WOW!

It sure has been a long time since I've blogged. I'll have to get some pictures up soon.

We had a great time in Illinois with my family. The girls had a good time getting to know their yankee cousins.

The girls and I also had fun visiting our friends in Wisconsin, at the Bristol, Ren Faire.

Next week is VBS. Call me a heathen, but I'm not really looking forward to it.

My friend Cassidy is up here visiting her family, but we havn't gotten together yet. I hope to see her before she has to return to Florida.

I ordered a few homeschool items~
Science, Apologia General Science
History, Truthquest Age of Revolution I (US/Europe, 1600-1800) .
Math book-Practical Arithmetic- Keepers of the Faith

Olivia, Bella, and I are taking ballet class on Saturdays. The girls are enjoying it, and are pretty good. I'd doing it for the exercise.

Starting to plan? Nah, not yet!

I've always made my own planning sheets, and enjoyed it. But after getting like 20 emails about The Well Planned Day planner, I took a look at it. It is very pretty, which is a big thing for me if I'm going to use it. Each month's pages are decorated differently with monthly articles included, PLUS

. A Class Planner: Schedule each student's class assignments.

. Weekly Schedule: Organize your week with class assignments, weekly priorities, prayer requests, dinner menu, and notes.

. Semester Time Schedule: Track each day by the hour.

. Month at a Glance: Plan field trips, enrichment activities and books to read

. Semester Attendance & Progress Reports

. Transcript Evaluation Forms

. Menu Planning: Plan weekly meals and conveniently shop with perforated shopping lists.

. Family Worship & Prayer: Read through the Bible in a year and record prayer request weekly.

Sounds really good, I liked the samples. I bought it. I've never had a "real" planner like this, I hope it is actually useful.

PS for my DH, I got it on sale!

Weekly Menu

Spicy chicken strips
Roasted Chicken
hamburgers
mac and cheese
chicken nachos
pizza

This past week June 22-27

hhmm, it seems like I must be doing something since I've not been blogging much, but in all honesty
I've not done anything exciting or even remotely interesting.

Monday-Mom's Bible Study
Tuesday- Magic Springs- got rained out- girls only got to float down a "lazy river" once- this was a big waste of gas money
Wednesday- Bible Study
Thursday-Library, visited gramma, got shoes for Emilie, Faith Ladies Supper
Friday-Started 24 hours of prayer at church my hour was from 4-5
Saturday- grocery shopping, Alabaster Box concert at Church, kick off to Revival
Sunday (28)- Revival, potluck dinner

This week's plan

Monday-Mom's Bible Study
Tuesday- Library and visit with gramma
Wednesday-evening church
Thursday-Magic Springs
Friday-
Saturday-sale at Mardel

Even though I didn't win the "Biggest Loser" contest with my friends. I have lost some weight. Mom and I are working on this together. I was doing a strict eating program, but that didn't last. So now I eat anything, but much smaller portions, with more veggies and some fruits. I have increased my walking, I walked 5 times last week and have already walked and showered this morning before 9 am. WHOO-HOO for me! I'm also going to start circuit training with Lindy.

Olivia and Bella are going to start Ballet lessons in July. Olivia has also expressed an interest in cake decorating lessons. I could show her the simple fundamentals but she would rather go to a class.

I want to do some Letterboxing, I'm sure the girls would really like it. I got out the Bocce ball set I bought 2 years ago and never opened. Seems like a fun family game we need to learn together.

Olivia has been coughing for 2 weeks now, she is about to hack a lung up any time now. I'm thinking it is allergies.

Weekly Menu

Lemon Pepper Chicken
Italian Roast Beef Sandwiches
coconut chicken strips
some sort of mexican dish
pizza

Summer School?

We have finished up with Into a New Land- The Beginnings of America. Except for a few Fine Arts lessons. We will work on those randomly through the summer.

I had planned to do a unit study on The Secret Garden, and I still want to, but not a real intense deep study. Something fun. Math we continue all summer.

We are gong to get season passes to Magic Springs/Crystal Falls in Hot Springs Arkansas for the summer, instead of our usual Galveston Trip. A couple good concerts are scheduled too. The girls of course want to see Barlow Girl, and Lindy wants to see Three Dog Night.

A trip to Illinois is planned for July. Hoping we get to see everyone and everything we want.

Recent Happenings-New Hair!

I love Olivia's new hair! It makes me want to get my hair cut too!







Sweet side


wild, spice side. It's so HER, sweet and spicy.

Recent Happenings-More Birthday Pictures

Recent Happenings-Bella's Birthday

Just a bunch of Birthday pictures.

Recent Happenings- AWANA Awards

May 27, was AWANA Awards.

Emilie received her second year service pin for being a LIT- Leader in Training.

Olivia earned the Third Book Award- which our church renamed the Barnabas Award. Cause Third Book Award is a boring name.

Bella earned her Sparky Second Book ribbon.  

We are very proud of their hard work.

Recent Happenings-Ladies Tea

May 17- Faith Ladies Tea

A wonderful tradition at my church, each May there is a different theme with decorations, food, door prizes and some sort of "costume/craft".  This year the theme was Aprons and being a service to others.  I suggested the Apron theme. We all wore aprons, and ladies could share a story  about a special apron.  Emilie, Bella and I wore aprons my mother made for us, Olivia wore the apron I made for her.  I was asked to read an Apron story.  I combined 2 different stories.  Here it is.

"The principle use of Grandma’s apron was to protect the dress underneath, because she only had a few, it was easier to wash aprons than dresses and they used less material. But, along with that it served the homemaker and her family is so many ways.

