1000 Gifts {Giveaway}

I mentioned in another post how a friend of mine gave me this book and how I think everybody should read it.  Well, now that I’ve finished it, I’m even more convinced that it is a treasure of GREAT VALUE!

I love to read but honestly I don’t have a whole lot of time or energy to do it.  Even my good intentions are over-powered by the weight of my eyelids or the call of, “MOOOOOM!”  But every once in a while a book that will come along and grab me from the start.  It will hold the power to prop those droopy lids open and keep that distracted brain focused and transform me.

This book has transformed me. 

This is not a feel good-name it claim it-all is perfect in Christ book.  It’s truth.  Truth that transforms and renews.

Ann’s style of writing touches a place deep in my soul.  My friend said it best when she told me she returns to it again and again.  I can see why. And I will be doing the same.

I savored every page of this book.  I read it slow and deliberate, sipped it, like the perfect cup of coffee that you never want to end.  It was that delicious.

If you are ready to move your relationship with God to the next level.  If you crave peace and joy.  If you desire to walk in the fullness of God’s love and goodness.

YOU NEED TO READ THIS BOOK!!

I am making this book required reading for my daughters. 

Because I feel so passionately about this, I am going to give away 2 copies of this book.  Out of my own budget.  Because it’s THAT important and I want you to have THAT joy!

I have one requirement.  Only one. I’m not even going to require that you follow my blog.  Who cares!  I just want you to promise me that you will read it.  That’s it.

Leave me a comment with your email address and a promise to me that you will read it if you win and you will be entered.  I’m not going to do anything with your email, just email you if you win.  I’m not that fancy!  (smile)

I don’t want to put an end date on this giveaway…Probably the middle of March.  In the mean time, why not join me as I embark on a Joy Dare.  Only good can come of it. 

With gratitude and love,

Mrs. Taffy

Homeschool Stuff for Sale!!

I’ve been cleaning off my shelves to make room for more books!  Oh how we homeschoolers LOVE books!  A friend of mine gave me buckets and buckets of wonderful Children’s Literature and I’ve been frantically trying to figure out where to put them all!  I feel a trip to IKEA in the very near future…anyway, I have a few things that I am going to show you in hopes that they may be on your homeschool list for this year or next.  Happy Shopping!

         $25.00-The Story of the World Volume 2

This set is also in really good shape.  For the activity book though, I did tear out the pages before copying them, they are all there, just being held together by a big paper clip.

                                                                                  

$10.00-Organizing Thinking Skills.  Book has been chopped and is stored in a big envelope.
Read Description Here.







$5.00-Apples: Daily Spelling Drills for Secondary Students
Perfect Condition. 
Read Description Here.


$5.00-Apples 2: Daily Spelling Drills for Secondary Students
Perfect Condition.
Read Description Here. 





$5.00-It’s About Time

This is a product I reviewed.  You can read my description here and the company’s description here.
My copy include the cards cut out and laminated as per the books instructions.  Less work for YOU!

$2.00 Each-A Case of the Red Herrings Book A1 & A2
I think these must be out of print as well, I can’t find them on the website at all.  Perfect Condition too! 



$1.00-Eco-Hysteria by Dr. Jay L. Wile
This is an enhanced CD, you can play it in your stereo or your computer, in the computer you’ll be able to see the slides Dr. Wile Used for his lecture.
More information here. 


 Literature:

• Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski-.50
• The 21 Balloons by William Pene du Bois-.50
• Martha Washington by Jean Brown Wagoner (Aladdin Books)-.50
• Stories of the Pilgrims (Christian Liberty Press) Love this book!- 1.00
• The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss (Abridged) .50
• Eric Liddell by Catherine Swift-$1.00
• The Cat who went to Heaven-$1.00

Note:  I personally own all of these books, I’m selling them because I had double copies of them.  I haven’t read The Cat who went to Heaven yet, that’s part of Son-light Core 7.
I will only charge actual shipping, which I will confirm with you before we finalize payment.  I can take PayPal (.50 extra to help cover fees), or a check, which will take longer, but I don’t mind if you don’t.
If you are interested in anything, or have any questions, please email me at carissa at wiserstill dot com. Or leave me a comment, with your email address and I’ll email you.  I’ll remove items as they sell.  I’m only leaving this up until the end of March as I’ll be taking whatever is left to a used-curriculum sale.

