{a review} Preschoolers and Peace: Homeschooling older kids with success while loving the little ones at your feet

by Meghan // October 1, 2014 // Comments off

While Lexie is technically a preschooler, I am also trying to homeschool with two other little ones! One of those littles is a very rambunctious, loud, two year old boy … So I was very excited (and blessed) to review the e-book for homeschooling moms, Preschoolers and Peace: Homeschooling older kids with success while loving the little ones at our feet ($2.99). This was written by Kendra Fletcher from Preschoolers and Peace and is a wonderful resource for all homeschooling families with preschoolers running about.

About the Product:

This e-book is inspired by the “best of” posts from Preschoolers and Peace website. (If you haven’t visited the website, and you are a homeschooling parent to littles, I would suggest checking it out!) The chapters covered in the e-book include:

What a Homeschooling Mom Needs
Preparing Yourself to Homeschool Older Kids with Little Ones Under Foot
Planning Around Preschoolers
How Do I Keep Them Busy?
What Does a Two-Year-Old’s Day Look Like?
How Do I Get Any Preschooling Done?
How Not to Just Kill Time
Circle Time: Or How We Pull the Little Ones In
Preschool Boys
When All Of Your Kiddos Are Preschoolers
Preschool Chores
Planning for Preschool
When Mama is Worn Out (or pregnant)
Meal Planning 101

Really? Do you have any idea how amazing it is to find a resource with all this information in one place?! I am a member of several online homeschool groups- the number one most posted question posted is, “how do you keep your little ones busy while homeschooling your older kids?” This is also MY number one question!

Lexie and Max are not close enough in development at this point, for us to do formal schooling together- At two years old, he obviously isn’t learning to read, write his numbers, grip a pencil properly, or create lapbooks. His “learning time” is just as important as my 4 year old’s, but it looks much different right now. And keeping him busy and quiet while she is trying to focus on reading her Bob Books readers?! That has been one of my biggest challenges. He joins us for read alouds, and circle time, but at two isn’t ready for the same activities she is at four years old.

What I Thought About It and How I Use It

Preschoolers and Peace: Homeschooling older kids with success while loving the little ones at our feet helped remind me of my options, and give me ideas for more options. But more than that, Kendra begins her book by reminding us of our relationship with God; that Christ is where our identity lays, and that making time for prayer and Him are first and foremost to homeschooling.

My favorite tip that she gives is one in a series of steps- determine what activities you can do with littles around, and which ones you cannot. There are certain lessons you may not mind your toddler being underfoot, such as Bible, or read alouds. Then there are lessons you may want to do while the “nappers are napping;” for me, that is definitely reading/phonics. The e-book is full of activities you can use to keep your toddler busy while schooling your older children. I am going to post the list Kendra provides on our bulletin board in the kitchen, and rotate the activities Max gets to enjoy each day/week. That way I don’t have to work hard to plan things for him to enjoy, yet he still feels like he is part of “learning time.” (Because he asks to do it with us all the time.)

But as I have mentioned, this book is more than activities. It is a collection of ideas, homeschool how-tos, and inspiration that every homeschooling mom needs! I found the e-book to be so helpful I have printed it out, highlighted it, and re-read many parts of it in just the few weeks I’ve owned it.

Preschoolers and Peace: Homeschooling older kids with success while loving the little ones at our feet has helped me rearrange our time, relax, and make our homeschool days count! I try to live each of our days as if this precious gift of homeschooling my children will end tomorrow, and this book has given me a refresher course so I can do just that!

Connect With Preschoolers and Peace

Preparing for Labor Naturally

by Meghan // September 26, 2014 // Comments off

For this pregnancy and labor, I did some things I have done before to prepare, but I also added in a few new natural ways to stay healthy.

We all know it is so important to stay (or get) healthy during pregnancy. Here are a few things I did for this pregnayc, labor and delivery.

