Weekly Wrap Up | Week 9

In my life this week…

We played catch up from being sick, had a Great Pumpkin Party at a friends house, I got glasses & contacts after being glasses/contacts free for almost 11 years thanks to Lasik surgery, had nanny at our house for a visit, celebrated the St.Louis Cardinals going to the World Series, and watched/documented a beautiful couple say "I Do!"

 

In our homeschool this week…

This was our fall break from CC so we took advantage of it and played a little catch up after being sick the previous week. I think if you combine week 8 & 9 together we would be able to put one week of school together! :) Such is life! 

 

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…

 We have a very busy schedule this time of year. The end of this week has us headed to Kansas City to see a friend and do pictures for her, then to NE OK for more portrait sessions. Should be a fun week! 

 

I'm reading...

I finished - Called Home: Finding Joy in Letting God Lead Your Homeschool
Started - Steady Days: A Journey Toward Intentional, Professional, Motherhood
The Church Planting Wife: Help and Hope for Her Heart
Still Reading - Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy
Sacred Parenting: How Raising Children Shapes Our Souls
Relationships: A Mess Worth Making

 

I’m grateful for…

Fall! I could complain about the lack of 60 & 70 degree days but I am not going to ;) I am thankful for the changing of the seasons and the reminder that God has ordered the seasons for His glory. As I watch the leaves blow across the back yard I am thankful for a God that is creative and gives us beautiful things to enjoy!

 

Truth to remember...

You know those times in your life when you feel like you have a theme song that is playing EVERYWHERE YOU GO... I currently have a theme song. I don't know the exact lyrics but the overarching theme is in my own strength and power I am not enough, I am greatly lacking, I am deficient.  From the books I have been reading to the sermons I sit under God is making one thing clear, in and of myself I am not enough... I am not enough wife, mom or friend nor will I ever be enough. I am learning what it means to press into Jesus and trust that HE is ENOUGH.

I am reminded of 2 Corinthians 12:9  “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” so as Paul said I too will say... "Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me."

 

Our week in photos... 

top left: my view as me and sister do school at the kitchen table, middle left: new specs, hubby helped me pick them out I am not sure if I am cool enough to pull them off :) bottom left: hubby rejoicing over the cardinals win! right: my cuties at The Great Pumpkin Party

 

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Weekly Wrap-Up | Week 8

In my life this week…

I enjoyed an awesome Sunday afternoon of lesson planning with the windows open and a fall breeze!

We have been battling some type of virus around here. I am happy to report a week later and I think everyone is healthy. I am just hoping none of us passed it to daddy! That means school didn't always go as planned this week and that is okay! 

In our homeschool this week…

We had a good week even with being under the weather for the week and also traveling at the end of the week. Kyla missed CC and piano lessons this week because of being sick.

A few homeschool highlights from this week in picture: (start top row, left to right) 1. I taught her how to play Yahtzee, it was a fun way to do math! 2-3. Mailing a letter to gramy & grandpa. 4. Tracing her European map, this week we will add the mountains. 5. Practicing her piano fingers Music for Little Mozarts style. 6. All About Spelling Lesson.  7-8. Sometimes you just have to push school books aside and play with some new homemade playdough. 9. Love seeing these two reading together!!!

We did quiet a bit of school in the car this week because we traveled to OK to spend some time with friends. She does a good job working in the car.

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…

This week is our "fall break" from CC. We are still going to do school at home because we lost most of last week but it will be a lighter week.  Nanny (my mom) is coming for a visit and we are looking forward to that! We also have  a Great Pumpkin party tomorrow, the kids are going to do some fall activities with a few friends, paint some pumpkins and watch Charlie Brown and The Great Pumpkin.

My favorite thing this week was…

Spending time with one of my best friends and her family! We visited a pumpkin patch together! Good times! 

Also loving the cardinals pulling off some big wins!! 

Things I’m working on…

Story of my life... editing 

I’m grateful for…

Oreganol Oil P73 - I struggled with "flu like" symptoms off and on for a few days, after 2 drops of this sublingually I felt better and after using it for two days I feel completely better. Now I have some on hand for this cold & flue season!

We had our family pictures and the photographer shared some screenshots..... I cannot wait to see these in real life! 

A great read from this week:

Gel Pen Faith

I loved this part, "This is a pattern. I felt capable of being a mother, back before I was. God gave me more to handle than I could possibly handle on my own strength. I felt capable of keeping house. I’m sorry. I don’t know if I can stop laughing about that. Anything that I felt capable of doing,  God will both make it seem impossible and simultaneously ask me to do it. And there I am – in the sweetest place you can ever be – relying on Him. Walking in faith. Living in joy.This broken feeling is only broken if it stays there. If it stops in self-pity. If it wallows in grief about the lost emotions of our journaling days. But this is richer. When we seek His joy instead of our own, when we lay our best on His altar, and we have nothing left for ourselves, that is when we are truly accomplishing His purpose in our lives."

