Gratitude

I just wanted to stop in and say a few things that have been floating around my mind lately.  It does not happen often and I thought I really should record these little light bulbs for future generations. 

We ( I ) do not often enough thank those around us who mean the most.  My wife, Mindy Kay, is a true blessing sent from God into my life.  She is first and foremost a wonderful Christian Lady who strives to follow our Lord in this life-and for that I thank her wholeheartedly.  She is also a dedicated mom, homeschooler, TeamKid Director, and VBS Coordinator not to mention a cook, janitor, impromptu nurse, and referee.  I am glad I do not have to pay her what she is truly worth.

I also wanted to thank all Homeschool parents in general for sacrificing time and often finances to educate your children.  I know that for those of you who do so from a Christian perspective God will bless you for your efforts and reward future generations.  I never thought we would be homeschoolers but now that we are I would not trade it for anything.  I cannot imagine sending my boys to a person who. for all intents and purposes isstranger, to shape and mold them through the public school system.

Finally I want to thank God for all the support that is now available for homeschoolers.  There are countless blogs, websites, and groups designed to inform and guide us parents who need all the help we can get.  I want to encourage everyone to read this blog ( shameless self promotion ) and to join us on Facebook at Adventures in Grace, as we travel this road of life together.

Luther

http://www.livingngrace.com/

Fun with Water and Science!

We use My Father's World Curriculum and this year in the first grade material we received two science books. I decided to wait till summer to tackle the books and the fun in them. A lot of the experiments are better outside so I decided to do them every Tuesday!! Today was our first day and we had a lot of fun with water. I made some science journals out of construction paper and lined school paper stapled down the middle. I thought we could write down any observations.
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Misconseption Monday: What about the S word? Socialization!!

 Socialization-
–noun

a continuing process whereby an individual acquires a personal identity and learns the norms, values, behavior, and social  skills appropriate to his or her social  position.

I am hanging out in  Walmart and my three boys are swarming around me and a older lady with pretty silver hair and matching shoes and pocket book asks the question. "No school today?" I smile and say my usual we are homeschoolers! Then the questions hit me but I am usually ready now! The top question I get is how do my children get socialized. I must admit I worried about this before I started but I have come to know that my boys can be "social" without school! I worried that there might not be birthday parties to attend or friends to invite. But actually quite the opposite has happened!

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We are on the case!

 Today I finally broke through and got some of my momma mojo back. We finished our first Nate the Great book today with all three boys begging for more. I am glad there are a ton of books in this category because it has become a Stapleton favorite. Yesterday the boys all pretended to be detectives so I was excited to find this site. We made our very own Nate the Great detective hats and now the boys are on the case!


Site full of Nate the Great activities: http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/pdf/nateactivities.pdf

Gotta love free fun!! Especially in the afternoons when it is WAY too hot to send the boys outside!






   Coloring their hats so nicely!

My little Nate the Greats!

Got Books?

Are your kids geared up for summer? Mine can't wait for the outside time, water fun and popsicles! (Red, Blue and Green to be exact!) I am also looking forward to starting a summer reading program with my kids. I have looked online and there are so many fun reading charts and programs out there. Here are a few that I think are really fun and you get something free in the process!!

Barnes and Noble: Imagination's Destination! Earn a free book when your child reads eight books and fills out the journal. http://www.barnesandnoble.com/summerreading/index.asp

Borders: Double Dog Dare! Your Child reads ten books of his or her choice and fills out the form. Bring it into Borders for a free book!  http://www.borders.com/online/store/MediaView_doubledogdare

Bookit: Your child reads five books fills out the form. They can enter to win a fun prize package! http://www.bookitprogram.com/summerbreak/challengesweeps.asp

Lifeway Summer Reading Race: Your child gets a punch card and a reward for every five books he or she reads!! http://www.lifewaystores.com/lwstore/readingrace.asp

This next week we are starting on the Barnes and Noble Challenge! We have purchased some Nate the Great books and they have some fun recipes and activities in the back. I am hoping this will be the start of a life long love of reading for my boys!! 

Barnes and Noble Summer Reading Journal.

            My Summer Readers!!

We Serve a risen savior!

No it isn't Easter this week and no I didn't miss it! We are celebrating Jesus this week and his death, burial  and resurrection. We have a few stories left in our Bible reader and I am happy they deal with this subject since it is so very important! This should be our celebration every day since we have been saved from our sins through Christ Jesus! My prayer is everyday I find ways to praise and celebrate my savior and all he has done for us!

He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said. Come, see the place where He was lying. ~Matthew 28:6

We made resurrection biscuits last night! They are super simple and very yummy! They make for a wonderful object lesson for children! My boys loved the fact they could help make these and loved the story that went with them!



1 tube biscuits
1 stick melted butter
cinnamon and sugar mixture
Fat Marshmellows (as many as biscuits you have)

Roll the biscuits flat. Stick a marshmallow on each biscuit (marshmallows represent Jesus). Completely seal each marshmallow in each biscuit (as the tomb was sealed).
Roll biscuit balls in butter then in sugar mixture (represents the dirt in the tomb or the embalming spices needed to bury the dead).
Bake according to the directions on the biscuit tube. When you pull them out of the oven the marshmallow is gone!

Listening to the story!

Waiting for his turn!

Putting "Jesus" in the tomb!

My Guys!

Finished product!

The tomb is empty! HE HAS RISEN!!!

