**Giveaways*** Homeschool and Knitting ;) *Closed*

*GIVEAWAY CLOSED*

Just one more day!! 

I mentioned awhile back (can't recall when..) that I thought another giveaway was in the works... And here it is!!

You could think of this as a curriculum purge here at my house- it does seem to be that time of year. I have some things that I think people may really be interested in. 5 things to be precise :) Want to know what they are??

VocabAhead One Thousand SAT Vocabulary Videos & MP3s

You can see what some people thought of this product at the TOS Homeschool Crew Blog :)

From Math Tutor DVD these two sets are really great! Check out my review of these and also TOS Homeschool Crew members. These will be given away separately, although they are shown together.

If your kids are interested in how to make web pages they will like this. From WebDesignsforKids.net this is good for an introduction to html.

And last but not least- not exactly a homeschool/educational item but it could be used for home-ec! Or just to learn something new!

I've had this for awhile but cannot bring myself to re-learn to knit! I really haven't found the time either. These books are really well done and to the point. I have the sewing and crocheting books as well that I have used more than once! :)

How to win?

Mandatory: Tell me you what you would like to win! Easy enough :)

Additional entries (leave a comment for each entry, thank you):

1. Follow my blog with Google Friend Connect (let me know if you are already a follower!)
2. Follw me on Twitter (lossolleff)
3. Follow me on Facebook (nlhome)

Make sure there is a way to for me to get in touch with you!

This giveaway will last until 04/01/2011, 10:00 pm MST. Winner will be chosen at random and notified by email within 24 hours of closing. A response is required from the winner within 48 hours of notification or an alternate winner will be chosen in their place.

Eco Awareness Workshop -Goshen County 4H

If you've been a reader of my blog for very long you may know that I am becoming more aware of how my actions affect the environment. This is in part due to the classes I've taken during my last year of college and also a desire to use more natural products and eat healthier foods. 

As part of my senior project I had wanted to hold a class for varying ages that addressed the issues of our local impact and how we, individually, can lessen that impact. I did write a post a while back on how I feel about Christians and 'going green' that you can read HERE. 

Unfortunately, I am not going to be able to do my original senior project idea BUT I am still helping with an Eco Awareness Workshop for 4H tomorrow night (03/31) and next Thursday (04/07) in Goshen County, WY, and I'm getting excited about it :) It will be at the 4H building at 6pm and is scheduled until 8pm but may end earlier.

From ConservingNow website:

Every year, 500 billion to 1 trillion [plastic] bags are consumed worldwide. Because only 1 in every 200 bag is ever recycled, almost all of them are discarded and enter our landfills, get blown everywhere, and float around in our oceans. Because plastic bags don't decompose well, their toxic elements seep into our soils, lakes, rivers, and oceans. They harm land, air, and sea creatures. And because they can take 400 to 1000 years to break down, they can do a lot of damage for a very long time.

At the workshop we will investigate the amount of plastic that is put into the environment by these discarded bags. We will talk about ways to lessen the number of bags that we use and how we use them. I hope to have the kids (and any adults participating) brainstorm ways that the plastic bags can be used other than for carrying groceries. Finally, they will design posters (and make them on the second night) that show how they feel about plastic bags, the effect on the environment and ways to reduce. There will be a survey the first night to take home that will show just how many bags families actually use.

I will be using materials from ConservingNow as well as information from other sources for this workshop.

I hope it will be a lot of fun :) If you happen to be in the area- stop on by!

If you are interested in a reminder to bring your bags, sign up for a free static cling from ConservingNow.

Notebooking Pages Search

I've decided on a Geography curriculum for Fox next year (Apologia's Around the World in 180 Days by Sherri Payne*) and have also decided that a notebook will work great for this. Notebooking to be more precise. I want to use it for The Story-book of Science as well. The problem is- I have no clue how to do it.

I am the kind of person who, although I do not follow recipes very well, needs step-by-step instructions for most things when I first learn of them or want to try them. After that the instructions fly out the window and anything goes! Until I get to that point, I want to see everyone else's ideas and finished products. For comparison purposes- to see if I am at least on the right track.

I've tried lapbooking but it actually was very time consuming for me and although the kids liked the finished product, I didn't feel there was enough for them to do. Suppose I could have done it differently but... perhaps another time. Right now, it's notebooking.

Here are a few sites that I've come across that have great notebooking pages already made and available for sale (also some freebies) and/or general information about notebooking:

NotebookingPages.com -those who notebook on a regular basis already know of this site. It is actually one of the first sites that turned up on my search (and wouldn't you know, it's a site that I have already bookmarked in the past!)

