Snow day!

If it gets really quiet around here...

A) That weird rash Rosie has really is the chicken pox.
B) The predicted ice storm has hit and the power went with it.
C) Both A and B

Homeschooling Meme

Thanks to Leslie for tagging me - whoever knew it was this much fun to be "it"?!

1) One homeschooling book you have enjoyed. The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling by Debra Bell (who just happens to have been my evaluator when I was homeschooled!)
2) One resource you wouldn't be without. The library! Homeschooling could end up being downright expensive! Right now, all I have to pay for are my fines - I call them my membership dues. :^)
3) One resource you wish you had never bought. Bob Jones K5 readers. They're perfectly fine readers, but they were very expensive, and introduced things in a different order than we'd been learning them. As a result they haven't been used much (why didn't I just get A BEKA?!).
4) One resource you enjoyed last year (and this year). Your Big Backyard magazine. My kids love it. And Rosie's favorite books right now are our old copies of its sister boardbook magazine Animal Baby (gotta renew that for her!). Both are published by the National Wildlife Federation, which also publishes Ranger Rick.
5) One resource you will be using next year. Plants Grown Up. We haven't used it as much as I'd planned this year, but next year he'll have reading down and we'll be diving in to this great handbook.
6) One resource you would like to buy. An extra room added on to my house to be the library. Our beloved books are completely taking over our living space!
7) One resource you wish existed. A Dora the Explorer or Go! Diego Go! Spanish course on DVD.
8) One homeschooling catalog you enjoy reading. Sonlight - I love their booklists!
9) One homeschooling website you use regularly. Just one?! Most of my favorites aren't exactly homeschool sites. I think I'll go with crayola.com, especially their coloring pages.
10) Tag other homeschoolers.
I tag Kim and Lindsey.

Ethan's Birthday Pics

I know these are reallllly late, but my computor quit acknowledging that I have media card readers, and even my teckie husband can't figure it out. So we're on to Plan B.

Ethan's cake on his actual birthday.

He served his cake by himself and would resheath the cake slicer in the above manner .

The requested "Transformers cake" showed up at his real party a week later when everyone was feeling better.

The Teaching Home

If you are homeschooling or thinking about homeschooling, and you do not get The Teaching Home's free e-newsletter, click here and sign up without delay. They're great! The new issue just came today, and is on Health Education, specifically how to prevent and treat a cold or flu. It has great links to all sorts of educational materials (mosly free online) and charts about germs, proper handwashing, etc. Here is an excerpt:

5 Ways To Avoid Infection

1. Teach Your Children about Germs

• Teach about germs and how they are transfered by air, fluids, and blood.
• Use a textbook, an encyclopedia, or the Internet.

Set of 7 teaching pages.

Learning activities and lesson plans.

Lesson plans for grades Pre-K through 6.

For Older Students:Infectious Disease Workshop contains extensive information and learning activities.

2. Sharing Infectious Agents

Children are adept at picking up and spreading germs. Teach them how to avoid this at all times, but especially when someone in your home is ill or you are out in public where many unknown and very harmful diseases abound.

• Cover skin abrasions and cuts.
• Don't touch the face, especially eyes, nose, and mouth.
• When ill, it is courteous to avoid contact with others so that you don't spread your cold or flu, even if it means missing something you really want to do.

Also, when you are ill and your immune system is weakened, it is easier for you to pick up another, and perhaps worse, illness if you are exposed to crowds and others who are sick

3. Establish Hand Washing Rules and Habits

The simplest and most effective thing that you can do to keep from getting sick yourself, or spreading your sickness to others, is to wash your hands well and often.

How To Wash

• Wet hands with warm water and ordinary soap.
• When you don't have access to soap and water, use non-alcohol baby wipes. Use of antibacterial soap can promote growth of more virulent germs and viruses.
• Teach your children to scrub all parts of their hands for 20 seconds. (You could teach them a hand-washing song that lasts that long to sing.) Handwashing curriculum.
• Dry hands well. In a public restroom, turn off tap with a paper towel or back of wrist, and open door with a paper towel or a corner of clothing.

