A House of Learning

This Blog Has Moved!

2011-04-27T09:57:00.002-05:00

I shouldn't have started a new discussion before migrating everything over. Sorry! For the family - see Simple Life Learners. This blog is private, please drop me an email if you want to be invited to read. I decided to leave it public and just be careful what I post. For home education, TJED, and Leadership Education - see Freedom Educators. This blog is public. Thank you!

You Know It's Bad

2011-04-26T13:17:00.001-05:00

You know it's bad when you see photos of a place you used to live and miss it so terribly that you want to cry. The problem is, I just don't know how to get back there! What do you do if you just can't afford to live where your heart wants to be? What if there is just no financial way? I wonder if the pioneers ever felt that way as they looked out at the dry, dusty basin of the Salt Lake valley.

Changing Blogs

2011-04-25T20:10:00.000-05:00

Several people have mentioned to me that I should diversify my blogs. I am hard headed and didn't want to make the changes, but I can see the wisdom in it. SOOOOO.... My home education blog is moving to Freedom Educators - http://blog.freedomeducators.com/ - You will find that all of my posts on home education are already there with all of the comments as well. Pretty fancy stuff that you can

New Website Launched!

2011-04-20T13:31:00.000-05:00

Thank you to all of you who I asked to preview and give feedback on a new website venture - Thrifty Like That! I have taken all of your comments to heart. I would also appreciate any further feedback, even if you feel it might be brutal! I need to hear what works and what doesn't. The design has changed since I last asked people to preview it, so let me know what you think of it's new look. What

Driving Costs

2011-04-18T18:05:00.002-05:00

Bye Bye Truck! Bye Bye Payment! I read an article today that made me feel a little bit better about going down to only one car. The article is titled "Driving Costs Climb to $8,776 for Car Owners". It was in the AAA magazine we get every couple of months. It basically describes how to determine how much your actual yearly cost is to own and drive your vehicle. I was completely shocked that a

Making Weaponry?

2011-04-13T11:56:00.001-05:00

I have had mothers question my choices in allowing my son to make "weapons". Our society has been leaning for some time towards "weapon free" play for boys. I personally think this is an agenda to keep us from defending ourselves, a way to "dumb down" the masses, creating a passive citizenry. I do not think ownership of weapons leads to war, quite the opposite, I believe it leads to self-defense

Whatever Happened to Penny Candy?

2011-04-08T16:27:00.002-05:00

document.location='http://blog.freedomeducators.com/2011/04/whatever-happened-to-penny-candy.html'; I highly recommend "Whatever Happened to Penny Candy?" to anyone wanting to understand how money works. I was very impressed with how the topics are explained and with how pertinent this information is to our day and time. I wish I had known this information when I was a young adult, I know I

The Silent Treatment

2011-04-06T11:19:00.000-05:00

document.location='http://blog.freedomeducators.com/2011/04/silent-treatment.html'; Imagine a day where you are not allowed to talk or make noise all day. You must go through all your duties without talking, not even a whisper. There are peers all around you, also going throughout the day in silence. The others make little signs to you. Signs like waving "Hi!" with a silent gesture as you pass

Taught by Our Children

2011-04-05T09:00:00.000-05:00

I have been struggling with things where we live. I posted about that before. I have struggled with cultural differences, which for a long time I couldn't even pin point exactly what was so different. Mostly, it is that my core of "right and wrong" is different than most of the people here. What they view as "right and wrong", "good and bad", "true and false" are not the same as mine. Knowing

Conference Reflections

2011-04-03T20:40:00.001-05:00

Ahhh...I love General Conference. We were able to watch all of the sessions, except for the Priesthood Session, at home on the Internet. Mike and Chris went to the building to watch the Priesthood session. I think my favorite session was the Sunday afternoon session. I was extremely touched by Richard G. Scott and his touching testimony of marriage. I seriously cried through the whole thing. His

Chumlee the Shih Tzu

2011-03-29T11:21:00.001-05:00

Everyone has been missing our animals, the work and companionship has been greatly missed. We do have Maggie the Mutt, but she is getting old and not nearly as playful anymore. Mike has been offered several free puppies on his route, but I have always said no due to the constant vigilance a puppy requires. BUT, everyone finally wore me down and we added Chumlee to the household. Everyone is in

A Year in Missouri

2011-03-26T10:39:00.000-05:00

Wow! It has been a year since we arrived in Missouri. It definitely feels like it... When people ask me how I like Missouri, I say, "It is beautiful!" I wish I had a whole list of things I love about it, but I can't honestly make that list. This move has been a huge trial. We moved with such high expectations. We were so happy to embark on this adventure. However, nothing seemed to turn out

Family: Nayna's Formal

2011-03-13T13:20:00.000-05:00

We finished Nayna's formal dress this past week. Nayna did most of it herself. We were able to modify the bodice a couple inches higher to make a more modest fit. Our church has a yearly formal for all teens ages 16-18 that encompassed two stakes. In some cases, youth traveled over an hour to attend. Couples may attend, but are not necessarily encouraged. Nayna went with a group of girls and

