Mom University for September: A Gentle Answer by Christin Slade (little VLOG)

Hello Moms!! I'm so glad you are here for my first Mom U video. These are going to be short, but I really wanted to share a little of myself with you as I journey through motherhood. I have some great books to share this year. Here is the LIST.

This month I am sharing about A Gentle Answer.  Christin Slade wrote a series last October on her blog Joyful Mothering about being gentle with her children. I somehow missed part of the series and she didn't completely finish with it because it turned out to be a bigger project than she anticipated. However, she decided to write a free devotional ebook that she made available on Mother's Day.

I was so excited to read this book. I took all of August in my daily devotion time to read her little book. I learned so much about myself and what I want be like as a godly mother. 

Subscribe to Joyful Mothering to receive this FREE ebook.

Here are a few thoughts on my video that is only about a minute and half long.  Enjoy!

Next month: Become the Confident Mom You've Always Wanted to Be by Susan Heid

Bumper Wipe Clean Activities by Juliet David Book Review

Bumper Wipe Clean Activities is a 69 page spiral bound book with wipe off pages.  The book features activities for stories from the Bible in the Old and New Testament.  The colorful illustrations instantly grab a child's attention and the activities are simple and easy to follow as well as engaging and will keep young ones busy at home or on long car rides.  There is drawing, dot to dot, mazes, matching, tracing, same/different, hidden pictures and more.  These are easy for any child to do even if they do not read.  The child will enjoy doing the activities, wiping them off and doing them again!  And they will also learn Bible stories too.  This is a great little book to have on hand for extra practice or a fun time filler.

*I was given a complimentary copy of this book Kregel Publications for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my own.*

First Day of School 2013

Backpack gifts

First day lunch all packed and ready!  I like to be prepared!

Spiritual theme poster

Spider web we saw on our walk to the front door

Shrade's Daily Learning Notebook

School "buddies"

Jessna's first Brightly Beaming Resources Lesson

Our first day of school was a success. I see a BIG difference in my attitude and the way the kids play when I have plan. I'm not doing anything extra special, but I'm being a lot more intentional about how I organize the day. I got up and prepared all the meals for the day so I could easily pull out snacks and lunch at the right times. We decided to walk out the back door and in the front door to start our new school year. Shrade was really reluctant to homeschool, but on day 2 he got up and was ready to go. I don't feel like I'm doing much, but adding songs and stories, daily learning notebook, Language Lessons, arts/crafts/activities, a reading lesson in the afternoon and Jessna's special lesson in the morning, I think our day rounds out well. There is also lots of free time and of course I'm still changing Jessna's diaper. Overall, I enjoy this school routine without having to rush off to playdates or the park which we will still do, but not as often. Next week we add MOPS and my Zumba day. Friday will be library day and Monday I will never plan any outside activities. Shrade is doing Awana and we signed him up for a pre-soccer class as well as we hope to get him into swimming lessons. So that is our new year off to a good start!

How to Get Ahead With Real Food Make-Ahead Meals (e-course and ebook now available) with Heavenly Homemakers!!

Hi Everyone!  You know I'm a big fan of Heavenly Homemakers and I also love to make meals ahead of time.  But if you are like me and want to get really good at it, there is a new e-course and ebook available right now.  I'm planning on getting some friends together to make freezer meals happen for more than just myself!  How about you?  Check out these great resources provided by Heavenly Homemakers:

Get out your mixing bowls, Pyrex, and freezer bags!  The Let’s Do This! Getting Ahead in Your Real Food Kitchen eCourse and {Healthy} Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks eBook are now available for purchase!  Join me as together we get ahead and save time (and money) while we feed our families healthy, delicious food!

