Wordless Wednesday: Wall-E and Eva the Tomato Snatchers

I lied. This post isn't wordless. You know me by now, though. It's real hard for me to be wordless with a keyboard in front of me.

So I have this little garden. Out back. And this year my prize crop is tomatoes. I love tomatoes. Sliced with salt and pepper... chopped up in tacos...

Tomatoes are wonderful in most anything you pair them with. Besides chocolate. Of course.

I pick'em and set them on my window sill to ripen up.

Only... Wall-E and Eva are lookin' real greedy up there...



Rogue Robots! Hands off my maters!



Subscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: tomato, food, red, summer, pictures, garden, movies, funny, humor, silly, SAHM, kids, kitchen, produce, organic, photography

Speaking of Homeschool Distractions...

This little guy only napped for 20 minutes today. Twice. OK, yes, I can add. That totals 40 minutes. But it was cut in half. And I disagree with Flylady who says you can get anything done in 15 minutes or less... or something like that. It takes us scatterbrain types at least 15 minutes just to figure out what we're doing - and then another 15 to get some steam up. By 45 minutes, we're really making headway. But not me today. I was the Little Engine that Could, constantly going up hill.

Life is slow going when you have a baby in your arms all. day. long. But we managed to get the downstairs clean, make dinner and get most of school done. I even got a shower and got dressed - just as Daddy was coming home from work.

But hey - I'm not complaining. I'm smitten. I'm sure you can't tell by how many times I have used the word CUTE in the past 4.5 months. I should be on Google's First Page for the keyword 'cute' by now fer shur.

Anyway, I have no time to post. I'm due upstairs - a date with my pillow and the snuggle-bunny in the photo above. So I'm leaving you a link ...

... check out my Tuesday Tour post over at The Homeschool Post. There are some neat links on it. You know you can't resist. Go ahead... click that link.

Nitey nite.

Your Ad Here!

ADS ARE NOT DIRTY

Advertising is a way of life. You like certain things better than others. You tell your friends about the stuff you love. "WOW! Where did you get that purse?!!" It happens whether you get paid for it or not, right? As long as you aren't lying to sell a product, advertising is a great way to pass along the stuff you enjoy and share a part of yourself that might not get covered in a blog post.

Don't judge me because I allow ads on my site. Just know that anything I link here is something I would read, use, or share! If I don't like it, it's NOT going to find space on Sprittibee's blog. Even down to the colors on my template!


WHAT KIND OF ADS DO YOU DO?

I have run all sorts of ads on my site. I've done reviews that were for product, reviews that I did for free just because I liked a product - even though I purchased it myself, and reviews for money (only on products I liked). I've done contests and give-aways. I've partnered with other bloggers to give things away. I've done paid text links, link exchanges, charity links for non-profits, and BlogHer ads in my sidebar. I've been an Amazon, TOS, and Vision Forum associate. I even had a Netflix affiliation at one point, but gave it up because all my friends got Netflix, but didn't use my link! For shame!

I think every blogger hopes that her/his blog will be a profitable one. A passionate blogger is going to blog whether they get rewarded for blogging or not. My opinion is that: as long as you are being honest, only giving honest opinions, there's no reason why you shouldn't accept ads or review opportunities. Pat yourself on the back for all your time, passion and effort. And pat others on the back by using your revenues (if you get any worth writing home about) to buy blessings to return to your readers!

Also... be frank with the company who is sending the product: "If I hate your stuff, I will return it and not post about it."

That's my motto, anyway.



(This is the size of a 125x125 pixel ad box.)

THE STUFF I 'RECOMMEND'

My little 125x125 box ads will never lead you astray. They are wholesome, good places and things. Some are paid ads, some are free ones. Just because. If you want to advertise there; let me know. I'll shoot you a reasonable and current rate based on my latest weekly traffic report. I'll link back to your web page - or whatever page you want (as long as I approve of the site/product).


THE AUDIENCE

I blog about a wide variety of stuff. You can read more about it on my "What Do You Blog About" post. I'd probably guess that my main audience are homeschool mothers, parents, Christian moms, conservative tax-paying citizens, Texans. However, I'm sure that not all the people who stop here are exactly the same. Many might not fit in to any of those categories. You just never know when you blog about so many topics.


THE NUMBERS

I used to keep up with stats, ecosystems, technorati, and such; but it really took the joy out of my blogging. I started becoming a numbers blogger. It wasn't happy any more.

I get a lot of emails from people wanting to know (before they send me some sort of sample of a product or request for a review) how many readers do you have? I can understand their reasons for asking. So I do keep up with my feed and email subscriptions (the number is available on my sidebar). I also get an email from my stat-counter once a week to let me know a general average for my hits. I don't check stats. Rarely I will go in to see what types of Google searches are drawing in the visitors... but for the most part, I stay away from the numbers. They don't tell me anything I need to know... and they remind me of the bathroom scale too much.

What I want to know is whether YOU are enjoying my posts. That only happens in comments. Because life is busy (especially for homeschool moms), I treasure your comments. I know you didn't have time to leave one... but you chose to do it anyway. I know that only 5 out of 100 people will stop to leave a note, so I try and respond to each and every one. HINT: PLEASE leave your email address as I respond mostly OFF-BLOG because it's easier to email than log in here to respond individually.

I hate that I can't respond to everyone, but I do my best because I'm a person. Not a blog. And I know you are, too.

Thus brings me back to the ads...


IF YOU READ MY BLOG AND WONDER WHY I ADVERTISE...

I used to blog entirely out of the goodness of my heart. But after a year or two, without reward, blogging became the 'thing that took me away' from the hubby and kids. They likened it to a video game addiction (mainly to rebut the fact that they had one and I was griping about it). That didn't set well with me.

So rather than give up blogging, I took on ads. Yep. I did a few reviews, I did a few give-aways, I ran a contest or two, I added a few paid links to my site. These things brought in products to our home that we wanted - that were not in the budget. Good products. Fun products. It also brought in a few dollars to buy groceries and sometimes keep the checkbook out of the red. Not bad for the work I originally was doing for free, right?!

