Coming Soon!

This weekend I was informed that I was selected to join Mosaic Reviews. As this is a very new venture, I am not sure when the reviews will start but I will let you know when I know! Stay tuned for...

Countdown to CHRISTmas ~ Days 22-24

Day 22 ~ We went to the Mesa, Arizona Temple Lights

Day 23 ~ We drove around town and looked at all the decorated houses

Day 24 ~ We made fudge, read The Night Before Christmas and the kids exchanged and opened their dollar store gifts.

Here is our gift to you:

Countdown to CHRISTmas ~ Days 13-21

Day 13 ~ We made paper ornaments.

Day 14 ~ We made sugar cookie dough and went to our ward Christmas Party: A Night in Bethlehem.

It was a cold and rainy night!

The children singing Silent Night

Joseph, Mary and Baby Jesus

Day 15 ~ We cut out and baked cookies.

Day 16 ~ We frosted the cookies and delivered them to some families that we know.

Day 17 ~ We made edible Christmas trees.

Day 18 ~ We watched The Muppet Christmas Carol.

Day 19 ~ We read more holiday books.

Day 20 ~ We made edible Nativities.

Monkey (and Daddy) made this Nativity

Ladybug's Nativity

Unicorn's Nativity

Day 21 ~ We gathered together some toys and clothes that we no longer need/use to give away.

And of course we are still doing 24 Days of Mormon Christmas!

Countdown to CHRISTmas ~ Days 10-12

Day 10 Grandma, Papa Ron and Daddy took the kids to the Zoo Lights at Tucson's Reid Park Zoo.

Days 11 and 12 we read Christmas books 

(Olive the other Reindeer and Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer).

We are also keeping up with 24 Days of Mormon Christmas!

They all found their favorite color tree at the Zoo Lights!

Countdown to CHRISTmas ~ Days 6-9

The last few days have been a little crazy but we have still been counting down to CHRISTmas. 

We are still doing the 24 Days of Mormon Christmas and we have made snowflakes (I was too busy watching kids with scissors to snap any pictures), read books and spent time together. 

We are having to switch up our schedule a little bit and move our Mesa Temple Lights field trip to another night but, hey, that's life! ;) Tomorrow we will be heading to Reid Park Zoo in Tucson to see the zoo lights (because it is FREE for members 12/10 and 12/11) and we will do our Family Home Evening Lesson on Tuesday. I hope to have some photos for you tomorrow!

Countdown to CHRISTmas ~ Day 6

Today we made mini-wreath ornaments.

Click here for information on how to make the wreaths.

Click here for a video tutorial on how to make a bow.

Of course, we also did Day 6 of 24 Days of Mormon Christmas!

Countdown to CHRISTmas ~ Day 5

24 Days of Mormon Christmas

and 

Ornament Painting!

Countdown to CHRISTmas ~ Day 4

Today we mixed it up a little from our original plan. Instead of doing the edible Christmas Trees we did the Dollar Store Shopping because we were already out running errands.

Of course we still did the 24 Days of Mormon Christmas!

Countdown to CHRISTmas ~ Day 3

We started with:

24 Days of Mormon Christmas

and then we made clay ornaments. The recipe was VERY simple and the clay was easy to work with. We will let the ornaments dry for a couple days and then paint them on Wednesday.

Countdown to CHRISTmas ~ Day 2

Today we did

 

24 Days of Mormon Christmas

and in about an hour we will sit down as a family and watch The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints First Presidency Christmas Devotional. You can watch live on BYU-TV or here.

Countdown to CHRISTmas ~ Day 1

We started by opening our Day 1 "gift". We read the letter inside and got started.

24 Days of Mormon Christmas Day 1

Today was Grinch Dinner and Movies Day.

Last night we made Who Pudding and today we made Who Hash, Grinch Cookies, Grinch Punch and Roast Beast (which you could either crock-pot a whole chicken or just snag a pre-cooked one from the grocery store like we did) and watched both versions of "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas".

