Two Great Movies

We love to watch movies here! I am always on the lookout for good family movies.  Recently we have watched two that we really enjoyed together!

Soul Surfer is the true story of amateur surfer Bethany Hamilton who at the age of 13 lost her arm in a shark attack.  This is a wonderful story of how she overcame her disability with determination and her faith in God.  As a result she ended up becoming a pro surfer. 

We loved this movie! It does have a Christian perspective. The characters are a Christian family. They are very believable. At times they question, have fear and ask why such a tragedy could occur. The family is devastated and leans heavily on their faith in God to get them through.

Out of this tragedy comes hope and faith and there is a very clear message that we need to be selfless in our giving to others.

This movie is rated PG which I believe is for the shark scene near the beginning of the movie. There was blood but it was not very graphic. There was no cursing at all in this movie!

Akeelah and the Bee is the story of Akeelah an 11 year old 6th grader who is very bright! She loves words and aces all of her spelling tests. She is not motivated to succeed and has quite the attitude. Her family is recovering from the loss of their father. Her mother is an overworked widow who is trying to support her family and raise her children while dealing with the loss of her husband.

Akeelah has a  love of words. It is a bond she shared with her father.  Her teacher and the school principal see Akeelah’s talent and the principal urges her to attend the school spelling bee. She does not want to be labeled a brainiac. That is not cool at all. The kids in her school will (and do) make fun of her.

Akeelah reluctantly attends the Bee and wins. Dr. Larabee an English professor on leave from UCLA is in attendance and wants to become her mentor.

Akeelah is sarcastic and insolent but eventually Dr. Larabee becomes her mentor. Dr. Larabee is suffering his own loss as Akeelah soon finds out. She goes on to win the district spelling bee and then on to the National Scripps Spelling Bee in Washington DC.

She faces lots of difficulty along the way. Her mother does not want her to participate, she faces opposition and difficulty along the way. Convincing her mother she really wants this. The entire town helps Akeelah reach her dream of attending the spelling bee. She also faces making the right decision during the spelling bee.

This is truly a heartwarming story of regardless of your circumstances you can do your best and be proud of who you are!

a word of caution: This movie is rated PG for language. There is some cursing during this movie.

 

Blue Skies Tomorrow~Review

 

 

Time for a Litfuse review! This time around I am reviewing Blue Skies Tomorrow by Sarah Sundin

About the book

Lt. Raymond Novak prefers the pulpit to the cockpit, but at least his stateside job training B-17 pilots allows him the luxury of a personal life. As he courts Helen Carlisle, a young war widow and mother who conceals her pain under a frenzy of volunteer work, the sparks of their romance set a fire that flings them both into peril. After Ray leaves to fly a combat mission at the peak of the air war over Europe, Helen takes a job in a dangerous munitions yard and confronts an even graver menace in her own home. Will they find the courage to face their challenges? And can their young love survive until blue skies return?

My Thoughts

Blue Skies Tomorrow is the final installment in the Wings of Glory series. While this is a series there is enough back story for this to be a stand-alone book and I was able to easily follow along!

This story takes place during one of my favorite time periods the mid 1940’s during World War II. Helen Carlisle is a widow living under the influence of her in-laws and raising her little boy.  Helen feels she must keep up the pretense of mourning after over a year of mourning her deceased husband even though she is ready to move on and make a new life for herself and her son.

Helen bumps into Ray Novak one day, a man she had a crush on when she was a young girl. Ray was so nice to her when she was struggling with polio as a young girl. Ray was nice to her when others were hard on her or made her feel like she was never good enough or could do nothing right because of her disability. A romance blossoms but there are difficulties along the way that challenge them and cause them both to grow their faith in God.

Sarah weaves a wonderful story. The characters are well developed and believable, real and down to earth.  She covers some serious topics disabilities, domestic violence and discrimination. I loved the history included in the book it was accurate and well researched.

Sarah Sundin is a new author for me and I am looking forward to reading more of her books!

Sarah Sundin received the 2011 Writer of the Year Award from the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference, and her second novel A Memory Between Us is a finalist for an Inspirational Readers' Choice Award. Her stories are inspired by her great-uncle who flew with the U.S. Eighth Air Force in England during World War II.

Sarah lives in California with her husband and three children.  Visit with Sarah online at www.sarahsundin.com.

 

To celebrate the release of Blue Skies Tomorrow, the final installment of the Wings of Glory series, Sarah is giving one lucky winner A Vintage Kindle Prize Package! Read what the reviewers are saying here.

