Until We Meet Again...

Today is the first day of Christmas break for Michael. THE perk of teaching (and being a teacher's wife) is the lengthy break at Christmas and over the summer. During the next two weeks we will celebrate, visit family, and just enjoy some much needed down time.

I am signing off until 2010. Before I do, let me leave you with some of the highlights of 2009.

In January I published my 100th post, shared how you can make Math Time Story Time, and encouraged you not to Skidoo when homeschooling gets tough but instead to put on Christ and find your fulfillment in Him.

February brought home remodeling and a lot of prayer requests. By God's grace, in the midst of the chaos, we managed to complete a project for our homeschool association's International Festival.

The remodeling ended in March... Drum Roll, Please!

In April, I found myself in the middle of a teaching experience that was Not Exactly What I Had in Mind when I wrote my OLIVE goals. I also revealed more of our remodeling efforts in The Cubby Hole. Most exciting of all, we received our copy of Crayola's Youth Art Exhibition book in which Wilbur's painting was published! Praise the Lord for blessing my sweet boy!

I found myself reminiscing in May. Michael and I celebrated Fourteen Years as husband and wife, and I recalled a science experiment the boys enjoyed as preschoolers in If All of the Raindrops. My boys competed in the Youth Birding Competition and shared how they created their birding journals.

I posted my very first Not Me Monday in June. I did NOT know what I was getting myself into with that! I also began my journey on the TOS Homeschool Crew. I did not know what a BIG adventure that would be, too.

In July, I began the Plan-It School Series and wrote three articles about our goals for education, Compartmentalized Education, Debugging, and Developing a Strong Work Ethic.

Plan-It School was finally completed in August. The series was born from the love I have for homeschoolers and desire to see them succeed. I have links to the entire series in my side bar.

Orville placed second in our local run-off for the National Bible Bee in September. What a great time we had meditating on God's Word!

Orville turned ten in October. I made a big whoop-dee-doo of that. He is my baby, and I'm his momma. Couldn't help myself. ;)

In November, I posted two of my most popular articles to date, Preschool Peace and Poor Wally Is Dead.

I ended the year with a Freezer Cooking Plan and by sharing a neat technique for teaching your child to Read Music.

Thank you all for joining me in 2009. I have loved having you around and getting to "know" many of you. It has been an exciting year in which the Lord has prospered Olive Plants by bringing you here and making you a part of our lives. I value you and with God's continued blessing hope to bring you an even better year of school ideas and encouragement in 2010.

May the Lord bless you all! Have a very Merry Christmas!!

Blessing!
Dawn

Fun with the Flute

Writing my review for Maestro Classics brought to mind the moment I knew I wanted to play the flute.

In the third grade, I had the cutest little teacher. Seriously, she was little... about 4' 8". I have always been tall, so we were almost eye-to-eye. She liked to square dance and would wear her darling gingham square dancing skirt to school every Friday. When we finished our lessons, we would move the desks to the back wall and create a dance floor. We paired up, and she taught us to dosey doe.

She loved to dance and she loved music. She introduced us to many different styles, from country to classical. One day, she brought in a recording of Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf. I loved the bird theme, played by the flute. It was then that I knew I wanted to learn the flute. Little did I know that one day my third grade son and I would enjoy bird watching together, too. All that reminiscing made me want to share Peter and the Wolf with my sons, so I went to YouTube.


I found the video below, and my jaw hit the floor. I have no idea how he manages to beat box while playing the flute. I would hyperventilate and hit the floor, only after hitting many bad notes first. I don't know the performer or anything about him or his music, other than I like this particular performance. So don't take this as an endorsement. But, I hope you will enjoy this as much as I did.

Since I am taking the time to write a little about my life as a flautist, let me share the piece I am currently learning, Bach's Badinerie. Bach gave flautists a gift when he composed his Suite No.2. It is not as easy to play as this video makes it look. That's what makes a professional. They can take something very complicated and make it look so simple. One day, probably when I am about eighty, I will finally master the piece and post my own video. I have to stop hyperventilating and passing out first. :) Enjoy.

