Friends of the Library

Don't miss out on a great hand-stamped jewelry giveaway!  Check out my post from Monday here.

It had been a while.  We always seem to take a break from the library during the summer as our trips into town decrease due to having the summer off from piano lessons.  Yesterday, piano lessons started back up so to the library we went.  Our library has a wonderful used bookstore that is operated by the Friends of the Library.  Usually a retired man or woman operates the store and yesterday was no different.  I am always blessed by a short visit with whoever is manning the store. 

Yesterday I also found a homeschooling friend from our local support group in the store with her son and we enjoyed a good little visit.  Come to think of it, I usually run into at least one other homeschooling family while we are at the library.  

Anyway, I love looking through the books for some great treasures.  I usually find one or two items that I just happened to be looking for.  In fact, my husband asked me once if I prayed to find specific books for sale before I went to the library.  It seemed to him that I always found just what I needed. Yesterday, I wasn't looking for anything in particular, but came away with some great finds anyway.

Yesterday I found these classic titles in very good shape:  Treasure Island, David Copperfield and Sir Lancelot.  Aaron quickly claimed the copy of David Copperfield for his personal library and the other two will be part of Jackson's birthday surprises tomorrow.  Finding good quality used books is a great way to build up your children's personal library.  In fact, most of our home library was created in just this way!

We will be starting our geography studies next week.  This semester we are learning all about Asia.  I found these three books in the middle for almost nothing!  Little Boat Boy was written by a missionary to India.  Japanese Children's Favorite Stories is a large collection of short stories with nice illustrations and the last book is a story book, but will be a great discussion starter regarding the false gods of the Chinese religions.

We are just beginning a  unit on the World Wars and the Great Depression.  Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms is one of the books that I wanted Aaron to read.  I have never read it, but will pre-read it first.  I found that the library has an audio version so have already requested that....the older boys can listen to this in their room.

And I can't forget the little guys!  A book by Anno, a beautifully illustrated version of Emily Dickenson's  poems for children, a If You Give a Pig a Party, another book by Munsch that I think Jackson took to bed with him last night and two easy readers.  Some of these books I will pass on to the grandson's.  I was able to get a huge stack of about 30 books recently at our local Goodwill bookstore that I gave to Chase as part of his 4th birthday present.  Gently used books are great gifts and as most of my grandchildren's books were lost in the tornado, I can help build their home library up with great books inexpensively!  All these books that I found yesterday were only $25.  Not bad at all!

Does your local library have a bookstore for used books or have a large book sale every year?  Find out! It's a great source for finding some wonderful books!

Rejected by the Library

So many of my favorite books are old books that have been discarded by our local library.  Several years ago our local library decided to purge the children's section....and purge they did!!  Huge bins of books were made available to some of their "preferred" patrons and many of my friends and I took advantage of the opportunity to gather up these books for FREE!  I made several trips to the library searching through the bins and filling the back of our old Suburban with many great finds that have become favorite resources for my children.

My 8-12 year old children LOVE the Childhood of Famous American series and it's a good thing.  We have over 100 of these books and most of them were discarded from our library.  I brought home bags of these when they were first discarded for free, but also purchased some from our library's yearly book sale and from the library's book store.  I haven't seen any in the library's book store in a very long while, so I think we got them all!  ; )  These series of historical biographies have reinforced provided a good basis for our young students  in American history and we  build on that with  lots of reading aloud, discussion and field trips.  These are the books that I find scattered throughout the house and one of my children requested to take them with her when she marries to use with her own children.  With seven children, though, I think they will have to stay in Mom-mom's library and can be checked out by careful grandchildren.  Here is the description of the Childhood of Famous Americans series in Jan Bloom's Who Should We Then Read?


"The Childhood of Famous American (CoFa or CFA) series introduces younger readers to important historical characters.  Children will appreciate the antics, dreams, and desires of other children.  These are available in many different editions.  Many of the titles were reprinted in the mid 1990s in a soft-cover edition. Some new titles were added at that time...  Then begins a list of the books arranged by author and then another list by the child's first name.  I like to keep mine in order by the child's last name, but if you look closely you will see that they get put back out of order.  I'm just glad they get put back on the shelf sometimes!  I know that there are several books missing from the shelf....most likely on Kaelan's nightstand!

Another old series that I love is the Landmark series.  Again, most of ours were acquired free from our library or were purchased at library sales or through independent sales.  I think we have about 100 of these as well.  I assign some of these for independent reading and have read many aloud to the whole crew.  Again, here is the blurb from Jan Bloom's book:  "American Landmarks and Wold Landmarks feature the stories of outstanding people and events.  Bennett Cerf, editor at Random House, inaugurated the series to honor a request from his son who had asked for interesting biographies written for young students.  Popular authors were commissioned to write for the series, which became incredibly popular.  Over twenty million hardcover copies sold in the U.S.  The books are written in a novelistic style to keep the mid-range reader entertained and interested.  This is considered on of the best biographical series.  There have been numerous printings of many of the books.  Some titles have been recently reprinted in a soft cover edition."

 

We also have several of the We Were There series which are written about various expeditions and historical incidents and are told as if by children who were actually witnessing the events.

