Sowing Mustard Seeds

February 6th, 2012 Daybook

2012-02-06T13:41:00.000-08:00

Outside My Window...Gosh the weather has been so mild around these parts for winter. It's been mainly in the upper 40's most of the winter. Honestly, I do not mind it at all. The kids on the other hand would like more snow.

I am thinking about...How I've neglected this blog. I really do need to take the time to update on a more regular basis.

I am thankful for...Dear friends and family that have been lifting my husband and family up in prayer.

From the schoolroom...As the winter has been the most unusual so has our school year. Typically, we have an illness from Thanksgiving to March. Knock on something hard (like my head) we have had only two illnesses and that's it. So, we've been able to get through a lot of schooling. Currently, we're traveling to Europe and this week's destination is Russia. The kids are enjoying our travel around the world this year.

Living the Liturgical Year...I can't believe we're looking at Lent already. I need to get that together and this year, I plan on doing another 40 bag challenge.

From the Kitchen...We're eating no processed food. We've been eating whole, healthy foods for a few months now and I've seen a marked difference with our health. We're not as sick as we've been in the past and I've dropped 15 pounds!

I am wearing...workout clothes. Yes, I've been exercising 3 times a week. Big boy said I'm a much happier mommy. Yeah!

I am reading...Sense and Sensibility. I'm enjoying reading the classics on my e-reader. I hope to see the movie when I'm done with the book.

I am wondering...How to remove old (like decades old) paint splatters off of wood trim. I would like to avoid refinishing the trim as that would take time that I don't have nor want to dedicate to this trim.

I am praying for...All Holy Souls in Purgatory.

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the masses said throughout the world today, for all the holy souls in purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen.

African Party

2012-02-05T13:05:00.000-08:00

What's a party without a costume? Here they're dressed as "authentic" ancient Egyptians.

African Peanut Stew served over rice.

Oh How I've Neglected Thee

2012-02-03T07:56:00.000-08:00

Oh how I've neglected thee.

I hope you can forgive me.

So many reasons why...

Today I will update and try.

For may reasons, this little slice of cyber space has been neglected. We are all okay and I'm hoping to blow off the dust and start updating on our schooling and family life. Hopefully, this weekend I can get a few posts up.

First Day of School

2011-10-27T21:59:00.000-07:00

Math for the year...

2011-08-30T06:43:00.000-07:00

This year we're continuing to use Math U See for our main math curriculum. Princess enjoyed it last year, but it seems we were missing a bit. This year I've linked MUS Beta with various living books and fun activities. I also added extended units on measurement, geometry, and the calendar. Living Math has an extensive list of books for almost every math subject. This was a tremendous help to me. And I don't know if this happens to just me, but I have all these fabulous manipulatives, games, and Montessori cards, but never use them quite as much. This year I linked it all together in one place. Here's the word document that links it all together. And then there's my Big Boy who loves to do what big sissy is doing. I did order the MUS primer, but will use it loosely and link a lot of living books with it. I'm finishing up the word documents and will upload when done.

2011-2012 Curriculum

2011-08-23T14:05:00.000-07:00

Princess/2nd Grade

Math: Math U See Beta

Linked with Living Books

Phonics: Explode the Code
books 5 and 6

Spelling: CHC

Writing: CHC

Grammar: Grammar Adventure

Science: Wonders of the Animal Kingdom

Unit Study: Around the World

First Communion Preparation

Bible: Bible ABC's

Foreign Language: De Colores CD and songbook

Big Boy Preschool/Kindergarten

Math: Various Math Games, Montessori, and living math books. Although he's wanted to do Math U See for a while. I will probably use the Primer loosely with him.

Phonics: Continue with Starfall, Before the Code A,B,C, and Montessori movable alphabet.

Writing: He really wants to learn how to write this year--huge, huge goal of his. How can I deny a kid so eager to learn? We'll introduce each letter corresponding with what letter we're on with Bible ABC's book. We'll use play dough letter mats, Handwriting without tears manipulative, and Little Folks Letter Practice and Little Folks Number Practice.

Science: Wonders of the Animal Kingdom with Princess.

Unit Study: Around the World

Religion: Celebrating the Liturgical Year, While Princess is preparing for first Communion I linked up with Who Am I series. Years ago when Princess used this book series, I created lapbooks for each chapter. I've added to them over the years to include various other materials.

Foreign Language: De Colores CD and Songbook.

Little Bear/ Tot School

Seriously, I'm finding I need to have a few things for her to do as well. She gets extremely upset if she is not included in our studies. Did I mention she thinks she's turning 5 on her next birthday. Let me remind you she just turned two! Along with the usual tot type of activities we're going to try a few tot packs and create sensory bins to go with each theme.

First Communion Preparation

2011-08-23T13:38:00.000-07:00

This year Princess is preparing for her first Holy Communion in the spring. Inspired by Sara at Amongst Lovely Things, I organized a few things together for a Communion Scrapbook for Princess to complete. I hope it will be a treasured piece for her.

Here are the documents organizing all sources:

First Communion Notebook

Faith and Life

The Wonders of the Animal Kingdom

2011-08-23T07:35:00.000-07:00

The Kratt Brothers have invaded my house! If you're not familiar with them yet, they are two brothers who believe they are creature teachers. Truly, this show has opened up a floodgate of curiosity about animals with the kids. Why not learn more about the wonders of animals this year for science? As a spine we'll be using the Childcraft About Animals Book. This book is not dry as most encyclopedias tend to be, but instead is written in a conversational manner geared for kids. It is quite a gem in my own opinion. Along with the animals book, we'll round out our studies using other books to further our study. I've included a document that individually lists each book. And lastly, we'll create a simple notebook using various lapbook components from Homeschool Share.

North America

2011-08-23T07:02:00.000-07:00

Culture

Mexico Abc's

Look What Came From...

Folktales

The Old Man and His Door

Three Snow Bears

The Wild Reindeer

The Legend of the Paintbrush

Where the Buffaloes Begin

Long Night Moon

Legend of the White Buffalo Woman

Arrow to the Sun

Paddle to the Sea

Animal/Habitat

Polar Bears HSS Polar Animals Lapbook

History

More Than Moccasins

The Star People

The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses

Love Flute

A Picture Book of Sitting Bull

Knots on a Counting Rope

Three Little Indians

South America

2011-08-23T06:43:00.000-07:00

Culture

A Penpal for Max

Carnaval

On the Pampas

Folktales

Love and Roast Chicken

The Shaman's Apprentice

The Gold Coin

Animal/Habitat

The Great Kapok Tree

Homeschool Share Lapbook

A Walk in the Rainforest

Nature's Green Umbrella

The Umbrella

Slowly, Slowly, Said The Sloth

Over in the Rainforest

Jungle Drum

Austrailia

2011-08-23T06:22:00.000-07:00

Culture

Australian ABC's

Look What Came From...

Folktales

The Pumpkin Runner

Homeschool Share Lapbook

Katie No Pocket

The Biggest Frog in Australia

Animal/Habitat

Coral Reefs

Coral Reef Adventure DVD

Homeschool Share Lapbook

Animal/Habitat

Homeschool Share Lapbook

Second Grade Grammar

2011-08-22T15:15:00.000-07:00

How in the world do letters turn into words, words into sentences, and sentences into stories? This year we're going on a grammar adventure using a few different sources to guide us along the way.

Book Basket

The Words Book (Spine)

Language of God (supplement as needed)

Brian Cleary Books (fun series of books to extend our study)

Ruth Heller Books (another fun series of books to extend our study)

Various Montessori Activities

Google Document that organizes all sources.

Antarctica

2011-08-19T21:12:00.000-07:00

Animal/Habitat

Usborne Antarctica

Race to the South Pole

Where is Home Little Pip?

