For more Wordless Wednesday posts, head to:
Go Graham Go
Mom Spotted
Mama to 4 Blessings
Two of a Kind Working on a Full House
Wordless Wednesday: Kako
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
For more Wordless Wednesday posts, head to:
Go Graham Go
Mom Spotted
Mama to 4 Blessings
Two of a Kind Working on a Full House
Anniversary Gift: Special Place In My Heart Maps
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
I'm linking up to Tatertots and Jello's 2011 Favorites:
Last week, Dave and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary. I knew I wanted to get him a special gift, but what would it be? Neither one of us needs a thing. Plus, stuff just feels like stuff sometimes. Does that make sense?
Anyway, I headed to Pinterest for some ideas. I came across this project from Full of Great Ideas:
I knew this would be a perfect gift for Dave, because he has always liked maps.
Funny side story...I remember the first time I saw him at my Dad's work picnic and the only thing I remember about him was his stupid looking map coat. I can't describe it, but it was a jacket with a map on it. LOL This was back in the 90's. Fast forward to the first time I go to his house and he has a clear map shower curtain in the bathroom. TeeHee.
So, back to the gift. I loved the Special Place In My Heart idea and decided to make my own:
This isn't the best picture, but no matter what I do, there is always a glare!
The hardest part was deciding on a frame. I found this one at Michael's. It was black and had a "Grandma" mat inside. I spray painted it white and then got to work on my heart maps.
Stephanie at Full Of Great Ideas used an atlas for her maps, but I did not have one. I also didn't really have the time to go find one, as I waited until the week of our anniversary to get started.
I ended up using Google maps (terrain) and printing them on cardstock. I then used a heart template I had in my scrapbooking stuff.
Finding the proper color for the background was also difficult. The blue of the water in the maps automatically ruled out tons of choices, because they just clashed. I finally remembered I had a large light purple mat board from when I used to sell stuff on ebay. I used it to lay my items on for pics. The light purple wasn't my first choice, but it's the only color that worked.
Here's a close up:
I'm really happy with how it turned out and Dave loved it. He knew right away what the special places were and thought it was really cool.
I also had the foresight to know that I would want to move this frame later. I went ahead and printed the maps again and made another mat that I can frame vertically.
What do you think? It was fun to make, minus Abby stepping on the glass of the first frame and breaking it into tiny pieces. I can't believe it, but her foot was just fine. I cleaned up all of the glass and headed back to Michael's for another frame. I went armed with an extra 25% off coupon for sale frames and it was only $9 something to replace it. I do have another black frame now, just no glass. LOL!
I'm linking this up to:
Last week, Dave and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary. I knew I wanted to get him a special gift, but what would it be? Neither one of us needs a thing. Plus, stuff just feels like stuff sometimes. Does that make sense?
Anyway, I headed to Pinterest for some ideas. I came across this project from Full of Great Ideas:
I knew this would be a perfect gift for Dave, because he has always liked maps.
Funny side story...I remember the first time I saw him at my Dad's work picnic and the only thing I remember about him was his stupid looking map coat. I can't describe it, but it was a jacket with a map on it. LOL This was back in the 90's. Fast forward to the first time I go to his house and he has a clear map shower curtain in the bathroom. TeeHee.
So, back to the gift. I loved the Special Place In My Heart idea and decided to make my own:
This isn't the best picture, but no matter what I do, there is always a glare!
The hardest part was deciding on a frame. I found this one at Michael's. It was black and had a "Grandma" mat inside. I spray painted it white and then got to work on my heart maps.
Stephanie at Full Of Great Ideas used an atlas for her maps, but I did not have one. I also didn't really have the time to go find one, as I waited until the week of our anniversary to get started.
I ended up using Google maps (terrain) and printing them on cardstock. I then used a heart template I had in my scrapbooking stuff.
Finding the proper color for the background was also difficult. The blue of the water in the maps automatically ruled out tons of choices, because they just clashed. I finally remembered I had a large light purple mat board from when I used to sell stuff on ebay. I used it to lay my items on for pics. The light purple wasn't my first choice, but it's the only color that worked.
Here's a close up:
I'm really happy with how it turned out and Dave loved it. He knew right away what the special places were and thought it was really cool.
I also had the foresight to know that I would want to move this frame later. I went ahead and printed the maps again and made another mat that I can frame vertically.
