Homemade Face Cream

Ingredients for making Face Cream

• 1 cup Grape Seed, Olive Oil or Jojoba Oil
• ¼ cup Virgin Coconut Oil
• 1 tsp. Lanolin
• ½ oz. grated Beeswax
• 2/3 cup Distilled Water
• ½ cup. Aloe Vera Gel or Juice
• Vitamin E at least 10,000 IU
• Vitamin A at least 150,000 IU
• 2 drops Essential Oil of your choice
• Clean Cream or Lotion Jars 

Procedure

• Before you begin making your face cream, ensure that all the ingredients are at room temperature.
• The first step is to mix the grape seed oil, coconut oil, lanolin and beeswax and put them in the top pan of the double boiler. Apply low heat to the boiler and heat the mixture until the mixture has melted.
• Once melted, take it out from the pan and pour it in a glass measuring cup. Allow it to cool until it reaches room temperature.
• Now, put the distilled water, aloe vera, Vitamin E, Vitamin A and essential oil in a mixer. Make sure that you blend them at the highest speed. While you blend them, drip the above made oil mixture into the mixer.
• The lotion would start getting thicker and the mixer would get slow in speed. Turn off the mixer when you reach this stage. The face cream is ready!
  Pour the cream in fresh cream or lotion jar and store them in a cool place. If you do not intend to use the cream for a few weeks, you can as well put the jar in the refrigerator. 

Coupon Organizer Pattern

I found this super cute (and fast to make) coupon organizer over at A Happy Little Family.  So now you can rock your organizer in style!

Net10 Customer Service FIASCO

Well we decided that spenidng almost $200 on cell phones was ridiculous and decided to search out some changes.  For me we got Simple Mobile $40 for unlimited everything!  I bought a used iphone,  Simple Mobile micro sim card, mini sim card tray off ebay and I was up and running.  Not so much for my BT.

We decided to go with Net10 and have his number ported since he doesn't call much but needed good coverage for when he's out in BFE working.  I bought a cheap slide phone off ebay and tried to have it activated ya...that was fun.  They told me they'd have to send a new sim and in the meantime I bought the $20 for 200 roll over minutes card.   The sim card arrived but too much was going on so I waited a bit to have it activated.  Finally after like 2 weeks I decided I finally had a chance to mess with the cell phone problem and  that's when the fun began.  After 5 hours and being disconnected 6 times I found (with my kiddlets going bonkers in the background)  that my sim card that had just been sent had been activated incorrectly.  Now the part I haven't mentioned is that the customer service is off-shore...so good luck understanding what's going on.  After speaking with "supervisor" after "supervisor" who did nothing but repeat the same thing over and over I asked for the US  #.  I got disconnected.  I called back and asked again...I got disconnected again.  Obviously they didn't know who they were messing with...I did what any strong, independent, ex-rock star chick would do...I went to the internet and found THE REAL NUMBER to customer service.

It took about 5 minutes after I called the US # to get what I needed which was another sim card sent and my number ported.  So here is the info for Net10 if this jacked up situation happens to you (some of the info may be outdated..you're warned):

Customer Support (Executive Resolutions Dept): These numbers tend to be more helpful and have people with more knowledge and better command of the English language.

1-800-339-9345
1-800-626-4883  ******This is the number I called and got help from******
1-888-442-5096

Direct Sales:

1-800-323-2366

Corporate Office: This is not a toll-free number and will more than likely lead you to a voicemail box.

305-715-6673 (M-F 9am - 6pm EDT)
305-640-2000
305-715-6501

Corporate Address: These are the corporate addresses of the company. I suggest mailing the CEO and others. Sometimes having a name on the letter saves it from being passed off and replied to with a form letter statement.

Tracfone Wireless, Inc.
8390 Nw 25th St
Miami, FL 33122-1504

Fj Pollak
President and Chief Execuitve Officer of Miami based TracFone, United States
Tracfone Wireless Inc
8390 Nw 25th St
Miami, FL 33122-1504

Stephan J. Ritter
Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing
Tracfone Wireless Inc
8390 Nw 25th St
Miami, FL 33122-1504

Kevin Gulbranson
Senior Vice President of Product Management
Tracfone Wireless Inc
8390 Nw 25th St
Miami, FL 33122-1504

Paul Kozma
SVP Operations
Tracfone Wireless Inc
8390 Nw 25th St
Miami, FL 33122-1504

Head of Refund Department: This is a name and extension of someone known to work at the Executive Resolutions Department.

Monica
1-800-339-9345 ext 3214
or ext 6673

Warehouse: This is where Tracfone usually tells people to send their phones.

Tracfone Wireless Inc
Attention Warehouse
8390 Northwest 25th St
Miami FL 33122

Email Addresses:

Stephan J. Ritter
Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing
sritter@tracfone.com

Melissa Sanchez
MeSanchez@tracfone.com

Sales Cycles - How To Stock UP!

Here's a list of the sales cycles for the year so you can stock up when things go on sale and use those coupons to score BIG!

