Yea! I have been awarded The Versatile Blogger Award from Erin at Baldwin Homeschool. Unfortunately, I am having some issues with Blogger's new picture uploader, so I can't seem to actually put the image of the award on my blog. But, I happily accept and thank you, Erin!
To accept the award, I am to:
Thank and link back to who gave you the award.
Share 7 things about yourself.
Pass it along to 15 blogs you've recently discovered and enjoy.
Leave your recipients a note, telling them about the award.
So, here are 7 things about myself:
1. I absolutely love to read. I have an unknown number of books in my to be read pile and on my Kindle waiting to be read. If I finish one book and don't have another handy, I start to panic. Really!
2. I was a teacher in my former life before I had children and stayed home with them. Now I'm still a teacher but with a smaller class.
3. I have been married to my best friend for almost 16 years now. I accidentally called it 15 a few days ago and he corrected me.
4. I drive a big red conversion van and have lots of trouble parking. I love my Big Red, but I have been known to call my aforementioned best friend husband to come and get me out of a tight parking spot.
5. Second only to reading, computering is my hobby. I have a Facebook page, three blogs, and am a member of several boards. I do have some "real" friends too. I promise.
6. I have often considered getting a tatoo. But, I am greatly afraid of pain.
7. Despite being a stay at home mom, I have very few homemaking talents. I don't sew; I can't cook well; and I am really not crafty. But, I love organizing, and I am a pretty good housekeeper and teacher. So, I guess it is not all bad.
Now, I am probably not going to pass this award on to 15 blogs, mostly because I am feeling rather lazy tonight, but also because I passed on an award recently, and I know some folks don't like awards and all.
But, thank you again, Erin, and I am happy to be a versatile blogger!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Bible in 90 Days- I Finished!
I am once again finished with my reading through the Bible in 90 Days! I am actually finished on day 85. I didn't use any of grace days this time, and I decided today to go ahead and read a little extra and finish. I had a little more time because we had a lighter homeschool day today.
Once again, I am amazed by the continuity I experience reading through the Bible this way. God promises us in His Word that his Word will not return void. I know every time I read- whether I am studying in depth or reading through lightly- God blesses what I read and speaks to me through His Word.
I am going to take a break for a while and do some more in depth study of the Old Testament. I know Amy from Mom's Toolbox is going to do this again in January, and I am sure I will read with her again. Please join us if you have been considering this. It is a wonderful way to be submerged in God's Word!
Once again, I am amazed by the continuity I experience reading through the Bible this way. God promises us in His Word that his Word will not return void. I know every time I read- whether I am studying in depth or reading through lightly- God blesses what I read and speaks to me through His Word.
I am going to take a break for a while and do some more in depth study of the Old Testament. I know Amy from Mom's Toolbox is going to do this again in January, and I am sure I will read with her again. Please join us if you have been considering this. It is a wonderful way to be submerged in God's Word!
Friday, September 24, 2010
Weekly Wrap Up-A Busy Week
I'm not sure what happened this week, but it seemed to be one of those weeks where everything BUT school was getting done.
Monday was our most "normal" school day of the week. We were home with nothing much to get done except soccer practice in the evening.
Tuesday was Junior Master Gardner class for Kathryne and Charles. This is a gardening/horticulture/leadership class sponsored by 4H. They were not too keen on it, but I signed them up anyway because it is only once a month, and I think what they learn will be good. They go from 9-12. While they were in class, I took the little girls to the local museum. There were some great new exhibits! We picked up the big kids and decided to eat lunch with Daddy. The kids wanted to go to kids Zumba at the Y at 4, so I decided I didn't want to go all the way and then drive all the way back across town for Zumba, so we went and hung out at the church to kill some time. That put us being away from home from 8:30 in the morning until 5:30 in the evening- a loooong day.
Wednesday, I had a doctor's appointment which took up most of the morning. My mom stayed with the kids and I left some basic school work, but we didn't get most of our usual stuff done. Wednesday evening was dinner and church activities. Another long day.