Several of our favorite authors' books were also discarded from the library shelves:  Lois Lenski, Charlotte Zolotow, Maud and Miska Petersham, Alvin Tressalt, Louisa May Alcott, Josephy Altsheller, Sonia Bleeker, Clyde Robert Bulla, Walter Farley, Jean Fritz, Stephen Meador, Opal Wheeler, Sterling North, Margaret Sidney and so many more.  While I am saddened that our library no longer offers many of these books I am overjoyed to have them here in my home to share with my own children and grandchildren.   I have several other bookshelves where these books have found happy homes.

I encourage you to check you own local libraries for booksales and stores.  You never know what treasures you may find!

Choosing Books for Children

There are so many books available for children today.  How do we choose books for our children?  Currently I use All Through the Ages by Christine Miller to help me choose age appropriate books for our history and geography studies.    For years I have used the recommended book lists in our KONOS curriculum for each unit study that we have done.  We have found some wonderful treasures there.  Another great resource has been Books Children Love by Elizabeth Wilson.  I also discovered Honey for a Child's Heart by Gladys Hunt years ago when we first started homeschooling.  I know that there are more current editions out now.   Jan Bloom's Who Then Shall We Read? is another fabulous resource for choosing great books.

Years ago Lifetime Books and Gifts, founded by our friends Bob and Tina Farewell, had a wonderfully thick catalog full of lovely books with many reviews.  This was such a tremendous blessing, but alas, is no longer available.   The online catalog is a great resource today.   I have found great books from Children's Books In fact, I have ordered so much from them in the years past that the vendors at homeschool conferences know me by name!  I was gathering a stack of materials to purchase at their booth one year and was telling an acquaintance with me how much I loved the company and ordered from them regularly.  The owner just happened to be running the booth that day and overheard my comment.  He asked my name and when I told him, he recognized it and commented that they have a big folder with my name on it!  Another company that I have purchased  from for years is Christian Book Distributers or christianbook.com.  A link to their website can be found in my sidebar.  Lamplighter books are relatively new to our home, but we have discovered many treasures from them in the last few years.  I will soon devote an entire post to Lamplighter.

Many curriculum have book lists such as Sonlight, Veritas, Five in a Row and many others.  There are even lists of recommended books online.  I have found, though, that just because a book is listed by someone, even a Christian, doesn't mean that the book will meet our approval.  I really try to pre-read most of the children's books before I give them over to be read independently.  There have been many times that we have been reading books out loud and have decided not to continue for various reasons.

So, there you have some of my favorite resources for finding books that we think are worthy for our children to read.  I'll be sharing some of our particular favorites in the days ahead and would still love to hear more from you.  Please leave a comment sharing your favorite source for children's books, a favorite author or a favorite book.  Thanks so much!

gnowfglins.com

What Are Your Favorite Children's Books?

Did I tell you that one of the most treasured things that Lauren and her family lost in the tornado last week was her collection of books?  Books that she has had since she was very young.  Jeff and I were young, too, and our taste in children's books has since been refined.  Lauren's collection consisted mainly of the classic Little Golden Books, Berenstein Bears and Sesame Street Books.  In fact, we had packed up the Berenstein Bears and Sesame Street books years ago as we didn't want to share them with the younger children.    She also lost her complete collection of Elsie Dinsmore books and many, many others.

Over the  next few months I thought I would search out the Goodwill bookstore, the libary book sale and other resources to start a new library for my grandchildren.   Some of my favorite children's authors are C.W. Anderson, Charlotte Zolotow,  Robert McClosky, Eric Carle and Alvin Tressalt.  I am busy helping to watch after the grandchildren for a couple of more days and don't have time right now to do a complete search, but wanted to ask you all for a favorite book or author that you think I should look for.  I am not limiting my search to the preschool years, but will be purchasing for the future as well.

Please leave me comment with one or more of your favorites.  I'll be doing post on some of my favorites soon.  Thanks for your help!!

Homeschooling Update

Yes, we are still homeschooling!!  Even though I (we) have been busy with early gardening and milk production the book learning is continuing.   I thought I would give you a run-down of what is going on in the homeschooling arena at Busy Hands Busy Minds.

Together we are studying the War Between the States.  In our group time we begin the day reading a chapter of Proverbs and a chapter from the Psalms.  We review our Latin or Greek root for the week from English from the Roots Up.  I have then been reading through Facts the Historians Leave Out A Confederate Primer by John S. Tilley.  We finish that up today and will begin Walt Whitman's Civil War Poetry and Prose.  We had started Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe, but just couldn't stand it.  I decided it was fine if the children just had a small taste of it and knew the history of this fictional story written by Stowe using second and third party sources.  It is said that upon meeting Stowe in 1863, President Lincoln said, " So, this is the woman that wrote the book that caused this war."  We are also reading Two Little Confederates by Thomas Nelson Page and Call of Duty:  The Sterling Nobility of Robert E. Lee by J. Steven Wilkins.  We are using All American History Volume 2 by Celeste W. Rakes as our spine for our history studies and hope to finish up our two year stretch of American history this fall.   The older two boys and I are also studying the rather hefty volume The War Between the States:  America's Uncivil War by John J. Dwyer.  This is a fascinating book and has lots of great quotes that you most likely have not read in any other modern day textbook.  Devin (22) is taking the children through A Young Scholar's Guide to Composers by Melissa E. Craig and Maggie S. Hogan.  She meets with them once a week for this and we are supposed to listen to the music selections throughout the week.