Third Trimester Tea– Beginning in my third trimester I started drinking *a lot* of Earth Mama Angel Baby Organic Third Trimester Tea. I like the taste, and drank anywhere from 1-4 cups a day.
Get plenty of rest– I got plenty of sleep. My husband joked about how I was in bed 18 hours out of the day … it is quote possible I was. I slept from 8:30 until 7 in the morning (most days), took naps when my children did (for 1-3 hours, and laid down in bed at 7 when the kids went down. This was mostly because I couldn’t sit comfortably with a baby in my ribs, but I probably would have slept that much anyway!
Exercise– honestly, I didn’t exercise this pregnancy like I did with my others. When I had the time I didn’t have the energy. I know exercise gives you more energy, but not when you have first trimester nausea and extreme exhaustion, or can barely move in the third trimester. I did walk to the park a lot with the kids, and in my second trimester I did quite a bit of at home work outs. But nothing as intense or regular as my first two pregnancies.
Eat well– Eating lots of healthy fats won’t make you fat (unless you coat them in sugar…). Healthy fats help every part of your body and baby’s development. From brain function to hormone production, healthy fats like organic farm raised eggs, avocado, coconut oil, grass fed butter, and natural peanut butter, make for a healthy pregnancy and baby! I ate a *lot* of eggs, and still do.
Fermented Drinks and Foods– Fermented drinks like water kefir and Kombucha are so good for your gut and immune system; they are especially beneficial to baby’s gut and developing immune system. I drank lots of kombucha with mint this summer, and we enjoyed our homemade fermented kraut, kimchi, and veggies all summer as well.
Cod Liver Oil, Iron, and Folate– I personally chose not to take a pre natal vitamin. I made this decision because typical prenatals are full of synthetic vitamins that the body does not absorb or process well. And also, because I couldn’t find one I liked with folate instead of folic acid. Typically though, my friend recently showed me a supplement similar to this l-methylfolate 15 mg, which includes folate. Anyway, I’m not getting pregnant again to try it, haha! So, folic acid is the synthetic, man made version of folate. Folate is the actual supplement you need for baby’s development- not synthetic folic acid. So I chose to take a pure folate supplement, and raw liver pills I made at home. I am always anemic, and most iron supplements cause constipation and are not readily absorbed in the body. I chose to buy grass fed, organic beef livers (from a local source I know and *trust*) and cut them into pills. I froze them on a cookie sheet and stored in the freezer for a few weeks. Then I took a few of them at a time, frozen, when I felt I needed an iron boost. The last supplement I took was cod liver oil, because of all the healthy benefits it provides through vitamins A and D.
Gentle Birth Formula– I will say, I believe this had the BIGGEST impact on labor and delivery for me. My water broke at 2:30pm, active labor/my contractions started at regular intervals 4 minutes apart, at 4:00pm. When I got to the hospital at 6:00pm I was 5-6cm! This has NEVER happened to be before; I have longer (12+hours) labors. This baby was born at 9:49, and was here in 4 pushes. It was seriously a 5 hour labor start to finish, from the beginning of contractions. And though I did cave and get an epidural at 7 cm, until that point labor was very manageable; not fun, but manageable. I truly believe this tincture helped my body prepare for labor. *it does have blue cohosh in it, but you can purchase the tincture without it*
Water, Water, Water!-I think it speaks for itself, but lots of water! I keep two bottles in the fridge and down one at a time; when one is empty I refill it and start on the other.

And that’s it! Those are the things I did this pregnancy to prepare my body for labor and delivery, and have a healthy baby. What do you do to prepare your body for pregnancy, labor, and delivery?

{picture credit}

Disclaimer: I am NOT a health professional and this is not health advice. Please talk with your doctor/midwife before making medical and health decisions.

Weekly Wrap Up: September 6, 2014

by Meghan // September 24, 2014 // Comments off

{written week of September 6, 2014} Lexie has been very excited about learning time- she loves our “learning time books” (Sonlight read alouds) and doing her activities. I had planned to sorta put school on the back burner these last few weeks before baby, but she is having no part of that This week Lexie (4) has been working on:

reading with AAR (she is doing great!) and sight words
writing numbers 1-10 with Singapore and identifying more difficult shapes (soon to be 3d shapes)
fine motor skills/writing & strokes HWOT
Bible, read alouds, and science with Sonlight
Bears lapbooks (she wanted to learn about bears)
we have also been playing with play do and Sands Alive for fine motor and creativity
writing words- she has “writing books” her daddy brings her from each country he visits. She has been practicing writing out words phonetically. It is amazing what she can write! very proud of her

Max has also become VERY interested in our “learning time books,” aka read alouds. He likes to climb in my lap and read with us, which is great. He even retold a story (kinda..) to his daddy when he got home the other night. He is also learning his shapes and we are still working on his letters. For his birthday, my Granny got him this ABC puzzle by HAPE Toys; we *love* this puzzle because it allows him to manipulate the letters (standing them up, etc). It is wonderful for tactile learners. I hope to start Before Five In A Row with him after Christmas- I think he will really enjoy the stories and activities.