When To Wash

• Wash hands immediately upon returning home after being out in public or playing outside.
• Wash hands before preparing food, eating, or handling clean dishes.
• Wash after using the toilet, changing diapers, sneezing, coughing, blowing nose, and eating.Poster showing how to cough, sneeze, and wash hands.Hand washing poster #1, #2, and #3.

For Older Students:

Chemistry: How soap works

History: Why handwashing is important

4. General Hygiene

It is important to practice good hygiene principles and routines at all times, as you or others may be contagious a day before symptoms of illness are evident. Explain to your children that, although they may not see germs, they are present and can make them sick. Connect hygiene to illness by reminding them of the last time they were ill. The memory may be powerful enough to convince them of the importance of hygiene.

• Don't share drinking and eating utensils, food that has been handled or partially eaten by others, or toothbrushes.
• When someone in your family is sick, don't even share books, games, and toys.
• Brush teeth and tongue, and rinse your toothbrush in mouthwash or vinegar between brushings to kill bacteria.
• Close toilet lid before flushing so germs cannot spray toothbrushes or other surfaces.
• Put dirty clothing or linens into the laundry right away and wash them with regular detergent.

5. Clean Your Home

Clean your home regularly, and more when colds and flu are going around.

• Disinfect carefully with a solution of bleach and water or use baking soda to clean surfaces.
• Also reduce exposure to dust, smoke, and other chemical irritants (such as cleaning compounds) in your home.
• Open windows and bring fresh air into your home occasionally, even in winter.

by Cindy Short and Sue Welch

Copyright 2006 by www.TeachingHome.com. Reprinted by permission

Homeschooling this week

I'm going to cahnge the color as we read/do them this week.

Memory Work: Review week

• Genesis 1:1-5
• Luke 2:1-14
• Psalm 100
• Psalm 150
• The Lord's Prayer
• John 1:1-14
• John 3:16-19

Poem: Review week

• "Trees" by Joyce Kilmer
• "A Thank You Prayer"
• "My Shadow" by R.L. Stephenson
• "This is My Bible"

Songs: Review week

• "This Is My Father's World"
• "Obedience"
• "How Great Is Our God"

Bible/Devotional reading :

• Genesis 21-26(30) (working on this a chapter or two a night)
• Leading Little Ones to God (Schoolland)
• The White Ram : A Story of Abraham and Isaac (Gerstein)
• The Binding of Isaac (Cohen)
• The Wicked City (Singer)
• The Story of Isaac and Rebeckah (Davidson)

Books to read:

• Magic Tree House Research Guide: Space (Osborne)
• Henry and Mudge books (Rylant)
• When Washington Crossed the Delaware (Cheney)
• Let It Begin Here! : Lexington and Concord (Fradin)
• Your Big Backyard - January 2007
• Your Big Backyard - February 2007
• A Mother's Journey (Markle)
• The Bravest Dog Ever: The True Story of Balto (Standiford)
• Valentine storybooks

Videos to watch:

• March of the Penguins
• Elementary Spanish : Volume 1
• Balto II : Wolf Quest (we somehow ended up with the Spanish version!)
• DK Eyewitness : Planets
• Abraham(is going to require a pre-viewing - started out with a women in hard labor - my kids still think babies"pop" out!)
• In the Beginning
• Abraham and Isaac
• Noah's Ark

Projects:

• Winter Scavenger Hunt : buds, insects that are "sleeping," animal tracks, old bird nest, berries, pinecone, squirrel nest, ice or icicles (from Your Big Backyard, January 2007)
• Finish alphabet book - all but the really weird letters,anyway
• Finish snowman craft
• Finish Birthday journal
• Groundhog Day celebration

Well, that's the plan, anyway, we'll see how far we get!

Cherry Cheesecake Milkshake

You've got to try this! Get some of Breyers Very Chocolate Cherry light ice cream and blend it with some lowfat milk and a block of cream cheese. Then serve your family the best milkshakes they've ever had. It's that simple.

Calling all Mommies in need of encouragement

Travel over to The Sacred Everyday, and read Ann Voskamp's (one of my favorite writers)ponderings, "Peace isn't a Place." May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Romans 15:13). Love to you all!

