tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-37265462121438256542024-03-13T08:54:35.817-07:00Fab Family of 5Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.comBlogger216125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-71463474876983805362016-09-14T07:36:00.003-07:002016-09-14T07:37:34.786-07:00Today is National Cream Filled Doughnut Day!! Who knew??<br />
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If you feel like celebrating (and really...who wouldn't want to celebrate this one), you could take the easy route and stop by a local doughnut shop, but if you're feeling like doing something from scratch, here's a recipe for indulgent homemade cream filled doughnuts to help you get your doughnut fix. Heck, you could even call it home economics and do this for school. It is cooking, and that totally counts! Enjoy! <a href="http://buff.ly/2cXIUz4">http://buff.ly/2cXIUz4</a>Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-12444428987531919682016-08-26T06:15:00.000-07:002016-08-26T06:15:56.447-07:00Online Homeschooling ResourceAs my kids get older, I'm all about them learning things on their own. Also, as a one income family, I'm also all about things that don't cost a small fortune. I recently discovered a new homeschooling resource that covers both those bases. Its called Schoolhouse Teachers. Its from the folks at The Old Schoolhouse. They have hundreds of online classes available for all ages. Pre-K through high school and even classes for adults. I showed the website to my 16 year old daughter and she even got excited by some of the classes offered. The best part is that you can try out their site and see what you think for $1 for the first month. Its just $12.95 per month after that. Or, you can choose their buy one get one free deal and buy one year and get the second free. That's awesome!<br />
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One thing I appreciate about the site is that its for your entire family. You pay the fee and anybody and everybody in your home can learn. They don't charge per child like so many sites do. To me, this was a no brainer. Check it out, you might find some classes that get your kids fired up about learning!<br />
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<br /><a href="https://schoolhouseteachers.com/dap/a/?a=42993" target="_blank"><img src="https://schoolhouseteachers.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/ST%20Affiliate%20Banners/ST-Affiliate-300x300.png" alt=""></a>Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-30284640767910773592016-07-15T10:02:00.000-07:002016-08-17T10:02:46.642-07:00Summer Bug ExplorationsBoys being boys, and my having two of them means that we've seen a lot of bugs this summer. We have had so many cicadas in our yard. You never know where you're going to find their exoskeletons! We've had them on the side of our garden boots, my husband's car tire, the house, etc. My son, the expert, tells me these are common Dog Day cicadas. I have to say, they are huge and quite impressive! These guys can measure up to 2" in length. Its especially cool when you find one in the midst of hatching out of its shell. I found just such a specimen early one morning.<br />
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I came across him just as he was starting to emerge. He's belly up at this point. My little expert also tells me that this is a male because of his little cymbal flaps for making the super loud noise they're famous for. Its how he attacks his mate. Some people say the sound reminds them of a power saw. It is certainly loud enough. See how tiny his little wings are? <br />
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Just a few minutes later, his wings have fully unfurled and are almost dry. He also somehow managed to flip over so he's not belly up any longer.<br />
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Now he's just waiting to fully dry before flying off, leaving his empty shell behind. His color will darken and he'll turn either brown or black. They vary greatly in color. He will only live for a few weeks at best, but he'll be very busy during that time trying to continue the species. Very cool!<br />
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This particular bug would make a great subject for any budding bug enthusiasts to study. They are found everywhere, they big and impressive, and they don't bite. There are lots of different species and some live underground for as many as 17 years! You could create your own unit study, notebook pages, or even a lap book. Happy learning!<br />
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<br />Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-2605866062018535312016-06-01T10:19:00.000-07:002016-06-02T10:20:59.786-07:00Homeschooling Words of Wisdom & EncouragementAs this year comes to an end for most of you, I wanted to share some advice that was given to me by a fellow homeschool mom when I was struggling through our first year of homeschooling high school. I'm a worrier and have had a seriously hard time adjusting to the rigorous amount of work involved in homeschooling my 9th grader. Thankfully I reached out to some fellow homeschool moms in my tiny Catholic homeschool group and received these words of wisdom. I am sharing them with you with her permission. <br />
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<span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">1 - Prayer. Pray alone, together, and as a family.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />2 - Family Unity. Enlist your husband's support to back you up emotionally and practically, if possible. Have him help strategize accountability.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />3 - Consistency. Be consistent with expectations and consequences. If it is a situation where respect isn't being given, address that issue. If it's underperforming academically, set benchmarks and enforce them.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />4 - Communication. Discuss the situation with your child and strategize ways to resolve disconnects. Chances are that not only you are unhappy about the way things are going, but they are as well. They should have a vested interest in helping to solve these challenges with you.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />5 - Listen. Listen to God speaking to you through your heart, your intellect, your husband, and others. Then take steps that will best fit your family's unique challenges. For me, it meant choosing a subject a child loved (acting) and immersing her in set design and acting classes for high school credit (which also motivated her to work harder to complete other work so she could pursue her passion). For another, it meant looking beyond the skipping of lessons/ missed class work to determine that child was bored and needed a more engaging way to learn math beyond textbook (it ended with a math tutor for one and online for another). </span></span><br />
<span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />6 - Think Outside the Box. If every subject is simply read a chapter and test, that would bore most people. Skip every other chapter test and find another way to pursue learning of those concepts. Write a report on a related project. Cook a meal from a country you are studying. Have them prepare a 4 week exercise routine for you and their siblings to do with them. Watch a documentary and prepare a paper on 10 things learned from that documentary. Research and draw medieval costumes in history. Write a poem about a book they read. Design a PowerPoint presentation about types of mammals in Biology. Pre establish a grading rubric (x points for neatness, x for creativity, x for grammar, x for content, x for using MLA or APA format, etc.), then use these types of projects to break up the testing monotony, and provide other ways to earn grades that aren't solely based on traditional tests.</span></span><br />