Playing letter sound BINGO- part of AAR Level 1

Overall it has been a wonderful last few weeks in our homeschool, before we add another tiny human to our home!

Pregnancy Update- 39 weeks {last days as a family of 4}

by Meghan // September 11, 2014 // Comments off

Yes. Hello there! Coming at yah ~~(still)~~ 39 weeks 4 days pregnant. Sunday the 14th will be 40 weeks.

one day I will be glad I posted this picture …

I will be honest, I didn’t think I would be pregnant this long, y’all. I was sure baby would be here by now … and I am trying VERY hard to be patient. It is difficult, but the last few days I have felt better. The baby has dropped so my ribs don’t feel like they are about to break in a million pieces anymore. After 18 weeks of excruciating rib pain, that makes being pregnant a little more bearable. I am also trying to savor the last days with my two oldest.

I’ve been having lots of contractions for the last week- and I don’t think they’re braxton hicks. They tend to be painful & some nights I wake up thinking “oh, this is it!” … and it’s not. They continue 5-10 minutes a part for hours and then just stop. With baby dropping and evidence that I maybe have dilated a bit, I am encouraged that baby will be here before 41 weeks, but OH I hope it is sooner! haha

I’ve been doing different exercises from Spinning Babies website to help get everything in balanced and in position; if there is no baby by tomorrow morning, I am probably going to run to my chiro and get adjusted. Maybe that will get things going.

My doctor appointments have been fine- baby’s heart rate is good (140s), fundus height is measuring perfectly, my blood pressure is good, yadda yadda. I had one pelvic exam at 37 weeks, but I won’t have anymore until labor. Oddly, I saw a different doctor this week (my dr just didn’t have appointments I guess) and he said they don’t usually do an exam every week unless mom requests it. In my experience all pelvic exams do is burst my baby-birthing bubble, because I never dilate or thin/soften much before labor anyway, they’re painful, and having a “stretch and sweep” has never resulted in me going into labor. Baby will get here when baby gets here.

Thankfully, it seems they don’t push a lot of medical intervention here unless necessary, so I am hopeful the doctor will let me get to at least 41 weeks before he talks about induction. The head of labor and delivery said they really encourage mom to walk around and move to labor, vs laying in bed (that’s a welcome change to what I had in AR!), you can have a nurse with you most of the time if you want (which I don’t…), and they will massage your back, hips, etc during labor! (sweet!). So, I am looking forward to that part I think. There are perks to delivering in a small town with more nurses than patients. =)

I have been “nesting” I guess. J.Tom cleaned out and organized the garage a few weeks ago, on Labor Day he helped me get all the light fixtures and fans down & cleaned, he dusted all the door frames and doors, and vacuumed the stairs. He helped me get the curtains hung and the glider put in the nursery from downstairs. I have all the baby clothes (boy and girl) clean and put away, and bought some newborn diapers for the weeks before we start cloth diapering. The kids did the footprint paintings for the nursery- I’m not crazy about them, but it will do for now. After baby comes and we finally settle on a name, I may make a wooden name for the nursery wall, but I am not sure yet. We are all trying to keep the house semi-picked up and clean so there isn’t much to do once baby is here (aka, I can let it all go!). The freezer is pretty full and the pantry is stocked. Hopefully we are ready!

Then, the dog has gone into heat … so that is fun! I am hoping that ends quickly! She is wearing Lexie’s left over pull ups. But, she is driving me nuts! She is so … anxious. And worrisome. Poor girl, but we have done a lot of reading and just don’t feel comfortable spaying her this young. JTom explained to Lexie that Charlie needed the diaper because she was ready to have pupppies, but mommy and daddy don’t want her to have puppies. She didn’t ask about anything else, so we left it at that.. *whew* I expected a million questions like everything else … Glad that didn’t happen!

There it is, our 39 week update. Hopefully there won’t be a need for a 40 week update! =) We shall see …

Here are a few pictures from our last days (week) as a family of four!

adventures!

bubbles with Charlie!

My little (tom-boy) lady

wrong way!

riding while daddy washes cars

*aaah*

York Children’s Museum

driving on a “long trip” @ York Children’s Museum

Cowboys!