What do you think? It was fun to make, minus Abby stepping on the glass of the first frame and breaking it into tiny pieces. I can't believe it, but her foot was just fine. I cleaned up all of the glass and headed back to Michael's for another frame. I went armed with an extra 25% off coupon for sale frames and it was only $9 something to replace it. I do have another black frame now, just no glass. LOL!
I'm linking this up to:
My Memories Suite Giveaway Winner
Monday, August 29, 2011
Congrats to Hydrangeas and Harmony! Thank you to everyone who entered the giveaway.
Homeschool Weekly Review: August 22-26
First of all, I want to make sure everyone on the East Coast is ok! It sounds like Irene did less damage than what was expected, however I just read over 4 million people are without power and the flooding...what a mess.
I guess that's the good thing about the Midwest, no hurricanes. However, we've sure had our fair share of tornadoes! The weather here has been hot and I'm still waiting for the cooler temperatures to show up.
Last week was week 6 of 2nd grade! Abby is still enjoying it. Whew!
She only had to use the blocks for 7+7, the rest she knew right away!
She loves coloring, so this was a fun review page.
We started out the week with Heritage Studies Lesson 11: The First English Colony. Abby learned about the original states and also about the crop tobacco. Later in the week was a supplemental lesson about John Smith and Pocahontas. This explained the definition of a legend to Abby. She was excited because it actually mentioned a Disney princess. LOL! Lastly, we covered Lesson 12: A Trading Post Colony. This lesson explained how New York was originally called New Amsterdam and how the colonists traded with the Indians.
Here's a notebook page where Abby was to color it and circle people trading:
She started out coloring it, but then decided she was finished.
Last week, we wrapped up the muscular system in Apologia Anatomy and Physiology. Abby added the muscular system to her Personal Person page, did a vocabulary crossword puzzle and put together a muscle vocabulary puzzle. These activities are all in the Junior Notebook and she loves it.
Abby completed lesson 6 in A Reason For Handwriting.
She likes me to leave the room when she does her handwriting, so that I can come back and be so surprised by it. I pointed out to her that she left out "to" before "the" and that there was also a strange line in front of "each", but I didn't make her correct the page. I've found that it discourages her and makes her think she can't do it right next time.
Abby also did a few grammar worksheets on classifying nouns, proper nouns and plural nouns:
Explode the Code is a big hit over here. Abby does the front and back of one page per day, but has been asking to do more. She thinks they are funny.
As you can see, she really got into it by coloring the page. She also had to make a person floating out of the word "boat". She had trouble with "toad". She was trying to write "frog", but it wasn't one of the word choices.
Tuesday, was book fair day at the YMCA that I've been waiting for since last year. We went with my sister Heather and Matthew. We stopped for breakfast at McDonald's first. That's the only thing I like at McDonald's, their breakfast!
Anyway, the book fair wasn't as cool as last year. There were still a lot of books, but not nearly the amount of homeschooling workbooks like I had found last time. Abby did find several books and many of them were new. Poor Matthew never did find a Star Wars book. We all searched for hours for him, to no avail. He did find a couple of chapter books though.
I know we did other running around with Heather and her boys, but I didn't write it down and now I don't remember.
This week, we are looking forward to Friday when all of us will go out to our favorite restaurant for lunch! It's the only place where all three kids will eat something.
Do you have any plans for the week?
I guess that's the good thing about the Midwest, no hurricanes. However, we've sure had our fair share of tornadoes! The weather here has been hot and I'm still waiting for the cooler temperatures to show up.
Last week was week 6 of 2nd grade! Abby is still enjoying it. Whew!
Math
This past week, Abby continued with a review of lesson 12 in Math U See. Also the extra worksheets for the lesson review past lessons, which I like to do for an overall review. Here's a few worksheets from last week:
She only had to use the blocks for 7+7, the rest she knew right away!
She loves coloring, so this was a fun review page.
Social Studies
We started out the week with Heritage Studies Lesson 11: The First English Colony. Abby learned about the original states and also about the crop tobacco. Later in the week was a supplemental lesson about John Smith and Pocahontas. This explained the definition of a legend to Abby. She was excited because it actually mentioned a Disney princess. LOL! Lastly, we covered Lesson 12: A Trading Post Colony. This lesson explained how New York was originally called New Amsterdam and how the colonists traded with the Indians.
Here's a notebook page where Abby was to color it and circle people trading:
She started out coloring it, but then decided she was finished.
