A Scary Day

Today I had to endure something I have always dreaded - watching someone I love go into surgery.

A week ago, my husband was participating in a joint training exercise a few hours from home. He had been gone for almost a month and it was the day before they were to return home. He was helping to tighten down a load when he lost his grip and fell off the truck. His feet were stuck under a pallet and he hung by his ankles - backwards - for several minutes before someone was able to help him get unhooked. He ended up with two injured ankles. Later that afternoon he sent me this:

 Needless to say, I was appalled. After almost a year in the Army and many opportunities for injury, he gets hurt falling off a truck! He worked on it all day and was sure it was just a sprain. I however was sure there was no way he could have gotten off that easy.

The next morning he returned home and we took him to the ER on post to have it looked at. After several x-rays and a few hours of waiting, the ER doctor confirmed it was broken and put it in a splint and told us to meet with the orthopedic doctor the following Tuesday. When we saw the doctor he told us hubby had already been scheduled for surgery on Thursday. He showed us the x-rays and explained to procedure to us. Hubby would have two pins inserted to realign the broken bone in the ankle joint and to help it stay in place.

Today was D-Day. His surgery was scheduled for 11 am, but as surgeries usually go, they didn't take him back to prep until 1:30pm. The nurse told us the surgery would take about two hours total and that we were free to go home and eat and relax for a little while. Since we only live a few minutes from the hospital, we went and grabbed some lunch and had a little picnic by the pond. Byt the time we returned to the waiting room, it was 3pm and I was then informed he wouldn't be done until around 4:30. by this time our oldest was home from school, so I took the boys back home to play and came back to the hospital a third time to wait.

They finally called me back to recovery around 4:45. the first thing the nurse asked me was if my husband had sleep apnea. I told him not that I was aware of. Come to find out, he had stopped breathing for a short time when he was under anesthesia. That was more than a little unsettling. When I got to him, they had an oxygen mask on him and were harassing him to keep him from falling asleep. After my arrival, that job became mine. After a while, he was able to remove the mask and stay awake with no problems. Before we left, they administered a pain reliever in his IV as well as gave him a block to block out some of the pain.

I finally brought him home around 6:30. He struggled with nausea for several hours and the poor guy hadn't had a thing to eat or drink besides water since midnight the night before. Other than that and some pain, which is to be expected, he is doing well.

I am praising God that there were no major complications and that the surgery went well. Now it is time to focus on healing and rehabilitation. He should recover full, normal use of his ankle within six months.

I told him he had better not plan on putting me through something like this again. :P

We are still here...

Yup, we are definitely in Washington! ;)

So my blog has been sitting here, lonely and neglected, for MONTHS waiting for me to plaster it's pages with my words. The problem is, I just haven't felt much like writing. I have plenty to write about, don't get me wrong, I am just not motivated to get it done. However, I worked really hard on designing this new blog and I had such high hopes for it so now is as good a time as any to get cracking and start sharing!

We have been here in Washington for over 4 months now but it seems like it's been so much longer. We have been busy, busy, BUSY! We absolutely love it here and our wish-list of things to do here is ever growing. We have had a few adventures and I plan on sharing each of them in the coming weeks (I hate playing catch up).

But as for NOW, I am short on time so I must go until I have the time once again to write!

Blessings,

Cassie

New Beginnings

Welcome friends! For my first post for this new blog, I thought it might be helpful to explain why I decided to start a new blog in the first place and give you a little bit of background about where our family is headed and how we got here.
The most pertinent thing I think I should share is that we are a new Army family. My husband enlisted and left for basic training November of last year. He finished in January and then spent 5 weeks in AIT (advanced individual training) for his job as an 88M (motor transport operator). Before enlisting he was a truck driver for 4 years, so it just made sense for him to go into the same field and use his on-the-job experience to earn an advanced rank through the Army Civilian Acquired Skills Program.
Our family spent 4 months apart through his training process and it was a huge learning and growth experience for all of us! There were some very real struggles on my part to keep things together in his absence, but all in all I think we did pretty good. Had it not been for my faith and my family, I don’t think I could have made it through as well as I did.
A week ago, after the movers came and packed up all of our belongings into a tractor-trailer headed to WA, we hit the road to make our 37 hour drive to Ft. Lewis – our first duty station.
The trip was absolutely amazing! For someone who has never been close to a mountain or has never seen very much of the country, I was very much in awe of the beauty of God’s creation. We experienced and saw so much on our trip – rolling hills, mountains, lakes, gorges, rivers. We even made a detour to stop and see Mt. Rushmore in all it’s beauty! Traveling here is an experience none of us will ever forget.