Mr. Popper's Penguins

How High is the Sky?

How Much is a Million?

March of the Penguins

Happy Feet

Penguins and Antarctica

Homeschool Share Lapbook

Europe

2011-08-17T08:19:00.000-07:00

Culture

Italy

Count through Italy

Look What Came From...

C is for Ciao

First Thousand Words in Italian

Ireland

S is for Shamrock

Germany

Germany ABC's

Folktales
Italy

The Thread of Life:12 Old Italian Tales

Legend of St. Christopher from Children's Book of Faith

Ireland

Jaimie O'Rourke and the Big Potato

Fair Brown Trembling

Prince of Ireland and the three Magic Stallions

Germany

Berloiz the Bear

Giants! Jim Weiss

History

Ancient Greece

Homeschool Share Lapbook

Diogenes

Hour of the Olympics

Kids in Ancient Greece

Run With Me Nike

Z is for Zeus

Life in Ancient Greece

History

Ancient Rome

Homeschool Share Lapbook

How Children Lived

Kids in Ancient Rome

See Inside Ancient Rome

G is for Gladiator

Life in Ancient Rome

Destination Asia

2011-08-16T08:34:00.000-07:00

Culture
Middle East
Snow in Jerusalem
Sitti's Secrets
Silent Music
Three Cups of Tea
China
Bringing in the New Year
My First Chinese New Year
Usborne China
India
Monsoon
Elephant Dance
My Mother's Sari
Japan
K is for Kabuki
Folktales
Middle East
One City Two Brothers
Tunjur Tunjur
The Enchanted Stork
The Persian Cinderella
China
Story About Ping
Round is Mooncake
The Emperor and the Kite
Daisy Comes Home
Yeh-Shen
India
One Grain of Rice
Anklet for a Princess
Once a Mouse
Japan
Grandfather's Journey
A Red Pair of Clogs
Animal/Habitat
DK Eyewitness Desert
Camels
The Camel's Lament
Homeschool Share Camel Lapbook
Pandas
Giant Pandas
Homeschool Share Panda Lapbook

Africa

2011-08-16T07:25:00.001-07:00

Culture
Kente Colors
Elizabeti's Doll
Galimoto
A Southern African Night
My Painted House, My Friendly Chicken, And Me
Shanti to Zulu
Lost My Tooth in Africa
Mama Panya's Pancakes
For You are a Kenyan Child
Bringing Rain to Kapiti Plain
Beatrice's Goat
Folktales
Beat the Drum Pum-Pum
Anansi the Spider
Zomo the Rabbit
Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears
Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters
Animal/Habitat
The Waterhole
Honey, Honey Lion
African Critters
We All Went on a Safari
Here is the African Safari
History
Usborne Egyptians
See Inside Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt Sightseers
Miss Frizzle's Adventure
Bill And Pete Go Down the Nile
We're Sailing Down the Nile
How the Sphinx Got to the Museum
Mummies, Pyramids, and Pharaohs
Pharaohs Foot Soldiers
The Scarab's Secret

Grab Your Passport

2011-08-16T07:05:00.000-07:00

Book Basket

P is for Passport

Somewhere in the World Right Now

All the Colors of the Earth

Whoever You Are

My House Has Stars

Digging Up History

Around the World

2011-08-16T06:22:00.000-07:00

This school year we will travel the world over and visit many places. Inspired by the gals from Serendipity, I've compiled booklists to help our world travels.

We will focus on one continent at a time. While visiting that continent we will learn about the culture, read folktales, learn about a certain habitat and/or animal, and lastly history will have a focus on ancient civilizations. We're off to grab our passports and pack our bags for an amazing year of exploration and travel.

Here is a Word Document that organizes all books used in this study.

Main Book Basket

A Child's Geography

Children Just Like Me

Animal Habitats

The Usborne Time Traveler

Wee Sing Around the World

Usborne Flag Sticker Book

Usborne Animal Sticker Atlas

Around the World Art and Activities

Animal Friends From Around the World

Around the World Coloring Book

Mary Around the World

It's a Chick Party!!!

2011-05-04T19:42:00.000-07:00

To celebrate the chicks going to their new home, a friend's micro farm, the kids decided to have a chick party to send the wee ones on their way.
On the Menu
No chicken!!! (Ha)
The kids enjoyed building their own chicks with various food items.
PB&J Chick Sandwiches
(We used potato bread for the yellow color)
Pineapple & Mandarin Orange Chicks
Lemonade garnished with orange slices
Trail mix served in chick cupcake holders
A simple chick cake

Before dropping the chicks off, the kids enjoyed playing with the chicks one last time.

And lastly, here is our chicks new home with a few dozen of their newest friends!

Pictures of Lent and Easter

2011-04-29T05:29:00.000-07:00

Our Jesus Tree Stations of the Cross

Resurrection Rolls

Easter Baskets and Sacrifice Beans

Annual Easter Egg Hunt

Coloring East Eggs

Happy Easter

2011-04-29T05:22:00.001-07:00

Robin's nest day #2

2011-04-28T20:40:00.000-07:00

As if life is not complicated enough with the chicks, we have this brave robin that decided to make a nest outside my bedroom window. I thinks she's become quite familiar with all our faces peering at her behind the glass.

Today's latest count

2011-04-28T20:25:00.000-07:00

Chick #7...Did you know brown chicks come out of brown eggs. The kiddos were so excited to see what color chick would finally emerge from the brown egg.
Chick #8...I'm amazed at how tired they are when they hatch. They sleep on and off, but within 24 hours are fluffy and playfully with one another. As seen by the brood below.

Now we incubated 12 eggs total. 8 hatched and seem to be thriving. The other four eggs are a bit questionable. One chick pipped through, but there has been no movement in a day and a half. The other three eggs appear to not even have a pip in them. We shall see what happens. My sister in-law read that it could take up to 25-26 days for some to hatch. I'm hoping this is the case.

First batch out of the incubator

2011-04-28T20:15:00.000-07:00

And into the brooder box.

We opted for a simple, see through brooder box so the kiddos could view them. We must have it up high on a counter top to keep our dog from getting too curious! The heat lamp is clamped to cabinets above the counter in our laundry/mudroom. The chicks seem to like their new home, but man they are messy buggers. I need to change the paper towels 4 times a day. Otherwise their feet and not to mention their fluffy down feathers would become encased in their excrement. Yucko!

Chick Number 6

2011-04-27T15:16:00.000-07:00

Right after number six was hatched, the oldest chick kept kicking him. It was as if he was saying, "Get up man! Stop being a wimp!"

And look what's on my window sill

2011-04-27T15:10:00.001-07:00

Yes, that would be a robin's nest. Now I need to research a robin's hatching process.

What we woke up to this morning!

2011-04-27T13:13:00.000-07:00

4 More Chicks Hatched Overnight!!!

First Chick is Out!

2011-04-26T19:17:00.000-07:00

What the kids were doing all day

2011-04-26T17:21:00.001-07:00

Birds chirping

2011-04-26T12:53:00.000-07:00

Listen closely, the birds are peeping.

Hatching Baby Chicks Unit Study

2011-04-26T09:03:00.000-07:00

There's much excitement going on in our household today. Not only are we in full swing of celebrating Easter, but our guests are starting to arrive. What guests are you wondering? Our chicks of course. Back during Ee week while reading about eggs, I signed us up for an embryology class to hatch our own little chicks. For the last 21 days we've taken care to rotate the eggs 3 times a day and make sure all the chicks were comfy and cozy. Here's a few of the happenings...

Our Book Basket

Our Sensory Bin
The kids enjoyed this thoroughly. And it's yet another use for those plastic Easter eggs. Inside some of the eggs were painted wooden eggs the kids place in the nest. Others contained fuzzy chicks. We even included some yummy yellow peeps (A huge favorite). And big boy thought it a good idea to put the toob animals that were oviparous inside some eggs. He even sequenced them in size order and made other various patterns.

