It's a God Thing!!

I think this has to be by God's design that little cross type symbols appear in our dried tears!! I don't get why it's so hard to comprehend that we are God's creation!

Happy Halloween

Boys are ready for trick or treatin! :)  I'm ready to help them eat their candy! :)  Here is a preview of their costumes. 

Kiss the Camel

Here is the promised picture!!  You haven't lived until you've been kissed by a camel! That's right! I tried it!!  No one was around to catch a picture of me doing this either! :)  Camels have prickley tickley whiskers by the way.  If ever given the opportunity, you should take advantage of being kissed by a camel!!  Wonder if Jesus was ever kissed by a camel?  Yes, that's my weird thought process.  For some reason when I see camels I think of nativity scenes and then of course I think of Jesus!! :) 

Practicing Face Painting Skillz!!!

I volunteered to help with face painting at our church's fall festival.  It was very fun and rewarding.  I was worried about not being able to do a good job.  So....of course I decided to practice before the big event. Wes and Austin were kind enough to lend me their faces.  Austin said is face was itchy and smuged it all off before I could get a picture.  I did capture a shot of Wes with a white lightning bolt.  He was good practice because he likes to wiggle around.  Next I practiced some spidey skills on my hand.  This is fun stuff.  Anyone want to come over and let me paint their face?? :)  Next up I'll get some pictures posted of the the festival.  It was so much fun for the kids!! Stay tuned for kiss the camel picture!! That one is a hoot!! :)

Packages!

Our boys get really excited when packages arrive.  Grandparents have a way of making different holidays special for the kids.  It's hard living in different states. We don't get to see each other as often as we like.  When packages arrive it's a big reminder of grandparents who may be miles away, but close at heart.  I know I always love to see the look on someones face when they open a package.  So, I try hard to capture these moments to share with our family members!  Thanks Grandma "P" and Grandpa Rich!  The boys are excited about Halloween and using all the cool prizes you sent. 

And of course this one well....

He wanted to know where is package was! : (

He thinks all treats should include him as well.  He seems to think he's people!

A New Adventure for my Kid Sized History Buff

We are having a great time discovering a new history book alongside our homeschool curriculum. It’s called Draw and Write Through History by Carylee Gressman. Before I even had a chance to integrate it with the current materials we are using, Austin discovered it. He immediately asked to look through it. He loves all things history. He has been reading a lot about Egypt lately. When he saw the Egyptian illustrations on the cover his curiosity was peaked. He spent a good hour looking through the book. He made it a point to bring the page with the Legend of the Trojan Horse to my attention. You can even try a sample lesson from the book posted on their website.  The illustrations are done by Peggy Dick. Her experience as a graphic design artist is evident in this book. She has done a great job of simplifying what appear to be challenging drawings. This book is put out by CPR Publishing. It is reasonably priced at $12. The quality and content of this book make it well worth the price. You can purchase this book directly through the website here.

What really makes this book great is how it integrates the practice of cursive writing, history, and art. I am a big fan of combining subjects. It really enhances the learning process for children. It also makes a subject like handwriting a bit more fun for a child that may dislike writing. This book would be perfect for supplementing history or Bible curriculum. Art is definitely the strong emphasis in this book. There are colorful illustrations throughout the book. Another nice feature is the step by step instructions on how to complete the drawings. It contains a wide variety of drawings. The style and content are appropriate for the targeted age group of ages 8 and up. I have a younger son who loves to do everything his big brother is doing. This is a book that I can easily adapt to include him. I really like how the author references  Bible verses.

When my son started the first drawing activity in Draw and Write Through History, I was amazed at his enthusiasm. He truly enjoyed the activity. He was very pleased with his drawing results. He usually doesn’t want to color in pictures, but with this book he took the time to carefully color in his pictures. He even went the extra step of blending the colors. After completing some leafy green plants from the creation story he was begging to jump ahead to the section about the Trojan Horse story.

