Some homeschool helps and more Montessori activities

This has been my best year ever, as far as planning and organizing for homeschool.  It's a shame it's taken me so long to get to this point.  (I started schooling Tabby 8 years ago.)  Though really every year I try new methods.

I spend a chunk of time on Saturdays typing out all the assignments for the next week.  This saves so much time and stress during the busy week itself.  I am using Ambleside Online's curriculum schedule for the bulk of our day, and adding in other things of our own choosing.  I print out my assignment lists and keep them in a binder.  Of course I had to embellish the cover of my binder - I used some vintage clip art:

 
I haven't figured out how to post documents in my blog, so maybe these pictures will work well enough for you to see examples the assignment pages I made.  This is Hunter's schedule for one week (I use the same method for Tabby):

 

 

After I am finished and print out the week's schedule, I load up a tote with Hunter's schoolwork for Monday:

 

I load up Tabby's work too, using the workbox method.  (see here for Sue Patrick's Workbox System. I started using workboxes years ago with Tabby, as the method really helps her.)

 
There is a separate drawer for each assignment.  A card (which I made) shows the subject:

When Tabby has completed her work for a subject, she turns the card over (they are secured by velcro dots):

If it is a subject that she will be working with me on, I add an extra card indicating that:

I have a stack of workboxes for Hunter too, though at this point, I use his for storing his curriculum.  It really saves time each evening when I am loading up the tote with his work for the next day:

Sue Patrick recommends open boxes on carts for this system, but Tabby felt it was too cluttery and overwhelming looking.  So we use two "6-drawer mobile organizers" from Staples, that are stacked and taped together.

The week before last, I introduced a new Montessori activity to Solomon each day.  For Monday, I gave him an "acorn sensory bin" (I got the idea from here).  It has popcorn kernels, acorns, and pine cones in it.  (Solomon helped me pick up acorns the day before.)  And I gave him a tray of scoops and pouring devices.  (Looking back, I probably gave him too many.)

I instructed him he was to keep the everything off the floor and in the bin.  He did pretty well with that on that day.  But another day, he was playing and suddenly started throwing and kicking the corn and acorn all over the place.  That session was ended abruptly!

Tuesday we did color matching.  I took some colored pieces of foam sheets and stapled them to make a pocket.  I used a green piece of felt because I didn't have foam in that color.  (I had seen some really nice, sewn ones on Etsy for sale which is where I got the idea.  Mine were not nearly as nice, but they worked.)  I used marker to color the popsicle sticks:

Solomon had some trouble getting the stick into the felt pocket.  The foam was so much better because it slid in easily.

When he was finished, he got the corn/acorn sensory bin back out and played with everything a long time.  He added his stacking/nesting cups to the game:

Wednesday was another color sorting activity.  I took a really neat vintage wooden silverware holder that I had gotten on Ebay, cut colored foam pieces for the slots, got out the little balls and a strawberry huller.  He used the huller to pick up the balls to match to the correct colors:

Solomon has gotten good at matching colors.  But he still doesn't usually get the names of each one right.  So we continue to point out colors of stuff throughout the day.

After he played with this color game a few times, out came the clothesline again.  I continue to be surprised at how much he likes this activity:

Thursday we practiced sorting "big" and "little."  I made signs for them on cardstock and gave Solomon a number of sets of things so he could separate them into big and little piles.  He really liked this and even when he had finished what I gave him, went around the room and gathered up more things to separate.

 

Friday was easy.  I gave Solomon a book - Montessori Number Work: 

This is such a neat book.  After counting objects on a page, you turn the page and it shows the number of those objects.  The number is a sandpaper number that is large and you trace it with your finger.  Solomon goes through this book most every day now.  Sometimes with me, but he usually likes to look at it by himself.

I haven't given Solomon any new activities since then.  He has been happy continuing to do those same activities over and over each day.  Plus his cousins gave him some train tracks and Thomas trains to play with, so he has been busy with those.

 As if I don't have enough pictures already in today's post, I am going to add a few more.  Since this is the time of year that colorful leaves on the ground are plentiful, I wanted to share a fun book that is full of ideas of leaf pictures to make.  Look What I Did With a Leaf! by Morteza E. Sohi.

Here is an example of one of the book's creative leaf designs:

 I showed this book to Hunter recently and then we went outside to gather leaves. I made some weird animal creatures:

I sort of expected Hunter to do the same.  But instead he made a leaf machine.  (What in the world was I thinking??!!)

