The McClanahan 7

K5 Learning

2012-03-03T02:30:00.000-06:00

K5 Learning is an online supplemental program for kids K-5th grade in reading and math. Their intent is for kids to build study skills by working independently in Math and Reading. After an online assessment the child will work independently at their own pace through 3,000 interactive and simple lessons and activities. The lessons are automatically chosen based on the child's assessment and progress reports are provided for parents.

Each student will have their own login with the parent having access to all student information in their own page. Reports for each child can be viewed in the parental access. You can see what grade level of work the child is working at in reading and math and how much time they have spent in each. You can also visit the Lesson Library to view or assign the lessons by grade or subject for your child.

K5 Learning was founded by parents who wanted learning tools for their kids to use at home. It is now used by thousands of students from hundreds of schools.

The K5 program includes:

free online assessments of each child’s math and reading skills,
award-winning, curricula based reading and math content,
over 3,000 online multimedia activities, personalized for each child based on his or her assessment,
a highly structured environment which allows the student to proceed through the lessons in a logical fashion at his own pace,
ease of use which allows even 4 or 5 year olds to work independently,
attention to child safety with no external links, advertisements, chat or similar,
comprehensive reporting to parents,
24/7 availability and no downloads

K5 Math Facts records every response your child makes it even includes how fast they answer the question. This helps determine what they need to practice more on. The Matrix displays the student's progress on each math fact. Mastery is achieved when the matrix is green.

The K5 Reading has over 1,500 tutorials and activities. It covers phonemic awareness, phonics, sight words, vocabulary and reading comprehension. Each lesson gives an interactive tutorial, practice segments, and a quiz. They usually last about 5 minutes allowing for a short study time.

K5 Spelling has a 150,000 word database and offers immediate feedback on each word spelled. If they spell the word correctly they will receive applause and if it is incorrect they will receive hints on how to correct the mistake. They always spell the word correctly before moving on.

Parents can assign any lesson from the K5 Reading, K5 Math & Spelling at any time. They can also access reports online which includes progress reports, quiz results, spelling words learned and progress made on each math fact.

K5 is available on a subscription basis for $25/month or $199/year with substantial discounts for siblings. Each subscription includes a free math and reading assessment and unlimited use of each of K5’s four programs, K5 Reading, K5 Math, K5 Spelling and K5 Math Facts. A 14 day free trial is available.

Alaina just turned 7 and has been using K5. She likes to spend time on the computer and really enjoys working on K5. I like that I know she is working on lessons that are right at her ability regardless of her age or grade. My older girls took the online assessment and it tells you if they test out of a subject by exempting them from the lessons. This program would work great for busy families or families where both parents work.

Sail over to the TOS Crew blog and read what other members thought of K5 Learning.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received a subscription to K5 Learning free of charge in exchange for my review.

Reading Eggs

2012-02-25T01:30:00.001-06:00

Reading is the most important thing that your child will ever learn. No matter where your child receives their education the parent should make sure that their child can read well and comprehend what they read.

Reading Eggs is an online program that will help your children learn to read. This reading world lets your children learn to read at their own pace. This program was developed by an experienced team of education teachers, writers, and developers. There are 100 lessons that are perfect for children 4-7 years old who are learning to read. For children 6-8 who are already reading can enjoy the new lessons and over 600 books in the Egg World called Eggspress.

Reading Eggs can be started at the beginning if your child is just learning to read or they can complete a placement test if they are already reading.

During the placement test the child is asked 40 questions and they will choose the correct answer to see how well they are already reading.

Each child will work their way through the Egg World Map by completing the lessons that work on phonics and sight words. As your child progresses they will be awarded golden eggs to use to buy reward games, items for your house, and clothes for your character. Children are given books to read using only the words they have learned in order to build their confidence. Activity sheets can be printed for free to go along with each lesson.

There are a variety of animated activities that will provide the repetition your child needs to remember the skills taught. In this activity the child hears a sentence and then they put the words in the correct order. After 10 lessons a quiz will be administered so you can see how well your child is progressing. All the activities can be repeated as many times as your child needs.

Reading Eggspress has a Floating Island that lets your child visit the Stadium where they can play games against a person or the computer, in the Mall & Apartment items can be purchased for your house or character, at the Library books are separated by category for your child to choose and read, and in the Comprehension Gym is a Comprehension Gym Placement Test is administered. There are 200 lessons to build your child's comprehension.

Alaina (age 7) has been using Reading Eggs and Reading Eggspress. She answered all the questions correctly on the Reading Eggs Assessment test and this put her in a higher level. I think the level she was started in was still to easy for her but she loves working through her map and the extra work has really built her confidence in her reading abilities. She even asks to play during her free time, she doesn't look at Reading Eggs as work to her it is more like a game than school. She has liked reading all of the books and she has a few favorites that she wants to read over and over.

Access to Reading Eggs can be purchased for $75.00 for one year or $49.95 for six months or monthly $9.95. A 50% discount can be applied for multiple children on the six month or year membership. Additional Reading Egg books may be purchased in the online store.

Sail over to the TOS Crew blog to read what other homeschool families thought of Reading Eggs.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received a free trial of Reading Eggs to use with my daughter free of charge in exchange for my review.

Spelling City

2012-02-25T01:30:00.000-06:00

Vocabulary SpellingCity.com is a website that helps children of all ages with their vocabulary and spelling words. The Premium Membership is $29.99 a year and that will give you up to 5 student accounts and a teacher account with no adds. There are 25 different learning activities that can be printed or played online.

The Teacher Toolbox comes with the Premium Membership and allows the teacher to create new assignments for each student. You can manage your students here and check on their progress and grades. You can use word lists that are available from Spelling City or create you own. It is very easy to create your own word lists and Spelling City will give you definitions so you may choose which meaning you would like to your student to learn

Each Student Account has their own login to access their assignments. They can enter their own spelling list to use with the activities, use an assigned list, or one that is available at Spelling City. Some of the activities include flashcards, vocabulary practice, spelling practice, hang mouse, letter fall, crossword puzzles, and word searches.

Using the Premium Membership with all three of my daughters will make keeping track of 3 levels of spelling words easier on me. Once their words are added they can login in and work on their own list independently. One of my daughters loves working on her vocabulary and spelling words and she likes to spend extra time on them so now she can work on her lists even when I'm helping one of the other girls on their school work. The best part is that they all like the fun activities to help them learn their words.

I've been given a premium membership to VocabularySpellingCity.com for a candid, personal, online review.

VocabularySpellingCity.com helps students study word lists using 25 different learning activities such as MatchIt Sentences, HangMan, and Word-O-Rama. Parents can create their own spelling lists, find published lists already available on the site, or use any of dozens of free teaching resources on topics such as analogies and compound words.

There might be more free memberships available for bloggers. If you're interested, find out how you can review VocabularySpellingCity.com.

BEEYOUTIFUL

2012-02-20T02:00:00.000-06:00

Healthy Living for the Real World

Beeyoutiful.com believes that each individual is responsible for their own health and they want to promote a healthy lifestyle by bringing you natural products. Their goal is to assist you in bridging the nutritional gap of a modern diet and our bodies nutritional needs.

A few weeks ago I received Beeyoutiful All-natural Lip Balm in orange and the Winter Breeze Vapor Rub in the mail. We have been trying to use more natural products in the last couple of years so I was very excited to try these products.

Beeyoutiful’s all natural Lip Balm comes in Peppermint and Orange flavors for $3.00. Both contain grapeseed oil, shea butter, beeswax, and essential oils that nourish, heal, and moisturize your lips. Orange is a refreshing, citrusy blast that helps brighten your lips. Peppermint's cool, tingly flavor is refreshing to your lips on dry days. B.A.L.M stands for Beeyoutiful All natural Lip Moisturizer.

I have always been very picky about my lip balm & I keep some in the kitchen, in the school room, my bedroom, my purse, the bathroom, and most of the time I have one in my pocket. I knew the Vapor Rub was coming but I was so surprised when I opened my package and found the Orange Lip Balm. I had to try it the minute I opened the package. It has a very mild orange scent and feels very light and smooth on my lips & it keeps disappearing......... into the hands of my 3 girls (they love it too!!).

Winter Breeze Vapor Rub from Beeyoutiful is a healthy version of vapor rub. Winter Breeze uses body-friendly coconut oils and olive oils, along with beeswax as carriers for camphor, menthol, eucalyptus, wintergreen and tea tree oils. These oils clear mucus and help relieve upper respiratory and bronchial infections. It can also be applied to your feet every evening at bedtime to relieve foot fungus and cracking. It comes in a 4 ounce tub with a screw lid for $18.00.

We have been very fortunate this winter and my kids have been very healthy so we didn't get to try this out for any respiratory problems. I was torn between wanting someone to get sick so I could really try the Vapor Rub or rejoicing that everyone is healthy. It has a very mild menthol scent and it isn't greasy. It leaves your skin feeling very soft and cool. My girls used it a few times just because they liked the way it felt.

Beeyoutiful has a variety of products for men, women, and children. They offer hair & skin products, essential & nutritional oils, supplements, books, tea, baking supplies, and small appliances.

Members of the TOS Crew received different products from Beeyoutiful. Sail over to the Crew Blog and read what other products were reviewed.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received Winter Breeze and Lip B.A.L.M from Beeyoutiful in exchange for my review.

Who Am I? (And What Am I Doing Here?)

2012-02-17T03:00:00.000-06:00

We have used a lot of curriculum over the years and I really like when we find something that will make my kids think. If we find something good they will get on a roll and will want to ask questions and talk about the subject matter for a long time. That is one of the reasons why Who Am I? from Apologia Press has been such a big hit.

Who Am I? (And What Am I Doing Here?) is the second book in the What We Believe series from Apologia. This series introduces young people ages 6-14 to basic truths of the Christian Faith. Who is God? is the first book of the series and we had the privilege of reviewing it last year. The next two books are Who Is My Neighbor? and What on Earth Can I Do?

Who Am I? And What Am I Doing Here? is a biblical worldview of self-image curriculum for children 6-14. I have been using the textbook, notebooking journal, CD, and the coloring book with my girls ages 7, 9, & 10.

The textbook is a beautifully illustrated hardbound book with 265 pages and retails for $39.99. The text is written directly to the student in a way the whole family can enjoy and learn from. It is presented in a conversational style that makes it easy to remember what was taught. The book should be used in order but each lesson can last as long as you need it to for your children. In each lesson the idea is talked about and reinforced with scripture, there is a story about a young person from around the world, there are vocabulary words, memory verses, thought questions, and you even learn about a famous horse and the invention of basketball. With the purchase of the textbook you will get a password to gain web access to additional resources to help teach the course.
The notebooking journal is a 248 page spiral bound notebook and is $24.00. There are several different types of pages to be completed. Some pages contain questions from the stories, thought questions, puzzles, copywork of memory verses, and even lists of activities, books, and songs to go with the lesson.
The CD is $19.99 and is a complete recording of the textbook. This would be great for auditory learners, slow learners, or people with other learning disabilities that make reading difficult. This CD is a MP3 and must be played on a MP3 compatible CD player or on a computer.
The coloring book is $8.00 and is a 64 page softbound book with very wholesome pictures to color. Some of them are of people praying, reading the bible, important or common people making decisions and some even show feelings.

This book has been one of my girls favorite review items. We didn't really follow a set schedule. I would read the lesson or story to the girls and go over vocabulary words & thought questions together until we were ready to stop. Amber (age 10) and Delaney (age 9) would then work on their vocabulary words, worksheets and journal. Alaina (age 7) would listen while I read and participated in the discussions but she didn't complete the worksheets or the journal. Some days we spent 30 minutes and other days we went a lot longer. I really like the conversational style of writing and it generated a lot of good discussions with my kids. We tried the CD to use with the textbook but there were so many places we wanted to stop and discuss something so it worked better for us if I read to all of them. My girls love to color so the coloring book was a wonderful accompaniment to this curriculum.

Sail over to the TOS Crew Blog and read what other members thought of Who Am I.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received Who Am I curriculum from Apologia to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Valentine's Day

2012-02-14T12:21:00.000-06:00

Today is Valentine's Day and it is also my Anniversary. My husband & I have been married for 22 years. Where has time gone? I don't feel like I am old enough to be celebrating 22 years as a married woman.

Mike and I were both in the Air Force and stationed at Yokota AFB in Japan. I had only been on the base a couple of days when I met Mike at the firing range. After we had been dating for awhile this guy at work came up to me and offered his congratulations on our upcoming marriage. Um....Mike and I had talked about getting married but he had never proposed & just started telling everyone that we were getting married without informing me. Since we were so far away from our family and friends we decided to just go to the American Embassy in Tokyo.

First we had to get permission from our commander to even get married. Well.....Mike was kind of a trouble maker. Our commander told him the only reason he would sign for us to get married is that he liked me & thought I could straighten him up. We needed two witnesses so we recruited two of our friends to come along. Once we were at the Embassy they just wanted to know if we had ever been married or divorced, we all signed the paper, and paid the fee. That was it!

We have definitely had our share of problems and difficulties in our marriage but I love my husband more today than ever before.

I may not of gotten a proposal or an actual wedding but I had the pleasure of getting married & honeymooning in Tokyo. I also have an awesome marriage certificate!

ALEKS

2012-02-11T23:43:00.003-06:00

ALEKS stands for Assessment and LEarning in Knowledge Spaces and provides individual instruction to homeschool children in mathematics. It is an online math program available for grade 3-12 and can be accessed from any computer with Internet access.

Your child will take an assessment to see what they already know and what they are ready to learn next. That means no two children will experience the same program while working with ALEKS. This program can be used as a core curriculum, supplement, or tutor.

After setting up the student account they are taught how to use the online tools because ALEKS avoids multi-choice questions. The personalized assessment consists of 25-30 questions.

Each student will receive a pie chart to record their progress. If they click on a section of the pie it will take them to the learning mode. There they will be provided with practice problems and explanations of concept and procedures. The student will receive immediate feedback on the missed problems. You can also print out personalized worksheets for more practice. A student progress report can be generated at any time and an new assessment can be assigned. Quizzes can be generated according to your state standards or based off of the students work.

All of your students accounts can be managed in one master account. Where you can view student progress, create a new quiz, and view quiz results.

You can try ALEKS Math free for 2-months and can be purchased for $19.99 a month, $99.95 for 6-months, or $179.95 for one year.

Sail over to the TOS Crew Blog to read ALEKS reviews.

This informational review was written for the TOS Crew. I received no compensation or free trial.

See-N-Spell / See-N-Read

2012-02-11T23:00:00.000-06:00

I have never been a very good speller and that is very frustrating to me. That has made me want my kids to be able to spell well. When we received See-N-Spell to review I was very relieved to read that people usually have a larger verbal vocabulary than written vocabulary and to avoid spelling errors writers will sometimes choose a simpler word to express their thoughts.

See-N-Spell is a spelling and vocabulary quick reference guide. It is designed to enhance correct spelling and broader vocabulary usage for 4th grade users and up. It is divided into 3 sections.

Section One- Is arranged in alphabetical order and the words are divided into common language functions for each word. This helps the user become familiar with the correct spelling and how to use the word in a sentence.
Section Two- Includes the most commonly misspelled words, arranged in alphabetical order for quick reference.
Section Three-Provides an area to write Special Interest Words that you might want to add to the guide.

To use the Quick Reference Guide simply scan the letter page for the word you need to spell. When scanning for the word you can use the See-N-Read to make it easier.