Thank you for looking!  May your homeschool journey be blessed and satisfying!

Joyfully,
Mrs. Taffy

Yearly Wrap-up! {Mega Post}

I’m happy to report that we have completed our 2011/2012 school year. It’s been a great year.  I’ve pretty much felt passionate about the whole year until these last couple weeks, those were tough.  Spring came early to Minnesota so my attention span ended earlier than usual too.  My goal for the day (Friday) was to get our school room really clean.  Well, one thing led to another and not only did I clean but I also did a major organizing/resorting project.

Lots of piles.  A pile to sell.  A pile to chuck.  A pile to file.  A pile of stuff to do over the summer x 5.  A pile of stuff to do next school year x 4.  I did all this when Marshmallow was sleeping, she would have been so terribly distracting.  Yeah.

Ahhh…much better.  Spider webs and dust gone the way of the Dyson.  There are still a few piles laying around, but they pretty much have to stay there until I get into the attic and get some little storage boxes.  Would you like to see the kid’s books for next year?

This is Laffy’s pile.  He’s about halfway through All About Reading PreReading and then he’ll start Level 1.  I have tons of other stuff for him to do too, but he’ll be doing kindergarten and I don’t buy a whole lot of “curriculum” for this age.  Oh, I almost forgot about Song School Latin.  Planning on going through the first book again unless Classical Academic Press releases SSL2 before August.

Bubble Gum will be doing 2nd grade work.  She has All About Spelling Level 2, Mathematical Reasoning Level C and A Reason for Writing Book B.  She also will be doing tons of reading through the various books I have on our library shelves and Song School Latin with Laffy Taffy.  She and Blue-Raspberry will be doing these together…

The CD is that annoying Geography Songs CD, you know, the kind that once you hear the songs, they continue to play over and over and over and over again in your head.  Possibly even waking you up at night…but, it gets the job done so I’ll sacrifice the quiet in my head for their education!  lol  All the stuff in the basket is stuff I’ve been collecting to use with their Apologia Science book.  I also bought the lapbooks that go with the book, but those are on my hard drive so I can’t show you.

Blue-Raspberry will be doing 4th grade work.  Here’s his pile of books.  God’s Great Covenant, Bible Nurture, Learning Language Arts Through Literature, Latin for Children A, Teaching Textbooks 4, Thinking Skills and Draw & Write Through History.  He’s a boy and he LOVES school.  He’s convinced he’s going to be a dentist when he grows up, it’s a good thing he likes school!

Strawberry will be doing 10th grade work next year. My last year being completely in control of her education.  After 10th grade she’ll move on to PSEO (college) just like her brothers.  Sniff…Sniff… Apologia Biology, Algebra 2, Excellence in Literature (most of her books we found free on Amazon for her Kindle, except the one you see there, The Count of Monte Cristo), Art of Argument and Argument Builder (Logic), Latin Alive 2, Various History Books.  I have to keep from piling her up with too many classes, she’s such an eager student but I don’t want to drown her either!

Now, if you can stand a few more pictures of books I’ll tell you what our plans are over the summer.

This is what Chocolate wants to cover over the summer.  He’s completed his first year of college and his Junior year of high school.  We are pretty sure he’s going to have a 4.0 this semester too!  Woohoo!  Because he wants to be an engineer, he wants to continue learning all summer as well as get a job.  So he’ll be completing his Geometry book, which he is slowing getting through, he’ll be studying for the SAT and he’ll be doing Apologia Physics.  All his idea (except Geometry) lest you think I’m totally brutal.  lol

Banana Taffy doesn’t want to do anything but work and play all summer.  He’s saving for a car.  I’m insisting he finish his Geometry book.  I told him if he doesn’t finish it I won’t graduate him.  See.  Tough.  But not brutal.  I’m not making HIM do Physics!!  He does have a 4.0 this semester!  We know for sure!  My child who didn’t think he could do it, he did it and he excelled at it!  I am VERY proud of him!