Well, my husband and kids certainly were impressed. When I got that free iPod in 2006 they quit bugging me about my blog time. I just waved the pink iPod at them and said - "Mommy is at WORK." They went back to their video games, I got some peace and quiet. We suddenly became able to itemize our tax returns and say we were 'self-employed'. No longer could Daddy and kids point the finger of 'addiction' at mommy during computer time. She was doing official business... even if she was getting paid less than someone flipping burgers at McDonald's.

My blog is my ministry - my way of sharing and encouraging other moms out there. With or without ads, I would be writing and sharing the same things. Ads only help me to share what I love with you while giving back to my family. That's a win-win situation in my book.


IN A NUTSHELL:

* I don't give away, link to, or review items/services/sites that I would not use or don't like.

* Ads provide my family with incentives to allow mommy to spend some time on the computer without distraction each week - this is good for EVERYONE. Cuz when mommy ain't happy, ain't nobody happy.

What I Love More than Blogging

So many of my good friends are all at BlogHer in Chicago this week. I really wanted to be there. Just look what Target* missed out on sponsoring! A nursing mom that didn't get out of her jammies until after five PM and couldn't find time to even join the non-conference blog parties going on during BlogHer. I bet they are sorry they didn't fork over money for my air fare now! I'm just the picture of high class PR. Let me tell ya.

*I updated this post Saturday with a picture to show that there's no hard feelings (look, Target - you're in the background! Still not too late to sponsor me for New York!).

I tend to over-complicate things, too. Like the house cleaning. I scrubbed my bathrooms today before my cousin dropped her kids off for the weekend - as if a seven and five year old really care how shiny my sinks are. I've been holding out on a blog post for the very same reason. I don't like posting without pretty photos and graphics. But I'm doing good to get dressed and brush my teeth lately with baby around. So tonight you are getting the iPod version of Sprittibee.

God is working on me. I may not be at BlogHer or have pictures on this post because He's reordering my priorities. Stranger things have happened.

I still say all those sponsors are missing out on the cutest baby in the galaxy. He would have stolen the entire BlogHer show, I tell you. He has found his little hands and voice... And his baby talk is ridiculously cute. It's cuteness that could end all the wars on earth. It is cuteness that might single-handedly be able to eradicate evil throughout the universe. Tonight the King of Cute had his first taste of applesauce. He's a cherub. Just a perfect little angel.

There will be other blog posts and blog conferences. But there's only one chance for motherhood. Only one first taste of applesauce. And there isn't a more rewarding job than 'mama'. Despite soap scum. Despite dirty diapers and missed naps. Despite missed vacations and sports cars we can't afford because I'm at home helping Daddy raise the children. Despite really super-fun blogging conferences that will go on without me.

Not even blogging can top it.

I heart being mommy.

These Lucky Ladies are Goin' to a Conference!

Courtesy of Random.org, these are my five free ticket winners of the Online Homeschool Conference ticket give-away! Thanks for participating everyone.

Sheri from The Shades of Pink
Michelle of Delightful Learning
Angie aka Mommyp4
Ammie who doesn't have a blog (what's up with that?!)
Shannon of On This Glorious Journey Called Life

Congrats!!!

If you didn't win a ticket - please hop over to their site and purchase one before the online chat room space is bought up! They are inexpensive and you'll be so glad you attended! What a great way to get fired up for the coming school year! I'll see you there!

Homeschool Teacher Talk

Today's random post will begin with... "The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round". Why? Because that's what my kids have been singing to the baby for a few days now, and it is stuck in my head like peanut butter on the roof of my mouth. Morgan drew that cute little picture on Paint one night earlier this week. I just had to share it.

I've been absorbed in a planning mode lately. The first week we had planned to do school didn't happen because we babysat a friend's daughter during her dad's surgery. This week we made some drastic changes to our school schedule for the year that allowed us a bit more "organizational time" instead of academic time: we reclaimed our Mondays for the school year. I had set the schedule up so that all Mondays were half days (which really extended our school year - July '09 through June '10). After meeting with my friend who was going to co-op with me on Mondays, I discovered that the amount of work we'll be putting in for the co-op will be enough to call it a full school day. That means less days of school for us this year; or at least it gives me a lot more leeway as to teacher in-service days I can take for organizing and goal-overviews... and just time to have fun playing hooky with the kids when the weather is perfect.

This week, I've been doing more planning than schooling. So our official back to school breakfast may have already happened, but we're still gearing up for the academic work to begin. After I got our schedule ironed out and our plans for when the year would begin and end - what holidays we were taking off, etc... then came the co-op plans. There's a lot of work to planning a school year. Good thing I find it fun!

In fact, tonight, I think a friend of mine is going to spend the night to stay up late fleshing out history plans from Genesis to Christ. We did American history last year (we covered states and regions and Revolution to the Civil War). We'll be covering Ancient history together with friends every Monday for a few hours and doing reading assignments throughout the week on our own.

Another friend of mine is planning our science and poetry co-op for Fridays. After we get all the details ironed out, I'm going to enter my assignments in to Homeschool Tracker and print assignment lists off for the kids every week. I can't wait to get that all done. Last year we manually entered assignments as we went and I created my own assignment lists. It was too much work and too easy to get behind on. With a baby in the mix, getting behind isn't an option. I have zero free time during the hours everyone is awake now... so I'm hoping our new system will work like clockwork.

The thing we're doing different this year is our school-box system. It is something like the 'workbox system' that I recently discovered online through blogging friends and facebook friends. I tried to do something similar to this back when we were in Arkansas but fell down on the job of keeping ahead of the kids in filling the folders for them every day. There's no way I could use actual boxes in my house for school subjects. My husband would freak out if I used up that much bookshelf space with plastic bins. My school boxes are mere file boxes with hanging file folders. What is similar to the 'workbox system' is that I am going to fill them each day with the next day's work.

We had a lot of trouble last year keeping things where they needed to be. Lots of time was wasted and books were lost. It was a serious hindrance. This year I want the kids have their work ready every morning and their supplies and books handy so they don't have to go looking around the house for things. The books and texts needed for each subject stand neatly behind each folder in their file box. The cool thing about my school box is that it is mobile. I do a lot of on-the-go schooling when we have to get out and about. This way the kids don't have to run around the house gathering things to take with us... we just grab our school box and go.

