Your Sacred Calling

"The woman who makes a sweet, beautiful home, filling it with love and prayer and purity, is doing something better than anything else her hands could find to do beneath the skies...

A true mother is one of the holiest secrets of home happiness... 

God sends many beautiful things to this world, many noble gifts; but no blessing is richer than that which He bestows in a mother who has learned love's lessons well, and has realized something of the meaning of her sacred calling."

~ J.R. Miller, Excerpt from The Family

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.

Project Dinosaur DVD ~ Family Movie Night

Project Dinosaur is the latest addition to Our Wholesome Video List. We really enjoyed this film as a family since it was entertaining while presenting the creation and evolution information to a younger audience. Your children will love it. There was also some character building lessons on "turning the other cheek" and "being prepared to give an answer for what you believe in" (whether or not it is the popular opinion). I really appreciated the fact that this required zero editing! Truly family-and-faith-friendly but fun (What a concept!!!)!

What is it about?

"In, Project Dinosaur Mikey's chances of winning the science fair take a nose-dive when his experiment suffers a crash landing, but the discovery of a dinosaur bone revives his dashed hopes. Then when Mikey realizes that evolution conflicts with his Christian beliefs, he must decide what he believes and have the courage to defend it, even if it means losing the science fair. Winner of the Bronze Crown Award. A resource for families, churches, and Christian schools. Suitable for ages 7 and up." 

~ From BJU PRESS (Unusual Films)

Homeschool categories:

• Science: Dinosaurs/Creation/Evolution
• Character Building: Love Thy Enemy/Stand Up for What you Believe

To see our criteria for choosing media for our family, click here.

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.

Cabbage Rose {Rows} and Serving Suggestions

This is our last segment on our autumn garden series. It features the cabbage (it is not hard to figure out how the "cabbage rose" received its name, is it?). Like our other autumn produce, we just made a row in the earth, placed in seeds and watered. I must admit that we only had a few of these do well. Some creatures were really enjoying it. Once the damage was done, we read that you could place your wood ash around each plant and that really helps to deter them. So, we will try again next year with our newly acquired knowledge.

Benefits of cabbage:

1. Excellent source of vitamin C (richer in the source than oranges!)
2. Excellent source of fiber
3. Good source of sulphur 
4. Natural detoxifier
5. Rich in iodine
6. Vitamin E, calcium, magnesium and potassium are also present in cabbage.

Serving Suggestions:

• Creamy Cole-Slaw
• Sauerkraut

• Confetti Cabbage Salad (shown in picture above) (printable recipe is shared here)
• End of the Garden Soup (cabbage is the base of this recipe)

What are your favorite ways to prepare cabbage?

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.

Chocolate ~ A Gift from Heaven

I LOVE chocolate. I mean, I really love it! I consider it God's gift to women and if our husbands would like some as well, then of course we will share (wink)! Wasn't it said in the beginning that...

"I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat." 

~ Genesis 1:29

And… chocolate is made from the "seed" of a cocoa plant. There you have it! The evidence at its scientific best. Well, if someone wants to be really specific they would probably tell me that it is not the plain chocolate I eat but the kind with sugar in it that I am actually enjoying…

Well, to those who would like to rain on my philosophical parade, I simply say that sugar is made from sugar cane which is a plant. (Yes, I am having fun with this! Of course I won't let my children read this sinful entry…)

Indulgence in a bit of chocolate is surely a treat but gluttony is a sin so I do keep that in mind when enjoying my little piece of heaven on earth. Also, if you feel this posting is a bit on the silly side, just remember there is a "time to laugh" (Ecclesiastes 3:4). But honestly, dark chocolate (the higher the percentage of cacao the better) is actually good for you!

Further Justification ~ Chart of Information:

• Dark chocolate contains large amount of anti-oxidents
• Dark chocolate helps balance certain hormones in the body
• Dark chocolate can help lower blood pressure
• Dark chocolate can help to lower cholesterol
• Dark chocolate contains serotonin which acts as a antidepressant

Favorite Chocolate Recipes:

• Blended Chocolate Mocha Frappe (Frugal with Healthy Options)
• Chocolate Chip Cookies (Revised and Somewhat Healthier Recipe and History)
• Chocolate "Cup of Gold" Candy Bar (Healthy and Satisfying!)
• Chocolate Dream "Cream" Filled Cake (Unhealthy but Delicious!)
• Chocolate Surprise Cookies (One of Our Favorite Cookie Recipes)

Incidentally, dark chocolate is my weapon of choice… What about you?