<span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />7 - Keep Goals in Sight. Determine if your goal is college preparatory or not. Do you want to take advantage of free community college classes by grade 11 (only books have to be bought)? If so, make sure they are focusing on those subjects that will best prepare them for their future environment. Reading, writing, and math skills must be strong before entering community college, and a solid science foundation is important as well.<br /><br />These are some things that come to mind. It's a huge challenge to be seeking ways to challenge and encourage your kids spiritually, academically, emotionally, and socially. 9th grade was a big challenge year for me with my firstborn daughter, 8th and 10th for my son.... Quite honestly, it was prayer, communication, and the support of my husband that got me through it. </span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;">Hang in there, and do what you can to take a step back and re group with your child so that your relationship can grow in a positive way, and you can work together to find ways to make these high school years successful and rewarding for both of you.</span></span>Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-41116913798174132922016-05-18T10:01:00.000-07:002016-06-02T10:03:16.027-07:00Veggie Delights!I posted earlier about our garden. I love having a garden. Who wouldn't like heading out to the back yard for fresh, organic produce? I know where it came from, and I know that its safe. No nasty pesticides to worry about. This year we planted several kinds of lettuce, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, sweet onions, tomatoes, okra, green beans, corn, squash, zucchini, bell peppers (red, yellow & green), watermelon, and cantaloupe. Its early days still, but the lettuce end of the garden is doing great!<br />
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We have several heads of broccoli ready to go as well, and our long awaited cauliflower is starting to produce tiny little heads. We've had so much produce that we've been able to share the bounty with family and friends. </div>
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It is so wonderful to be able to have a large garden after so many years of dealing with my tiny 4' x 8' raised bed garden in Georgia. I personally can't wait until the summer veggies start producing! How about you?</div>
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<br />Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-91729783855737950522016-03-24T08:12:00.000-07:002016-03-24T08:12:08.175-07:00Krispy Kreme Field Trip - YUM!This week my kids and I had a very impromptu and last minute field trip to a local Krispy Kreme Donut factory which is located about 20 minutes from my home. Let me just say that from the moment you step out of your car in the parking lot, you are hit with the most amazing smell. I don't know how the people that live near the factory stand it! I would gain weight on the wonderful smell alone.<br />
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Before I get started on the tour photos, I thought I'll share some facts about Krispy Kreme that we learned while visiting. Krispy Kreme was born in Winston-Salem, NC, in the summer of 1937 by Vernon Rudolph. He purchased a yeast raised donut recipe from a French chef in New Orleans. He started selling the donuts to local grocery stores. The smells permeating the air attracted attention and people wanted to buy the hot donuts they could smell, so he started selling them out of his factory location. Over the years these donuts became more and more popular. Shops began popping up all over the southeast. At the time of Vernon Rudolph's death in 1973, there were 60 shops. 1989 brought the very first Krispy Kreme retail store front located in Greensboro, NC. Today there are 1000 stores across the county. They can even be found in Canada and Mexico. <br />
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The factory we visited in Concord, NC services the entire north and south east, even Canada. They produce 300,000 donuts per day 364 days a year. These donuts are shipped to grocery stores, gas stations and other retail locations. Now that's a lot of donuts! We also learned that as an employee of Krispy Kreme, they get all the free donuts they want, along with free Krispy Kreme coffee and Coco-Cola products. Now you can understand where they get the energy to make that many donuts!<br />
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During our tour the line was running filled donuts. Creme filled, chocolate glazed donuts to be precise. We started out by viewing the donuts rising inside huge glass ferris wheel type machines. Up, down and around they go until they have risen to the proper height.<br />
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Once they are finished rising, they get dumped out onto a conveyer belt of 350 degree oil. They cook on one side and then are carefully flipped and cooked on the other side. Before heading into a cooling compartment along the line.<br />
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After cooling, any duds are disposed of and two workers stationed on either side of the line carefully use a machine to poke a hole in each donut and fill them with creme. Each worker fills two donuts at the same time.<br />
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Next the donuts are placed back on the line and go through a machine that gives them their chocolate glaze. Lastly they are inspected for perfection and placed by hand into their individual sealed boxes. These boxes are stacked at the end up the line and then shipped all over the country.<br />
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All of the kids that participated in the tour got to take home a complimentary package of freshly baked donut holes. I may or may not have made them share. <i>-grins-</i><br />
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All in all its a quick tour that took maybe 30 minutes in all. But, it was interesting and there were free donut holes. Win, win!! Basically, this factory is a larger version of what you would see at one of their franchised retail locations. If you ever get the chance, check it out! Its a really "sweet" tour. Pun intended. LOL<br />
<br />Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-67114709827481048632016-03-18T16:48:00.000-07:002016-03-18T17:00:29.577-07:00New garden & new math, new bread recipe! YUM!!This week has been an incredibly busy week for me on the home front. My parents have now officially moved from Florida to North Carolina, although their furniture is still in limbo, but that's a whole other story. Having them here means more going out to dinner this week, and impromptu visits during the day to drop stuff off and surprise my kids with lunch out at one of their favorite restaurants, Steak-n-Shake. I'm still trying to wrap my head around living in the same town as them again. Its been YEARS!<br />
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On the home front, we've been working on our garden. Last year we paid a local farmer to till up a good portion of the yard to have a garden. I've never had a garden other than my small raised bed garden in Georgia that measured a whopping 8 feet long by 4 feet wide. This new garden is more like 50 feet long by 25 feet wide. Its HUGE by comparison! We had great success with lettuce last spring, along with tons of squash and zucchini. Our tomatoes didn't do well, my okra died a slow and painful death, followed by my peppers. No idea what happened to our watermelons, but we did manage to get a few small cantaloups. I also had strawberries in our garden, but they didn't survive the winter. The one thing we had great success at growing in our garden last year was grass and weeds. This year we decided to suck it up and purchase a tiller. What a wonderful thing to have I tell you!! It makes short work of all the old grass and weeds, leaving behind glorious fresh tilled dirt. We tried to improve our red clay soil with a clay breaker type organic fertilizer mix. My wonderful hubby and son got that tilled in last Saturday, along with some chicken poop happily supplied by the girls, leaving the garden ready for our Spring veggies! Sunday morning my wonderfully helpful son, Adam, helped me plant tons of lettuce in four different varieties, along with broccoli, cauliflower, Georgia onions and a bunch of spinach. By some miracle, our kale from last year not only survived the winter, but its been thriving! It kind of looks like little palm trees at this point. All this planting only takes up about 1/3 of our new garden though. We're waiting until mid April to plant the summer stuff. Isn't it pretty?