The See-N-Reed is a clear reading window surrounded by a non-glare tinted transparent finish that reduces line skipping. It allows readers to concentrate on the content by helping to control smooth eye movements across the line of text.

Alaina (age 7) has used the See-N-Read the most. She didn't use it with the See-N-Spell but it worked great with her bible. The print is smaller with more words on the page than other books that she reads. This has helped her stay on the line of text that she is reading. She is a very good reader but it is harder for her to focus on the tiny words and it has built her confidence while reading her bible out loud.

Delaney (age 9), Amber (age 10), and I have been using the See-N-Spell. We kept it very accessible in our school room & it is very quick and easy to find the word you are looking for. This 40 page book contains over 300 commonly used American English words. As long as you know the first sound of the word you can find the page and easily find the word. It is much smaller than a dictionary and my girls already know the meanings of most of the words so we didn't need the definitions. We used the Commonly Misspelled Words section for our spelling words so maybe they will not be my kids commonly misspelled words.

See-N-Spell can be purchased for $9.99 and it comes with a free See-N-Read.
Sail over to the TOS Crew blog and read what other crew members thought of See-N-Spell and See-N-Read.

I received See-N-Spell and See-N-Read free of charge to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Math Rider

2012-02-09T01:03:00.002-06:00

Math is probably my least favorite subject to teach my kids. I was beginning to think it had to do with me or our curriculum but finally my youngest child loves math. Alaina begs to do extra math every day, she loves worksheets, flashcards and especially math facts games. She just turned 7 and is learning multiplication for fun!! All three of my girls ages 7, 9, & 10 have been playing Math Rider to work on their math facts.

Math Rider is a computer program that helps your child master math facts from 0-12 in addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. This program is great for any elementary child that is learning math facts or older children (or parents) who need the review or to build their speed. You can choose the level of difficulty for each quest but it is recommended that they start in the easy level before moving into a harder one in each math operation because it helps the child remember the facts easier.

Each student gets to ride Shadow through Mathlands. Shadow jumps over obstacles by answering number sentences correctly and rewards await you at the end of your quest.

As the student progresses through the program there will be objects added to their home page. They can earn flowers, buildings, gates & posts, and eventually a castle.

The statistics page is great. It is so easy to see what math facts each child has mastered and what they need to work on. Once the number fact has been mastered the square will be green. If you hover over the square the math problem will pop up and if you click on it it will recite the problem to you. The problems that were a challenge for the student are listed in the tan box. The colored bar represents the mastery level.

My girls really like Math Rider because they get tired of using paper speed drills and flash cards over and over. This is like a game to them and they are very willing to work on the math facts. I really like it because I can tell at a glance what my children need to work on and what they have mastered. We use speed drills in our school daily and getting 3 levels of them printed from our CD is a little time consuming.
Math Rider is currently $37.00 but on February 15th it will increase to $47.00. This price will include any future updates made to the program. There is a free 7 day trial and there is a 30 day money back guarantee.

If you like Math Rider on Facebook you will get a discount code!!

Sail over to the TOS Crew Blog and read what other homeschool families thought about Mart Rider.

I received Math Rider free of charge to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Celestial Almanack

2012-02-03T14:31:00.000-06:00

We have had some wonderful winter weather & it has been nice because it has given us the chance to notice the night sky early without being to cold. Amber has been very intrigued with the moon lately so I was very happy to be able to start using The Celestial Almanack from Classical Astronomy.

The Celestial Almanack is a visual representation of the sky. It is written for each individual month so that the information is current. It can be used as a monthly supplement to Signs & Seasons Curriculum or on its own and there is no need for a telescope. The 21 page monthly Almanack can be purchased a PDF download at Currclick for just $3.00.

We have just received the February 2012 Volume I, Number 2 Almanac. It starts our explaining leap year and show us different signs of the seasons. The pictures are wonderful because they actually show how the sky will look from where you are standing. February is a great month to watch Jupiter and Venus draw toward a conjunction that will take place in March.

The Celestial Almanack will be promoting three very rare sky events over the next six months.

1) the Jupiter-Venus conjunction on March 15 (once every 24 years);
2) the annular solar eclipse on May 20 (once every 18 years); and
3) the transit of Venus on June 5 (last one til 2117!).

Jay Ryan is absolutely frantic about trying to make sure that every single American, besides homeschoolers, finds out about these events and how to observe them!

Jay is homeschool dad to his 5 children. He has a BS degree in Physics but is completely self-taught in Astronomy. His home based business is Fourth Day Press and their goal is to create a series of user-friendly astronomy books and curricula that present the visual appearances of the sky in a visual medium, relying heavily on illustrations that depict the actual scenes that a reader might expect to see.

I know very little about Astronomy and am looking forward to learning right along with my kids.

Sail over to the Crew blog and read what other members have to say about the Celestial Almanack.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received Vol. 2 of the Celestial Almanack to help spread the word about exciting sky events.

Cooper and Me Review & Giveaway

2012-02-03T12:41:00.000-06:00

My son joined the Army last year and it has been very hard on my little girls to have him so far away. The new Cooper and Me and the Military book was great for reassuring them that they can stay close to him no matter where he is stationed.

Meet Trooper, Cooper’s best friend, and learn how he was adopted by Gracie and Joe and their parents, who both serve in the military. Find out how this family stays close despite being separated.

A must-read during patriotic holidays and for anyone with friends and family in the military, this book helps children know, that even when loved ones aren’t with us, they still love us and think about us. This book, along with all the other books in the Cooper and Me series, includes these interactive features:

• A Special Memory Creation

• Life Lesson

• Connections

• Learning Together

In addition to a fun adventure, each Cooper and Me story teaches an important Life Lesson and features interactive materials at the back of the book to drive the message home. Included are activities that help children name and process their own feelings about what they’ve read.

So your kids can enjoy the Cooper and Me books more there are coloring and activity pages to go along with the books available free on the Cooper and Me website.

The Cooper and Me books are written by Alexa Peters and her mother Monique Peters. Alexa was only 11 years old when they wrote their first book. They wanted to turn their love for writing and drawing into an opportunity to give to other kids.

I have a copy of Cooper and Me in the Military to giveaway to one of my lucky readers.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

KinderBach

2012-02-01T23:23:00.001-06:00

KinderBach is an online beginning piano program for individuals or groups. Your child will learn note reading, rhythm, singing, and composition with fun playful characters as early as age 2. This curriculum will give your child a good music foundation that will carry over to any instrument.

Alaina (age 7) has really enjoyed KinderBach. She watched the videos portion of the program on our Kindle Fire, this made it very easy to use with our piano. Alaina has been taking piano lessons but she has learned a lot from KinderBach and it has really helped her get the idea of rhythm. Her favorite part is where you make your own instrument out of anything you have in your house. She likes the coloring sheets and Felicity the Frog is her favorite character. Maybe she likes her because Felicity likes classical music or could it be because Felicity likes fashion & glitter!

I think KinderBach is a great beginning music program. It is taught directly to the child with very minimal preparation time and the best part the teacher doesn't have to know anything about music. I printed out Alaina's worksheets and coloring pages from the computer and then she would log in on the Kindle Fire and find exactly where she needed to be.

The 6 levels in KinderBach are divided into 240 lessons. There are worksheets, coloring pages, sheet music, games, and activities to keep your 2-7 year old child active in the music lessons.

This is what the program looks like when you are logged in. It shows that the child is on Week 19 lesson 1. If you click on the printer it will bring up any worksheets that you need to use with this lesson.

There is an activity book to go along with each Level.

When you get to the lessons using the piano the exact hand placement is shown to help your child get it right.

Karri Gregor is a professional musician and has decades of experience in teaching music to over 8000 kids.

KinderBach is available to use online starting at $19.99 a month or the CD/DVD version for $40.45.

Let your child try the free online trial to see how they like it the first 2 weeks of lessons.

I have a discount code for 30% off the subscription rate.

Use COUPON CODE: TOScrew2012

Expires 2/2/2013

KinderBach offers a no risk 30 day money back guarantee!!

Sail over to the Crew Blog and read what other members thought about KinderBach.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received a three month membership to KinderBach free of charge in exchange for my review.

Vocabulary Spelling City

2012-01-31T12:31:00.001-06:00

Delaney is excited at our house!!

She loves spelling and vocabulary words. She can't wait to get started using Vocabulary SpellingCity.com.

I've been given a premium membership to VocabularySpellingCity.com for a candid, personal, online review.

There might be more free memberships available for bloggers. If you're interested, find out how you can review VocabularySpellingCity.com.

Be sure to come back in three weeks to read about my experience.

Pick and Draw Review & Giveaway

2012-01-28T03:00:00.000-06:00

We have been playing Pick and Draw and it is a huge hit at our house. My girls love this game. The first time we played the girls had a friend from CO over for a few days. Amber was tired of playing dress up so her and I started playing Pick and Draw. We were having such a good time that the other girls joined in after the first couple of rounds and they played for hours.

Pick and Draw is a card game where you draw cartoon characters. It is $10.00 and is being played all over the world. The cards are divided into 5 categories. One card is taken from each category without looking at it. First you turn over the Face card and draw the shape that is on the card for your face. The next card is from the Nose category then the Eyes, Mouth, and Hair. The nose, eyes, mouth, and hair can be drawn at different angles, sizes, & positions but you must use the shape that is turned over. Once the round is over everyone has a different looking character. Pick and Draw suggests that you name each character and answer a few questions about them.

We had so much fun and we thought each character had a different personality. Once we were done we named each one and decided where we thought they would work. My girls enjoyed this game so much that they have played through the cards several times at once or if they only have a few minutes they will get them out and draw a couple of characters. I'm thinking this will be fun to take in the car on vacation and use with our draw erase boards.

This is a sheet of Amber's characters.

Rich Davis created Pick and Draw so that you can draw together. He wants you to have fun and thinks you will be surprised at how well you can draw. Rich has written several children's books and gives presentations at schools and libraries.

Rich Davis was generous enough to send a Pick and Draw game to one of my lucky readers.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received Pick and Draw free of charge to play with my children in exchange for my review.

We Choose Virtues

2012-01-22T16:58:00.000-06:00

I AM ATTENTIVE

I watch and listen carefully

I am NOT...forgetful, distracted or distracting and I don't ignore or interrupt!

~Virtue Clue Card

It is impossible to achieve moral excellence but it is very important to continually try to gain it for ourselves and our children. We Choose Virtues wants to turn your caterpillar's character into butterflies.

I received Virtue Clue Cards, Kids of Virtue download coloring book, Family Character Assessment, Kids Memory Verses, Bible Heroes and Truths, and the Teacher's Handbook. The character curriculum is recommended for children ages 3-18.

There are 13 colorful Virtue Clue Cards in a carrying pouch. On each card is a virtue, a phrase to go with it, and a Virtueville character. On the back is a reminder to go the whole day practicing the virtue. The Clue Cards are sold for $7.95 but they are on sale right now for $5.99.

The Kids of Virtueville Coloring Book is available for $3.00 in a download format only. All 12 Virtueville Characters are included along with a word search.

The Student Character Assessment is available for $1.00 but right now it is FREE. This assessment lists all 12 virtues with numbers 1-10 to rank the child's progress on building their character.

The Teacher's Handbook is 48 colorful pages and is available in hardback for $19.95 or download version for $4.99. This is included free in many of the kits that are available from We Choose Virtues. This handbook contains steps and tools for teaching character education in the classroom, home schools, and daycare.

The Youth Memory Verses and Heroes and Truths was also included in our products and it is available free. It contains a bible hero and a memory verse to go along with each virtue.

I have been using We Choose Virtues with all three of my girls ages 7, 9, and 10. It has been very easy to implement into our day with very little amount of time committed. It has been good to have character traits on our mind to help ourselves and each other with our attitudes. My girls like to color so they have really been enjoying the coloring sheets and my pig loving 7 year old daughter's favorite character is Piggy Bank Frank (I'm sure I'll be printing that one several times). This character curriculum would be great to use with Sunday School class too.
Heather McMillan has created We Choose Virtues out of her love for children and her desire to see them succeed. She is a preschool teacher and a chilren's pastor and was concerned about the lack of good character in chilren.

We Choose Virtues has just updated the paper quality of their most popular posters. You may now purchase the new quality posters or the original posters at a discounted price.

Prices for these thicker posters:

Kids Virtue Poster now $11.99 (from $14.99)
3 Rules Poster now $9.99 (from $11.99)
100 Days of Virtue Chart with Butterfly Stickers now $13.99 (from $14.99)

CLEARANCE POSTERS! While supplies last.

2011 Kids Virtue Poster $9.75 (from $14.99, 35% savings)
2011 100 Days of Virtue Chart and Butterfly Stickers $11.99 (from $14.99, 20% savings)
2011 3 Rules Poster $7.75 (from 11.99, 35% savings)

SPECIALS:

JANUARY/FEBRUARY-The 100 Days of Virtue Poster and Stickers will be included FREE with any Homeschool Kit purchase during these months.

PROMO CODES: You may use only one.

VIRTUE15 for 15 % off the shopping cart is still available
SHIPFREE for free worldwide shipping

Make sure you check out We Choose Virtues Facebook page. They include tips on parenting, leadership and inspiring lasting Virtue.

Sail over to the Crew Blog to see what other crew members thought of We Choose Virtues.

I received We Choose Virtues products free of charge to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Tide Coldwater

2012-01-18T15:50:00.000-06:00

Alaina loves pigs!! She has pig stuffed animals, pig slippers, a pig alarm clock, and for Christmas my sister gave her a pig hat. She loves that hat & she has worn it every day since she opened it. I have to make her take it off to wash her hair & let it dry. Well you can imagine it can get very dirty!! I should have taken a before picture because it was bad.

I had just received my bottle of Tide Coldwater and decided to wash her pig hat using this. I was very skeptical at first......I was thinking I would have to use hot water and a stain remover to get it clean. I decided I would forgo the stain remover and see just how Tide Coldwater would preform. All I can say is "WOW" her hat came out looking brand new. I am very impressed with Tide Coldwater and am happy to cut back on my hot water usage. Alaina was so excited to get her pig out of the washing machine to see if it was clean. She was very happy when it came out looking like new. Now I wonder if Tide can help me with the static she gets in her hair from her hat.

I have used about half of my Tide Coldwater on all of our laundry and it hasn't let me down.

I received one bottle of Tide Coldwater free of charge from P&G to use in my household.

A Mile In His Shoes Review & Giveaway

2012-01-18T01:30:00.000-06:00

When I watch my kids play sports it always makes me feel good when the player with the least talent makes a goal, a basket, or gets a good hit off the pitch. You know that they are very excited to finally achieve something for the themselves and the team. That is the way A Mile In His Shoes makes you feel. It is about a young man that has Asperger's syndrome and he gets a chance to pitch for a baseball team. Pitching comes naturally to him but coping with the new environment and situation is what he really has to overcome. This uplifting movie is about determination, hope and friendships.

In A Mile In His Shoes Mickey (Luke Schroder) is a young man with Asperger's syndrome. He helps with the family farm and has a incredible pitching arm. Arthur "Murph" Murphy is a baseball coach for the River Rats and discovers Mickey when he puts his car in a ditch right outside of the Schroder farm. Mickey's parents are reluctant to let him leave the farm because of his autism. Murph convinces Mickey's parents that their son is very special and they allow him to join the team. No one realizes how much Mickey helps the team game and their spirit. Mickey's parents especially his father finally realize that their son can succeed in the real world. A Mile In His Shoes is from the director of "Angels In the Outfield" and is based on the book "The Legend of Mickey Tussler".

