and gave a great nararation!  We are doing more tandum readings... We are off to a good start that I pray smooths the way to next year.

Ladybug and reading...  Our wonderful start has hit a challenge with "e".  After a week of tryign to read the SSRW E book... I took a deep breath and knew we needed to move slower.  She's been happily readng the A book again... with much more speed and understanding.  Gradually we'll head into that new ground.  Now I'm treasuring my 5 year old.... and too soon she'll be reading to sissy!

btw...  Bloggers!!??  How do you read a blog?  Dana just mentioned G reader & I've been blown away with the ease of getting to sooo many blogs!!  Wow!  This is another upgrade!! 

The girls sleep!  We have a little rabbit in the back yard.  Our Goldfinch & Indigo Buntings have left fond memories.  Tonight hubbie acquired wood for my raised garden!!  I hope for tomatoes!!!  Grace!  ss

**Update:  G Reader is Google Reader  :)

Posted in AO2

"Mommy, Mommy, I got it!"  Jacob's Ladder!  Yesterday in our Genisis reading we were at Jacob & Esau.  As I looked ahead we'll soon read of Jacob's ladder.  I pulled out some string and tried to remember just how to make Jacob's Ladder.  I found it on the web too....  this is definately a handicraft!!!

Tonight is the Big Girl & Little Girl Sleep Over.  I hope the girls can pick up some string knots tonight.  

Update!  Beautiful Goldfinch are still with us with a Nuthatch today too!  Hubbie had an Xray Monday and has new meds... praying his insides work right! 

Grace!!  ss

 ** Update 5/9 Ladybug proudly made her Jacob's Ladder!!!  I wondered if her little fingers at 5 could do these tricks.  Many times she started only to slip the strings and start again....  Welll start again she did!!!  And just a month later she got it!!!

Posted in AO2

We are trying to figure out how to get Daddy into the midst of our schooling!!   Our newest try to is make Daddy his own Narration Cube to use during dinner!!!

(Here's a direct link to my jpg)

This is a great idea from Penny Gardner at her site http://www.pennygardner.com/narrationcube.html  She has great info on each side of the die to help understand what's being asked.

We have used this before... after a reading and it has on been minorly successful ("I don't want to do that...."  When Daddy asks it is more fun to tell him :)  We've focused on this narration is not a test on the reading... it is a process of storing the info...  That helps me remember the focus! 

Happy Valentine's Day!!  Grace! ss

Posted in AO2

Complete the reading or learn from it!   It seems I've lost focus of the learning in AO and we are getting it done....  humf... and that's not enough!!! 

• Old Way:  Read the entire selection in a book in one sitting.  Regardless of the length... 
• Challenge:  There is the greatest memory in the first & last 5 minutes of a reading.
• New way:  Read for a short time 10 to 15 minutes... take a break (laundry, cup of tea, brush teeth.... asundry!)  Then back to the book... or rotate books....  We loose time in the adjustment but it is gained in the recall....

Benefit!!  I saw Ladybug sit with her daddy and tell MORE THAT EVER BEFORE....  of our AO2 time.  Wow!  I'm blown away!!  And realizing I've had my eyes on completion rather than on learning!!! 

This is truely an adjustment in my vision!!  Our scope!!  In the very rhythem & rhyme of our day!!  This is a power boost to our narration!! Yea!!

Grace! ss 

Posted in AO2

Trial in Triumph  Peter Waldo & the Waldensians Faithful to the Word  1130-1217

This reading left Lovebug mad.   She was greatly sadened at the slaughter of the Waldensians.  We talked about their love for the Bible.   Peter translating the Bible in to French so he could read it on his own.   What would it be like to not have a Bible in our language?  To have never hear about Jesus. 

Her anger was released as we talked thru the passion to follow the Bible.

Naration :(  Tonight Daddy asked about her schooling today.  She retold virtually nothing.  Hummm we need a better system on this.....

Grace! ss

** She did narate to daddy on the pillow... and was next to tears telling the tragic details... 

Posted in AO2

Our new term is off to a great start!  Our schedule is more intense.....  and we've added a jewel too!! 

20 Minutes!!  (That's not a time out!!!)  It is 20 minutes solo with mom!!  We gather in my room with an array of books... these are the things we need solo time... body book, manners, anger...  or Mother Goose, story books, Peter Rabbit, Pooh...  This time has been precious!!   Then after the girls Mama gets 20 minutes solo!!  :) 

Another add on is Lovebug is using 20 for independent reading...  She's thilled with Heidi!  We've had a bread and cheese and milk lunch, just like Heidi!

Here's our schedule!!

8a Reading with Mama, AO2 Additional reading by me or Heidi by her
9a Breakfast & Bible Devo & Psalm 8 (Daily read & btw memorize)
10a  Window to the World-  Praying for Chad this week
AO2 Her Pick A - Wind in the Willows
Poetry
MEP - Math
AO2 Her Pick B - Child's History of the World

And I've added a weekly check list to help us stay on track & catch up!!  Right now we're doing 2 math lessons, poetry & handwriting daily.

I've also added our Hymns & Folk song on my MP3 player... and we play those at breakfast or in the afternoons!!

Right now I think we're doing more of the AO & CM that ever!!!  We need focus on nature & time on Spanish.  Also in the days to come we'lll add in our artist & composer!!! 

That's our start to AO2 Term 2~~~

Grace!  ss

Posted in AO2

This week we've started the climb into a new trimester!!  We're in the middle of 2nd grade & K and enjoying the views in our AO journey!

Pagoo tears!!  We'er appraoching the end of our hermit crab trip!  Oh!!  Lovebug does not want to finish this trip!!  We've seen Pagoo grow from a pre-hermit crab... thru his fights for a shell of his own.... And today he pinched another hermit when Pagoo moved in first!!  Just a month or so left!!

Math!!  Oh this even yet needs more of me!!  Math!  Once a week is just not enough, humf!!  So today we've ventured into double lessons!!  In the midst of the lesson we enjoyed skip counting songs that are wonderful (The Skip Count Kid's Bible Heros)!!  Also, the girls enjoyed the finger play with Thumbkin!  We did number stuff to!!  We are enjoying the MEP lessons!!  Now mama needs to be consistent!!!

Ladybug enjoyed mama's favorite book... Miss Rumphius!!  Maybe some day we too can live by the sea!!! 

We are off to a great start!!  These two days have been fabulous!!!  Praise my Creator & Sustainer!!  Tonight's pillow talk walked again the journey of the day!!  Highlights were King Richard the Lionhearted & Robin Hood of Sherwood forrest from Our Island Story!

Grace!! ss

Hubbie-  His biggest concern lately was a fall skating!!! (Roller, alas we're without ice!!)   Praise nothing broke!!  His wrist & a twist were feeling better after rest!!   Pray for snow!!

Posted in AO2

We are brushing on the final touches of Psalm 139.  There are just a few rough spots...  missing a phrase...  or so.  Lovebug has asked to move on to a new passage... 

Challenge-  She need to say this passage... like during Christmas with family... and then we'll start something new.

?How do you memorize?

Every morning at breakfast, we read our Psalm.  We'll read it and talke about it.  It is a very causual & no pressure reading.  We are NOT focusing on memorizing!!!  I know if we consistently read the  passage...  we'll know it!! It will be like a friend!  Every morning I read to the girls.  Sometimes Lovebug wants to read... I love her reading God's word.

As we go along.. I'll stop and see if they know what comes next.  Gradually we'll set it to memory.   Some parts we'll know and others need more attention.  I'll do more focused reading starting sometimes at our harder parts.

Now we are at our challenge point.  We nearly have the passage word for word.  We'll spend the next few weeks reviewing and practicing reciting the Psalm.  Hopefully Christmas we'll say it top to bottom!

?How long do you spend on a passage?

We started Psalm 139 when we were expecting a baby!  That was August.  We we lost the baby in September I found so much comfort in the same Psalm...  It was awsome to see God's workd meeting me in such grief. 

So it has been from August to December.   That's 5 months... with many breaks with surgery in the midst too.  My goal is to work on a single passage for each trimester of our schooling.  That's 12 weeks.  Before this we learned Psalm 19.  We picked it up after our Colorado trip.  That was 4 months, April thru July.

Isaiah 40:8 The grass withers and flowers fade, but the word of our God lasts forever.

As we make His word part of our day, I think we take on a bit of eternity!!  For this lasts...

Grace!  ss

Posted in AO2

 We've just started working on knitting with Lovebug and Ladybug.  I'm not sure they will be hooked... but it has been fun to check out....

The Art of Knitting 4 Kids is a DVD with great instruction!!  Here is a snip it!  I think it is an easy way to introduce you and your kidos to knitting...

Memom picked up this DVD.  She is a compulsive knitter!!  She's having a ball knitting socks!!  We have a great shop we can get to get yarn & help!!

I'm knitting a bit!!  I'm learning from Memom too!!!

