Category Archives: Single Parenting

affiliate links, homeschooling, Life, Parenting, Single Parenting

Little House On The Prairie Adventure: Week by Week Math Lessons

5 Comments

**This post may contain affiliate links to some of the products and resources that we have used. These are provided at no extra charge to you and help to support our blog and family if a purchase is made through these links. -Thank you!

Here are our Lesson Plans For Math

These lessons were made to go along with ‘The Little House On The Prairie‘ written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. We are planning to go through the whole series and I am keeping track of the different topics we are learning about here on my blog. We hope you enjoy these as much as we have!

Tip: If you want to go to a certain week/chapter or topic simply push the ‘ctrl’ and the ‘F’ button down together and a small bar will pop up. Type in the week number or chapter number you want and it will take you to it.

Week 1: Chapters 1, 2 & 3

You can work on a lesson in your Ray’s Arithmetic Books or other math workbook. (The lessons below reflect what we worked on.)

You may find it easier to buy a Math Workbook to work through as you go along with the study.

Group:

Rotate through these activities:

Older Kids:

Younger Kids:

 

Week 2: Chapters 4, 5 & 6

You can work on a lesson in your Ray’s Arithmetic Books or other math workbook. (The lessons below reflect what we worked on.)

Group:

Rotate through these activities:

Older Kids:

Younger Kids:

 

Week 3: Chapters 7, 8 & 9

You can work on a lesson in your Ray’s Arithmetic Books or other math workbook. (The lessons below reflect what we worked on.)

Group:

Rotate through these activities:

Older Kids:

 

Younger Kids:

 

Week 4: Chapters 10, 11 & 12

You can work on a lesson in your Ray’s Arithmetic Books or other math workbook. (The lessons below reflect what we worked on.)

Group:

Rotate through these activities:

Older Kids:

Younger Kids:

Week 5: Chapters 13, 14 & 15

You can work on a lesson in your Ray’s Arithmetic Books or other math workbook. (The lessons below reflect what we worked on.)

Group:

Rotate through these activities:

Older Kids:

Check out this video on multiplication:

Younger Kids:

 

Week 6: Chapters 16, 17 & 18

You can work on a lesson in your Ray’s Arithmetic Books or other math workbook. (The lessons below reflect what we worked on.)

Group:

Rotate through these activities:

Older Kids:

 

Younger Kids:

 

Week 7: Chapters 19, 20 & 21

You can work on a lesson in your Ray’s Arithmetic Books or other math workbook. (The lessons below reflect what we worked on.)

Group:

Rotate through these activities:

Older Kids:

Younger Kids:

 

Week 8: Chapters 22, 23 & 24

You can work on a lesson in your Ray’s Arithmetic Books or other math workbook. (The lessons below reflect what we worked on.)

Group:

Rotate through these activities:

Older Kids:

Younger Kids:

 

Week 9: Chapters 25 & 26

You can work on a lesson in your Ray’s Arithmetic Books or other math workbook. (The lessons below reflect what we worked on.)

Group:

Rotate through these activities:

Older Kids:

Younger Kids:

Week 10: Finishing Up

You can work on a lesson in your Ray’s Arithmetic Books or other math workbook. (The lessons below reflect what we worked on.)

Group:

Rotate through these activities:

Older Kids:

Younger Kids:

**BE SURE TO SAVE A FEW SAMPLES OF YOUR WORK FOR YOUR  PORTFOLIO!  TAKE PICTURES OF BIG PROJECTS!

Advertisements
affiliate links, Family, homeschooling, Kids, Life, Meal Planning, Parenting, Single Parenting, special needs

Little House On The Prairie Adventure: Language Art Lessons

6 Comments

**This post may contain affiliate links to some of the products and resources that we have used. These are provided at no extra charge to you and help to support our blog and family if a purchase is made through these links. -Thank you!

These are divided into weekly work as we like to use Loop Scheduling in our home. We simply work on a little bit and then move on to the next subject area. We have four days of ‘school’ and then the fifth day is used to finish up projects that we have been working, for independent study, or fun activities and field trips. Have fun on your Little House on the Prairie Academic Adventures!