My family enjoyed this movie very much and my kids have asked to watch it again several times. I really appreciate movies that can entertain my entire family without using foul language and excessive violence. There is one part of the movie where Mickey gets beat up by the bully of the team but you don't actually see him getting beat up.

I have a copy of A Mile In His Shoes to giveaway to one of my lucky readers.

a Rafflecopter giveawayDisclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Swan Lake

2012-01-12T23:06:00.002-06:00

A story can really come to life when it is set to music. It makes you feel like you are there and that you know what the characters are experiencing and how they feel. Maestro Classics does an excellent job of making Swan Lake come alive.

If you are not familiar with Swan Lake it is a story about a prince who falls in love with a beautiful princess but she is turned into a swan by an evil magician. Only the prince's true love can break the spell.

Maestro Classics goals are to expand musical horizons, develop listening skills, and encourage families to listen to music together. Listening to complex patterns of classical/symphonic music stimulates brain development and Maestro Classics make it enjoyable.

We received Swan Lake CD along with a 24 page booklet containing information about Tchaikovsky who composed the music for Swan Lake, Stephen Simon who is the conductor of this musical story, Bonnie Ward Simon the producer, Yadu who is the narrator, and Joe Stump who arranged and plays the Speed Metal Swan. There are also puzzles, musical activities and piano music for Tchaikovsky Wrote a Great Ballet. Swan Lake is preformed by London Philharmonic Orchestra and is available on CD for $16.98, the down loadable MP3 is available for $9.98. There is a preview available on Maestro Classics web page. The Swan Lake CD lasts 54 minutes and has 7 tracks.

The Story of Swan Lake
Tchaikovsky's Life
Speed Metal Swan
About the Music
"Tchaikovsky Wrote a Great Ballet"
Want to Have Some Fun? Prepare to Perform
"Tchaikovsky Wrote a Great Ballet" Sing-Along

It has been such a joy to experience Swan Lake from Maestro Classics. The story and music flow together wonderfully. It has really made us appreciate classical music. My girls ages 7, 9, & 10 and I have all enjoyed listening to the CD over and over. We were very pleasantly surprised by the "Speed Metal Swan" ~ a heavy metal version of the main theme. My girls thought it was wonderful. Another additional track on this CD tells us what to listen to in music and about Tchaikovsky's life.

Maestro Classics offer several other classical music CD's. We had the pleasure of listening to Peter and the Wolf last year and you can read my review of it here. My girls and I are thinking that we would enjoy Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel next.

JANUARY SPECIAL: Order a Swan Lake CD or MP3 download, and Maestro Classics will automatically send you an additional free MP3 Swan Lake orchestral version!

Sail over to the Crew Blog to read what other members thought of Swan Lake.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received Swan Lake free of charge to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Glass Etching

2012-01-07T14:41:00.000-06:00

My daughter-in-law and I wanted to have friends over for a tea party and we wanted them to be able to take something home with them. Since we had some glass etching cream that we used on her and my son's toasting glasses for their wedding we decided to etch a glass for each guest. We wanted to keep the cost down so bought our glasses at The Dollar Tree.

This is one of the toasting glasses from the wedding. The big "M" came from Tie the Knot Cricut cartridge and the small "M" & "S" came from the Jasmine.

These are the glasses that our guest could take home. We chose 3 different size glasses.

This is our trial glass before starting the ones for our guests. It has icicles and snowflakes but since it was the holiday season we chose to use icicles holly leaves for our guests.

First we cut the images on the Cricut using vinyl. Our icicles and snowflakes came from the Martha Stewart Seasonal Cake Art and the holly leaves were from the Stretch Your Imagination cartridge. You will want to use the reverse image so you can use the actual image for something else if you want. If you don't have access to a cutting machine you could use any adhesive stencil.

The icicles were easy to adhere to the glass. Since it was curved we had to make sure the creases were closed, we did this by pressing them flat.

We used transfer tape with our snowflakes and holly leaves so our small pieces stayed in there exact place.

The etching cream was applied with a foam paintbrush. We applied it pretty thick but not so thick that it dripped down.

After about 10 minutes we rinsed the etching cream off with warm water and removed the vinyl.

We had a lot of fun making the glasses and the image could be changed for any occasion. I think they would make a great personalized gift.

My Side of the Mountain

2012-01-05T21:44:00.000-06:00

My Side of the Mountain is one of my families favorite books. All of my kids really enjoy following Sam on his wilderness adventure. I just finished reading the book out loud to my kids when we were offered the Z-Guide to the movie version of My Side of the Mountain from Zeezok Publishing.

The My Side of the Mountain Z-Guide was written to be used with the 1969 movie from Paramount Pictures. This Z-Guide covers Natural Science, Henry David Thoreau, and Survival Skills it is meant to be completed over a weeks time. The topic overview and movie synopsis should be completed before watching the movie while the movie review questions should be answered during the initial viewing to help the student evaluate the message from the movie. There are 9 other activities to complete or you can pick and choose which ones to finish if your time is limited. Some of the activities included are spelling & grammar, designing a wilderness home, surviving in the wilderness, learning more about the peregrine falcon, and worldview activities. There are also family discussion questions and a list of additional resources for further study.

Amber (age 10) & Delaney (age 9) completed the Z-Guide while we watched My Side of the Mountain. We found the exact movie copy that this Z-Guide was written for at our local library or you may purchase it from Zeezok for $19.98. The Z-Guide was very easy to use and my girls didn't have any trouble hearing the answers to the questions. Their favorite part of the guide was designing a wilderness home & rewriting the ending to the movie. They also enjoyed studying more about the peregrine falcon and their wilderness plan was very interesting. The girls used the Kit Kitteredge Z-Guide last school year and we feel they are a great way to break up our regular school work.

Zeezok Publishing strives to provide quality literature and educational books to train the next generation and was established in 2003. They believe "It is better to build children than to repair men." They want to help you develop your family's love for God and country through their products.

The Z-Guides are available for $12.99 and there is a very good selection for elementary through high school students. There is a great explanation of what a Z-Guide is on their website along with a sample of the Z-Guide for The Count of Monte Cristo.

Crew members received Z-Guides to several different movies. Sail over to the Crew Blog to read what other ones were reviewed.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received the Z Guide for My Side of the Mountain free of charge to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Taken

2012-01-02T00:30:00.000-06:00

Format: Paperback

Number of Pages: 320

Vendor: P & R Publishing

Publication Date: 2011

Dimensions: 8.50 X 5.38"

ISBN: 1596382457

ISBN-13: 9781596382459

Series: Quest for Truth

If you follow my blog you know that we have been reading the new Adventures in Odyssey series from Focus on the Family. One of the authors Brock Eastman has his own series The Quest For Truth, and we just finished the first book Taken. The only complaint my kids had was that the second book, Risk, doesn't come out until May.

Oliver is the oldest kid in the Wikk family and he has to get his sister and twin brothers to another planet after his parents get taken by the Ubel renegades. Oliver must fly the family space ship in some dangerous situations to reach the planet Jahr des Eises. Oliver and Tiffany must go into town to get a part for the Phoenix. The twins Mason and Austin must stay with the ship while they are gone. The twins disobey their brother and go outside the ship, while they are out they get kidnapped by the Blauwe Mensen (blue people) and are forced to live in Cobalt Gorge forever. They become friends with Prince Obbin who helps them to escape back to the Pheonix. Oliver & Tiffany make it back to the spaceship and barely escape the attack of the Blauwe Mensen. Then the Brighton Security force want information from the Pheonix and when the kids don't respond to them they launch a torpedo at their ship. The Pheonix begins it's countdown but the kids don't know if it is the countdown to hyper flight or the impact of the torpedo!!

My 10 year old daughter started reading this book as soon as we received it in the mail but since I am writing the review I had to practically steal it from her to read out loud. She didn't want to put it down & couldn't wait for me to catch up to where she was in the book. All three of my girls ages 7, 9, & 10 enjoyed this book and can't wait for the next book in the series.

I really like taken because I like the action, excitement and it is not about every day stuff. Every night when my mom reads us a chapter book she will say time for bed and we do not want to go to bed because we want to know what happens because most of the time when we end a chapter it is usually exiting. In Taken pretty much all of the book was exciting. I was reading it by myself but then my mom caught up to where I was and she just read the rest of the book to me and my sisters and it was really hard for me to stop reading because I always wanted to know what happened next.

-Amber age 10

Brock Eastman is the Product Marketing Manager at Focus on the Family and has worked on Adventures in Odyssey. He likes to write and with his wife's encouragement, signed a publishing deal for The Quest for Truth series in 2010.

I think Brock did a wonderful job with this book. There is plenty of suspense and adventure without a lot of graphic violence. He had all of our attention from the very beginning and kept it to the end.

I have 3 copies of Taken to give away to three lucky readers of my blog. I will choose 3 winners on January 9, 2012.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received Taken free of charge in exchange for my personal review of this book.

Homeschool Spanish

2011-12-30T20:26:00.002-06:00

My girls are very imaginative, they love to come up with characters, plays, and stories. Some days they are animals, characters from books, characters from the stories their dad tells them at night, and they each have a made up fancy name for the times they are at elegant restaurants. Since we started using Homeschool Spanish they have come up with new scenarios. They now each have a Spanish name and use what little Spanish they know with each other.

Homeschool Spanish is a curriculum for the whole family. Their motto is to Relax, Enjoy, Aspire, Learn Spanish. Dr Williamson-Cora developed the curriculum to use with her own children because she didn't have time to sufficiently plan using other foreign language curriculum. She is French professor and wanted something that her kids could communicate with after learning it.

We received a download that contained the Curriculum Book, the Activity Book, the Daily Curriculum Guide and the Audio Files for the program and sells for $59.95. You can view a sample of each at their website.

The Daily Curriculum Guide contains a 48 week lesson plan. There is a column for prep for each week along with a plan for each day. It includes activities that your children will enjoy like creating board games, putting on puppet shows, and playing regular games using Spanish words instead of English. I think that the plan is very easy to read and follow. Even if your children are younger or older it would be very easy to extend or shorten the plan as needed. We tried staying right on target but with holidays and so much company it didn't always happen.
The Curriculum Book is 105 pages and is divided into 10 units. Each unit is divided into a general category such as greetings, food, sports, etc. The units are divided into sections with new vocabulary words, phrases, tips & ideas to help teach the new words. Some units also deal with grammar.
The Activity Book contains word search, crossword puzzles, dialogue completions, cryptograms, matching, and other fun activities and is 179 pages long.
The Audio Files are actually 2 sets of recordings. There is one set for the Curriculum Book with 32 recordings and one set of 18 recordings for the Activity Book. Both books have a picture of a speaker where you should listen to an audio recording. The dialogue is written word for word in each book.

I am using Homeschool Spanish with all three of the girls. Amber (age 10), Delaney (age 9) have been completing all the worksheets and activities while Alaina (age 7) listens to the audio conversations and just repeats what her sisters tell her while they are playing. The program is very easy to use with very little preparation time. The program is taught in a conversational way by learning words that we use everyday right from the start. This made it very easy to remember and to use throughout the day. We all listened to the audio and then talked about our new vocabulary words and used them with each other. Amber & Delaney would then complete the worksheets that went along with each lesson. Some weeks we worked on Spanish everyday but with company for the holidays some weeks we did fewer days. With this program it was very easy to change our schedule and the girls actually remembered what they had learned even after a couple of days of no school.

There are several options when purchasing the curriculum. The download starts at $49.95 or $59.95 with the curriculum guide. The hardcopy is $89.95 and $99.95 with the curriculum guide. They will be offering a high school supplement soon.

Sail over to the TOS Crew blog to read what other homeschool families thought of Homeschool Spanish.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received the download version of Homeschool Spanish free of charge to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Purex Laundry Detergent Review & Giveaway

2011-12-15T01:05:00.000-06:00

Unless you are one of the lucky few who can afford to hire a housekeeper we all have to wash our clothes and at my house this in never ending. I try to make this household task as pleasant as possible by choosing a laundry detergent that works and has a wonderful scent. As a Purex Insider I would like to introduce you to the New Triple Action Purex.

The R&D scientists have come up with a new formula, but one that will continue to stand up for it's name.

The new formula is now available and comes in 6 different scents. After the Rain, Lavender Fresh, Original Fresh, Linen & Lilies, Lilac & White Lavender, and Free & Clear.

My 7 year old daughter has a thing for smells, she loves to smell perfume, air freshener, hand soap, and yes even laundry detergent. She thinks the stronger the smell the better. I would have to disagree with her. I like more subtle scents, the kind you can smell but not over power you. That is part of the reason I like the new Triple Action Purex with the Mountain Breeze scent. It leaves your clothes feeling clean and smelling clean for half the price of the leading brand.

Since I bought my high efficiency washer I have made sure that my detergent was safe for my washer. The new Purex is safe to use in all machines.

I just found out that you can get a free laundry app for your Blackberry or iPhone, iTouch, or iPad. Now there is no excuse not to get those stains out.

Starting early in 2012, Purex will be offering free samples of the new Triple Action Formula at FreeSamplePurex.com.

I have some great news. I have 3 coupons for Purex Triple Action detergent to giveaway to my readers, 3 lucky people will win 1 coupon.

a Rafflecopter giveawayI was given a free sample bottle of Purex Triple Action liquid detergent in exchange for my review and as always my opinions are my own.

The World's Greatest Stories

2011-12-14T23:30:00.001-06:00

If we are going to be in the car for very long or if we are going to be cleaning for awhile the girls and I like to listen to audio CD's to make the time go by faster. They like to listen to any story but I like to have good stories that they can learn from that is also enjoyable. The World's Greatest Stories gave us both.

The World's Greatest Stories are actual, word for word, Biblical accounts. The storyteller is very dramatic and brings bible stories and characters to life with only music and sound effects added to God's Word. There are 6 volumes available for $7.95 a piece in either NIV or KJV of the Bible. If you purchase all 6 CD's together you will receive free shipping.

We received a sample CD and volume 1-The Prophets. The sample CD contains a short selection from each of the stories as well as some general information.
The Prophets CD contains 5 stories:

The Blazing Furnace
The Handwriting on the Wall
Daniel in the Lion's Den
Elijah and the Prophets of Baal
The Prophecy of Jonah

The stories are very dramatic and my girls thought that the storyteller sounded a little weird in a few places but they still wanted to listen to them again, I think Daniel and the Lion's Den is their favorite. I really like that they are taken straight from the Bible, so many Bible stories that are retold add things that are mere speculation. You can tell that George W. Sarris really enjoys telling stories and he does a great job in keeping everyone focused on the story.

George W. Sarris has been telling live Bible stories since 1985 in churches, conferences, schools, retreats, and camps with audiences from several to several thousand. He has been a spokesman for radio and television commercials and films for companies such as AT&T, IBM, American Express, Burger King, Pizza Hut, Sprint, and Honda in Boston and New York City for 30 years.

Sail over to the TOS Crew blog and read what other members thought about the World's Greatest Stories.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received a sample disc and volume 1 The Prophets from the World's Greatest Stories free of charge to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Magazine Christmas Trees

2011-12-09T11:29:00.001-06:00

These cute little Christmas Trees are impressive and are very cheap to make. I usually find old magazines at our local library that are on the free table. Thicker magazines give you a fuller tree.

They make wonderful Holiday decorations, gifts for friends and I have handed them out to people when we go Christmas Caroling.

