Currclick Secret Sale!

Currclick is now having a “secret” Winter Whisper sale. This sale hasn’t been advertised on their homepage or Facebook and is only accessible by the “secret” link. Now it is not really secret, because I (and you) are encouraged to spread the word about it.

10 of their top homeschool product publishers are offering their entire lines at 50%  off. Plus, there are 10 new freebie products—including lapbbook studies and literature units! Go check it out (and spread the word)!

The sale ends on Jan. 19.

Secret Sale

Welcome, 2011

I am looking forward to this new year---a time for new beginnings. 2010 brought with it many blessings and good times that I cherish, but also a lot of heartache. I am determined, in this new year, to move forward, and to emotionally let go of some things that are distracting me from what is most important.

I’d like to do more writing. I started with NaNoWriMo in November and failed miserably, in part due to being out of town for half the month, but I still want to try my hand at writing fiction. I’m exploring new ways to grow my Super Star Speech business and and am open to seeing where God may lead me.

My first priority right now is raising Emily. I hope to see her grow in the Lord this year. We’re also working on some attitude issues that need to be fixed ASAP. I’d like to see her become more self-initiated in her learning and conscientious in her quality of work. (Any suggestions would be welcomed!)

I am excited to see where God will lead me this year!

Good-bye 2010

Last year, I posted some New Year’s resolutions. I thought it would be good for me to revisit them and to think about how I did!

2010 Goals:

1. Get up earlier to begin my Bible/prayer time. I am consistent about doing this nearly every day, but I would like to start about 30 minutes earlier, so that I can finish before Emily is up. I tend to let her oversleep or make her wait for breakfast and school because I am still having my quiet time.

I started out well with this, but in recent months have really slipped! This is a good goal to carry over!

2. Smile more. Make an effort to have and be more fun with the kids. Take time to stop and enjoy the moment instead of worrying so much about checking the next item off my mental list.

Again, I think I’m doing better, but there’s still room to improve! Now that Emily and I are the only ones at home, we’re definitely more relaxed. This year, I’d like to work on getting up earlier and being more efficient in the first few hours of the day in order to feel more flexibility the rest of the time. I’m going to print out a “smile” sign as a reminder, too!

3. Relax and trust God. My life in in upheaval right now, and has been for the past couple of years, but I spend way too much time worrying about what might happen and trying to “fix” things myself rather than trusting God to work everything out for good in His own time.

Well, sometimes I do really well here, and sometimes I fall apart. I’m really working right now on letting go of the past and trying to thrive where I am, trials and all.

4. Put more time and effort into preparing good and nutritious meals instead of throwing something together at the last minute. Reminder to self: It really doesn’t take that much longer to plan ahead!

I’m actually doing better here. My freezer is also loaded with casseroles and soups that I can pull out for a quick nutritious meal.

New Year’s Eve Game Night

Allison went out with some friends for New Year’s Eve, but the rest of us enjoyed a quiet night at home playing games with my parents and father in law.

Mind Benders (Review)

I have always loved logic puzzles, so I when Timberdoodle  Co. gave me the opportunity to introduce Mind Benders to Emily, I eagerly took it. We were sent book A3  (grades 3-6) to review.

Mind Benders are deductive reasoning puzzles. Each puzzle is accompanied by a blank chart that the student will fill in as he or she draws conclusions from the given information. This is the example problem in the Mind Benders book:

Davis, Edwards, and Jones are an astronaut, a computer programmer, and a skin diver.

1. Davis is not the astronaut or the computer programmer.

2. Jones is not the astronaut.

What does each person do?

The book explains how to solve a problem using the chart, so if you, as a parent, are wary of tackling these, you have help! Answers and step-by-step procedures are also provided in the back of the book in case the student or teacher gets stuck.

Emily had a few moments of frustration with some of the puzzles, but she did think they were fun. She is learning that she has to read very carefully to pick up small clues that will yield information and is excited each time she figures something out.

She struggles with work problems in math and has a tendency to skim over small details when reading, so I think that the Mind Bender puzzles will be excellent training for her that should carry over into her school subjects. Best of all, she does the puzzles for fun, not because they are “school!” Actually, I think they are a lot of fun, too!

I was given a free review copy of Mind Benders A3 by the Timberdoodle Co. for review purposes. Timberdoodle sells a  variety of Thinking Skills books and games.

Christmas Day

Early Christmas Morning….

An Alabama White Christmas!

 

Gift opening…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We enjoyed the afternoon at my parents’ house.

We had a wonderful day.

Unstuff, Making Room in Your Life for What Really Matters (Review)

Unstuff, Making Room in Your Life for What Really Matters, by Hayley and Michael DiMarco is a book that challenges the reader to take a close look at all the “stuff” in his life that impacts his walk with the Lord.

