Mama Manuscripts

I'm Sorry, Blogger

2010-08-13T13:57:00.001-07:00

I tried to love you...

I didn't like being split in half.

I've moved back home.

http://mamamanuscriptsplace.wordpress.com/

I'm really sorry, Blogger...(and sorry Dad, click the above link and then add that site to your favorites (like I showed you how to do)).

Houston, We Have Vegetables

2010-07-29T14:03:00.000-07:00

Soon to be green bell pepper

Soon to be Tiny Tim tomatoes

Just about a zucchini

Bush beans next week

Nice, as our spinach has now gone to seed, earwigs ate our head lettuce, and we're just about done the leave lettuce.

Dealing with too Much Stuff

2010-07-26T13:33:00.000-07:00

quite literally.

When I first had children, my goal was to raise them in the most natural way possible. I wanted them to have nice quality toys (handmade, wood toys, etc). I didn't want to get into the whole world of plastic JUNK but over the years we have. We've been to numerous yard sales where the people hand over a box of junk and say "here, take it all for free." Then when were away at the cottage we (yes, WE) purchased Morgaine a large 5 dollar bag of "stuff" as she didn't have much to do and I was huge and very much pregnant. Well, she didn't want to get rid of anything and now I'm overcome with Barbies (gasp), building toys and just stuff in general. They have so much stuff that they don't care about the things they own. They are SPOILED!

For about the last month I've been taking the toys they leave out and putting them in a laundry basket in my room. The plan was that eventually they'd get down to a decent amount of toys that they'd be able to take care of and understand that more isn't always better at which point we could go through the stuff and decide to donate some of it to others with less than we have.

After about a week I'd collected a fair amount

The sad thing is that after a month, I've collected over a laundry basket full of stuff and have started to donate things without their knowledge. They still have more than they know what to do with. I could likely toss the whole basketful without a word from them. I am totally appalled that it has come to this. We don't have any of the nice quality toys that I dreamed of. We've succumb to brand names and cheap toys and as a result the children don't care and actually just want MORE! I'll continue to purge over the months (I have a friend doing a 500 pound purge this year and I'm kicking myself for not joining as I'm sure that we could have reached that goal) and let you know how it goes.

Have any of you managed to go from way too much back to basics? Let me hear your stories!

Stitching, Sketching and Scrapping Sunday-On Hiatus

2010-07-25T06:11:00.000-07:00

We'll be back and better than ever come September. Let's just enjoy the summer!

Friday's Fave Five-July 23rd

2010-07-23T17:01:00.000-07:00

I'm loving Friday's Fave Five because I get to share my favorites from the week and that allows me to slow down and appreciate the good moments even when things are hectic or seem to be going all wrong. So take a moment for yourself, and reflect on the good times you've had this week and the things you've enjoyed. Then please join me at Living to Tell the Story and share!

1. Rain. It has been so hot and humid here leading to a clingy baby and a sticky (yes, ewwww) Mama. The rain that we had yesterday brought much relief.

2. Deciding to spend the afternoon together as a family. My facial/head pain has been pretty bad since I am no longer pregnant and I've been a little short with the family so I was glad to have enough relief to be able to go out with the family and enjoy.

3. Berry-picking. Well the berry picking was challenging but the raspberries were lovely and we managed to get quite a few in the short time we were out. The kids did not see the fun in being up to their knees (or necks) in brambles and the black flies were terrible. Note to self: unless we are going to be sitting in a field of blueberries were the kids can just sit and pick, let Mike do the gathering.

4. Finding a beach, making the berry picking excursion worth it for the children.

5. Feet in water....

....and on sand.

Nothing is more grounding to me than the ocean and I've been reflecting on the fact that since moving back east I don't take the time to just be. I usually only cast the waves a passing glance as I hurry past and it was nice to take the time today to just slow down and enjoy.

Travel Kits-A Review

2010-07-22T00:00:00.000-07:00

Product: Travel Kits: A Simple Way to Bless Others by Donna Rus
Company: The Old Schoolhouse
Price: 12.95$US

We spend time in our car. We spend A LOT of time in the car. As spontaneous people, we often decide out of the blue to pack a bag, hop in the car and GO. Instead of taking one family vacation a year we easily take five or six overnight, unplanned weekend trips with our 3 children. We have had to come up with ways to keep the children occupied on these trips because, well, half of the trip is usually spent getting wherever we are going, so the getting there has to be fun as well! Several years ago I started keeping a packed variety bag of books, treats, and small toys in my closet so that when we wanted to hop in the car we'd have something prepared for the kids that would keep them busy. Well, apparently, I'm not the only one who does this and Donna Rus has written an e-book Travel Kits: A Simple Way to Bless Others to help others learn how to make traveling kits as well.

This e-book from The Old Schoolhouse explains what a travel kit is, who can use it (just about anyone), and makes lots of suggestions for what kinds of things make good travel ideas. In addition, she talks about way to organize the gifts, which she usually wraps, if you are making a travel kit for more than one child. The book is jam packed with pictures of different, creative travel kits the author has made.

While I did like some of her suggestions, I would not be willing to pay 12.95$US for this product. I went to our local dollar store, as suggested in the book, to purchase some items to make a travel kit of our own and I honestly could not imagine buying them more stuff. Many of the items suggested for the travel kits are things that I would not be willing to buy my children so they were not particularly useful. Many of the things that I use in my travel kits are old toys that my children have not seen in a while or books we haven't read and they are happy with those. I don't feel the need to contribute to consumerism by buying them more things that they don't need. If I had the money to buy quality items that would be useful after the trip I might have been more willing to buy new things, but with our numerous mini vacations a year, that is not the case. Another thing that I found was that most of her example travel kits were HUGE. With three big car seats in the back of our small car there would never be room for such large travel kits (though, they do give a lot of suggestions for smaller items as well. While I definitely think that this book could be useful for people that have never packed travel bags for their children, I think that a lot of the information is common sense. As I have been packing fun bags for my children for years, I did not find a lot of the information new to me and therefor would not be interested in purchasing the book myself at 12.95$US.

To find out more about Travel Kits: A Simple Way to Bless Others please check out The Old Schoolhouse Store here. To find out what other people thought of this product please visit The Homeschool Crew website.

**Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

The Old School House Monthly Modules

2010-07-19T07:16:00.001-07:00

Product: Travel the World-June 2010 Old Schoolhouse Planner Module
Company: The Old Schoolhouse
Price: 7.95$US

Last year I was given the opportunity to review the 2009-2010 The Old Schoolhouse Planner (you can read the review here). I was quite impressed with the product and mentioned that in addition to the planner The Old Schoolhouse also sold monthly modules to accompany the planner but that I hadn't seen them myself. I am pleased to say that this year the first product up for review as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew was the June 2010 Monthly Module-Travel the World.

My son has been very interested in learning world geography but, I haven't taken a lot of time beyond answering his questions to explore the topic. Despite repeatedly talking to him about the different continents, the information just wasn't sinking in for him. I'd get asked the same questions on a daily basis, most often when out and about in the car where we do not have a world map handy (maybe we should as I spend a fair amount of time sitting in the car nursing our youngest one). Upon arriving home, we'd move on to something else and I'd never pull out the map to clarify my answers. Thankfully, this review has allowed me to sit down with my son and study the topic further.