Strawberry wants to keeping working on learning HTML code this summer, she wants to start Algebra 2 right away so she doesn’t forget anything and she wants to work on her writing.  I’m all for that but I told her she has to wait at least a couple weeks before she resumes her studies.  I don’t want her to get burned-out.

             

As I was going through books I threw some things in the kid’s baskets for them to work on throughout our summer break.  I’m sure they will have moments of needing some focused seat work, like when they start complaining about being bored.  Just fun stuff.  I’ll probably move those baskets up to the dining room after we’ve all had some time to unwind.  If we don’t sit in the school room it won’t be school.  haha!

This turned into a MEGA-POST.  If you made it this far, thank you! 

I want to share the #1 thing that I think contributes to a successful homeschool experience.  There’s are many many more, but for us the #1 thing that we have going for us is enthusiasm.  Don’t underestimate enthusiasm.  Just like complaining is contagious, so is enthusiasm.  I want my children to know that their education is important to me and that I am FOR them.  I’m happy to be helping them meet their goals and to push them onward.  This is not a burden, this is a privilege!  If you are having trouble motivating your children to get their work done check your own enthusiasm meter.  If you are running low, take a break and recharge, then joyfully gush on your children and let them know they can do nothing but succeed and you’ll be their applauding their efforts and cheering them on the whole way!!

Joyfully,

Mrs. Taffy

God’s Great Covenant~Review

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of pretty much everything Classical Academic Press puts out, it’s thanks to the Old Schoolhouse Crew that I discovered them last year.  So every time an opportunity comes up for me to review another set of their books I jump right on it, I want to see if they are consistently as wonderful as I think they are.  I’m happy to say that God’s Great Covenant, New Testament 1 does not disappoint!

Written for children ages 4th grade and up, God’s Great Covenant teaches the amazing story of Jesus, from birth to his sacrificial death.  It covers the importance of who Jesus was and the significance of what He did for us.  This is so foundational to our faith!  There are 36 weekly chapters divided into 4 themed units.

          

Each chapter contains a memory verse, charts, questions, worksheets, quizzes and a reading portion.  The set I received to review included the MP3 files, which I think are just fantastic.  Christopher Perrin (he is the narrator for The Tale of Two Princesses on Headventureland) has a very appealing voice and my children are already familiar with him, so it’s like being read to by a friend!  Here’s a link to view a sample of the student workbook.

There is very minimal teacher prep required.  This is pretty much an open-up-and-work-your-way-through book.  The teacher book has extra information to share with your child, it’s up to you if you want to teach that to your child or not.  Depending on their age and attention span you might not use the extra information, but it’s fascinating to read anyway!  Here’s a link to see a portion of the teacher’s book. 

I love that this book focuses on fact…this isn’t a book of theory and speculation, it’s a line up on line, precept upon precept teaching of who Christ was and is and more importantly the proof that confirms it all.  This makes it PERFECT in my opinion.

God’s Great Covenant bundle, which includes the student workbook, the teacher book and the MP3 downloads,  sells for $56.95 from the Classical Academic website. 

Joyfully,

Mrs. Taffy

To see what other Crew Members thought of the God’s Great Covenant, visit the Crew Blog!

Disclaimer-I was given this book bundle from Classical Academic Press for the purpose of this review.  All opinions expressed here are my own, I was not paid.

Truth Quest History: Ancient Greece

Do I have a treasure to share with you!  I have here a very affordable and very precious history study guide.  I honestly don’t have the words to describe how this study guide makes me feel, because I’ve never encountered a history curriculum like this.  Just read some of the phrases I highlighted from the introduction:

As Christian adults, though, we must hold every definition up to His blazing light.  Is history indeed the story of mankind?  Could the secular minds that birthed our history textbooks also have had a secular definition of history itself?  Is it possible?

Please think about history in a brand new way, for it is not first the story of mankind, but of the One who made mankind.

God’s initiation and our response…that’s history.

I’ve never even considered that before!  Sure I’ve used “Christian” history curriculum in the past, but still, they would be classified under the old definition:  the story of mankind.  But to be able to study history through the new definition: God’s initiation and our response…it’s profound to me!

