Week Ending 9/30/17

I honestly can't believe today is the LAST day of September!! Where has the time gone? It seems the older I get the quicker the time goes.  I miss having those little ones around.  Life seemed so much simpler when they were younger :) There isn't much to post about this week because I've been dealing with a cold.  I rest, feel better, feel worse, rest, feel better, feel worse (LOL) I thought I was better yesterday, but this morning work up a little feverish again and congested :( It's been a rough week even without feeling poorly.  Watched a dear friend bury her 18 year old son on Monday. Such a sad situation and there really isn't anything you can say. I'm sorry just doesn't seem enough, but it's what we say....

Trying at attempt following the Trim Healthy Mama program again. I've heard such wonderful things about it, but I struggled when I tried it. I've decided to try again and work on eliminating the coffee and soda from my diet. That's something I didn't do the first time because I just wasn't willing (LOL) Got their new book, trim healthy table, recently and they've got some great new recipes in there.

I made two of the breakfast items today.  The no-bake breakfast cheesecakes are in the freezer right now.  I'm hoping these are super yummy :) I opted not to put the fruit on top of mine because I just don't like fruit on my cheesecake :)

I also made the easiest breakfast casserole.  Below is the picture before I put the eggs/cheese on top.

After it was finished cooking.  

Can't wait to try these for breakfast this week. Making the tuscan cream chicken for dinner today as well.  We have another busy week, but I've realized I say that every week (LOL) Hope you all have a great weekend!

Review: The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls

Issac has always loved for us to read to him, but he's never really loved reading to himself.  He struggled for many years and really has just in the last year gotten to wear he can really read well.  We have tried many books and it seems like not much has really interested him.  When I saw the The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls by WorthyKids/Ideals up for review they seemed like books he would enjoy. My plan was to read them at night because we always read before bed.  I think we were just a few chapters into the first book, The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls: The Beginning when I noticed that Issac was really interested. I believe he was wanting to take a nap that day and asked me to read. I read him a chapter and he asked could he continue reading. Of course I told him yes.  He read a few chapters and then took his nap. That night we continued reading and he asked me if he could read some the next morning. I was happy for him to want to read on his own and excited that this book was prompting him to do that. On the other hand I was already interested in the book and knew that I'd have to go back and read those missed chapters on my own! The story was really fun and I thought the suggested age/grade levels were accurate.  The books are recommended for ages 6-9 and grade levels 1-3.  Issac is 10 and for him these were easy enough for him to read so that it built up confidence.  

