Author Archive

Thought Provoking Video

I have seen this video a few times now and it always makes me think. First of all, Paul Washer rocks! :) Secondly, I agree with much of this video if not all of it and even if you don’t agree with it please take the time to think and pray about it.

The part I really want to point out and make sure you catch is the part about public schools. How can we as Christians send our children to be educated by the World, or as Paul Washer puts it Satan. We are to train our children up at home. We can’t expect the little bit of teaching we give them when they get home from school (if we have time and aren’t too tired from homework and housework since mom isn’t home doing it) and church to make our kids Godly! If we want to raise up a generation of rock solid Christians who can make it through the coming persecutions we need to be training them at home and training them in the Word first and foremost!

Franklin the Cowboy

Well finally Franklin has one of his costumes. I have finished the Cowboy one. Ben was very excited to get it and we put it on him right away. That poor turtle is well loved. I’m not sure how long he will survive. The shells seem to be surviving good though so I can always make another turtle if need be. I’d rather he play with it than it just sit around in perfect shape. So without further ado, I present to you…Franklin (Sheldon) the Cowboy!

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Micro Bike Riding

Aunt Annie and Uncle Paul came over for dinner last night. When they got here Ben wanted to show them how he rides his bike without training wheels. I told them that he tried to ride the micro bike they got him for his birthday last year but it was still too hard for them. Uncle Paul asked if he could try it since he had only tried it in his house and not outside. So I got it out for him and well….it was pretty funny. I video taped him and Aunt Annie trying to ride it. I hope you enjoy the videos. :)

Busy Knitting

I have been very busy doing lots and lots of knitting. I just haven’t posted much about it. :( Bad blogger. So here are some updated pictures of projects and what I am working on now. Enjoy!

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Here is Ben’s Moderne Baby Blanket. It was a lot of fun to knit and I am so glad I finished it. I told myself I had to finish it before I started a new project and I stuck to my word although it was tough. Since I did finish it I was able to start Mr. Foster. And here he is….

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I just started him on Saturday and I am joining the arms this afternoon. I was so worried about this pattern because lots of people have had problems but it was a cinch.

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Here is my finished Classic Lines Cardigan. It went super fast and I just love this sweater. I knit it longer than it was intended on accident but I still love it and can’t wait to knit another one.

Now you are pretty much all caught up on my knitting. I do have a couple more projects in the works but at least I posted something knitting related. :)

No Training Wheels



Ben just came home from his dad’s last night and announced that he can ride his bike without training wheels.  I can’t believe how BIG my baby is getting.  It seems like it was just yesterday I brought him home from the hospital and now at almost five he is riding a bike like a pro.

The thought of no more training wheels made me think about how many of us Chrisitans ride through our Spiritual lives with training wheels on.  We don’t study or read the Word for ourselves we just trust the Pastor to do so.  We need to take the training wheels off so to speak and start searching the Word on our own.  Especially with the amount of false teachers spouting heresy nowadays.  If we are not studying the Word on our own we will not recognize false teachers when they come.

I have a couple of recommendations for ways to get in the Word and study it for yourself (get those training wheels off).  The first is to check out Precept Ministries from Kay Arthur.  I have read her book How to Study Your Bible
; and it is very good.  Some of you know that I have my Bachelor’s in Theology and yet this book put studying the Bible in such a concise, practical format that it has me excited once again to dig into the deeper truths of God’s Word.  The other resource I would recommend is Todd Friel’s (of Wretched TV) Herman Who? It is a fairly short DVD teaching on Hermeneutics.

So get those training wheels off and start digging into the Word for yourself.

Happy Memorial Day Weekend

Reading the Bible with Your Children


Reading the Bible with our son has been such a great blessing in our family. For some time we had been reading to him out of a Bible storybook. Then one day my husband stumbled across an article on Titus2.com about reading to your little ones out of the “real” Bible. While I was not initially convinced, I submitted to his decision and he began reading to our son a segment out of the Bible every night, starting in Revelation (of all places!). We originally read out of the NKJV, but then switch to NIV because it is an accurate translation and easier for a youngster to follow. Eventually we bought our son his very first “real” Bible, a VeggieTales NIV Bible, which we now read from with him. I think it’s special that he has his own little Bible which he can look at during Bible study at our LIFE Group (it has Veggie-Tales comic strip inserts relating to Bible stories) and when we read to him in the evenings we’re reading from his very own Bible. He also has a Hermie Plush Backpack Bible Cover and you can get a Hermie & Friend’s Bible to go with it. :)

Hermie Bible Backpack

Inside the Bible

Another inside picture with a comic strip

The outside of Ben’s Bible

While it took me quite awhile to be completely sold on the idea, I was amazed that our son would actually pick up on things from the text. Ben is sometimes reluctant (especially at first), but he is actually absorbing the Word of God. A child’s mind is much more complex and ready to understand things than we often think. A recent example of how Ben is really getting it was when he was playing with his cars the other day. He was playing with the ones from the Disney-Pixar movie Cars, and I heard him tell one of the cars that “the first shall be last, and the last shall be first.” He even said “shall.” :) It just melted my mommy heart. I love that he is actually picking up on these concepts; all it takes is a mommy and daddy willing to put up with the fussing and actually read the Bible to their children.

I encourage you today to start reading to your children from the Word of God. They may not look like they are listening or care, but it is being absorbed.

Proverbs 22:6 – “Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it.” ESV

Isaiah 55:11 – “so shall my words be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” ESV

2 Timothy 2:15 – “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” ESV

Hadi’s New Trick

Funny Homeschool Video

TOS WeE-book Series Review


Introduction: WeE-book Series

This is my second review (which will actually be three reviews) in connection with The Old Schoolhouse (TOS) Homeschool Crew application process. The following short reviews will focus on three of TOS Magazine’s WeE-book Series books and should provide a taste for the series as a whole.

Building Strong Arithmetic Thinking

The first WeE-book I chose was Building Strong Arithmetic Thinking by Dr. Ruth Beechick. It was a quick read regarding how most preschool to third graders do not grasp the abstract concepts we try to teach them in beginning math. Dr. Beechick gives some excellent examples of how to concretely teach your children mathematical concepts and basic math skills. She also provides a very useful worksheet to help you keep track of how your child is progressing.

This e-book helped me realize that I am on the right track with my approach to teaching my son math. (No wonder he is good at math so far. :) I have chosen a math curriculum (Math-U-See) that emphasizes visual and logical metaphors for teaching children to learn math and understand abstract concepts. I believe that this curriculum is in line with the concepts and goals noted by this e-book, and I was very encouraged that the approach I am taking with teaching math to my son is correct.

The “Me Time” Myth
WeE-book: The
The second WeE-book I chose was The “Me Time” Myth by Amy Roberts. We are bombarded in our world by the term “me time”. We are told by psychologists, pediatricians, and so on that we must have “me time” or we won’t be good parents. However, as Ms. Roberts outlines in her book: any “me time” we get, in order for it to truly be satisfying and fruitful, must be spent with our Heavenly Father; He is the only One who can truly satisfy and re energize us for the job He has called us to as a wife and mother. It’s not really “me time” that is helpful, but rather time spent in the presence of our Heavenly Father and in His Word.

This e-book was exactly what I needed to hear right now, and it fits right into how I have been feeling. Since my struggle with postpartum depression, I have often been told I need this so called “me time”; but rather than feeling refreshed, I’ve found that it normally causes me to dread coming back to real life. This e-book addresses this very issue. It was great to know I wasn’t the only one who struggles with the whole “me time” idea.

This WeE-book is a great read and I truly believe every mom, whether she homeschools or not, needs to get a copy of this e-book and read it. And then, when you start to get overwhelmed, read it again! I believe it is a message straight from God to the wives and mothers of this current generation.

Are Parents Really Necessary? A Guide to Preschool Education

The last WeE-book I chose was Are Parents Really Necessary? A Guide to Preschool Education by Amelia Harper. This terrific e-book covers the myths regarding early childhood education. If you are feeling pressured to put your three or four-year-old into formalized, all day preschool, then you need to read this e-book. Amelia outlines a series of myths and refutes them one by one. She also covers the top ten things that a preschooler needs to learn, and includes some fantastic worksheets in the appendix. There is a lot of useful material included for the price making this e-book a real bargain.

Conclusion
Overall I really enjoyed reading these three e-books and would highly recommend that you explore the titles and try a few out for yourself. The WeE-book line currently consists of 39 e-books; at only $1.95 each, this series is a very affordable resource to motivate and educate. These short e-books only take about 10 to 15 minutes to read and are also easy to digest. This makes them a great read for a busy homeschooling mom. Each WeE-book ends with a very useful appendix on how to do homeschool. I believe the WeE-book series is a terrific product by TOS which will help busy homeschool moms everywhere!

PS
After my husband went to great lengths to edit this post and my last post, we decided not to apply for the Homeschool Crew. We have decided that it would be too stressful for me and not a great idea for our first year of more structured homeschool. But my husband went to great lengths to edit this and I believe the review may still be helpful to some so that is why I am posting it. I hope you enjoyed it.