Our Family's Favorite Bible resources

The most important aspect of our homeschool is our relationship with God.  It's one of the main reasons that we felt led to homeschool.  It's also the reason that we decided to go with the curriculum from My Father's World.  We love how it is all bible based.

My Father's World: Learning God's Story includes My Big Book of 5-Minute Devotions as well as the Bible Reader and Bible notebook, so we will be using those as needed throughout the year.  We are also memorizing the Proverbs along with the lesson plans.

As great as I think these resources are, our family still likes to include more Bible time.  In the mornings, we usually read from 365 Read-Aloud Bible Stories if there isn't a reading from the Devotional book.  These stories are short and sweet and include a couple of questions at the bottom. 



In the evenings before we go to bed, we like to read out of one of our other bibles. We've been reading through the Jesus Calling Storybook the past few months.  They kids seem to really enjoy the stories, and the illustrations are captivating. 

We recently bought The Rhyme Bible Storybook, and have been reading from it some nights as well.  It's a joy to read and keeps all three of our young children's attention.

We also bought The Mystery of History Volume I: Creation to the Resurrection.  Although we haven't done much out of this yet, what we have read has been wonderful.  Our kids loved the lessons and we also did some crafts to go along with the stories.  

 

 

Do you use any of our favorite bible resources?

What does your family use?  Let me know in the comments! 

2014-2015 Homeschool Verse

This is our second year homeschooling, and since Squirrely Girl is now a First grader, I am now doing something more structured.  I've already spoken some about our decision to use My Father's World curriculum.  I had seen it on quite a few blogs, and when I was researching curriculums I kept being drawn back to this one.  God has a way of weeding through all of the unnecessary stuff for us!

In addition to doing the MFW 1st Grade: Learning God's Story, my husband and I are really wanting to focus on biblical character training.  This led us to adopt a verse for the year.  Since our kids are still so young, we wanted to start them out with a good foundation on how we should act. 

So I sat down, bible opened before me, and prayed that God would lead me to the perfect verse for our coming school year.  As I began reading, I was drawn to Galatians 5.  I immediately knew that this was a wonderful verse for our family for the upcoming year.  With all of us trying to become more structured with our schooling, we are bound to have hard days where the tears flow and the frustration levels rise.  What better thing to cling to than our Savior's provision to handle all these things?!

 

 

With everything that I am wanting to include in our day--from the math facts and phonics lessons to the science experiments and cooking lessons--I don't want to forget to focus on what's truly important.  One of the most important reasons we decided to homeschool was so that we could "train our children in the way they should go" (Proverbs 22:6). 

If in my zeal to check off my lesson plans and cram as much fun, interesting instruction I can into their little brains I forget the weightier matters such as love and mercy, then it is all for naught.  God gave me these three little blessings to raise into people that love and praise Him with every fiber of their being.  How will they know unless I point them to the One who did it all? 

Above all, if my children learn nothing else this year, I want them to learn to rely on God and know that in Him we can be victorious in all things.  Through Him we are able to truly love, have pure joy, a peace that surpasses understanding, patience in all things, show kindness at all times, goodness in all circumstances, faithfulness in following Him, a gentle spirit, and self-control. 

To help the kids memorize the verse, I got the bible verse printout as well as the fruit basket printouts from Christian Preschool Printables.  I laminated the verse and hung it in our living room so that we would see it often throughout the day.  I also laminated the fruit basket pieces and used some Velcro to make a game for the kids to practice our verse.  We've played many variations with it, and already Squirrely Girl has memorized our verse.  Bear in well on her way to having it memorized as well. 





Does your family have a verse for the homeschool year?  I'd love to hear your story in the comments.

First Week of Homeschool for 2014-2015!

Last week we started back to our full homeschool schedule.  We decided to go with My Father's World : Learning God's Story for Shania for First Grade.  Kenzie is following along and completing the activities she's able to do, with additional handwriting practices and basic math skills.  Cole, who will soon be turning 2, is doing a whole lot of coloring, playing, and fine-motor skills work! 



Shania (Squirrely Girl) -1st Grade
Kenzie (Bear)-Pre-K
Cole (Bubba)-Tater-Tot Tot School

We were doing a lighter school load during the rest of the summer, but we wanted to have part of November and all of December off for the most part to incorporate a lot of seasonal activities so we thought we'd start the school year a bit early.  Here's what our daily rhythm looks like.

Start the Day Together Basket

This is sort of our families circle time.  We usually start by singing a few songs together and praying.  I also have various flash cards that we use some days in our basket.

 

• Bible:
  My Big Book of 5 Minute Devotions by Pamela Kennedy with Douglas Kennedy if in the MFW schedule, or a story from 365 Read-Aloud Bedtime Bible Stories by Daniel Partner. 

• Poetry/short stories:
  Folk Tales from Many Lands by Hazel Gertrude Kinscella. 
• Science:
  This varies.  On Mondays, we read from one of the science books from MFW (Things Outdoors, Science with Plants, and Science with Water).  The rest of the week, we read from one of our other science books to dig deeper into our topic.  This week, we used Life In a Bucket of Soil by Alvin Silverstein and Virginia Silverstein and Fun with Nature: Take-Along Guide by various authors to learn more about things that live close to or inside the ground.
  
