Thursday, April 30, 2015

American Girls: Samantha Week 6 (time #2)

This week in Samantha class, we discussed book six in the series, Changes for Samantha. I also read from Welcome to Samantha's World about orphan trains. For craft, we made a pressed flower bookmark and animal chains. The animal chains pattern and idea came from Addy's craft book. I thought about making paper dolls, since it was discussed in the book, but chose animal chains instead.

For the bookmark, this idea came from Samantha's Craft Book. I gave each girl one piece of 2 X 6" piece of pasteboard and parchment paper. I cut one piece of 8" blue cord per girl. I put glue in a bowl to use to paint on the poster board and parchment. They glued the flower on the bookmark and put the parchment over top. Then we punched a hole and inserted the cord. They turned out lovely! I used my own flowers again, as my pink impatiens plant has been blooming for 3 months! I pressed the flowers in dictionaries to dry.
 Painting the posterboard piece with glue...
 Flower pressed onto the glue, covering the parchment paper with glue...
 We had Sugar Cookies for snack. The snack mom this week used her own recipe. Another mom brought chocolate chip cookies too.
 Making the animal chains with tracing paper and construction paper...
 Tracing onto construction paper...
 Eating another cookie...
 This girl graduated from six semesters of American girl class! I will miss her quiet sweetness!
 Animal chains sample...
 My daughter's bookmark completed sample...
 I got a flowering gerber daisy from a student! So sweet!
I've loved teaching this class this Spring... I'll miss the girls this summer! In the fall we will be studying Rebecca and Kit in the timeline of American Girls!



Isaiah 40:8
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.”

Matthew 6:28
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.

Luke 12:27
“Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Kindergarten: W week

We had a Wonderful week last week during W week! We talked about wind, water, wood, watermelon, weather, watches, walking, wonder, who, whose, woodchuck (Nana's book), wolves, days of the week and more. We did read "Wacky Wednesday" on Wednesday of course! My girls love that book!

Bethany was sick for two days this week, so we didn't get everything done as we planned. I didn't take too many photos, since she was sick... 

She made a cute mini-windsock and hung it on my water bottle. Silly girl, it's not very windy there!
We got the pattern for it from Family Fun magazine. 
We made a weather book (found online by Scholastic) and she did a weather match page. We had a lot of wind the week before, and it reminded me of this part of "Winnie the Pooh and the Blustery Day:"
"Happy WIndsday, Owl," said Pooh... Owl says..."I wouldn't go so far as to call it Windsday. Just a mild zephyr." : - D
On Friday, we talked about watermelon. Bethany colored one on half of a paper plate and pretended to eat it! We also found the states Wyoming, Washington, and West Virginia on a map. We talked about the World map and the globe too. We planned to write with white chalk on black paper, crack and open walnuts, and discuss the watermelon life cycle, but we didn't get to it. Here's to good health for the rest of the school year! Cleaning up yucky beds in the middle of the night is no fun!

Next week is X & Y week... with lots of yellow! (but not yawning!)


Matthew 8:26-27
He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”

Genesis 1:10
God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good.

John 4:5-10

So he came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about noon. When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”

Thursday, April 23, 2015

American Girls: Samantha week 5 (time #2)

We had a lovely class in American Girls this week. We discussed book 5, Samantha Saves the Day. I also read the page in Welcome to Samantha's World about Women's Suffrage to the class. It was discussed in book four last week.

This week in class we made May day baskets. The May baskets pattern and directions are found in Samantha's Craft Book. We took one sheet each of 12 X 12 card stock, drew a tic-tac-toe pattern on the card stock, and cut two portions on two sides. Then we folded on all of the rest of the lines, and stapled the sides into a basket. They got stickers to decorate it and a piece of ribbon for the handle (another one inch piece of card stock cut for each girl). They turned out cute, and would look great with flowers in it!

 Our second craft was doily party favors. You can find the directions here. We rolled up a doily, glued it, put a tulle round in the center, added a ribbon and a string of pearls to the outside and put a small bottle of bubbles inside. We discussed Uncle Gard's wedding and how this might have been used during that time (except no bubbles. Maybe mints would have been used?) The girls loved them!


