Not Just Tacos Latino Recipe and Culture eBook FREE for Five Days

September 16, 2013 by 1 Comment

My family often teases that I am a fair skinned blonde Mexican. I love to eat Mexican and I love to fix Mexican foods. Up until recently though, I really had no idea any background behind the foods I was creating, or whether or no they were authentic. Not Just Tacos by Shirley Solis of Lifetime Books and Gifts has changed all that!!

Not Just Tacos

Our Favorite Recipes from Not Just Tacos

My family’s favorite recipes that we have tried are the Pico De Gallo, and the Arroz Imperial. My husband LOVES the Pico De Gallo, he asks me for it almost daily. I am now making triple batches of it, and it might just last two days. I also took it to this week’s church pot luck and my bowl was empty, even with the HOT sign.

When my son Isaiah had his tonsils out ten days ago, he asked for chicken. The Arroz Imperial being a mild dish from Cuba was a big hit.

Not Just Tacos Arroz Imperial

The top photo is part of the preparation of the Arroz Imperial. The bottom is just out of the oven.

Get Not Just Tacos FREE this Week ONLY

Here is the great news!! You can get Not Just Tacos eBook on Kindle FREE through Friday!! So, hurry over to the Not Just Tacos Link, (Click the red text) and follow the instruction to get your FREE eBook Cookbook. This book is so much more than a cook book. It is an introductory to the cultures of the Latino Countries. It helps you cover geography, cultures and so much more! It is a HUGE asset to any family kitchen!!

Not Just Tacos has given my menu plan several new recipes, widening our tastes to the food available south of the border. I am sure your family will enjoy Not Just Tacos as much or more than we are, and may even decide you have to have the hard back book.

I have both the hardback book and the eBook. I use the Hardback Not Just Tacos book during our school and family discussion time. When I am in the kitchen, I use the eBook form on my iPad, so I can easily wipe it off when those little kitchen splatters happen.

Filed Under: Christian Family, Christian Mothering, homemaking, homeschool, Housewife, In the Kitchen, Just for Fun, Large Families, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With: , , , , ,

Farm Life Chronicles on the Prairie

March 18, 2013 by Leave a Comment

It seems my readers enjoy our stories from the farm. So, I would like to try to share a few farm life highlights each week.

Farm Life Chronicles on the Prairie

Spring Forward Slows the Farm

Spring Forward has been a long time great thing for farmers as far as crops and livestock go. However, me, I like that earlier hour of darkness of an evening. Farmers for the most part come home at dark. This seems to make a long day for the mom who is home all day with her dear children and she can quickly start missing that extra hour of adult communication. This week, most days I didn’t see The Hot Guy home to stay until near or after 9 pm. Not horrible, but it does make for a long day when you don’t see or talk to another adult, except for my lovely group of ladies I chat with online each week, in a blogging group. Y’all know who you are, and you don’t know how much of my sanity you save by being the only other adult voice in my home.

I was actually asked this week if I was an introvert…umm, well, we shall just let that one rest. I think y’all know the answer to that.

As I mentioned earlier in the week, we moved one of our horses, for two reasons. One they quit getting along and two…she is expected to foal in about six weeks. Monday when we woke, we noticed she had not drank well, even though we attempted to teach her how to use her automatic waterer. So, every hour to hour and a half, we went out to “hold the ball” down for her to get a drink. Being pregnant, we don’t think this is a good time to test the fact that if she gets thirsty enough she will figure it out. Talk about a fun way to disrupt the day. Whoever was sent out to hold the ball, would get distracted on the way back to the house and end up being out there for at least thirty minutes. Lesson? Farm life is full of unplanned interruptions…go with it!

Automatic Waterers only Work if the Animal Knows How to Use them

Tuesday morning, I woke better, as in not so late. Two of our chickens were out, and the dog was quite upset they were not where they belong. We have lots of coyotes in the pasture behind our house and well, penning them is the only way to keep them alive. Stormy was still not getting this whole automatic waterer thing, but doing a little better. We fed our beef cow herd, and watched a few deer nibble on the alfalfa that is showing signs of spring growth, thanks to the wonderfully blessed snows we received a couple of weeks ago. We managed to get through all our chore and homeschool assignments, and watched some Leave it to Beaver before bed.

Working on her Creating a Masterpiece Colored Pencil Drawing

Working on her Creating a Masterpiece Colored Pencil Drawing

New Toilet Cleaner from Your Kitchen

Wednesday morning was much like earlier in the week, except I woke to a plumbing problem with the one and only toilet in our home for eight people. Yes, ONE toilet for EIGHT people… Uh Oh… And that led to this new discovery of how to clean and break up toilet clogs in one single step. Again, the chickens were out…not sure why they keep getting out, but I guess the old saying “the grass is greener on the other side of the fence” seems to be true for chickens too. We were missing one for about four hours, and finally let the dog back outside to see if she would point us to it…and she did, up in a tree, with a kitten chasing the poor hen higher and higher… We managed to get most of our homeschool done and some of the chores. Something about spring and animals throwing us a few extra miles in our days seems to slow us down on the bookwork part of our homeschool days. Y’all know that climbing trees to rescue chickens is lots more fun and somehow has to be some education in there, than sitting at the dining room table writing about James Garfield for your history.

