Shaving cream!

I bottle of shaving cream (sans SLS chemical)= $.99

Paintbrushes and other random kitchen items=$.99

Hours of fun being creative and sensory exploring= priceless!

Our little bike rider!

So this summer has been filled with lots of tricycle riding....in the house, because it's super hot outside:-(. Then we were given a 16" bike for roman that sat in the garage waiting for training wheels for about 2 months! This past weekend we finally bought some training wheels at a bike store and while we were there Brooklyn hopped on a 12" bike with ease and rode around like a pro! So, thanks to Papa, she now has a very good quality aluminum frame bike to ride and an adorable helmet too! Here are some pictures from our inaugural early morning bike ride. And yes, it was humid and hot, but the kids loved every minute of it; even wearing the helmets! In fact, the day we bought the bike, she wore her helmet all through Costco! It was super cute! We, of course, shopped around to other stores, but no other bike was quite like the aluminum frame bike. It is well made without a cheap plastic chain cover. I snapped a picture of Roman guiding Brooklyn around Walmart; it was very cute! He has been super kind to her in this whole bike riding adventure. What a great big brother!

How we play (our curriculum)

So many people have asked lately what curriculum I am using for my homeschooling. I can honestly say, play is my curriculum! not the kind of "play" where they sit in front of the TV or iPad or other electronic devices (we limit these and use them sparingly so they feel like BIG TREATS when they get to use them)

But rather the kind of play that uses their imagination, life skills such as sharing and talking things out when someone hurts you. I find myself encouraging my children to "tell it to them" instead of "telling on them" when they are upset at someone for taking a toy. I'm right there encouraging them but they are using their words, not mine.

So how can play actually be a good foundation for a curriculum for my 2 yr old and 4 yr old?---all you preschool teachers might be wondering. Well, here's how:

When they do free play I am involved to either observe, encourage or interact.

They have free unlimited access to creative tools such as crayons, markets, scissors, paper, blocks, cars, trains, balls, stuffed animals, and books.

I read to them and with them OFTEN throughout the day. At least 3 times of me sitting down reading Bible stories, library books, hi-five magazines etc!

I answer every question they have. EVERY QUESTION! If I don't know the answer I look it up.

We play music in the background, we sing, we have dance parties, we play instruments LOUDLY, and we make instruments too!

We do crafts together...cutting, coloring, gluing.

We pretend to be race cars with our paper plate steering wheels, trains pushing our kid chairs lined up, trucks hauling each other in laundry baskets, etc.

We creat obstacle courses where we jump on the mini tramp, roll down the wedge mat, crawl through the tunnel, slide down our mini slide, crawl like animals, racing down our hallway!

We go on letter hunts and word hunts around the house.

We count forwards when we are waiting our turn, we count backwards when we play with our blast off space shuttle. We skip count going up the stairs. We count balloons after tossing them all over the house.

We collect and name the shape of the blocks as we put them away. We cut out, trace and color shapes. We are shape detectives with our magnifying glasses.

We learn our colors as we find the lost crayons and cap less markers

We sweep up our messes, sharing the coveted mini broom and dustpan.

We learn responsibility and work ethic by doing chores like feeding the fish and cat, getting dressed, and vacuuming/mopping the floor.

We build forts, we snuggle, we have tickle time, laughing like no one is listening!

90% of the play is child led. Meaning that they draw, build, color, create, explore what they want and I help build upon their learning with those teachable moments.

Yes I have worksheets that roman does...even Brooklyn has a school binder. But the attitude for learning is so great in our house that when I bring out the "school binder" filled with dry erase pages for them to practice tracing, counting, opposites, rhyming, connect the dots, writing letters and numbers, etc...they yell with excitement! And they always have the option at this age to keep free playing and come over in a few mins for the binder work. I keep in mind their attention span and don't expect them to do every page, just whatever their little brain wants to learn that day. I observe, encourage, and sit down with them on the floor "oohing and aweing" at their work.

This is our curriculum. They love learning and I love THAT!!!