The TOS monthly modules allow you to sit down and learn with your children without having to do the research and find the material yourself. The June Module entitled Travel the World includes 56 pages of material introducing your child to world geography from a Christian perspective. Included are lapbook pages, colouring sheets, copy work and games (crosswords, word searches, etc). As your child reads about the continents and other geographical terms, they can click on various links in the PDF to allow them to visit websites that expand on the information and allow your child to test their knowledge through quizzes and other interactive games.

With a variety of materials for multiple age ranges this unit study not only provides an introduction to young children but can be easily used as a review with your older children who should find the e-book easy enough to use on their own. For 7.95$us, this book provides a wealth of information that I would happily pay for. With a very young child at home I am finding that I have less time to actually look for information and create unit studies myself so this book was very welcomed. The Old Schoolhouse publishes a new e-book planner module each month and I will be checking back to see what new topics are being covered. Some previous topics, still available for purchase, include the presidents of the United States, the universe, staying safe, world wonders and many more. These modules are jam packed and cover a variety of age ranges and I would happily purchase them again especially considering the number of links included to well presented informative websites, which I currently don't have the time to hunt down myself. Well worth the cost!

For more information on this product and to purchase it click here. For more reviews of this product be sure to check out the TOS Homeschool Crew website here.

**Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Stitching, Sketching and Scrapping Sunday-July 18th

2010-07-18T04:30:00.000-07:00

brought to you this week by my lovely husband and the traditional craft of loom knitting!

We are still in the hat business here and Mike has knit up several on the round knitting loom we purchased for the kids. He has enjoyed it a good deal and is enjoying trying out different combination of stitches to get different results.

Here are just a couple of his creations.

The red, ribbed, real wool hat:

Feltied pink hat:

Reversible baby yarn hat:

This may be the last week for Stitching, Sketching, Scrapping Sunday until the fall. I'm thinking that most people are out enjoying the summer and not working on too many projects. If you have been crafting this week be sure to let us know by signing the Mr. Linky below.

Friday's Fave Five- July 16th

2010-07-16T16:03:00.000-07:00

I hope that your all had a lovely week. What were your favorite moments, things, places this week? Please join me at Living to Tell the Story and share!

1. That time of year again! Last year I was known (hopefully affectionately) as "that crazy lady from Quebec eating maggoty cherries." Well, the season is staring again! I'm shocked that (most) people here don't eat what we've been freely given. I have no problems doing so.

2. Having things start moving on the TOS Homeschool Crew again. Things have been slow on my blog as I haven't had much motivation to post. Hopefully, with reviewing starting up (two reviews to be posted next week), I'll get back into the swing of things!

3. Baby exploring the world. I guess I don't have to tell you I LOVE the baby stage. If I could figure out 4 year olds I would have a dozen children!

4. Guacamole: Needs no further explanation!

5. Sitting outside with my big kids! I love summertime for homeschooling. We somehow seem to get a lot more accomplished, and while sitting out under our big oak trees, at that.

Stitching, Sketching, Scrapping Sundays-July 11th

2010-07-11T04:10:00.000-07:00

Hello there,

It's time to share what you've been up to this week. If you are anything like me, and have had heat and humidity like we've had, perhaps you haven't done much. Or perhaps, you took the time to camp out by your air conditioner and work on some projects.

I have difficulties knitting or crocheting in the heat (my fingers tend to feel funky as the wool runs through them and I tend to drop my needles/hook). I've had to put down those projects for the week and pick up some pencil crayons instead. I've been working on Kaplan Medical's Anatomy colouring book this week while working my way through Marieb's Human Anatomy and Physiology but that's not very crafty or artsy so I won't bother sharing. I'll instead share a picture I'm working on.

It has been YEARS since I've tried to draw so this is actually a kit from Walmart, cheating probably, but still fun. It's taking me FOREVER to get anywhere on it so it's still work. I'm hoping to eventually get back into really drawing and maybe painting but while working through my creative block this will have to do!

What have you been up to? Sign Mr. Linky and let us know!

Friday Fave Five-July 9th

2010-07-09T11:20:00.000-07:00

I'm back! We've had a somewhat stressful week and a bit. Tension were running a tad high and we needed to just take some time away and regroup but I am happy to be back and posting, and just in time for Friday Faves at that! What were your favorite moments, things, places this week. Please join me at Living to Tell the Story and share!

This is like to be very baby focused this week!

1. Skin to skin in the shower. I hadn't tried to shower with Ruadhán until about a week ago. It is WONDERFUL! He is full of smiles and even though he isn't newborn holding him right next to me feels so nice. It has also been very welcomed the last day or two because it is HOT here!

2. Nursing in public and people's reactions. Which have surprisingly been very positive. People seem much more opposed to my using a carrier to take babe out and about and I was expecting to get negative comments about nursing.

3. Ruahdán reaction to our facial expressions. He is getting expressive now and loves to copy what we are doing. Much fun!

4.Finally choosing a colour for our house that covers well (and the fact that Home Depot let us return 13 cans of red paint we purchased over a year ago). The house is going to look soooooooo good! (will post pictures when we (okay Mike) has the painting finished...I assume it will take a week or two)

5. Enjoying the summer in the sprinkler! I don't love the heat but a run through the sprinkler is always fun!

What is WRONG with my Garden Wednesday

2010-07-07T05:48:00.000-07:00

Help! There's something wrong with my garden. One of our 4 x 4 square foot above ground containers seems to have come down with something and it is even jumping the container and heading towards my spinach in the next box over! It appears to have started in the swiss chard with just a few leaves looking dried

and then spread from there.....

to my bean bush, and like I said, seems to have jumped the container to the first couple leaves of spinach nearby.

I'm not a gardener so I'm looking for answers from those of you that know more than I do. The problem started in the container that has sweet corn and I know that they are known for having diseases so I am wondering if that might be the problem. Also, in case it'll help diagnose the problem, it's been pretty wet here.

I'd love some advice. I'm going to go out there and take off all the affected leaves and hope that helps.

Help me....

SAVE THE CHARD! SAVE THE CHARD! SAVE THE CHARD!

No Meme This Week

2010-07-04T06:18:00.000-07:00

I haven't picked up a crochet hook or knitting needle all week and with Independance Day in the US and people away for the Canadian long weekend I figure I wouldn't get many links anyways. If you do stop in with something to share feel free to add it to last week's Mr. Linky. It is still open.

Enjoy your weekend, Everyone!

Stitching, Sketching, Scrapping Sunday

2010-06-27T04:12:00.000-07:00

Good morning!

I hope that you had a wonderful week and had some time to get some craft work done. Did you finish something up or start something new? Maybe you and your children worked on something together this week (as this this my homeschooling/parenting blog) those projets might be interesting, too.

This week, as I thought it would be, was still all about hats. I actually didn't get as many done as I had hoped I would because I had a very much in arms baby this week. My needle for knitting in the round also broke and I could not find one as small as the store. I'm not looking forward to knitting the whole hat on double point needles. I always only use them just as much as necessary.

Here's a couple pictures of this weeks creations (not finished as my tapestry needles is jammed into a drawer I cannot currently get open).

Newborn beanie. I hope to find a rainbow ribbon to thread through and tie.

Top of beanie.

Ruadhán in a bit bigger of a hat and loving it!