"May the beauty of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us—    yes, establish the work of our hands." - Psalm 90:17

The book list - August

I spent much of my reading time in August researching various sources to prepare for our current homeschool year.  So for regular book reading, I only finished 3 books.  Still, considering statistics show that less than half the adult population read literature of any kind anymore, then 3 books in one month is not bad.

Goofing around - using shorts for a hat

Song from the Ashes by Megan Whitson Lee - Last month I dedicated a whole blog post to the wonderful book written by a dear friend.  You can read it here.   If you just want a short summary, here is my amazon.com review:
"This well written, engrossing novel pulled me in, right from the beginning. It is a modern retelling of Edith Wharton's novel "The Age of Innocence." I read Wharton's book shortly before reading "Song from the Ashes" and it is was fun to see the parallels. My heart ached for Landon, and the struggles he had in whether to stay with his wife April, or leave her for April's fascinating cousin Ella. Landon knows what the right thing is to do before God, but just like with real Christians, temptations are there. April and Landon have a baby, born with Trisomy 18, a genetic condition. I cried through that whole section, because I had a little girl that lived 17 months with Trisomy 18. (Most people do not know about Trisomy 18 and this book helps spread awareness and basic knowledge.) The author does a wonderful job in showing how through all the struggles of the different characters in the book, God's plans are perfect and He is constantly weaving them into our lives. I highly recommend this book!"

school fun - Tabby's house built with toothpicks and mini marshmallows

Getting to Yum: The 7 Secrets of Raising Eager Eaters by Karen LeBillon - In April, I read French Kids Eat Everything, by this same author.  (See my blogpost here.)  It was such an interesting book, I bought this book shortly after that.  It is full of proven strategies to get kids - and adults - to eat a wide variety of foods.  As I read it I was once again amazed in thinking about the huge variety of foods that kids in France eat, and actually like.  Unlike in America where we have so many foods specifically for kids - kid yogurts, kid cereals, kid lunchables, kid crackers, etc etc.  And of course many American kids are stuck on only wanting to eat a few basic foods like pasta, white rice, and crackers.  Why?  Because in general, we don't expect anything different from them!  Rice cereal is the standard 1st for for babies in the U.S., in spite of all sorts of research showing it should not be.  But Americans introduce bland foods and keep them bland.  Babies don't learn to like lots of flavors and textures.  This book has ideas and games to help correct that, no matter what your age.  We have started working through the suggestions, and I will blog about our first week, hopefully this Sunday.

Chow time!  Notice the chickens coming up to the porch.  Their pushiness in trying to get the dogs food resulted in the death of a chicken this past Monday.  The dogs are now fed before the chickens are released from their coop in the morning, and again after the chickens go to bed and the coop is closed for the night.

Once Upon an Island: The History of Chincoteague by Kirk Mariner - I picked up a copy of this book when we visited Chincoteague island in Virginia in June 2012.  (You can read about LillyBear's adventures in Chincoteague in this post.)  I started reading the book shortly after that but then Solomon was born and then when he was 3 weeks old we moved, and I never picked the book back up.  But last month I decided to finish it and I am glad I did because it really is a book full of interesting facts about Chincoteague and it's neighboring Assateague islands. Most people only know about Chincoteague from the Misty of Chincoteague series.  But there is so, so much more rich history to this little island.  Interesting people, terrible natural disasters, destructive fires, etc.


Post contains amazon.com affiliate links.  If I make any money through this program, 100% of it will be contributed to Trisomy 18 causes.

Megan Whitson Lee: "Song from the Ashes"

Siblings:  Exhaust Pipe & Sherlotta

We had a wonderful surprise today, when we got home from church!  Frank said "Isn't that Exhaust Pipe?!" And it was!  After being missing for 5 days, he was home!

We have no idea where he was.  His collar with tag was still on.  He showed no sign of injury.

But he was ravenous!  He downed 3 bowls of food in a flash.

The chickens have started running over to the porch when they hear the sound of dog food being poured in the metal bowls.  Sherlotta did a good job chasing chickens off the porch while Exhaust Pipe ate and ate and ate.