Jordan (18) is studying Biblical Economics by R. C. Sproul, Jr. which he is greatly enjoying.  He has edited several programs for The Homeschool Channel on economics and many of R.C. Sproul's talks as well and finds them very interesting and beneficial.  He is also studying American literature through Learning Language Arts through Literature, doing an algebra review using VideoText and is doing lots of research on homesteading topics.  He is pretty much in charge of our gardening endeavors this year and has started hundreds of plants indoors and out and has built all of our raised beds and some planters by himself.  He is quite the handyman.  In addition to his film editing responsibilities at The Homeschool Channel, he spends a few hours a week taking and editing photos of his own.  He also has a huge stack of homesteading, theology and historical works that he is reading through.

Aaron(14)  is plugging through Apologia's Physical Science.  This has been a stretch for me to prepare and keep up with as most of our science studies have previously been through unit studies as a family.  Aaron feels led to study medicine, so we felt he needed to have a more formal science curriculum.  I am interested in looking at other science curriculum to see if I can find a better fit.  He has recently started VideoText algebra with Jeff and is finishing up Learning Language Arts through Literature (green).  He also using Daily Grams for daily grammar review. He is also using Building Thinking Skills Book 3 and doing some spelling review through Natural Speller.   Typing and Quarter Mile math drills are done on the computer.  He does Spanish independently using PowerGlide.  I hope to move him to Rosetta Stone this next year.  He also greatly enjoys reading through the Ballantyne books of world wide adventure stories and is reading some theological works, historical fiction and biographies.  Practicing piano, drawing, painting, chores,  and editing audio programs for his dad's home business round out his days.

Kaelan (11) is studying plants through Answers in Genesis God's Design for Life series.  Jackson is tagging on this study at times. She started a pressed flower collection and will be doing some identification of plants as well.   She is working through Teaching Textbook 6, typing and Quarter Mile math drills on the computer.  She also likes to email extended family members frequently.  ; )  She keeps up with family members all over the world!  She is studying Learning Language Arts through Literature (purple) with Daily Grams for daily grammar review.  Spelling lists come from Natural Speller and she is also using Building Thinking Skills Book 2.  Kaelan also has a tall stack of books that she is reading from based on our history studies, but usually pulls some old favorites from the bookshelves to read as well.  I think she is now reading Little Women...again!

Jackson(6) is finishing up the primer level of Math U See and will be starting MUS Foundations (the old version) as soon as it comes in.  I decided to put him in the older version because we already have the teacher's edition and I have already gone through it myself, ummm, like three other times and it won't be something that I have to relearn. ; )  We are s l o w l y making our way through Alphaphonics.  Little by little, bit by bit, I am seeing progress.  One of the great advantages of  homeschooling is that we can go as slow or as fast as we need to.  Right now, for this child and his phonics studies it is slow going.  And that is OK!!  He is using the Italic Handwriting Series as have all of my children.  I think I like it much more than any of them do.  Jackson participates in most of our group time and usually enjoys coloring a page from a historical Dover coloring book while he listens in.  I am trying to have some time each week where he is listening to audio books like Charlotte's Web or programs such as Your Story Hour or Jonathan Park.  He is read to daily by either me, Jeff or one or more of his siblings and he "reads" books by himself several times a day.  His favorite right now is  David Macaulay's The Way Things Work.


Two year old Caedmon is now enrolled in Potty Training 101.  He is now 2 1/2 (as of tomorrow) and as the weather is warming and he can now go half dressed without getting too chilled, big sister Devin has declared it TIME!.   We have been putting him on the potty for several months before bath time and he has had some success.  We are now going into full mode with training pants (no pull-ups here).  Diapers are still going on at nap and bedtimes.  Caedmon enjoys books, puzzles and most of the activities in his daily boxes.  Some of my favorite resources for this age come from Lauri and Melissa and Doug.   Some of the activity bags and folders have become too easy for him and I need to reorganize his materials.  He is a genius, I tell you, a genius!

So, that is what is going on in the homeschooling department of Busy Hands Busy Minds.  If things weren't so busy around here I would have linked all these wonderful resources so that you could look at them and purchase from my affiliate links, but my children need more time from me than this blog does.  If you have a question about any resource, please leave me a comment and I will get back to you ASAP.    Thanks so much for stopping by!

 

Simple Things

Last night I had the two little boys at home with me while everyone else went to church.  They watched a little movie while I did some cleaning and talked to my mom on the phone.  After we took our nightly meds and brushed teeth we climbed into my bed to snuggle and read books.  Jackson was so excited!  Now, reading books together is really nothing new, but to be the only ones at home and to be allowed to get in my bed and snuggle together WHILE we are reading is not an everyday occurrence.  This was special.

