He Giveth More Grace

I don't do resolutions, but I do want to make a plan for the next year that is about reaching vertically, and  give and accept more Grace. I fully appreciate and and trust God to care for me and my family through all things. But I realize I only expect, and even only ask for what I have carefully calculated and know is the bare minimum I need for the soon to be five of us to survive. But what if Gods minimum is bigger than my minimum? I feel God telling me I have put Him in a box, that I only deserve for myself the amount of Grace I think I deserve.  So I am asking God to forgive me for limiting Him, and accept ALL that He wants to provide for us, and not judge myself into believing anything is too much.

April 29

I here by declare the second annual All Pink Day.  Today every girl and woman is a Princess. Wear pink, eat pink and know that you are special. Watch a princess movie or read a princess story. 

A year ago today my DD and I had this our all pink day in honor of Prince William and Kate's wedding. We hardly watched the wedding, we had so much fun just being girls!

I think it's important to remember once in a while how valuable we are as women. Rich or poor, young or old, strong or weak, we all influence the people around us. Take this day to reward yourself and the other women around you.

PINK SOMEONE! Leave an anonymous "pink" gift for someone. Here's a note to go with it

Have your cake and eat it too today!

clip art from  http://school.discoveryeducation.com

Special Agents: Greek Alphabet Code Cracker

Wow! Its 9:30 pm and I just got the oldest two settled down and to bed. They are stoked and more excited than Christmas Eve! All because we turned Greek studies into a mystery caper using the Book: Greek Alphabet Code Cracker (click the link for a free sample chapter.)

No one has asked me to review this book, we just LOVE it so much we wanted to recommend it to others interested in learning ancient Greek!

We have a general course we are working through and love, and have mastered saying the names of each Greek letter. But we were having a bit of difficulty learning the sounds each letter made and the diphthongs, to be able to read actual Greek words. But this book was perfect! It uses the Greek letters to form English words...that's the code! Look at the Greek letters and decide what English word it pronounces! It is a complete work book but I only bought one copy. It's full color, so photocopying pages would be expensive and probably illegal, so how do three people use one workbook? We turned the book into a game!

The book is a missing Vase case, and you have to break the Greek code to find clues and discover the thief and his hiding spot.
I made little notebooks for the two oldest children, detective note books! They drew pictures of the suspects and used the notebooks to record the codes, the clues and at the back kept track of diphthongs and general rules. We even drew the map inside the books to follow the thief to his hiding place!

We sat at the kitchen table, at about 7pm...I mean Squad room at 1900 hrs...and I was promoted from Detective to chief by the two other detectives! They chose their badge numbers and wrote them on their books, and then the fun began!

I read the details and witness accounts, and led them through the exercises on the blackboard. We turned some exercises into races between the two detectives, and other exercises were collaborations they had to finish together and agree on the answers before writing in the blanks on the board. And other activities they copied from the board into their note books, all keeping in character of any good Hollywood version Detective team. Actually, I felt a lot like Charlie Eppes, Numb3rs mathematician phenomenon, writing all these amazing characters on the board the normal Canadian wouldn't understand! (Yea, I wish, lol! Me and math are not best friends!)

So what do I hoe this accomplishes? Well, if we can read the letters as sounds that form English words we are familiar with, we should be able to look at the same Greek letters and sound out Greek words that are foreign to us with decent accuracy...and learn their English meanings of course so we know what we are saying! We will then return to our regular Greek course.  I think as a game it was perhaps so much fun for us because we have a previous knowledge of the alphabet and had an introduction to their sounds. So we weren't really trying to learn something new, we are using this to deep root the knowledge we have been trying to retain.

We finished two units tonight, and I had to bribe them to settle down to sleep, and threatening NOT to play tomorrow if they didn't stop talking to each other through the walls of their rooms about the game! We have 6 more units to the book...and even I can't wait until tomorrow to play at least two more!

Image from: http://www.classicalacademicpress.com/

Clean Heart Clean Home Challenge

What woman- single, married, with children or without - couldn't use some encouragement cleaning out our closets, basements, kitchen drawers, office spaces...you get the idea! Most of us just need that little shove and a lot of encouragement.
I recently discovered a link to a blog called "On the Old Path" with a 52 day clean heart clean home challenge with devotions and encouragement to clean out our lives, spiritually and physically. I posted a link on Facebook and  realized how many people would enjoy doing this! So here is a link with a PDF guide to go with it. (see the red word "challenge" ? Right click and save as!)

Clean Heart, Clean Home Link

Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. 

- Luke 2:10

Merry Christmas!

My personal thought for the day.....

 I'm often worried about sharing my past in case I get labeled as "one carrying baggage" ... but sometimes talking about a difficult time in your past is really only showing the stamp in your passport to show you were there once.

 - Charlene Elizabeth

I have changed my profile to read: Single, work from home mother of three homeschoolers. 

YES it can be done, and I am self sufficient by the grace of GOD! My life isn't a bed of  roses, but I'm loving the daisies and can pull out the stink weed when it pops up. 

C'est la vie, and I'm living it stronger than ever!

CEJT/11

 

 

 

HURT NO LIVING THING by Christina Rossetti
Hurt no living thing:
Ladybird, nor butterfly,
Nor moth with dusty wing,
Nor cricket chirping cheerily,
Nor grasshopper so light of leap,
Nor dancing gnat, nor beetle fat,
Nor harmless worms that creep.

A Social Studies Project+ Just a WEE Bit Of Snow

Well, it's still winter.  Wiarton Willie says it will be an early spring, but I doubt it.
We spent one day at  Grandma and Grandpa's, where Grandpa had piled all the snow into sledding hills and snow forts. Grandpa had also been trimming back the old willow tree in the yard in preparation for it's quick spring growth, and the children were happy to help pile the sticks and brush.  So as a bit of reward, grandpa built them a willow fort in the shape of a First Nations Teepee. It had no covering but it sure was fun to play in. It had a snow platform with steps cut out of the sow to climb up to it.

It was a fun day, and it helped a little with the understanding of our Canadian social studies program. We have been watching Billy Connollys North West Passage (best known as "McSquizzy" in Open Season) documentary on Netflix. As we watch, the children follow his progress on maps they have labeled and colored themselves. It has been wonderful for them to see the people that live in our country, and hear the history and see how it influences the present.The documentary discovers the past and present of our eastern Islands, northern country and BC, and all 4 episodes have been a joy to watch.

 Being in the most extreme North of our country, he visits a number of Inuit villages.  Some are still traditional villages with a gentle touch of the modern world, and some have been kicked hard in the teeth by the western influences.  In Episode 2, the children felt a small connection and a glimpse of understanding about our first nations people, having been a big part of the work it took to create their wood stick fort.  Their favorite part was the throat singing demonstration. Littlest Dude (who's 4) even gave it a try after watching that part of the documentary! Their "Eww Gross!" moment wasn't when they skinned a seal, but when the Inuit children ate some raw.

*A quick note, there is a occasional bit of swearing in it, as Billy's  Scottish humor jumps in occasionally, and the occasional drinking scene. But drink is a reality in our country. And as an abstainer I think it's fair for our children to realize that it is a choice for me and my parents and our friends not to participate in that part of our culture. And I  explained as such to them when we see drinking in media or in public.

HOMESCHOOL RESOURCES: Composition and Eng Lit Ideas

Ok, I'm trying out Squidoo.  Stumbled on it looking to make a book list for teaching the children, and it seems to have positive possibilities for me.
So here it is, my Classic Book List for Homeschoolers Grade 3-6. Hope it's helpful!

It's where my heart is....

Advent Week 2 Reading

Week2/Candle 2

Bethlehem Candle

God prepared a place for his Son to be born. The Bethlehem candle reminds us that we need to be prepared.  We need to prepare our hearts for Him so that we will be prepared when he comes back for us.

Micah 5:2

But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting.

Matthew 2:1

1 Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem,

Matthew 25:1-13

1 Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.

2 And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.

3 They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:

4 But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

5 While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.

6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.

7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.

8 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.

9 But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.

10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.

11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.

12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.

13 Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.

Memory Verse

2 Timothy 2:15

15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Song:   

O Come All Ye Faithful

O come, all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye, to Bethlehem.
Come and behold Him, born the King of angels;

Refrain

O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.

True God of true God, Light from Light Eternal,
Lo, He shuns not the Virgin’s womb;
Son of the Father, begotten, not created;

Refrain

Sing, choirs of angels, sing in exultation;
O sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!
Glory to God, all glory in the highest;

Refrain

See how the shepherds, summoned to His cradle,
Leaving their flocks, draw nigh to gaze;
We too will thither bend our joyful footsteps;

Refrain

Lo! star led chieftains, Magi, Christ adoring,
Offer Him incense, gold, and myrrh;
We to the Christ Child bring our hearts’ oblations.

Refrain

Child, for us sinners poor and in the manger,
We would embrace Thee, with love and awe;
Who would not love Thee, loving us so dearly?

Refrain

Yea, Lord, we greet Thee, born this happy morning;
Jesus, to Thee be glory given;
Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing.

Refrain

Advent Week 2 Meal Plan

Taco's

This week is a meal of preparation. It is definitely not a gourmet meal, it's VERY simple. But everyone can take part in making it! Prepare it together and eat together, after lighting the 2nd candle: Remember the Spanish speaking countries and South America at this meal.  Make this advent season a time to pray globally.

Working together the job gets done quicker.  And when we support our missionaries and are willing to be missionaries in our own communities, Christs salvation message spreads more quickly. Be a part of the great commission. God Prepared a place for Christ to be born, and has promised to prepare a place for us in heaven if we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.

Taco's 
1 box of corn GF  Taco shells or 1 bag of corn chips.

1 lb ground beef or turkey
1 small onion chopped
S&P 1 can of beans (pick you favorite, black, chick, kidney, navy)
1/2 cup frozen corn

Taco Meat seasonings:
1/4 c water
1/4 cup GF ketchup
1/3 cup chunky salsa sauce
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp paprika 
2 dashes Hot pepper sauce


Toppings:
Lettuce
Tomatoes
Grated cheese
Salsa Sauce


Directions:
Brown the meat and onion. Add Salt and Pepper (S&P) and drain and add the beans and corn.Mix up the Meat seasoning and pour over mixture and simmer.

Serve hot in Taco shells or over a plate of chips and add your fresh toppings.

Have the younger members of you house pull the toppings from the fridge. Little ones can pull apart lettuce, older ones can cut cherry tomatoes in half  and teens can grate cheese. Everyone can prepare their own plate of food the way they like it!

Advent Week 1 Readings

Wreath

We use the wreath to remind us that God has no beginning and no end. He is eternal

Psalms 90:2

Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.

Candles

We use Red candles instead of the tradition candle colors to remind us of the wounds on Jesus back, that Christ suffered for us that we would be able to receive eternal life.  And we use a white candle to represent Christ’s purity and our cleansing.

Isaiah 53:5

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

Psalm 51:7b

…wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

Week 1/Candle 1

Prophecy Candle

The Prophecy Candle reminds us of the Promise God made to the Israelite people that God would send a Savior for the world. There are over 300 prophecies in the old testament of the coming Savior, and each one was fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

Isaiah 7:14

Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Matthew 1:18-25

18 ¶ Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.

19 Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a publick example, was minded to put her away privily.

20 But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying,

23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.

24 Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:

25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS.

Memory Verse:

1 John 4:14

 And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.

Song: : A  song that refers to many of the Old testament writings and Prophecy 

O Come O Come Immanuel

 O come, O come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse, free
Thine own from Satan's tyranny
From depths of Hell Thy people save
And give them victory o'er the grave
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Day-Spring, come and cheer
Our spirits by Thine advent here
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death's dark shadows put to flight.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, Thou Key of David, come,
And open wide our heavenly home;
Make safe the way that leads on high,
And close the path to misery.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel.

O come, O come, Thou Lord of might,
Who to Thy tribes, on Sinai's height,
In ancient times did'st give the Law,
In cloud, and majesty and awe.
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel. 

Advent Week 1 Meal Plan

GF Lasagna and Latkes:

We are doing advent again this year, following last years outline. It is so wonderful, to see the children excited about lighting the candles every night and learning the memory verses.  We have added songs and I have been working out a meal plan for each Sunday night of  advent.

Here's our plan for the first night of advent:

Meal: 
      
Latkes:Serve with French Apple Sauce

We choose latkes because this is the week Hanuka begins and our first candle is Old Testament Prophecy. This week we pray for the nation of Israel, rejoice for the Christian Jews and pray for the opening of the hearts and protection of Jews world wide to the message of Christ. Christ IS the Savior promised to us in the Old Testament  !

Recipe:

• 4 potatoes, peeled and cubed
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, or as needed
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 cup canola oil, or as needed

you need a cheese cloth or open weave fabric to strain the potatoes...

1. Shred the potato and onions by hand or with your processor. remove from bowel onto the cheese cloth and wrap it up tight around the mixture. Squeeze hard, remove all the excess water from the potatoes and onion. 
2. Place back in bowl and add remaining ingredients.
3. Heat small amounts of canola oil in a skillet over medium heat. Scoop up about 1/3 cup of the potato mixture per latke, and place into the hot oil. Press down into a patty.  Fry the patty until brown and crisp on the bottom, flip it, and cook the other side until brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Repeat with the rest of the potato mixture, replenishing the oil as needed. Serve hot.