Today we are working on organizing our school boxes. Eventually, when we're finished tweaking them, I'll share photos and a detailed description of how it works for us. So far we have these folders: Bible, Math, Grammar, Spell/Vocab/Write, Type/Software, History, Science, Art/Photography, Italian/Blogging, Individual Learning, Narration, Piano, Reading, Home Ec & Chores. My problem is that we don't do everything on every day. Blogging, for instance, is once a week for the kids. So it has to fit inside their Italian folder because they do it on Tuesdays during the time period that they normally do Italian. They do Italian three times a week, blogging once. That same time period on Fridays is spent at the park with our local group-co-op or at home doing Science co-op - depending on the week.

The cool thing about homeschooling is that you get to pick your own schedule and curriculum... set your own yearly calendar, and decide what priorities and goals will be accomplished. I hate it when the best plans we have fail, but I love the fact that we can keep learning together despite our failures. My friend Cindy said she likens homeschool teaching to Thomas Edison. We may find a lot of things that don't work... but if we keep trying, we'll eventually find what does. It's all in the attitude.

Now that the children are older and more independent and I know my limitations a lot better, we are giving the school box system another try - with a few twists. I'm looking forward to having them work on their box system with an assignment sheet in hand... and praying that baby won't throw too big a wrench in to our routine. It feels good to start a new year out. We're excited to have friends to keep us accountable in History, Science and Poetry, too.

This school year is going to be great!

School Planning Stage 2: Your Binder and Forms

I told you that I had begun my school planning, right? Well now we're in to "PHASE II". Phase I was just closing up loose ends and getting things ready to plan. Phase II is just a fancy way of saying that things are moving right along. Stick with me... and you'll find a way to win 3 blank planning forms at the end of this post! Not just any planning forms... Sprittibee originals!

You see, I'm a list and planning nut. An "Org-Junkie" just like the real OrgJunkie. I am just obviously more challenged than her. Or less gifted. I like to see things with the glass half-empty.

Anyway... I won the TOS planner. And it is great. There are already a bunch of reviews on the planner, so I'll lead you to one I particularly liked... over at Shannon's blog.

There are some GREAT forms in the TOS planner. And recipes. Recipes are always a BIG PLUS for a cookbook junkie like me. I'm just a junkie. Have you noticed that I tell you something new is my favorite thing every day? I think they call that OCD. Not sure. This is a tangent, sorry...

Back to the plannerish stuff.

Here's what I love about the TOS planner:

1. HOLY COW that's a lot of good stuff in there. Over 300 pages. Saves you a ton of time, but who has the money or ink to print it? Not me. I picked and chose what I needed and left the rest neatly tucked away on my hard drive for a rainy day. And Lord knows we need the rain.

2. It isn't just a planner. It's a brain. It's smarter than you are. Lists of inventors, artists, time-periods, landforms, etc. It has some great unit studies tucked in there and lots of links to more helpful products in their store for each topic. Talk about saving you time! I'm going to use the artists and history timeline lists ALL YEAR. They are going in our school planners.

3. I used their monthly menu planner form already. Great idea!

4. For those in co-ops with the job of field trip planning, there's a nifty form for that. There's even a beginning and ending school page for weight, height, and a cute photo. They thought of everything.

5. Did I mention the recipes? Food is good for you.

6. Prayer list form. Can I just say, "THANK YOU" for making this for me so I don't have to?! This will be a weekly or monthly print-out for their school binders. It makes it official so the kids will be more apt to remember their friends and family in prayer.

I actually threw out my old method of buying a teacher planner this year and am using their monthly big-box calendar insert pages (month-at-a-glance) to do my lesson planning drafts. I also trimmed my big-fat-I-can't-believe-you-carry-that-thing-everywhere binder down, too. If you are using my old binder method, I'm here to set you free: YOU GOTTA LET GO of some of that paper clutter, baby. It was too much. I went from a 7-ring (barely exaggerating there), popping open and stuffed papers falling out, with extra teacher planner notebook ... to a 3 ring binder. 'Simplify' is my word for the school year.

However much as I love the groovy TOS Planner (because they are saving me time this school year), there are a few forms that I make for myself each year. Because I can. And because I am a form and list junkie (I already told you that). I heart Excel and Word. In a past life, I had a love affair with Microsoft Office. Some things are hard to get over. And just for the record, I hate Vista. If you follow me on Twitter, you'll already know that.

So... here's a quick-list of Stage 2 Planning:

* Get your School Binder and kids school binders together (post coming later this week of what's inside mine)

* Make your list of what you have left to do before school begins

* Start printing the forms that fill up the binders (lists, goals, calendars, menus, reference papers, rubrics, charts, etc.)

* Make a schedule of what you want to teach during your day and when

* Get together with co-op friends to discuss planning for the year

* Figure out what days will be school days next year (make your yearly calendar)

That's where I'm at now. The general overview of the year is coming in to focus. The details about what we'll be learning is my next step. Each step is fun, but different.



Are you wanting to start planning now, too? I'm doing a twitter contest to give away three home-made planning forms. They are: A Daily Schedule, a Yearly Unit Study or Year-at-a-Glance Planner, and an Annual Evaluation Form for the student. Every tenth person that tweets the below statement will win a set of forms for free!

@sprittibee is giving away 3 free planner forms for 2009-10 to every 10th RT. http://bit.ly/xNjNN #homeschool #teacher

You know you want'em!




Subscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: teacher, lesson planning, teaching, homeschool, parenting, forms, motherhood, planner, printables, printouts, templates, kids, lists, homeschooling, binders, school, preparing, school year, resources

Blessed Friday with Fotos

There's no field trip to speak of today. No big school update. I just have some photos that I wanted to share because I'm feeling extra blessed lately. Look at those cuties!