Homeschool Helper Online -you can find some freebie notebooking pages here, as well as a lot of other resources dealing with homeschooling.

The Home School Mom -this link takes you to the notebooking page (talks about what it is and has links).

Homeschool Notebooking -this site I just found and here you can find free notebooking pages. 

Notebook Share -although this is a great resource for lapbooking, I discovered they have a lot of notebooking pages also. 

Here are some that show/tell how to make your own notebooking pages:

Jimmie's Squidoo -I love the lenses by Jimmie. They are always great. This is no different. Actually when I started searching for how-to's for making your own pages this was the first one in the results :)

LilliputStation's Squidoo -not as descriptive or inclusive as Jimmie's but it is helpful as well.

Soon as I figure out how to use my free desktop publishing software (Serif PagePlus Essentials- which is no longer 'free'- but you can get the basic version here for free) I plan on making some of my own. Then I can share them with others :) 

I'm excited to get them put together for his school but also for the simple act of making them :)

*Links to Amazon search. It is unavailable from Apologia until May 2011. It is an affiliate link- any purchases you make from Amazon from that link will help my budget- and yours~!

Book Review: The Fight of Our Lives

The Fight of Our Lives: Knowing the Enemy, Speaking the Truth and Choosing to Win the War Against Radical Islam by William J. Bennett & Seth Leibsohn

ISBN: 978-1-59555-029-3

208 pages

Kindle Edition: ASIN: B004P5NRSS

File size: 317 KB

Retail: $19.99

I'm going to come right out and say this: This is a great book. Absolutely right on the nose for what is going on. And it honestly scares me to think about the issue presented in this book.

In the introduction of this book it states, "This is not a book intended to detail every mistake, error, and lapse in judgement that we have made in the war that radical Islam has declared on America and the West. Nor is it a book that can describe every threat against us. Nor is this book meant merely as a criticism of President Barack Obama." But this book definitely is criticizing how the United States went from not negotiating with terrorists to blurring the lines that are not to be crossed. When writing about the Fort Hood massacre, Bennett and Leibsohn say, "maybe even the very cause of the massacre itself, implies that this understanding, this once necessary dichotomy, has become outdated- or rather that the lines of division in our culture have become blurred. The soft has corrupted and eroded the hard."

"The point, in fact, of this book: through our cultural and political actions, we are not now as a country on a serious war footing against our enemies, Islamist terrorists; but, rather, we are abnegating the cultural, policy, and rhetorical responsibilities of rational self-defense." That is how it is now. How different from right after 9/11/01- as the authors write: "After that series of coordinated attacks, what Winston Churchill once said about us would, at long last, become true again: 'The United States is like a giant boiler. Once the fire is lighted under it, there is no limit to the power it can generate.'"

I do not usually see myself as one to really argue with people on these issues (politics in general and especially on wars- I'm a bit of a pacifist, I suppose) but this book has really brought to my attention a lot of disturbing events and thought processes of the American people. One of the most shocking statements to me is as follows: "Our diversity, not only in our Army, but in our country, is a strength. And as horrific as this tragedy was, if our diversity becomes a casualty, I think that's worse." -Army Chief of Staff General George Casey speaking after U.S. Army Major Nidal Hasan murdered thirteen and one unborn child at Fort Hood.

There is definitely a war going on- it is very real. This book goes down the path that has led to the war going on now and why it is important to realize that it is indeed a war. Coming from the author William J. Bennett, I am not sure what I was expecting of this book. I definitely got more than I bargained for. Time to take my head out of the sand, I suppose. 

**Disclaimer: I received this Kindle edition book from Booksneeze in exchange for an honest review. All opinions stated are my own. I was not required to write a positive review.**

TOS REVIEW: Latin Alive! from Classical Academic Press

Looking for a Latin program for your 7th-12th grader? This may be what you are looking for.

Recently I was privileged to receive Latin Alive! Book 1 from Classical Academic Press for 7th-12th grade to review via the TOS Homeschool Crew. 

Cost: $139.95 as a Bundle. These can be purchased separately: Student text- $24.95; Teacher's text- $29.95; 1 DVD & CD set- $114.95

You can watch excerpts of the DVD here:

How did we use this?

I have two kids, ages 14 and 11, but I figured this would be better suited for the 8th grader rather than the 6th grader. I believe I made a good choice. Using the DVDs we follow along as Karen Moore teaches the lesson. Because we have some background in Latin (ecclesiastical) the first two chapters were somewhat reviewing for us. However this program has something that we didn't have exposure to before- hearing/reading Latin as it is used today, and on a regular basis. So we followed along with Ms. Moore as she taught the lessons and paused when an exercise was directed, pressing play to 'check' our answers. This has been a program for more than just teaching the kids- I'm learning, too!