Product Review: Mathletics

Mathletics from 3-P Learning has been a valuable addition to our school program.

Mathletics.com is a paid membership site where your child can log into his personal account and complete grade-appropriate math challenges.

There is an area for practice where he is given a group of math problems on a particular skill to solve. Instant feedback is given, and players receive points based on their performance. There is also an area for problem solving. Students can choose word problems from a variety of math topics. Printable activities are available for certain topics and grade levels.

Mathletics keeps a record of the points a child earns and awards him certificates based on his performance. Students also work to earn perfect scores, represented by a gold bar in their progress report. With these high scores and certificates, players are awarded credits which they can use to buy items for their personal avitar. My sons loved this and thought they were on Webkinz.

On the Mathletics homepage, there is a Hall of Fame where the top students for the day, both in the US and internationally, are listed. One of my sons made the list a few times. This was highly motivating.

I liked that I received a weekly report. It was sent to my inbox once per week and allowed me to easily monitor their progress. When we first registered, I was allowed to place them at the grade level of my choosing. After a few reports, I saw that one son was not being challenged and was able to change his grade level immediately. I like that flexibility.

Interested? Now is a good time to purchase a membership. A one-year subscription for one child normally costs $99, but currently, the cost is $59. I would renew at that price and feel like I had received a good deal.

I received 2 memberships to Mathletics, one for each of my sons, for the purpose of completing this review. I have received no other compensation and have offered my honest evaluation. Please visit the TOS Homeschool Crew blog to read more reviews.

Product Review: Maestro Classics

The Maestro Classics' CD I received to review re-creates the fable The Tortoise and the Hare to include narration and orchestration, similar to Prokofiev‘s classic, Peter and the Wolf. The tortoise and the hare each have their own musical themes, played by instruments whose tone personifies the character. The narrator, Yadu, tells the story with enthusiasm and draws the listener in with his character voices. The results spark the imagination and bring the story to life.

Both of my sons loved the music. With the London Philharmonic Symphony performing, how could they not? My son who plays piano and violin now wants to add the trumpet, the bassoon, and the timpani to his repertoire. Ay, ay, ay! Maybe the folks at Maestro Classics have done their job a little too well!

When I asked my younger son to give his opinion, he answered that he did not like the story at all. I was shocked by his answer and asked a few probing questions. He explained that the hare is prideful and his statements were rude. As I listened to him state his case, I realized how well Maestro Classics kept his attention and got him emotionally involved in the story. He was able to recall many details and defend his position.

Because of my son’s dislike of the story, particularly the hare’s attitude, I listened to the story a second time to make sure I had not missed anything inappropriate. The hare is rude, but not any ruder than in any other telling of the story I have heard. Keeping to the theme and moral of the original fable, this rendition teaches an unambiguous lesson.

There are a couple of statements on the teaching tracks of the CD that clash with my worldview. The sing-along is about a pretzel vendor on the Champs Elysees who sells his pretzels to American tourists on Sundays. Because we do not work on the Lord’s Day, I felt uncomfortable allowing my children to sing this song. In one of the teaching tracks, “B.C.E.” is used in place of “B.C.” However, we were able to work around these minor issues, and they did not affect our overall enjoyment.

I give Maestro Classics two thumbs up and may purchase other titles in the Stories in Music series, like Casey at the Bat, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, and my personal favorite, Peter and the Wolf. Each CD is currently available for $16.98, a great price for such a quality product.

I received one Maestro Classics CD for the purpose of completing this review. I received no other compensation and have offered my honest opinion. Please visit the TOS Homeschool Crew to read more reviews of this and other products.

Product Review: Tektoma

When I received a Tektoma membership as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew, I felt certain my boys would love it.

Tektoma offers GameMaker tutorials and teaches you step-by-step how to create your own computer games. My boys set out to create a race car game which is right up their alley. They are gamers and particularly like non-violent, racing games.

The tutorials are very good, offering both audio and video support. You see what you should be doing at the same time you are listening to the instructor explain the steps to follow. It is simple to use and good for all ages.