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I also made the huge decision to switch Haley's math from Teaching Textbooks back to Saxon this week. Teaching Textbooks Algebra 1 just isn't working for us. I purchased the brand new version of Saxon Algebra 1 and it arrived from Amazon on Thursday. Can I just say how much I love Amazon Prime? What an amazing thing it is!
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Just working through Lesson 1 in the book showed me just how much my math hating girl needs Saxon. Teaching Textbooks encouraged her to use a calculator and focused solely on algebra. Good old Saxon doesn't work that way. It made her do long multiplication WHICH SHE FORGOT HOW TO DO, as well as fractions and long division. Its way harder and more intense, but I feel it is honestly a stronger program. So, as much as I hate to jump in with a new math program in mid March of her 9th grade year, we're doing it. I'll do a review of it once we've used it a bit more.<br />
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Another big exciting thing I did this week was finally perfect my favorite homemade bread recipe using freshly ground whole wheat. I have been messing with recipes for weeks now trying to get it just right. I have this tried and true recipe that I've used for a couple of years now. My kids love it, and frankly so do I. Its fool proof. However, it uses store bought flour and includes 1 1/2 cups of white bread flour. I'm trying to eliminate as much processed food from our lives. I especially avoid all things white...white bread, white rice, white sugar, white flour, etc. However, the all whole wheat loaves I made were either bricks or the kids just didn't like them as well as my old standby. I decided to tweak it a bit and change up a few things and found an awesome new recipe that we all love. Its also all whole wheat! Win, win!
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Now before you get all "who has the time to bake their own bread" on me, give me a minute. I use a bread machine. Yes, I do. I don't bake it in though. I don't like the tough crust and the weird shape with the paddle hole in the center. Better yet, I use a cheap bread machine. My machine is an Oster version that I purchased from Walmart for maybe $70 or so. I have carpal tunnel and just can't knead bread. No way, no how. This recipe originally came from a blog that had several recipes where the bread machine did the mixing, kneading, and rising, but the bread is baked in the oven. This is such an easy process that it makes bread making possible for even the busiest of people. Ask me how I know! So are you ready for this miracle of a bread recipe? Here goes:<br />
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<b>Honey Wheat Bread</b><br />
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1 cup warm water (I use the hottest water that will come out of the faucet)<br />
1 tablespoon milk (I use Organic Vanilla soy milk, but that's just me)<br />
2 tablespoons olive oil<br />
2 tablespoons honey<br />
2 tablespoons brown sugar (I use organic Sucanat, but have also used Sugar in the Raw)<br />
1 teaspoon salt (I use pink himalayan sea salt and just grind a bit in)<br />
3 cups freshly milled whole wheat flour (I use 1/4 cup of hard red wheat berries and 1 3/4 cup of hard white wheat berries)<br />
1 teaspoon vital wheat gluten<br />
1 teaspoon soy lecithin<br />
2 teaspoons yeast<br />
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My machine wants all the liquid ingredients added first, then the non-liquid. I just dump everything into the bread machine pan in the order listed. I make a small well in the center for the yeast. Next, I set my machine to the dough setting and let it do its magic. I do watch and help it get started by making sure everything gets mixed in well and I almost always add maybe an eighth of a cup of warm water as it first starts forming a dough ball. The freshly milled flour requires more water and seems to soak it up pretty fast. I don't want the dough to get too stiff too fast, so I add the water. Once its all mixed up nicely, I basically ignore the machine until it beeps at me around an hour later. At that point I have wonderfully risen, nice warm bread dough.
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I simply turn the pan over and give it a shake and the dough falls out onto my floured surface for shaping. Usually there is quite a bit of sticky dough stuck in the pan as well, so be prepared to scrape it out with your fingers or a scrapper. My boys love the raw dough and love to scrape out bits and pieces to eat. Once you have it all out, shape it into a smooth ball.
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I don't do any further kneading and my only real goal is to smooth it out in order to shape it into a loaf sized shape. I do sometimes have to work harder to get it in a nice shape, but usually its fairly easy.
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Last, I carefully pick up my loaf shaped dough and plunk it into a well greased standard size loaf pan. Cover that bad boy and place it in a nice slightly warm oven to do some more rising magic. This generally takes my dough about half an hour. You want the loaf to be almost fully risen. In other words, fairly close to whatever height you'd like the baked loaf to achieve. If it needs more time, put it back in.
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Once you are satisfied with the rise, remove it from the oven and pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Bake it for about 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Carefully remove your masterpiece and enjoy! Its best to let it cool before cutting into its yumminess. Slather on some butter on a warm piece of fresh bread. Heaven I tell you!
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That's about it for happening around here. How was your week? For more great Weekly Wrap Up posts check out <a href="http://www.weirdunsocializedhomeschoolers.com/" target="_blank">Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers</a>!Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-91022045979183998092016-02-26T14:56:00.000-08:002016-02-26T14:57:05.106-08:00Struggling with math...Math was never my favorite subject in school. It seems like all of my life I've personally struggled with this subject. Because of this I really did my best to prepare my kids to do their best in this subject. Until this year it seemed to have worked. However, this is the year that we started Algebra 1. I loved algebra in school. It was the first time I felt like I truly understood math after so many years of struggling. I actually got an A and enjoyed it so much I decided to take an additional year of math that I wasn't required to take. I should have known better because I took geometry and totally didn't understand that one little bit!
Haley is struggling with algebra this year. She has always struggled with math. She probably hates it more than I ever did. But, she's better at it than I was, she doesn't like doing it. For the first time in several years we decided to try something different. We changed to Teaching Textbooks. We are longtime users of Saxon math. Its basic, boring, black and white, but it really gets the job done. But due to the fact that the kids are getting older, I wanted them to be able to do things themselves without me. So, I chose Teaching Textbooks.