I purchased a Latin & English dictionary to go along with this program as suggested by Ms. Moore in the introduction DVD and I feel it has been somewhat helpful. We've not had to use it very much yet. 

Here are some things to expect in this Latin curriculum:

• Thirty six weekly chapters including twenty nine new content chapters and seven review, “reading” chapters.
• Pronunciation Guides
• Weekly introduction of vocabulary
• Thorough grammar explanations including all five noun declensions and cases, all verb conjugations, irregular verbs, various pronouns, adjectives and adverbs
• United States state seals and their Latin mottos
• Extensive study of the Latin derivatives of English words
• Substantial Latin readings and translation exercises
• Lessons and stories of Roman culture, myths and history
• Exercises and questions to prepare students for the National Latin Exam and the Advanced Placement Exam
• Includes historical contributions from Christopher Schlect, historian and Academic Dean at New Saint Andrews College, Moscow, ID

Pros:

The videos help immensely! When I first received the two books (plus the DVDs), I was intimidated. Although we have been doing Latin since the start of our school year, this is a notch up from where we are. Without the videos, I would be lost. Even with the teachers text to guide the 'teacher' through this, I still think the videos are extremely important. *Of course, if someone has a background in Latin, this probably wouldn't be a problem.* 

Also, the inclusion of questions and phrases that we would use in English are translated into Latin, to make the language more 'alive'. One of the great aspects of the program are the state seals and Latin mottos coverage. This is a part of our history and it is great to learn more about it through this program. Another thing that I like is the dialogue in Latin. My kids like to tell me that Latin is a 'dead language' and that no one speaks it. With this program you do!

There is also a Yahoo! Group for those using this curriculum that has been super helpful from scheduling, correct pronunciation, errata, study guides for quizzes, and worksheets for each chapter.

At least my son *who isn't using it right now* likes that Ms. Moore is expressive- even cracks a joke here and there ;)

The student text, so far as I can tell and that we've used is non-consumable so it can be passed down to the next student.

Cons:

The pronunciation is classical instead of ecclesiastical, which we've been using up to this point. This is not really a con but does require a bit of getting used to.
It seems to be set up for those who have had Latin previously. If we'd not been using something beforehand I think it would have been extremely difficult to use this without feeling anxious. However, this is supposed to be a curriculum that can be used for upper middle school and high school students with no Latin background, according to CAP. Of course, I will mention again that they say this will work fine with middle-high schoolers that have not had a background in Latin, but I think the videos would be extremely important in that situation.

Bottomline:
This looks/feels like a good Latin program. We are not very far into it at the time of this review. As I mentioned, I think a background (even if it is very minimal) in Latin would be good before beginning this program. Also, don't forget about the Yahoo! Group for support and added help. 
CAP does have Latin for the lower grades: Song School Latin (grades K-3); Latin for Children A, B, & C (grades 3 and up). I did notice they also have Latin for Teachers! 
I almost forgot to tell about Headventureland from CAP. This site is free to use, just sign up. There kids (or you *wink*) can play some games, listen to stories, read, watch videos and use flash-cards to help with learning Latin. *There is also Spanish and Greek resources.

If you would like to see other reviews of this curriculum, go to the TOS Homeschool Crew blog.

 **Disclaimer: I received the above items free in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review nor was I compensated in any way. The opinions presented are my own. See more Disclosure/Policies.**

Being a Teen- Good and Bad

Hi! Hey, I'm getting kinda okay at this blogging thing... :D

 Well, today I'm posting about being a teen, cause I'm a teen and so I know.

Just like every part of life, there's good and bad. Like ice cream, which is good, but the getting money for it, which is bad-ish.

So, perhaps I'll talk about good first...

Being a teenager is cool! There are a lot of things you can do now... You can get a phone (probably), you're trusted to stay home alone... There are a lot of things! (Of course, responsibility comes with those things.) You're know approaching job-age, when you can earn your way towards that awesome Nintendo 3DS (which, by the way, is really awesome, and $250). You get that awesome feeling of being almost grown-up and knowing things. Of course, each person if different, so we each get different awesomenesses when we're teens. 

Sadly, on to the dark side... (They don't have cookies!) 

You can get a phone, but... You are expected to be responsible with your minutes, and even pay for them. (How bad this is varies... I'm okay with it, I guess). You're approaching job-age, not quite there... You're not quite old enough for a job where you can get good pay and get that Nintendo 3DS in under a year (or two!). The jobs you can get are most likely low-paying, and you probably have expenses that take up half or more of your pay! Also, there are other people. Homeschool teens usually get it easier than public-school teens, but it's there: peer pressure. Maybe your clothes aren't cool enough, or you don't have a phone. The small things can make you feel uncool or outcast. (I've learned that real-life people are much nicer than school people)

I could go on about the dark side (I'm pessimistic sometimes...). But it's too... dark and sad.