This is a difficult (and yet most appropriate) time of year to look at this topic as most of us are busily shopping, giving, and receiving “stuff.” And when we are not, ads everywhere are encouraging us to buy, buy, buy!

The authors’ premise is that “stuff” is meant to fill our needs. It is not meant to control our time, our money, and our hearts. We work hard to buy things that satisfy us only temporarily. We expend time and energy maintaining our large homes, cars, and other “stuff.” All of these things leave us little time for what is most important—God and family—and adding to our stress levels.

The authors say, “Stress results from our assumption that God isn’t enough so we have to take up the slack…It is the result of a life that hasn’t focused itself on things above but on things within.”

Unstuff addresses not only the “wallet stuff” that occupies and distracts us, but also “mind stuff,” “body stuff,” “worship stuff” and “love stuff.”

I enjoyed the first part of the book and appreciated the call to simplify. I don’t know how far I am willing to go in letting go of my stuff, but I do know that my efforts over the past few years to simplify my schedule and obligations and to de-clutter have simplified my life and lessened my stress levels. I wish the authors had focused primarily on “wallet stuff,” however. I felt that much of the last half of the book just tried to cover too much material. I think the definition of “stuff” was so broad that the initial emphasis on downsizing our lives was weakened.

I still recommend this book and think that most of us would benefit from this call to simplify our lives.

Thank you to Tyndale House for providing me with a free review copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Pier 1 Imports

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Pier 1 Imports. All opinions are 100% mine.

I've spent some time this afternoon browsing the Pier 1 Imports website. Pier 1 has such a fun variety of gifts and decorating items. I would love this set of Snowman dishes to use at a party or to serve my family a Christmas morning brunch. Isn't it bright and cheery?

The Christmas decor is all arranged by collection (Gilded Forest, Couture Christmas, etc.) to make it extra easy to pick items that will coordinate to give your home that put-together look. The snowman dishes that I like are from the Yuletide Treasures collection.

If you are looking for some last-minute holiday gifts, the site conveniently has sections for "Gifts for Her" and "Gifts for Him."  While browsing through the "Gifts for Her," I found ideas from throws to jewelry to wallets. Isn't this appliqued throw cute? With the cold weather we've had this week, this appeals to me right now!

Many of the items I found were marked down to clearance prices. All the better! This lantern sconce is only$8.98; marked down from $30! I think a pair of these would be lovely in my foyer!

 

Throughout this month, Pier 1 Imports is collecting donations for Toys for Tots. Unwrapped toys or donations are accepted at the register. Also,  Pier 1 Imports will donate $1 to Toys for Tots for everyone who "likes" them on Facebook. I really appreciate companies that support their communities and reach out to help others as they do business.

Advent Traditions

For many years, one of our favorite Christmas/ Advent traditions has been our nightly Advent candle lighting and reading. Most nights, during the 4 weeks leading to Christmas, we gather around our Advent wreath and read a devotional together. Our hands-down favorite has been the Jotham’s Journey series. We’ve read each of the 3 books at least twice through. This year, we are reading a lovely devotional that I downloaded from one of my favorite blogs, A Holy Experience. 

Often our Advent readings are followed by singing a Christmas carol or reading through some of our favorite Christmas picture books and accompanied by hot chocolate and cookies.

I think this tradition as helped us all keep our focus on Jesus throughout the season. What are your favorite traditions?

Super Star Speech Sale

Do you have concerns about your child’s speech skills? My Super Star Speech books were written to help parents work with their children’s articulation errors at home. Visit Super Star Speech to learn more about speech disorders and look over the free resources offered there!

I am offering free shipping on any Super Star Speech sale from now until Dec. 16. In addition, if you use Google Checkout, you will receive an additional $5.00 off any order of $30 or more.

All of the Super Star Speech books are also available from Currclick in e-book form for about 30% off.

Little Star, by Anthony DeStefano (Review)

We have a large collection of Christmas picture books, ranging from silly “fluff”  to “classics” that I will keep for my grandchildren. My favorites are those that tell the story of Jesus’ birth in a way that touches children and adults alike. Beautiful illustrations are a plus, as well.

Little Star is a book that falls into that category. The Christmas story is told from the perspective of the star, who watches Mary and Joseph from the sky, feels sorry for their struggles, and loves the baby Jesus so much that he gave himself for Him.  The story is a simple retelling of the birth of Jesus and a tale of a little star who was considered insignificant by the other stars, but it also addresses Jesus’ choice to be born in humble circumstances instead of coming to earth as a King and even foreshadows Jesus’ sacrifice for mankind.

I think Little Star would be an excellent addition to any family’s collection of Christmas stories. It is a story that will engage any 3 to 8 year old and one that children will understand at  a deeper level as they age.

I received a free review copy of this book from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group. All opinions are my own.