History has always been boring to me, boring to teach and boring to learn. I went to public school after all and everything I learned was a dry account of man’s activities.  Who cares!?  (Well, I’m sure somebody did, but not me!)  But if history can be this:

…a personal encounter with the King of the Universe, the Maker of our souls!  It should be one of the most inspiring, personal, real and intimate topics because it hooks us up with the truths that make life work!

Now that’s the kind of History I could get into!!  And get into we will be!  Truth Quest History Guides are written for Grades 5-12, but can be used for younger children too.  This is a non-consumable History Curriculum that will typically take a year to complete.  You can view a sample schedule here.  Many of the books that are suggested to read while using Truth Quest Ancient Greece are available at the library, trust me, I checked!  And the best part is, besides the amazing world view, is that these guides are inexpensive!  You can purchase the PDF download for $19.95.  There are other things available for purchase as well, but they are not necessary for a wonderful experience.  The tone of the study guide is a real gem.  You can feel the passion of the author, Michelle Miller, her writing style will definitely get you fired up about the Lord and His influence on history! 

Here’s what’s included in your study guide, this is from the website.

TruthQuest History guides have four components:

1) vivid commentary introduces each and every topic;

2) individual reading lists organized by grade level flesh out each and every topic;

3) ThinkWrite™ exercises are strategically placed throughout the guide to help students incrementally internalize and express various facets of key truths (whether through writing or discussion), until significant and synthesized wisdom is achieved at the end of a guide; and,

4) an appendix at the rear of the guide offers sample answers to the ThinkWrite™ exercises (useful in evaluating the student's writings for depth of comprehension, or for engendering rich oral discussions), while another appendix offers a cumulative list of all resources cited in the guide. Remember, the student's profound learning comes in such small steps that it seems almost effortless! Parents often tell us they don't see the full depth of a TruthQuest History guide until they've read or watched their students work through it a while. It does all come together, but the veil is lifted very slowly as the great truths of God and people's responses to them are seen step-by-step through the chronology. It's an exciting odyssey!

I’m pretty well sold on the whole program and will definitely be using these in our homeschool for years to come!  I’ve included many links throughout this post, hopefully you will get all of your questions answered.  There are also samples of the different guides on the website.

Joyfully,

Mrs. Taffy

To read what my crew mates thought about this and other study guides from Truth Quest, visit the Crew Blog.

Disclaimer-I was given the PDF form of Truth Quest History-Ancient Greece, in exchange for my honest review.  I was not paid.

The Art of Argument~Review

Being what I call Classically Relaxed, and having children in each of the 3 stages of learning:  Grammar, Logic and Rhetoric, I am excited to share with you a product that is a great help with teaching logic to your classically minded student.

Using the Art of Argument students learn to identify 28 fallacies, broken down into 6 chapters.  There are chapter tests, unit tests and a final exam in the Teacher’s Book. 

I’ve used this curriculum with my older 2 and Strawberry will doing this in her 10th grade year.  The study is geared toward Junior High Students, so this is where the “relaxed” comes in. (We are a little behind, but I like relaxed better.)   I love the tone of this book, written to the student, in a conversational style, with pictures, examples and activities to work through the fallacies.  Our mode of operation has been to learn 2 fallacies a week, followed by the second book in this series called Argument Builder.  Each could easily be expanded to a year’s worth of learning, especially if using with a younger student.

Along with the teacher book and student book I was given the 1st DVD in the optional DVD set that complements the curriculum.  The DVD’s show a teacher and students discussing the different fallacies.  I think this is a fantastic recourse, though it’s not necessary for mastery.

The Art of Argument Student Book is $21.95, you can see a sample lesson here.  The Teacher Book is $24.95, I highly recommend this if you want to be able to correct your students work without reading the book yourself and if you want to administer the Chapter, Unit and Final Exams.  Here is an example of the Teacher Book.  Another option is the bundle, which sell for $99.95 and includes both books and all the DVD’s. 

The Classical Academic Press website has many great resources and samples, I encourage you to visit the site to learn all you can in deciding if the Art of Argument can help you teach Logic to your students.

