My Normal/Crazy Days with Kids

Being with your children 24 x 7 can actually drive a mom crazy. I don’t mean literally crazy, but you know, just crazy in a nice and funny kind of way at times. I don’t know how many times I’ve cried aloud “Lord, please help me!” when dealing with my kids. I usually do this when all four are trying to get my attention at the same time. Just this afternoon while we were studying in bed – yes, this is how we usually are:

I was teaching all three of the sisters at the same time. The two big ones have the same subject while the other one have her own workbook. Of course, not to be outdone, Flash Boy comes to me with a book of his own asking me to read it to him. How can I possibly do 4 things at the same time?

I can’t so I had to reject Flash Boy’s request. Nonetheless, we were still able to finish our schoolwork today.

Here are still a few things that go on as part of our normal day that can sometimes drive me crazy, but ultimately, makes me thank God for these four beautiful blessings in our lives.

While studying Maths one day, Guitar Babe and Artsy Princess were whispering in front of me as if I wasn’t there.

Me: Hey, what are you two doing? Guitar Babe, why are you telling her the answer to her worksheets? That’s cheating!

Guitar Babe: It’s not cheating, Mom. It’s called teamwork!

Hmm… trying to put one over me.

Here’s another conversation with my Sunshine Girl one day while I was trying to get her to take an afternoon nap.

Me: Go to sleep, babe.

SG: Later, Mommy.

After 10 minutes…

Me: It’s time to go to sleep.

SG: Not yet Mom.

After another 10 minutes. Now I use my threatening voice.

Me: Sunshine Girl, go to bed now!

SG: Mom, pinagbigyan na kita kahapon! (Mom, I did you a favor already. Yesterday I obeyed you.)

Huh?

Here’s the latest involving Artsy Princess. While checking her schoolwork:

Me: Artsy Princess, there’s no date on your work. Didn’t I tell you to always write the date?

AP: But Mom, you already know the date today. Why do I have to write it down. It’s just the same when you tell me that I don’t have to keep writing my name because you know my name already.

Well, these are just some of the things that make me say “Thank you, God!” everyday.

I hope you enjoyed this post!

TOS Crew Review: The Write Foundation

A few months ago, a homeschool mama asked me what I used to teach my kids how to write. She assumed that since I’m a blogger, then my kids must also write very well. Hmm, that stumped me. Unfortunately, as much as I love to write, and even get paid to write, I have been unable to pass this skill on to my children just yet. The reason being that I don’t know how to teach them to write. In my mind, I understand the process but without a guide, it’s hard to teach. Online casino Ireland. ###

Good thing I was given the opportunity to review The Write Foundation. By its name, The Write Foundation, teaches writing by teaching students the foundations of writing. Created by another homeschool mom, Rebecca Celsor, and used by homeschool coops, The Write Foundation curriculum has three levels to choose from:

Level 1: Sentence to Paragraph Writing, suggested ages 11-13

Level 2: Paragraph Writing, suggested ages 12 – 15

Level 3: Essay Writing, suggested ages 14 – 17

This review is for Level 2: Paragraph Writing, Lessons 1 -15

First of all, let me say that Rebecca Celsor was so good in making sure that all of us reviewers picked just the right level for us to use with our children. They already explained how to pick the right level to use for your children, but Rebecca took time to talk to me over Skype and discuss the level for use for my children. The guidance was one that I thoroughly appreciated.

Next, she suggested that since I live in the Philippines, I may just want to receive the material via email. Now I totally don’t mind this at all because this will mean that I will get the materials immediately as opposed to waiting 6 weeks for it to arrive via post office. So it came as a total surprise to me when I received the product in the mail just the same. Thanks Rebecca!

I received a spiral bound Step by Step Lesson Plans Lesson 1 - 15, and the Paragraph Writing Worksheets ready to be placed in a 3-ring binder. I also received these very same materials via email plus an extra folder containing additional materials to be used for teaching. The whole material cost $39.95 plus tax and shipping. Or you can purchase the complete curriculum Lessons 1 – 30 for $69.95 plus tax and shipping. I can’t see in their ordering information if they offer the whole material in downloadable format. I hope they offer it in the more economical downloadable format.