Nothing to Say

2011-03-04T17:48:00.000-06:00

Mike is STUNNED I have nothing to say. It is a very RARE occasion indeed in which I have nothing to say. (Tongue in cheek.) But, that is how I have felt lately. I do love my blog and have felt a great deal of fulfillment in writing and posting on my blog. I'm not sure what it is exactly... Am I too bored with my blog now? Have I said everything important I wanted to say? Am I feeling too

Family: Disneyland

2011-02-21T09:00:00.001-06:00

Several years ago, I went to Disneyland for the first time. I was able to share this first with my children. It was the first time Chris and Nayna had ever been too. Sam had been with her dad before. It was the funnest family vacation we have ever had. My Little Monkeys Patiently on the Trolley Ready to have fun! Exhausted! This last one is my favorite. Mike told them to rest while we waited for

Family: "Undaunted" and My Ancestors

2011-02-18T20:53:00.000-06:00

I finally got a copy of "Undaunted" by Gerald N. Lund from the library. There are not to many "Mormon" books in our library system, so I was happily surprised to find one. First Nayna snagged it and then Mike. I finally got my chance to begin reading, only to discover that this book is about a pioneering event in which two of my ancestors were called to participate. I always knew my family had

Family: My Valentines

2011-02-14T09:00:00.013-06:00

OK - I decided to copy my friend and do Monday Memories. I have enjoyed looking at their past and thought it would be fun to share some of ours. My Valentine The day I married my honey was the best day of my life. He is truly the man of my dreams and my best friend. I am so thankful for you every day, Mike! What a handsome man I married. Tears still come to my eyes when I look at this picture.

Education: What a STEAL!

2011-02-11T09:00:00.000-06:00

document.location='http://blog.freedomeducators.com/2011/02/education-what-steal.html'; I am so excited I can barely contain myself! I won an Ebay bid on a set of the Great Books of the Western World for only... $66 with free shipping! Whoot! I basically bid when it was a low-ball price thinking I would never get it, but just thought I would give it a shot. To my happy surprise...I won! That

The Parable of the Grocery Store

2011-02-08T11:52:00.001-06:00

document.location='http://blog.freedomeducators.com/2011/02/parable-of-grocery-store.html'; A friend wrote a beautiful post about home education and another one on her love of public schools. Both have their reasons and stated them with feeling, thought, and purpose. I am always extremely thankful for the freedom of choice in educating our children...whichever way you choose for your family,

Education: Weekly Planner #2

2011-02-07T09:00:00.001-06:00

document.location='http://blog.freedomeducators.com/2011/02/education-weekly-planner-2.html'; Nayna decided that she didn't want to use the Weekly Planner #1 anymore. She devised a specific planner to suit her needs. This planner includes all of the subjects she wants to study, planned out over the days she wants to study them. She checks off the subject and writes in the details (chapter or

Education: How did it happen?

2011-02-04T09:00:00.001-06:00

document.location='http://blog.freedomeducators.com/2011/02/education-how-did-it-happen.html'; I've been re-reading "Alas, Babylon" by Pat Frank. The second time through is definitely an eye-opener. I am understanding things I did not get before. I wanted to share a couple of insights from the book that I feel are relevant in today's society. From Alas, Babylon: Note: In this scene, Randy

Family: The Boring Life

2011-02-01T09:00:00.000-06:00

"I'm Bored!" mourns one of my offspring aloud with a full body flop on the couch and loud sigh. "Nice to meet you, Bored. I'm Mom," I quip back with a smirk, thinking I am terribly witty while the offended offspring, realizing their mistake in uttering this statement aloud, makes a quick and quiet exit to their room. I've been using this line for several years now. Maybe it's time to get a new

LDS: Emergency Preparations

2011-01-31T13:24:00.000-06:00

With a large ice/snow storm on its way tonight and tomorrow, emergency preparedness is something on everyone's mind. A few years ago there was an ice storm here that knocked out everyone's power for 9 days. That is a pretty long time to survive in frigid temperatures. Many people left and drove to neighboring relatives that had power. I don't know how the pioneers did it! Fire was their saving

Education: TJED for Teens Book List

2011-01-28T09:00:00.003-06:00

document.location='http://blog.freedomeducators.com/2011/01/education-tjed-for-teens-book-list.html'; I love the TJED for Teens book. I found it helpful for me to learn more about being the type of mentor my children need. It also helped me to see how to give my teens direction based on their personal Mission. I highly recommend this book for all home educating families, even if all your

Family: St. Louis Trip

2011-01-25T09:00:00.000-06:00

I already posted our main reason for going to St. Louis here (Tumor News). Since we were making the trip anyway, we decided to make a mini-vacation out of it. Unfortunately, we had to return that same day since we had a funeral the next morning and Mike had to work. After spending the entire morning at the orthopedic surgeons, we went to see the St. Louis Gateway Arch, now called the National