Our first week back to school wasn't really that at all. I ended up doing some babysitting and the kids got some last minute pool time in (and a second degree sunburn for Kaden - ouch!). We also have seen family members that stopped in to spend a day, and I spent WAY too much time organizing my online book store last night. I put hundreds of books in categories to make them easier to find. Go check it out!

My cup has been flowing over. God has been giving me a time of refreshing. To top it off, I think it might rain soon! We certainly need rain on this crispy land. I love my kids and I am so happy to be able to be with them and teach them. I'm thankful for my sweet husband who puts up with the chaos around here, and for my awesome mother who is my biggest cheerleader and such a major help to me when she's here during the week.



I am also thankful for these sweet cheeks and all this baby squishiness to cuddle and kiss on. Baby K got his first rice cereal dinner last night to celebrate his 4 month birthday (which is today). He ate it up like a baby birdie; almost ate his fingers along with it.

And can you believe how growed-up and handsome that big guy up top is? I hate to see him getting older - and can't imagine him with a cracking teenage boy voice... which could come at any time since he'll be 13 in less than a year! I'm so proud of him. He's a great guy, a sweet big brother, and has a huge heart. He even does diapers!

What are you thankful for?



Subscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: boys, blessings, family, homeschool, parenting, baby, motherhood, inspiration, thankful, sweet, brothers, kids, mommy, photography, children, love, mom, infant, SAHM

About Our Bookstore

I heart books. Don't you? Any homeschooler will tell you that books are the backbone of a home education. If you learn to read well, the world is your oyster. You can teach almost any subject with just good books... including spelling, vocabulary and grammar!

Because I love books and love to keep lists, I keep a book list each year of all the books we read for school. To read these lists, click the "Homeschool Link" on my sidebar and it will take you to a post that contains a detailed year-by-year, grade-by-grade list of our homeschool posts (each year there is a book list you can click). We have from Pre-K through 7th Grade (plus a bunch of books that are adult-level reading). I have most of the books the kids have read listed on this site.

I have marked our favorite books on our lists, but I wanted to do more... so that we can purchase favorites as we have the money, and so that we can share them with our readers.

So... I created an Amazon store! I went in and spent an hour or so picking all the favorites we have had over the years (the ones we could find, anyway). Now you can go purchase the books if you are interested in them - without having to do a huge search online.

I have quite a few books listed already and we are adding to our favorites all the time. They are listed in these categories:

Homeschool Helps
Baby and Preschool
Picture Books
Devotionals
Chapter Books
History & Famous People
Science and Nature
Poetry
Just for Fun
Mom Books
Cat Books
Geography
Movies

If you want to check out our beloved books, you can click the "bookstore" at the top of my blog. When you hover over it, you'll see my bookworm appear.

As a present to the kids, if you buy a book in our store, my children get a few pennies towards a new book for our home library! So far, in the past 4 years of blogging, we have only gotten 2 or 3 free books because I've been too lazy to take the time and link them in my blog. Now I have remedied that and ALL of our favorites will be just a click away! I'm not trying to sell you books, I just want to share our joy. Cuz we love 'em. And no - no author is paying us to tell you about our favorite books. Just in case you wondered.

Thank you in advance if you buy something at Amazon through our little book store (even if you click on a book and end up buying a separate item, I think our affiliate link will give us credit for the sale). In this economy and on one income, every penny helps!

Happy browsing and reading!




Subscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: books, reading, teaching, homeschool, parenting, read, motherhood, inspiration, Amazon, family, favorites, kids, mommy, homeschooling, summer reading, school, mom, school year, resources

Online Homeschool Conference Ticket Give-Away!

This has been the year of the conference for me. I’ve been to THREE so far… and am planning on attending another one before the summer is out. I need all the pep talks I can get after enduring our worst year ever last year. At the two conferences I have attended in the real world so far, I spent more of the time in a nursing room than I did listening to speakers. Even when I don't have a baby in the mix, I usually don’t have the energy to attend BOTH days at any conference. While conferences are sooo worth it, you have to admit that giving up a weekend, traveling, and dragging kids or babies out in the heat and away from home is a hassle.

Then came Heart of the Matter's online conferences. I spoke for them last year about homeschool burnout (something I was living through last year) and blogging (something I love). It was an entirely NEW experience. Then, this year I attended the ‘A Woman Inspired’ online conference. Boy, that was awesome. Just the spiritual kick I needed after feeling drained with no time for Bible study or me after baby was born this spring. I needed the spiritual encouragement and learned a lot about social networking and my digital camera in the process. HOTM's Homeschool Conference and AWI both lasted a number of days – all of which I had the option of attending without spending any gas money, packing a diaper bag, or getting out of my pajamas!

Going to book fairs with babies isn’t an easy task. Neither is driving half-way across Texas to attend a conference in another city. The next conference I was considering attending was the one in Houston at the Woodlands. I dread that drive. It’s much easier to sit at home and nurse the baby in front of the computer as I listen to the online speaker talk.

How would you like to attend a HOME-conference? To have famous speakers lined up to talk in your own living room… folks like Andrew Pudewa, Sue Patrick, Linda Hobar, Lee Binz, Sheila Wray Gregoire, etc. Wouldn’t that be cool?

I know you know where I’m going with this!

YOU CAN!

The Heart of the Matter Online Magazine is having a Parenting & Home Education Conference August 3-7 2009...

...and I’m giving away FIVE free admission tickets.

Here’s how you can win a free ticket (leave a separate comment for each thing you do):

1. Comment here and tell me why you want to attend the conference.
2. Add yourself to my Google Friend Connect box.
3. Follow me on Twitter.
4. Follow me on Facebook.
5. Tweet about this contest and leave me the url of your tweet.
6. Tell about this contest (with a link) on your Facebook page and leave me a link.
7. Subscribe to my email updates or feed (see the sidebar or the bottom of this post).
8. Blog about this post linking both the url of this post and the conference info in your post.
9. Put my Sprittibee button in your sidebar.
10. Bookmark this post with Stumble or another page bookmarking site.

You have until 7/21/09 at midnight to enter (each of those items in a separate comment counts as one entry). Random.org will pick a winner for me and I'll post it here on Sprittibee.com on Thursday, the 23rd. HOTM will then contact you with instructions on how to log in to the conference in August!