Have a great week friends!




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HMJ | Week 7 Wrap Up

Week 7 is *almost* complete. I have two kiddos who are napping because grumpy attitudes were abundant this afternoon! We have some things I would like to cover this afternoon and possibly tomorrow.

I decided on Sunday that I was "unplugging" the TV for the week. I realized I was using it as a crutch to not really engage my kiddos, especially the little guy. It has been a great week and the TV will probably remain unplugged. I confess to turning it on for 1 hour this week so I could watch Castle.

This is some of the fun these two had being TV free :) 

 It has finally cooled off, we have spent a few afternoons doing this!

In our homeschool this week…

After Miss K started asking questions about baptism and salvation we decided to put out original Bible lesson plans aside for now and her and I are going through Helping Children Understand the Gospel from Desiring God Children.There are 10 truths we are going to spend two days on each truth.

I am going to reinforce the truths by having her do a notebook page and we will make a book at the end of the 10 truths we are learning.

This gal has also really picked up the pace with reading! She read me to sleep last week! 

We ended up going to the big city this week to get little guy a hair cut (we have our family portraits in a few weeks)  and Kyla did a great job getting the work done in the car. We also started piano lessons this week, she was really excited to pick those back up, it is something she really enjoys.

We also went on a nature walk/scavenger hunt with some friends.  Who knew our local park houses Missouri's largest Sassafras Tree? Not me! If it's not on the play ground I don't know it exists! ;)  While we were at the park the city workers were releasing fish into the pond. The kiddos enjoyed watching the fish being released into the pond.

We finished week 5 of Classical Conversations. We are loving CC!
 We drill daily and sometimes go deeper.

A few small ways we went deeper:
Abstract castle painting

Watching videos about hibernation, adaptation, & migration and play a few games I found from googling. (that is a word right!?!?!)
Also found this website: Study Jams by Scholastic that has awesome short science videos that go along with what we are learning. *DISCLAIMER* You may disagree with some of the content found in these links so watch these before and with your kiddos to determine if you want to use them!

She will color in her prescript book while I read to her about Joan of Arc and the 100 Years War.

For geography we will look up the European cities and some prominent features. I will be using the geography cards from Melody @ And Here We Go as a jumping off point.

On of my favorite things about Classical Conversations is the opportunity to give weekly presentations, this week was a dramatic recitation, Kyla shared the story of The Three Little Pigs.

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…

I am incredibly inadequate to give advice, but I shared this on my facebook this week and it is so very TRUE for me!

I am thankful I get to stay at home with my kids and homeschool them, it is a sacrifice I am happy to make, that doesn't make it easy!

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…

We have one more week of CC then we are on break! I am traveling to central OK to spend a few days with one of my best friends! I am looking forward to that! 

I’m cooking…

A few new things, but tonight is an oldie and a goodie, Sweet & Sour Chicken! The only difference is I use coconut oil instead of canola oil!

I’m grateful for…

I’m praying for…

*our government*
*some friends with health concerns*

Something I am ogling or have my eye on…

I was looking at Song School Latin and when we were in the big city I found it on sale! Bonus! We will be starting that soon!

A photo, video, link, or quote to share (silly, serious or both!)…

 A very thought provoking read! Is Public School an Option by Albert Mohler

I know I am probably a little late to the free audiobook party BUT I finally checked out Librivox and it is awesome! I have been listening to The Jungle Book, so good! That search also lead me to / Lit2go and Story Nory.
Anyone use these free audio book resources? What do you like or your children enjoy? 

If your stopping by from one of the link ups please say hello so I can pop over and say hello! 


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HMJ | Weekly Wrap Up | Week 6

I cannot believe a week has went by without any blogging! We have had a good week of school and are plugging right along! 

In my life this week…

I am tired!! I thought my Sunday afternoon nap helped me recover from my "wedding hangover" as we photographers call it but I don't think it was... after two more naps this week I think I am finally getting some energy back! I sure love what I do though!

In our homeschool this week…

We had a great week! Here is a review in pictures:

Monday we took our science to the park

Top two photos history coloring in the Prescripts book while mom reads the timeline cards and history snippets found on C3. 

Water cycle wheel found here.

Skip counting mazes were a new addition this week.

I decided for geography we would either trace Europe or the continents depending on the memory work. This week we traced, colored, labeled and then added in our rivers from week 5. 

The last picture is my daughters drawing of her class at CC. Complete with parents sitting around the table. :)

 A few non CC activities included....

READING BOOKS! Last night instead of me reading to her she read to me.. pretty cool if you ask me.