New Baby on the Farm brings extra Joy to Farm Life

Thursday morning, thankfully the chickens had stayed in, but The Hot Guy received a phone call from the other guy who rents the pasture here and has cattle here. He had a three day old calf, whose momma wasn’t taking care of her. Well, The Hot Guy went out to the pasture and brought her in. She is so tiny…less than 40 lbs, and a normal beef calf is 75-100 lbs. Her first night in the barn was bad, and honestly, I didn’t think she would make it, but…she is still going and getting stronger every day! We have named her Scooter. Book work didn’t happen today, as we figured out how to work four calf feedings into our chores and other parts of the day. Today was also our Fifteenth Anniversary!! Farm Life interrupted our plans for a supper out, but a new baby calf is always fun to have on the farm.

Hannah feeding Schooter the Bucket Calf

Hannah feeding Scooter

Farm Life Date

Friday, The Hot Guy and I took off to a larger town forty-five miles away…we went on a DATE. However, fairly certain a few of you would balk at what we did:

  • First top, a Steel Warehouse—as in iron
  • Next, Tractor Supply Company—Needed some goodies for little Scooter
  • Starbucks-yeah, that was for me.
  • Out to look at some tools at a place where an auction is scheduled for next weekend
  • Lunch—wonderful bar-b-que place
  • Bulk food store
  • Grocery Store

 

Steel Warehouse

Inside the steel warehouse

Ladies, I am telling you, a date is something you do with your husband, without children and whenever, no matter what you are doing, you can just be the two of you together. The whole idea that it has to be romantic is not realistic in my life. Romance here is giving The Hot Guy a hug when he isn’t covered in grease, oil or cow poo…

Saturday, I woke to a sick four year old and walked around on eggshells trying to decide if she would need to go in. With antibiotic drops for her ears, she is better, and now I am sick… Love the things they share. Hence, why what seems to be a review of last week’s Chronicles from the Farm is posting today. Most of my farm life, was spent inside.

Farm life is full of blessings and challenges. God is by our sides every day, keeping us safe, offering us comfort and giving us blessings and humor all around.

Farm Life Funny :

The Hot Guy is sitting down to lunch and keeps asking who smells like calf poo. We are all looking around, checking our shoes, when he wipes his nose and notices the smell is worse…the inside of his shirt sleeve is umm covered in, yeah, you guessed it. So, now the calf is producing laundry with the kids. I sat there trying to remember if he had given me a hug recently… Sometimes, farm life literally stinks.

Filed Under: Blessings, Chores, Christian Family, Christian Home, Christian Mothering, Christian Wife, Farmwife, homeschool, Homesteading, Horse, Lifestyle of learning, Livestock, on the farm Tagged With: , , ,

Homeschool on the Snowy Prairie

February 27, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Over the last week, we have had snow, as in a lot of snow for our area.  I have heard for our community anywhere from 22-30 inches.

There were two rounds of snow, the first was pretty even and with everyone saying about 16 inches.  However, the second round drifted a lot, and is drifting today too, so not as easily measured.  Whatever amount it is, we love it, and are so very thankful for the blessed moisture on our crops.

We didn’t stop school for the snow though.  We had school around chores and played in the snow for breaks or when mom decided that staying in was not worth it. The animal chores took up quite a bit of time.  Between needing water and extra feed, some of the drifts make it possible for curious babies to go right up and over a fence.  

 

I pulled out an Ice and Snow Study, I found on Currclick, we read about Abraham Lincoln, found out at a funeral that our 7 year old has a distant cousin who looks almost exactly like her, worked on a Black Beauty unit study, did some puzzles, started our Creating a Masterpiece Art Study, Decorated some eye patches, and much more.

The snow storms bring children energy and this mama pain, as in back and neck pain that ends up drifting to my legs, head and right arm.  So, once the wiggles got in the way of the learning, I umm..kicked or let them out the door. 

 

As you can see, they had lots of fun outside.  Snow days in the homeschool, don’t have to mean a missed day of school.  There are many ways to add in some school while outside.  We didn’t do this, this time, as I didn’t stay out much due to the back pain.  However, in the past we have used food coloring mixed with ice cold water in spray bottles to practice spelling words in the snow, used a tape measure to measure the snow balls they made, learned how snow is made before it hits the ground, along with the weather conditions needed, and more.

How much snow did you get?  How do you spend your snow days in your homeschool?

Filed Under: Christian Family, Christian Home, Christian Wife, Cows, Farmwife, homeschool, Horse, Lifestyle of learning, Livestock, winter fun Tagged With: , ,

Field Trip Friday~The Only Underground Salt Museum in the U.S.A.

November 16, 2012 by Leave a Comment

If you read last week’s field trip post, you know that my grandparents have been visiting. We had already taken a few four generation field trip in Kansas. However, we went on one final trip this past Sunday, to the one and only USA Underground Salt Museum. This field trip was awesome. We learned about types of salt, what colors it, how to shine it up, and different tools to mine it.