Thursday morning we were able to get some work done before we had dental appointments at 11. We came home after but then went out again to swim Thursday afternoon.
Today, we had a preplanned field trip to the nature museum in Charlotte. It was a nice trip except that there was some sort of festival in the park that I wasn't aware of, and things were pretty crowded.
I'm hoping that next week is a more normal week for school.
For more weekly wrap ups, check out Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers.
Monday was our most "normal" school day of the week. We were home with nothing much to get done except soccer practice in the evening.
Tuesday was Junior Master Gardner class for Kathryne and Charles. This is a gardening/horticulture/leadership class sponsored by 4H. They were not too keen on it, but I signed them up anyway because it is only once a month, and I think what they learn will be good. They go from 9-12. While they were in class, I took the little girls to the local museum. There were some great new exhibits! We picked up the big kids and decided to eat lunch with Daddy. The kids wanted to go to kids Zumba at the Y at 4, so I decided I didn't want to go all the way and then drive all the way back across town for Zumba, so we went and hung out at the church to kill some time. That put us being away from home from 8:30 in the morning until 5:30 in the evening- a loooong day.
Wednesday, I had a doctor's appointment which took up most of the morning. My mom stayed with the kids and I left some basic school work, but we didn't get most of our usual stuff done. Wednesday evening was dinner and church activities. Another long day.
Thursday morning we were able to get some work done before we had dental appointments at 11. We came home after but then went out again to swim Thursday afternoon.
Today, we had a preplanned field trip to the nature museum in Charlotte. It was a nice trip except that there was some sort of festival in the park that I wasn't aware of, and things were pretty crowded.
I'm hoping that next week is a more normal week for school.
For more weekly wrap ups, check out Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Great Wolf Vacation
We were thrilled to go to Great Wolf Lodge in Concord, NC last week for our third trip since January. I definitely rate it as one of the best family vacations ever. It is a might expensive, but they do have a homeschoolers discount. We love the water park, Magiquest, and all the other activities for families. I can't wait until we go back!
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Friday, September 17, 2010
Bible in 90 Days Check-In
I realized that I had not done a Bible in 90 Days check-in recently. I am caught up in my 90 days of reading, and we are headed down the home stretch now.
I am reading in the gospels- started John today. I had a little catching up to do from being on vacation, so I read through most of Luke and into John today- two days worth.
I love reading through the gospels. It is much easier than the law and the prophets from the Old Testament! I have gotten so much out of reading through in 90 days these two times because everything seems to flow together so much better when I read straight through in a short time. I understand the law and the prophets more in the light of the other Old Testament history, and the gospels seem even more relevant when I am looking at their connection with the Old Testament I just finished. I know I've said this over and over during both of my reading through in 90 days, but it is so true for me. I would encourage anyone to try this 90 day reading program. It is lots of reading, and it is definitely NOT an in depth study, but it is a new and fresh way to really see the Bible!
The gospels are interesting because they are four accounts of some of the same events of Jesus's life. I found two great charts comparing the gospels:
This one gives lots of information about the gospels- the authors, the intended audience, and other historical information.
This one offers a detailed comparison of all the events recorded in the gospels.
I'm a very visual person, so the charts help me to see how all the gospels fit together.
I'm less than 20 days away from finishing my reading through this time. I'm going to do some in depth Old Testament study next, but I'm already thinking about when I want to read through again.
I am reading in the gospels- started John today. I had a little catching up to do from being on vacation, so I read through most of Luke and into John today- two days worth.
I love reading through the gospels. It is much easier than the law and the prophets from the Old Testament! I have gotten so much out of reading through in 90 days these two times because everything seems to flow together so much better when I read straight through in a short time. I understand the law and the prophets more in the light of the other Old Testament history, and the gospels seem even more relevant when I am looking at their connection with the Old Testament I just finished. I know I've said this over and over during both of my reading through in 90 days, but it is so true for me. I would encourage anyone to try this 90 day reading program. It is lots of reading, and it is definitely NOT an in depth study, but it is a new and fresh way to really see the Bible!
