Crazy Hair, Or Just Crazy?

My hair already has a natural wave to it. Add in this damp, dreary weather and you've got something borderline scary! We've had about 2-2.5 sunny days in what feels like forever. Yesterday, Nana and I took the boys to the playground to run off some energy and have fun before the rain came again last night. We were there for two hours! Gump came by after work. The boys had a blast! Big Boy's favorite thing was to climb up in the tunnel to go down the slide. Little Boy's favorite was the gravel pit and trucks (....as if he didn't have that at home....?) Anyway, it was great and we all had fun!
     Yesterday I also made pumpkin doughnuts. I ran out of Bakewell cream, but the recipe already had baking powder and baking soda in it. So I increased the amount of each a little and went with it. (You mean to tell me that people actually check for ingredients before mixing up their goodies? Pfft. No sense of adventure!) They are good, especially with coffee, but just not quite the same without the good ol' Bakewell cream.  Besides keeping the little people alive, today's goals are to finish all the laundry and maybe scrub the kitchen floor (the good ol' fashioned way-bucket+rag+old cloth diapers). Along with all the usual cooking and dishes and diapers and squabble solving and reading of the same stories over and over and all things related. We'll see how far we get!
      I would imagine Darlin is getting tired by now, being up from 3am to 8/9pm and driving all that way to work and back. I'm glad he rides with a work buddy of his to take turns driving and keep him awake-I worry about him falling asleep while driving. I don't also have to drive, and I'm sure tired by the end of the day!  Why is it that from 4-7 in the morning the time flies right by, but then from 7-nap time it drags on? LOL. Well friends, keep on the sunny side of life and stay dry today!

~Drinking Heavy-And A Surprise reveal~

Keenan, Big Boy and Little Boy got into the good stuff this past Saturday! Auntie Kaelie left her cans by the front door and they had so much fun pretending to drink Mountain Dew!

All dressed up for Easter Sunday! Someone didn't want his picture taken...

 And the surprise is.... I asked my Grandmother to label my spice jars for me! I think it is so awesome to have part of her in my kitchen! She encouraged me on baking homemade bread, and I was able to make my first loaf at 9 years old! If I have any cooking questions, I will usually call her. She tells me what she has tried and found to work, and what doesn't. I didn't come up with this idea of the old style canning jars,masking tape labels, or even having my Grandmother write on them! I got the idea from Alejandra Costello (you can find her on YouTube.com her channel is HomeOrganizing) and there is a link to her website on the left sidebar on my blog. I owe her thanks for this treasure I now have in my kitchen!

 Had the wood cook stove going,so I thought I'd throw in some potatoes for breakfast hash.

 I could hear some birds singing early this morning, but was puzzled as to why they weren't at the feeder. Then, as I sat down with a cup of coffee, I saw this little guy sitting in the ash tree outside my kitchen! Not exactly sure what kind he is, but he is some sort of hawk. He isn't very big either. He sure is pretty though.

The boys were up at 5:30 this morning. Ugh! They will be ready for an early nap today! 

Here I am, thinking about my garden, chomping at the bit to get to plantin', and it snowed last night! Oh well. Have a great day! 

~A New Spring~

Slowly, we have been watching the snow disappear more and more from the fields through our bedroom window.
     All around it seems as though Spring were holding its breath, waiting for Winter to be truly over. Ever so slowly, nature is creeping to life once more. Each day the sun grows a little warmer, touching the cold Earth with its life-giving rays of hope. Seeds, holding the promise of new life, wait patiently below the frigid soil for the day when they can stretch out in flashes of pale green after months of waiting.
     The song birds are returning once more, bringing with them their sweet melodies, filling the fresh, Spring air with songs of praise. A thick blanket of fog spills gracefully down the mountain and settles into the valley below.
     The arrival of a new Spring will soon be complete. I will know it has arrived as I lay on my bed at night. It will be that first night, when the cool, still, night air carries on it the chirping sound of pond peepers to my bedroom window as I drift off to sleep.

~Let's Talk~

There is a trait in the human race, which I fear has succumbed to an endangered state. Oh, it is still out there; I've seen it. But, much to the sorrow of this country and our individual souls, it appears to have gotten harder to come by. Folks, I'm talking about INTEGRITY. If you look up the definition, it means "the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles, moral uprightness" and "the state of being whole and undivided". With that thought in mind I ask you, who are you when no one is looking? When you find $50 laying in the parking lot, do you take it to the customer service desk? How about $20?  $5? $1? Or how about when you stop at a gas station and the cashier rings up your total. You realize she didn't charge you for your pack of gum. What do you do?
     Or, if  you are slighted in public, do you brush it off, but then "lay into" family members at home for an equal or lesser offense? Are you "divided" or are you the same person "out there" as you are in your home? Do you put on a facade in public then take it off coming through your front door? Or are you the same ''across the board"? Are you as patient with family as with friends? Ouch, that last one hurt. C.H. Spurgeon said:

"You must know that it is at home that you are what you really are."