After I got the boys to stop jumping on the bed we read Good Night, Everyone Good Night by Harriet Ziefert and The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf.  Jackson picked out both books for our evening reading time.  After we finished reading and discussing each book (Ferdinand is a bull in Spain and is picked to go to the bull fights in Madrid--I have actually been to a bull fight in Madrid, so could add lots of information to the background) we set the books aside and tried to go to sleep.  As he has done before, sweet six year old Jackson reached for my hand and laced his fingers through mine.  What a sweet and precious moment!  One I know most likely won't be repeated by him in a few more years.

Today, I am going to slow down a little bit (no big milk production going on today, Michelle) and spend some more time with these little guys.  It won't be long until they are just a big as the older boys and  won't be wanting to snuggle with their old mom in the bed reading picture books.  Today we will make tomorrow's memories.....and I hope they are all good!

My precious little guys!

Caedmon Alexander-2

Thomas Jonathan Jackson-6



For a Child
Fannie Stearns Davis

Your friends shall be the Tall Wind,
The River and the Tree;
The Sun that laughs and marches,
The Swallows and the Sea.

Your prayers shall be the murmur
Of grasses in the rain;
The song of wildwood thrushes
That makes God glad again.

And you shall run and wander,
And you shall dream and sing
Of brave things and bright things
Beyond the swallow's wings.

And you shall envy no man,
Nor hurt your heart with sighs,
For I will keep you simple
That God may make you wise.

Turning Those Routines into Habits

                                                   Large Family Logistics

Earlier this year I wrote about being inspired to get my home decluttered and organized after reading Kim Brenneman's Large Family Logistics.  I now realize that it may take a little more time than I had hoped to get my family on board with the routines.

Old habits are so very hard to break and with young people especially as you must constantly INSPECT if you EXPECT the job to be done well.  This has been a trying time for me as I assume my children (most of whom are well above the age of 10), can easily read the daily routines and charts and just get them done without me nagging  reminding them.  Sadly, this is not happening yet.  Dad has realized that he will have to step in and make sure everyone is taking their responsibilities seriously.

One of my major problems is that I have put my 6 year old son in the rotating chores which involve the living areas, dining area/laundry and kitchen chores.  This means that not only am I overseeing the older children's chores, but I am working with Jackson to get his done and he has never had this much responsibility before.  So we will continue in the training department and hope to see some success soon.

I have,  however,  been able to keep up with my own routines for the most part.  There are some areas of weakness that I need to work on, but I have found after doing a major decluttering in the master bedroom that I am able to keep it neat and orderly with no difficulty.  Decluttering my bedroom has lifted a HUGE weight off  my shoulders!  I have even been making my bed every morning for the last several weeks and that has made me feel so good.  Now you see where the bad habits in my children have come from!

The decluttering bug is sweeping through the house.  I have been cleaning out kitchen cabinets and putting aside things that I either don't love, don't use or have too much of.  Items were constantly falling out of my pots and pans cabinet, so I simply removed the oldest set of pots and pans and will put them in a yard sale or give to Goodwill.  The boys and I also worked in their bedroom and removed many items.  Our collection of CDs and DVDs has been culled as well.   The laundry room needs to be done and then I need to do a thorough evaluation of the school room.  I regularly declutter in there as it is a small area used by many, but the books, games and  craft cabinet need to be organized again and I am sure I will get rid of even more items.

So, are you working on some new routines and habits in your home?  Has the Spring Cleaning Fever hit you?  What are you doing to make your home more organized and clutter free?  Do  you have any tips to make training my children to actually do the routines easier?  How do you encourage your children to work in your home?

Book Recommendation

"Is he well educated?"
Yes, I think so, as far as he's gone," I answered. "Of course he will go on being educated every day of his life, same as father. He says it is all rot about 'finishing' your education. You never do. You learn more important things each day..."— Gene Stratton-Porter (Laddie: A True Blue Story)


Have you read this book?  It is such a sweet story of a large farm family in the 1800's who live close to the land.  It's one of those books that you just sigh as you read along.  I hope to read it aloud to the children soon, but I know there are parts of it where I will cry.  I don't mind crying as I read to myself, but it is a little bothersome when you are reading aloud.  
Gather your children around the tea table in the afternoons or enjoy a time of snuggling close to the fire.  Pass around a bowl of popcorn and enjoy some crispy apples together.  This book will surely bless each member of your family.


And the above quote?  All I can say is....I totally agree!


  

What We Are Studying- Leading Up to the Civil War

We just recently began one of our favorite studies of  the Civil War.  We will be learning about this time period for the next several months.  For the next couple of weeks we are reading and discussing the time period leading up to the war.  We have so many great resources that I thought I would share with you.

Aaron and Jordan, 14 and 18 years old, will be reading The War Between the States:  America's Uncivil War by John J. Dwyer.  This 38 chapter volume is jam-packed with lots of great pictures, maps, quotes and other information you will not get from any other resource.  Dwyer has a handful of other well-known historians who contributed to this  undertaking.  The boys will be working through the study guides for each chapter and adding quotes and maps to their notebooks.

In addition to the above text the boys will be reading Sounding Forth the Trumpet by Peter Marshall.   Marshall, being from Massachusetts, takes a decidedly Northern view of the war.  We feel that it is important that we learn from both sides as every story has different versions.  Dr. Marshall  has meant a lot to us in our studies of American history.  We have been privileged to meet him and had him sign all of our books that he wrote.  Jeff made several programs with him about segments of American history for American Family Radio.  They are probably still available for sale.  If you are interested, leave me a comment and I will point you in the right direction.