The gospels are interesting because they are four accounts of some of the same events of Jesus's life. I found two great charts comparing the gospels:
This one gives lots of information about the gospels- the authors, the intended audience, and other historical information.
This one offers a detailed comparison of all the events recorded in the gospels.
I'm a very visual person, so the charts help me to see how all the gospels fit together.
I'm less than 20 days away from finishing my reading through this time. I'm going to do some in depth Old Testament study next, but I'm already thinking about when I want to read through again.
Monday, September 6, 2010
The Courtney Family Labor Day
We started our Labor Day with no particular plans. I decided not to try to do school because Jason was home. It is always hard to get school done when Daddy is home. So, we ended up doing a variety of things.
Jason made a bike rack to clean up all the bikes in the driveway. He found the plans on the internet.
The girls spent the morning in the bathroom made into The Diva Day Spa with Kathryne, the spa lady giving spa treatments to Ashlyne and Rachel.
The kids all rode bikes and the older ones helped Rachel work on riding without training wheels. She's our last to learn a two wheeled bike.
The cats enjoyed basking in the sun. No, Gracie isn't dead, just lazy.
We've had a good day. Tonight is a movie night with a double feature- Barbie in a Mermaid's Tale for the little ones and Avatar for the older ones.
Happy Labor Day!
Jason made a bike rack to clean up all the bikes in the driveway. He found the plans on the internet.
The girls spent the morning in the bathroom made into The Diva Day Spa with Kathryne, the spa lady giving spa treatments to Ashlyne and Rachel.
The kids all rode bikes and the older ones helped Rachel work on riding without training wheels. She's our last to learn a two wheeled bike.
The cats enjoyed basking in the sun. No, Gracie isn't dead, just lazy.
We've had a good day. Tonight is a movie night with a double feature- Barbie in a Mermaid's Tale for the little ones and Avatar for the older ones.
Happy Labor Day!
Sunday, September 5, 2010
Weekly Wrap Up - A Good School Routine
This was our first week in a regular fall routine using our new fall curriculum! We had a great week.
The little girls are doing Five in a Row and we read The Story of Ping this week and did activities related to the book. We discussed China and it's culture. We discussed illustrations and drew water. We talked about ducks and watched a video about ducks from Discovery Education.
The little girls also worked on Handwriting Without Tears, Explode the Code, and Saxon math. I did learn that I need to do workbook time with Ashlyne and Rachel separately- even though this is harder for me.
The big kids and I began reading The Magician's Nephew for our Further Up Further In unit study. I love the Narnia books! Thankfully, so do they. We discussed some Bible truths from the story, defined vocabulary words, studied the food chain, discussed adjectives and their use, and did some creative writing.
The big kids also are working on Saxon math, copywork, and reading independently at least 15 minutes a day.
Together we listened to the first two chapters of Story of the World, reviewed 8 units of Latin (We're reviewing before we start the next unit in the book.), listened to Shakespeare (The Taming of the Shrew), and began a read through the Bible in a year program.
On Monday, we hosted our science co-op group. This is something new we are doing this year. We are getting together with two other families and doing science experiments twice a month. September is my month to host, and I chose to build a volcano. We watched a Discovery Education video about volcanoes, took a short volcano quiz, built an erupted two volcanoes, and ate a layers of the earth ice cream cake that one of the other moms had made.
On Thursday, we took a trip to Discovery Place in Charlotte. This is a great hands-on science museum. It has been in the process of renovation for almost two years but finally is complete and totally open now. There are some great new areas in the museum. We are members and were very excited by some of the new activities we can do now. My only complaint is that all of the museums programs have a very blatant evolutionary and politically correct spin. We discussed some of that after watching the Sharks 3D program. We did enjoy the museum, however, and spent about 5 hours there exploring all the new activities.