Here are some pictures of our play

Back before the supermarket

I often wonder how life would be different without the supermarket. Markets where people could buy dry goods, like canned foods for example, emerged in the early twentieth century. It wasn't until the 1930s and 40s that the "supermarket" changed shopping forever making it convenient for consumers to get their produce, meat, and dry goods all in one place. Seems like a great idea, and in my opinion it was until our human flesh and selfish desire to be greedy with our convenience took over. We now live in a world where canning is looked at as "a grandma thing to do" and homemade meals are considered any meal made at home (even if every ingredient is FROM A BOX!) We live in a convenience driven society where we rush our kids to soccer, softball, football, swimming, gymnastic, choir, and dance instead of teach them valuable skills of cooking, sewing, wood shop, landscaping, car repair etc
During those times we teach them way more than those skills; it's about the opportunity to pass on Godly values and character traits that can only be found in the hard work of servicing others.

Im a young mom who, maybe like some of you, feel the immense pressure to have it all: big house, lots of stuff, vacations multiple times a year, kids in as many activities as they possible can despite the cost, and a pet or two to round out the American dream. Well, I'm not giving in to that pressure. Why? Cuz it will drive me insane if that's my goal. Instead I have to remind myself DAILY that it's not about me. It's not even about my kids. Its about God. 100% God. What do I trust? Do I trust the Organic certification label on the foods I buy? No, I trust in God to protect me even when the organic label fails. Do I trust in the swim lesson t to save my child from drowning? No, I trust in God to protect my children. Now I'm not saying forego the organic food and swim lessons, but if you just can't afford either then there is a level of trust one should have in God who will provide. I can't worry every day and busy myself or my kids into thinking that life is about running around to multiple events week after week and sacrificing family time and valuable time with God.

What brought this post on was my quiet time the past few weeks. I've been able to consistently spend time with God, reading my Bible before the kids get up. I've noticed a drastic change in my temperament and attitude towards my kids and life in general. Starting the day out praising God as David did in the Psalms and reading a proverb or two for wisdom on how to raise my strong willed children and even reading a couple chapters of a book of the Bible (I just started Isaiah, so it a little rough right now unlike other books that are like stories and so captivating) allows me to really focus my intentions on God's will and not my own. I've gone from being quick tempered and raising my voice often at my children to being peaceful and soft spoken (yet firm).
It has been a HUGE difference. For me personally, I believe my obedience is directly related to my kids obedience. A friend from BSF mentioned that to me a couple months ago as I shared with her my struggles with my children just not listening to me and how mad that made me feel after all that I do for them the least they could do was listen! Really this was my reality. But my focus was all wrong! I was being selfish and my thoughts were guided by always getting them to behave. When the real problem was my misbehavior. I was being a two year old child of God...selfish, stubborn, emotional, and inconsistent. When I stopped doing that and put God first every day (even before checking email or FB) I noticed a radical change in me that was only from God! In so excited to see God work in our lives in the future! I hope this post inspires you to put God first in your life (whatever that looks like for you!)

David's thankfulness

2 Samuel 22 describes David's song of praise to God after all his battles won, including with his son Absolom. He truly was a man of God, giving glory to God in everything.

This particular scripture passage resonated with me this morning. When is the last time I sang out in deep adoration and praise to God? Now most of you know, I'm not a huge fan of the worship time at church....there are usually 4 songs sung and for me that's 3 too many. But I love hymns! I sing them around the house and to my kids....they lift my spirits so much it's only God who can be rewarded for that desire in my heart. After reading David's song of praise, it made me realize how thankful I am for God's protection, provision, and joy that he has given me. We don't live in a mansion, but it's not a hut with a dirt floor either. We don't buy new clothes every week or every season. Instead we are so so so so blessed to have donations given to us. We have two beautiful children who despite their sinful nature bring me joy everyday!

My prayer this morning was to be like David and not recount over and over the battles (financial ups and down, kids behavior cycles,etc) in my life, but rather be thankful for God's hand that was ever present in those battles which carried me through. Its as though I look forward to the next battle because I have my security in God.

Verse 30 says, "with your help I can advance against a troop; with my God I can scale a wall."