In our group time we are reading:

Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Facts the Historians Leave Out by John S. Tilley
Sojourner Truth:  American Abolitionist by W. Terry Whalin

Tonight we will watch an A & E Biography Frederick Douglass.


We have a stack of books from the library to read through in this next week as well.

Kaelan will read Harriet Beecher Stowe:  Connecticut Girl by Mabel Cieland Widdemer, a Childhood of Famous Americans book.  I will read Henry Clay by  Helen Stone Peterson, a Discovery Book to Kaelan and Jackson.  Other books to read through in this stack are-

Aquila's Drinking Gourd:  A Story of the Underground Railroad by Pamela Kell
Escape to Freedom;  The Underground Railroad Adventures of Callie and William by Barbara Brooks Simon
Harriet Beecher Stowe and the Beecher Preachers by Jean Fritz
Frederick Douglass:  Abolitionist and Author by Norma Jean Lutz
The Story of the Underground Railroad by R. Conrad Stein
The Abolitionist Movement by Elaine Landau

I am still typing up our full lesson plans for this unit, but if you would like a copy I would be glad to share with you.

Of course we still have phonics, math, language and science to cover each day, not to mention the piano, violin and all those chores we do!  Time to gather my little (and big) chicks around and get our group learning time going!

Read Aloud

Do you read to your children?   Do you share great stories of adventure?  Do you read stories to your children that encourage them to live lives that glorify God?  Do you read the Bible to your children?

Reading aloud to my children is  a big part of our day.  I generally have a historical fiction and a biography that I am reading to the children in addition to our daily chapter in Proverbs and Psalms.  Caedmon and Jackson get extra time as we snuggle on the couch to read picture books together.

I found this sweet poem that depicts a child's view of what happens when mother reads aloud and thought I would share with you today.  If you are not reading aloud to your children I encourage you to do so.  I have so many precious memories of time spent with my children and a good book.

When Mother Reads Aloud
  Anonymous


When Mother reads aloud, the past
     Seems real as every day;
I hear the tramp of armies vast,
I see the spears and lances cast,
     I join the trilling fray;
Brave knights and ladies fair and proud
I meet when Mother reads aloud.


When Mother reads aloud, far lands
     Seem very near and true;
I cross the desert's gleaming sands,
Or hunt the jungle's prowling bands,
     Or sail the ocean blue.
Far heights, whose peaks the cold mists shroud,
I scale, when Mother reads aloud.


When Mother reads aloud, I long
     for noble deeds to do--
To help the right, redress the wrong;
It seems so easy to be strong,
     So simple to be true.
Oh, thick and fast the visions crowd
My eyes, when Mother reads aloud.
     


Now the little boys have removed the cushions from the couch and are preparing a nice, cozy spot on the floor for our time of reading together.  Grab a book and join us!!  Do you have a favorite book that you have shared with your children?  A book that has inspired you?  A book that has blessed your family?  I would love to hear about it!!

A Boy and His Bow

Intense concentration!

Jackson asked for a bow and arrow for Christmas.  He had been using an old one of Aaron's, but he really wanted one of his own.  Actually, he wanted a cross bow, but I don't think he is quite ready for that.

Checking out the target.

              He has been shooting bows and arrows for the last couple of years.  We always have some stray arrows around the yard and a target or two.  Jackson has very good aim with the bow and with his BB gun.   The guys have even set up a shooting range out behind the barn.

This target has been shot so many times the plastic is almost off and the styrofoam is falling out!

Love his expression here!

I do believe he hit the target!

We still have several inches of snow on the ground here.  The other day Jackson and Aaron built snowmen on the back deck.....and shot them with arrows.   He also decapitated Kaelan's snow man with a sword.  He warned us before the snow came that he was going to build a snow man and cut his head off.  Do you think I need to worry?  All of this is just practice at the art of defense.  Oh, and last night I had to physically remove the bow from his hand.  He had it with him in his bed.  He was going to be ready to protect us during the night!

When my oldest son was little I didn't allow him to have play weapons.    By the time we started studying American history with him and needed to reenact battle scenes from the Revolutionary War, I changed my tune.  Muskets, cannons and pistols filled our arsenal then.  With the middle ages came swords and shields.  It seems they make weapons from anything they can anyway!!  Legos, crackers, sandwiches and sticks all become weapons of some sort.  Now we buy them weapons and teach them to use them correctly.

Yesterday we were reading aloud from Ballantyne's The Gorilla Hunters and came to this passage which was very thought provoking to me.  Ralph Rover and his companions are in Africa in the mid-1800s hunting gorillas and tromping through the country.  Just before this passage they were caught in a dangerous situation as they were confronted with an angry bull which they managed to kill and then were almost attacked by a leopard which Ralph, despite his fear and bumbling killed as well.

As we walked along I could not help meditating on the uncertainty of this life, and the terrible suddenness with which we might at any unexpected moment be cut off.  These thoughts led me naturally to reflect how important a matter it is that every one, no matter how young, should be in a state of preparedness to quit this world.

