{ with eager hands }

Homedoings: Making Butter

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Mon, 20 May 2013 15:00:00 +0000

In our house, we eat butter.

Lots of butter.

We also use coconut oil and olive oil, but definitely butter. I began buying Kerrygold butter at our local Kroger a few months ago, and while it is more spendy than the store brand butter, it is visibly different in color and texture, and is from the cream of grass-fed cows. I like that. The flavor is fantastic as well!

I have wanted to make butter since we started participating in a herd share program for raw milk 6 years ago, but was very spotty in actually doing it. It takes time and some bit of practice and patience to get it done, in my experience.

A couple months ago, I became resolved to make butter consistently from our milk, and it’s really coming along! I know that there are many tutorials out there for making butter, but I got into a FB conversation with another butter lover and decided I would share my way here. Maybe you do it, too and have some tips for me – or maybe I do something that can help you! The pictures aren’t the best and I took more in better light during another session, but they are still on my phone I also have a couple little videos for you to see what it looks like. Are you visual like me? I’ll get those up soon and update you folks on that.

We get 3 gallons a week from our herd share at Sweet Land Farm in the Floyd area. From these 3 gallons, I pull about 4 cups/1 quart of cream. I am not usually doing it all at one time, or as soon as we get home. Usually I am doing a rush job before someone starts pouring themselves a glass of milk! We use this butter in cooking and for spreading on bread. My brother-in-law and his wife got us a butter bell a while back, and that keeps the butter soft for spreading. mmmmm….

So here is the {with eager hands } way to make butter :

1.Let the milk jugs sit still for a good while in the fridge, to make sure the milk and cream separate. Even a few hours after you put them in the fridge is ok. You can see the separation. The creamy top is the cream, and the milk is almost blue-tinted. It’s super faint, but it’s not as starch white as commercial milk.

2. Gather your tools for getting your cream: Batter Bowl (or other bowl with a lid, and a baster

3. Catch your cream, then put your cream in the fridge until you have time to make butter.

HOW TO CATCH YOUR CREAMI started getting the cream out with a small ladle, but have found this baster to be so much faster. That being said, it’s a cheap Vile-Mart baster, and now that I am dedicated to doing this weekly, I want to get a higher-quality (read: not plastic) tool. This is STRICTLY for the cream-catching and washed IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING the catching. Otherwise, the process is a pain in my elbow, ya’ll.

I get my bowl right up against my milk jug and a clean surface to lay the baster while I switch from one jug to the next. Then, basically, I slowly suck the cream out of the jug. Below is sort of how I do it, because you have to be careful not to suck the milk out with it.

I squish the basting bubble at the top (what is that called, anyway?) BEFORE putting it in the milk. Very important, folks. I put the tip of baster in the milk, only a smidgen! I then slowly let it open up in my hand, while moving my hand to guide it around the edge of the jug.

In the beginning it’s not a big deal if you just stick the end in the middle and suck, but you’re likely to get the milk, so I just always run it around the edge. This way, you can see the tip of the baster and also see if you are messing up the cream-milk line. If you see that line skew, you know you’ve hit the milk. I take my time here, letting my OCD fly. I try to suck as much cream out as possible (more butter!!) and not any milk.

As you can see below, I left a bit. Since this picture, I have done several more batches and can a bit more out. But, still, that’s a lot, considering it went to the very top.

In the picture below, the left milk jug has been creamed and shaken – just because I like to – and the right jug is one not yet creamed.

4. When you are ready to make butter (or some time in the next few hours) get it out and give it some time on the counter (covered so nothing falls or flies in there) to warm up a bit. If it’s fridge-cold, then you have to run the machine longer to make it separate. Gather the rest of your tools during this time: food processor, a couple quart Mason jars and lids, fine mesh sieve, canning funnel, small bowl, Pampered Chef Small Mix ‘N Scraper (it needs to be this one. It is awesome.)

5. Pour it into the food processor bowl (unless that’s where you put the cream to begin with) and let ‘er rip! I do it on “1”.

In the above picture, I haven’t gotten started, and it just looks like cream. When I ramp it up, it will ride up the sides….like cream would do, lol! You have to let it run for a few minutes, but exactly how long depends on the temperature of your cream, the machine and the way you hold your head (just joking about that last one.)
After a while, you will see the contents beginning to behave differently in there whilst spinning. It begins to clump a little and slide down the sides, like this:
And when you open up to see if you have butter, you might see this:
It’s not butter yet, but you can see that it is beginning to come! Church, butter churn! Close it up, turn ‘er back on, and let it go some more! At some point, maybe 2 more minutes (give or take), will change more…..

Do you see the separation? The butter is in the back, clumped up, and there is white milk at the bottom.
BUTTER!

6. After you see the butter, stop the machine and pour the “buttered milk” (as I say) into one of the mason jars outfitted with the blue canning funnel with a fine mesh sieve on top. That sieve catches any clumps of butter that might fall out. Label this and fridge it up. You can use this instead of regular milk in any recipe you have – or even drink it! It is a little sweet and has a buttery taste. Laura Ingalls liked it!

7. We don’t have an ice maker, so I just pour cold water (I have started pouring a good 1/2 cup or more in there) into the bowl and then run the machine for a minute or 3. (Can you see the water at the top, all cloudy, and the butter on the bottom, slammed against the side of the bowl?)This cold water and the agitation will draw more of the milk from the butter. I then move the funnel and and sieve to the second mason jar and save this watery-buttered milk and the next round and label it so. Again, you can use it in place of regular milk. I was dumping this all, and just felt so bad about that – there is STILL milk in there, you know!
8. I will drain the butter of the water-with-less-and-less-milk, refill with more clean cold water and run the processor until the water is clear. I do this routine several times. It won’t be perfectly clear, veeeeery nearly so. At that point, I take my butter out of the food processor bowl and put it in a small bowl. I squoosh the butter with the back of the scraper and it makes more water come out. Pretty soon after starting, I will add about 1 teaspoon salt (we use RealSalt brand) for flavor and a smidge of preservation. Then I squoosh more, pouring out the water now and again. This is where my patience is tried, to be honest. It’s not hard, but it’s teaching me to slow down……much like kneading bread.
9. After I squoosh until I am not seeing water come out, or only a drop or so, I will put it in a small bowl, like one of those Pampered Chef Prep Bowls that hold 1 cup of something up to the top (and it has a lid, yaya!) I have found that squooshing in the bowl brings more water out. We go through the butter in a week’s time, but in the past, I wasn’t getting al the milk out and it was souring a bit. From raw milk, cultured butter is very healthy, but none of us like it here, so I like to keep it sweet cream Baby steps, right? I am getting better and as I find myself being consistent in this, I hope to use the spring butter and early fall butter to save for the winter months. Did you know that the grass grown in those times is even better than the rest of the growing season? The milk, then, has even higher vitamin counts! Next year, then!

I’d love to hear your tips for making butter!

Linking up:

Homedoings: Make-Ahead Hash Browns

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Thu, 02 May 2013 02:46:00 +0000

I love potatoes, it’s no secret and I think that the rest of the family will agree – spuds are spectacular!

I bought a couple 10# bags at our local produce market, because I want to make my own hash browns!

Have you ever done this? My husband will fry potatoes sometimes, but it is a bit laborious. I was in my final months of this pregnancy when I saw a recipe on Pinterest for a breakfast casserole that had hash browns as the base. I thought it looked good, but something about buying frozen shredded potatoes felt wrong.

It didn’t take long for this idea to come across my scree:

http://heavenlyhomemakers.com/make-your-own-frozen-hashbrowns

This gal makes her own hash browns, then freezes them for later! It may seem obvious to peel and shred potatoes to freeze for later use, but then you get funky-colored spuds. Bleh.

Have you clicked on the link yet? She discovered that if you bake the potatoes first, they don’t get funky!

I scrubbed the taters down, poked them with a fork, and baked them at 350 degrees for about1.5 hours or a little more. I let them cool in their skins until I had time and two hands to deal with them.

When I had time and hands, I peeled the spuds and started to shred them (or do you call it grating?) with my food processor. It seemed to turn some of them into mashed potatoes, so I stopped and flipped my disc over to the slicing side and went on from there. That was a little better, but I need to work on it.

I froze two bags of taters and then used the last portion in our supper. Horrible picture, I know, and even worse tater-packing! Hey – I was doing it with a wiggly 6-month old in arms, and 4 children squabbling over ice cream in the background. I was in “git ‘er done” mode!

I threw some Kerrygold butter in the big-daddy cast iron skillet and fried them! yummmmmm…. butter and potatoes!