Science
Last week, we wrapped up the muscular system in Apologia Anatomy and Physiology. Abby added the muscular system to her Personal Person page, did a vocabulary crossword puzzle and put together a muscle vocabulary puzzle. These activities are all in the Junior Notebook and she loves it.
Language Arts
Abby completed lesson 6 in A Reason For Handwriting.
She likes me to leave the room when she does her handwriting, so that I can come back and be so surprised by it. I pointed out to her that she left out "to" before "the" and that there was also a strange line in front of "each", but I didn't make her correct the page. I've found that it discourages her and makes her think she can't do it right next time.
Abby also did a few grammar worksheets on classifying nouns, proper nouns and plural nouns:
Reading
Explode the Code is a big hit over here. Abby does the front and back of one page per day, but has been asking to do more. She thinks they are funny.
As you can see, she really got into it by coloring the page. She also had to make a person floating out of the word "boat". She had trouble with "toad". She was trying to write "frog", but it wasn't one of the word choices.
Misc.
Tuesday, was book fair day at the YMCA that I've been waiting for since last year. We went with my sister Heather and Matthew. We stopped for breakfast at McDonald's first. That's the only thing I like at McDonald's, their breakfast!
Anyway, the book fair wasn't as cool as last year. There were still a lot of books, but not nearly the amount of homeschooling workbooks like I had found last time. Abby did find several books and many of them were new. Poor Matthew never did find a Star Wars book. We all searched for hours for him, to no avail. He did find a couple of chapter books though.
I know we did other running around with Heather and her boys, but I didn't write it down and now I don't remember.
This week, we are looking forward to Friday when all of us will go out to our favorite restaurant for lunch! It's the only place where all three kids will eat something.
Do you have any plans for the week?
Links I Like
Friday, August 26, 2011
How is it almost September? It just doesn't make sense to me. I guess because it's still in the 90's here and doesn't feel anything like Fall yet.
To get you ready for the Fall months, head to Anything But Perfect for a September, October and November printable calendar. They are so cute, here's my favorite:
How cute is that?!
Thinking about Fall also makes me think about our annual Branson family vacation. It's coming up so soon. I found a great idea for on the go meals for Abby at Lookie What I Did:
Very smart! Abby's car seat does have a cup holder, but she insists that it is Kitty's seat and she will not put a cup in it. Speaking of her car seat, I saw that it is on sale this week at Target for only $129! That's a great deal. It's a Graco Nautilus:
This is not the color we have, but it's the same style. It's a great seat, if you are looking for a new one.
I am having so much fun using the My Memories Suite digital Scrapbooking software. I've found so many great freebie papers and embellishments to play with too. First go enter my giveaway for My Memories Suite and then check these out:
School Time papers and School Time embellishments from Ronda's Scrap Blog.
On A Sunny Day mini kit from After Five Designs.
As usual, I'm sitting here wishing I had something sweet to eat. I recently came across this:
Just the presentation is adorable! It's Chocolate Peanut Butter Pudding from This Chick Cooks. Chocolate and peanut are made to go with each other!
Lastly, did you notice I made a favicon? It's supposed to be a pencil writing ONN. I hope it looks like that. LOL! I found the instructions on how to make them over at From GARDNERS to BERGERS.
Have a great weekend! Do you have any cool plans?
To get you ready for the Fall months, head to Anything But Perfect for a September, October and November printable calendar. They are so cute, here's my favorite:
How cute is that?!
Thinking about Fall also makes me think about our annual Branson family vacation. It's coming up so soon. I found a great idea for on the go meals for Abby at Lookie What I Did:
Very smart! Abby's car seat does have a cup holder, but she insists that it is Kitty's seat and she will not put a cup in it. Speaking of her car seat, I saw that it is on sale this week at Target for only $129! That's a great deal. It's a Graco Nautilus:
This is not the color we have, but it's the same style. It's a great seat, if you are looking for a new one.
I am having so much fun using the My Memories Suite digital Scrapbooking software. I've found so many great freebie papers and embellishments to play with too. First go enter my giveaway for My Memories Suite and then check these out:
School Time papers and School Time embellishments from Ronda's Scrap Blog.
On A Sunny Day mini kit from After Five Designs.
As usual, I'm sitting here wishing I had something sweet to eat. I recently came across this:
Just the presentation is adorable! It's Chocolate Peanut Butter Pudding from This Chick Cooks. Chocolate and peanut are made to go with each other!