Underground Salt Museum Field Trip

Underground Salt Museum Field Trip

I think one of the cutest things, is toddlers in those little hard hats. ;)

My children really enjoyed seeing the old equipment used to mine the salt, and seeing a bit of red salt.

There was some evolution in several of the posters and one of the guides talked about it a bit, but my children got the, “they are so lost” looks on their faces and we went on.

If you are in the Kansas area, I highly recommend this field trip, but know it is a bit pricey.

Filed Under: Fun School Friday, homeschool, Homeschool Field Trip, Lifestyle of learning, Nature study, Uncategorized Tagged With: , ,

Are You Teaching Your Children a Biblical Worldview?

October 2, 2012 by 1 Comment

How do you teach your children to see scripture in their everyday activities, sights, sounds, and doings? 
Many Christians have compartmentalized their spiritual life and their daily life…Work, parenting, friends and all are in one compartment and their spiritual life in in a compartment call church on Sunday. 

Today 88% of children raised in a Christian Home walk away from their faith never to return by the time they are 18.  This is a great problem in the United States today.  The U.S. was founded on Christian principles and is quickly losing sight of those principles.

Over the next several weeks, I will be re-reading Homeschooling from a Biblical Worldview by Israel Wayne.  I read this book a year or two ago, and gained a lot from it.  However, this is one of those books that will give you information you NEED every time you pick it up and crack the cover. 

I am not homeschooling because I hate the public school, or because I have an issue with a teacher.  I am homeschooling because God told my husband, BEFORE we were married that his children would be homeschooled.  Back then, I laughed…Today I celebrate.

In April, I got to meet Israel Wayne at the Midwest Parent Educator’s Convention in Kansas City.  Since then, Israel and I have chatted a bit on Facebook.  A couple of weeks ago, as I started rereading his book, I was posting quotes on Facebook. He noted this and gave me a pop quiz…YIKES!!

It started with this quote:

It is easy to overlook God’s purposes in homeschooling. We get so wrapped up in nonessentials that we forfeit the blessing God has for us. How do we keep from getting off track? We need a target. ~Israel Wayne From Homeschooling from a Worldview

Then there are a few comments and this:

Israel Wayne:  Betty Eisenhour: Pop quiz! So what is the target? ;-) (Put ya on the spot, didn’t I?) ;-)

Betty Eisenhour Our target is to help our children become Godly adults, to serve others in order to serve Christ. To train them to think deeper, and longer on most modern issues, in order to see a Biblical answer. ;) Well, and a whole lot more, but that is the short answer. ;)

And his response?  He liked it. 

In the last three weeks, we have barely cracked a text book.  However, the learning never stopped.  We canned, processed, baked and cooked a lot of food.  In all that cooking we kept talking about the way God provided us a way to feed the whole “herd’ through the winter, He has given us wisdom to find safe ways to preserve the food.  He has given us nutritional food to help us stay healthy. He has allowed me to teach that our food doesn’t come from a package on a shelf, but from Him, through is awesome and amazing creation.  We covered fractions, nutrition, science of bacteria and mold, weights, writing instructions, reading instructions, the importance of time, and a good work ethic. 

By taking time to use God’s classrooms, and talking about Him as we use them, we can be sure our children are gaining a Biblical Worldview of the world around them, rather than compartmentalizing everything they come across.

For more on Homeschooling with a Biblical Worldview, I highly recommend Israel Wayne’s Book Homeschooling from a Biblical Worldview.

How do you insure that your children are learning from a Biblical Worldview?

Filed Under: Christian Family, Christian Home, Christian Mothering, homeschool, Homeschool Convention, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With: , ,

A Look into our Second Week of Homeschool.

August 27, 2012 by 1 Comment

This was our second week of school. It was rather frustrating as my youngers and middles worked hard and my olders seemed to struggle with the concept that since they are older and studying some new things, that their book time school day will take a bit longer.

After much thought and prayer, I have decided to have my older two do half pages of work on a couple subjects a day. I didn’t decide to homeschool in order to completely overwhelm my children. I can always add more later, but if I burn them out in week two or three, what have I accomplished?

I am also scheduling Who is God a bit differently. I love this program, and know that if we take it a bit slower, we will come out ahead, gaining a better understanding to the beginning of gaining a Biblical Worldview…ultimately what I want my children to learn.

 

In My Life this Week…

In Science Class… Lora is learning about predators and prey. She has been drawing lots of pictures for her science notebook and working on her science Lapbook from A Journey Through Learning.

Philip has been working through Apologia’s General Science and I am excited to say, our new Notebook for Apologia General Science just came in the mail. I love all the extra Bible Discussion in the new notebook.

This is not the notebook I ordered. It is a free one, but I wanted the new one, that has many more Biblical insights.

In History, we have continued notebooking as a review of last year’s studies. We will be starting up where we left off this next week.

In Geography, we are studying Turkey. This has been quite interesting.

