Reformation Rap for Reformation Day

Happy Reformation Day! Thought we could celebrate with a rap!

Bun head--my newest way to make a ballet bun

Spring Recital 2012

Mija loves ballet and is working diligently on the upcoming Nutcracker. (She has two new parts in addition to one she's done the past two years.)

The biggest challenge is getting and keeping mija's hair in a bun. It's long but thin and fine. 

There have been two products that I found that finally kept her bun up and her hair back. One was  Big Sexy Hair Volumizing Hairspray
and the other were these Goody Spin Pins. I make a braid and then screw this in and tada, it's a bun.

Well, the other day, mija took her bun out before she got home and lost them.

Now I will admit that I love the "screws" but came across something on Pinterest (of course) that gave me something else to try which actually works.


First, you take an old sock and cut the toe off. Thankfully, I found one of those lonely-socks-which-has-lost-its-mate-in-the-dryer to use. Here's what it looked like when done.

You fold the sock over and put it over her pony tail...kind of like a scrunchie. 

Then you flip the hair over the sock making sure to cover all the sock.

After it's all covered, you slip a ponytail holder over the hair-covered sock.

The hair that is hanging out is twisted around and around the ponytail holder. Now the Pinterest link used bobby pins. We didn't have bobby pins, so we just used little clips all around.

It's easy enough and has been good about staying in place. I think I'll fold the sock over more so the bun doesn't stick out as far next time.

I still want to get more "screws" before The Nutcracker, but this way is working just fine in the meantime.



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National Candy Corn Day Crafts from Pinterest

Tomorrow is National Candy Corn Day.  I enjoy candy corn in the fall and think it's so cute that I actually have a whole board on Pinterest dedicated to it!

Here are a few of my favorites.

Source: lessonplans.craftgossip.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: parents.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: weeklyhive.blogspot.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: mathwire.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: poppytalk.blogspot.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: innerchildfun.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: lessonplans.craftgossip.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

 

Source: blessedbeyondadoubt.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: jugglingwithkids.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Friday Funny--Homeschooling on the Run

Psalm 23 Booklet--Free Printable

Mija is learning Psalm 23 in AWANA. I thought of a cute way to review the book! I made a booklet she could illustrate herself.

First go get my free printable HERE. (I've also posted in My Printables.) I've made it four different pages, so you can choose to do one at a time if you want!

Here's what you'll end up with after printing.

It's four sheets with four pages on each sheet.

The next job is cutting them apart and punching the hole in each corner.

Sneaky mommy got in some extra review by having mija put the cut cards in order!

Then came the fun part of coloring a picture for each phrase. I left them blank for personal illustrations because she loves to draw more than color and personal illustrations are much likely to become keepsakes!

I think some of my favorite illustrations were a picture of vegetable oil for "He anoints my head with oil," and the dripping blood and dead person for "the valley of the shadow of death."
We then put it together with a paper fastener and viola! 

So, just go HERE to get your own Psalm 23 Booklet and please let me know what you think!

  

Rosetta Stone Sweepstakes

Personalized Stocking Deal with free shipping

What a great keepsake! A personalized Stocking! With this Vistaprint deal, you choose the name AND the font. 
The cost is $7.99 with free shipping.
It's never too soon to start thinking/preparing for Christmas!
Oh, and this deal ends Friday, Oct. 26 at 11:59PM. ;-)

Reformation Day is just a week away--Pinterest ideas

For those who don't know yet, we don't do Halloween. We definitely focus on Reformation Day, however. Martin Luther hung his 95 Thesis on the church door at Wittenberg on October 31, 1517 which started the whole Protestant Reformation.

Last year, mija made a lapbook about Martin Luther for Reformation Day. This year, I accepted the insanity challenge of doing a monologue for AWANA next Wednesday. I will be Katherine Von Bora, Luther's wife, and share the story of Luther, the 95 theses and such. Pray for me because I only found out about this last week!

I found some great pins on Pinterest. Each pin links to a lot of ideas or other links. There are definitely a lot of ideas for celebrating Reformation Day. No excuses not to do so!

Source: homeschoolforfree.net via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: thegospelcoalition.org via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: sojournkids.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: titus2atthewell.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: mustardseeds.typepad.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: proverbs14verse1.blogspot.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Source: ehow.com via Betsy Price on Pinterest

Power of a Positive Attitude--from Eternal Encouragement

Earlier this year, I was able to attend an Extreme Mom Makeover with my Mom.   It was great actually meeting Lorrie and convicting to listen to her lessons. The theme was "The Power of Positive Attitude".  

Now, you can be blessed and convicted, too. Lorrie Flem of Eternal Encouragement will be making these lesson available to all come November 1, 2012. This will be Collection 3.

It was a blessing to not only hear this lesson from Lorrie in person, but now to hear it again. Boy do I need it. It's obvious God doesn't want me to forget and remember to apply what I've learned!

I need to remember that I set the tone of my home by choosing my attitude. Most of the time, I don't make the choice, and I can see the results which I don't like. Lorrie pointed out that contentment (like all fruits of the Spirit) is a decision not a feeling. I also need to remember to choose gratitude which then affects my attitude. This has been a couple of years full of challenges, and truly I have tried to be thankful even during the trials, but I need to do better. 

I think one of the most convicting things Lorrie mentioned is being thankful for the imperfect gifts. God had given us many things to sustain us during my husband's unemployment. At times, I know I haven't been as thankful as I should be because I've seen the gifts as temporary fixes/imperfect gifts unworthy of full gratitude. I confess that now. 

Lorrie also points out that we are often ungrateful for our bodies or our health. Our bodies and health are often imperfect gifts because of this fallen world, be wee need to be thankful for what we have. As I write this, I'm heading into a period of pain and discomfort. I definitely have not been thankful for my health and overweight body. I need to choose to be thankful for the times I am without pain and the activities I can do.  I will be fully grateful for even the imperfect gifts. 

This set will include MP3s and fill-in-the-blank PDFs. I also like how each section  has an exercise which will help you apply or further learn about what Lorrie has taught. It helps it go beyond the MP3 and PDF.

So starting on November 1, visit HERE to get your "Power of a Positive Attitude".

As a Gabby Mom, I was given the product for free in exchange for my honest opinion on the product. 

Free Science Class this Wednesday!

Salvete! Tempus Fugit! There is another free science tele-class this week by Supercharged Science! Remember, Supercharged Science is taught by Aurora Lipper who is an actually rocket scientist but doesn't teach like one!

The class will be Wednesday, October 24 at noon Pacific which is 2 PM for me here in the Central time zone.

The topic this month is LIGHT WAVES & LASERS.  All you have to do it sign in with your email address and you're registered for the class.

We try to make it to the class each month. She does a great job, and there's nothing like a free science class that you don't have to teach!!

Friday Funny--Egyptian-style

How about a fun activity of doing math with Egyptian hieroglyphs? When you're done, you can give yourself a High-Five! HERE's the link for the math.

Smart Phone Apps for Education

We were recently with Smartphones. I'm trying to be smart about my Smartphone. While I enjoy a game of Angry Birds like most, I didn't want my phone to be merely entertainment. I want it to be a tool including being a tool in educating my daughter. And you know my penchant for FREE. 

Here are a few of the apps I have found already and  I would LOVE to find out about what apps you use.

Kindle--You don't have to have a Kindle to download the app for free to your phone or computer. I have access to all the books I have on my regular Kindle.

Google Sky Map--My family really enjoys astronomy and this app is really cool. You hold your phone up to the sky and it displays constellations, planets, etc.

iFlash Free--The link is for "i" products, but it's also available for other products like my Android. You can make flash cards for any subject you want! Currently, we work on our Latin words using this app.

Math Practice Flash Cards--This is really handy. You can practice addition, subtraction, multiply, division and is totally customizable. It reviews missed cards and answers can be multiple choice.

Word Search--Always a fun way to learn new words and vocabulary. I think this one is pretty because each word is colored a different color.

Well those are the ones I've started with. What have you found/used that you like?

Scientific Method on a Sunday afternoon

AKA---I am out of vinegar and baking soda.

We recently watched a video about how glow sticks work. Here it is:

It really spurred her to think about "experiments", so Sunday afternoon after church, while my husband and I watched the Kansas City Chiefs lose (as usual), mija played scientist in the kitchen.

She had started mixing things together to see what happened. She used things like left-over 7UP, coffee, soap ("foam" soap & liquid), etc. Since she was so interested, I introduced her to what happens when you mix vinegar and baking soda. 

Now, it would have been very easy for me to turn this into an "official" science lesson. I didn't, however, because I didn't want to squelch her natural, spontaneous learning. 
What I did do was to introduce some correct terms and scientific method as she experimented. I mentioned words like "observation", "data", "record results", and "hypothesis". As she checked in throughout the afternoon, I asked her "What do you think will happen if...?" or "Why do you think it did...?" 

Well, by the time she was done, I was out of baking soda and vinegar and my stove top looked like this:

She did help clean up before she went outside, and she did it without complaining! Another plus!

All this to say, sometimes we need to be careful not to turn every "teachable" moment into a "school lesson".