For snack we had Corn Oysters. You can find the recipe here. The girls tried them, but not many liked them very much. It was a different snack this week! Since we had extra time, we played "Hide the Thimble." It is a game where everyone puts their heads down and closes their eyes, then the teacher hides a thimble (or spool of thread, in our case.) in someone's hands. Everyone else guesses who has it. Whoever guesses correctly gets to hide the thimble the next time. It was a fun and simple little game!

Next week we will discuss book six. Only one more week left of Samantha for the semester! : - (


Matthew 13:48
When it was full, the fishermen pulled it up on the shore. Then they sat down and collected the good fish in baskets, but threw the bad away.

Matthew 14:20
They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.

Acts 9:24-25
...but Saul learned of their plan. Day and night they kept close watch on the city gates in order to kill him. But his followers took him by night and lowered him in a basket through an opening in the wall.

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Kindergarten- V week

We had a VERY fun week last week in homeschool kindergarten learning about all things V- vegetables, volume, volcanoes, visits, venus flytrap, vests, value, vacations, violets, violins, Valentines, volleyball, vitamins in food and more. We read books about the above things, and made crafts with them too. Bethany made a vest from a paper bag and colored on it a lot! We talked about eating fruits and vegetables and how they are an important part of our diet. The two girls measured volume by pouring beans into different cup, pint and quart sized containers. We found Virginia, West Virginia and Vermont on a map. We wrote down lots of V names, and talked about people we knew that had some of those names.
 Pouring beans into cups...
 Getting ready to add baking soda to the volcano (colored water/ vinegar mixture)...
 There she blows! So cool! They had to show the big kids too, even though they knew what would happen...
Bethany painted a lovely picture of violets in her favorite subject-- art! She wants to be an artist like her Nana when she grows up!

It was a fabulous time... looking forward to W week and talking about wind, water, watermelon, wood and more! Tune back next week for the update...



Daniel 1:12
“Please test your servants for ten days: Give us nothing but vegetables to eat and water to drink.

Daniel 1:16
So the guard took away their choice food and the wine they were to drink and gave them vegetables instead.

Romans 14:1-3
Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them.

Thursday, April 16, 2015

American Girl class: Samantha week 4 (time #2)

We had a delightful class in American Girls this week! We talked about Samantha's birthday story, book #4, and had fun talking about Victorian weddings, and how important letter writing was back in the early 1900's. We talked about penmanship, how they would have used ink and a quill. You can find good info here and here.  I gave them stationary that I printed from here. We had talked about this in Felicity too, so I didn't review it too much. We did look in Welcome to Samantha's World at the pages for weddings. It was very interesting!
 Our craft was a gift for Mom. We also wrote a proper letter on stationary.  Most of the girls wrote a letter to their mom or Grandma thanking them. I didn't get to read them all, but I loved the ones that I did see! Some of the letters were pretty long (3/4 page) and some were just a few sentences. I am sure the person they are intended for will love it!
 I won't tell what the gift for Mom will be, but it was simple and easy! Most of the girls thought they would save it to give for Mother's Day next month! Since we had time left after snack, we made tissue paper snowflakes. They were pretty easy, it was a pattern that I got from Samantha's Craft Book.  Each girl made two or three snowflakes. They were all beautiful!

Snack this week was Blueberry Muffins. You can see the snack on the table. I didn't provide a recipe for them, the mom just used whatever recipe she had. They were yummy!
 Making snowflakes...


I'm sad to think that we only have two weeks of Samantha left! The semester is going by quickly! Next week we will talk about how Samantha saves the day!



Psalm 51:7
Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

Matthew 26:56
But this has all taken place that the writings of the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples deserted him and fled.

Luke 1:63
(Zechariah) He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote, “His name is John.”

Wednesday, April 15, 2015

Kindergarten: U week

Last week in homeschool kindergarten, we had fun talking about all things U related-- us, umbrellas, under, up, under the big top (circus), units, ukuleles, Uncle Sam, Utah, U.S.A., unicorns, etc., We read books about under and over, up and down, waking up, eating up, lacing under and over, underground, under the sea, underwater, the "Land down under", and the ugly duckling. We played the game UNO too! We played a dice game to illustrate units with our math blocks. We discussed urine and udders (cow). We looked at people in uniform online. Most of what we did involved the circus, and under the big top. We stamped and counted balloons, made a shape clown, colored a clown hat, and read circus books. We also made a paper plate umbrella and did a rain/ umbrella file folder game. It was an unusual week, but interesting!
 Bethany drawing her picture of "us"... (our family)
 The umbrella word sorting file folder game...
 Writing units and tens on her dice game paper...
Decorating her clown hat with bingo markers!


