Autumn Craft-Another use for the Laminator!!

I love my laminator.  It's awesome.  My family will tell you that I get excited when there is something that needs (or I want) to laminate.  And they're right-I do!  Our backyard is a beautiful mix of greens, yellows, oranges and reds right now, and I wanted Chad to do a craft with the leaves.  So he collected different leaves and placed them in the laminating pouch how he wanted them, and I (very carefully so the leaves wouldn't fall out) laminated it!  Turned out like a mini-placemat, and it looks pretty on a window with the light shining through it.  I tried to take some good pictures, but it was hard to get really good ones that show how pretty it is.  Here is the finished project up against the window:

 and laying on the table:

I'm sure there are tons of variations you could do with this.  I thought it would look pretty just loaded with leaves all mixed up and overlapping, but Chad was feeling rather orderly today apparently and this was what he wanted!!  This activity is also good to get outside and have a nature walk.  Now go use those laminators!!!!!

Book Review-The Wonder of Your Love by Beth Wiseman

Katie Ann Stoltzfus is a 40-year-old Amish widow with a new baby to raise alone. She lives in Canaan, Colorado, which has a small Amish community. She has several close friends and family there, but wonders how she will raise Jonas as a single parent.  At her nephew's wedding, she meets Eli Detweiler, an Amish widower who is in town for the wedding. He has already raised six children as a single parent, and now as an empty-nester, is looking forward to this new, slower-paced time in his life.  There is an instant, strong connection between Katie Ann and Eli, yet neither of them can imagine that a relationship would ever work out.  They both question whether their own plans are the same as God's plans for them.

The Wonder of Your Love is the second book in The Land of Canaan series by Beth Wiseman.  I read the first book, Seek Me With All Your Heart, earlier in the year and just loved it.  So I was quite excited to receive The Wonder of Your Love to read and review.  Beth Wiseman is one of my favorite Amish authors, and she did an outstanding job once again with this novel!  I enjoyed reading about the Amish in a different setting than they normally are in back east.  The characters in The Land of Canaan are genuine and well developed, and the story line kept me from wanting to put the book down!  The Wonder of Your Love is an excellent book, and I hope Ms. Wiseman will be coming out with a third book in The Land of Canaan series soon!  Disclaimer:  I received this book from Booksneeze in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review-Forsaking All Others by Allison Pittman

Forsaking All Others is the second book in The Sister Wife Series by Allison Pittman.  I did not realize it was part of a series until I had it in my hands, and was worried it would be hard to jump into not having read the first book.  It turned out to be very easy to read separately.  The story:  Camilla Fox is a married mother with two children living in Utah in the 1800s with her husband Nathan. When Nathan obeys their religious leaders and takes another wife, Camilla flees their home, leaving him and their daughters.  She desperately wants her husband to leave his new wife, but if he won't she dreams of starting a new life with her daughters at her parents home. A snowstorm nearly kills her, and she ends up in the care of the United States Army until the Spring. 

Although this wasn't the type of book I usually read, I did enjoy it.  The story was easy to get into, and the characters had depth.  I would be interested in reading the first book in the series now. Personally I enjoyed the story line as I live in the Salt Lake City area of Utah, so it was fun hearing the referrences to where I live. Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes from Tyndale House.

~Wordless Wednesday~

Book Review: The Harvest of Grace by Cindy Woodsmall

Cindy Woodsmall is one of my favorite Amish authors, so I was definitely excited at the opportunity to review 'The Harvest of Grace', the third of the Ada's House novels.

Sylvia Fisher is not your typical old-order Amish young woman.  In her 20s, by now she should be married with babies.  But Sylvia loves her family's dairy farm, and coming from a family of all girls, has helped her father run the farm most of her life.  After the man she loves turns to someone else and gets married, Sylvia throws herself even further into the farm.  She ends up doing something morally unacceptable by her family and faith, and flees to start a new life far from home, helping run another old-order Amish family's dairy farm.  There she devotes her life to saving the debt-ridden farm, and denies herself any chance at finding love again.

'The Harvest of Grace' was my favorite of the three Ada's House novels.  The characters were deep and believable, and I could not put the book down.  I wonder though, if it would be possible to read this book without having read the other two in the series without confusion due to the amount and complexity of the characters.  Easy solution-make sure to read all three, you won't be sorry!  Disclaimer: I received this book in exchange for my honest review.

Our Curriculum for 2011-2012 School Year!

Better late than never, I'm telling myself :)  Don't get me wrong-we did start school about 1 month ago, it's just this post I've been delayed at getting to!!  So-in case anyone is interested, this is our lineup. Keep in mind this is what we have designed for our own family, not a post on what I think everyone should use! I don't know about you, but I'm always fascinated by other homeschooler's curriculum choices, and I often learn about a product or two I didn't know about!

Alyssa is enrolled in 11th grade at Open High School of Utah (OHSU), which is a virtual High School we are very pleased with so far!! She is attempting to get most core classes taken care of so next year she can take the community college dental hygienist program, which covers 4 electives. So far it's straight As! I'm also considering using the Dave Ramsey Foundations in Personal Finance program for teens. Here is a recent photo of my sweet girl, doing schoolwork while on vacation!!

 Chad is officially a 3rd grader, but is at a 1st-2nd grade level in most areas.  He's consistently stayed about 1-2 years delayed since he became ours at age 2, but this past summer we found out he has numerous learning disabilities, including Dyslexia and Dysgraphia.  You can read that post here.  So, armed with this information, we've tailored a curriculum to really focus on reading and writing much more than anything else.  We are also getting some special education assistance-speech therapy and reading/writing help as needed.

 I decided to go with a school district in Southern Utah (we are northern), for their state-wide K12 program, Washington Online School Utah (WOSU). We are using them for the special ed, Math, History, and Science.  This is a program we used in the past with my oldest two, and were very impressed.  Chad will have lots of opportunities for field trips and fun which he needs having no siblings at all close in age. Plus I get the special support I need to learn how to teach him effectively. They also have awesome online classes and teachers there when you need them.  Some homeschoolers have big issues with what I am doing, as the state school system gets money for our being enrolled.  I believe you do what you feel/know is best for your child, and reassess that each and every year for each and every child.  Even after homeschooling for 14 years, I know when I need help, and the private kind is way too pricey.  I love that I can still involve special ed. assistance and tailor my own curriculum! Our curriculum may change later in the year based on how he is progressing.  This year I decided to try out my own version of a workbox system.  This is getting long, so our workbox system will have to wait for another post.

K12 Math, Science, and History (all 2nd grade) through WOSU.
Reading Horizon's Discover Intensive Phonics (K-3 program on computer, Orton-Gillingham based)
Susan Barton's Reading and Spelling program
Writing With Ease
Handwriting Help for Kids (will be Handwriting without Tears next)
Building Christian Character/60 Day Wonder Devotional

Later in the year: Read, Write, and Type
Occasionally: First Language Lessons, All About Spelling (click button on right sidebar for more info)*

Plus, we have so many wonderful products we get to use and review through the The Old Schoolhouse Crew throughout the year.  And after homeschooling for so many years I have lots of good unit studies and crafts to do at a moment's notice!

*I love the All About Spelling Program, and Chad had completed level 1.  We decided to start back at the beginning, now knowing his diagnosis, with the Barton program and see how that goes.  I would like to eventually get back to AAS. 

Well, that about covers it!!  I really don't have a good enough feel yet for how these products are going to work out for us, so I'll check in again a month or two down the road.  Happy Homeschooling!!