So on to the actual use of the lessons. Reading the introductions actually left me a little bit intimidated by the lessons and a bit reluctant to begin teaching. I felt afraid that I may not be able to teach the lessons well. So I think I had to read it over about three times, which meant a lot of time spent in preparation. BUT after looking over the whole material, I actually appreciate that it is laid out in detail. No need really for me to add anything to it if I will just follow everything it says.

The lessons also make use of Mind Benders, a product produced by Critical Thinking. I have not seen this material because it has to be purchased separately. Mind Benders is a book on puzzles that develop a student’s thinking skills. Seeing this, I decided to just buy a puzzle book from our local bookstore. Upon using this, I can see why Rebecca Celsor recommends that solving puzzles should be part of her writing curriculum – it really opens up their minds and prepares them for their studies.

Guitar Babe and I have only done up to Lesson 2 as of this writing and so far, I haven’t received negative comments from her, apart from her hand aching from writing too much. The suggested time is to teach the beginning of the lesson every week for 1.5 hours. We haven’t done this because of time constraints. Instead the actual teaching time was about an hour a day to begin, and help with her assignments.

Overall, it may seem intimidating in the beginning to use this curriculum, but over time, you really only need to jump in and follow the instructions, and soon you and your child will actually get it. I’ve decided that I will continue using The Write Foundation for Guitar Babe and will also try to begin the lessons with Artsy Princess.

To know more about the Write Foundation, please click here.

For ordering information, please go here.

To see sample lessons and worksheets, go here.

Find out what my fellow crewmates thought about The Write Foundation in our TOS Homeschool Crew blog.

Once again, thanks to the Celsors of The Write Foundation for providing me this material through the TOS Homeschool Crew for free. This is in exchange for a written review. I am not required to write a positive review.

TOS Crew Blog Walk and Comments Week 11 Nov. 22 - 26, 2010

Did you know that our TOS (The Old Schoolhouse) Crew is composed of over 200 bloggers? Our goal is to let you (our readers of the homeschool community) know about the many, many materials that are available for homeschoolers.

This week’s Blog Walk is composed of blogger reviewers that have been reviewing homeschool curriculum and materials for two years or more. So each blog is a treasure house of homeschool reviews. I invite you to visit each one by clicking on every Blog title. You’ll most likely find that they have reviewed a material that you are interested in.

1. 1 of 100 plus 25 TOS Crew Reviews
2. Homeschooling Hearts and Minds
3. Homeschooling Drewper
4. Burkherts Brigade
5. Families Again
6. Homeschool and Family
7. The Sunny Patch
8. Life on the Hilltop
9. Our Busy Homeschool
10. Homeschooling Blessings

DVD Review: The Way Home starring Dean Cain

This is the first time that I’m writing a review for a DVD movie. I’m blessed to have watched this touching and inspiring movie, The Way Home. Starring Dean Cain (Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman) leads the cast in this new movie production by Lionsgate.

The Way Home is the story about a two-year old boy who vanished from his home one day. After a desperate search by Randy Simpkins, the father and his wife, he decides to call 911 and report it. As they search for their little boy, other family issues come to the forefront. Most important of which is Randy’s lack of time for his family due to his work. Randy is totally absorbed with work and church that his wife complains that he’s not working on what really matters most.

As the search continues, friends, families and other people that they barely knew volunteer their own time and resources to help in the search. Will they find the little boy in time or will they lose him? Their faith in God is tested as every hour passes by and they still can’t find their little Joe.

Our whole family watched this DVD and it really touched our hearts. This is the true story of Randy Simpkins and his family that happened twelve years ago. It was a time when the community came together for a common goal. It was also a crucial time for Randy Simpkins to finally make a decision of what matters most in life.