Next time there will be three babies in our pictures! =)

Preschooler {3 yrs old} and Toddler {23 mo old} Summaries

by Meghan // August 29, 2014 // Comments off

(Written Thursday, August 28, 2014)

17 days until baby wright #3 should be here (September 14th) … of course it could be more or less than that, only the baby and God know the plan. I talked with my very sweet friend that is going to have Bug and Mister while I labor, and it feels good to know my babies will not only be safe and taken care of, but that someone else is praying about this for me. God knows our circumstances, and theirs and we know He will send baby on when the time is right.

I woke up this morning, about 2:30am, to more storms. We have had a TON of rain here the last 10 days, so much the trail and parks we enjoy most are flooded terribly. (Good thing we decided not to have the birthday party at those parks, just in case in rained). I couldn’t go back to sleep so I hopped in the shower and am drinking my first cup of coffee since July 2nd. I quit coffee, mainly because I like it with cream and I am doing no dairy for baby, so this is really nice even if it is with rice milk.

I can’t believe that next week my babies will be four and two years old! I will begin with Lexie’s summary.

Proud of her birthday dress

To say Lexie is vibrant, happy, and full of silliness is an understatement. She loves to play in her dressy dresses, go “camping” with Max, and read books (all. day. long). She is currently reading the Bob Books: Advanced Beginners books. You can read a bit more about that Here.

She enjoys our learning time together, helping me bake, and playing downstairs. Of course outside is usually her very first choice of play time, especially if it involves water. Developmentally, her language is amazing. Her fine motor (writing) skills are improving, and her confidence has grown by leaps and bounds.

If there is anything I can say about being a parent for the first time, it is that you can definitely go with your gut. Lexie has always been very social, but despite being in daycare and Mother’s Day Out when we lived in Arkansas, she was/is still very introverted in a group. Whether it is at daycare, library story time, or gymnastics, if it wasn’t her close friends and family, she wanted to sit by the grown up in charge and watch (she is my people watcher!) or play mostly by herself. Today, she starts out that way in a new setting, but quickly warms up! And just a few weeks ago at the neighborhood block party she jumped right into the festivities without needing us to encourage her at all! My point is- we have never rushed her. We did not push her to stay the night with family before we felt she was ready, participate in things she didn’t feel comfortable with, and here she is learning within her OWN boundaries how to feel confident. There are definitely rules to raising an introverted child, and being an introvert myself I understand her insecurities and what makes them “flare.”

I love watching her grow and change, but am very sad my baby is almost four and not such a baby anymore.

Lexie and Max are sleeping in the same room now; it is going surprisingly well! Hopefully it continues to go well after baby arrives … Lexie wakes some nights needing to go potty, and sometimes that wakes Max up, but in the last few weeks he has gotten used to her being in the same room and he sleeps through it.

He naps in his crib from 12:15-2:30/3:00. J.Tom comes home for lunch and Lexie spends that time with him; at about 12:45 she goes downstairs and has “rest time” on the bed down there. She is allowed her books on the bed with her but must be quiet. She does pretty good with it.

As for Max Payne, well he is a little “stinky pot,” as he calls himself. He is TT potty trained; we are still working on poopy, which he usually does after he wakes up at nap time, but some days that isn’t the case. I am not sure he has distinguished between having gas and needing to potty, or if he is just a bit afraid of using the potty? Either way, he will get there and we have aaaall winter inside to get it down! haha In the mean time, we are down to using 2 diapers a day (nap and night time) and that makes this mama a happy camper!

He does and says everything big sister does. Everything. They are a mess together and I am thankful they are such good friends (for now..) and pray we can continue to foster that relationship as they grow. He can identify many of his letters, but not all. He just hasn’t been interested in learning them like Lexie was, and if there isn’t interest it just isn’t going to happen. So I haven’t been pushing it. He loves to count and read nursery rhymes.

Oddly, he isn’t a big fan of messy play or crafts. He gets most interested in painting, but even that doesn’t hold his attention long. He would rather be driving trucks and engines around on the floor and furniture. =) Or playing in water. The boy still loves water, and being outside. He and Lexie will spend what seems like hours downstairs playing pretend together.

At this point (well, for a while now), he is jumping with two feet, climbing everything he can get a foot on, and LOVES to bounce on the trampoline. “Dog dog” is his buddy- poor Charlie girl puts up with a lot from Max! He refuses to say Charlie, although we know he can. She is just “dog dog” for now. She doesn’t seem to mind. =)

loving on his “dog dog”

His personality has just blossomed in the last 6-8 months- he is funny, rowdy, and so sweet. He and Lexie are both obsessed with their Daddy, and we are so thankful we have had this summer home with him. It has been wonderful watching him do nap time with Lexie during his lunch hour every day, and eating dinner with him every night.

