Lizzy at 2

This dear sweet picture was taken 5 years ago. Weekly, Lizzy would wear this little costume when she was 2. It came with red/white stiped knee socks and white bloomers.

Viking Ship

2nd Grade History Lesson

The lesson for me: Keep things interesting and simple. While I was looking over this lesson for history I was thinking we could make a simple Viking ship. I found one on a website from Dublin Ireland called NCTE.
Theirs looks nicer, but I decided to use what we have on hand. Usually projects like this get destroyed from play or end up under something.
For this ship we used cardstock, 2 straws, thread, modeling clay, and a scrap piece of white fabric. Other supplies used: a needle, scissors, markers, a hole-puncher and crayons.We drew our own ship instead of using the template. For the shields we used the end of a spool of thread as a template. The sail was decorated with crayons on fabric.
For the seat we used an ordinary hole-puncher, it was the perfect size for the mast. For the cross beam at the top of the mast we used another straw that was cut down the center long ways, punched a hole in the center of the straw and added it to the mast.

A Little Letter Game

Said the Hobbit is a nice lady I "follow". If you are not familiar with blog language, first off, know it's not cult language. It just means that I put myself on a list on blogger or blogspot to get notifications when my friends post something new. With saying that, check out Said the Hobbit if you get a chance, she is a talented knitter, loves her family, and is funny.
In this game someone gives you a letter and you post 10 things that you you are thankful for. This next part is ingenious: " If you want to play just leave me a comment and I'll visit your blog and give you a letter." So many times in playing a game I'm not always comfortable tagging others. I like it when people can choose to play if they wish and do not feel any pressure.

So she popped over to my blog and gave me the letter "B".

1. BIBLE - God speaks to us through the Bible.
2. BOOKS - I've visited many lands though books. How else would we know as much as do.
3. BIRTHDAYS - What a perfect way to celebrate and give that person special attention for the day. I love family and thank God for each of them.If you step away from your computer you can see the picture a little better. My oldest daughter in the picture turned 16 last weekend.
4. BLOGGING - What a great way to record things for a person who doesn't journal.
5. BLUE JEAN - Is there anything more comfortable?
6. BAKING - I love baking and my family enjoys the fruit of my labor. :)
7. BEDS - Aslan finally puts Uncle Andrew to sleep, as it is "the only gift he is still able to receive." Before reading the Chronicles of Narnia, I had never seen sleeping as a gift, but has anyone not been able to sleep? Indeed this is a gift for me to be thankful for.
8. BLOOMS - Flowers are a gorgeous gift from God! For them I am thankful
9. BEN FRANKLIN & 10. BETSY Ross I am thankful to be an American. If I was born just about anywhere else I would not be so blessed. As a woman I have many rights that most women do now have. Much blood was shed in protecting our freedom, and I am thankful.

Twaddle-Free Book List

I met some women at Borders Book Store a few weeks back with some of the homeschool moms I know. My friend, Melissa introduced me to the Twaddle-Free Book List and I thought it would be great to pass this along and have it here next time I look for it.
Twaddle means dumbed down literature.
Here is the Charlette Mason Twaddle Free Book List
She includes direct links to Amazon so you can get a better idea of a book before you buy it or look for it at the library. If you've never bought a book from Amazon, I'd like to say that they offer free shipping to any order over $25. If you buy a second hand book through Amazon the free shipping does not apply. I've bought books from both Amazon and their venders and have never had trouble.

Here is part of her list:

Kindergarten / Grade 1
Amelia Bedelia, by Peggy Parish
Blueberries for Sal, by Robert McCloskey
Bread and Jam for Frances, by Russell Hoban
Billy and Blaze, by C.W. Anderson
A Chair for My Mother, by Vera B. Williams
Corduroy, by Don Freeman
The Courage of Sarah Noble, by Alice Dalgliesh
Curious George, by H.A. Rey
Frog and Toad All Year, by Arnold Lobel
Frog and Toad are Friends, by Arnold Lobel
Harry the Dirty Dog, by Gene Zion
Little Bear, by Else Homelund Minarik
The Little Engine that Could, by Watty Piper
The Little House, by Virginia Lee Burton
Madeline, by Ludwig Bemelmans
Make Way for Ducklings, by Robert McCloskey
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, by Virginia Lee Burton
The Snowy Day, by Ezra Jack Keats
Stone Soup, by Marcia Brown
Story of Ferdinand, by Munro Leaf
Story About Ping, by Marjorie Flack

Grade 2
The Boxcar Children, by Gertrude Chandler Warner
A Child’s Garden of Verses, by Robert Louis Stevenson (illustrated by Jessie Willcox Smith)
Little House on the Prairie series, by Laura Ingalls Wilder
The Railway Children, by E. Nesbit
The Random House Book of Fairy Tales, by Amy Ehrlich
Tikki Tikki Tembo, by Arlene Mosel
The Velveteen Rabbit, by Marjery Williams
Winnie-the-Pooh, by A.A. Milne

Birthday Party

My oldest baby turns 16 tomorrow, Monday, and so we celebrated Saturday. It turned out that 5 people were able to celebrate with us. We had a spaghetti dinner.
After we ate we looked through my daughters pictures, she is a shutterbug enthusist. It was great for the family to see what she sees. It was the perfect little party for a shy girl. Plus, it seems like the parent's emphasis is on taking care of a large group instead of the birthday child when the party is too big. I hope she thinks it went as well as I did. :)
I am thankful to have the family I have. Each person is unique. I don't think I express this enough with my siblings and cousins. I began praying for them a few months back and since then I see them a little differently.

Treat Bag

Happy Valentine's Day!

I had to quickly create a few treat bags and got this idea from Zakka Life. I only had about 2 hours to make something. We didn't have lunch bags, only cellophane treat bags and I couldn't find a cute color for the "awning". So I recruited the girls to help me in using markers. If you take a look at Zakka Life you will see tons of ideas for everything. Jessica knows how to make anything cute.

Potato Pancakes

Every time I make Stuffed Shells I have extra potato/cheese mixture left over. I thought I'd try and make potato pancakes but because there is cheese in them they sort of melted in the pan. This last time I made the pancakes I rolled them in corn meal and froze them. A few days later I put them on a cookie sheet and baked them. My family really loved them. I didn't use any butter or spray, but they are fattening because of the cheese.

Skip Counting

I wished I had learned skip counting when I was taught multiplication! What a cool concept! In today's lesson we were to put (solid colored) counting cubes on every three and then on every four. When I was getting her supplies out for this lesson, I thought, why not use bingo chips? You can see through them!

Handwriting

We've been busy as bees working on school work, which is going well for both girls.

Learning

I thought that besides recording what my girls and I are crafting, that in the future it would be good to look back to see what I am learning in life. What is God teaching me. I don't journal much. I do take notes a lot though. I journal in that fashion of taking notes of what I read in the bible, what comes up in prayer time, what my pastor says, and/or what I need to work on, namely a sin that I need to address in myself.

Job 23:11-14
11"My foot has held fast to His path;
I have kept His way and not turned aside.
12"I have not departed from the command of His lips;
I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.
13"But He is unique and who can turn Him?
And what His soul desires, that He does.
14"For He performs what is appointed for me,
And many such decrees are with Him.

These verses are a great challenge in that I don't think I treasure God's Word anywhere close to "more than my necessary food". I have committed to reading more and have noticed that in doing so I want to read even more, that is huge for someone who is a non-reader for the most part. God's given me the desire to read. And so, that is cool.

On another note, I think it is interesting that though Job faltered in application with the sovereignity of God, he always comes back to it and affirms it. The sovereignity of God is huge, can any one who understands it, accept it everytime, is that your first response to bad news? I used to beleive in open theism. Maybe because that is what I was taught when I was younger and just accepted it. I heard this said not too long ago, "Get your theology right before disaster hits." I think I have done this in that I understand alot better, but I'd add to what that man said in that I need to get the Word in my heart in meditating on them day & night.

Washcloths

I took a really bad picture. Already gave it away so I am stuck with this one.
The green is variegated and called: Green Twists.
Yellow is actually called cream and looks like a white-ish butter color.
And the only color that looks like what it is the white.

Apple Pancake

Using a cast iron skillet for this yummy treat will make the edges and bottom crunchy. It will rise up above the edges but after it sits for a few minutes it will go back down. Serve while hot with confectioners sugar and maple syrup!

10" cast iron skillet
4 T Butter
1/4 c Brown Sugar
1 large Apple, cored & sliced 1/8"
5 large Eggs
1 c Flour
1 c Milk
1/2 t ground Cinnamon
Pinch of Salt
Confectioners sugar

Preheat oven to 400. In a 10" skillet, melt butter & 3 T brown sugar. Add apples, and cook 5 minutes, stir occasionally.

In med bowl, whisk eggs, flour, milk, cinnamon, salt, & remaining sugar. Pour batter slowly over cooked apple mixture. Transfer to oven til golden brown, set in center, and puffed around edges, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle with confectioners sugar and serve hot.

For great tips on cooking and caring for cast iron please visit the Black Iron Dude.

Taking care of my oldest

My oldest (who will be 16 in a week) got her wisdom teeth taken out this morning. Her face is still numb but is wearing off and getting tingly so she blogged a bit while she is still feeling up to it. Lizzy made her an adorable mini "Magnadoodle-thingy" (easel) and a mini painting of an apple to go on it that says "I hope you can chew soon." Her little easel is here.

I really enjoy having both of my girls home!! One of these days my oldest will be off to college. She is in her Sophomore year of high school this year. I cherish the time I have with her.