What’s Wrong?!

It has been awhile since I have posted on any of the children, especially Lady Bells, but we have been having some attitude from her. She just refuses to do anything school related for the past couple of weeks?! She is too young to have the end of the year itch so I am bewildered. Can she read it from me? I know I have been trying to rush the days, even though we really do not take a break but things just have not gone as planned this year.
First we had the move that made things crazy, then the curriculum we are doing is just not as fun as we expected, not for me anyway because I am scrapping and scrambling to get things together. I am at the point to just say, STOP!
But I am afraid to do that because Prince is getting closer and closer to his important high school years, although I know he will redo all of this within these years I just want him to enjoy these years. (Although I know if I am unhappy with the way the year is going so are the kids).
When we moved, I got the 4th bedroom I wanted, but the room is proving too little for all 5 of us and all the school things and I find myself having to take several breathers. So what is the solution?
After much prayer and talking with my husband, we have come up with a few answers:
1. Even though I LOVE the thought of MFW and their reason behind the curriculum, I have decided it is just NOT for us. There is not enough meat within to satisfy my teaching style. I have realized through a pros and cons chart, which I do often, the cons out way the pros. And the Pros are things I can be involved in without using the curriculum, such as supporting the Bible translations.
2. I have realized that my first choice for curriculum is what God had chosen for my family. I backed away from this curriculum more than once because of the price, but have since realized that this was the source of my unhappiness and feel peace in my heart now that I have accepted God’s will and know that he will provide this curriculum for us, if this is his path for us.
3. I have since, through other blogs that I love realized that there is no one perfect curriculum. There is no standard that we as homeschoolers have to follow, this is the reason that we homeschool so that we are not held under the Public school standard. My heart is at peace with this also, this is a big one since I was always trying to tweak this and that to make it “perfect”. I spent most of my time doing this. Now I can create because it is what I like to do.
4. I myself have realized that homeschooling is the heart of our family, and have helped my husband come to this realization also. We have this huge living room that is barely used because we don’t watch TV; the children are band from the filth. We hardly invite people into our “sanctuary” and those that are privileged enough to be invited in, know we homeschool and that this IS our life. So do you see what I am getting at? We have decided that the living room would make the “perfect” classroom! The 4th bedroom will become the living room (minus the wall that makes up the hall) which will be the right size for the perfect cozy living room. We will be again a 3 bedroom family but most of our time is spent in the classroom so everything will even out. I am so excited about this change, which will happen the first week we will be out, so maybe this is the reason for the end of the year itch for everyone.
I will keep you posted on the change!

Leaving Norway

We actually officially left Norway last week, but it has been so pretty out that school has been light this week. We plan on arriving in France on Monday. Many may think that we never get anything done because we are always taking breaks, but with our schedule we actually get lots done.
We school year-round, only taking the month of August and a week in June for VBS in the summer. I don’t know about you but summers around here are just to hot and the kids always in up in the house anyway. And even when we do a “light” week the kids still have to do one lesson in MUS and Daily Grams. We also do reading in something daily which to them is not school because you can always find them with some sort of book in their hands daily, I guess they get that from me .
Anyway back on topic, in Norway we learned about the many fjords and islands off the coast. Prince and Princessa both done drawings for their notebooks of the fjords:

We spent a lot of time on the Native Sami tribe, the kids seemed really interested in them. They also realized that when someone says Native tribe you can’t always visualize the dark skin of the Native Americans. Prince was interested in the Norse Myths also, “I let him read and learn about such things only because his faith and knowledge in God is strong.”
We also reviewed the Vikings and Leif Erikson’s discovery of North America and his role of bring Christianity to his people.
All in all we enjoyed our stay in Norway but look forward to France.
Thanks for reading about our week at Our Days at CA!

Friday Book Basket

Well we are back after a much needed break, a break I took for my sanity and get get things better organized. I did not do such a good job of this over the summer. We all learn from our mistakes right? Anyway we are now off to Europe, Norway being our first stop. So here is our regular book basket posting although a couple days late .  but in any case thanks for reading with us here at Our Days at CA.

Christian Heroes: Then & Now George Muller (Prince’s Lit reading)
Norway (countries of the world)
Thor’s Wedding Day
Seven Natural Wonders of Europe
East of the Sun & West of the Moon
Master Maid
The Race of the Birkebeiners
Snow Treasure *
Odd and the Frost Giants
A Gift for Mama *
Heidi *
The Long Way to the New Land *



*recommended by the Hazells

Still in South America!