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After 5 days of traveling in a minivan we were more than ecstatic to finally arrive. Ft. Lewis is absolutely beautiful and I can’t believe this is where we are going to love for the next 1-3 years! Within a few days of arriving, we were offered a beautiful three-bedroom house (it’s actually a duplex attached by the garages) in a nice neighborhood on post. the housing is in a newer neighborhood and is surrounded by nice large yeards and lots of trees and is very close to the PX and commissary. We can’t wait to get our keys on April 6th and start getting settled.

(These pictures are not of our specific home, but taken from the housing website.)

So as our new life here begins, we are very busy taking care of paperwork and getting to know our surroundings. We have found a few churches we would like to visit and we know that God will lead us to the right one, the same way He did with our previous church. And so the process of putting down new roots begins!!

Blessings,

Cassie

Hey There… Remember Me?

Things have been crazy, crazy around here since my wonderful husband left to start his BCT at Ft. Sill, OK. I am busy getting a lengthy update written, but in the meantime I wanted to share something from our wonderful holiday with you. Bobby was able to come home for two weeks over Christmas and it was such a blessing to be able to spend that time with him, smack dab in the middle of his training. As you can imagine, we had missed him like crazy!! Here is a video of the entire family going to pick him up from the airport… get the kleenex ready and ENJOY!

Blessings,

IEW Phonetic Zoo – Crew Review

We recently received a wonderful spelling program from IEW to try out in our home called the Phonetic Zoo. Now what is really interesting about this program is that it is not your standard grade-level spelling workbook approach. This program is designed for students in 3rd grade and up and consists of three levels. Each level has 47 lessons that are taught by blending sound and sight methods in a way that is fun and easy for your child to remember.

Phonetic Zoo uses the average child’s love of the animal kingdom to make lessons fun and also uses animals as “learning pegs” upon which they can mentally “hang” each new spelling rule they encounter. A complete level set contains:

• Teacher’s Notes e-book (found on the DVD)
• Spelling and the Brain DVD/DVD-ROM
• Set of large flashcards
• Set of small “Zoo” cards
• One set of Audio CDs (Levels A, B or C)

With each new lesson taught, you introduce the new rule to your child using the teaching notes and the large flashcard that corresponds to that lesson. You then give your student the corresponding small zoo card to help them remember the rule of the lesson and it also has written on it a jingle or rhyme about the rule. IEW recommends that to use the program to the best of it’s potential, you have your student go through the lessons on cd using a pair of headphones, paper and pen (not pencil). The student then listens to the first track for the lesson they are studying and takes a test to see what words they can spell. They then listen to the second track for that lesson to make corrections and to reinforce the correct spellings of the words. The student repeats the same lesson everyday until they have gotten every word correct for 2 consecutive days. This ensures mastery and long-term retention of the material. The program also has periodic “personal spelling lessons” and each level has a final exam.

What I like about this program is that it is very teacher friendly and requires very little preparation ahead of time. The student moves through the bulk of the lessons independently. I also like that the student must really grasp that material before moving on to the next lesson.

I used this program with my son, Drew, who is 10, for a month and I actually saw quite a bit of improvement beyond what I have seen thus far using our current spelling program (or any of the others we have used in the past). However, after the initial newness of the program wore off, Drew became very sullen and begged to not have to continue doing the lessons. I think his unhappiness with the lessons came from his complete hate-hate relationship with anything that requires him to write things out repeatedly. The program requires that each word is written out twice daily during the testing and correction times. He thought it was very unfair of me to ask him to rewrite a word if he had already spelled it correctly in the first place!

I would highly recommend this program for an older child that struggles with retaining spelling rules. I loved the program and wish my son had liked it more, we probably would have continued using it!

Each level of the Phonetic Zoo can be purchased directly from IEW for $99 each and contains everything you need to use this program with several children. The fact that everything is reusable makes the program a great value! If you desired for each of your students to be able to keep their zoo cards, then you could easily purchase an additional set for a 2nd child for only $7.

DISCLAIMER: This item was provided free for review purposes through the TOS Homeschool Crew.  I received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion.  Click the TOS Homeschool Crew banner above to read more reviews on this and other products by other Crew members.

The Master Ruler (Crew Review)

We recently had to opportunity to review a few products from Master Innovations, thanks to the TOS Homeschool crew. Master Innovations is a company that specializes in making unique and easy-to-use tools to help children learn how to measure the world around them and understand tricky math concepts like time, fractions, mixed numbers, and much more.

We received two Master Rulers (one standard and one metric) and a workbook to try out. When I first learned about the review my first thought was, “Oh Goody, a ruler.” But after I visited the website and watched this video I was intrigued and couldn’t wait to get our products in the mail:

As you can see, the Master Ruler does more than just measure length. With the Master Ruler your students have a visual, tactile tool to use to help learn about fractions and their relationships. I tried out the products with two of my children. For my 8th grader, we used the ruler with the portions of the workbook covering fractions. With my 5th grader, we used the measuring portions of the workbook.