January:

National Oatmeal Month: Quaker
Diet Foods including: Healthy Choice, South Beach, Lean Cuisine, Special K, Kashi, Smart Start, 100 Calorie Packs
Super Bowl Sunday:  Pepsi, Coke, chips, dips, cheese, sandwich items, crackers, snacks, wings
Seasonal Produce: oranges, pears, grapefruits, tangerines, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chard, collards, kale, kiwis, avocados, cabbage, spinach
Clearance:  Christmas decorations, toys, wrapping papers                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Winter Health:  cold medicines and vitamins

February:

National Canned Food Month:  canned fruits and vegetables; meats:  tuna, chicken, salmon; pie fillings
National Hot Breakfast Month:  Malt O Meal, oatmeal, Eggo Waffles, syrup
Valentines:  chocolate, Hershey’s, KY Lubricant, etc
Chinese New Year: soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, noodles
Seasonal Produce:  artichokes, asparagus, raspberries, potatoes, strawberries, broccoli, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chard, collards, kale, kiwis, avocados, spinach

March:

Frozen Food Month: frozen meals, TGI Fridays, Contessa, Foster Farms chicken, Eggo, Sara Lee, Healthy Choice, DiGiorno, Freschetta, Breyers, Dreyers, Marie Callendars
Seasonal Produce: artichokes, asparagus, avocados, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, celery, chard, collards, fennel, kale, leeks, lemons, limes, mushrooms, onions, oranges, peas, radishes, rhubarb, spinach, strawberries, tangerines

April:

Easter:  ham; eggs; some baking supplies:  sugar, spices, baking mixes, chocolate chips
Earth Day: organic foods, Energy Saver
Seasonal Produce: artichokes, asparagus, beets, broccoli, cabbages, carrots, grapefruits, avocados, mushrooms, onions, peas, rhubarb
Clearance:  after Easter sales are the time to stock up on decorating, baskets, etc for the next year.

May:

Memorial Day: BBQ sauce, ketchup, condiments, charcoal, salad dressing, potato chips, dips
Paper Products:  plates, utensils
Cinco de Mayo:  salsa, tortillas
Seasonal Produce: artichokes; asparagus; avocados; green beans; beets; blackberries; carrots; sweet Vidalia onions; peas: edible-podded peas,  English Shelling peas; new potatoes; raspberries; strawberries
Outdoor: insect repellant, sunscreen

June:

National Dairy Month:  eggs, milk (free milk Catalina, wyb cereal), ice cream, cheese, butter, yogurt, Cool Whip, in-store dairy coupons or booklets
End of June is Fourth of July Sales: hot dogs, hamburgers, BBQ sauce, ketchup, condiments, charcoal, salad dressing, potato chips, dips
Seasonal Produce: apricots, blackberries, blueberries, boysenberries, cherries, corn, cucumbers, eggplant, grapes, honeydews, nectarines, peaches, potatoes, raspberries, red onions, summer squash, strawberries, sweet Vidalia onions, tomatoes, watermelons

July:

National Ice Cream Month
More 4th of July BBQ Sales:  hot dogs, hamburgers, BBQ sauce, ketchup, condiments, charcoal, salad dressing, potato chips, dips
End of July, Back to School Sales begin:  crayons, pencils, folders, binders
Seasonal Produce: Asian pears, Bartlett pears, green beans, blueberries, corn, cucumbers, eggplants, figs, garlic, grapes, nectarines, red onions, Valencia oranges, peaches, sweet bell peppers, plums, potatoes, summer squash, tomatoes, watermelon

August:

Back to School: pudding cups, lunch meat,
Staples and Office Depot penny items
Disinfectant:  Clorox, Purell
Clearance:  insect repellant, sunscreen, charcoal
Seasonal Produce: Gravenstein apples, avocados, beans, green beans, berries, corn, cucumber, eggplants, figs, grapes, melons, onions, peaches, Bartlett pears, bell peppers, plums, raspberries, summer squash, tomatillos, tomatoes

September:

Back to School Sales through Labor Day:  crayons, pencils, folders, binders
Diabetes:  Bayer glucose meters, Glucerna cereal
Seasonal Produce: apples, artichokes, beans, bell peppers, chili peppers, cucumbers, eggplants, grapes, onions, Valencia orange, pears (Asian, Bartlett), pomegranates, squash, tomatillos, tomatoes, winter squash

October:

Halloween:  candy
Beginning of the baking sales:  canned pumpkin, evaporated milk, baking chips
National Seafood Month
Adopt a Shelter-Dog Month: Pedigree, Purina
Seasonal Produce: almonds, apples, artichokes, arugula, beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, chard, chestnuts, cranberries, lemons, parsnip, pears, pomegranates, potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, spinach, winter squash, turnips, yams

November:

Baking Sales in full swing: nuts, chocolate chips, evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, coconut, cake mixes
Canned foods: soup, broth, condensed milk, vegetables, fruits, spaghetti sauce
Thanksgiving: turkey, canned pumpkin, Stove Top stuffing, Betty Crocker boxed potatoes, gravy mixes, Rhodes rolls, frozen pies, cranberry sauce, Jello, marshmallows
Seasonal Produce: Anjou pears, beets, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, carrots, celery, Comice pears, cranberries, kiwis, lemons, oranges, potatoes, squash, yams
Clearance:  After Halloween Sales are the time to stock up on things for the next year.  I like to buy the Halloween candy-alternatives like Halloween crayons, erasers, watches, spinning tops, etc.  I mix this in with my next year’s candy bowl, and it stretches my loot for all the neighbor kids!