*Don't just join here. The Homeschool Post is also giving away 5 free admissions!*

Don’t want to wait until next week to find out who won the contest? Want to make sure you get registered for one of the 1,000 spots NOW? The cost is only $12.95.

(If you missed last year’s conference, you can pick up the handouts, chat logs, and MP3s for only 9.95$, too!)

Wanna join me? Hope to ‘see’ you there!




Subscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: conference, online, teaching, homeschool, parenting, give away, motherhood, inspiration, encouragement, family, baby, kids, mommy, homeschooling, summer, tickets, mom, school year, freebies

Even Girls can Shoot

Home or the range? That was the question at about 7:30 AM this Saturday morning.

I actually left my child to go to the shooting range this past Saturday. Well, I left two of them at home and took one with me. It was no problem leaving the 12 year old boy with grandma... but the 4 month old was another story. My stomach was in knots. I haven't been away from him for more than 30 minutes since he's been born... especially since I'm breastfeeding. I just knew he would wake up the second we drove out of the driveway.

And he did. So grandma said.

You see, Kaden and Daddy got to go last weekend to the range by themselves. It was only fair that Morgan and I got to go this time. We got up really early and tried to be as quiet as we could, so as not to wake the little bumblebee sleeping on mommy's side of the bed. He was totally unaware that his milk supply was slipping out the garage door.

Morgan was afraid to pick the gun up at first.



So Daddy gave us a quick gun safety lesson. And some nifty ear muffs and safety goggles. Morgan rented shades, so she looked cool.



I didn't. Which is why you won't see my picture in this post. And because Daddy took a shot of ME shooting from behind. I swear my butt must have been photoshopped in, because it looked a lot larger than it could be in real life. I told him to delete his pictures and keep his day job. Or else.

After the first shot, Morgan fired a few more times on the 9 millimeter. Then she decided it had too much kick for her. Hey - she's only 10. Give her a break. My arms got kind-of tired after a while, too.



A nice feller shooting next to us offered to let her borrow his 22 target practice pistol. Both of us shot that one off a few times and liked it much better. It might be a sissy gun, but I'm sure a 22 would still give a robber something to think twice about. I know Morgan's orange man was definitely dead when she was done with him.

One of the owners of the shooting range asked her, "What did that orange man ever do to you?"

While we were there grandma called twice to let us know that Baby K had figured out we were gone. More specifically that MOMMY was gone. We stayed only an hour, because we had to get home to the little critter.

Even if it was short, we had fun doing something with Daddy. I'm looking forward to having it as one of our extra curricular activities this year. I'm excited that it will be a 'class' that Dad will be teaching. I'm also planning to do a little extra-curricular class with a different kind of shooting: photography!

Ignore these photos. They were taken with my iPhone. Silly, lazy me. I ran off and forgot the Canon again.

Morgan was thrilled to show her brother the targets we brought home from the range. Even girls can shoot! He was impressed. Well - the big brother was impressed.



The little brother, not so much. Maybe he'll come around when he gets a little older. For now he's only interested in his milk.

(By the way, don't tell my mother I posted this picture of her. She'll kill me.)



Subscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: shooting, guns, teaching, homeschool, parenting, life, personal, handgun, shooting range, family, baby, kids, mommy, homeschooling, summer, motherhood, mom, school year, plans

The Winner of the STUFF!

I swear I didn't rig it. Just cuz I know the purdy lady that won this, doesn't mean I cheated. I promise. Blame it on the Random.org number generator if you have a complaint.

The contest is over... if you missed it, there will be another one next week. Only next time I'll be giving away 5 tickets to an online conference... and maybe something else, too. It's all in the works behind the scenes. I try and give away something each week... or at least once a month for sure. Sometimes it's expensive things - like Kodak printers, sometimes really simple things - like hand-picked Texas wild-flower seeds. You just never know what's up my sleeve.

For the 50$ Free Stuff contest, the winner is:



Beth of The Brew*Crew Adventure!

Thanks so much for playing everyone! Please give her a hand in the comment section... and do tell us what you got with your 50$, Beth! Inquiring minds wanna know!

School Planning for 2009

Well, it's THAT time of year again. I'm itching to fire up the pencil sharpener and stretch out on the King-sized bed with the kids to read a good book. Sure, they have been reading on their own during the time off we took (our summer started early out of necessity - maternity leave). Because friends don't let friends homeschool on hormone overload. We're starting school back up next week after about 3 months off (minus a few weeks of school that were strung out haphazardly from April through June). That's what I call a 'fizzled out' year. Hopefully THIS year will start and end with a BANG. Being more specific, in case God has a lightning storm in mind, what I mean by BANG is FUN and SUCCESS... because I'd rather keep my 8 years-worth of photos backed up on an external hard-drive. Bang could mean a lot of things that are very educational and yet completely contrary to our desires as homeschool parents, ya-know?

You laugh at me for being specific, but there was that one year I prayed to get out of debt and get rid of our car note... and God sent. a. flood. That's one way to get out of a car note, for sure! I wouldn't recommend it to the faint of heart. God is more creative than you give Him credit for. I was instantly cured of obscure and generic prayers. For good, people.

To get ready for school, there are projects that needed to be done FIRST:

School closet organized (check)

Bookcases straightened (check)

Book lists and reading goals made (check)

Portfolios finished (we have only one year's worth of school left to binderize)

Last year's paperwork finalized

Read through 'The Organized Homeschooler' again (started...)

Report cards printed

School boxes cleaned out (check)

Schedule written out (check)

Generic monthly menu plan created - to keep us out of the drive-thru lanes! (check)

Planning for the year (In progress...)

Evaluations and goals/heart-to-heart discussion (check)

Notebooks, workboxes and supplies in order

Curriculum list made out to show what we want to cover

Annual back to school breakfast (check)

We've been working away at our list up there and are hoping to come to a close and get started on school this coming Monday. It will be interesting to see how God works things out with a baby in the mix. You notice that I said "GOD works things out" (heavy on the capital G) - because I know that with Him, 'all things are possible'. With me, I assume at some point there will be a meltdown and I'll be crying in the closet like a sniveling ninny. So I'm planning to wear my knees out this school year (like I should have been doing last year). Hello?! You'd think a girl would learn.