Psalm 49:3
My mouth will speak words of wisdom; the meditation of my heart will give you understanding.

Psalm 91:4
He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

Isaiah 9:6
For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Friday, April 10, 2015

7 Challenge for Lent: Stress

 The last and final week of 7, (which is based on the book, &: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by Jen Hatmaker) was about getting rid of stress. This week came at the perfect time for me, as Easter was approaching, and a busy time for my hubby and I at our church. We host a Good Friday "Experience the Passion" every year, and my hubby sets it up and I help him get it ready. We have a seder meal, and I always make the charoset, which is an apple/ raisin/walnut/ cinnamon mixture. We make enough for attendees to eat.

Besides "Experience the Passion," my hubby and oldest daughter had decided to be in the local group's presentation of "The Messiah", choral and orchestral performance of the entire work by Handel. That meant the two of them had extra practices Friday night, Saturday morning and the performance on Easter afternoon. It was WONDERFUL! I loved hearing it, and I loved seeing two of my loves in the performance this year. I'm not sure whether they will do it again, but it was just beautiful!

All of that to say that the days of leading up to Easter were quite busy for our family. As if that wasn't enough, on Thursday while doing laundry, our dryer quit! My hubby thankfully replaced the heating element on Friday. There were other challenges too, so I felt that this week of 7 was very timely for me.

Mrs. Hatmaker talks in this chapter about rest, and how God rested on the seventh day. That was part of the reason she chose to rest, and lessen stress in the last/ seventh month (my last week). "There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live it is a Sabbath to the LORD." (Lev. 23:3) The same Sabbath rest is also mentioned in Hebrews 4:9-11... "make every effort to enter that rest..." God designed time for rest, relax, pause, pray... every week! God knows our tendencies to overwork and underrest. God ordained the Sabbath for us, not as just another requirement from us. (p. 382)

Mrs. Hatmaker then discusses following the ancients, the Benedictines and honoring the prayer pauses every day, which are : midnight, dawn, mid-morning, noon, mid afternoon, twilight and night. Mrs. Hatmaker's guide for this month was the book, Seven Sacred Pauses by Marcia Wiederkehr. She describes the pauses as "breathing spells for the soul", an oasis to remember the sacredness of life, who we are, how to offer God the incredible gift of our lives, and learning to be in the midst of so much doing. (p 383)

The seven pauses are:

The Night Watch (midnight)
The Awakening Hour (dawn)
The Blessing Hour (midmorning)
The Hour of Illumination (noon)
The Wisdom Hour (mid afternoon)
The Twilight Hour (early evening)
The Great Silence (bedtime)

Every one of these prayers has a rhythm, a focus, and written prayers, with psalms and readings. Mrs. Hatmaker describes each of the prayers in depth, and has the psalms/ readings in her book. I made my own notecards of each one of the prayers/ psalms/ reading and printed them. I laminated them too. They are nice and durable, not able to get damp by water or juice or anything else. I have them around my home, where I usually am at that time. I set reminder on my phone (actually did this in the fall when I read the book) and I really appreciate the reminders to pray 7 times a day.

As another reminder, I made this...


It has seven crosses on it, to help me remember to pray. It also has handmade clay diffuser beads so I can use my oils on it and smell a pleasant aroma!  I am loving it, it is made with thick memory wire, so it stays on pretty well.  I will leave you with one last prayer that I really loved from this chapter... "This day is yours, Jesus. Awaken Your love in my heart so that I am a vessel of light today." (p 390)

Some verses from this chapter...

Psalm 42:8
By day the Lord directs his love,
at night his song is with me—
a prayer to the God of my life.

Psalm 90:14
Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love,
that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.

Psalm 90:17
May the favor[a] of the Lord our God rest on us;
establish the work of our hands for us—
yes, establish the work of our hands.


*I loved this book, and I recommend to my readers to read this book and maybe DO this experiment yourself. During Lent worked well, and I feel that my heart was changed through doing this. It is very impactful, insightful and touching to focus more on God, and less on our 'stuff' of life each day. I might even do this again next year!