December:

Holiday Dinner:  egg nog, deli platters, instant potatoes, gravy mixes, Rhodes rolls, frozen pies, cranberry sauce, Jello, marshmallows
Baking: flour, sugar, butter, cream, cake mixes, brownie mixes, muffin mixes, breads, pie crusts, marshmallows, whipped cream
Canned foods: soup, broth, condensed milk, vegetables, fruits, spaghetti sauce
Clearance:  Buy all your Thanksgiving decorations, extra table settings, and turkey carving products now once they’re at least 50% off.

Couponing Myths Exposed!

Here's an awesome list of why couponing really works IF you do it the right way...

This is from Embracing Beauty:

10 Coupon Myths Debunked

Myth #1: Coupons are only for junk food.
While there are a lot of coupons for processed and junk foods, now a days there are just as many coupons for healthy and organic foods too.  I have seen coupons for fruit, eggs, milk, yogurt, bagged salads, frozen veggies, etc.

Myth #2: You can’t save money if a store doesn’t double/triple coupons.
Drug stores such as CVS, Rite Aid & Walgreen’s are great places to save money even though they don’t double or triple coupons.  Most drug stores have excellent store deals, sales, and rebate programs that most grocery stores don’t have. Don’t skip over a store  just because they don’t double coupons. There are many higher dollar coupons which you can combine with a sale for deep discounts and possibly free items.

Myth #3: Shopping at discount stores and dollar stores will save you more money than using coupons.
Dollar Stores are often as expensive as other stores and have many extra disadvantages.  They don’t have the store deals and rebates like other stores do.  Also the food they have was likely to have been sitting on the shelf for a lot longer than at a grocery store.

Myth #4: Only poor people use coupons.
Maybe it’s just me but I am never ashamed to use coupons.  Saving money is more important to me than giving the appearance of wealth.  According to statistics, people with lower income (under $25,000 a year) are less likely to use coupons.  Those in the middle class with a college background are the most likely to use coupons.  Interesting.

Myth #5: You should only use coupons for products you normally buy.
By using coupons, I’ve gotten things for free or incredibly cheap that I would never have bought otherwise.  Our family has new grocery favorites because of high value coupons. I’ve also learned to be more creative in meal planning to incorporate what’s on sale that week.

Myth #6: Store brand products are always cheaper than name brand products.
Yes, it’s true that store brands are typically a little cheaper than name brands.  However, generic is rarely cheaper than name brand when you combine a coupon with a sale.

Myth #7: People who use coupons spend more than people who don’t use coupons.
If you are going to the store and buying everything you have a coupon for especially if the item is not on sale, you will spend more.  However, if you use coupons the right way by combining coupons and store sales you will get rock bottom deals and will undoubtedly cut your grocery bill.

Myth #8: It’s not worth it to shop at multiple stores.
The 3 main stores I shop at are right near each other and 5 minutes from my house, so it really doesn’t take me much time to go from store to store. Even if your stores are not as close as mine, it can be worth it to shop at multiple stores. For instance, if you are able to get $100 worth of product you need for $15 and you only spent $4 extra in gas and an additional 20 minutes, then I would say that would certainly be worth it!  You have to do what is right for you and your family but I wouldn’t rule out going to multiple stores right away without giving it a try.

Myth #9: You shouldn’t clip coupons for products you won’t use.
I clip coupons for every item I might buy.  Some coupons I throw away after they expire because I never found an item on sale.  Don’t dismiss a deal just because you haven’t used a product in the past–keep the coupon and look for a sale. I also recommend swapping unused coupons with a family member or friend. If you don’t have any use for baby coupons save them and give them to a new mom. I also keep coupons for items I know I won’t use and if a sale comes up and I can get the item for super cheap or free I will do so and later donate the item to a local woman’s shelter.

Myth #10: You will save more money by shopping at big box stores.
Big box stores such as Costco or Sams will save you money because you buy items in bulk but you can have much bigger savings if you buy a smaller quantity and use coupons.

Sonlight Too Expensive??...Really?

I've heard so many times "you use Sonlight...it's so expensive!"  Compared to what?  When you add up all the time I've spent online looking  for books at the library, paying library fines, returning books, picking up books and  scrolling through blogs and boards trying to find "the best"  you start to realize that you've spent more time looking for stuff than acutally DOING homeschool stuff.    So how can someone on a tight budget afford Sonlight?

Well let's start with budgeting.  Do you have a monthly budget for homeschool supplies?  Or do you use tax money?  If you do, start buying gift certificates from Sonlight.  Ask for gift certificates for presents.  Even $10 gift certificates will add up.