Anyways, being a teen can be really awesome if you let it be... So let it be!! Get the job you can, and work, work, work towards that 3DS with the 3D top screen! Have your own style and enjoy it! A phone is a phone, right? Enjoy it, if you have one! And be responsible with everything you encounter! Life will be better for you.

Here's to being a teen...! Lee, out...!

Just for Fun...Where Have You Been?

Here's a bit of fun for a Sunday evening. Where in the US have you been? Over at Reviews & Reflections, Heidi put where she's visited so I thought it would be fun to see "in lights" (haha, or at least color) where I've been. 

When I look at this I'm surprised how many states I've been to! Now, honestly most of these I've only driven through and at least stopped for fuel while on the way to another state/location. But I'm including it anyway! I can recall every state....uh, with the exception of Mississippi. I visited there when I was very little and have no recollection of it. I'm sure we went through Tennessee but I didn't include it...maybe I should have... oh well :)

Oh and to play along with the others (sometimes I play well...other times not so well!), tell some of the favorite places and a little bit about them:

1. Custer State Park, Black Hills, South Dakota-
Love, love, love this area! I am from Oregon and will always be 'from' Oregon but South Dakota rivals it as my second favorite state for beauty. We've gone a few times camping (ahem, cabining- it's not 'camping' if your not in a tent my kids say...) and I can't wait to go again and again.

2. Xenia, Dayton, & Middletown, Ohio-
Although these places might not be very pretty they hold a special place in my heart because I spent a lot of my younger years between them. And the trees....love the different types of deciduous trees.

3. OREGON-
Although this is #3, it's really #1 for me :) Anywhere in Oregon is great for me!! Washington is nice as well ;) But I really love Southern Oregon (Medford, Central Point, Grants Pass area) and hope to someday move there to stay.

Want to make your own map of where you've been? Check out epgSoft Visited States Map. They also have Canada and Mexico maps :) Hmm maybe I'll make a goal to get to every state :) ...someday.

Cooking and its Benefits

Hello, my friends!

Today I'll be talking about cooking.
 

Lately, I've been helping Mom make food. Sometimes I even make it. Often I just do little things, like shredding cheese or cutting olives. But then of course, when I make the food, I do everything, asking Mom for help along the way.

In my opinion, cooking is very fun and confidence-boosting. I enjoy helping my mom with the food and knowing that a little of my work went towards feeding everyone else. It's most confidence-boosting when I do it by myself. When what I made comes out well, it just makes me happy and proud of my work.


Cooking is more than just fun; it's a life skill. When I get older and live on my own, without my Mom to make my food, I'll have to either buy all my food ready-made (that'd be expensive) or I'll have to make the food myself. But the good thing is, I'll know how to cook...! And if someone comes over, I can make food for them. So by learning to cook now, I'm ensuring that I'll be able to make it on my own.


My failures in cooking, like any failures, help me learn. A few days ago, I made cookies using a chocolate-chip cookie recipe, without the chocolate chips and putting on crushed mints. While I was making it, I ran into a few complications: it called for brown sugar, but we didn't have any, so I mixed sugar with molasses. Also, our mixer was ruined when Mom tried to make marshmallows (yeah, we'll just buy store ones from now on), so I had to mix the dough by hand. I was using the smallest bowl and quickly running out of room in it. My hand was starting to ache, but I still needed 1/2 cup more flour! I decided, "Ehh, we'll live without it." 


Without the flour, the dough was a little runny once it got in the oven. I had accidentally put too big of scoops on the cookie sheet, and they ended up running together. We ended up with huge, flat cookies. Then, when I put in the second cookie sheet, the cookies wouldn't cook. Mom ended up microwaving the two that wouldn't; they were very crunchy... Thankfully, they tasted good...


So, I learned from that experience a few things: Make sure your bowl is big enough. Make sure you have the right materials. Make sure you have the right ingredients. And make sure you use the right amount of the ingredients.


That's all for today! Bye...! ^.^

This has been submitted to the Christian Home eMagazine at The Legacy of Home under Young Adults

Weekly Wrap-Up...Co-Op Showcase!

