As you can see by my last post, it has been a while since I last wrote. I have been having a hard time being consistent with school. As soon as we get in a rhythm, something comes up--family in town, going out of town, or just plain feeling crummy. I get very discouraged sometimes--are my kids really learning anything when I am this sporadic??

Well, we went to a trivia game and my 8 yo daughter could answer all the Bible questions and quite a few of the history and science question. I guess she is doing okay.

But what about my Kindergartner? Is she getting the basics? Is her reading approving and what about math? I don't think I have to worry there either. I told her she could not play a game because she was not old enough--her sister is 9 and can play the game, Donna told me just to turn her 6 upside down and she could play. I think she is getting it. Almost anything that is put in front of her, she can read--she might not comprehend it all, but she can read it.

Do I want to be more consistent? Of course!

I enjoy doing some lapbooks with the girls and have finally started getting a routine--

1st and 3rd weeks of month: Monday - American Girl Book Club. Tuesday - swim class and play date. Wednesday - Hands On History and AWANAS Thursday - swim lessons and history. Friday - fun day science .

2nd, 4th and if have, 5th weeks of month : Monday-school (everything but history and science). Tuesday-swim lessons and play date. Wednesday - school (everything but history and science) and AWANAS. Thursday - school (everything but history and science). Friday - make up day.

Am I going to be consistent? Well, some of the time.

Mary, Did You Know?

May you celebrate the true meaning of Christmas throughout the year.



"For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16

My second favorite Christmas story (the first being about the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ) is A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. This animation is by Richard Williams and was aired in the 70's.

The Election

Tonight is the culmination of Carol's Election Lapbook. She is sitting up with her Dad watching the polls and keeping track of the Electoral College.

I read this from Homeschool Weekly E-Newsletter.

The Familyman
Todd Wilson, Familyman Ministries

Election time is where the homeschool rubber meets the road. Do we really believe God sets up kings and presidents and that "He's got the whole world in His hands". . .or do we show our children by our gloom and doom predictions that all we've taught them about God is a bunch of hooey (to use the Greek word)? To hear some Christians talk, you'd think that God steps down from His throne on November 4th.

We can teach them all we want about God through reading the Scriptures and memorizing Bible verses. . .BUT they LEARN the most from the way we live when "school" is not in session.

We don't watch TV, but on November 4th, we plan to plug in the TV and watch the presidential coverage. I'm sure we'll cheer on our favorite. . .but afterwards, no matter who walks away as winner, we will pray for our new president and thank God for setting him in place. Then no complaining.

Oh, here's one more thing to leave you with. . .the absolute truth is that what takes place in YOUR house is way more important than what happens in the White House.

Be Real. . .and trust God,

Todd

"Subsribe to the Homeschool Minute Weekly e-Newsletter"

Gooney Bird Greene

by Lois Lowry



Gooney Bird Greene is a fantastic book. Gooney Bird is a girl who tells only true stories to her classmates.



Chapter One: We learned about parts of a story and things not to stick up your nose. We also made a five-pointed star.

Chapter Two: We learned how Gooney Bird Greene got her name and what a Laysan Albatross (otherwise known as a Gooney Bird) was. Also, we learned a little about Rudyard Kipling.

Chapter Three: We learned all the different places called China and how many definitions there are for "consume".







Chapter Four: We found out who Napoleon Bonaparte was and where he lived. Also, we learned some about hypoallergenic dog breeds and homonyms.

Chapter Five: We learned about the symphony orchestra.

Chapter Six: We learned about different wildflowers.

American Girl Felicity Lapbook

Doing the Felicity lapbook, Curly and I found out a neat fact. Let's see if you know it.
Clue#1: Who is know as the Father of the American Revolution?
Go ahead, take a guess--I am not going to tell you yet.



Felicity's story takes place in 1774. During the books, the Boston Tea Party occurred. I found these stamps on the internet and thought it would be a nice addition to the front of the lapbook.



The inside of the book. Curly used colored pencils to add color to some of the pictures.
Do you need another clue? OK, here goes--he organized the Boston Tea Party.
Is your answer still the same? A little later you will get the final clue--hope you get it.



Some of the elements in the book.



We made a pocket with the recipe cards of the food Curly tried at an American Girl Book Club meeting. Some of her favorite foods are the Queen's Cakes and Apple Butter.



The underneath of the flap.

When you lift the flap, this is what you see. It is hard to see from the picture but Felicity's dress has metallic pink and green flowers on it.
Final Clue: His ran his family's brewery.

This is a picture of Mr. Merriman's shop.

It was quite interesting watching the girls play the Game of Graces. They are supposed to gracefully toss rings and catch them with sticks. They are not very graceful but boy did they have fun!



Do you know the answer? If you said "Samuel Adams" then you are correct!

I got the templates from HomeSchoolShare and the graphics from the American Girl Website (except for the Game of Graces graphics--don't remember where I got them)

Life and the Shed

Oh my. It has been almost a month since my last blog. We have been very busy. Between homeschooling and trying to get my garage ready to close in, I have not had anytime to blog. In the next few days, I will be trying to catch up.

I have pictures of the girls making bread and of them sewing their first quilt block. Hope to get them posted soon. Also a couple of lapbooks have been completed that I need to show you guys. And my little Donna has been taking swimming lessons. She is having so much fun.

As for the shed, I have been cleaning it and the garage. So far, we have had over 20 bags of garbage, one truckload of hazardous waste (paint cans, pool supplies, etc) and at least 10 bags of donate.

This past weekend, we resided the shed. I must remember, if you think it will take a day to complete--it will take three.

This is some of the wood that was on the shed. It has a lot of water damage from the wood touching the ground. To eliminate that problem, we put flashing at the bottom of the shed and then will caulk it on the inside to seal it.

Mom and I started working on the shed on Friday. We put the door up on Monday. I think Mom and I did a pretty good job on the door. It should look good, it took us around 6 hours to construct and hang.
THANK YOU MOM FOR ALL YOUR HELP!


THANK YOU SAM AND PEGGY!
I think Mom and I would still be working on the walls if it weren't for their help. I still have some of the little stuff to do--caulk, trim and attach a latch on the door. But that will be easy compared to what I have been doing.
Hope to have pictures of a finished garage soon!!

This is the shed without the doors.

Here is a view of the inside of the shed and the inside of the door. The great part is the cost. It just cost me 3 days of work (but I got to spend it working with my Mom--a plus!) and less that $375. Try to buy a 8x12 wooden shed for that price!!