Pink Penguin Craftivity

After reading one of my favorite penguin books, Pink! by Lynne Rickards, the kids made these adorable guys today:

I always love this craftivity, because it is super simple, but stinkin' cute.  I think I might leave these up in the hall for awhile.  In my reasoning, I can leave them until Valentine's Day, because they are pink--and pink is a Valentine color.  {Yes!  So, there!}  

I used scrapbook paper for our penguins, and, as a last minute decision, decided to mis-match the body pattern with the wings!  I think it makes them look even more unique.  After crafting, the kids wrote about their penguins.  Some of their writing was HYSTERICAL!  One little one said she'd take hers to Chuck E Cheese, and another said that his penguin was named Monster.  {He had to give that pink guy a tough name!}

I LOVE this one--look at those eyes!  The writing to go with it is below!  It is so cute!  The penguin's name is Crazy Bill, and he is a good "guard penguin".  His birthday is unknown because he is a super hero from Mars.  And he can lay exploding eggs!  Very cool.

This craftivity and writing page is available as a free download!  Please click the picture below:

Just 30 Minutes

I've found myself getting frustrated lately ~

I look around at all there is to be done in our home, 

and I'm finding that there are no big blocks 
of time in which to do it all.

This is where the *old* idea of taking it in small 

doses comes in!

It really is brilliant.  
I'm enjoying crossing things off my list. 
Little by little...those *extra* things are getting done. 
The frustration is being replaced with a feeling of satisfaction.

Do you realise what can be accomplished in small chunks of time?

Added up, those small chunks become big.

I've allocated 30 minutes a day to the task of addressing

some of those larger projects that just never seem to get done.

Little by little.  Day after day.  Just 30 minutes!

Do-able?

I think so!

How do you tackle those

looming projects in your home?

Please share so we all can be inspired,

and be an encouragement to each other.

Let's tackle them together.

Ready?  Set.  GO!!  :)

Many Blessings,
Camille

**Images in this post are of small *projects*
that have been staring at me for awhile now ~
they're finally getting attention.  Yippee!! 

Numberless

The LORD's mercies truly are new every morning.

They are countless.  Numberless.  Infinite.

In light of all this, I'm starting fresh.

Perhaps it's the influence of a New Year.

A fresh calendar.  Fresh possibilities.

Maybe even a fresh perspective?

The numbering of my thanks has been 

a tremendous blessing to my soul.

Truly, numbering has been a balm.

But, now, I'm leaving the numbering behind.

My plan is just to list ~ point by point.

Line by line ~ one after the next.

Join me?  I'd be thrilled!

If you do put up your own post, 
please alert me to the fact

that you are listing out your blessings,

and I will seek to stop by for a visit.

Let's encourage one another!

"Many, O LORD my God, are Thy wonderful works which Thou hast done,
and Thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto Thee:
if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered."
~ Psalm 40:5 ~

So, on this grey day in January, I list out my numberless thanks.
They are random and not necessarily logical,
but, they are precious nonetheless.

~ Memories of times like these...

~ Traditions to keep...

~ That this young man could indulge...

~ It was a momentous occasion...

~ We all enjoyed watching him take that satisfying bite!

 ~ Our Stanley Park walk that ended with a view of the city ~ 
isn't it beautiful?

There really are so many things to be thankful for!
May the LORD grant us eyes to see 
and hearts to rejoice in HIS many Good Gifts.

Recently, we were reminded in a sermon that
the question should not be ~
"Why do bad things happen?"
But, rather ~ "Why does anything good happen?"

True, isn't it?  We have our very breath because 
the Great God of Heaven gives it to us!!

With Love,
Camille

**The last four images in this post courtesy of Calvin ~
Thank you my love!  XO

Challenge 1 - Winner & Top 3

So we had lots of wonderful entries to our first challenge of 2013.  Don't forget challenge 2 still has a week to go and can be found here.

Without further ado, the winner chosen by random.org was #14 - Kerry Louise.  Congratulations, Kerry Louise, email me on cardsformen@donnasden.co.uk with your choice of either, Brights, Subtles or Regals and I'll pass your details on to the sponsor.