We are still in South America. Although we are using the MFW_ECC curriculum (who by the way are having a sell right now) I chose to add in more countries from each continent. To do this I purchased Erica’s EE curriculum, and use some of Jolanthe’s Geography printables to round out our studies. So far we have visited Brazil, Peru, Venezuela, Ecuador and our last will be Argentina.  
We took the full week in Brazil, but with the other countries we played it by ear and moved on when we were ready. Brazil and Peru were by far our favorite as you can see in this post.
The children liked learning about the ancient Inca City of Machu Picchu and about the Bowler Hat Indian tribe (as they remembered them). They were surprised by all the items that these Natives made using reeds including the floating islands they lived on.
Their favorite part was learning about all of the animals of SA. I used this opportunity to teach them how to do reports, which went great because they were doing and learning about something they loved! Isn’t Home school GREAT! 
Here is what we did in South America

A growing experiment and speculation sheet. Both cups were treated the same except for the plastic wrap that represented the tropical rain forest.


We did the EE animal books of the different countries.


In Peru, Prince and Princessa drew their version of  Machu Picchu.


They colored the children of San Blas Islands in Panama in their traditional clothing.


In Venezuela we learned about the art of pottery and looked at some of the pieces found in the area. Since I could not find a cheap pottery activity for them to do that would go along with the lesson, they colored a picture of pottery.
There are also some good cheap recipes in the Trip around  the world books for some of these countries.
I think the kids are getting restless in SA so we are off to Europe as you are reading this post.
That is our traveling here at Our Days at CA!

Brazil

We spent a week in Brazil, another country we enjoyed!
We stamped our passports and watched the powerpoint. We listened to our wee sing song and the kids enjoyed themselves dancing.

We also studied the rain forest and the Amazon. Prince and Princessa drew their own notebook pages.

Princessa "cloud forest"

Prince "rainforest"

Princessa "Amazon"
 We learned about an Indian tribe who built their homes on stilts in the water, which actually goes along with Venezuela but it is still on the Amazon.

Prince "Amazon"

We also started using Erica's Expedition Earth to supplement the MFW student sheets. We made the animal mini books.

Animals of... books

 The kids are really getting into learning the animals of different countries, that's why the powerpoints have taken that change. Because they have made that interest known I have let them do their own research on any animal of that region and write a small report to read to each other.
We are also putting the lapbooks together that go along with EE and God's animal wall, which is an easy way to teach or review classification.
We have also decided to take just one week on each country, which will allow us more time to fit in more countries.
The children learned the history behind Mardi Gras, or carnival in Brazil. they created their own carnival costumes on paper dolls.

Then we had Brigaderiros, chocolate balls, which you can find in the A Trip Around the World book.
I also had the plan to Watch Rio, but my Netflix did not ship like planned :(
That was our week in Brazil thanks for visiting Brazil with Our Days at CA.

Canada

Here is another post I forgot to get posted during the holidays, but we were very busy with the holidays and moving, yes moving during Christmas. But I am not complaining I prayed for a bigger place and God answered my prayers on his time ;) We now have a 4 bedroom instead of 3 and that 4^th bedroom makes all the difference. Although I hate, HATE packing and moving I enjoyed it this time because we have finally been blessed with our OWN home, no more RENT!

Anyway I realized I have not posted about our Canada week, so here is a short version of what we did.

We started with stamping our passports and watching the powerpoint. We listen to the Wee Sing CD, and just as before the children enjoyed themselves. We made up hand movements to go with the song, it was fun watching the kids try and keep up.

our dance moves

The kids were very impressed with the Edmonton Mall in Canada, so I search for pictures for them to drool over. I guess I know where we are going once we can get our "Dream" vacation.

We also studied the history of Quebec and with Prince we did and short history lesson of our Acadian Heritage, and the reason why "our" people ended up in Louisiana. I also made him read the poem Evangeline and the history behind it. I plan on taking a day trip to St. Martinville, in March when we visit our family still in Louisiana.

That was our trip to Canada, it was very short due to packing and the itch for the upcoming break.

Mexico

I just now realized that this post has been sitting in my "ready" folder. My mind seems to shut down near the first of December, after Thanksgiving, I go on break mode.