In the first book, The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls: The Beginning, we meet Peter, Mary and their dog, Hank.  They have been left with their Great-Uncle Solomon while their parents headed off to Africa.  The children hadn't spent much time with their great uncle and the first evening didn't seem so exciting. They found out there was NO television, the meal wasn't great and it seemed like a month would be a LONG time.  They discovered the library and it seemed like it could be exciting, but Great-Uncle Solomon told them he didn't think they were ready to experience it yet. The kids didn't understand, so Great-Uncle Solomon decided to tell them a story.  He told them a wonderful story about hidden scrolls and Peter realizes this might turn out to be a better visit than he thought! That night Peter woke up to a lion's roar.  He, Mary and Hank go to investigate and hear the sounds from the library. They enter to find more books than they could have ever imagined.  Peter pulled a book from the shelf and suddenly the library went dark except for a glowing clay pot.  Hank knocked the pot over and the kids hurried to pick up.  As Peter held one of the scrolls he realized the red wax seal was broken. Suddenly the walls shook, books fell to the floor and everything was quaking.  The children were suddenly floating in what felt like air and they were still in complete darkness.  All of a sudden there was a loud voice that said "Let There Be Light" and there was light.  The children didn't know what was going on or where they were. Exhaustion finally set in and the next thing they knew they heard "Let There Be Sky To Separate The Water Above The Sky From The Water Below The Sky" and they hit they water.  They were in water as far as they could see, but thankfully they saw a boat and managed to get to it.  As they approached the boat a large man in white reached out and helped them into the boat. He introduced himself as Michael and told the children God had sent him there to help them.  Michael explains that he is an angel of God.  He is the head of God's army and has been sent there to protect them.  The kids wonder who they need protection from and he explains that Satan is not happy that he was kicked out of heaven and he feels he will try to mess things up. He then explains that they are on Earth in the early days.  One rule they have to follow is that they have to solve the secret of the scroll within seven days or they will be stuck there.  They also aren't allowed to tell anyone they are from the future and they can't change the past.  The scroll is written in Hebrew and the children have no idea how to decipher it.  Michael tells them there will be clues along the way to help them solve the secret. As the story continues the children get to live through the days of creation.  Michael tells them the first clue will be DECLARED to them as the sky turns day.  As the children sit and watch Mary is reminded of a verse "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky shows the work of his hand." Peter wonders if the first word is God when suddenly the first word glows on the scroll.  As the children continue to solve the secret of the scroll they experience the beauty of God's creation. They ultimately realize that the secret of the scroll is GOD CREATED EVERYTHING.  Suddenly the red seal fell off and turned into a medallion.  The ground began shaking, trees swayed and suddenly they were right back in the middle of the library.  They tell Great-Uncle Solomon their story, not expecting him to believe them, but he does.  He tells them the Legend of the Hidden Scrolls is true and they are the chosen ones.  Mary talks about how perfect the garden was and how all the creatures, the man and the woman were so happy. Great-Uncle Solomon explains that's not how the story ends. He pulls out his Bible and reads to them the story of creation.  He explains how the man and woman broke the ONE rule that God gave them.  God still loved them, but he kicked them out of the Garden of Eden and put angels in place to keep them out.  Even though Satan and sin entered the world, God would forgive and fix everything someday.  
In the second book, The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls Race to the Ark the children continue to try and solve the legend. They find a journal with information about the scrolls.  They read: The Legend of The Hidden Scrolls: The scrolls contain the truth you seek, Break the seal, unroll the scroll, and you will see the past unfold.  Amazing adventures are in store for those who follow the Lion's roar!
 Great-Uncle Solomon realizes they've found his old journal and tells them it contains a great many memories. Suddenly they hear the lion's roar and he runs around the room putting things in a bag. He tells them they will help on their adventure.  They run into the library, find the red book with the lion's head on it and find their next scroll. As they start their next adventure the kids check out what their Great-Uncle Solomon packed them.  He sent a flashlight, compass, matches, hatchet, a small bag and a canteen.  After walking for an hour they reach a valley full of small houses and gardens.  As they walked through the town they encountered some very unhappy people, but they were able to find some food.  They are unable to get the food though because they have no coins. They are told they can lie, cheat and steal like everyone else to get some. They say they can't do those things and are told the Dark Ruler has said they can! They say God will help them and instantly are told never to mention the word God.  As they get into a little trouble with some local boys Michael appears and helps them once again. This time their scroll has six words to solve and again they have the same rules to follow. They don't want to be stuck in the world they are in, so they are anxious to get started solving the secret.  As they try and sleep the first night they hear many noises in the dark. They are afraid and hope that whatever is making the noises goes away. The next morning they realize it was animals: an elephant, horse and camel. They decide to follow the tracks. As they follow the tracks they run into a huge boat.  As they are checking out their surroundings they solve the second word. They now have God Will....They meet Shem and explain who they are hiding from. He tells them they can stay with him and then explains about his father's ARK. He explains that they need to get the animals into the ark and be prepared for the great flood. They then meet Noah and he explains why he is building the ark.  He tells them of the violence, sickness, hate and greed in the city.  He tells them that God is sending the flood to wash it clean. As they help fill the ark they continue to solve the secret of the scroll. As they go into the town for an errand for Noah, they run into Satan. He plans to stop Noah and the ark. Thankfully Michael comes to help them once again. In the final moments of the flood starting Peter solves the final word and they are saved. Once they are home Great-Uncle Solomon once again pulls out his Bible and reads them the story of Noah's family. Great-Uncle Solomon tells them he once went on a dig in Mount Ararat and brought home one treasure.  It was a rusty hinge with the initials TC engraved on it.  Just like the one that Peter and Mary got from Noah's brother.  I think most children prefer fictional stories, but when there is truth and wonderful lessons woven throughout it makes a much better story. Issac has really enjoyed The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls by WorthyKids/Ideals.  He already had me look up to see if there were any other books. That is a big sign for me that a book has really captured his attention and his heart.  We can't wait to continue to read more of these and see what secrets are revealed through the scrolls.   Check out what the other crew members thought as well as their social media sites:
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Thankful Tuesday 9/26/17