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The program is great and I love the fact that I don't have to be involved. That part is AMAZING! It really works beautifully for my boys who are in 7th grade. The few times that they've had some question with something they learned, I was able to take a quick look and explain. Easy peasy. Not so with Haley. Its been YEARS since I took algebra! I really don't remember how to do any of it anymore. When she gets stuck I can't just take a look and help her out. Algebra doesn't work like that. My math guru hubby can, but I just can't. So, we have a problem. He's a work when she gets stuck and unless I want to go back and take every single lesson she's already done, and then watch every lesson with her (which defeats the whole purpose of using Teaching Textbooks), we're stuck. This has led to many, many frustrating days. If we're having this many problems with Algebra 1, I shudder to think about doing geometry and algebra 2! Not sure where this leaves us. We may end up back with me teaching Saxon again. I really, really don't want to though. It is so much nicer to have the kids do things on their own letting somebody else explain things. Why can't life ever just be easy? I'll keep you posted on what we end up doing.Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-79705053921527375882016-01-29T05:05:00.000-08:002016-01-29T05:06:12.204-08:00Awesome skit with such a powerful message!! Had to share this today!I think all of us are guilty of doing what she does here. I know I am. We go through the motions of being a good Christian, but are we really being followers of Jesus? Are we really doing what Jesus would do? I say this prayer every single Sunday during Mass. At times I feel like its just another response that we've learned to say together at Mass. I thought the Lord's Prayer to my children when they were very young and we used to say it every night before bed along with a Hail Mary and a Glory Be. Why did I stop doing this? Why did I let life get in the way of those few precious minutes when I spent time showing my children that praying was important. Much more important that whatever is on TV, or on my Kindle, or the dishes, laundry, etc. I am making a vow here and now to change. To work on not only saying the Lord's Prayer with my family, but truly meaning it! Who's with me?<br><br>
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kLVzV9n69UY" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-10796615742423471562015-08-10T07:13:00.000-07:002016-01-25T07:15:16.097-08:00Sometimes the grass isn't always greener...Okay, so school started some time ago, but this year has had its ups and downs. My darling 15 year old decided that this year was the year that she wanted to brave the public school system again. At first I was shocked because this is the child that HATED public school with a passion. She has terrified her little brothers with stories of her trauma in kindergarten and first grade for years. Suddenly she wanted to try it again. We had lots of family discussions, prayers and research, and we ultimately decided that it is her life and she should have a say. All of this was complicated by the fact that I had already purchased all of her VERY expensive curriculum for homeschool. So, we enrolled her in our local high school. It doesn't hurt that we just so happen to live in the best school district in the area. Awesome school which is new and geared toward all things artistic. My sweet girl thought she'd found her happy place. We spent several weeks buying an extensive new school wardrobe, new highly expensive backpack, a phone and phone plan, and lots of miscellaneous school supplies. She even practiced wearing makeup with her cousin, because she really isn't into makeup, but most 9th graders are.
We went to orientation, met her teachers, toured the school and she was so incredibly excited. She couldn't wait until her first day! Here she is heading off to school that first morning with high hopes for this new venture in her life.
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I dropped her off and cried the whole way home. The hours ticked by that day. It was so quiet at our house without her here! I sat in the school pick up line for almost an hour to make sure she didn't have to wait long to be picked up. As soon as I saw her face I knew something was wrong. Her first words to me were "get me out of here". She said she just didn't fit in and hated it. I did my best to calm her down and find out the root of the problem. Having been homeschooled for the past 7 years, I fully expected that this wasn't going to be easy. I reminded her that this was something she really wanted to do. She begged me not to make her go back. Being the mean mom that I am, I told her she had to go back. You can't make a major decision in just one day. So...she went back the next day. She wasn't in tears that day, but she didn't like it any better.
We went to the football game that Friday and cheered for her team. They won! I thought maybe things would get better. They didn't. She suffered through two weeks of school before I finally gave in to her pleading. I removed her from school with a somewhat heavy heart. Not sure if I was making the right decision. Again, we didn't make this decision lightly. We prayed and prayed for guidance. Thankfully I hadn't returned her curriculum so we were able to just jump right in. She has been much better since we let her come back home. She is now satisfied that this is the right decision for her. I'm terrified and feel like I'm back in kindergarten starting out our homeschool journey, but that's a whole other post.
Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-23143835072650233732014-09-04T06:16:00.002-07:002014-09-04T06:16:37.798-07:00Days Gone By...Some days I seriously miss the days of old...you know the ones...the days that started with a cuddly kid climbing in bed with you to snuggle. Those sweet little arms wrapping around your neck and whispering "I love you mommy." These days my day generally starts with our seriously deaf dog pacing back and forth across the hardwood floor, whimpering to go outside like he has to go NOW! However, he's been let outside by my husband about an hour ago, so I know he's faking. The bad part is that I can't even yell at him BECAUSE HE CAN'T HEAR ME! If by some miracle one of my sons climbed in bed with me first thing in the morning, he'd probably have terrible morning breath and possibly stinky B.O. because he forgot to put on deodorant. Yep, the sweet smell of little kids are over at my house. I'm dealing with a teenage girl, and two pre-teen boys. Fun times indeed. I will never forget the day we were visiting a local museum a couple of year ago and walk into this enclosed tunnel area that showed glowing rocks. I'm standing there thinking that somebody had been through that really smelled BAD! Then, a few minutes later in the shark tooth digging area I smell it again. This is the lovely moment that I realize its coming from my sweet little twin boys. Yep, we had to have a lesson on hygiene and why deodorant was important right away. What fun! Gotta love boys! Of course, this is not to say that my pubescent daughter smells much better. I miss the days when life was simpler and my kids were younger. Anybody with me?
Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-89920958818479104622014-08-25T15:30:00.000-07:002014-08-26T08:51:21.314-07:00Its that time again...back to school!This year was rather uneventful. Every year for the past 7 years, I've been keenly aware of the first day of public school. I guess it was because so many of my neighbors and friends have kids in school, and this made me feel I needed to follow along and start at the same time. We tended to take holidays when they did, and end our school year at about the same time they did. The first day of public school has always been a day where I'm laying in bed as I hear the school bus stop just outside at my next door neighbor's house to pick her kids. I cannot even begin to tell you how liberating it feels to be dozing in bed at 7:00 am when the elementary bus comes by. The middle/high school bus has already been by at this time!<br />
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Here, in our new state, new school district and new home, the first day of school passed without fanfare. We started our new school year three weeks ago. I find its much easier to buck the system when you don't have neighbors or friends locally that are in public school. Oddly enough, I didn't even notice any school buses this morning. Had I not looked up the date of the first day of school, I would have missed it entirely.<br />
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We have a very rigorous schedule planned this year, as it marks the boys first year of middle school, and Haley's last. I'm trying to foster independent learning, and trying to re-capture some of the joy of learning that we used to have before the subjects got tough. These days I feel like I live by the schedule and school work is something to just "get through" before we can get on to better things in life. I miss all the fun and adventure we used to have and I'm doing my best to re-capture some of it. Finding a balance between tough subjects like middle school math and writing, and fun stuff like science and history, gets much more difficult as my kids get older. I need to once again find my groove. On top of the stresses for this year, I can't tell you how absolutely terrified I am about Haley starting highschool next year! Yikes!! When did she get that old? Regardless, as I've always done, I will keep calm and homeschool on! How was your first day of school?Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-3021023820825499792014-07-31T08:01:00.000-07:002014-08-26T08:02:53.109-07:00Changes...I haven't written in a very long time. I've had so many thing going on in my life that I simply haven't taken the time. I wrote some time ago about my husband losing his job. Who knew what a whirlwind adventure it would lead us on. We tried very, very hard to stay put and find a new job there. It wasn't God's plan for my family. After many prayers and tears, we had to make the extremely tough decision to sell our home in Georgia and move to North Carolina. I am very partial to North Carolina. I lived in Charlotte for two years and was living here when Glen and I met. My brother moved just north of Charlotte about 8 years ago. My parents liked the area so well, they bought a house here to use as a vacation house. We have visited North Carolina many times over the past several years for most major holidays.
I don't know if I've ever mentioned how closely my family is related or not, but my husband and I met at the wedding of his older sister to my older brother. We've been together ever since. That was 17 years ago this past June. God had a plan for us, and we simply had to take a leap of faith. My parents purchased a larger home in North Carolina in February, and we came up to help them move. The new house is almost twice the size of the previous vacation home. They live in Florida most of the year and only use the North Carolina house over the holidays for maybe three months out of the year. Someday they plan to live in North Carolina full time.
On March 22nd, we packed up our house, loaded as much as we could on a huge Uhaul truck and drove to North Carolina. My parents were in town to help out on the North Carolina end, and we left our kids with them and drove back to Georgia to finish getting the house ready to list and to pack the remaining stuff. On April 7th, after a whirlwind few days, we drove away for the last time. I can't even begin to describe how hard it was to leave. I cried like a baby for the first half hour on the road. I will miss my house, for sure, but its the people I will miss the most. We have such good friends there. My church, our AHG and Trail Life troops, my homeschool group, my neighbors...I could go on, and on.
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Since that day in early April, my life as changed so much. Although we live in a town where we have family close by, I have no friends, my kids have no friends, and we're just getting involved in our church and trying to find our way. Thankfully, after 14 long months, God blessed us with a new job. Glen doesn't have such a long commute anymore, and its a great company. We're looking forward to the new school year because it will allow us to meet some of the homeschoolers in our area and hopefully start to rebuild our life. In the meantime, God has been good. I'm living in a beautiful home in a great area, we've found a new church, been blessed with a new job, and hopefully, new friends will come along soon. Things are looking up.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pwLRhKgoj7k/U_yhVNGhyCI/AAAAAAAABBQ/q6YjThJLBSg/s1600/china%2Bgrove%2Bhouse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-pwLRhKgoj7k/U_yhVNGhyCI/AAAAAAAABBQ/q6YjThJLBSg/s320/china%2Bgrove%2Bhouse.jpg" /></a></div>Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-64029321413937886482013-07-11T13:46:00.002-07:002013-07-11T13:50:22.157-07:00Jamestown Fun!Wow! I looked at my last post and realized I hadn't posted anything in a few weeks. So, I thought I would take a minute to share what we've been up to. Earlier this year, I decided to do something radical and completely change our curriculum. I have always been very eclectic and pieced together our curriculum using what I thought would be the best fit for my kids. However, after reading (and lets face it...drooling) over a package curriculum for quite some time, I took a leap of faith and bought the first six week unit to give it a try. Well, as it turns out, we LOVE it! Its called Trail Guide to Learning. So far we've completed the Columbus unit from Paths of Exploration, the Jamestown unit, and we're currently progressing very slowly through the Pilgrim unit since its now summer and daddy's home with us everyday for now. I will put together a more in depth post about why we're enjoying this curriculum so much, but for now, I wanted to share what we've been up to. So...without further ado, here are some super fun miniature Jamestown replicas my kids made.<br />
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This was a freebie that I received from Homeschool In the Woods. I absolutely love their stuff!!! I have to admit that I have so many freebies and other purchased items on my computer that its scary. But, this one was perfect to go along with our Jamestown studies. Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-8533900773056184132013-06-30T13:59:00.000-07:002013-07-11T14:00:05.490-07:00Vacation Time!Vacation you say? Well, while I realize going on vacation might not be the smartest thing to do when you've recently lost your job, but we went anyway. We always go with my parents, and this was planned earlier in the year. If we cancelled our plans, we would have lost quite a bit of money. So we went and enjoyed, not knowing when and if we'd be going again anytime soon. Here are some of the highlights from our trip.<br />