Have I ever mentioned that I'm HARD-HEADED? I give great advice, and yet can't follow it. Story of my life.

Truthfully, last year was our worst school year ever. E.V.E.R. If it weren't for reading Clay and Sally Clarkson's "Educating the WholeHearted Child" and starting Robin Sampson's "Heart of Wisdom Teaching Approach", I might not have a homeschooling blog to speak about any more. I'm sure that there were prayers from friends and family that were answered as well. My mom helped me out some when I was in nervous-breakdown mode, also. She's a keeper. We had a few of those "I'm going to set you on the curb for the school-bus" talks. Or rather, yells. It wasn't pretty. And with pregnancy hormones and the desperate need for naps... mom was a walking time-bomb. Sadly, I was pregnant the entire school year. What a learning experience for the kids, eh? They now have "How Not To Homeschool 101" covered.



The past few months have been detox. Lots of fun with friends, free reading and drawing, time to play and learn on the computer... and - as the kids would tell you - unfortunately, CHORES. We've been working on finding a household groove - a routine - that fits baby in to our life without allowing him to take up our entire day with leaking poopy daipers and nursing sessions. The kid has to learn that there are other priorities around here. Up until now he's been calling all of the shots.



It wasn't until very recently (he'll be 4 months old on the 17th) that he started to show some sign of a nap and sleep schedule. PRAISE GOD. I'm weeping for joy.

So now the fun begins... a new year... a new schedule... a new baby... even MOM is getting a homeschooled edu-ma-cation!

I feel like God has been giving me little gifts along the way as I struggled to keep my heart in the whole homeschooling movement. I know that He is in the driver's seat. There have been sweet comments made about my kids, homeschool book fair conference pep-sessions I needed to hear, friends that have shared with me about public school issues they have had - kids that are behind grade level and forced to be on meds, and much support from family (especially my husband and mom). The day I decided to start school planning again and start the school year early - I won the TOS Schoolhouse Planner on a blog contest! Now I have a stack of shiny new planner forms, recipes, charts and goodies on my desk to make my planning easier. A few of my friends have offered to do some co-oping with me on certain units this year. Seems like all green lights and rights.

Just like a kid with a stack of brand new supplies - sharpened pencils and un-opened books - I'm thrilling at the prospect of 2009-10 unfolding before us. That's the sign of God restoring my homeschool passion... which is a very, very good thing. I've survived the first half of my children's home-education! Survived a nervous breakdown and the birth of a 9.4 lb. baby coming out with his arm beside his head (sorry for the visual). And it wasn't all that bad after all. OK, maybe the labor and delivery were.

Bring on the 6th and 7th Grades, baby! Hopefully by Monday, we'll be ready!




Subscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: school, thoughts, teaching, homeschool, parenting, life, personal, planning, babies, family, SAHM, kids, mommy, homeschooling, summer, motherhood, mom, school year, plans

Smacking of Arrogance

This comic in the Austin paper made me want to go turn every stinkin' halogen light in my house on. I resisted for the sake of my energy bill.

Meanwhile, down the street, despite a surplus, gas went up another ten cents.

Another year goes by and we hunker down - prepared to keep both of our vehicles when they are paid off soon... no new cars for us. I'll be driving mine until the bolts rust and the doors fall off.

We'll need the car note money to pay for the gas price increase and cost of living increase. In case you hadn't noticed, all the goods in the country are more expensive since gas has made the price of transport and shipping go up. Don't know about you, but are you suffering at the grocery store lately? Remember a day when you didn't HAVE to clip coupons?

How these stupid light bulbs and cap & trade taxes are going to help the economy, no-body knows. Sorry, but the economy is a bit more important to me than some rare albino salamander in the Edward's Aquifer. Or the doomsdayist global warming alarmism (that's an incomplete sentence ON PURPOSE). Not to say I don't love nature, I do... but using nature as a tool to suck the food off of my table with extra taxes is just low-down and dirty politics. It's the thing that revolutions are made of. Tea and taxes. Government growing too big for their breeches.

I say 'keep your ugly, unnatural, blue light bulbs and your fingers out of my wallet'.

Let the American people alone so we can get on with the business of living - free from tyranny and oppression... free from insatiable, corrupt Government greed.

That is all.

Sorry for the soap box. I need to get on one at least once every five or six months. Consider yourself lathered.

Subscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: energy, Obama, conservative, economy, taxes, gasoline, America, oil, cost of living, freedom, arrogance, recession, economic crisis, transportation, issues, life, families, money, opinion

"I Wish Life Was Simple" Woman's Daybook

The last time I did a Simple Woman's Journal was a month before I delivered my son. I was huge and miserable! I got a kick out of going back through my answers on that day. Here are today's journal notes...

The view from where I sit ... a nursing baby on a boppy (love the little click of swallowed milk) whose fingernails need clipping, piles of paperwork on my desk - screaming at me without a sound, a cold mug of ice water, my digital Photoshop book by Scott Kelby (can't wait to read it), loads of laundry waiting for us to wash-dry-sort-fold and put away...

Outside My Window... Blue skies and blistering heat. Yesterday it was 105. I'm beginning to wonder if the rain will ever come. We are all certainly praying for it.

I am thinking... of all the gazillion things I have to get done if I want to start school this week. Which is why I'm blogging. I tend to blog and avoid starting a project when it overwhelms me. Maybe that's why I've been blogging for four years. Normal life overwhelms me. Ha!

I am thankful for... the freedom to homeschool, freedom of speech, the freedom to worship and pray without government sanctions or interference, the friends I've made online, air conditioning (can't live in Texas without it)...

We are learning... about taking care of a baby, mostly. The kids have gotten a hands-on education in the past few months. They are begging me to start school back up. Morgan actually cried this morning when I told her I wasn't ready!

