Yo! It's a Book Review!

I'm a magnet for useless trivia.

Back when I had a better memory I used to soak up information like a sponge.  My motivation was that perhaps one day I would need it.  Every now and then, in a class, conversation or random Jeopardy episode I would get my chance to showcase my efforts.

In the spirit of knowledge and useless trivia I wanted to find an easy way to learn the U.S. Presidents in order.  I stumbled came across two magical books, Yo, Millard Fillmore and Yo, Sacramento by Will Cleveland and Mark Alvarez.  These books use word and picture association to assist in memorizing those tedious lessons we all need to know at sometime or 'nother!

Our library didn't have either book so we requested them through Inter-Library Loan.  The first book to come in was Yo, Sacramento.  Through picture and word association this book teaches readers the state capitals.  An example for Augusta, Maine is "A gust of wind blew down Main Street."  The accompanying picture shows a windy street. 

Gman (and also myself) learned the state capitals in about 2 hours!  And we still know them!  We practice in the car and around the house by quizzing each other.  I'll give him the capital and he'll name the state and then I'll give him the state and name the capital.

The second book, Yo, Millard Fillmore, begins with a picture of a washing machine in the yard at the White House.  The accompanying sentence is "Wash a ton for George Washington."  Then the authors build a story from that first picture.  "Imagine that when you raise the lid of the washing machine and look inside, there are a lot of atoms swirling around in the water.  Atoms for Adams."  The second President is John Adams.  "What's this? Well, now the atoms are being fried up over a grill by a chef's son who is wearing his father's big chef's hat.  Chef's son for Jefferson."  The third president is Thomas Jefferson.

The book also gives you easy tips for remembering the corresponding number for a president.  For instance, Monroe is a picture of money rowing a boat.  The money is a five dollar bill with Monroe on it.  He was the 5th president.  That way, if someone were to ask you who the 8th President was, you could reference the 5th and work your way forward.  Or remember the 10th (John Tyler) and work your way back.

They're fun and easy books.  Gman had a great time learning his capitals and Presidents.  He's so proud of his accomplishments!  Quiz him next time you see him!

By the way, the 8th President was Martin van Buren...just some useless trivia for ya.

The Boys of Summer

Fishing poles and ice cream cones,

"No, Mom, I'll do it on my own."

Hot nights outside with the stars and moon,

The boys of summer coming soon

 Bikes, trikes and scraped up knees,

"More watermelon if you please."

Blowing bubbles and roller skates

The boys of summer stay up late.

Matinees and dollar days,

The temperature is all ablaze.

Hammocks, wagons, laundry on the line

The boys of summer one more time.

Wagons, lightning bugs, splashing in the pool

Frozen slushies keeps us cool.

Garden fresh, soft summer rain,

The boys of summer, back again.

--FB

A New Objective...

So I haven't blogged in a REALLY long time. My apologies. I know my followers have been hanging on by their teeth for me to bestow upon you the the wonderful golden nugget of knowledge...

Yeah, I know...that's completely facetious...

However, given my (at times lame) attempt at blogging and my continued desire to do so I've decided to change my focus and direction of my blog. Yes, it will still be a "we want a farm/here's how we did it" type blog but it will also include (hopefully) a glimpse of our daily doin's as well. I've got a lot more material in this facet!

As most of you know I'm a (blissfully blessed) stay at home Momma. I've had a few in-home jobs such as transcribing and babysitting but at the moment I've put those aside and am a full-time, 100%, 24 hour a day Mom/Wife (and yet I still can’t get supper on the table every night). Not too long ago my hubby and I kicked around the idea of homeschooling our oldest, Gman.

You may be asking yourself, “why?”  Well, most importantly we wanted to get Gman back in to a Christian based schooling program.  He went to a private school for kindergarten and first grade. We all loved it.  Due to some theoretical differences and financial obligations (our 2^nd son was on his way) we decided we’d try public school. 

Gman LOVED public school!  We had two very wonderful years with excellent teachers and staff.  I cannot praise his experience enough.  However, we felt as though the “Camelot” was ending and that perhaps his extraordinary public school experience wouldn’t last.  We decided not to take that gamble and instead teach Gman at home. 

After much consideration, reading, research and talking to and emailing other homeschool families we've decided. It's official, we're homeschooling!!

We've purchased a curriculum, two actually. The first and foremost is Switched On Schoolhouse by AlphaOmega. This is a Christian based software curriculum that will guide Gman and myself through the daily to-do's of homeschooling. We purchased the 5 subject set; Bible, History, Science, Math and Language Arts. All the work, testing, journaling and daily documentation required will be done on the computer.

The second curriculum we purchased was a book by the American Education Publishing company. It’s basically a book of torture devices worksheets.  I admit, it was a bit of an impulse buy on my part but I was looking for something to supplement the SOS software anyway; this just saved my printer toner and provided something tangible for the file cabinet!

We are all absolutely thrilled and (albeit cautiously) optimistic about the up and coming school year.  Gman is totally on board and excited about this adventure.  We hope and pray that we’re doing the right thing and that he’ll thrive in this environment.  I’m very excited about doing hands-on activities like science experiments and field trips.  Any experience can be a learning experience.  There is a lesson in everything.  Golden nugget anyone?



“All experience is an arch wherethrough gleams that untraveled world…”  -Tennyson

I bargained with Life for a penny,
And Life would pay no more,
However I begged at evening
When I counted my scanty store.

 

For Life is just an employer,
He gives you what you ask,
But once you have set the wages,
Why, you must bear the task.

 

I worked for a menial’s hire,
Only to learn, dismayed,
That any wage I had asked of Life,
Life would have willingly paid

Pinch to Grow an Inch!

After a minor setback...our plants are taking off!! 

With high hopes we planted our seeds in late February.  Within days they surprised us by sprouting with energy and drive!  Just as quickly as they sprouted, they wilted.  "What went wrong?" we wondered.  The only thing we could come up with was that these fragile plants, residing in our kitchen, were somehow exposed to heat or fumes from our cooking.  No, I don't burn everything...but perhaps in the formative days these poor dears needed to send us a message:  we can't handle the heat...get us out of the kitchen.  After a reprieve to another room they bounced right back!  No harm done.  However, I can't say I'll be surprised if our herbs/veggies have a slight bacon flavor.

Worried we'd lose them completely we quickly planted another set, identical to the first.  Now we have double the produce!  Double the fun!

In the recent days they've grown hardy and strong enough to transplant!  The process is to transplant to bigger containers until they're strong enough for the ground - and until there is no more threat of a frost!  We plan on utilizing this process year round!  Fresh, home grown tomatoes in December anyone?

We have tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, cabbage, herbs such as mustard, thyme, and lavendar, eggplant (yay!) and onions transplanted.  I'm hungry just thinking about them!

Spring has Sprung!

When you see upon the walk,
Circles newly made of chalk,
And around them all the day,
Little boys in eager play.   
                           --Evaleen Stein



What we've been up to...

It's been awhile since my last post but we've been busy!  We received a wonderful gift from Farmers Jerry and Pat, a greenhouse!  It's perfect for our small home.  We planted peppers, herbs and eggplant (my personal favorite) amongst others in a styrofoam tray.  Each tray holds over 600 plants!  When the tiny plants sprout we'll start transferring them to larger containers until they're ready for the ground!  Can't wait!!  The top picture is our "garden,"  currently germinating in our kitchen.  The bottom two are the rapidly progressing plants of our personal fountain of knowledge, Farmer Jerry.