Lastly, did you notice I made a favicon? It's supposed to be a pencil writing ONN. I hope it looks like that. LOL! I found the instructions on how to make them over at From GARDNERS to BERGERS.
Have a great weekend! Do you have any cool plans?
10
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Today, Dave and I have been married 10 years! A whole decade! If you like "how we met" stories, see my 8 year anniversary post. There's lots of pics on there too.
Last year, I wrote about how we were recently debt free and hoping to go to Hawaii for our 10 year anniversary. Well, that didn't happen. LOL! We are still debt free, so that's good.
This year, Dave got us a suite at a local casino. We don't gamble, but the hotel is fancy and has a nice pool and dinner buffet. Abby is coming with us, isn't that romantic? LOL!
I made Dave an anniversary gift that I will post about next week.
Dave, if you are reading...
Happy 10th Anniversary to the best husband ever!
I love you!
I made the picture above with Persnickety Print's All You Need Is Love freebie on My Memories Suite. Don't forget to enter my giveaway for a copy of it here.
Last year, I wrote about how we were recently debt free and hoping to go to Hawaii for our 10 year anniversary. Well, that didn't happen. LOL! We are still debt free, so that's good.
This year, Dave got us a suite at a local casino. We don't gamble, but the hotel is fancy and has a nice pool and dinner buffet. Abby is coming with us, isn't that romantic? LOL!
I made Dave an anniversary gift that I will post about next week.
Dave, if you are reading...
Happy 10th Anniversary to the best husband ever!
I love you!
Wordless Wednesday: Princess and the Pea
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
For more Wordless Wednesday posts, head to:
Go Graham Go
Mom Spotted
Two of a Kind Working on a Full House
Mama to 4 Blessings
Homeschool Weekly Review: August 15-19
Monday, August 22, 2011
Don't forget to enter the My Memories Suite Giveaway!
This past week was week 5 of 2nd grade for Abby. I say this all of the time, but seriously it's going by fast!
We had another busy week with a library trip, trip to the park, taking my younger sister to the dentist, hanging out with my cousin's little girl Lauryn, a mall visit and Thursday was our Not Back To School party day!
Each year, my sister and I have a Not Back to School party for Abby and Matthew. This year they wanted to go swimming. Heather and were mostly interested in the lazy river.
The pool opened at noon and there was hardly anyone there. The local school districts started back the day before! It was so nice. Around 1 p.m. you could tell the kindergarteners were there, but still it wasn't crowded at all. We stayed until 2 and then headed to lunch and a few stores. It was a great day. I have no pictures, because I didn't want to have my camera at the pool and try to keep track of it.
Here's what we did as far as school work this week:
Math
We are still enjoying Math U See. Abby continued reviewing lesson 11 and started lesson 12 about adding doubles and word numbers. She is doing really well with remembering her facts!
Social Studies
This past week, Abby did Heritage Studies lesson 9 on making cloth and learned about cotton and wool. She also did lesson 10 about farming today. This covered how plows are different today, making farming easier. We learned that today, 1 farm can feed 40 families. The lesson also went over how farmrtd are making better plants, by using the seeds of the best crops.
I also brought along Maps Charts and Graphs, book C when we took my sister Holly to the dentist. My cousin's little girl Lauryn was with us. She's 7 months younger than Abby and she enjoyed doing these workpages with Abby. They took turns answering the questions. Lauryn just started first grade last week and is in the gifted program!
Between the two of them, we were able to do the first 7 pages in the book. These were about map reading, map making, captions, aerial maps, surveys and cartographers.
Science
Apologia Human Anatomy and Physiology had us studying the muscular system last week. This included skeletal muscles, tendons, muscle cells, muscle fibers, mitochondria, lactic acid and anaerobic exercise. Throughout the text are Try This! experiments. Abby enjoyed the Try This! experiment on facial expressions. She learned that by making a face you can change your mood. Just making a happy face makes you feel better. I think I'm going to use this little experiment to remind her when she is having one of her drama queen moments.
Language Arts
A Reason For Handwriting is still going well. Here's her bible verse from last week:
Abby also did several grammar worksheets covering: commands, combining sentences and nouns.
I'm so excited, because I found this grammar workbook at a YMCA bookfair last year and this year's book fair is tomorrow! It's an older Frank Shafer book and I can't find any reference to it anywhere online. It was in new condition and has been a great resource. Plus, it was 25 cents!
