Everything

Hi, friends.

I will not be blogging for awhile.  We have another foster care placement.  This time he's a wee-tiny one who needs a lot of extra care.  We are managing with the help of AMAZING family and friends (some who trudged through the snow to get to us to help this weekend).  Please remember him (and our family) in your prayers.

Love,
Jane

"For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength."

Phil. 4:13

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Multiplication and Division Helps

At one time or another each one of our kids struggle with a certain concept.  When this happens, we slow down and look for new ways to present, learn and practice the new idea.  If the concept is crucial, we might stop new work completely and take a few days (or weeks) to focus on it.  If it's just not coming, we take a break and come back to it.  Homeschooling makes this so easy to do- moving forward and hanging back as needed.

Last March I shared about our attempts to find a spelling curriculum that works for one of our kids who was having trouble with spelling.  All About Spelling is still working well for us and I still highly recommend it.

But then there's 3rd and 4th grade math when multiplication and division are presented.  Those concepts fall into that crucial category because both really must be mastered before moving ahead. From here on out, those skills will be built upon.  And they come easier for some more than others.

Sometimes flashcards, manipulatives and worksheets just aren't enough.  For some times tables (like the 9s) there are tricks to be taught but sometimes facts just need to be memorized.  Games are great but usually require more than one person to play and I am often looking for tools they can use on their own.  Thankfully, we've found a few tools that have really helped things click.

The pattern became that while I was putting wood on the stove, washing up dishes, changing over laundry or what-have-you, I could ask my student to use one of these tools as a review before we jumped into math (the first subject we do together).  This additional review has really helped and we're back tackling new lessons in math. Non-homeschooled kids can totally benefit from these tools as well.

Wrap Ups.  You can buy these individually (for about $10), in a set like we have or make your own.    I think it would be pretty easy to make cardboard versions of these- cutting notches in the sides and affixing a string through the top (using a hole-punch for the opening). The set comes with a CD with some really catchy math raps that assist in the wrapping.

You can listen along as they rap the facts (like, "7 times 4 is 28") or just give you the problem so you can wrap the right answer on your own.  To check to see if your wrapping has lined up correctly, there are grooves on the back of each plastic card that show where the string should lie so you can see if you have it right.

Hot Dots.  There are sets for different skills.  We have the division set.  The special pen (sold separately) is pressed on the dot beside your answer choice.  If you're right, it cheers for you or says some encouraging words.  If you're wrong, it asks you to try again.  The sound can be turned off if it's distracting to others and the end of the pen will light up instead, letting you know if you got it right.

This last one is our favorite: Times Tables the Fun Way.  A friend of my sister recommended this book and I was so glad I was able to find a copy.  For some kids, memorization is just hard.  Linking the facts to a story or image helps them recall what they need to know.

Each picture incorporates the numbers of a multiplication problem and tells a story like this one below.

I decided to make my own drawn-copies of those we needed the most help on and had my student color them.  We then laminated them.  These act as flashcards now and are easier to refer to than finding the right page in the book.  You could totally create your own drawings and stories.

Sometimes I find myself saying, "Is the three a bat or a bow in this problem?" to help trigger their memory.  And it works!

All kids hit a snag now and then.  I've found that changing things up, slowing things down and taking breaks (without putting undue pressure on the child) works best in helping them over their hurdles.  

What math helps have helped your child? 

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Birdseed Ornaments

I love birds.  They're my favorite animals.  We've been thinking a lot more about birds than usual in our house because the girls and I are studying Flying Creatures for science this year.  In order to study them better, we've been putting out bird treats to entice the many birds that live in and around our yard to come a bit closer- suet feeders, bird baths, etc.  So it just seemed natural to make birdseed ornaments as gifts for some of our loved ones this Christmas.

This is also a great winter craft to do with children that helps feed the birds once the ground is covered with snow.

There are many recipes out there, I was soon to discover, and I tried several before finding my favorite.  I like this recipe best because...

1) it only calls for two ingredients,
2) the "glue" holding the seed together dries clear and
3) the ornaments dry very hard so they do not easily crumble.

