Handmade with Love

Kiersten has taken up making some gifts by hand and of course with love. Embroidery, with all its colors and fun patterns has made an impression. We stumbled upon embroidery by accident, really. The art book we were doing had a lesson where they talked about embroidery and then had the kids made a drawing of what they might embroider. I guess that just didn't really compute with me. Draw an embroidery idea? Why not just embroider for real? While I knew this probably wasn't super practical for Isaiah, I didn't see any reason Kiersten couldn't give it a go.

With embroidery on the mind I went to the best free resource a girl has- the library. We found some real gems in the way of books to get us started. One of them was this book -

There were really cute ideas and patterns. We just needed something to get us started. Kiersten chose a sampler type project.

There were a few different types of stitches used; satin stitching, french knots, stem stitching as well as back stitching were involved. The backstitch stitch is Kiersten's favorite. She did a really wonderful job. The sky is the limit now.

The other book she really likes is this one:

There is a CD inside to print off the patterns/designs. This particular gal uses some really eye catching colors which completely appealed to my girl.. I'll have to add a picture another time of the under the sea bag Kiersten made for her cousin.(We gave it away before getting a picture of it.) All the patterns and color ideas came from this book and it turned out really lovely.

After the sampler Kiersten decided to get a set of 3 plain bags in order to embroider them and then give them away. The under the sea bag was one gift and then Kiersten made this bag for another birthday gift.

I gave her a little help adding the fabric on. We got the 'pattern' by tracing the cover picture of a sticker book the girls had. Kiersten was pleased with how it turned out. : ) Next she is on to making a bag for herself. You'll have to tune back in to see the finished product!

Not Exactly What I Had in Mind

The other day I gave Kiersten a writing assignment: Write about an invention you would like to make, provided you had all the space and materials you needed. Tell me how this would help people.

We’ve been working through the Industrial Age in school, particularly with regard to the United States. We had just finished a book on Thomas Alva Edison. She was quite taken with some of the inventions he came up with like the phonograph, both to play and record sound. He also invented the light bulb and what we would call movie projectors. When the end of the story mentioned a museum on the East Coast we both thought it would pretty cool if we were to travel someday to see it.

Some other inventors we’ve learned about this year and last are Eli Whitney (cotton gin and making guns with interchangeable parts), Benjamin Franklin (electricity, stoves),  Robert Fullton (steamboat), Henry Ford (the assembly line)….

My thoughts were on a little deeper humanitarian level when I asked her to do this writing assignment. I have to say we were definitely not on the same page. Or were we? You be the judge.

Kiersten’s invention:

If I had certain parts, I would make an invention called the…”Let-You-Do It Inator.” (LYDI) What it is: a head piece and a remote control that looks like this:

This is how it works. The head piece goes on an adult and the kids gets the remote. When a kid wants to do something, like get two cookies or not do the dishes, the kid flips on the remote that acavates the head piece. Then the kid ask a question, “Can I have two cookies?” And the the adult says, “Yes.” So this invention makes life easer for the kids. THE END

Hmmm…I saw where she was going with this about two sentences in. Slick, real slick. I can see she has a real heart to make life better for other kids. : ) What say you?

Bee Accepted

This story, Bee Accepted, within A Hive of Busy Bees by Effie Williams, is truly one of love. (I promised I would share after the last post didn’t I?) The first part of this story is about the love of a shepherd whose very job is to watch over and protect his flock. He takes them out to pasture but returns each evening to put them in a pen, the fold. As the shepherd reaches the pen he counts each sheep as it passes the gate, making sure he has each and every one.

Now I said gate, but the beauty is there was no gate on this pen that the shepherd put his sheep into. At night he would lie down in the opening of the pen acting as a living gate. That way he would know if anything came in or went out. He was their protector and provider and they heeded his voice.

The person telling this portion says wouldn’t it be nice to own the verse, “The Lord is MY shepherd”? Wouldn’t it be nice to be within the loving protection of the fold of the Lord, to be His sheep and He your shepherd? The invitation goes out so eloquently to bee accepted into God’s family.

The second part of this story begins with some men driving past a farm and noticing the sheep out in the meadow. One sheep looked a little off, like his coat was actually sewn on. Upon arriving at the farm they inquire of the farmer about the sheep. He tells them a mother sheep lost her baby and a baby lamb lost its mother. The farmer sees one and one and thinks why not make two? He puts the lost baby with the grieving mother to see if she will take it as her own. She goes near the little lamb and then starts to buck and kick. Before serious damage is done to the baby the farmer takes the lamb out of the pen. He puts the mother back in the pen with her little dead lamb and finds she calms down immediately. He figures she knows her baby by its smell. Getting desperate to make this situation work and to save the living baby lamb he decides to take the coat off the dead lamb and put it around the living one. Once the coat was tied on he reintroduced the little lamb and the grieving mother. She came near again and found that what she smelled was familiar and so she began to nurse the lamb. She accepted the little lamb as her own.