Our Chick Countdown Calendar
For Big Boy it was a true test in patience. When we first picked up the eggs, he thought they would hatch immediately. To bypass the disappointment, we created a chick countdown calendar. Here and here are "egg"cellent sources for all kinds of printables.

21 Days ago

We placed the eggs in the incubator...

Welcome Sign

Princess' Welcome to the world sign for the chicks. Can you see how excited she looks?

Today...

The start of our chicks hatching!

More updates to follow...stay tuned!!!

Mm Week

2011-03-30T14:27:00.000-07:00

Mm Book Basket

When the Moon is Full

Papa, Please Get the Moon for Me

Kitten's First Full Moon

On the Moon

The Pied Piper of Peru

The Moon

Maple Syruping Tour

This is how people of the past used to heat the water to extract the maple out of the sap.

Tapping the trees.

Here's the "modern" way of extracting the maple out of the sap. It's a lot of hardwork, but oh so worth it!

Ll Week

2011-03-20T11:58:00.000-07:00

Ll is for Lighthouses

The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge

Keep the Lights Burning Abbie

The Lighthouse Cat

Beacons of Light: Lighthouses

Kk Week

2011-03-20T11:53:00.000-07:00

Kk is for Kingdom

Sorting the toob animals by kingdom

What is the Animal Kingdom?

Kk is for Kindness

The Kindness Quilt

Jj Week

2011-03-20T11:45:00.000-07:00

Jj is for Jungle

From homeschoolshare we used components to create a lapbook for The Great Kapok Tree.

We also made finger puppets for The Umbrella. The Umbrella

Jungle Drums

Over in the Jungle

Nature's Green Umbrella

The Great Kapok Tree

King Cake

2011-03-14T14:23:00.001-07:00

Feast of the Epiphany with a twist on the King Cake

First Lost Tooth!!!

2011-03-14T14:18:00.001-07:00

The bottom right side tooth has been hanging on for by a thread for a while now--especially since her big tooth started popping in behind it!

Gg Week

2011-03-14T13:39:00.001-07:00

Gg is For Saint George, God, Gardens and Geography

Gg Week Book Basket

Arctic Ocean to Zimbabwe

Me on the Map

Jack's Garden

Saint George and the Dragon

A Gift of Gracias

God Made Me

God

Gg is for Garden

Princess received this cute Fairy Garden Kit for Christmas and we thought it was perfect for Gg week. Last year we tried to grow various seeds, but they all turned out moldy and gross. I can still smell the nasty rotting seeds. This kit is so much fun and it does include some bean seeds, but mainly it contains grass seed. I'm still trying to locate the finished product picture, but the grass grew and it grew fast. Perfect for us!

Gg is for Gingerbread Baby
We read Gingerbread Baby and Gingerbread Friends
And made cute foam gingerbread foam friends.

Gg is for Geography
In addition to the geography books we read, we played with another Christmas present the kiddos received Leapfrog Tag Maps.

United States

World

Also, from here on out with the alphabet path books, we plan on pointing out where in the world the stories take place. If it should perk and interest, we may take a bit of a side lesson.

Ii Week

2011-02-27T13:19:00.000-08:00

Ii is for St. Ignatius, Insects, I'm Sorry

This week was kind of a slower type of week. We were all finally recovering from a nasty flu-ish type of virus that lasted several weeks.

Ii is for Insects

Book Basket
Ant Cities
The Life and Times of the Ant
Bugs Are Insects
I Saw an Ant on the Railroad Track
I Saw an Ant in a Parking Lot

Science and Nature

I just sent away for the larva to grow our own ladybugs! Here's the kit I bought a while back.
Insect Lore Ladybug Land

The weather is starting to warm up a bit--not much really, but we're hopeful. I purchased this

4 pc quality Bug Catcher set from amazon. The kiddos are very excited and have started to catch and observe spiders that are starting to pop up around the house.

Hh week

2011-01-24T14:52:00.000-08:00

H is for St. Helen

H is for Helpful

H is for Homes Homes Around The World ABC: An Alphabet Book (A+ Books)

H is for Little House

I found most of the My First Little House illustrated picture books for a steal at Goodwill. Princess has really taken a liking for Laura and all her adventures in the Big Woods and the Prairie. We supplemented using this lapbook from Lapbook Lessons.

And I'm personally proud of myself for incorporating food with the stories. We used My Little House Cookbook and had many Little House meals. Princess felt such a sense of accomplishment as she did most of the cooking.

Making homemade butter

Little House Menu

Cornbread

Turkey Sausage

Strawberry Jam

Fresh squeezed lemonade

Hh is for History

This week we introduced the concept of history. We will complete one lesson a week using Mary Daly's First timeline paired with some excellent read alouds. I hope to include our history journey in separate posts in the coming months. Seriously, is you are looking for a basic timeline history designed for kindergarten-second graders, this is the timeline. It even includes copy work for each person or event on the timeline.

Ee Week

2010-12-14T18:15:00.000-08:00

For whatever reason, I can not find any pictures from our Ee week we did many moons ago, but I wanted to include the list of books we read for Ee week. One theme for the week was about Eggs. In the springtime, through the local university, we will hatch chickens from eggs. I actually signed up for a course on embryology today. So, we will revisit this booklist in a few short months...
An Egg Is Quiet
Rechenka's Eggs
Green Eggs and Ham
An Extraordinary Egg
Chickens Aren't the Only Ones
First the Egg
Little Grunt and the Big Egg: A Prehistoric Fairy Tale

Books for Big Boy

Eli
The Little Engine That Could

Ee is for Endangered Animals
Gone Wild: An Endangered Animal Alphabet

I also found some interesting information regarding Blessed Kateri and Saint Francis regarding each being the patroness and patrons of ecology and the environment at this website.

Ee is for Eucharist
The Little Caterpillar That Finds Jesus: A Parable of the Eucharist

Ee is for Eat Nicely
How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food?

Saint Nicholas Day

2010-12-10T14:44:00.000-08:00

Happy St. Nicholas day. Good old St. Nick paid the kiddos a visit when Daddy arrived home from work. Daddy came home to find presents left on our front porch for each of the kids. Every year St. Nick brings each of them Christmas pajamas and a pair of slippers. This year St. Nick also wrote a letter to each of them. The kids are still sleeping with their notes from St. Nick.

In our book basket

Nicholas: The Boy Who Became Santa
The Miracle of Saint Nicholas

We made Saint Nicholas Hot Cocoa as gifts for teachers and neighbors and it is quite a delicious recipe. The kids got a kick out of crushing all the candy canes.

Feast of Saint Juan Diego

2010-12-10T14:35:00.000-08:00

Saint Juan Diego, Our Lady of Guadalupe, and Saint Juan Bernadino paper dolls.

Our book basket
Juan Diego: Messenger Of Guadalupe

The Lady of Guadalupe

Feast of the Immaculate Conception

2010-12-10T14:31:00.000-08:00

Explaining the Immaculate Conception coloring sheet.

The Immaculate Conception

All Aboard!!!

2010-12-07T12:06:00.000-08:00

"At one time most of my friends could hear the bell, but as years passed, it fell silent for all of them. Even Sarah found one Christmas that tshe could no longer hear its sweet sound. Though I've grown old, the bell still rings for me as it does for all who truly believe."

The Polar Express

Pumpkin Fun

2010-12-01T20:37:00.000-08:00

Happy Halloween

2010-12-01T20:33:00.000-08:00

Ff Week

2010-11-04T17:41:00.000-07:00

Ff is for Flowers

Learn about flowers craft--extremely easy craft to explain the structure of the flower.