Here are our Lesson Plans For Language Arts

These lessons were made to go along with ‘The Little House On The Prairie‘ written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. We are planning to go through the whole series and I am keeping track of the different topics we are learning about here on my blog. We hope you enjoy these as much as we have!

You may find it easier to buy a Workbook for your children to work through as you go along with the rest of the study.

Mornings:

We Start every morning off with our prayers and the Pledge of Allegiance. Below is a picture of the prayers that we say and a video of the Pledge of Allegiance.

a4f356a8-2a6f-4280-abd7-33bce0719b96-4019-000000c2c1f8254c_file

Not the prettiest example but that’s what we’ve been using for the past few years.

Don’t have a flag? Grab one HEREand print it out to put up somewhere… you could even let the kids make a flag to proudly display. Amazon also has some little ones like this one HERE and HERE.

After this we have our calendar time also where we go over such things as the Days of the Week, the months, and some basic math.

d3cbca65-c096-4094-b421-827b79058cc5-4019-000000c2ec08e8e6_file

This one came from Lakeshore Learning.

Tip: If you want to go to a certain week/chapter or topic simply push the ‘ctrl’ and the ‘F’ button down together and a small bar will pop up. Type in the week number or chapter number you want and it will take you to it.

Week 1: Chapters 1, 2 & 3

We plan to use this FREE Lapbook to go along with our study.

Reading:

Read Chapters 1, 2 & 3

Discussion Questions:

Chapter One:

  • What was happening at the beginning of the chapter?
  • Why did Pa say they needed to leave? Where were they going?
  • What season was it? How do you know?
  • What states did they travel through?
  • What did Pa trade the horses for? What did they name them?

Chapter Two:

  • How did Mary feel about crossing the water?
  • Did Laura feel the same way?
  • Why do you think Ma covered the girls with a blanket?
  • What sad thing happened while crossing?

Chapter Three:

  • What was the spider? Why was it called that? Click HERE for pictures.
  • What did the girls have to share?
  • What sound did Laura not like to hear?
  • What surprise did they get?
  • What did Laura wish Pa would give her?

Additional Reading:

Each child would complete a reading lesson from our McGuffey Primer Books or other reading materials that we chose for the day.

Younger kids will also be doing one lesson a day from Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

Vocabulary/Spelling:

Older Kids:

Parents click HERE for the answer key.**see instructions at the top of the page.

Younger Kids:

Handwriting:

Using  Spencerian Penmanship go over the instructions on p. 1-4

Writing:**

We will be making a journal to record some of our pioneer adventures in. The link to the journal will be HERE.

Choose one prompt below:

  • Make up a campfire song.
  • Write about your favorite camping adventure and be sure to describe what you see, hear, smell, and feel. Draw a picture to go with your story.
  • Review some skills with this worksheet HERE.

**Remember to use the thesaurus to come up with different words.

Other Activities:**

Group:

Older kids:

Younger kids:

Week 2: Chapters 4, 5 & 6

Reading:

Read Chapters 4, 5 & 6

Discussion Questions:

Chapter Four:

  • What did they eat for breakfast? Would you like this? Why or why not?
  • What chores did they have?
  • Name three animals that the girls saw while exploring. Name three different animals that Pa saw.
  • What did Laura want to see?
  • What did they have for dinner?

Chapter Five:

  • How did they set up house?
  • What did Pa go to get from the creek bottom?
  • What did Pa do with the logs?
  • How did Ma get hurt?
  • Where was Mr. Edwards from? How did he help them?

Chapter Six:

  • Why did Pa say that they hadn’t seen any Indians in the beginning of the chapter?
  • What did Pa use for the roof?
  • What did Pa use for a door?
  • What did Pa say he wanted? Why?

Additional Reading:

Each child would complete a reading lesson from our McGuffey Primer Books or other reading materials that we chose for the day.

Vocabulary/Spelling:

Older Kids:

Parents click HERE for the answer key.**see instructions at the top of the page.

Younger Kids:

Handwriting:

Using  Spencerian Penmanship go over the instructions on p. 5

Writing:

Choose one prompt below:

  • Practice writing a friendly letter with this worksheet HERE.
  • Practice some writing with this worksheet HERE. (You may need to make a FREE account to print these out.)