Hosted by Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers

I just realized that I think I've misspelled "homeschoolers" more than once when linking with weekly wrap-up! Or perhaps I catch it every time and haven't posted it misspelled once- yet ;)

The highlight of our week was Monday and Friday :) 

Sunday the 20th was the Ham & Pancake Supper for the local 4H, where both Lee and Fox had to help with setting up/serving/cleaning up/eating. LOL- eating wasn't required but they certainly didn't miss that part! I didn't go myself. I went with my dh to dinner at Arby's instead (hey, any time with just the two of us is much appreciated!). 

Monday- Co-Op. It was the last day of it for this semester/term/whatever-you-call-it and it was a wee bit sad for me :( I enjoyed my Creative Writing class although, to be honest, we didn't get much in the way of writing done. But what was done was definitely creative ;) Lee did her paper route all on her own and it only took 2 1/2 hours.... Fox was supposed to have the day off from school but I made him do school anyway. k12 (WYVA) for some reason didn't have classes. 

Tuesday- same ol, same ol. The kids were supposed to have shooting at 6pm and I was going to work out with a friend while they were shooting- turns out they rescheduled or something and wouldn't be shooting until later. We didn't make it back. The equipment that was supposed to be ready for my friend and I to use for working out wasn't ready (and we don't know how to work it!) so we didn't work out... well, we exercised our jaws by chatting :) It's good to talk about peanut butter and coffee- as well as whatever else comes up- sometimes :)

Wednesday was a nonchalant day... but it was nice outside (at least I'm pretty sure it was Wednesday- it's snowing at the moment so...) and the kids and I went to the park. We walked there :)

Thursday, Fox got a lot done with school and it took forever! Well, perhaps not forever but it was 7pm by the time he was done. Fortunately for all involved there was not much resistance...not sure I'd been able to handle it. I got back my graded assignment for Spanish and am wondering/hoping/praying that the instructor grades on a curve. And that the other students are doing as bad as I am! ;)

Friday! Co-Op Showcase!!! I forgot to take my camera though so I only have a couple of photos from my phone and they are not very good. I didn't even get a photo of the set up displays- doh! I wanted to remember the camera, really I did... All the kids did great. I got to help with the Song and Snack group which was made up of 3 (or 4??) toddlers (ages 2-4, I think) sing "Head, Shoulders, Knees & Toes" and "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." They were soooo cute! 

Lee participated in the flag folding ceremony at the beginning of the showcase and later both she and Fox were in the choir. They sang Folksong Rhapsody and Benediction. If I had a way to share the music, I would. They did great :) I could really hear Fox singing. I loved it :)

Here are a few photos from the Showcase (please excuse the poor quality! they are bad, I know...)

All of the choir singing.

Them having fun (and eating a lot of cookies!!) afterwards :) It took quite a bit of convincing to get Lee to do it- and let me take a photo heehee.

Co-Op choir will continue until May. There will be a final performance May 23rd.

So how was your week? Link up with the Weekly Wrap-Up at Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers :)

Fit Mommy Friday, Week 5

Yay! I've worked out this week AND made sure to drink my water every day! 

I've honestly not had any water yet today (but did have coffee lol). Getting some just as soon as I get this posted ;)

Monday's are not conducive to working out- way too much to do and not enough time to do much else. But I did drink water ;)

I worked out on Tuesday night by myself because we couldn't get things to cooperate for working out with my friend that first day. The plan was to work out twice a week together... We did get together one day this week! Yay!

Wednesday I walked to the park and back home and also did some exercising at home (not much though). 

Thursday finally got together with my friend to workout. Was almost an hour! It isn't strenuous but it was nice to do something. I was sweating and my muscles were feeling a nice warmth from the workout.

Nothing today because I really am not sure if I have the time (maybe I do...for a few minutes..). 

Next week my plan is to work out EVERY day- even if it is a little bit. Hopefully there will be more ladies to get together this coming week for our twice a week work out, if not, my friend and I will do it ourselves :) Also, I'm hoping to up my water and knock down my coffee (which I've done well with anyway). 

Here's to a great next week :) Have a great weekend!!

Web Design

Hello, Lee here! (I want to get one of those fancy signature thingies for the end of my posts...)

Well, a few days ago, my mom posted up a giveaway. I about freaked out over the 'Web Design for Kids (and Curious Grown-Ups)'. I really like that DVD. Although the video itself isn't the best (the speaker is kind of blah and the kids who help him are obviously reading paper scripts, you can see the tape on the computers), I really learned a lot. So when I found out she was giving it away, I had to watch it one more time and write down all the codes and such.