As the family talks over this story it becomes this beautiful depiction of the Lord and his love for us, his lost sheep. How when He looks at us and sees us, sin and all, we just aren’t acceptable to him. However when we choose Jesus, when we are welcomed into the fold of God, we are given a new coat, a new skin, the cloak of Christ. From then on when the Father looks at us he sees the cloak of His Son and we are accepted.

My retelling just cannot do this chapter justice. Such a sweet, sweet message of the love of a Father and the lengths He went to so that we wouldn’t have to be lost but rather accepted as members of His fold.

Character

I find it interesting that when this is a theme I pick out to develop a little in my children it speaks most to me. We have been reading A Hive of Busy Bees by Effie Williams for several weeks (read online for free).

Each story is centered around a character trait. We recently read Bee Careful. It was about being careful with your words. This has been an area in which I greatly struggle. Sad as it is to say I struggle the most in my words towards the kids’.

In the story the father was trying to get his daughter to have a better feel for the impact of her words so she wouldn’t use them so carelessly. I tend to be a visual person so this example struck a cord with me. He had her pick up a white dandelion and blow as hard as she could. Then he told her he would wait patiently while she went forth and picked up each of the pieces of the dandelion that had blown away. The daughter thought for sure he was kidding for that was an impossible task. He then told her that is how she needs to think of the words that leave her mouth…they carry further then you mean them to and there is no getting them back. Indeed.

The other part of this story had to do with a knot that was put in a baby tree. Once the knot was discovered it was a year later and too late to undo it. The family then called it their learning tree because they were reminded by looking at it that once some things are done there is no undoing them. The impact of that action lasts, regardless of apologies made and forgiveness received.

I should have known better, because isn’t it always the way when you pick something out as a weakness in someone else the mirror comes out and low and behold the weakness is really yours?

(For whatever reason on the free online download versions there are some stories missing and Bee Careful is one of them. Another is Bee Accepted…all about the cross. I’ll write more about that another day because it is a beautiful story.)

A Rare Gem

I find when I do searches I am overwhelmed with all there is to choose from. I tried to find a decent typing program for the kids at the end of last year (for free, of course). I did find something but it was along the lines of I-don’t-have-time-to-look-too-long-or-hard-right-now-so-this-will-just-have-to-do. Nothing against this program, it did just fine. The only issue was it didn’t spark an interest in typing, made it more chore than fun.

Knowing how important it can be to make something fun and how they’ll run after it all the more if they like it I searched again. I am thankful I did for this time I stumbled upon this site.

It also seemed even more than appropriate since a couple of dear friends of ours are from that land across the Atlantic. Who knew?

Since we bookmarked this site I get asked if they can type and believe it or not I have to put the timer on to make them get off! This is what I call a gem of a find. : )

Now if I could just channel the enthusiasm they now for have for typing to a few other areas of school time I would be set!

{photo credit}

A Declaration

I am not a huge football fan. Watching the super bowl? Not high on my list. My husband on the other was a little too into this years game because his beloved Packers were in it. : ) It is thankful I am that they won. (I left the house a little after half-time. I won't make privy the things he was saying to the T.V. prior to my departure. My only prayer was that he wouldn't wake the children in his agitation/excitement.)

Anyhow, why the chat about the super bowl when I am not in the slightest bit a football fan? I was thankful and surprised to hear the Declaration of Independence being read just prior to the action by different NFL players.



This year we have begun our 2 part study of the history of the United States. We are on the Revolutionary War, thus my interest and appreciation in the reading of the Declaration of Independence. : ) In addition to the history section of our curriculum we have books that Kiersten reads on her own (I do too, before she does.) as well as read-alouds. It has been so neat to have the books we are reading tie in right with where we are in history. Currently we are finishing up Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes.

I have to tell you I have a whole new appreciation for what our forefathers went through and did just so that I could live in a free and democratic society. I honestly don't remember learning much of this in my own school days, which is neither here nor there, but am doubly thankful I am learning it now.

Continuing my much slacking list of thanks : )

# 125 - 134

 - living in a free & democratic nation

- those dear men & women who have served in the military and given so much from 1776 to today

- a rich national history

- a school curriculum that works hard to bring out the most in what we are studying

- the Declaration of Independence

- the Star Spangled Banner

- Adventures in Odyssey telling Kiersten the story of how the Star Spangled Banner came to  be written

- a country that was founded on a belief in the One, True God

-relearning a history I had long ago forgotten and thus greatly under appreciated

- my Mom is home safe (for good)  after having served to support our troops over seas in  a warring area for 6 1/2 years

Family Entertainment

(Since we’ve been immersed in all things potty training I thought a change of pace would be nice. You’re welcome. : ))

As the summer ended and Fall began we started to see more and more large spiders around the house. I say we, but I mean they (Beloved + children). Until I went out to take pictures I had not laid my eyes on the little, or not so little, buggers I knew to be infesting our yard.