**Remember to use the thesaurus to come up with different words.

Other Activities:

Group:

Older kids:

Younger kids:

Week 3: Chapters 7, 8 & 9

Reading:

Read Chapters 7, 8 & 9

Discussion Questions:

Chapter Seven:

  • How long did it take Pa and Mr. Edwards to build the stable?
  • What wonderful thing did they find in the morning?
  • Why did Pa come back home in a hurry?
  • How did Pa get away from the wolves?
  • What scary thing happened that night?

Chapter Eight:

  • What did they see outside the next morning?
  • What did Pa plan to make for the house? Why?
  • What did he need? Did he let it stop him or did he find a way to get the job finished?
  • What was Pa’s next project for the house?

Chapter Nine:

  • What did Pa need to get for the fireplace?
  • Describe the process that Pa used to build the fireplace.
  • What did Ma put on the mantel?
  • What did Pa warn Ma about?

Additional Reading:

Each child would complete a reading lesson from our McGuffey Primer Books or other reading materials that we chose for the day.

Younger kids will also be doing one lesson a day from Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

Vocabulary/Spelling:

Older Kids:

Parents click HERE for the answer key.**see instructions at the top of the page.

Younger Kids:

Handwriting:

Using  Spencerian Penmanship go over the instructions on p. 6

Writing:**

  • Complete this worksheet HERE and use some of your vocabulary words for the bottom part.
  • Practice brainstorming for upcoming reports with this worksheet HERE.

*Remember to use the thesaurus to come up with different words.

Other Activities:

Group:

Older kids:

Younger kids:

Week 4: Chapters 10, 11 & 12

Reading:

Read Chapters 10, 11 & 12

Discussion Questions:

Chapter Ten:

  • What did Ma say about snakes?
  • What did Ma scold the girls for?
  • Why did Pa say Mr. Edwards was a good neighbor?
  • What difference did the roof make in the house?
  • After Pa finished the floor what did he wish he had for the house? How did he plan to get it?

Chapter Eleven:

  • Why was Jack sad? How did the girls try to cheer him up?
  • How did Laura describe the Indians?
  • What made the bad smell?
  • What did the girls share at the dinner table?
  • What did the Indians take?
  • Why did Pa warn the girls about being disobedient?

Chapter Twelve:

  • What did Pa make that Ma really liked?
  • Where did the girls sleep?
  • Why did Pa dig a hole?
  • What happened to make Ma say it was a terrible day?
  • Why did Pa and Mr. Scott use a candle in the well?

Additional Reading:

Each child would complete a reading lesson from our McGuffey Primer Books or other reading materials that we chose for the day.

Younger kids will also be doing one lesson a day from Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

Vocabulary/Spelling:

Older Kids:

Parents click HERE for the answer key.**see instructions at the top of the page.

Younger Kids:

Handwriting:

Using  Spencerian Penmanship go over the instructions on p. 7

Writing:**

Choose one prompt below:

  • Sometimes we might come across words we don’t know but we can use context clues to help figure out what the words mean. Complete this worksheet HERE.
  • Start on this workbook HERE. Complete 1-2 pages a day.

*Remember to use the thesaurus to come up with different words.

Other Activities:**

Group:

Older kids:

Younger kids:

Week 5: Chapters 13, 14 & 15

Reading:

Read Chapters 13, 14 & 15

Discussion Questions:

Chapter Thirteen:

  • Why did the cowboys need Pa’s help?
  • How would they pay him?
  • What did Laura want to be?
  • What did Pa bring home?
  • What did they let Baby Carrie have?

Chapter Fourteen:

  • What time of year did Ma say it was?
  • Where did Pa take the girls?
  • What did they find?
  • What did the girls make with their beads? Who did they give it too?

Chapter Fifteen:

  • What did the Laura help Ma pick? What did they do with them?
  • What did Mary do while Laura was helping Ma?
  • How did they keep the mosquitos away?
  • Who came to help when the family was sick? How did they help?
  • What was different about the Doctor?
  •  What did Mrs. Scott say caused the sickness? What really caused the sickness?

Additional Reading:

Each child would complete a reading lesson from our McGuffey Primer Books or other reading materials that we chose for the day.