Like it says on the case, HTML is a good thing to learn, and it can help you later in life. It's also very simple and fun (to me, at least). The DVD doesn't cover everything; but you can always search online for codes. Which I did. : ) Anyways, I learned a few things, like adding links. What makes me sad, though, is that I can make a file that opens in an Internet browser, but it's not an actual site. To have an actual site you have to pay and stuff... *sad face*

But I can still use my knowledge of HTML on other things. Like Weebly or FreeWebs. (Maybe I'll check that out...) My knowledge can stretch out to other things, which is pretty awesome. Need help with HTML? Hey, I just might be able to help!
 

Hopefully, this turned out not as jabber-ish as I felt it was. I wanted it to have a sort of message, I guess, like my mom's do. (She's awesome, did you know?) So, anyways, if you do win the web Design DVD, yay for two reasons: you won!, and you get helpful knowledge. 

Well, bye everyone, and later...! ^.^

Keeping Things- What Should I Keep?

So last time my mind was on why I keep things. Those things that outwardly have no real purpose. Inwardly they may hold the key to something great- but often it isn't seen simply by looking at the item.

Jesus tells us: "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: for where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Matthew 6:20-21

It seems simple enough what I shouldn't keep in my heart- physical, material items. These are easily destroyed. They can be stolen or corrupted.

But what of those items that you like and would like to preserve for future generations? As mentioned, items such as tshirts that have been lovingly been picked up at various locations for much-loved grandchildren; drawings from when a dd was 3 (her first smiley face); the best car drawing that ds 'ever' drew (when he was 8); or even those cds that contain educational programs that are just a bit too old for the kids (or too young..). Are those wrong to keep? Again, when I ask this question (or really any of these) it is a rhetorical one- you might have a different answer than I.

If you do not feel that they are wrong to keep (as I do not- unless they become obsessions and all consuming- where our heart is) then perhaps you've also wondered what to keep of all these things. I do this on a very regular basis. I go through my boxes and shelves periodically and purge items that I've decided their time has come (haha to 'go'). I often look around my little area -whether it is at my computer or the kitchen counter- and think to myself, "Is all this necessary?" Honestly, the answer is almost always, "No".

I came across a great post at Barefoot Voyage on how to keep the paper clutter reigned in. I highly recommend the post; it is full of wonderful tips and reasons why she keeps her things the way she does. It spawned this post, honestly.

Although I do not have grand tips and suggestions as to how or where to keep items, I do think there are some things that I personally want to keep- and here's how I plan to keep them. 

• Drawings- we are a family of artists. If you were to talk to ds he would say he cannot draw (phooey- totally untrue!) and yet I have papers and books full of his 'art work'. A year or so ago I'd purchased an expanding file folder for the purpose of keeping papers like these. Perhaps when the folder is full I will digitize the art work and then recycle the papers. It has also been suggested that the art work and drawings be used in scrapbooks for keepsakes.
• Books- we cannot get enough of books. But I've slowly been letting go of some of our unused or used up books. Ones that we no longer read or we didn't really care for in the first place. Paperbackswap and our public library are richer because of these :) The books we do keep are kept in all kinds of places. Fortunately, most of those places are bookshelves :)
• Clothing- some baby clothes that I've kept and don't wish to alter are kept in a safe box with other baby mementos to be passed on when the days come that my children are out on their own. My ds doesn't care about his clothes (is that simply a boy trait??) but I've kept every tshirt that his Grammy has ever given him (they are special and often refer to a specific place) and some day I will make a quilt or something similar out of these. My dd is more sentimental for clothes (a girl trait??) and has a few dresses that she doesn't want to part with because of memories. I have thought about using them in a similar way to create a keepsake for her. Fortunately they are both very good about getting rid of clothing that is too small or ready for the trash (I used to recycle/repair/stitch/sew/patch their older clothes to make them last longer but...too. much. work)
• Dishes- does that seem silly? We do not entertain other people very often at our home. We are a family of 4- really all we require are 4 plates, bowls, forks, spoons, glasses...or something like that. However, there was a time when I was younger that my mother had some Cornflower Blue Corningware that (although I honestly do not recall ever seeing them) have embedded themselves in my mind. I now have a collection of these dishes. They are all in one cupboard on one and 1/2 shelves. Someday I will give them to my kids (or grandkids). The rest of the dishes come and go- we even use jars for glasses :)

Those are the things that I want to keep. As I look around me there are a lot of things I see that do not fit into the categories above, and that is okay. Those things come and go. I think that it is coming time to purge more of the unnecessary things out of our house (such as old DVD players, stacks of books for younger readers, and the strangely large pile of 'junk' mail...

I'm looking forward to some Spring cleaning.

The Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival 3/22/11

Hosted by Simply Charlotte Mason

Although I did not contribute to this edition of The Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival I would like to direct my readers to it. This edition can be found at Simply Charlotte Mason blog. There are great number of submissions this time on the theme of Education is a Discipline and many more that are relevant. 