One winner will receive:

* Kindle with Wi-Fi * Handmade vintage apron for you and a friend (see a photo here) * Blue Skies Tomorrow (for Kindle)

To enter just click one of the icons below. But, hurry, giveaway ends on 9/10. Winner will be announced on 9/12 at Sarah Sundin's blog. Details and official rules can be found when entering the contest.

disclosure: I received this book as a member of Litfuse in exchange for my honest review. No other compensation was received. All opinions in this post and on this blog are my own.

Route 66~Book Review

 

This is a Kregel blog tour for Route 66: A Crash Course in Navigating Life with the Bible by Krish Kandiah

From the Book

Welcome to Route 66: a crash course in enjoying the breadth and depth of the Bible.

Route 66 is an inspirational eight-week challenge for you, your small group or your whole church to get into gear with the Bible.

My Thoughts

This is a great little book that leads you on a journey to learn and study all 66 books of the Bible.

The book is broken down into eight sections:

• Living faithfully (the narrative literature)
• Living distinctively (the law)
• Living poetically (the psalms)
• Living discerningly (the wisdom literature)
• Living prophetically (the prophets)
• Living infectiously (the gospels)
• Living purposefully (the epistles)
• Living hopefully (the apocalyptic literature)

This 8-week study can be used individually, with a small group or with a church congregation.

Each section is broken down into 5 days. At the end of each days reading there is a Travel Journal with assigned chapters of the Bible to be read that day. In addition there are four questions for you to answer after each days Bible reading.

At the end of each section there are pages that can be used in a small group/church setting.

Each chapter is laid out nicely in an easy to read manner.

If you use this study and follow the daily Bible reading challenge found in the back of the book you will have read through the entire Bible in 8 weeks!

I really like this book. It is a great resource to have on hand for my own Bible study time. I found the book easy to read. The daily book readings are easy to comprehend and gave me much to ponder over each day. I really like the way this book is laid out. Not too much information each day but meaty enough to be challenging and cause me think and grow in my belief in God.

I think Route 66 is a great tool for learning more about the Bible. This study would be perfect for someone wanting to really delve deeply and cover the entire Bible in a short period of time!

disclosure: I was given a copy of this book by Kregel Publications in exchange for my honest review. All opinions in this post and on this blog are my own.

Beautiful Butterfly

 

Summer at our house means at any given time I will walk by my kitchen table to find any number of nature awaiting me.

Recently it has been butterflies. Kaden is our nature lover. While both boys love nature, it is Kaden who usually brings these beautiful gifts in!

This is what we had as our centerpiece yesterday. Two butterflies. A Monarch and a Buckeye.

We observed them and gently held them and admired their beauty before we let them go. We are learning a bit about butterflies since catching these two.

Free-10 Unit Studies from The Old Schoolhouse!

 

From now until August 27th you can pick up these 10 units for FREE!

They include:

• Firefighter
• Veterinarian
• Chef
• Military
• Doctor
• Police Officer
• Missionary
• Artist
• Pilot
• Farmer

Just go the The Old Schoolhouse Store and use coupon code FBWANNABE at check out!

Cinnamon Roll Pancakes!

 

I found this recipe the other day and knew that my cinnamon roll loving boys would love them!

My are not nearly as pretty as the ones pictured and it was a bit of a struggle to make them.  However they were very tasty and the boys loved them!

Yeah these pancakes have a lot of glaze on the top. Don’t judge.

Here are a few tips if you decide to try them. Of course I did not follow my own advice and read the comments before I made these up. ***sigh***

• This batter is very thin and wanted to go all over my griddle. I will try a different pancake recipe the next time. These were not light and fluffy. They were a bit dense.
• I used a half cup to measure out the batter for the pancakes, instead of the  3/4 cup recommended. 
• my cinnamon mixture was not the consistency of toothpaste as it needed to be. When I tried to swirl it into the batter it was a huge mess and it did not sink into the batter as it should. It was very thin and well, it made a huge mess. I suggested you make this up before you mix up your batter and stick it in the fridge to firm up a bit.
• the directions for the cream cheese glaze tell you to melt the butter and cream cheese together.  I tried this it had an awful taste and did not get the smoothness you would expect. I tried again and softened the butter and cream cheese and used my electric hand mixer to whip it up. The consistency was perfect. 

Corn Dog Muffins

Lunch at our house can get boring sometimes. Having the same thing day after day can get old very quickly. I try to come up with new and different ideas for our lunches.