In the book basket

Flower Garden
Wildflowers, Blooms & Blossoms
Miss Rumphius

The Boy Who Grew Flowers

Ff is for Feelings and Fire Safety

Both subjects worth a second go around this year. Here's the link to last year's lists.

Dd Week

2010-11-04T11:34:00.000-07:00

Dd is for Saint Dominic, Dinosaurs, Donuts, and Desert

We spent about two weeks savoring up Dd week. I have two Dinosaur fanatics. The two of them enjoy all things dinosaur.

Yummy, Yummy Donuts!!!

Dinosaurs, Dinosaurs
Barnum Brown: The Man Who Discovered...Tyrannosaurus Rex
Ten Terrible Dinosaurs
Dinosaur Roar
Bones, Bones, Dinosaur Bones
Edwina, The Dinosaur Who Didn't Know She Was Extinct
If the Dinosaurs Came Back
The Super Hungry Dinosaur
Where to Look for a Dinosaur
Fossils Tell of Long Ago
Digging Up Dinosaurs

How Do Dinosaurs...

See Inside the World of Dinosaurs
Usborne Dinosaur Stencil Book
The Dinosaur
First Picture Dinosaurs
Hide-and-Seek Dinosaurs

Creatures of the Desert World
Watching Desert Wildlife
A Desert ABC: An Alphabet Book

Melissa & Doug Dinosaurs 48 pcs Floor Puzzle
Melissa & Doug Deluxe Dinosaur in a Box Jigsaw Puzzles
Dinosaurs - Paint By Numbers

Scientific Explorer's My First Dinosaur Science Kit

Cc Week

2010-10-13T18:50:00.000-07:00

Cc is for Saint Cecilia, Compassion, Church, Corduroy, Curious, Chocolate, and Coral Reefs

Big Boy's copywork using Do-A-Dot ABC's, Numbers & Shapes

Cc is for Compassion
Princess' copywork and compassion color sheet.

Cc is for Church
After reading A Peek into My Church we took a tour of our chuch and drew what we see in our own church. We also read The Clown of God.

Cc is for Corduroy and Curious
Especially for Big Boy we read Corduroy and completed components from homeschoolshare's lapbook.

Cc is for Chocolate...Yummy!!!
Our Reading basket included...Mercedes and the Chocolate Pilot
How Is Chocolate Made?
Cocoa Ice
The M&M's Brand Counting Book
The M & M's Subtraction Book
And completed homeschoolshare's chocolate lapbook. Lastly, we baked chocolate chip cookies.

Cc is for Coral Reefs
Over in the Ocean: In a Coral Reef
Underwater Counting: Even Numbers
Old Shell, New Shell

Feast of Saint Francis

2010-10-12T22:28:00.000-07:00

We started the day by reading

The Song of Francis.
And created our own Saint Francis and the Doves book.

This idea came from

The Big Book of Catholic Customs and Traditions for Children's Faith Formation

And then we headed outside and made our own pinecone birdfeeders. The kids had so much fun as you can see from their faces!

The Month of the Rosary

2010-10-01T06:12:00.000-07:00

The dedication for this month is to the Most Holy Rosary. Many people do not understand the power of praying the rosary and asking Mama Mary's assistance in asking her son for help. Even as a craddle catholic, it was a strange concept to understand at first, but now these simple prayers linked together make one powerful prayer to heaven.

As some of you know my husband and I lived many years with the cross of infertility. Those years were especially difficult emotionally. I found great support online from a group of catholic women. In October 2003, the women banded together to start a 54 day novena rosary prayer. Both my husband and I prayed every evening for everyone's intentions on the list. The peace we both felt was a gift that only God could grant. As the novena concluded, many women became pregnant, adoptions went through, and many other countless prayers were answered. All in all, 15 babies were born from that miraculous novena...including Princess. Never forget the power of Our Mother. She is a powerful intercessor for all.

How we plan to celebrate

We are discussing one mystery in depth per day using Discovery the Rosary Mysteries.

Both Big Boy and Princess are using these cards.

And Princess is making her own rosary book using these coloring pages.

And lastly, each day we are praying the rosary. The kiddos seem to do much better with praying a decade a day.

Bb Week

2010-09-29T12:17:00.000-07:00

Bb is for Bible, Saint Bernadette, Birds, Blueberries, Backyard Habitat, and Baseball

For a gentle introduction to the bible we read this explanation of the Holy Father's intentions for the month of September. We created a bible notebook to be used for our annual Jesse Tree and Jesus Tree Bible Study. The Bible bookmarks can be found here as part of a massive lap book.
Big Boy read Blueberries for Sal and did his "copywork" from Do-A-Dot ABC's and Numbers. Below is a him working on his file folder activity.
Bird Book Basket
Make Way for Ducklings
The Birdwatchers
Bird House
Owl Moon
About Birds: A Guide for Children
Soaring with the Wind: The Bald Eagle

Backyard Habitats, Bears, and Beaks

Backyard HabitatsGreat introductory book to get us ready for nature studies in our own big backyard.

ZoobooksWe were gifted a years worth of issues from a kind neighbor. Thank you!

Your Big Backyard
We were gifted a subscription by Uncle Mike. Thank you!

Bb is for Birdhouses

Be a Blessing
Bb is for Baseball

We had a great time despite the 14 to 0 loss! And, no, Baby Bear is not the one taking the picture. Grandma watched her while we were at the game.

Triumph of the Holy Cross

2010-09-18T08:04:00.001-07:00

We adore thee, O Christ, we bless thee,
for by thy cross thou hast redeeemed the world.

After reading The Tale of Three Trees we made our hand Cross for the schoolroom.

Aa Week

2010-09-18T07:43:00.000-07:00

Aa is For Angels, Saint Anne, and Apples

Big Boy's work.
Do-A-Dot ABC's Book

Princess' copywork.

Virtue Alphabet Coloring Page

Angel dot to dot

The Children's Book of Heroes

This book is filled with wonderful stories that lend themselves naturally to narrations. I will be using stories from this book to supplement our journey down the alphabet path this year. For Aa week we read and narrated Angels and How the Animals Got Sunshine.

The Apple Doll
With apple dolls of our own. Directions are provided in the back of the book.

Apple Picking Time
Amazing Apples
Anna and the Letter A
Apples Here!
The Seasons of Arnold's Apple Tree

We also studied the life cycle of an apple tree using montessori for everyone's 3 part cards.

Angel in the Waters
3 in 1: A Picture of God
Pascual and the Kitchen Angels
After reading Pascual and the Kitchen Angels the kids decided to raid our pantry to donate food to the poor. Gotta love how quality literature inspires.
If the weather improves, we will try to head out to the Apple Orchard today for a field trip. One of the perks I love about homeschooling!

Sounds from Day Out with Thomas

2010-09-14T20:07:00.000-07:00

First Week of School

2010-09-14T13:51:00.000-07:00

First Day of Co-op

First Day Presents

One of the few presents
Binocular Gift Set – Rainforest Life

Welcome First Day Signs

Exploring the Schoolroom

Math-U-See Alpha

Explode the Code

How to Build an A

On the Reading Menu

K is for Kick: A Soccer Alphabet

The Boy and His Rock Collection

2010-09-14T13:18:00.000-07:00

Once there was a little boy, who loved all rocks. One day he came across a path that he could not resist all the pretty rocks. The boy desired all the rocks, but ran into one small problem...

This is why Mama has a one rock rule!!!

Day Out with Thomas

2010-09-14T13:10:00.000-07:00

PEEP! PEEP!

Hello! I'm Thomas!