Next time I will try to cook the potatoes a little less, so they are more firm. I will also batch cook the meal’s potatoes so that they get crispier faster. I look forward to pulling out the potatoes for a breakfast addition, or another beans-and-fried-taters meal. Yum!

We had black-eyed peas, fried taters, and carrots & cukes, washed down with good milk! This was all that was left!

Have you tried this technique? What have you found works for spuds?

Dear Blog,

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 02:27:00 +0000

Dear blog,

I haven’t forgotten you, I promise. I think of you often, of all the things I want to share. I find myself throughout the day composing lovely posts in my mind on a recipe, a funny thing one of the children said, a series of photos taken, neat lessons done during school, or a Bible verse that spoke to me. The thing is, by the time I get to the laptop to tell you these things, I am exhausted. And I have mostly forgotten what I was going to tell you. It’s more than postpartum exhaustion that has kept me from visiting, though.

I’ve thought a lot about our future together, you and I, and had to come to grips with our relationship, and our future. ~~ I have always been a people-pleaser, needing the praise of others to make me feel better. Have you ever felt like that? It’s been a long time in saying so, but you and I both know that’s all-out sin. I don’t struggle with that as much as I used to, but having you, blog of mine, has made me realize that the struggle is far from over.

You see, wee blog, when I post, I love to get comments and private emails about what I have written! It feels so good! I have even been nominated for things, and asked to guest post here and there. Isn’t that cool?! Let me answer that for you. Yes, it IS cool, but the problem with that is what is going on in my head and heart.

Can I be honest with you? I like writing here, I truly do! There is great value in it, but I tend to share what looks good to others – tiny snippets of a life that, for our readers, might give a skewed impression of who I am, and who my family is. Does that make sense, bloggy blog of mine? I sometimes write to please other people. My intentions for blogging aren’t always pure. I don’t want to blog about the dirty, the ugly, the trivial, the loud, the mundane, the sin. I want to show the pretty, the tasty, the creative, the what-I-want-to-be – so few of the harder posts ever see the light of day.

And so I have been silent.

I have spent a great deal of time with my God, questioning why I started with your big sister, Adventures in Living & Learning and what my intentions are for you. I love blogs, but the truth of the matter is that these other blogs that I read and love are part of what is causing me such strife in my life right now. Don’t worry blog, I won’t worry you with that mess. In this period of blog silence, I have come to grips with WHY I blog, and for WHOM.

**I blog to journal what we as a family do – a family of 7 on an acre in rural Virginia – in our home, with our faith, alongside one another.

**I blog to share our lives with family, all of whom live far away from us. I stink at calling people, bloggity blog (as my mother will attest. Ahem.), so this is a great way to get things to them. An online photo album, if you will.

**I blog to process some feelings and thoughts, and to reach out to others who may be experiencing the same things and can help, or be helped.

Blog, these months of silence have also shown me that it is of greatest importance that I build relationships *in real life* before I do so online. Those who read this blog are awesome, but I have to remember that real people I see (or need to see – Amanda!!) have got to take priority! ~~ Does this all make sense, blog? What I’m saying is, the silence was necessary to get my intentions right and my agenda pure. What I’m saying is, it’s not you, it’s me.

I may post many things here, or I may post only once in a great while. Before I hit “publish” I have made the commitment to check my intentions at the door, and make sure that I share is God-honoring and honest. I know that when I read blogs, I want to read about their “real,” not just the pretty or the staged-for-pictures. I do this now and again, but mostly, I keep it light. This is all good, but I have to make sure I am not panting a particular picture that isn’t true to form.

I just want to share our lives, chronicle what I can, in a way that is respectful to my family, honoring to God, and that is good and true. That might look different for different posts, which may come fast or slow.

So here is to a fresh start, a Real beginning!

what have we been doing?

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Sat, 23 Feb 2013 04:46:00 +0000

It’s been really quiet here on the blog since OCJ was born in October, but that is to be expected. I write in my mind, thinking that I will get here after folks have gone to bed, but either I just want to sit and relax, or (more likely) I have fallen asleep nursing the baby. And I like to :)

Since OCJ has been born, formal lessons have been very sporadic, but thanks to Heart of Dakota, when we do have lessons, we can open up and roll with it. MG and I are starting Apologia’s Botany book, mainly for our shared interest in the subject, and more specifically, her long-standing interest in herbs. I am also dropping Math-U-See for a while and have MG in Math Mammoth. And Timez Attack – have you see this? She desperately needs to work on her multiplication facts, and this game is pretty neat! EK is sort in math limbo, doing more open-ended things, but I am thinking MM will be what I pull for her as well. HR is popping in and out of his HOD book, following along with EK sometimes. And SA? Sigh….so, so busy. But, for all the struggles and tears I seem to have lately about what is and isn’t getting done, I still firmly believe that God has called us to educate our children at home.

Knitting is sporadic at best. I have to really watch myself on seeing what other folks can accomplish – my sister-in-law and her gorgeous cardigans that she churns out, my online friends with their cool kid knits, even local mamas with their hand-spun lovelies! I have to remember that I am mama who is in her own skin, raising 5 children 12 and under. But it’s easy to let jealousy take over, so I am trying to focus on other projects: like paying more attention to my children and my husband, rather than my computer or even my knitting. WIP, yes?

Life here is busy and simple at the same time – how does that work? Our outings are really limited: co-op on Tuesdays, AWANA on Sunday nights, church on Wednesday. There have been so many days where they children are out at the creek, or inside playing with one another. These are sweet times, my friends! My time is most often spent nursing a baby, changing a baby, walking a baby, playing with a baby. Oh, this little one gets her fair share of Big Brother and Sisters’ Time! EK is absolutely my “little mama” – from diapers to shushing, she’s all about being a Mama! MG softens so much with OCJ, it’s really sweet to see, and HR is such a darling, too! What a daddy he will be one day! SA loves on OCJ, too, toughening her up real good. Ahem.

HR wanted to calm her down – it was so heartwarming to see that. It didn’t work, of course, but that he would want to, was sweet as could be!

This post turned out word-heavy – oops! Just wanted to update on life here and try to get myself used to banging away on these keys, relearning how to share here :)

Now, time to put the weight on the other foot – pictures! (these are from all sorts of things, a smidge of HOD Preparing, Beyond and Little Hearts curriculum, Apologia Botany books and then life:freestyle!)

EK got several sewing books and a sewing kit for Christmas. At the beginning of February, she pulled out some felt and made SA a pair of mittens for frolicking in the cold! This was as still as I could get this child!

The living room floor is often where things happen. During the 6-week “Little House” co-op session EK attended, they made paper dolls. For the next week solid, EK was totally engaged with adding to and making more paper dolls. She even got SA and HR in on the action!

~~~~~~

HR loves to sculpt. While working at the table with the girls, he grabbed some white paper, and for all I could see, he was just wringing it. Turns out, he fashioned a rocket, then made a telescope!

Another party! I can’t even remember who this party was for, but she even got dolled up for the occasion! The table is always set with whatever she can get her hands on. So darling! (Just need to get her to clean up WELL after these parties)

MG is taking 2 year-long classes, band and science. She plays the flute and is enjoying the challenge! In science, she is getting ready for a science fair – she and Papa are going to make a periscope! This was her first prototype, which was actually pretty cool, even if it didn’t give her the results she was hoping for. It is fun to see her and her dad put their heads together for this project! Love this girl!

Valentine’s Day Crafting. Need I say more?

~~~~~~~~~~~

MG doesn’t have a thing for shoes (no, that would be her two younger sisters.) No, she is working on a taxonomy assignment in the Botany book from Apologia. We are using the notebook that accompanies the main text and we are liking it very much. so much easier to actually get things done when you don’t have to worry about printing stuff out all the time. Because you have to have ink and paper…..

I am sort of using Delightful Reading with EK, but not really sure she even still needs it. She taught herself to read, just recently. Seriously. It’s later than most, but once she decided to do it, she literally picked up a book and pushed herself. She blows my mind sometimes, that child.

And this is just a teeny tiny bit of what we have been up to. I hope to get back here more often to share! Have a great weekend!

2013 Knitting Plans

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 11:56:00 +0000

I love knitting. I love handmade gifts. I love special occasions. I do not love knitting handmade gifts very close to special occasions.

I have a small stash. I have put myself on a No-to-Low-spend diet.

What’s a girl to do?

At the end of December, I saw a gal on Ravelry who made a plan for gift-knitting that I really liked. I thought about it and decided I’d like to do something similar.

My basic plan has 2 parts: (1) I will knit from my stash until it' is run out, and (2) for every 3 items I make for myself, I will knit a gift to add to the Gift Box.