I also made a bear hat but didn't take a picture as the ears are not attached yet. It looks really tiny so I think it would only work for a preemie baby. Then again my chidren were all born with massive heads so maybe I am not a good judge, so I am asking you, what circumference would you make hats for the newest newborns (say that you want to fit for the first couple weeks)? Let me know in the comments section and please link up with your projects from the week!

Friday Faves-June 25th

2010-06-25T16:24:00.001-07:00

It's that time again! What were your favorite moments, things, places this week. Please join me at Living to Tell the Story and share!

1. Having my beautiful son cook me breakfast almost all my himself. Liam's Delisio Restaurant has been keeping me busy helping him choose recipes and overseeing the kitchen but I wouldn't change it for the world. He is happiest when he is in the kitchen and that makes me happy, too!

2. Having my daughter feel ill on Wednesday morning. Yes, this is a strange fave to have, but it really gave us all time to relax and spend time together. I think that we'll need to schedule a pyjama day at least once a month.

3. Having above said illness be short lived and hopefully only hitting the wee girl. Knock on wood. I do NOT handle the "ickies" well (though, I think I am getting much better) and really hope that this is the end of this round of illness.

4. Getting to know the neighbours more and more. I'm quite painfully shy and in my year and a half here I've hardly met any. I resolved myself to get out there in the world and I think it has given me more of an approachable aura because withuot effore I've met the lady from across the street AND another Mama to two children that lives just down the road.

5. Having our first salad of greens from our garden for supper tonight. YUMMY!

What's Going on in my Garden Wednesday

2010-06-23T10:56:00.000-07:00

Well, since I no longer have a baby belly to update about weekly, I've decided to update on my other little project, the square foot garden. I've been quite impressed with it's growth. I think the mix of warm days and on and off showers has done wonders for it.

The only think we planted from seeds were bean bush and they have popped their heads above ground in the past couple of days. The cucumbers are doing well and so is the leaf lettuce (already being enjoyed in our sandwiches). I wish the chard was doing more but it is still early in the season. I'm anxious to eat it and a sure I will be sick of it come fall!

Strawberries are indeed trying to take over the beats and new year we will definitely give them their own container! My Cauliflower looks really good but we had no success with it last year so I'm up for any advice on how to keep the heads from going to flowers so easily. There's a row of tomatoes along the top as well and they are the smallest I have but I have hope!

These are my peppers and Tiny Tim tomato plants. The pepper plants have buds not and the Tiny Tim's are starting to flower so there will little fruits there soon enough!

My Scotia tomatoes and some Romaine lettuce doing will. There is a lone pepper plant looking a little sad and I think cucumbers and carrots as well.

My yummy and successful spinach! We've been eating up the baby leaves and have some maturing quite nicely as well. There's also three pepper plant being taken over by carrot tops and some leeks that I am no so sure about. I'm hoping to actually get some heads of iceburg lettice this year but didn't have success with them last year.

My herbs are doing well but I won't post pictures as they won't change much from week to week with us using them.

I hope you all have beautiful gardens as well!

Introducing my TOS Homeschool Crew Mini-Crew

2010-06-22T16:11:00.000-07:00

I was honoured to be selected this spring to come back for a second term on the TOS Homeschool Crew. As a proud first mate (just a fancy term for someone that is returning for a second or third consecutive voyage) we've been assigned several other new crew members in order to make their early days on the voyage as calm as possible. I've had a great time getting to know my mini crew through e-mails and their blogs and I am looking forward to introducing them to you all.

I give you, The Virtuous Vessels: Carrying you Towards Quality Homeschooling Products!

First up we have Holli-Marie at Taylor's Mark Orthodox Academy. I've enjoyed visiting her blog and reading about the different activities her 4 lovely children are involved in. She certainly keeps herself busy!

Next is Lisa over at Homeschool Circus (don't you love that name?). She is also the Mama of 4 children. I've enjoyed her blog and am hoping to implement the chore chart and allowance guidelines she uses in her house with my own children. Thank you!

Then we have Sweetie over at Life in the Tribe. This Mama of 7 seems to always have time to write on her blog! I'm enjoying her writing style and her photos.

Finally, we have Tea and Tomes (two of my favorite things!). This Mama of of 4 shares the ABCs of parenting in her About Teas and Tomes section of her blog and I have to agree with her, the ABCs are never boring! Go check them out for yourself!

I look forward to getting to know these wonderful women more and more over the year and I hope that you will visit their blogs from time to time to read up on the products that we will have the priveledge of reviewing for you this year.

Bonne Voyage, my friends, we are ready to set sail!

Finding Uses for Unused Things-Wax Crayons

2010-06-22T09:36:00.001-07:00

This looks familiar, doesn't it?

If you have young kids at home then you most likely have broken up crayons. Not only are they broken up but they are never used. They are just sitting on the shelf taking up space. In an effort to organize and simplify my life, I decided that the crayons MUST go. Not wanting to just toss them I did the whole, not so creative idea, of melting them in a mini muffin tin. Morgaine stayed occupied for the better part of an hour peeling the crayons and loved the final results.

She loved them so much that she's using them for the first time in over a year, and actually putting them away when she is done with them. No more stepping on stray crayons trying to make a get away!

Stitching, Sketching, Scrapping Sunday - June 20

2010-06-19T07:36:00.000-07:00

First of all, HAPPY FATHER'S DAY TO ALL THE DADS OUT THERE!

Secondly, thank you all so much for making the second week of my meme successful. 5 links sure beats the single, solitary post from me the first week! I've enjoyed all your posts! Some creative girls out there!

This week has been all about HATS! I made hats for my Ruadhán when he was tucked nice and cozy on the inside but he, of course, decided to be born with the most massive head (90%) so all the hats fit for about a week before helping to grow Moragaine's doll hat collection!

Her dolls appreciate all my effort I'm sure!

However, I had a friend request some hats for her new photography business and I couldn't resist. Well, actually, I offered my help. I've only gotten one knit up so far. She only sent the patterns to me yesterday and there are a few I'm itching to try, but first I had to knit up a blueberry.

Of course, we have to model it for you. I know that you all like a good baby picture from time to time.

Too bad I'm supposed to be making newborn hats! I'm anxious for the children to head to be tonight because I hope to get a smaller, bluer blue berry knit up this evening. I hope to have several more hats to share next week.

What crafty things have you been up to lately? Let us know by checking in below!

Friday Faves- June 18th

2010-06-18T17:02:00.000-07:00

It's time to share your top 5's from the past week! Head on over to Living to Tell the Story and let us know what you especially enjoyed this week.

My favorites include:

1. Lots of smiles from my little guy. This is the first week that Ruadhán has been really expressive and smiling in reaction to the world around him. Sure, he'd had the occasional smile before but when you'd try to make him smile again he'd totally refuse!

2. Taking the family out for lunch to celebrate Liam's promotion to Grade 2 (and Grade 3 in math, he won't let us forget). We'll continue to school through the summer but it was a nice day and I wanted to mark the end of one year and the start of another so we found a restaurant where we could eat outside and enjoyed the afternoon.

3. The moment when the older two finally fall asleep and the house is quiet. Their behaviour has been trying and I have to say it has been nice to be able to relax in the evening.

4. Getting to know my mini-crew for the TOS Homeschool Crew 2010-2011 voyage. There's some good things coming and I look for to sharing with you all again this year.

5. Tim Horton's English Toffee Cappuccino. I would not have gotten through the week without it.

I'm off to make myself a nice Cap' now....have a great weekend, all!