To be sure I had been beckoned, “Mom! Come see the huge spider!”

 “Thanks so much. But I’ll pass.”

I leave all that spidery stuff, especially ones still out of doors, to my Beloved. (A spider inside the house? Different story altogether. I wouldn’t be able to rest until I knew I had done all I could to get it. Make no mistake, get it I would.)

Anyhow, what my Beloved decided to do once the spider was pointed out to him was catch a moth or some other small bug or insect and toss it into the web so the kids could watch the spider come down, sting its victim and wrap it up nicely.

That is some serious free family entertainment let me tell you! I’m not much amused by the whole display but then it isn’t me my honey was out to impress. The funny thing is that even though I avoided these ‘shows’ my Beloved would induce by throwing things into webs I recently ended up seeing that very thing. However it wasn't a spider in my backyard I was watching. (Thankfully.)

We are using Sonlight Core 3 as well as their science program this year for school. Incredible Creatures that Defy Evolution is a DVD that is built into the curriculum. I am thankful the topic of evolution has come up. We’ve chatted a bit about it now and again but I think it is hard for Kiersten to understand what all evolution means, entails. (She’s still little. : )) What I am even more thankful for is how this DVD shows time and time again that all these different creatures (us included) are so complexly made and have such individualized tasks our bodies perform that there is just no way we evolved from some other type of animal. We have a creator, who is God, and in His awesome power and glory made all things unique…especially man, his most beloved creation, formed in his image, loved deeply and created to have a relationship with him.

But I am getting off topic.

The point is in this video there is section that shows a spider, a rather nasty looking bugger, catching something in his web, going in for the sting and then spinning his prey up in a nice neat and tidy package!

This same spider, or at least it looks a lot like the same spider (the big ones all start to look the same to me, scary and in need of killing), showed up in a library book Isaiah just adored that same week. This is it…

It is a picture book of letters found in nature. For the letter “X” wouldn’t you know the creepy crawly guy from the DVD would make an appearance. The kids just giggled when I would act grossed out and not even want to look at it. They would cover it, I would sigh with relief, they would uncover and I would cringe. Isn’t it a blessing kids are so easily prone to giggle? And in return make you giggle? : )

Nothing like spiders to keep a family entertained.

Day 2

Who would have thought? Surely not I.

I would never have imagined Isaiah would take to school like a duck to water. Never.

I thought I would be telling him constantly to sit, stay focused, stop playing- something along those lines. He is so focused and surprisingly just cannot seem to get enough. We do some math…just a little to get us going and he is ready to do more pages. We did handwriting, trying out a few letters, and he is ready to do more. (This is going to be his weak area as even holding the pencil correctly poses a problem for him. We have some grips to help him place his hand properly on the pencil so hopefully that will help.) We also did a little reading. He is flying through and ready to do more.

Funny. It just isn’t how I thought it would be with him.

But then it isn’t how I thought it would be with Kiersten either. I didn’t imagine that I would be struggling with her on day 2 of school. Day 2!!!! *Sigh.*

Let me just tell you that math is our stumbling block. Has been from the get go. I am confident my lack of patience and her lack of listening skills are BIG contributing factors. We even switched math programs this year to see if that would help. And here I am on day 2 (oh, the irony) of school telling you it isn’t the program that is the issue.

It is us.

We just don’t seem to mesh well. Our chemistry is bumpy and we butt heads, often.

Knowing this I set out today to make sure I spent more time with her on her math. (More importantly I committed it to the Lord before my feet hit the floor.) I think I expect too much of her and how she learns. She is a quick learner and a smart girl. This tends to make me think she should just get it from reading the book and seeing the examples contained within. Not unlike a college student sometimes has to do. Did I mention she is only 8? My bad.

Long story short even after spending close to 30 minutes doing some examples and trying to make things more concrete for her she still wasn’t wanting to meet me half-way. She even went so far as to say, “I hate school.”

And that my friends was the last straw.

I did mention this was only the second day of school, didn’t I?

I looked over at her and said something to the effect of, “This isn’t going to work. It just isn’t. We are only on the second day of school and this is your attitude? Do you want me to send you away for school? That is my only option if you won’t work with me and at least try.”

I didn’t say it as a means to manipulate or scare her into doing what I wanted her to do. I said it because it was and is the truth. I don’t have it in me to fight her. This isn’t a season I am willing to or can take on a fight simply to fight. There are others to consider and at the end of the day I don’t want school to be why we don’t like one another. It isn’t worth it.