It's the stomach virus

Ethan has a stomach virus. Doesn't it break your heart when your child says,"what can you do to help me?" and all that you can offer are prayers, hugs, and apple juice? Pray for him, and pray for the rest us not to get it, please. (Did I ever mention that my super-immune system has zero immunity to stomach viruses? I usually catch them if someone looks at me.)

Blogs for life

• One of the greatest national tragedies to ever befall us at Biblical Womanhood
• When Is Abortion Racism? at Desiring God (John Piper's sermon of the week, not exactly a blog, but it fit the theme...)
• Nick Cannon: Can I Live at The Rebelution
• Sober Thoughts Today at Life in a shoe

What's the best mattress?

I need some help here. Brian, with his fibromyalgia, has had lots of back pain the past few years, but I haven't had any since elementary school (except for when I'm pregnant, of course). The past few weeks, though I have had a lower backache that has gotten progressively worse. Long story short, I think we're overdue for a new mattress. I've researched them a little, but I just get more and more confused. It seems that every store has a different name for the same mattress, making it virtually impossible to comparison shop. I'd be willing to spend substantial amount for a good mattress, but don't want to find out later that the $300 one at the liquidation sale was the same thing (or just as good) as the $1000 one I just bought. That would kill me - I'm an extreme tightwad about stuff like this. So help me out. Did you get a great mattress at Sam's or Big Lots? Did you have a lot of back pain that was relieved by a particular mattress? Please tell me!!!

And now, on to a prayer request. I'm coordinating a funeral dinner for 120 people tomorrow. Please pray for the Greene family. The grandfather went to be with the Lord and joined his 5 year old granddaughter who passed away suddenly in November. This family needs lifted up. And I humbly request your prayers for me as well. A nerve is trying to get pinched in my back and when it does, I can't stand up straight or lift things. It's been fleeting in that effect so far, but getting worse overall. So pray that it doesn't do anything weird tomorrow at least. Thanks, friends!

How sacred is the life of the unborn?

This week is sanctity of human life week. I'm afraid I could get on about twenty different soap boxes, but I'll start with just this one. While I would definitely agree that abortion hurts both mother and child, I simply find some people to be overly compassionate in their treatment of this topic, afraid to condemn the choice to take a life. If a lady came to me personally wanting to find hope and forgiveness, then certainly I would compassionately show her the Way to true Life. Some have made this decision not fully understanding the consequences of their actions, and they have my sympathy. But I find it difficult to understand why people feel the need to allow other people to "make bad choices" in this area. I personally think that we still have too sterile a view of what's happening. 43% of American women will have an abortion by the age of 45. In 2003, 43% of women that had an abortion in the U.S. had already had at least one other abortion. (Thanks to Focus on the Family's Citizen Link for those stats.) If your next door neighbor chose to violently murder her 2 year old, I doubt that most of us would say, " I'm sorry that she made that decision, but we should treat her with compassion and not judge her." And I venture to say that that murder would likely have been less painful and horrific than the typical abortion. Do we choose to view it as the horror that it is only if the government declares it illegal? That sounds very similar to what the German people living near concentration camps did. That is the defense given by Nazi doctors who experimented on Jewish twins and nurses who euthanized the elderly and handicapped gave as their defense. It was legal. We, as a society judge people for their crimes all of the time. There is no sin that Christ cannot forgive, and we should always offer that hope with compassion because none of us are without sin, but until we start being shocked and appalled and calling sin by its name, why should anyone seek that forgiveness? Do I think the answer is to launch an attack against against women choosing abortion or the doctors performing them? No. I believe that the Gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation. Christ is the only lasting solution to any problem. Proverbs 28:13 says He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy. But we must speak the truth in love.


WARNING: The following video is VERY GRAPHIC and should not be viewed by children.

Abortion: The Facts

WARNING:VERY GRAPHIC
NOT TO BE VIEWED BY CHILDREN

Read Aloud and Memory Work This Week

I'm posting this partly since I have all of the memory work printable on one sheet and partly to keep me motivated to plan and keep up with it all. We've done pretty well with our Bible reading, but our memory work hasn't been getting done lately because I haven't been planning it in advance properly. So I'm going to try to post it every week to help me think it through and stay motivated.