Thankful today for friends that offer support in one's time of need! A little over a week ago I learned that a dear friend lost her son in a motorcycle accident.  It seemed unreal that their family was experiencing this loss. A few days later I learned that another friend had experienced a similar loss.  So much sadness going on for so many. Yesterday I attended the funeral of my friend that lost her son. I was so amazed at the support that was shown for her family.  The church was completely filled and they had to bring in chairs.  I can't imagine experiencing the loss that she and her family have, but I was thankful for all the support that was shown for them.  There were friends that that they knew from homeschooling, martial arts, church etc.  It was just so nice to see so many people join together to offer their support. 

Review: Captain Bayley's Heir

We recently had our first experience with Heirloom Audio Productions when we were fortunate enough to be able to review In the Reign of Terror.  I was so impressed with the audio story and quality of the "extras" that I was excited to be offered the chance to review Captain Bayley's Heir.  We spend a TON of time on the road.  Quite often we are making trips that are 60-90 minutes each way.  The week that our copy of Captain Bayley's Heir arrived we had one of those appointments scheduled.  Last time we reviewed from Heirloom Audio Productions we looked at the study guide available, but didn't really delve into it much. This time I wanted to be prepared and have the guide printed, so we had it with us when we first listened to the story.  When we received our cd's in the mail we were also given access to the Live the Adventure Club. When you are a club member you are able to access many extras.  When I open my dashboard these are the options open to me.

If I go into the adventure library I'm able to access the study guide, we can listen online, we can read the e-book, hear the musical soundtrack and many other options.  In the kid activities & games section there are coloring pages, word searches and fun activities.  Here are a few of the activities that your child can do.

Under the Educational Treasures section there are also many additional freebies that come with your access to the Live the Adventure Club.

There are also many additional extras, such as a recipe for Hangtown Fry, that can be found in the Resources & Articles section. 