We like the movie for its Christian message, family values and community support. I found the movie editing to be lacking at times, but it’s worth buying for the message that it tells us.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this DVD free from Booksneeze as part of their Book Review 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: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

TOS Crew Review: KB Teachers Website

*Please click to go to the website*

Ever since I started homeschooling, I’ve always relied on the internet for worksheets to supplement my children’s studies. In doing so, I’ve found several websites over the years that give free worksheets. Unfortunately, I’ve had to spend so much time in doing a search for a particular subject. Apart from that, some of the websites that I’ve found in the past have closed down.

Recently, I have the privilege to use KB Teachers website for review as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew. KB Teachers is a website with tons and tons of worksheets for several subjects and multiple grades. Here are a few samples of the worksheets:

There are several worksheets for alphabets. Each one can be customized from a choice of 5 different fonts. Applicable for preschoolers up to lower grade students.

Math worksheets abound in the site for the four basic operations, counting money and telling time. Worksheets for Algebra for the higher years are also available. There’s also an option of creating your own worksheets in the site.

Cursive handwriting worksheets are available with or without images, in color or black and white.

Above is a list of worksheets available for Astronomy, several activities and even links to other sites for further studies.

KB Teachers also have workbooks available for different areas of Science, Social Studies and many others. It is very easy to navigate. I thought it strange that there is no search feature within the website, but as they say, it is clearly laid out so a search box is not needed. I think, however, that a search box would minimize the number of clicks to get to the worksheet that one needs.

One of the things that I also appreciate about KB Teachers is that they keep creating and adding new worksheets every week. Aside from that, the site also features a monthly webquest where they feature special days of the month with links to visit. I like that you only need to go to one site and find almost everything there. However, the site is currently undergoing renovations so some of the links are broken. But all of the worksheets are currently available.

Membership to KB Teachers cost $29.00 for 12 months and $49.00 for two years. If you are unsure, you can always try out the site for 10 days for FREE. You can sign up for the free 10 days trial HERE.

To find out what the rest of my TOS Crewmates thought about this website, please click here.

I received a two year membership for free from KB Teachers as part of the TOS Crew. This is in exchange for this written review. I am not required to write a positive review and all opinions stated are mine.

Book Review: The Surprising Way to A Stronger Marriage by Michael and Amy Smalley

There are things that God brings our way at just the right time in our lives. That’s what the book The Surprising Way to a Stronger Marriage by Michael and Amy Smalley is to me. At a time when hubby and I are going through some struggles, this book arrived. It did not look too interesting to me at first. In fact, I wondered why there’s a mirror in the cover. Since this is a book about marriage, shouldn’t the cover have a picture of a couple in it?

After reading the first chapter, I was hooked. I couldn’t stop reading it because it actually opened my eyes to the reality of our marital problems. I learned that I don’t have to wait for me husband to act on our problems. What I needed to do was to start taking responsibility for our problems, to stop blaming him and  looking to my husband for solutions, and to start looking at how I also contributed to the problems and how I can start the change in me.

Authors Michael and Amy Smalley have been married for 15 years and “specialize in teaching couples the principles of loving well and loving for a lifetime.” Their teachings are biblical and realistic, making you look at yourself to start making a difference for your marriage.

I plan to read The Surprising Way to a Stronger Marriage by Michael and Amy Smalley all over again for the stuff I missed because I read it so fast. The mirror on the cover was actually just right because they say that the solution to your problems is staring at you when you look in the mirror. I’m not claiming that my problems are solved after reading this, but it has made me take a different perspective, not only in my relationship with my husband, but also in relationship to others.

You can purchase this book here:

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Tyndale House as part of their Book Review 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: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Homeschool Book Review: Trivium Mastery by Diane B. Lockman

 

If you’ve been homeschooling for some years, you would know that there are several homeschooling philosophies. There’s Charlotte Mason, unschooling, eclectic, unit studies, Montessori and then there’s Classical Education. I have to admit that I did not really understand much about this particular kind of educational philosophy. In fact, I had the chance to review a complete classical curriculum in the past, but I hardly understood it! Despite having read pages and pages of its explanation, the how’s and the why’s, I can’t say that I have understood it. Actually, it left me even more befuddled than before.