His creative juices were definitely flowing at this point. He began drawing background details for his picture. Even my younger son was following along and making his own pictures. While he isn’t quite four, he could still understand the simple directions with help. It was definitely obvious in his artwork that he was drawing green plants. Any activity that I can use together with my kids makes for a more peaceful and productive school day! The only area that may be challenging for us is the amount of cursive writing practice listed on each page. It seems just a bit lengthy. Handwriting is not a favorite subject for my third grader. We are tackling that subject this school year. Austin completed second grade in public school. The schools in our state are not teaching cursive writing. This was one of many factors that persuaded us to return to homeschool. I am hoping that my little history buff will find the cursive writing process more pleasurable since it is combined with wonderful history and Bible tidbits. We will happily continue to use Draw and Write Through History with our other curriculum. 

**disclosure: This is a Mama Buzz review. This product was graciously provided for free by
Carylee Gressman for our review.

Fun at the Air Show

We had a blast, literally at the air show!!!  I'm not kidding.....there were even explosions!!!  One that would require the fire trucks to rush to put out a smallish fire!  I think the explosions were intended, but the fires that wouldn't go out on their own, weren't.  Seems no one was hurt or anything like that.  It was a little erie.  Made me thankful we don't live in a war torn country like the middle east.  I didn't manage to get any pictures of the exlposions that took place in the finale due to camera batteries dying. Sorry to disappoint! :)  But we did manage to get some fun photos for your viewing pleasure.  Wes took a lot of persuading to go to the air show and of course some nice ear muffs as well.  Even with the muffs, he had some moments where he was not happy with the noise!  The explosions in the end were a bit much for him even though we were pretty far away.  I have to say, if I didn't know it was planned, I would have been terrified too!!

This Fella was Eyeballin ME!!

On a rainy day last week we spotted this guy on the a/c unit in the backyard. I love photographing praying mantis. They are a more than willing subject. They are not skittish. They will pose for you endlessly. They will however keep a close eye on you while you're doing this. What ever angle you move to, a mantis will rotate it's head with precision to keep an eye on you. And what EYEBALLS they have!!! I felt like he was staring into my soul!!

Bedtime Stories

We are BIG on bedtime stories. It is such a great way to unwind and wrap up the day. We have been reading a new bedtime story at our house. Sleepy Sun by Mari Priscilla Hanson,

is filled with delightfully colorful pictures. The illustrations seem to jump off the pages. My three year old instantly took note of the details as we began the story. The catchy rhymes throughout the story keep the reading extra fun. My older son particularly liked the detailed artwork showing various cultures and landmarks. I didn’t even realize that my three year old had the word cactus in his vocabulary until he saw the desert scenery. He was quickly calling out all the different things he saw throughout the story. This book has a way of igniting those precious conversations at bedtime with my boys. This story is a reminder of thankfulness that each morning we are greeted with sunshine.

This picture book is classical yet refreshing at the same time. This book is great for children of all ages. Despite the fact that this is a bedtime story this book is full of topics to teach and build upon, from new vocabulary words and colors to various cultures and ethnic diversity. You can purchase this story book at Amazon.com for $14.99.

Check out another review on this story book.

*** This is a Mama Buzz review. The product was provided for free by Mari Priscilla Hanson for this review.

Family Photos

Finally getting around to posting the pics from when my family was here. It was such a special week. Their visit was a true blessing. I'm so thankful for my parents and brother!! House always feels empty after family leaves. Takes a few days to shake off the sadness of missing them!!

Happy October

We have had a busy week with a visit from my parents and brother here from Florida.  It was their first big trip with their RV.  We had a great week together, but as always, it goes by entirely to quick.  This time they brought their thrree dogs along for the trip.  It was a treat for the boys as well as our dog Ben.  He loved having doggy pals around to play with.  Wes just loved Belle.  She is a mini-pin.  This little doggy seemed to enjoy his company as well.  I think the picture speaks for itself.