The Bears (that’s the boys, per Lexie) spend time together every night when Daddy gets home, just rough-housing and being “bears.” Lexie gets a bit jealous; she is very much her daddy’s girl and wants to join them, but she loves to laugh at them and their silliness. We try to encourage her to let daddy and Mister have bear time. Both of them are super snuggly and I think they will do great with Baby #3!

petting the “baby cow” at the fair

enjoying the cool mornings and teaching Max to swing

Silly babies!

I really can’t believe we will be a family of 5 soon- Lexie and Max will both be such good big siblings. *feeling blessed*

Peaceful Days {this season in life}

by Meghan // June 14, 2014 // Comments off

Some days, I just need a reminder- this too shall pass. These are phases. This season in life is hard, but you are doing everything you can to get through it in one piece without hurting little hearts.

My babies are beautiful, fun, sweet, funny, loving, and such a joy. But these days are hard, exhausting, rarely rewarding, and sometimes I just feel like, “whew, we made it through today!” That is good enough.

Some days I feel like we are just doing good to get meals eaten, the kitchen cleaned up, and little people dressed (or not…); that we didn’t play enough, or read enough stories. I didn’t laugh enough, and give enough hugs.

There are hours where I wonder what was God thinking trusting me with such preciousness? With such rambunctiousness? With such sweet hearts? Am I cut out to show them His way? To give them the gifts of time, unconditional love, and guidance that they need and so deserve?

But then I am reminded that with each season the winds change- life becomes less chaotic, more peaceful. The waters calm and I can see the shore.

Days are filled with laughter, joy, sunshine, easy routines, lots of smiles, and snuggles galore.

And I know it is all worth it.

We Choose Virtues {a review}

by Meghan // June 9, 2014 // Comments off

I have mentioned before how much we enjoy character lessons in our home, so when we had a chance to review a set of Parenting Cards ($38.49) by We Choose Virtues. The parenting cards are a wonderful resource for any family wanting to implement character lessons in the home, and are best used with children ages 3-18. (I reviewed the NIrV of the parenting cards- this version includes both Old and New Testament verses. The NKJV only has Old Testament verses.)

Each set of cards teaches the same virtues:

diligence
helpfulness
perseverance
gentleness
contentment
attentiveness
honesty
kindness
self-control
patience
obedience
forgiveness

How We Used The Parenting Cards

We enjoy character lessons, and integrating them into our conversations through out the day- everywhere from reading Bible stories to our own behaviors- Lexie really likes to point out which character traits/virtues we should be working on and when. =)

Implementing these cards into our homeschool was very natural for us. You can teach the virtues in any order you’d like. As you may have read we are using Sonlight for our core curriculum. Each week of our SL lessons includes a character/virtue topic with a matching Bible verse; I thought this would be a perfect way to add in our We Choose Virtues cards. I simply organized the cards in alphabetical order for easy navigation, and choose the card that is most closely related to our topic in the SL. Some weeks we had perfectly matched character traits (obedience, attentiveness, diligence, and kindness to name a few), and some weeks we just had to choose what was most closely related to our topic. I loved doing it this way.

So after I chose which card we would focus on that week, I quickly looked it over. The front of the card tells you which character trait you are focusing on, has a really cute catch phrase for what the trait means, then it also explains what that character trait does not look like (which is a great reminded for little ones!). At the bottom there is a Bible verse that goes with the trait. You can see an example below:

The back of the cards is where any “teacher notes” can be found. Here you will see a “User Challenge” section that give your family a challenge for the character trait, such as doing kind things for others without them knowing (on the Kindness card). It has a reminder of what the trait looks like coming from the parent, so for instance, “kindness is best taught by passion and lead by example.” There is a “Teachable Moments ….” section that gives you things to think about, topics to discuss with the family, and activities to enrich your lessons. At the very bottom on the back of each card, there is a “Kids of Virtueville” section that has the name of a character that goes along with the card to help children remember that particular card. We didn’t focus very much on the characters themselves, but we did read their little story and discuss the question included.

What We Thought

I truly love using these cards in our home! I posted ours up on my weekly board in the kitchen, where I write down what we are studying (so I have everything handy for us talk about throughout the day). This was a perfect spot, because every time bug looked up and saw it from the table, she wanted to discuss it!