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<br />Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-74918575531412016362013-05-28T08:13:00.000-07:002013-05-30T06:15:04.913-07:00Stressful times...As I sit here writing this post, my husband has now officially been out of work for a month. Being unemployed was not something I ever expected to happen to us. It was so completely and totally unexpected. God obviously had a plan for all of this because unlike some times in our life together, we actually had extra money when it happened. There have been times over the past 10 years since I quit working to be a stay at home mom, that we had barely enough money to scrape by until pay day. Thankfully, this wasn't one of those times. <br />
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When I first found out, I'll be honest, I freaked out. There were major tears and lots of "what are we going to do?" But, once I calmed down, I did the only thing I could. I put my faith in God and took comfort from the fact that this wasn't a surprise to Him. We're getting through this stressful time believing that God has a plan for us. Until he reveals that plan to us, do me a favor and pray for my family. Pray that He continues to bless us with what we need to get by each day. Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-86194564630611186162013-04-17T10:51:00.003-07:002013-04-17T10:55:31.094-07:00Photo editing...I am currently helping the girls in my American Heritage Girls troop earn their photography badge. This badge has helped me remember my love of photography and get back to doing something that I love. I got my first SLR camera when I was about 24 or 25 and instantly fell in love with it. This led to the purchase of my own black and white darkroom equipment and so much more. I also took a college level photography course. However, aside from using my camera, I've tucked all of my equipment away for about 20 years. During that time, my SLR was replaced by a digital SLR. My husband was kind enough to purchase it for me for Christmas, and then follow it up with an awesome zoom lens which I love.<br />
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I've always loved taking pictures, but recently I've been honing my skills and learning not just how to take great pictures using only manual settings on my camera, but also how to edit them. I have owned and used Photoshop for years because of my business. However, I am always amazed at just what this program can do. I stumbled upon the website of a wonderful photographer located in Texas. Her site has taught me more about taking pictures and also editing them than I ever hoped to know. If you have any interest in taking better pictures, I highly recommend taking a look at <a href="http://www.kristendukephotography.com/" target="_blank">Kristen Duke's blog</a>. Aside from the fact that she is so gracious about sharing tips on how to take better photos, she also has tons of awesome decorating ideas and so much more.<br />
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Based on one of her lessons on editing pictures, I messed around with a recent picture of my twin boys. Here's a before and after of the photo. Do you see what I mean?<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gycpc1V56oc/UW7eJy6flJI/AAAAAAAAA7s/VWXzA3eKklA/s1600/misc+pics+021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Gycpc1V56oc/UW7eJy6flJI/AAAAAAAAA7s/VWXzA3eKklA/s400/misc+pics+021.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before editing...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WQh8pOop1vI/UW7eMLXX5DI/AAAAAAAAA70/lvBLJR4h3Tw/s1600/boysedited.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WQh8pOop1vI/UW7eMLXX5DI/AAAAAAAAA70/lvBLJR4h3Tw/s400/boysedited.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and after.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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Here's another one of my daughter that I edited. Mainly I'm just enhancing the pictures, and sometimes cropping them a bit. Fixing any blemishes, etc...<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gELBKiQ32kM/UW7e5sdUXoI/AAAAAAAAA8E/cQl2aHuMuXY/s1600/kids+003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gELBKiQ32kM/UW7e5sdUXoI/AAAAAAAAA8E/cQl2aHuMuXY/s400/kids+003.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before...</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nDIvP1xTaGM/UW7e6iMynWI/AAAAAAAAA8M/e8PrvwOuUxs/s1600/haleynew.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-nDIvP1xTaGM/UW7e6iMynWI/AAAAAAAAA8M/e8PrvwOuUxs/s400/haleynew.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and after.</td></tr>
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I am using the layers in Photoshop to add a soft light layer. You can play around with the levels and get just the right amount. The difference is amazing! It makes the colors so much richer. Another tip I've learned is to play with the eyes. That's a bit more difficult, but really makes a difference too. Here's one I did of my son.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xTTZdQ1TE_Q/UW7fxxp6e-I/AAAAAAAAA8U/aHaT4ejTMHw/s1600/misc+pics+061.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="350" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xTTZdQ1TE_Q/UW7fxxp6e-I/AAAAAAAAA8U/aHaT4ejTMHw/s400/misc+pics+061.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before...</td></tr>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f61OE7szMMI/UW7f1M2EcEI/AAAAAAAAA8c/EjqZjjm-BJ0/s1600/ryannew.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="350" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-f61OE7szMMI/UW7f1M2EcEI/AAAAAAAAA8c/EjqZjjm-BJ0/s400/ryannew.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">and after.</td></tr>
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This doesn't just work on people pictures. You can enhance any photo using the soft light layer in Photoshop. This is a picture of my daughter's pink dogwood tree in our back yard.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--1dcvZwSCGw/UW7YN-vuMNI/AAAAAAAAA7o/yNE78Y2CgYs/s1600/bird+%2526+butterfly+010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/--1dcvZwSCGw/UW7YN-vuMNI/AAAAAAAAA7o/yNE78Y2CgYs/s400/bird+%2526+butterfly+010.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before...</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JjBCfUYbZKo/UW7gm0UOKII/AAAAAAAAA8o/fmljDOniKjs/s1600/dogwoodnew.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JjBCfUYbZKo/UW7gm0UOKII/AAAAAAAAA8o/fmljDOniKjs/s400/dogwoodnew.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">after.</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr>
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Pretty cool stuff! This could totally become addictive. Now if I could just my kids to be enthusiastic about helping mom improve her photo taking skills. Lately, if they see the camera in my hand, they run.Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-81907137775280654022013-04-12T10:14:00.000-07:002013-04-17T10:15:31.158-07:00Spring is finally here!Aside from the pollen aspect, I love Spring! It comes as a close second to my all time favorite season, Fall. Each year I enjoy watching the abundance of tulips, daffodils and crocus bulbs sprout up in my garden. Here's a photo trip through some of the gorgeous Spring flowers and trees in my area. Enjoy!<br />
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<br />Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-37320245543298372162013-03-26T09:14:00.003-07:002013-03-26T09:14:57.035-07:00Where is Spring?.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
I read in the paper over the weekend that Punxsatawney Phil has been criminally indicted based on his erroneous early spring prediction on Ground Hog Day. Still more shocking was the fact that they were seeking the death penalty! However, it is believed that Phil is less than 18 years of age, and therefore considered a juvenile. His attorneys have filed a "cease and desist" notice and rumor has it that all charges are to be dropped against Phil. </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eY_N6pwwRq0/UVHJPGwzKZI/AAAAAAAAA6k/2-bbH2ORmkU/s1600/phil2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="220" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-eY_N6pwwRq0/UVHJPGwzKZI/AAAAAAAAA6k/2-bbH2ORmkU/s400/phil2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Seriously though...what is up with the weather? My trees are budding, daffodils are blooming, and the birds are busy building nests. All signs of spring, right? Then what's up with the snow flurries and bone chilling wind temps we've had for the past two days? I live in the South! I demand an explanation!! My daughter's American Heritage Girls troop has a mother/daughter campout scheduled the first weekend of April. Please, please, please let it be warmer! Who's with me? </div>
<br />Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-43014489928044561762012-11-06T08:09:00.001-08:002012-11-06T08:13:24.245-08:00Yeah for Election Day!Can I say how glad I am that all the election hoopla will soon be a thing of the past? It seems that every time I turn on the television there's yet another political ad accusing someone or another of doing less than savory things. Here locally, my least favorite is one that talks about subjects such as abortions and mistresses. Not something I want to explain to my young children! I'm just glad it will soon be behind us.<br><br>
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My husband and I were lucky enough to have an afternoon off on October 31st. We took advantage of it to head downtown and do the early voting. We were able to walk right in and vote. No waiting required. How awesome is that? Because I live in such a small town and the fact that they weren't busy at all, I kept my kids with me. They were able to actually come into the booth with me and read the screens, follow the instructions, etc. We discussed how it all works and they even took turns touching the screen to vote for the various candidates. I really think that allowing my kids to see the process first hand, and teaching them the importance of voting is very important. I'm hoping that even though I really dislike politics in general, I've made it more approachable for my kids. <br><br>
Tonight as the votes are tallied, we'll color the states either red or blue and follow along until our new president is announced. During our school day we'll be talking about elections and the presidency. Earlier this week we were able to watch a really interesting program called "Flipping the White House". It showed what goes on behind the scenes at the White House when a new first family is on the way. It was amazing! It was also filled with history and photos of presidents from the past. We all learned so much! Lastly, I purchased a unit study from CurrClick called <a href="http://www.currclick.com/product/74510/All-About-the-Presidential-Election!%7BMini-Booklet%2C-Craftivity-%26-Slideshow%7D">All About the Presidential Election</a> to help them understand the process.<br><br>
Do you do anything special with your kids during an election year? Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-44553308523915183342012-10-24T16:38:00.002-07:002012-10-24T16:40:00.157-07:00Birthday Fun!Yep, its that time again, I'm another year older. Each year for my birthday, I like to do something fun with the family. It's rather convenient when the weather cooperates with me. This year, the weather was perfect and the leaves are beautiful. On Sunday, the day before my birthday officially, we took a trip to Elligay, Georgia to get apples and a pumpkin. As an added bonus, we went up and over Fort Mountain, which is where my hubby and I met. The views from the lookout never fail to amaze.
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Next, we drove into downtown Ellijay and smack into the apple festival. Imagine tons of people, and lots of traffic. I'm sure the festival is fun, but we didn't stop to find out. We pushed on through and finally arrived at Hillcrest Orchards to buy apples. We visited last year with our homeschool group and have been dreaming about their apple cider, apple pies, apple donuts, and pink lady apples ever since. It too was a madhouse, but we got our apples and headed up the road to Burt's Farm to pick out our pumpkin. Now I know you can buy a pumpkin at any grocery store or Walmart, and they are a bit cheaper. Why drive all the way to Ellijay, you ask? Its kinda like going to a Christmas tree farm and picking your tree rather than putting up a fake tree or buying one at Home Depot. Its the experience! I have never, ever, seen such big pumpkins in my life. This year they were more picked over and not quite as large as last year, but still rather impressive.
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The one Ryan (in white) is leaning on is $46. Can you imagine paying that much for a pumpkin? Not me! The farm is a wonderful place to get some great fall pictures. They even have hay rides for the kids.
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Let me just say that picking a pumpkin from such a wide assortment of colors, shapes and sizes is no easy task! Nobody could agree on one. Here was Adam's choice.
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In the end we got a larger pumpkin that didn't cost that much. We'll be carving it into a masterpiece this weekend. The kids also each got a tiny little pumpkin each. Here they are with the super cool white pumpkins at the farm.
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Here's daddy wheeling our pumpkin to the front. Such a fun day!
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Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-46918687988014686152012-10-21T21:16:00.000-07:002012-10-23T09:17:37.460-07:00Biking Fun!Saturday my family, along with my fellow American Heritage Girls leaders went on a long distance bike ride. The plan was to ride for a few miles and then have a picnic. We'd be done right after lunch. But when it turned out that it was just us leaders and our kids, we got a little crazy. We rode and rode, and rode some more. We started out at the Chickamauga Dam and ended up having lunch in the Bluff View art district down town about 7+ miles later. Then, we decided we needed to visit Julie Darling Donuts on the North Shore, so we proceeded to bike across the Walnut Street walking bridge. Of course, we had to bike all the way back to the Dam afterwards. We braved some (like 300 or so) seriously scary looking zombies on the way back across the river who just happened to be out and about having Zombie Walk 2012 or some such thing. Who knew? Then had to zig zag our way back down hill and out of the Bluff View area back another 7+ miles. All in all we figure we biked about 15 miles round trip. What a day! We did see some interesting sights along the way though...other than the zombies that is. There was this guy...
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He was sitting right in the middle of the path just begging to get run over. When I first rode by I thought it might be something off a tree. It was HUGE! I'm talking as big around as a carrot and about 3 inches long. I have never, ever seen a caterpillar that big. He was also brilliant lime green. No way was I actually touching him, but I did find a small stick and move him off the path. I guessed at the time that anything that big and awesome looking had to turn into something cool. My guess was a Luna Moth. I was right. I just wish my boys had been there to see him. Ryan loves caterpillars of all kinds, and this one was a doozy!