My 8th grader has long struggled with fractions and she found after getting the hang of HOW to use the ruler to help her, understanding fractions was much easier. All she had to do was use the ruler to find the mark that coincided with each fraction she was given and compare them. We both found this to be much easier even than using fraction “pie manipulatives” because it was quicker and there were no little pieces to keep track of.

For my 5th grader, this was his first time measuring anything more detailed than 1/4 inches. The different layers of the rulers for each unit of measurement made it easy to figure out how to measure things to even 1/16 of an inch! I am looking forward to using these rulers in the future with my 2nd grader also.

Along with the Master Ruler, Master Innovations has several other products available including the Master Clock, Master Fractions, and Master Angles. I have yet to try any of these other resources, but after reading the reviews of my fellow Crew members, I have added them to my homeschool “wish list”.

The Master Ruler (U.S.  or Metric) can be purchased for $9.95 each directly from Master Innovations. I think this is a very reasonable price, considering how many uses it has and how sturdy it is. The Student Workbook  is available for $15.95 also, or you can purchase The Master Ruler Starter Set which includes metric, U.S. and a teachers ruler plus the workbook  for $41.25. Make sure to check out the other products that are available, too!

DISCLAIMER: This item was provided free for review purposes through the TOS Homeschool Crew.  I received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion.  Click the TOS Homeschool Crew banner above to read more reviews on this and other products by other Crew members.

Bright Ideas Press-Illuminations Y2 (Crew Review)

When I was a student, History was not one of my favorite subjects. But since I began homeschooling my own children, it has quickly become one of my favorite things to learn all over again. Part of that new found love is a result from all of the awesome History programs out there, and Illuminations totally fits the bill!

Never heard of Illuminations? Well I am sure you have heard of the Mystery of History yes? Well, Illuminations is a brand new all-inclusive curriculum from Bright Ideas Press, the publishers of MOH. Illuminations is an all-inclusive, chronological study of history that is Biblically based and centered. It covers Bible, Literature, Language Arts, Geography, History, Science, Life Skills and Humanities all in one very thorough guide that will take you and your kids on an exciting trek through the history of mankind. It is available in 2 levels covering grades 3-8 and High School. There are also suggestions for gently covering the same material if you have younger kids that want to join in the study. For our review, we chose to cover Year 2, 3rd-8th grade.

For this review, we were unable to give it as thorough a tryout as I would have preferred to because we were unable to purchase any of the additional materials that are recommended throughout the program. Luckily, we do have experience with MOH and loved going through the book a few years ago. SO this review is based purely on my opinions from giving the materials a very thorough study. I hope I can do it justice. Please bear with me as there is a LOT to this program and I want to cover a little bit of all of the elements that come together to make this program so unique and fun.

History

As I mentioned before, Illuminations uses the correlating book of Mystery of History in each year plan. Bible and Geography is incorporated into the study as well. Each weekly plan grid includes everything you might want to do for a thorough and fun study of history including daily history reading, notebooking, bible reading, mapwork, timelines and more.

Literature

The way Illuminations incorporates the Literature element of the program is probably my favorite aspect of the curriculum. Literature readings are recommended (and scheduled for you) that coincide with what you are reading in MOH and Bible. But the best part is the awesome study guides that are included. There is a study guide for every book your child will read in the program, allowing you to make sure your child is getting the most rom every selection.

Language Arts

I you choose to follow the Language Arts plans, you will have to make some additional purchases. However if you decide not to, you can still make use of the copywork in the program. You do have a choice of several curriculums to use with Illuminations that are already scheduled in the plans for you. These are Grammar Punk, English From the Roots Up, The Natural Speller, Write Shop, and Foundations to Writing.

Science

Year 2 of Illuminations covers earth and space science using the popular program: Christian Kids Explore Earth & Space. Every single day of lessons and activities is scheduled for you and you will never have to wonder what to cover next. Science plans include reading, discussion, vocabulary, memory work, and hands-on projects.

There is so much more to this program than I can share with you in one blog post, but if what I have shared here with you sounds interesting, I encourage you to check the program out for yourself! It can be purchased as a digital download direct from Bright Ideas Press for only $82.50 for a semester and $165 for an entire year. There are some great sample files available for you to view also and you can find them here.

Make sure you check out the Crew blog post here where you can read reviews on different levels/years of Illuminations, and other great homeschool products by Bright Ideas Press!

DISCLAIMER: This item was provided free for review purposes through the TOS Homeschool Crew.  I received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion.  Click the TOS Homeschool Crew banner above to read more reviews on this and other products by other Crew members.