Bible/Devotional reading:

• Genesis 16-25
• Leading Little Ones to God (Schoolland), chs. 72-76

Chapter book:

• Baby Island by Carol Ryrie Brink

Other books:

• Kingfisher Young Knowledge: Solar System (Goldsmith)
• Worldwise: Space (Stott)
• Escape North! The Story of Harriet Tubman (Kulling)
• Young Abe Lincoln: The Frontier Days, 1809-1837 (Harness)
• Abe Lincoln Goes To Washington 1837-1865 (Harness)

Scripture memory:

Genesis 1:2-5 (ESV)

2The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

3And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.

4And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness.

5God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

Poem of the Week:

Trees

I think that I shall never see A poem lovely as a tree.

A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the sweet earth's flowing breast;


A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;

A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;


Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with rain.


Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.

Song of the Week:

"This Is My Father's World"

This is my Father’s world, and to my listening ears All nature sings, and round me rings the music of the spheres. This is my Father’s world: I rest me in the thought Of rocks and trees, of skies and seas; His hand the wonders wrought.

This is my Father’s world, the birds their carols raise, The morning light, the lily white, declare their Maker’s praise. This is my Father’s world: He shines in all that’s fair; In the rustling grass I hear Him pass; He speaks to me everywhere.

Words by Maltbie D. Babcock

Pics from Ethan's Birthday

Christmas memories

Aunt Hannah (from This May Be My Life)

and Anna Kate

Hey, hey the gang's (almost) all here!

Daddy and Anna Kate

Mommy and Rosie

Anna Kate urging Uncle Gary forward

Pappy and cousin Brooklynn

Bass Pro shop at Christmas

Pappy, Rosie, and Uncle Isaiah

Pretty Anna

Anna Kate and Uncle Titus

Anna Kate's surprise corner she found in

her room when we returned home, complete

with rug, pillows, canopy, and dollhouse.

She had to sleep in her "cave," and did so all night.

Five things to do this weekend

1. Pray for snow. (I know some of you are praying for the snow to melt, but you can pray for God to send it to me instead. Besides were looking at an ice storm, and snow is so much better!)
2. Write a thank you note, not for an actual gift received, but for someone's time, friendship, or service to you. Write the thank you note that doesn't have to be written, to the person in your life that has really encouraged you. If you're really stumped, try starting with your church pianist, janitor, or secretary.
3. Oganize your recipes. If you're anything like me, you have a lot of recipes that sounded great, got clipped out and stuck in a folder, and may never get used becuase you can't find the right one at the right time.
4. Pick up some eyedrops at the pharmacy. Yep, this is a prayer request, Brian has infection in his eyes again. Please pray that it clears up fast!
5. Fill your bird feeders.

Healthy Vegetable Recipes

Isn't everyone trying to have a healthier lifestyle these days? My kids love vegetables and salad, but I would really like to find some new ways to serve veggies. We eat green salads, as well as canned and frozen veggies. I usually cook frozen veggies in chicken broth, then season them. We also eat raw carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower; and I make lots of potatoes or sweet potatoes.

But I'm looking for some new ways to eat veggies. It seems like most vegetable recipes have a lot of fat (butter, sour cream, cheese), have some kind of wheat ingredient (bread crumbs, cream soups, crackers), or look like something my kids would never eat. I've tried some roasted squash recipes, that, frankly, weren't that great. I really need some help here. So if you've got a great vegetable recipe that your whole family enjoys, then please, please share it!

Just a note to those of you wondering, Brian has still done well with dairy, so I can use recipes with lowfat dairy, but we can't eat gluten, found in wheat, rye, barley, and most processed foods.

Are your hands dried out this winter?

I wash my hands constantly, partly because I have kids, partly because I'm a germaphobe, and partly because I cook. A lot. As a result my hands start drying out when we switch from central air to heat, and are usually dry, cracked open, and bleeding the rest of the winter. Yippy skippy.

But I now introduce to you my skin saver : Sunlight Ultra Sensitive Skin. Best stuff on the market. You know how Palmolive is supposed to be gentle? It gives me detergent burns. But I wash my hands all day with this in the kitchen and it actually makes awesome suds for dishes too ( not like some of those soft detergents that leave you going,"Where's the bubbles?"). I had to share, because someone out there still has the stinging hands I had a month ago. Hands too sore to even knock on a door. If that's you, try this stuff!