Sherlotta standing guard while Exhaust Pipe and his Mama, Dixie, eat (note the hens on the rails)

Happy dog news is the perfect segue into the subject of my post.  Books written by my dear, longtime friend, Megan Whitson Lee.  Megan loves dogs and she and her husband own two greyhounds.  :)

I met Megan in the early 1990s.  We were both working at the Virginia Employment Commission and attending George Mason University.  (She was a music major and my major was administration of justice.)  We found we had some unique things in common: a love of heavy metal music and Dracula.  We also liked Renaissance festivals and historical events.  Besides those things, Megan had a love for God which I did not have at the time.  I fondly credit her with being one of two people in my life, who's influence lead me to finally accept Christ.  (The other person was one of the survivors of the government's massacre of the Branch Davidians in Waco in 1993.  But that is another story.)

Megan and I liked to dress up and have historical themed dinners, followed by movies.  That was a lot of fun.  Here is Megan at our medieval themed dinner.  I remember we watched "Braveheart" after eating.  :)

Megan

Another dinner was a civil war meal, in which we watched "Gone with the Wind" afterwards:

Me (on the left) and Megan

After collage graduation, Megan left for London, England on a year long work permit.  Before she returned to the United States, I went and visited her and saw many wonderful placed in London, York, Bath, and in Edinburgh, Scotland.  Some photos of that trip are interspersed below.

Megan - Parliament and Big Ben in the background

In 2009, Megan published her first novel, All That is Right and Holy.  This book follows the lives of several people involved in sex trafficking - at different levels.  From pornography addicts up to sex slaves.  Though none of the people in the stories are real, they are based on real people and circumstances.  It's been about 5 years since I read this book and it continues to haunt me.  I especially can not think of the country of India without thinking of the way girls are sold - by their own parents or relatives - to be sex slaves.  My review on amazon.com sums up how I feel about it:

"I read this book several years ago and I still think about it at times and often find myself praying for those involved. The story was riveting, haunting, and educational. I learned a lot about the sex trade industry and how it is truly all around us. I learned about the types of people that get involved and why. Many heartbreaking stories out there. I was thankful this book was not overly graphic. I came away from it feeling I know how to better guard my own children from being accidentally exposed to and sucked into that nightmare world. I urge everyone to read this book and learn these things for themselves. For those already involved in some way - this book offers hope and shows the way out. This book is a story that needed to be written, and it needs to be read by many."

Megan won second place in the 2009 Christian Choice Books Awards for the novel.

me in Bath, England ( I LOVE all the old architecture in Europe)

Earlier this month, eLectio Publishing published Megan's second novel, Song from the Ashes.  Here is a summary from the back cover of the book:

"A retelling of Edith Wharton's classic novel The Age of Innocence, Song from the Ashes explores the struggle with contentment in marriage and the dilemma between striving for personal happiness versus acceptance of God's perfect plan."

I do not usually read Christian fiction, so honestly, I only know the stereotypes of it.  I like that Megan writes about "messy" Christians.  Meaning she writes about struggles that real Christians have.  Though not all Christians are being tormented in a love triangle, as this book's main character  Landon is, we all have our own struggles and temptations with sin.

William Wallace (Edinburgh) - "FREEDOM!!"

Landon, a Christian man that is steady, responsible, and does the right things, is newly engaged to April when he meets her fascinating cousin Ella, a failed country musician.  He struggles with his feelings for Ella, but chooses to honor his commitment to April, and marry her.

However, since Ella has a part of his heart, his marriage to April is not easy.  His struggles with his feelings for Ella and it makes him miserable.

Me in the classic red phone booth! I wonder if they even still exist (because of cell phone use)

Towards the end of the book, April gives birth to a baby girl named Carys.  ("Carys" is Welsh for "loved one.")  Carys has Trisomy 18.  This is the part of the book I started to cry and continued to cry until the end. I'm sure I would have cried reading about any baby with Trisomy 18, but Carys is special to me because she is based on our Lilly.  How I miss our sweet Lilly ...  And just like Lilly brought amazing blessings with her during her short life to us and others, Carys blesses those around her in the book and brings healing.

On a fun note, there is a girl named "Tabitha" in the book mentioned briefly (if you don't know, Tabby's real name is "Tabitha") and there is a pastor named "Frank."  There is also a little girl named "Lilly" who is mentioned twice.  She is like a little angelic being.  :)

I will always be grateful to Megan for including the Carys character in the book.  Not just because of her similarity to Lilly, but that she helps spread awareness of what Trisomy 18 is.  On the "Author's Note" pages in the back of the book, Megan briefly describes Trisomy 18 and cites my blog for Lilly.  :)

Megan by a sign for "The Ultimate Ghost and Torture Tour" in Edinburgh.  This tour was a nighttime walk through the catacombs under the city. We had a bizarre paranormal experience at one point.

As I mentioned in my last blog post, I read The Age of Innocence right before reading Song from the Ashes and it was really neat seeing the parallels.  Though I did like The Age of Innocence, I liked Megan's story better.  I really appreciated how Megan brought God into her story.  Wharton's book was not from a Christian perspective.  (If you are not a Christian and are reading this, please know that you do not need to be one in order to appreciate this book!)

Megan set her story in Kingsport, Tennessee, the town she grew up in.  In the week before her book's release, she did a series of blog posts about Kingsport.  They were so interesting, especially as I remembered them while reading this story.  Frank, Tabby, and I attended Megan's wedding, years ago, in Kingsport.  So it was neat when she wrote about places I was familiar with there.  Megan's blog, called "Life Before the Hereafter" is at:    http://meganwhitsonlee.blogspot.com .

Hampstead Heath - beautiful open countryside, right in London

So ... I guess you can tell ... I highly recommend Megan Whitson Lee's book, Song from the Ashes!  The book is available in both paperback and Kindle.

"I count him braver who overcomes his desires than him who conquers his enemies; for the hardest victory is over self." - Aristotle

"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure.  Who can understand it?" - Jeremiah 17:9

Me at Trafalgar Square in London (goodness - the main thing that shows up are my white hightops! How 1990s ...)

The Book List - June

I am thankful to have been raised in a family of readers and to now have my own family of readers.  Just this afternoon, Tabby read a 288 page book.

Solomon has taken to swiping Frank's reading glasses lately.  Tabby and I usually make a run for the camera when he does.

After reading French Kids Eat Everything by Karen LeBillon several months ago (see my blog post about the book here), I kept encountering the book Bringing Up Bebe, a book on French parenting, in things I was reading.  I finally bought a copy and found it fascinating.  So first on my list of books I read last month:

JUNE:

Bringing Up Bebe: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting by Pamela Druckerman - This book was written by an American journalist who is living in Paris with her family. The book was so interesting as it was a glimpse into child raising norms in France.  There are some major difference between French and American parenting for sure, though parents in both countries love their children.  If I ever have another baby, I plan to follow the French parenting method of helping babies sleep through the night by 3-4 months old - done without letting babies "cry it out."  (Tabby slept through the night early on but neither of my sons did.)  I also like the way French parents teach their little children to "wait."  They intentionally "frustrate" their little children - teaching them to how to wait - and guess what.  It is apparently rare to ever see a French child have a tantrum in public.  (It's the American or English children having the tantrums there, not the French kids!)  There are a number of other things I learned from the book that I am using with my kids.  But there are also some things, just like the author, that I just don't understand.  One example is that French mothers stop nursing after only a few months.  This seems so strange since so much research shows the enormous benefits of nursing through a baby's first year.  There are a couple other things that I would never choose to do, as a homeschooling Christian mama.  But from what I understand, Christianity continues to decline in France.  And I'm not sure homeschooling exists.  (As an interesting aside, I recently learned that there are only 2 countries in the world that have a huge homeschooling population - the United States and India.)  Aside from the things I didn't agree with, there is quite a bit of French parenting that really is very wise.

Bebe Day By Day: 100 Keys to French Parenting by Pamela Druckerman - I liked the above so much that I read the author's other book on French parenting.  This is a shorter book that is a summary of Bringing Up Bebe.  It's a good review if you've already read the other book and it's a good, concise "just the facts ma'am" type book for those that want to read something quick.  I liked it but I liked Bringing Up Bebe best because it had all the details and the full story.

The Mood Cure: The 4-Step Program to Take Charge of Your Emotions -- Today by Julia Ross, M.A. - After Tabby took "The Mood Cure Questionnaire" online (see here), I got this book to see about giving her some supplements to help her in some health/emotional areas.  The book was interesting and was similar to Female Brain Gone Insane, a book that prescribed amino acid supplements that REALLY helped me to feel better when I was dealing with depression over Lilly's death and postpartum issues with Solomon.  (You can read my blog post about that here.)  I think The Mood Cure had a lot of useful information in a lot of areas of health.

Montessori From the Start: The Child at Home, From Birth to Age Three by Paula Polk Lillard and Lynn Lillard Jessen - In looking for activities for Solomon on Pinterest, I kept coming across some labeled "Montessori."  (See my Montessori Pinterest board here.)  I knew very little about Montessori so I checked out this book at the library to learn more.  What I read was so intriguing that I've been reading more and more about Maria Montessori's methods.  (I will share some things in a future blog post, as Solomon is loving the Montessori type activities I've been giving him to do.)   The authors quickly dispelled a common misconception that I believed (and they once believed):  children in Montessori programs are not "free to do as they like" but "they are free to 'work': to engage in sustained and productive activity while, at the same time, learning how to behave in a community of others." (p. xi)  Though this book was rated well within the Montessori community, I've read a number of people saying this probably isn't the best book to start with.  It is rather heavy at times.  But I did learn a lot.

(If you have a Montessori background, I would love to hear from you.  What did you like?  Not like?)

Happy reading!

Book on Grief: I Will Carry You by Angie Smith

Several months after Lilly died, I received the book I Will Carry You: The Sacred Dance of Grief and Joy by Angie Smith in the mail.  The book was from a complete stranger, a woman that had read about Lilly's death in the Samaritan Ministries newsletter.  (Samaritan Ministries is our alternative healthcare.  It is an awesome group to be a part of and yes - almost all of Lilly's medical bills were paid.)  The woman enclosed a card which read:

When I read about the loss of Lillian in the Samaritan Newsletter, my heart broke for your family.  While I have suffered a miscarriage in the past, I won't pretend that I can imagine what you are feeling, the pain of losing a child you have held, loved and cared for.  Angie Smith's story has been a vital tool on my journey to healing, not just from the loss of our baby, but also from the many hurts and disappointments this life has dealt.  When the time is right, I pray God can use her book in your life, too.
I now understand that many of us come to you feeling the need to help "fix" how you feel with our words and even scripture, but the simple truth is, we can't.  I realize "our faith gives us the sure hope of seeing [Lillian] again, but the hope does not take away the pain." (Gregory Floyd)
So I close with a long-distance hug and assurance that I and many others have been and will continue praying for you.

Isn't that such a sweet note?  Of all the books we received on grief, this is the one I wanted to read the most.  Yet I was unable to even read the back cover without crying.  I picked it up numerous times in the last 2 years, teared up, and put it back down.  Finally I determined early last week that now was the time.  Lilly's 4th birthday was coming up, making it her 3rd without us, and I just felt like I was ready to read it.  That I needed to read it.

First night of reading - no tears.  Accomplishment!  After that, I cried off and on while reading, but overall handled the story well.  I finished the book without crumpling into a heap on the floor. That made me feel triumphant.  It means that I've healed some.

Angie Smith is the wife of Todd Smith, the lead singer of the Christian group Selah.  When she was 18 weeks pregnant, they found out Audrey had a number of conditions that earned her the dreaded label "incompatible with life."

Angie described the roller coaster ride that her pregnancy was.  She cried.  A lot.  I was struck by this and all the many similarities between what happened with her family and Audrey and our family with Lilly.  But I dealt emotionally with some things differently than Angie.  Honestly Angie probably took the more healthy approach.  She cried and talked about what was happening a lot.  I didn't so much.  While pregnant with Lilly I put my numb/detached wall up and refused to think anything other than "I will bring this baby home from the hospital."

Audrey was born by c-section.  She was tiny - 3 lbs.  And much to her family's delight, she lived for 2.5 hours.  They loved on her, talked to her, sang to her, and extended family was at the hospital to meet her.  They dressed Audrey up and had beautiful pictures made with her through Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep.

[NOTE:  I got all the photos used in this blogpost today from Google Images.]

The Smith family with Audrey

They were so thankful to God for that time with her alive in their arms.  When Audrey's little damaged heart finally stopped beating, she slipped away quietly.  Look at her beautiful little face:

Audrey

One thing the Smith family did during Angie's pregnancy with Audrey that I really really think was a great idea was that because they did not know if Audrey would live, they enjoyed doing things with Audrey while she was still in the womb.  They talked to her, sang to her, read to her.  They took her to the theater, movies, the ballet.  Todd's group Selah recorded a song for her - "Audrey's Song."  When the song was recorded, they put headphones on Angie's belly so Audrey could hear the song.  The Smiths' 3 other girls wanted their sister to go to Disney World with them.  The family made the trip.

Notice the hat for Audrey

Angie discusses the story of Jesus, Mary and Martha, and the death of Lazarus in quite a few places in the book.  She took great comfort from that story and analyzed it in ways I have never thought of.  Very interesting and comforting.

In the back of the book, there is a section that Todd wrote for fathers.  I think this was such a good idea to include that since I think in general, fathers do not get the attention and help that mothers do, in the grieving process.

Angie also has a chapter on helping children grieve.  As we've done a number of things that she talked about, I can say that "yes" they are things that helped.  Angie noted that her girls often drew pictures with coffins in them.  That reminded me of how Hunter went through a phase of playing funeral.  He would "bury" his stuffed dog Sam.  Hunter was 3 when Lilly died, and in the 6 months proceeding her death, we had also buried Frank's father and uncle.  Then a few months after burying Lilly, a baby at church died and Hunter asked "Oh, did that baby have Trisomy 18 too?"  Hunter was 4 when he cried about Lilly.  Children process things differently, depending on their ages and maturity level.

And really, adults process things differently at different stages too.  I doubt there are two people in the world that grieve in the exact same way at the exact same time.

Finally, Angie has a section of helpful resources.  Books, websites, and memorial ideas.

You may recall that earlier this year, I gave away Angie Smith's children's book Audrey Bunny for Trisomy 18 Awareness Day.  (My post is here.)   This is a book about a bunny that has a mark on her heart and she tries to hide it.  But when her "owner" finds it, she loves the bunny anyway.

This bunny is based on the real stuffed bunny that Angie and Todd bought for Audrey when Angie was pregnant.  They had found a bunny with a mark on it's heart and in spite of pressure from the saleswoman at the gift shop to buy one without a mark, they bought it anyway.  It was the perfect bunny for their little girl with the heart issues.

Angie and Todd took the bunny home and showed it to their little girls and explained that Audrey's heart had "a boo boo."  The little girls put bandaids on the bunny's heart.  Isn't that sweet?  And I think a very helpful tool in teaching those little girls about their sister.

I'm so thankful I finally got the courage/strength to read this book.  Tabby took it from me the day after I finished it and read the whole book in a morning.  She liked it too.  I think it is a helpful book for anyone.  Even if you haven't lost a child,  I Will Carry You can help you better understand those that did and how you might help.

"Therefore we do not lose heart.  Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.  For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, while we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen.  For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal. - 1 Corinthians 4:16-18

--
note: This blog post contains amazon.com affiliate links. If I ever make any money from book purchases through these links, the money will be used to bless others through the Lilly Memorial Fund. :)

The Book List - May and 2 health book recommendations

Sugar Love Carpet Lilies - photo by Tabby

You may have noticed, that I have started adding "this post contains amazon.com affiliate links" to some of my blog posts lately.  This simply means that I signed up for Amazon.com's Affiliate program and use their links for books or other products I mention sometimes.  Then, if anyone uses one of those links to buy that product - or anything else after clicking through on my link - then I could earn a tiny percentage of that.  Any money at all that I earn, will be used for blessing others through my Lilly Memorial Project.  :)  You can also click through the amazon.com link at the top right column of this blog.  I'm on sort of a "probation period" with them right now.  When you sign up, you have 90 days to get a sale.  If not, then you're out of the program.  So I figured it is worth a try.

Please don't feel obliged to buy your amazon.com products this way.  But if you do, I just wanted to explain where any money I make off your sale would go.  Thank you!  :)

future recorder player - photo by Tabby

Before I get into last month's list of books I read, I wanted to share two books that I turn to, anytime one of us is sick or has any health issue.  They are both by the same woman and focus on ways to heal with natural methods as opposed to prescription drugs.  (Though the author reminds us, there certainly is a time for those.)  The books are:

Be Your Own Doctor - 101 Stories:  The Informative Guide to Herbal Home Health Care by Rachel Weaver

Be Your Child's Pediatrician: Responsible Home Health Care by Rachel Weaver

I used the tips in the first book to get rid of Frank's last kidney stone issue without him ever having to go to the doctor. 

The author is a mother of 9, midwife, and master herbalist.  Samaritan Ministries did a member spotlight on the Weaver family here and a review of Be Your Own Doctor here.   

Dixie & Sherlotta visited the doctor recently and got spayed - photo by Tabby

Exhaust Pipe had his turn at the vet too.  No more puppies for us! - photo by Tabby

MAY:

Hit the Knee and Other Sage Advice:  A Cheeky Account of My Heart Bypass Surgery by Dennis J. Gwin - This book was written by my brother-in-law Dennis, (Frank's sister's husband.)  It is a humorous and informative story about his heart bypass surgery.  Dennis is a funny writer and I found myself laughing - out loud - at a number of parts of the story.  (You have to understand that though I have a sense of humor, I am not an "easy laugher" so this is certainly notable!)  The book made me think a lot about Lilly's two heart surgeries (one to insert a pulmonary artery band and the other was VSD repair) and made me wonder how things felt for her.  After Lilly died, Dennis wrote this sweet poem about her.  You can get paperback copy of Dennis's book at: http://hittheknee.wix.com/hittheknee and kindle version on amazon here.

Saved at Sea by Mrs. O. F. Walton - I recently went through a unit study on lighthouses with Hunter and this is one of the books we read.  Written in 1879, this was an intriguing tale of a boy and his grandfather and the lighthouse they help tend.  The title - "saved at sea" - has several meanings in the story.  Not only is a baby saved in a shipwreck, but the main characters are saved by becoming Christians.  We have the Lamplighter version of this book (which is the one I linked to), but if you search amazon.com, you will see plenty of other cheaper re-prints.

The Nesting Place: It Doesn't Have to be Perfect to be Beautiful by Myquillyn Smith.  I always enjoy reading a home decorating book every once in a while.  We moved into our current home, a 100-year old farmhouse, less than 2 years ago.  Solomon was only 3 weeks old.  The first year here felt like survival mode.  This year, I am finally able to start painting rooms and getting the house in better order.  So I enjoyed  reading The Nesting Place and am thankful for the the inspiration and encouragement I got from it.  The author and I do not really have the same decorating style, but that didn't matter.  The author blogs at: The Nesting Place (www.thenester.com).  She says "Welcome to our home where things aren't perfect.  We trust you can relate."  One of my favorite pictures in the book shows her office staged for a magazine shoot.  Then shows a picture of her office of how it normally looks.  Quite a difference.  ;)  I'll never look at magazine house shoots the same.

the Guinea Hens just moved into their new house! (coop) - photo by Tabby

Soft Rain: A Story of the Cherokee Trail of Tears by Cornelia Cornelissen - This is a historical fictional account of a sad time in America's history.  It is about a girl and her family - and the other Cherokee Indians around them - being captured and forced from their home in North Carolina to relocate west.  Though I was familiar with "the trail of tears" this book really brought it to life and all the sadness surrounding it.  This book was one of the assigned books for the Veritas Press self-paced history course that Tabby is taking - 1815 to Present.  (I read the books and watch the online course too, because I love learning along with her.)

Super Nutrition for Babies: The Right Way to Feed Your Baby for Optimal Health by Katherine Erlich and Kelly Genzlinger - I began reading this book about the time Solomon was ready to start eating solid foods.  Many chapters are divided up into age groups, and I did not read those until he reached whatever those ages were.  So last month I finally finished the book.  This book is the ultimate way to fight back against the SAD way of eating (Standard American Diet).  It follows along with a lot of Weston Price's research.  If you follow the recommendations, you will definitely have a super baby!  I have done pretty well with Solomon, but there were a number of things that I just couldn't or didn't want to feed him.  But I'd say his health is very good - he has only been sick twice I think.

Man of the Family by Ralph Moody - I am reading through the "Little Britches" series for literature with my kids and this is the second one we've finished.  These are true stories based on the author's life, growing up in the early 1900s.  This book picks up where Little Britches: Father and I Were Ranchers left off, Ralph's father had just died.  The family must try and find a way to make money and survive.  My kids and I were continually amazed at how creative this family was!  These books are just fascinating.  Sort of Little House on the Prairie type books, though from the male perspective.  (Note - there are some cuss words in them, but I just leave these out since I read them out loud.)

25 Ways to Communicate Respect to Your Husband:  A Handbook for Wives by Jennifer Flanders - I find it interesting that in the Bible God instructs husbands to "love" their wives and for wives to "respect" their husbands.  (See Ephesians 5.)  Why does God say this?  Are those some universal struggles for us in marriage?  Like many areas of my life, I know respect is one I can do better in.  The author of this book has 25 practical ways to do this, in easy to read, short chapters.  Many of these ways can apply to anyone in our lives.  In a day and age where it seems so few people truly respect others, this book is a great tool.  The author suggests taking just one "way" a week and working on it to make it a habit.

"Respect? I demand respect!" - Tabby's Silkie Bantam rooster - photo by Tabby