He lives! He lives! Christ Jesus lives today!

He walks with me and talks with me along life's narrow way.

He lives! He lives! Salvation to impart!

                                     You ask me how I know He lives? He lives within my heart.

This may be the start of a beautiful friendship...

A couple of weeks ago I joined the Christian Homeschool Hub. I was looking through groups and found a group dedicated to Homeschoolers being Pen Pals. I was pretty excited so I joined and added my kids to the list. I got a response for a Pen Pal for Weston within minutes and his letter came in the mail today. His Pen Pal happens to be a eight year old girl named Madeline from Tennessee!  He got started right away drawing her a picture and we will be working on a letter soon! I remember having Pen Pals in school and I think it will be great for practicing writing and reading!

That's all folks!

Today we finished our State required testing and I am beyond relieved about it! This is our first year to have to test and I was pretty nervous! I am happy to say that I think Weston did just fine! The test seems less about what he has achieved and more about where I might have failed. At least in my mind I guess! It is hard to believe that two years have passed as a Homeschool mom! I am excited about the next chapter as all my  boys will be in different areas of study next year.

Summer is here in all it's sunny glory! I have come up with some fun stuff for the season in the way of  reading clubs,crafts and lots of outside time. As for a vacation I am pretty sure this mom will have to settle for soaking her feet in the kiddie pool in the backyard! Happy Summer Everyone!!!

The Last Supper!

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
~John 14:6 


What a blessed day at school we had today! Our reading lesson was on the last supper and I was reminded of how grateful  I am to be able to share these moments with my boys. Weston read through the Bible reader and the boys and I had sweet conversations about how great our GOD is! Weston commented that Jesus is like a elevator with out stairs and the only way to get to the top. How precious is this time God has given me and how he is showing how wonderful and mighty he is through my children! 


We also had a "Last Supper" of sorts today. We had grapes, cheese, pita bread and grape juice. We enjoyed retelling the story and munching on the food God has provided us!!

Yummy!

Saying Prayers!

Weston was hungry!!

Mr. Logical...

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.~Psalm 139:14

One thing that I absolutely love about my children and teaching them is their completely different takes on life. Jackson is very logical and is interested in details. He is also my problem solver and always has a logical solution to whatever we are doing. Today as we discussed Jesus healing the blind man Weston commented on how amazing it was that the blind man could see. Jackson and his practical mind stated "Why didn't Jesus just get him glasses?"  Of course this tickled me but I know better than to laugh at Jackson! What a sweet spirit that little fellow has!!

Jackson David as a baby!!

Hard worker!!

Jackson's Proverb for the week!

Mom and Jackson!

My kids will never move out....

Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living.  After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need.  So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs.  He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.
~Luke 15:13-16


We had a lesson today on the prodigal son and my child  must have missed the point. Weston is now convinced that he should never leave home because if he does he will eat with the pigs. I tried to explain to him the symbolism of the father in the story and God the Father but well he is a seven year old boy. Hopefully when he is all grown up he won't recall this story and decide to stay with us for the rest of his life! HA!

Weston with his pig puppet!

Jackson with his pig puppet!

Gibson with his pig puppet!

Three little pigs!

Fish and Loaves Picnic!!!

Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. ~ Mark 6:41

Basket of fish and loaves

We had bread, fish sticks, goldfish crackers and ocean water!!

The boys didn't want to sit on a blanket so they chose to eat at the table!!  (Probably better with blue juice!)

Jackson and Weston enjoying lunch!

I love fun times like this with my boys. I know someday when they are grown and have lives of their own I will recall these memories and be so happy I spent the time and effort to create these moments! I thank God for his precious gift of my children!

Just another Manic Monday....

Just another typical Monday around the Stapleton house. There is more to do on Monday's because the weekend is as crazy as it gets right now. The house gets pushed aside as we focus on surviving numerous baseball games, softball games and other fun stuff! I have more laundry, dusting and cleaning than I care to share but first we must tackle our day at school.

We start off everyday with the Pledge of Allegiance.

Then a prayer!

Then we do our Calendar!

Math this week is graphing!

Jackson's Worksheets!

Weston's story in his Bible Reader!

Writing in his Bible notebook!

Working hard!!

There are lots of days when we do fun activities, crafts or snacks with our lesson but today was not one of those days! The boys worked hard and are now playing like they are firemen and using the vacuum cord as their hose. Since school is tackled I guess I better get this place whipped into shape! Here is to a typical Monday and only four more days till Friday!! HA!

Science Center the second time around...

Today with Luther having a day off after having to work Easter Sunday we decided to take a second field trip to the Greensboro Science Center. We explored the down stairs this time with cool fish and lizards. We got to go out to the petting zoo which we had never been to in the many times we have visited!

Heading to the Barn to pet the animals!

Cock-a-doodle-doo!

Gibber looking for some comfort from his big brother!

Jackson Petting a sheep!

Milking Bessy!

MOO!!!!

The boys were thrilled that the Alligators were out to see!! (FYI-This is not a Real one!)

We also got to see a 3-D Omnisphere show. It was about the boys favorite dinosaur the T-Rex! We all thought it was WAY  COOL!!!!

Waiting for the show!

This is going to be so COOL!!

 

We had a lot of fun spending some much needed family time! It was great to be with the boys and we all had a great time learning together. I am so glad we decided to get a season pass because it is a blast being able to go as we please.