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.

Trees ~ A {Free} Unit Study

Fall has come to the northern hemisphere and the leaves are falling which beckon to the children to come out and play.  There is something so beautiful in the crisp cool weather and warm earthy colors. Let us enjoy the season by learning a bit about the trees and what makes this time of year so special.

Suggested Chapter Book to Read Aloud: My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George (A story of nature about a boy who goes to live in the mountains and hollows out a tree to live in. He does tell his parents first and this theme did not present a problem in our household but I thought I would inform any concerned parents about the plot. This is a very informative but fun book!) An alternative read aloud chapter book would be a biography on the life of Johnny Appleseed.

                                        

Suggested Picture Books: Tell Me, Tree: All About Trees for Kids by Gail Gibbons (There is a reference to millions of years on one page which I whited out for my library collection.) Why Do Leaves Change Color? (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science, Stage 2) by Betsy Maestro,  A Tree Is a Plant (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science) by Clyde Robert Bulla, Be a Friend to Trees (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out, Stage 2) by Patricia Lauber, Sugaring Time by Kathryn Lasky.

                    

I would suggest reading together from the above chapter book for 1/2 hour a day. Read one of the pictures books per day as well since they are the non-fiction source of information in this study (though the chapter book is filled with nature information). (The books are just suggestions and you may use whatever you have available to you.) Then, have the children do some of the listed activities below each day according to their abilities.  Include all work separately in a notebook/binder or composition book for each child. Don't forget to let them decorate their own covers with pictures of trees, stickers or clip art! Encourage them to be creative.  By the end of a few weeks you will have a nice collection of "tree scrapbooks" to cherish as an educational keepsake.

Tree Inspired Learning Activities~

Spelling/Vocabulary Words:

1. tree
2. autumn
3. leaf
4. branch
5. photosynthesis
6. coniferous
7. evergreen
8. deciduous

Science/Nature: After reading to the children, Tell Me, Tree: All About Trees for Kids by Gail Gibbons, go outside on a nature walk and each day find a different kind of tree to do a tree bark rubbing and leaf rubbing of.  Cut and paste onto notebook paper and using a field guide, label your entries.

Science/Nature: Draw and diagram a tree and a leaf.

Science/Nature: Learn about root systems from an encyclopedia or other reference book. Have students write out a short description of their function.

Science/Nature: Learn about photosynthesis from an encyclopedia or other reference source.  Write a brief explanation of the process. Make sure to discuss the fact that trees provide us with oxygen and we provide them with carbon dioxide. God has created a clever system!

Science/Nature: After reading, A Tree Is a Plant (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science) by Clyde Robert Bulla, have children draw and color what a tree would look like in all four seasons.

Science/Nature: After reading to the children, Why Do Leaves Change Color? (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science, Stage 2) by Betsy Maestro, see if they can explain to you the process of why leaves change color in the fall. Perhaps they can tell you why people call the autumn season "fall" as well? Older children may write the explanation on paper if you like.

Science/Nature: Read the book, Sugaring Timeby Kathryn Lasky and have the older children document the step by step process of creating maple syrup on paper.

Science/Nature: Research the difference between an evergreen tree, deciduous and coniferous trees and write a short report about your findings.

Science/Apologetics/Family Discussion: Discuss the petrified wood theory of a million years and the creationists theory of a young earth. Read linked article aloud to family and discuss the information.

Bible/Penmanship: Copy in your best writing some Bible verses about trees.  Be sure to include the proper punctuation.

Bible Discussion: Read together the passages in the Bible where it talks about human beings producing fruit (John 15:5-8) and discuss the spiritual meaning and physical meaning. This would be a good time to talk about pruning (spiritually and physically). Have your children prepare a "Fruits of the Spirit" list (Galatians 5:22). 