Now, I have the opportunity to understand Classical Home Education once more through Trivium Mastery – The Intersection of Three Roads: How To Give Your Child An Authentic Classical Home Education by Diane B. Lockman. Let me first say that out of all the homeschool books that I have read so far, Trivium Mastery has clearly brought home to me what my children needed to learn and how to go about it.

Ms. Diane Lockman, a CPA and a homeschool mom, first talks about the foundation of Classical Education, how it has evolved to follow the model of public school system of education, and how to reclaim in our homes the true classical education we can give to our children.

The first part of the book talks about the intersection of the three roads to Classical Education. The three roads being Language, Thought and Speech. She says that these three roads must be taught to our children to the point of mastery. There are no grade levels in Classical Education, no particular years that you can say your child is educated. But mastery of these three roads by the student will fully equip him to keep on learning throughout his lifetime.

The second half of the books shows five family case studies. Each family is unique and all wanted to transition to classical home education. Ms. Lockman shares here how the families were able to transition to classical home education.

Surprisingly, we can do the same thing because the last part of the book has the same assessment tools that Ms. Lockman uses to evaluate the families. Not only that, Ms. Lockman’s website, The Classical Scholar, has a free Parent Workshop that we can do ourselves. The workshop will allow you to evaluate your family’s strengths and weaknesses and will show you where your child is weak academically and where the child is already strong.

I’ve done the workshop myself and even though it took me some time to finish it, I’m really glad that I did it. After completing the workshop, it became clear to me what my children still needed to learn. Now that I have a better understanding of Classical Home Education, I am no longer intimidated by it and am assured that I can give my children the quality education that they need. If I can read only one book about homeschooling, this is it.

Thanks to Ms. Lockman for agreeing to send me her book for free for review purposes. I was not required to write a positive review and all opinions stated here are entirely mine.

Order Trivium Mastery – The Intersection of Three Roads: How To Give Your Child An Authentic Classical Home Education by Diane B. Lockman here:

Is God with Us During Life’s Trials?

Our family has had a crazy month and it’s still not over.

In mid-October, our son, Flash Boy, was brought to the hospital because he has been vomiting the whole day. He wasn’t eating or drinking anymore because he just vomits everything he takes in. After four days in the hospital, we brought him home. A few days later, his sister, Sunshine Girl, woke up one morning and complained of a headache. She didn’t want to get up from the bed and did not want to eat. After lunch, she also started vomiting. So again, we went back to the hospital to have her treated for dehydration. Both Flash Boy and Sunshine Girl have been hit by a non-specific virus.

Not even a week has passed, when Artsy Princess told me that she feels sick. I told her to get plenty of rest and drink lots of water and Vitamin C. After three days of this, she’s still not better, she developed a low-grade fever and rashes were breaking out all over her body. After a call to her doctor, we brought her to the hospital to be tested for dengue fever. True enough, she was positive for dengue. Sigh… another four days in the hospital. It was starting to feel like we lived in the hospital, I haven’t even had the chance to unpack our bags from the past hospitalizations.

The whole experience felt like being hit by a truck many times over with no time to get up and recover. The hospitalizations have left me exhausted and at times, discouraged. I asked the doctor what it is that brings it on. She said that children are really prone to sickness nowadays with the terrible pollution in Metro Manila. Here’s a picture to show the smog covering our city.

* Photo courtesy of Guintong Tahanan *

That picture was taken from a hotel in Ortigas. You can’t even see any blue skies anymore.

One day when I was walking on the street outside the hospital to buy our lunch, I was thinking about how hard this time is for us. The Holy Spirit reminded me that other families had it much harder. I know of a family in our TOS Crew whose two children have illnesses that they have been dealing with since birth. Hospital visits are a part of their lifestyle. Another family had a mom dealing with fibromyalgia. A mother whom I saw in a drugstore the other day was worried about where to get the money to pay the hospital.  

Looking at it from that perspective, I realized that we had much to be thankful to the Lord for, despite the illnesses. Our children may have gotten sick but these were simple illnesses that they recovered quickly from. It was scary for me to see them being so weak, but after a day of being infused with IV fluids, they recovered quickly.