After our candid little talk she did come around to at least trying. I’ll give her that. And would you believe I think I even saw her smile a time or two while she finished up her math?!

We’ll have to wait and see what tomorrow brings because surely it has to be better than today.

How many days are left in the school year? *Sigh.*

The Reading Corner

Recently I moved some furniture around the house. We needed a change and some more organization to most of our school materials. Our house doesn’t have any spare rooms left for a play or school room so the dining room is where all the action takes place. Thus this is where I moved the little bookcase necessary to house school things.

I put up this years material and then brought up from the basement last years material. It was so funny to watch the kids sit on the bin I brought up and just peruse what was there.

Kiersten was meeting up with some old friends and remembering stories read before and Isaiah was picking up the science experiment book and finding thing after thing he wanted to try again. Katie, she just wanted to see what the other two were looking at so closely.

The only damage done thus far was to the small occupant on top of the bookshelf just now…a caterpillar we found on a walk. Poor guy has been tossed around a bit and then dropped. Insult to injury if you ask me.

Anyhow, back to the reading corner or area. It is a blessing to have things organized and up for us to find all in one place and I am looking forward to adding many more years worth! I know the kids are as well. (We’ll worry about logistics later. : ) )

Debating

I have been debating and seriously considering alternate schooling options for our kids come Fall. I have been nervous about #4 coming and could I handle it all (still am). Will I do a good enough job? Will I still have my sanity at the end of the day? Will my kids’ have theirs? How will I be able to keep up with day to day things, school and a new baby? Just mountains of questions and insecurities about what I can or can't do.

So I did what any grown woman would do…I confessed to my husband. I made my fears known to him and asked him how he felt about tentatively enrolling the 2 oldest in the public school system next year. That conversation did not go at all how I had envisioned it going. It wasn’t bad. It just wasn’t what I thought I would hear in response. My Beloved was quite opposed to doing the public school thing.

After that conversation I had to think on the situation a bit more. Another Mom informed me our state offered ‘virtual’ schools. These types of schools allow your child to be registered as a public school student and yet still do school at home. They would receive a laptop, have an on-line teacher and all school materials would be sent to us at the state’s expense. It sounded like the next best thing- the in between of sending them to school and full time home schooling.

But the more I thought on it the more I realized this situation might be even more stressful than doing the home school program we do now. I mean, my kids aren’t big enough (at least the little guy isn’t) to do on-line courses without help. They would still need my physical help for quite a bit AND I would be at the mercy of someone else’s schedule. That pressure of marching to another person’s tune didn’t sit so well with me.

The other thing that made me seriously reconsider doing the virtual schooling option was checking out their curriculum. We predominantly use Sonlight and there are things here and there I don’t love. However, one of the things I do love is the reading material that they have selected, both for us to read together and for her to read on her own. The stories are wonderful. The virtual program didn’t really have a reading program and the math was a bit weak. It just was all around unimpressive. I don’t mean to sound snobby about it.

Then I looked at what we would be doing this year through Sonlight, Core 3 – Introduction to American History, and I got excited again. The Biggest Man has also been making his own strides with reading and we’ve started a different Bible program just this week to bring him into all this schooling business too. That has been neat to see him join the fold a bit and take an interest in learning.

I still have time to say I want to do the virtual school option…but I think I just might pass. After all, even if we can’t stay on schedule in the Fall we can always extend through the Summer and just try to enjoy doing the family thing together.

A ‘Cool’ Experiment

Not long ago, while studying Pluto (an ice planet) we were able to make our own homemade ice cream. The whole point of the experiment was to show, in a rather tasty fashion, how things freeze.

We had wanted to grab one of those nifty soccer ball-like contraptions to make the ice cream in…but as that was not something we could do without ordering it we went with the old school way the book described.

We took two Ziploc plastic bags…1-quart and 1-gallon size. In the gallon size bag we put a certain amount of rock salt and water and in the quart size bag we put heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla. Each bag was sealed individually and the smaller one placed within the larger one.

A few minutes of shaking, watching the salt turn from a solid to a slushy mess and we had some not so bad tasting ice cream!

It was still a little troublesome trying to explain to such a young one about freezing point depression and have it make sense as some of the high school and college students who learn about it have a hard time wrapping their minds around it as well. We did what we could.

What she’ll remember? 1) That Pluto is an ice planet (ok, it isn’t a ‘planet’ technically anymore. Nevertheless she’ll remember it does not have a hot inner core as the rest of the planets do). 2) That making ice cream ourselves is fun, yummy and we should try experimenting making some other flavors as vanilla is good but other kinds are even better! : )