In Bible/Character. We have been covering obedience and studying lots of scripture in depth. We are also studying Proverbs in depth with Kevin Swanson.

Our older two are working through Who is God from Apologia, and the youngers and I are working through Answers for Kids 1. I am really liking these little books. We are also using the A Journey Through Learning Lapbooks with these.

In Math…

We have covered things from counting and number formation to addition, to multiplying fractions, to multiplying decimals, to reducing fractions. Some days I get quite confused when trying to help a child learn a new concept. So far, math is definitely the hardest subject for me to teach.

In Language Arts:

In Analytical Grammar they are covering nouns, adjectives, articles, and more. In Jump In, they are discovering their strengths in writing. They are also writing quite a bit in their Geography and History projects.

What We are Reading, I am reading 7Tools still. My children are reading numerous books on creation.

Week three is going to be spent doing more farm/garden stuff. We will be making pickles, apple sauce, and apple pie filling. We will be picking apples, and cleaning seed wheat. We will also be hosting a homeschool gathering. I think we will cover nearly every subject, without cracking a text book!!

 

Filed Under: homeschool, Homeschool Mother's Journal, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With:

Homeschool School Room

August 13, 2012 by 3 Comments

We don’t really have a classroom or school room per se.  However, we do tend to do most all table time at our dining room table.  We have computer time and family time and other times, where we are scattered about.  Independent reading time takes place during our afternoon quiet time.  We school outside, and around the farm.  Really, our learning takes place everywhere.

This year, I have put most of our file boxes away.  We were given a pamphlet shelf that is just right for school books.  This is behind our dining room table.

All sorts of goodies fit on this great shelf.  I love that we can see what is on it at a glance. On the side, I have hung all the notebooking pages for the first semester that I have printed to pull out and add to their slots as the year progresses.  I also have our bag of lapbooking supplies and our weekly Bible/Character Flashcards hanging here.

       

I have a shelf of extra resources and games.  This shelf also includes manipulatives too. This is on the south end of the dining room. 

Here is our dining room.  We do spend lots of time in this room for school.  The main reason is, it is very centrally located in our home.  The kitchen is to the north, and our family room (playroom, where mommy’s computer is, where one of the school computers is) is to the east of the dining room. 

The posters on the left, are our memory verses and definitions for our character study this week. 

Here they wait for mommy to do family school.  Family school consist of science, history, geography, bible, and character.

A lot of our science time is spent outside.  Here we have a fairly large bull snake.  This little guy loves the mice from the fields.  We also have a garden, and we farm, having cattle, hay and wheat.  They also spend quite a bit of time, working in daddy’s shop…welding, mechanicing, using a lathe, woodworking and more.

Education doesn’t have to take place behind the same four walls all day every day.  It helps to have an area dedicated to keeping books and supplies organized and on hand, so we have set up our dining room for that.

What does your school room look like? 

Not Back to School Blog Hop

Filed Under: Christian Home, homeschool, homeschool organization, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With:

Ten Gadgets I Love for Our Homeschool

May 7, 2012 by 5 Comments

As a farmer’s wife, this is the time of year I make my list of needs for our school, such as those bigger non book items. We have a steady income during the summer, so now is the time I get that list together. I have and am using the items in the following list. However, I figure you might want to add a few of them to your list as you get ready to take a summer break and gear up for next year. Maybe you can even find a couple of them at a garage sale?

Photoshop Elements~I use this for so many thing in our homeschool. From graphics for reports, to making custom notebooking pages.

WonderMaps~It is geography with a Photoshop twist. I LOVE this program.

Printer I use my printer every day. I suggest a printer that is economical both in ink and paper. It should be able to do two sided printing easily. I love our HP 8500

Laminator

Globe though Wondermaps is wonderful, it is also nice to be able to see each geographical area on the globe.

Binder Cut down on the number of three ring binders you need. I bind nearly all of our notebooks, ebooks from currclick and so much more. I have even started binding our lapbooks instead of using file folders.

Tablet We have a Toshiba Thrive, and love it. I didn’t go with an Ipad due to the fact I have no other Mac or Apple products, and I wanted full size ports…USB, SD, HDMI…

Thirty One Bags Do like a little something pretty? Do like it to be practical? Do you like it to be durable? Then These bags are for you. I love to use these to keep our school supplies organized. Right now, the Large Utility Bag is full of next years curriculum. I use the Cindy bag for a laptop bag too.

Over the Door Shoe Holder~Love how this keeps our school supplies organized.

DSCN7113

Digital Camera, we have three, one very worn out, one that is older and Philip’s that he got for Christmas. Honestly, love Philip’s. It is a Nikon L120.

What items do you use that are not your typical homeschool items?

Top Ten Tuesday at Many Little Blessings

Filed Under: homeschool organization, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With: ,

Super Moon May 5

May 6, 2012 by 1 Comment

Saturday evening we headed out to look at the "Super Moon". It was pretty, and quite bright, even with the clouds here.  God’s Creation is amazing isn’t it? Below are the pictures I actually took of the moon, using the camera we got Philip for Christmas.  He helped me work on the settings.  I think these turned out pretty good.  

