Merry CHRISTmas !

Merry CHRISTmas everyone !  And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed. (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.) And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; because (he was of the house and lineage of David:) To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they had seen it, they made known abroad the saying which was told them concerning this child. And all they that heard it wondered at those things which were told them by the shepherds. But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things that they had heard and seen, as it was told unto them. (Luke 2:1-20)

The Miracle Theater , Free For Sevier County Residents

Hello everyone ! I hope that all is well in your household this week . We have been very busy here . Last Thursday we had such a great time with the Youth Group . They did an amazing job caroling . We had many of our adults join us too . If you have never done this before , I suggest you try it . It was such a blessing . My Mother & Father - in law came to visit Friday so that we could have CHRISTmas together . A great time was had by all . Todd, the kids and I spent all day Saturday running around shopping and just being together . Sunday was amazing also ! Our Service was awesome and afterwards we went to Knoxville to tour the "Walk Through Bethlehem" exhibit . It was great ! Also big news for Sevier County Residents : the Miracle Theater in Pigeon Forge is hosting Sevier County Days til Saturday . You get in free with a SC ID . Just call ahead to reserve your tickets . We went last night and it was very impressive .They use live animals for the Nativity and it was wonderful .

Well here are a few more sites for CHRISTmas freebies .

All Free Printables   - Free gift tags , cards and worksheets

Mint Printables - free stationary and planners , etc.

Presents and singing and parties , oh my ! Free CHRISTmas printables too !

Today begins a special little celebration for our family . We have our "12 days of CHRISTmas" celebration . We started several years ago giving the kids a little present on the 12 days leading up to CHRISTmas . It's nothing expensive ,  just things from the $ Tree or a pack of gum , a pencil or candy . It helps us all get a little more excited about our day and the kids really enjoy it . Tonight our Youth Group is going caroling to some of our shut ins from our church and community . Afterward we will have our Youth CHRISTmas party . We kinda have a full plate today but it will all be fun . I have found some great printables for CHRISTmas that you could use for lapbooking or notebooking . There is stuff just for fun too . I'll share the links below . Everyone have a great day !

Activity Village    - They have tons of great printables . They have templates galore that would be great for notebooking , lapbooking or making paper ornaments . The mini CHRISTmas cards would be great for making booklets in lapbooks . Plus - IT'S FREE !

papersnowflakes.com - lots of great patterns for making snowflakes and some other interesting stuff too . FREE !

Dave's Paper Snowflakes - He has some free sample patterns . We used them in my Sunday School Class and they loved them . They are really intricate and lacy . Beautiful ! This would probably be better for your older kids to try .

DLTK  - This link will take you to the printable cards and envelopes but be sure to check out the whole site . There are tons of neat stuff there especially for younger kids .

printactivities.com - lots of coloring pages and stuff .

I will post more later .

A grand adventure ... or not

Well , Gin from Doe Hill Homeschool wanted me to share my story about the alligator bite . I wish I could say it was a grand adventure worthy of Steve Irwin or Jeff Corwin but alas it was not . I wasn't dredging muddy swamps for gators or gator wrestling or anything like that . Actually what happened was this ... Long , long ago in a time before I had crow's feet and silver streaks in my hair , I was a teenager . An adventurous , carefree 15 year old was I ! Oh well , moving on ... my Uncle Rick had a visit from an old Army budddy who for some reason brought a baby gator with him . I'm sure there was a reason , I just can't remember it . Well anyway , he wanted Uncle Rick to watch it for him while he was out and about enjoying the many fine attractions , that Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg had to offer . It was in an aquarium on the coffee table for all of us to enjoy , which we thought was great , having never seen a real live gator before . Well the buddy's enjoyment apparently was going to last the entire weekend because he didn't come back that night as I recall so it was up to Uncle Rick to feed the gator which of course meant my cousin and I would have to do it . Well grand adventurer I was , I volunteered , the gator wasn't quite as enthusiastic as I was about it though . Everytime I would get near the lid to the aquarium he would hiss and snap at me . Well , of course I was upset because he didn't act that way toward everyone else . My Uncle had even picked it up and held it for a long time without any problems . Everyone laughed at me and said the gator just didn't like me . To prove it they all put their hand in the aquarium and started petting it . Well , that of course kicked off my temper so I was bound and determined to show that gator who was boss . I picked him up (hissing back at him the whole time of course) and tucked his legs up under my arm so he wouldn't rip my arm open with his claws . I thought I had him pretty well subdued so I laughed at him and said a few smarty pants comments to him and low and behold  it jumped at my other hand and latched on to my finger . OOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW !!!!!!!! Everyone laughing at me didn't help matters much . I 'm positive that gator was grinning and smirking when he finally let go . I put him back in his tank and gave him the "look" for several hours and reminded him how some people think gator is a delicacy . He and I just couldn't get along , all weekend long I tried to play nice and get near him but every time he would snap at me and sometimes even get close enough to bite again . I wasn't sorry to see that gator go . Sorry I could't offer up a mind blowing , swashbuckling adventure for you all . Hey wait a minute , there was that time I was bitten by that horse ...

Hello again !

Well after another round of sickness and computer problems ... I have returned ! I was tagged while I was away so here are the rules and my answers . Enjoy ! I was tagged by Squeeli and Gin .

I have to write seven weird things about myself.  The rules are as follows:

Link to the person that tagged you, and post the rules on your blog.

Share 7 random and/or weird facts about yourself.

Tag 7 random people at the end of your post, and include links to their blogs.

Let each person know that they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

Here we go.

1. I have been bitten by an alligator . (o.k. it was only 1 1/2 feet long but it was still an alligator .)

2. I like to walk in the rain .

3. I can turn my eyelids inside out .

4. I like to put vinegar in my pinto beans . (Really , its not gross , it gives it a little twang :)

5. I enjoy watching meteor showers and other celestial events (even at 4 a.m. with the kids in tow of course)

6. My big toes look real funny . They are long and chubby but yet flat looking . EEEEWWWW

7. My eyes actually change color when I cry . They go from a deep blue to an aquamarine .

O.K. there is my wierd stuff. Now I tag :

TnBabyGirl

Hobitt's Tale

melissal89

momof3kids

westward

Melissa's Idea Garden

AmyD

November Calendar -Turkey Time

I thought I would post some pics of the calendar I made for November . It's about 2 1/2 ft tall . I made the body from posterboard and the feathers I made in Printshop . I used my daughter's camera to take these but it's like there wasn't a lot of good lighting in the hall .I couldn't get the whole thing in the pic , our hallway is very narrow and I couldn't get far enough away from it . Our day marker was made from a graphic in Printshop . I thought it was so cute .

11-7-07

We finished our study on Jamestown yesterday . We had fun with it . We made the mini Jamestown that we found free at Homeschool In The Woods . We made our lapbooks out of cardstock that we taped together to form the spine so that we can fold them and they fit into our page protectors in our notebooks . We used templates from Homeschool Helper in our lapbooks . They have lots of good ones and of course they are free .We also played this game , Jamestown Adventure , and printed our results to put in our notebooks . The kids really enjoyed it . They kept playing it after school :) We took them to the Winterfest Celebration last night . Perfect weather for it because it was freezing ! We were all so cold that we left to get something to eat but we came back and watched the lights being turned on and the fireworks . Of course we watched from the comfort of our warm vehichle :) For all you Veggie Tales fans out there , (come on ...who doesn't love a talking cucumber ? GO LARRY !), Big Ideas is releasing a new movie The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything  . It looks like it will be real funny . Well folks I guess thats all for now . Have a great day !

Another Bug ! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Good morning everyone ! . I hope everyone is having a great Sunday morning . My oldest DS and youngest DD are sick this weekend with another viral bug . High fever and the yuckies - YUCK ! Well it is that time of year I guess . I have a question for all you homeschool Mommas out there . When I was in school we used to gather leaves and press them between wax paper with an iron but I read recently that someone used laminating paper too . My question is , What method have you used and which one do you think works best ? I plan on doing this with the kids this week when everyone feels better . Thanks for the input . Don't forget to join the Autumn Poetry Party I'm hosting .

Autumn Poetry Party

Just wanted to remind everyone of the Autumn Poetry Party I'm hosting at my blog . Come on over and check it out and spread the word . ~ Nikki

My Pencil Story

One of my favorite pencils is one that had an eraser at both ends . It said "Life without Jesus is like this pencil . It has no point ." Neither does this blog entry but it is a true story of me and my ongoing battle with pencils .         

1. Pencils come in all shapes and sizes . Your children will all want different kinds therefore you will have to buy 4 packs instead of one .

2. Pencils come nicely decorated for each season of the year . Unfortunately these go on sale months before you actually need them (ex. Christmas pencils go on sale on July 4) , forcing you to buy them and hide them til the correct holiday at which point you either forgot you bought them or lose them . This of course will begin a massive pencil hunt in which you will not find the Christmas ones you are looking for , although you will find the Easter ones you forgot you bought .

3. Pencils have a habit of disappearing from Mom's supply box . Naughty pencils ! Even though Mom checked her box on Sunday night and it was full , by 8 a.m. Monday morning the pencils will have disappeared and Mom will hear a rousing chorus of "I don't have anything to write with !"

4. Mechanical pencils are great ! Until you find out you are out of lead or you have the wrong size . It is a proven fact (by me) that you will buy a # 7 pencil knowing without a doubt that you have 3 new packs of lead at home only to get there and find out it's all # 5 .(Or vice versa .) Or what's worse you will mistakenly pick up a pack of # 9 pencils believing you are reaching for a # 5 or # 7 . When you go back to town to buy lead for these new pencils you will find out noone within a 50 mile radius of where you live actually sells # 9 lead refills .

5. Wooden pencils and pencil sharpeners are highly addictive . They will cause your child to lose all sense of reason (and all desire to do math) until he/she has taken a new pencil to a length of 1.4 " 

Read more pencil stories or post one of your own . More info here .

         

Hello everyone ! I hope that everyone is doing well . We were sick all last week with a terrible stomach flu . After the actual sickness passed we were left with mind numbing exhaustion . But Praise the Lord that is over ! I dressed up the blog for Fall which is my favorite time of year .Does it look ok ?  We have news from the pet world :) . My youngest son's guppy is expecting and we are excited . He is thinking about breeding and selling them or trading them to the pet store . My youngest daughter came into the kitchen the other night crying and told me she thought Dry Crabby was dead (her hermit crab) , my heart broke for her . My oldest DD and I thought that she was molting because she stopped eating and buried herself partially in the sand several weeks ago . Anyway Lil DD and I go to her room and there is Dry Crabby out of her shell , or so one would think but I turned her shell over and she was curled up inside with her new shiny pinkish , purple claw covering the "door" . Immediately there were smiles instead of tears . Lil DD was so excited . I was too of course , this is Dry Crabby's second time molting this year . Her old exoskeleton is nasty looking of course but very beneficial to her so we left it in the tank . My oldest DS is doing great with his guitar . He plays with the church band now and loves it . I was blessed by my oldest DD with the Nice Award the other day . Thanks Baby Girl ! I am supposed to pass it on of course . So I'm out of here to go check out my friends list and read and comment and hand out the Nice Award . I think everyone deserves it because you are nice enough to come here and share your experiences , ideas , tips and humor and I appreciate that .

Solar System Unit Study

I just thought I would share with everyone the links I have been using with our Solar System unit . There are tons of great books out there to use but what I will list here are the informative websites and free notebooking and lapbooking websites . For this unit the kids are keeping the planet fact sheets in their notebooks for reference but our big project is actually a big lapbook we are working on together . I bought a presentation board at the $ Tree , it is folded just like a big lapbook , and we have been using coloring sheets of the planets to color and cut and paste in the lapbook . I bought some half size index cards at Big Lots that we put the planet facts on and paste it next to the picture . We also use our encylopedias to gather facts about the Roman gods that the planets are named after ( this has turned out to be a great way to have extra Bible time too ) and paste these on the lapbook too . I wish I could post a picture but my digital camera is broken . Anyway here are the links . I hope you can use them . As always be discerning in what you choose to use for your homeschool . Some of these have some great stuff and other stuff you may not want to use .

The Learning Page - you have to become a member to access most of the themed pages but it is free . Once you join you will find the Space worksheets under the members themed sheets .

Notebookingpages.com - a couple of free sheets

Solar System Coloring Book 

eMints - A wealth of different themes , be sure to take a few minutes and check it out . There are several links for the Solar System .

JeannieFulbright.com - free notebooking pages

Exploring Planets In The Classroom - lots of stuff to sort through

Happy Birthday and 2 Day Trips

Hello everyone . Well here is what has been going on . My youngest DS had his 10th birthday on Sunday . HAPPY BIRTHDAY HOOP ! I LOVE YOU AND I THANK GOD FOR YOU ! We took a mini vacation with my parents and my Momma's sister and my Daddy's brother . We went to Cherokee , Maggie Valley and Cataloochee NC . We all had a great time . My parents and aunt and uncle had never seen elk before so they really loved it . The elk were bugling so it was neat . Our schooling has been doing great . We are all learning some neat things and everyone seems to be enjoying it . Today we went outside and built a tepee . The kids got a little annoyed trying to get the support poles to stay put but all in all it was a great lesson . We have been learning about early Native Americans and how they used their local resources for shelter . I have been scheduled for surgery on the 30th to have an endoscopy with throat and stomach biopsy and to have my esophagus stretched . I will know more about seeing a dr. about the thyroid after this surgery . I hope to be visiting everyones blog this week and seeing whats up . Sorry that I havent been commenting and blogging but it seems like time is flying and there is so much to do . I know ya'll know what that is like . :) Keep me in your prayers if you don't mind .

Long Time No Bloggin'

Well it has been quite hectic here for a while . We began our school year last Monday and of course it  did not go as planned . :) We had some kind of virus run through the family and we are just now getting over it . My youngest DD was still vomiting earlier today but she feels better now . We still have managed to get some school work done and everyone seems to be enjoying the work . We are studying the Solar System for science and we are all loving it . I got a nice surprise in the mail today . MY PRIZE FROM THE BATTLE OF THE TOYBOX CAME !!!!!!YEAH!!!!! The toys are so awesome . Well sorry this is such a short entry but hopefully I will be able to blog more tomorrow . I hope everyone is having a great time in school . God Bless !

 

Just a Tidbit

Hey everyone ! I hope everyone has been having a good week so far . It has been hectic here as we have been traveling and getting ready for school to begin on Monday . I just have a couple of things I would like to share tonight . One is a prayer request for my Uncle Randy . He was diagnosed Friday with mouth cancer on his tongue . He has to have a biopsy on the 18th . Please put his name on your prayer lists . I would greatly appreciate it . I made some Fall pages and posted them on my website . They have some leaf and candy corn templates for notebooking , lapbooking or shape book making . Well I hope to be blogging more soon but for now I am going to sleep . Goodnight blog world !

I won !

Wow ! I was so excited yesterday when I checked my blog and saw that I was one of the winners of the Battle for the Toybox contest . Thanks HSB for such a great contest .  I was going to blog last night but I was just to tired and my mind just couldn't focus . I had to go to the doctor yesterday for my physical and to get results from a thyroid ultrasound . They found what they called a "nodule" that is about 8/10ths of a cm big on my right lobe . The nurse practioner said he wasn't concerned about it but I have this nagging little feeling in my head that it might be something to be concerned about . I had this same feeling with a dark freckle that my DD1 was born with . It began to change and grow as she got older and in the summer of 2005 it began to become slightly lighter around the edges . Once again the NP wasn't concerned but that feeling just wouldn't go away so I just kept at her and she said if it concerned me that much then she would send DD to a dermatologist . When the dermatologist saw it he removed it for testing and it came back as a precancerous melanoma . So DD1 had to go through surgery that was very painful and left her with a scar that constantly itches because of the nerve damage where they had to cut so deep and have more spots removed . She has to be checked every 6 months for the rest of her life . I believe God is that nagging feeling :) So I will call today and see if I can get a second opinion . Everyone just pray for me if you don't mind and BabyGirl I hope you don't mind that I shared your story . It was a frightening time for us and maybe I will blog about it more at another time if it's ok with DD . Parents , just keep an eye on your kids skin , especially during the summer . Make sure they wear sun screen and check birthmarks regularly for any changes  . I was really surprised that her birthmark hid such danger . All of my Blessings were born with dark freckles so I have to keep a close eye on them . Well have a great day today everyone .

Happy Birthday BabyGirl !

Well today my DD1 , BabyGirl turned 14 . Happy Birthday ! I Love You ! We got to watch the meteor shower the other night . It was awesome . Well I'm tired so no long post tonight :) Congrats to you BabyGirl !

Look to the sky

Space is so amazing ! I'm astounded all the time at what our Creator has done . We will be begining our science this year by studying the Solar System and we found something neat to get us geared up . Here are 2 links to some neat stuff happening in the August sky . Check them out .

The Great Perseids   ~ August 12

Dreamy Lunar Eclipse   ~ August 28

My MIL sent me this email below too : 

Planet Mars will be the brightest in the night sky starting August.
It will look as large as the full moon to the naked eye. This will
cultivate on Aug. 27 when Mars comes within 34.65M miles of earth. Be
sure to watch the sky on Aug. 27 12:30 am. It will look like the earth
has 2
moons. The next time Mars may come this close is in 2287.

Share this with your friends as NO ONE ALIVE TODAY will ever see it
again.

New Contest

The Battle for the Toy Box Contest!
I entered the Battle for the Toy Box Contest
on the HSB Company Porch.  I hope to win
over $100 worth of, Tales of Glory, Bible-based toys
from one2believe!!

These are some awesome toys ! Check it out !

My Open House

Tiany over at Less of Me ~ More of Him is hosting a homeschool open house . Everyone has had such great posts . I thought I would share a little about us . My name is Nikki and you can read more about me here .

How We Homeschool ~ We are eclectic . We use a wide range of learning material . We use textbooks for English , Math and Spelling and unit studies for most other subject except for some of my DD's courses . Unit studies are a great way for us to learn together and of course they can be adjusted for various ages which is great because I homeschool 4 blessings . The best thing is about 99% of Unit Study material is free , most of the books and stuff can be found at the library or online . We tried doing all textbooks before and it just didn't work out for us . Being able to switch around is the great thing about homeschool though .

Our Homeschool Resources ~  Our local library gets to see us alot during the school year . There are so many great books and videos available there . I 'm sure most homeschoolers are like us and survive on one income and that can make us very frugal indeed . I love to shop at thrift stores and yard sales and used book stores for our curriculum . I have found some great deals at these places . I bought my daughter's Algebra books , TE included for around $ 7 ,her Biology and English for about $5 each (with TEs) . These books looked new , no writing in them at all and they were bought at a thrift store . The internet is of course the resource of all resources . There is so much free stuff that its hard sometimes to figure out just what you want to use .

Where We Homeschool ~  We dream of a room just for our school but for now we work either at our dining room table or in the living room , especially if we are reading together . Our hallway is filled with maps and posters that we get from the Dollar Tree and the internet . I sometimes refer to it as the "Hall of Knowledge"

Our Schedule ~ We have a rough outline but nothing that is down to the wire . Been there done that Waaaaaaaaaaaay to stressful . Now we finish when we finish and if it takes a little longer than fine . I find when one of my blessings begins to stress all hope of learning for the day is shot .  We try to get started by 9 am and are usually done no later than 3 or 3:30 . We break for lunch and other little moments . We  use our "books" Monday thru Thursday and Fridays are spent doing life skills learning . We clean the house , have cooking lessons , work in the yard and other things they need to know how to do . It also allows us to have a 3 day weekend which gives us plenty of down time to be ready for Mondays . It's not that we stop learning , we just slooow down . We take a break from June til after Labor Day . It gives us more family time with loved ones that live elsewhere and plus we have VBS and other stuff to do in the  summer . This schedule works best for us .

Well I hope you have somehow been blessed by a little peek into our homeschool . Have a great day ! ~ Nikki

Happy Birthday Indeed !

I must say I have had a wonderful birthday today . My Momma fixed a great fried fish supper for us . My Aunt or "Second Momma" as I call her was able to join us and I got to talk to my Brother on the phone . It was a perfect time spent with family . I loved the gift of being together more than any physical gift . Although I did get some awesome stuff :) . My Husband and Kids got me a professional chef knife set with the large cutting board that I have been wanting . I also got some "Momma Stuff" . My Parents got me a beautiful bookcase for my books that have been in boxes forever . My Brother got me some candles , yes I am a candle nut :) . My Aunt got me a set of sunflower glasses and a lovely sunflower note set , yes I am a sunflower nut too just ask my Momma , I took a bouquet of hers home tonight . My DDs made me lovely cards , one with a hummingbird , yep nuts about birds too , and the other had a drool inducing cake on it . My DSs gave me special attention and lots of hugs and kisses today :) My BBF and her family gave me two picture frames that my "Lil Buddies" made for me (her sons) . Most of all though , my Heavenly Father gave me the greatest gift  , His Son who paid my debt and set me free , He gave me life eternal and a family so dear and wonderful , not only my "family" but brothers and sisters in Christ , you know who you are :) , a lovely day and a precious rain shower with a gentle cooling breeze . So thanks to my wonderful family and to my most awesome God !

A Tag From TnBabyGirl

You are riding in an air-plane when you happen to look out your window and see a dragon flying alongside the plane. You...
A: Scream.
B: remain perfectly still, too scared to make any noise or even move.
C: Jam your fist through the window, and leap onto the dragon's back.
D: Faint.
E: Trust in the Lord that he will see you through, pray, and come to my senses and realize that there is no such thing as a dragon. :-D

You are sleeping over your friend's house, it's late at night, but you can't fall asleep. Lying in bed, you hear their front door creep open, and the sound of someone coming in and sneaking around the house. You...
A: Grab a baseball bat, or anything at hand that looks in any way like a weapon, and peek past the door to see what's going on.
B: Hide under your covers and remain very still, hoping the burglar or whoever it is would just go away and leave poor you alone.
C: Wake up your friend or whoever is closest at hand to tell them what you hear.
D: First off be scared out of my wits that all I could think to do would be to pray.

You are on the train with your family to visit your Grandparents. You chose to sit at the window seat and you are staring out of the window when all of a sudden the sky flashes. You look towards the sky to see a meteor rock land in a far away field. you...
A: Jump off your seat and look harder.
B: Ask no one in particular "What happened."
C: Try to remain calm and not show that your freaked out.
D: Freak out.

You fling a watch on the side of the road and press a button. Before you know it you are speeding back in time and find yourself confronted with a big, armed warrior, you ...
A: Push blindly at the buttons hoping you will go forward in time.
B: Stare at the scary scene before you, hoping it's your imagination
C: Scream at the top of your lungs
D: Grab the nearest weapon and start swinging
E: Pull out my trusty sling-shot and pick up a stone. Close my eyes, pray real hard and let go. (Hey, God helped David do it, didn't he.) :-D

You're walking from the kitchen to the living room, carrying a cookie. You trip, and you cookie falls onto the unvacuumed carpet. Would you...
A: Break down in tears and lament the loss of nine chocolate-covered fat grams.
B: Kick yourself because you knew better than to try to break your diet, and retreat back to the kitchen to get a carrot stick.
C: Pick up the cookie, and enjoy. Remember, you abide by the 5 second rule.

Rules: Copy the tag and rules into your entry. Bold print the option that most applies to you. Add another what-would-you-do-section to the quiz, and list at least several more options to go along with it. Tag five more people. ~ Nikki

July 25

Saturday we took our kids fishing . We had a great time . Lake levels are low here so we were able to park on part of the lake bed . We found some very interesting tracks . Fishing itself wasn't so hot . DS "T" caught a large mouth bass (about 1lb) and DH caught a turtle . It was just such a beautiful day . Everything seemed to be so vibrant and colorful . It was nice to relax as a family after VBS and stuff . Monday was our anniversary . DH brought me flowers and took me out for Chinese . It was very nice . He is a sweetie . LOVE YA HONEY !  Last night the kids and I watched the hummer feeder so we could get an upclose and personal look at those beauties . I recently moved my feeder to the front porch . We had two visitors last night and we actually got to hear one chirp . It was neat . They sound like a squeaky toy . Well for now I guess that's it . It's Church night so I gotta go . ~ Nikki

Free Bible Reseach Paper

I created this page for my Sunday School Class . You may be able to use it in your Bible Study for school . It works best if you are studying one book at a time . The first day the kids have to READ all the assigned Scripture for the week then every day you assign a certain Scripture that they have to STUDY , not just read . It worked great for my class . I required them to turn it in each week for points toward our Points Store .

EX . On Monday - read John 3 : 1-36

Tuesday : verses 1-8

Wednesday : verses 9-15

Thursday : verses 16-22

Friday : verses 23-30

Saturday : verses 31-36

Here is the form . You can preview it before you download .  Weekly Research Form

More school supplies !

Last week I wents nuts getting school supplies at Staples' 1 cent sale . We bought pencil cases , pencils , glue , folders , 3 ring binders and pencil sharpeners . Imagine my joy when I checked online yesterday and they were having another sale ! YEAH ! So off we went to Staples again . This time they have notebook paper for 15 cents (limit 6) a pack of 4 glue sticks for 49 cents and the 3 ring ring binders (flexible) are stil 3/99 cents . Don't you just love these sales !?!  I know at some point and time Walmart will start having their school supplies sale . BRING IT ON !  I like to stock up on stuff while its cheap .

Ok one more ramble before I go

Before I rile all you Harry Potter fans out there just listen to my opinion : I don't like HP , never have , never will . I tried to read a paragraph once from a book my DD's friend had been given and it was scary how that book seemed to captivate me . No I didn't find it interesting , it was like I had to force myself to close that book . Very strange (call me wierd but it happened) . I have had a friend of mine tell me how some of her family members wouldn't put it down , they would even walk through the house reading it , they even spent a family get together reading it . Now  today while on Walmart.com , they have an advertisment to "take the pledge" not to reveal the ending of the lastbook . How stupid is that ? And strange ? The ad takes you to a webpage that you can "pledge" on . This Hp stuff just keeps getting wierder and wierder . Now before someone gets upset , know this : I am not going to get into a long debate , argument or whatnot over HP . To me it seems evil and that is that . My kids have never been allowed to read or watch HP and they have turned out to be normal (?) kids . LOVE YA KIDS LOL ! My opinon is mine and you are entitled to your own . My whole point is that I think this whole HP thing is getting stranger and stranger .

Sevier County , TN Residents (& Tax Free Sales Days)

I read yesterday that 11 million people pass through our area annually . WOW , no wonder traffic is so bad :) . Seriously though , it seems like with all the tourists that we have coming through our area , attraction prices keep going up . Its hard for homeschooling families with one income to visit these fun places (who doesn't love Sevier County Days ?) . I just wanted to share with some local families who might not know , that some area attractions have discounted rates for SC residents . I encourage you to call and ask . We used to take our kids to the Ripey's attractions (I have never seen a discounted rate for the aquarium except for SC Days) in Gatlinburg for a discounted price . Forbidden Caverns used to offer SC discounts too so check with them , that is an awesome place to visit . Some restaraunts offer SC discounts too like a certain percentage off your meal .  The Knifeworks on Hwy 66 is a great FREE option to everyone . Not only is it a place to buy knives , it also is a mini museum of sorts with lots of great displays so check it out

Don't forget about the Tax Free Days coming up August 3-5 . Check it out HERE .

 ~ Nikki

Free Seeds - Purple Columbine

Hello everyone . Yesterday I did some seed harvesting in my flower bed . I have some seeds to share with you if you would like them . They are Purple Columbine (pic below) . I will send them to you free of charge . They will come in a small seed envelope because they are tiny seeds but there will be at least 10 seeds in each . If you would like some seeds email me , nikkisimcoxatyahoo.com. Be sure to replace the at with @ . Please put seeds in the subject line . First come first served .

For my 50th entry -Today on Africam

Wow ! Well I have reached the 50th entry ! So without further delay here is what I would like to share ....  Look what we watched this morning . Usually we only see it at night . ** OK , on 8-7-07 I deleted an entry about a mini unit study I made because you couldn't open the file but at the time this entry was posted it was indeed my 50th .**

Africam Today

Free Beatitudes Copywork Pages

Here are some free notebooking pages for you . They are Beatitudes copywork .

Set 1                              

Set 2

Our local Staples store is having a 1 cent sale thru Wednesday . You can get pencils , pencil cases , sharpeners and folders . You may want to check your local store .

UPDATE : 1-15-08 For some reason I missed the last comment on this post and didn't know about it til today (oops) , here is the link where you can download the Beatitude copywork pages . Sorry about that everyone . Click here to get to the pages : Notebooking Pages

What a wonderful surprise today !

First , I would like to apologize to everyone who tried to download the unit study . I didn't realize til today that I had the folder set to private . You should be able to download it now . Today was Youth Sunday at our church and the kids did such a great job . I was so very proud of them . My husband and I work with the youth . I am co director of the youth group and my husband and I minister in the Junior Church . On to the wonderful surprise ... my oldest DS "T" has been learning to play guitar . He saved his birthday money and bought an electric one . He has learned so much so quickly . A friend of ours has been giving him lessons for free . How great is that ! Well anyway , he has been wanting an acoustic guitar . He plays my Dad's at church . At this evening's service he was given a beautiful acoustic guitar by a man at our church . He was speechless he was so surprised . God really blessed him today . I just thank God so much for not just supplying needs but even blessing us with things we want sometimes . Thanks God ! You are awesome !

Another Great Find At The Dollar Tree

Yesterday I went back to the Dollar Tree and they had the Teacher Recordkeeper books for grades and attendance . I bought a couple . I like to have a written copy of records plus those on the computer . Homeschool Tracker  is a great recordkeeper for the computer . Has anyone purchased the Plus edition Homeschool tracker ? If so , is it more useful for you or do you think the basic edition does enough ?

Happy July 4 !

I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful 4th . We finished our VBS last week and it was hectic .So today since my DH is off we are going to spend the day relaxing except for the hour that I tutor my neighbors grandson . After church tonight we are going to my Dad's for fireworks . My Mom and Dad's neighborhood is the best place for fireworks . It is beautiful around 10 when all the neighbors are putting on their displays . Amazing ! I gave up going to Pigeon Forge a few years ago . Their firework display wasnt all that hot . Not impressive enough to want to fight hours worth of traffic . Anyway , you can see them from my parents house . Happy Independence Day ! 

And remember the most important thing :

 

John 8:36

If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

 

 

Free July 4 Coloring Sheets and Printables From The Web

Here is a list of some neat places I found for July  4 .

Eclectic Education (Wonderful unit study)

Kids Domain

A Kids Heart

The Homeschool Mom

 

New Printables For July 4 , FREE !

Here are some new printables I made for notebooking . I hope you find them useful .

 

Liberty Bell Facts Notebooking Page

Liberty Bell Notebooking Page

July 4 Notebooking Page

Flag Facts Notebooking Page

 

Teacher Lesson Plan Book

Hey everyone . I just thought I would let you know that our local Dollar Tree has Teacher Lesson Plan books . So you may want to check your local store . I bought a couple . I also purchased some great maps and poster copies of the Declaration of Independence and other great stuff a few weeks ago . We got maps of all the continents . So check out your store for some great deals . ~ Nikki

Homeschool eStore

I have been busy getting everything ready for our VBS this week that I didn't find out til today that there were so many freebies at Homeschool eStore this week . I missed yesterday (I'm whining) . Can I still get them somehow ? If I can let me know how p p p p pleease ! ~ Nikki

New Printables

I fixed the broken links ( my file host went down and I never was notified , my apologies to everyone who has tried to access notebooking and devotion printables from my sites ) on the printables page and added some new ones . They are gardening journal pages . You can go to our homeschool sight and get the notebooking printables here .

My DD has started a new blog . She is a big POTC fan and a great writer . Her new blog is for her fan fiction she has written . Check it out here and let her know what you think about her writing .

Todays News

Well the baby is doing great . 7lbs 11 oz. He sure is cute too . I seem to have writers block , so goodnight blog world .

Todays Rambling

Well today is my hubby's birthday . HAPPY BIRTHDAY ! My BF S****** should have had her baby by now . We are still waiting to hear from them . Just thought I would let everyone know that the baboons are at the watering hole at Africam . There are a lot of babies there today . ~ Nikki

Hello Blog World

I have not blogged for a long time due to computer woes . Ahhh ! The age of technology . :) Well we finished our school year at the last of May . Now we are enjoying our summer vacation . Three of our four kids spent a week camping with my Mom and Dad in Cades Cove . The rest of us got to stay for the last two days of the trip . It was very fun and relaxing . The food sources for the black bear were mostly destroyed by the freeze in March so they have come down into the lowlands and valleys in Cades Cove . We saw a few moms with their cubs . One had three with her . If you want to see black bear , this is the year to do it in Cades Cove .

We have tomatos some and bell pepper plants in the garden . The dry weather has been hard on them but I think they will be ok . I want to buy some blackberries this year to freeze and maybe make some jelly . I didn't put out any cucumbers this year . I'm not sure why . I just wasn't thinking I guess .

Tomorrow is my DH birthday . My best friend S****** is having her little boy in the morning . We are all excited . My DH thinks it is great that he is coming on his birthday . We will have her other two little boys with us while Momma is in the hospital .

Such a busy summer ! My husband and I are directing VBS this year at our church . It is the last week in June so we are in go go gear right now to get things done . Well hello to anyone who is reading , I will ramble on more tomorrow I guess :) . Have a great day in the Lord ! ~ Nikki

It's almost over

Our homeschool year is coming to a  close in a few weeks . We take a three month break during the summer although we have "mini classes" throughout . It gives everyone a chance to rest and visit with family out of town and VBS and youth retreats and stuff . I have been thinking about our plans for next year . We did unit studies for social studies (history & geography ) this year and we really enjoyed them . Thats probably what we will continue with next year . There are so many great resources out there for unit studies but do any of you have a favorite you would share ? I use the library for most of our stuff we come up with . They have great books and movies and it's free . Can't beat that ! We have really been enjoying our Civil War unit , guess thats why we are dragging it out :) . Our local Dollar General is doing free 8x10 old time portraits next weekend so we are taking the kids to have a group photo made in Civil War era costumes . We are going to start our projects for the fair soon . My kids enjoy making stuff . They have placed every year they entered . I'm not sure what I will put in . Well it's time to stop rambling and get going .

Bluebirds ?

We have had a nearly 30 degree drop in temps here the last few days so it was kind of disappointing not to be able to go outside without freezing today . So sitting on my couch reading today I noticed something at the birdhouse in my front yard . Could it be ... was it ... yes... no ...maybe...yes ...YES it was ! A pair of bluebirds . I was so excited . I have always longed to have a nesting pair of blues . They hung around for a while then flew away . Now I'm waiting for them to come back . I don't want to be dissapointed  They will come back ! I know it ! Won't they ? Do you think ? ...Do ya ? !

Wanna Know a Secret ?

Ok , I'll tell ya ! I have always had a "dream" to write a book . A novel that would somhow change the world . As the years have passed that dream has faded into the far recesses of my mind , popping up only occassionally . Well yesterday was one of those "pop up" days . After thinking about this great literary work that I would never pen , I told myself , " Self , it's ok . Writing a bestseller isn't really that important anyway . " It was that moment when God spoke so clearly to me and revealed that indeed I am writing a book , a novel that will change the world . It might not be put onto paper by my hand but it is written on the pages of time by my actions , words and deeds .My "book" will affect all those around me . My husband will read it , my children will read it , so will my family and friends . What I say or do in my "book" will have a profound effect on people in this world . What kind of change will my "book" cause ? Will my children become good parents ? Will my lost loved ones be saved ? Will I lead someone astray because I was a hypocrite ? What kind of language do I use in my "book" . Does it glorify God ? More important , who is the main character in my "book" ? Is it me and mine or is it God and His Son , my Savior Jesus Christ ? Wow ! What a profound revelation God sent my way . It put a whole new spin on things . I am so grateful that as I "write" this great(?) work , I have the best Editor in the business . He always know what scene to delete and which one to add and which direction the characters need to go in . And when I kneel to accept the award (reward) for my life's work I can give credit to whom it's due , I can say "Thank you Lord , I couldn't have done it without you !" ~ Nikki

A SPRING poem

An acrostic I was inspired to write today . Enjoy !

Sunlight , golden and warm

Perfumed breezes of lilac and apple blossoms

Rain , soft and gentle or loud and strong

Innocence of newborn creatures, great and small

Notions of running barefoot in the grass

God has blessed abundantly again , it's Spring

© 2007 “Nikki” Simcox

Busy, Busy, Busy !

We have been quite busy the last few days . Saturday we went on a roadtrip to Cataloochee in North Carolina . We love it there . We were blessed enough to see 25 elk on this trip . The best part though was catching crawdads and salamanders in the river with our kids . It was so much fun . We laughed more on this trip together than we have in a long time . We needed that little stress buster and all it cost was the gas to get there .

More about the science project in the back yard : we found a nest (cocoon) full of caterpillars in one of our backyard trees . We each estimated how many we thought there were . We are keeping a close eye on it so we can watch them grow . Very interesting !

A quicknote for Sevier County residents - from April 1-8 , take your valid I.D. and get into Parrott Mountain for $5 .

It's Moving Fast ! Time That Is .

Yesterday was my oldest DS birthday . "T" is now 12 . He is fast becoming a young man . He has a deeper voice and a mustache . Well he has had the mustache for a year . He shaved it off last month but decided to let it grow back . He bought an electric guitar with his birthday money . He has musical abilities that amaze me . He picks up stuff so quickly . He has already learned some chords . "Roosie" (youngest DD) bought an acoustic guitar with her birthday money . They go around strumming on them whenever they can . They are going to be taking lessons so pray for them . They are excited about learning .

Spring is in full swing here . Everything is in bloom . We have found some science "projects" outside but I'll write more about those later . Have a great day today .

And once again the Provider is ... God !

Today God answered a prayer for us and even blessed beyond what we asked for . I have our school books stashed in the hall closet , on book cases in the living room and in every nook we can find to put them . I have been praying for a book case that we could put our books in so they would all be in one place . Well today my Aunt brings me a pantry style storage cabinet . It is about five feet tall and very deep . It has four shelves that would hold our books wonderfully . She also brought us some new phonics based readers from scholastic . Most were still in their plastic wrappers . She also gave us a little V-Tech computer that has educational games to play . This will benefit my youngest . The only people who knew I was praying about this was my hubby and kids . It's just amazing to me how God provides for us sometimes . What a wonderful God we serve !

Spring Has Sprung

Well it's official - Spring is here ! The day we have held our breath for all winter . How many of you are itching to get your hands in the dirt ? I am , I am ! It's kinda cloudy and foggy this morning - the sun should be shining and the sky should be a brilliant blue (I'm sure it is behind those clouds) ! Annie has some great tips and ideas (as usual) on her Spring Page . Take a look around and have a wondeful first day of SPRING !

Spring "rain" Devotion

Rain - without it seeds planted in the soil won’t grow , they will lay dormant until that first drop of life giving water soaks in . When we were saved , a seed of Faith was planted in us , if it isn’t watered by
“rain “ it cannot grow . The rain I speak of are trials we as Christians sometimes go through . Jesus himself said that we would be persecuted , Matthew 5:10 -12 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
Peter also assures us of the reward of trials in 1Peter 4:12-14 Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:
But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.
If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the Spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.
Sometimes God sends us this rain in light spring like showers , in quick and overpowering cloudbursts or sometimes as a steady downfall . The trials are the life giving water to our seed of Faith . It’s what makes it grow . When we go through a trial our dependency on God becomes greater , which is what He desires of us. He wants us to be more dependent on Him , to trust Him with not only our souls but with our health , our families and our finances . Our Faith grows and grows when it is watered and cultivated . So let us be like Brother Paul when he said , 2Corinthians 12:9-10 And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.
~ Copyright 2007 Nikki Simcox ~

They Grow Up So Fast

Today my "baby" turned 7 . My youngest daughter "Roosie" had a birthday today . I can't believe how quickly the years have passed . It seems so unreal at times doesn't it ? It's like we blink and they have grown . It has been a fun day . My parents and aunt came over for Roosie's birthday supper tonight . She is having a party with her brother "T" on Friday . His birthday is the 28th so they wanted to have their party together this weekend . The weather here is finally settling down . Spring temps returned yesterday . We are having "Spring showers" right now . I have lots of things in bloom . Grape hiacynth is coming up in my yard . I plan on transplanting them to a flower bed so the mower doesn't knock them down . My husband put up an owl box for us . Hopefully we will have nesters soon . We really enjoy watching birds . Our Civil War study is going great . We are all learning so much . I have really put the free resources at the library to good use . I am so grateful to be able to be at home with my children . I don't thank God enough for it but I feel impressed to do so now . ~ Dear Heavenly Father , thank you for the oppurtunity to be the one who teaches my children . Thank you for allowing me to be at home with them while supplying my husband with the strength to go out every day and work hard to provide for his family . I ask Lord that you uplift and encourage him , renew his strength every day . I also ask that you uplift and encourage every homeschooling parent . Help us to stand strong even when we feel like we should quit . Bless our efforts and the efforts of our children as we seek to do what is right in your eyes . I ask also Lord that you impress upon each parent's heart the need and desire to bring their children home and teach them how to walk in your statutes and commandments . I pray that those who are lost will make this day the day that they accept Jesus . I pray for those who are sick , that they will receive your blessed touch . All these things I ask in your Son Jesus' name , Amen .

~ Nikki

 

 

Why I love homeschooling my kids

I love the fact that when it is cold outside they are sitting by the fireplace reading a book or studying and not waiting on a bus . When the weather is nice and everything is in bloom the outside becomes our classroom . I like being the one who sees their eyes light up when they learn something new . I like the fact that above all we can read the Word of God and pray in our "school" . ~ Nikki

Please Pray

I would like to ask everyone who would to be praying for my cousin Jamie  . He has been diagnosed with terminal colon cancer . He is a 32 year old Baptist Minister with a wife and small children . I ask that everyone add him to your prayer list at Church . I know that God can do what man says is impossible . Thanks ~ Nikki

Friday

Well today is our regular "off" day from school . We do all our major cleaning on Fridays so that our weekends can be fairly relaxing . Monday we will be finishing up our weather unit . I found some great printables last night . Wild weather   has some great information and printables . Kidzone has some water cycle pages that would be great for notebooking . We were blessed and missed out on the severe weather they were forcasting for us last night . We ended up just having rain and some high winds .Today is supposed to be warm and sunny . A trip to Cades Cove would be nice .

 

A Memory of Mom

A memory assailed me today that left a huge smile on my face .It was a memory of a shopping trip with my Mom , whom by the way is a wonderful woman . My Mom is in her mid fifties and thin except for a little tummy that comes with middle age . I on the other hand have left the days of thinness far behind (although I have lost weight but that’s another story ). My Mom and I are thrift store junkies . There is in our genes some malformation of our DNA that prohibits us from passing up a thrift store . We have the grandest time digging up treasure in these islands of unwanted stuff . We get excited over such wonderful finds as old books , antiques and tattered old quilts (my fave) . Many a treasure has found its way into our car .It was one such shopping trip where I learned that my Mom is not only smart and beautiful with the singing voice of an angel but she is also very optimistic . She can take the worst of situations and this case compliments and see the good and funny side of them . We were having a wonderful time at a little out of the way thrift store one day . We had once again found some wonderful treasure . When we went to check out the cashier (actually a young lady) looks at my Mom and gushes out “Oh , when are you due ?” My Mom looks at me with raised eyebrows and I try so hard not to giggle (really , I tried !). She looks at the lady and says “ I’m not pregnant , just pudgy “ That poor girl's eyes bugged out of her head , she turned four shades of red and I was sure she was going to try to find a hole to crawl into . The lady beside her begins to choke and cough and this poor girl starts pouring forth with all kinds of apologies . My Mom’s favorite was when she said “ It’s just you have such a small perfectly round little belly , I was sure you must be pregnant “. I wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry at this point because the poor girl was embarrassed beyond measure , so I went ahead and cried because I was laughing so hard . Of course through her chuckles my Mom tells the girl to stop apologizing that she didn’t feel insulted . She was actually pleased that she looked young enough to be having a baby . Well to make a long story short we all had a good laugh over it before we left and my Mom and I laughed all the way home . A lot of women would have been extremely angry if that had happened to them , some would even have been verbally abusive to that girl . Not my Mom . She found the humor and good in it and ran with it . I treasure that memory of that shopping trip . I try to treasure every moment we spend together . My Mom was diagnosed with MS last year and there are times she can’t walk at all now . Our trips together have dwindled some but if you do see us out in some thrift store someday , come on up and ask her when she is due . I’m sure she would smile and say thanks .

Free printable

I posted some Easter papers on the website . They are free for you to use .

Wonderful video

We watched a wonderful video today . We picked it up at our library . It's called  The Wonders of God's Creation , Planet Earth . We really liked it . We are learning about weather and this video gave a great explanation of the water cycle , even my smallest DD understood it . Spring is trying so hard to get a grip here , my flowers are pushing up , I even have one daffodil that has bloomed . There is a 30% chance of snow forcast for Saturday though . I enjoyed the snow we had but my heart yearns for Spring . All this warm weather is giving me cabin fever . We are already making plans for camping .

Our Saturday

We took a road trip yesterday afternoon . We were on our way to Clingman's Dome but it is closed . We got so see some beautiful ice flows on the drive though . I wished I had taken my camera but alas I did not . It was very cold at Newfound Gap , it started snowing while we were walking on the Rockefeller Monument . Since Clingman's was closed we drove on over to Cherokee , NC and visited a couple of shops . My husband bought an Indian flute . He has already learned to play Amazing Grace on it . He is so musical , myself I only function in one key , that's OFF key . It was fun just to get away and be together as a family and have fun . We have not been able to take a pleasure trip in months . Usually when we go somewhere it's with a purpose other than vacation .

Yesterday and today were so warm and spring like . The wildflowers are blooming in our yard ! I have been hanging our laundry out to dry on the line since it has been so warm . It helps cut the electric bill plus the clothes smell great . We had to babysit for my best friend yesterday afternoon . She has two little boys and another on the way . I was so proud of my kids , they took her boys for walks and helped me feed them , they were so helpful . Today was our day off from school so we went to the store and then picked up sticks and branches out of the yard that the storms knocked down . I like having Fridays off so we can get housework done and have some "down" time .

Thunderstorms and a learning oppurtunity

We had some awesome thunderstorms last night and they are continuing this morning . Right now it is hailing real hard and thundering . Spring is coming in like a lion I suppose  After it calms down a little we are going to head to the library to check out some books and videos about weather . This has turned into a true learning moment for us . The kids are excited about storms and are eager to learn . I thank God for the freedom to be able to throw out a schedule and pick up something else to teach my kids . I believe we should take learning moments when we can . Kids don't often get excited about learning .

Great resource book $1

Hey all you fellow Smky Mtn. homeschoolers ! I went to the Discount Christian Book store on Hwy 66 last night and bought a great resource book for $1 . It's called Learning through Research by Shirley Cook . It has a lot of notebooking style pages in it . Its a great deal at $1 . They have lots of stuff on sale . Check it out .

Notebooking Printables

All the notebooking printables can be found by clicking on the Simcox Homeschool website link on the right .

Spring is almost here

I am getting a late start this morning for school but I just wanted to know , is anyone else ready for Spring ? We had a beautiful 3" snow this weekend but I'm ready for warm weather and flowers . Yesterday we were at 57 degrees and it was great . Some of my flowers are coming up so I know Spring is coming . I enjoy being out in the yard with the family . We are expecting highs near 70 this week so I think we will have a picnic under the chestnut trees .

Snow Day

We actually had some snow yesterday morning so I sent the kids outside to enjoy it . They had a great time . We have been looking forward to some snow this winter but it has come sparingly . We made snow cream as a special treat . Of course today it is very cold , some of the snow is still on the ground . Don't forget that the Great Backyard Bird Count starts tomorrow . I have some free printables on the notebooking site to help you keep track of how many you see .

Christian themed valentines

I posted some valentines with Scripture on the notebooking site . You will find the links on the right . ~ Nikki

Praying with expectation

I wanted to share this with everyone . I posted this on a message board that I'm a member of . I wanted to post it here too . I'm sure someone else has felt this way . I love how God opens our eyes so that we can see clearer .

"I wanted to share something with everyone . The focus of our church in January was prayer . We had a prayer revival (met for a week and prayed for ourselves and each other) and studies on prayer . Last week we had two speakers come and share with us , one was the Prayer Coordinator of our association . He shared some words that have been running through my mind every since . He said , "pray with excpectation , faith believing ." Now , I thought about that for a while and realized that alot of times when I pray , although I have faith that God can answer , I don't always expect Him too . Does that make sense to anyone ? I guess I have a little bit of a "your gonna do what your gonna do God" attitude sometimes . How awful is that ! Anyway , God has really been dealing with me over this . He reminded me how clear His words were on this subject . John 15:7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Matthew 21:22 And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive. God wants us to pray with the expectation that He will answer . Hebrews 4:15 - 16 For we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. I need to apologize to everyone who I have been praying for , I haven't been praying with expectation . I'm glad God opened my eyes to this and I assure you I will be praying for your more and EXPECTING , not just believing God will answer . ~ Nikki"

Washington-Lincoln Venn Diagram

I posted a venn diagram for President's Day on the website (find link under my notebooking pages heading). All those notebooking pages are free so help yourself .   Have a great day ! ~ Nikki

New President's Day printables

I put some new President's Day printables on the website . Look under the notebooking pages heading for a link to the site . Enjoy ! ~ Nikki

Notebooking Pages

I moved all the pages to one webpage . You will find the website link under the notebooking heading . Maybe this will be easier to navigate . ~ Nikki

Great Backyard Bird Count

My family enjoys birdwatching . We have feeders everywhere . We all get excited when we have a new visitor . We even have some goofy squirrels we love . February 16 - 19 is the GBBC . You can get more info here Audubon . I created some notebooking pages to use for your birdwatching . Look under the notebooking link . ~ Nikki

New Valentine Printable

I posted a new valentine printable under the notebooking links . It can be used for stationery or notebooking . ~ Nikki

Free printables about rocks

We studied how rocks were formed today and the different types of rock . The kids really enjoyed it . I love how they participate when we study something they really enjoy . I found this website that has some great printables for a rock unit . Just wanted to share it with everyone . rocks Click on the teaching tools link .

~ Nikki

Free notebooking pages

I made some notebooking pages for a Civil War unit . They are under the links heading . I will try again later today to get them into one file , I tried this morning but I just couldn't get it .  I'll tweak on it later . Enjoy ! 

~ Nikki

Devotion

Why Don't Woodpeckers Get Migraines

Hermit Crab

We have two hermit crabs , Lisa and Kristen , and they have finally finished molting . Kristen came up from the sand last week and Lisa came out today . The kids were so excited . The weather has turned colder here and snow and ice are forcast for this weekend . The Smokeys are already white from an earlier snow this past week . I am posting a devotion that I wrote last summer . I felt the need to post it so I'm sure God will lead someone here who needs to read it .

Links for free worksheets

I wanted to post some links I have found to be very helpful . Being on a one income budget , I like free stuff so I really enjoy these sites . ~ Nikki

Beginning Reading

The Teachers Guide

Kiddy House

Homeschooling Adventures

Mrs. Jones Room

Africam - Nkorho Stream This site is awesome ! It has live streaming video from Africa . Our family has been doing an online safari and we have seen some awesome animals .

Who I Am

I am a saved by GRACE CHRISTian mother of four , two beautiful daughters 13 and 6 and two handsome sons 11 and 9 !   I am married to a wonderful man , Todd , who is a Baptist preacher . We live in the awesome Smokey Mountains of Tennessee . I used to teach in a Christian school but have come back to homeschooling so that I can be available to care for my Mother who has MS and to be more involved with my children's education . We have many different ways in which we homeschool . We use textbooks for some subjects and unit studies for others . We also take advantage of the many free resources online and in our area to expand our homeschool learning . We have been blessed to live in an area packed with amazing wildlife . Birdfeeding is one of our favorite things to do . I created this blog to share some of our experiences and to try to help others with links I have found to help me .