Take advantage of their payment plans.  They offer 3 month financing all year.   During April they offer 9 month financing and during May they offer 6 month financing. Cool!


If you have to buy used consider buying the IG from Sonlight so you are still supporting them for the hard work they put into this curriculum.  Then get the books from the library.  You'll have to be pretty organized but it's doable.

Happy Homeshooling!

IHomeschool Apps

Here's a list of apps done by someone on WTM (wish I could remember who but I can't... if you know let me know)

Iphone/touch Apps

Ghetto Ipad Stand From Pencils

I LOVE this...

Raw Revolution Bar Recipe

I love Raw Revolution bars BUT...unless Farmer BT becomes a millionaire soon I needed to come up with a recipe.  Which btw sounds easy to find but in fact involves hours trying to find a recipe that actually has the ingredients listed not just someone coming up with random ingredients

 I use plain old plastic wrap and store them in the fridge. 

Raw Chocolate Cashew Bars


1/4 cup chopped dates  (can sub with raisins but will taste different)
1/4 cup cocoa
1/3 cup whole raw pecans, almonds or walnuts
1  Tbl  Raw Honey ( we don't use agave but you can)

I added:
2  Tbl Raw almond butter   (for protein)



Set out two pieces of plastic wrap for shaping and wrapping the bars. Tip:  wet the surface of your counter slightly and then put the wrap on it.  Like magic the wrap will stick to the counter and not to your fingers.   Do this first...just trust me!

Add the nuts to the processor and pulse until finely chopped.  Remove to a bowl you'll add them in back in a minute.

Place the dates, cocoa and the honey in the food processor. If using nut butter you'd add it at this point. Pulse until processed to a gooey paste ball.  (Tip:  use a smaller processor...this doesn't seem to work as well with a bigger processor.)  Now transfer to the bowl with the nuts and your fingers to knead the nuts into the paste.



Divide mixture in half or quarters if you want 100 calorie bars. Place each half (or quarter) on each of  the sheets of plastic wrap. Start to mold into a bar shape.   Get them into the basic bar shape then tightly wrap the plastic around each bar and press them against the counter to get a more "perfect" bar shape. Now just store in the refrigerator. Makes 2 bars or 4 100 cal bars.
.

The State Of Education Comic

Via: OnlineEducation.net

Need To Scan Some Books?

Well i'm heading into new territory by buying an Ipad.  I was thinking I wanted to scan some of my kids books and was wondering about some of my bigger books as well. ..and then...I found this by The Golden Road To Samarqand

How To Scan ALOT of book

This mom lives internationally and homeschools her kids by using ereaders and Ipads. 

I love when someone figures things out for me! Now I can take all the stuff I want and have the kids write on the ipad...cool.  STill though, part of me thinks it's weird that this generation of kids is not going to be as familiar with books as we are.  I think that's how my parents probably feel about computers...guess I'll get over it.


UPDATE:  ACk!..this post was riddled with typos.  Guess I shouldn't post while kids are running around LOL

Organizing Homeschool Supplies

I just found this over at  Day by Day Discoveries for organizing your homeschool supplies....

Dish Racks!

Castle - Obedience

Here's a pic of our castle building for our KONOS Obedience Unit.  I was glad to finally get these boxes out of the garage after collecting for a couple of months.  We didn't go all out and paint this but I could see it would be in our future.


Here's what happened the next day....so ya...letting kids explore really works...

How To Search on VegSource With A Mac

If you've ever been on VegSource trying to find something you KNOW what a pain it is.  To reduce the drama all you have to do is use command F on a mac or control F on a PC...

there...now you can shop for used curriculum with all that money that's burning a hole in yur pocket :)

Oh No! Not The Mini Van!

I've often thought how much I can't stand my mini van.  The hubby and I have had many, many discussions about a new vehicle only to get tripped up because of third seating.  Neither of us want a minivan but a normal SUV doesn't have a third row.    The only SUV that does is a suburban and let's be honest...that thing is so big the bumper has to have a different license plate since it's practically in another state.  I always thought if I could just get a third row for our 4Runner it would be great....guess what?  Someone thought of the same thing and makes them!

Now get the SUV you want and add seats if you need them...


Little Passenger Seats

Book Of Virtue Curriculum

Well I have the Book of Virtue by William Bennett and for a long time I thought it would make a great curriculum but I didn't want to mess with it...guess what?  Someone already did it and it's FREE!!  It's an amazing resource with over 900 pages!


Book of Virtue Curriculum

Sonlight Core Label Colors

Did you know that Sonlight has labels so that you can find which books match what core?

The colors are:

• Core P3/4 - pale purple
• Core P4/5 - dark fluorescent orange
• Core K - hot pink
• Core 1 - red
• Core 2 - orange
• Core 1+2 - fluorescent yellow
• Core 3 - yellow
• Core 4 - kelly green
• Core 3+4 - fluorescent lime
• Core 5 - sky blue
• Core 6 - light fluorescent orange
• Core 7 - teal
• Core 100 - pale yellow
• Core 200 - cream
• Core 300 - pale blue
• Core 400 - gray
• Core 530- brown

There is a great post here about how to use the labels

Colds Are Here Again!

Cold season is upon us so here's a respost of the homemade cough syrup you can find here

A Time To Reap - Fall Curriculum

Here's What I've been working on.....




A Time To Reap -

FIAR CM Planner - Filled Out

I got a couple of questions about how I fill out my planner so I thought I'd just post some pics to help ya out

This one is filled out for FIAR

This one is with is filled out for KONOS

 

 This one is filled out for Sonlight but also has my addition of daily activities,  lunch menus and Iphone apps which is how I use it now.  I also have my own Activity Planner called "Discover My World" which has a schedule that looks like Sonlight that I have in my IG

KONOS Attentiveness - Sound Experiments

Here's the pics from our sound experiments from July....

Here the kids are finding out how sound travels by using a bowl that is wrapped with cellophane and then salt is added to the top.  As the yell it vibrates the cellophane.

Here they're using rubber bands over the top of an open container to make an instrument and to tell which one will vibrate and make the higher or lower tone... and yes we shop at Trader Joe's ;)

Sin in a Crust Pie aka.. Chocolate Chip Pie

 Okay this isn't raw which is kinda weird for me but I wanted cookie dough..NOW!  This is like sin in a crust...chocolate chip cookie in a pie crust.  You could probably cut down on the chocolate chips if you're feeling kinda frugal and with the variations I have you could make it vegan as well.



Chocolate Chip Pie 
 
1 pie crust (I used premade because I already had one)
1 cup sugar (this is really good with 1/2 cup white & 1/2 cup brown)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs (I substituted 1 banana, mashed and 1/2 tsp baking powder)
1/2 cup melted butter ( you could substitute Coconut Oil if you want vegan)
1  cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tsp vanilla extract


Preheat oven to 350.  Fit pie crust dough into a pie pan.  In a large bowl, combine sugar and flour.  Stir in eggs (or in my case, banana and baking powder) and butter until the batter is well-blended and smooth.  Add the chocolate chips and vanilla, mix until smooth and chips are evenly distributed.  Pour mixture into the unbaked pie shell.  Bake for 40-45 minutes at 350.  Cool until firm, about 45 minutes.

****Here's the update:  My hubby said he thought the pie tasted like banana so you're warned!

Felt Slippers Anyone??

So the leaves are starting to change and I'm thinking about what our feet will need when the floors get cold and found these felt slippers . We'll be doing ours in wool felt of course ;) Maybe we'll do elf colors for fun?

Elderberry Syrup

So the elderberries are ready to be picked so why not make some syrup? Elderberry syrup is known for being a strong anti-viral (aka flu fighter)

Elderberry Syrup

• 1 cup fresh or 1/2 cup dried elderberries
• 3 cups water
• 1 cup RAW honey (most honey is not raw so check)
  

1. Heat the berries and water to a boil, then reduce to simmer for 30-45 minuets.

2. Mash the berries, strain, and add 1 cup of honey. I add a half cup of the purple liquid to a measuring cup, then pour in honey until the total volume is 1 1/2 cups. Then stir to mix well, and add to the rest of the reserved liquid.

3. Bottle and store, refrigerated. for 2-3 months.

4. Enjoy a tablespoon daily to keep the immune system strong, use more often when afflicted with the flu.

KONOS Bloggy Goodness

Thought I share some of my favorite blogs for KONOS:


Cultivated Lives
Fun, FREE hands on Unit Studies (not actually a blog but oh...the choices!)
KONOS Booklist Collective

Planning...Where Art Thou?

So I thought I'd share an app I've used since it first came out that rocks for planning your day. It's called HomeRoutines. Seriously I have everything on this from chores to homeschool to housekeeping.

And for those who are app handicapped...here's what I use to use: Hipster PDA then I moved on to D*I*Y Planner

which I still use on occasion which moved me to: Hipster POD because I had my HomeRoutines but still wanted my D*I*Y Planner with me.

Happy Planning

Kindergarten Curriculum Revist

So can someone say crash and burn?

Since my original post (you can find it here) I have radically changed the way we are doing school. I dumped my original plan and I dove into KONOS Unit studies which we love but I felt like there was no organization in how the material was being given and I've been hording Sonlight catalogs forever...drooling.. so...I took the plunge and love the combo of using both!

We also love our nature study books and I just can't say enough good things about Kindergarten Gems and For The Children's Hour. Every kid should sit with mommy listening to these great stories over and over...well you get the idea.

So on the weekends I use Five In A Row and during the week I use Sonlight mixed with activities and the above mentioned old readers and it's working great. We're still Using Queens stuff for the three R's mixed with lots of 3R games.

So I guess what I'm saying is...we read and play ALOT! Sounds fun no?

Sonlight Printable BookList With Descriptions

So I don't know about you but the new catalog for Sonlight left me a little bereft. I think a great majority of us use it to read all the fabulous descriptions of the books for each core. Well this year they took that part out and for the life of me I couldn't figure out how to find it online....until today. So here's the instructions to get a printable booklist with descriptions like you use to get in the catalog.