**Let me know if you are interested in the prayer cards, I can email to you what I have typed up!

Thursday, April 9, 2015

American Girl class: Samantha Week 3 (time #2)

This past week our class for Samantha was quite enjoyable! After discussing Surprise for Samantha, we discussed calisthenics and the importance of sewing in the early 1900's. Then we began our craft, which was fancy fans this week, another craft in Samantha's Friendship Fun. The craft used one sheet of gift wrap, measuring30 X 4", a stapler, 2 thick craft sticks, a rubber band and a 6-inch piece of satin ribbon.

The girls folded the paper accordion style until they reached the end of the paper. Then I stapled all of the paper together for them (with several staples!), about 1/4" inch from the end. For the fan handle, the girls glued the sticks on each side of the fan, 1/4" above the staple. We wrapped a rubber band around the fan to keep it closed while it dried. The ribbon was tied around the handle to keep them fan open, and they can retie the ribbon to keep it closed.

 Folding the paper...
 When we finished the fans, we worked on our geography pages for Samantha. The girls each got a USA map, where they colored the state of New York, a New York state page to write about where Samantha lived in the state, and a New York state flag and flower page to color.
You can find them here, here and here.
 Geography pages...
 For our second craft, we made fun foam gingerbread men magnets. I found this pattern online, and printed four-six of them, and cut them out. Each girl got a small piece of fun foam (2 1/2 X 3") and a magnet strip. I found lengths of magnets at Jo-Ann's for really cheap! I used part of one 12 X 18" piece of brown fun foam for my class. The girls traced the gingerbread man, cut it out and colored on it with a marker. Then they applied the magnet to the back (it was already sticky). They really liked them!
 The gingerbread man craft...

I had thought of making tissue paper snowflakes, which was another craft from Samantha's Craft Book, but we ran out of time. Maybe next week! We only have 3 weeks left of Samantha before summer break!


2 Timothy 1:6
[Appeal for Loyalty to Paul and the Gospel] For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.

Genesis 18:1
[ The Three Visitors ] The Lord appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day.

Isaiah 4:5-6
Then the Lord will create over all of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night; over everything the glory will be a canopy. It will be a shelter and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and rain.

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Kindergarten- T week

We had a Terrific week last week during T week in Kindergarten! We talked about lots of T things--transportation, traffic signs, trucks, tractors, teeth, triangles, turtles, tortoise, thermometers & temperature, telephones, time, trees, trains and more. We made our own "telephone" book, in which we put phone numbers of people that our Kindergartener could call. We made a traffic light and talked about traffic signs and shapes. We made triangles on the geo-board, looked at the thermometer outside, read books about the tortoise and the hare, made a shape train, did a file folder rhyming train game, talked about train & bus fare, counted by tens and read books about the topics too. We were pretty busy getting ready for Easter and took part of the day off on Friday to help Daddy at the church, getting ready for the Good Friday service. It was a great week!

Enjoy these few pics...

Bethany's shape train car... I tried to get this picture to be turned... oh well!
Bethany made her traffic light and then put dinosaurs on top!
 Bethany's telephone book...
And the triangles on the geo-board with rubber bands ...

Next week we will talk about U things... up, under, umbrella and more!


Some favorite verses about time...

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

Monday, April 6, 2015

Monday funny

Since I have problems with my posture, I thought this comic was cute...
Enjoy!





Genesis 21:6
Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.”

Psalm 126:2
Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.”

Proverbs 17:22
A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

Friday, April 3, 2015

7 Experiment for Lent: Week 6- Spending

This week for 7, which is based on the book 7:An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by Jen Hatmaker, was to shop at only 7 places for the week. I don't feel like we are excessive shoppers and spenders, but I know sometimes we spend for fun or boredom. 7 has really changed the way I shop, and this week was no exception.

The first day of the week, I forgot until part way through the morning that it was my switch-over day. (Probably because it was Spring Break) Of course, my hubby and I had planned to shop that day and that evening too. We looked at two stores in the morning and bought something. Well, Joshua bought something. I didn't contribute anything to one place, but the other place was part of last week's planning left over. Since last week of 7 was waste, we have been working on our garden. We looked for vermiculite to begin preparing the garden for seeds, but we didn't find it. We also looked at items for the square foot idea, and for another handmade trellis. We did find some items there.