Surprisingly, my boys were not that interested. I do not understand why. I guess they like playing the games but not creating them.

If you have a young gamer in your family who would enjoy making a game of his or her own, I highly recommend Tektoma. Membership costs $14.95 per month or $140 per year. For the quality of instruction offered, I think the price is reasonable.

Not sure if your child would fall in love with game making or be bored to tears by it, Tektoma offers a free 14- day trial.

I was given a free membership to Tektoma in order to complete this review. I have received no other compensation. I have offered my honest opinion. For more reviews, visit the TOS Homeschool Crew blog.

Not Me Monday: I am NOT scatterbrained.

Last week I did not end my Not Me post with a joke.

I did not say that you should come back soon so I can prove to you that I am not scatterbrained.

I did not write this purely as a joke with absolutely no intention of doing such a thing. I mean, I am not scatterbrained after all. Not me. No way! Writing a post to prove this would be unnecessary.

After I hit publish on my hee-hee, ha-ha of a joke, the following did not happen:

1. I did not forget to email the Mathletes' problems of the week to the team members.
   
   
2. It was not Tuesday morning when I finally realized I had not yet sent them out.
   
   
3. I did not send an email apologizing for my tardiness, explain that the level 2 and level 3 problems and their solutions were attached, and type the level 1 problem into the body of the email.
   
   
4. I did not promise to send a second email with the solution for the level 1 problem.
   
   
5. After hitting send, I did not start to type out the solution to level 1 and realize that I had not written the problem down or sent the previous email to myself.
   
   
6. I did not have to write another email explaining what I had done and attempt to write out steps for solving the problem, omitting the numbers. It did not sound like this:
   
   Take the first % in the problem of the second number. Then subtract that answer from the second % I listed from the third number. (I would never give instructions that are so vague. Not me! I'm a master teacher who can explain everything with ease!!)
   
   
7. About an hour later, I did not begin to do the PoW with Orville and Wilbur and realize that I still did not have the numbers for the level 1 problem and that I, the coach, would have to write the team moms and ask them to send me the PoW!
   
   
8. Before I had a chance to write that email, one of the team moms replied to the original email. My dilemma should have been solved since the reply contained the level 1 problem, complete with numbers, except that she had written to inform me that I had not attached the levels 2 & 3 problems and solutions.
   
   
9. I did not send yet another email to the group with the attachments actually attached.
   
   
10. About an hour after that I did not receive a phone call from another team mom. It seems that when scanning the level 2 problem, I did not place it cock-eyed in the scanner and cut off part of the text.
    
    
11. I did not send out a fourth email with a fully legible PoW. That was not the worst job I have ever done... EVER!
    
    

There! That proves it! I am NOT scatterbrained. Not even a little bit.

Come back next time when I will prove that I am not…

Never mind. I won’t go there again.

Just come back next time.

I’m sure it’ll be interesting.

P.S. If any of my Mathletes or their moms read this, thank you for being the best, most understanding group ever! :)

Nutter Butter Snowmen

It just isn't Christmas until I've dipped something in melted almond bark.

I made the Nutter Butter snowmen, pictured above, for our church's annual caroling party. I found the recipe at Taste of Home, and they are so easy to make. You simply dip Nutter Butter cookies in melted almond bark, place on wax paper, and arrange the candy to look like eyes, noses, and buttons. The scarves were done with deco glitter gel after the almond bark had set.

I decided to stray from the Taste of Home recipe and make my guys armless.

Okay, I forgot to buy the pretzels.

I could only fit two M&M's on my snowmen, and they look a little bug-eyed. That would be because I missed the words "miniature chocolate chips" and "M&M's miniature baking bits" in the recipe.

My reading comprehension is much lower this time of year. I have the Fa-la-la-la-la LA-luh-luh-duh syndrome.

I did come up with the idea of adding candy corn noses instead of using orange deco gel. I think that's pretty cute. Maybe a little big... but cute! I don't know if they make miniature candy corn.