Younger kids will also be doing one lesson a day from Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

Vocabulary/Spelling:**

Older Kids:

Parents click HERE for the answer key.**see instructions at the top of the page.

Younger Kids:

Handwriting:

Using  Spencerian Penmanship go over the instructions on p. 8-9

Writing:

Choose one prompt below:

  • Write a story about when you were not feeling well. Tell about who helped you and what made you feel better.
  • Continue working in your workbook.

**Remember to use the thesaurus to come up with different words.

Other Activity:

Group:

Older kids:

Younger kids:

Week 6: Chapters 16, 17 & 18

Reading:

Read Chapters 16, 17 & 18

Discussion Questions:

Chapter Sixteen:

  • What preparations were they making for the winter?
  • What bad thing happened? What did Ma do?
  • Why did Ma say that Laura was brave?
  • What did Pa bring home? What did he say they could make from the feathers?
  • Why did they need to go to town?

Chapter Seventeen:

  • Where did Pa go?
  • Why did Mr. Edwards come to the house? What did Jack do?
  • Who came to visit Ma the next day? What did she say about their house?
  • What did Ma make for Pa to warm him up?
  • What special thing did Pa bring back from town that made Ma so happy?

Chapter Eighteen:

  • What did they see more and more of?
  • What ran in front of the house?
  • What did the Indian try to take from the house?
  • What did Pa say the government made the Indians do?

Additional Reading:

Each child would complete a reading lesson from our McGuffey Primer Books or other reading materials that we chose for the day.

Younger kids will also be doing one lesson a day from Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

Vocabulary/Spelling:

Older Kids:

Parents click HERE for the answer key.**see instructions at the top of the page.

Younger Kids:

Handwriting:

Using  Spencerian Penmanship go over the instructions on p. 10

Writing:**

  • Start planning a holiday menu. Include beverages, sides, main dishes, breads, and desserts. Click HERE for worksheets.
  • Design a nice invitation for the meal and send them to people, with your parent’s permission. Click HERE for worksheets.
  • Continue working in your workbook.

Other Activity:

Group:

Older kids:

Younger kids:

Week 7: Chapters 19, 20 & 21

Reading:

Read Chapters 19, 20 & 21

Discussion Questions:

Chapter Nineteen:

  • What holiday was coming up?
  • What did Pa bring Christmas dinner?
  • Why did the girls think Santa couldn’t come?
  • Who did Mr. Edwards say he had saw? What had he sent for the girls?
  • What did the girls find in their stockings?

Chapter Twenty:

  • What games did the girls play with Baby Carrie?
  • What did they hear? Who did Pa think it was?
  • What was really screaming?
  • Who killed the panther?

Chapter Twenty-One:

  • How long was Pa gone?
  • What did Pa trade the furs for?
  • Why did Pa give Mary her package first? What had he brought for them?
  • How did the Indians feel about the settlers?

Additional Reading:

Each child would complete a reading lesson from our McGuffey Primer Books or other reading materials that we chose for the day.

Younger kids will also be doing one lesson a day from Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

Vocabulary/Spelling:

Older Kids:

Parents click HERE for the answer key.**see instructions at the top of the page.

Younger Kids:

Handwriting:

Using  Spencerian Penmanship go over the instructions on p. 11-13

Writing:**

  • Describe a favorite holiday meal that you had with your family.
  • Continue working in your workbook.

Other Activity:

Group:

Older kids:

Younger kids:

Week 8: Chapters 22, 23 & 24

Reading:

Read Chapters 22, 23 & 24

Discussion Questions:

Chapter Twenty-Two:

  • What did Pa like so much about the land?
  • Why did they keep their food hidden and locked up?
  • What scary thing happened? How did they handle it?
  • Where did Ma say they would’ve went if Pa had been in town?
  • What were some things that could have caused the fire?

Chapter Twenty-Three:

  • What made the family so uneasy?
  • What woke Laura up?
  • What did Pa do at the table? Why?
  • What did the Osage Indian tell Pa?

Chapter Twenty-Four:

  • What did Laura finally get to see?
  • Who was the first Indian in the procession?
  • What did Laura want Pa to get for her?
  • What did Pa have to do to Jack? Why?

Additional Reading:

Each child would complete a reading lesson from our McGuffey Primer Books or other reading materials that we chose for the day.