I don’t have a huge stash pile, mostly single skeins of fingering weight yarn. I have 2 sweaters that will be frogged for new projects: a sweater from Goodwill in a soft gray that I intend to frog and turn into a cardigan for me, and orange Berroco Vintage that is presently Eggnog.

I also have a SA-WEET gift card for Knit Picks from B’s parents but I can’t decide if I should use it towards a ball winder (the swift will definitely have to wait) or yarn……WWYD? (What would you do?)

Below is my KP2013 List! (Knits Planned for 2013)

~~ KP2013 ~~

KNIT: Classic Silk Short-Sleeve Top, Cecily Glowik MacDonald {Rav link}
YARN: stashed Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool (originally purchased at The Crooked Stitch, frogged tank top project

KNIT: Sockhead Hat, Kelly McClure {Rav link}
YARN: Unplanned Peacock Sock, Morning Glory colorway (purchased at The Crooked Stitch)

GIFT-KNIT: Camp Out Fingerless Mitts, tante ehm {Rav link} …
RECIPIENT: MG
YARN: stashed Berroco Vintage (originally purchased at The Crooked Stitch for the Stefane sweater)

GIFT-KNIT: Mini Caviar, Yoko Johnston {Rav link} *This was a Birthday “Random Act of Patterns” gift from Kara, aka “Rockin’ Granola”*
RECIPIENT: EK, niece P perhaps
YARN: tba

GIFT-KNIT: Gathering Cowl, Xandy Peters {Rav link}
RECIPIENT: MG
YARN: Sea Star Handpaints Bare Foot, Dunes and Oceans colorway (purchased at Knitting Addiction, OBX 2011 trip)

If you are on Ravelry, check out stashbust2013 to keep up with what my stash-busting projects are! I will also try to keep this page updated on what my plans are, for those that aren’t on Ravelry!

((I apologize for the lack of pictures – for some reason either LiveWriter or Blogger is being stubborn, and won’t let me add any more!))

Handmade, a Valentine

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 12:59:00 +0000

We had a laid-back Valentine’s Week here on the Creek. I have a small-but-growing Pinterest board for Valentine’s Day (Winter :: Valentine’s Day), but this year was not the year to max out on décor and crafting.

I think that my watchword for the year, “Simple,” is a good one – having an in-arms baby (read: Nobody puts Baby in a sling…or Ergo…Mei Tai…or wrap…or a corner, for that matter.) keeps things simple-ish. Ya know?

And here is what I noticed: the children need only suggestions for V-Day crafting, and then do best when left to explore. To try new things. To make horribly ugly things. Which turn out to be the fuel to find out how to make something really cool!

There are no cute heart buntings here, or appliqued heart pillows, or even baskets of darling knitted and felted hearts here. Sigh…. BUT! There are a ton of paper scraps, paint stains on the table, more on the floor-turned-drying-rack, and a plastic bag full of child-made (but not necessarily signed. Ahem.) Valentines for special people at our homeschool co-op. I think these are my favorites, don’t you know!

One sweet moment was when EK told MG that I have good ideas – all I had done was suggest a crayon resist valentine. I also fought with an origami heart. Fail. They enjoyed my toil, methinks, and they collectively saved the day by pulling the Origami Cup card :) And what a cool idea to put the candy (that MG was INSISTENT on getting. Sorry, parents. Next year, we will go healthy and/or handmade. This year, Miss Kit Kat and Mr. Hershey Bar will fill your children’s goozle.) in the cup!

All that said, I am thankful for a MUCH grander Valentine this year --

… Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature, God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient to death --
even death on a cross!
Philippians 2:6-8, with a touch of 5

WHAT? Love in death? YES!

God demonstrates His love for us in this:
While we were sinners, Christ died for us!
Romans 5:8

Friend, I don’t know if you come here by way of Pinterest, as a current reader, or whatever other means folks find themselves on blogs. I don’t know if you count yourself among those who call themselves Christ-followers, or something else. What I know is this:

You are a sinner. I am a sinner. “Sinner” means someone who is not perfect. You sin. I sin. You mess up. I mess up. But here is what I love about God – even on our most horrible, nastiest, most un-Pinnable, non-bloggable, un-Facebookable days (or months), the Creator of you and me and every living thing on this earth that ever was, is, or will be STILL LOVES US. He knows us at our worst, and STILL LOVES US. So much so that He offered up the Ultimate Gift – Himself.

He wrapped Himself in flesh, and ultimately gave Himself as an offering our OUR behalf. On YOUR behalf and mine!

Whether you or I or the rest of the world accepts this, does not change the fact that GOD LOVES YOU TO DEATH!

For some readers, this message is offensive.
For some, this message is one you carry and embrace.
For some, this message strikes a chord in you that reverberates through to your very soul. You can’t let it go. Maybe it doesn’t make sense; or perhaps, it makes perfect sense.

It is for you I write these words. If you do not have someone close that bears the yoke of Jesus (who says himself that such a burden is light) – a friend, co-worker, boss, neighbor), please contact me and I will be glad to be that Someone.

Because the love that God offers, is RIGHT AT YOU. It’s YOUR Valentine, straight from the one who created you. And that is better than a dozen roses, fancy chocolate, or even a hand-made card.

Because YOU are Handmade by God, and He loves YOU most of all.

Yarn Along :: Smidge of 2012 and first FO of 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 16:00:00 +0000

~ ~ Ginny shares what she is knitting and reading this week, and invites us to share as well. Here is what I am up to and into this week ~ ~

Reading :: One Thousand Gifts, Ann Voskamp

I read this over the summer, as part of my homeschool mom’s summer study group. My Sunday School class has begun reading it, and I look forward to hearing their thoughts.

Knitting :: I’m a rule-breaker today, folks. I am showing one small project from 2012, one finished project and one still on the needles.

Above is the one hat, the bebe bonnet, I made for OCJ before she was born. I didn’t even get a button on it until….much, much later. It’s super easy. I made a couple for SA as well. I have made a number of these, all without the lace that follows the ribbing. I called this the Delicious Ursula Bonnet because I was introduced to the pattern by a dear friend’s daughter, who looked delicious in it :) Really, though, it’s called the Super Quick Baby Bonnet.

Below is the first FO of 2013. I have committed myself to knitting through my small stash before I buy any more yarn. This is the absolute easiest knitting on the planet. It is a garter stitch square. I’m working with 5 children and a postpartum, nursing-mommy brain, friends. Garter stitch is all I got :) It’s knit up with Plymouth Yarn Happy Feet, a fingering weight yarn knit on US 6 needles. Soft yarn, bigger needles, garter stitch? This translates into a SUPER squishy, stretchy fabric that feels so good to wear! The color made me choose this for EK, and I think she likes it. It’s simple a square, folded over, then sewed shut. Here is the link to the “pattern”, the Mustard Garter Stitch Cowl.

And this is the cardi I am STILL working on. It’s the arms, I tell you, the arms that are slowing me down – I just lose interest! I started this guy in the spring, and it might be spring again before I finish. I have many other cardi’s in my “faves” on Ravelry, as I have been in Cardi Season for many years – nursing will do that do you.

Here is the link to the cardi: Garter Yoke Cardigan. I have a few requirements for cardi knitting: worsted or bulky weight yarn – top-down design – seamless – simple! If you want to see a Faulkner knit gorgeous cardigans that are knit up in fingering weight, lush yarns, involving all manner of construction techniques and lacework, I shall direct your attention to my sister-in-law’s Rav page :)

I also have a bag, the Weekender, that I am s l o w l y working on. I have decided that I do not like to knit on big needles. I have had this project for some time, and am determined to finish it, so I keep it in the car for when Papa is driving and I can work a few rounds between home and church. It was supposed to go to a Pay It Forward 5, 2012 edition person…..

What are you working on this week?

I am also joining up on this!

Creating a Family Home :: a neat little blog! She had a baby a little before I did and has found her groove! So much so, that she has re-opened her Etsy shop and is making custom-order baby shoes using GIRASOL wrap scraps!! Check out

Homeschool Materials For Sale

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Sat, 26 Jan 2013 21:24:00 +0000

From an inside-cat, smoke-free house
PayPal only, unless local to me.
Shipping included.