One thing that I've really enjoyed with these audio stories is that they are one story within a story.  When Captain Bayley's Heir starts we have Mr.George writing a letter about his adventure so far in America.  Mr. George is doing research for a book and that research takes him to the gold mines of California.  He meets a young man, Frank, who is also on his own journey.  He is headed to Sutter's Fort and talks about a young lady, Alice, that he hopes to marry one day. The problem he sees is that she is a "christian girl" and he can't see that. He doesn't believe he could "ever be good enough for God!"  Mr. George tells him it's all about the "gift of grace."  Mr. George starts to tell Frank about the story he is writing.  As the story starts we learn of a young man, Harry, that has a love of music and learning, but suffers from a physical handicap.  He and his dog, Flossy, go out because his mother feels he shouldn't just stay home alone.  His dog falls into iced water and a stranger rescues him.  This stranger, Frank, showed no regard for his own safety, but instead jumped straight in to save Flossy.  Frank is from a world that is completely opposite of the one that Harry lives in.  Frank and his cousin, Fred, were best friends and spent much of their time with another dear friend, Alice.  She was considered to be a cousin, but there was no blood relation.  Frank and Alice lived with the famous Captain Bayley.  Harry is so thankful to Frank for saving his dog that when he runs into him later he invites him to his home to be thanked by his parent. The two start a friendship that others might consider unlikely.  While the friendship is blossoming Alice learns that Captain Bayley has a daughter that he hasn't seen or heard from in years.  Frank is a very impulsive young man as we saw when he jumped in the water to save Flossy.  One day Frank's life choices put him in a very complicated situation.  He went off school grounds when he shouldn't have.  Someone tried to bribe him and he's not sure how he'll get out of the situation.  Out of the blue an envelope appears in his room with the money he needed with a note included that said "from a friend."  Frank assumed one of his friends was helping him until he's later charged with stealing the money from a teacher's desk. Frank is believed by no one and is about to be expelled from school. He reaches out to Captain Bayley, but receives no word back. He is devastated and has nowhere to turn.  Fred gives him money and suggests he leave for America immediately! He can't believe that Captain Bayley and Alice didn't believe him, but with no answer he feels he has no choice, but to leave.  Frank heads to America on board a clipper ship.  Frank is used to a life of riches, but realizes his new life will be different. He felt deep down that he would never again see England. He was now dependent upon himself and he was quite capable on the ship.  As Frank journeys on he meets many men that help shape him.  His quick thinking saves a ship and his mates.  As a thank you for his part in saving the ship the owner decides to pay to help Frank get out west.  On Frank's journey he meets Abe, Rube and Dickens.  They teach him the ways of weapons, horses and life in the west.  Frank hopes that he won't have to draw his weapon, but at one point in his travels he runs into an Indian attack and it's a fight for your life situation.  While Frank is struggling to believe that his uncle and Alice really didn't believe him Captain Bayley has learned some news of his own. He learns that his daughter has passed away. He is distraught at the thought that his daughter passed without knowing that he loved her and accepted her marriage.  There are ultimately many twists and turns in this audio adventure.  Captain Bayley learns that Harry is actually the son of his beloved daughter.  He learns about the letter that Frank sent, but Captain Bayley never received.  While Harry is adjusting to his new life as Captain Bayley's grandchild Frank is making is way in gold country.  He and some friends work together to try and strike it rich.  Even after hitting gold Frank still isn't quite content because he can't truly believe that Alice wouldn't have believed him. As a friend was heading to England he asked him to stop in on Alice and mention his name.  Captain Bayley, Harry and Alice were on an extended trip and it took them some time to find out about Frank. In the meantime Frank is in the fight for his life and is badly injured. Captain Bayley is devastated at the thought of losing Frank and especially for Frank to have thought he didn't believe him.  Ultimately there is a happy ending for this audio drama and I was hanging on the edge of my seat right to the end.  This story was yet another quality story with good morals. I think that's what most of us prefer our children to listen too.  Heirloom Audio Productions has brought us yet another wonderful and family friendly audio story.  

While my initial plan was to have the kids and I to listen to the audio story on our trip and my daughter read the questions from the guide to my son that didn't happen! We listened to the story, but my daughter was working on her own work. I figured we could always listen to the story the first time without the guide and later go back through again. We enjoyed listening to the entire story that day and later we went back and worked through a chapter at a time. What I've realized is that while the study guide is great the questions and vocabulary are just a little too detailed for my son.  He's in fifth grade, but still struggles some with comprehension and often times attention. While he enjoyed the story he struggled with being able to answer most of the questions.  The way I chose to approach it was to skim through the questions and ask him the ones I thought he could answer. I found that he was able to answer a few more in the "listening well" section compared to the "thinking further." The "thinking further" questions required more thought and understanding about the story than he was able to muster.  That said for us personally I don't think the study guides would really be able to be fully completed on his own for several years. I think he'd need to be higher in middle school to be able to focus on the small details that were required to answer the questions.  He didn't seem to know any of the vocabulary words, so I looked those up and we read the definitions together.  While he seemed to enjoy the action of the audio stories, he didn't seem as excited about the study guide. I think it required that he actively listen more to the story than he's currently capable of doing.  I do feel that most older boys could easily listen to the audio story and answer the questions.  These would be great to add in as part of their literature program.  I've enclosed a few parts of the first few pages of the study guide.  There are very thought provoking questions, but they are just too thought provoking for my child at this moment.  

I have really been impressed with Heirloom Audio Productions and I think the audio story of Captain Bayley's Heir is my favorite so far.  I'm looking forward to being able to listen to many more of these audio stories with my son. I highly recommend you check out their social media sites: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google+ as well as read what my fellow crew members thought.  