How much more secure can one get? So, here's to scaling a wall today!

In the kitchen!

So my desire to bake has returned...all to the glory of God! Tonight I made cheese crackers, ritz crackers and frozen yogurt (peanut butter, strawberry, and plain).

You can find the recipe on Pinterest for the crackers. The frozen yogurt was made with homemade yogurt, fresh cream and milk (straight from the cow!) and sweetened with only stevia. Maybe my taste buds have acclimated to what REAL food taste like and I enjoy food not saturated in fake "not found in nature" Sweetener. It's nice to taste the flavors of the food and not just sugar:-/

I've attached pictures of the recipes if you want to replicate the crackers. I used 1/2 buckwheat and 1/2 brown rice flour for the the ritz crackers though.

For the frozen yogurt I just followed the recipe that came with my ice cream maker. Simple!

Enjoy!

BSF

Have I posted how much I love BSF (Bible Study Fellowship)? Here's a glimpse into what our Thursday mornings have been for the past 9 months barring any illnesses:-)

Imagine a morning where you are rushing around to get your 4 and 2 yr old out the door. This would include giving them 2 more minutes of play time while you get snacks packed (because you were too tired the night before to pack everything!). Then when the 2 minutes are up and the bags are packed, you realize you managed to get everyone dressed except yourself who is still in pajama bottoms! So you add another 2 minutes (we have a sand timer) and rush upstairs hoping that in your brief absence the kids won't undress themselves and be stark naked when you return downstairs (cuz that has happened before!). Thankfully this time they are still dressed when you re-emerge wearing "going out" clothes. For me, this is usually jeans and a t-shirt. :-). Then you grab the kids' breakfast (smoothie or homemade gluten free granola bar) and say, "shoes on children. It's time to go to BSF!" and your children yell with excitement, "horray!" They get their shoes on while you load up the car and if there is any slacking in speed, you tell them,"no smoothie in the car if your shoes aren't on!". This usually gets them moving faster cuz they love their smoothies. Depending on the day there is probably some whining about socks not being straight or the seatbelt not able to buckle, but you keep your eyes focussed on the prize of going to worship God! Now, some mornings, you are short tempered and have to later apologize to the kiddos for your unnecessary snappiness. But this morning you took your B vitamins, had your veggie drink, and even had coffee so you are ok:-). (not great cuz you didn't get any quiet time with God that morning)

You are late...as always. But this time you aren't as late as usual which means your children won't miss free playtime in the beginning. So you are happy. Every minute the kids aren't there makes you sad because they do more than just keep them safe. They have a very organized schedule for the kids even or the kids in the "18mo/walking" room. They sing hymns, the teachers read a story (which is the same as you read for your study), they open up the Bible and each child gets to take turns pointing to the words and reciting the Bible Verse of the week, they have large muscle play where the teachers actually play with the kids instead of just stand back and supervise, and they do quiet time where everyone lays down and teaches their body to rest for 10mins.

Overall, they learn that the bible is true, that it's not just for sitting on the shelves, and that God loves them soo much. The teachers encourage good listening and are just plain amazing! The babies get loved on and sung to or rocked to sleep by a beautiful hymn. It's just great!

While the children are in their class, you go to the sanctuary where there are about 400 ladies! You sing hymns as well to get your heart prepared for the individual group Then you are dismissed to your smaller group of 10-12 ladies in all stages of life. This is where you share prayer requests and go over the lesson question by question. Here is where you make friendships with other women who can hold you accountable and encourage you in your struggles as a Christian woman. Then you return to the sanctuary for more hymn singing, prayer, and then about 35 minutes of lecture reviewing what you just talked about in your group. You be sure to grab the home lesson paper as well as the children's training sheet. These sheets are stock full of tips and helpful Godly insight for raising your children in the Word!

So after Thursday mornings you are refreshed, your kids are refreshed and then you are equipped with tools to continue this Biblical devotion all week long.

I pray you find a BSF near you to help encourage you as well!

I snapped a picture of Brooklyn reading books with a teacher when I arrived to pick her up (a bit early just to see how amazing they are!).