February Sunshine

and is that a blue bird I hear?? Okay, maybe not, but it is VERY spring-like outside. So much so that I gave my kiddos an extra long break after lunch to suck in fresh air (and blow the stink off!) They are there right now--and just came in for some water in a big bucket which can't be good. I can't bring myself to spoil the quiet tranquility that I am enjoying at this very moment.

I'm not one to complain about the weather (except when it's super hot with high humidity, okay, then I do get a little cranky.) I certainly can't complain about the wonderful weather we have had recently.

I've been working through an online Bible study through the book of Ephesians. It's a slow, thoughtful walk meditating on Paul's inspired words to the church at Ephesus. Last week, due to sickness, I got a little behind. However I caught up last night--even though to be honest I just copied down the Scriptures and read them over and over. The normal "method" is SOAP: Scripture, Observation, Application and Prayer. It's been difficult for me to find applications in each day's reading. That has brought me to the place of praying that God would guide me to the application--the thing HE wants me to walk away with, how HE wants me to change.

Throughout the study, I've been reminded again of God's great LOVE for us. And that is my "one word" for this year. Here is where I first read about "one word" Ali Edwards: One Little Word. So, I've been choosing one word for several years now. I really want to make my one little word more prominent in my thinking and my life. I'm going to look into what Ali has on her blog. However, I digress...

My one word for this year: LOVE, has come out of a prayer that I would realize in my heart of hearts how much God loves me and how His love for me will guide my relationships with others. Don't get me wrong, I know God loves me and I know I'm His child. I still struggle with the reality of this truth and I'm not sure how to even explain that. As I prayed about what God would want my one little word to be this year, "love" kept coming to my mind.

It's exciting to me that in the Ephesians study I'm being reminded of His love for me!
Well, the kiddos are back inside and school must commence.

The January winds blow...

And I resurface...

We had a wonderful Christmas together.

School has been back in full swing for a few weeks now. I readjusted some things in our daily routine. My nine year old, Bethany is now doing Bob Jones Reading. Mostly, I am a unit study, pull together my own thing, kind of girl. However, I needed to have something all planned out for me to ensure she's getting everything she needs. It's working well so far, and I was able to borrow everything except the consumable from a friend of mine. I've also gone back to daily check-off sheets and hopefully our workboxes will be resurrected for Trenton and "Muffin" (the little 4 year old I babysit).

Edited to add: Okay, so now it's February 1st and this little post has been in my drafts waiting to be finished. ack! Posting now and writing a new one for today. :)

Holiday Wrapping

I absolutely love wrapping gifts. It may be a sickness; I'm not quite sure. My oldest daughter noted that there aren't many folks in my camp of loving to wrap gifts. It's such a beautiful precise thing, measuring, cutting, folding, taping...ahhh...just talking about it makes me all giddy.

To go along with the love of wrapping is my love for printable gift tags and box top embellishments. Some wonderfully creative bloggers are giving away printables for gift tags. Go visit Creature Comforts for a LONG list of free printables.
The Handmade Home has some here.
And Fresh Picked Whimsy has a cute set here.

This year I printed tags from the last two resources listed above, mainly because I just found Creature Comforts list today.

I hole punched the tags and used all kinds of fun, different sized ribbons to tie up my packages.
Hope you enjoyed this holiday wrap-up of my wrapping! :)

Monster Cookies with "Muffin"

The little "Muffin" I babysit made monster cookies with me the other day. We had a good time. She loves to bake, cook and be in the kitchen. I loved it when she tried to stir the M&M's into the mixture. Her little arm couldn't even move the spoon. :)

We took two plates of cookies along with homemade cards to some of our local community service men and women. The county jail sheriff and deputies and the firefighters were glad recipients. We  have been intentionally thinking of ways to give gifts to others--whether it be gifts of baked goods, candy canes, cards, time, etc. I'm thankful for the opportunity to be with my kids and do fun things like this!

Monster cookies are GREAT because it makes a BIG batch, they are yummy, and they freeze well. The only downside is that you spend hours switching cookie sheets in and out of the oven.

Enjoy!

Homemade Ranch Crackers

I made these yummy crackers today! I posted the recipe here a few years ago. Easy recipe and SO good.

December is under way

I've been thinking:   if I can post a status update on Facebook every day of November, then I can make time to post something on my blog everyday of December. :) My goal is to include a picture from that day and some thoughts about our happenings.