Here is our weeks spent in Mexico.
So far the kids still think it fun to stand in line and stamp their passports, I wonder how long this will last, after which we watch the powerpoint on landmarks of the country.

We then listened to the Wee Sing CD, again the kids enjoyed listening to the song. We did two with Mexico they liked the song Tingalayo better (west Indies), I think we listened to it 5 times each day!

Along with Mexico we studied the desert ecosystem. Both Prince
and Princessa did their own notebook page that I think turned out awesome! They certainly draw better than me.

 

Prince's desert

princessa's desert

                    We also studied the Oasis in the desert, and they both did notebooking pages for this.

Prince

Princess

In art, which is every one's favorite time this year, we did yarn art. This is a type of art taken from the Huichol Indians, which we also learned about. This was a tedious craft for the kids, I had to help Lady Jey who soon got bored with it.

 I chose to do this during nap time there was no way Lady Bells was doing this one (she gets VERY unhappy when things do not come together as she likes them to) but I highly recommend it as a stress relief exercise, it was for me anyway. 

To go along with our week we ate "Mexican" food all week, which is not a surprise for us. We had Apple Panadas, Pozole, Spanish Rice, Dobladas and Taco Casserole, and drank Horchata. We also enjoyed Erica's Hot Taco soup recipe.

Since the menu for the week was nothing new or special we decided to treat the kids and ended our week with a trip on Sunday, after church, with a visit to our favorite Mexican restaurant.
And That is our days at CA.

Spanish Rice

Here is another dish we served during our "trip" to Mexico.

Spanish Rice

ingredients:

3 cups white rice

1 small can tomato sauce

1 cube chicken & tomato bouillon cube

1 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. salt

6 cups water, or enough to cover the top

1. heat olive oil in pan over medium heat, pour in rice and stir mixing in the olive oil.

2. let rice cook for 5 mins. add tomato sauce, Pour in the water (making sure to cover the top of the rice) and add salt.

3. bring to a boil, stir and reduce to a simmer (this is the point on that you do not want to stir, to avoid mushy rice)

4. once  you start to see the rice, reduce to medium low and cover. If rice is still hard at this point move rice to center of pot and add 1 cup of water and repeat step 3. rice is done once all water is gone. (if rice appears to wet, remove lid and continue to cook until done.)

Can be served as a side or put into a casserole.

ENJOY!

Taco Casserole

Here is another recipe we used while studying Mexico. It was a big hit with everyone!

Ingredients:
3 pounds of ground meat
1 package taco seasoning
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. salt
1 medium can green chilies
1 can of dice tomatoes
1 medium onion chopped
1 can refried beans
fiesta blend shredded cheese
1 cup red Spanish rice (see recipe)
1 cup masa (corn flour) separated

optional garnishes- fresh diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce

1. brown the ground meat in a skillet and drain pre-heat oven 350
2. return the meat to skillet, add green chilies, onions, diced tomatoes, and all seasonings. cook until onions are wilted.
3. sprinkle the bottom of a casserole dish with 1/2 cup masa, then add a layer of cheese, spoon half of the meat mixture into dish, top with remaining masa, spoon in rice, layer again with cheese.
4. add the refried beans to remaining meat mixture cook for couple of minutes.
5. spoon the remaining meat mixture to top and sprinkle top with cheese.
6. cook at 350 for 45 minutes
serve with garnishes


Enjoy!

Book Basket Friday

We are finally back in session. The holidays were like a whirlwind and to top it off we have moved. Yes call me crazy, but in the mist of all the action of Christmas we were packing and 5 days, yes you read right, FIVE DAYS before Christmas we closed and were moving our stuff. Now I am not complaining because this was an answer to my prayers to have a bigger place. We now have 4 bedrooms and room for everybody, for now ;)

So with school back on and "arriving" in Brazil on Monday I thought it fit to start back up my book basket posting. Remember these titles or our picks, some recommended by the Hazells and some supplemented by me. Again you may want to preview some of them for your taste. But in any case thanks for reading with us here at Our Days at CA!

Christian Heroes: Then & Now  Nate Saint  * (Prince's Lit reading)
Geronimo Stilton: Four Mice Deep in the Jungle
One Day in the Tropical Rainforest
Amazon Fever
Little Monkey Lost
The Great Kapok Tree
Jabuti the Tortoise: A Trickster tale from the Amazon
I Wonder What A Rainforest Is
Ecosystems in action: Life in a Rainforest
Plants of the Rainforest
MSB: in the Rain Forest *
MTH research: Rain Forests
Animal Worlds: Rainforest Animals
Tropical Rain Forest
Nature Hide & Seek: Jungles
The Rainforest Indians: Footsteps in Time *
Explore the Continents: Explore South America
Brazil Countries of the World *
Brazil American Geographical Society: Around the world program
DK A school like mine: The Americas



* recommended by the Hazells

United States

Since we school year round, we kind of take a little break for the month of December, doing only math, reading, and grammar. I decided to take this time to catch up on my blogging.

As you may know we are doing Explorering Countries and Cultures, with My Father's World.

And our first stop was America: 

The kids enjoyed "arriving" and having to stand in line to stamp their passports. They were then seated in the "travel agency" living room where the TV is connected to the laptop for easy viewing, and we all watched the powerpoint on America that I put together.

We then listened to the Wee Sing CD, and played follow the leader, just as the Navajo children do. The children really enjoyed hearing the little Navajo boy speak in his own language, as did I.
We read and leaned about the Navajo, and enjoyed some of their legends, along with other Native American legends.

                        

We found an awesome book about types of trees and their leaves, and they enjoyed looking up all the leaves in our yard, and the neighborhood. We even went to Nana's in the country to collect lots more.

  We did a color the world colorsheet.

Which happen to be the Great Smokey Mountains, right here in our back yard. This precented a great oppertunity to discuss some of our state geography and history.

  In art we chose to stick with our Navajo subject and created some sand art. FYI, this is not a project for perfectionist, which we learned with Princessa doing it. She was not happy with her final project, even though I gave her the praise she/it deserved. Although, she was not happy with the outcome, I think all the children had fun with the project.

 This is the first year we "do" art, I can't believe what we were missing out on. We will deffiantly be adding more art and I am also considering adding art history with Erica's art curriculum.

We ended our visit to America with a family night, we ate homemade chili and hotdogs, and watched an old favorite, Angels in the outfield.

                                                 And that was America with Our Days at CA!

Book Basket Friday

Ok So I am late posting this, but when am I ever on time ;) We have finished up Mexico but we are taking a week off from ECC because of Halloween on Monday, instead we are going to do a little unit on Halloween, then we will pick up on Canada the next week. I thought I would go ahead and post the Canada books so I am head and not behind!
Remember my list is our basket, recommended and what we found to supplement  the recommended  ones, you may want to preview some of them before adding them to your stack. Good luck searching, and thanks for reading with us here at Our Days  At CA!

Canada the Culture *
Canada A to Z
Canada Major World Nations
Many Nations an Alphabet of Native America
 M is for maple: a Canadian alphabet
My Arctic 1,2,3 *
Immi's Gift
Wolf Island
Goose's story
The Magic School Bus Meets the Rot Squad
The Magic School Bus Food Chain Frenzy
Flat Stanley's the Intrepid Canadian Expedition
Anne of Green Gables *
Anne of the Island
With Pipe, Paddle, and Song



* recommended by the Hazells

Apple panadas

This is a great, an easy substitution to apple pie. When you are cooking for 6 anything simple is greatly appreciated!

Apple Panadas

ingredients

2 cans of crescent rolls (we use the large ones)

2 apples cut up into 8 equal slices (use your favorite)

2 sticks butter melted

2 cups sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. cinnamon

10 oz. yellow soda (Mellow yellow, Mt. Dew... just use your favorite)

1. preheat to 350

2. roll cut apples into crescents. fold ends up so apple is enfolded completely.

3. mix butter, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and soda in large bowl and pour over crescents

4. bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Serve hot!

Horchata (rice milk)

This refreshing drink took the place of milk in my children's diet whenever they refused to drink milk. Even now they still enjoy it.

Homemade Horchata

ingredients

1 cup rinsed long grain rice

1/2 a gallon of water

2 Cinnamon sticks broken in half

1/2 cup sugar

1. in a large saucepan combine water, rice, and Cinnamon sticks. set aside for 4 hours.

2. after 4 hours bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. allow rice mixture to cool.

3. puree rice mixture in a blender until smooth

4. finely strain mixture leaving only liquid. Add sugar to taste, chill and serve over ice.