I also reflected, and not without a feeling of shame, on my want of nerve, and was deeply impressed with the importance of boys being inured from childhood by trifling risks and light dangers of every possible description, such as tumbling into ponds and off trees, etc., in order to strengthen their nervous system.  I do not, of course, mean to say that boys ought deliberately to tumble into ponds of climb trees until they fall off;  but they ought not to avoid the risk of such mishaps.  They ought to encounter such risks and many others perpetually.  They ought to practise leaping off heights into deep water.  They ought never to hesitate to cross a stream on a narrow unsafe plank for fear of a ducking.  They ought never to decline to climb up a tree to pull fruit merely because there is a possibility of their falling off and breaking their necks.  I firmly believe that boys were intended to encounter all kinds of risk, in order to prepare them to meet and grapple with the risks and dangers incident to man's career with cook, cautious self-possession--a self-possession founded on experimental knowledge of the character and powers of their own spirits and muscles.  I also concluded that this reasoning applies to some extent to girls as well as boys...those who have been advised from the earliest childhood to "take care of themselves and carefully avoid all risks," will probably fall victims to their nervous alarms and the kind but injudicious training of parents or guardians...... I beg then, that it will be  understood that I do not by any means inculcate hare-brined recklessness, or a course of training that will foster that state of mind.  On the contrary, the course of training which I should like to see universally practised would naturally tend to counteract recklessness, for it would enable a boy to judge correctly as to what he could and could not do.

A very interesting aside in the adventure story, but it does make me consider even more the times that I discourage my guys from having their own adventures....My admonitions to take care.  Don't get in the creek.  Don't climb up that high.  There is such a balance that needs to be used in teaching and training our boys.  One day they will be men who may be called upon to do hard things.  Things that they need to be preparing for now.  

Thanksgiving Resources

I wanted to share with you all a few of our family's favorite Thanksgiving resources.  I am not an Amazon affiliate (don't think I want to be) and don't have time today to link up to christianbook.com, but some of these books are available from christianbook.com and if you decide to purchase I would appreciate it if you went through the little button on the right.

--I found the ThanksLiving Treasures box years ago on a clearance table in a Christian bookstore.  It has been the best investment.  The box contains:

 a 56-page booklet containing six biblically-based lessons on thankfulness form the Pilgrims'        exciting adventures along with creative ideas on family celebrations for Thanksgiving

A tablet of My Treasures pages to record and preserve your family's expressions of thankfulness from year to year

Five historically symbolic objects including a miniature Bible, replicas of the Mayflower and Mayflower Compact, a stone cross and a cluster of Indian corn

Five full-color 5 x 7 reprints of historic paintings depicting scenes from the Pilgrims' journey to the New World

A keepsake treasure box to store these contents and other cherished family photos or mementos

We have enjoyed this so much over the years and the children look forward to our time remembering the Pilgrims and how God led them.

--Another resource, again from Family Life, written by Barbara Rainey is Thanksgiving;  A Time to Remember.      This book is beautifully illustrated, has pages for  your own Thanksgiving journal entries and comes with a CD of beautiful Thanksgiving hymns and praises.

--A sweet book that was discarded from our local library:  Autumn Harvest by Alvin Tresselt.  With the exception of one page about Halloween this book is a treasure from another time, describing fall and harvest time in a country setting.

-Another library discard;  The Thanksgiving Story by Alice Dalgliesh.  This is a classic Thanksgiving story retelling.  It is simply written and simply illustrated.  A perfect book for an introduction about Thanksgiving to younger children.

-One of my precious Thanksgiving memories is reading Louisa May Alcott's An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving to my children as we were driving to my mother's home for Thanksgiving one year.  What a precious story of children being resourceful and working together to bless their parents.  A couple of years ago I found a picture book version illustrated by James Bernardin that is just beautiful and includes Miss Alcott's recipe for apple slump!

-Still another library discard:  Who's That Stepping on Plymouth Rock? by Jean Fritz.  Like her other books this one has illustrations that tend to be a bit comical, but not disrespectfully so.  This book tells what happened to the actual Plymouth Rock in the centuries after the landing of the Pilgrims.

-Eating the Plates:  A Pilgrim Book of Food and Manners is a great book for studying the customs and eating habits of the Pilgrims and early settlers.  It also includes a Pilgrim menu and recipes which include fresh corn soup, red pickled eggs, Hot Indian Pudding, Succotash Stew, Spicy Cucumber Catsup, Bannock Cakes, Whole Baked Pumpkin Stuffed with Apples, Bearberry Jelly (cranberry), Swizzle and Hot Nuts.  This is a very interesting book!

-Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende and Harry Devlin is a book from my childhood.  This is a story about befriending those who may look different and takes place in New England.  A fun story for kids of all ages.

-The Pilgrims' First Thanksgiving by Ann McGovern is a beautifully illustrated tale of the first Thanksgiving which "introduces children to the struggles of the Pilgrims during their first year at Plymouth Colony and the events leading to the historic occasion we celebrate today--THANKSGIVING."

-The Thanksgiving Primer is a "complete guide to re-creating the first harvest festival for your family, friends or church."  Includes primary sources, pictures from Plimoth Plantation, an order of service, music, a menu and recipes.  There are even drawings to use to design your own Pilgrim costumes.