Come back, as I will be updating regularly now that it’s up here!
UPDATED 1/26

Alpha-Phonics. Brand new from company, never used. Book and CD-ROM. Retail: $34.95 Asking: $22

Math-U-See Primer. Bought used, excellent condition. Includes Teacher’s guide, DVD and “Decimal Street” poster. Retail: $30.00 Asking: $17

Math-U-See Alpha. Bought used, excellent condition. Teacher’s guide, DVD and Test and Activity booklet. Retail: $40.00 Asking: $22

Math-U-See Gamma. Bought used, very good condition. Teacher’s guide, DVD and Test book. Retail: $40.00 Asking: $17

Miquon Math: Lab Sheet Annotations and Mathematics for the Primary Teacher. Bought used, excellent condition. Rainbow Resource listing: $13.50 Asking: $12

Miquon Math, The Red Book. Brand new, bought from company and never used. Retail: $7.95 Asking: $7

Horizons Math Grade 1. Teacher’s Guide. Bought used, very good condition. Retail: $49.95 Asking: $27

~~Horizons Math Grade 3. Teacher’s Guide Part 1 and Part 2. Bought used, good condition. Retail: $49.95 Asking $20~~ PENDING

~~Horizons Math Grade 3 Student BOOK 2. Bought from the company, never used. Retail: $18.85 Asking: $13.00~~ PENDING

TEACHER’S GUIDE for Intermediate Language Lessons, Emma Serl. *This is NOT the actually Serl book, but the teacher’s guide to accompany it.* Bought used, like-new condition. Retail: $17.95 Asking: $7

English From the Roots Up, Volume 1. Bought used, fair condition. Retail: $17.95 Asking: $9

Queen Homeschool’s Language Lessons for Little Ones. Bought from company, excellent condition. Retail: $22.95 Asking: $15

Child’s History of the World, 1997 copyright. Bought used, excellent condition. Rainbow Resource listing on back of book: $28.00 Asking $22

Story of the World, Volume 1: Ancient Times. Set of 2: paperback storybook and activity book. **NOT the revised condition, copyright 2001.** Bought used, very good condition. Retail: $16.95 + $34.95 Asking: $47

Truthquest History: American History for Young Students 1, 2005 edition. Good condition. Includes notebooking pages I printed out and didn’t use for the first few lessons. Retail: $24.95 Asking: $10.00

TO BE SOLD AS A SET: Apologia’s Young Explorers Series: Exploring Creation with Zoology 1: Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day. Bought used, very good condition (name in pencil at front) Retail: $39.00
Accompanying Notebooking Journal. Bought new from the company, never used. Retail: $24.00
**As a set, asking: $45

Mapmaking with Children, David Sobel. Excellent condition. Retail: $31.89 Asking: $15.00

Video: The History of the Oregon Trail & The Pony Express. Like-new condition, viewed once. Reviewed while on the TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew 2012. Link: http://www.marshallpublishinginc.com/the-history-of-the-oregon-trail-and-the-pony-express--dvd.html Retail: $19.95. Asking: whatever it costs to ship it safely to you, not more than $7.

Prima Latina. Bought used, good condition. Includes 1 Student Book, 1 Teacher Manual, CD and DVD set. Retail: $32.95 for Student,Teacher books and CD. $45 for DVD set = $77.95 Asking $45

~~Simply Charlotte Mason, Delightful Handwriting, D’Nealian. Brand new, Includes both Teacher book and student book. Retail: $25.90 for the two Asking: $12~~ PENDING

the boys

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 14:37:00 +0000

… they love her …

TOS Schoolhouse Review :: Journeys of Faithfulness

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Thu, 01 Nov 2012 17:45:00 +0000

Did someone in The Old Schoolhouse - Schoolhouse Review Crew mention Apologia? If they did, I’m interested! This is my last review for the Crew (I have loved this opportunity, but I need to hunker down and focus on the core of life, what with a newborn and all!) and I am so pleased that my final review is (1) an Apologia title, and at the same time (2) a book written by a Clarkson!

Sarah Clarkson penned Journeys of Faithfulness as a way for women young and old to reconnect with women –real women- of the Bible who were just that – REAL.

You can go to the Apologia website to see the Journeys of Faithfulness Table of Contents and a sample chapter. What you will find there will likely pique your interest; just look at the women whose stories are found between the covers of this book: Mary and Martha, Jesus’ mother, Ruth, Esther!

What I want to share with you is how amazing the book can be to the reader! Clarkson is the daughter of author Sally Clarkson. I admit that part of my wanting this book was to experience another Clarkson’s writing. And what a writer Sarah Clarkson is! She has most certainly come into her own, with her own strong voice – I love it! Her gift with words is clearly evident in this book. The way she takes such familiar stories of sisters Mary and Martha, for instance, and takes it to an entirely different level is so rich. Clarkson has taken these stories and used them to consider MORE. MORE of what these women were like, how they felt, what they thought – things that aren’t included in the Bible. She wants us to see that these were REAL women with struggles and anxieties, fears and joys, just like us! To be sure, she lends her own creative voice and thought to these stories, but what a marvelous starting point for her readers to consider the backstory, the “behind-the-scenes” look at the stories that are oft heard in our lifetime.

I intended to share this with my 11 year old daughter, but it’s a pretty intense read, meaning you (I) can’t just run through it. You have to drink this one in, slowly, and with consideration. Clarkson gives you the time and space to consider the stories she has laid out, with Scripture on which to ruminate, and a devotional to help guide you through personal experience. I think waiting another year or two for my own daughter would help her to really connect with these stories and the devotional, to learn to better slow down into a book and hear the deeper message. I have, however, read snippets to her, and then followed up with conversation. I found this to be what I could go to in my long moments of solitude right before and then after OCJ was born, to serve as my devotional, which I was then able to “feast upon” as the day wore on. Such a wonderful read!

There are other folks reviewing Journeys of Faithfulness – click on the banner below to read their thoughts!

This is my final review for TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew. It has been a great experience – thank you, TOS, for the opportunity!

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

TOS Schoolhouse Review :: Beloved Books

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Wed, 24 Oct 2012 15:31:00 +0000

We love stories ‘round here. Papa tells the craziest stories sometimes, and the kids hang on his every word. When this product came up for review, I knew I wanted to try it! I am talking about Beloved Books, a company that has shared with us wholesome stories that are not lacking in excitement and adventure!

Way back in ‘39, Paul Hutchins began writing the Sugar Creek Gang series. 36 books in this series! Beloved Books got a great reader (or dramatizer?), Paul Ramseyer, to read all 36 of the Sugar Creek Gang books! We are talking over 100 hours of good stuff!

The collection is broken down into several volumes, Sugar Creek Gang, Volume I CD set, being the volume I was sent to review.Here are the stories you get in the CD set:

The Swamp Robber
The Killer Bear
The Winter Rescue
The Lost Campers
Chicago Adventure
The Secret Hideout

These have been great for Quiet Time for HR and EK (SA doesn’t sit and listen, but I bet she’s getting it.) as well as those other times when a break is needed. I can tell you that the Christmas trip to NC will likely include one of these stories! I like how they appeal to my girls and my boy. There is a lot going on in one of these stories, that we only sat through one whole story once. We stop, and return later … which actually gives time to think and talk and ramp up for the next section!

What I LOVE is the God-message that is clear and present, relatable, if you will. The stories are read straight out of the book, and the books are so full of rich language, and a connecting of God to so many things, from nature to even things we sing and say! It’s as lovely for the children as it is for the adults!

For a nickel shy of $55 dollars, you have hours and hours of wholesome, exciting listening pleasure! Head to Beloved Books and check out the other volumes. Be sure to stick around to see what else they offer – they have so many great stories!

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

Welcome to His World, Little One

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Mon, 15 Oct 2012 19:05:00 +0000

while the leaves fell

the sun shone

the breeze blew

the earth smiled

God moved

the children played

the midwife raced and prayed

the water ran

the Papa held on

the biggest sister leaned in to support

the mama worked

you were born

“She’s so pretty, Mama” were the first words said

indeed, my love, indeed.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

13 October 2012

11:37(ish) am

19 inches long

7 pounds 2 ounces

13.5 inch wee noggin and body

all love

Pregnancy Update :)

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Fri, 12 Oct 2012 11:36:00 +0000

We are presently at 38 weeks, getting excited about our 5th child, 4th homebirth and finally, all the birth goodies are ready! Birth tub set up in the Front Room, birth kit arrived for the midwives, all the other baby and birthy sundries assembled, roasted almond butter and white honey at the ready (for sandwiches, you know)!

I have only knit three items for the baby: this little ditty, a pink version of the same, and a simple bonnet. As much as I love to knit, my time has been spent going what has felt like 50 other directions. I love this pattern, though, and think this might be my go-to baby knit pattern. Still needs buttons, though!

