NEW BEGINNINGS

Since our co-op is coming up soon and the theme is the  American Revolution, I have already prepared a lot of the mini books. Here is the first one to share with you. It is actually the pieces to decorate the outside of the lapbook or to glue to your notebook page.

I have made the minibooks so that the file folder is turned landscape instead of portrait.  I can't wait to share the rest of the minibooks with you here or when I reveal the page on the site.

Click here if you want this download.

Time Sensitive Freebies - hurry hurry freebies

FREE Native American Themed Note Cards

Sign up for the Akta Lakota Museum & Cultural Center eClub and receive Native American-themed note cards, writing pad, Native American-inspired address labels and email updates. After signing up you will receive a confirmation email which you must confirm within 5 days.

Click here to go there. (btw I did NOT give my phone number and it accepted it just fine)

FREE The Love of Baking download.

Click here to download the pdf.

FREE subscription to Working Mother.

I challenge anybody who is not homeschooling to say that homeschooling is not a career. It IS a fulltime job. Even though not all tips will apply in this magazine, I have gotten some really great tips from this magazine when it was free before. It's free, so throw away what you don't need.

Too see if you qualify

Click here to go there.

Anybody working on measuring? Really who can find a measuring tape when they need one?

FREE 16' Tape Measure at Surplus Warehouse - Valid until October 15th

Click here to dowload coupon and find a location. (scroll to very end of page to find a location)

I got this off one of my groups - great find!

FREE Origami Paper.

From the site:

"We'll ship you 50 sheets total, in 3 different sizes. Enough to create just about all the origami listed on this site! We'll even cover shipping, 'cause we're awesome like that (doesn't cost much to ship paper anyway)."

Click here to order yours today. weeeeeeeeeee

 Freebies - when you have time.

Free McGraw-Hill Language Arts

Grammar and Language Workbooks Grades 6 - 12.

Click here to go there and download them. (Too my tip: I wouldn't just bookmark this if you are interested. In my many years of finding resources and bookmarking, I come back later to only to find them gone. I know it takes longer, but if you want them I would download them.)

Hugs for today and remember,

"The three great essentials to achieve anything worthwhile are: Hard work, Stick-to-itiveness, and Common sense."

~ Thomas A. Edison ~

(A picture of some of the earliest ballroom dance during the Renaissance Period.)

When I planned at the beginning of this year to have my oldest son take one semester of ballroom dancing at a local studio for a fine arts credit for his high school, I never dreamed he would enjoy it so much and especially after the protesting he did!

Actually, my husband thought it was best they all took ballroom dance lessons as it is a good way to keep active during the winter months. After we mentioned it to them about starting a homeschool class you would have thought were convincing them of bodily torture.

We made a pact with the teens, that they had to take lessons for a month before they decided to keep going or not. Kelley said her daughter was on board about it.I think girls are different, they seem more apt to explore new talents..lol.(ok so not all of them)

I blogged it about last July and well the update is that ballroom dancing is a "keeper". Let me emphasize here that ALL of my boys told my husband that they did NOT want to do this. Okay, my oldest could give it one try but my other two knew all the way up until they got to the first class that they would not enjoy it.

But the verdict is in and I am here to say, ALL of them LOVE it...I think it helps that the instructors are personable, young and hip and full of energy.

I just tell Kelley over and over again as the mom of boys I didn't think we would be doing dance lessons each week. Here are a few updated pictures.

(my little guy here on the left side..and YES complete with dance shoes..my big guy is here on the right..sometimes he wears his dance shoes , sometimes not...but he has a new partner today)

(lol..and  sometimes it's not sooo pretty.....but they do better than me...You know I told you I can't sing,dance or swim...so it all looks good to me... Can you see Kelley's daughter in the background..the red head.. She is getting time with the dance instructor. I love the personal attention the kids get.lol)

(Here is a better pic of Kelley's daughter and my youngest)

I am telling you push those kids, even the self-willed ones. I think I am uhmm "blest" with three strong willed kids but the pushing them to try something new is an experience in growing for all us. Now, ballroom dancing is part of their "school" for this year. They did not stop at all during the summer and kept right on going into this year.

IS IT POSSIBLE TO OVER ORGANIZE?