I'm off to read it myself :)

Enjoy!

Keeping Things

I keep thinking about having a yard sale. Or about making a run to Goodwill. Neither of those have happened and I wonder if I will get to it...eventually or not at all. 

How often do you tuck a paper away because someday you'll want it to look back on? How often is an outfit that no longer fits put onto a shelf because someday it might be useful again? How about those drawings and doodles that your children (or nieces, nephews, grandkids, or neighbors' kids) that have been carefully put into a pile to keep for another time?

Packrat or not, there are reasons to keep things. Homeschooling families in states that require a portfolio know first hand how important it is to keep some things. Papers showing improvement in subjects, to show that subjects were indeed covered, as well as showing mastery in the subject area. There are different ways to show these: photographs, drawings, essays, paintings, videos, commentaries, and many more. Funschooling has a great post on keeping a portfolio for school.

What of all those things that will not 'fit' into the portfolio for a child's school, such as the tshirt that he wore every other day until it was too small? Or the dress a daughter wore for years and loved that now hangs in the closet in its own special spot? Or the book that was read over and over for years that now sits on the shelf? Are these thing unnecessary? Should they be tossed?

There is a lot of talk and discussion about possessions and belongings- especially in light of being a Christian. Jesus told the man who wished to follow him that he needed sell his belongings and follow him, and later we are told to store up our treasures in heaven where neither rust or moths can corrupt. In light of this, is it wrong to keep things that hold memories? Is it wrong to have a box of items that have no purpose but for the sentimentalism of their owner?

I do not know if I have an answer to those questions. Perhaps they are better left between those individuals and God. Some questions that I have been thinking on in terms of keepsakes (or anything that we are reluctant to give away or get rid of): Why do we keep these things? What should we keep? Why do we need to purge ourselves of these things?

Let's start with the why we keep things. There are quite few reasons why people keep items. As mentioned above, some states require homeschoolers to keep portfolios. These may include many items other than pieces of paper. Included are photos, scrapbooks, notebooks, or perhaps the invention or items that were produced by the students. Generally speaking though, they are made up mostly of items that are relevant to schooling.

The reasons people keep other items that are not a means to an end (such as a portfolio) range from a need to have a connection to the past, a memory that they worry will fade, a connection with the future, a connection with a certain feeling and/or the simple inability to part with items. That last one seems rather unconnected to the others but perhaps it is a result of the others.

My name is Blossom. I'm a packrat. That's my confession. I have things that when others look at them they wonder 'why?' In a small container that can be used as an individual soda can cooler there is a napkin from a flight I took on Alaska Airlines and on top of this napkin there is a very dry leaf. In a large plastic container I have every tshirt that has been given to my ds (who is now 11) from his Grammy that he can no longer wear. These are the things I am talking about keeping and holding onto and wondering if they should be done away with.

I keep things because I cannot seem to part with them for sentimental reasons, for the possibility that they will be useful and also as connections to past and future.

Next time I will focus on what I should keep...if anything.

Thank You So Much ... LinderCroft

You may notice that my blog is different again -mhm. It's a surprise my house isn't being rearranged every week!

Still looking forward to spring here and I hope that my mellow, calm blues don't get you down...they really brighten me right up! 

I wanted to take a moment to say THANK YOU to someone really awesome. *Get ready to blush, Mom*

I'm talking about my mom, LinderCroft. Awesome lady. She has been helping me with this 'blogging' thing since I started. It was her blog that originally got me thinking about having one of my own. And wow, almost a year later and I feel like I know so much about blogging now! (lol- whoa, I didn't say I knew it all- I've got plenty to learn!)

When I can't figure something out or if I want to make sure something is right on my blog, she's the one I turn to. Just tonight (when it was past her bedtime, lol) I called her and asked if she would make a header for my blog. I do not have photo skills, you see, nor the software. I've used Picnik before but well, I'm not that savvy. And I couldn't get things to go the way I wanted them to. 

She was there- she helped me- she told me what to do. And it turned out pretty darn good! 

Her blog is about 'biointensive homesteading'; she's a talented lady. She made my header and she also made the button on the right side of my blog for Lossolleff, my artfire shop. Not only that, she makes gorgeous things out of 'simple' things.

I just want to say Thank you, Mom, for the things you do for me :)

Meet Me On Monday...Blog Hop

I figured since it's been quite awhile since my last hop, I'd join up. It's late in the day though... oh well. It's Monday and I'm tired. I will 'relax' by visiting some people :) This hop is hosted by Never Growing Old and features 5 questions to help get to know bloggers better. Here are the questions:

1.  What jewelry do you wear 24/7?
2.  Do you twirl your spaghetti or cut it?
3.  How many siblings do you have?
4.  Were you named after anyone?
5.  Coke or Pepsi?