Reading
A few weeks ago, I got this tote from Barnes & Noble and I'm so glad I did.
Do you have a special library bag? My sister Heather can confirm that I did obsess about buying this bag for several weeks. I was too cheap to do so and finally went for it. LOL!
My Memories Suite Giveaway-CLOSED
Friday, August 19, 2011
I have posted about how I've enjoyed digital scrapbooking with Picasa. However, I have a new digital scrapbooking software to share with you:
My Memories Suite is a digital scrapbooking software that is loaded with tools to help you create the perfect pages, calendars, cards and more.
When I first downloaded the program and began to use it, I was very impressed. You can do quick theme layouts or make up your own, the possibilities are endless!
I was happy to see that there is a prompt for choosing the right dimensions for your creations: 12x12, 8x8, etc. My first project was to do a simple 12x12 page to get to know the program. I chose a blank template, but there were tons of photo layout templates and collages to choose from.
From there, I was able to pick my background. This could be one of their many choices from dots to plaids to textures and more or you can upload your own into the program.
Then I found the embellishments tab and was so excited. The way I was digital scrapbooking before, there was no way to get embellishments. With My Memories Suite, that is no longer a problem. They have adorable buttons, bows, brads, ric-rac, stitching and the option to upload your own to make your project the cutest!
Here's my first project using this software:
It was so much fun to create.
To demonstrate how easy this program is to use, I had Abby try it out as well. I showed her how to use it and guided her through the tabs to find what she wanted. Here's what she came up with:
Nevermind that Kako is a boy, Abby loved putting a pink bow on his head! She was really into the embellishments and had so much fun picking out what she liked. We had this printed and it turned out great. She put it in a frame :)
I decided to try using the "custom" option on the background paper and embellishments and used Cherry O from Dancing Princess Designs.
It was so easy! My Memories Suite also has a collection of kits available, including freebies and of course, I had to try that too:
This was made with the Spring It On Extras set.
Besides backgrounds, templates and embellishments, My Memories Suite v2 software has the ability to:
I have a special offer for you. My Memories Suite is only $39.97. However, head to My Memories Suite and enter the code: STMMMS40005
You'll receive $10 off your purchase and a $10 credit to use at the My Memories store. Purchase kits, embellishments and more to make your project perfect!
That's a total of 3 entries. This giveaway will be open until Monday, August 29th at 12 p.m. central time. I will choose the winner with Random.org and will email the winner.
Enjoy checking out this awesome software and good luck with the giveaway!
**I received a free download of this software in order to give an honest review.**
My Memories Suite is a digital scrapbooking software that is loaded with tools to help you create the perfect pages, calendars, cards and more.
When I first downloaded the program and began to use it, I was very impressed. You can do quick theme layouts or make up your own, the possibilities are endless!
I was happy to see that there is a prompt for choosing the right dimensions for your creations: 12x12, 8x8, etc. My first project was to do a simple 12x12 page to get to know the program. I chose a blank template, but there were tons of photo layout templates and collages to choose from.
From there, I was able to pick my background. This could be one of their many choices from dots to plaids to textures and more or you can upload your own into the program.
Then I found the embellishments tab and was so excited. The way I was digital scrapbooking before, there was no way to get embellishments. With My Memories Suite, that is no longer a problem. They have adorable buttons, bows, brads, ric-rac, stitching and the option to upload your own to make your project the cutest!
Here's my first project using this software:
It was so much fun to create.
To demonstrate how easy this program is to use, I had Abby try it out as well. I showed her how to use it and guided her through the tabs to find what she wanted. Here's what she came up with:
Nevermind that Kako is a boy, Abby loved putting a pink bow on his head! She was really into the embellishments and had so much fun picking out what she liked. We had this printed and it turned out great. She put it in a frame :)
I decided to try using the "custom" option on the background paper and embellishments and used Cherry O from Dancing Princess Designs.
It was so easy! My Memories Suite also has a collection of kits available, including freebies and of course, I had to try that too:
This was made with the Spring It On Extras set.
Besides backgrounds, templates and embellishments, My Memories Suite v2 software has the ability to:
- Photo edit: crop, retouch, edit, etc.
- add audio
- add video
- convert to a JPEG
- burn to DVD
- and more!
Would you like My Memories Suite v2 software?