Our top 3 in no particular order are:

#17 - Jo

#19 - Jane's Journal

#33 - Trollkatta

Congratulations to you all, grab the top 3 badge from our sidebar and add it to your own.

"ar" Art Gallery

To learn the "ar" sound in phonics, the kids helped generate a list of "ar" words, chose one from the list, and then drew a picture of it to place on our "ar" art gallery wall.  I love what they came up with--especially the drawings of Jar Jar Binks, garbage, and Barbie!  This was an easy and fun activity that can now also be used for the "read & write the room" station!

Seven Weeks ~ An Update

Just over seven weeks ago, Austin's pacemaker was inserted.

At the ten day mark, we were at Children's for a check up.

It was determined at that appointment that Austin 
would be re-evaluated after two months ~

That will be mid February.

More information should be revealed at that time.
However, we are observing weekly improvements in our son.

Prior to the pacemaker being placed,
Austin was having trouble climbing stairs 
and walking around the block.
Since his surgery, there has been a slow, 
but steady, increase in his energy levels.

He was even able to walk the entire seawall 
at Stanley Park a few weeks ago!
We were able to complete the 5.5 mile (8.8 km)
walk in about 1 3/4 hours ~
Austin even said that he could have kept going!

Please join with me in praising the LORD for His Goodness!!
He has done great things ~ we are thankful.

~ L to R: Emma, Austin, Fraser, and Calvin ~

We were at the pacemaker clinic in Vancouver yesterday

for our seven week post-op check-up.
All seems to be stable and the numbers are the same
as they were at our last visit to Children's.

We are so thankful!

Crohn's, however, has been unhappy for awhile now.

We are tweaking and testing and pursuing different things.
We see specialists at Children's for both DCM and Crohn's.

What a blessing it is to know that God is in control,

and that He is Faithful to give wisdom as we require it.

Our gracious God has always given insight so that we have
known the next step to take.

Sometimes it takes awhile to figure out,

but, the answers come and the path is made clear.

By His grace, it is a journey that He is leading us on.

It is His prescription for us.  How precious to rest in that!!

Through it all, Austin continues to have great grace.
And, the LORD gives him patience in this affliction.

We are so thankful that he has been blessed in this way.

God is Good.  Always.

If you want to read the entire story of Austin's journey
over the last year or so, please click here to begin. 

Thank you all, once again, for your kindness,
love, support, and prayers over these last many months.
God is Faithful.  He truly does all things well.
And, we are blessed.

With Love,
Camille

Doubles, Quints, Graphing, Groundhogs, and a GIVEAWAY!

Last week we spent our station time reviewing and practicing our doubles addition facts with "Daring Doubles" and the double superheroes!

The kids used ten frames to match up the addition fact with the visual representation, played "Double Dare", Doubles Tic-Tac-Toe, read Double Rhyme Time--a superhero story to help remember the doubles facts, and they played Superhero Shake Up (another egg carton game)!

Richard our class bird even played Double Dare!  He totally knows his doubles.

Of course, we also had to learn the "Doubles Rap"!  

Next week is going to be a busy one for my class!  It is my favorite phonics week EVER:  /qu/!  

The "QUINTS" have already been dropped off by the stork--I can't wait for the kids to meet them.  

We will have a baby shower for them on Friday! FUN! I will take lots of pictures!  

Next week in math, I am also HOPING to start our "Grab & Graph" bags!  They will be a station activity that the kids can rotate through.  I have 12 different bags set out.  The kids will choose a bag, "grab" items out of each, sort them into categories, then graph!

They will have a "Grab & Graph" recording page and check off sheet to help them keep track of the graphs they have already created.

AND....if that wasn't enough to keep them busy learning, I also wanted to start learning about Punxsutawney Phil and groundhogs with my newest packet "Punxsutawney Phil & Friends"--so I am going to work it in wherever I possibly can!  Because I LOVE Groundhog Day!  

And...clearly, I have an addiction to Melonheadz Illustrations clip art!  Ha!  

It's almost February--one of my favorite months of the year, so...

I will be giving away all of the units above to whoever is 2nd, 14th, and 28th to comment!  

{Please remember to leave your email address in your comment!} 

Challenge 2 - Transport

It was good to see all the entries for our last challenge.  Please check back later to see if you are a winner.

The challenge this time is 'Transport' so let's see all your ideas.  We're sponsored by Meljen's Designs and the prize is 4 digi images.

Meljen's Designs (http://meljensdesigns.com) is a digital stamp company owned and illustrated by Melissa Jenkins. She illustrates whimsical, fun digital images inspired by her kids and family. The Meljen's Designs store officially launched on April 1 and it is steadily growing. The new store offers instant downloads, organized categories, and a search feature. We have new releases along with a new challenge every Thursday, freebies every Mondays and a monthly Guest Designer at the Meljen's Designs Blog (http://meljensdesignsdt.blogspot.com/). Please visit the store to find more of Melissa's wonderful images!

The design team were lucky enough to be given some images to use, so let's see what they came up with:

Shirley

CAZ

ALAN

VIV

Sandra

Lisa

Patricia

  

Michelle

Erin

Donna

So there you have it.  Now all you need are the rules:

1. Your card must be new for this challenge and follow the themeset.
2. Your card must be for a Man or a Boy.
3. Your blog post must mention Cards for Men and contain a link back to the challenge.

The challenge will run from now until midnight on 3 February 2013.  Leave a link to your post (not just your blog) in the link list below.  If the linky is not there for some reason, leave a comment and I'll enter you in before the draw.  Good Luck.

Keep Blogging Burnout at Bay

Ever wonder how *they* do it all? 

How *they* manage their schedule

in such a way that everything gets done? 

A little secret. 

 *They* don't. Something has to give. 

Somewhere.  Sometime.  It's inevitable. 

 We all make choices. 

Often, one thing gives way to another.
That's not necessarily a bad thing.
But, it is something to be reckoned with.

 Do I read to my child or blog? 

Do I make dinner or order something in? 

Do I work and then play? 
Do I go for a run or lay down for a rest?

 There is a time to play, a time to blog, 
a time to run (or walk), a time to rest,

and perhaps, even a time to order dinner in. 

Yes, it's true! 

 But, we ought to seek the LORD

as to what He would have us to do. 

We make our plans, but He orders our steps. 

 We seek to live our lives surrendered to Him. 
By His grace.  In His strength.  For His glory.

 With nearly three and a half years of blogging 

and over 500 posts behind me (dear me!) ~ 

I have a few suggestions on how to manage this blogging life.  

However, I have not arrived, and I am still tweaking
and revising my own list of *do's* and *don'ts* ~
I suppose it's the way it is and, the way it will always be.

Ready for some suggestions to 
keep blogging burnout at bay?

Here they are...in no particular order.  :) 

Set aside a specific time to blog and stick to it! 
(Just so you know, I am not perfect in this area...I'm a work in progress). 

Do not allow yourself to feel obligated to blog.
(This one I am much better at...in case you hadn't noticed...LOL)!  

Perhaps time off is in order.  
Give yourself that time and let your 

online friends know that you will be away from the screen for awhile.  

Or, just go *off grid* and *reconnect* when you are back!  
In my experience, the blog does not fall apart in my absence,
and time away helps to redefine the goals I have
for blogging in the first place.
I have found this practice to be very beneficial!

The challenge with an online life is that it's *live* 24/7.  

And, often we can feel its pull.  

Resisting that pull is key to remaining in control of it.  

In the early days I posted frequently, 

and I visited other blogs frequently as well.  

It was a learning curve.  

Sometimes the school of hard knocks is necessary.  

It's the way it often is.  

Now, I visit others when I can. 

I blog when I can.  I leave the rest.  

True friends will understand.  They really will.  

And, isn't that what we all want?  

True friends who understand?  

Yes, I think so.  

If we expect understanding, we must also give it.  

Sometimes we need space.  Our friends will too.  

What a blessing it is that we can pick up 

where we left off and resume a true friendship at any time. 

Oh, the joy of it!  

Grace extended and received is a beautiful thing. 

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for extending it to me. 

May the LORD help us all to find the balance in all things ~
yes, even in blogging...for HIS glory alone.

Would you like to share your ideas on this topic with all of us?
It would be lovely to read your thoughts on how
to keep blogging in its proper place ~
Please feel free to share in the comments of this post.  

Blessings to you all!  

With Love,
Camille

**Photo in this post courtesy of Calvin ~
Thank you my love!  XO

Mittens or Gloves {A Graphing Lesson}

So, until today, it has been about 70 degrees outside.  Gotta love the south.  Well, even though we've had no reason to pull out our mittens or gloves this winter, I felt the need to make a wintery graph anyway!  {We can pretend!}  I used the mitten and glove cut outs from Marvelous Mittens by my sweet and talented friend, Cara Carroll.  The kids started by writing their name in the circle of which they preferred to wear to keep their hands warm--mittens or gloves.

They could already tell which circle had more names, but we had to carefully count together to figure out how many names were in each circle.  I challenged the kids to brainstorm another way to show our information--to make it more organized.  The kids suggested a tally chart, so that is where we started.  We no longer knew who exactly wanted to wear mittens or gloves (by name), but we could tell very easily from the tally chart how many people liked mittens and how many liked gloves.

After the tally chart, I handed out the pictograph pieces.  The kids decorated them, and we glued them to our pictograph chart--where we continued to make observations about our data.  We talked about how we could count the amount of mittens in the easiest way possible.  Our class decided to group them into 2's, since we have recently been practicing counting by 2's.  Someone saw that 10 more kids liked wearing mittens better than gloves--by counting up from the number 5.  {Yay for mathematical thinkers!}  The conclusion was that most kids in our class like to wear mittens when it is cold outside.  Now we are just awaiting a cold day...

A-mazing Oatmeal Options!

How is your oatmeal repertoire?

Do you even eat oatmeal in your home?

Does it ever get boring to have plain old oatmeal every day?
No, really?  It does?  Yup, me too.
Get ready...because...

This, my oatmeal-weary friends, is the post for you!

Let me share with you some of my new finds ~

A-mazing Oatmeal Options!!

And, yes...they really are that good!!  :)  

 First up ~ Basic Chocolate Oatmeal originally posted by Katie

who writes the "Chocolate Covered Katie" blog.

Okay, is it even right to make your oatmeal into dessert?

Let's not even open up a debate on that one...agreed?  
Oh, and if you don't like chocolate, you won't like this.  :)

Here's what I did to make it mine.

This will make enough for about four ~
depending on hunger levels.  

5 cups Liquid ~ I used half water and half milk ~ 
(or, all of one or the other)

2 cups Old Fashioned Rolled Oats ~
(You could substitute Quick Cooking oats...
just reduce cooking time accordingly)

3/4 tsp Sea Salt

Put these three ingredients into a medium sized,

heavy-bottomed pot.

Bring to a boil over medium-high heat while stirring.

Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer partially covered

for about 8 to 10 minutes, until it gets creamy.

Stir in the following, and mix well ~

3 Tbsp Dutch Processed Cocoa Powder

1/3 cup Sugar ~ I use dehydrated cane juice

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Cover with lid and let sit off the heat 

for about 5 minutes prior to serving.
Stir in more of your choice of liquid, if necessary.

Serve with a few chocolate chips sprinkled on top (yes, really!).

And, some chopped nuts ~ I like pecans.

Drizzle with milk or cream.

Dig in ~ I dare you!!  ;-)

 Next up ~ Apple Cinnamon Overnight Oatmeal originally

posted on the "Real Mom Kitchen" blog.

A little less dessert-ish, but, completely yummy-ish ~

This recipe fits the bill for a great crock pot breakfast that

can be prepared the night before.

Who does not like to have the morning's work done ahead of time?

And, what could be better than waking up to a cinnamon-y,

apple-ish-ously smelling home in the morning?

Nothing.  That's what!

This recipe will serve six to eight hungry adults.
If you like creamy rice pudding, you will like this.
Yum.  Yum!

One more thing...I found it necessary to fill my

large crock pot half full with water and then I used a 2.5 Litre (2.5 Quart)

casserole dish to hold the recipe ingredients.

I placed this dish into the water and then put the crock pot

lid on the whole thing.

The first time I made this recipe it burned...

perhaps I just have a weird crock pot...

could very well be!

Whatever the reason, it was not pleasant.
Only half the oatmeal was salvageable.

However, the second time I made this, 
I did the insert thing and it worked beautifully!

No burned stuff to scrape off.

And, every last bit of this yummy oatmeal 

was ready to gobble down.

Yippee!! 

3 Gala apples cored and chopped ~ skin on

3 cups Milk

2 cups Water

1 cup Apple Juice ~ I like organic, fresh-pressed

2 cups **Steel Cut Oats ~ uncooked
**(Don't use regular oatmeal in this recipe...
it will become too mushy!)

1/4 cup Maple Syrup 

2 Tbsp Butter ~ cut into little pieces

1/2 tsp Sea Salt

1 tsp Vanilla Extract

1/4 cup Brown Sugar

2 tsp Cinnamon ~ ground

Butter your casserole dish.

Mix all ingredients together and carefully pour 

into the casserole dish.

It will come nearly to the top.

Stir well.

Place into your crock pot. Put the lid on.

Turn the heat to low and set on the counter

to cook while you sleep.

This will take about 7 to 8 hours.

Mine burned after about 5 hours on my first try,

when I cooked it directly in the crock pot.

No fun!  I woke up at about 4:30 am to the smell of burnt sugar.

Take my advice, and use the casserole set-up

and there will be no issues.

It is so worth it!!

In the morning, remove your casserole dish
from the crock pot and stir the oatmeal prior to dishing it out.
Serve with chopped pecans, raisins,

a little more brown sugar and milk or cream.

Enjoy!!  And...do let me know what you think!  :)

Many Blessings,

Camille

Shoe Shopping and a Setting Scavenger Hunt

We went "shoe shopping" this week, and had a blast learning all about digraph /sh/ with shoes!  At word work, the kids had to sort shoes:

Another popular activity was "Shoelace Spelling"--spelling /sh/ words with shoelaces (or, in our case, yarn--because I didn't have shoelaces.)

They had to read words with /sh/ to earn "shoe dollars" to spend at  the class Shoe Shop.  The picture below shows one cute and "fashiony" example of a purple high-heel purchase {read the describing words--I LOVE it!}  On another note, I did not help her with spelling the word fashion(y)--I am actually very impressed.  

I also added a class journal to our writing area that will remain there the rest of the school year.  My little friends get pretty excited about new shoes, so they now have a journal to draw and write about their new shoes:

We were also learning to identify the setting in stories this week.  At buddy reading, the kids went on a "Setting Scavenger Hunt" through our class library, looking for books that took place in the settings listed on cards.  

This guy did a great job with his Setting Scavenger Hunt:

We also spent a lot of time brainstorming books with famous settings.  They came up with really great examples:  Zuckerman's Farm (Charlotte's Web), The Town of ChewandSwallow (Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs), the Berenstain Bear's tree house (The Berenstain Bear's books), the Chocolate Factory (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), Hogwart's (Harry Potter series), Skippyjonjones' closet (Skippyjonjones books), The Mountain View Inn (The Mouse and the Motorcycle), the North Pole/Polar Express (The Polar Express).  

After brainstorming the famous book settings, the kids designed travel brochures for a famous book setting.  Although this was challenging, I was so pleased with their creativity and critical thinking.  They really worked hard on these!

We set up a travel brochure area in our room to remind us that books can take us places!

Click the picture below to check out the Setting Scavenger Hunt on TpT:

Click the picture below to check out "Shoe Shop" on TpT: