Little House in the Big Woods

"As the years pass, I am coming more and more to understand that it is the common, everyday blessings of our common everyday lives for which we should be particularly grateful.  They are the things that fill our lives with comfort and our hearts with gladness - just the pure air to breathe and the strength to breath it; just warmth and shelter and home folks; just plain food that gives us strength; the bright sunshine on a cold day; and a cool breeze when the day is warm." ~ Laura Ingalls Wilder

When we found out that we would be home-bound for awhile, I knew immediately what I wanted to do with the kids.  I wanted to read through the Little House Series.  Laura Ingalls Wilder is one of my favorite authors.  I love reading her books because they take me back to a much simpler time.  She has a way of describing home and everyday life with such fondness and incredible detail.  There's no place I'd rather be than home (which is a good thing right now!) and I think Laura felt the same way.  I couldn't wait to share a little history and create some fun memories with my kids during our time of isolation!

I purchased The Prairie Primer which is a literature based study using the entire Little House series.  It includes ideas for reading comprehension, writing, history, science, art, Bible, living, and more.  I have found it to be an INCREDIBLE resource. 

We have been reading a chapter a night from Little House In the Big Woods.  We've also listened to Alison Arngrim (Nellie) read aloud on her Facebook page. She's also had Almanzo on there reading "Farmer Boy" but we haven't gotten that far :)

I thought I'd share a few things we did as we read through the book!  Chapter 1 discussed Laura and Mary's dolls:

"Mary was bigger than Laura, and she had a rag doll named Nettie. Laura had only a corncob wrapped in a handkerchief, but it was a good doll. It was named Susan. It wasn't Susan's fault that she was only a corncob."

The girls made corncob and corn husk dolls to play with that night.  They even used a paper towel to wrap them in for awhile until finding a handkerchief downstairs.  They drew faces on them and planned on making some clothes...but we haven't gotten that far!  They surprisingly carried these around everywhere for a couple days! 

                          

In Chapter 2, Laura, Mary and Ma make butter.  So, we gave that a shot too!  Girl - you got to shake a lot for some butter!  We finally ended up with our butter and buttermilk.

Chapter 3 was mostly about Pa cleaning and loading his gun, so we took some time for gun safety.  The hubby had a muzzle loader so he took it apart, cleaned it and reloaded it much like Pa.  He gave them some gun safety tips along the way.  Then we went outside afterwards for some shooting practice. 

                        

The kids loved that the prayer Laura and Mary pray in Chapter 6 was the same prayer they pray alot at night. "Now I lay me down to sleep..."  

In Chapter 7, Pa and Grandpa collect sap to make maple syrup.  I was thinking it was probably too late for us to be able to actually collect it.  BUT...we did have a cold snap come through about this time so I thought maybe it would get the sap running!  So we did some research on how to tap trees and ordered some taps from Amazon.  While we were waiting on them to be delivered, we watched an episode of one of my favorite shows FarmHER where they visit a maple farm and show the process of making maple syrup.  We also took a couple walks over our property looking for trees to tap. This was quite a learning experience for me too!  There was a lot of discussion first about what types of trees would be good for making syrup.  Then, we had to identify those trees.  Then once we found the trees we tried to determine which ones would be the best for tapping.  We thought we had found one down by the creek.  It seemed to just have sap oozing out of it.  However, before we tapped we decided to ask my Dad who is a logger and pretty much a tree expert.  He came down to check out the tree and said it actually had the sap oozing out because it was dying...NOT the one we wanted to tap!  When our taps arrived, we tapped 5 maple trees and it ended up not even really mattering because apparently we had waited too late and never got any sap.  (Boo!)  I guess the snow still being on the ground in our book, should have been a good clue we had waited too long.  Anyway, we learned a lot through the process and there's always next year!  

"C" helping drill a hole in the tree

In Chapter 8, Laura and her family visit her Grandpa.  They ride through the snow in a one horse open sleigh (complete with sleigh bells-how fun would that be?) and Pa showed Laura the different tracks in the snow as they rode.  I printed off some common animal tracks to use as a guide and we took a hike around the house to identify some different tracks.  We saw cow (of course), horse, some type of dog (our dog had not walked that way) or coyote tracks.  Later in the week on a walk we also spotted some turkey tracks.  Other than tracks, we also found some cow bones.

This chapter was also a fun one because there was a barn dance after all the maple syrup was made.  Pa played his fiddle while everyone danced.  Grandma and Uncle George even had a competitive little dance-off!  (If you want to know who won you'll have to read the book ;)  I found Pa's Fiddle:Charles Ingalls, American Fiddler on Spotify and we did a little dancing in the living room!

We also kept a journal throughout the book and the children took turns writing different things down.  I can't even begin to tell about all the other great discussions that we had.  The Prairie Primer does a great job including scripture, character or even manner lessons with every chapter which led to some wonderful character building conversations.   This is also my third time to read this book and I don't remember there being so much rich detail about food in it.  It's funny how different things stand out to you when reading at different times.  Knowing where my food comes from and what I'm putting in my body has become very important to me (although you wouldn't know it by watching me during this quarantine) and this book made it SO easy to discuss those things with my kids!  Of course in the middle of the big woods, they had no choice but to be self-sufficient, especially with their food and other necessities.  We not only discussed butter and syrup; but oats, meat, cheese, johnny cake, hasty pudding (which we are still planning to try), and more!  Preserving was also a necessity for them.  The book went into great detail about preserving meat.  We  discussed bacteria, antibiotics and Louis Pasteur.  We watched this youtube video for a quick biography on Louis Pasteur.  We were discussing and learning about germs, antibiotics, and vaccines right as COVID-19 was really beginning to be diagnosed near us.  

We not only learned so much from this book, we also created some memories that I know we will all carry with us!  Home, self-sufficiency, food, keeping safe from bacteria and viruses...Laura's writings and the topics brought up in the book were totally relatable to us right now!  

“She thought to herself, "This is now." She was glad that the cozy house, and Pa and Ma and the firelight and the music, were now. They could not be forgotten, she thought, because now is now. It can never be a long time ago.”

We can't wait to dig into Little House on the Prairie and see what all experiences come with it next!!

I Spy God

 "What we do see depends mainly on what we look for...In the same field the farmer will notice the crop, the geologist the fossils, botanists the flowers, artists the colouring, sportmen the cover for the game.  Though we may all look at the same things, it does not all follow that we should see them." ~John Lubbock.

Our family has started this new thing that I'm loving.  Let me share a little background first:  When I begin to plan a new school year, I choose a word or phrase that's going to be our theme for the year.  It's what's going to get me through those days when I think "These kids are complete aliens and I have no idea what to do next."  (Moms-you've been there right??  Homeschool moms I KNOW you have.)  This year, my phrase is "Seek God."  It comes from my favorite verse, Matthew 6:33:

Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you.

I can't even BEGIN to tell you how many times I've read and even quoted this verse!  I've just always summed it up as "Put God first and everything else will fall into place."  You've heard that too, right?  Which is true, but recently the word "Seek" really stood out to me.  

Seek- v. to search or hunt 

Did you get that?  It's more than just putting something first or checking it off the top of your to-do list, it's searching or being on a hunt for it.  In this case, it's searching for God's sovereignty (His Kingdom) and His goodness (righteousness).    

• It's SEARCHING for His power and control in my own life.  
• It's LOOKING for how I can use my current situation to further His kingdom.  
• It's FINDING Him and His will in EVERY area of my life.  

That may mean I have to move some things around (or completely get rid of them) to have a clearer vision of it.  It may mean digging down deeper and really stepping out on faith.  It may mean it's going to take some time of just residing in His presence until He's ready for me to move forward.  It WILL mean recognizing who He is and completely surrendering to Him.  

