Smores - inside with no fire or stick. ;)

My friend told me about this tasty new treat that is really awesome.  It's the homemade quick version of a smore. 
No fire, no sticks.

Here is what you'll need.





graham crackers
marshmallow fluff
nutella


Break the graham cracker in half.  Put the nutella on one side and the marshmallow fluff on the other.  Put together and OH MY!  This is a good fix for those 'I need something sweet' moments.  (No one claimed it to be healthy.)





This is great for kids to make too.  May be a bit messy for the younger ones, but they'll learn.  But it is a snack that you don't have to make, cook or unwrap.

Enjoy!

Our first day of homeschooling this year

Well, our first day (which was yesterday) went very well.  I have found the 'key' to having a great homeschooling day.  Actually, I found this 'key' years ago.  I just have a hard time being disciplined and applying it to my routine.  Without this key, my day starts, goes and ends in disarray.  My day is most always stressful (without this key) and I am almost always tired.  The day drags on and I just want to make it through my day and finish (again, only when I don't apply the key).  Finishing is my goal; not learning....but finishing.  This is NOT the homeschool mother that I want to be.

I am not like this often.  My children and I have a very successful homeschool.  I am just making the point that my homeschool flows so much better, I'm more calm and non-stressed, the atmosphere is better and the day is very productive... with this key.

What is the key?  Seriously, you do not know?  It's very simple.  The key is the Lord.  The days I wake up, do my devotion and spend time with the Lord, those days go very well.  The days I do not apply this before starting, not so good.





I use a certain book for my daily devotions.  I just started using this particular book this school year.  It gives not only scripture but it relates to every aspect that a homeschool mother can think of.  I can relate to these devotions.  Unfortunately, I cannot reveal the name of this book yet because it is something that I am reviewing for TOS.  


I can tell you though, my review (and the reveal) will be posted the very first week of October.  So you need to stay tuned!




Whether you have your own devotional or not, you need to spend time with the Lord every morning before you begin your homeschooling day.  I'm sure there are free devotions online you can read / download or pick up a book at the local department store.  Spending time in the word and with the Lord is what is important.  I guarantee that your day will be less stressful, more relaxed and more productive.  After all, HE is the reason we have this blessing of homeschooling.  The Lord guides us through each and every part of our lives.  He wants the best for us and our homeschooled children.  So let him guide you.  You won't regret it.

2013 - 2014 homeschool curriculum choices

I thought I would post my curriculum choices for this year.  Our local homeschool group has several new homeschooling families and with all the choices out there it can become very overwhelming.  I will be starting my 10'th homeschool year next week and I think I finally have everything I need.  YEAH!

I've also included the links for those who would like to learn more about them.


For high school -

History, Bible & Literature (all three combined)
"Exploring America" by: Notgrass

http://www.notgrass.com/notgrass/american-history-high-school-curriculum/


Math
Algebra II by: Mathusee 
 http://store.mathusee.com/catalog/secondary-math/algebra-2/


Science
Marine Biology by: Apologia 
 http://apologia.com/index.asp?proc=pg&pg=1


Spanish
Spanish Journey II  by: Mango Languages 
 http://www.mangolanguages.com/


Writing
Essay Writing/Research Paper  by: Essentials In Writing
 http://www.essentialsinwriting.com/

Health
Health Lifepac  by: Alpha Omega Publications
 http://www.aophomeschooling.com/




 For elementary -


 History, Bible & Literature (all three combined)
America the Beautiful  by: Notgrass
 http://www.notgrass.com/notgrass/about-us.html


Math
Zeta by: Mathusee 
  http://mathusee.com/


Science
Exploring Creation with Zoology 3: Land Animals
by:  Apologia
 http://apologia.com/index.asp?proc=pg&pg=1


Health
Exploring Creation with Human Anatomy & Physiology  by:  Apologia 
 http://apologia.com/index.asp?proc=pg&pg=1


Grammar
Explode the Code  by: EPS
 http://eps.schoolspecialty.com/products/details.cfm?seriesonly=1460M

Language Arts 5  by: Spectrum
 http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/cms_content?page=608609&sp=102656&event=1016SPEC|528057|102656


Writing
Student Writing Intensive  by: Excellence in Writing
 http://www.excellenceinwriting.com/



Picking curriculum is NOT easy.  Several hours of research goes into choosing what is right for my family's needs.  Price is a HUGE factor, but also reviews.  Read the reviews before choosing!  
TOS (The Old Schoolhouse) has reviews on tons of curriculum each year.