Simply put, yes it is. Why would I even blog about being over organized when so many struggle with the very fact of just being organized? The truth of it is that when you try to be over organized you don't accomplish the very task of organization. You can get distracted. An example please! I think of my recipe binder. In my "ideal" world I would have paper that is all colored the same, the same beautiful font  and the same size.

When in fact if I waited to do that ORGANIZATION would never happen. I have recipes torn out of cookbooks, printed off, handwritten on regular size paper, handwritten on index cards and in pen and pencil all in my binder in "organized' page protectors.

Too, remember I blogged about not using a "binder" for EVERY year for your planner because of the constant  "temptation" of changing.  You never use a system.

That is NOT organization. Another example I shared this month with my New Bees is when I ask the question which meal do you need help with the most and most would say dinner. But when they start to menu plan they end up menu planning ALL the meals.

You have just created more work for yourself AND guess what? Now organization is not something you like, but a "chore".

Don't over organize, only "organize" what you NEED and ACCEPT a not so perfect system. 

How about some freebies too?

TIME SENSITIVE FREEBIES - hurry hurry freebies

This is for tomorrow .

Free Mini Waffle Sundae from Marble Slab on September 28th from 3:00 pm. to 6:00 p.m. 

I checked the locations and we live close to 3..Does that mean I drive to each one? lol

Click here to see if there is a participating store in your area. 

Ski magazine is free again

Click here to go there.

I posted this in July of last year and it's coming up again. I am thinking its a continual freebie instead of a time sensitive one, but I am putting this here. It is a nice coloring book with great pictures. You can download it as a pdf or send off for it. (28 pages)

Get FREE Endangered Species Coloring Book to get the book click at the top, where it says “Get a Copy” then click United States Postal Service, select the book and click “Show order form.

Click here to go there.

FREEBIES - when you have time.

 Site for Picture prompt for Inspiration in Creative Writing.

You know not all kids are creative writers. Too some that are creative writers can write pages and pages and never really get to the point of what they are saying. The pages go on and on with no real clear end to the story. I have experienced both kinds of writers with my sons so when I find sites like this that bring some life into our writing experience I like to keep them and use them for a change or for inspiration.

This site is by a homeschool father who would doodle something to share and it was like an inspiration or story prompt help. It has a picture and starts with "I wonder.."

 Here are some pictures from his site.

Click here to go there.

Coloring sheets for Texas Unit Study.

Click here to download pdf.

 Are you feeling uncomfortable yet?  I keep this quote handy for days that I think I might get "comfortable" in homeschooling. It reminds us that we never want to get comfortable with thinking we have to use ALL A Beka or none, ALL Bob Jones or none or ALL lapbooks and no textbooks. We can keep changing, growing and use a different math program, language program and even science and history for each child if need be. Switch curricula around until it suits you. It's probably easier to use one curricula provider for your family but how can each child be suited to that particular curricula? Go outside your comfort zone and try different programs.Start slow at first and then add in other providers..I promise you will grow from reaching out and making the curricula provider suit each child.

Hugs for today and remember..

“If we're growing, we're always going to be out of our comfort zone.”

~John Maxwell~

Image 2011 Jupiter

(one of the covers of my timeline notebook I am working on)

Hi ya'll,

Just a heads up real quick - I was contacted by Jim Erskine at Homeschool Freebie of the Day to feature both of our sites (New Beginnings and Dynamic 2 Moms).  He is featuring our sites today on Homeschool Freebie of the Day. He will feature my free planner, viking lapbook and our free web workshop. So the traffic will increase. Last time I was featured, the servers were slow but fine. Just wanted ya'll to know in case you see "crazy" things happening on our sites OR who knows if you don't see me blog for a day or two you know Kelley and I will be watching our servers closer...But the Erskine family does such a great service over there.

Switching gears--I really don't have "back to school" in August. I jumped off that Aug to May ship a long time ago. (come join me..it feels good over here)

My school year kind of follows the physical year a little more. A lot of advantages to this are that 1) I can help others during the "Back to School Rush" if they need to follow that schedule, you know make time for the New Bees and I 2) still have time to focus on looking over curriculum I bought at the conventions. I don't like getting new curriculum and then using it right away without a lot of time looking it over a good while before I use it. [It may be a waste of my time or not and I want to be sure it's gets my attention}

Another reason 3) though is that I have time to change some things, or in this case with my timeline, create something new. One thing I have been wanting to change this whole year was for a new timeline. After using one on the wall for many years when the kids were young, my oldest two boys have clamored for a new way of keeping a timeline. So I made some strides on it over the weekend. It's a work in progress (mostly because I always like to mull it over after I create it and use it) but wanted ya'll to see what I got so far. Some of it may not be keepers..

And oh yes, yes..it will be FREE....Ya'll will know first when I get it all done...I work on printables slow and sure as I go along..shouldn't be much longer before I share it.

However you know my workshop with my dear New Bees is this month. I tend to lose a few brain cells during that time..[lost happily]

The picture at the top is one cover I made. It will probably be a Notebook Style Timeline as I wanted one that would allow me to put away and store and also to add more to it. Here are a few more pics I am playing with..

and oh yes, we need matching "binder inserts" on the outside. I am playing with this font and wording, but I really love this font for a History Timeline Notebook. Do ya'll?

I am waffling with this page above as a "back" to the Notebook  -- "waste not" plus the back of the notebook is a good place to keep straight how many increments you actually decided to break your timeline up into.  But the idea is to insert this into the clear outside cover of your notebook and too personalize it more.

I have some more of our "needs" to review before I finish creating pages. I'll blog about it when I get finished and release it so hopefully if I share a few tips, it can make your planning one easier..

Or use mine for free...

TIME SENSITIVE FREEBIES - hurry hurry freebies

I don't have any family members that need to eat gluten free but I have lots of friends that do and they have to be really creative, but end up telling me that nowadays its easier eating out than it use to be. But anyway this is a Free Gluten Free Cookbook...I am sure it's probably good to eat like this normally all the time.

Limited time offer and need to use this code to check out: 2011BTSebook (case sensitive). Offer expires: August 26.

Reg price: $9.95

Click here to go there.

 Free Sweet?N Low Tote Bag and Samples - Email Request

 For your Sweet?N Low tote bag and samples, email your name and address to: sweetnlow@kellencompany.com

Click here to read about it.

Free Mary Kay Color Cards. Anybody else like samples for when you travel? It looks like you get a sample of each color.

Remember use your email for freebies so you don't give away your main one...

Click here to go there.

 FREEBIES - When you have time.

 This next site is a very useful site if you are teaching 6th grade reading. She has listed by units downloads for each. The picture above shows what she has on there if you are interested.

Click here to go there.

Now this next site has absolutely nothing to do with the topic we are studying about this week, but the photography is so amazingly beautiful I had to share. Besides you may be studying about birds right now. You just have to watch and wonder at the beautiful creation.

Take an haaaa moment and view it. While the photos look like paintings, the site said they are not. I just wanted to post one pic...there are about 15 images.

Amazing Bird Photos.

Click to go here.

Another resource I have been using in what is called "Social Studies" on this next site. I  prefer to use separate topics like history, geography, cultural studies, religion,etc.but public school likes that all under one sweeping category.

 Holt, Rinehart and Winston Social Studies Home Page. I *highlighted* in yellow to use that as an example of what to use from this site.

So when you get to the site and click on the first page Geography, you are taken to this page.

Then if you click on the first choice, you get a page with what I think are some of the best features the "Interactive Part". Here is how that looks when you click on it. Each section has interactive features.

A few clicks to get there, I know seems a pain--but well worth the time, I promise you because of the interactive features. The site works great now but has been known to have "issues" in not working...I imagine with school starting soon, it will get slow again. But mark it and keep it. Great resource I enjoy....

Click here to go there.

Before I forget, Homeschool Creations has been releasing some wonderful freebies right and left. Here are a bunch of free printables to go with Before Five in A Row.

Click here to grab them. and she also released

 Read, Build and Write mats.

Click here to go there.

Oh and let me welcome my newer followers that just came over from Homeschool Freebie of the Day..I hope to encourage all of you a little each day.....

Hugs and my quote for today

(treasure every homeschooling moment..it is so worth it)

"We destroy the . . . love of learning in children, which is so strong when they are small, by encouraging and compelling them to work for petty and contemptible rewards--gold stars, or papers marked 100 and tacked to the wall, or A's on report cards, or honor rolls, or dean's lists, or Phi Beta Kappa keys--in short, for the ignoble satisfaction of feeling that they are better than someone else."

 ~John Holt~