Folks joke about how, from the back, I don’t look pregnant at all. And then I turn around – WOWSERS! Makes me giggle :) I carry that way – all baby, right up front. I tend not to gain much weight, I think about 12 pounds with this one so far (HR’s pregnancy, I only got to 10), but I certainly don’t feel that way! LOL! I have joked that she is so low that the only “lower” she can get is out! But that’s nothing but truth, folks! The big words in I-Can-Go-Anytime Land are dilation and effacement. With this being my 5th baby, dilation isn’t any big whoop (well, actually it never is, but by now, not much seems to happen until the party starts.) I’m at 4cm, but again, that means very little. What is “interesting” is the effacement, which is nigh on complete. Basically, between the station of the baby (she’s “dropped”) and percentage of effacement, we could meet this little one anytime … … or not until our due “suggestion” of the 21st or later. Too much information? oops!

Guess which I am hoping for?

Mid-September, 2012

The pregnancy has been fairly uneventful, save the weird leg event at the beginning. I have had all the typical pregnancy things go on: crazy heartburn, leg cramps, funny and intense cravings for ice and salt & vinegar chips, hyper-emotional mood trips, nerve-pinching sensations that make me do this silly bend-down step – seriously, I look like I am practicing to be on some step team!

September 22, 2012 – waiting outside with Papa for the Tim Hawkins show

My pregnancy with SA had me basically on iron-intake management the last month, and I felt that I was going that direction, so I began to take Floradix alongside my liquid vitamin. My vitamin D level was low, and I had been concerned about some super-sadness issues, so I started Cod Liver Oil and a D pill. It seems to be helping. And then I added calcium. My brain is so scattered that I have to make a list of what to take each day and check them off!

So that’s the boring stuff about the pregnancy.

A few weeks ago, some friends held a Mother Blessing for me, which was really sweet and lovely, and if I can find the patience to get the pictures off my email and onto the computer I will post some. My best friend, Lecia, organized a small “shower” for me at our homeschool co-op this past Tuesday and showered us with – get this! FREEZER FOOD!! This was amazing, as such a huge struggle for me (and many other mothers) is making supper for the family once all the help has gone, Papa has returned to work, the infant is crying, and the other children are bouncing off the walls! The chest freezer is literally full-to-bursting (so where we are going to put the 1/4 side of beef that is coming I have no idea…..).

October 2012

Now I’m off, as I hear giggles and feet and that question that always comes is coming….”what’s for breakfast?” So off I go!

TOS Schoolhouse Review :: Kinderbach

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 19:56:00 +0000

ooooooh, I am so excited to share this with you! I have really liked being a part of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, and here’s a good reason why: Piano lessons for my son! I grew up in a musical sort of house, thanks to my mother, Mrs. Music herself. (you’ve heard all about it from other posts!) It thrilled me to bits for my 8 year old daughter to want to learn the piano, which are going really well, thankyouverymuch! Our 11 year old daughter is participating in a small homeschool band, playing flute, which is also going well. But my boy of 6 is all without Something. Enter: Kinderbach! I jumped right out of my Chacos with excited for this program when I saw it come up on the Crew, and ya’ll – it’s such fun!

The details are all over the Kinderbach website, and you’ll see right off that the lessons for piano can be used by one of two formats: computer, or iPad application. I chose for my review the laptop option which requires a real keyboard. If you go with the iPad application, you have the keyboard on your screen – how cool is that!

We are using the In-Home online format, and here you can find a 4.5 minute video all about it – fun, fun! (can’t figure out how to get the video on here; sorry folks!)

You set the pace for the videos that you use with your keyboard, and there is no limit on how many children can use it. My 3 year old absolutely loves the videos and plays with the print-outs that come along with each lesson, but this is mostly exploratory for her. HR, the 6 year old took a bit to get into it, but all he needed was EK, the 8 year old to get into it (He’s not much on the dancing, moving around part which means that someone might look at him…and take his picture. ahem…)

The videos are all pretty short, and the worksheets are available to extend what they are learning. We like them both, mostly because it affords us more time to think about what we are learning – and come on, that Frisco guy and the Dodi the donkey are cute! The teacher is fun and easy to understand, and she moves slow enough to let the children “get” what she is doing. She gets you on the keyboard really quickly, which surprised me, but she does so in a playful sort of way that you are about to sit down to drudgery.

I haven’t found this to be a product that I can walk away from, mostly because I am not keen on leaving my 6 and unders unattended with my laptop, but more so because I need to know what they are doing. If your child is more adept at computer use, or just more mature, you might find yourself ok with walking away. I’m a Helicopter like that (ok, ok, I like to watch the videos! There, I said it!)

I don’t think my 3 year old is grasping the concepts so well right now, but I see this as a definite possibility when she gets a couple years older, and it’s presently right smart fun review for my 8 year old in piano lessons – win/win!

You can try out Kinderbach for 2 weeks for free, just to see if this is something that might be right for your children. Kinderbach has several choices in how to use the online piano lessons and payment plans, which is nice. I like choices.

Are you thinking about your children taking piano lessons, but you don’t know a dotted half note from a half-measure rest? Interested in something that you can do at home, on your own terms? Looking for a program that will engage and excite your little Bachs? Kinderbach might be the program for you!

Click the banner below for more reviews!

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew :: Dayspring Christian Academy

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 19:08:00 +0000

Dayspring Christian Academy is actually a “bricks and mortar” school up north, which follows The Principle Approach:

America’s historic, classical Christian method of education to prepare young people to be servants, scholars, and statesmen in our constitutional federal republic. This requires developing a biblical worldview as well as excellence in character, skills, and talents. The Principle Approach is very intentional in its purpose: equipping young men and women to help restore America to her gospel purpose, thereby helping to fulfill Christ’s Great Commission.

Pretty neat, huh? If you are interested in reading more about the specifics of how The Principle Approach works, click here on The Principle Approach page! Dayspring Christian Academy has taken this approach online, offering a few different classes for anyone with an internet connection. As a member of the TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was able to utilize a 6-month subscription to “The Pilgrim Story.”

For $99, you and your 3rd-6th grade-age children have 6 months to experience the story of the Pilgrims and all that led up to their arrival here, all from a Christ-centered, “providential view of history.” Sounds fancy, yes?

While the course itself is online and quite interactive, you have access to pdf files: vocabulary lists, note-taking sheets, activity sheets, mapwork and the like. While these are officially optional, I think that (depending on your student), you will find them a great tool in learning.

The way it’s set up, you click on the lesson you are ready to jump into, and it carries you through the entire process, from learning to notetaking to craft activity and review. The end of each of the 5 units has a test as well.

The Pilgrim Story …

We are still working our way through it, but it’s pretty cool, and we are looking forward to (well, *I* am looking forward to it, as I haven’t told the children yet!) the virtual trip we will take at the end of this wee adventure!

At first, I had all the children sit (HA!) down to watch the video, having only my oldest (the 6th grader) do the worksheets. It’s really great information, but it simply didn’t hold the interest of my 3 and 6 year olds, and after a while my 8 year old lost the connection. EK (the 8 year old) can take it in small doses, but we keep it oral with her for the time being. MG, the 11 year old got into the work and was able to run the program herself. I have enjoyed the talks about things, and while I’m not required to be present, I am so glad that I have been. I know so little about our history!

We implement Charlotte Mason’s narration for this, which has been wonderful with it. There is so much to talk about, and it’s all from a Godly worldview, which is the Number 1 reason I think this online curriculum is so wonderful. Easy to use, sure. Thorough, yep. Variety of different learning styles hit, right on the mark. But the best is that God thing!

---THIS LINK--- lets you see a neat little video about The Pilgrim Story (I can not for the life of me figure out how to get video on here!)

Click on the banner below to read more reviews!

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew :: Beeyoutiful

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 14:51:00 +0000

What a treat! As a part of the TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I have had the chance to use and review a variety of different products for our homeschool. But this review is different! How cool to have been selected to review products by Beeyoutiful!

For my review, I received:

Beeyoutiful Views DVD

I love that all the ingredients can be traced and placed in nature: beeswax, essential oils, herbs, and so on. No 7-syllable names, chemical numerical identifiers or anything that makes you wonder what it is to begin with! The website is so full of information and support that you will feel confident in using the Beeyoutiful products! There is so much to learn! They also sent me a DVD that is so cool! It shares how some of the products are used in their home – awesome! (ok, that, and I’m just nosy and like to know these things!)

What a treasure! We much prefer the use of herbs and foods for health and wellness than conventional medicine, and these products have been a wonderful addition to our “medicine box”. We keep the elderberry syrup in the box as well, and are ready to use it when the first sign of Ick and Yuck begins to show its face. We were introduced to elderberry syrup a couple years ago, and have found its value in shortening illness – and that stuff tastes really good! This is a product I think every single home should have for everyone in the family.