I'm a practical girl and as God began to reveal this to me, I began to think about how we could apply this even more to our daily study and just life in general.  How could we get in a habit of searching for God in our daily lives?  I decided to start a little game of "I Spy God" in our family.  (Thus the thing I'm loving💓)  When we spot a "God thing", we say "I spy God."  That gets everyone's attention and then we guess what it is.

So, where all have we seen God?  In sunsets, in rainbows, in each other's actions, in the actions of others, at home, in the car, at school, outside, and the list continues...  

Sunset from our Front Porch

About a week after we started this, I was folding clothes and my oldest daughter walked by and said, "I Spy God."  I was looking around the room wondering what she was referring to and she grinned and said, "Thanks for folding our clothes."  I may never get thanked for doing laundry again but it sure felt good that day!  

Playing "I Spy God" has also made us all slow down a good bit, which is one of my goals in life anyway.  A couple weeks ago, we had finished up most everything for the day and my younger daughter asked if we could just go outside and sit and see if we could spy God.  My response was, "Of course"!  We fixed a hot cup of tea and went outside and watched the sunset, discussing all the ways we could see God.

Another one of our major times of "spying God" has been on our hikes.  Camping and hiking have become some of our favorite things to do as a family.  Being outdoors is one of my favorite places to be, because God is so evident, especially this time of year.  (You know, like in those 2 days of fall we had!)  We spied God in the changing leaves, different rock formations, deer, songs along the way, and some hilarious conversations.  On one hike, my oldest daughter declared she was never getting married to which my four year old son replied, "If God tells you to, you have to whether you want to or not!"  Even at the age of 4, he already knows how important it is to follow God's direction for your life.  I spy God.    

Mushroom Rock at Horse Pens 40

Gorgeous view from the top of Chandler Mountain

Deer at Lake Guntersville State Park

In approaching this Christmas season, I hope that we can all slow down and "spy God" a little more all around us.  At the time of Christ's birth there were some right in Bethlehem that had no clue the Savior was being born.  There were some that had no room for Him.  There were also some that came with haste to find him.  There were others that traveled miles and miles from another country SEEKING the Christ child.  They took the time and spied God, and the paths of their lives forever changed.  When we take the time to spy God in our own lives, to recognize His goodness and power, we are forever changed.  Life begins to fall into place and eventually we find Him, the greatest gift of all.   Seek and we shall find.  What will you spy today?

The Best Gift We Can Give This Christmas

"God will give you a place to inhabit, which means you get to become attentive to what is there where you are. This means that to dwell knowledgeably and hospitably in and toward the place God gives you is to glorify Him. God will give you a few things that he intends for you to do in your inhabited place and with those people. To do what God gives you to do is to strengthen the common good and to glorify him."  Zach Eswine


Several months ago, I was in the car with my Mom and sister and we were talking about Christmas.  We talked about how much fun it would be to have our family, friends and community all come together for a tree lighting and to sing some Christmas carols.  You know, like we see in all the Hallmark movies?   Thus, Country Creek Christmas was born.

This Friday night, our family will be opening up our farm (working farm mind you, not an "event location") to share a little bit of what Christmas really means to us.  We will start - where it all started - with a live nativity in the barn.  Then we will light a huge tree cut from the farm.  Following the tree lighting, we will have live music in the backyard and Santa in the front yard.  Hot chocolate and cookies will be provided in hopes that everyone will stick around for awhile for some fellowship! 

So why are we doing this?  First of all, just to be able to share some time with our family and friends.  It has already been a huge blessing just in preparing it and seeing everyone come together.  I have been amazed at the people that have shown interest and volunteered to help.  Secondly, we hope it will be a reminder to everyone to slow down this Christmas and be attentive to what-or better yet, who- is right in front of you. 

That's what Christmas is really about - the presence, not the presents.  It's about first being in the presence of Christ so that He can fill us up with exactly what we need.  Then taking that and letting it overflow into those that are right around us.