Week Ending 9/23/17

We were scheduled to be home most of this week, so I was super excited to get a ton done! Monday morning I learned that a dear friend's son had passed away in a motorcycle accident.  School was forgotten and there were frenzied messages back and forth with friends to see how we could help.  My son had an ENT appointment on Tuesday to have his hearing rechecked. A few months ago he was having trouble hearing and she told him to hold his nose and blow out his mouth. She told him he needed to do that several times a day until we went back. Seemed to have worked because everything was good! I later found out that another dear friend had a nephew take his own life.  My heart is just breaking for all these moms that have lost a child.  So much sadness in our world right now!

My daughter was having some allergy or cold issues and felt much worse Wednesday, so she wasn't as productive as maybe I had hoped. The wheezing kicked in and it became a wait and see. Thankfully she seems to be doing better, but now my throat is bothering me, so I'm in a blah kind of mood :(

I did read one book, Taken for English by Olivia Newport .

Issac is interested in cooking and says he wants to become a chef. When we were at the library recently we each picked out several cookbooks. This week I looked through Michael Symon's 5 in 5 For Every Season.  I found a few things in there I'd like to try, but most things weren't things I'd eat (LOL) 

I also read through Week in a Day by Rachael Ray.  Again a few things I thought we'd like, but not a ton. I think I'm just too picky :)

Review: Let’s Go Geography

Issac has become pretty obsessed about geography over the last year or two.  He often drives his siblings crazy with his talk of oceans, continents and the like.  Enter in this homeschool geography curriculum and we have found a way to help his love for geography blossom!  

We will be studying the following countries in this first year:

We haven't really studied any countries before, so Issac was excited to start learning.  Since we hadn't studied any countries previously I decided that we'd just go in the order that is listed.  One thing that is really cool about the subscription process is that you can work through the countries in one of two ways.  You can go to the Let’s Go Geography and work through the countries any way you like.  You can also get an email each week with the direct link for that week's country. This second option is pretty neat because it helps keep the parent organized and on a good timeline whereas sometimes we might fall from what we had planned to work through.  The recommended ages are Kindergarten-Fourth Grade.  Issac is in fifth grade this year, but I just knew that he would love this program and we had to try it.  I figured if it seems a little easy for him we could add to what is recommended or we could just move quicker through the program.  We first printed off our passport and our dividers.  The first week we were exploring the United States and I was pleasantly surprised at all the activities that were given to us.  We had some map work, so that we could locate the area we were studying. There were then just a few questions to help us navigate the area.  We had several videos where we got to listen to the anthem as well as exploring and sightseeing.  There is also a flag activity, a coloring page, a page for you to write what you learned and a craft.  Each country has the same basic plan with your student doing the following:

Here's a sample of a few of the pages from the program.  

Issac doesn't really enjoy coloring too much, so for each country I showed him the coloring page and asked him if he wanted to do it.  I also showed him the craft and gave him the choice whether he wanted to do it or not. Some coloring pages he chose to do and others he didn't.  He did the same with the crafts.  I was fine with him doing that because there were so many other activities to do.  

Issac is really loving this program and we will continue moving through the countries until we finish them all. There are several review weeks built into the schedule and even a break week.  The schedule is planned out for 36 total weeks to finish the year 1 program.  We are almost to the first review section, so I jumped ahead to see what we'd do to review.  One of the things is trying to see if the child remembers where the countries are located.  

Reviewing the equator, latitude and longitude.  

There are different options for the way you can try the program out.  You can buy just one semester at a time or the full year.  

Here are a few of the things we did while we were working through Let's Go Geography.  

The above is one of the pages we were able to print that showed some of life in Haiti.  

This was the page where we glued all the flags we colored for North America. 

Map activity for Hawaii.

These are little picture pages that are to put on your continent dividers.  We wanted an easy way to flip back through the countries, so we taped post it slips on the first page of each country for an easy way to find the country we were looking for each time. 

Lighthouse craft for North America.  

Owl craft for Greenland.  

There are plans in the work to make a second and third year.  Not sure when they'll be released, but this will be the schedule for when it does come out.  

If you are interested in more information please check out this video on a typical lesson from Let’s Go Geography about how this wonderful homeschool geography program  works.  You can also follow them on their social media sites for updated information.  

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Review: Imagine. . .The Great Flood by Matt Koceich

Imagine you got to experience one of the greatest events in history.  Imagine that you were alive during the time that God told Noah to build the ark and take his family and all the animals into it.  We recently felt like we were able to experience that great event by reading Imagine. . .The Great Flood by Matt Koceich by Barbour Publishing.  We were thrown right into the preparations of the loading of the ark!



The story starts out with ten-year-old Corey, his mom and his dog, Molly, taking a walk to the park.  Corey's family is planning a move to Florida. Corey isn't excited about the move, but his mom tells him that sometimes God calls us to places even though we aren't sure what will happen when we arrive.  A storm is approaching and the thunder and lightening is getting worse.  Molly has run off into the wood chasing a ball and Corey runs off to get her before the storm hits.  As Corey jumped over a log rushing after Molly, he trips, falls and blacks out.  


As Corey awakes he's in Mesopotamia 2400 B.C.  Corey is confused, is looking for his mom and dog, only to find two lions watching him.  Corey is terrified and asks God for mercy.  He hears a voice telling him that the lions won't hurt him.  He opens his eyes to find a robed man with a shepherd's staff near him.  The man introduces himself as Shem.  He proceeds to ask Corey to help him get the two lions onto his father's ark.  Corey is shocked to realize that he's looking at Noah's Ark! Shem explains to Corey that God commanded his father to build the boat because soon waters would cover the land.  He soon meets Shem's brothers, Japheth and Ham.  They explain that they need to move quickly because the Nephilim will try to stop them from completing their mission.  Corey tried to remember what the Nephilim were, but he quickly experienced for himself what they were and what their plans were.  


As the story progresses Corey experiences how the Nephilim try to stop Noah and his sons from loading the ark.  The weather turns stormy and Corey and the brothers realize they don't have much time to get the ark loaded with the remaining animals.  Corey is warned to stay away from Elizar.  He is told that many people would say he could help Corey get back home, but Shem warns him that his name means "The One Who Deceives" and that Corey should stay away from him.  Elizar and the Nephilim try to stop Corey and the brothers in their track.  As they try to get to the ark Corey realizes how much he needs God in his life and all that he does for us. He realizes that he had been putting his faith in himself and not God. He knows the only way he'll possibly make it out alive is by trusting and having faith in God.  


We enjoyed reading this story as our bedtime story.  Issac is ten, so I thought he might connect a little with Corey. I thought he might enjoy reading a book about a child his age having such an adventure.  The chapters were just the right size to read to Issac before bed.  I prefer shorter chapters because if they get too long then he'll fall asleep and I always feel we didn't have a good stopping place. I was able to easily read one chapter a night to him and we were able to discuss the book the next morning.  He's heard the story of Noah and the Ark many times over his life, but reading it in this context made him ask questions I hadn't heard before.  He really wondered about the Nephilim and compared it to a tv show we had watched about a hunt to know if giants ever really lived on the earth.  He just couldn't imagine how anyone got these animals to the ark as well as into the ark.  This historical fiction version of the great flood really got him thinking and exploring what he would have done.  

Matt Kocheich has given us a great Christian Fiction book for kids.  It's getting harder and harder these days to find clean books for kids.  Society is throwing things at them so early now due to all the social media and technology. It's nice to be able to sit down, read a book and know you don't have to worry about bad language. That's always a BIG plus for me. Add to that we are reading about a child who is learning to trust in God and count on him to guide his life makes it's even better.  


Issac really enjoyed the book and said he would like to read other books with a similar story line.  I would highly recommend Imagine. . .The Great Flood by Matt Koceich from Barbour Publishing.  It's a wonderful read aloud or could easily be read by most kids from fourth grade and up on their own.  Follow them on social media as well as read what my fellow crew members thought of this wonderful story.  

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