3 Days Down–46 More to Go…

Monday morning my husband left on a bus from the MEPS center to the airport to begin his training as an US Army soldier… We were there to him get sworn in and see him off. It was a really tough day. That night he arrived safely at the reception battalion and that was the last I heard from him til the following evening.

Bedtime was rough. All the kids cried and were pretty much a mess. It’s hard to tell your kids they have to be strong when all you wanna do is melt into a puddle of tears yourself. But I did good, I calmed them down and comforted them and got them off to sleep. I was emotionally and physically drained from the last few days’ activities and went right to bed myself. That was the end of day one.

Tuesday was a better day. I was feeling much more rested and concentrated on getting myself back into the swing of things by cleaning up a bit around the house and hanging out with the kids. I got a 10 minute phone call from my soldier hubby when the drill sergeant came in and hollered for them all to be lined up by their bunks for roll call. After another 10-15 minutes, I got another call. It was so good to hear his voice and hear what his day had consisted of. He was pretty choked up and missing us all badly. I made a very conscious effort to stay upbeat and positive and encouraged him that we were fine and that things would get easier. That night, Joey ended up in bed with me. I wouldn’t have minded but that I really needed some down time to myself. That was the end of day two.

Today I spent a lot of time online windows shopping for a new family car. Ours is on it’s last leg and we are going to be in a much better financial position to purchase a new one. This is what we are leaning towards purchasing:

It’s a 2009 Dodge Journey R/T. It has 3 rows of seats and accommodates 7 people. This model has all the extras like leather interior, sunroof, and DVD entertainment system, and it fits into our budget. I will probably not end up with this exact car, but this is the model we are looking for.

My pretty decent day was almost ruined by a major mishap – I dropped my phone (which I carry with me everywhere in case he calls) in the toilet. Yup. I immediately fished it out, took it apart, and dried it the best I could. Shortly thereafter, hubby called. About 3 minutes into our conversation it shut off without warning. I couldn’t get it to turn back on!!!! I was flipping out thinking this would be the last phone call I would be getting from him until I could afford a new phone (which wasn’t going to be anytime soon). So I again took it apart and took the hair dryer to it. I managed to get it dry enough to power back on and hubby called me back. The audio was funny sounding, so I used the speakerphone. We ended up getting to talk for almost an hour!! I was on cloud nine. He sounded sooo much better and said that he had had a much better day today. He got to talk to the kids (except Jazz who is spending time at her mom’s) and they enjoyed hearing his voice. Soon after I put the kids into bed (without incident) and now I am laying in bed with a heating pad, getting ready to sleep. So ends day three.

All-in-all I think we are all handling things quite well. It’s not difficult for me to stay busy and distracted during the day, with four kids to take care of and teach and a houseful of cleaning to be done. But in the evening, it’s a different story, being able to speak to him each night he is in reception has been a blessing to say the least. I am really dreading the end of the week when he moves into barracks and will be lucky to make a short Sunday call home.

I have connected with an awesome group of new Army wives on facebook who are going through all of this right alongside me. It’s so nice to be able to chat with ladies who know exactly what I am going through. just about any time of the day, there’s someone on there to be a listening ear, or to just make me laugh. The Army really is one big family, and I am so proud and thankful to be a part of it.

In 46 more days, hubby will get leave and will get to come home for Christmas for a few weeks. The timing of his training is really awesome, since this break will split his BCT just about in half. I can’t imagine how I would cope If I had to go through a full 12 weeks without seeing him!!

I want to thank each and every person who has offered prayers for our family through this challenging transition. Please, continue to pray! Especially for my husband. I hope to be journaling our journey as much as I can over the next 4 to 5 months and beyond. It is my hope that it will be an encouragement to others who travel down this road as well!

Blessings,

Can Babies REALLY Learn to Read? (Crew Review)

  There are a lot of programs out there that claim that you can teach babies as young as six months old to read. This is something I admit I have been very skeptical about as I have seen the advertisements here and there in the recent past. Which is exactly why I was so excited to review a really neat product from Brill Kids called Little Reader. I was enthusiastic to see how the program worked and to see how my toddler would react to the lessons.

Little Reader is a computer based program that’s designed to teach your baby (or young child) to read using a multi-sensory, interactive methodology. The software breaks each short lesson down into 3 parts: Word Flash, Multisensory, and Picture Flash. The lessons are designed to be used twice daily and are very short. Each lesson groups the word list into categories, and your child will encounter the same words over and over again, allowing them plenty of exposure to new words. The lessons are fun, age-appropriate, and engaging. There are a plethora of options available allowing you to customize the lessons by choosing at what speed the screens changes, what pictures accompany the words on the screen, and you can even program your very own voice into the lessons! I only played with a few of these options during our review period, but there are plenty of ways for you to make the program work for you and your child.