I like that each cards says, “I am … ” Kind, Obedient, etc. It is positive reinforcement that they already have these characteristics. Then the “I am NOT …” tells what the trait is not and reminds us what behaviors we should avoid. These cards are meant for the whole family- and I love that! Because can’t we all use some character lessons sometimes? (I certainly can!)

The cards themselves are made of a great quality cardboard material, so they are very sturdy. If you have a laminator, which many of us homeschooler do, they would be easy to laminate, though not necessary. They are 8.5 x 5.5 cards, which means they are nice a BIG, but not too big. The illustrations and words are big and bright enough to help make them stand out.

We also received the We Choose Virtues Download Bundle; this bundle is $7.99 by itself, but is free when you purchase the Homeschool Kit. The bundle includes extras to go along with your cards:

Teacher’s Handbook
Family Character Assessment
Coloring Pages
Butterfly Awards
Sing along song sheets

These were fun and easy to incorporate into our lessons- the teacher’s handbook has tons of helpful information and activities to include. I did the character assessment for Lexie, but really she is a little young to understand the concept- however, she can understand the concept of improving, so that is what we focused on. The coloring pages are of the characters that are mentioned on the cards; we didn’t do these with the lessons, but just for fun when she wanted to do some coloring (she really doesn’t like to color very much ..) We have not used the butterfly awards yet, but this will be a huge hit! And the sing a long sheets are fun!

****And for the month of June, use Promo Code BIG50 for 50% off WCV’s amazing set of 12 11×17 Kids of VirtueVille Posters! Then, from June through August, use Promo Code BTS20 for 20% off anything in our WCV Store. This includes any kit. Let’s start School with Virtues this year! (*Only one promo code per order)

Connect With We Choose Virtues

Beginning Sonlight P4/5 Part I: new schedule/routine

by Meghan // June 2, 2014 // Comments off

Monday, May 26th, we began our Sonlight P4/5 curriculum. You can read more about my first impression when we received everything here and why we chose what we did, here.

I wasn’t sure if we would begin in the summer, or closer to the fall when baby #3 arrives. I have been so excited to get started, and in desperate need of a new routine for Lexie’s learning time, that I decided to start now. I am glad we did!

Had we waited until fall, we would probably be all the way through our current math (which is Singapore early bird) and would begin Saxon. But, since we are starting early, we are just continuing on with Singapore. I am not super impressed with their program, and don’t find it challenging for Lexie at all cognitively; but it does keep us in the routine of doing some math thinking skills so we will continue with it for a bit.

We also began our All About Reading Level 1– to say I LOOOOOVE this program is an understatement. Love love love. Honestly, everything she is doing now she has been able to do for months; almost a year, actually. But it is giving her a great foundation and building her confidence in literacy SO much. Lexie has been sounding out CVC words (like “cat” “cup” “pig” etc) at least since her third birthday, but when I would introduce a reader like Bob Books, she would always say, “I can’t read the words. You do it.” So, while we played around with decoding (and reading by sight words), I didn’t push her. (besides, she has many years before she needs to be a fluent reader!) I just follow her lead on what she is comfortable with at this point.

All About Reading has built her confidence so much, and in just the first week. She has been reading any cvc word I put in front of her, loves the short activities that go along with the program, and looks forward to getting everything out of her workboxes each day! (well, we don’t do learning time every day, but when we do do learning time …)

(In addition to AAR, we are still using our little curriculum from ThisReadingMama. I will talk more about how we incorporate it in my following posts in this series.)

Like many children her age (under 4) her writing and fine motor skills are still developing. Her cognitive development is way beyond her writing abilities, so we are practicing fine motor skills and handwriting (just how to form the letters and numbers, not making them perfect). She does not like to color very much (bummer) and prefers to “write,” in her special books daddy brings home to her. She is still enjoying Logic of English, but we are only using the handwriting portion (because we love AAR).

So here is what our schedule looks like now for days we have learning time (it’s a little detailed ..):

7am- wake/brush teeth/milk and snuggles/breakfast/clean kitchen
(we do our memory work and Bible verse during breakfast)
8am- kids clean up any toys they got out. I get our Sonlight read alouds for the day and potty chair for Max, we all go to Lexie’s room and read while Max plays and practices pottying
9am- Max to independent play, Lexie’s learning time, then independent play for a few minutes while I clean up, get laundry changed over, and do other chores
10am- walk to park, play outside, pool time in backyard, play games, chores, run errands
11:15- lunch, clean up, free play, baths if necessary
12:00- nap for max. depending on our morning Lexie will either have a little more independent play here, or she will go down for nap
1:00- Lexie goes down for nap if she had a low key morning
1-2:30/3:00- everyone is napping, including myself if I am super tired (and at this point I usually am)
2:30/3:00- up and go to the pool, park, play outside, or run errands
That’s it until dinner, baths and bed!