The idea of integrity goes to the very heart of a person. What is right, and what is wrong? Is wrong to you wrong, or just a little wrong? What do you believe in? What do you stand for? Do you only stand for "right" when it is easy? Do you back down, fold, give in, or join in when standing for what is true and right means you will be the only one standing?

   I don't know about you, but I'm sick of cheap imitations. Imitations in many respects, but most grievous to me is fake integrity. "Fake" people. Let's all hang onto being real, true, honest and reliable people. There was a time when a man would shake on a deal, and then bend over backwards to keep his word, because his word had more worth than a carefully drawn up contract. Let's all look into the mirror, ask ourselves the hard questions, and let's get real.

I thought it fitting to post this song here. If you've never heard it, it is definitely worth listening to!

~Homeschool Preschool~

*I stared working on this post four days ago, until I realized my new external hard drive quit working. It had most of the pictures on it for this post. After trying for two hours to get it to work, I gave up. I re-took pictures of everything I could think of that might have been on it for this post. I'm so bummed. When your hard drive goes, it is worse than losing your purse! Also, it is 4:30 in the morning, I have been up since 3, the kids were up a lot last night (they went right back to sleep, but I'm a light sleeper and I hear everything) so this could be interesting. Irish coffee this morning, anyone? *

Big Boy won't officially be in preschool until Fall, but we are doing "school" at least a few days a week now. In January, He was begging me to do school, (who wouldn't if it meant you could do crafts and use glue sticks for chap stick!) so I went to Mom's for ideas. One of the perks of being the oldest daughter of a 20+ year homeschool vet that I didn't see coming growing up is that she has all this cool stuff stored away that she doesn't use anymore! So we sat down with a note book and made lists of things I could do with them that would be fun and educational at the same time. It took some trial and error to figure out just how I wanted to do what and when, but now we have a basic flow to things and there are much fewer days when Big Boy asks "What are we going to do today?!"

Okay, here goes:
This magnetic calendar came from Ya-Ya, as Big Boy calls my youngest sister. She wrote a cute note on the back saying that she loved the boys. They really like this calendar! We write in the date each day and move the magnet to the current day of the week, then they practice saying what the day is (Tuesday, the 21st). The magnet this month says "first day of Spring", they don't quite understand that yet, so we use the magnet to help them visualize that it is the next day and each day has a different name.

After we do our calendar, we dress Calvin. He is our weather boy that we got from Amazon.com.

We open the side door off the kitchen and the boys decide whether is is hot, cold, warm and sunny, windy or rainy, etc.

 Then we look through Calvin's plentiful wardrobe and dress him accordingly.

 I was in Walmart with my brother Sai, getting craft stuff for the boys. He spotted the mini clothes pins and said "Hey! You could make Calvin a clothesline!" Genius! So we did. And when we dress Calvin, they take off his "dirty clothes", pretend to wash them (sound effects and all) and we hang them to "dry".

After that, we do our Morning Basket.

 I forgot to mention in the Morning Basket post, we also go over the first 5 questions in the first catechism of the OPC. He has them down now. 

1. Who made you?

A: God

2. What else did God make?

A: All things

3. Why did God make you and all things?

A: For His own glory

4. How can you glorify God?

A: By loving Him and doing what He commands

5. Why are you to glorify God?

A: Because He made me and takes care of me

After Morning Basket, we start on name practice and letters. Mom made this practice sheet for him online, then laminated it so he can use it over and over with a dry erase marker. He loves practicing with this! (I helped him with the first two).

Then I grab a letter tracing paper from the "Letter of the Week" crate. (Also from Mom. She made her own letter of the week collection over 20 years. A free, organized letter of the week collection; yes please!)

I also keep Calvin's outfits and Seasons in this crate for easy access. 

After name practice, and letter tracing, I have him find the matching letter from his paper on the alphabet boarder. I got this boarder from Dollar Tree($1!)

Next, we build the letter with Mom's old Handwriting Without Tears set.

 He likes building things, and it is a good visual for him.

Next, we practice on the slate.

For math, right now we are just practicing counting. Side note: M&M's make very motivational math manipulatives!

We also use our counting bears.

He also colors a page that goes with the letter of the week. (B is for Bulldozer).

Little Boy wants to do school too!

Then we do our Before Five In A Row book. (Also from Mom)

You pick a book from the list in the guide book, and read it every day, five days in a row. Then you do an activity (there are suggestions and ideas in the guide book) that goes with it. 

Last week it was Ask Mr. Bear

In "Ask Mr. Bear" it is about the mother's birthday. We read it and made cards for cousin Keenan's birthday.

This map is also $1 from Dollar Tree. We use tacks to show Big Boy where he lives, where his cousins live, and where Daddy works.

These cards are also from Dollar Tree. Numbers and shapes/colors.