Our "Who" Feast

"Who Hash"

"Who Pudding"

"Grinch Punch"

"Grinch Cookies"

Countdown to CHRISTmas

The last two years we have counted down to CHRISTmas by doing readings and activities from Discover Christmas. We loved it but I am going to mix it up a bit this year! I have everything (I think) pinned on Pinterest HERE. I am going to post as we complete each activity but just in case you would like to follow along with us here is my plan:

Daily:
~24 Days of Mormon Christmas (even if you are not Mormon you may enjoy the songs, stories and activites...just tweak as you see fit)!
~Advent Calendar (you could also just make a chain to count down to CHRISTmas)

For the rest of the activities wrote the activities down and 

put them in envelopes for the kids to open each day.

Dec. 1 ~ Grinch Dinner  and Grinch Cookies and Grinch Movies night (we will watch both versions)
Dec. 2 ~ We will watch the First Presidency Christmas Devotional
Dec. 3 ~ Make and Bake Clay Ornaments
Dec. 4 ~ Make an edible Christmas Trees
Dec. 5 ~ Paint ornaments from Dec. 3
Dec. 6 ~ Make mini-wreaths
Dec. 7 ~ Make paper snowflakes
Dec. 8 ~ Read a Christmas book (I just grabbed a couple I had on our shelves but you can always head to the library if you don't have any of your own.)
Dec. 9 ~ Go to the Mesa Temple Christmas Lights (If you live near Mesa, AZ I HIGHLY recommend this)!!!
Dec. 10 ~ Christmas in the Book of Mormon Family Home Evening
Dec. 11 ~ Dollar Store shopping (I will give each child a couple dollars to buy a CHRISTmas present for each of their siblings at the local dollar store). I think we will also take advantage of our Zoo Membership and head to Tucson for the Reid Park Zoo Lights!
Dec. 12 ~ Read more Christmas or holiday books
Dec. 13 ~ Snow globes (still figuring this one out)
Dec. 14 ~ Paper Ornaments
Dec. 15 ~ Make sugar cookie and gingerbread doughs and our Church CHRISTmas Party: A Night in Bethlehem
Dec. 16 ~ Bake cookies
Dec. 17 ~ Decorate cookies and deliver them to some neighbors
Dec. 18 ~ Watch a holiday movie (we will be watching "The Muppet Christmas Carol")
Dec. 19 ~ Read more books!
Dec. 20 ~ Make an edible Nativity
Dec. 21 ~ Gather toys, games, clothes etc. to donate
Dec. 22 ~ Read more books
Dec. 23 ~ Read more books
Dec. 24 ~ Road Trip...we are going to check out all the CHRISTmas lights in the neighborhood
Dec. 25 ~ CHRISTmas
Dec. 26 ~ Watch The Polar Express and make edible Trains

Just a side note: You may want to check out the MyMemories tab at the top of the page. There are 3 FREEBIES that you may enjoy. Until Dec. 10 it is a 3D paper star project.

  

Gratitude Challenge ~ Day 22

Thanksgiving

Today I am grateful that I am NOT hosting or cooking anything for Thanksgiving this year. 

I am grateful that my mom is hosting and that she and my husband will do the cooking. 

I am grateful that my in-laws and my sister and her husband as well and my grandmother will all be in attendance this year. 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Gratitude Challenge ~ Day 21

Quiet Mom Time

Today I am grateful that I got a couple hours at home by myself.
I was able to catch up on a couple shows and do some organizing in the school room.
As a homeschooling mom this is a very rare and cherished occurrence!
I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving tomorrow!