Younger kids will also be doing one lesson a day from Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

Vocabulary/Spelling:

Older Kids:

Parents click HERE for the answer key.**see instructions at the top of the page.

Younger Kids:

Handwriting:

Using  Spencerian Penmanship go over the instructions on p. 14 – 15

Writing:**

  • Write about a time when you were scared and what happened.
  • Continue working in your workbook.

Other Activity:

Group:

Older kids:

Younger kids:

Week 9: Chapters 25 & 26

Reading:

Read Chapters 25 & 26 

  • You can read it or let the kids help to read it aloud.
  • You can also access an audio version:

Discussion Questions:

Chapter Twenty-Five:

  • What were they busy doing?
  • What did they plant in their garden?
  • Why did Pa say they had to leave?
  • Who did he give the cow to and why?
  • What did they eat for dinner?

Chapter Twenty-Six:

  • What item couldn’t they take with them?
  • Who did they find? What had happened?
  • How did Pa offer to help?
  • What were they taking with them that they didn’t bring with them?
  • Where do you think the family is going?
  • Who did Pa say would eat the garden?

Additional Reading:

Each child would complete a reading lesson from our McGuffey Primer Books or other reading materials that we chose for the day.

Younger kids will also be doing one lesson a day from Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

Vocabulary/Spelling:

Older Kids:

Parents click HERE for the answer key.**see instructions at the top of the page.

Younger Kids:

Handwriting:

Using  Spencerian Penmanship go over the instructions on p. 16-17

Writing:**

  • Write about what you would plant in your garden and why?
  • Continue working in your workbook.

Other Activity:

Group:

Older kids:

Younger kids:

Week 10: Finishing Up

Reading:

Finish up any reading. 

Optional: Read Chapter 2 from Laura Ingalls Wilder Country ‘Kansas Prairie Country’.

Additional Reading:

Each child would complete a reading lesson from our McGuffey Primer Books or other reading materials that we chose for the day.

Younger kids will also be doing one lesson a day from Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.

Vocabulary/Spelling:**

Older Kids:

Parents click HERE for the answer key.**see instructions at the top of the page.

Younger Kids:

Handwriting:

Using  Spencerian Penmanship go over the instructions on p. 18-19

Writing:

  • Continue working in your workbook.

Other Activity:

Group:

Older kids:

Younger kids:

Bonus Activity:

**BE SURE TO SAVE A FEW SAMPLES OF YOUR WORK FOR YOUR  PORTFOLIO!  TAKE PICTURES OF BIG PROJECTS!

affiliate links, Family, home organization, homeschooling, Kids, Life, Meal Planning, Parenting, Product Reviews, recipes, Single Parenting, special needs

Finding Peace Amongst The Dirty Socks, Grocery Lists, Stuffed Animals, And Buffalo

Leave a comment

**This post may contain affiliate links to products and/or services that we use in our home.

How’s your day going? I hope you said it’s going well but if it didn’t you may be having a day like mine. I’ve been busy, too busy on too many things… you probably know how that goes when you try to multitask. Sometimes multitasking can be great and you can accomplish a lot but then there are those times that nothing seems to get done.

I’ve been working on our next unit study using  ‘The Little House On The Prairie‘ written by Laura Ingalls Wilder. We had so much fun with our last unit study Little House In The Big Woods Adventure that we decided to keep on going. This is A LOT of work though but I want my kids to have fun learning so it is well worth it. To be honest I’m having a blast doing this with them too.

This next unit study is going to be so much fun! I have found so many projects, crafts, and fun activities to go along with our studies. We will be studying about so many things like prairie animals including prairie dogs and buffalo. Then there are the Native American studies that we will be doing along with continuing our state studies. We will also be touching a little bit on stars and constellations as the kids have really been interested in this topic lately. One of the girls asked to do an herb study too so I am trying to work on that as well.

Of course I have a lot more than that included in the study and I still have to finish up our Life Skills section. This time I am hoping to do it a little differently but still plan to include some fun activities like baking some molasses cookies, sewing sun bonnets, and memorizing some bible verses. I think I will have some camping tips, information, or other activities in this study as well so we may see a Weenie Roast and S’mores in our future! I’m not sure what other fun activities I will find to go along with it as I haven’t really even started this section yet and I plan to start this unit next week! AHHHH!