Anyone of you who has a child obsessed with trains knows this saying all too well. It is a language spoken quite often in our household. When we heard Thomas was coming not too far from us, we decided to pack a lunch and visit the Island of Sodor...
Baby Bear even enjoyed her time at the Island of Sodor!

The kiddos enjoyed a tour of some old steam trains. They thought it was Tinman Sheds!

First Train Rides
...including the dolls.

the boys

And Baby Bear.

Enjoying the view.

Showing off their certificates.

Bye Bye Thomas!

Do you think we could use this as our family Christmas photo?

We ended the day by getting temporary Thomas tattoos.

American Girl

2010-09-13T20:41:00.000-07:00

What could be more fitting for a newly 6 year old then taking a trip to the American Girl Store? Of course purchasing a Just Like Me Doll! If you've haven't been to a store, the only way to describe it is overwhelmingly delightful. Princess, since she was 2 years old has been salivating over the American Girl magazines when they arrive in the mail. Imagine if you can, all the stuff in the magazines all on display and then some. Add to it glitzy, jewelery store lights and you have every little girl's dream shopping experience. Here are the three choices the employee picked out to look just like Princess. As you can tell in the following picture, she was not too happy about it. Though, to Princess' credit, she was gracious about it. To be honest with you, none of those dolls looked like her at all. And Princess did not want to even take the doll out of the box. This is when I knew we had to find one that worked for her.
We walked over to the otherside of the store and found another one that did have the correct hair and eye color. To which someone was very excited.
Here's the two of them posing together in front of the Lanie display.
Look who's tuckered out after a long day shopping...

2010-2011 School Plans

2010-09-10T12:11:00.000-07:00

This year will be filled with a year of focusing on the basics of reading, writing, math, and religion.

For phonics instruction we'll continue using Explode the code workbooks with Little Stories for Little Folks. Princess enjoys this very much.

For writing we'll continue with Handwriting Without Tears and copywork. I didn't make a ton of prewritten copywork sheets, because I would like Princess to advace from copying the dots to actual copying of the words and eventually sentences. Hopefully over the year she'll feel comfortable with writing more and more.

For Math we're trying Math U See Alpha. I hope the manipulative based program will be enjoyed by all.

For Religion we'll continue with our Liturgical Year plans. Twice a week, we'll work on My First Catechism and read the coordinating stories from Angel Food For Boys and Girls using this chart.

After much thought I decided to have Princess with Big Boy tagging along walk the Alphabet Path again. For Princess we'll beef it up with narrations and focus on animals and their habitats this year. I will keep track of our weeks under the Alphabet Path tab. When we get to Hh week I'll introduce our history study. For first grade we'll be using Mary Daly's First Timeline coordinated each week with various picture books from this list. We'll cover one historical figure each week. I figure it will probably spill over into next year to finish it up.

Daybook August 16th, 2010

2010-08-16T07:56:00.000-07:00

Outside my window...Finally lower humidity levels. It was like the tropics here for a while. It was so hot and humid the mosquitoes are in full season. It is so out of control we really can't go in the backyard. I think next year we may start school at the beginning of August and take a month off in the fall.

The other sound outside are cicadas. It is so loud at night that Big Boy said, "I can't sleep with all the crocodiles outside." I guess crocodile is easier to say than cicadas.

I am thankful for Good health. For six weeks this summer we passed pink eye around to each other. It put a damper on a lot of plans, but finally I was able to gain control over it. I gave the perscription drops to the one who had a current eye infection and the rest of us took saline eye drops and saline nose drops 3 times a day for a week. I had to come up with creative ways to get them in the kiddos eyes. I hope not to go down this path again. Princess on the other hand was so excited about the prospect of having pink eyes she excalaimed, "Mommy can I keep my pink eyes forever and ever?" Ummm...No.

Currently we're reading...Many things from our own personal library. Our library's elevator has been out of order all summer and makes trips to the library difficult. On one hand it's been a blessing as we are reaquainting ourselves with some old "friends" we haven't seen in a while. On the other hand as school is approaching, I do hope they get the elevator fixed. Princess also had a huge explosion with reading this summer. She's been reading chapter books to the others. So much fun!

I am wearing...Shorts and a tanktop. I realized as the summer started heating up I did not have much clothes in my summer wardrobe. (Last year I was post partum and the year before that they were showing all those maternity looking styles). I was able to get out and get a few shirts...the downfall is that they do need to be ironed or they look crumply. Oh well...

From the kitchen...Not much from the oven. It's been way too hot. We've utilized the grill a lot. We even grill the veggies on there.

One of Big Boy's favorites are Summer Egg Boats. (Basically, deviled eggs). However, if I called them what they really are, I suspect he wouldn't touch them!

Our tomatoes are starting to ripen so I expect BLT's this week.

This summer, I've realized that wheat and me do not make good friends. I've been wheat free for two weeks and feel much better. If I had a scale, I'd even venture to say that I've lost weight too.

From the schoolroom...Lot's of unopened packages. I finalized what we're doing this upcoming shcool year and am expecting a few more packages soon. I'll update when I have it all together.

I am creating...A peace filled home. This summer was filled with way too much running around between Vacation Bible School and Summer Camp. All of which sounded great in February, but when put into action, fried all of us. I'm hoping to strike a balance with outside activities this fall. We'll see how that shapes up.

What's new with Baby Bear...TEEETH!!! And lots of them. She turned one and still had not a one and then all of a sudden, they are popping out like crazy. She's had a lot of crankiness lately, but who wouldn't when cutting 4 teeth at once?

A picture worth sharing...Actually, it's a video of Baby Bear scooting. Way too precious in this mother's opinion!

Happy 6th Birthday Princess!!!

2010-08-13T11:47:00.001-07:00

When I was One,
I had just begun.

When I was Two,
I was nearly new.

When I was Three,
I was hardly Me.

When I was Four,
I was not much more.

When I was Five,
I was just alive.

But now I am Six, I'm as clever as clever.
So I think I'll be six now for ever and ever.

Alan Alexander Milne

Pure Joy

2010-08-12T11:13:00.000-07:00

Baby Bear turned one!!!

2010-08-11T18:02:00.000-07:00

The Very Hungry Caterpillar happens to be Baby Bear's favorite story at the moment. Princess and Big Boy enjoy reading the story to her over and over again. Princess thought it would be a good idea to have a Very Hungry Caterpillar themed party for Baby Bear. And thus the plans for this party began. There's quite a bit of ideas out there on the wide world web. Here's a few ideas princess liked and helped with...I think she may have a future as a party planner! LOL!!!

The caterpillar invitations read...

We can hardly believe a year has flown by.
Our caterpillar has turned into a beautiful butterfly.
Come join us for some food and fun.
Baby bear is turning one!

The food--how I wish I had pictures--was easy to come up with. We served most of the food the hungry caterpillar ate through in the book. Which minus all the sweets was fairly healthy.

Decorations were all cut by Princess. She picked it out from here, printed and cut it all out on her own. What a helper!

Included in the goodie bags was a box of crayons, notepad, fruit snacks, and this caterpillar to butterfly craft.

The cake was so much fun to make. Princess, Big Boy, and even Baby Bear helped.

Happy 1st Birthday Baby Bear!!! May God's Blessings Be Upon You!!!

Scooter

2010-08-11T17:31:00.000-07:00

Here's our little scooter...

May 10, 2010 Daybook

2010-05-10T15:40:00.000-07:00

Outside My Window...Sun and warmth. Well, 60 degrees to be exact, but I'll take it. Usually it's rainy and cold this time of the year with only a few warmer sunny days.

I am thankful for...My children. As we recently celebrated Mother's Day, it reminds me of the many years DH and I waited anxiously for our arms to be filled with babies. Even three kids later, the pain of infertility is still fresh and I pray for all women experiencing this cross.