Joyfully,

Mrs. Taffy

To see what other Members of the Old Schoolhouse Crew thought, visit the Crew Blog!

Disclaimer-I was given these products in exchange for my honest review, I was not paid.  All opinions expressed are my own.

The Guardian Duke~Book Review

About the Book:

The Guardian Duke is award-winning novelist Jamie Carie’s most exciting story yet, a uniquely arranged Regency-era romantic adventure where hero and heroine know each other through written letters but have yet to meet.

Gabriel, the Duke of St. Easton, is ordered by the King to take guardianship over Lady Alexandria Featherstone whose parents are presumed dead after failing to return from a high profile treasure hunt. But Alexandria ignores this royal reassignment, believing her parents are still alive and duly following clues that may lead to their whereabouts. Gabriel, pressured by what are actually the King’s ulterior motives, pursues her across windswept England and the rolling green hills of Ireland but is always one step behind.

When they do meet, the search for earthly treasure will pale in comparison to what God has planned for both of them. (from the publisher)

This was my first experience with Author Jamie Carie, and I was not disappointed!  Guardian Duke was a terrific read!  The characters were interesting, the plot deep and intriguing and the ending…  The Guardian Duke ended with a jaw-dropping cliff hanger that did it’s job in making me long for the next book in the Forgotten Castles Series!

Joyfully,

Mrs. Taffy

“Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Who Am I? Apologia Review

Does Apologia ever make a substandard product?  Not that I’ve found!!  What a blessing to be able to review the second book in the What We Believe Series. 

Who Am I ? And What am I Doing Here?  Is a world view curriculum focusing on who we are in God, who God has made us to be and how that effects everything we do and should be doing!  This is just a great book, especially if you or your children have struggled with who you are in God. 

Lessons Include:

What are we doing here?

What will you make today?

What’s on your mind?

Can you trust your feelings?

Will you choose wisely? (Click to view lesson)

How will you run the race?

What kind of fruit are you growing?  (LOVE THIS!!)

Who do you think you are?

There are only 8 Lessons, but they are big with many subsections.  The book includes a lesson plan to help you plan your time.  This book can be completed anywhere from 4-9 months.  We read this during lunch time, all the children have enjoyed listening to it though it is especially designed for children ages 6-14.  Clearly some of the wording is written for younger children, but not in a way that the older children felt was demeaning or silly.

Not only does Apologia sell this gorgeous hard-cover book ($39.00), it also sells an audio CD for your auditory learners ($19.00), a gorgeous notebooking journal ($24.00 click here for a sample page) and a fun coloring book to keep little hands busy while they listen ($8.00)!!  Wow!  Now that’s a curriculum!

Thanks Apologia for another high-quality product that helps us to pass on our faith on to our children and build our faith in the process!

To see what other Crew Member thought, visit the Crew Blog!

Joyfully,

Mrs. Taffy

Disclaimer-I was given these materials for purpose of this review.  All opinions expressed are my own and I was not paid.

S.W.O.R.D~An invitation

I’m not exactly sure how to do this, I just know that I really want to do this!  I want to invite my readers to join our S.W.O.R.D group on Facebook.  My husband started this group in an effort to get people reading and discussing the Word.  S.W.O.R.D stands for Supernatural Wisdom Often Revealed Daily.  We are using the Bible reading planner that came with our Balancing the Sword books.  Our goal is to read the through Bible, each of us in our family, during 2012.  I want to invite you and your family to join us!

Sometimes we read together, sometimes we read separately. We always take Sunday’s off and most major holidays.  There is a link to the reading schedule in the group under the “Docs” link.  Now comes the part I don’t know how to do.  I want to invite you to join us, but since it’s a closed group I don’t exactly know how to do that.  So, I think what I am going to do is ask that if you are interested, leave me a comment with your Facebook I.D.  and I’ll send you an invitation from the S.W.O.R.D group.  I won’t publish your comment though…does that sound alright?  If that doesn’t work…I work on figuring out how to make it work!  Here’s the direct link….maybe you can just request to be invited?  Give it try and let me know.  (smile)

Reading the Word is so important!  Just like eating right and exercising, just like teaching school each day and faithfully making dinner, it’s a discipline that is unequal in it’s benefits!   Please join us!