So, you can see learning time doesn’t take up our whole day, or even a whole hour usually. We are also doing some lapbooking (which is SO fun) , on days we lapbook or do puzzles or something during learning time it takes a little longer to complete. But we have FUN and play a lot. On days we don’t do learning time, the kids play out back, either with me or together while I do chores.

I live by routine and schedule; my kids need the structure and so do I. I don’t do chaos well, however we alway have fun! We are always dancing, playing music, singing songs, etc. But we just do it in a controlled-chaos kinda way! 😉

I like this routine, because Max can be involved with our read alouds; but during the time Lexie needs to focus and have my undivided attention Mr. Rambunctious is having his down time in his room. I would LOVE for him to sit in on learning time, but at this point he is way too hands on wanting to be in the middle of everything she is doing; it just makes it harder for her (and me). So we play and learn with Max later during the day through songs, puzzles, outside, and just good ole conversation!

When the baby comes along, his/her naps and feeding schedule will go right along with everything we already do. I am not worried about that at all. I am actually looking forward to it! =)

(I did the red as an example for her, she did the rest) activity from Reading The Alphabet

My second Beginning Sonlight post will be about how I organize all our materials for everything.
My third Beginning Sonlight post will be more details about our Sonlight curriculum and how exactly we use it as well as along with our other programs. Every Sonlight family uses it differently, but we are really enjoying it this way so far; of course if that changes, I will let you know.
And, look for my post on our workboxes!

Braided Egg Bread {with allergy alternatives}

by Meghan // April 7, 2014 // Comments off

I have had several requests for this recipe, so I want to share it with you!

I know, I made the ropes too long so it is a little wavy …

When I lived in Hot Springs, there was this amazing bakery that everyone in town loved. They had the very best of any baked good you have ever eaten- cakes, cookies, bars, and bread!

My mother-in-law always had a loaf of their braided egg bread on the table. When we moved to Nebraska, I had no idea where I could get (and still don’t) a loaf of that amazing bread. So I did a huge search, far and wide, to find a recipe.

I am pretty sure this bread was the first thing I baked in our oven in Nebraska.

Just a fair warning- if you aren’t a bread baker (and I am not) this may look intimidating. I promise it is really hard to mess this bread up! It is the first real bread I ever made in my whole life and turned out perfectly the first time, after several mistakes! Yes, it requires a few rises, and kneading but it is still easy. I usually start it while the kids eat lunch, finish it during nap time, and we enjoy it for snack and with dinner. =)

Also, it doesn’t have a very strong flavor. It is a very subtle, light bread that is so yummy with butter and soup or salad.

Braided Egg Bread {with allergy alternatives}

2 hours

See Detailed Nutrition Info on

Braided Egg Bread {with allergy alternatives}

Ingredients

4 1/2 to 5 1/4 cups of flour (you can use whole wheat or all purpose)
1 package (or 2.25 tsp) of active dry yeast
1 1/3c milk (for dairy allergies use coconut or rice milk)
3 tbsp sugar (I use sucanat for a wholesome, real food sweetener)
3 tbsp butter (or coconut oil for dairy alternative)
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs, plus one egg yolk
*you will need an electric mixer

Instructions

Please don't be intimidated by the kneading and rising times. I promise- this bread is so easy and delicious.
In your mixing bowl, combine 2 cups of your flour and the yeast
In a medium saucepan heat the milk, sugar, butter/oil, and salt until just warm (about 130* using a food thermometer-any warmer and you can kill your yeast = no bueno!)
Add the warm milk mixture to your flour
Add the 2 whole eggs
Beat with electric mixer on medium speed for 30 seconds
Scrape the sides of bowl really well, and then mix on high speed for 3 minutes- set the microwave timer and load the dishwasher while you wait =)
Scrape down the sides, add in about 2 more cups of flour, a cup at a time, and mix until well combine (just a minute or so-don't over mix! That makes your bread tough = no bueno!)
Turn dough out on a lightly floured surface, and flour your hands
Your dough is probably pretty sticky, go ahead and add another 1/4 to 1/2 cup more flour
This should make your dough pretty stiff, but still elastic. That's what you want
Knead the dough for about 6-8 minutes (again, set the timer)
Spray the bottom of a bowl with a little Pam. Add the ball of dough, turn once to coat with oil
Cover and let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour
Punch down dough, divide into three balls and let rest 10 minutes
Roll each third out into an 18" rope. Place ropes on a large cookie sheet and begin braiding.
Let rise 30 minutes.
Preheat oven
Brush braid with 1 beaten egg yolk (that's what gives it the pretty brown sheen)
Bake for 25-30 minutes at 375 or until bread sounds hollow when you tap on the top

If you try it, please let me know what you think!