The Arnica tube, or Ow!-Ease, has been used a couple times, but I like to keep it near at hand. Bruises are a dime a dozen here, as I think they are at any house with younger children within. As long as the skin isn’t broken, you take that tube (Hello, Easy Applicator! Thank you, thank you, thank you, Beeyoutiful!) and apply it to the just-been-whacked-and definitely-gonna-leave-a-bruise spot with the mega-chappie-looking applicator of arnica. You will be amazed at the minimal to non-existent bruising that actually occurs! A friend showed me the glories of arnica when we lived in South Carolina and Beeyoutiful has a wonderful product for you in great form!

My favorite of the products I received is the lip balm, or “chappie” (as I have always called it), but I am just a Chappie Girl! I love how well it goes on, stays on and doesn’t make my lips feel gunky or greasy. I love this chappie! The proportions of oils to fats make it a great application on the lips and yep, the knuckles when they start to crack. :) TMI? So should I say that the Miracle Skin Salve is already set with the baby diapers and wipes for the baby, who I hope will come any day now?! The website shares how it is great for most any skin malady, from burns and bruises to rashes and chapped skin. PERFECT for this fall and winter season.

For Beeyoutiful to be a new-ish, up and coming company, they offer so very many options for wellness, all using natural ingredients. The amount you get for you money is fantastic – I know that the products I have (with the exception of the chappie/lip balm, which I run through like ice these days of pregnancy!) will last so long!

The thing with anything that is produced on a smaller scale, and is made with such high quality close-to-the-source ingredients costs more than allopathic remedies, true enough. I believe, as do the folks at Beeyoutiful, that considering the impact of using herbals and homeopathic remedies instead of, or alongside allopathic application is worth your time and money. I suggest considering what you use most of all that is of the more conventional variety, and substitute that with an herbal remedy. Take your time, and slowly introduce the change. For example, does Ick and Yuck befall your home hardcore in the winter? The Elderberry Syrup would be a wonderful introduction – and most certainly well-received by the smallest of the crew! Or perhaps, you have very dry skin that you feel you are constantly battling? Maybe the Miracle Skin Salve would be a nice replacement for what you are currently using.

I have found that making small changes makes all the difference, and these Beeyoutiful products are already winners in our house! (Now, if only the baby will get here!)

To read more reviews about the Beeyoutiful health products AND the make-up products by Beeyoutiful, click on the banner below!

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

TOS Schoolhouse Review :: Music Together

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 18:34:00 +0000

I grew up in a home where music was a part of life – my mama is a music lover! She has a degree in music, plays a church, teaches piano, goes to schools to teacher music. Growing up, band wasn’t really ever something that was considered an option, it just was the thing to do (Thank you, Mama!) Having children of my own, I realize the value of music in the home, yet actually making it happen can be so much more of a challenge. Enter Music Together!

When I saw the opportunity to review this product, I jumped on it! I had seen Music Together advertised in some of my magazines at home, and had read a little bit about it. It sounded interesting, but with a houseful of children, joining in a class outside the home was just more than I could handle.

Music Together has extended their wonderful class offerings to parents at home! They offer materials that bring in some of that same fun and musical discovery and experimentation from their classes with trained teachers into our own homes!

As soon as I got the book and CD (seen below), I poured over the pages, to learn where this all came from and the company’s “how” and “why.” Here is the Music Together’s Mission. One thing I like is that the Music Together folks understand the need for discovery of music in relation to our own natural abilities and the part that music can play through our every day goings-on. As we moved through the book, I found more and more that it wasn’t about learning music theory or steps, but of how to enjoy the rhythm and flow of all that is music – in the context of the day! (Can you see me hugging my book?)

Music was a part of the day for folks all through history – to pass the time, to instruct, to keep particular tasks in order, to make the work easier, to remember things, to note transitions in the day, to celebrate, to mourn, to in some way bring about an emotional feeling, for fun! Music Together has brought together many different forms of song –fingerplays, songs with props and instruments, actively moving songs (our favorites!), partner singings, and even rounds (we didn’t attempt that!) -- together in this book for you to share *with* your child. Yes, this book is meant for you to use alongside your children, so let your hair down, and enjoy!

Using Music Together in your day can be as simple or elaborate as you like it. In our home, simple is best: a little here, a little there, with a few songs and schedule suggestions from the book during Morning Circle Time. One thing I pulled from the book that it’s important to vary song, so you aren’t doing all “campfire” style songs, or mostly songs that involve lots of movement. They suggest a sampling, and believe me, that works!

This set is $39.95, which is the Family Favorite book, and accompanying CD.

As a homeschool mother of 4, ranging in ages 3 through near-12 (who usually participates), one part of my book that I found most helpful in-the-moment was how to use the song with different ages. I already have things dog-eared to use with this new baby, because thankfully, they’ve already thought about it!

We’ve only worked through a handful of the songs, but they integrate so well into a day! A fair number of songs are old folks tunes and we love that! Others are fun and are easy to happen upon as we are doing other things. You can listen to some of the songs as well: Music Together – Listen To Our Songs. I have found that there is a great deal of grown-up information about music in there that is good read BEFORE you sit down to work, as the information gives you a good idea of what skills are being developed. Note that none of this needs to be told to your children – it’s just for you.

I am thrilled to have this in our homeschool bookstacks, as it hits a part of my children’s lives that needs to be nourished! Music Together has given us a very affordable, approachable product that you can use for a long time, in many ways – and you might even find yourself reading the last section in the book on how to become a Music Together teacher! This has been a fun review, and I hope that you will find yourself over that the Schoolhouse Review Crew site to see what others had to say! (click the banner below to WHOOSH you there!)

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew :: Family Time Fitness

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 16:11:00 +0000

Another review! This one will make you work up a sweat, too: Family Time Fitness!

We don’t really “do” P.E. the way Papa and I did it in public school. We' tried the in-town YMCA homeschool PE class for a while, but it was costly, took so much time in driving (and sitting for me) and it wasn’t always a lot of fun for the children who were participating. The idea of facilitating PE at home didn’t cross my mind – I simply am not going to do it. Or so I thought. When this opportunity came across to review Family Time Fitness, I thought, “Hey, how could this be bad? I need to move, and so do the kidlets!” So here we are – sweaty and having fun (and me having to come inside for a hundred Pregnancy “breaks.”)

So what is this program like? At first I was really initiated by all the pdf files to download, but the intro that you are to read first (AND DO READ IT FIRST!!) was really great – it set the stage in my head for how this would work and why it’s important. The rest of the files are just the lessons, which are so well written, and to the point. And, for those that are picky like me, NOT multiple pages. I can take one outside, read over it, or have MG read it and we are movin’!

And sweating’. Ya’ll, this ain’t Duck, Duck, Goose. These folks have put boo-coos of time into the layout of this FAMILY curriculum, making sure that there is a balance of activity, hitting different skill levels, muscles groups, and all that stuff and PE majors know all about, and education majors don’t.

I love that I can print the activity out, grab a piece of equipment (rope, ball, hula hoop, sock-as-a-bean bag, etc) and roll with it. Did you catch the sample equipment list? Everything that is needed you can get at the Dollar General that just opened up in your no-stoplight-town. (I live in rural VA, remember?) And shoot, they give you all sorts o other ideas to use in case you are like me and can’t find your keys, so you can’t go to the Dollar General and have to use what you have at home. Welcome to my world, ya’ll :)

(nifty picture of your noggin after doing something other than sitting quietly. which is when, exactly, when you have a 3 year old?)

For 57 bucks, you get a WOW-ing 260 lessons for homeschoolers, Fitness 4 Homeschool (read: thinking done for you!) set to about 3 times a week for 30-ish minutes a day (unless you have the aforementioned potty breaks for the pregnant lady!) Family Time Fitness does it up RIGHT! And if you’re on the fence about it after reading this and other over reviews (see below), you can work you up a free trial: Family Time Fitness Free Trial. Enjoy!

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew :: Marshall Publishing

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 15:46:00 +0000

Up for review this week, thanks to the TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew is Marshall Publishing! This company produces an eye-popping-to-me about mount of DVD’s, in all sorts of areas!

Motorsports and Monster cars
Jets, Planes, and Fire trucks
Trucks and Trains
Rockets and Space
Animals and Games
Educational History and more!
So much more!

When I was looking through the website, I saw that Marshall Publishing had won all sorts of awards: Dove Foundation, Kids First and NAPPA.

The History of The Oregon Trail & The Pony Express

Above is the DVD we got to review, The History of The Oregon Trail & The Pony Express. You’ll notice on the product page for this that there is a study guide to read. I didn’t use that, but I it might have been helpful.