In the evening that day, we went to Kohl's to purchase shoes for our son, because he REALLY needed them. We had a coupon and found a nice pair there. His other TWO pair of shoes were falling apart, with more than one hole in each one. My hubby made the purchases there too, but I helped pick them out and I looked at a few other things, but did not buy anything for me. (7 was running through my head...)
My list of 7 places for this week included City Market (grocery store), Target, online bill pay, Jo-Anns (for crafts to do during Spring break), Lowe's, Del Taco and Jamberry Nails (somewhat by accident). My sister-in-law was going to a Jamberry nails open house on Saturday morning, so I tagged along. I bought some nail polish there (didn't even think about 7!) A few of the places I went to several times-- such as Jo-Ann's (even though I love Hobby Lobby!), the grocery store and Target. I did curb my spending a few times-- my son needs new baseball pants, but I have put it off. Also, I found I was CRAVING McAlister's sweet tea-- which I rarely have. So I looked up a recipe online and my made own version. Not exactly the same, but it curbed my craving.

In the days before I began this week, we spent different ways, such as at a quilt show (crafty patterns and ideas), paying the piano teacher, items for my American Girl class, bought ice cream at Cold Stone, and other small things. There are so many times that we just don't think about spending money on small things. Some things are necessary, but other things are just "wants." This week helped put things into priorities for me.

I like what Mrs. Hatmaker says in this chapter about spending. One of the areas that she talks about is eating and eating out. Another author that she quotes said, "I'm voting three times a day with my fork for a wholesome food supply." She talks a lot about making healthier food choices for her family, and looking at all we need in the world to sustain ourselves. We have a stewardship responsibility to earth, and to God. We can't answer for the way another Christian mismanaged money or their irresponsible consumption. We can only answer for our own choices. (p 330-331)

 She also talks about the mentality of this quote, "Just because I can have it, doesn't mean that I should." We rationalize in lots of different ways when we purchase things... It's no big deal... We can afford it... I've worked hard for my money, so I can spend it how I want... I deserve this... etc., So we spend, amass, indulge and indulge some more, item by item. Jesus talks about tithing, and the mentality that Christians have about it, and tells us to "turn out our pockets and give generously to the poor," in Luke 11:37-42. (p. 330, 331, 333, 334). Mrs. Hatmaker reminds us that this is a fast, and a fast is about making sacrifices or it's not a fast. The discomfort is where the magic happens." (p 340)

What if we had friends to our homes instead of going to coffee together? What if we went on walks together instead of seeing a movie? What if we got outside more and got to know our neighbors? What if we played games in the front yard with the kids instead of buying a new app or video game? It might just changes our lives... a little at a time. Food for thought, for sure!

What about you? Have you ever tried to curb your spending for a time, or done a "spending freeze?"


Ecclesiastes 5:10
Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their income. This too is meaningless.

Isaiah 55:2
Why spend money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good, and you will delight in the richest of fare.

Luke 16:13
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

1 Timothy 6:10
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Thursday, April 2, 2015

American Girl class: Samantha week 2 (time #2)

We had another great class this week in American Girls! We talked about the book, Samantha Learns a Lesson, the 2nd book in the Samantha series. We talked about exercise, practiced the curtsy, and played charades (at the end of class when we had a few minutes left...) I liked these curtsy directions and these charade instructions. Some of the girls had not played charades before, or for a long time!

We made glass paperweights for craft. In the early 1900's the terrarium was a popular thing, so we made our own mini-terrarium. This idea is from Samantha's Craft Book. We used a baby food jar, cut a piece of cardstock for the bottom of the jar and a piece of felt to cover that. The girls picked out artificial flowers and a seashell to put inside. We glued the felt onto the jar opening after everything was where they wanted it to be. Then we glued a 7" piece of red cord around the edge. They turned out cute!

For snack, we had carrot soup. The girls all tried it, but only a few of them liked it. You can find the recipe here.

 Cutting card stock and felt...

 Arranging flowers...
 Eating snack...

...and playing charades! It was another satisfying class. I missed the girls over spring break!
Only four more weeks left of Samantha! Next week we will practice some of the exercises mentioned in this book!


A few verses about flowers...
Isaiah 40:8
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever.”

Matthew 6:28
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin.

Luke 12:27
“Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these.
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