1. Go to the grade you would like
2. Pick the tab for Core Program (not multi subject or instructor's guide)
3. Pick the core you would like with the readers you would like with the dot
4. Pick included items tab
5. click booklist with description on the right hand side on the top

For me this seems like a lot to do to just get the booklist. I for one will definitely be missing my rendezvous with my Sonlight catalog in my bathtub filled with bubbles after the kids are asleep but this will have to do for now.

Crawl Through Ear - Attentiveness

Here are the pics from our crawl through ear. The ear canal is the chair, a drum at the end was the ear drum, a seashell was the cochlea and a rope was the auditory nerve. The funny part to this was the next day my older son explained the whole thing to my husband while they were outside. My husband came in and said "what have you been teaching them?" Of course I had no idea what had happened outside so I was kinda panicked. I asked why and he said our son just explained to hom why my mom is deaf. So curious I asked what did he say. My husband said he explained that my mom's auditory nerve doesn't "hear" the cochlea. 'nuff said.

Guess the homeschool thing is working!

The Best Preschool/Kindergarten Curriculum

If you love unit studies and KONOS but you've got pre-k and K kids then you know that your kids are usually just tagging along with the big kids. I finally found the curriculum that works GREAT with littles and transitions nicely to KONOS.




Just awesome. You can even use this if you run a at-home daycare or nursery..bonus!

If you add Leapfrog: Letter Factory, Number Circus and Word Factory you're kids will be learning effortlessly and with a LOT of fun.

KONOS Attentiveness - Scootie Track

So we continue with our study of attentiveness by having a scootie course in the house and setting up stop signs so that we can be attentive...here's the action shots.

The faces have been changed to protect the guilty LOL

Solar Smores - Summer Fun!

A New Way to Make S'Mores!!!

I found the cutest activity in Disney's Family Fun Magazine (April 2008)! It's so hot here today...and it's supposed to get worse as the week goes on. I've been waiting for a way-too-hot spell to try it, and this is the week!

S'mores are probably my favorite summer treat, with or without the campfire. I make them in the oven, you can grill 'em, but this new way is completely safe for the munchkins. Introducing....

SOLAR S'MORES!
Here's what you'll need:

• Pizza Box
• Pencil and ruler
• Craft Knife
• Aluminum Foil
• Scissors
• Glue Stick
• Black Construction Paper
• Clear plastic packing tape
• Clear plastic (like sheet protectors, laminating paper, etc)
• Graham Crackers, chocolate bars, marshmallows
• Stick or dowel

Next:

1. Adults: On the top of the pizza box, draw a square that is an inch smaller than the lid all the way around. Use the craft knife to cut through the cardboard along three sides, as shown, and then fold the cardboard up along the uncut line to form a flap.

1. Kids can help: Glue aluminum foil, shiny side out, to the bottom of the flap, keeping it as wrinkle free as you can.
2. Glue another piece of foil to the inside bottom of the box and then tape black paper on the top of the foil.
3. Tape clear plastic to the underside of the lid to seal the opening created by the flap. For the best results, the seal should be as airtight as possible.
4. Place your "oven" outdoors in direct sunlight with the flap opened toward the sum, For each s'more, center two graham crackers on the construction paper. Top one with chocolate and the other with a marshmallow. Close the box and then use a stick or dowel to prop the flap open at the angle that reflects the most sunlight into the box (check periodically to adjust the angle). Within an hour (or sooner if it's a really hot day), the chocolate squares and marshmallows should melt enough to assemble into s'mores.

If you try it, let me know how it goes. It's also a good excuse to order out pizza for dinner. :)

KONOS Attentiveness

Ear/ Hearing

How your ear works

Mr Bell Video Free!

Free video on Mr Bell - Great if you're doing KONOS Attentiveness unit. This is the movie that is referenced in the sound experiments/music lesson plan

Mr. Bell part 1

Mr Bell part 2

Play Everywhere!

I think I'm starting a theme here....

Here's some great sites on play called:

Let's Explore

Childhood 101

Outdoor Play!

This is a great guide on the reason for bringing back outdoor play. The average preschooler only gets 1 minute a day compared to 2 1/2 hours of screen time (videos, games, computer etc.)

A Parent’s Guide to Nature Play

Cicadas

Really it's gotten to plague proportions here. They are so loud that you're ears are deaf like when you go to a concert by the time you get inside. And...for further enjoyment, lets have them flying everywhere landing on everything. Good thing I don't freak out about bugs.

So between floods, tornado and now this...I'm wondering if the water will be turning to blood soon.

This was an interesting thought on these huge bugs.

Well...I'm Back to FIAR with Konos thrown in. I just can't handle Sonlight. While I like *some* of the books in Sonlight I found that I didn't like 1/2 of them for Kindergarten...jeeze. So I'm back to what we love with read alouds thrown in from Sonlight, For The Children's Hour and Kindergarten Gems.

Which was what I was doing before...nothing like learning an expensive lesson.

What To Do With Your Toddler/Preschooler Part II

Here's another treasure from the last century

Home Occupations For Little Children

ARt for Kids!

This is a great book on how to teach art using picture books!

Classic Education?

This is by far the best lecture you'll ever hear about Classic education given by Susan Wise Bauer who of course wrote The Well Trained Mind

go...go now and find out why you're kid doesn't like (fill in the blank)curriculum! It's will open your eyes to many things and it's only .99!


The Joy of Classical Education: Introduction to Classical Education at Home

FREE!! FIAR CM Planner Download

Whadya Think?  click on the photo if you'd like to download

Free Curriculum List

Holy Cow! The Mother Lode of free curriculum is listed here

And Another Living Science Book List

from Penny Gardners' site

Readable Science

Another Living History List

I just love booklists and here's another great one from Charlotte Mason Pioneer Penny Gardner

Penny Gardner History Book List

Homemade Cough Syrup - Great for Colds Too!

Okay I'll give ya this...the ingredients sound gross but it works.

1 Raw White Onion
*Raw Honey - Must be RAW! check as most store bought honey is pasteurized .


Take the onion and cut into parts. Now stab it a couple of times with a fork so the quarters have a little bit of holes. It doesn't have to be perfect so don't worry about not stabbing it the right amount of times. Place onion in a quart mason jar and fill with raw honey so that the onion is just covered. Screw lid on and leave on the back part of your stove for at least a day but probably a couple of days. You'll notice that the onion imparts it's juice into the honey. Using a strainer pour liquid into a pint mason jar and store in the fridge. To take you want to take a teaspoon 3 to 4 times a day when you're battling a cold or cough.

*NOTE:

****Please remember not to give honey to children under 1*****

Great Book on Nature!

Great Daily book for Nature


The Kids' Nature Book: 365 Indoor/Outdoor Activities and Experiences (Williamson Kids Can! Series)

Science Living Book List

and to complement my other post here's the Science living book list a la Charlotte Mason

Science Living Books

History Living Book List

Here's a list for living books a la Charlotte Mason

Living History Books

What To Do With Your Toddler/Preschooler

Ever been there? You need to talk on the phone or do some schoolwork but you don't want to plop your kid down in front of the TV? Ya..me too. As a matter of fact it started happening too often and then I remembered reading somewhere about a book. After MUCH MUCH research I found where I had seen it (Ambleside Online) and here's the book:

102 "I-can-do-it-myself" activities for preschoolers

The only problem is it's a fortune so I suggest you get it from Interlibrary loan.

Here's a link to a great resource as well

Boredom Busters

Bible For Kids

Here's a great free book to use with young children (4-8ish)

Story Sermons for Children by Howard James Chidley

Free Language Book for 4-5 grade

You can find this great Charlotte Mason style book here:

Intermediate Language Lessons by Emma Serl

Kid's Meal Plan

****Update 9/13/12  this link no longer goes to that amazing resource...so sorry :(

So who hasn't wondered what they were fixing for breakfast? or how about what's for lunch. Here's a great resource that has a 13 week plan filled with food your kid will probably eat all figured out for you...love that!

Menu Planning Central

Look under bonus for the kid approved meals ;)

Great Book On Discipline Circa 1833!

So check out this great find from 1833!~What great wisdom is given in this book about discipline and being a loving mom.


The Mother At Home By John Stevens Cabot Abbott

Winter Indoor Fun

Ya we've all been there...what do you do with the littles when it's too cold to go outside? Here's a good one...

Indoor Snow!

Just grab your biggest container and put fresh snow in the sink. I happen to have those tubs you use for washing dishes (I have no idea what they are called..they remind me of camping LOL) and I filled it with snow. Just add clean sand toys and TADA! Hours of fun.....okay...maybe the snow melts after hours but that's a lesson in science right there. Plus you know you had to clean the floor anyways and now you have little helpers to tidy up.

Go! Run outside and grab some snow and then make a cup of tea and enjoy the peace...well..maybe it's noisy but you don't have to be hovering to deal with this one!

Kindergarten Curriculum

Here's my current curriculum for kindy.



Bible

Mother Stories from the New Testament
Mother Stories from the Old Testament


Language Arts (maybe 10 min):

Queen Homeschool Language Lessons For Little Ones #2
Wood Blocks
LeapFrog Talking Words Factory DVD
ABC Books Like:
Lucy & Tom's abc

Math (maybe 10 min):

Math Lessons For A Living Education
Games for Math
Family Math for Young Children
Dominoes
Leapfrog Math Circus DVD
Number books like:
One is 1

History/Geography/Science (maybe 10 Min):

Five In A Row/Before Five In A Row
Wee Folk Art Kindy Curriculum per season

Read Alouds (maybe 10 min):

I alternate History, Science and Literature (a lot of these are ebooks on my Ipod)

Kindergarten Gems
Burgess Bird Book
Among the Farmyard People
The Story Mother Nature Told Her Children
Stories of Great Americans For Little Americans
Stories of American Life and Adventure
Storytime and the Millers
Tiptoes Lightly

Picture Books (our evening reading):

Anything by Shirley Hughes!
Rod and Staff Little Jewel Books
Wee Folk Art Curriculum covers this
FIAR/B4FIAR covers this


Nature Study:

Handbook of Nature Study website and ebooks
Pets In A Jar
Nature In A Nutshell
The Kids' Nature Book - 365 Indoor/Outdoor Activities & Experiences
Watching our backyard!