This was a pretty neat video, to the parents, at least. I wish I could say that the kids liked the video, but alas, it’s not on their Top Ten list. I think I should have done a build-up activity beforehand, and talked more about the content. We watched it during a time that we usually watch something less educational :) It wasn’t really fast-paced or anything, but I could never get out of them what they were expecting.

That said, after we watched it, I asked what they liked about it, and for both videos, they really liked the pictures and scenery. This is true – I am not well-traveled at all, so it was SO COOL to see all these locations where so many feet have trod. There were some reenactments in the video, which EK got into (sort of Little House style) and the horses – Oh the horses! HR loved the horses!

There were all sorts of little tidbits of information that I didn’t know before, like the description of the guys on The Pony Express.

All in all, it was a fine video, I just should have presented it in a very different way. It’s a learning video, so running it at a different time, and had some activity related to it would have probably made it the mood around it different, does that make sense? The study guide on the website has idea for hands-on activities and questions you can ask and such.

It looks like Marshall Publishing is a safe go-to place for filling your DVD cabinet with films that are both fun and educational, and most videos are $19.95. In looking around, they have have Deal of the Day, Closeouts, and Special Sets to buy. It’s certainly worth looking into, in keeping the video twaddle out of your home!

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew :: Marshall Publishing

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Mon, 17 Sep 2012 15:45:00 +0000

Up for review this week, thanks to the TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew is Marshall Publishing! This company produces an eye-popping-to-me about mount of DVD’s, in all sorts of areas!

Motorsports and Monster cars
Jets, Planes, and Fire trucks
Trucks and Trains
Rockets and Space
Animals and Games
Educational History and more!
So much more!

When I was looking through the website, I saw that Marshall Publishing had won all sorts of awards: Dove Foundation, Kids First and NAPPA.

The History of The Oregon Trail & The Pony Express

There were all sorts of little tidbits of information that I didn’t know before, like the description of the guys on The Pony Express.

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

TOS Schoolhouse Review :: Speekee TV

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 14:16:00 +0000

I’m not so keen on teaching a foreign language, but I understand the value and importance of doing so. The big girls have had Spanish in the past, at our local homeschool co-op, and they both remember quite a bit! Still, I knew that I needed to do something more, as there was not another Spanish class scheduled for the co-op. I had purchased another Spanish curriculum that uses VHS for instruction. I bought it cheap, thinking it would be no big deal to transfer it to DVD….

That was two years ago.

When the Schoolhouse Review Crew offered the Spanish program, Speekee, for us to review, I thought this would be a great chance to try something different and fun.

What I was given to review is called Speekee TV, which is a completely online Spanish instruction set of modules. SCORE! We don’t own a television, so the watching of anything must be conducive to computer use. Thankfully, this program fits the bill. I do want to point out that you can purchase Speekee DVD’s and books and all, if that works better for you (and there are some reviewers that found that option better for their family – check out the banner link at the bottom of this review for those reviews!)

As I read through the website, it is clear that this is geared towards my younger lot; the website states 2-10 years of age. Our family has a 3 yo, 6 yo, 8 yo and almost 12 yo – and amazingly, everyone has gotten something out it! In all honesty, I have to agree with other reviewers in that has a definite “Sesame Street” quality to it. I think that it was a little cutsie for MG and I, but the rest of the gang got right into it.

I always think I will use such a program with 1-2 of the children while I work with other children, and that never works. Part of it is because I *need* to watch this with them so that I can learn, too. It’s also fun to speak to one another throughout the day with words we’ve learned, and connect with the children in this way. We’re also not spending all day on this, and it provides a fun-ish learning experience that I don’t have to prep for (PERFECT for this 8-month pregnant lady!) that can be kind of laid back.

The catch for us is that it IS online. What??? During the day, we only have access to my small laptop, and so it’s sort of a pain in the tookus to have 4 children want to watch it. My speakers aren’t grand, either, so trying to keep the room quiet enough to hear everything is aggravating. This could be easily remedied by using Papa’s laptop when he gets home….which never happens. I have thought about rotating children through it, but that’s never made it past the List stage.

This here is what we call “Speekee Man.” How Speekee works, is that you watch video of children here and there in Spain and they sing and have a rollicking time, teaching phrases and the like. At first, I didn’t think it was “enough”, but there is no limit to how many times you can watch it, so it was sort of a fun thing for the Littles to do. What I , at first, dismissed and deleted was a really valuable component of Speekee TV: the emails that you get each week! I had deleted the first one, but soon realized that these emails contain more ideas of how to USE that 15-20 minute fun video throughout the week!

The website has other resources you can access from your account, though we haven’t used them yet. We have a 6-month subscription through the Review Crew, so I feel that we might use it more in the early days/weeks of the baby’s arrival But here’s what is pretty nifty about this – besides being online and really accessible and not lose-able in your house (ahem.) the cost is pretty great: $7.50 per month and $60 a year. Plus, you get a 2-week free trial to see if it’s a good fit for your family.

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

Homedoings || Gussy up a room with what you have

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 11:00:00 +0000

This isn’t very much like me, slapping pictures of my house on here for all to see, but during the week of Camp MeMe & PawPaw, I set out to do something…ANYTHING to our Front Room.

This is the room you enter before going into the house-house. It used to be a porch, and one day, it will return to a porch, but that requires time and money. Lots of both. So we wait!

It gets so cluttered and nasty in this room, and I wanted to create some sort of space that was welcoming to folks, and didn’t automatically start me off into a panic attack.

There are a a few components of this room that we needed to consider:
-- the clothes shelf & changing station for the Littles (and now EK, apparently)
-- the Shoe Shelf
-- the chest freezer
-- where the birth pool will go.

Minus the birth pool, here is what we came up with, and then a request for ideas!

This is what you see as you walk in the door, and look to the right. This is our Clothes Shelf and Changing Station. The reason behind this is simple: our 3 yo bundle of joy loves to change clothes as much as her 8 yo sister. Anyone’s clothes. Many times a day. The upstairs was constantly littered with her clothes, HR’s clothes, everyone’s clothes! It was driving me insane, and after months and months of talking about it, I convinced Papa to give the “family” clothes shelf a chance. It was Lacey’s post on her own clothes stash that made me feel better about finally doing it. Just about anything Lacey does is awesome, this I have decided.

To the left (or would you say right?) of the shelf is my MeMaw’s old ironing board/step ladder/chair. I remember this well from her home, indeed. I was so glad when my mom (MeMe) gave this to me, but it’s not in play-condition, so I rolled one of Papa’s old family quilts up on it. Now who is the world would want to sit on that? (wink!) Behind is the wash board I got a few years ago for doing felting and play-washing activities with the gang.
This is the top of the shelf that I had no idea what to do with. That big box is my Granddaddy’s old radio. Cool-cool-cool, I tell you. The needlework on of it is a Goodwill find that had an old tear-off calendar on it. One day, I will add my own. The drawer is there for some reason, and the cross is what EK nailed together and painted. I love it all to pieces. Surprisingly, that hat is STILL there….I can’t believe that, because even with the pink ribbon, Cowboy HR loves to play with it. And I love THAT all to pieces.

And THIS. This is The Shelf. Nasty old Goodwill shelf that Papa and the Gang (are you singing any Cool and the Gang hits, perchance?) painted and added a fabric back to. Sally loves her some tension rods, which is what we have here. The fabric is an ~~old~~ vintage sheet from Goodwill –I LOVELOVELOVE Goodwill!—and held up with this simple café curtain clips.

Behind the curtain is my printer and paper. I had it on top, but I wanted to hide it. I will also put my laminator out here as well. It’s on the highest shelf, which will make it more fun for SA to get to.

SA’s clothes, then EK’s clothes, and then HR’s. The daily challenge is to keep SA out and clothes off the floor. That challenge, however, is WAY better than dealing with it upstairs. And being 8 months pregnant, those stairs are incredibly daunting and I don’t often take them. Phew.

This is the Changing Station. They change clothes out here, but not sure how that will play out in the winter months. I had all these ideas of snazzy drapings for a changing station, but as it turns out, our old drying rack with an old sheet clothespinned for looks and function works just fine. Note the fiber art by our Artist-in-Residence, EK, in her earlier days:
Behind the “screen” is a rug to stand on and a small clothesbasket to drop dirty clothes. The point is to get the clothes IN the basket. We’re working on that. :)

The other side of the room has our shelf that has games and whatnot on it. Nothing exciting, really, but there ya go.

And here is one reason we bought this house (ok, not really…): the wood cookstove. It was in the kitchen, but it really needs lots of work, so Papa moved it out here. We hope to make it work, but that’s in the Super Long-Range Plans. For now, it is what greets you as you open the door.