The link below will take you to the review crew for TOS.  Here you can look up curriculum and see what they have to say about it and tell about their experiences as well.

http://schoolhousereviewcrew.com/

We have tried several different curriculum over the years.  If you have any questions about a curriculum or something that I have chosen and posted, please feel free to ask.  Sometimes my choices are wrong.  This has happened with Math several times.  I had to switch math programs three times over one homeschool year before!  The key is to find what fits your child's needs.  Don't be afraid to swap, re-sell, exchange or return what you don't like.  Sometimes you won't know what fits until you try it out for a few weeks.  Keep in mind, making your child finish something that isn't beneficial to them isn't going to solve your problem; it may make it worse!  So if you need to swap programs during the school year, do it!  Your child will thank you for it later. ;)


Disclaimer:
Even though I do reviews for the TOS crew, this blog is MY opinion from my own experiences only.  These product above are what I (myself) have chosen for my family's needs.

And the winner is.........

Congrats to Kris Desimone! 

 She is our lucky winner of the  

"Well Planned Day Planner" 

from HEDUA!

Thank you for entering the giveaway and visiting my blog!

Teen drivers

Well, my oldest now has his drivers lic.  I have to say, he is a pretty good, careful driver.  But there is one problem.  He seems to know everything.  Why is it that a teenager that has had his drivers lic. for less than one month knows more than his mother who has had her drivers lic. for 24 + years?  The answer:  He doesn't.  Not sure what chemical in the teenage brain tells them that they know more than their parents.  For the record:  My parents will ALWAYS be smarter.  Why?  Because they have lived longer, that's why.  That is how we learn; by living.  Going through trials, hardships, tough times, is what makes us stronger.  It makes us who we are.  If I only could get that through the heads of both my teenagers we could save so much time, energy and lectures.

I pray for my children everyday.  I pray that my teens will never have to go through the hardships, heartaches and trials that I have endured.  Not saying that I had a terrible childhood.  I had a wonderful childhood.  I just want them to have an easier life.  If I would have listened to my parents way back when, it could've saved me so much!

But then, I wouldn't be who I am today right?  So do I thank God for my trials?  I do.  I thank him for not only letting me walk through those, but being by my side the whole time.  That is what I am going to be praying from now on.  Praying that my children's trials are handled with God by their side and faith on the other.

 

Cleaning House with children

Um, cleaning a house that has children living within it, is like brushing your teeth with Oreos.  Seriously.

There are days when I clean all day.  I go from one room to the next.  I look behind me and it's like I wasn't even in that room.  My boys are 17, 14 and 10.  Seriously, with children those ages, you'd think I'd finally overcome the 'messy house' syndrome.  NOT!  

 
My youngest is the lego king.  He has legs all over his room.  He picks them up and an hour later, lego land all over again.
   
I can follow him around the house and pick up after him.  That alone would be a full time job.  

I know what you are thinking.  'Give them some chores.  Make them help.'  I do.  They have daily chores.  They are good chores too.  Folding laundry, doing dishes (no, we do not have a dishwasher), feed the chickens, feed the dogs & cat, help cook dinner, clear table, fold throw blankets and straighten pillows, these are all on the chore list.  They are GOOD chores.  They complete them daily.  When they are finished with their chores  and I have finished mine, the house looks great!  They really do a terrific job!


 

 Then the next time I walk through the room it's like, "Where am I"?

How come my house is still dirty?