 As a potholder for removing hot pans from the oven.

It was wonderful for drying children’s tears, wiping runny noses, and on occasion was even used for cleaning out dirty ears.  The pockets seemed bottomless when filled with clothes pins while  hanging clothes on the clothes line.

From the chicken coop, the apron was used for carrying eggs, fussy chicks, and sometimes half-hatched eggs to be finished in the warming oven. And, from the garden, it carried all sorts of vegetables. After the peas had been shelled, it carried out the hulls. It served to wipe hands and jars during canning time.

When unexpected company drove up the road, it was surprising how much furniture that old apron could dust in a matter of seconds. Those aprons were also ideal hiding places for shy children.

In the fall, the apron was used to bring in apples that had fallen from the trees. 

When dinner was ready, Grandma walked out onto the porch, waved her apron, and then men knew it was time to come in from the fields for dinner.

When the weather was cold, grandma wrapped it around her arms. Chips and kindling wood were brought into the kitchen in that apron.

Those old aprons wiped many a perspiring brow, bent over the hot wood stove.

In today’s world you would go crazy trying to figure out how many germs were on that apron. I don’t think I ever caught anything from an apron, but love.

Today, aprons are making a come-back. It will be a long time before someone invents anything that can replace that “old-time apron.” They served so many purposes.  What kind of apron will you wear and what kind of love will it bring to the hearts of others?"


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Olivia and Bella

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Emilie and Olivia~~~

         Gramma and Mom

The girls and I were very happy that the "grandmas" could come.

Kaitlyn and Olivia with their cookbooks

Each place card was a different apron. Very Cute! Each table was a different color theme, pink, yellow, blue, green, orange.  

Homeschool Pioneer needs Prayer!

Jessica Hulcy has just been in a traffic accident; she was broadsided 
 by a fire truck. She is alive but badly hurt, in critical condition but
stable. Her lungs are collapsed. She has no broken bones. There is some brain 
 trauma but nothing to operate on. She is unconscious. Back in the most 
 challenging days of home schooling there were few options for 
curriculum. Abeka, BJU or write your own. Two neighbors wrote their 
 own and developed one of the first widely used curriculums written for 
home education... vs a classroom.

Jessica Hulcy, author of KONOS and national speaker... and friend of 
Texas home school families... Please keep her, the family and doctors 
in your prayers...
Her husband's name is Wade.

Workboxes

I made a loose outline of 3 lists, Must Haves, Want to Have, and Fun.
If I do a fun box after each harder box I'd end up with way more boxes than 12. Again I don't have the book yet.

My Must Haves include
Bible/AWANA
Literature
Math
History
Latin
Science (Apologia General)
Writing/Grammar
Spelling for Olivia
Computer/Technology
Audio Literature

I thought I could alternate History and Science, doing History 3 days a week and Science 2 days a week, but I don't think Science would get finished. We also notebook or lapbook these two subjects in addition to reading, so that would add another box for each.

Want to Have
Nature Journal
Art
Music appreciation (they do not have formal music lessons at this point, but Olivia is trying to teach herself to play guitar)
Enrichment Reading
PE
Homemaking/Handicraft- TOD-KAH (Training our Daughters to be Keepers At Home) and/or Polished Cornerstones
iPod-Listening to selected short messages- Joyce Meyer Radio, Grammar Girl, Learn French podcast, Faith Comes by Hearing Daily Proverbs and Psalms, Your Story Hour ( not all of these daily of course)


Fun
Mad Libs
iPod- Free, music or story
email
computer game
Geo-Safari
exercise/train dog
I suppose that tramp jumping & bike riding (PE) can also be on the Fun list.

Workboxes Holycow!

I read about this whole "workbox" concept a couple months ago and loved this idea. I had no idea it exploded over at FIAR, where have I been?! I read the whole thread at the FIAR boards today( all 37 pages, I need an award). SO now I just have to do this.

Like *many* of you I don't have room to have 3 sets of boxes. Today I found "File Jacket" packs of 10 for $5. I bought 3 packs.
I plan on using the file jackets for Emilie and Olivia in a plastic file box. Isabella, I think will like the whole box set up. I have room for one shelf/box unit under the big calendar poster.

I haven't gotten the book yet, it is on my wish list. I should be able to buy it next month.

Want to see what others are doing with workboxes? Check out this google search.

Bella's birthday!

Pictures to come!

hatching an egg?

About 2 weeks ago the girls found a little blue egg that had gotten blown out of a nest. Bella and Olivia decided to try to hatch the thing in a basket with old socks and washclothes. Do I have to tell it the out come?

It didn't hatch, but today while Olivia was cleaning her room, it cracked and I tell you it was a powerful stink!!

We opened the windows and turned on the attic fan, thank goodness it didn't last too long!

Olivia has had a fascination with eggs. As a preschooler she made a nest with her special blanket and sat on a chicken egg from the refrigerator.

Learning at Home

Emilie and Olivia ( the "Sisters")
AWANA
Math
Read Battlefield of the Mind
Read Mary of Plymouth
History-French and Indian War, Colonial homes, Massachusetts state notebook, Timeline figures
Science- Science Scribe-Tornado, Funnel cloud
Technology- computer research skills,
Life Skills

Bella-
AWANA
Read- Town Mouse, Country Mouse by Aesop (Milo Winter)
Copywork
Math
Life Skills

Weekly Menu

Hamburgers
Pork chops
Grilled Chicken
Korean Beef Tips
Pizza

Happy Mother's Day