I've often wondered on that night over 2,000 years ago, how many people rushed right by that stable without even knowing the long awaited Messiah was there?  How many had spent years in the tabernacles hearing the prophesies, yet they were so wrapped up in their own agendas, they missed the Savior wrapped in swaddling clothes?  They missed the most important Christmas and the best gift ever given.

I don't want that to be me this Christmas!  I want to put down my phone and my shopping lists and look up.  Really see those that are right around me.  God has given us all a place.  It may be in our own home.  It may be as we go to the grocery store or work today.  It may be in another country.  Wherever we are, He has intentionally placed certain people in our lives.  Let's be attentive.  Be with them.  Build relationships.  Most of all give them the best present we can give this Christmas-our presence!

A Book Review: Daring to Hope

(This post contains affiliate links which means when you order from these link I will receive a percent of the profit.  I am also a part of the Daring to Hope Launch team and was given a copy of the book to review.  In full disclosure, I had already preordered the book because I knew it would be that good!)

About 6 years ago, I ran across the book Kisses from Katie, I had just quit my full time job teaching to stay at home with our baby girl.  I almost didn't read the book.  I thought, "How can I, a 31 year old mom who is at home 90% of the time, relate to a girl out of high school that gave up everything to move around the world to be a missionary?"  But - I read it anyway.  It broke me, challenged me, and encouraged me in a way no other book, outside of the Bible, ever has.  It wasn't just a story of  a missionary, but of a girl that completely surrendered her life to Christ.  It was exactly what I needed at that point in my life.
 
Fast forward, to the present...and I see her second book coming out, Daring to Hope.  It's a continuation of Katie's story in Uganda.  How she has overcame so much and been able to have a deeper relationship with God through it all.  Again, I think "I can't really relate to that.  I'm not seeing devastation, starvation, and death all around me like Katie is."  However, because the first one was just SO good, I went ahead and preordered it.  A few weeks later, I had the opportunity to join the launch team for an early preview of the book.  Little did I know that about the time the book would arrive, I'd be facing some serious spiritual issues.  Things that made me question everything in which I believed.  God always has a way with perfect timing.  As  I read the book, I too, like Katie, wrestled with God through some things.  To be honest, I'm still wrestling through some things, but here are some truths that Katie reminded me of in her book:
 
God is still God even when I don't get MY ending.

We've all been there.  That time in our life when we think we know better than God does.   When it seems that our way is the only way for "all things to work for good."  When we're praying and praying, but God just keeps right on leading in a different direction.  Katie was there too.  She had to surrender a foster child back to the natural mother and she is so open and honest about it.  She says: 

God kept reminding me that I wasn't the writer of this story, and that when I tried to write all the endings, wrapping them up in a neat little package, I was diminishing who He was and all He could do.  He was asking me to trust Him, to believe that He would bring about His own glory even when I couldn't see it.

Maybe we don't always see the big picture, but God does.  Sometimes the big picture may include uncomfortable, challenging moments to us but that doesn't make Him any less good.  He will love us right through it and we will be able to look back and see how He used it for His glory. 

God shows me SO much through the eyes of being a mom.
 
Maybe we are literally a world away; however, Katie and I face some of the same struggles as a mom.  Grant it she has 8 more kids than me in a 3rd world country, but we are still trying to raise our children in a way God would be pleased.  Often that means giving up control to Him even in our own homes.  It means realizing we can't do it without Him; in fact He never meant for us to.  When it comes to being a mom, He has a way of humbling me and deepening my relationship as His daughter.
 

 
I'm just barely scratching the surface on this one - but Katie really speaks to my mom heart.

Our mission field is all around us.
 
For Katie, it's Uganda.  For me, it's my own home, it's my neighborhood, it's my church, it's wherever we may be that day.   We both have our own issues to get past - for Katie it's disease, uncleanliness, lack of food and supplies; for me, it's modern day culture, the constant race against time,  and having so much we don't even realize what we really need.  She lives in a world that is so hungry for natural and spiritual food.  I live in a world that is so overfed, we often choose complacency and self-centered desires, over what is best for us.  In both places, there are needs all around us. 