I think one day, after my children are gone, I will finally have a clean house.  That doesn't put a smile on my face though.  A clean house.......accompanies a quiet one. :(  I cannot imagine my boys not living at home with me.  

Ok, my messy house.....it isn't so bad.  ;)

"Well Planned Day Planner" review

I received the 'Well Planned Day Planner'

from HEDUA (home educating family association) 

for review.

Price:
$26.95
ISBN: 978-0-9850498-1-2
236 pages with 2 page monthly layout
2013 - 2014
Spiral bound 8.5 x 11


Note:
In my review, I chose to post lots of pictures.  When looking for a homeschool planner, seeing what you are getting is very important to determine whether it will fit your family's homeschooling needs.

What Is This? & How did I use it? -

This is a spiral bound 2013 - 2014 school year planner.  Full color 236 pages.

Each month has an encouraging article to read.  The picture below is a lists of the article for each month. 

ISBN: 978-0-9850498-1-2Each month has an encouraging article to read.  The picture below shows the titles for these articles.

ISBN: 978-0-9850498-1-2

This pic to the right is the article for October called 'Book Gluttony'.














Each month contains a beautiful, colorful, 2 page layout for easy documentation or activities that need to be added to your calendar.




There is a spot to the right of every month for writing 'notes'.  I use this area for things that are not set on the calendar yet but things that are to be scheduled or I need 'to do'.








The lesson plans are shown in the picture above.  There is a section for Bible, Math, History, Science, English and then 2 blank areas for you to fill in.  There are 4 lines in each subject for writing.  I split these into 2 lines for each of my 2 boys.  The "D" is for my older son, and the "B" is for my younger son.  In the past, I have always kept their lesson plans separate, but this year I am putting them together.  I think this will be easier to keep track of who is doing what and save me time looking through 2 different set of plans.





Here is a closer view of how the lesson plans are set up.  I added in Spanish II for my oldest son as shown in the picture above.


















In this above picture, there is a place to write a 'student schedule'.  The times start at 7:00am and goes through the day until 6:30pm, then an evening slot.







In the picture above, you can see that the months are well labelled and have indented tabs for easy page turning.




There is also a section for 'Household Duties' & 'Household Finances' as seen here.






There are a few report cards (seen above) in the back of the book as well.  They are very colorful and easy access.


Below there are some pages that are for any 'note' you may have to jot down.  This will be a great place to write something that the boys may need to work on during the school year or maybe something to review closer to the end of the school year.







What I Thought -

I have to honestly say, I have had my eyes on this planner for a few years now.  I have always made my own planner pages and placed them in a three ring binder.  So when I had the chance to review this, I was so excited!  

What can I say?  This planner is awesome!  It has lots of room to write notes and things that I would probably lose in my three ring binder.  The calendar is nicely spread out over the two pages which gives lots of room for writing in events.  

It has uplifting articles and things in here to inspire me throughout the schoolyear.  I also LOVE the colorful design and pages!  There is something about having a colorful and organized homeschool planner at your fingertips to just make your day!  This has everything to keep me well organized during my homeschool year.  It isn't bulky or flimsy.  It is just perfect for carrying in my homeschool bag with the books I need for a day out doing school.  Let's face it, as busy mom's we have this thing called 'life' that gets in the way of homeschooling at times.  Things like doctor's appointments, sports events, piano lessons, etc. get mixed into our day and we have to do school over the road occasionally.  So bringing the books is one thing that isn't too hard, but bringing the planner is not too easy..........until now.  It fits in my bag perfect and I can't wait to use it this fall with my children!

So if you are looking for a good planner to keep your homeschooling organized, I highly recommended the 'Well Planned Day Planner'!  

And here is my great news!  

I am having a giveaway right here on my blog!  All you have to do is enter!  

The time to enter is limited!  

I am just running this for 5 days 

- NOW through Friday, Aug. 23'rd @ midnight -  

So hurry up and find the entry on my blog to enter now!

Disclaimer:
I received this item for free in exchange for my honest review.  I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.  
All opinions are my own or those of my family.