We didn’t worry at all about our hospital bill because we have previously made the wise decision of getting medical insurance for the whole family.

We had the support of family and friends who visited us and also prayed for our children. The messages of my fellow Crewmates on our TOS Crew also did much to bring me encouragement.

Last Saturday, I was so excited to attend our church’s worship service. It was a time for me to worship God once more, receive His word, and to refresh myself in His presence.

Whatever may come our way, we are assured that we have the Lord with us. We are never alone in our trials in life. It is during these times of difficulties in life when we hold on to God’s promises. We see God clearly and know that He is working hard for us, too. Yes, God is with us in good times and bad.  God is truly, truly good!

“Dear brothers and sisters, when trouble comes your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when  your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.”

James 1:2-4 (NLT)

TOS Crew Review: Book Collector by Collectorz.com

I have a confession to make … I am a bibliophile. Yes I am and proud of it. To me, walking into the annual Book Fair here in Manila elicits that sigh of satisfaction. Very much like the way a woman who loves shoes can sigh at the sight of lovely shoes. Needless to say, our house is filled with so many, many, many books! Once in awhile, I’d have the urge to just clean the house and try to get rid of some of the books that I no longer use. But no matter how much I do that, I always find myself in the same boat after a few months – with books all over the house!

Though I’ve never had the urge to catalog my book collection, I am quite blessed to be able to use and review Book Collector by Collectorz.com. Book Collector is a fantastic software for those who just loves to organize their book collection. After downloading the software from the site and installing it into your PC, using it is pretty intuitive. I must make another confession, I didn’t read the online user’s manual before using the software. But who needs to? It’s quite easy to use!

There are several ways to add books into the database: you can add it automatically, add books manually, or purchase a scanner to scan a book’s barcode. Since I don’t have a barcode scanner, I added my books by inputting the ISBN. With the ISBN, the Book Collector searches through its wide database of books and brings back a result/results. The Collectorz database automatically puts in the book’s data such as its genre, author, publisher, number of pages, book format and more. If it’s not in the database, you can choose to add it manually. After adding my books into my database, I can now see how many books I have in each genre, or how many books I own for a particular author. It also automatically creates a folder for each author.

Since I am a lover of books, now that we are in the digital age, I also have a collection of ebooks filed away in my PC. Surprisingly, my ebooks can be added into the database simply by telling Book Collector to look through my files. The software does a quick search and out comes my ebooks!

WHAT I THINK ABOUT THIS PRODUCT:

I took down my books from one of my bookshelves and started inputting the ISBN into Book Collector. It performs very quickly. Even if I’ve had to type in the ISBN’s, I was able to input about 40 books into the database in 45 minutes. I also got a surprise when I entered a local book written by a Filipino author into the system and found that it is already in the Collectorz database! It also has a neat loan feature where you can track down who you loaned one of your books to.

I believe this product is very useful for someone who has the time to input their books. If you are a born organizer and would really like to organize your books, then this is the way to go. If purchasing a book twice or thrice is a problem for you, then Book Collector is for you. Book Collector can be synced to your Iphone/Ipod via an apps that you purchase from their site. This way, you can actually bring your book collection with you in your Iphone/Ipod and will be able to check first if you already own a particular book before buying.

This software is available from Collectorz.com for $29.95 for the Standard edition and $49.95 for the Pro edition. Book Collector can be used for both Windows and MAC.

Notice of Material Disclosure: I have received this item as a part of the TOS Homeschool Crew for free in exchange for this review. I am not required to write a positive review. All opinions stated here are mine.

 

TOS Crew Review: The Digital Field Trip Series by Digital Frog International

I have a niece who loves photography, so much so that she has invested in professional digital camera with all its accompanying accessories and gadgets. She takes her camera with her all the time and calls it her youngest baby. Needless to say, I love her pictures. Everytime I look at her pictures, I feel as if I am transported to the place where she took those pictures. She can see things differently and can translate what she sees to her photographs. I just love it!