And here's my answers :)

1. My wedding ring on my left hand and my hubby's first wedding ring on my other hand. He smashed his ring finger a few years after we were married and couldn't get the ring back on. We've moved so many times that he lost *ahem* misplaced it until this past year. He does wear a wedding ring now (but it's a different one and a tab bit larger). In order to not lose the original again, I figured I'd wear it :) I also wear two 'earrings' all the time.

2. I'm a twirler- definitely. But dh likes his noodle broken in half before cooking...makes it not so fun to twirl... Just one reason I enjoy going out to Italian restaurants ;)

3. I have two older brothers and two older sisters. It goes 10 years older, 6 years older, 5 years older and 1 1/2 years older. I'm the baby :)

4. I was named partially after a friend of a friend (? or something like that) of my mom's when she was younger. My first name, definitely not! Unless you call a flower a 'who'  0.o

5. Coke definitely! It used to be Diet Coke all the time. Some strange reason Pepsi has always had the effect of conjuring thoughts of moldy houses... rather not drink it, if you know what I mean! But I'm a coffee or Mt. Dew drinker more often now.

The Journey

There are many people that are working toward self-sufficiency and some who have gained that position. Many more that simply want to live a little healthier by making and growing the things that they need for everyday life. There are some, like me, who would like to be able to live self-sufficient but realize that a little bit at a time, is the only way that it can happen, if at all.

I invite you to head over to The Journey and have a look around. There are a lot of individuals who are knowledgeable about homesteading, either on a large plot of land or in an apartment with containers on the porch. You're sure to find a wealth of information at The Journey.

Feel free to share a bit (or a lot!) about your own journey. There are plenty who would love to hear!

What you'll find at The Journey includes (but definitely isn't limited to!):

• Growing Fruits & Grains
• Greenhouses, Cold Frames & Hotbeds
• All Things Building
• Country Income
• Emergency Situations
• Self Sufficiency
• Links
• The Journey Recipe Book
• threads on just about any animal you can think of that would be found on a 'homestead'
• General Chat (How's the Weather, Jokes & Funnies, etc.)
• Improve Your Soil
• Homeschooling 
• Buy & Sell
• Barter Board
• And a lot more! 

See you there! :)

Click here

Spring- Hurry, Get Here & Stay Awhile

I shouldn't want for the winter to be over, since to everything there is a season, but I really would love for Spring to be here and stay for a long time. I never tire of Spring. The beauty, the smells, the freshness of it... I've changed the background to reflect my desire that it would be Spring... 

Also am sharing the verse that was displayed yesterday. I enjoyed it then, and now, and always:

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23) Public Domain

May we all strive to cultivate the fruits of the Spirit.

Latest Additions to the Links Page by Subject for Schooling

Most of the latest additions to the Links by Subject for Schooling have been for Math (by far the most linked section!). But there were a few others as well. Hope to not repeat any from previous updates but here they are:

Foreign Language:

+Intro2Spanish (Spanish :) 

Geography/History

+The Archaeology Channel videos of various locations and times in history, these are secular in nature (evolution is promoted) World
+Virtual Tour- Postcards of Algiers

+Primary Source Documents American History
+Constitution of the United States American History 
+US Constitution.net American History Costitution, Declaration of Independence, Articles of Confederation, and other. 

Language Arts

+KISS Grammar I posted about this on my blog but putting here too :)
+Emily Dickinson Museum  Navigate around to find games and activities (I'm including this although it isn't new because the link was broken previously- it should work now!)

Math

+Calculation Nation by National Council of Teachers of Mathematics
+CryptoKids America's Future Codemakers and Codebreakers
+Me & My Math covers numbers, place value, addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, number line, fractions, laws of arithmetic (up to grade 7?)
+Math Cats a lot of cute/fun things for math, here is a list of math ideas
+Number Gossip fun little site that will give you all the 'facts' about a number
+Off-Road Algebra from HotChalk 'real-life' application of Algebra 
+Super Teacher Worksheets more than just math!
+XP Math games that go up to Algebra, worksheets and math homework help
+The Eyeballing Game by just your eyes, adjust and bisect angles and shapes, pinpoint midpoints and see how accurate you can be
+Circle Math from Wholemovement.com
+Rader's NumberNut basic to advanced math
+Savings Quest from Wells Fargo budgeting for teens (I had trouble getting it to load) 


That's it for now :)