Birthday Boy recap!

(9 years old!)

So last week was my N's birthday!  His birthday was actually Wednesday but because of church and other commitments we couldn't celebrate until Thursday. I did do a couple small things on Wednesday. Like I let him know first thing by writing with dry erase on the bathroom mirror!

(Little did I know that the marker leaves a residue and when you shower it will show the message again! I'll be trying something else next time!)

Then I decorated the school room door with streamers and signs so he would have to "bust through" before starting school! They all really loved that!

All decorated!



Busting through!

Thursday was the day we were really going to celebrate but unfortunately he and me both woke up with the stomach bug. :( We did still let him open up his presents but you can see how pale he looks. My poor guy!

Present time!

I also made little cards for him for everyone in the family to fill out. Each one said, "Happy Birthday! My favorite thing about you is...." and then I had each of the boys and The Rev and I filled one out.


By Friday he was feeling a little better so we decided to let him get his birthday dinner. He really wanted Panera and we figured soup would be ok for him.
We were originally going to take him bowling but we still didn't want to risk it with him just feeling better and all so we did some Wii bowling with the promise that we'd take him bowling in the next two weeks. Finally, on Sunday everyone was feeling much better and we celebrated at grandma's with a cookie cake! (pictured above). Mr. N doesn't like regular cake. So overall it was fun. Just spread out over quite a few days!



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Rocket Balloon!

                                 

So, in science we are talking about forces and today we talked about thrust so what better thing to do than make a rocket balloon! I did this with N again. (I promise I do stuff with B and MyMy too! B is getting ready to make a roller coaster!

thread the yarn or string through the straw

It is easy peasy to make one. Materials needed are string or yarn, 2 balloons, tape and a straw. All you do is tie one end of your string to a door knob or a chair. (anything stationary) Next, you need to thread the other end through your straw and make sure the straw can move freely. Secure the end of the string to something else stationary and make sure the string is pulled tight. We probably did ours too close and I'm thinking next time we'll do the length of the hallway.

Next up, you blow up the first balloon as full as you can. Then, don't tie it! Just hold it! This is where it's good to have two people. One person holds the balloon under the straw while the other person uses tape to secure the straw to the balloon. Make sure that your balloon opening is facing away from the direction to want to balloon to launch! Then you let 'er go! (I have videos next. To turn off the music scroll all the way down and on the right hand side you'll see a black box. Click pause. :) ) And please excuse my mess!

Balloon Rocket 1


Balloon Rocket 2


So have fun homeschooling today! We did!

Goals for the week: 2/27/12-3/4/12

                      

Well, last week's goals didn't go so hot because we had the stomach virus. I wasn't able to get much extra done and I'm ok with that! Sometimes life happens and you gotta go with the flow!
Goals from last week:
Finish watching Homestead Blessings: The Art of Breadmaking
Start watching Homestead Blessings: The Art of Dairy Delights
Read half of Made to Crave
Exercise at least 30 minutes daily
Work in the backroom for 15min
Get dentists appointments in order for the week.

Yep, I didn't get any of those things done!! So those are my goals for this week and I'm adding a few.
Get baby shower ideas (the deaconesses at our church are throwing a shower for our youth director's wife!)
Start making baby blanket (for shower)
get my dinner menu in place

That's good for this week! Tomorrow, a recap of the birthday boy's week!

Hope for the Weary Mom: book review

                                                     

Recently I purchased Hope for the Weary Mom: Where God Meets You in Your Mess by Stacey Thacker (of the MOD squad) and Brooke McGlothlin (of the MOB society). First off, the MOD squad is for Mothers Of Daughters and the MOB society is for Mothers Of Boys. Since I have all boys I frequent the MOB society and I love it!!

Now onto the book review. I saw the title of this book and thought, "Oh, yeah. I'm weary. A lot." So I picked it up. And it was well worth the $0.99! As I read this I thought numerous times, "That is me!!!" And it brought tears to my eyes a few times as well. It also brought encouragement. It breathed God's breath fresh and straight into my mom heart. It let me know that I am not mothering alone but God is with me every step of the way. In my weaknesses He is strong. Thank Him for that! Overall, I really loved this book. It was honest and true to what I think many mothers feel at some point in time! Being a mom of 5 boys, I do get weary from time to time!