  
  
   
  
  
   
• Kids Choice:Each child takes a turn in choosing a book or two to read each morning.
• Calendar time. 
• Number of the Day

Language Arts

• Handwriting and Phonics:
  This week, and for the next week or so, MFW has worksheets for ABC handwriting practice as well as some phoneme blending worksheets for Squirrely Girl.  I also gathered some for Bear to do along with her.
• Spelling:
  Squirrely Girl then does her Spelling work.  This year, I simply downloaded a master list online for 36 weeks worth of word lists.  Each weeks list has 8 words.  Monday-Thursday she does different spelling practice pages, and on Friday she takes a test over her words.
• ABC Work:
  Bear continues to work on ABC words and colors the worksheets while Squirrely Girl is doing the rest of her work.
• Reading:
  Squirrely Girl reads the same three leveled readers daily for a week, along with any other books she picks out.  She also reads and fills out a reading comprehension sheet once a week.
  
                                   Math
• Math Lesson:We go over the math lesson, practicing together using manipulatives. 
• Practice:
  We then complete any activities or worksheets that are in the MFW, or some days we simply play one of our games (Like Chutes and Ladders, Candy Land, Go Fish, Chocolate Chip Math, Math Bingo, or the Math-o-Matic game).
  
  
                                                                       Science
• Worksheets:
  Some days, we will do worksheets pertaining to the weeks topic.  I got some of these from various workbooks, the rest I printed off from sites online.
• Lapbooks:I sort of out together a lapbook of sorts to go along with this weeks lesson.  I include a lot of fill in the blank type work for Squirrely Girl to complete, and Bear has added some pictures of a few bugs that she colored.  I'm hoping that as the year goes on that Squirrely Girl will be able to put these together herself.  I am helping with at least the first few, especially since they are mostly handmade pieces rather than printouts.
• Games:I've put together a few games to review a few of our topics so far, and am hoping to make a few more.  This week, the girls played several rounds of the "Parts of an Insect Game".  We used dice, and they had to say the name of the body part before they could place their pieces in the correct place on their insect.  We had a lot of fun!|

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, we may do some art projects, color, and play some more in the afternoon.  Before bed, we also read a Bible story from one of our storybook bibles.  Right now, we're using these two!

 

 That's what our day looks like as of now!  What does your homeschool day look like?

Homemade Vapor Rub

As I've said before, coconut oil is sort of an obsession with me.  Its great for your hair, skin, and nails.  We use it as an every day lotion, but it really comes in handy when cold season hits.

Growing up, I can remember my mom slathering me in Vick's VapoRub.  It's one of my favorite things when I'm feeling under the weather, but taking a look at the ingredients put a stop to its use.  I no longer like using petroleum based products, which lead me in search of a natural alternative.

And what do you know?  I discovered yet another use for my beloved coconut oil!

The stuff is amazing, I tell you!

 

Homemade Vapor Rub

 

What you'll need:

2 Tablespoons coconut oil

Eucalyptus or peppermint essential oil
small plastic container with a lid

What to do:

1.  Add the coconut oil to your plastic container.

2.  Add 5-7 drops of your essential oil and stir together.  If it isn't strong enough to your liking, add more essential oil in 2 drop increments until you reach the desired strength.

3.  Once it's all mixed up, slather it on your chest* (and feet, if you're like me!) and inhale as you drift into a restful sleep!* When using for babies and children, use half the amount of essential oil, or dilute already made Vapor Rub with more coconut oil before application.

 

To Make Homemade Whipped Vapor Rub, follow the recipe for Whipped Coconut Oil, adding your either eucalyptus or peppermint essential oil into the bowl before whisking.
 

Whipped Coconut Oil

One of my favorite ways to use coconut oil is topically, from an all over moisturizer to an intensive conditioner for my hair.  This is a super simple recipe for whipped coconut oil to be used for beauty, and best of all there is only one required ingredient.  Yep, just one.



Even for skin care, make sure you are using food quality organic coconut oil.  Your skin is your largest organ and absorbs what you put on it, so make sure you slater on the good stuff!

Homemade Whipped Coconut Oil

What you'll need:

1 cup organic coconut oil, a little below room temperature

a few drop of your favorite essential oil, for fragrance (optional)

What to do:

1.  Place your ingredients into a bowl.  Do not use melted coconut oil for this, as it will not whip up properly. It must be solid.

2.  Mix on high speed with a wire whisk for 6-8 minutes, or until whipped to a light, airy consistency.

I suggest using an electric mixer for this step.  Do not use a blender or food processor, as they tend to get too hot and melt the oil.

3.  Spoon whipped coconut oil into a glass jar for storage.  Keep at room temperature, or in the fridge if your house is warm enough to melt the oil.

This will stay soft even when cool and shouldn't become hard like coconut normally does when it gets too cold.


This recipe is wonderfully easy and customizable.  Use it instead of lotion for the whole family, as a conditioner, and  shaving cream.  This recipe can also serve as the basis for Homemade Vapor Rub. 

The Hammond Family

Several weeks back, about the time we moved to Fort Worth, we had an amazing opportunity to catch up with Chris's Aunt Kelly.  She is an amazing, sweet lady, and offered to take pictures of our family! The pictures came out great, and I wanted to share them with you!



Shania and Kenzie were wearing their matching dresses that day.



They had so much fun chasing the chickens around the yard.



And Cole got to meet his first horse.  He doesn't look too happy about it!



My handsome men!  



Love the pop of color on this one.  Shania is looking beautiful.



Kenzie jumping and dancing around.  She's such a happy, fun girl.



This makes my heart swell in happiness. 



Simply me.






Chris's grandfather, Chris and Cole.  It was wonderful seeing them all together.



Chris, Cole, and I along with his Aunt Kelly and his Grandpa.





I absolutely love how the pictures turned out, and am so grateful that Kelly was able to capture a special day as we all spent time together.  The girls loved seeing the horses and chickens at their great grandpa's house, and we all enjoyed seeing family.