Supplies Needed

Magazines (any size)

Spray Paint (any color)

Glitter (any color)

1. Open magazine and bend binding backward up and down the spine.

2. Fold top right corner of page into the center of the magazine.

3. Grab the top right corner of the page you just folded and fold into the center. You will have a point sticking out the bottom of the magazine.

Repeat on every page.

4. Fold pointed corner in between both folds.

5. Repeat on every page. Your tree should then be able to stand up on it’s own.

6. Spray tree with spray paint in a well ventilated area.

6. While paint is still wet sprinkle with glitter.

Let dry and enjoy.

Pitsco

2011-12-07T17:59:00.001-06:00

Amber is a very determined hands on learner. She loves to craft, build, bake, cook, and even work on cars with her dad. I wonder where she gets that?? But unlike me she will read the directions. The UPS guy doesn't come to our house until around 6:00 pm and on the day we received our box from PITSCO we lost her for the rest of the evening.

We received the Medieval Machines Pack and it includes a Trebuchet Kit, Catapult Kit, Mass Plates, and the Siege Machines book along with some clay. This kit is a Pitsco exclusive that is manufactured at their facility in Kansas and retails for $21.95.

The first night Amber (age 10) put the Trebuchet Kit together. It came with everything we needed except the super glue which we already had. Amber likes to do things on her own until she absolutely can't figure it out on her own. I sat with her while she completed the Trebuchet and she didn't need help until she was ready to tie the sling. The next day she assembled the Catapult without any help. The directions were very detailed and easy to follow.

The 31 page Siege Machines book explores the science, technology, engineering, and math of medieval siege machines. Although this was mainly Amber's project she had to make sure that we all knew the history of siege machines that she had learned from the book. We covered History, Math, and Science all in one. The activities cover Tension and Torsion, Mass and Distance, Metric Conversion of Length, Calculating Averages, Elasticity, Prediction, Force and Motion, and Weights vs Wheels.

This Siege Machine Unit was very educational for the whole family and it was so much fun. The girls used clay and other objects laying around the house in the machines to knock down walls built with their math manipulatives and to see whether the catapult or the trebuchet would throw the farthest. When their big brother was on leave from the Army he even had to get in on the action.

PITSCO Education combines hands-on activities and a student-directed learning environment in core courses and career skills in science, technology, engineering, and math. After 40 years of innovation they now serve more than seven million students a year.

The Siege Machines are available in other kits and there are many other items at the PITSCO store that we have added to our wish list. They offer race cars, aerospace, structures, robots and so much more starting at $10.95. Amber is really wanting a hot air balloon now.

We would definitely recommend PITSCO for great hands on learning.

Sail over to the Crew Blog and read other Crew reviews.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received one set of 2 Siege Machines from Pitsco Education to use in our homeschool in exchange for my review.

Christmas Greetings

2011-12-04T16:22:00.001-06:00

The Christmas Greetings for 2011 from The Old Schoolhouse magazine is free to everyone. Take a peek and see how homeschool families celebrate Christmas. Make sure you look at page 74 & 75 to read my greeting and see my recipes.

ARTistic Pursuits

2011-11-30T10:43:00.001-06:00

One thing my girls ask to do every day during school is art. They love to draw, create, and craft just about anything. I had heard some very good things about ARTistic Pursuits so when the Crew had the opportunity to review their art curriculum I knew we wanted to try it.

We received ARTistic Pursuits for grade 4-6 Book One The Elements of Art and Composition. This 88 page book by Brenda Ellis is $42.95 and is divided into 16 Units.

Space
Line and Shape
Texture
Value
Form
Form using Value
Local Value
Contrast
The Shapes of Natural Forms
Edges
Balance
Rhythm
Overlap
Depth
Proportion, the Face
Movement

This curriculum can last a year by doing 2 one hour classes a week. Each unit contains 4 sections Building a Visual Vocabulary, American Art Appreciation and History, Techniques, and Application. This book wants the student to observe the things around them & to focus on one element of art at a time.

We love this book, I used this curriculum with all three of my girls ages 6, 9, and 10. We spent more time on art during this review than suggested so that we could get farther into the book. This book is non-consumable and there is an art supply list in the front of the book. I read the lesson to them and then they spent time drawing. My 6 year old daughter's pictures didn't turn out as nice as her sisters but she didn't have any trouble following the directions or getting the concept that was taught and I will have her repeat the book in a few years. The girls loved looking around the house or outside to find the objects suggested in the lesson. It is so nice to have Art Appreciation included in the book. Brenda Ellis does a great job explaining the concept we just learned in paintings or drawings by other artists. She also includes information about each artist. This book is written so the child can read and complete the lessons on their own and my older girls will probably finish the book this way.

The book also includes work done by former students. I really like this because it gives my children the opportunity to see how other kids draw instead of always seeing artwork from a professional. If you give your children number or letter grades there is an Evaluation Sheet in the back of the book to help.

I decorate birthday and wedding cakes from my home and I pipe or draw pictures on a lot of my cakes I do this by using a sharpened wooden dowel or an icing bag. I use the very same concepts taught in this book with my icing and I have picked up some great pointers from this book to make my decorating even better. It also showed my girls that the elements of art can be used with any medium.

Sample Pages

As you can tell from the sample pages the student is taught the proper way to draw, how to sit, hold the pencil, and erase. Paying attention to details are very important.

ARTistic Pursuits was created by Brenda Ellis and they offer curriculum and art packs for preschool through 12th grade. Brenda has a very unique way of homeschooling her children.

The TOS Crew members reviewed different books from ARTistic Pursuits to give you a glimpse of a wide range of their products. Sail over to the Crew Blog to read the other members thought about ARTistic Pursuits.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received Grade 4-6 Book One The Elements of Art and Compostition free of charge from ARTistic Pursuits to use in our homeschool in exchange for my review.

Gratitude Challenge Day 30

2011-11-30T10:12:00.001-06:00

Today is the last day of the 2010 Gratitude Challenge. I missed a couple of days but I am very Grateful for Brenda hosting this again. It is such a blessing to think about things we are thankful for every day.

Cooper and Me Review & Giveaway

2011-11-29T23:56:00.001-06:00

Christmas is my favorite time of year & one thing I love to do in the winter is curl up on the couch with my kids and read stories together. I love story books that teach my kids something while we are reading.

We have been enjoying Cooper and Me and the Winter Adventure! This cute little book is about Bella and her dog Cooper. They can't wait to go sledding but they wander a little to far from home and a snow storm sets in and it becomes difficult for them to find their way home. This story teaches kids the importance of making good decisions and gives them a lesson of how to be prepared in case they get lost.

Each Cooper and Me book has a free Reading Guide, coloring and activity pages to go along with the book. When you purchase a Cooper and Me book you get a free download of the theme song.

My girls really like the Cooper and Me books because they are about a dog and they are co-written and illustrated by a young girl. My girls love to write stories so this has been a big encouragement to them. We liked Cooper and Me and the Winter Adventure just as much as we did the original Cooper and Me book.

Cooper and Me and the Winter Adventure retails for $12.99 and they will donate $1 of every book sold until February 2012 to the Lustgarten Foundation. The Lustgarten Foundation ensures that 100% of all donations go to pancreatic cancer research.

Now through December 15, 2011 you can get free shipping on orders of $25.00 or more at Cooperandme.com.

Promotional code: COOPERBLOG

Cooper and Me was illustrated by 11-year-old Alexa Peters and co-written with her mother, Monique Peters. The idea was inspired by Alexa's own experiences. A talented young artist and writer, Alexa wanted to give back to others in a meaningful way through her art. Starting at a very young age, Alexa created illustrated stories about her daily experiences, and from the pages of her sketchbooks came the idea for her first book, Cooper and Me.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products orservices mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Gratitude Challenge Day 28

2011-11-28T23:47:00.001-06:00

Today I am very grateful for my sisters. I have 4 and there have been times in our lives when we haven't gotten along. Ok.... a lot of times!! Escpecially while we were growing up. There have been times when we spend hours talking on the phone and there have been times when we don't talk for a couple of months. One thing I know for sure is that they will always be my sisters and if I ever need them they are only a phone call away.

Gratitude Challenge Day 26

2011-11-26T20:26:00.001-06:00

Today we put up our Christmas Tree and it always makes a huge mess all over the house. So I am very thankful for leftovers. My family loves Leftover Thanksgiving Soup. Every year after Thanksgiving we put all of our left over thanksgiving dinner in the crock pot to make soup. I put everything in it: turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, noodles, and stuffing. Sometimes I will add a little water if it is to thick.

Gratitude Challenge Day 25

2011-11-25T22:33:00.001-06:00

Today I thankful for deals & shopping with friends. We had so much fun shopping the after Thanksgiving Day sales. We went out at 9:00 last night got home around 2:30 am and then headed back out at 4:30 am. I came home at 7:00 am and didn't get up until 10:30, I'm so glad my kids like to sleep in. I was able to get everything that was on my list (I can't tell you what I bought because someone in my family might read this). So excited!!

Gratitude Challenge Day 24

2011-11-24T19:23:00.001-06:00

We have had company all week so I didn't get my gratitude post written yesterday. My husband, kids, and I went with my dad, my sister & her kids to the bowling alley yesterday. After that we went swimming at their hotel pool, and then we had church last night. We had so much fun. Today they all came over and we played games this morning and went for a walk after we ate. Morgan got home last night and we got to spend the day with her too. So today I am thankful for the time I got to spend with my family.

I'm sure I will be thankful for shopping tomorrow. I can't wait to see what deals I get tonight and in the morning.

Thank you Brenda for hosting the 2011 Gratitude Challenge.

Gratitude Challenge Day 22

2011-11-22T22:49:00.001-06:00

Today I am thankful for games, it is so much fun to have people over to play with. Today we played Euchre, Wits & Wagers, Scum, and Liar Liar. My dad, step mom, one sister, two nieces and two nephews are here visiting from Indiana and we had so much fun playing games today.

Thank You Brenda for hosting the 2011 Gratitude Challenge.

Oatmeal Dinner Rolls

2011-11-22T22:23:00.001-06:00

My family loves to eat homemade bread & I love to make bread. These dinner rolls made with oatmeal are my family's favorite and everyone who I make them for loves them. I serve them for everyday meals, holidays, potlucks, and I even served them at my son's wedding. I also make them into bread bowls and they are great with cheesy potatoe soup or beef stew.

Oatmeal Dinner Rolls or Bread Bowls

2 cups water
1 cup oatmeal
3 Tablespoons butter
1 package of yeast
1/3 cup warm water
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 Tablespoon honey
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
4 3/4 – 5 1/4 cups flour

~Bring water to boil add oatmeal and butter. Cook and stir for 1 minute. Remove from heat and cool to lukewarm.
~In mixing bowl dissolve yeast in warm water and add the oatmeal, sugar, honey, salt and 4 cups of flour and beat until smooth. Add enough flour to form soft dough.
~Knead 6-8 minutes. Place in greased bowl, cover and let rise until double in size about 1 hour.
~Punch down dough and let rest 10 minutes.

For Dinner Rolls:
~Divide dough into 18 pieces and shape into balls. Let rise for 45 minutes.
~Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes.

For Bread Bowls:
~Make 9 balls the size of a large gumball. Divide the remaining dough into 9 large balls. Place the small ball on top of the large ball using a dab of water to adhere them.
~Let dough rise about 45 minutes.
~Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes.
~Using a serrated knife cut downward into the roll (kinda like a pumpkin) to make a lid. Scoop out the middle of the roll and fill with soup. To serve place lid on bread bowl.

Gratitude Challenge Day 21

2011-11-21T10:54:00.001-06:00

Coffee is my number one favorite drink when I'm cold or when I'm not cold. My second favorite drink when I'm cold is the Celestial Seasonings Gingerbread Spice herbal tea. Yummy!! I am thankful for the quiet time of night when everyone else is in bed and I can actually enjoy my Gingerbread Spice tea without anyone drinking it or adding sugar to it.

Thanks Brenda for hosting the Gratitude Challenge.

Gratitude Challenge Day 20

2011-11-20T13:57:00.001-06:00

I love it when I actually plan ahead and figure out what we are having for lunch on Sunday after church but sometimes I wake up Sunday morning and I haven't thought of anything. Today was one of those days. So after I got out of the shower I cooked a pound of hamburger put it in the crock pot with a can of corn, a can of green beans, water, beef bouillon, Italian seasoning & pepper. As soon as we got home from church I added a package of egg noodles and it was ready by the time we all changed our clothes. It is so nice when lunch is over and cleaned up before 1:00, it gives us more time to enjoy our afternoon. I am very thankful for my crock pot.

Thanks Brenda for the 2011 Gratitude Challenge.

Gratitude Challenge Day 19

2011-11-19T20:40:00.001-06:00

This is my second year as part of The Old Schoolhouse Homeschool Crew. It has been such a blessing to be part of such a great group of homeschool moms & dads. It just amazes me that so many people from around the world can come together to make everything happen. I am very grateful to be part of this group and for Brenda Emmett and Heidi Strawser who put so much time and energy into this program. I almost forgot we also love getting new product to review.

Thank You Brenda for hosting the 2011 Gratitude Challenge.

Gratitude Challenge Day 18

2011-11-18T12:12:00.001-06:00

I have been decorating cakes for 21 years. I am very grateful for my talents and the extra money that it has provided our family with. A few times in our marriage we needed all the extra money we could get just to live on. Now the extra income is great for fueling my scrapbooking and Cricut habits.

Thank You Brenda for hosting the 2011 Gratitude Challenge.

Gratitude Challenge Day 17

2011-11-17T09:32:00.001-06:00

Freebies!!

I love giveaways.....I don't win a lot but when I do it is so much fun. This week I won $20.00 to spend at Chikadeedee's hair bows and a coupon for a Torani coffee syrup!!

And this weekend Starbucks is having BOGO Holiday Flavor coffees. Yum!

I am thankful for my free things what about you have you got anything free lately?

Thanks Brenda for hosting the 2011 Gratitude Challenge!!

Gratitude Challenge Day 16

2011-11-16T12:07:00.001-06:00

The first snowflakes of the year are so pretty. My girls were so excited this morning because it was snowing. They figured that later in the day it would be melted so they wanted to go outside and play this morning. We started our school later so they could enjoy the snow and a cup of hot chocolate. Another great reason to homeschool! Flexibility.

Thanks Brenda for the Gratitude Challenge.

Gratitude Challenge Day 15

2011-11-15T11:18:00.001-06:00

Happy Birthday Mike!!

Today is my husbands birthday and I am very thankful for him. He has been a great provider for us financially and spiritually throughout the years. He always puts the needs of me and the kids before his own & actually he spoils us all. I love him more today than ever before.

Head over to Garden of Learning and see what other people are thankful for today!

Math Mammoth

2011-11-14T20:56:00.001-06:00

Math has never been Amber's favorite subject, she hasn't had trouble learning it she just dislikes it. When the Crew was offered Math Mammoth to review I was a little curious about it because I would like her to enjoy math more. I did not review it last year but the Crew members who did gave it the Homeschool Crew Seaworthy Award so if it was that good I wanted to try it.

Marie Miller was very generous to the Crew, she let us choose what we would like to review. I sent her an email telling her what Amber (age 10) is using for her math curriculum, that she doesn't have trouble with it & that she loves fractions. She was nice enough to send us 3 PDF books, Arithmetic 1, Introduction to Fractions, and Geometry 1. Amber has been using all three of the books and her regular math during our review. We printed all 3 of our books and had them spiral bound at our local office supply store.

Geometry I

Amber learns better if she can physically do something with her hands, she is not big on reading directions. When she is learning something new she just wants to try it & figure it out on her own. (Just like her mother). She said "I really like the Geometry book because I get to draw and use my tools, I like when I can work with things instead of just answering the questions."

Math Mammoth Geometry I gives a thorough view of basic plane geometry. This book can be purchased for $7.00 as a PDF download or $12.50 for a black & white book. It is recommended for grade 4-6 with an emphasis on learning through drawing. This is a very hands on book and the drawing required in it helps the child achieve an understanding of Geometry. In this book the student should keep a notebook that will contain all the new terms or concepts that are learned. They will also need a protractor and a triangle-shaped ruler. The first part of the book deals with angles, shapes, and classifying triangles. The student will learn the seven different terms used for classifying quadrilaterals and there is a brief section on congruent and similar figures. The students are then taught to calculate areas of triangles and parallelograms with the end of the book studying solids. The PDF download may be printed or your student can fill it in on the computer, using the typewriter and drawing tools in Acrobat Reader version 9 or greater.

Arithmetic I

Amber said that she likes Arithmetic I better than her regular math book. She could relate to the real situations that were in the problems. She also loves history and geography so she was very excited when she had problems with information she could share with the rest of us. We will definitely be buying more books in this series.

Make It Real Learning Arithmetic I focuses on real world situations using addition, subtraction, estimation, division, bar graphs, etc. Each problem uses real companies, countries and real issues. This 46 page PDF download written by Frank C. Wilson is recommended for grades 3-6 and retails for $4.99. With this PDF file you have the option of printing the book or having the student complete their work on the computer, using the typewriter and drawing tools in Acrobat Reader version 9 or greater. Fruit Snacks: Working with Averages is a free sample of one of the 10 activities included in the book and the complete Activity Objectives are listed on the website and in the front of the book. Some of the activities include Australia, South Africa, sharing snacks, country populations, and coins in the United States.

Introduction to Fractions

The Introduction to Fraction is very easy for Amber, Fraction 1 would probably been more challenging but she loves fractions and had fun with this book. This book is very pleasing to the eye when it is printed. The fraction pictures are all in color and it is very clear to see what part you are looking at. The book is taught directly to the child and Amber understood all the directions and she didn't need any help with this book.

Math Mammoth Introduction to Fractions is a self-teaching worktext geared for children in the 2-4 grade. The first two lessons are for second grade and the rest of the book is for third and forth. All the answers are in the back of the book. The PDF download for this 84 page book is $4.00 and the black & white printed copy is $10.50.

The topics covered are

one-half and fourth parts
concept of a fraction
concept of a mixed number
adding and subtracting like fractions
adding and subtracting mixed numbers with like fractional parts
equivalent fractions with pictures
comparing fractions - special cases
finding fractional part of a whole using division

Marie Miller is the author of the Math Mammoth books. Her aim is to help parents to teach math so their kids can understand it. The books are written so that the parent and child can understand the concept making it a self-teaching curriculum. She wants to make her materials affordable, a full curriculum can be purchased for $32.00. There are also over 300 free sample worksheets and pages from her books. All items can be purchased in bundles for considerable savings.

Math Mammoth offers math products for grades 1-8 in these options.

A full curriculum for grades 1-6

Worktexts by topic for grades 1-6—you get both instruction and exercises
Worksheets by topic

Worksheets by grade

Make It Real Learning workbooks—highlighting how math is used in real life.

The curriculum is color coded:

The Blue Series ~ worktexts by topics

Light Blues Series ~ full curriculum

The Golden Series ~ Worksheets by grade

The Green Series ~ Worksheets by topic

If you are not sure where to start I would definatly sign up for the free samples and the newsletter. There are also placement tests to help you decide.

Of course if you use Math Mammoth your kids might want to buy one. Maybe it could be used as an incentive for having a great year of math.

I'm thinking Amber would really like the States by the Numbers in the Make it Real Series. There are 50 workbooks in this one and the data comes from the Census Bureau.

The members of the Crew all received different math products from Math Mammoth. You can sail over to the Crew blog to read what other members thought about the different books. I know I'll be reading them.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received Introduction to Fractions, Geometry I, and Arithmetic I PDF downloads free of charge from Math Mammoth to use with my children in exchange for my review.

One Silent Night

2011-11-14T12:12:00.001-06:00

If I had to pick my favorite type of music I would pick Christmas music. I love to listen to Christmas songs so I was very anxious to listen to FFH's very first Christmas Album One Silent Night.

FFH wanted this album to to be more of the classic style of Christmas music rather than something that is trendy. For them Christmas is a time for slowing down to see what is important and to be reminded of the birth of Christ. They spent 4 years working on this album to bring a mix of new and traditional Christmas songs. I'm sure you will recognize a few.

Baby It's Cold Outside
Jingle Bell Rock
One Silent Night
I'll Be Home For Christmas
The Birthday Of The King
O Come O Come Emmanuel
Winter Wonderland
Glorious Impossible
O Little Town Of Bethlehem
Heaven And Nature Sing

I'm not sure if I can pick a favorite on this album because I liked them all. This will definitely be an album that I will listen to every Christmas season. (Don't tell anyone but I like to listen to Christmas music all year so it will stay on my iPhone throughout the year!)

A preview of One Silent Night can listened to on iTunes and the album can purchased there for $9.90.

Pop vocal group FFH has released thirteen projects, sold more than two million albums, and garnered 24 radio hits, including seven No. 1 singles and ten Top 5 radio singles. In addition to multiple Dove Award nominations, FFH has been recognized at the Inspirational Life Awards as well as the Billboard Music Video Awards. The group has performed more than 1000 dates since 2000 and continues to be a favorite on the tour circuit. FFH is also known for its work with the “Make-A-Wish Foundation,” Kurt Warner’s “First Things First Foundation,” and for its contributions to national ad campaigns for Coca Cola and IBM.

Giveaway
I have one download copy of One Silent Night by FFH to giveaway to one of my readers. I will choose a winner on Monday morning November 21, 2011. To enter leave a separate comment for each entry and be sure that I have access to your email address so I can notify you if you win.

Leave me a comment telling me you all time favorite Christmas song.
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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

Gratitude Challenge Day 14

2011-11-14T01:27:00.001-06:00

Every family probably has a clown and Alaina, our youngest, happens to be ours. She is very goofy!! She is also very tender hearted, if something is bothering her she tends to wait a couple of days and then she will cry about it no matter what it was. Her favorite animal is a pig and she seems to find something pig related every time we go any where. I am very thankful for my baby!!

Thanks Brenda for hosting the 2011 Gratitude Challenge.

Keyboard Town Pals

2011-11-13T23:37:00.001-06:00

Keyboard Town Pals is a typing program that claims to teach children ages 7-12 to type in one hour. The student will learn the entire alphabet and it is available on CD for $35.00 or web based for $30.00. Keyboard Town Pals was founded by Rita Herman and Donna Katz and is based on five years of research and it was created to help children develop and refine their typing. It is recommended that the eight 6-8 minute lessons be broken up into two 30 minute time periods or you could complete one lesson per day. This program uses the same four psycho-motor skills to teach typing as you use to learn to ride a bike.

Conscious Learning - focus attention on a new activity.
Trial and Error - mimic the action.
Refinement and Practice - repeat the action and build muscle memory.
Automatic Performance – execute without conscience thought.

Keyboard Town Pals use ragtime music and puppets to teach the three rows of letters on the keyboard. Sunny takes the children down 3 streets to visit each letter home. The letter is introduced and the child meets the puppet that lives there. A keyboard with a hand then demonstrates the move of the finger used to type the letter that was just introduced. Sunny starts on Homekey Street with the letter A and Amy lives there. Amy then take us to visit the zebra in the Z house on Downtown street. Then Amy takes us to visit the Q house on Uptown Street. Amy then repeats what has just been taught and has the child type them. They continue through the rest of the alphabet. Once both hands are used the child is directed to type short words. There is also an assessment page where the alphabet is typed in order and then backwards for practice. Additional typing practice should be added.

I used this program with all three of my girls ages 6, 9, and 10. My 9 year old was the only one who wanted to use the program more than once. They liked the puppets and they loved learning all the letters at once but they didn't like the way the puppets spoke to them. They told me that the puppets spoke to them as if they were babies.

I really like the concept of this program but I have to agree with my girls that it seems like the puppets are speaking to a younger age group than the 7-12 that this program is recommended for. When the kids are typing the letters show up in the typing box but the child is not told if they hit the wrong key or even if they don't type at all. I understand that Typing Town Pals doesn't want to discourage the child but as a homeschool family we grade everything we do immediately so we can correct out mistakes right away while the subject is still fresh on our minds. It would be nice if you had the option for the program to let the child know they were typing the wrong letter. My children were more familiar with the keyboard after using Town Pals but they will need more practice before they are typing well.

Keyboard Town Pals also has finger puppets and coloring books to go along with the typing program and they are offering free shipping until December 31, 2011.

Sail over to the Crew Blog and read what other members thought about Keyboard Town Pals.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received a 30 day trial subscription to Keyboard Town Pals to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Gratitude Challenge Day 13

2011-11-13T23:16:00.001-06:00

Some kids get whiny when they are tired...not Delaney she gets giggly. She is a giggle box!! She has the most contagious laugh ever and when she gets the giggles you can't help but laugh with her. There have been a few times....ok a lot of times during church that she will start giggling. Do you know how hard it is to get on to your child when they are so cute & giggly? It's not easy so usually we all get the giggles right along with her. She was a very good baby and has always been a happy child. Today I am thankful for Delaney, her good attitude, and her giggles!

Thank you Brenda for hosting the Gratitude Challenge!

Gratitude Challenge Day 12

2011-11-12T17:14:00.001-06:00

Today I am very thankful for Amber. She was a very fussy as a baby but now she is the sweetest most caring 10 year old that I know. She has so much ambition for anything. She loves to cook and took third in the cooking contest in town today. She is always eager to do her school work. Her idea of fun is raking leaves and mowing the grass. She loves to play the piano and she even helps her dad on the vehicles. She give 100% in all that she does.

Thanks Brenda for hosting the Gratitude Challenge.

Gratitude Challenge Day 11

2011-11-11T11:27:00.001-06:00

With today being Veteran's Day I want to thank all the men and women who have served our country!!
With a special thanks to my family!!

My son Michael P. McClanahan Jr. currently at AIT for the Army.

My brother-in-law Russell Lawrence career Navy.

My step dad Max Motsinger U.S. Army serving in Vietnam.

My grandfather Leslie Perkinson, U.S. Army WWII in Japan.

My husband Michael P. McClanahan, U.S. Air Force.

And I guess since I'm sharing all the photos of my military family I have to share mine. U.S. Air Force.

Gratitude Challenge Day 10

2011-11-10T11:35:00.001-06:00

Today my gratitude goes to my oldest daughter Morgan. She is such a hard worker and a good manager of her money. I miss her beautiful smile and her good attitude. She loves to travel and visit other people. Everyone who knows Morgan loves her, she gets along with everyone she meets regardless of their age. She only lives 4 hours away so I get to see her often but I miss having her home every day.

Thank you Brenda for hosting the 2011 Gratitude Challenge.

Gratitude Challenge Day 9

2011-11-09T18:27:00.000-06:00

Every day my daughter-in-law Shelby comes over, we have been scrapbooking, card making, crafting, or just hanging out. I know that she really misses Michael and he misses her but the girls and I have been enjoying our time with her. I am very thankful for my daughter-in-law and the time we can spend together. I will miss her when she moves.

Thank You Brenda for hosting the Gratitude Challenge.

Baby's Little Bible

2011-11-08T22:20:00.000-06:00

When my friends have babies I like to give them gifts that can be used for years and a lot of times I will give them a bible for their new little one. A well written and beautifully illustrated bible will be read together over and over again and I feel every child should have his or her very own. Since my baby girls is 6 I have been having her read me this little bible so I know if you give this as a gift it can get years of use. The 160 pages in this Bible retell 25 stories from Creation to the Resurrection in a way that little ones can understand. This will make a perfect gift for my friend who just had a baby.

About the Author: Sarah Toulmin is an experienced teacher, publicist, and now full-time mom. She started writing when expecting her first child who was the inspiration for-and first critic of!-the Baby's Little Bible.

About the Illustrator: Kristina Stephenson trained as a set and costume designer and worked in theater and television before going on to illustrate children's books. she is the illustrator of Lion's Baby Bible (Lion, 2006) and The Angel and the Lamb (Lion, 2008).

I received Baby's Little Bible free of charge as a blog tour through Kregel Publications in exchange for my review.

The Three Trees

2011-11-08T21:35:00.002-06:00

A beautifully illustrated picture book can be enjoyed by everyone. We have been reading the folktale of The Three Trees. This story is about three trees from long ago and the things they dreamed about becoming. After each tree was cut down they played a very important roll in the life of Jesus. This book shows what is important in life. One tree dreamed of becoming a beautiful chest used for holding great riches, he was made into a trough to feed animals but eventually held the precious treasure of all...baby Jesus. The second tree dreams of becoming a mighty ship used by a great king, he becomes a fishing boat that Jesus calms the storm from. The third tree just wants to stay on the hillside, pointing to heaven and he becomes the cross of Jesus. While reading this book the girls and I discussed the seasons of the weather and the seasons of life. We talked about how the greatest riches in life don't have anything to do with money and what we want to do with our life may not be what God has in store for us.

About the Author: Elena Pasquali studied romance languages at university and has a special interest in researching folk tales. She worked for some years in children's publishing before going on to be an author in her own right.
About the Illustrator: Sophie Windham has illustrated books for Bloomsbury and Orchard and was shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal for Unicorns! Unicorns! by Geraldine McCaughrean.

I received a free copy of The Three Trees from Kregel Publishing in exchange for my review of the book.

Imagination Station Book 5 & 6 review & giveaway

2011-11-08T19:53:00.001-06:00

My girls were so excited to receive books number 5 & 6 of the Imagination Station Series to review. Amber was sitting beside me when I opened my email and she saw the invitation to participate in the Blog Tour. Her reply was "Yes, Yes, tell her we want them!"

We reviewed book number 3, Peril in the Palace and book number 4, Revenge of the Red Knight this past summer. We enjoyed them so much that we went out and bought book number 1, Voyage of the Vikings and book number 2, Attack at the Arena.

In Showdown with the Shepherd Patrick and Beth take us back to the Holy Land in 1000 BC. Their goal is to find Master Hugh to get the Whittaker family ring back & take Hugh back to England in 1450. Of course this isn't easy. As soon as they are out of the Imagination Station they run into an angry bear & later an angry giant. Can you guess who the giant is? If you guessed Goliath you are right. Patrick and Beth learn that it is better to have giant faith rather than having a giant on their side while they are trying to keep Hugh from changing history.

Problems in Plymouth brings us to Plymouth Colony in 1621. Here Patrick and Beth are having trouble finding Hugh but the encounter a lost pilgrim boy, stolen corn, and natives on the warpath. Of course Hugh is causing problems and they must find him before he changes American History and the first Thanksgiving turns into a war.

Alaina asked me today if we could stop while we are out and buy some more of these books. Well I had to tell her the the next two will not be released until January & May. But here is a sneak peak of book 7 & 8.

Paul McCusker is the director for the Imagination Station series. He has been writing since he was a boy and is best known for writing over 300 episodes for Adventure in Odyssey. He is now the director of Creative Content at Focus on the Family. Marianne Hering is the writer for the series and she has more than a dozen children's fiction books and more than 40 bible phonics readers. She is now a general book editor for Focus on the Family. Brock D. Eastman is the Product Marketing Manager for Focus on the Family co-wrote Showdown with the Shepherd. His dad got him hooked on Adventures in Odyssey as a boy. Marshal Younger wrote with Marianne Hering on Problems in Plymouth and has written over 100 Odyssey audio dramas and the children's book series, Kidsboro.