Please note some of my tips below- they will help make your birdseed-ornament-making go smoothly.

Birdseed Ornaments (to hang outside for the birds, recipe found here)
* This recipe makes six medium-sized ornaments.
* Even if you want to make more than that, do not double/triple the recipe- it will become too sticky to handle towards the end.  Make one batch at a time.
* Be very generous with the cooking spray.
* Allow several days for drying before packing up and gifting.

2 tbsp. unflavored gelatin
2 cups birdseed

2/3 cups water
1 plastic drinking straw, snipped into 1 1/2-inch lengths
waxed paper, to cover cookie sheets and for packing
cooking spray
baker's twine or very thin ribbon

Place wax paper on a cookie sheet with your cookie cutters on top.  Generously spray the cookie cutters (and underneath them) with cooking spray.  Place two cups of birdseed in a large bowl and set aside.  Boil 2/3 cups water in a glass bowl in the microwave and then add the 2 tbsp. gelatin.  Stir until dissolved.  Pour the gelatin mixture over the bird seed and stir for just about a minute, allowing the birdseed to absorb the liquid but don't stir much longer than a minute- it's okay if some liquid is still at the bottom of the bowl.  Quickly fill the ornaments using a small spoon- pressing the birdseed into the corners and packing it in tightly with the spoon back.  Move fairly quickly and stir the seed each time before filling the next cookie cutter.  If some liquid seeps out the bottom- no worries.  It will gel and can easily be removed once dry.

Once the cutters are full, use a small piece of wax paper laid on top to pack it down further.  Insert a straw piece into each ornament not too close to an edge and press down to the cookie sheet.  Set the ornaments aside to dry for about 2-3 hours and then flip them over or onto their side.  A couple hours later, gently press the ornaments out of the cookie cutters and let them dry overnight on a wire rack if you have one.  Let them continue to dry until they are nice and hard.  Then, using baker's twine or ribbon, tie on long loops for hanging on branches.  Feeding the twine through the straw, then removing the straw before tying off, makes for an easier time.  Pack or wrap gently in wax paper and tie with more twine.

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A New Twist: Apple Crunch

Each fall we stock up on local (storage) apples, tucking them wherever we can find room- under the kitchen bench, in the pantry, in the fridge.  We use them for baking but mostly we eat them out of hand or sliced with peanut butter.

potatoes in the box on the left, apples on the right

We've found several varieties that we like for this- Pink Lady and Fugi are two.  They keep for a couple months before some starting to turn mushy.  At this point, I'm motivated to use the many that are still good before they get soft, too, incorporating them into salads, casseroles and (of course) desserts.

This fall, I discovered that I could use my mother-in-law's Rhubarb Crunch recipe by substituting apples.  I'd already learned that this recipe works beautifully with sour cherries, so why not try an apple version?

I did cut back on the sugar (apples don't need the extra sugar tart rhubarb or sour cherries do) and added some cinnamon to the filling. The result was a success and my family now says *this* is my best apple dessert recipe.

If you have my cookbook, this crunch recipe is on page 99.  If you want, you can simply add the changes you see below off to the side (like I did).

Apple Crunch 

1 1/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cup quick oats
1 1/2 cup flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup melted butter
Combine these ingredients and mix well with a fork. Press half of the crumbs into the bottom of a greased 9x13 inch baking pan. Cover the crumbs pressed into the pan with...

5 large apples, peeled and sliced

In a small sauce pan, combine
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
3 tbsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 cup water
Bring to a boil while stirring regularly with a whisk. Once it becomes thick and bubbly, pour it evenly over the fruit. Top with remaining crumbs and bake in a 350 degree oven for 45 min. to 1 hour or until a knife glides into the apples easily.

Delicious served warm with homemade vanilla ice cream. Also good cold right out of the pan with a fork while standing at the counter ;-).

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I am Mother.

Between Christmas and New Year's Eve I unexpectedly found myself without children.  For five days.