So, it's December 3rd and I've already missed yesterday...I know. Tiredness overtook me and I slept for a long time last night! I took a picture though. Here is a picture of one of the crafts we are taking for our local homeschool's annual Kid's Christmas Craft Sale. I got the idea from a friend and then I did some research online. I found this cute example:
Everyday Art--alphabet glass stone magnets
 
I know originally I looked at lots of other sites, but I can't seem to find them now.  We used scrapbook paper, regular stick glue, glass stones (flat on one side, bubble on the other) and round magnets glued on with E-6000 glue. We glued the stone to the paper, cut it out, glued the magnet on and walaa! Cute!

The other pictures are of my younger two with their Truth in the Tinsel craft. We are enjoying this Advent devotional.

Advent--You are Here!

I really enjoy this time of year. The concentrated focus on Jesus does my heart such good. Oh, to keep that focus all year long. For several years, we've celebrated Advent as a family. Each year we seem to add a little something and this year, we've added two little somethings. :) You can see below what we do, and please, leave a comment and share how you celebrate Jesus' birth.

First, a good couple article by Noel Piper on Advent can be found here. She's written several more that pertain to Advent (use the "search" feature to find them.)

Ann Voskamp has written a lovely thoughtful devotional called Jesse Tree Advent Family Devotional. Last year, I printed out the ornaments, mounted them on card stock paper, hole punched and threaded a ribbon through each one. We usually read this devotional at lunch time and the younger kids take turns hanging the ornament on the tree.

This year I found "Truth in the Tinsel" This fun Advent devotional is geared more toward younger children and will work well with the little girl I babysit. She is four. My two younger kids (ages 6 and 9) are doing it too and enjoy making crafts. I found this great printable from Mama Jenn that has added a curiosity factor for them.

Lastly, we've decided on lots of fun "random acts of kindness" based on this idea from Lil Light O' Mine. We read through all the ideas and have a whole pile of ones we are praying that we are able to do. We are so excited! Today the younger two kids and I tied ribbon and a little message on to the candy canes. My little 6 year old has given two of them away already! One to mom of the little girl I babysit and the other to a HVAC service man. {I love my kids!}

12 Days before Christmas we will start Adornaments that we received years ago from a sweet friend. They were sold by Family Life Today, however I don't know if they still sell them. Each day you read about a different name of Jesus and there is an ornament that you hang on the tree. There is also a CD with a song that goes along with the name of Jesus. We've enjoyed this devotional for years.

Our church is celebrating Advent too, so it's wonderful reinforcement for the kids. The message on Sunday was on hope and was very powerful. We have hope in Christ!

30 Days of Thanksliving {part 4}

O give thanks to the Lord, call on His name; make known His doings among the peoples! 1 Chronicles 16: 8
Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. I Thessalonians 5:18

day 22: thanksliving: I've enjoyed recording my thanks a day later as it's given me opportunity to reflect on each yesterday and remember. I'm very thankful for God giving us discernment, wisdom and help in the very small details of life and in the big challenges too. I'm also thankful for time with Trenton and Alea talking about what it means to be thankful and what we are thankful for.

day 23: thanksliving: my two girls helping me clean and bake with lots of cheerful smiles, being prompted by the Lord to give to others, fresh hair cuts for 4 of us, warm snuggles from my little guy who is still not feeling well, and the table set for ten :)

day 24: thanksliving: yesterday was a good day of putting the finishing touches on the house and my contributions to dinner. We hosted Maurice's mom, sister, niece, nephew and aunt. Good company, good food! Lots to be thankful for! God is gracious.

day 25: thanksliving: I'm thankful for my hunny receiving therapy on his hurt knee, I'm thankful for a day of ease with my kids and family movie night watching Cars 2.

day 26: thanksliving: Good day with the family and a fun afternoon with a friend. My creative side has been sparked! I'm so thankful for great family, fun friends and a date night with my hunny.

Day 27: thanksliving: First Sunday of Advent--hope, assurance and certainty of God's rescue for our future. Powerful message and a good day of celebrating with our church family.

day 28: thanksliving: thankful for God's mercy and grace each day, thankful for my hunny and appreciate how hard he works, thankful for my girls who are so helpful and for my little guy who keeps me on my toes, and I'm thankful for the start of *Advent!

day 29: thanksliving: enjoyed a field trip with some of God's furry creatures (and slimy ones too!), lunch with friends, and school in the afternoon. Grateful for my hunny who helps keep me balanced and grounded in what really matters. I must remember that I cannot control what others think of me or what they do; I can only control me. Praying that I live my life filled with integrity and all out love for God. 