The Let’s Do This! eCourse answers your questions about Getting Ahead in Your Real Food Kitchen:

• I can’t even keep up – how am I supposed to get ahead?
• I don’t have freezer space for freezer cooking, how I can I make this work?
• Will this actually help me save money on food?
• Will this really save me time and energy?
• How can this work for me if I’m not an organized person?
• My family is picky.  Will this frozen food taste good?
• I want to get ahead, but I don’t even know where to start…

Even if you already have a pretty good idea of how to work ahead in the kitchen to prepare meals and snacks ahead of time to make life easier – I still believe you will benefit from these resources.  After all, you can never have too many healthy, make-ahead recipes!
The Let’s Do This! Getting Ahead in Your Real Food Kitchen eCourse includes five simple but detailed lessons:

1. Getting Ahead for the Day
2. Getting Ahead for the Week
3. Getting Ahead With Meals and Snacks
4. Getting Ahead During Spare Moments for Busy Moments
5. Using Your Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks

Within each lesson, you will be given loads of practical tips and information, online links, downloadable worksheets and planners, and plenty of down-to-earth encouragement.  Each lesson includes a brand new, exclusive recipe not found on my website or in any of my books.  (Sweet and Sour Meatballs, Creamy Salsa Enchilada Casserole – plus three more delicious recipes you’ll love!)  In addition, I’ve recorded short videos for each lesson so that you can watch me in action – getting ahead in my real food kitchen.

This Sour Cream Enchiladas (in Lesson Two of the Let’s Do This! eCourse)
recipe is SO easy to make, and has now become a family favorite.

This entire eCourse costs only $5 – total!  Your purchase will allow you unlimited, lifetime access to all of this information.  These lessons are online – or print them out if you prefer.  There is no limit to how many of you can take the eCourse, nor is there a time commitment.  Work through the lessons at your own pace, on your own time, in the middle of the night, while your kids are napping, in the morning, in the evening -  whenever works for you.

Purchase the Let’s Do This! Getting Ahead in Your Real Food Kitchen eCourse

$5.00

While the eCourse includes helpful information to help you get ahead in the kitchen, plus five great new Make-Ahead recipes, we couldn’t just stop there.  To go along with the Let’s Do This! eCourse, we put together an eBook filled with 33 more easy, healthy, real food recipes – all of which can be put together and set aside or frozen to be served when you need them.  We’ve got you covered through breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks.  Only a few of these recipes can be found on my website – most of them are brand new and only found in the {Healthy} Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks eBook!

Here are the recipes you’ll find in the {Healthy} Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks eBook:

All of these recipes have now become family favorites.  I love keeping the freezer and fridge well stocked with great, easy foods my family loves!
Here’s more exciting news:  Within the {Healthy} Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks eBook, you will find over $14 worth of savings on other products in our Heavenly Homemakers Shop.  The Bonus Section of the eBook includes additional free printables as well.  It’s too good a deal to pass up!

Purchase the {Healthy} Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks ebook

$5.00

Want them both?  We highly encourage it – as owning both the eCourse and the eBook will offer you a wealth of Getting Ahead in Your Real Food Kitchen information!  That’s why we’ve packaged them up and knocked a couple dollars of the price of the package.  And don’t forget the additional coupons worth $14 you’ll receive with the purchase!

Purchase both the {Healthy} Make-Ahead Meals and Snacks ebook and theLet’s Do This! Getting Ahead in Your Real Food Kitchen eCourse Package Deal

$8.00

Giving! Learn Your Letters Learn to Serve by Heavenly Homemakers

Learn Your Letters, Learn to Serve

from Heavenly Homemakers

 

How do you cultivate a heart of giving in your children?  One thing that I notice with my son is that he truly has a servant's heart.  He watches both his daddy and I because we also have hearts that love to give.  But it's not always the most natural thing for me.  I excited this year to learn more about giving by using Learn Your Letters, Learn to Serve.  I know that both the kids and I will really look for ways to give as we are given many ideas and opportunities this year.

Just last week we picked up a bag at church to fill for a needy family.  I took the kids shopping and we picked up more than what the bag could hold.  We had a lot of conversation about what we were buying and why we were buying it.  I hope to have many more conversations like this.