From the kitchen... Needing to make a menu (as usual). We've been in a mesquite grilled fish mode lately (cooked it for friends last night). I have no idea what's for dinner... and hopefully that doesn't mean we're having fast food!

I am wearing... jeans and one of my two Old Navy striped shirts that I always wear (this one is greys and white, the other one is reds and oranges). I probably SHOULD be wearing my shoes, too. I've heard that it makes you get more work done (Flylady.net).

I am creating... a mural on the baby's and Morgan's wall. The only thing left to add is the owl.

I am going... crazy. My kids would tell you I've always been there.

I am reading... The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian, The Heart of Wisdom Teaching Approach (Robin Sampson), and my Bible.

As for homeschooling books... We're getting our book lists made for the school year and we'll be starting a new chapter book together for school soon. Not sure, but it might be The Cat of Bubastes by Henty, Mara Daughter of the Nile or The Golden Goblet - both by Eloise Jarvis McGraw (winner of the Newberry Honor).

I am hoping... that our financial stresses will melt away. I always get uptight on bill-paying day (which is why I'm in here blogging instead of doing the checkbook right now).

I am hearing... the washer, the dryer, the voices of unhappy children doing chores, and a babbling baby who's now chewing on his Cracker Barrel bunny in his play pen.

Around the house... there is much to be done and it doesn't seem like the kids are as anxious to get it done as I am. Clean houses are my favorite.

One of my favorite things... chocolate chip cookies (Morgan baked me some this morning). Mmmm! Chocolate chip cookies are my favorite!

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week: Blog, pay bills, get school planned and started, tackle the to-do list, finish the mural, start learning how to Photoshop. Photoshop is my favorite.

Here is picture thought I am sharing...


Sorry. Another iPhone pic. Man, I need to get the Canon out and go take some real pictures! This one was of me and my honey at Red Robin burgers on July 4th. Nothing says American like a cheeseburger. Cheeseburgers are my favorite.

Subscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: memes, thoughts, daybook, simple, women, life, personal, journaling, babies, family, SAHM, kids, mommy, homeschooling, blessings, motherhood, mom, bills, plans

My Blogroll

My spine may never be straight again after hunching over my desk in the dark until 2:28AM to type out this list. I'm not even going to hope that it is complete or updated - even though I typed it just now. I love too many invisible people. I hope you grow to love them, too.

If you are a reader here and would like to join my blogroll page, let me know. If you catch a dead link or a blog that has been shut down on this list (heaven forbid that twitter kills off all my favorite blogs), let me know.

!! Also see my Button Page !! I may have some blogs there that aren't listed here! Especially NEWer blogs or ones I discovered more recently. I love a good blog button!

These aren't in any order, nor are they sorted in any way. I just dumped my old lists and mingled them all together in a lump so I wouldn't lose them. As I get time, I'll come in here and clean this list up. I've been blogging so long that a few of them may lead you to a virtual black hole. You just never can be too sure!

Otherwise, here are 'those that admit to reading my site from time to time' and 'blog gems I have discovered over the years':

The Homeschool Post
Gathering Manna - a recipe blog
Momomimic (my son)
Mees-Alees (my daughter)
Gooblink
My Home Sweet Home
Bunny Trails
Holy Experience
Pollywog Creek
Life with My 3 Boybarians
Robin of Heart of Wisdom
Work of Heart and Soul
Sheila of To Love, Honor, and Vacuum
The Brew*Crew Adventure
From the Rubber Room
Gremlin Wrangler
Kelly of Wisdom Begun
LJC
Wifely Steps
About Homeschooling
Growing in Grace Magazine
Ambleside Classical
Heart of the Matter
Spunky Homeschool
Beth of Pages of Our Life
Smockity Frocks
Renae of Life Nurturing Education
Amy S of Milk & Cookies
Amy B of amybayliss.com
Marsha of Our Homeschool Happenings
Lori of All You Have to Give
Nikowa of Knowledge House Academy
Mandy of MandyMom.com
Sallie of Everyday Me
Bev of Pufferfish Diaries
Jacque Dixon of Walking Therein
Kellie Ann The Pirate Mom
Simply A Musing
Design Chicky
Antique Mommy
Boo Mama
Big Mama
Simple Mom
Fiddledeedee
Robin of Pensieve
Sister Lisa of Apples of Gold
Like a Warm Cup of Coffee
The Crafty Crow
Why Homeschool
Common Room
Shades of Pink
Jack Lewis
Semicolon
Dana of Principled Discovery
School @ Home
Rhonda Mom of 2
Grown at Home
Floresita
All Sorts
Heather Bailey
A Dollop of Sour Cream
Dandelion Seeds
Funny Movie Reviews
Big White Hat
Veerle's Blog
Ward-O-Matic
Homeschool Buzz's Blogwatch
Farmgirl Fare
Sparkling Adventures in Australia
Like Paper Lanterns
The Curriculum Choice
Smooth Stones Academy
A Dusty Frame
Life in a Shoe
Lil' Duck Duck
Jasmine Star Photography Blog
Biblical Womanhood
Valerie of Homeschooling with Encouragement
Bluebird Blogs
Girl Talk
Owlhaven
Save the Kittens
Rocks in my Dryer
Trivium Academy
Mama Says...
All Sorts
Everyday Mommy
Texas Homeschoolers
The Purl Bee
Robot Jumping Rope
The Savvy Organizer
The Pioneer Woman - Photography
Higher Up and Further In
The Daily Planet
A Pondering Heart
The Milk & Honey Tea Room
On the Road to Manhood
Maiden in Training
Dawn's PhotoBlog
Sweet Juniper - Detroit Photostream
Texas Home Educators
Nesting Place
The Pleated Poppy
My Wooden Spoon
Blogging from the Boonies
A Peaceful Day
My Quivers Full
Joyfully Feminine


Because I know it is bound to have happened, here's your apology ahead of time: "I'm so ashamed that I forgot you. Please forgive me." There. That's out of the way now. Please, let's still be friends anyway!

... not listed up there and want to be? If you comment here and are interested in adding your blog to my list, just let me know (click the contact link above my header).