We received the download version of this program which did not come with any of the optional additional materials (such as readers and flashcards). I used the software with my 2 year old son and within the first few sessions, he was hooked and even threw a fit wanting to continue doing more of the lessons after we were finished with that days activities. I don’t feel at this point that we have been using the product long enough to actually gauge whether or not he is learning to read with it, but there were several positive things I have noticed about using Little Reader with him. First of all, he was thrilled to have something of his very own to “do” on the computer (just like the big kids). Secondly, he really enjoyed the words and pictures and videos that played on the screen as we went through the lessons, and loved repeating the words that were shown to him. I never had to coerce him into doing the lessons at all. Every day I would ask him if he was ready to do his “baby reading” and he would immediately jump up and down and say, “Yes! Baby reading!”. Third, though I sat with him through every lesson, it was very much an option for me to set the lesson up and walk away if I needed to. That was definitely a very nice perk, especially when we have several times throughout our school days when he wants mommy to entertain him, but I have to help one of the older kids with schoolwork.

One of my favorite features of the software was that it gave me the option to print off picture flashcards for any lesson I wished. I did this for a few of the first lessons and again, Joey thoroughly enjoyed “playing” with the flashcards. Using the flashcards there are lots of fun ways for you and your child to interact with the words they are encountering in the daily lessons. This was definitely a plus in my opinion.

So can this program teach your child to read at an early age? I can’t really give you a yes or no answer to this question, HOWEVER, IF it is possible for a baby, a toddler, or even a preschooler to learn to read, I can see how this program would be an excellent tool to help you reach that goal. The developers of this software have really done their research and utilized it to give you a very thorough and fun way to expose your young child to the world of words. I do think that use of the Little Reader software (along with reading to your child often and as early as possible) is a great way to introduce your child to written language and can easily see how it would give your child a head start in that area. I have now taught 2 children to read (and am still teaching one struggling reader) and can see what a benefit Little Reader could be to every parent.

If you want to learn more about Little Reader, or any other Brill Kids early learning programs, you can visit their website here. The Little Reader program is available in several formats (including the download version) and pricing starts at $149. A free trial is also available here. If you are at all curious to learn more about the Little Reader program, the website is chock FULL of informative videos, screenshots, and information for you to browse through.

 DISCLAIMER: This item was provided free for review purposes through the TOS Homeschool Crew.  I received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion.  Click the TOS Homeschool Crew banner above to read more reviews on this and other products by other Crew members.

Read, Write, & Type is Full of Fun!

Read, Write, & Type is educational software that teaches reading, phonics, spelling and keyboarding all within one program. Recommended for children ages 6-9, the program teaches children to hear the individual sounds within a word and associate each of those sounds with a key on the keyboard. The program is multisensory and engages the child no matter what their learning style. The program tracks and assesses the child’s progress and suggests additional activities along the way. Children are given immediate feedback to incorrect answers which enable them to correct any missed problems along the way. You can even customize the program to work with your child’s learning level!

The program takes as little as 15 minutes a day and has 40 engaging lessons to keep your child interested. Read, Write, & Type is research-based and was designed by the same developers that made the popular Reader Rabbit software. Your child will even have the opportunity to write their own stories with the built in word-processing program. Though this may not sound like a very exciting feature, both of my boys really enjoyed writing and printing their own short stories with the program.

We have been using this software for several weeks now and both of my boys, one a struggling reader and the other a fluent reader, really enjoy using the program. I have been saving it for the end of our school days, as an incentive to complete the rest of their work in a timely manner.

The best way I can give you an idea of how well we liked the Read, Write, & Type program is to let my kids share with you what they do (and don’t) like about it. Drew is my fluent reader. He is 10 years old. This is what he had to say:

“It’s pretty cool. I think all kids 10 and under should definitely learn to type by using this program. What I like the best is the Messaging Tower. The Messaging Tower is where you write stories and send them to other people and people send you their stories back. The only thing I don’t like is that the lessons are too short for older kids. I think it would be better if they were around 30 minutes. I think Lefty and Rightway are pretty cool. They are the “hands” that teach you how to type. I liked this program better than some of the other ones I have done.”

Isaiah is my struggling reader and he just turned 9 last month. Here is what he has to say about Read, Write, & Type:

“My favorite part of the program is when you have to fight Vexor. Vexor is a big radioactive virus that tries to steal the letters for himself. You beat him by playing and winning games. The characters in the program are pretty funny. I think it helped me to be a better reader. I think parts of it are too easy.”

Read, Write, & Type is available as an online program for $35. This license entitles you to one user log-in and is good for 5 years. The cost for additional log-ins for more children is another $20 for the second user and $15 for each user after that. There is also a cd-rom version of the program available for $79 and it includes additional materials to use with the software. You can get more information about the program by visiting the Talking Fingers website. An online demo of Read, Write, & Type is also available here.