Thankful Thursday! (a day late!)

                                

It's time for another round of Thankful Thursday! I apologize for the lateness. I was sick yesterday and wasn't up to doing anything!

1. I am incredibly thankful for God's forgiveness, grace, and mercy. I can't even begin to tell you how thankful I am for it. He is an amazing God.

I am blessed!

2. I am so thankful for my family. God has truly blessed me and has really made me see this past week how incredibly blessed I am with my hubby and boys.

3. I am thankful for my church. God knew what He was doing when He called us here! It has been so evident that He placed us here for a reason!

4. I am thankful for my bed. No doubt my favorite thing to do is to lay down in it at night and .....ahhhhhh......

5. I am thankful for the sunshine. One of the reasons I hate winter so much is the lack of sunshine we have. I really enjoy going out and being in the sun. It always warms me physically and emotionally!

I love the sun!

Happy Birthday, N!



 Eight years old


Well, I remeber 9 years ago well. I had been having false labor for a week. We had called in The Rev's parents on Monday because I thought I was in labor. I stopped having contractions. Then they started. And stopped. Finally on Wednesday I went to the hospital to see what was going on and they said what every 9 month pregnant woman fears....nothing. They actually gave me something to help me sleep (because I hadn't been) and I had a good night's rest that night. I slept on our new recliner. :)

Fast forward to Friday, February 21st. Still nothing. My gracious in laws decided to stay through the weekend and then they'd have to return home. I was fretting. I decided to go to sleep about 10pm. I crawl in bed and I thought...what was that?!?! Nah, it can't be a contraction. Go to sleep! But, wait! Another one! This continued for an hour and I knew this time it was real. (You would've thought I'd known after already having two children by this point!) I went back down stairs at 11pm and said, this is it! We timed for another hour and they consistently came 5 minutes apart. We got to the hospital around midnight and sure enough I was in labor! WOO HOO! I did not know the sex of this baby. I actually only found out for my last 2 boys. So I was anxiously awaiting to see if God had blessed us with a girl or a boy.

Further along into my labor I decided for an epidural. I had one with B 20months earlier and it had stopped my labor, but I decided I was in so much pain I wanted it. Well, God had other plans. The doctor must've poked my back over 20 times with that huge needle and I was crunched in a ball for an hour. (not a comfortable position while in active labor!) Everytime he would go to insert the catheter into my spine I would get shooting pains going down my legs! Finally, he said he couldn't try anymore because I'd get a spinal headache. I was surprisingly OK with that. I actually think I'm a pretty nice person when I'm in labor! (I think the Rev and my mom would agree!)

Anyway, it was only about 2 hours later that N was born just after 5am. I was so excited when the midwife said, "It's a boy!" I remember saying, "I can't believe I'm a mom of 3 boys!" Little did I know that I would be a mom of 5 boys!

N has been such a blessing. He is my spirited, energetic, charasmatic little boy. (although he would say he's not so little anymore!) He's all about fairness and standing firm in what he thinks is right. I know this is something God will use mightily for Him someday. I am incredibly grateful that God decided to bless me with N. He chose N for our family and he most certainly fits perfectly!

Now for some pics through the years! (Sorry no newborn. Those were before my digital!)

3 years old

Four years old

Six years old

 Seven years old

Gettysburg!

So we aren't actually learning about Gettysburg this week in school but I thought it would be fun to revisit what we did this past summer. I had been to Gettysburg when I was a little girl and The Rev and I had wanted to take the boys for some time but we had been waiting until they were a bit older. We decided to go this past summer. I remembered very little from when I went as a girl so it was really eye opening for me to be there where this battle took place.
What started off my younger boys interest was the gravestone to the left. It is in an old cemetery right next to our church. Apparantly, James W. Thompson died at Gettysburg on July 2, 1863. He was 21yrs and 5 months old. It also says this was his 12th battle! This young man was a seasoned veteran already. My boys started asking all kinds of questions.



L loved Gettysburg! (with T right behind!)

 So as we began our journey around the Gettysburg National Military Park I was in awe myself about the whole thing. We started on the side where the South started. Just looking at the cannons and seeing the view from where so many soldiers stood made me speechless. My boys loved it. Especially L. He is my war buff and so he was in his glory being there!