I have a picky eater and an one who will try just about anything. Some days I get tired of trying to find something that both boys will like that is easy to prepare and better yet can be made ahead of time.

Kaden would eat peanut butter and jelly every day of his life while Justin rarely wants it. Lunch meat is something they both like but that seems to be getting more and more expensive and after awhile that gets boring.

I was excited to find a recipe for corn dog muffins. Justin has been asking me to make corn dogs for him. I thought these were a good compromise!

This idea actually came from Money Saving Mom. She posted about making these and I knew it was something both boys would like! Using her honey corn bread recipe I filled up my muffin tins, cut the hot dogs into thirds and dropped them into the mixture and baked them.

These muffins were a huge hit with the boys! You can make a big batch and put the in the freezer for easy lunches! They are a bit healthier than a regular fried corn dog!

Can you thread ice onto a skewer?

We can’t either. These “ice cubes” you see on the skewer are really water cubes! These are so cool! They grow over 195 times their original size!

Justin was experimenting with them the other day and decided they looked like ice cubes! Science can be so fun!

Across the Wide River~Book Review

 

It’s time for a Kregel book review! This time around I am reviewing the book. Across the Wide River by Stephanie Reed.

About the book

Freedom- Some take it for granted. Others consider it worth dying for.

Lowry Rankin knows all too well the cost of freedom; after all, his family's red brick home is the first stop on the Underground Railroad north of the Ohio River. He's seen friends beaten for the color of their skin. He's watched simple farmers make a difference. He's even risked his own life transporting escaped slaves. But will Lowry be able to conquer his greatest fear when he's called to speak out?

My Thoughts

This is a story of the Rankin family (based on a real family and real events in history)  and the important role they played in the pre-civil war underground railroad. Their brick house is the first stop on the northern side of the underground railroad just across Kentucky and the Ohio river into Ohio.  Slaves from Kentucky would flee to Ohio seeking freedom and safety. The Rankin family helped slaves escape to the north.

In this story we meet young Lowry when he is nine years of age. He witnesses his young friend being beaten just because he is a slave. The story follows Lowry through his elementary years and into his adolescent years. He transports slaves from one safe house to another, faces bullies and most of all faces his own fear of speaking out when he needs to.

Lowry learns he can take a stand for something he truly believes in, freedom for people regardless of the color of their skin.  He overcomes his own fear and insecurity to help others.  He learns that God uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things and that he can make a difference in the lives of many.

Ms. Reed has done a wonderful job in writing this story. It will keep you wanting to know what will happen at the end of the story. It is a wonderful living book about a difficult time in history.

This is a book I will be keeping on my shelves to use school when we study the underground railroad. It will make an excellent go along book!

Ms. Reed has also written a sequel A Light Across the River. You can read more about Stephanie Reed and learn how she came to write this story at her website.

Disclosure: I was given a copy of this book as a member of Kregel Publications Bloggers. No other compensation was received. All opinions in this post and on this blog are my own.

Math Fun!

Today we added in a math game to our school time! This is a fun game I came across on Pinterest! (there are so many awesome ideas to be found there!)

It is an addition game called Cover Up. Justin knows his addition facts but Kaden is just learning his. This game is perfect for reinforcing those facts!

You will need the printable found here, 26 markers, we used marbles with a flat side and two dice.

The object of the game is to fill your side of the board first. To play you roll the dice and add them together for the total. Cover the answer on your board. When your board is full you win!

There are also blank playing boards available near the bottom of the page and a template for making your own dice you can customize! I am going to print a few more with higher numbers to challenge Justin. I think I will laminate them as well just to make them a bit more durable.

 

Our Favorite Games: Ravensburger Labyrinth Card Game

Our family loves to play games. We love board games, card games and video games all sorts of games! I thought it would be fun to share some of our favorites with you!

We bought Kaden the Ravensburger Labyrinth  card game for his birthday back in March.  We’ve  played it several times now and it is fast becoming one of our favorites!

I love it because it is challenging enough for all of us and yet easy enough for Kaden to play!  There is almost a four year difference in age between Justin and Kaden and they both love this game!

I also love that it takes around 30 minutes give or take to play. So it is not overly long to where the kids get board. It is portable. Since it is a card came we can easily take it with us on vacation or to grandmas! (I always pack games for vacation for times of boredom or inclement weather.)

This is a maze game with the object of the game being to form a path from one treasure to another and collect a matching treasure.  To start the game you lay down four randomly chosen cards to form a square. This is the beginning of the maze. Each player is given two cards. The remaining cards are put facedown where all the players can reach them.