We have thoroughly enjoyed using the software in our home and we would heartily recommend it to any family which has children that are learning to read or type!

 DISCLAIMER: This item was provided free for review purposes through the TOS Homeschool Crew.  I received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion.  Click the TOS Homeschool Crew banner above to read more reviews on this and other products by other Crew members.

LanSchool – The Ultimate Homeschool Tool!

Of all the reviews I have written for the crew so far, this has definitely been my absolute favorite! LanSchool is so much more than just a classroom management program, there are so many awesome things you can do with this software:

• see the screens of ALL your student’s computers and track their activity
• take over control of student computers with the “remote control” feature
• administer tests and quizzes from the comfort of your own pc or laptop
• share your screen with your students
• chat with your students and send them messages
• lock down the students computer by restricting their controls, audio, internet, or even log the student out of the system or power the computer down
• track student keystrokes
• receive alerts when the student types something from the “banned words” list
• and much, MUCH more!

Ok, so how exactly does this software work? LanSchool uses your home network to tie all the computers using that network together. You can choose one computer as the teacher computer and set the others up as student computers. The software is super easy to install and has you up and running in just a few minutes.

When I first received this program for review, I didn’t tell my kids I had installed it on the laptop they use. As soon as the first one logged in to get online, I took over the controls (all while they were unaware of what was going on) and they thought something was going really wrong with the laptop. Hehe, I know, I’m such a mean momma :) We all got a good laugh out of it and it was a fun way to introduce the program to them and show them everything it could do.

Since installing the program and learning to use it, I have used it just about every day. My youngest uses the computer to do several learning programs online, so LanSchool makes it super easy for me to log him into his next assignment from my own laptop while I am sitting on the couch helping another child. It makes for a lot less up and down for me, which is a big plus when you are homeschooling 3 kids and chasing around a 2 year old! The one feature I keep forgetting about is the quizzing feature, but I do plan on utilizing that as soon as possible.

The one thing I was hesitant about regarding this software was the bandwith it would use up on our wireless home network while running. I was pleasantly surprised, however, to find out that I really don’t notice a difference at all in how quickly the computers connect to the internet and download files. All this with having the lowest speed cable internet our isp offers.

I just can’t think of anything I don’t like about this software. I never even knew anything like this was available at a decent price to home users and I am so glad I’m “in-the-know” about it now. Now that I have shared with you how much I LOVE this program, let me share some necessary details with you!

A subscription to Lanschool for home use costs $99. This price includes a perpetual license, and 3 years of updates and support.  There is also an option for homes that need up to 10 computers.  It costs $299 and includes the same features as the base priced program. You can learn a lot more about the software by visiting their website here. They also offer a guided tour of the software from this link. And if you are really interested and want to take it a step further, you can get a free trial of the program here.

 DISCLAIMER: This item was provided free for review purposes through the TOS Homeschool Crew.  I received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion.  Click the TOS Homeschool Crew banner above to read more reviews on this and other products by other Crew members.

25 Days and Counting…

I hate how time can seem to drag on at some points and race by faster than you can blink at others. Today marks a little over 3 weeks left before my dear hubby leaves. For those of you who missed it, he enlisted into the Army several months ago and was given delayed enlistment status. So on October 31st, we will drop him off at his hotel so he can then be processed through MEPS and transported to basic training in Ft. Sill. And so will begin our journey and transformation as a new Army family… and his transformation from civilian to soldier.

This is a decision that was very tough and well thought-out. We truly feel as if this is God’s will for our family. When we made this decision, I agreed that I would support and enable my husband to follow this dream, wherever it may take us. That being said, I’m having kind of a hard time right now.

On one hand I am really excited and hopeful about this complete shift in lifestyle. So much about our life as a family is going to improve. We will have great healthcare, drastically better income, opportunities to travel and live in parts of the world we have never seen, job security, money for college (for ourselves and our children), and a retirement plan. Right now we have none of these things. I am excited (and anxious) to see what things are in store for us. The other side of that coin is this – my husband is leaving us. Yes, to get the training he needs to succeed in his new profession as a soldier, but nonetheless he will be gone. He will no longer walk through the door every afternoon after work, hug the kids, give me a kiss, and ask about our day. When the kids have a bad day, I won’t be able to confide in him and ask him what to do about it. I won’t even be able to pick up the phone and call him or text him with a quick question. I won’t lay in bed at night and hear his steady breathing as he sleeps beside me, or cuddle closer to feel his warmth. This, and much more, is the hard, cold reality that is smacking me in my face.