Our children are almost always with us.  Sure, there have been the occasional overnights when one isn't home and there are the handful of times Jamey and I have gone away for an anniversary or funeral... but never for five days.  And never has it left me home alone in an empty house, except for our dog who seemed to enjoy being an only child despite missing his little people.

How would I spend my time?  Would I lie around and read and write and take long naps?  Would I scour the house, wash every piece of laundry and ready their school lessons for the New Year? Would I cry? Would I dance around the house in glee?

It's not often that I'm given this much free time.  At first it scared me.  What would I do with that much total me-time?  This lead to another question. Who is this me that has all this free time anyway? What do I do without my kids?

There is a lot of talk (and think) about "losing" yourself to motherhood.  It's something I know many women wrestle with.  Our days often do not look like they did before children.  No longer do some of us use those corporate (or otherwise) gifts to earn money and interact with the world in a direct way that makes us feel like outward contributors to society.  I don't think that when women struggle with this they are saying they don't feel as if motherhood isn't a major, worthwhile contribution to society.  It's just...different.

So what would the pre-child me do with five free days?  I couldn't even figure that out because that person doesn't exist anymore.  Thirteen years have come and gone.  What was important to me then isn't important to me now.  That woman has changed.

I don't mind that she's gone.  I liked her an awful lot, for sure.  She was all that I knew.  But now I know the me-with-children.  And I like her a lot, too.  Oh, she's not perfect.  She messes up every day.  She yells at her kids sometimes.  Some days she's on her computer too much.  Sometimes she loses her patience and wishes she had more freedom.

But she's a mother now and all of those struggles come with the mothering territory.  It's hard but it in no way makes the pre-child her any more important or valuable than the her she is now.

I realized in my discernment about how to spend my five days that I am a mother through and through for this season of my life.  I enjoyed the previous season and I will enjoy the next.  But for now, being a mother even when my children are away is the best me I can be.  Anything else would be trying to be someone I'm not.

So what did I do for five days when my children spent time with their grandparents?  I washed their clothes and sheets, made up their beds, got some school plans together, and stocked the fridge for their return.  I checked things off my to-do/want-to-do list that normally draw me away from them (computer work, writing, taxes, visiting with a friend, shopping, quality time with Jamey) so that when they came home, I was be ready to mother (with children) again.  Don't worry, though.  I also indulged in watching a show in the middle of the day with snacks and managed to not cook a stitch of food (pulling food out of fridge and freezer is not officially cooking in my book).

If you don't find yourself at the same place I am with this whole mother-identity thing, that is okay. We all experience, manage and live out our mothering differently.  And I can honestly say that there have been times, especially when my children were younger, that I wasn't at this place either.

At this point in time, I am a child of God, follower of Jesus, wife, daughter, sister, friend, neighbor, foster parent, church-attender, home manager, and teacher.

But most of all, I am Mother.

And I am okay with that. Pin It

Polish and German Stars

Our family spent much of the two weeks before Christmas crowded around our school table folding and gluing paper.  It wasn't a planned craft or gift.  We just kind of fell into creating.  And we couldn't stop.

It all started with these Polish Stars (video tutorial here).  Before long, Sadie (almost 10) was making them on her own and Miriam (age 6) was too, with only the slightest bit of help.

Then, wanting to be true to our heritage, we learned how to fold German Stars (video tutorial here). They come together faster but there are more steps involved.  It wasn't long and we were all contributing to a jar full.  We hope to make enough to string them into a garland for our Christmas tree next year.

As if that wasn't enough, we started making these stars below, too (video tutorial here). These are the simplest of all.  Aren't they pretty?  Midway through these projects we found ourselves running out of old scrap-booking paper I used to make cards with.  I was overjoyed to find that our local craft store was already running a 70% off Christmas craft paper sale five days before Christmas!  It was full steam ahead.

Soon, we were overrun with stars- making for pretty decorations everywhere.

Who knew folding paper could be so much fun?  Maybe you'll find your family crowded around a table full of paper snippets, glitter and sticky fingers sometime this winter, too. :-)

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