8.30.2011

Why We Homeschool

(If this clogs up your reader, SORRY! I've got lots to say today)

 Greetings, blogging friends! It has been a week since I last blogged -- how sad! But the truth is, "life" happened.  And when life happens, projects have to wait. BOO!

I took last week to get stuff done. I had to get all my homeschool paperwork updated and get things ready (computer, spelling lists, etc.) for our new homeschool year. I attended a homeschool group meeting. I met with old friends. I prayed and encouraged some of our old friends caught up in hard times. It was a "life" week, for sure!

 And this past week -- when seeing many kids go back to school both locally and in blogland -- I've really been thinking about WHY exactly we homeschool. I'd love to share with you our reasons; so today's the day!

 We first started homeschooling in 2008. Our oldest son had been in public school for 3 1/2 years. We put him into Kindergarten when he was four years old turning five. He did great, kept up well, and continued on until the third grade.

When he was in second grade, he had the most incredible teacher. Mr. L was a Christian man who was passionate about the Lord. He and his wife were BOTH SECOND GRADE TEACHERS at the same school! So sweet. He was so tender with the students, and reflected his relationship with Jesus Christ every day in the classroom, whether it was by singing children's bible songs on the guitar with them or encouraging our son to invite children to our church and AWANA program. He would even come see my son in our church performances, though it was not his home church! I will always be grateful that the Lord placed such a Godly teacher in the public school system in our son's life.

 It was that year with Mr. L that convinced us that we wanted our children to have a Christian education. We just couldn't afford it. So our son continued on into the third grade. It wasn't until his open house in March that we really knew we needed to bring him home to homeschool. We weren't comfortable with what was being taught in their textbooks. We felt that the challenges we would experience allowing him to be taught certain things that were against our convictions -- and then us trying to convince him what he was learning was false -- would be dangerous ground to tread on. So after much prayer and discussion, we decided to withdrawal him from public school and homeschool.

 Now backing up for a minute -- I would have NEVER in a million years thought I would homeschool. I'm not a very patient person, and teachers require an extraordinary amount of patience! They needed to be knowledgeable in all things! They needed to be experienced! I'm none of the above. 
 There was also the issue of socialization...DUN DUN DUN. The "S" word. "Homeschooled kids aren't socialized." "All children need to be socialized and that happens among their peers in a classroom setting". These are things I've heard in regards to homeschooling. And it's a complete and total myth. But more on that later.

Luckily, in California our homeschooling rules are pretty laid back. There is a wonderful, informative site CHN that takes you step by step through how to withdrawal your child from public school and how to set up your homeschool. Wow! So after getting all that taken care of, we finished out the rest of third grade and then I bought a curriculum set that would take care of all of fourth grade.

Boy, was that year rough! Our son had spent 3 1/2 years learning one way. Coming home and homeschooling with a very different learning technique really threw him for a loop. There were tears, arguing, frustration. It was a HARD year. When we finished out that curriculum, I knew that we needed to find another one; that curriculum was NOT working for him, and not catering to the way he learns. So after searching and asking fellow homeschooling families what they used, we decided to go with Switched On Schoolhouse.

 It was just what he needed. This is an amazing, interactive curriculum that totally caters to my son's learning style. We have been using it for 3 grade years now, and I've also started my youngest son on Switched On Schoolhouse for the 3rd grade. In addition, we do spelling and sentences to keep their penmanship neat and up to par, along with book reports and lots of book reading.



 Now, onto our reasons WHY we homeschool! 


  •  Our first and most important reason for homeschooling is to keep Jesus Christ in our education. I love the fact that Christian based curriculum always implements the Lord into the work, no matter what subject it is. We love the Lord, and want what we learn to be centered around Him and His Word :)


  •  We LOVE the freedom of a homeschooling schedule! I have always found the concept of children waking up extremely early to get into the habit so that they'll be prepared for doing it for the rest of their life kinda strange. The fact that they'll be doing it for the rest of their lives is reason enough to let my kids be KIDS, and get their rest. I find they're at their best when they sleep in a bit and are able to go about their morning at their own pace (sometimes a little TOO slow, which is when I regulate! hah).


  •  We LOVE the flexibility of homeschooling: When something comes up, we can just take the day off and resume tomorrow. If we wake up and decide that we want to go to the beach, we can do that! When a baby's been throwing up all night and mom needs a day to focus on her, we can do that. When something comes up that might need to take us out of town, we can do that. Now granted, we have to make up the school day to comply with our state's mandatory attendance regulation, but we just add a day to the end of the year. 


  • We LOVE being with other homeschoolers! When we moved to this new town and started going to our current church, we found a large sized homeschool group that likes to do activities together! There is a field trip once a month, and they're cool field trips too! October is the Science Museum here in Southern California...LOVE that place! And the support from the group is awesome. My boys really enjoy the friendships of the other boys in the group, which are also their friends that they go to church with. Win Win situation here :)


  • We LOVE the controlled environment aspect of homeschooling. Another reason why we removed our son from public school was the unnecessary profanity and vulgarity he was exposed to. We're talkin' third graders with mouths like sailors! The bullying of other students, the "harmless, all in fun" name calling....it's just not a necessary part of my children's education. At home, they learn free from the anxieties of playground bullying, their flaws being pointed out daily and the adult-influenced vulgarities that their little ears just need not hear.


Socialization...the "S" word. The fact is, as long as your children have interaction with other children, their socialization skills are being developed and nurtured. They don't NEED to be in a classroom for 6 hours to have that skill developed. If you take your children to a playground, to children's church, to choir, to gymnastics, to dance class, to play places...they're socializing. For someone to say a child who learns at home vs. learning in a classroom environment will lack socialization skills is just silly.

 I believe the Lord has entrusted me and my Husband with our children to do the very best that we can raising them up in Him -- to know Him, to love Him and to WANT Him as the Lord of their lives; and for our family, teaching them at home the required studies with God's fingerprints all over them is what works best. I'm NOT saying that homeschooling is for every family, because it's NOT. But it's what the Lord put on OUR hearts and our convictions, so we do it. 

 Oh, does it have its challenges! But it's worth it. I think it pleases the Lord. And that's enough for me. 


So here's to another year of homeschooling! 

8.23.2011

Kissyface Kreations Giveaway Winner!

Time to announce the winner of the Kissyface Kreations $15 Etsy Credit Giveaway!

The winner is:



CONGRATS! You have 48 hours to contact me or I'll have to choose another winner.


Thanks to everyone who entered! 
Keep an eye out, I have a unique, one-of-a-kind giveaway coming up soon!

8.22.2011

Monnndaaayyyy!

Hi friends!

 I hope you are all having a fantastic Monday!

 I'm writing this post from my new HP Pavilion g6x laptop! *squeal*


I have a feeling I'm gonna be kinda quiet this week; I'll be playing on this sweet thing and learning all its gadgets! I also am doing two projects at once that I'll put up here as soon as I finish, along with preparing to start our homeschooling year in 7 days! Busy Busy! So bear with me, I'll be back before you know it.

 One of the current projects involves Oil Rubbed Bronze spray paint.....ooh la la! Can't wait to share it!

PS. Don't forget to enter my giveaway: $15 Etsy Store Credit to Kissy Face Kreations! It ends TONIGHT!

8.19.2011

Winnnnner!

 Happy Friday!

 It's time to announce the winner of the UPrinting Letterhead Giveaway!

The winner is-


 


CONGRATS! I'll be emailing you shortly!

Thanks everyone for entering!

8.18.2011

Just another Thursday...

What are you doing in the holy bathroom, 
what are you doing in the holy bathroom, 
holy bathroom holy bathroom, 
what are you doing in the holy bathroom.


----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Not sure what exactly this means. All I know is I heard my 7 year old singing this upon catching my 1 year old in the bathroom. He is such a funny boy.

I'm still here! I know I've been quiet all week, but it's been one of  THOSE  weeks. You know, the kind where you're running around like a chicken with your head cut off. I still have 2 Dr. appointments today and a fellowship night with some old students tonight....

Today is the last day to enter my 500 piece CUSTOM LETTERHEAD Giveaway! So make sure to enter, if you haven't yet. Who doesn't want FREE pretty letterhead to write stuff on?!

And I also have another giveaway going until Aug. 22nd!

She has the CUTEST girly hair stuff! I just love her clippies. With $15, you can get a good amount of stuff! So enter away!


8.13.2011

Custom Letterhead Giveaway!

Today I have a REAL TREAT for you! 

Photobucket


UPrinting is offering one lucky reader at I HEART My Glue Gun the chance to win:


 A 500 piece letterhead package valued at $89.83!

Prize Details:
500 pcs. Letterheads for One winner
5.5” x 8.5"
Front Only Printing
4 Business Days Print Turnaround Time
Free Shipping

UPrinting has made designing your own letterhead so easy! After getting inspiration from over 50 samples in their letterhead design section, I went into their Easy Design Tool to create my own Custom Letterhead! You can upload any picture or logo and there are TONS of fonts and colors to choose from!

 I personally decided to build my own graphics in GIMP, and came up with these!








TOTALLY cute, RIGHT?!


UPrinting offers everything from business cards, letterhead printing, envelope printing, brochures, calendars, postcards, wall art, and stickers!


Wanna Win this amazing prize? THOUGHT SO!


To Enter-You MUST be a Google Friend Connect follower of I HEART My Glue Gun-so make sure you are, and leave me a comment letting me know!


2nd Entry-Take a look around UPrinting, and let me know what your favorite product is!
3rd Entry-"Like" I HEART My Glue Gun on Facebook and comment letting me know!


+Please leave your email in your comment+
+Only available to US residents 18 and over+
+Giveaway ends August 19th @ 12:01am+
+Winner will be announced August 19th!+


GOOD LUCK!



Disclaimer: This giveaway is sponsored by UPrinting, no monetary compensation was given and I will receive letterhead printing service by hosting. Letterhead design inspiration and envelope printing is also available. Please visit UPrinting.com for more details.


8.11.2011

SYTYCD Sesaon Finale!!!

 Well hey there you guys!


 I'm a little late on this, but I'm watching the SYTYCD Finale right now, so better late than never!

 I was less than impressed with last night's Part 1 of the finale-every season prior had some AMAZING
dances for the Finale; and these ones were just so so.

 Here are the ones I liked:







I have a strong feeling Melanie's gonna take this one-the judges ranted and raved about how they loved her and how she was their "favorite" dancer. Lady Gaga endorsed her. Kenny Ortega offered her a job. 

I love Melanie; she seems super humble and is an out-of-this-world dancer. But I was really put off at the constant endorsement. I thought the judges needed to be neutral about every dancer? Don't they realize they're affecting the votes by saying,"You're my FAVORITE dancer!" or like Nigel said last night to Tadd and Marko "A Girl will win the competition tomorrow." Rude!

I truly loved this show, and enjoyed EVERY season (didn't watch season 4) but I'm not sure I'll be back to watch next season. It's been fun doing this series every Thursday though! 

And the winner is-
(highlight below to reveal winner!)
MELANIE!!!!

8.10.2011

Ballard Topiary Knock Off

Happy Wednesday friends!

 Today I'm going to share with you a Ballard Topiary knock off!

These puppies start at $49.00 at Ballard! Wow!


But for under $8.00, you can have one that's very similar and in my opinion, CUTER!


 So let's get started!

 Here are the supplies you'll need:


I got everything from the two different Dollar stores, EXCEPT the ball which was $2.39 at Michael's. Yes, it pained me to pay over a dollar for a Styrofoam ball, but what could I do? None of the $0.99 or Dollar stores had them! 


First, I cut the block down to size and stuck it in the vase.



After that, I shoved the dowel in there...


Put some Spanish Moss at the top of the vase to cover up the block.

(whoops! Slightly crooked....fixed it off camera)

Cover your ball in glue, and then the fun of attaching the floral moss begins! It's kind of a pain, but eventually it'll all stick. It might take a few tries, however.



And voila! A beautiful, Ballard inspired topiary! LOVE IT!


What a fun craft, and so versatile! 

8.06.2011

Fall Fall Fall Faaaallll!

 Sorry there was no SYTYCD Thursday! I watched, and of course thought there was some incredible dances! Ricky and Caitlynn went home, and now we have our Top 4 with the Finale being next week! WOOHOO! I'll be sure to have a super cool post then!

Now onto other stuff! Anyone EXCITED about the fall? I AM! I LOVVVEEE Fall! I love decorating for the fall. I love the smell of cinnamon sticks in the fall. I love pumpkins and acorns and pinecones and gourds, and those are fall things!


FALLLLLL, I love you.


































 It never, EVER looks like this here in the desert. But I LOVE the thought of someday moving to where it DOES look like this!






So here's the million dollar question: 
When do you start decorating for the fall? 


8.05.2011

Yo Gabba Gabba In Da Houuusssee!

So does anyone's kiddos love Yo Gabba Gabba as much as my little ones do? Well, two of my little ones anyway. Our 2 year old daughter and our 1 year old daughter. Our 7.5 and 11.5 year old boys aren't interested. 

 ANYWAY! I decided to make my girls some Muno shirts that they can sport around and look cute in! So without further ado, I bring you:

No Sew Muno T-Shirt

Materials needed:

Red T-Shirt 
1 sheet white felt
1 sheet black felt
Heat n' Bond


First, trace out your facial features needed (eyeball, pupil, mouth and teeth)



 Next, Attach to Heat 'n Bond, following instructions on package, and iron onto shirt! 



And we're FINISHED! So, so cute and SUPER EASY!


My Model is our 12 month old daughter (her birthday was Tuesday!)! Isn't she darling?!

(I DO think I'm going to "reinforce" by stitching around the felt pieces, just so nothing happens when it get washed)


 Happy Friday Everyone!

8.02.2011

Giveaway from Kissy Face Kreations!

Hi everyone! Today, I NEED to share with you an AMAZING shop on etsy, Kissy Face Kreations!


She is so stinkin' talented! And it totally helps that her model is ADORABLE, too ;-)

 Let's take a look at a few things I like in her shop!


How pretty is this?! 


This sweet little alligator clip reminds me of  a 1920's flapper headpiece, but for little ones! I ADORE this little clip!


And Oh. Em. Gee. How awesome is this owl hat?! 

Didn't I tell ya? Huh? She's ridiculously talented! 
Wanna see more? Go check out her etsy shop, Kissy Face Kreations!

And one of you lucky readers will win a $15 store credit to her shop! Hollaaaa!!!

So here's what you need to do:
*YOU MUST BE A GFC FOLLOWER OF HER BLOG, Kissy Face Kreations TO ENTER!*
So hop on over there, Follow her and come back here and let me know you're following!

Extra Entry-"LIKE" Kissy Face Kreations on Facebook! Comment here.

Extra Extra Entry- Which item is your favorite? Comment here.

Giveaway will run until August 22nd @ 11:59pm.

GOOD LUCK!

8.01.2011

15 minute Cloche!

 Hi friends! I know I've been MIA, but I'm so thankful that you all hung around and continued "following" me! I think you all are GREAT, and I love that you're here :-)

 Life has been crazy....I feel like I've been running non-stop since the second week of July! So much has happened. But alas, we're going to be starting our new homeschool year in 4 weeks; it's almost fall which is my favorite season; and it seems that everything "falls" back into place in the fall. So I'm looking forward to that! 

 Yesterday, I whipped together what I'm calling the 15 minute Cheese Dome Turned Cloche! It literally took 15 minutes, give or take with drying.

 I picked up the cheese dome at a thrift shop for 1.00, and the candle holder at the Dollar Tree. So $2.00 for this project-MY KINDA PROJECT!

UUUUUUUG-LEE!



After removing the feet underneath, Spray the plate and candle holder black in the forbidden-spray-paint-corner.



Whip out the e6000 to attach the dome plate to the candle holder base


TaDaaaaa!!! So purdy.


Can't wait to put a sweet, metallic pumpkin in here in the fall!

Tomorrow I'm going to have an AWESOME giveaway for you guys, so make sure to head on back over here!



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