Captivated The Movie {a review}

by Meghan // April 1, 2014 // Comments off

To tell you that the Captivated DVD by Media Talk 101 has been a blessing for our family would probably be an understatement. We do not allow much “media” watching in our home to begin with; because we find most of it, though targeted at children is not really appropriate, and we would rather our children spend their time reading, playing, building, running, dancing, etc. (that isn’t to say that with being stuck inside all winter in Nebraska that we didn’t watch Winnie the Pooh or Little Women 1 too many times!). There were many times while viewing I was thinking *eek, that would be ME*

Not only did I learned a few things we can change here as well, but I was saying “Yes!” the whole time! For me, limiting media interaction for my children follows our lifestyle of natural, simple, living. This film helps support that lifestyle for us, and will be a great wake up call for many!

What Is Captivated?

Captivated has been an absolutely truth speaking, Christ centered documentary that I suggest ALL parents watch. It is also a movie you can watch with your children at your discretion (it is approved for all ages).

It is not a media bashing film! It does however present the concerns and proven issues caused by media. Captivated highlights the fact that we live in a media saturated society and this bring new challenges to every single aspect of our lives today. It features an amazing cast of experts from ministers to doctors and researchers; the documentary mentions many studies to back up everything it is presenting to you, which as a research-freak, I love!

The purpose of this film is to encourage media discernment- teaching our children (and ourselves) when, how, and to what extent using media is healthy. This is so important because everywhere we go, we are surrounded by media. The average screen time for the American child is 53 hours a week! Very out of balance, wouldn’t you say? We are living in a time where 4 year olds are asking for iPhones. My own 3.5 year old tells me she needs a “little girl computer to do ‘work’ like mommy” (fyi- never gonna happen).

Captivated has won several awards, including the Best Documentary Runner Up at the 2012 San Antonio Independent Film Festival and 2013 Best Documentary at the GloryReelz Christian Film Festival.

As someone who was totally engrossed by the documentary after watching it, I’m so glad that they decided to take it to a film festival, which saw them be successful at the same time. I’m surprised they didn’t take the next step in showcasing at local theater’s, but I guess they need something like a DCP builder to help them organize the movie and the adverts that come before it so they can have the relevant advertising. But even getting recognition at film festivals like these are a step in the right direction to get the message across.

What I Thought

*Four thumbs up!* (if I had four thumbs …)

First- I want to say I loved the beginning of the movie. How they used technology to introduce all the credits; Very creative, and right away I felt like this was going to be a fun, interesting, educational movie. And it was! I was writing down notes and quotes to share with you all the entire time!

I was not surprised to hear that today, American homes have more televisions than people. (Thankfully, we have one television, and quite frankly we could live without that one.) But how often do we come in from work, school, or running errands and turn on the television?

Do we really know what an impact this is having on our children? When you watch Captivated, you will find out!

Captivated cites research that brain studies show by spending too much time in front of media, reality starts to seem boring, and will shorten attention span. The more tv a child watches before the age of 3, the shorter their attention span. Television is hurting our children’s ability to learn and function in real life. The more cognitive stimulation children get (ie reading books, conversing, doing puzzles), the less likely they are to have a shorter attention span later in life.

I personally am guilty of bingeing on social media on the internet. I will go weeks with barely getting on my personal Facebook, but then I will go weeks when I update daily. What could I be doing with that time? What real life am I missing because of it?

Throughout the film you will hear from real life moms, dads, mentors, and children who are impacted by media and the impact removing it had on their lives. I write a lot about young children, but the truth is teenagers are even more surrounded by media than the littles- with online cell phones, tv, radio, computers, and iPods, older children are always “connected”- but this film actually helps parent, through real life situations, find the tools to limit usage and exposure. Captivated is truly an eye opener; you will soak in all 107 minutes!