Katie speaks of practicing the art of being interrupted.   I begin my day with my own agenda and instead of taking advantages of what God places in front of me as a ministry, I often just consider it an interruption.  I've been able to go on a couple of mission trips and when I came back from the second one, I remember thinking one of the best parts was just being focused on Christ and that communities needs for the week.  Katie reminds me that , "Life was certainly intended to be lived as ongoing ministry, not separate from ministry."
 

 
 
There is always hope, there is always a cause.
 
It's easy to look around at the world and think, it's just not worth it.  We're already too far gone.  I don't want to risk hurting myself or hurting my family.  Guess what?  Christ went through death, hell and the grave for us and because of that we have hope!  There's our own children, neighbors' children and future generations that need Christ, so we have a cause.  Katie shares how she had to learn how to put herself out there and trust God even at a time He was asking her to take care of someone very similar to a friend that had just passed away.  It may hurt us for a season, but if it brings glory to God isn't it worth it in the end?  Sometimes the only way to know God better is by coming to know His children better.   
 
 

 
  
And perhaps the biggest reminder of all throughout the entire book - Through our trials we come to know God in a deeper way as He shapes us into the person He wants us to be.
 
We all have trials - God rains on the just and the unjust.  However, there's a difference between someone seeking Christ through a trial and someone just wallowing their way through it.  When we seek Him through the trial, he shapes us and molds us into what He wants us to be.  We are drawn closer to Him and He reveals more of Himself to us.  Our trials can have purpose.  They can strengthen us in ways we wouldn't have otherwise been strengthened.  They can help us depend and know God in ways we otherwise wouldn't have.   Katie has certainly not lead a life without disappointments or trials, yet she has learned to surrender to His will and praise Him through the storm.

The woman with the issue of blood never would have reached for Jesus so desperately had she not been bleeding.  Certainly, twelve year of sickness and being completely ostracized is not desirable, but to have Jesus himself look into her eyes- was it worth it?  Though we would rather be delivered from our suffering and our trials, or never encounter them at all, I have come to long for the tender care of Jesus that fees most tangible in places of pain and desperation.

 
 I actually wrote down 5 other points, but I'm not going to share them all, because I want you to read the book!  Scriptures came to life in ways that I hadn't seen them before.  Did I mention that in a 200 page book, I had over 50 post it notes from quotes I wanted to remember?  Or that I was in tears by page 3?  On my knees by the second chapter?  Amen-ing through the entire book?  Rejoicing alongside Katie towards the end?  It's that good, y'all!!
 
God is the same yesterday, today and forevermore.  In this book, Katie shares how God has proven His presence in her life, especially in the most difficult times.  She reminds me that if God was there for Abraham, Jacob, Mary, and her, then He will be there for me.  She also reminds me that God's purpose is to take the broken and make it beautiful.  That's exactly what He can do, when I surrender my life to Him. 

Through her testimony and the places in her own life she has marked, "God will provide" she inspires me to step out on faith to try Him even more.  She encourages me to draw close to Christ and help meet those needs around me.  She dares me to hope.

Daring to Hope will be released on October 3.  However, if you preorder it between now and October 3 you will also receive a free gift.  Simply go here and order the book.  Then go to https://amazima.org/daringtohope to enter your information for your free gift. 

Anyone want to win a copy????  When I was chosen to be on the launch team, I had already preordered my copy of the book, so I thought I'd just pay if forward!  If you'd like to win a copy, simply share this blog post on Facebook and then comment on the blog.  U.S. residents only.  I will contact the winner on October 3.
 
 

A Reflection on God's Faithfulness...