You can check it out and use some of the activities to go along if you plan to read this series with your kids too. A good majority of the resources I link to are FREE because I really like FREE stuff. Some of the links are affiliate links to things we are or will be using.

I am slowly working my way through the books and coming up with lots of fun stuff to do. It has been such slow progress because of so many unexpected interruptions. The biggest being the impromptu trip to Pennsylvania due to the passing of my Mom-mom. I am still not quite over that as much as I felt I should have been by now but I know everything takes time.

Then on top of that I have a houseful of kiddos running around. There are so many chores, like the never ending laundry, and so much cleaning that I need to catch up on I get overwhelmed at times. Not to mention I have to feed these little monsters at least three times a day! No wonder I can’t get anything done. Another issue this week has been our internet… yes, again. It seems that no matter what I do I can’t get it to do like I feel it should. We don’t have a lot of choices so I’m kinds stuck with what I have for now but I do plan to research options… really I do when I get a free moment… lol.

img_5547

Continue reading Finding Peace Amongst The Dirty Socks, Grocery Lists, Stuffed Animals, And Buffalo →

affiliate links, Family, homeschooling, Kids, Life, Parenting, Single Parenting

Don’t Miss This Free Event!

Leave a comment

**This post contains affiliate links. Products and Prices are subject to change without notice.

I wanted to share this awesome parenting resource I came across recently. I’ve really enjoyed it so far and maybe you would too!

Homeschool Summits

is pleased to bring you a free online event:

FB 10 Continue reading Don’t Miss This Free Event! →

Family, Inspiration, Life, Parenting, Single Parenting

Don’t Keep This Secret!

Leave a comment

As many of us know October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month but you may not be aware that it is also National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Domestic abuse is often one of those things that we keep silent about because of a stigma that goes along with it.

Some just accept it as a normal part of life while others refuse to admit what is happening. It can happen to anyone regardless of race, gender, or social status. It can also happen in a variety of ways that we may not even be aware of.

Here is one story:

High School Sweethearts

There was a young girl who married her high school sweetheart. They were happily married for a while. Then after the second child came along things began to change.

She didn’t know what was going on but somehow she was always made to feel like it was her fault. His words were sharper than any knife and would cut her deeply time and time again. Continue reading Don’t Keep This Secret! →

affiliate links, food, holidays, homeschooling, Kids, Life, Parenting, recipes, Single Parenting, special needs

November Holidays

Leave a comment

I will try to update this list with some fun activities as well. Feel free to click the links to find out more about the origins and meanings behind these special days. I plan to incorporate a few of these into our normal homeschool routine to add a little fun and excitement to our days. We’ll update this page with ideas as we go along. Have fun and maybe make up your own personal family holiday or tradition for the month!

This month is also know as:

  • Aviation History Month
  • Child Safety Protection Month
  • International Drum Month
  • National Adoption Awareness Month
  • National Caregivers Appreciation Month
  • National Diabetes Awareness Month
  • National Epilepsy Month
  • National Model Railroad Month
  • National Novel Writing Month
  • Native American Heritage Month
  • Peanut Butter Lovers Month

The weeks are known as:

  • Week 1 Chemistry Week
  • Week 3 Game and Puzzle Week

(These links will be updated as we get closer to the actual holidays.)

I found this list and more here:

All Saint’s Day (1st)

Dios Los Muertos (1st and 2nd)

All Soul’s Day (2nd)

Deviled Egg Day (2nd)

Book Lovers Day – first Saturday of the month

Sandwich Day (3rd)

King Tut Day (4th)

U.S. General Election Day – first Tuesday of the month after first Monday of month

USMC Day (10th)

Veteran’s Day (11th)

Chicken Soup for the Soul Day (12th)

National Indian Pudding Day (13th)

Sadie Hawkins Day (13th)

Young Readers Day second Tuesday of month

World Diabetes Day (14th)

America Recycles Day (15th)

Great American Smokeout  – third Thursday in November

Have a Party With Your Bear Day (16th)

Homemade Bread Day (17th)

National Adoption Day – Saturday before Thanksgiving

Universal Children’s Day (20th)

Thanksgiving – fourth Thursday.

Black Friday – Friday after Thanksgiving.

National Parfait Day (25th)

French Toast Day (28th)

Square Dance Day (29th)

Flip a Coin Day (1st)

National Doughnut Day (2nd) ** the first Friday in June

**see National Doughnut Day for recipes

Also be sure to check out my Homeschool: August board on Pinterest for more ideas and activities!

Family, home organization, homeschooling, Kids, Life, Parenting, Single Parenting, special needs

Help! I’m Drowning, Or At Least It Feels That Way…

Leave a comment

I started out this morning with over 2,000 emails which was a bit overwhelming. I had cleared a few hundred of them on Saturday but it barely made a dent in the pile.

Then today as I was catching up on emails and such I happened to see that we have HURRICANE MICHAEL headed our way. Just another thing to add to the list of things to think about. While we are not on the coast nor have we been put under the ‘State of Emergency’ the counties right next to us are so that means we do have potential to see some damage. This also means that we need to make some emergency preparations and be prepared for when the storm hits. As we have learned in the past the storms don’t always go along their predicted path.

**Update: The state of emergency has been expanded from 26 counties to 35, including ours, since this post was written. Our prayers are going out to all of those in the affected area as well as the first responders, National Guard, and all of those working to keep everyone safe. Continue reading Help! I’m Drowning, Or At Least It Feels That Way… →

affiliate links, Life, Parenting, Single Parenting

Living Debt Free And Loving It!

Leave a comment

If you have followed along with Dave Ramsey’s baby steps that I’ve been posting about over the past couple of months then you know what I’m working towards.

I really want to become debt free and pay off all of my bills so I have no financial obligations. Well, maybe not none per se  but as few as possible. Can you imagine how good that would feel?

I know how that feels and I really want to feel like that again, soon! Once I reach this goal I will be able to do a lot of things that I’ve always wanted to do but haven’t been able to do.

Once I have freed myself from these financial burdens I will be able to help others, including my children, to learn to build their wealth.  I want to teach them by example how to be debt free and stay debt free. This is something I am seriously committed to doing and hope maybe you will want to join me on this journey.

This post contains affiliate links that help to support our blog.

Are you ready to making your blogging dreams a reality? Try this Blog Start-Up 101 to get started!

affiliate links, home organization, Life, Parenting, Single Parenting

Paying Off The Big Bills

Leave a comment

**This post does contain affiliate links which help to support my blog.

Well, I don’t have a mortgage or a car payment at this time but if I did I would definitely be working on this one. This would be a very big step towards becoming debt free for anyone according to Dave Ramsey.

There are a couple of ways to work on this. You could just apply extra money towards the payments to pay it off quicker. You could also consider refinancing to get a lower rate so that you can achieve your goal of becoming completely debt free!

Have you dreamed of starting your own blog to earn a little money from home? Then you need to enroll in Your Blogging University to get started.

affiliate links, Family, holidays, homeschooling, Kids, Life, Parenting, recipes, Single Parenting, special needs

October Holidays

Leave a comment

I will try to update this list with some fun activities as well. Feel free to click the links to find out more about the origins and meanings behind these special days. I plan to incorporate a few of these into our normal homeschool routine to add a little fun and excitement to our days. We’ll update this page with ideas as we go along. Have fun and maybe make up your own personal family holiday or tradition for the month!

This month is also known as:

  • Adopt a Shelter Dog Month
  • American Pharmacist Month
  • Apple Jack Month
  • Awareness Month
  • Breast Cancer Awareness Month
  • Clergy Appreciation Month
  • Computer Learning Month
  • Cookie Month
  • Domestic Violence Awareness Month
  • Eat Country Ham Month
  • International Drum Month
  • National Diabetes Month
  • National Pizza Month
  • National Vegetarian Month
  • National Popcorn Popping Month
  • Seafood Month

The weeks are also recognized as:

  • Week 1 Get Organized Week
  • Week 1 Customer Service Week
  • Week 2 Fire Prevention Week
  • Week 2 Pet Peeve Week
  • 14 – 20 Earth Sciences Week
  • Week 3 Pastoral Care Week

(These links will be updated as we get closer to the actual holidays.)