Each card has two treasures on it as well as part of the maze. On your turn you put down one of your two cards adding to the maze and trying to create a path from matching treasure to another. If you create a match then you can take the card with the treasure on it that matches the card you just played. The treasures do not need to be right next to each other but they do have to be on the same connecting path.

The catch is that you cannot take a card from the maze if it will leave part of the maze unconnected. This is where critical thinking and strategy come into play!

When all the cards have been played the game is over. The winner is the one with the most cards collected from the maze!

Download N Go Football Frenzy $4 Sale!

Are you ready for some football? Yes fall is fast approaching and football season is almost upon us!  Download N Go just released its newest title Football Frenzy just in time for pre season football!

I had the opportunity to review this unit and know a little bit about football. I was really surprised about how much was packed into this unit! Geography, math, science, the history of football and much more!

Here is a run down of what you will find in this unit:

• Day 1: What Is Football?
• Day 2: Where Did Football Begin?
• Day 3: People and Places of Football
• Day 4: Science Secrets of Football
• Day 5: Goodies and Gadgets of Football

Whether you are a seasoned football fan or really don’t know much about the sport the new Football Frenzy Download N Go unit is sure to spark some interest this pastime!

Football frenzy is currently on sale for $4.00! What a great opportunity to pick up a 5 day study for less than $5! To be honest these Download N Go studies have more than 5 days worth in them. You could easily stretch this out to a 2 week or even a 4 week study! There is that much packed into each unit!

Don’t wait as the $4.00 sale is only good through August 20th. You can find Football Frenzy and many other fantastic Download N Go titles by clicking here.  

disclosure: contains affiliate links

Become a Cloud Inspector!

 

A few weeks ago on Pinterest I found a link for a cloud inspector that you could purchase. I pinned it for future reference thinking it would be something the boys would love to use.

(this is the one I found on Pinterest)

The other day as I was perusing the FIAR boards (Five in A Row) and what did I find? One of the wonderful moms that frequent the message boards there had created her own version of a cloud inspector and was kind enough to share her link! Who Hoooo!

I decided to make a couple up for the boys. While they were in Bible school I printed them up. I was not sure which size would be best. I  decided to make an 8 x 10 and a 5 x 7.  I liked the 8 x 10 size the best so ended up making two of those. I almost threw out the 5 x 7 and then decided it would be great to keep the smaller size in the car.  I laminated them and cut the centers out.  The original called for a popsicle stick as a handle but the boys decided they liked it better without the stick.

They were a huge hit! The best part is I did not spend any additional money for this! I so love free! This is such a fun way to add in a little school while we are out and about! Of course there had been much talk about clouds in our household since we made these!

 

 

Click here to make your own cloud inspector!

Do you Pin?

Have you discovered Pinterest yet? I have. Happy sigh….. I love this site! Pinterest is a visual bookmark where you can save all those neat links you come across! If you are visual like I am then pinterest is a dream come true! 

You create boards on pinterest with different categories and then when you discover something you love, you pin it to that particular board! Once you pin something you can go back and easily find what you have pinned. I have quite a few boards and I can go back and easily find an item I have pinned. No more searching through my bookmarks or wondering why I saved something!  Some of my categories are homeschool, crafts for me, recipes, photography, cooking ideas, quotes and sayings and many more!

Another great feature is you can access your pinterest account from any computer or internet device! You can follow your friends (or make new ones) and repin something someone else has pinned! There are just so many ideas floating around on Pinterest!

You can follow all of someone’s boards or say you are only interested in their homeschool or recipe board. You can follow just that particular board!

When I was looking for ideas for Justin’s science party I went to pinterest and typed in scientist party and then pinned all the items I found interesting. I went back when I had time and went through my pins and found some neat ideas for the party!

You do need an invite to join Pinterest. You can follow me by clicking the button at the top of this post if you would like to follow me. This is a great organizational tool for the internet! I will warn you though it can be time consuming! Happy pinning!

Too Blessed to be Stressed-Review

 

Too Blessed to be Stressed by Debora M. Coty is devotional book written to give you inspiration in your day to day world.

About the Book

Do your to do lists have footnotes? Has your fam suggested a rabies shot because your bite has surpassed Rover’s?

Maybe it’s time for a healthy dose of truth gift-wrapped in humor. With her own offbeat brand of wit and near-wisdom, inspirational humorist Debora Coty addresses the heart-needs of desperate women drowning in the churning everyday stress-pool of busyness.