Currently we're reading...about Dinosaurs. An especially cute book is How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight by Jane Yolen. Big Boy has been having issues with going to sleep at night and this book has helped him indirectly to go to bed the first time.

I am wearing...jeans and a short sleeved shirt. Again, so happy to shed the fleeces of winter.

From the kitchen...I'm trying to get a good working schedule of meal planning. This is so hard for me as I really do hate cooking. My mil says people view food two different ways--either people live to eat or people eat to live. We fall into the second category in this house thus my lack of motivation to try anything new.

From the schoolroom...It is just about organized. Yippee! And speaking of organization, I just figured out how to add tabs or pages to this blog. I'm organizing my posts in all one place. I just finished the Alphabet Path tab and realized I need to publish several weeks worth of work.

I am creating...lesson plans for next year. I hope to finalize certain curriculum choices soon and get the information up on the appropriate tabs on this blog.

What's new with Baby Bear...Still no crawling, but she has perfected the sit and scoot. She flaps her arms like a bird to move faster. It is the cutest thing to see. If I can figure out how to load a video to this blog, I will have to share. This past week she's signing more. I like that she can communicate when she wants more of something to me.

A picture worth sharing...
How BIG is Baby Bear????

Soooooo BIG!!!!

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-05-10T09:39:00.000-07:00

For sometime I've been planning in my head a Mary Garden. However, I was having trouble finding one of the key components to the garden--A Mary statue--Until yesterday when DH and the kiddos got me this for mother's day....

Mama Mary, mother to us all, pray for us...

The Windy Day

2010-05-03T14:08:00.000-07:00

One windy day, we decided to fly a kite...

Big Boy was such a good helper...helping to throw it in the air and encouraging daddy along the way.

No matter how fast he'd run...

the plane went up and flew just as fast back down.

Instead of calling the whole day a wash, we decided to go to the park.

May 3rd, 2010 Daybook

2010-05-03T13:07:00.000-07:00

Outside my window...Sun, sun, and more sun. The kids are enjoying this weather so much. In retrospect, I think it's been a long winter in more ways then I could even begin to write.

I am thankful for...Laundry. Crazy, eh? My husband was out of town last week and the laundry was much less. I'm glad to have him back home safe and sound--even if it means more laundry!

I am wearing...jeans and a short sleeved shirt. So happy to shed the excess baggage of winter clothes!

Currently we're reading...Anything and everything DINOSAURS. Princess and Big Boy will be taking a Digging for Dino's class offered at the local museum next week. Both are excited.

From the kitchen...Lots of different types of salads. With the warm weather, we're trading the meat and potatoes mode of winter in for a lighter, seasonal meals.

Around the schoolroom...Still trying to organize in there. It's not that I don't have the ability to organize, it's stringing together the time.

I am creating...plans for a new garden. It will be our official Mary Garden. It will be a fairly large sized plot that will encompass our side yard. From there I'll be able to see the garden from my kitchen window.

What's new with Baby Bear...She's 10 months old! She's eating small cut up pieces of food. She is an expert at gumming up her food. Still no teeth in sight, too. Mobility is just around the corner for her, too. She can get in a crawling stance, but is still content with the sit and scoot method. I'm always amazed at how fast time is going. I'm proud of myself that I refuse to let the first year of her life go by in a blink.

A picture worth sharing...

Easter Table

2010-05-02T11:02:00.000-07:00

Our Easter Table 2010

I like to get the kiddos either Tulips or Daffodils for the Easter Table. After the bulbs are spent we plant them in the backyard to enjoy the following Spring.

Our Sacrifice Beans turned into Jelly Beans.

Princess's Easter basket with something more then yummy goodies.

Big Boy's Basket, if you couldn't guess!

And Baby Bear's basket.

Coloring Easter Eggs

2010-05-02T10:48:00.000-07:00

Resurrection Rolls

2010-05-02T10:34:00.000-07:00

I've always wanted to do something like this with the kiddos, but due to milk protein allergies, I could not find a dairy free recipe that would work. However, due to Princess and Big Boy growing out of this allergy we can use the Crescent Rolls without a problem. I was excited to see Catholic Cuisine had a simple recipe for the Resurrection Rolls. I copied it here so I would have it for future reference. The kids really enjoyed it.

What you will need:

1 package Crescent Rolls, divided into triangles

Butter, melted

8 large Marshmallows

Cinnamon/Sugar mixture

8 squares of foil (with child's name written on it if desired), sprayed with cooking spray

Cookie Sheet

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Give each child a triangle of crescent rolls. The crescent roll represents the cloth that Jesus was wrapped in.

Give each child a marshmallow. This represents Jesus.

Have the child dip the marshmallow in melted butter. This represents the oils of embalming.

Next, have the child dip the buttered marshmallow in the cinnamon and sugar. This represents the spices used to anoint the body.

Demonstrate how to wrap up the coated marshmallow tightly in the crescent roll (not like a typical crescent roll up...but bring the sides up and seal the marshmallow inside). This represents the wrapping of Jesus' body after His death. (Optional: Have each child work on a square of foil with their name written in permanent marker on the foil to easily identify after baking.)

Place on a cookie sheet and bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes. The oven represents the tomb--pretend that it has been three days!

While waiting for the rolls to bake, use Resurrection Eggs or a child's Picture Bible and tell the story of Christ's Passion and Resurrection.

When the rolls have cooled slightly, the children can open their rolls (cloth) and discover that Jesus is no longer there, HE IS RISEN!

The rolls will be hollow because the marshmallow melted. While the children enjoy the rolls, explain that knowing Jesus is alive and He loves us feels so good, like the rolls taste good and sweet.

May Crowining

2010-05-01T19:07:00.000-07:00

At church the Princess participated in the May Crowning. She sang her heart out and recited the Hail Mary. Here's a few pictures...and yes, that is Big Boy playing on the floor with a train.

Spring 2010

2010-05-01T18:53:00.000-07:00

The First Signs of Spring

2010-05-01T18:46:00.000-07:00

Daybook

2010-04-26T13:00:00.000-07:00

Outside My Window...It is sunny and 60 degrees. This has been one of the most mild and pleasant springs in a long time. We are soaking the warmth in. It's been a dark cold winter.

I am thankful for...my family, husband and children--even when things get a bit crazy around here.

I am wearing...jeans, tank and fleece.

I am creating...the rest of the peg doll saints for the Alphabet of Catholic Saints book. I left off on N and Princess wants them all.

On my mind...Lessons for next year. I'm prayerfully discerning what to do for next year. There's so much out there and it's a matter of keeping it simple. One definite is to start the Continents and Cultures over at Serendipity.

From the kitchen...Menu plans. I feel like we've been in survival mode for a while now and need to get a handle on menu planning again.

Around the Schoolroom...So excited to say that we've decided to turn the dinning room into a schoolroom. Just been busy organizing everything. Hope to get a post soon. We're continuing our journey down the lovely Alphabet Path and am on Tt week. Big boy is joining in as well.

A picture worth sharing... Ackkk...I'm still figuring out this whole new computer. I'm such a techno-phobe and I can't find the picture I want. Maybe I'll figure it out later.

What's New with Baby Bear...She's now 9 months old. Eating Cheerios and about a jar of baby food a day. She's not crawling yet, but is mobile. She sits and scoots on her bottom. Now if I could figure out a way to tape a swifter wipe to her bottom, my floors would be spotless.

Vacation Pictures

2010-03-12T07:07:00.000-08:00

During Hh week...the few weeks it lasted due to illness...it was suggested we plan for a vacation to get away. I was happy to imagine a happier and healthier time could be in our future so the idea of a family vacation began to sprout. We decided to go to Wilderness Territory in Wisconsin Dells. The time was wonderful we got to spend as a family and the memories will be cherished. This is a picture of the outdoor waterpark. Great weather, huh? Inside, however, was a warm 88 degrees and we could care less about what it was like outside!