Picture/Artist Study:

Come Look With Me series

On Audio Tape:

Winnie the Pooh
House at Pooh Corner
James Herriot Treasury
French for Babies
German for Babies

Play:

pretty much our whole day!

Home Made Dryer Sheets - Reusable

Adding to my previous post... here's another that's fantastic and really works. We use organic fabric softner for ours but I suppose you can use the old fashion kind ;0)

Reusable Homemade Dryer Sheets

Flannel pieces
4 TBS liquid softener
10 TBS water

• Cut fabric sheets from old flannel pajamas or leftover flannel fabric from sewing and cut into 3″ x 5″ strips (approximately).
• Stack flannel strips in a cleaned margarine tub (large size) or plastic container (cleaned baby wipes container works well too). Mix the liquid softener and water together, then pour evenly over top of stacked flannel strips.
• Seal container and shake well.

You can use several dozen strips with this mixture. Leave sealed for 2 or 3 days, then use one flannel strip per load–squeeze out excess if necessary (it should be just damp). Keep container sealed at all times. Wash strips after use, then use again to make another batch when needed.

Home Made Fabric Softner

I don't know about you but I love soft clothes but I don't like the weird chemical smells that most fabric softners have. Seriously, when I go down the laundry aisle at the store, both the kids and I start sneezing or complaining and we run for the hills..okay maybe it's the dairy section but it might as well be the hills. Maybe I should run to the chocolate sections..mmmm.. Anywho I've tried using vinegar but if you've tried it straight you probably found out like me that it will ruin any and all things elastic...ya that's great if you have underwear. So here's a recipe that will work great and if you want some smellies I suggest adding an essential oil like orange or lavender. Beware though...not all essential oils should be on skin!

Homemade Fabric Softener Recipe

1 part Vinegar
1 part Baking Soda
2 parts Hot Water

2T Glycerin

• Place a pail large enough to hold double the amount of ingredients in the kitchen sink or bathtub. Mix the baking soda and water in the pail, stir till the powder is dissolved. Then add the vinegar.
  
• Remember that baking soda and vinegar reacts with fizzing, so use a big pail to account for this. Once it’s stopped fizzing add gycerinand mix, pour into clean bottles, cap, then use 1/4 cup per rinse cycle.
• Updated Info: The baking soda won’t be completely dissolved, just shake the bottle to mix the batch up before adding to the rinse cycle.

Winter Curriculum!

Just found this on Wee Folk Art ( a GREAT blog by the way) and thought I'd share ;0)

Winter Wonderland 12 Week Curriculum

Curriculum

Well I haven't posted in a while and I spent some time doing a Waldorf approach and pedagogy. And now I'm back with Five In A Row with reading selections pulled from Waldorf and the classics. The reason? Every weekend I would think of all the beautiful painting and such that I hadn't done with my kids, which is very much a part of how the material is presented in a Waldorf approach, and I would feel bad. Really Bad. Like I was failing my kids. I just didn't like doing the circle time, puppet shows, painting, making books, knitting, making dolls, storytelling etc. I love the thought of those things and I can see that the kids love it but...You see I've discovered I'm a book geek. The polite way of saying it would be a closet intellectual but since I'm not one for flashing my education I'll just say I'm a book geek. I do love baking and sewing but if you knew me you know how funny that is because I'm like the rockin rainbow colored hair martha stewart. Most people don't know how domesticated I am because of how I look. Seriously I'm almost amish..well I could never be amish because of the outfits but that's another story. But if I had a choice between making an artsy fartsy apron or reading a book, the book wins hands down. I came to this conclusion sitting next to my bookshelf that was JAMMED with books I have from the library that I want to read. So I needed to pick a teaching style that fits me and fits my kids.

What I have come away from Waldorf all these years is this...children need to be protected from an overstimulating environment. A good book about this is Simplicity Parenting: Using the Extraordinary Power of Less to Raise Calmer, Happier, and More Secure Kids The Waldorf pedagogy is great at speaking to a child where he/she is at in growing and learning so I'll probably keep that as well. And of course we'll keep the beautiful wood toys, beeswax crayons (I sooo recommend these!) and peaceful surrounding I've made for the kids. So in the end I got some amazing things out of this time.

So what Am I doing now? Well I'm using FIAR and then adding elements of the Moore Homeschooling, Classical and Charlotte Mason ideas. So what that looks like is: FIAR, Character study using Rod & Staff books and Stories of missionaries for read alouds, Classics for read alouds (Winnie the Pooh etc), Nature Study & Books for read alouds,Waldorf picture books and stories, Art Study and Music with crafts from Waldorf thrown in here and there. So I guess I'm eclectic...that's nothing new for me LOL.