Thanksgiving Day small tablescape

Edited to add: Day 30: thanksliving: thankful for finishing something I started...documenting my thanks for 30 whole days! {that's progress, folks!} Thankful for concentrating on the things I'm thankful for...sure chased the grumpies away on a daily basis.

*Be sure to visit again soon as I'm getting together a post of all the great resources I've found for Advent.

Easy Reference: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

30 Days of Thanksliving {part 3}

I chose to document the month of Thanksgiving with a daily Facebook update. (Scroll to the bottom to find easy links to Part 1 and Part 2.) I posted what I was thankful for the day after each day. This delayed posting allowed me to deliberately reflect on yesterday and assign words for the blessings that God has given me. And isn't it all blessings? Music is one means of grace that God has bestowed to not only uplift my heart, but also music gives melody to my thoughts, feelings and beliefs. The song Blessing by Laura Story is one such song.

Day 15: Thanksliving--thankful for lunch and reconnecting with a friend I have not seen in a LONG time. Her little guy is a cutie pie. 

Day 16: thanksliving: Thankful for being able to spend time with Trenton. Yesterday both girls were off doing other things, and Trenton wasn't feeling very good. We snuggled on the couch, even did his school on the couch and generally took it easy.

Day 17 of thanksliving: I'm so thankful for the gift of friends...they help carry burdens, make the day brighter and are an all around joy!

day 18--I'm thankful for the ways God provides what we need when we need it: extra sleep in the morning, encouraging chat on FB with a friend, insurance taking care of several outside house things damaged by the hail and sharing a conversation with a sweet friend.

day 19: thanksliving--so thankful for my hunny and how he takes care of the kids and I. He really lives out "in sickness and in health." Yesterday he gently took care of Trenton...and then me today as Trenton must be sharing his germs. Thanks, hunny. 

day 20: thanksliving--eternally grateful for the Gospel. Over the last few weeks, at church we've heard from many different ministries and how they are meeting needs of people everywhere. Inspiring...challenging...

day 21 of thanksliving: thankful for the chiropractor (who Trenton affectionately called the "choir practice"), thankful for oohs and ahhs of my girls after they saw the completed craft closet, and thankful for my cozy bed where I can rest my weary bones! Please keep praying for health and wellness to be restored to the our household. Marissa and Trenton are both not feeling well at all.

Side note: cleaning the craft closet had been on my "goals list" for SEVERAL weeks. I finally conquered it! Oh the sweet taste of completion. I really need to taste it more often. :) 

Easy Reference: Part 1, Part 2

30 Days of Thanksliving {part 2}

I'm so glad I am taking the time to repost my 30 Days of Thanksliving. (If you haven't read part 1, click here to read it.) You and I both know that 30 Days of Thanksliving will slide fairly effortlessly into a LIFE of Thanksliving. Did I say effortlessly? I meant to say "will slide into a life of Thanksliving if I continue to be intentional and thoughtful."

Day 8 of a month of thanksgiving: I'm thankful for God's grace and the freedoms He gives us. Freedoms I do not ever want to take for granted. My prayer is that a month of thanksgiving will turn into a thanks~living.

Day 9 of a life of thanks-living: I'm thankful for God's provisions for us.

Day 10 of thanks-living: I'm thankful for the freedoms we have to worship God and educate our children. I'm thankful for Christian radio.

Day 11: Thankful for the service men and women who serve our country here and abroad and their families who are making huge sacrifices too.

Day 12: Thankful for the different "jobs" God has given me. Marissa and I had a good time cleaning and shopping in the afternoon. I love being a wife and mom!

Day 13: Thanksliving--thankful for a Sunday afternoon date with my hunny.

Day 14: Thanksliving--thankful for shopping with my kids for gifts for others. It was a good reminder especially to the younger one that love puts others before ourselves.

For easy reference:  Part 1

30 Days of Thanksliving

For each of the days in November, I posted what I was thankful for. I posted in Facebook and wanted to transfer them here for longevity's sake. A long time reader and believer in 1000 Gifts, I've tried different ways of keeping track of my heart's gratitude. Maybe on my blog is the way?? I'm a good starter, but not a good follow-through-er. I'm working on changing that.

So, here are my 30 Days of Thanksliving {divided into 4 parts}

day 2 of a month of thanks: I'm thankful for my wonderful hunny. thanks for helping me rearrange the furniture the other day...and thanks for not freaking out when I wanted to put it all back the way it was. :)

Oh, what's that, you didn't see day 1--that's because I didn't do it yesterday...I'm thankful for God's grace!