So, as we looked across this battlefield from the Southern point of view we could see why there would be so many causualties. Completely open field! It was so different back then and it really sobers you to what really happened back then.

View of the battlefield as a Confederate

As we made our way around it became more and more clear why the north won. If the south had gotten ahold of little round top or big round top the Union probably would've lost! So this was a good teaching lesson for the boys as they could see first hand how position was key in this battle.



The Union point of view from Big Round Top

 Above is the Union point of view. They had the vantage point of the whole battlefield looking down! It was amazing to me to actually stand and look out like a Union soldier would've. (Only I didn't have to be terrified of getting killed!) As we looked down, my boys actually got that we (as the Union) had a better vantage point and position. They saw that the Union could see the Confederates coming up to them!

There was so much rich history and it was such an amazing learning experience for me and the boys! I can't wait to go back again someday! Next, I'll just share some additional photos that we took.


L and B on Big Round Top

Pennsylvania State Memorial



My crew in the Pennsylvania State Memorial

Jennie Wade house

We also visited the house of the only civilian casualty, Jennie Wade. I don't know if you can tell in this picture, but there are HUGE holes in this house! A bullet actually went through 2 heavy doors and struck Jennie and killed her. Back then this was a HUGE no no. Ladies were seen as especially frail and it would've never been done on purpose!

Anyway, i have tons more pictures and stories but I think I've bored you enough! I highly reccommend if you get the chance to go!




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Overheard at the dinner table

MyMy: "Mom, I want a cheese sandwhich for dinner."
Me: "Ok. I'll make it right now."
One minute later...
Me:"MyMy, your dinner's ready!"
MyMy: "Geez, that was faster than an old man!" Then proceeds to hunch over and walk slowly while holding his sandwhich! Cracks me up!

Goals for the week: 2/20/12-2/26/12

Goals from last week:
Get The Rev's V-day gift in order-this is happening today! (yep, I'm late)

Exercise at least 30min a day-DONE
Plan my garden some moreDONE
Finish reading Real MarriageDONE
Start Reading Made to CraveDONE
Finish watching Homestead Blessings: The Art of SewingDONE
Start watching Homestead Blessings: The Art of BreadmakingDONE
Start organizing my cooking binderDONE

Goals for this week:
Finish watching Homestead Blessings: The Art of Breadmaking
Start watching Homestead Blessings: The Art of Dairy Delights
Read half of Made to Crave
Exercise at least 30 minutes daily
Work in the backroom for 15min
Get dentists appointments in order for the week.

My boys have been sick so that is plenty to add on to my already busy week!

Thankful Thursday! 2/16/2012

It's time for another round of Thankful Thursday! There truly is something to always be thankful for even if it's only the fact that you are still breathing! This leads me to my list.

I am thankful for the breath in my lungs. If you think about all the things that have to work together just to take one breath it really is mindblowing. God has designed us so magnificently that sometimes it's hard to wrap my mind around it!

I am thankful for the funny things my boys say. They crack me up. Daily!

I am thankful for vegetables. Seriously. I haven't met a vegetable I haven't liked yet!



Last summer dh let me throw a pie in his face for VBS!

 I am thankful that my hubby is a good sport and likes to have fun with me. He makes me laugh! Last summer for VBS he let me throw a pie in his face! I love that man! (for many other reasons too!)

I am thankful for fresh air blowing in my face. Honestly, it's one of my favorite things! It makes me feel like God is saying, "Here. This is just because I love you!" That's how much I love the breeze in my face.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Me and The Rev

Valentine's Day. A day full of love. Shouldn't every day be that way? I think so! Everyday we should be telling our loved ones how much we love them! I started the day off by writing on the mirror in our bathroom for The Rev and I wrote a message for the boys on their bathroom mirror. B responded by saying, "How are you going to get that off? I can't see my reflection!" I'm super tired today but I am furiously thinking about some creative things to do today for The Rev especially and my boys. I didn't have time to get to the store for a gift so a homemade Valentine's Day it is!!