Joyfully,

Mrs. Taffy

Vintage Remedies~Review

 

As part of the Old Schoolhouse Crew I was blessed to be able to review a wonderful nutritional education book for  young children.  This book is the essence of Delight-Led Learning!

This curriculum helps you teach little ones how to choose healthy foods, how to prepare some fun and delicious snacks, how to establish prevention based habits, and how they can participate in your family's natural lifestyle. The workbook is flexible and can be used for playgroups or as a fun family project. Children at this age learn best with active lessons, so this isn't a sit and read style picture book! It's a guide for parents that is packed with hands on activities that are perfect for little hands, but fun for all ages. Each of the 18 chapters includes a brief age appropriate lesson on the topic that parents can use to discuss with little ones while they are preparing for the projects, a featured project to teaches the lesson, additional instructions for parents to include these lessons in the family's lifestyle, and a selection of additional projects on the topic for additional fun. The book also contains sample schedules for preschoolers and convenient shopping lists for each project, complete with a resource guide and tips for parents and leaders. (From the Website)

       

If you’ve read my blog for any amount of time you know I both love to cook and love to talk about food and I am especially interested in nutrition as it pertains to making healthy kids and parents.  This book takes the things I already love to do and discuss with my children and sets it up in a book with suggestions and recipes.  I’ve had some of the best conversations with my little people regarding food thanks to this book!

                  

The book is written in a very conversational tone and is easy to read and understand.  If you know nothing or everything about nutrition and food you will still be able to get something from this handy book!

Vintage Remedies for Kids sells for $25.00.  You can order it, or read more about it and other Vintage Remedies books here.  Also, to read reviews about this book and others by Vintage Remedies visit the Crew Blog!

Joyfully,

Mrs. Taffy

Disclaimer-I was given this book in exchange for an honest review, I was not paid.

Tintin for young readers~Review

As part of the Timberdoodle Blogger Review Team I was given a copy of this fascinating Young Reader’s Edition of The Adventures of Tin-Tin:  Red Rackham’s Treasure.

Just look at that tongue…apparently Tintin requires a lot of concentration!

Written for children 9 and up. Let me just say that there wasn’t one child in my family NOT interested in this book.  In fact, my oldest two were so excited to see it, they snatched it up and took it hunting with them!  They both gave the book positive reviews and Banana Taffy really enjoyed the end of the book, where the REAL adventure along with actual photographs and descriptions is shared.  Here’s what Timberdoodle says about it:

New historical photos, original sketches, timelines, and more!
Now some of the most beloved titles are available in a popular, easy to pack standard paperback size. What makes this especially appealing is that there are now character biographies at the start of each book, so new Tintin readers can get to know the players in each episode. Even more exciting are the additional twenty-five pages of back-story. Parents who want more than a gutsy tale will be thrilled to find the global history of Tintin, with character and story inspirations, historical photos, original sketches, actual diagrams upon which the vehicles in the books were based, timelines, and more included in these newer reprints!

Sweet Strawberry Taffy has been so sick…this book was a great distraction for her!

I never realized that Tintin’s adventure’s were based on actual events!  The children all really love to read books comic style and to have them learning something at the same time makes for a happy Momma!

Finally!  He was the LAST one to get his hand’s on the book!

I even found myself laughing at some of the funny antics of the different character’s in Tintin’s adventure!  My only complaint, and this is just the result of my age more than anything…the words were a little small and I had to wearing my “granny glasses” in order to read the story.  The children didn’t complain though!  lol

Timberdoodle sells several different Tintin Adventures in this Young Reader version, which includes the historical information at the end of the book.  They sell for $7.99.  If this sounds like something you would love to get for your budding historian/adventurer, visit Timberdoodle! 

Tis the Season!!

Joyfully,

Mrs. Taffy

Legal Disclosure:
As a member of Timberdoodle's Blogger Review Team I received a free copy of Red Rackham's Treasure Young Readers Edition in exchange for a frank and unbiased review.