Sometimes you just have to get your money back!

Okay, nothing happened to me today, but I was inspired by Mary's post. Since I consider myself to be pretty good at this (and humble too), I thought I'd share.

I'm the one my friends and family know can talk people into giving me my money back for stuff. I really think that most people just don't try. But money doesn't grow on trees, and I refuse to be burnt by someone's bad products or service. On the other hand, I'm also far more likely than most people I know to go out of my way to thank people for good products or service. It's just good business. The business of running a home.

For example, a part went out on my dryer one month after the warranty expired, and I was nine months pregnant. They wanted to tell me that this was just too bad, but they were not going to get off that easily. Through eliminiation (dryers really don't have that many parts), it was obvious that a major part had gone bad. A part that, by their own admission, should not have gone bad for around ten years. Simple deduction: the part was defective. And they thought that I should be responsible for paying their technician for a new part to be installed. I DON"T THINK SO. Just because it didn't break a month ago, didn't mean it wasn't bad. What if I had had six kids already? It surely would have given up within that year then, right? Eventually I paid a $40 service fee and they covered the rest and gave me an additional 1 year warranty. The dryer's been great ever since. And do you know what? I would buy their dryer again next time now.

Toys are another big area in which you can lose a lot of money. My son took his birthday money and bought two similar toys at $15 a piece. He was thrilled with them. Until the first one broke and the second one wouldn't stay together one week later. I probably could have returned them to Walmart, but I hate to do that when it's not Walmart's fault. I have found that most major toy companies aim to please, and Hasbro absolutely outdid themselves. They sent me a prepaid label to ship them back for evaluation, asked if I would like to have them replaced with the same thing or something of equal value, and actually told me that I could write the item numbers for substitute choices on the return slip. It ended up that we wrote several items down with a note that this one particular Star Wars toy was what he had really wanted for his birthday, but it was completely sold out even before Christmas (his birthday is at the beginning of January). I mean this toy was gone from the market except fot a few collectors sites that had it for $200 instead of the original $30. Well, we got a package back from them expecting Hungry, Hungry Hippos, but it was instead, you guessed it - the Millenium Falcon!

Even bills can be helped by a polite conversation with a customer service rep. I always pay our credit card in full, but one month, I got online a day (really just a couple of hours) late. I was sick to my stomach. Late fee, interest.... I had nothing to lose. And the customer service lady just adjusted the date for me as sweetly as could be, and I was fine again.

So don't just give up on stuff. You can be polite, but persistent. Here are some tips. Some I've learned on my own, some from my brother (who actually goes way beyond what I would ever ask for, but has me laughing hysterically and scolding him at the same time. And he does get what he asks for).

1. Ask for the person's name, write it down for future reference, and call the person by name when you're talking to them. If you are getting a serious run around (like the five month run around my mother-in-law got from a furniture company whose furniture she had under extended warranty, but they wouldn't replace) you can let the person know that you will let the next guy up know if they were helpful or not.
2. Work your way up. There are a lot of things a customer service rep "just can't do" for you, but her manger or his manager most certainly can.
3. Always be calm and polite. You can get a lot farther by kindly explaining that you need their help than you do by issuing threats. (Although, my brother once actually threatened to take out newspaper ads in the company's home town, and swears it was effective - but I wouldn't recommend it! :^)
4. Don't assume that it's too late. If you feel that you've gotten a bad product, most companies will work with you. They want to keep their good name and your business. Try saying, "isn't it your goal to have satisfied customers? (yes) I am not a satisfied customer!" I had an infant toy that was used with Ethan for about a month or two, then packed away for two years until Anna Kate was ready to use it. But it would no longer keep it's shape and hold the little toys up; I was going to have to replace it. I decided to give Fisher Price a call (they are the best company to work with!). They couldn't replace it fully, but they did prorate it, which gave me back around 70% of what I paid - and I bought another Fisher Price toy.
5. Don't forget to call about the good things too. I often call food companies, in particular, to thank them for a great product. They sometimes just stutter in shock and amazement, but sometimes they actually send me coupons or sign me up for a newletter. And I'll hold a long time just to let someone's superior know that they really went out of their way to help me out, even after someone else had told me that they couldn't do anything.