Day 3 of a month of thanks...I'm thankful that God is Peace when life is hard.
Read this sweet story on one of my favorite blogs...

Day 4 of a month of thanks...(yesterday)...thankful for friends. God has graciously given me wonderful friends who dig in and walk this life with me. I'm thankful that my friends challenge me to be more like Christ. And laughing with friends is one of the greatest gifts!!

Day of thanks #5: thankful for my husband and the opportunity to attend a beautiful, encouraging wedding together on this lovely autumn day

Day 6--month of thanksgiving: So thankful for our church family. Pastor who teaches boldly, yet lovingly; members who love and serve each other, a women's class that enters into each others' stories treasuring and loving each other. God is so good.

day 7 of a month of giving thanks: I'm thankful for my 3 kids--sometimes they make me want to tear my hair out strand by strand but even through that, I love them. They challenge me to be a better me and they love me unconditionally. I love my kids.

Stromboli with friends

Last week I enjoyed a fun dinner with some friends. We talked about being more intentional about getting together...and since we all need to eat, well, dinner sounded like a good way to fellowship. I made stromboli, and others brought salad and desserts.

This stromboli recipe is written on a hand-penned 3x5 card from my friend Julie. Unable to make this recipe without thinking of Julie, I'm eternally thankful that God allowed us to be friends. I miss her so very much.

Here is the recipe:

Stromboli

*You can use frozen bread dough, thawed, or make the dough in the bread machine following these instructions: 
1 1/4 c. warm water
3 T. oil
1/8 c. + 2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
2 T. instant mashed potato flakes
3 c bread flour
1 1/2 tsp. yeast
Dough setting on bread machine.

When dough is finished, roll out on floured surface into large rectangle (like 8"x15").
Brush lightly with oil and sprinkle with oregano and mozzarella cheese. Evenly sprinkle about 1/2-3/4 lb ground beef (browned and drained), pepperoni and more mozzarella.
Roll longways and pinch to seal ends (wet dough to get it to stick together.)
Bake on stone or sprayed baking sheet. 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until slightly golden brown.
Serve slices with warmed pizza sauce.

You can add other meats such as cooked, drained sausage to the inside. Can also be made as lunch meat stromboli--use cheddar cheese, lunch meat and dip in mustard/mayonnaise, etc.

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

So far, I've only been able to keep up with posting the preschooler's school plans. Really, I'm doing schoolwork with the other 3 (1st grade, 4th grade and 10th grade), I just can't figure out time to write about it all. Anyway, our next book is Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.

Here are some of the ideas I've collected for the next two weeks:
Confessions of a Homeschooler has these printables 
1+1+1=1 shared this cute lapbook
Making Learning Fun posted ideas and some printables to use with the book
I Heart Crafty Things has two great ideas--magnetic letters on a baking sheet and a snack
The Crafting Chicks posted this cute idea for making a mini coconut tree out of an empty toilet paper roll.
Click here for a freebie download for a fun game from Peace, Love and Learning.
I made our own coconut tree out of tag board and lowercase alphabet stickers. I crafted the coconuts out of brown paper bag circle cut-outs stuffed with a bit of cotton. 
Lastly, we are going to make a coconut dessert on the last day...I think I'm going to use this recipe from AllRecipes.com

I'm excited about using this book with Alea...she so fun to teach and she loves school!

Blueberries for Sal

We had a great study of We're Going on a Bear Hunt! The little girl I watch LOVED the video of the author reading the book. By the end of the 5 days (which is two weeks for us--two days one week and three days the next) she had the book memorized. very cute!

For the next two weeks, we are going to "row" Blueberries for Sal. Here are some resources I found for this book.

• Literature Based Themes: Robert McCloskey This site has some great links to good ideas. We are SO making blueberry paint! :) 
• my favorite...Homeschool Creations printables 
• Blueberry Crumble {!!}

The only big downside is that this isn't really the right time of year to go blueberry picking. :( So I'll get some at the store and we'll make blueberry pancakes and muffins, etc. Won't be exactly the same, but we'll still have fun.

We're Going on a Bear Hunt

With as long as it's been since I've posted, you may think I've already been on a bear hunt! Really, I have so much I want to post, I just can't seem to find time to do it. I am working on sticking to my schedule and hopefully, once I get into a routine, I will have time for some other things that I really enjoy doing.