For more weekly wrap ups, visit Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
August- A Month in Review
August has been a relatively quiet month in the Courtney Household- not necessarily a bad thing. After a fairly busy summer filled with camps and trips and VBS, August was a good time to get back into a regular routine.
Changes: Our baby Abby that I kept since January has moved on to a daycare/preschool. I was having a hard time keeping up with everyone's school and running after a busy toddler again. So, with some sadness, we stopped keeping Abby. We've missed her, but we have developed a good school routine that I hope we can continue through the fall.
School: We finished up our summer units- the Answers in Genesis VBS, the Ancient Egypt lapbook, and the Human Body unit study- that we had been working on. In the last week, we have begun our regular fall schedule. The older kids are enjoying beginning the Narnia books again and the little girls are enjoying the Five in a Row stories. As well, we have started copywork, geography, math, Story of the World, Shakespeare readings, and Latin this week
Personal: I am continuing to read through the Bible in 90 days for the second time this year. We are reading through the prophets now. I have found it easier to keep up with the reading this time, and I really like the discipline that I have to have when I read in 90 days. I have been inspired to study the Old Testament in more depth and have purchased the Genesis and Exodus study guide from Navpress to begin after the 90 days reading is through.
I am also reading and reviewing on my Good Reads blog. I enjoy reviewing books for both Booksneeze and Tyndale because I love getting free books! I have so many books on my TBR list right now that I could easily keep on reading through the fall and into the winter. I also keep adding books that I get through BookMooch and library book sales!
Couponing: I haven't abandoned my couponing even though I haven't blogged about it in a while. I am still clipping and trying to match my sales with coupons. I don't think I will ever make it to the $40 or $50 a week budget that I have heard about. But, I am happy that sometimes I save more than I spent. And, for the month of August, we came in slightly under our grocery budget! Yeah! I'm headed in the right direction.
As we head into September, our fall schedule is well under way- school, soccer, choir, middle school group, and AWANA are all back. Days are not cooler yet, but they are getting shorter. It is not light as long. Fall is in the air. Time for a field trip to the apple orchard.
Changes: Our baby Abby that I kept since January has moved on to a daycare/preschool. I was having a hard time keeping up with everyone's school and running after a busy toddler again. So, with some sadness, we stopped keeping Abby. We've missed her, but we have developed a good school routine that I hope we can continue through the fall.
School: We finished up our summer units- the Answers in Genesis VBS, the Ancient Egypt lapbook, and the Human Body unit study- that we had been working on. In the last week, we have begun our regular fall schedule. The older kids are enjoying beginning the Narnia books again and the little girls are enjoying the Five in a Row stories. As well, we have started copywork, geography, math, Story of the World, Shakespeare readings, and Latin this week
Personal: I am continuing to read through the Bible in 90 days for the second time this year. We are reading through the prophets now. I have found it easier to keep up with the reading this time, and I really like the discipline that I have to have when I read in 90 days. I have been inspired to study the Old Testament in more depth and have purchased the Genesis and Exodus study guide from Navpress to begin after the 90 days reading is through.
I am also reading and reviewing on my Good Reads blog. I enjoy reviewing books for both Booksneeze and Tyndale because I love getting free books! I have so many books on my TBR list right now that I could easily keep on reading through the fall and into the winter. I also keep adding books that I get through BookMooch and library book sales!
Couponing: I haven't abandoned my couponing even though I haven't blogged about it in a while. I am still clipping and trying to match my sales with coupons. I don't think I will ever make it to the $40 or $50 a week budget that I have heard about. But, I am happy that sometimes I save more than I spent. And, for the month of August, we came in slightly under our grocery budget! Yeah! I'm headed in the right direction.
As we head into September, our fall schedule is well under way- school, soccer, choir, middle school group, and AWANA are all back. Days are not cooler yet, but they are getting shorter. It is not light as long. Fall is in the air. Time for a field trip to the apple orchard.
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