I actually got engaged on Valentine's Day 12 years ago. I'll never forget it because my son was sick throwing up. He was feeling terrible and The Rev kept insisting we still go up to his parents (2hrs away). I was a little irritated at the time. I could not figure out why he was so desperately wanting to go out still! I found out later that day. We went out to eat at Damon's (the only time we've eaten there!) when he asked. I said yes, of course! (I knew the first second I saw him that God had him picked out for me and I told The Rev on our second date and almost scared him away!) So I hope you all have an amazing Valentine's Day!

Homeschool: Organized chaos!

So, most of the time I get asked how I can homeschool my youngest four. They wonder how it's possible to keep everything going and working and smooth. Well, I am somewhat organized. Yep, somewhat. Not fully by any means. I have a method that works for our family. It is not one of those super neat and tidy rooms with lots of nicely stacked and color coded bins. Nope. Ours is organized chaos.

First up, everyone gets their own desk or table. N's desk I scored on half off day at our thrift store and got it for $15. It has three drawers he keeps various stuff in. B has an old library table that I got at a thrift store with a gift card I received for Christmas. M and T use a small child's picnic table my dad built.

Then I have various storage for books and supplies. B actually keeps all of his books in a shelf built into his table. For N, someone gave me a small, wooden cupboard they no longer needed. It fits nicely in between his desk and B's. For MyMy and T I use some old shelves we had laying around. One simply needed a coat of paint. All their stuff is placed in these things in no particular order but it all available and easy for each of us to reach from their particular area.

B's and N's work areas

I also have all of them in the same room. This way we can all do work and I am readily available to help and/or teach anyone at any given time.

Another thing I do is on the weekends I print out a list of work they need to do each day of the week. I simply used a template in Word on my computer and filled in each class, and what they needed to do for that class. They highlight it when they are finished. When all things are highlighted they're done for the day! Some days it takes two hours and some days it takes five!

What are some things you do to keep organized and your "homeschool" running more smoothly?



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Goals for the week! 2/13/12

It's that time for my goals for the week! How'd I do last week? Let's take a look!

LAST WEEK'S GOALS

Exercise at least 30 min a day  DONE! I actually got in at least 45min!

Read at least half of Real Marriage by Mark and Grace Driscoll  DONE!

Plan more of my garden by figuring out what I want to plant and where! I did get a few things figured out but not as much as I wanted to partially done!

Work 15min in the basement back room Again, nope! This is really last on my list and I didn't get to it!

Finish watching Homestead Blessings The art of Herbs (I'm halfway through!) DONE!

Start watching Homestead blessingsThe art of Sewing  DONE!

Start reading Made to Crave by Lisa TerKeurst  OOPS! Forgot about this one!

Play a game with my boys at least twice. Maybe a nerf gun fight? I think that would be fun! They're favorite thing is football! Well, we didn't play any "official" games but we did hang out together and get to spend some time outside. I call that done!

Peeled snacks review DONE!  My review is HERE.

GOALS FOR THIS WEEK! (2/13-2/20)
Get The Rev's V-day gift in order

Exercise at least 30min a day

Plan my garden some more

Finish reading Real Marriage

Start Reading Made to Crave

Finish watching Homestead Blessings: The Art of Sewing

Start watching Homestead Blessings: The Art of Breadmaking

Start organizing my cooking binder

I think that should do it on top of my "regular stuff"! I am also watching my 3yr old nephew over night from Tuesday to Wednesday. I hope you all have a great week!

Peeled snacks: review!

Peeled snacks!

So, I was recently given the chance to sample Peeled organic snacks for free through SheSpeaks.  I was excited to try them because I am all about eating healthier. First, I had trouble finding them in the store. Then the package was tiny for the price. I also was given a $10 gift certificate for their online store.  I was super excited to get something for "free". Well, little did I know that their prices are more outrageous online! There was one thing online cheaper than $10 and it was the Farmer's Market trio. It had dried raisins, cherries, and apples. I like all of those so I ordered it only to find shipping was $7! I thought that was extremely high. Thankfully I had some paypal to cover it and awaited my Peeled snacks. They arrived pretty quickly and were packed fine. I thought they were very good, but I like that kind of stuff. The apples were a little chewy. (My mom said it was like chewing rubber!) She didn't like the taste either. Overall, I liked them. I thought they were good tasting and I like that they are organic but they are WAY to expensive. So I'll probably forgo buying them for my other snacks because of it!

I love that it's real food!