I am homeschooling 10th grade, 4th grade, 1st grade and Pre-K this year. The youngest one is a girl that I've watched since she was a tiny baby. She LOVES doing school and I'm really excited to do Before Five in a Row with her.

This week we've started We're Going on a Bear Hunt. Here are some resources and printables I've found to go along with the story.
A video of the author telling the story:



Homeschool Share--lapbook for this story
Homeschool Creations printables for this story
Printables from Sparkle Box
For some fun snacks we are going to have Teddy Grahams, Gummi Bears and chocolate pudding (for the mud, of course!) I'll have to spread out the snacks during this week...don't want her to have too much sugar all at one time.

Hopefully soon I will be able to post about what I'm doing with the other kids. We started school on August 22, so we are still working hard to be diligent and consistent.

Off I go, to do more printing and preparing!
Thanks for sticking with me!

Preparing for Montana State Study

I've finished preparing for the Pacific Coast States: Washington, Oregon, California and Alaska. Now I'm moving on to the Rocky Mountain States starting with Montana.

For all 4 of the Pacific Coast States I really liked the HomeschoolShare printable lapbook pieces.  So, I will continue to print these and use them for these states as well.

I found this mini unit on Montana from diyhomeschooler. 

SchoolExpress has these printables for Montana (and other states as well.)

Lots of fun Cantering the Country!

Planning for NEXT Year!

Well, we are finishing up school for this year. We'd gotten a little behind on Math, so we've pushed through the month of June and now into July trying to get finished. I'm letting myself start to plan for next year {I had to make myself wait because I LOVE the planning part--it's the carrying out part that is hard for me.}

So, here is the beginning plans for Trenton {1st grade} and Bethany {4th grade}::
Cantering the Country
Five in a Row {Volume 2 selected books}

We are going to read Gramma's Walk.
And we will study Washington State.

Here are some resources I've found for Gramma's Walk:
Oceans of the World map (so far, I'm just using this one lapbook piece from this unit.)
Lapbook for Gramma's Walk

Here are some resources I've found for Washington State:
US Geography Resources
Enchanted Learning--Washington
Official Washington State site--with coloring pages, activity book, etc.  

For this coming year, I'm doing our lapbook/unit studies a bit different. Last year, I printed out resources, put them in a folder and several folders remain untouched. :( SO, this year, I'm printing out everything, cutting it all out, pasting it on cardstock paper and binding it together. Then when we do the study, the kids will decorate the title pages, fill in the mini books and learn, learn, learn. :) I'm excited to see if we have more success doing it this way. {Not to worry about the untouched folders; I imagine they will be used before it's all said and done.}

I'd love to hear how others organize, plan and carry out their homeschooling...so please, feel free to leave a comment!

Father's Day Ideas

June means Father's Day and I want to help my kids make something for their Daddy. He is a wonderful Dad and a great Husband. I'm thankful for him and I want to make Sunday a day to celebrate him!

Here is a cute idea from Mama Jenn's blog. I think I'm going to make this with the kids tomorrow. :)

Do you have any ideas for Father's Day? Please share!

Warrior Prayers: Week 1

My son has been giving me a run for my energy, strength and yes, even sanity lately. So when I saw a 21-Day Challenge of praying for our sons...my eyes perked up and something stirred deep in my weary heart...maybe...just maybe, a glimmer of hope.

Hope for the encouragement to keep trying.
Hope for the strength to be consistent.
Hope that God loves my little treasure even more than me.
Hope that it is God who changes his heart.
Hope that I can be faithful to what God has called me to do by the power of His Word.

So, that's where I am. Praying through this fantastic little e-book, that I printed out and have a feeling it will be well worn over the years to come.

In Which the Children Plan Easter Service

Bethany and Trenton spent most of the afternoon planning a Good Friday Service. It was so sweet. They changed into dress clothes, made bulletins, set up the school room and practiced songs. I'll let the pictures and captions tell the story. 

All dressed up

I love these sweet faces.

Can't leave out the elements for Communion

Taking offering (with money they gave us). Bethany is in the background getting the games set up for us. Yes! They had games with prizes. Really creative and cute!

Bethany teaching a lesson. She had places marked in her Bible and she asked Daddy to read them. The vacuum piece Trenton is holding is their microphone and Bethany is standing behind the podium. :)

Trenton playing the worship music.

A visual aid of The Last Supper. Trenton is holding it up as Bethany tells the story.

Trenton did a reenactment with his knights and people.

Trenton closed in prayer.