4th of July: Pink, Orange, White and Brown?

What to do on 4th of July weekend: fireworks, swimming, camping, grilling, and eating of yummy American foods.

What NOT to do on 4th of July weekend: Buy clearance rack hair color, let non-licensed crazy cousin foil you some 'highlights', go to church with pink-white-orange-&-brown hair.

Even when I really WAS a punk-rocker, I never dyed my hair. I was always too chicken. I once bought a bottle of WASH-OUT burgundy red ...only to have it stay for 3 months - while I was working at a Pizza Hut and my uniform was the same color. I was mortified. That was the END of my hair dying feats.

Until Kevin. My man can do a mean highlight kit. Twice he has done my hair - very mildly highlighting and always cautious.

But I wanted to get in on the fun yesterday while my cousin was over. My mom wanted her hair frosted, so I figured we would both do them at the same time. Guess I should have known when the dye bottle turned bright neon pink that things were off on the wrong foot. Granted, the dye was cheap and my cousin did her best with my tender-headed whining self.

I'm just glad that most of the pink washed out. Hubby and son have taken to calling me "Pinkie on the Brain". Facebook friends are sending me pictures of Cindy Lauper. My daughter now officially thinks I'm 'cool'. Things could be worse, I guess. The entire of my head could have turned out bright pink. Or all of my hair could have fallen out.

So I'm heading out tonight to go see some fireworks and hoping that even in the dark, my hair won't be brighter than what's crackin' and poppin in the night sky.

ubscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: crazy, kids, summer, fun, children, life, parenting, photos, Wordless Wednesday, funny, happy, personal, photography, pictures, silly

50$ Free STUFF Give-Away

FREE STUFF:

I talked some about bookcases on my last post, but I'm certainly not giving away book cases (Unless you consider this a bookcase: Wood Designs - Book Display Rack). I just wanted you guys to know that the store I'm giving stuff away from HAS book cases... and if I were to BUY something there, that's what I would get. My owl nursery is needing a book case right about now... so I have book cases on the BRAIN. Instead of book cases, I'm giving away STUFF.

"What's STUFF?" you say. Well, that's really the only difficult thing to explain about this give-away. You see, there are very few things that this online store doesn't have... they might even have kitchen sinks if you look long enough. I scrolled through half of their children's furniture (and stuff) store until my eyes dried out and got bloodshot. I kept getting more and more amazed at all the groovy name brands and neat THINGS there were. I think I got the raw end of the stick here - YOU get the toys and goods, and I don't!

What kind of stuff do they have at http://www.allchildrensfurniture.com?

diaper bags
rugs
bedding
window treatments
lamps
high chairs
mobiles
book cases
toys
toddler beds
cribs
car seats
wall art
stuffed animals
picture frames
strollers
benches
wall-paper border
stools
bikes
baby carriers
coat racks
tables
remote controlled helicopters
dressers
night stands
toy boxes
doll houses
backpacks
storage bins
bookends (had to link that one - it was too cute!)

That's a lot of stuff!!!

Next time they ask me to do a give-away, I'm going to hold out for some toddler toys or a snazzy new diaper bag. I'm telling you, these people have got their STUFF ON!

Take for instance these items:



What do they have in common? All of them are under 50$! Some of them are closer to 25$! If you win my contest, you can get as many items as you want with the 50$ as long as you don't go OVER $50!

Shown in the photo above:

Little Tikes-Cozy Coupe 30th Anniversary Ride-On (regular 94.98, on sale for 49.99$... one penny under the 50$ free prize limit!)

Lambs & Ivy - Bubbles Decorative Starfish Pillows ($23.77)

Learning Carpets - Marble Game Kids Game Rug ($49.99) Cool! That is so what my kids would beg me to get if I could win!

Melissa and Doug - Shape Sorting Cube Toy ($12.99) ...can't have enough blocks for motor development!


I WANT TO WIN:

To get the logistics of the contest out of the way, here's how you can win:

All entrants must leave a comment for each of the following things individually that they do. Each thing counts as one separate entry. All entries must be received by Friday, July 10th. A random winner will be chosen and winner will be announced Saturday, July 11th.

1. VISIT THEIR SITE: http://www.allchildrensfurniture.com , and tell me a favorite item you would love to have. (1 entry)

2. TWEET THIS: @sprittibee http://tinyurl.com/ldjtdv is giving away $50 worth of free stuff from http://tinyurl.com/znyx3 enter 7/3-7/10! Please RT! (1 entry)

3. ADD YOURSELF TO MY GOOGLE FRIEND CONNECT BOX (1 entry)

4. FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER: click the 'Follow the Buzz' link in my sidebar (1 entry)

5. SUBSCRIBE TO MY FEED: enter your email address above or follow me in a reader - or just let me know you already subscribe (1 entry)

6. POST ABOUT THIS CONTEST: make sure to link back to this post and to http://www.allchildrensfurniture.com on your blog.

7. SOCIAL NETWORK THIS CONTEST: Stumble, Digg, Del.icio.us, Furl, Kirtsy, Google Bookmark, Reddit, etc. Use any sort of bookmarking social site. (one entry per bookmark!)

8. FACEBOOK THIS CONTEST: You can add a link to your facebook page easily - and even add a graphic from this post with one or two clicks. You can use the twitter phrase above or come up with your own comment to go along with the link. (1 entry)

9. Fooled ya! There aren't any other ways to win. However, I'm not above home-baked chocolate chip cookie bribes (naw, I'm just kiddin').

By the way, I check these types of people out before I offer goods away. They are 100% BBB Accredited and super nice. They have a TON of stores online and a return policy (which I doubt you would ever need since the STUFF you'll be getting is FREE anyway). In fact, since I'm not in the market for a toddler bed right now and I can't win all these other things, I browsed their list of other online stores and found one for KITCHEN STUFF! Maybe I can talk them in to doing a give-away on my food blog! One can dream.

OK. The contest is on. Ready, set, have fun!

Subscribe to Sprittibee by Email

Buzz Words: give away, furniture, children, parenting, freebies, free, toys, baby, contest, thrifty, household, bedding, fun