Thankful Thursday!

Psalm 136:25
"Give thanks to the God of heaven.

His faithful love endures forever. "

It's been some time since I've done a Thankful Thursday so I thought I'd do one this week. I've much to be thankful for!

B last winter

1. A mild winter (so far!) I suffer from S.A.D and am incredibly thankful for such a mild winter! Last year was our first winter and I was a bit shocked at all the snow we had!  And this week has brought some warmer temps and I've enjoyed going outside!

2. I am thankful that God graces me every morning. Somedays I feel like....Blah. I know I've screwed up and the day is just terrible. I am thankful that God washes His grace over me and beckons me to come and sit with Him under His forgiving song.

3. I am thankful for God's voice. He spoke to me clearly about homeschooling, moving to this church, leaving the pregnancy center and much more. My quiet time with God is something I cherish.

Josephine Cochran

4. I am thankful for Josephine Cochran. Just who is Josephing Cochran? Why she's a woman who hated to wash dishes by hand! In 1886 she invented the first working dishwasher! Praise God for a woman after my own heart!

5. I am thankful for my mother in law. Yep, I am. She is an amazing and strong woman. (any woman who makes it through burying their husband is strong in  my eyes!) Not only is she like a second mother to me, she is a good friend!

Me, my mother in law, and my sister in law. A good looking bunch of ladies!

Homeschooling resources!

Over the past few months I've come across quite a few resources for homeschooling parents. Maybe you've heard of them and maybe you haven't. I thought I'd share some of them. If you have any additional please list them in the comments and I'll check them out and add them as well!

FREE RESOURCES

KB kids and Professor Garfield - for grades K-6, math, LA, science, and social studies

IXL - preK-8th grade, has many, many differenct skills for each grade including algebra. It's an all math site

EZSchool - K-12th grade, has many activites for each grade including all core subjects (math, LA, social studies, science, as well as world languages)

ABCya - K-5, math, typing, LA

FunBrain - elementary, mostly math, some reading

APlusMath - 1-5 math

Sheppard Software - PreK-5, great math skills up to algebra, geography, science, LA, nutrition

PBS kids - PreK-1 different math and LA learning games

Kent trust web - K-3 LA, reading

Funschool- K-5, LA, math, science, language, sports, geography and history, art and music

Roy the Zebra-K-2 Reading, LA

Sesame Street-PreK-2 Different learning games

A Maths Dictionary-K-12, You look through the ABC to find what you want. Like F for fractions and it gives you interactive definitions

Spelling City-1-12 You put in the spelling words and there are many games and ways to learn them. There is also a premium membership if you wish to pay for more features but it's not necessary

Multiplication.com-2-5, lots of multiplication games

Here is a large list of Math websites

Starfall.com-preK-2 Lots of reading, letter sounds, alphabet, word blending, etc. It also has a premium membership for only $35 a year. I am planning on subscribing. :)

Khan Academy-4-12, This site has tons of amazing videos to help with math (even calculus!) It also has many videos on arts and humanities, biology, civics, geometry, arithmetic, health, history and test help. Very good site!

Mathway.com-4-12, A site that helps you solve basic arithmetic to trigonometry and calculus!

The Factor Tree- When The Factor Tree first came out it cost money. I had a free trial and I did like it but wasn't sure if it was worth the money it was asking. Well, it seems it is now free! It's definitely worth that price! Factor Tree adjusts to your child's learning. You can even make up a schedule when you want them to practice and track their work online. I really like this site and am going to use it again now that it's free!

Progressive Phonics-preK-1 reading, LA, phonics

ABC teach- PreK-middle school, Reading, holidays, interactives, core subjects. A great site with lots of features. You can also join for arond $40 a year and get more options as well as make custom worksheets.

First School-PreK activities, crafts, ABC, theme units and the likes

Letter of the Week-a whole preschool, PreK program lasting 26weeks that you can do at your own pace to fit your own needs

Learning Page-free teachers resources including lesson plans, books, worksheets and more!

Easy Fun School-Tons of resources for all ages including history, home ec, LA, math and much more!

Homeschooling Adventures- Lots of links and information for homeschooling preK-12th!

The Math Worksheet Site-make your own math worksheets

Handwriting for Kids-handwriting worksheets

Kidport-K-8 has many online games for core subjects

HippoCampus-8-12 Has multimedia presentations for math (including calculus, geometry, etc) and natural science and social studies

NeoK12-videos, lessons and games for k-12 on just about any subject you can think of! Looks like a great site!

Mr. Nussbaum-1-5 Has TONS of stuff to do on all core subjects

Now are some paid ones that may or may not be worth your time!

Brain Pop and Brain Pop Jr. Brain Pop is 3-5 and Brain Pop Jr. is K-3. I love these sites. They do always have a free movie of the week. And they both cover many things. Reading, math, history, science, art and music, health, safety and so much more. The price is for one full year and varies depending on if you do one user in your house, multi users and if you get one or both. Brain Pop Jr. is $85 for the year for one user. They also have it in Spanish and for ESL.

Landry Academy I'd say this is for Jr High and up. It has "Christ Centered online classes and summer camp" They have online classes for just about anything including Math, History, English, Geography, Art, Bible, Computer, Foreign Languages, Science, etc.  (I've not had any personal experience with this but it looks cool!)

Compass Learning (link takes you to samples) I'm not sure how expensive this site actually is because we get it free through a cyber school. It is an amazing tool. it is for K-12 and has math, LA, science, reading and more. It has about every thing you can think of when it comes to lessons. Can track online.

DreamBox (link takes you right to homeschool section) This is an online math help that changes according to your students need. If your student is advanced it moves to the next level. If they need additional help, it adjusts to offer more help. There is a 14 day free trial. One child is $12.95 a month or $59.95 for 6 months. Up to 4 children is $19.95 a month or $99.95 for 6 months. Grades K-5

 Allows you to track them online.

Raz-Kids-PreK-6 This has tons of leveled readers to chose from. A little pricey at $65 to $90 for a year.

I know this is A LOT! There is so much out there and hopefully you found something useful in all of this! If you have found any that you think are amazing let me know and I'll add them to the list!

Goals for the week!

Well, I'm actually getting my goals up before the beginning of the week this week! So how'd I do last week? First, I only posted a shortened version. I actually had 2 notebook pages filled with things I wanted to get done. I'd say I got done about 3/4 of it. I was also feeling sick (and still am) so I thought that was good!

Here was my list from last week:

I'm a little late with my goals for the week! I have just a few. I thought it would be good to start tracking some small goals for the week for myself. Since I only have a minute I'm only going to list a couple for this week. (although I have quite a few more!)

Finish watching Fresh the movie. (it's free this week only streaming from their site Fresh the Movie) I have about 20 minutes left to watch. Very eye opening about where our food comes from! DONE!

Watch Homestead Blessings the art of gardening. DONE!

Start planning my garden by taking measurements of my plot. DONE!

Work 15min in the basement backroom. (I'll post before pics soon. YIKES!) Unfortunately, not done. I just didn't get time!

Finish reading Runaway Pastor's Wife.  (I'm about 85% of the way through. I may post a review if I get a chance.)   DONE!

Start reading Real Marriage by Mark and Grace Driscoll  STARTED!

Finish helping N with his dog house project for school.   DONE!

I have more but it is so nice outside and the boys (and me too!) are dying to go out and play while we can!

 

THIS WEEKS GOALS (2/6-2/12)

Exercise at least 30 min a day
Read at least half of Real Marriage by Mark and Grace Driscoll
Plan more of my garden by figuring out what I want to plant and where!
Work 15min in the basement back room
Finish watching Homestead Blessings The art of Herbs (I'm halfway through!)
Start watching Homestead blessingsThe art of Sewing
Start reading Made to Crave by Lisa TerKeurst
Play a game with my boys at least twice. Maybe a nerf gun fight? I think that would be fun! They're favorite thing is football!
Peeled snacks review
If I think of anything else by tomorrow I'll add it

These are just a few things on top of all my regular "chores"  and schooling that I would like to do. And if some of you are wondering how I fit in watching a movie, well, I'll tell ya! I put it in my laptop and watch while I'm loading/unloading the dishwasher or making dinner. I watch what I can! As for reading, I try and take 10 minutes every day with my lunch and read. I do my Bible and prayer time first thing in the morning before anyone is up.

Have an amazing week!