The older kiddos did try some of the larger waterslides, but enjoyed hanging out at the kiddie waterparks. Big boy also liked riding the lazy river with Mommy and Baby Bear. Princess did not like the lazy river one bit and avoided it as much as she could.

One night we decided to try mini-golfing. Did I mention this resort has everything and one would not need to leave for anything? All the kids had a blast--even Baby Bear!

The red slide was by far the olders favorite slide in the whole place. I can't tell you how many times they went down this slide.

Along the Alphabet Path Kk

2010-02-25T19:24:00.000-08:00

Kk is for King Cup Fairy, Blessed Kateri, Kisses, and Katy and the Big Snow

This week we read Katy and the Big Snow (Vol 2) and completed this lapbook. And to go along with the lapbook I ordered up some snow...lots of it as a matter of fact! The kids were over the moon about all of the snow and wanted to get to the swingset.

However, they had to dig a path just like Katy in Katy and the Big Snow.

After Mommy shoveled the rest of the way, all faces were swinging happily. Perhaps this picture story should be called Mommy and the Big Snow!

We also made lots of Kiss Kritters to handout at co-op for St. Valentines Day.

Jesus Tree

2010-02-19T13:35:00.000-08:00

I have had this kit since Princess was a baby. I made all the pieces her first Easter and now the kiddos are old enough to understand it. I'm so excited to finally use it. After reading the bible story and putting the ornament on our tree, Jessica over at Shower of Roses has included a link for coloring pages for each day. Here's week 1, week 2, week 3, week 4, week 5. While coloring I ask the kiddos to retell the story. I'm taking the narrations and will compile a Lenten notebook for Princess and Big Boy.

Lenten Poster

2010-02-19T13:29:00.000-08:00

We've never done a Lenten Calander as a family. I found several great ideas and incorporated them into our Lenten Poster. This is our guide and checklist as well :)

Lenten Calendar explanation

From Catholic Icing I used a free printable lenten countdown calendar

I could not resist incorporating this somehow in our lenten journey after seeing this original post about it.I included a lamb and after completing their pennance, they glue a cotton ball.

Lenten Plans 2010

2010-02-17T09:07:00.000-08:00

God So Loved the World, He Gave His Only Son

After stockings were opened Christmas morning we headed to church for Christmas day mass. This was an oddity, because we usually go to mass on Christmas Eve. However, due to circumstances beyond our control, we attended morning mass. Princess and Big Boy were excited the creche at the back of church now included the baby Jesus. All through mass both kept reminding us they needed to visit baby Jesus. The mass ended and everyone hustled out quickly to their celebrations. We made our way to the front of the creche. Princess sweetly sang baby Jesus Happy Birthday. I delighted at her pure and innocent voice singing out of love for the babe in swaddling clothes. My eyes slowly made their way to the altar and eventually looked up at the crucifix. I noticed light on the face of Jesus. We've attended mass at this church for 12 years and never had seen the face of Jesus illuminated. My husband and I stood awe struck at the beauty of this simple moment--a child's sweet voice singing lovingly to baby Jesus and the beauty of Christ's face illuminated while hanging on the cross. Peace filled my heart and at that moment it connected Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter. During both Advent and Lent we wait in anticipation of our savior, Jesus. These two times of the liturgical year should not be seen as two seperate events, but instead as one intertwined, unseperated focus of God's love for us. We as Christians enter into the 40 days of Lent today. May we remember the Love God gave us poor sinners through His son, Jesus Christ. Daily meditations to read during lent.

________________________________________________

Our Lenten Plans

To keep our focus on Lent we will use our Lenten Poster.

For our Bible Study, we will use our Jesus Tree.

On Fridays during lent we will read Benjamin's Box: The Story of the Resurrection Eggsand use the Resurrection Eggs

For Holy Week, we will transform our Lenten Table to our Easter Table.

Palm Sunday
Holy Thursday...Feet Washing and Praying Hands
Good Friday
Holy Saturday
Easter

As for me, I'm decluttering and cleaning both my house and heart this lent. Using the 40 bag challenge and deep cleaning list, I hope to make my home environment a bit more conducive to prayer life.

Our Lady of Lourdes

2010-02-11T09:35:00.000-08:00

In 1858, in the grotto of Massabielle, near Lourdes in southern France, Our Lady appeared 18 times to Bernadette Soubirous, a young peasant girl.

She revealed herself as the Immaculate Conception, asked that a chapel be built on the site of the vision, and told the girl to drink from a fountain in the grotto.

No fountain was to be seen, but when Bernadette dug at a spot designated by the apparition, a spring began to flow. The water from this still flowing spring has shown remarkable healing power, though it contains no curative property that science can identify.

Lourdes has become the most famous modern shrine of Our Lady.

For the Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes the kiddos watched Bernadette The Princess Of Lourdes and made these lovely grottos using this coloring page.

First Feedings...

2010-02-09T12:26:00.000-08:00

At first Baby Bear did not really understand why the spoon was in her mouth.

However, she caught on quickly and really enjoyed the cereal.

Princess even wanted in on the fun.

Holy Heroes Lenten Adventure

2010-02-07T11:50:00.000-08:00

My kiddos are still talking about our Holy Heroes Advent Adventure and can't wait for the Lenten Adventure to begin. If you would like to join here's the link. Here's what you can expect on your adventure...

We invite you and your friends to join us for Holy Heroes Lenten Adventure - last year's was a lot of fun and this year's will be even better!

It's free (costs you nothing!) and easy for your Mom and Dad, because all they need to do is:

•Open our emails three times a week, then

•Click and watch... a short video of children teaching children,

•Click and listen... to children leading and explaining prayers,

•Click and print... fun activities for all ages,

•Click and answer... quiz questions to see how much you've learned.

40 Bag Challenge

2010-02-07T10:11:00.000-08:00

Jessica over at Shower of Roses is doing a 40 Bag Challenge for Lent and invited others to join her. This year I decided to join on in.

Here's the details taken from the original handout on vocations and family faith formation from the Archdiocese of Cincinnati :

Every day during Lent this year, empty one bag of 'stuff' that is no longer needed from your house, totaling a loss of forty bags of stuff!

1.) Taking a look at the size of your family and household, with an acknowledgement of how much 'stuff' is present, make a prudential choice on the size of bag to be employed during this challenge. Bag size should be small enough that the goal of 40 bags during the season of Lent is able to be accomplished, while not being too big that you are left with nothing. We must still live in the world, after all!

2.) If smaller children are a part of your family, a 'gauge' may be helpful to keep them engaged and help them keep track of progress. As part of your preparations, make a 'paper chain' of forty numbered links. As each new bag is started, place a new link in the bottom of the bag. This way, as the chain gets smaller, there is a greater sense of accomplishment.

3.) This challenge necessarily involves sacrifice. Each member of the family should be encouraged to give something to each bag, or there could be designated bags for each member of the family.

4.) Instead of just throwing things away, recycling is a great way to encourage good stewardship of the gifts we have been given, as it symbolizes that we are passing along our gifts to others. Families with children are encouraged to pass along clothes that no longer fit or toys that sit dormant in a closet to families in need instead of just throwing them away.

5.) Units of count need not necessarily be trash bags, either; however they should be equivalent. For example, a box of gently used toys or clothes could equate one bag off the chain. A stack of books donated to the parish library is another easy equivalent.

As the family accepts this challenge together, bonds will be created that will last a lifetime. Lessons are also learned not just by saying, but by putting it into practice. Here, the simple lesson will last throughout life that having fewer things can lead to a greater contentment in life.