Showdown with the Shepherd, softcover, $4.99, ISBN 978-1-58997-631-3

Problems in Plymouth, softcover, $4.99, ISBN 978-1-58997-632-0

Now for the fun part!! A giveaway!! I have one set Showdown with the Shepherd and Problems in Plymouth to giveaway to one of my readers in the United States or Canada. I will choose a winner on Wednesday morning November 16, 2011.

Leave a separate comment for each entry.
To Enter:

Leave a comment telling me where and what year should Patrick and Beth travel to next.
Follow my blog with Google Friend Connect.
Follow my blog with Networked Blogs.
Follow my on Twitter.
Like me on Facebook.

I received Showdown with the Shepherd and Problems in Plymouth free of charge from Tyndale House Publishers to use with my children and to offer another set as a giveaway in exchange for my review.

This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations Mark for winning these wonderful books.

Gratitude Challenge Day 8

2011-11-08T11:58:00.003-06:00

I think every mother should be blessed with a son. I was lucky enough to bring mine home from the hospital on Christmas day almost 21 years ago. Where has time gone? I can still remember it like it was yesterday. Michael has such a sweet spirit. He was such a happy child and he doesn't let things bring him down. I miss his happy go lucky attitude! I am very grateful for my son and I am missing him tremendously. Michael joined the Army and is away at school in Virginia. He will get to come home for a couple of weeks in December and we are all counting down the days. We went to South Carolina in Sept to see him graduate from basic training but we only got to see him for a couple of days, it wasn't enough time.

Thank You Brenda for hosting the Gratitude Challenge.

The Person I Marry

2011-11-08T10:57:00.002-06:00

The person we marry is a very important decision to make. I started praying for my children's spouse when they were very young. I pray that they will find a godly person to share their life with and I pray that my child will make a good spouse. Our children need to know that they will run into problems in their marriage and it is how they react to them and how they handle their spouse is what counts. The Person I Marry is a great way to show our children how to be the spouse they should be.

I read The Person I Marry with my daughters ages 6, 9, and 10. This beautifully illustrated picture book is wonderful and is a must read for everyone. I wouldn't just call this a children's book because even people who have been married for years and years could benefit from reading this. The book tells us that the wedding is not just about the beautiful clothes, flowers, and decorations it is about the qualities of the people getting married. This is a great introduction of marriage to children that can lead to many discussions throughout their life. This book is a celebration of commitment, purity & true love! This would make a wonderful gift for a bridal shower or wedding.

The Person I Marry is part of the "Bright Future Series" from Bower Books. It was awarded the "2010 Book of the Year" by the Christian Small Publisher Association. On their 30th wedding anniversary Gary and Jan Bower created this book to use as a tool to spark conversations about marriage with their 12 children. It is hardcover, 32 pages, and retails for $11.99.

The Bright Future Series was created for all ages and are filled with wisdom and principles that lead to a brighter future. Other titles in this series are What Do Heroes Wear, The Garden Where I Grow, The Jingle in My Pocket, and There's a Party in Heaven!

Gary uses his wisdom as a writer and a father of 12 to speak at mom's groups and elementary schools. He also offers some wonderful tips for writers here. Jan also offers a tip of the month to aspiring artists. Are you wondering how a mom of 12 kids has time to paint? Check out the video below to see how things happen at the Bower house.

About the Author
Gary fell in love with picture books at an early age, sitting in the lap of a mother who understood the wisdom of investing reading time in her child's life. As a youngster he entertained himself for hours by writing his own comic strips, comic books, jokes, poems, and skits. As an adult, his years of professional and volunteer experience ministering to small children and teens, combined with thousands of story nights with his own children, have helped him develop his skills with the written word and polish his storytelling craft. While he has been published with several conventional publishers, self-publishing is something he loves. It allows him not only the opportunity to develop a story, but also the joy of designing the entire book and working very closely with every aspect of the publishing process. He has been tinkering with several adult story ideas for years; but for the time being, he has found his voice in the melodic and tender lines of picture books.

About the Illustrator

Jan Bower began doing portraiture in high school, using oil pastels at first until she sold enough portraits to purchase her first set of oil paints. Her first commissioned oil portrait was of a professor at the college Gary attended. Self-taught and passionate about her art, she developed her skills and techniques through years of personal study, trial-and-error, and practice. Over the last 30+ years, Jan has painted hundreds of commissioned portraits. All along the way, her husband, Gary, kept trying to coax her to illustrate books for him. She finally gave it a whirl ten years ago. Now, illustrating consumes much of her time and artistic focus. She has created hundreds of adorable book illustrations, both for her husband's books and for others.

Sail over to the Crew blog and see what other families thought of The Person I Marry.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received a digital copy of The Person I Marry free of charge to read with my children in exchange for my review.

Gratitude Challenge Day 7

2011-11-07T11:45:00.000-06:00

My gratitude for today goes to my marriage. It gives me great joy to be married to a Godly man who happens to be my best friend. We have been married since 1990. We had a few rocky years in the beginning but with God's help we overcame our selfishness. When Mike separated from the Air Force we asked God to lead us to a church that taught the truth and for Mike to find a job that would make enough money so that I could stay home and take care of the kids. God was very generous to us because Mike found a great job with Union Pacific Railroad and our church not only preaches the truth but we also have a wonderful church family to go along with it. I guess my gratitude today also goes to God.

Thank You Brenda for hosting this Gratitude Challenge.

Ooka Island

2011-11-07T00:37:00.000-06:00

Alaina loves pigs....little pigs, big pigs, flying pigs, fluffy pigs, you name it she loves them all. Even bad pigs called Fligs!! The Fligs in Ooka Island like to steal the elves and you have to save them by finding and reading books. Alaina (age 6) has been having a great time using Ooka Island. She already knows how to read but it has been great review of her phonics. She loves the little story books in the Popcorn Library. Her favorite part of the game is the Cake Factory.

Ooka Island is a down loadable hero-mission in 3D that will motivate your child as they learn pre-reading, reading, spelling, and writing skills. This adventure is for children in grade pre-K through second grade and contains dozens of activities that will captivate the child while improving their literacy skills. Ooka Island Inc. wants to teach children to read fluently with fun and compelling reading instruction. The Ooka Island team is very qualified and passionate about teaching literacy.

The OokaMethodTM combines phonological development and language-rich text with comprehension activities so that children have the opportunity to achieve effortless reading.

To get started with Ooka Island you must first download the program onto your computer. This download is a very large file and will need high speed Internet. Once this is done you will set up your parent and child account. It is very easy for the child to log themselves into Ooka Island because they are assigned a picture to click on instead of actually typing in their password. First off you get to create you very own avatar, of course there were big decisions to be made on what Alaina's avatar should look like.

Once on the Island the child goes to different locations where they play phonics games and try to find the lost books. The Cake Factory, The Z Doo, and the cave of sounds are Alaina's favorite parts of the Island. Once the book is found then you can continue to the Popcorn Library to have the book read to you. After the book has been read the child will be asked questions about the book. If they questions are missed then they will be sent back to that page in the book to have it read again. The book is then saved in the library and the next time the child can choose to have the book read to them or read it themselves. There are 85 books to be found on Ooka Island. While the learning games are being played you can collect currency that is called Ooka Mist. During free time you can play with the elves on the playground.

The Book Path

This cycle is repeated to complete all 24 levels in Ooka Island.

The Ooka Lighthouse is a place where parents can view progress reports of their child's work. This part of Ooka Island is not up and running yet so I did not have a chance to use this. The website says it will record progress with every click of the mouse so the phonological skill development and growth in reading comprehension can be monitored.

Subscribe now and save!!

Ooka Island has several pricing options for homeschool and public school families. The homeschool pricing is listed below and you can view the school pricing here. You can also explore the island and see if it would be right for your child.

Family & Homeschool Pricing

Sail over to the Crew Blog and read what other Crew members thought of Ooka Island.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received free access of Ooka Island to use with my daughter in exchange for my review.

Gratitude Challenge Day 6

2011-11-06T08:39:00.002-06:00

Today I am very thankful for my family. I really miss Michael & Morgan being around every day.

My family has made me who I am today.

There are still plenty of days left in November to be grateful if you would like to join the Gratitude Challenge.

Brittany Hargest

2011-11-05T23:55:00.000-05:00

Jump 5 is one of my girls favorite bands. I just recently found out that Brittany Hargest from Jump 5 has her own album, Love All The Way. Her music is very upbeat and lively. She sounds like she is having fun while singing. It is hard to choose but I think my favorite song right now is Put It All Together or wait maybe it's You Met Me. You Met Me is about God waiting in the valley for me when I was not deserving of His love.

The Love All The Way album has 10 tracks:

Critical
Slow Motion
Miracle
You Met Me
I Believe in You
He Can
Like a Fire
Bring the Party
Put It All Together

I am excited to announce that I have a copy of Love All The Way to giveaway to one of my readers. I will choose a winner on Saturday morning November 5, 2011.

To enter complete any of the following.

Follow my blog with Google Friend Connect
Like Brittany Hargest on Facebook
Follow Brittany on Twitter
Follow me on Twitter
Follow my blog with Networked Blogs
Like me on Facebook

"Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Gratitude Challenge Day 5

2011-11-05T19:59:00.001-05:00

I absolutely love my clock!! And I am so very thankful that we get to turn our clocks back an hour tonight.....that means I will get an extra hour of sleep! Maybe I will actually get seven hours tonight.

Read Aloud Challenge

2011-11-04T11:16:00.001-05:00

I didn't read as much to my girls this week as we normally do. Morgan came up last weekend and we went out of town for a hayride & fall fun.

We have been reading Nancy Drew The E-mail Mystery and we should get that finished up tonight. I also read something from the Bible to my kids every night maybe I'll start keeping a log of what we read & share that here too.

Thank You Debra for hosting this Read Aloud Challenge every week.

Gratitude Challenge Day 4

2011-11-04T10:51:00.001-05:00

The kids and I are very spoiled by my husband. He always makes sure we have what all the things we ~~need~~ want. I am very grateful today for our schoolroom. We have plenty of room to spread out our books and crafts.

First Form Latin

2011-11-03T23:17:00.000-05:00

First Form Latin curriculum from Memoria Press is recommended for children grades 5 and up but is the equivilant of a one year high school foreign language. The 34 lessons take a grammar-first approach and focuses on grammar forms and vocabulary making it great for any age. It is written by Cheryl Lowe and is based on twenty years of teaching experience and is used by more than 100,000 students across the world. The First Form series is committed to the trivium model of teaching grammar with extensive workbook exercises to ensure mastery and rapid recognition of inflected forms.

After mastering First Form, the student will have a solid grasp on the six indicative active tenses of the first two verb conjugations, five noun declensions, first and second declension adjectives, and 185 vocabulary words

I received First Form Latin plus DVD's & Flashcards from Memoria Press. I used this curriculum with my daughter's in the fifth and sixth grade. This curriculum is very in depth but easy to teach and the DVD lessons are a big help to the teacher.

We received a 120 page student text book with a 120 page teacher manual, a 190 page workbook, a quiz and test book with a teacher manual, instructional DVDs, pronunciation CD, and flashcards. There is a copy of the student text page on each page of the teacher manual, which really helps when going over the lessons. First Form Latin plus DVDs & Flashcards can be purchased for $115.00 at Memoria Press. You can view sample pages of the student textbook, student workbook, teacher manual, contents, and recitations. The First Form Latin by itself is $55.00

Founded in 1994 by Cheryl Lowe Memoria Press is family run and produces classical Christian education materials for home and private schools. They currently offer complete K-6 curriculum packages, Latin, French, Literature, Classical Studies, and Logic & Rhetoric.

Cheryl Lowe is the author of the popular programs, Latina Christiana, Lingua Angelica, and the First Form Latin series, as well as the First Start Reading phonics program. Cheryl discovered Latin when she homeschooled her sons and is the self-styled apostle of Latin, claiming that Latin has more educational value than any other subject you can teach your children. Cheryl graduated from the University of Louisville with a degree in Chemistry and from Western Kentucky University with a M.S. in Biology. Cheryl and her son Brian founded Memoria Press and the highly successful Highlands Latin School, where all of the Memoria Press products are taught and field-tested.

Crew members also reviewed Classical Phonics and Reading from Memoria Press. Sail over to the Crew blog and read reviews on both products.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received First Form Latin from Memoria Press to use in our school in exchange for my review.

Gratitude Challenge Day 3

2011-11-03T11:32:00.001-05:00

We love books!! We really love old books!! So today I am very thankful for my local library. We have saved so much money over the years by using our library. The ladies who work there are very nice & they really like homeschool families. My kids loved story time when they were younger. Twice a year the Friends of the Library hold a book sale. There are books that have been discontinued from the library or books that people donate for the sale. They use this money to renovate the library.

Today is the day!! The library book sale!!

The first day is only for the Friends of the Library and then Friday and Saturday anyone can shop. We are always there when they open at noon on Thursday and then we go back late on Saturday afternoon for the bag sale!!

My favorite books to find are from Landmark Books. I'll come back later and let you know what treasures we find.

Gratitude Challenge

2011-11-02T15:57:00.000-05:00

I have so many things to be thankful for in my life. Today I am thankful for homeschool curriculum. There are so many great products to choose from. I love the freedom to pick and choose different companies for different subjects. I have even switched to a different curriculum for some of my kids because they didn't like the product the other kids used.

Introduction to Literature

2011-11-02T00:05:00.005-05:00

I love reading to my kids, we have been on so many adventures together while we were curled up on the couch but it is the writing part that we are lacking. I have always wanted them to get the most out of what they read or what I read to them so I ask them questions about the book. This usually leads to a discussion of some kind. I'm not sure if they really want to learn or if it is because we read as a family at night before bed & they are just trying to stay up later. I really want them to think about what they read and be able to put their thoughts in writing. I was very happy to recieve Introduction to Literature to use with my girls.

Introduction to Literature is recommended for children in grade 8-12 but I am using it with my 5th and 6th grade daughters. They love to read and their comprehension is wonderful so I figured they could handle it but that it might take them a little longer to work through it. I was very surprised at how well they caught on to what they needed to do. I am planning on finishing this book and then maybe come back to it at a later time and complete the honors reading.

When I first saw the book I was a little overwhelmed. I hated writing in school and had never written an approach paper so I am learning right along with my girls. It is nice that this curriculum starts out with short stories because it was a lot faster to finish them and it made the writing easier to get the hang of. A web address is included as to where the short stories are listed for free. We already have several of the books listed and some of the ones we don't have were free for our Kindle on Amazon.

Introduction to Literature is a college-preparatory literature and composition course. The student will learn literary analysis through practicing essays, approach paper, and other evaluative writing. The reading list includes novels, short stories, poems, and drama and have been selected for literary quality, and their place in historical development of literature. The author has put a lot of thought into the reading content of this course. If you use all five years of the Excellence in Literature curriculum, you'll read stories that show freedom, justice, truth, humility, goodness, and love in action. You will also encounter imprisonment, injustice, falsehood, pride, evil, and hatred. These topics are true to life & it is important that your child learns to discern what is good.