I found this list and more here:

National Homemade Cookies Day (1st)

National Kale Day – first Wednesday of October

Taco Day (4th)

Do Something Nice Day (5th)

World Smile Day first Friday of month

World Teacher’s Day (5th)

International Frugal Fun Day – first Saturday of the month

Mad Hatter Day (6th)

World Card Making Day – first Saturday of the month

American Touch Tag Day (8th)

Columbus Day – second Monday of month.touch tag

Fire Prevention Day (9th)

Leif Erikson Day (9th)

National Angel Food Cake Day (10th)

World Egg Day  – second Friday of month

National Dessert Day – take an extra helping, or two

White Cane Safety Day (15th)

National Fossil Day – Wednesday of Earth Sciences Week

National Pasta Day (17th)

National Pumpkin Cheesecake Day find a recipe, too. (21st)

National Bologna Day (24th)

Navy Day (27th)

Frankenstein Friday – last Friday in October

Make a Difference Day–  fourth Saturday of the month, neighbors helping neighbors

National Candy Corn Day (30th)

**Check out this recipe here for Candy Corn Finger Jello Recipe

Carve a Pumpkin Day – no surprise here (31st)

Halloween (31st)

**Check out these ideas for a No-Sugar Halloween party

Flip a Coin Day (1st)

National Doughnut Day (2nd) ** the first Friday in June

**see National Doughnut Day for recipes

Also be sure to check out my Homeschool: August board on Pinterest for more ideas and activities!

 

affiliate links, Family, homeschooling, Kids, Life, Parenting, Single Parenting, special needs, Square Dance

Butter Making, Bear Hunts, and Bull Dogs

Leave a comment

** This post may contain affiliate links to products that we use in our home. These links help to support our family and our blog.

You may be wondering what butter making, bear hunts, and bull dogs have in common, right? Well, these were just a few of the topics we covered in our first week of our Little House On The Prairie Academic Adventure.

We have had so much fun as I’m sure you’ll see in the pictures below. I’ve been meaning to post our progress but we’ve been so busy there hasn’t been a lot of time for another ‘b’ topic… blogging! I’m gonna try to catch up a little tonight before I go to bed and put away my computer for our Screen Free Sunday which is another post in itself.

img_4965-1.jpg

Caitlyn’s new glasses.

The first week we were quite busy with school, doctor appointments, and square dancing not to mention everything else that LIFE seems to throw at us. We read through the first two chapters of Little House in the Big Woods and discussed what we read. The girls also worked on some Vocabulary matching and crosswords that I made up.

We’ve been working through the topics I have listed in the weekly guide and the kids have been so excited to learn so many things about Laura Ingalls Wilder and her pioneer family. Our Pioneer Journals were one of our first projects and the kids loved making them. They will be using these for various writing assignments throughout the year.

pioneer journals

Continue reading Butter Making, Bear Hunts, and Bull Dogs →

affiliate links, Family, home organization, homeschooling, Inspiration, Kids, Life, Parenting, Single Parenting, special needs

Learn How To Plan Your Homeschool In 15 Minutes Or Less Per Week!

Leave a comment

**This post does contain affiliate links which help to support my blog and my family. 

As a Momma of 9 I am constantly looking out for my kids. I worry about them, like all moms do, and try to be there for them any way I can. I am also constantly looking for new ways to encourage them and keep their curiosity and eagerness to learn alive.

They really do love learning however sometimes they get bored with what we are learning or the way I am teaching it. I admit I get bored sometimes too but I love homeschooling because I am learning right along with my kids. Seeing the look on their face when they finally ‘get’ something is priceless and I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

On the other hand I often feel frustrated and tired because things don’t go as planned. We also experience A LOT of interruptions in our day to day life and that can cause some frustrations too as I feel like we just aren’t GETTING ENOUGH DONE in our day.

Not to mention how exasperating it can be when you plan a lesson or activity only to have your kids totally HATE IT! Hours and hours down the drain on what you thought was going to be such a FUN LEARNING EXPERIENCE.

Planning and learning can happen on its own, and the results are mind-blowing!

Continue reading Learn How To Plan Your Homeschool In 15 Minutes Or Less Per Week! →