Nellie Edge Writing to Read Seminar + FREE resouces

I can't tell you how excited I was to be able to go the Nellie Edge Writing Seminar this summer!  I went to one a long time ago and it transformed my Kindergarten classroom into a joyful and educational learning environment.  Now as I'm planning to homeschool I want to bring back a lot of what I used as a K teacher to my home with my own kids. 

This seminar was called Writing to Read.  She shared TONS of ideas for getting kids to write.  She has been a Kindergarten teacher and mentor for many years and she knows what works and how to ignite passion in the lives of her students. 

Her ideas for teaching writing are creative, entertaining, fun and absolutely successful.  I know first hand that when I used her strategies in my classroom that my students blossomed into excited readers and writers. 

So this quarter I have an assignment to write 3 activities to earn credits for my teaching certificate.  I thought I would share them as I write them on my blog!

Here are my 3 ideas:
*How to use Nursery Rhymes to  develop language concepts and vocabulary, inspire movement and dramatic interpretation and build a foundation for concepts of print and guided reading instruction
*Animal Research Projects- building vocabulary, researching favorite animals and reporting by making books, posters, etc.
*Word matching and sentence building- encouraging drawing, making sentences, dictation, matching words and reading

I'm very excited to write these plans so I can use them as I teach my kids.

Here are few things that you will find on the Nellie Edge website for FREE:
*Free little books
*16 Essential Mother Goose Rhymes
*ABC Phonics information and free teacher ebook
*Read and Sing Book Club

Those are just a few of the amazing resources available at Nellie Edge.  Also, if you subscribe to the newsletter you get access to a FREE member resource center with lots of printables and articles.  And if you ever get a chance to go to her seminars you will understand how fascinating she is and the ways that she has helped children reach for their potential in loving and fun ways.  Looking forward to sharing more with you!

Spiritual Theme 2013-2014: Fruit of the Spirit

When I taught at a Christian school they had a Spiritual Theme every year.  I wish I had saved all that paperwork, but God will give me the ideas I need for my family.  I think the Spiritual Theme sounds familiar since I wanted to use it for our Summer Bible Reading Adventure that I never did.  Ooops!  I definitely did not plan well this past summer.  Forgive me!  However, I have a new and better plan!

So this year I would really like to learn and grow in the Fruit of the Spirit.  Notice, this is more for me, but I am the model for my children.  I am going to use many of the resources I mentioned for the Summer Bible Reading Adventure.  I will spend a month on each fruit.  There will be a theme verse with lessons and activities for the month.

Spiritual Theme 2013-2014: Fruit of the Spirit

from Galatians 5:22-23

September- LOVE

October- JOY

November- PEACE

December- PATIENCE

January- KINDNESS

February- GOODNESS

March- FAITHFULNESS

April- GENTLENESS

May- SELF-CONTROL

*Lesson Ideas:
iKids- Fruit of the Spirit Lesson ideas from iKidsonline
Especially for Tweens- Free Fruit of the Spirit Christian Study for Kids.
Ministry to Children has a great set of ideas for lessons including coloring sheets, games and music.

Source: ministry-to-children.com via Shonda on Pinterest

*Crafts:
Christian Preschool Printables have some great craft ideas, games, and mini-books.

*Devotional:
Raising Arrows has created a great devotional to use with young children.

Source: raisingarrows.net via Shonda on Pinterest

*Music:
Seeds Family Worship- The Fruit Song

*Podcast Program:
We like to listen to Karen and Kids on iTunes through podcasts. She has two episodes on the Fruit of the Spirit.

*Kids Character Chart:
Heavenly Homemakers has a cute little chart to use to teach the Fruit of the Spirit.

Click here to view more details



And a great resource just for MOMS is Parenting from the Overflow by Teri Lynne Underwood that goes through each of the Fruit of the Spirit.  I got this when it was free on Amazon (I always snag those deals!).