By the end of the course, students will:

Understand the process of writing, including the use of tools such as a writer’s handbook, dictionary, and thesaurus.
Have specific understanding of selected representative texts by major authors of the periods studied.
Have a general understanding of the historical and cultural contexts of the works.
Be able to analyze literary texts and present thoughtfully developed ideas in writing.
Demonstrate competence in essay organization, style, and mechanics.

In each unit there is a focus text, context reading, honors reading, unit focus, an introduction, something to think about, be sure to notice, and assignments. The context materials are additional materials to read, watch, or listen to. There are links to websites and recommendations for additional readings.

This literature course starts with a unit on short stories and then moves into larger works. Here is the focus text and honors reading for each unit.

Unit 1: Short Stories by-
• Sarah Orne Jewett: A White Heron
• Edgar Allen Poe: The Purloined Letter (This one is not scary, if you're concerned about that.)
• Guy de Maupassant: The Diamond Necklace
• O. Henry: The Ransom of Red Chief
• Eudora Welty: A Worn Path
• James Thurber: The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

Unit 2: Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne
Honors: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne

Unit 3: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court by Mark Twain
Honors: The Prince and the Pauper by Mark Twain

Unit 4: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
Honors: Shirley or Villette by Charlotte Brontë

Unit 5: Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw
Honors: Murder in the Cathedral by T.S. Eliot

Unit 6: Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
Honors: Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson

Unit 7: Animal Farm by George Orwell
Honors: 1984 by George Orwell

Unit 8: The Tempest by William Shakespeare
Honors: A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare

Unit 9: Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift
Honors: The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan

The back of the book talks about the format for writing and offers sample writings of former students to use as an example. An approach paper, author profile, literature summary, essay, and poetry analysis are discussed.

Introduction to Literature is 130 pages that are divided into nine four-week units and is recommended for children in grades 8-12. The e-book sells for $27.00, and the print edition is $29.00 plus $4.95 shipping.

Janice Campbell homeschooled her four sons from kindergarten into college, and has been writing and speaking on homeschool topics since the 1980's. She graduated cum laude from Mary Baldwin College with a B.A. in English, and is lifelong student of literature and writing. In addition to Excellence in Literature, a five-year, classics-based, college-prep English curriculum for homeschoolers, she is the author of Transcripts Made Easy, Get a Jump Start on College, and Evaluate Writing the Easy Way.

Sail over to the Crew Blog to see what other members thought of Introduction in Literature.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received a digital copy of Introduction to Literature free of charge from Excellence in Literature to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Gratitude Challenge

2011-11-01T21:12:00.001-05:00

Today is the 11-1-11 and it is the first day of Brenda's Gratitude Challenge. If you are grateful you can join in or you can just read what everyone else is thankful for.

I love fall, the cool weather, the cold nights, and the crunchy leaves on the ground. Every day when we walk our dog the girls and I love shuffling our feet in the crunchy leaves that are on the sidewalk. Alaina was on a mission this year to find the biggest perfect leaf she could find to decorate our table with. I think she did a great job in choosing the right ones.

Reading Aloud Challenge

2011-10-27T18:54:00.002-05:00

I haven't joined Debra in her Reading Aloud Challenge in quite sometime. We were gone so much this summer and then I hadn't thought about it since school started back up. I read to my kids every night before bed I just haven't taken the time to write about it.

Here is what we have read in the last week.

The Imagination Station book 5 Showdown with the Shepherd and book 6 Problems in Plymouth. We loved these books and we read each book all at one time. Look for my review of these 2 new books early in November.

Last night we finished The Baby-Sitter Burglaries in the Nancy Drew series. The girls love mysteries.

Christmas Lodge

2011-10-27T01:29:00.000-05:00

Every year after Thanksgiving we start getting ready for Christmas. One thing we enjoy doing together as a family is watching Christmas movies. This year we started early with Christmas Lodge from Thomas Kinkade, this movie is very uplifting and places an importance on faith and family. It's about leaving the hustle and bustle that the world has to offer for family. What's not to like about a snow covered lodge in the mountains at Christmas time surrounded by a loving family.

When Mary takes a weekend trip to the mountains she hears a cry for help from a little girl. Mary is helping her get back home when she realizes her home is the Christmas Lodge. As a little girl, Mary spent every Christmas at the lodge with her family and had so many great memories of it. She takes it upon herself to help Jack, the owner, to restore it as it once was. She wants to make Christmas special one more time for her grandfather. Mary has been unlucky in love in the past but the lodge project renewed her faith in life and she falls in love with Jack. Once again her family celebrates Christmas at the Christmas Lodge.

You can watch the trailer on IMDB.

I have another DVD to giveaway!! This giveaway will end Friday, November 4, 2011. I will pick a winner on Saturday.

To enter do any of the following.

Leave a comment telling me about one of your families Christmas traditions.
Follow my blog on Google Friend Connect
Follow me with Networked Blogs
Follow me on Twitter
Like me on Facebook

Refuge on Crescent Hill

2011-10-26T23:13:00.001-05:00

I love big old houses, mansions with secret passageways even better. I enjoyed Refuge on Crescent Hill so much I couldn't put it down. I love how this book has some history, mystery, and treasure hunt along with a little romance. Camden is like a lot of us because when things are not going so well we tend to seek out things we remember loving the most.

Camden Bristow is down on her luck, she just lost her job and her home. She had no where to turn so she decided to visit the place where she enjoyed the happiest summers as a child....her grandmothers. She traveled to the mansion on Crescent Hill only to discover that her grandmother had just recently passed away, leaving her with a 150-year-old mansion. A mystery unravels when Camden suspects someone else living in the mansion. She remembers her Grandma Rosalie's bedtime stories of runaway slaves and secret passageways. Being new to this town she isn't sure who to trust.

Melanie Beroth Dobson's first novel (Together for Good) was published in 2006, and she has now authored nine contemporary and historical novels including Love Finds You in Nazareth, Pennsylvania which releases in November 2011. Melanie and her husband, Jon, met in Colorado Springs in 1997 at Vanguard Church. Since they've been married, the Dobsons have relocated numerous times including stints in Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, Colorado, Berlin, and Southern California. These days they are enjoying their home in the Pacific Northwest.

Prior to launching her own public relations company in 1999, Melanie was the corporate publicity manager at Focus on the Family where she was responsible for the publicity of both events and products. Melanie received her undergraduate degree in journalism from Liberty University and her master's degree in communication from Regent University. She worked in the fields of publicity and journalism for more than fifteen years including two years as a publicist for The Family Channel.

Jon and Melanie have two daughters — Karly (8) and Kiki (7). The entire Dobson family loves to travel and hike in both the mountains and along the cliffs above the Pacific. When Melanie isn't writing or playing with her family, she enjoys exploring ghost towns and dusty back roads, line dancing, and reading inspirational fiction.

You can find out more about Melanie Dobson, her family, and the books she writes on her website or blog.

Refuge on Crescent Hill will be available on Amazon Kindle FREE for one week, starting Oct. 31. You can read an excerpt of this mystery here.

I received Refuge on Crescent Hill as part of a Kregel Blog tour in exchange for my review.

Thankfulness

2011-10-26T11:12:00.000-05:00

November is a great month to be thankful! Last year my friend Brenda at Garden of Learning hosted a Gratitude Challenge that I participated in. I am very grateful that she is hosting this again this year. I will be blogging every day in November about something I am grateful for. Anyone can join and it is so much fun to read the other gratitude posts.

Let us be filled with gratitude the whole month of November!!

Lots and Lots of Firetrucks

2011-10-25T12:53:00.001-05:00

♪♫ Call 911 And Help Will come ♫♪

♪♫ Don't Be Afraid It'll Be OK ♫♪

♪♫ You Call 911 And Help Will Come ♫♪

♪♫ Don't Be Afraid Help We Are On Our Way ♫♪

I don't know if it is a girl thing or if all kids act like this but when my girls get a catchy tune in the heads they sing it all day!! They have been singing Call 911 after viewing Lots and Lots of Fire Songs & Safety Tips DVD.

The TOS Crew received 2 items from Marshal Publishing & Promotions, Inc. One group received George Washington Carver His Life and His Work DVD and the second group received Lots & Lots of Fire Songs & Safety Tips DVD and Lots and Lots of Fire Trucks & Firefighters book. We were one of the lucky ones and received both of them and you can read my review of George Washington Carver here. All three of my girls ages 6, 9, and 10 participated in this review.

The Lots & Lots of Fire Songs & Safety Tips DVD has a lot of catchy tunes that my kids loved. We got to see huge selection of firefighting and rescue equipment in action. We really needed to review our fire safety tips that were included in the video. This 30 minute DVD can be enjoyed by everyone no matter what age you are. It's not every day that we get to see firefighting equipment in action.

Lots & Lots of Fire Trucks & Firefighters book is wonderful. This 124 page book is full of brightly colored pictures of fire and rescue equipment & vehicles, firefighters in action, and even food that firefighters like to prepare while at the station. Firefighter Joe is our host throughout this book and he shows us all the clothing that a firefighter wears and explains their tools & equipment. This book not only talks about firefighting, tools, safety tips, and prevention but they also cover the science of fire which I have never gone over with my girls. In the back of the book there is a timeline of firefighting, a complete list of museums in the United States, fire related websites, and all the lyrics to the songs on the DVD. Amber wants to make all the of Firefighter Joe's Firehouse Recipes that are included in the book.

The regular price for both the book & DVD is $49.95. I have a coupon code so that you can get both the book & DVD for $19.95. That is a huge savings and well worth the price!!

Use Coupon Code: TOSC1

Marshall Publishing and Promotions, Inc. is a media publishing organization. Their goal is to provide media fun for everyone through DVD's, books, CD's, CD-roms, and broadcast and Internet programming that will entertain and educate everyone from ages 3-93. They offer a wide variety of materials including Animals, Monster Trucks, Jet Planes, and Education Historical Documentaries. Available now - DVDs in Spanish.

Sail over to the TOS Crew blog to read more reviews of Lots and Lots of Fire Trucks and George Washington Carver DVDs.

I received Lots and Lots of Fire Trucks book and DVD free of charge to use with my kids in exchange for my review.

George Washington Carver

2011-10-25T12:53:00.000-05:00

I love when my kids are inspired to complete more research on their own. Amber wanted to go to the library and get books on George Washington Carver as soon as she viewed the George Washington Carver His Life and His Work DVD from Marshall Publishing and Promotions, Inc. The TOS Crew members received this DVD to review, we were on the list to review Lots & Lots of Fire Songs & Safety Tips DVD and Lots & Lots of Fire Trucks & Firefighters book but Marshal Publishing also sent us the George Washington Carver DVD. You can read my review of the Firefighters here.

This 30 minute DVD talks about how George Washington Carver was born into slavery and how his dad died when he was a baby. He and his mom were stolen and he was later returned to his owners. It continues on into his adult life and his love of plants. He was a living example of the importance of hard work, a positive attitude and a good education. Carver was very instrumental in changing the stereotype that blacks were intellectually inferior to the white race. His life was full of hope, meaning, and inspiration and should not be forgotten.

George Washington Carver Day is celebrated on January 5, the anniversary of his death.

Marshall Publishing and Promotions, Inc. is a media publishing organization. Their goal is to provide media fun for everyone through DVD's, books, CD's, CD-roms, and broadcast and Internet programming that will entertain and educate everyone from ages 3-93. They offer a wide variety of materials including Animals, Monster Trucks, Jet Planes, and Education Historical Documentaries. Available now - DVDs in Spanish.

If you would like to order this DVD it is normally $19.95, but I have a coupon code for you to use and it will bring the price down to $16.95.

Use Coupon Code: TOSC1

The TOS Crew reviewed George Washington Carver and Lots & Lots of Firetrucks book with Lots & Lots of Fire Songs & Safety tips DVD. Sail on over to the Crew blog to read what other people thought.

As a member of the TOS Crew I was sent George Washington Carver DVD free of charge with my Firefighter book & DVD. I am not obligated to write a review of this item but we learned a lot and wanted to share.

Say Anything

2011-10-23T20:24:00.003-05:00

Are you looking for a game that the entire family can play or one that the answers may never be the same. Then Say Anything Family would be a game for you. I have been enjoying 2 games from North Star Games with my family, Say Anything Family and Wits & Wagers Family.

Say Anything Family is recommended for 3-6 players ages 8+ with game time lasting about 30 minutes. It comes with a score board, 6 dry erase answer boards plus marker, question cards, Meeple coins, and the SELECT-O-MATIC 6000.

All the players get their dry erase board with two tokens of the same color. The SELECT-O-MATIC 6000 is a dial with each board color space on it and the judge gets to hold this. A question is read and everyone will answer remembering that the judge will select the one he likes best. The judge will then turn the SELECT-O-MATIC 6000 dial to the color he chooses then the rest of the players can place their coins on the one they think the judge has chosen. Both Meeple coins can be placed on the same answer or 2 different ones. The judge will then reveal his answer by turning over the SELECT-O-MATIC 6000 to show the players what color answer he chose. Points are awarded to the player who wrote the correct answer, one point is awarded for each coin that is placed on the correct answer and the judge receives a point for each coin that is on the answer he chose. There is a maximum number of 3 points per question.

We really enjoyed this game and it helps if you really know the people you are playing with because you kinda know what answer they would pick. For example one question asks, "Which store is the most fun to shop in?" Well it would depend on who the judge is to what answer you would write down. I played this with my daughter-in-law and all three of my girls ages 6, 9, and 10. There were a few questions that we had to explain to my 6 year old but for the most part she had fun playing also. While the girls waited for everyone to answer the question they loved coloring the Meeple that is on the back of their answer board.

North Star Games brings friends and families together with fun, innovative party and family games.

Meet the designers of North Star Games:

Dominic Crapuchettes

Dominic is the Founder & Co-President of North Star Games. In 8th grade, Dominic earned the much-coveted “bad boy” title when his first game, Kabloogi, was banned from school because kids were playing it during first period. It is because of his great passion for games that he stopped captaining a commercial salmon fishing boat in Alaska to start the most innovative board game company on the planet.

Satish Pillalamarri

Satish Pillalamarri is the Co-President of North Star Games. He was a cog in the wheel at a New York hedge fund when a life-changing event took place: he became a contestant on Jeopardy! This experience prepared him for his position as the Chief Question Writing Officer at North Star Games. Inspired by his love for having fun, Satish’s mission is to bring innovative games to every man, woman and child (and the occasional monkey).

Luke Warren

Armed with a Masters degree in Philosophy and a compelling argument, Luke Warren dedicated over a decade of his life to grassroots politics. Then he decided board games were more fun and joined North Star Games. By the way... if you are wondering if anyone has said to him, “Luke, I am your father”, yes, yes they have. Many times - So just stop it!

Say Anything Family can be purchased online at retailers such as Amazon or check your area for a retailer near you. This game retails for $19.95 but right now it is $13.85 on Amazon.

Sail on over to the TOS Crew blog and see what other families have to say about Say Anything Family.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received Say Anything Family free of charge to use with my family in exchange for my review.

Wits & Wagers

2011-10-23T20:24:00.002-05:00

We have been playing games again!! This time from North Star Games. The TOS Crew was offered Wits & Wagers Family edition and Say Anything Family and we were lucky enough to get both. First I'll introduce you to Wits & Wagers and then you can head over and read about Say Anything Family.

Wits & Wagers Family edition is recommended for 3-10 players ages 8+. It came with a score board, question cards, 5 dry erase answer cards with markers, and 10 Meeples. Play time takes about 20 minutes. After the question is read everyone will answer in a number. Once the answers are all displayed everyone will get a chance to wager on which answer is correct. All players or teams have 2 Meeples one is bigger than the other and will earn you more points than the small Meeple when it is played. Points are awarded by getting the correct answer, wagering your Meeples on the correct answer, and other people placing their Meeple on your correct answer.

My girls had so much fun playing with their Meeples.

We loved this games!! All of the answers are in numbers so everyone has a chance to answer even if they don't know anything about the question. It was funny because the times my daughters (ages 9&10), daughter-in-law, and myself didn't have a clue what the answer was my 6 year old would come the closest with her guess. I think it took us a little longer than 20 minutes to play the game because we are very easily distracted. one of our questions was about balancing spoons on your face so we had to stop and google it.

Of course....we had to try it.

Every time my daughter-in-law comes over to play games Wits & Wagers Family is the one she always wants to play.

North Star Games brings friends and families together with fun, innovative party and family games.

Meet the designers of North Star Games:

Dominic Crapuchettes
Dominic is the Founder & Co-President of North Star Games. In 8th grade, Dominic earned the much-coveted “bad boy” title when his first game, Kabloogi, was banned from school because kids were playing it during first period. It is because of his great passion for games that he stopped captaining a commercial salmon fishing boat in Alaska to start the most innovative board game company on the planet.

Satish Pillalamarri
Satish Pillalamarri is the Co-President of North Star Games. He was a cog in the wheel at a New York hedge fund when a life-changing event took place: he became a contestant on Jeopardy! This experience prepared him for his position as the Chief Question Writing Officer at North Star Games. Inspired by his love for having fun, Satish’s mission is to bring innovative games to every man, woman and child (and the occasional monkey).

Luke Warren
Armed with a Masters degree in Philosophy and a compelling argument, Luke Warren dedicated over a decade of his life to grassroots politics. Then he decided board games were more fun and joined North Star Games. By the way... if you are wondering if anyone has said to him, “Luke, I am your father”, yes, yes they have. Many times - So just stop it!

North Star Games offer several games including a regular version of Wits & Wager. We have been playing the Wits & Wager family edition and it retails for $19.99. It can be purchase online at places like Amazon or find a retailer in your local area. Right now it is on sale for $15.23 on Amazon.

There were 100 Crew members who have been playing so sail on over to the Crew Blog and see what other families thought about Wits & Wagers.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received Wits & Wager Family edition free of charge to use with my family in exchange for my review.

Educating the WholeHearted Child

2011-10-23T11:54:00.004-05:00

A few months ago I introduced you to the book Read For the Heart by Sarah Clarkson. I think it is a must read for every parent. So when I found out I was getting to review Educating theWholeHearted Child written by her parents, Clay and Sally Clarkson, I was very excited to read about their success.

Clay and Sally Clarkson started homeschooling in 1988 and started Whole Heart Ministries to encourage Christian parents to raise wholehearted Christian children. They have been blessed with four homeschool graduates.

Educating the WholeHearted Child is not meant to be an educational program as if they have the only right way of homeschooling but to give you a larger vision for what God can do in your home and provide a model of home education.

This 378 page book is in it's third edition and covers the Christian Home, Learning, Methods, and Living WholeHearted. I especially like their 12 pillars of WholeHearted Learning. Throughout the book they get more personal when they share with us how things are in their home. The resource section contains several pages of the Clarkson family's favorite books plus there are forms to help keep track of you WholeHearted learning.

In this book you will discover how to:

Make your home and family the heart of your children's education.
Train your children to become creative, self-directed learners.
Enrich life and education with living books.
Identify and work with each child's learning style
Help your children love to learn as naturally as they love to play.
Gain confidence to teach with practical, commonsense methods.

This book is a great encouragement for every homeschool family regardless of how many years you have been homeschooling or if you haven't started yet. It is so good to see success stories in homeschooling.
Educating the WholeHearted Child can be purchased from Apologia ministries for $22.00. The table of contents can be viewed and the first chapter read at Apologia Ministries.

Apologia is a family-owned corporation with the mission to help homeschooling families learn, live, and defend the Christian faith. They offer a wide variety of products in their endeavor to help us.

Sail over to the TOS Crew Blog and read what other crew members thought of Education the WholeHearted Child.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received Educating the WholeHearted Child free from Apologia in exchange for my review.

E-Mealz

2011-10-19T17:55:00.001-05:00

We all have to eat. No matter if you work or stay home we all have days where we are at a loss for what to fix for dinner. E-mealz makes dinner planning easy.

E-mealz is an online menu plan that is based on your grocery store sales. It is $15.00 for a 3-month subscription. Once you log in it only takes 3 steps to have dinner on the table for a week. After you create your account you can choose a plan that fits your needs. You will have accesss to this weeks menu and last weeks menu. When you print you get 2 pages one is a complete shopping list and the other is the meal plan.

You can choose a menu plan by your grocery store, if you are on a budget, on a specialty diet, if you have a picky family, or if you cook for only 1 or 2.

The meal plan contains the menu for 7 meals plus the recipe all on one page.

The grocery list has all your ingredients listed according to catagory. There is a spot to check off the item once you have it, the price, and the meal number that the item is used for is also listed. Things that you normally have on hand are listed at the bottom such as condiments, eggs, and butter.

I chose the Wal-mart Menu Plan since we live in a small town and we don't have the other grocery stores locally. It was nice to actually have a plan for our dinners. I normally fix whatever I feel like making or whatever the kids or my husband have requested. It even forced us to try some different meals that we might not have tried if we were just browsing for new recipes. This plan is for a family of 4-6 and the recipes worked out perfect for my family 5.

The recipes are very easy to follow. One day I wasn't feeling good so Amber my 10 year old decided to make dinner. She chose Beef and Veggie Chow Mein from the weeks menu and it was nice because we knew we had everything she needed. She didn't have any trouble following the directions and dinner was delicious. We will definatly be making this one again.

I am very frugal with my grocery budget and I do not shop or cook the way the meal plan is suppose to work. My husband plants a big garden every year and I can and freeze it to use throughout the year. We buy our beef and chicken from ranchers and I buy as much stuff as I can in bulk instead of buying only what we need for that meal. I typically stay away from boxed foods and I like to make my bread from scratch.

After printing my Menu I checked off everything I already had at home or that I would replace with a homemade version (breadsticks, rolls, flat bread, etc). I didn't have a lot left on my list. I had no trouble finding the items I did buy but I found that our Wal-mart was a little higher than the price they had listed on the shopping list. That is probably becuase we live in a smaller town and we don't have the competition of that in a big city.

Jane Delaney, wife and mother of 4, founded E-Mealz 7 years ago with her sister Jenny Cochran, mother of 3. They credit the inspiration to their mother who fed her own family on a budget with her own meal plan. The motivation came from Jane struggling with feeding her own family every night at home.

The concept of the E-mealz is great but I feel if we ate and shopped the way this meal plan is set up we would spend more money on groceries than we do now.

Other Crew member reviewed different meal plans so sail over to the TOS Crew blog to see how e-mealz worked for their families.

As a member of the TOS Crew I recieved a free 3 month subscription to e-mealz in exchange for my review of their plan.

Alway Ice Cream

2011-10-18T23:00:00.000-05:00

What girl doesn't like ice cream and cute little pets? My girls certainly do and that is why Always Icecream is such a big hit at our house. The only downfall is every time the girls logged in they wanted ice cream.

Always Icecream is an online play and learning website for girls ages 7-12. Each girl has her own account and you can set up a parent account to keep track of each girls progress. It is a very secure online site because all memberships are traceable. After the trial period members are asked to provide a credit card which identifies the player.

The parent account gives details of your daughter's learning progress, see which videos she watched, select games that she can play and award her scoops. You can chose to receive email updates of your child's progress.

The first thing your daughter can enjoy is setting up her avatar and answering a few profile questions so others can get to know her. Each girl is given a friendship code that can be used to connect with real world friends (RWF). If 2 girls know each others code they can become RWF and chat online while playing Always Icecream. All the messages are moderated before being published. There are educational games in math, language arts, science, history, geography, music, art, foreign language, religious education, computer and life skills.

All three of my daughters ages 6, 9, and 10 enjoyed Always Icecream. They all agreed that their favorite part was taking care of their eggs and animals. A new egg could be purchased with scoops they earned while playing the games or awarded by their parent. My 10 year old made sure that her sisters remembered that mammals do not hatch from eggs, but they were very excited when their new pet hatched. The scoops that are earned can also be used to decorate homes in Miniworld.

Always Icecream subscriptions are available for girls 7-12 and can be purchased monthly for $4.99, 2 months for $9.98, annually for $29.99, or a lifetime membership for $99.99. The first month is only .99¢. If you are not sure it is right for your daughter she can try it free.

Swenja and Johannes Ziegler are co-founders of Always Icecream and are parents of five children.

Sail over to the TOS Crew Blog and see what other Crew member's thought of Always Icecream.

As a member of the TOS Crew I recieved a lifetime membership for one of my children to use in exchange for my reivew of this website.

Visual Latin

2011-10-14T00:08:00.000-05:00

"Can we do Latin first?""Please!""Can we do one more?"

I never knew teaching Latin could be so easy!! We received the first 10 lesson of Visual Latin from Compass Cinema to review. As soon as we completed the first lesson my girls wanted to do more. Every day they asked to do Latin first and they would beg to complete more than one lesson at a time.

The High Definition (HD) m4v videos we received for iTunes works great on my IPhone and computer. Every lesson contains three short videos with a worksheet for each and it only takes about 20 minutes to complete them both. Dwane Thomas does an excellent job of keeping the kids attention with his humor during the video. The short lesson really helped my kids remember what they were taught. The focus is more on reading Latin than just memorizing words.

Visual Latin is different than most curriculum because they believe:

It’s better to make students laugh than yawn.
Shorter videos teach more effectively than longer ones.
Small successes lead to big successes.
Children like reading Latin more than memorizing it.

The lessons are set up the same.

Lesson

Part A ~ Dwane gives a video lesson on Grammar. They are so easy to follow along and understand. He even goes over definitions of English parts of speech. Our worksheet contains any vocabulary words or rules that we just learned.
Part B ~ The words we learned in part A are used in sentences. We continue to use the new words or rule on the worksheet.
Part C ~ Dwane reads us a story in Latin, then rereads it one sentence at a time so that we can repeat after him. After a few lessons he only speaks to us in Latin. The worksheet contains the story and the student translates it into English.

Visual Latin has 30 lessons in the first level and can be purchased as a download or DVD. You can purchase 10 lessons at a time for $25.00 as a download or $30.00 on a DVD. All 30 lessons can be purchased on a DVD for $80.00. This includes all the worksheets you will need to go with the lessons. The first 2 lessons plus 4 intro lessons can be downloaded for free.

Two homeschool dads had the idea for Visual Latin. One was a Latin teacher and the other a producer. Dwane Thomas has been teaching Latin for 15 years, and you can tell he loves his job. Thomas Purifoy, Jr. is the producer and likes to create curriculum. Together they came up with a different approach to Latin that works.

This program is very easy to use. There is no teacher preparation needed & you do not need any knowledge of Latin before beginning. You can learn right along with your students.

Sail over to the Crew Blog and read what other members thought about Visual Latin.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received a free download of the first 10 lesson of Visual Latin to use with my children in exchange for my review.

Cooper & Me Review & Giveaway

2011-10-13T01:15:00.000-05:00

My girls like to write their own stories, so it was pretty cool that we had the opportunity to review a book that was illustrated by an 11-year-old girl and she co-wrote it with her mom. Cooper and Me talks about a girl just starting school and she is upset because she can't take her dog with her. Her mom finds a solution that will help her make it through her day.

The back of the book talks about dealing with life lessons and has some great discussion questions to share with your children. The Cooper and Me website offers a variety of freebies. There are coloring sheets and puzzles for the kids, reading guides for teachers and parents. The book is based on co-author Alexa Peters life and her dog Cooper. You can visit their blog to get to know more about them. You can purchase Cooper and Me books here.

About Cooper and Me:

Cooper and Me was illustrated by 11-year-old Alexa Peters and co-written with her mother, Monique Peters. The idea was inspired by Alexa's own experiences on her first day of school. A talented young artist and writer, Alexa wanted to give back to others in a meaningful way through her art. Starting at a very young age, Alexa created illustrated stories about her daily experiences, and from the pages of her sketchbooks came the idea for her first book, Cooper and Me.

Through rhythmic verses, Cooper and Me tells the story of a young girl who is nervous as her first day of school approaches. She is frightened about leaving home and doesn't want to go without her best friend, her dog Cooper. Fortunately her mother finds the perfect solution to help the little girl overcome her fears – a small replica of her beloved pet she can take to school with her. In Cooper and Me, the story of a child’s fears about starting school has evolved into a timeless tale about overcoming separation anxiety and trying new things – basic emotions all people experience throughout their lives – but this time, written by a child, for children.

The story behind Cooper and Me also offers an inspiring example of families working together to help others. In addition to helping young children gain emotional resilience and confidence through their books, Alexa and mom Monique wanted to go beyond that to help less fortunate kids. Their search for an organization to which they could donate a portion of the proceeds from the Cooper and Me book led to a charitable alliance with the Happy Hearts Fund, founded and run by Petra Nemcova, the supermodel who was directly affected by the tsunami in Thailand. Happy Hearts improves children’s lives through education and sustainable programs in natural disaster areas.

Cooper and Me Giveaway

I have an extra copy of Cooper and Me to giveaway to one of my readers. I will draw a winner at noon on Friday, October 21.

To enter:

Tell me what your favorite children's book is.
Follow my blog with Google Friend Connect
Follow my blog with Networked Blogs
Follow me on Twitter

My Memories Winner

2011-10-12T11:14:00.002-05:00

Congratulations Sarah!!!

You won The My Memories Suite giveaway.

I should have picked a winner yesterday but after school we started in on our tomatoes.

SCRUBLE Cube

2011-10-11T01:05:00.000-05:00

Games, Games, Games!! We love games & we are reviewing a lot of them this year on the Crew. This time we received the Scrubble Cube. This cube is like Scrabble and the Rubik's Cube in one. The website describes The SCRUBLE Cube as a word game and a puzzle- on steroids with over 7.4 x 10⁴⁵(that’s 7,401 septillion)possible configurations that anyone who can spell can play.

The Scruble Cube contains 96 rotating letter and scoring squares. Each letter has a number which will be used for scoring. Each word you make must have 3 letters and you add up the number on each letter for your score. If you can put a bonus word score at the end you can double or triple you points. Bonus points are also awarded if you wrap a word on at least 3 sides or play off your opponents word. This cube can also be played as a puzzle by trying to get the color coded tiles to spell "Scruble Cube". This game can be purchased for $24.95 and is recommended for 1-4 players ages 8 and up. The game comes with 1 Scruble Cube, sand timer, scorepad, and instructions. The website offers some great tips for getting started and some fun lesson plan activities.

All three of my girls played with the cube. Amber (10) & I enjoyed it the most. Delaney (9) liked playing by herself and Alaina (6) only made 2 letter words, but it's a start. We didn't use the timer but it would be nice to use if the game is played with adults or all older children. I left the cube out on our school table and the girls would pick it up throughout the day and find a couple of words before finishing their lessons. One thing we really liked about this game is that it is great for travel. We received ours the day before vacation so we took it with us on our 3000 mile round trip.

If you like word games you will want the Scruble Cube. I showed it to my friend who loves Scrabble and she said she has to have one.

Sail over to the Crew Blog and read what other families thought of Scruble Cube.

As a member of the TOS Crew I received Scruble Cube free of charge to use with my children in exchange for my review.