Language Arts: Copy the following poem, making sure to pay attention to punctuation:

The Tree by Sarah Coleridge

The Oak is called the king of trees,
The Aspen quivers in the breeze,
The Poplar grows up straight and tall,
The Peach tree spreads along the wall,
The Sycamore gives pleasant shade,
The Willow droops in watery glade,
The Fir tree useful in timber gives,
The Beech amid the forest lives.

Thinking Skills: Have older children alphabetize the trees mentioned in the poem above.

Grammar: See if the children can point out the nouns, verbs and adjectives in the poem above. Each child can do one line and so on until the poem is complete.

History: Read a biography about Johnny Appleseed and do a short report on his life. Did you know he was a God-fearing man?

Research: After reading the book, Be a Friend to Trees (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out, Stage 2) by Patricia Lauber, have children create a list of  products that come from a tree. Older children can use an encyclopedia to see if they can come up with more ideas to add.

Family/Science Project: Plant a tree in your back yard. Research what your tree needs to flourish and make sure you plant accordingly. 

Family Tree Link

Family History Project: Create a family tree and see how much your children know about their roots!  This would be a great time to share some special stories of their ancestors.

Geography: Look up your state tree in an encyclopedia and do a report on it.

Discuss Tree Terms: Barking up the wrong tree, branching out... (See what others you can come up with and make a list.)

Home Economics/Math: Make an apple pie and have the children measure and weigh out the apples and ingredients. Have children "double" the recipe and make two (you can place the extra in the freezer or give away as a homeschool gift).

Physical Education: Go climb a tree! (At your own discretion…)

Almond Branches in Blossom by Vincent Van Gogh

Art History/Picture Study: Do a picture study on the painting "Almond Branches in Blossom" by Vincent Van Gogh and have the children observe it for a week and then write an "art review" on it. Did they like it? What mood did it put them in?  What season do they think is taking place in the picture? Do they realize that the painter is Dutch? Can they find Holland on the globe or map? The artist painted this picture as a gift for his brother Theo after they had a son whom they named Vincent (explaining extra information about art and artists will help them to retain information better). Include a print out of the painting on the "art review" page and place into their scrapbooks.

Arts/Crafts: 

• Do some iron on leaf crafts (When you have them completed, punch holes through the top of each leaf; run yarn or ribbon through the holes and make a leaf garland for your fireplace mantle or any other place in the house to give some autumn flavor to your home.)
• Decorate your hearth or windows with a pinecone banner. Using this clip art from the Graphics Fairy, have each child color a few "cones" and attach to string and hang as a garland. You may want to decorate with some brown glitter as well. 

Foreign Language: Memorize how to say "tree" in the foreign language you are studying.

Field Trip: Visit a local arboretum (a botanical garden devoted to trees).

Suggested Movies:

• God's Power Plants Video by Moody Science (Children will love this video about plants and how special God made them.) (I don't think it's out on DVD but if you have a VHS player you will be glad to add this to your library or you may find it at your local library to rent.)
• My Side of the Mountain DVD (based on the book by Jean Craighead George)

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.

Black and White Pantry Labels {Antique French} ~ Free Printable

You will find our updated pantry label post featuring five pages worth of labels {for free} HERE.

Happy homemaking! 

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Roses of Inspiration, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.

Soaring with Swings ~ Precious Playtime

Sometimes we forget the enjoyment that an old fashioned swing could bring.

Do you have one in your backyard?

All you need is a decent sized tree and the fun can begin! 

We have two on our property (shown below)...

This old eucalyptus doesn't give much shade

but it does bring much pleasure…

A swing doesn't have to be fancy…

Be creative!

Just a few lines of rope and

something to seat yourself on to!

Why not put one up today?

Girl on a Swing by Jesse Wilcox Smith 

The Swing

How do you like to go up in a swing, 

Up in the air so blue?

Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing

Ever a child can do!

Up in the air and over the wall, 

Till I can see so wide, 

River and trees and cattle and all 

Over the countryside-- 

Till I look down on the garden green, 

Down on the roof so brown-- 

Up in the air I go flying again, 

Up in the air and down!

By ~ Robert Louis Stevenson

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  The Scoop, Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays,  Coffee and Conversation, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Our Simple Homestead, From the Farm Blog Hop, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Awesome Life Friday Link Up, Five Star Frou Frou Friday, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.