Grace!  ss 

Posted in AO2

We enjoyed A Midsummer Night's Dream play today!!   I'd not planned this trip with all life has going on lately... but last night I prayed "God, if you want us to go, get us up in time."

He must have wanted us to go!!  This morning I was up at 6a and my sinus attack kept me up!!  So I started to get ready for the day and realized that God had gotten me up in time to go to the play!!  I was dressed and fixing breakfast at 8a.... my little one was up at 7:45 and dressed right away.  I woke my big girl and she was eager about the play too.  We ate and were out the door by 8:30!  Impressive!

I'm so thankful!!  I'm surprised too, that we could be up and gone!!!  God is so good!!!  And I really like ages 5 & 7!!!

Just so I knew God was orchestrating... He got me at the play at 9:20 just as Traci was arriving.  It was a God appointment!!  We'd never met and only emailed on our AO site.!!!  She has 3 kidos and my girls had a ball playing with them after the play!!  It was great sharing our AO journey and learning from each other!

The play was enjoyed by all!!  It is great to see Shakespeare acted out.  We are reading his plays in our AO plan, but reading does not capture the joy of his plays. 

God's Plan!! ss

Mum-  so glad you found our site :)  All our love to you & dad & Eric. We miss ya!

Posted in AO2

Two Frogs - Author unknown

Two frogs fell into a can of cream, or so it has been told.

The sides of the can were shiny and steep, the cream was deep and cold. 

“Oh, what’s the use,” said number one.  “It’s plain no help’s around.” 

“Goodbye, my friend, good bye sad world.” Weeping still he drowned.

But number two, of sterner stuff, dogpaddled in surprise. 

All the while he licked his creamy lips and blinked his creamy eyes. 

“I’ll swim at least a while,” he thought or so it has been said. 

It really wouldn’t help the world if one more frog were dead. 

An hour or more he kicked and swam, not once he stopped to mutter. 

Then he hopped out from the island he had made of fresh churned butter.

 
With Grand'ma's help we made butter and enjoyed her poem!! 

After 15 minutes Lovebug was still shaking determined to finish HER butter!!  Grand'ma encouraged that she was getting close and all of a sudden it would be done!  She was right! 

And we enjoyed fresh butter on homemade bread!  Yumm...

Want to join us??  We'll have fresh cream on Saturday... and butter in the days that follow!! 

Hubbie is healing on the couch... The Grands are packing for the voyage home...  Lovebug is fasting from ice cream, webkins & candy to pray for a baby... all her idea....  from her God Girls Devotional.  Ladybug is fightin' a cold & aching ear....  Mama has finished the Echo in the Darkness and awaits the 3rd book...   

His Grace is Sufficient!  s2

Posted in AO2

We've just read in Understood Betsy (AO2) that Elizabeth Ann learned how to make butter!!  I want to do that too!!!  Like her we’ve only gotten butter at the store.  Here's my butter making research:

·         http://www.geocities.com/scalaska1/butter.html  This one has great pictures!

·         http://pbskids.org/rogers/parentsteachers/theme/1696_t_act.html  So much of food preparation and cooking gives children an opportunity to see and understand transformations. Here's a way children can see how a liquid can change into a solid.

·         http://pbskids.org/zoom/activities/sci/butter.html  So, you know that cream can be separated into two parts, but can you put them back together?

Tonight I’ve bought heavy cream!!  Soon we’ll make butter and hopefully fresh bread too!!!

Yumm!  ss

(It’s been a harder day.  With more tears than I’d expected.  I think I’m between the heaviness of losing the little one and the coming surgery.  God’s is faithful!  Fear not!)

Posted in AO2

Wow... Love Bug picked math first today!!  Daily we pick 2 of our 7 weekly AO2 books.  Generally we start w/ our books and end with math.  Today she picked  The Little Duke and Our Island Story but did not want to start here.

For the first time the pick was to start with math.  We've just started MEP a free online math program out of Brittan.  She's enjoying our new math routine.  http://www.cimt.plymouth.ac.uk/projects/mepres/primary/default.htm

Here's today's math....  Draw a ladder & number the steps, count up & down, skip rungs.... next sequence 5 items shut eyes & shuffle, what changed...  counting songs 2s & 3s girls skip and sing....   then we worked w/ greater & less than signs using number & sign cards.... then we worked w/ shapes matching and comparing... and lastly we worked in the workbook w/ greater & less than, & matching...

She did great!!!  And we enjoyed it all!!!  Wow!  Math was fun!! 

(And it was easier than what else was going on!  And  good distraction)