Southern Psalms - location of the Calling All Women's Conference

"Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think according to the power that worketh in us, unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end.  Amen."  Ephesians 3:20-21

This time last week, I was battling Satan.  I was scheduled to be one of the speaker's at a Women's Conference and Satan was telling me it was impossible.  He has ways of keeping us quiet and at first he was doing pretty good with me.  Telling me I was too quiet and shy to speak in front of people.  Which is partly true - I am more of a quiet person.  Even my own husband said he'd never heard me speak a solid 15-20 minutes!  Yet, the part he was leaving out was that while I couldn't- God could!  I knew it was something God wanted me to do.  At first, I tried to be like Moses and pray for an Aaron but that didn't work either!  God said I had to do it. 

So, the way I saw it, I could either believe Satan's lies and live defeated or I could step out on faith and trust God to use me as a willing vessel for Him. 

So, I had spent the last few weeks - months really- in a spiritual war with Satan.  I had been trying to guard my mind and come back at him with scriptures such as Philippians 4:6-8, 13; 2 Timothy 1:7; and James 4:6-8.  And there I was at the moment of truth, I was the next speaker and I literally felt nauseated.  My legs were shaking, I even wondered if I'd make it up to that podium without falling.  But I did!  And when I did, a peace
that passeth all understanding took over.  God was faithful once again!  There was no way to explain it, except it was a God thing!

I was able to share a little about the importance of being a wife and mom and what God has done for our family, including providing a way for me to be a stay at home mom.  Also, what He has revealed to me during this time on living out my priorities and being more intentional with my time.  I am so thankful for the opportunity to be able to be a part of this Women's Conference.  No doubt, throughout the process, it was me that grew the most.  First of all, in just reflecting and seeing how real He had been over the past seven years.  I could now look back and see that even in my times of uncertainty how He was working all things out for the good of me and my family.   Secondly, as God continued to stretch me and make me step outside my comfort zone, He drew me closer to Him and revealed once again that when I need Him the most - He's always there and will never fail me. 

The conference was on Saturday, then on Sunday we wrapped up another year of Classical Conversations with our end of the year celebration.  Once more, I just sat back and reflected on God's goodness.  So many questions I had when we began this homeschooling journey- to be honest, so many questions I still have- but as I looked over the last two years, I could once again see God's presence woven throughout! 

First of all, I can see His presence in our Classical Conversations group.  I was probably one of the biggest skeptics of all as I went to my first CC info meeting.  I, who had been working with preschoolers for several years, thought it was absolutely ludicrous to try and teach my preschooler a song that lasted almost 20 minutes and covered the entire history of the world-and that was just scratching the surface of their memory work!  However, they sucked me in with their motto "To Know God and to Make Him Known" and the idea of community as I wanted my children to still be involved with other kids.  As I looked around Sunday and saw the community God had given us to help raise our children, I was so thankful for the wonderful families that truly lived out His will for their lives.  

Not only were we teaching our children facts, but  more importantly, we were teaching them what a community truly should look like. On a weekly basis my children were seeing families, that truly valued children and others over material things-which to be quiet honest is so rare in today's society. 

We look so very different within each family:  some with foster children, some with adopted children, some with children from other countries, some with many children, some with one, some seriously struggling with health issues within their families, some with financial issues, and I could go on and on. 

Yet, here we all were encouraging each other, lending a helping hand and trying to teach our children more than anything else - to know God and to make Him known! 

Because really, is there any other reason we should be educating our children? And you know what else - I love that timeline song!  

Secondly, God's presence has been evident through our time at home together "schooling".  In case you didn't know school comes from the Greek word "schole" which means "leisure".   The Greeks considered it a pleasure to be done working and to sit around and read and discuss ideas.  That's how some of the greatest philosophers  and ideas came.  Looking back, it's been in those moments we've slowed down that we've learned the most about each other, the world around us and most importantly, God.  While the future still holds many uncertainties, I'm so thankful for these years at home to give my children a God centered worldview and a strong foundation to build upon. 

I know this has probably been one of my most scattered post ever written; however, after last weekend, it's where my mind has been this week:  Rejoicing over God's goodness and faithfulness throughout our journey so far! 