-Of Plimouth Plantation by William Bradford is a bit heavy for the younger crowd, but a must-read for the older ones....at least portions of it!  We can only know what actually happened by reading first-hand accounts and you can't get more first-hand than this book written by the long-time governor of the Pilgrims.

-Squanto and the Miracle of Thanksgiving by Eric Metaxes is another beautifully illustrated book that tells of how God prepared Squanto to be just a tremendous help to the First Comers.  A must read for the younger children, your older ones will enjoy it as well.

 -For years Jeff has read from Margaret Pumphrey's Pilgrim Stories (sometimes entitled Story of the Pilgrims) to the children each night during the month of November.  This is a highlight for the children and due to several church meetings this month it has been put off until this week.  Jeff was going to drop it for this year, but the children wouldn't let him.  It is so special to see big and little children gathered to hear daddy read!

While I know that it is too late for you to purchase these books for this year, perhaps you can find them for next year's Thanksgiving season.  Your time spent teaching your children about the true reason we celebrate Thanksgiving will be richly blessed.

Raising Producers

Jeff and I have been amazed at how much work we are able to get done around our home these days.  It's not that Jeff and I are actually doing the work, though.  We have raised some young men who are turning into some amazingly creative and productive workers.  Jordan, our 17 year old first born son, loves to write and has for years.  In the last year or so he has discovered photography and is taking some great outdoor/nature pictures.  He gets up very early in the morning, has his coffee and quiet time and then takes the camera out for a stroll in the woods.  I am "encouraging" him to choose his ten favorite photos, edit them on Photoshop and have them printed for a portfolio by the end of June.  He has also developed a keen interest in homesteading and has been a great help in our gardening endeavors this spring.  This weekend he built seven new raised beds for us and has been out working in the garden a few mornings before I have  gotten up from bed.  He spends some time each day researching homesteading on various homesteading blogs.  I am "encouraging" him to start a notebook with interesting ideas that we can incorporate in the future.  He plans on building a greenhouse or two this fall so that we can enjoy fresh produce during the winter and have an early start on seedlings for our spring planting next year.

Aaron, our 13 year old, finally weighs enough to run the riding mower.  Yes, it only works if you weigh a certain amount..  Something in the seat detects the weight.  A safety measure I am thankful for as I am sure our 5 year old would love to mow.  He has eagerly taken over the mowing and ASKS me if he can mow every few days.  He is also in charge of keeping mulch on the garden;  raking leaves up from the yard and woods and keeping the garden covered so we don't have to weed as much.  Aaron also has turned into a great pianist.  He spends lots of time practicing and has made great improvements.  He also wants to learn composition and spends time playing around with composing on the computer.  Aaron also loves to draw and we have invested into quality art supplies for him.  He has been motivated after seeing Barry Stebbing's nature journals to draw more nature pictures instead of the cartoons that had been his focus.

Jackson, at five, is still developing interests, but is eagerly awaiting the day that he can take piano lessons.  He loves to work outside with Jeff and the big boys, can cut down a small tree by himself and can clear brush from the woods.  This morning he was looking very manly in his cowboy boots and shorts as he was keeping the neighbors' visiting dog out of our garden while handling a BB gun.  (the dog has dug up plants and done his job on newly planted fruit trees, etc---not good at all!)

Raising boys (and girls) to be Godly men (and women) who know how to work hard is a very humbling job.  The late Bob Schulz wrote three great books that I have shared with my children.  These books have a great message to us about becoming hardworking men who support and love their families.  Look for Created for Work, Boyhood and Beyond,  and Practical Happiness to share with the young men in your lives.  These books would make excellent gifts for the middle years.  Every young man needs them in their personal library.

Coming Home!

It's been a long five days!!  Jeff and Jordan left home Wednesday morning for Cincinnati to film at the GIANT homeschool conference up there.  They were kept quite busy the entire time and didn't have time for any meals other than fast food.  So I have a rotisserie chicken planned for dinner tonight with green beans, corn, rice, corn bread, and homemade bread.  That should revive them somewhat!

I have had 4 sick children on my hands for most of the week.  I think the pollen has gotten to some of them, but Jackson seems to have a virus with a headache, fever and vomiting.  He is pretty pathetic!  Caedmon and I are the only ones who haven't been sick.  The older ones are resting most of the time, but are helping some to keep things picked up and in order.

I was really hoping to have a good well-planned school week starting tomorrow, but with this sickness, I will just have to do the best I can.  I am giving a short talk on the best books for children this Saturday at a mothers' brunch for our local homeschool support group.  Do you have any books that you would recommend?  What are some of your favorite books about books?  I would love to hear about books that you have enjoyed sharing with your children.   Some of my current favorites are from Lamplighter.  What are yours?

Building a Homestead

We have been working on our garden beds these last few weeks.  Our soil is so poor that we started using raised beds last year and purchasing soil.  This year we have used a combination of peat moss, manure and our own compost.  We have planted broccoli, cabbage, lettuce, radishes, spinach and potatoes.  Tomato seeds are in cups and will be put out in several weeks.  Jeff and the boys planted 6 new blueberry bushes last night.  We have been cleaning out flower beds and adding fresh soil and weeding out the mint bed so I can transplant some more that has been growing in the yard.  We have seeds to start for several herbs and will be watching hopefully for a good yield.