Imagine what it would be like to be ‘transported’ to three different ecosystems around the world – places that I know we can only dream of going – and that is what The Digital Field Trip Series is all about. This award-winning DVD is produced by Digital Frog International, a software company dedicated to producing high-quality, multi-media  CD-Roms dedicated to the study of biology and ecology.

The Digital Field Trip Series brings your homeschool to three different ecological systems around the world. Through the use of your PC, you can take a virtual field trip with your children and learn so much about these systems.

 

The three ecosystems you and your family can visit are:

The Wetlands in Southern Ontario where you can learn about the mechanisms of wetlands, types and study of a bog and much, much more.

 

 

 

The Rainforest in Belize, Central America, where you can actually hear the different cacophony of sounds that is produced in a rainforest.

 

 

The Deserts in North America, where you can learn about the different desert types, the animals that live there and how people can affect this ecosystem.

WHAT WE THOUGHT ABOUT THIS DVD:

I was very excited to review this DVD with my children because these are places that we only dream of going to. We concentrated on the Rainforest. For my children, it’s as easy as plugging in the DVD and watching it to see where it goes. They have already taken a virtual field trip to the rainforest and investigated the different kinds of animals that live there. The study of animals are most interesting because they have live videos of the animals. Then there are field notes that you can read through that gives the facts about the system. At first I was afraid that it might be boring for my children, but surprisingly, it has kept their interest for long periods.

As for me, while watching it with my children, I was thinking to myself: “How can I possibly make sure that these kids actually learn something from this DVD and that this is not just for entertainment?” Well, after going on our TOS Crew forums, I learned that included in this DVD are workbooks that we can use for more interesting and in-depth study of these ecosystems. The Digital Field Trip Series is interactive and has games for children to play as they keep on learning about it. As of this writing, we have only scratched the surface of what this DVD has to offer. There’s far more to it than I am able to describe.

I’d like to thank the fabulous people at Digital Frog International for sending me The Digital Field Trip Series for review.

The Digital Field Trip Series is available for sale from their website for $125.00 for a home license. If you find that too steep, they have each digital field trip for sale individually for $60.00 for a home license. Also available are The Digital Frog – a virtual frog dissection CD and Sciencematrix – Cell Structure and Function.

Notice of Material Disclosure: I have received this item as a part of the TOS Homeschool Crew for free in exchange for this review. I am not required to write a positive review. All opinions stated here are mine.

 

Living in My Anger

Psalm 73:21-28 (NLT)

Then I realized that my heart was bitter,

and I was all torn up inside.

I was so foolish and ignorant -

I must have seemed like a senseless animal to you.

Yet I still belong to You;

You hold my right hand.

You guide me with your counsel,

leading me to glorious destiny.

Whom have I in heaven but You?

I desire You more than anything on earth.

My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak,

but God remains the strength of my heart;

He is mine forever.

Those who desert him will perish,

for You destroy those who abandon You.

But as for me, how good it is to be near God!

I have made the Sovereign Lord my shelter,

and I will tell everyone about the wonderful things you do.

I grew up with an angry man – my father. I promised myself that I will never be like him. I’ve seen how his anger has caused so much hurt to the people that love him the most, and until now he denies his anger. And though I tried very hard not to be just like him, I find myself also living in my anger. Recently, every little thing can trigger me to anger. So much so that I’ve stooped down to quarrelling and shouting at other people. I wondered what has happened to me. It’s as if the joy of living in God’s grace was totally snuck out of me. It’s been a difficult few months for me – trial after trial after trial has made me a bitter woman. It’s just such a good thing that the Holy Spirit continues to work in my life and letting me know that God is there with me. This morning I opened my Bible and came upon Psalm 73, and the above verses have struck me to the core of my heart. I really was foolish and ignorant. I must have seemed like a senseless animal to God and to those I have quarreled with. Yet, I have the comfort of knowing that despite who I am, I STILL BELONG TO GOD. He holds my right hand and guides me to my glorious destiny.

I pray God’s grace to carry me through those times when I feel an injustice being done again. I pray that I can master my anger and not let it overcome me.