The Moon behind some trees.

Filed Under: Lifestyle of learning, Nature study, on the farm Tagged With:

Nature Study~Herps are out in Central KS

April 3, 2012 by 6 Comments

Philip has been out hunting down the snakes, toads, frogs, salamanders and turtles. They are out, and we are having fun working with a Facebook group that is focused on these creatures in Kansas.

Great Plains Toad

 

Speckled King Snake (Juvenile)

Red Eared Slider found in Peace Creek

Tiger Salamander found in our well house

Filed Under: homeschool, Lifestyle of learning, Nature study, Nature Study Tuesday Tagged With: , , , , ,

Jumping Out of the Homeschooling Box

February 26, 2012 by 2 Comments

Why are you homeschooling?

Oh, that is a loaded question, but one of the reasons we chose to homeschool, was we wanted to give our children more than a classroom full of textbooks and workbooks. We want them to learn something with their hands, minds, eyes and ears. We want them to learn to think, to appreciate what they are learning.

So many parents who are “home” schooling, don’t even know that they can jump out of that box that was delivered at their door. Yes, all that wonderful curriculum…

Do you remember what you learned in that history class 25 years ago? What day did what happen and how does that pertain to today? Yeah…umm, those dates are fairly useless without the true lessons behind the historical event.

Teaching a page of math problems and never actually doing any real life math is pretty much useless too. Especially when it comes to algebra. I have a much better understanding of algebra now as a mom, from having to figure out medication dosages.

The same applies to science. Really what do you remember from elementary science classes? Not much? Really?

So, are you seeing something here? Are you thinking that you might have wasted many years in school, filling out workbooks, answering questions to get a grade? Oh and grades…umm are they really worth much? Have you ever noticed that those people you thought were so very smart, really maybe aren’t so smart now that they have to deal with real life?

Oh, back to grades…umm, an A is a letter, I teach for mastery…I also figure out what the child is capable of.

For instance..my special needs child has a “looser” mastery level than my more gifted child.

Special Needs, must get a 80% or more on every math lesson or they do it again…the ENTIRE lesson.

My gifted student must get a 90%. Same deal. We always correct all wrong problems for both older children, for each subject. I am teaching for mastery, not to just brush over a topic and move on.

I also tend to make sure science and some other topics are interest related. This helps keep school from being a drudgery.

As you can see, I tend to jump out of the homeschool box. I want to keep my children interested in learning to help them have a life long love of learning new things.

 

Some of the ways we add some creative and unusual items to our school days are:

  • Lapbooks
  • Unit Studies
  • Going with Dad (replacing floors in a trailer, welding, working on engines, rear ends and more)
  • Sewing
  • Cooking
  • Baking
  • Other crafts
  • Gardening
  • Caring for animals (pets) and Livestock
  • Helping with church activities
  • Playing chess
  • Playing other games
  • field trips
  • and so many more

Educating you children needs to be more than filling in blanks, writing reports and doing a few math problems. We need to begin with their hearts, and move out to the other areas, making sure we use lots of real life experiences. Because the whole idea of educating our children is so they can handle real life, right? I don’t know about you, but what I needed to know in real life to get me through the basics…cooking, shopping, balancing a check book, getting a loan, keeping a good credit score and many others, I didn’t learn inside of a textbook.

We need to be giving our children a head start in the real life, by letting them live it with us, through example.

Filed Under: Christian Family, Christian Home, Farmwife, homeschool, Lapbooking, Lifestyle of learning, Livestock Tagged With: ,

Teaching with Tech, without being Overwired

February 9, 2012 by Leave a Comment

When we started homeschooling, I always figured we wouldn’t be one of those techie families.  You know the ones, with five computers, phones,eReaders and more?  We we aren’t quite that bad, but, we are becoming a techie family and I can honestly say there are a few bonuses to this.

We have four computers, one which we purchased over ten years ago (used for offline school), one which we purchased for online and other school purposes in Oct. out of necessity for our math curriculum, a laptop given to use by my grandparents to upgrade our offline computer, and a laptop given to me for work purposes from A Journey Through Learning. 

We also recently purchased a  Toshiba Thrive Tablet for school use.  This is much more user friendly for our younger crowd.  It is all touch screen and they are able to do several different activities on it, which are quite educational. 

Some of our favorite apps are:

  • 123s ABCs Handwriting Fun from TeachersParadise.com~This is a great way to save paper while practicing beginning hand writing.
  • 50 States', '50 States’ target=_blank>50 States']);" target="_blank">50 States’ target=_blank>50 States from Socratica
  • US Geography Quiz from Brett Plumer
  • Bible from LifeChurch.tv
  • Kids Learn to Read (Kindle Fire Edition)', 'Kids Learn to Read (Kindle Fire Edition)’ target=_blank>Kids Learn to Read']);" target="_blank">Kids Learn to Read (Kindle Fire Edition)’ target=_blank>Kids Learn to Read from Intellijoy
  • Kindle for Android', 'Kindle for Android’ target=_blank>Kindle']);" target="_blank">Kindle for Android’ target=_blank>Kindle from Amazon
  • Mad Math Minute from LipAppls~Great way to practice math drills without paper
  • U.S. Presidents from Socratica, LLc
  • iTouchiLearn Words from Staytoooned
  • Bible Trivia from Brett Plummer~My daughter using this and is loving learning so much Bible information

I allow my under six crowd about 20 mins each on the computer or tablet each day.  They are working on educational items during this time. 