Jordan is interested in developing a real homestead that could turn into a side business for him.  We will be looking at plans for building a greenhouse, trying to keep chickens again (if I can only get over the taste of fresh eggs....),  and we would love to learn about keeping bees.  I think I would like to have my own source for honey and it could provide some income for the boys.  I have plans to read Gene Stratton Porter's Laddie and The Keeper of the Bees to encourage the children (and myself) to work hard, become self-reliant and  to love working as a family.  There is just something about working together that either draws a family closer or breaks them up completely.  God created us to be workers and to take dominion over the land that He gave us.  We need to be more focused on doing the work that He has given us to do.  If you were to walk around our place you would see that there is a lot of work that needs to be done!!    Good thing we have a bunch of children who are willing to work (most of the time!)

Here are the three big boys getting ready to set out blueberry bushes on a little ridge behind the house.

Jeff gives them a little help with the tiller.

It's a big job for Jackson, but he loves to work.  They dug deep.  Aaron actually had water coming up in one of the holes he dug.  Not a burst pipe, just runoff from up the hill.  They planted the blueberry bushes in a mixture of our clay soil, sand, peat moss and compost.

Caedmon loves being out and "working" with the big guys.

Jordan looks like he is really preparing to tackle a hard job.

Some of our early crops are coming up!   I think these are radishes.

Kaelan took all of these pictures.  It was a beautiful spring day and you can finally see new leaves coming out on the trees.

The daffodils have bloomed and Kaelan can't resist picking one or two or a bunch!

One of the children's many hideouts around our property.  This one is fairly close to the house in a shady little glen.  The little boys play here with Kaelan.  She has a nice little set up!

We Love to Read!

I thought I would do a quick post on what we are reading around here.  We all love to read, but there isn't enough time in the day to read as much as we would like.  Here is a list of our current reading material.

Jeff is reading Clyde Cranford's Because We Love Him.

Anita is reading What He Must Be by Voddie Baucham and Presenting Miss Jane Austen by May Lamberton Becker.

Devin is reading The Attributes of God by A. W. Pink.

Jordan is reading To Have and To Hold by Mary Johnstone (about Jamestown), The Treasure of the Incas by Henty and selections from The Mentor Book of Major British Poets.

Aaron is reading The Land of the Pilgrims/The Courtship of Miles Standish (a very old textbook).

Kaelan is reading The Double Life of Pocahontas by Jean Fritz and The Landing of the Pilgrims by James Daughtery.

Jackson is listening to John Smith by Charles Graves and various picture books.

Our read aloud selections include Pilgrim Stories by Margaret Pumphreys (a tradition every Thanksgiving season), Martin Rattler by Ballantyne, The World of Captain John Smith by Genevieve Foster and from the Heroes of the Faith series, Jim Elliott.

Would love to hear what you are reading!  We are always looking for new or old books to add to our library.  I just placed an order for new books last night which includes a new favorite publisher, Lamplighter.   Now we definitely need to add on to this house.  We need more book storage!!

Used Book Finds

My post follows this rant. : )

I've been working on an EXTREME post for the past two days and can't seem to get all the links and such to work. Maybe I don't need to post it....Just suffice it to say that we are now on the Homeland Security's checklist as extremists. Just in case you didn't know. And if you haven't heard about this new memo from the Department of Homeland Security you haven't been listening to AFR Talk radio. I know, it can be scary, but you must be aware of what is going on and the secular media is not going to let you know. You can go to afr.net to find a station near you or listen online 24 hours a day. Not that I do! I do have other things to do.

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A couple of weeks ago a sweet homeschool mom decided to purge her bookshelves. All of them. I don't know how she could do it, but I racked up a good deal for my cookbook collection and Lauren's. Brand new in shrink wrap 2005 Southern Living Annual Cookbook (I was nice and gave it to Lauren...her birthday is Sunday!) Two versions of the Fix-it and Forget-It crock pot series. Once-a-Month cooking, and many others all for 20 bucks. Good deal!

Yesterday we made a quick dash through the library and their used book store where I found:
CS Lewis' The Screwtape Letters pb for $2. Not a great deal, but it was on Jordan's Want-to-Read list.

Five Little Peppers Grown Up by Margaret Sidney hb 1937 copyright for $1 to add to the other Peppers books on our shelf.

Bob Jones Heritage Studies 6 which covers ancient history. I don't use textbooks for history but it will be a good resource for $2.

Whatever Happened to Penny Candy? by Richard J. Maybury (an Uncle Eric Book). We have several other books in the series and highly recommend them. This book as about the economy...Jordan is eager to get into this book...especially in light of our recent economic woes.

The Hound of Ulster hb by Rosemary Sutcliff...one of our favorite historical fiction writers. 50 cents!

Mississippi Yesterday and Today...a hardback MS history text printed in the year of my birth for $1. We are planning a MS study either this summer or next.

Do you take advantage of used book sales? What are your absolute favorites? We have over 100 Childhood of Famous Americans that I get for FREE when our library purge the children's section several years ago. A priceless treasure!!!