 I got this little work book at the Homeschool conference last year. It is only a couple bucks and he likes the activities.

 This work book was a gift from my Aunt Jane. He likes the activities in this book as well.

 We also do Pattern Blocks. He likes matching up the blocks where they go, and learning the more "complicated" shapes.

That is pretty much it right now. I have a few brand new things that I am saving for him for this Fall.

We also have activities like water play (he gets in a chair up to the sink and plays with measuring cups, Tupperware, trucks, etc and soapy water). And We have a rice box, sand box, wooden blocks and toy animals.

I have a list of books I'd like to get from Amazon.com this Spring. I plan on raising tadpoles with the boys. The books are about frogs, ponds and such. "Tadpole Season" was always one of my favorite times growing up, I think the boys will enjoy it too.

Big Boy really likes school. The main thing is that he has fun while learning. If your preschooler hates school, you might be trying to do too much. We don't always do everything every day. In fact, we rarely ever do it all every day.  He is 3, he is supposed to have fun while exploring the world around him. I don't want to squash that joy. A check list is not that important at this age.

I hope you enjoyed this post, and that it was inspiring. Happy Homeschooling!

~Morning Basket For Toddlers/Preschoolers~

Good morning! I thought I'd share with you our current morning basket contents. First off, you can "Google" 'morning basket' and get all sorts of ideas on what to put in your basket and why. Basically, it is a basket or box that contains activities and books that you do with your children in the morning (or at night!). This can be anywhere from traditional school subjects like history, science, etc. if you homeschool. Or it can be family devotions/Bible study, or a mix of the two. I didn't really find much for ideas with preschoolers and toddlers, but here is what we put together and if your kiddos are in the same age bracket, maybe this post will help you build your morning basket too.

What's in it?

Bible story coloring book and reader. My mother ordered these for the boys. These are by Rod and Staff. They are a great pair and the boys love them! They are also budget friendly. Here is the link:Coloring Book:  Reader:

 Church History ABC's. This is a big, hard cover book which introduces a "hero of the faith" for each letter of the alphabet. From Saint Augustine, John Calvin, John Owen, Saint Patrick, to Charles Spurgeon and more. It gives a short paragraph for each historical figure, so it is good for young listeners with short attention spans. The link: Church History ABC's

 The Beginner's Bible. After looking and looking, and reading several reviews, I bought this picture Bible for the boys. It has brightly colored pictures on every page, and the 90+ stories are short and easy for little ones to understand. The first day we read from this, Big Boy asked me to keep reading!
Hard cover. Link:

Favorite Hymns of praise. This is a nice, old hymnal with all the old favorites. You can either buy this online, or often times if you ask, when your church orders new hymnals they will give you the option of taking an old one (free) or purchasing a new one with the church's order.

 Crayons and clipboards. The boys like to lay or sit on the floor to color their pictures, so I put them on clip boards. Then we just have two jam jars with crayons in them. Do not give your toddlers/preschoolers a whole shoe box full of crayons and expect them to share nicely and not dump out the entire box of 200+ crayons. Just saying.

Previously in our morning basket: Sammy And His Shepherd. This is a beautiful book. Beautiful in how Psalm 23 is presented through the story of lovable little sheep, and beautiful in illustration too. The boys absolutely LOVED this book. We will revisit this one for sure.

 Link:

 Future books:
 Reformation ABC's. This is the same idea of the Church History ABC's, a person, place or thing about the reformation for each letter of the alphabet.
                                      
Then there are these books that I've had my eye on. I will be ordering from this bundle for future morning basket material. (Already have Sammy and His Shepherd). Link: You can also find these titles individually on Amazon.

 

*This photo is from Ligonier.org and I take no credit for it*

So what does "morning basket time" look like for us? First I'd like to say that I think the secret to having a pleasant morning basket time with little ones is this: Keep it short, keep it simple, picture books when possible. This can be a wonderful time to spend together, and introduce little ones to the Word and your faith. Don't make it something they dread by having too many things on your "to do" list. This is not about the quantity of time spent, but rather the quality of time spent.

First we gather on the couch and take turns praying.

Then the boys take their clipboards and crayons and head for the floor to color while I read the story that goes with their pages.

Little Boy LOVES coloring.

Then I read from our current book (Church history ABC's) and a Bible story from the Beginner's Bible.

Lastly, we sing two verses from a hymn. That's it. Short and sweet. 

The other day, Big Boy announced that he was going to sing that day. He took the hymnal and flipping to a random page, he began to sing "Rock of Ages". It was so cute! 

Sometimes if we have a story book that Big Boy is using for school, I will read it at this time if they are up for listening to more reading. Otherwise, they go off to play while I get school ready for Big Boy. As they get older I may also incorporate traditional school subjects such as history and science. For now, this is enough and we are enjoying it!

Do you have a morning basket? If so, I'd love to hear what you have in it! Have a great day! God Bless!