My request is for this space. Take a look at this picture:

The the left is a busted Cedar armoire from my MeMaw and Granddaddy’s house, hiding a second doorway to the interior of the house (why is that, I wonder, two doors?). To the right, you can see the framing of the main door to the interior of the house. So there’s all this white space above the wood stove you can see, and I don’t know what to do with it! I’d love your ideas on how to gussy up this entire area: the wall and the woodstove. One thing I’d like to put above the woodstove is a Blessings Unlimited iron doo-hicky:

Thank you for letting me share with you this very humble space, gussied up with only what we have. It turned out ok, and I like that it used things just laying around. It was rather like a game in my mind – do you do that, too? I want my home to be more inviting, and this room is the second welcome that guests get – the front yard is still very much a work in progress, but we’ll get there :)

I can’t wait to hear your thoughts on this space!!

:: Words for the Weekend ::

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Fri, 07 Sep 2012 11:20:00 +0000

I was moved – challenged – inspired – re-oriented by a blog post at a holy experience, and would like to share with you

Have a wonderful weekend!

TOS Schoolhouse Review :: Reading Kingdom

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 10:00:00 +0000

When I read about this program, Reading Kingdom, I was all excited because I thought that it would be great my for EK! She’s been much more relaxed about coming into reading, but has recently expressed a serious interest in learning to read. So you bring to her a (1) computer program that (2) contains the very princess-y word, “Kingdom” that (3) only she can use, and she is all excited! (Really, it’s not that she’s a selfish person, but there is something special about the program being only for her. Her older sister certainly doesn’t need it, and I guess it makes her feel bigger?)

Below is the chart found on the website that tries to explain how Reading Kingdom serves the student as a more complete program. I found it interesting, because I got my teaching degree at a *very* hardcore Whole Language Approach sort of college. If I had more sleep and less heartburn (ahh, pregnancy!), I might argue with this chart, but I won’t.

Overall, this is a program that EK and I are enjoying. Reading Kingdom is set up for children ages 4-10, with the goal to get them to a 3rd grade reading level. Your child takes a placement test of sorts online, and the program will tell you again and again *NOT* to help them, except for any struggles with clicking on things. This is actually very important, as it takes stock of what your child can do, and places him/her appropriately, according to their system. I sat with EK through the placement process, and found it interesting to see how she followed directions and completed each activity.

The activities are varied, based on the chart I added above. While EK has gotten to the point where she can do this program without me, I still feel like I need to be near. It could be just because I want to learn about HER as much as I can, and that I want to know about this program for the review. Either way, we haven’t gotten tot the place where I walk away.

Each session, with it’s 2-3 different activities (at least at the stage EK is at) is 15-30 minutes, which I imagine is fine for most children. I find that both of us start losing our focus before it’s done, which is another reason for me to stay close – I need to keep her on task. Right when I think we’re just going to have to walk away, she is done and has moved on to the next level – whoo hoo! So maybe this is Habit Formation in action? :)

Here’s one thing that I lovelovelove: they have this tracking system for the parents that is pretty clear and has a visual component, so you always know what your child is working in, and how he/she is doing. And they have pretty pictures to go with it, so if you are reading the report while trying to fix a meal and get the 3 year old off the counter and the 6 year old off the 11 year old, you can still process the progress.
Not that this scenario would ever play out at my house or anything. {cough,cough}

We will continue to use the program. EK likes it, and it seems to be helping her follow directions, slow down!, and consider what she is reading. I wouldn’t say this is a complete reading program, but it certainly makes a pleasant supplement to what you already use. HR really wants to start, so after EK moves a little further into the program (read: when I can let go and walk away!), I think that I will start him with it, too.

Reading Kingdom is $19.99 a month for your first reader, or you can love it so much that you pay for the full year at $199.99. Each additional reader is $9.99 per month, or $99.99 for a full year’s subscription. If Reading Kingdom sounds interesting to you, but you’d like to test drive it before you commit, you can try it out for 30 days! They also have a free newsletter you can sign up for, and according to the website, you get 2 free e-books as well! It’s worth a shot!

Try Me! Try Me!

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Disclaimer: As a member of TOS Schoolhouse Review Crew, I was given this product to use, in exchange for a timely and honest review.

Yarn Along :: 5 September 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Sally) — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 10:53:00 +0000

~ ~ Ginny shares what she is knitting and reading this week, and invites us to share as well. Here is what I am up to and into this week ~ ~

Reading :: The Hobbit, Tolkien – Kay Arthur’s God’s Love Alive In You: an inductive study of 1,2,3 John, Philemon and James -- Karen Andreola’s Charlotte Mason Companion. It’s wonderful every time I read it!
Knitting :: As my Project Board on Ravelry can attest, I have several projects on the needles these days, and they need to be cleared out fast – there’s baby and Christmas gifts to get going!
1. Garter Yoke Cardigan. Confession: I have only the sleeves left to knit, and yet that project sits and waits. I am using a rusty orange Peace Fleece, stashed way back when. It’s pretty scritchy, but they all tell me that it washes soft. Soft of not, I’ve knit it to be more of a jacket, rather than an everyday cardigan.

this is an older picture. I’m afraid that I might not get it re-shot before the post goes live, so if I don’t get that one up, pretend you see a finished garter border. Thankssomuch!

I want something soft as butta from the start that is washable to wear whilst toting my newest little bean! (remember, I’m pregnant, but you wouldn’t know that from this blog, since I have failed to keep you apprised of my, erm, expansion. I guess having 4 already and homeschooling and gardening and starting a new business will do that, right?) But I love this pattern! I see more coming, with a variegated yarn for the yoke, stripes, who knows! Here are my Rav project notes for the Garter Yoke Cardigan.
2. The Weekender Bag, at Purls of Wisdom. This is for one of my Pay it Forward 5 gals for 2012. Not sure which one, though :) This is stash yarn from my sister-in-law, Stephanie who came upon a million pounds of wool yarn at a thrift store one day. Insanity, I tell you. She called up her knitting posse and they took that mountain out. Anyhoo, she passed some to me and this yarn is a super bulky scritchy wool yarn, that is stout as an ox. And truth be told this super-simple project wears my arms out! I am just not used to knitting with such fat yarn on such big needles (which aren’t that big, I think I’m just being silly) Still, it’s a super cute bag, and I can’t wait to get it done and give it to that PIF5 gal! Here are my project notes for The Weekender Bag.
3. Frock Camisole, by Katie Himmelburg, a free pattern found on Knitting Daily. I am using a lovely red color in Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool. I love knitting with this yarn. I have no idea how it will hold up, but the process of knitting with it wonderful. Here are my Rav project notes for the Frockity Cami, as I call it.
I have also finished up a couple projects that I wanted to share! Yay for small victories (which lead to Startitis!)!!
1. I joined The Crooked Stitch, my local yarn shop’s KAL (Knit Along) during the Olympics, what Ravelry called Ravellenics 2012. They chose Piper’s Journey, a neatly constructed, easy to follow shawl pattern. I used some stashed Unplanned Peacock Sock yarn, which is a local dyer…about 5 minutes from my house, even! You should check out Natasha’s yarn at Unplanned Peacock – luscious, I say! Back to the pattern.

I enjoyed the pattern, but I think I will be gifting this to someone special. To whom does it belong, I wonder? First I need to block it……..Here are my Rav project notes for Piper’s Journey, or as I called it, Piper’s Ravellenic Journey.

2. Felted Bowls.

Another stash buster for my Pay It Forward 5 gals. I still have to finish this gift-deciding what to put in the bowls for gifting. This is a super simple project, but they are so cute! I must make more! I used stashed Lamb’s Pride wool in worsted weight, the “Spice” colorway, and they are certainly strong enough to hold the somethings that I am thinking about putting in there.
I think that I will make more of these and fill them with different things for different folks, but after the Lamb’s Pride stash disappears, I will use something else. The mohair in the yarn makes me so sneezy! Here are my Rav notes on this project, Felted Nesting Bowls.

3. Anahera. (only Rav members can see this particular link) FINALLY! EK’s 8th birthday was in March, but it took me ‘til August to block it so I could finish the pockets! I used Knit Picks Swish DK in “Carnation” pink, her choice (no surprises there). The top is really cute, but I didn’t care a whole lot for the pattern. I prefer top down, but the numbers were off on the gathering and a couple other spots. No biggie, but I am in that season of knitting needing to be easy-peasy, and I’m ok with that. It’s really cute though! Here are my Rav notes on EK’s Anahera.

What are you working on this week?

I am also joining up on this, as my cardi is a stash-buster!

Creating a Family Home :: a neat little blog!