I have a special offer for you. My Memories Suite is only $39.97. However, head to My Memories Suite and enter the code: STMMMS40005
You'll receive $10 off your purchase and a $10 credit to use at the My Memories store. Purchase kits, embellishments and more to make your project perfect!
Also, My Memories has graciously offered a giveaway to my readers!
- Visit My Memories Suite and tell me the name of your favorite digital kit. There are so many, so don't forget to come back to enter :)
- For an extra entry, follow My Memories Blog and comment here to let me know.
- Leave me a comment to let me know if you are a follower or email subscriber of Our Nifty Notebook for another entry.
That's a total of 3 entries. This giveaway will be open until Monday, August 29th at 12 p.m. central time. I will choose the winner with Random.org and will email the winner.
Enjoy checking out this awesome software and good luck with the giveaway!
**I received a free download of this software in order to give an honest review.**
Wordless Wednesday: Baby Andrew
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
My cousin had a baby last week and we got to go see him in the hospital. He's so sweet. We can't wait to see him again.
Meet Andrew Henry:
For more Wordless Wednesday, head to:
Go Graham Go
Mom Spotted
Two of a Kind Working on a Full House
Mama to 4 Blessings
Meet Andrew Henry:
For more Wordless Wednesday, head to:
Go Graham Go
Mom Spotted
Two of a Kind Working on a Full House
Mama to 4 Blessings
Homeschool Weekly Review: August 8-12
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
This past week was our 4th week of school. It was a busy week with lots of running around. On Monday, we cleaned the kid rooms at church (we do this once a month) and I met a lady who is going to start homeschooling her son for Kindergarten this year. I'm so happy for her. I shared with her some great online resources she hadn't known about.
Last week, we also went out to our favorite place for lunch, walked the mall and met up with someone from craigslist. You'll see what I got below. Oh and my cousin had a baby, so we went with my sister and her boys to see him. He's adorable!
Abby did lessons 10 and 11. These were about skip counting by two's with odd and even numbers and circles & triangles. Now the circles and triangles part was super easy, but the good thing about Math U See is that it has reviews built in from the past lessons as well. It is a great mastery program.
Abby is doing really well with using the blocks to do the math problems and is also remembering more and more of the addition facts.
This past week, Abby did lesson 6, 7 and 8 in Heritage Studies. These covered old and new farms, what grows on farms, cotton and wool. She also did a notebook page where she drew a farm:
From left to right: cow, sheep saying baa, horse, cat chasing a mouse and a dog say ruff.
Apologia Human Anatomy and Physiology has been really fun for both of us. I learned this stuff before, but it has always been my favorite topic. Except when I had to take it in college. Too much chemistry involved at that point!
Anyway, this past week we continued with the skeletal system. We discussed types of joints, reviewed the names of bones and I also found something awesome on craigslist. Meet Mr. Skelly:
He was only $35! What an exciting find. It really helped Abby learn the names of the bones. In the Apologia notebook is a "personal person" page, where you put a picture of yourself and then add the transparency type body systems as you learn them. Here's Abby's:
I was pretty excited that there were transparencies in the back of the notebook. I had Dave bring up the overhead projector one evening and we traced it. Abby talked about the bones as we traced them. Later in the week, she labeled them:
Abby did lesson 4 in A Reason For Handwriting. This continues to go well. She really enjoys coloring the border page on Friday and reading the bible verse.
She also completed 4 pages in the grammar workbook. These included: exclamations and asking sentences.
Explode The Code is also going well. I'm always surprised she likes these, as they look rather boring to me.
If only she'd chose to write in lowercase on her own. Oh well, if she's learning how to form the letters, she'll eventually get there right?
After missing a week, because my nephew Andy was sick, we picked up with Artistic Pursuits lesson 2. This was about how artists imagine things. Abby and Matthew were to imagine a time they enjoyed and draw a picture of it, then color it with watercolor crayons.
This was too funny, as Matthew is an 8 year old boy with no interest in art whatsoever. He kept talking about Legos and Star Wars. He is also very precise and doesn't want to draw something, because he wants it to look completely perfect. So after countless minutes, he decided to draw an ATV logo, since he wants one and the thought of him getting one is enjoyable to him. LOL!
