Minivan Moments

As a member of the 2009-2010 The Old Schoolhouse Homeschool Crew , I received a few e-books for free from Guardian Angel Publishing to use and review. The books we received were Earthquake , The Sum of Our Parts: No Bones About It , and Andy and Spirit Go To The Fair . The books are easy to read and interesting, with illustrations that catch even the youngest child's attention. The kids (and mom!) really enjoyed the book, The Sum of Our Parts: No Bones About It ! I adored human anatomy in college, and with all of my well-developed language skills, all those parts' names were fun to learn (mostly) - and I love teaching the kids about our bodies because of my fascination with the topic. The Guardian Angel Publishing book had a lot of great information inside, with eye-catching images and a fun rhyme about the body's bones. In essence, if you read the book, then memorize the engaging rhyme, you could actually know the major bones in your body by heart! How fun and eas...

... there is God. When someone who knows Jesus is no longer with us on earth, we mourn our loss, not theirs. Because of the unique relationship with Christ, we do not die ... we merely pass on . The phrase " pass on " is maybe overused to some, but it has great meaning to people of the Christian faith. People with a relationship with our Savior, Jesus Christ, do not die because Jesus, himself, overcame death and conquered the grave. Therefore, to be absent from the body is to present with the Lord! [2 Corinthians 5:8] Let's look at what " pass on " means. We pass on from a mortal life on a wounded earth to bigger and brighter things. We pass on to a place that is more wondrous than we can imagine. We pass on to forever worship our Lord. Also... We pass on suffering. We pass on loneliness. We pass on anxiety. We pass on sorrow. We pass on regret. We pass on anger. We pass on pain. Answer this question today: does your spiritual belief give you comfort in k...

This morning, i gave Calysta the responsibility of helping Dania with her alphabet puzzle (we have started exposing her to letters). I simply reminded Calysta that learning should be fun for Dania and left her to it. You will never guess what she did! I am so proud!! She "hid" each letter somewhere in the house for the younger kids to "find," which is fun in itself. But the amazing part to me is that she hid the letters near or with an object that started with that letter! For example, she hid "C" in the candy dish, "N" in the napkin holder, and "L" in the lamp. She's so creative! {sniff} I am so proud. Future preschool teacher... future homeschooling mother... Did i mention how proud i am? Have a creative day!

As a member of the 2009-2010 The Old Schoolhouse Homeschool Crew , I received a couple of issues of Nature Friend Magazine for free in exchange for using and reviewing them. (Wow - those writing skills have come in handy!) This blog entry is my review, and before you skip it because you don't homeschool, let me assure you this review applies to anyone with children. When we received our first completely beautiful issue of Nature Friend Magazine , I was enchanted! We sat down immediately and read through the first half of the magazine together. The photography was so amazing, it was dazzling to the eye! Imagine: having a gift that allows you to capture so beautifully God's creatures in their natural habitats - in action! My kids began carrying their own cameras around outside not long after our perusal of the magazine. Additionally, the stories were so engaging, the kids could actually read them to themselves! I cannot tell you how big a feat it is to have a nature maga...

My littlest angel, Dania, is turning three today! She was such a surprise 3-1/2 years ago that I confess to a bit of crying, panicking, and whining (yeah, i regressed momentarily to the terrible-two's). Now, however, it is hard to imagine I was ever anything but grateful to have her!! She sure puts us through our paces, but life would be pretty boring without her. She is energetic, funny, full of dramatic displays and funny faces, demanding, sure of herself and her place in the world, and fully in touch with the Spirit of God. She keeps us laughing, keeps us trying, keeps us working on ourselves, and she keeps us honest. Life is hard. But anything worth having is worth working for. Happy, Happy, Happy Birthday, Dania Rose!

We all know there are categories of foods we should eat that benefit our bodies the most, right? Well, there are also categories for proper brain development: Roots & Fruits . No, I'm not actually talking about eating root vegetables and healthful fruits for proper brain development, but rather a vocabulary curriculum ( stay with me, here ) created by Educational Diagnostic Prescriptive Services ( EduDPS ). Roots & Fruits is an amazing vocabulary program that I received free as a member of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine 's Homeschool Crew . I have to tell you, I am learning right along with my children - because even though I had a great education (and have no shortage of words), there is so much to this program that I never even knew we could learn! Okay, so let me break this down for you so you can truly appreciate what I am talking about. You know those programs that you can use to learn "a word a day" - calendars, websites, etc...? This curriculum act...

I remember being in college and having one of my guidance counselors explain the importance of good writing skills in life. He described a student who didn't do very well on science tests, but who could write up a science lab report in such a way that the he could earn a good grade in the class despite his poor testing. This counselor also spoke of the many career paths that a person could take that would require excellent communication skills, including written communication, reports, etc. This counselor's advice has never left my mind, and thankfully, I have been gifted with good writing skills. Writing skills that saved my grade many times in college, brought in the perfect job at a time when I had a small child to raise, and helped me win the blessing of reviewing homeschool materials for TOS Homeschool Crew this year! So you'll believe me when I tell you that writing is ver y important to me, and I was delighted to receive a writing program to review! Especially w...