In closing, I encourage you to not let Satan fill your mind and life with his lies.  Don't live defeated.  Instead, guard your mind and life by knowing and trusting in God's word.  Speaking at the women's conference and homeschooling are only two instances where I've stepped out on faith and witnessed His faithfulness.  Had I of believed Satan's lies or just went with what today's society said I would've missed these two HUGE blessings!   It doesn't always make sense to us, but that's because we only see a few of the pieces of the puzzle at a time.  God has a plan for your life that is "exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think" - step out on faith and live it!  Then you too will be reflecting on His faithfulness...



 

A Look Inside Our Homeschool Week

One of the questions I often get asked is "What does a homeschool day look like?"  That's really a tough question to answer because it's different for everyone and even our days often look different from each other; that's one of the beauties of homeschooling!  However, as we wind down this year-I wanted a reminder of what some of our weeks looked like so here's what last week looked like for us:

Monday was an actual "class" day - as in we were in the "classroom" in our basement.  We start earlier on Monday mornings (8:00 am) to be done by 10:30 and head to piano. We begin our mornings with our CC memory work, followed by "carpet time" (calendar, pledge, weather, etc). Then I do reading/language with Miss Priss (Abeka) while the other two do seatwork and tray time (Confessions of a Homeschooler, 1+1+1=1).  Then I swap and Miss Priss does her seat work while I work with the other two. Then I swap back and do math with Miss Priss while the other two do more seatwork and puzzles or another center. One last swap and I do math with the other two (Math U See) while
Miss Priss does her math seat work.  Totally confused yet?   

 

We then head to piano and run errands!  When we get back after lunch, we usually have read aloud time.  This week we read James and the Giant Peach in preparation for our field trip to see the play on Thursday. 

 

 

Tuesday is our Classical Conversations community day. We meet and the children learn their new memory work, do art/music, science and a presentation.  This week we spent some time reviewing and preparing for our end of the year celebration.  Then we tested straw bridges and egg crates that we had built in previous weeks.  It was so fun watching the kids' faces as we tested their projects!

 

This week for presentation it was just a show and tell. Miss Priss wanted to take her Bible for her presentation.  Ladybug took a new purse she had bought while we were on vacation.
 

Wednesday was a "traveling school day" as I've come to call them. Since the weather has been sooo nice lately, we've been putting our school work, some snacks and a blanket into a wagon and taking school on the go!  We walk until we find a comfy place to sit - usually by the creek or a pond.   This day it was by the pond!

 

On our walk back, I had a few extra "students"!

 

 

 

 

Thursday was a field trip to see James and the Giant Peach with our CC group.  It's always fun seeing a play or watching a movie after reading the book!

 

 

 

Friday was supposed to be back in the classroom.  However, my Mom called and decided she wanted to go to Vintage Market Days and wanted to know if we wanted to go with her.  Had it of been the beginning of the school year, I wouldn't have.  I would have totally stuck to my schedule. However, what teacher doesn't get a little lax toward the end of the school year?  So, we loaded all of our worksheets onto clipboards for the car and went along with her!

 

 

We were glad we did because other than scoring an awesome bread bowl centerpiece for my kitchen table, we also met an author's husband and discovered a new set of books.  It was interesting listening to him tell about how his wife had taken her childhood experiences on a farm and written a series.  Each book includes original recipes, songs, and a character lesson.  Miss Priss chose the first two in the series and I can't wait to read them!

 

Down on Friendly Farm



We made it back home a little after lunch and managed to get in some classroom time finishing up James and the Giant Peach and doing a few assignments on it. 

 

We wrapped up our school week with a family movie night.  Any guesses what we watched?  You bet!  James and the Giant Peach.  We had gummy worms, peach rings, and peach soda with popcorn.  Not surprisingly, out of the movie, play and book - the book was my favorite :)

So there you have it - a crazy week of homeschooling!