My oldest gets to play chess online with his great grandfather three times a week.  This has many benefits. 

  • Building a relationship with his grandfather who lives over a 1000 miles awa
  • Learning to play a thought provoking game
  • Critical Thinking Skills
  • Building attention span

My oldest two children have some school on the computer:

My oldest also does some Nature Study on his computer.

This project taught him design skills, typing, research, photography and more.

Here Philip is using the Tablet as an eReader. He is reading a G. A. Henty novel.

We also watch You Tube Videos from the tablet and computer for school.  This helps bring things to life for subjects like science, history, geography and more.

Using technology in the homeschool can be very beneficial.  It can also be bad, if over used.  Set time limits on the amount of use, and make sure that technology is not used for entertainment, but for education.

Filed Under: homeschool, Homeschool Computer Use, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With: , ,

Where Learning Takes Place…

January 26, 2012 by 2 Comments

For a few months in the beginning of our homeschool journey, I believed that learning had to take place at a table or desk, but that is not the truth.  Our children learn nearly everywhere.

We learn outside

On a walk

In a field

On the couch

In the van

Dining Room Table

On the Floor

In the Kitchen

At a Museum

 

At the Fair

I am so glad, I got out of the nasty desk habit, and allow my children to learn wherever God leads us.

Filed Under: homeschool, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With: , , , ,

Homeschool Mother’s Journal Jan. 22

January 22, 2012 by 1 Comment

In my life this week…

This week was both exciting and sad, all in twenty-four hour period.  That’s how life tends to roll though. 

First the exciting!!  I am going to Teach Them Diligently!!  I am very excited about this opportunity for several reasons.  The convention itself is enough to make one drool, but I also get to see family, some who I haven’t seen in over eleven years!!

The Sad…Brad’s Aunt Chonita died this past week.  We laid her body to rest on Friday and celebrated her life here and her new life in heaven.  Chonita, you will be missed, but we WILL see ya latter!!

In our homeschool this week…

We fell behind in our bookwork, but in our character, and home, and life skills we learned a lot.  We learned not to stuff a washing machine, how to tear it apart, and how to put it together.  We learned how to have compassion.  We learned how to photograph landscapes, flowers and more.  We baked, we cooked, we baby sat, we lived.

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…

When life seems to get in the way of book work, go with it.  The books will always be there, those life learning opportunities might not be.

I am inspired by…

Leslie Nunnery and all her work to put Teach Them Diligently together.

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…

We went to the funeral, and saw many family we don’t often get to see.  We met a few new faces, and even in our sadness, we were able to see God’s work in it all.

My favorite thing this week was…

Finding out that I am going to Teach Them Diligently!!

Things I’m working on…

Travel plans.  I have had to update my sad wardrobe. lol  Also, a few of the transportation logistics. And a very special surprise I hope to talk more about at a later date.

I’m reading…

How to Have a HEART for Your Kids

I’m praying for…

Safe travels for all attending TTD.  That my children will not miss me too much, or should that be that I won’t miss them too much?  I know it is the latter.  I even set my non techie husband up a Skype account.  I am also praying for the organizers and all those working hard to make this happen. 

Extended family as they mourn the loss of Aunt Chonita. 

Filed Under: Christian Family, Christian Home, Christian Mothering, Christian Wife, Homeschool Mother's Journal, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With: ,

A Journey Through Learning DigiFolios Current Events Giveaway FIVE winners

January 19, 2012 by 16 Comments

Current Events have taken a back seat in children’s interest. However, in recent years you can see an alarming trend that society is not up to date with what is really going on in the world. Our current events pages were designed to help you guide your children in keeping up with important events taking place all around them. There are twenty pages, including pages for political events, international, national, local, election, missionary, economic, education, and many more. Your children will learn to recognize the need to know what is going on, and how to keep up with important events, thus teaching them to prepare for making important decisions as an adult.

A little about DigiFolios:

Do you love the idea of lapbooks and scrapbooks but don’t like the mess? Do your children love to
work and create on a computer? If so, then welcome to a new and technologically advanced way of
learning…digital learning! Everything is done on the computer, but we have added a TWIST!

Think of it as Educational Digital Scrapbooking with guided templates. Your child will have the opportunity to gain research and computer skills, while using their grammar, spelling and writing skills to complete each page.

For a complete page of suggestions and ideas, check this out.

These products were designed with the special needs student in mind. Rather then having lots of handwriting involved, they are able to type into each area. These make a great book for your student to show off to family and friends. Check out all the DigiFolios products.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Filed Under: Giveaway, homeschool, Lifestyle of learning, political Tagged With: , , ,

Staying Sane when Plans Change

January 14, 2012 by Leave a Comment

I like to make lists, and be able to check those things off, however, more times then not, my plans get changed.

This week those plans have changed over and over, and I am ok with that.  However, I haven’t always been ok with it…

It used to bother me and get me terribly frazzled.  However, God spoke to me one day…

I must allow His plans to take over my list when He sees fit.

Last week, our first week back to school after our Christmas break, went with out so much as a hitch.  This week, well, not so great.

As I posted yesterday, my hubby’s aunt is dying, and soon.  Our school days are a bit out of whack with that.  I also had a horrible back ache that pretty much grounded me on Wednesday.

God knew all these things were going to happen, and he knew, that I would either accept His change in my plans or become stressed….Is it ok if it is both?

I am stressed because I feel like I should put on my supermom cape and get it all done, but at the same time I fully believe that I am NOT supermom…

So, as we wait in limbo, knowing that there is going to be some crazy days ahead, I am contemplating even bothering to make a list that would be my plan for the next few days…is that bad? is it good?  is there a right or wrong answer?

Sometimes our plans are messed up for our own good.  We have all heard stories about someone who got delayed and missed a bad wreck or other such happening.  So, as I end this week and look to next week, I think to myself.  Is it going to be a huge deal if I didn’t get our bathroom closet cleaned out?  Is it a huge deal that we didn’t get the yucky grammar lessons on commas wrapped up?  Is it a huge deal that we didn’t get to lesson six in our Mystery of History?

I wonder how many public school classrooms didn’t get it all done either?  Not that I am comparing our school to the Public school, because that would be like comparing apples and oranges, since we use lots of real life for our school.  What I mean here, is that I remember being an aid at the public school and knowing what lessons were planned, and them not getting done.

The plans, all around the world are left incomplete a lot of time. Look at all those Presidential promises.  They had great plans to accomplish lots, but…someone else derailed them, or that is what we are told.  The senate or house or this person or that…

I would much rather assume that my God had better plans, and that we will learn much more from His plans they we would have from mine.  I mean, He did create me, and my children, He knows our every hair and thought, then He surely can create a better plan then I can.

So, as I move to making next week’s lists, for school and as a homemaker, I will make room for changes. Because, this not so supermom, isn’t going to feel guilty if we can’t get it all done.  His plans are my plans whether we want to admit it or not.

Filed Under: Christian Family, Christian Home, Christian Mothering, Christian Wife, homeschool, homeschool organization, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With:

R.E.A.L. Homeschool Spanish Review

December 31, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Are you frustrated with trying to teach a foreign language?  Do you want to teach Spanish? 

Photobucket

R.E.A.L. Homeschool Spanish is a program that may help take the frustration out of teaching Spanish.

R.E.A.L. stands for Relax, Enjoy, Aspire, Learn Spanish

Pricing:

  • $49.95 for download version of the Book, Activity Book, Answer Book, and audio files
  • $59.95 for all of the above plus Daily Curriculum Guide
  • Hard copies (with audio Cd’s) of above are available for $89.95
  • $99.95 with the Daily Curriculum Guide with free shipping

This program is made for homeschoolers.  It is meant as a family study, meaning that mom and children and dad if able learn together and communicate in Spanish together to help learn the language better. This style of learning a foreign language is called immersion. 

There are tips and unique ideas scattered throughout the program to help you help your family increase your fluency.

Each unit is made up of 15 vocabulary clusters with phrases to use to present the material.  In total there are 33 vocabulary clusters, and 15 idea sections. There is also a Planning guide and Daily Planning Chart.  There are writing and reading games to use also. Reading, writing, listening and speaking are all integrated into this program, helping you reach fluency easily in a homeschool setting.

I encourage you to view many of the samples to help you decide if you can use this program in your school.  I also encourage you to read about the authors and about how this program works.

Due to our Christmas break and a recent round of illness we had very limited time using this program before the due date to post my review.  What we did use over a two week period, we really enjoyed.  I did find though, that the hard copies would be very handy, as there is quite a bit of printing involved. It was quite fun also to notice that our soon to be three year old also wanted to try her tongue at speaking Spanish… Had I been “on the ball” and knew how to get a video off my phone, it would have been fun. Winking smile 

I hope to use this program further this summer, why this summer?  Because we will take a break from our “hard core” routine of school subjects, and this looks like a great program to help keep students in the “studying” mode, while also learning some valuable skills.  Due to the nature of this curriculum, it would be a great asset for the Lifestyle of Learning Family. 

Disclaimer: I received a free copy of the Download version of R.E.A.L. Homeschool Spanish for the purpose of completing this review.  I received no other compensation for my honest opinion.