I think I will use grocery bags for this one as I don't have a very large house and I have way too many of them. During Hh week I also got rid of 5 bags worth of stuff in order to transform our rarely used dinning room into our schoolroom. I will count those as well. To keep me accountable I will keep track of the total bags on my sidebar. Care to join in?

They're Playing Our Song

2010-02-05T17:00:00.000-08:00

Erin over at Growing With My Girls recently shared what her and her husband's song was and the story surrounding it in the post They're Playing Our Song. She invited others to share what their song is. I was going to comment, but the story behind "Our" song is something worth saving on my blog as I've never committed it to writing and it's quite humorous at that...

Up until our wedding day in July of 1998 when asked the question, "So what's your song?" The answer would've been Good Things by the Bodeans. This is what my husband and I were to dance to for the traditional first dance. A little quirky I know, but we had seen them in concert so much and loved this song.

However, DJ Tony, screwed up big time and played this song...

You all laughing? I know we were when it happened. This was several before BEFORE the Wedding Singer came out, but when that Adam Sandler movie came out, well everyone thought we must have had Adam Sandler at our wedding for him to get the idea...

So after our wedding day, when asked what "Our" Song is, we smile and tell them, "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?"

Jj week

2010-02-05T13:33:00.000-08:00

Jj is for Saint Joseph,

Jasmine,Jewelry, Jam! We made Jewelry! This was a kit from Oriental Trading I had sitting around for a while. They are Guardian Angel necklaces. If we had more time we would've made some jewelry using this idea from Catholic Icing. And what's the point of having all this wonderful new jewelry without a place to put it? Princess' Auntie gave her this do it yourself jewelry box set for Christmas and it seemed like the perfect time to work on it don't you think?

Jj week was a busy week for us. We read the The Giant Jam Sandwich and completed the corresponding lapbook and activities at homeschoolshare.com.

We also made homemade jam and we baked our own bread using the recipe provided at homeschoolshare. For lunch we had many jam sandwiches.

Feast of St. Brigid

2010-02-01T19:14:00.000-08:00

Young Sister Brigid and seven other women lived together in a convent. They worked hard, raising cows and chickens, planting and harvesting fruit trees and gardens. With these, they prepared food and fed all the hungry people who came to them.

One day, many hungry people had come to the convent. All the eggs were scrambled; the butter had been used up on the bread, which was gone, too. Not a pear remained in the bowls. Not a drop of milk remained in the pitchers.

Then before the good sisters had time to relax, word came that they were to receive more visitors--seven bishops!

The sisters were very upset. "What can we do? There is no food left in the house to serve them!" one of the women wailed.

Of course, there were no supermarkets or restaurants, either.

Brigid smiled. "I think God will provide this meal," she said. "Go ask the hens if they might be so kind as to give us more eggs. Then talk with the cows. Perhaps they will give us a bit more milk. Oh, and go ask the fruit trees to ripen some fruit."

As the other sisters left the room, Brigid stirred up the fire of the oven. Then she opened the oven door and smiled again. There were two loaves of hot, golden brown bread!

Soon the others returned. One carried a pitcher filled with fresh milk. Another carried a basket filled with hens' eggs. Two others held their aprons out, which were filled with pears.

"Time to cook!" Brigid said cheerfully. "God has blessed us again!"

Story from The Big Book of Catholic Customs
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To celebrate the feast day of Saint Brigid we colored lovely pictures from waltzing maltilda and had to have brunch for dinner. The kiddos loved it. I think brunch is their all time favorite meal and to have it for dinner during the week was beyond a treat for them.

Salt Dough Letters and Numbers

2010-01-30T18:21:00.000-08:00

We made salt dough using this easy recipe. It was so easy to make and wonderful to work with. I did decrease the water a touch and added a teaspoon of vanilla. The dough smelled delicious. The kids are very impressed with the way they turned out, too!

These are the aprons the kids made before Christmas. We sliced an apple in half and stamped the star shape in the middle.

I will admit this project took quite a few days to complete. The mess was quite a bit and it had a lot to do with the fact we were dealing with the in flow of Christmas presents.

However, the kiddos smiles were well worth the few days of mess. It was a good way to ease back into the school routine again. I will need to make note of that for next year.

Ii week

2010-01-30T12:08:00.000-08:00

Ii is for Saint Ignatius and Blessed Imelda

We listened to the Glory Stories Blessed Imelda. Now that I moved all of our school stuff in one room---our schoolroom---I am able to find lots of supplemental materials that were once tucked away. I can't tell you how happy I am about having all our school stuff in one place!!!
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Ii is for I'm Sorry

As a springboard using the wonderful alphabet virtue coloring sheets from Pondered In My Heart, we did a lesson on forgiveness. The first picture are Princess' puppets for the story of the Prodigal Son. Next we read stories about forgiveness in Devotional Stories for Little Folks. I would like to incorporate a virtue study using both the coloring sheets and Devotional Stoires for Little Folks. In the back of the book is a topical index to indicate which stories would work well with a particular virtue.
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Ii is for Insects

We did a mini unit on insects for Ii week and created a notebook for Insects. Currently it is 20 degrees outside so not too many bugs to go outside and see, however, come the spring I'm sure we'll fill the notebook and then some!

Roe v Wade Anniversary

2010-01-22T13:32:00.000-08:00

A Person's a Person No Matter How Small!

Today with the kiddos, we read Horton Hears A Who and made A Person's a Person No Matter How Small project at Catholic Icing, donated baby items to our local crisis pregnancy center, and prayed for an end to abortion...

A Pro-Life Prayer For Our President And Public Officials

Lord God, Author of Life and Source of Eternal Life, Move the hearts of all our public officials and especially our President, to fulfill their responsibilities worthily and well to all those entrusted to their care.

Help them in their special leadership roles, to extend the mantle of protection to the most vulnerable, especially the defenseless unborn, whose lives are threatened with extermination by an indifferent society.

Guide all public officials by your wisdom and grace to cease supporting any law that fails to protect the fundamental good that is human life itself, which is a gift from God and parents. You are the Protector and Defender of the lives of the innocent unborn. Change the hearts of those who compromise the call to protect and defend life. Bring our nation to the values that have made us a great nation, a society that upholds the values of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all. Mary, the Mother of the living, help us to bear witness to the Gospel of Life with our lives and our laws, through Christ, Our Lord.

Amen.

Imprimatur:

January 22, 2009

Most Reverend Robert J. Baker

Bishop of Birmingham in Alabama

Along the Alphabet Path Hh

2010-01-20T16:28:00.000-08:00

Hh is for Health, Saint Helen, Home, and Honeybees!

The kids recieved a Color Me House for their birthdays from their Auntie. What a perfect week to pull it out and continue coloring and decorating.

These pictures are from a rainy summer day. My camera seems to have lost my Hh week pictures :(

Along with Hh week we learned about honeybees. We lapbooked about honeybees using this lapbook from homeschoolshare.com.

About midway through the week, one by one we began to succumb to one nasty virus bug. Princess broke out in hives...really bad ones, too. We aren't sure if it was a virus or if another allergy is rearing it's ugly head. She'll be tested in a few weeks at the allergist. Big Boy was next with a double ear infection. Poor guy! And then Baby Bear had not only an ear infection, but also developed the croup. Very scarry to say the least. We spent lots of time in a hot steamy bathroom several times a day for about a week. My skin never felt better in January and if I closed my eyes and had sand between my toes, I could imagine myself at a warm beach somewhere other then here.

Originally, I wanted to ease back into school and work on Hh week for two weeks. It has now turned into three. Now that we're on the back end of this virus bug, I'm getting into home reorganization. We went through Princess' room and rearranged a few things. It was great to be able to work with her to show her the process of how to organize things. As for my not so small project, I'm turning our dinning room into a schoolroom. I want to post about this later.