Abby decided to draw her and her Daddy at the donut shop. They just went there last weekend:
The difference between Abby and Matthew is so entertaining. Matthew is so detail oriented and analytical, whereas Abby is the type to throw caution to the wind and do whatever. Surprisingly, they get along very well and are best friends. Their conversations are hilarious!
Abby also spent several hours last week and this week as well making felt pictures. She found my felt box and I did something I don't normally do...I let her have free reign over it! She did end up using almost all of it, but it was great entertainment for her. She actually made the bug guy a felt spider today. LOL!
I'll have to share some pictures this week of the sweet baby we visited in the hospital. He was 7 pounds 14 ounces and I just can't believe Abby was once more than 2 pounds less than that. We brought her home at 5 pounds 11 ounces. My nephew Andrew came home at 4 pounds, 10 ounces! They sure get big fast!
The local schools here start back today and tomorrow! We can't wait to go to the zoo soon!
Last week, we also went out to our favorite place for lunch, walked the mall and met up with someone from craigslist. You'll see what I got below. Oh and my cousin had a baby, so we went with my sister and her boys to see him. He's adorable!
Math
Abby did lessons 10 and 11. These were about skip counting by two's with odd and even numbers and circles & triangles. Now the circles and triangles part was super easy, but the good thing about Math U See is that it has reviews built in from the past lessons as well. It is a great mastery program.
Abby is doing really well with using the blocks to do the math problems and is also remembering more and more of the addition facts.
Social Studies
This past week, Abby did lesson 6, 7 and 8 in Heritage Studies. These covered old and new farms, what grows on farms, cotton and wool. She also did a notebook page where she drew a farm:
From left to right: cow, sheep saying baa, horse, cat chasing a mouse and a dog say ruff.
Science
Apologia Human Anatomy and Physiology has been really fun for both of us. I learned this stuff before, but it has always been my favorite topic. Except when I had to take it in college. Too much chemistry involved at that point!
Anyway, this past week we continued with the skeletal system. We discussed types of joints, reviewed the names of bones and I also found something awesome on craigslist. Meet Mr. Skelly:
He was only $35! What an exciting find. It really helped Abby learn the names of the bones. In the Apologia notebook is a "personal person" page, where you put a picture of yourself and then add the transparency type body systems as you learn them. Here's Abby's:
Language Arts
Abby did lesson 4 in A Reason For Handwriting. This continues to go well. She really enjoys coloring the border page on Friday and reading the bible verse.
She also completed 4 pages in the grammar workbook. These included: exclamations and asking sentences.
Reading
Explode The Code is also going well. I'm always surprised she likes these, as they look rather boring to me.
If only she'd chose to write in lowercase on her own. Oh well, if she's learning how to form the letters, she'll eventually get there right?
Art
After missing a week, because my nephew Andy was sick, we picked up with Artistic Pursuits lesson 2. This was about how artists imagine things. Abby and Matthew were to imagine a time they enjoyed and draw a picture of it, then color it with watercolor crayons.
This was too funny, as Matthew is an 8 year old boy with no interest in art whatsoever. He kept talking about Legos and Star Wars. He is also very precise and doesn't want to draw something, because he wants it to look completely perfect. So after countless minutes, he decided to draw an ATV logo, since he wants one and the thought of him getting one is enjoyable to him. LOL!
Abby decided to draw her and her Daddy at the donut shop. They just went there last weekend:
The difference between Abby and Matthew is so entertaining. Matthew is so detail oriented and analytical, whereas Abby is the type to throw caution to the wind and do whatever. Surprisingly, they get along very well and are best friends. Their conversations are hilarious!
Abby also spent several hours last week and this week as well making felt pictures. She found my felt box and I did something I don't normally do...I let her have free reign over it! She did end up using almost all of it, but it was great entertainment for her. She actually made the bug guy a felt spider today. LOL!
I'll have to share some pictures this week of the sweet baby we visited in the hospital. He was 7 pounds 14 ounces and I just can't believe Abby was once more than 2 pounds less than that. We brought her home at 5 pounds 11 ounces. My nephew Andrew came home at 4 pounds, 10 ounces! They sure get big fast!
The local schools here start back today and tomorrow! We can't wait to go to the zoo soon!
Not Back To School Blog Hop: Student Photo Week
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Here is Abby on her first day of 2nd grade 5 weeks ago:
I thought it would be fun to look back at past years.
I can't believe how fast time goes by.
To share your student photos, head to the Heart of the Matter's Not Back to School Blog Hop.
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