Gratitude Challenge ~ Day 20

Answered Prayers

 Ever since I started homeschooling almost 3 years ago I have been searching for a curriculum that is all laid out for me, can be used for ALL my children at the same time, includes history (the history in chronological order and starts with creation), geography, science, literature, art, music and, most importantly, incorporates the Gospel of Jesus Christ (LDS Doctrine) in to each lesson! I was beginning to think that what I desired didn't exist, and it didn't, at least, until this year that is! Yesterday, I got an email from an LDS news organization and there was an article about Latter-day Learning and their Family School curriculum! I spent hours on the site yesterday learning about their curriculum, downloading the scope and sequence and sample lesson plans, and reading their mission statements, FAQ's, blog and exploring their networking forum! I am so excited to finally find what I have been searching for. Now, I need to save up some money so we can purchase it! :)

Click the Graphic below to learn more!

In a Nutshell

Complete Year Pre-Printed Version: $390

Complete Year Download Version: $285

Includes: History, Geography, Science, Literature, Art and Music 

Not Included: Math, Phonics/Reading and Spelling

Christmas Coupon Code: GIFT2012 $40 off good through 12/31/12

If you join their network please mention that I sent you. Thanks!

{Disclaimer: This is not a review. I do not own this product (yet) and I have not received anything from the company. I am just sharing this information because I am grateful that I have finally found what I am looking for!}

Gratitude Challenge ~ Day 19

Books

 Today I am grateful for books! I love me a good book! ;)

Gratitude Challenge ~ Day 18

March of Dimes

 Yesterday was World Prematurity Day. Two of my children were born premature. 

Unicorn was born at 33 weeks and was 3 pounds 11 ounces. I had eclampsia (I skipped over toxemia and pre-eclampsia) and started having seizures. Her father found me unconscious on February 29, 2000 at about 3:00 pm and called 911. She was born via C-section around 5:30 pm. I woke up 2 days later. I was in the hospital for 5 days and she was in NICU for 15 days. It was a terrifying experience that I will probably never remember. She is now 12 years old and happy and healthy. She has only one health concern that may be related to prematurity! I am grateful we both survived!

Ladybug was born via a scheduled C-section at 38 weeks and was my only "full-term" baby and my biggest at 6 pounds 4 ounces! Her birth was nice and uneventful (other than the 4 1/2 months on bedrest)!

With Monkey I went into labor at 34 weeks (April 15, 2008). I was given a shot of turbutaline and had an allergic reaction. Since the only other medicine that can stop labor has to be administered through an IV I was immediately admitted into the hospital where I spent the next 2 weeks on magnesium and in labor. At 36 weeks the doctor did an amniocentesis and determined that Monkey's lungs were fully developed and that it was time to deliver. He was born at 36 week and was 5 pounds and 8 ounces. He is now 4 years old and happy and healthy!

I am grateful for the March of Dimes and their mission to help prevent premature births!

Gratitude Challenge ~ Day 17

French Fries and Chicken Nuggets

I am grateful that we have a deep fryer and that potatoes are fairly cheap so we can have homemade French Fries a couple times a week. Unfortunately they disappear faster than I can snap a photo! I am also grateful that my hubby makes awesome chicken nuggets! Yummy!

Gratitude Challenge ~ Day 16

Unexpected Blessings

The other day my husband came home from work and said that one of his co-workers (a single woman who is taking care of her niece) needed to find someone to watch her niece while she was at work and asked me if I knew anyone local who might be willing. He told me that this young woman is taking care of her niece because the little girls father is making some decisions that are not conducive to taking care of a child. She also lives in a neighboring city, drives to another neighboring city (thirty minutes out of the way) to drop her niece off at a daycare and then drives to our city for work. The cost of gas alone for that kind of daily commute is enough to break the bank and then she has to pay a weekly rate for daycare even though she is a teacher and has many days off. I told him to have her stop by after work and if she was comfortable with it that I would watch her niece.

Long story short: 

She gets to save money on gas and childcare (because she is only going to pay for the days that I watch her niece) and I get to make a little money and Unicorn gets to practice babysitting! 

Win - Win - Win!