So, I'm sore, but had such a wonderful day with friends and family, that I'd happily do it again! If you've never walked or biked the Riverwalk, I highly recommend it. Its such a great trip with gorgeous views of the river, wetlands, cool factories, surrounding mountains and so much more. Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-65195673874198563352012-10-09T09:36:00.000-07:002012-10-24T16:22:29.413-07:00Our New Foster BabyAfter raising 7 foster kittens this past spring, I said I was done with fosters for a bit. Little did I know that I had yet another surprise heading my way. Haley was at a friends house for a play date when she found a tiny little kitten crying and begging for food, sitting beside his tiny dead sister, abandoned by their mother. Apparently, some of the neighbors near her friends house feed the local stray cats, but don't do anything humane like call animal control or spay/neuter them. They have litter after litter of kittens each year, and each year those same kittens suffer. This little guy got lucky because my daughter knew what to do. When my husband came to pick her up, she showed him the kitten, shared the story of his poor sister, and low and behold, I received yet another foster kitten.
This little kitten was in the worst shape that I have ever seen a live kitten in. Every single bone in his tiny body was highly visible. He weighed less than half of a pound. His eyes were crusted shut and he was covered in fleas. I honestly didn't know if I could save him. He was that dehydrated and thin. But, this kitten is a fighter. Here's Pumpkin, our latest baby foster.
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He's now happy and healthy and is looking for his forever home. He's still tiny, and I don't think he's going to be a very big cat. He is a bundle of energy and spends his days enjoying his new lease on life to the fullest. Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-30572211040454534952012-09-17T09:09:00.000-07:002012-09-17T09:09:00.685-07:00Introducing the Elements!I have to admit, while I find chemistry experiments loads of fun, I get lost in the details when it comes to studying things like the Periodic Table. We touched on this subject a bit last week in reading about atoms. Haley got a bit glassy eyed while I was reading, although the boys seemed to understand. Maybe its that whole math thing again. They just seem to "get" math while Haley and I have to actually work at it. Regardless, in my quest to make the elements fun and more approachable, I found this fun song from They Might Be Giants.
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I also printed out black and white copies of the Period Table for them to color and have some fun with. I also found a neat <a href="http://chemistry.about.com/library/blperiodictablekids.htm">website</a> that allows the kids to see the entire table, and by clicking on any of the individual elements they can find out more about it. It gives a picture and description of each one. This really helped in my opinion. All those numbers and symbols is just WAY too confusing in my opinion! Overall, I think that's enough for right now. I mean seriously, I managed to graduate from highschool and I don't think I even knew that much. Regardless, if you happen to be studying chemistry this year as we are, you might want to give some of these ideas a try!
Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3726546212143825654.post-36380845394597501652012-09-14T06:31:00.000-07:002012-09-14T18:00:55.426-07:00Protons, Neutrons, Electrons and more...Fun with Atoms!This year we're once again doing our <a href="http://www.ccmemory.com/" target="_blank">Classically Catholic Memory</a> program. Last year it was all about earth science and astronomy. This year we get to delve into the exciting study of chemistry and physics. We've done some chemistry in the past using Real Science 4 Kids, and really enjoyed it. We'll be using some of those studies again this year, and adding in lots more. <br />
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Week 1 of our memory work focuses on atoms. We spent the first two days reading about atoms in our Real Science 4 Kids, Pre-Level 1, and Level 1 books, Fizz, Bubble & Flash chemistry book, and the Usborne Encyclopedia of Science book. On Wednesday and Thursday I decided to do something more interesting and fun. So, after scouring the internet for resources, here are a few of the fun ones we did. First and foremost, Bill Nye The Science Guy has a segment on atoms!<br />
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Next, we made models of atoms using Play-doh. Adam chose to make a carbon atom. I was seriously amazed at how much he retained from the books we read. He used the Periodic Table of Elements to determine that his atom needed to have 6 protons, which he made out of purple Play-doh. Then, since all elements must have the same number of electrons as protons, he made 6 small balls of light brown Play-doh to zoom around the nucleus of his atom. He then determined that carbon has an atomic weight of 12.011, which allowed him to figure out that he needed 6 neutrons as well. He used mint green Play-doh for this. By the way, he remembered (all by himself), that you take the atomic weight of the element you wanted to make, and subtract the number of protons it has,and you'll know how many neutrons it has. Pretty cool, huh? Why is it that he gets this so easily while Haley and I had to re-read everything multiple times to make sense of it? So not fair!
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Lastly, I found a cute little song that is sung to the tune of The Addams Family theme song. I'm dating myself here... My kids had no idea who the Addam's were, so that led to another search to give them little background info. It really helps if you listen to the original theme song first to get an idea of how to sing this. <br />
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Now that you know the tune, plug in these lyrics and have some fun! Hope your week was as fun as ours!<br />
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<span class="line line-s" id="line_1">They're tiny and they're teeny </span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_1">Much smaller than a beany,</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_3">They never can be seeny,</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_4"> </span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_4">The Atoms Family.</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_4"> </span>
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<span class="line line-s" id="line_5">They are so small.</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_6">(snap,snap)</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_7">They're round like a ball.</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_8">(snap,snap)</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_9">They make up the air.</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_10">They're everywhere.</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_11"> </span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_11">Can't see them all.</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_12">(snap,snap)</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_12"> </span>
<br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_13">Together they make gases,</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_14">And liquids like molasses,</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_16">And all the solid masses,</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_17"> </span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_17">The Atoms Family</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_17"> </span>
<br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_18">They are so small. (snap,snap)</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_19">They're round like a ball.</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_19">(snap,snap)</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_20">They make up the air.</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_21">They're everywhere.</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_22">Can't see them all.</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_22">(snap,snap)</span><br />
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<span class="line line-s" id="line_23">Neutrons can be found,</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_24">Where protons hang around;</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_25">Electrons they surround</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_26"> </span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_26">The Atoms Family</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_26"> </span>
<br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_27">They are so small. (snap,snap)</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_28">They're round like a ball.</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_29">(snap,snap)</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_30">They make up the air.</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_31">They're everywhere.</span><br />
<span class="line line-s" id="line_32">Can't see them all.</span>
<span class="line line-s" id="line_33">(snap,snap)</span>
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Fab Family of 5http://www.blogger.com/profile/04950385521411144625noreply@blogger.com0