I am not handling it well, and he is not even gone yet. I long to spend every moment of every hour that he is home with him, talking, cuddling on the couch, laughing… but the reality of everyday life is that I have 4 children at home with me every day. Four precious blessings that make messes for me to clean up, have lessons I need to teach them, and have needs to be met. I have a 3 bedroom townhouse full of carpets to vacuum, dishes to wash and put away, piles of laundry to fold, and messes to be straightened. I have meals to prepare, grocery lists to be made, coupons to be clipped, and schoolwork to be planned and graded.

Now more than ever I feel the need for more energy and a few more hours in my day. The reality? That’s not going to happen. I have to make due with the time and resources God has given me, and make the very best of it all. I am having a really hard time balancing it all. Not to mention we have a pretty decent list of things that must absolutely be done before he leaves. Most days I feel like I’m treading water and never getting closer to that island I can see in the distance, and it’s slipping further and further away.

I’m lost. I don’t know what to do or how to start doing it. I don’t know what changes I can make. I just know I must find a way to treasure these next 3 weeks with my husband, because life will soon change forever, and we can never go back. I am in prayer, because that’s the only thing I know to do. I pray for the time to go by slower, for the guidance to balance my desires and responsibilities, for the wisdom to not fall apart in the face of everything bearing down on me.

I can’t even really imagine what things are going to be like while he is away. I can’t make that leap because it is so far removed from any reality that I have ever existed in. I can only focus on right here, right now. I know I am not the first wife and mother to go through this. There have been many before me and I am sure there will be many after. Yet I feel so alone.

So if you don’t see many posts in the next few weeks, now you will understand why. Though I am quite sure I will be pouring my heart out on these pages often during his absence. If you have the time, or the desire, please pray for my family over the next few weeks. You may never know how much it is needed and appreciated.

Blessings,

New Monic Vocab Cartoons (Crew Review)

Today I am bringing you a review of a product that is very unique compared to anything else I have come across for learning vocabulary. New Monic’s Vocabulary Cartoons promise that your child will “learn a word a minute and never forget it”, all while enjoying the process!

The Elementary version of this book (the one I was sent to review) is geared for 3rd through 6th grades and contains mnemonic cartoons to help your child retain the meanings of over 200 oft-used words (complete word list found here). The cartoons are fun and easy to remember, and will easily serve the purpose of painting a permanent picture in your child’s head of each word’s meaning. Take a look at this sample cartoon, and you will see what I mean…

You can view more samples here

This book puts these words in a very easy to learn format that would be especially helpful for the visual learner. Each page shows the word, part of speech, definition, pronunciation, a clue word (that sounds similar to the new word), a fun picture, a sentence, and 3 examples using the word. There are also review pages sprinkled throughout the book (one every 10 words) with matching and fill-in-the-blank questions (the answer key can be found in the back of the book).

The book can be purchased directly from the publisher here for $12.95. They also offer vocabulary building titles geared for high-schoolers preparing to take the SAT.

I chose to let my 10yo son try this product out. He rather enjoyed the fun way the new words were presented, and seemed to retain them better then he typically does using our usual methods of learning new vocabulary. For the two weeks we used the book, it was the very first task he chose to complete every day, which had definitely never happened before with a vocabulary study. We did not make use of the review pages included in the book, but instead we did oral quizzing to see how many words he could remember. Sometimes I covered up everything on a page except the cartoon, other times I would give him the clue word and the meaning, and he would tell me the correct vocabulary word. He did well with this method and only had a few words that really gave him trouble. We plan on continuing to use the book throughout the school year, during weeks where we don’t have enough time for our usual vocabulary studies as a fun break from the ordinary.

Overall, we enjoyed trying out this fun and different book. I would highly recommend it to anyone who wants their elementary aged child to expand their vocabulary. I can also see how it would be a beneficial book to help prepare your children for standardized testing (if you are required to do so). It is definitely worth the price and easy to incorporate into your days as it only takes about 10 minutes max to learn a few new words!

DISCLAIMER: This item was provided free for review purposes through the TOS Homeschool Crew.  I received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion.  Click the TOS Homeschool Crew banner above to read more reviews on this and other products by other Crew members.

Why I LOVE the Wimpy Kid…

About a month ago, we took a trip to our local Barnes & Noble, as I had a few books I had on my wishlist. Most of the time (if we have the money) I let the boys pick out an inexpensive book to take home. Drew was having trouble finding anything that was in the price range I had given him. This is the kid that has had MANY books purchased for him that he has never read past the first chapter. They were either a bit too challenging for him to read by himself, or the story just didn’t grip him enough to continue reading them.

So, as I typically do, I directed him to a specific area of the children’s section and began showing him books and reading the covers to him. Book after book, he responded with a hearty, “No, that doesn’t sound interesting,” or a “That book is too hard, “ reply. That’s when a book caught my eye. It was the first in the “Wimpy Kid” series by Jeff Kinney. I flipped through the pages, showing Drew how it was written like a diary and had lots of funny pictures on it’s pages. I managed to talk him into, so we purchased the book, along with a few others, and left to have dinner at a close by restaurant.

By the time we had been seated, both boys had their noses in their new books. Drew kept on giggling and rereading sections to us that amused him and showing us the pictures. By the time we got in the car to head back home, he had read over 30 pages!

The next day I woke up and came downstairs to find both boys on the couch, with the tv off, books in hand. I can’t even begin to tell you how much I enjoyed seeing that. By lunch time that day, Drew had finished the entire first book! I couldn’t believe it. Not only had we found a book he could and would read, but he devoured it. In less than 24 hours, he had torn through the entire 224 page chapter book.

He has since finished the first 3 books, each of them being read within a 24-48 hour period. This is the first time EVER he has stuck through a chapter book and read it entirely on his own. I will be purchasing the 4th book for him very soon. Then we have an entire month to wait for the 5th and newest book to be released.

I am really hopeful that reading this series will open up new worlds for him, and encourage him to read more books. I have been trying to find other books that are the same reading level that I think he might enjoy. SO far I have come up with the following:

• The Indian in the Cupboard series
• The Phantom Tollbooth

I am really struggling with adding anything else to this list. SO I am begging you, ask your 8-12 year old boys for suggestions. I want to keep him supplied with fresh reading material so that we can further develop this newfound love for reading.

If you have a young man who you just can’t get to read, you might wanna check out this series for them. It worked for us, and I am so thankful to Jeff Kinney for writing such an engaging, entertaining series for kids to read and enjoy.

Blessings!

Looking For a Little Math Help? (Crew Review)

We recently were gifted with the opportunity to review a very unique, web-based math tutoring program through the TOS Schoolhouse Crew. Before I share our opinions of the program, let me tell you a little bit about America’s Math Teacher.

The program is essentially an online video tutor. America’s Math Teacher covers Basic Math, Advanced Math, Pre-Algebra and Algebra skills.  Each individual video tutoring session is linked to practice worksheets for your student to complete.  Basic Math is for 4-5th grades and Advanced Math is for 6-7th grades.  Tests are included for each level, making it easy for you to evaluate your student’s progress. Not sure where to begin? The program also has an initial evaluation to help place your student in the correct lessons.

The courses cover:

Basic Math Skills:
This course is for 4th and 5th graders. Topics include whole numbers, fractions, decimals, percents, integers, geometry, and much more.
Advanced Math Skills:
This course is for middle grade students. Students will master the critical skills necessary for success in pre-algebra. Topics include whole numbers, fractions, decimals, percents, integers, geometry, and much more.
Pre-Algebra:
This course is a must for students prior to taking Algebra I. Integers, exponents, order of operations, ratios & proportions number theory, linear equations, probability & statistics are just a few of the topics that students will learn and master.
Algebra I:
This course will guide students to master the “gateway” subject, algebra. Algebra opens the doors to more advanced classes in math, science, and technology. Students will learn and master all of the essential algebra skills. The lessons are carefully explained in clear, simple terms, so that all students will understand, learn, and master each and every topic.

America’s Math Teacher operates on a mastery-based approach. Your student will spend several consecutive lessons honing a specific skill area before moving on and learning a new concept.  The lessons are set-up in the following order: review of math facts, review of previously learned topics, learning a new skill, and then practicing that skill.

America's Math Teacher was founded by Rick Fisher. He is a math instructor in San Jose, California. Rick graduated from San Jose State University in 1971 with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics. Rick has devoted his time since to teaching fifth and sixth grade math students. Each year approximately one-half of his students bypass the seventh grade math program and move directly to an eighth grade algebra program.

The cost for this program is $195 for one year of online access for as many students as you need. There are also plenty of free materials for you to try out so you can get a feel for the program before purchasing.

Our family found it difficult to incorporate this program into our every-day routine, mainly because we already use a video-based math program daily. I found myself using it most often to help explain a concept that my kids just weren’t getting a good grasp of, and also to give them extra practice with those really important skills. America’s Math Teacher enabled me to give my students an alternative method for learning a particular skill that had previously eluded them via our regular program.

I feel this program would have been much more useful for us had we been using a more traditional, textbook-only program. The only aspect of the program that I would change would be to include courses for grades 1-3. There’s really not much else that this program is lacking. In light of the fact that the subscription cost covers more than one student in a household, I feel the pricing is right on, especially if you have more than one student in 4th grade or higher.

All-in-all I feel that America’s Math Teacher would be a great addition to any basic homeschool math curriculum!

Happy Homeschooling!

 

DISCLAIMER: This item was provided free for review purposes through the TOS Homeschool Crew.  I received no other compensation, and this review is our honest opinion.  Click the TOS Homeschool Crew banner above to read more reviews on this and other products by other Crew members.