Remember those art and music plans I have mentioned. I am getting closer to having them figured out. I am looking forward to learning about art with my kiddos and she is too!

A letter to grammy and grandpa, I know they will be so excited too!

Continuing on with our all about spelling. 

Things I’m working on…

Art and Music plans

Editing out my ears

Laundry, that does need to be folded right.... 

I’m cooking…

I have actually made two new dinners this week and a third is one the menu for tonight. 

Oven Chicken Fajitas

Italian Pasta Bake

Three Cheese Garlic Chicken Pasta  (tonight's dinner)

I’m grateful for…

Fall! Thankful things here in the Ozarks are cooling off so we can get outside a bit more!

A link to share...

Is Your Life a Mess? Are you willing to admit it?

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HMJ | Weekly Wrap Up | Week 5

I feel like the ball is in motion for school and we are hitting a rhythm which is really nice.  

In my life this week...

Monday was a bit bumpy, I am praying this is not the new norm for Mondays around here.

I knew this week would be a bit off because we left for OK Thursday afternoons it was a bit of a lighter week.

In our homeschool this week…

We completed week 3 of Classical Conversations and Kyla is doing a good job with the memory work.

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…

We are currently in OK at my parents house. I had a session last night for a couple who celebrated 40 years of marriage recently and I have a wedding tomorrow. I like to keep Friday light with a little work and hopefully an outing of some kind. This morning we did school at Nanny's House.

After we met Nanny for lunch we headed over to Claremore, OK for Art on the Hill at Rogers State University. We watched about half of a production of Hank the Cowdog (the little guy was done about 1/2 way through and I didn't come prepared for a show) before heading out to look at the art from local artists and students of RSU.  The big hit was the kids activity tent where my kiddos made a few crafts. We finished off the outing with a stop at self serve frozen yogurt bar.

My favorite thing this week was…

The one piece of memory work my girl was struggling with was skip counting the 4's. She has known the song and been singing it incorrectly for 2 years. (she was saying 24, 48 instead of 28) For her to put her sticker on her chart she needed to nail it down. It was tough for her and she would say, "it's to hard" and want to quit but I was able to encourage her to keep on until she knew the facts. She finally nailed it down and she was so excited and proud of her hard work!  It was a good lesson for her to learn, hard work pays off!

Say hello so I can stop by and see what happened in your week!

 

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Geography Flags | Classical Conversations Review

I mentioned a few weeks ago one way I wanted to enrich our CC Memory Work was by using the flag of the country during review. 

I think for us the first review day needs to be regular geography review and then the second or third day we can use the flags.

I used small craft sticks and tape to put the flags on the stick and sticky tack to make them stand upright on our Trivium Tables. I may try hot glue with the next set I need to make.

I did upload this to C3 in case anyone is interested. It is under Cycle 2 - All Weeks - Geography or my username is KaraGuffey. There is a pdf format and a doc format if you wish to re-size the flags.

If you end up using these please let me know how they work for you!

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HMJ | Weekly Wrap Up | Week 4

Week 4! Wow! I still can't believe it! I really enjoy looking back at our week and seeing all that we accomplished!


In my life this week…

I feel like we are slowly getting into a groove around here. Even with all the bumps in the road God is doing so many great things in our family.  At the end of the week Kyla started asking questions about baptism which lead to some really great gospel centered conversations. Her daddy and I are excited to see God working in her life!! My grandmother came to town on Friday and I am excited to spend a few days with her this weekend!

In our homeschool this week…

You can see what we did in regards to CC here.  After we got past Monday we had a great week. In addition to all of the CC work we continued with our Bible, writing, spelling and reading. We are up to the Tower of Babel in the Bible and learning more all the time. She is doing a great job with her catechism questions and I love how we reference back to the catechism questions when talking about God.

I introduced cursive this week, she is sooooooo excited!

Kyla also is to the point in her reading program that she received her second set of readers, she is blowing through them!!

Places we’re going and people we’re seeing… 

With great grandma in town we headed to the big city close by to watch my cousin play division 1 women's volleyball. The kids enjoyed the game. We are headed out today to watch two more games. Kyla was really enjoying the scoreboard and all the numbers, adding them up and telling me the score. It really is amazing how kids really want to engage their surrounds and when it is encouraged it is even fun! 

My favorite thing this week was…

Hands down, our conversation with Kyla about the Lord!

My kiddos favorite thing this week was…

Most likely doing school with our friends who came over Friday morning! 

Things I’m working on…

I have one session to edit

Art and Music lessons 

Books I am reading...

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy

Relationships: A Mess Worth Making

Sacred Parenting

I’m grateful for…

Grace, redemption and new mercies!


I LOVE seeing what other people are doing! Be sure to say hello so I can stop by your blog and see what was going on in your week!



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