French Apple sauce:

4-6 large apples peeled and chopped into pieces

1/4 cup water

1tbsp butter

Place apples into a pot with the water and cook on low heat until they begin to soften. Stir to keep from burning. Do not mash the apples, the apples will fall apart on their own as the cook and are stirred.  When apples are chunky and soft like apple sauce, add the butter and remove from heat.  Serve hot over pancakes or latkes.

Lasagna made with homemade Gluten Free pasta

Ingredients:
Lasagna Noodles (see recipe for fresh variety)
1 large jar Tomato sauce
1 can mushrooms
1 recipe of meat mixture. (see below)

Pasta Recipe:
4 cups Basic Gluten Free Flour Mix (or all purpose wheat flour if you aren't GF)
1 tsp Xanthan gum (omit if using all purpose wheat flour)
2 t. salt
1/4 c. butter
1 c. boiling water
Mix all, (I used my bread machine) roll out really flat,

Ground Meat Mixture:
1 onion, diced small
1 lb ground beef or turkey
2 tsp garlic powder
Italian-type seasonings (oregano, basil, parsley, salt, pepper)
Brown together, remove from heat.
Add 1/4 c grated Parmesan and 1 egg.

Roll out the dough as  thin as possible but still holds together, and cut into strips that will fit your pan (Work quickly with the dough, as it dries out fast!)
Pour some tomato sauce into bottom of 9x13 a pan
Layer fresh noodles  into pan with the Ravioli meat mixture, mushrooms and tomato sauce. On the third layer of noodles add the remainder of the sauce and a layer of mozzarella or cheddar cheese
Place in oven at 350o for 45-60 min. covered. Uncover and cook 10 more minutes.

Book Review

I struggle to know what to say about this book....it wasn't a bad book by any means.  It was even a pleasant read. I just found that the author would appear to get on a roll with a thought, and then it would drop off into a fluffy,"no need to get personal as your views may not be mine", finish. As a "pick it up and read for a minute" devotional type book it is fine.  It gives you a good place to get started on organizing your life, spiritual and personal. And for me it did leave me with the desire to sort through my own personal decisions regarding each topic.  But for someone looking for "the perfect answer instantly in a book" this isn't it. It has become a coffee table book here.

I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255

Homeschool Resources

Finances are tighter, but the schooling must continue on without a break.  I have made a few changes to our curriculum to accommodate our budget and to keep the kids progressing in their grade level.

Two free resources I have recently discovered are:

1.  A  free Homeschool Tracker, which generates lesson plans, report cards, accumulative grading and resource lists. It downloads right to your computer and has an inexpensive upgrade that would benefit high school level students and parents. 

2. The National Gallery of Canada CyberMuse, with artist related materials for ALL ages.  A great way for those of us "in the boonies" to see and appreciate art, past and present in a fun way. At our local Homeschool group we have had a wonderful experience this semester learning about art and making our own interpretations of artists such as Picasso and Amedeo Modigliani

Hope these links are helpful!

MOM......?

DS: Do you know what SuperMan does?

Me: Leaps over tall Buildings?

DS: Nope.....Cleans His Room!

(From the mouths of babes folks!)

Ontario in Autumn

Here are some beautiful fall pictures I took from right outside my house. It inspired me to do the watercolor, that now hangs in my kitchen.

Have you ever found one of these in Your Garden?

Look what I found, playing in the woods today !

 

These little guys are full of fun and mischief! WARNING: Do not feed them sugar or candy or Chocolate or they may explode into an uncontrollable ball of fun!

My Love

You talk about Amazing Grace
And in your life God has some place.
Singing “Tis so sweet to trust in Jesus”
Wearing a smile upon your face.

You do your part, teach Sunday School.
My precious young learn the “Golden Rule”.
You read about the glorious day -
My greatest triumph! the third day raised!

And though that all is very true.
(I did that for everyone of you.)
Love cost more than that for me,
I let man nail my limbs onto a tree.

You need to know that as I knelt
With sweats of blood, the fear I felt.
You need to know the pain endured -
Each flesh tearing blow, each iron filled belt.

You need to know the shame I felt
When in nakedness I was paraded out.
So that when you stop to look at your worst self
You KNOW that I’ve been in that same place too.

You need to know that through my pain
Forgiveness was still handed out.
To the thief who hung beside of me,
To the ones who mocked, and the ones who flee.

It’s not just the sweet you should talk about.
I defeated mans worst, I threw death out.
In my names sake, let me see you through.
That’s really what my love is all about.

CEJTM 09/2010