Filed Under: Homeschool curriculum review, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With:

Signs of Autumn for Homeschool Families~Includes a free Autumn Scavenger Hunt

October 4, 2011 by Leave a Comment

We have entered October, and for many that means we are surrounded by signs of Autumn. If you haven’t been surrounded yet, you probably will be shortly.
In our area, Kansas, we don’t have as many of the coloring leaves and such, but we do see lots of changes in the rural farm areas. We see farmers planting wheat, harvesting corn and Milo, and big yellow sunflowers. There are cattle ranchers stocking hay and silage for winter feed for cattle.
In other areas, you are seeing hints of changing leaves, migrating birds, and signs of animals preparing for winter.

Photo Credit Robin Mattingly

My children often ask me the whys of many of these signs of Autumn around us.

Why do the leaves change color?

Why are most all the birds flying in a v shape and heading the same direction?

Why do animals seem so busy?

Why are farmers so busy?

And, so much more. Our Children see and notice these changes, while we are noticing the changes in our homes as we prepare to head into winter.
I have included a Signs of Fall Scavenger Hunt that I put together for my children. You won’t find everything on this list everywhere, but maybe you can do some research about some of the things and learn a little about fall in other areas, as you research check off the items.

While your children are busy on their scavenger hunt, let’s talk about Autumn for the homeschool Mom?

Autumn in the homeschool seems to be a time of slowing down, getting back on schedule, or figuring out routines for many. The hustle and bustle of Winter is not yet here. A relaxing morning with a cup of java, or evenings on the patio in the coolness of an earlier dusk allows us to reflect on what matters most. Fall for homeschool moms is a time to gather our thoughts, as the animals gather their food.

Photo Credit Robin Mattingly

I believe God gave us fall to help us fall on our knees, at His feet or into prayer to ask God for His guidance in our days ahead.

A Time for Everything

1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

I encourage you to take a few minutes to write down some of your thoughts as to how you can prepare for a happier, more joyful and abundant winter season, now, as God’s animal creation does in example. Preparing to beat the winter blahs now, before they hit is much like the natural instincts God has given the animals as they prepare for winter by gathering their food before it gets cold.

Filed Under: Autumn Fun, Christian Family, Christian Mothering, encouragement, Farmwife, homeschool, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With: , , ,

Fall Field Trip Frenzy

September 29, 2011 by 5 Comments

Every fall it is like this…field trip opportunities abound. This year though, it has been a little busier then the last couple.

We have been to a homeschool fun day, the eye doctor four times, State Fair two times, Wild Life and Parks day, Peace Treaty Pageant, Farm helping too many times to count (from actually being in the field to running for parts), a fall BBQ party at our home and it’s not quite over yet.

We do these things in the fall, because that is when they take place, the weather is still nice and sickies haven’t come out to get us quite yet.

For about three weeks, we put our books away and enjoy the time we get to spend learning through experience, hands on, actually being there. We don’t worry about the hours of book work we don’t have done, the fact that we aren’t home, or that someone will think we aren’t doing school. Why?

We keep records, take pictures and don’t take off at other times of the year, but will take off when we feel God giving us opportunities to make memories, learn and grow, trying to keep a lifestyle of learning mind open to anything God would throw our way.

Allowing our family to enjoy these outings and not stress of what I had planned to do, or schedules, routines and other such my plans for my children, allows for me to let God lead our family. There are memories made that will last a lifetime, there are days that we are all tired and grouchy, but these days allow character development that wouldn’t happen otherwise.

We do a few group field trips, but mostly we do them only as a family. This allows us to spend time together, learning together as a family unit. We have found that our children gain more from our family field trips most of the time. However, they also enjoy doing field trips with other homeschoolers, as do I. There is a balance though, and for the most part, I think we are staying within a good boundary for our family.

Here are a few pictures of some of our recent field trips. I haven’t been able to take pictures at all, but several.

DSCN7257

DSCN7264

DSCN7270

DSCN7271

DSCN7285

DSCN7339

DSCN7286

DSCN7341

DSCN7344

This post is linked to:

For more field trip fun, check out the above link…click the graphic. ;)

Filed Under: Autumn Fun, large family homeschool, Lifestyle of learning Tagged With: ,

Friday Fun School September 2

September 1, 2011 by 2 Comments

As I have mentioned before, Fridays are our Fun School days.  We play games, and do experiments and other such fun.

Photobucket

This Friday we will be doing a Nature Scavenger Hunt.  This is one of the activities in our Exploring Creation through Flying Creatures study.

Next up with will break out our new Scrubble Cube.  I am not even sure what we are doing yet…Might need to get on that ehh?

The younger crowd will be working on their basket of items I toss in.  Another thing I need to get on…

Oh, and you know what?  I came up with a great way to help my olders, whose activities don’t typically fit in our Friday Fun School Basket be able to see what is up for them each Friday also.

DSCN7207

I laminated business card sized pieces of card stock and I write down their activities.

We will be having a spelling bee also this week.

For math we will do math drill bingo.

Here are a couple of pictures from last weeks Friday Fun School.  We made airplanes to study flight, foil, and draft and other such terms.

DSCN7204

DSCN7199

Are you doing Friday Fun School ?  What activities do you include?

Filed Under: Fun School Friday, homeschool, large family homeschool, Lifestyle of learning, Nature study Tagged With: ,
Next Page»
%d bloggers like this: