Bella Birthday with the Grammas, 2010

Raising Homemakers

As a mother of 3 daughters I'm excited about this new website Raising Homemakers

Raising Homemakers is dedicated to inspiring, teaching and blessing mothers who have an interest in raising their daughter in godliness and preparing them in the arts of homemaking to the glory of God.

House Cleaning

Been busy working around the house last week.
Cleaned ceiling fans
Lindy took down all the blinds, washed them and put them back up.
Washed windows
Got a new to us couch and table lamps from my mom, so we rearranged the living room and vacuumed under the furniture.
Washed the living room sheer curtains.
Straightened the laundry room


These are homemaking “rules” that I try to live by, but not always successfully.

1. Clean house before you leave for vacation so you don’t come home to mess-this is from my mom
2. Don’t go to bed without cleaning kitchen, no dirty dishes left overnight.-this is from my paternal grandma.
3. Plan your menus before you go shopping-from my mom. I also plan my menus to work around what is on sale for the week. This has kept my grocery bill under $100 for the week for a family of 5.
4. Write all family plans/activities on the same calendar. Plus keep a weekly planning sheet on the fridge.
5. No computer until chores/school are done. This is more for the girls. LOL

I know nothing earth shattering but it helps my home run more smoothly.

Menu Plan

We had a lunch cookout with my gramma and went to a Memorial Day Service this afternoon. So tonight will be a lighter supper of
Baked Potatoes and Salad
beef and chicken fajitas
brats (the sausage kind not my kids LOL)
pork chops
pizza
grilled buffalo chicken legs

Bella and Clover Club

May 27 Clover Club spent the day together at a members home and learned about horses, got to ride a horse and painted horse shoes. It was a fun day for us all.

Love this!

I love this swimming suit!Stylish, modern, good sun protection for my fair skinned beauties! I love the sportiness of the cut, I feel it would encourage more activity and less worry about what is falling out or riding up.

Almost done!

The girls are almost done with school. Emilie and Olivia have finished Literature, and Grammar. They will finish History June 2,
Science will continue until July 2. After June 2 Math will be 3-5 times a week, Grammar Girl podcast 3-5 times a week, free reading daily, pursuing interests other than computer.

Bella will finish next week. This week she will finish Wizard of Oz, next week she will have 5 James Herriot stories.

I made this President Notebooking page for the girls to use with A New World of Adventure.

Menu Plan

Chicken Fajitas
Pork Chops
Spaghetti
Pizza
Beef Noodle
Grilled Chicken

A History of Christianity DVD Review

I was able to watch Episode 1 of History of Christianity: The First Three Thousand Years
and wish I had the whole series. Diarmaid MacCulloch is very honest at the beginning that this is not a series about Christian theology, it is about the movement of the church through history and countries and how this shaped both along with the church itself. The series does lump all Christ worshipping religions together- Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant.

I loved the tours of the countries and the buildings both great and small where believers gathered for thousands of years. This first episode works wonderfully with the homeschool curriculum Mystery of History Vol 2. I'm sure it could be used with others but MOH is what I have used.

I found this dvd very interesting, informative and inspiring. I was moved by the total dedication of the early church, they changed the world- can we do any less?

Thank you TBB Media for this review copy.

Glaen- Book Review

Glaen: A Novel Message on Romance, Love and Relating, This story follows Annie as she discovers what makes true love last- between friends and spouses. The author Fred R. Lybrand suggests reading the book book twice and I have to agree. Once for the story line and once for the concepts.

I enjoyed the story line but found the writing somewhat disjointed and this made the plot difficult to follow. But overall an easy book to read. I had hoped that my 15 year old would read it. Nothing in the book is inappropriate as far as my personal taste, but the “jumpiness” of the writing made it hard for her to follow the plot. She will try again in a couple months.

We are a “non traditional dating” family- we subscribe to a more “courtship” style model. My one objection to Glaen is the very narrow definition of courtship. When in reality each family is free to design their own style of courtship. One families “courtship” is another’s “group dating only” style.

There is a website, www.glaen.com, for a study guide which would make this a great book study for older teens/college or premarital classes.

Thank you TBB Media for this review copy.

NotebookingPages.com 4th Birthday Sale-a-Bration!

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Ultimate Homeschool Expo 2010

Ultimate Homeschool Expo 2010 starts today! I'm so excited.

What is it you ask? It is an online homeschooling conference with online seminars featuring 35+ Speakers.
The seminars/workshops are Mp3 download audios that are available forever. I download the ones I'm interested in and save on my ipod and listen while walking, or doing housework, or traveling. Lots of good ideas, and encouragement. And it's not just academics either, marriage, family, parenting, spiritual issues are covered as well.
Virtual Vendor Hall-special offers from your favorite Online Vendors!
Free Gifts ALL WEEK--ebooks, audios, downloads!


I got the UHSE 2009 last year and I so enjoyed it. I'm still listening to several seminars and now I have a whole new batch to get me pumped up, fired up, and ready to tackle another year of homeschooling High School!

You don't want to miss this years Expo, lots of great messages available on *your* time schedule. That's the best part for me, I can download and listen to what I want when I want it. Go check it out!

Daily Steps for God Chicks

Daily Steps for God Chicks by Holly Wagner is a 90 day devotional. I like Holly's personal writing style, it's like a visit with a girl friend. This book is more than a devotional which tend to be passive. This book gives you a daily assignment that build on one another. Some are reflective-perfect for journaling and some are more active steps.

This is one devotional that I'll keep in rotation. I'm looking forward to reading more by Holly Wagner.

Thank you Regal Books for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

Warrior Chick

Sound your battle cry! Stop being a whimpy Christian, be the warrior God made and called you to be! Warrior Chicks by Holly Wagner is like visiting with my girlfriends. Holly's writing is easy and fun while getting across strong spiritual truths. Holly shows us the "how and why" of putting on the armor of God daily.

Each of us have battles, be it a serious health issue, such as cancer, a family issue like rebellious teens or a marriage that is falling apart. We even have minor issues daily that we need to rely on God to get us through with victory. People are watching our testimony while we deal with these issues. Holly shows us how to move from being a victim to an overcoming warrior.

This book would be a terrific book for group Bible study, Sunday School or personal Bible study- a study guide is included in the back. Although written for women by a woman, men could also glean much of the warrior spirit from this book.

I'll be visiting Holy in this book again and again.

Thank you to Regal books for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

Menu

grilled chicken sandwiches
ham and cheese roll ups- ham and cheese rolled up in crescent rolls then baked
spaghetti
pizza
chicken fajitas

Lesson Plans

Well, I finally got some uninterrupted time on the computer to catch up Bella's lesson plans. You can view weeks 18-27 here.

Again these are our actual lesson plans that we are really doing. As you can see some weeks are full and others are not due to travel or sickness.
This is my own "tweeked" schedule of Sonlight books that I had already. I've added many other books as well. The list of books isn't complete, after we are done I'll update the list with all the books we used.

Menu

Tacos
Coconut Chicken Strips
Pork Loin
Roasted Chicken
Pizza

Free Summer Fun!

I signed the girls up for the Kids Bowl Free bowling all summer long!

"Select bowling centers and schools around the country are participating in the first ever “Kids Bowl Free” program. This program is designed by bowling centers to give back to the community and provide a safe, secure, and fun way for kids to spend time this summer.

Children whose age does not exceed a limit by a participating bowling center are eligible to register for 2 free games a day, all summer long, courtesy of the particpating bowling centers along with the schools and organizations."

Fun with my girls!

Well I didn't get my 2nd grade lesson plans typed up, blah. I'll have to work on that soon.

We had a very nice relaxing time during our Easter break. We saw the movie "How to Train Your Dragon" it was very good. We all enjoyed it. We went for a hike along the Red River, but the camera batteries died so didn't get any pictures.

Emilie's 15 birthday was on Friday, can't believe she is 15! Her friend Hannha spent the night.

Today the girls and I are going to a mother/daughter conference with our church. All the moms and daughters that are going made tie-dye shirts to wear on Saturday. That was fun, my girls want to do more tie-dye.

Today for school we are doing History, Science and Math.

Menu and More

Jerk Chicken Nachos
Tacos
Spaghetti
Roast
homemade pizza
not sure about Saturday
Sunday- ham, green beans, scalloped potates, salad, fruit and lemon pie

We are taking off Good Friday (April 2) and all of next week for Easter. I hope to have Bella's school lesson plans uploaded during that time. I also have some pictures I want to share.

Have a blessed Easter week!

Olivia's Wolf report

Olivia's video report. There are a few spelling errors and I don't believe that one wolf can eat 300 pounds of meat. I think that was suppose to be 30 lbs.
Anyway, I think she did a good job.

Asking for Trouble

Asking for Trouble (London Confidential)
by Sandra Byrd

What’s a girl to do when she moves to a new school in a whole new country?
Savvy and her family move to England for her fathers job. Starting a new school is hard enough but in a new country makes it even more tough. Some of the kids and neighbors seem nice but standoffish.

Savvy has a few hard decision to make in the quest to win friends and be excepted in a group. I’m a big sap, and the loneliness Savvy feels did make me tear up. This book has a good biblical message, but it isn’t preachy and doesn’t slap you in the face.

Both dd and I enjoyed learning about how things in England differed than here in US. We found some of the candy mentioned in the book at World Market to try which was fun. In an interview with the author about why she decided to set the series in London she says “I think, at heart, we are all fantasy travelers, excited about visiting new places - especially places that speak English! London is such a fun, cosmopolitan town. They speak English, but with an enchanting accent that American girls often imitate because it sounds so, well, posh!  We love their royalty, their history, the fact that they are both very similar and yet different from us. The girls who read the London Confidential books may not be able to visit London in person this year, but they can go there via the book. And then plan the REAL trip to follow.”

This is a book aimed at tweens/teens. I say tweens because there isn’t anything in this book that wouldn’t let my 12 yo read. My 15 yo dd read this book in one day and really liked it as well. Both dd and I want to continue the series. We have discussed what we would like to see happen with the main character. Will Savvy join the youth group? Will friendship with Penny ever grow? Will she get the cute boy? Sandra Byrd states, “The final two books in the series release on September 1, 2010 and talk about good friendships and bad, why it's important for Christian girls to stick with only liking, even crushing on, Christian boys, how to persevere in times of trouble, and taking your first adult steps in your faith. When girls open any of the books, they'll find a girl who is a lot like them, with dreams and hopes and fears like theirs, and God who works things out in ways they would not have imagined.  There are friendship ups and downs, school ups and downs, guy ups and downs, family issues and lots of fun. I wanted to write books that would be fun to read, and yet still be meaningful. I hope the girls find the books to be just that.” We are looking forward to seeing what will happen. 

Thank you to Tyndale House Publishers for the review copy in exchange for my honest review.

Real World Parents

Real World Parents: Christian Parenting for Families Living in the Real World
By Mark Matlock

Excellent book! Fear based parenting can lead to legalism, help your kids ( and yourself) see their part in God's story line, rather than operating in the story line the world tells them is true. I don't agree with some of the first 2 chapters but after that it is a wonderful book.

Where I disagree with the author is that the world isn’t getting better nor is it static, that is not the nature of sin, sin causes degeneration. True there aren’t “new” sins, but the world has gotten so far from God and His holy standard that many sins are excepted as normal, not harmful, or are a valid choice.

Once I got past the first 2 chapters I really loved the message of this book. It is all about teaching yourself and your children a Biblical Worldview from Gods point of view.
Mark Matock has a heart for youth and teens. He has several other workbook Bible studies for teens that I plan on getting for Emilie.

I really like media analysis guide, helping kids and self to make wise choices with all forms of media be it TV, music, web and books. The Story Worldview analysis will be used in our literature classes.

Each chapter has a few questions for digging deeper that would make this great for a Bible study for parenting/and or worldview. I wholehearted recommend this book.

Thank you TB&B Media for the copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Finding Easter at Walmart

The Hardwick family of Creation Sensation were stuck in Walmart for a few hours after picking up a screw in a tire. This little Easter video is what come out of their boredom. Enjoy and remember!

Homeschooling for the Rest of Us.

Homeschooling for the Rest of Us: How Your One-of-a-Kind Family Can Make Homeschooling and Real Life Work by Sonya Haskins is a wonderfully uplifting and encouraging book for those of us that aren’t perfect and are a long way from it.

This book is affirming and validating homeschooling parents that they *are* doing a good thing even when things go wrong. This book really is needed in the homeschooling community where everyone likes to brag how their children are excelling in academics. My kids are not super big brains and that is OK. My house is decorated with educational posters, time lines, calendars and marker boards and that is OK. My kitchen counters have a few piles of newspapers ( current events)a sink of dirty dishes and a dishwasher of clean dishes ( home life skills) and that is OK.

We are home educating for the glory of God and not ourselves, and that’s more then OK!

This book needs to be read by everyone who struggles with keeping up with the perfect family. Not every family that seems perfect on the outside has it all together. I think this is a big problem in the homeschool community. We all struggle but feel we can’t share this struggle publicly for fear people will think less of our abilities to teach, our children’s ability to learn and the validity of homeschooling in general. That’s a lot of pressure!

I encourge all fellow homeschoolers to share your stuggles, you will be surprised how many other families stuggle with the same time.

Thank you Bethany House for this book in exchange for my honest review.

The Flowering Cross

The Flowering Cross
by Beth Ryan is a new Easter book for children.

Katie's family ministers to a cranky old neighbor by showing the love of Jesus to him over a long period of time. One Easter Katie invites “Papa Jack” to church. Surprise! Papa Jack says yes.

Because of the love and commitment to minister to crabby old Jack, he was able to see the love of Jesus in this family,and wanted it for himself. Katie's church decorates a cross with flowers as part of the service. The flowering of the cross has been traced back to the 6th century. It is an especially striking and beautiful way to symbolize the new life that emerges from the death on Good Friday. I never knew of this tradtion. I really like it. Directions are included to make a small table top cross for your own family or to give to others.

This is a touching story that you can share with your children to teach them that just loving people can soften their hearts and prepare them to accept Jesus into their lives. Some people are only an invitation away from Jesus!

“By this shall all men know that you are my disciples, if you have love one to another.” John 13:35 and Galatians 5:14 “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Thank you Thomas Nelson for providing this book in exchange for my honest review.

Book give away winner

Tracy is the winner of the Finding Inner Peace booklet.

I have not been able to contact her. Tracy, if you're out there please email me.

If I don't hear from Tracy by Friday, March 12, I'll draw another name.

Update- March 17, 2010
I've been unable to contact Tracy to send her the book Finding Inner Peace, so I drew a new name. Susan is the winner!
Susan if you are out there, I need you to contact me so I can get your book sent out to you.
Thank you ladies.

He's Everything to Me

He is Everything to Me
Words and music by Ralph Carmichael

In the stars His handiwork I see,
On the wind He speaks with majesty.
Though He ruleth over land and sea,
What is that to me?


I will celebrate Nativity,
For it has a place in history,
Sure, He came to set His people free,
What is that to me?

Til by faith I met Him face to face,
And I felt the wonder of His grace,
Then I knew that He was more Than just a God
who didn't care,That lived away out there and .....
Now He walks beside me day by day,
Ever watching o'er me lest I stray,
Helping me to find that narrow way,
He is everything to me.
(repeat 3 times)

We sang this song at church camp. I've always loved it.
I'm looking for another song we sang, An Attitude of Gratitude, but have been unsuccessful.

Chosen: The Lost Diaries of Queen Esther (Lost Loves of the Bible)
by Ginger Garrett is an intriguing blend of the biblical account of Esther, Persian history, and fiction. This story of Esther is told in First Person narrative in a “dear diary” form. Esther is a young Jewish girl who has lost her parents and has been raised by her older cousin Mordecai. When current queen Vashti falls out of favor, King Xerxes calls for all available girls to be brought to him for the chance to win his favor. After a year of training and beauty treatments it is Esther’s time to meet the King. King Xerxes’ imagination is captured by her beauty, wisdom, and purity and he chooses for Esther his queen.

Danger and conspiracy are all around Esther as people close to the King deceive him. Neither Xerxes nor Esther are truly safe.

There are a couple things that I wasn’t satisfied with in this account of Esther’s life. I wasn’t all that fond of the feelings she held for Cyrus for so long. I didn’t like that she waited so long to tell Xerxes that she loved him, I didn’t like the timing or the words she used. I didn’t like the the ultimate traitor at the end.

It was a good story, not racy or too sexy. It made me cry which is a sign of a good story. My 14 year old daughter is reading it now. The whole time reading this book I did have visions of the movie "One Night with the King".

Some people have posted on Amazon about recipes and beauty treatments included in the book, my copy had none of those things.

The other books coming in the series about Jezebel and Delilah are of no interest to me at all. An idol worshipping murderer and a traitor, lier and deceiver are not women I want to read about. These women are not the heroines of their stories.

Thank you to David Cook and TBB for my free copy in exchange for my honest review.

A sonnet by Shakespeare

CXLIII.

Lo! as a careful housewife runs to catch
One of her feather'd creatures broke away,
Sets down her babe and makes an swift dispatch
In pursuit of the thing she would have stay,
Whilst her neglected child holds her in chase,
Cries to catch her whose busy care is bent
To follow that which flies before her face,
Not prizing her poor infant's discontent;
So runn'st thou after that which flies from thee,
Whilst I thy babe chase thee afar behind;
But if thou catch thy hope, turn back to me,
And play the mother's part, kiss me, be kind:
So will I pray that thou mayst have thy 'Will,'
If thou turn back, and my loud crying still.

Sense and Sensibility

The classic Sense and Sensibility (Insight Editions) by Jane Austen is, well a classic. But the new Insight Edition with all the little extras takes it to a new level for a new generation.

The extra tidbits of information on every page cover historical and cultural information of the time period,facts about Austen’s life, themes of faith, and my favorite, comments on the books characters and plot.It’s these (and more) little facts that make reading so satisfying. They really give the reader a depth into the time, characters and the authors point of view of all of it.

Also included are discussion questions that will make this book perfect for my homeschooled high school student. I plan on buying the Pride and Prejudice Insight Edition.

This book was provided to me free from Bethany House in exchange for my honest review.

Revolve 2010 Review

Revolve 2010 (Biblezines) This is a colorful and interesting concept. The New Testament in the accessible form of a “teen magazine.” Short vignettes covering a variety of topics that are of interest to teen girls.Some of the topics include, make-up, fashion, boys, music and movie stars.

While the little snippets are a fun read, there isn’t a lot of “meat” offered here. I wouldn’t even say a lot of “milk” either. I would hope that by the time a girl is a teen that she would be ready to handle some more in depth study on the topics. I mean hey the Word of God is right there contained in the magazine, let’s use it. I did really like the character study that looked like a Facebook page. I may use this idea in our homeschool Bible study.

My oldest daughter (14) likes the graphics and the short articles but like me would like to see fun Bible quizzes, study guides, character studies, and how to personalize the Word of God daily in her life.

This has great potential to be a wonderful tool if it included more substantial Bible application.

Thank you Thomas Nelson for providing this book for review. Visit. http://booksneeze.com to join Thomas Nelson as a book reviewer.

Planning for next year!

I received Bella’s curriculum for next year this past week.
It is Sonlight Basic 2 (World History), 2000 edition. I’m pleased.

There are several reasons why I bought one so old. First it was less expensive, the older editions of the Instructors Guide (IG) where cheaper to begin with, I don’t know why they have nearly doubled in price since I used it, 6 years ago. Are they any better? Contain more information? I’ve not a clue, so if I can get it cheaper that fine with me.

The second reason I wanted an older version is that I already have many of the books for the older edition. Sonlight has changed the books with the IG, so again I would have to buy more books if I went with the newer IG. It’s all about being a good steward, being thankful with what I’ve got.

I didn’t get Sonlight Science nor the Language Arts. I don’t like the LA, and even though I LOVE Usborne books (I sell them, mostly to myself) I didn’t want to pay for a IG. I like my Science to sort of go with our History.

So I sat down last night and wrote what the history topic was for each week-
Wk1-5 Egypt
Wk 6-13 Greece
Wk 14-18 Rome
Wk 19-24 Dark Ages- Middle Ages
Wk 25-30 Reformation/Explorers
Wk 31-36 America/Industial Revolution/Westward Movement/WWI

So our Science will be the following topics
Wk 1-5 Deserts
Wk 6-13 Human Body
Wk 14-18 Geology
Wk 19-24 Plants
Wk 25-30 Oceans( Bella was given the choice of space or oceans)
Wk 31-36 Insects

I love Rod and Staff Spelling, so will stick with it. I’m still thinking about what to do for Grammar. Wondering if I should go with something premade like Rod and Staff, or teach it myself with literature/Bible verses and something like Grammar By The Book.

Finding Inner Peace During Troubled Times

Finding Inner Peace During Troubled Times: Living in the Presence of God through Prayer and Meditation by William Moss, is a very short booklet that reminds the reader that Jesus has promised us peace, but it is our part to accept that peace that God offers. It is a quick read, with lots of room for notes as you study the Bible on your own. One might want to use this booklet as a stepping stone for a personal Bible study on peace. Mr Moss is very sincere and genuine in his writing.

This is a good message for believers, but there is the missing part that one must have already accepted Jesus sacrifice on the cross for our sins to have access to the true peace that passes all understanding.

I did enjoy it and it was a good tool to use to focus on the peace that God has promised.

Thank you B&B Media Group for this review copy.
For an author interview contact B&B Media at 1-800-927-0517 Ext. 104 106, or 109

I have one copy to give away in a random drawing. Just leave a comment and you will be entered.

Snowball Sale

Winter Sale at Notebooking Pages!

2nd grade lesson plans

Week 17 lesson plans

February 12!

Today Olivia turned 12!
Pictures soon!

Snow!

Snow is a rare thing here in Texas. Flurries started around 9am. It didn't take long for the snow to thicken up. It's been snowing nonstop since 9:30ish. It has been hard to keep the girls on task for school, but they knew that tomorrow was scheduled as a free day, so they worked well today. They are all outside playing right now. The last "big" snow we had was on Olivia's 6th birthday. She turns 12 tomorrow!

I am thankful I have a cozy, snug home. I'm thankful for hot chocolate, chili, and a husband that went to the store for milk.

lesson plans

Bella's 2nd grade week 16 schedule

Bella has enjoyed Sonlight much more than the other girls did. I am very pleased that I was able to find the IG ( instructors guide) for next year.
It is "Basic 2" A one year intro to World History, 2000 edition. Which is just what I was wanting. I don't have all the books but I have many for this "Basic" and many from "Basic 1" ( 2003) so I will modify the plans to work for us.
Again Bella will be reading many of the "read alouds" as "readers" since she is way beyond Owl at Home and Fire Cat.

Not sure if we will stick with Learning Language Arts Through Literature. I'll be working on getting some sort of flow to science using Usborne books. I've heard many wonderful things about the Apologia Elementary Science, so that is a possibility. Another option would be to use the science topics from Learning Adventures Vol. 1, since they would "go along" with the history.

February Beginnings

It has been grey and gloomy here this past week. Lots of cold rain. Not a whole lot to report.

Last weeks menu:
Roast Chicken
Tacos
Chicken Chowder
Italian Beef Sandwiches
Sweet and Sour Chicken
Chili

Next Week menu:
Pork Chops
Chicken something
Hamburger something
Another chicken something
Steak on Friday for Olivia's birthday. She will be 12! Hard to believe how fast my babies grow.

My brother started Chemo and Radiation tx this week. Thanks for any prayers on his behalf.

Starting to think about next school year. We will be starting a new curriculum called Far Above Rubies. Both Emilie and Olivia will be doing it. Bella is really flourishing using a modified Sonlight schedule this year, so I plan on doing something similar next year. Which reminds me that I need to post her weekly schedule, but that is on the other computer so I'll get to it later this weekend.

My Illinois family heard me state that I'd rather have my feet cut off then exercise. It's true, I hate cardio, but I do like weight/strength training. I found a book called the Cardio Free Diet and have started the workout routines. I really like it. I've not gotten crazy about counting calories or points. I think this is something I can stick with, I really like it. It doesn't take forever to do, only about 20 minutes, 3-4 times a week.

Rediscovering God in America

I received a free copy of Rediscovering God in America: Reflections on the Role of Faith in Our Nation's History by Newt Gingrich, from Thomas Nelson as a book reviewer.

Like it or not our nation was founded on Biblical principals that are etched in the very monuments of our nation. After taking the tour of our national monuments through this book there can be no denying that yes, our founders knew Who it was that gave each man their freedoms and “unalienable rights.”

I found this book very educational and fascinating. I doubt many people realize just how many of our great founders and leaders over the years relied on, and thanked God. My copy did not have any colored pictures but I know the newest edition does have colored photos which really makes the book come to life for the reader.

We will be using this book in our homeschool to reinforce that even if current political correctness says we are no longer a Christian nation, we can stand firm knowing that this country and our founders held a different, higher standard.