In Too Blessed to Be Stressed, you’ll find simple, practical steps for attaining the peace that you crave as you struggle with the stresses of finances, health, career, relationships, self-image and family. You’ll discover healing, refreshment, and revitalization for your own spirit, body and mind through heart-changing real life stories, biblically based insights, and short chapters for on-the-run convenience

My Thoughts

Too Blessed to Be Stressed is a compact little book at just over 200 pages it is written with humor and wit.  The book is broken down into forty chapters. Each chapter has a bible verse at the beginning and ends with a quote to ponder.

I found the chapters quick and easy to read. When you just have a couple of minutes you can pick up this book for a quick read!  If you like a little humor and lightheartedness to get you though a stress-filled day this book is for you! I found myself laughing at some of her stories and being able to relate to many of them!

Debora M. Coty is a humorist, columnist, speaker, writing workshop instructor and award-winning author of over 100 internationally published articles and ten inspirational books. She has also contributed short stories and devotionals to numerous anthologies. Debora's passion is sharing her offbeat blend of humor and hope, wit and near-wisdom with women of all ages. As a piano teacher for twenty years, she acquired the skill of auditory long-suffering and has helped countless people as an occupational therapist specializing in orthopedics for over three decades. Mother of two grown children, Debora currently lives and loves in central Florida with her husband and desperately wicked pooch, Fenway.

To celebrate the release of her latest laugh-out-loud book, Too Blessed to Be Stressed, Debora Coty is hosting the Too Blessed to Be Stressed KINDLE Giveaway! Too Blessed to be Stressed is a fun-filled read overflowing with insights and practical tips. Perfectly delicious for living happily ever after! -Rhonda Rhea, best-selling author of Whatsoever Things Are Lovely Read what the reviewers are saying here.

Debora has created a “Too Blessed” prize package worth over $150! One grand prize winner will receive: * A brand new Latest Generation KINDLE with Wi-Fi and Pearl Screen * Too Blessed to Be Stressed by Debora Coty (for KINDLE) To enter just click one of the icons below. Hurry! The giveaway ends August 25th. Winner will be announced on the evening of the 18th during href="http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=100796683354892">Debora's De-Stress Facebook Party! Debora will be hosting a "life-preserver" chat (it’s okay if you haven’t read the book – who knows, you might WIN a copy!), testing trivia skills, swapping funny stories, handing out some decom-stress tips, and giving away tons of great stuff! (Chocolate, books, and more!) Hope to see you there. Bring your friends and join the fun on August 25th at 5:00 PM PST (6 PM MDT, 7 PM CDT, & 8 PM EDT).

Also - be sure to check out Debora's series of Stress-Buster videos at her website: www.debcoty.com. She’s also hosting a photo caption contest on her blog for a chance to win a copy of Too Blessed to Be Stressed.

disclosure: I received a copy of Too Blessed to be Stressed as a member of Litfuse. No other compensation was received. All opinions in this post and on this blog are my own.

Free Kindle Edition: The Advent Jesse Tree

Amazon is currently offering the free Kindle edition of The Advent Jesse Tree.

Remember if you don’t have a Kindle you can download Kindle for PC free to your computer!

 

An easy no-mess way to prepare marinades!

I love to use marinades for some of our meals. They are easy can be made ahead and even frozen. I use them frequently. I love that I can just pull them out of the fridge or freezer and have much of the meal prep ready.

One thing I don’t like are the amount of dishes and bowls I sometimes use to create them.  Clean up is not my favorite thing to do. Ever.  I got to thinking that there must be an easy way to prepare these marinades without the mess. 

I always use zip top bags for my marinades. The problem is keeping the bag upright and not spilling the contents everywhere. (ask me how I know this!) .

I saw this idea somewhere (I cannot remember where)  and thought it was brilliant.  Remove the blades from your blender container to hold your bag. Just insert the bag into the container, fold the sides down around the edge and add your ingredients.

It gives you a nice large opening and holds the bag so that it is not falling over.  Using this method I have eliminated the need for additional bowls and dishes. The only items I use now are my measuring cup and measuring spoons. No mess and easy clean up!

When you are done flip the bag up, pull it out of the container, seal it and put it in the refrigerator or freezer until you are ready to use it!

This makes meal prep a whole lot easier!

Cool Cloud Formations

I took these pictures back on July 4th on our way home from a 4th of July picnic. We thought they were very cool!

 

We love to look at the clouds! They are so amazing!