What's most important is that my taste testers, a.k.a. Orville and Wilbur, give them two thumbs up!

Happy Cookie Making!

Dawn

Freezer Cooking Recipes: Tater Tot Casserole and Orange Glazed Carrots

I hesitated to do the freezer cooking thing.

There was a dear relative we used to visit when I was a child who, bless her heart, did freezer cooking. Every time we visited, she would pull a thing of creamed corn out, heat, and serve it.

For some reason, it never tasted right. She could make a thousand other dishes, and they were all delicious... homemade waffles and syrup, roasts, casseroles, veggies, desserts. Everything was YUM-O!

But that corn.

Ugh!

So for that reason I've always thought freshly cooked... Mmmm.

Frozen... ICKY!

I decided to give it a try anyway and have been happy with the results. Now that I know these dishes do indeed freeze well, I will share my recipes. The first dish I made for the freezer was Tater Tot Casserole.

1. Brown 2 lbs extra lean ground beef. As it cooks, season with salt, pepper, garlic powder (I don't measure but just give it a light coating), and minced onions (don't measure these either- a couple of shakes worth).


2. When beef is cooked thoroughly, add 2 cans of cream of celery soup. I use the 99% fat free soup. Stir until beef and soup combine.


3. Place beef mixture in a 9 x 13 foil baking pan.


4. Arrange 1 bag of tater rounds (or tater tots- I like the rounds better) on top of the beef mixture.


5. When cool, cover with press and seal paper and aluminum foil. Place in freezer.


6. On the night you want to serve it, preheat oven to 350 and bake the casserole for 40 minutes.


7. Remove from oven and cover with shredded cheese. I have used Monterrey jack, cheddar, a blend of the two, and pepper jack. Return to oven until cheese melts.

I found the carrot recipe here. I followed the recipe as is and let the carrots cool. Then I placed them in freezable containers, covered with press and seal, and placed the lid on the container.

I bought the bread at Kroger, ready to bake. It is called "Wholesome Harvest Fruit n Nut Wholegrain Bread". I found it in their bakery for $1.25 per loaf.

Next time I will share my Chicken Pot Pie and roasted sweet potato recipes.

Happy Cooking!

Dawn

Not Me Monday: I am not messy!

I have told y'all before that I am not messy.

Really, I'm not. Not me. Not a bit messy!

Saturday, when I finished making soap, my kitchen table did not look like this.

Why is the game cabinet open? Don't look inside! I didn't drink that Vanilla Coke in the foreground, either. As one commenter said last week, I am the "Energizer Bunny". I don't need caffeine.

I would never allow my work space to become that cluttered. I am all about organization and efficiency.

To further establish my case, I give you exhibit B. These pictures prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am not messy.

At least the floor's clean...

and this leak didn't require the services of a plumber, an electrician and a carpenter!

The soapy mess all over my kitchen floor did not spew from my dishwasher because I did not cram it full of measuring cups and spatulas covered in soap film. I realize that adding too much soap to the dishwasher is hazardous and carefully scraped away all dried-on soap before loading.

So there you have it. Proof positive that I am not messy.

Come back soon when I will prove that I am not scatterbrained. Nope, not me! I always remember....


Um... what was I saying?

Making Soap

I made soap today that I plan to sell at a Christmas Crafts Bazaar being held by my local hsa next week.

This is my cucumber melon collection.

I made these layered stars from olive oil and goats milk soaps.

These are my lemon verbena soaps. They make me think of Laura Ingalls Wilder.

I made these glycerin soaps with kids in mind. There are vehicles, animals, toys, and other fun items kids like.

This is the Sweat Pea collection with glycerin and goats milk soaps.

Last but not least is my Christmas collection. There are smaller soaps for the sink or kids bath, popsicle soap, Christmas trees, and snowflakes.

If you are a local friend and are interested in purchasing my soaps, call me for more information.

If you are an online friend, I won't be selling via the internet this year. If the Lord wills, perhaps next. Feel free to let me know what you think of my soap collection in comments.