Square Foot Garden Update

2010-06-15T03:01:00.000-07:00

We've managed to get our gardens planted!

I'm amazed at how much stuff one can cram into a square foot! I had no idea how much we'd be able to cram in those little beds. We probably would have been just fine with four beds but we did fill up all six. I think we were a little ambitious but square foot gardens are supposed to be pretty easy to care for so hopefully we'll be okay!

We've planted:

3 varieties of lettuce (Romaine, iceburg, and red leaf)

lots of spinach (though it isn't looking too healthy....it was HOT the day I planted it)

carrots

tomatoes (Tiny Tim and Scotia varieties)

zucchini

cucumbers

Herbs (sweet basil, spicy globe basil, rosemary, chives, marjoram, sage, feverfew, Italian parsley, frilly parsley, savory, bee balm, etc)

Swiss chard

sweet corn

bean bush

sweet peppers

onions

leeks

strawberries

broccoli

cabbage

All in all, we spent a little under 100 dollars for the plants (and were given a few leftovers from a friend and if we get a good turn out we'll easily make that back (plus we won't have to worry about our food being covered in pesticides). Some of the herbs and the strawberries should grow back again next year so we'll be able to enjoy then for years to come!

I'm a little terrified that certain plants (cucumbers, zukes, and strawberries) as going to take over the garden and I likely should have given them a box of their own. I honestly didn't have a clue what I was doing so I'll be happy with whatever we get. It will be a good learning experience.

If there are any others out there that have planted a square foot garden this year I would love to see them (share your link in the comments section) and hear how they progress over the summer.

I will keep you updated on ours as well!

Stitcking, Sketching, Scraping Sunday-June 13th

2010-06-13T01:56:00.000-07:00

This week was pretty slow in terms of crafting or pretty much anything in my house. Wee baby was going through a major growth spurt (almost 2 pounds in less than a week) and as a result I was one handed for much of the week. I've been meaning to share a Mei Tai carrier that I designed and made for Ruadhán but being one handing I didn't get around to blogging this week either!

As my children tend to be quite attached, carriers are a must. When Morgaine was a baby my favorite carrier was a Mei Tai but it was only borrowed from a friend. I found that I could very easily do everything I needed to do with a that type of carrier. This time around, the only carrier I had was a ring sling and I didn't find that it allowed me as much motion as my Mei Tai. I spent a couple weeks procrastinating because I wasn't sure it I had the skills required to sew one. As crocheting has been my thing the last little while I figured I would give crocheting a Mei Tai a go instead.

I searched and I searched but I could not find a crocheted Mei Tai pattern anywhere (I wonder if there is a reason I don't know about). I think it turned out fairly well but we've only been using it for the past two weeks or so and I haven't washed it yet so I am hoping it will keep it's shape. I purposely used cheap acrylic yarn to prevent shrinking. I kind of winged it with a combination of single and double chains. The main body is double chained as I felt that it would be too stiff all in single chains and along each side there is a single chained border for support. This border is also reinforced with an additional layer of single chains that I sewed into the body and then extended up to become the straps of the carrier. I did the same along the bottom where it ties. Additional features include wide shoulder straps than narrow so that there isn't so much bulk where the carrier ties in front. I also added a black single chained border around the whole carrier to hide where the reinforced sides were sown together. The only problem I can see is that the carrier is perhaps a little stretchy. With extended wear I find myself having to pull the carrier up and retying the straps. I may add a single chain band up the middle of the body of the carrier to see if that helps but it really is a minor thing. If I were to make it again I would likely do the entire carrier with single chains because the stiffness I was trying to avoid is probably a good thing in a a baby carrier.

Ruadhán seems to enjoy the carrier and I know that I can get a lot more done when he is in there so I would have to say that this has been a success!

What have you been working on? Any success (or even failures) to report? Below is your Mr. Linky (remember you must click the image to post your link and view other people's links as well).

Share away!

The Last of my Personal Ramblings...at least for now!

2010-06-08T04:52:00.000-07:00

I started the second part of my post from last week but have decided to let it go. I sounded whiny and pathetic and well, that just isn't appealing. My main point was that I often let other influence me and decide what direction my life is going to take. In doing so I am giving other the power, some cases where it isn't deserved and other cases where the power isn't wanted. This is not fair to me or others. In doing what I think will make others happy, I am robbing myself. I don't get a chance to find out what a wonderful person I can be in my own right.

It's been relatively easy to let others make my choices for me. Making my own decisions means I am taking responsibility for my happiness. If things don't turn out as I hope, I cannot look to others. It is a little terrifying. I have plans for the future now, that are my own. They are plans, though, that will likely be hard on the family. They are plans that will require support of those around me. They might require me to be away from my family for extended periods of time, or at odd hours of night. They are plans that I am not even sure will lead me to where I am hoping to go (with the way things are in Canada at the moment in terms of midwifery care). There isn't an easy path to follow.

I do know, however, that if I don't try my hardest, then I will kick myself for letting my life pass me by without giving this goal of becoming a midwife a good shot. It means pushing myself in directions that I am not particularly comfortable going (AKA speaking in public). It's fine to be calm and quiet (and I think it serves me well in certain cases and I have a host of doula clients that appreciate my presence/support because it is non-obtrusive) but really, the state of patient care in Canada requires that we make a little noise. That we work to further things, that we NOT sit idle.

My first mission, is to talk to my neighbours! Yes, I've let myself become so concerned over what others might think of me that I don't make first contact with anyone. It's a shame as I am sure that there are a wonderful group of people out here in Cape Breton that won't bite me. I plan to look at people and smile more! I've always been able to work really well with people but it's always been up to them to make the first contact. After that I am good to go, but sometimes it's hard to get that first contact initiated so I'm going to try hard on my end as well.

Watch out world, here I come!

2010-06-06T03:08:00.000-07:00

Good Morning,

This will be pretty quick as we are getting ready to head off to church and no one is at all ready.

I've set up my first Mr. Linky (unfortunately, with Wordpress, you don't get the cool Mr. Linky that you normally do on other sites). I'd love for you to share your crafty blog posts/pictures, etc. Ideally, we'll use this Meme to share what were done over the week but for now, to get things going, I'd love if you'd share anything crafty you've posted about and we can get motivated to start new things as we get going! As the official name is something along the lines of Stitching, Sketching, Scraping Sundays I'm looking for your needle work projects, your art/drawing projects, and your scrapbooking projects. You can share pretty much ANYTHING related to those topics.

To use Mr. Linky click the image below and you will be taken to a new window where you will put in your name and link directly to your post. To see other people's links you'll also have to click on the Mr. Linky image.

Okay, this isn't going so quickly......

I started this project while we were down at the cottage waiting for the baby to arrive. When it was clear that we were going to be going out site seeing or hiking because we were just too sick, I stocked up on wool to make a blanket for the baby. Well, my head wasn't into anything complicated so I ended up with a blanket made entirely with single and double chains. No fancy pattern whatsoever.

The thing is, it is quite stiff and not very cuddly so it has morphed into what Morgaine likes to call the "baby carpet". I haven't been working on it much since being home as I figured I had MONTHS to go before Ruadhán would be laying on the floor. Well, to my shock, Mike lay him on the floor on Thursday and the kid LOVED that point of view!

I'd better get crocheting!

Calling All Weekend (or Anytime) Crafters

2010-06-05T13:46:00.000-07:00

Hmm, crafters? Is that a word?

Anyways, I'm calling all of you that like to knit, crochet, sew, embroider, scrapbook, draw, paint, etc, etc, etc to join my new weekly Meme. Starting on tomorrow, and every Sunday thereafter, I am inviting you to share your hobbies with the world. I should get a weekly post up where you can link to your own blog posts about whatever project you are working on (and I am not picky, you are more than welcome to link to a post about a past project instead). I know that I love to see what other people are doing and I don't always have time to search around. I think that seeing what everyone else is up to will serve as inspiration. I hope that some of you will choose to take part in this new weekly feature on my blog (know that it is my first Meme and I don't really have a clue what I am doing so please bare with me!)

I also figured that I could add photos (and a little blurb of whatever you'd like to say) of other people's work in my blog post as well for anyone that might like to share that do not have their own blog. If anyone is interested in that then you can e-mail me at Cookie5765 @ yahoo.com (no spaces!)

Memes are a great way to get your page views up and I've enjoyed sharing in the ones I participate somewhat regularly in. It's fun to see what everyone else is up to.

I look forward to seeing all your crafty projects!!

Friday Fav Five-June 4th

2010-06-04T07:07:00.000-07:00

Here are my favorites from the week. Be sure to visit Living to Tell the Story to share your favorites from the past week.

1. Starting the week up with a phone call from my dear friend, Shannon. We live far away from each other now and it was really nice to catch up a little bit!

2. This video from last night on So You Think You Can Dance. So inspiring!

3. The song from the above video. I find it catchy and I've enjoyed it from the first time I heard it on the radio. Most stuff on the radio these days does not appeal to me so it is always nice when something new comes out that I actually like.

4. Getting my above ground vegetable beds ready for planting. All we need now is soil and seeds!

5. Tortilla chips and Salsa. Yes, I've really enjoyed snacking on the tortilla chips and salsa (that we got on sale this week). Salsa has to be my favorite food EVER. I could just eat it by the spoonful. Looking forward to my tomatoes in the fall when I can make my salsa fresh. YUMMY!

Who am I? (Part 1....with children these things don't get written in one sitting)

2010-06-02T09:11:00.000-07:00

I might ramble on and on in here for the next little while (you know, I'm bored because there are no reviews to do for the whole month on June). Seriously, this is my space and while I've made it public I hope that I can just write on here as I work on making changes and opening up new possibilities. I'd journal but my hands cannot keep up with my head and at least here my fingers have a chance!

~~~~

A couple weeks ago, after attending a seminar as part of the TOS Expo, I started writing a post on being real. The speaker really motivated me to "get real" but at the same time the thought was terrifying. His whole point of view was that we, as (homeschooling) women, expect too much of ourselves and always think that Jane, over there with the perfect house/children/husband, is so much better than us. That we'd be shocked to find out that Jane thinks exactly the same thing of us and it is by being real with each other that friendships can grow. That people aren't going to run away screaming if they knew what we were really like. Nice to know! I vowed to be more authentic and let people in. Terrifying thought.

Even more terrifying, though, was realizing that after many years of being what I figured everyone else wanted me to be I had NO IDEA who I actually was. Mike and I had been talking about passions a few weeks earlier and he said he missed the person he'd started going out with that had passions/wanted to do things. Well, even 10 years ago my passions weren't my own. One lady told me that she thought that I had a lot of compassion and that I would make a wonderful nurse, so I went to nursing school. Once I started school, I got of recognition for being really good at what I did. I could be shown a technique once and then be able to demonstrate it to the rest of the class. Everyone wanted to be in my group because I would take the time to teach them. The teachers praised me and I thought, that's who I am, a nurse. It seemed like I had passion, I dedicated myself to learning above and beyond what was needed because I needed that acknowledgment in class to feel like I was someone. I didn't feel a passion for the work. All the nurses looked totally beat as they started their shifts at the hospital and they didn't get near enough time to actually interact and be with the clients. But I was good at it, so I stuck with it, despite already not having my heart in the work.

After a year and a half of nursing school, a teacher was walking me as I doodled in my notebook sitting at a table in the cafeteria and said, "Oh, a fine arts student. You are very good." Well, I wasn't a fine arts student but thought, well, maybe I should be. I never really wanted to be a nurse, anyways. I'd felt a strong interest in art therapy but thought that was a silly idea and people kind of laughed when I was planning to go into psychology in university. I'd gone into nursing instead because people seemed to think that was a good idea. I was sure to find my passion in art, right? Well, I quit nursing and started fine arts only to find out that I was just a mediocre arts student. There wasn't much praise for my work. The most I got was, "well, you have your own style." (which I took as criticism and not a compliment). When I'd tell people that I was taking fine arts to build a portfolio in order to become an art therapist, I'd get strange looks, like what on earth is "art therapy?" Despite really wanting to be an art therapist, I decided to drop out because I felt like a no one in the art world of college. That same day, a mentor, friend, and woman I really looked up to e-mailed me and told me that I would make a fine art therapist and that she was really proud of me as she'd been an art therapist before she'd decided to teach. I cursed myself for letting my dream go because I'd felt like without praise/acknowledgment I was no one.

For a while I was lost. I had no idea what to do next. No one was telling me I was good at anything so I bummed around the house, watched TV and played video games. It was my, I've reached my 20ies and don't have a clue what I want crisis. Then, having been unusually tired, dizzy and moody, I realized that there was something else going on besides my little crisis. I was PREGNANT. Well, there you go. I'd be a mother by default. Not planned, by certainly not unwanted, I was thrown into motherhood. Well, being pregnant and a new mother I certainly was someone again. People take notice of the pregnant lady. They talk to the pregnant lady. Then when there's a new baby, they talk about the new baby and poof, I was the lady who made gorgeous babies. Well, babies only stay "gorgeous" (in the eyes of others) for a short time and frankly a lot of motherhood/homemaking is without reward. There isn't a lot of acknowledgment. We don't get praise for cleaning poopy bums. No one says anything when the house is spotless (those few times that it is). Mothers don't get praise. In fact, these days, they are more likely to get asked when they are going back to work. There isn't much value put on staying home to raise a family....

(my family calls and I seem to be loosing my train of thought a little, anyways....I'll be back!)

Wordless Wednesday-June 2nd

2010-06-02T06:14:00.000-07:00

As seen driving along a rural Nova Scotia route.....

6 weeks Baby!!

2010-05-30T14:33:00.000-07:00

The many sides of Ruadhán in 30 seconds....

Love you, sweet boy!

Super Star Speech-A Review

2010-05-28T13:44:00.000-07:00

Product: Super Star Speech: Speech Therapy Made Simple
Price: 12.95$US e-book, 18.95$US-22.95$US print version

Morgaine started to speak very early and spoke very clearly with a large vocabulary. Over the past couple years, however, we've begun to have a harder and harder time understanding her. Having received many hours of speech therapy myself as a child, I started to feel that perhaps we'd have to look into that option for Morgaine as well. However, I continued to delay looking for a therapist as I was concerned about the cost aspect and my uncertainty over whether my concerns were founded. At just the right moment, I received Deborah Lott's Super Star Speech to review as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew.

Deborah Lott has spent many years working as a licensed speech pathologist while also homeschooling her children. She realized however, that such speech therapy may not be accessible to everyone for various reasons and graciously decided to develop a program that would be easy for parents to use in their own homes to help improve their children's speech. Super Star Speech begins with an articulation test to use with your children to help pinpoint their exact areas of difficulty. This is followed by activities to teach them how to properly articulate the sounds that they are having difficulty with. These activities are very much like I remember doing as a child so you can be guaranteed that you are giving your child the same type of instruction they would receive if they were seen by a speech therapist. In addition to this, there are many fun activities included in order to make this program enjoyable for your child.

After doing the articulation test with Morgaine I've come to realize that when Morgaine takes the time to speak slowly she can speak clearly. This was very much a relief to me and I was quite surprised to learn that her difficulty comes from having too much on her mind to say all at once. As a result, we did not use this program with Morgaine very much. I, however, was quite impressed with the detail of the program and the quality of the materials. I remember receiving programs guaranteed to improve my speech as a child and groaning about them. Both my child have hung out watching over my shoulder as I've looked at this program and are begging for speech therapy because "it looks like fun."

For 12.95$US the e-book is an exceptional deal. I would not hesitate for a moment to buy it, if only for the assurance that my child's speech is right on track. If some problems are identified then this e-book is such a valuable tool, especially for those that would have trouble paying for traditional speech therapy. In addition to Super Star Speech: Speech Therapy Made Simple, Deborah Lott has also created specific programs for various sound difficulties so be sure to check out her website for more details on these if you know which sounds your child has difficulty with. I think that Deborah Lott has blessed many families who couldn't afford speech therapy with this product and if your child is struggling I encourage you to check out her website to find out more.

**Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Friday Fav 5-May 28th

2010-05-28T13:24:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy week here so it is time to slow down and look back on my favorite moments. Be sure to visit Living to Tell the Story to share your favorites from the past week.

1. Children who enjoy long car rides. We decided to take a spur of the moment trip to PEI for Victoria Day long weekend. The children all behaved really nicely in the car. Liam devoured a couple chapter books. Morgaine was full of imagination. Ruadhán slept, as always.
2. Enjoying a game of mini-golf at a beautiful PEI golf course. As a child I couldn't stand mini putt but I've found that bringing my own children is MUCH more enjoyable.

3. Taking out a bunch of books on gardening from the local library. I've been loving reading about various herbs and vegetables that I plan to grow in the above ground gardens Mike is preparing for me. I'm hoping for more success than last year!

4. Finishing up my last review for the year as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew. I'll be continuing on the voyage next year as a first mate on the Crew's third voyage but I am looking for to the month long break I'll have before the new year starts up again in July.

5. Taking the time to reread a book that was given to me at a time pf great change and the reminder that there are times when I still need space. This sentiment rang very true to me when the book was first given to me and is still important for me to remember today:

I needed "space"-distance from all the was pressing in on me. I needed a penetrating quiet inside, and I needed to hold that silence up to me ears, like an empty shell, and listen to the roar of my own life."

-Gregg Levoy

I need the reminder to slow down and be myself. To listen or what it is I really want or need. This week was the perfect time for that reminder.

A Budding Chef....

2010-05-27T07:08:00.000-07:00

Liam has been begging me for months and months to open a cafe at our house. I told him that running a cafe would be lots and lots of work and having a baby around while setting up a cafe and serving customers would be hard (to which Liam replied, "We could keep the baby upstairs when there are people here, Mum") However, he has continued to ask about opening a restaurant and talking about how he is going to be a chef maybe when he is 8. As a result, I've decided to let the child open up his own restaurant and feed the family (hey, that's what homeschooling is about, isn't it?)

Yesterday was the official launch of Liam's Delisio Restaurant. Liam chose what he would like to prepare and wrote out his grocery list. He chose the produce he needed from the market and then did the majority of the food preparation himself while following the recipe. He worked well, and mostly stayed on task, to prepare us a lovely family meal.

Liam's Meatball Fusilli with Vegetables

The verdict: The meal was DELICIOUS, but Liam wants to try it a couple more times before he thinks it would be good enough to write down on his menu! Liam plans to write on his blog about his restaurant just as soon as he finishes his math work so be sure to check in tonight to see what he has to say.

Liam plans on attending culinary school when he is "10 or maybe 12" so I am sure that there will be many a yummy meal in our future!

Friday's Fave 5-May 21st

2010-05-21T09:33:00.000-07:00

Join me at Living to Tell the Story as we share 5 highlights from our week. What were YOUR favorite things this week?

1. Surviving my first outing with the 3 children alone. While visiting in Sydney, Mike was invited to stay in town for a seminar so the children and I were left on our own for 3 hours and we survived to tell the tale. Supper out, a walk along the one of the main streets sight seeing and then reading together in the children section of the library. I was quite impressed with how easy it was.

2. FINALLY receiving Holistic Midwifery: Vol 1 in the mail this morning. I've already sat down and taken a good look over it BUT I cannot wait for some time to really devour it. I am a CRAZY lady that absolutely LOVES textbooks so I could not be happier.

3. Celebrating Liam's 7th Birthday on Sunday. Liam is turning out to be a fine young boy and I cannot believe that he is already 7 years old. Time has flown by.

4. Having the chance to see several of my friends. I still don't have a lot of friends that are local so having the chance to see several of my friends all in the same week was lovely. Running into a doula friend of mine was an added unexpected treat. I look forward to meeting up with these lovely ladies again in the next future.

5. Being able to freecycle/donate some of our old stuff and receiving some "new to us" stuff. I dislike waste so I'm happy that we were able to pass on some of the things that the children no longer needed and even get rid of a couple pieces of furniture that were just taking up space. I was also happy to receive clothing for all three children and the loan of a seat for Ruadhan. I really do have some wonderful friends!

Ideal Curriculum Review

2010-05-21T03:00:00.000-07:00

Product: Month 1: Transportation
Company: Ideal Curriculum
Price: 30$US download, 55$US + 7.50$US/child print version

Many homeschoolers spend months, and sometimes years, looking for the ideal curriculum for their homeschool. They read reviews, they try different programs, they ask their friends what they use. I've only been homeschooling for a couple years now, and I to have searched high and low for the best program for us. I've come to realize that Liam is a workbook type of kid who also enjoys having ample time for free reading so all he needs is to be printed some worksheets from time to time and a library card. Morgaine is still quite young but I have started to search for things that she would enjoy. I'm not big on pushing academics but Liam was way beyond Morgaine at this age and occasionally I wonder if I'm doing too little with her. When I was asked to review month 1 of Ideal Curriculum's Pre-K program, I had high hopes that this would be a curriculum that would work well for her and we'd be set to start her Kindergarten year. Ideal Curriculum provides month long units that strive to teach language, reading, writing, math, and science in a sequential way through games, music and hands on activities. Each month follows a specific theme to help unify things. The theme for Month 1 one was transportation but other themes include weather, animals and the world around me. Sounds good!

Unfortunately, their statement that "95% of all children will not pick up academic skills on their own," was a bit of a put off for me. While I think children do need some guidance, most children learn lots just by exploring and asking questions without a lot of structure and formal learning (remember, we are talking PreK curriculum here). I was immediately filled with dread as I imagined my little 4 year old sitting at a a desk filling out repetitive worksheets. Thankfully, each lesson is kept short and for the most part do feel like play and not so much like work. The teacher manuals provide ideas for continuing each lesson throughout the day so that the learning can happen in a more natural way as you go about your daily activities as well. With music, written/visual work, and hands on activities (including full body movement for those really kinesthetic learners) there is a little of everything so whatever kind of learner you have they should benefit from this program.

While I thought having all three areas (literature, science, and math) provided in one package would be beneficial it was immediately clear that my daughter is at a different level in each area. In fact, I found that she would not benefit from either the literature or the math sections of the program very much at all. She is way beyond what is being taught in math section and the literature sections I found to be a little bit disorganized for my liking. Some parts seeming really simple for her abilities and other parts seeming to move ahead too quickly. While they touch on a number of important areas (letter sounds, sight words, print awareness), I found that the method of teaching these skills was a bit helter skelter and would not work well with my child.

The science unit of this program, though, I found to be really nice addition. Most programs I've seen tend to ignore science in the younger grades (most certainly in PreK-Kindergarten) and it was really nice to see that science was included and that the activities were not babied down and used proper scientific terms. The experiments are well demonstrated and the explanations are clear. This is the area where the theme of transportation comes into play and your student gets to experiment with wheels and axles and learn about different forms of transportation. I, however, still would find it hard to justify buying the program for the science or even the science/social science section independent of the other curriculum.

This curriculum is available for purchase for 30 dollars/unit (month) for a downloaded version of the program or 55 dollar/unit (month) plus an additional 7.50$US/child for a print version of the program. You can also purchase the entire year (9 units) for 440$US the print version or 240$US for the download version. We reviewed the download version and I found that there was a lot of back and forth between the teacher manuals, the children's workbooks and the other print material. I think that I may have enjoyed having all the material printed and ready for me. We were out of town without computer access for the majority of this review period and being unable to print any of the material, I had to flip back and forth between the different files repeatedly. Ideally, I would have been able to print everything before beginning. I would not be able to justify spending this money on a monthly basis for what is included in this curriculum. Even stretching the work over two months (which is possible as the program is quite flexible in that regards) I still would not be able to buy it.

I feel that this program is best suited to a classroom environment and would be ideal for an educational daycare or other such program. For a homeschool, at least mine, the cost is not justifiable. Many of the activities remind me of things that I did in Kindergarten or that I used when volunteering at a preschool a number of years ago. The activities are fun but really geared more towards a group of children in my opinion. The fact that the curriculum takes a multi-sensory approach is appealing and the whole body learning experience is great if you have a child that likes to be on the move so if that sounds ideal to you, I encourage you to visit the Ideal Curriculum website and check out their free week trial.

A Story of Scones and a Baby

2010-05-17T11:52:00.000-07:00

My friend posted a scone recipe. Thinking that scones are pretty straight forward, I decide that they would be easy enough for me to make with the kids. Liam and Morgaine are more than willing to help, especially when I tell them that they will be the ones doing most of the work. Wee baby gets strapped into the ring sling so that I have two hands available should I need to jump in to rescue the recipe. For all of 30 seconds things go well. We pull out the flour, butter, and baking powder. Then looking at my two children working together in the kitchen, I get a feeling of warmth and happiness. However, as a new mother, feelings of warmth and happiness are often accompanied by the flow of breast milk. Ruadhán, smelling (and likely feeling) the milk, starts to wiggle around and make his wee baby grunts and well, of course my milk starts even more. Wet circles begin to form on my chest. The kids have by this point measured the ingredients and are waiting for a spice from the top shelf. Being notoriously clumsy, I remove wee baby from the carrier and lay him on the couch. He is quiet. All is well. I climbed on the chair and lean over to reach into the cupboard. The baby, realizing I am gone, SCREAMS....

Drip....

Drip......

Drip......

Drip........

There's breastmilk falling on my TOES!

The spice in question is nowhere to be found so I grab the next best thing, hop down, and run to the screaming baby who is now red with rage and has huge alligator tears streaming down his cheeks. I'm soaked, the kids are excitedly asking what they need to do next while jumping up and down, despite being in my arms, Ruadhán continues to scream. I grab the butter from the fridge, cut off a half cup chunk and toss it into the bowl and tell the kids to break it up with their fingers (hey, the recipe says we can use our hands). I sit with the baby at the table to oversee and nurse. The baby latches and then pulls off, the milk arches in the air and lands on the table just inches away from the mixing bowl. On then off. On then off. On then off. Meanwhile, the older two are letting the butter melt in their hands instead of blending the chunks of butter into the flour. It's time for me to rescue the recipe and besides the baby has no interest in nursing. Back into the carrier he goes. No sooner in, then he started to scream AGAIN! Just wanting the recipe done at this point, I take over. Toss in a couple eggs, get both hands into the mixture and bop around

Up and down......

Back and forth......

Side to side.....

Trying quite UNSUCCESSFULLY to soothe the now quite distressed infant.

Form a ball.....the baby SCREAMS!

Cut the dough.....the baby SCREAMS!

Place the dough on a baking tray....the baby SCREAMS!

Open the oven and place the try inside....the baby sighs and falls asleep!

The scones turn out magnificently.

All Liam Wanted Was.....

2010-05-17T04:26:00.000-07:00

Chinese fondue, Yorkshire pudding, and and a can of peas (without carrots, please, Mom) for his birthday.

And that was exactly what he got!

Happy 7th birthday, my beautiful boy!!

Friday's Fave 5-May 14th

2010-05-14T14:54:00.000-07:00

This has been a LONG week! To remind myself of the good things I'd meant to post a Thankful Thursday post yesterday but I didn't get around to it. Luckily this evening I was looking around on Facebook and noticed that a friend of mine posted a Friday Fave 5 post so I decided to join in on the fun as well. To see other Fave 5 lists be sure to visit Suzanne at Living to Tell the Story.

1. I am absolutely loving my new bookshelf (despite the fact that its construction/painting took place in my living room for the last two days). I am looking having all the children's homeschooling books in one place and having a home for all my beloved midwifery/doula/nursing books and yes, textbooks. It has been so nice to be able to empty a couple bins of books that have been hidden away since we moved here over a year ago.

2. I am so happy to have received some diaper covers in the mail earlier in the week (the AppleCheeks™ ROCK, Ilana!!). After shrinking all my wool covers earlier in the week the quick arrival of the new covers was appreciated. I am really happy to have received even more covers and some extra prefolds from another friend yesterday. I finally feel I have enough diapers to be able to say that I no longer have to keep a back of disposables on hand just in case.

3. I'm really, really happy that Ruadhán has apparently fallen into a deep a blissful sleep in my arms. It has been a really loooooong day of walking, cuddling and nursing him. We've been wide awake 4:30am. I was beginning to wonder if he was ever going to sleep again!!

4. I'm about to go get a cup of rich hot cocoa and sit of the couch to watch some mindless junk on television!

5. My son finished his grade two workbook yesterday and we got to print out the next level and he is over the moon and so proud of himself. I am excited and proud myself! Way to go, Liam!!!!!

(and posting these a looking for a category for this post reminded me that I actually used to post my Friday Favorite once upon a time! Might be a good habit to get back into!)

Wordless Wednesday-For Those that Haven't Seen Them

2010-05-12T11:45:00.000-07:00

After Ruadhán's birth.... (they'll be added to the birth story this evening as well)

Look! I DO Take Photos!

2010-05-11T07:32:00.000-07:00

Sure, I'm mostly taking the pictures because I got nice new Applecheek™ diaper covers in the mail and now Ruadhán has such a cute little bottom that I couldn't help grabbing a few shots. That works for all of you that just want to catch a glimpse of the baby, right? I'm really an action shot kind of photographer and babies don't really do much so he hasn't been in the spotlight too much, yet!

First attempt at "tummy time" and it's not too bad....

Looking puzzled. Why am I on the floor, Mum, and not in your arms?

Not bad, I could get used to this!

I think I'm loved....

No, I KNOW I am!

Everyone Loves a Good Lobster-Lobster Network Review

2010-05-10T13:37:00.000-07:00

Product: Lobster Network Free Membership
Company: Optimized Consulting Inc.
Price: FREE!!

Lobster is great! Lobster is wonderful! Lobster is one of those things that you enjoy (maybe) once a year. What if I told you, you could enjoy lobster EVERY day? Well, now you can! Just not the the food kind. Through the TOS Homeschool Crew I've happily been introduced to a new networking site (and if you know me, you know I LOVE networking!) called Lobster Network. Lobster Network is the perfect place for people that like a good deal, or even FREE stuff. The idea behind lobster network is that people have stuff. Stuff that they would be happy to share, give away, or sell for cheap and Lobster Network allows you to do so for free all in one place. Lobster Network allows you to list your inventory (books, movies, tool, toys, etc...) and whether you are willing to sell, lend, or give the items away. While lobsters in general are great, it also stands for all the potential that this network can bring to you.

Just take a peak.....

By joining/creating local groups (communities) you are able to find items that are in your area. For example, my husband is a bit of a do it yourself type of guy. We are flipping a 135 year old home. Occasionally we run into problems when we realize that we need a tool that we do not own. Imagine being able to browse through your local lobster network and finding out that Billy from down the road has the exact tool you need to loan out, saving you money that you would use to buy a tool that you might only need to loose once. What's more, if Billy down the road doesn't have the tool that you need then you can but in a request for that tool and perhaps there is another local fellow that might have that tool.

As a homeschooling parent, I'm always looking for deals on curriculum. Sometimes I'm not sure if a certain program would work well with my family and don't want to spend a lot of money on a program that we might not end up using. With Lobster Network I'm able to borrow homeschooling material from other homeschooling families and try it out before committing to the product. Sometimes I can even find deals on homeschooling materials that other families are finished using,

That's not all! As a doula and aspiring midwife, I've collected a wealth of material pertaining to pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding and babies that I am more than happy to share with my clients. With Lobster Network my clients can easily see which material I have available to lend out and I can keep track of where my books are without worrying (I am not typically organized and have lost several books since beginning my practice). The more I can educate families (and really, anyone would would like to read any of my books) the happier I am. I cannot wait to use Lobster Network for the purpose.

Now that you know a few of the things that Lobster Network can do, I want to let you know that not only does it serve multiple purposes but it is very user friendly so even a child could help you add items to your inventory list (hey, it could be a learning experience for them!). It is also easy to search for items, add friends and create communities. I really do feel that Lobster Network has the potential to be the next big thing in cyberspace and I am happy to be able to introduce my friends to this free resource. I am hoping to that you will all sign up by going to the Lobster Network website so that you will be able to savour some Lobster (Network) for yourself!

**Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Introducing.....

2010-05-10T12:59:00.000-07:00

Ruadhán (Rowan) James M.

Birthdate: April 18th, 2010
Time: 3:48pm
Weight: 8 pounds 7 ounces
Length: 21 inches

Apparently, I'm not featuring the newest baby enough on my blog so by special request I've gotten around to posting his birth stats......and oh yeah, his NAME!!

This baby has been a blessing in so many ways. His birth has taught me to be more gentle with myself. In the days after he was born I had ample time to search my soul and find out what I really want from life. Ruadhán's "blissed-out" nature reminds me just to relax and live in the moment. The kids tender treatment of their baby brother reminds me how much I love them. I always knew that baby #3 was waiting out there for me (even when it felt like it was never going to happen) but I never knew how much on an impact adding him to the family would have on me. I am forever thankful and am looking forward to everything the coming years will bring.

(and I really did try to get some pictures to share tonight but the lighting in our house it just horrible so you'll have to wait for your photo fix)

Test only folks-Review to Follow Shortly

2010-05-10T03:46:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day

2010-05-09T13:16:00.000-07:00

I wanted to write something inspired to celebrate today. I wanted to write about the joys that come with being a mother. I wanted to write about my own mother, who has been gone for far too long. I wanted to share the little special moments of being a mother to three children but today, what I am feeling mostly is how unbelievably HARD it is to be a parent. The worries. The wishes. The moments of "how could I have possibly said/did that?". The fears for the future. The differences of opinions. The (sometime outright) defiance. The "what if?". There are so many Mamas out there struggling at this time to give their children the best that they can and what I really want to say is THANK YOU!! If you feel that being a mother is the hardest job out there, if you feel your children's pain, worry about their futures, but rejoice in their little successes then you are being a good mother. If you are trying to do right by your children and your family then you are doing good enough. There's no such thing as perfection....

I'm wishing my good enough Mama friends a wonderful and blessed day....each and every day....despite how crazy hard it is!

Fit Mama Friday-May 7th

2010-05-07T06:20:00.000-07:00

I'll admit it. I'm sitting here eating an ice cream cone as I type this. The ice cream isn't 100 mile and it certainly isn't healthy but it sure is good.

That being said, we did groceries yesterday and stocked up on all kinds of healthy stuff. Lots and lots of fruits and greens, asparagus, mushrooms, tomatoes and more. Nothing was 100 Mile BUT the local farm is now open so soon enough we will be able to start getting a bit more local food. By July or August it is my goal to be back on the 100 Mile Diet in full force. For those of you that haven't heard of the 100 Mile Diet or read about our earlier attempts at it here are a couple links.... Introduction to the 100 Mile Diet and Foraging: The Life of a 100 Mile Dieter. We only managed to follow this diet for the month of August last year. By the first week of September I was plagued with morning sickness and then fatigue set in so easy to prepare foods became key (though, I am ashamed to admit how heavily we relied on that stuff. This year there will be no pregnancies interfering with the plan but I'll have to get a good carrier in order to get wee baby on my back and "out of the way" so I can tend to my kitchen and all the foraging that comes along with eating local. I cannot wait!

The diet also gives one a workout rummaging through the forest looking for food (seriously, we did this last year!) so that will be a benefit (though we found our favorite places for a variety of berries already). As it stands right now the only exercise I am doing is marathon nursing, occasionally sucking in my tummy as I walk, and those lovely kegel exercises that one is supposed to do after having a baby. I hope to add in a few more tummy exercises next week. As suspected, I am indeed below my pre-pregnancy weight but there is some toning to do and I really need to get into the habit of working out. I like to eat and I am sure that once my appetite returns it will be really easy to start gaining weight (I tend to hold on to calories when I am nursing as oppose to using them up) so exercise is going to have to feature more regularly in my plans.

I hope that my other Mamas are doing well and getting out there this spring and enjoying the weather! Please check in with them at Got Chai? and leave a word of encouragement or two (and remember it is never too late to join in, too!)

Wordless Wednesday-If Only She Actually Needed Glasses

2010-05-05T11:02:00.000-07:00

They suit her so well, don't you think?

Lesson Planet: A Search Engine for Teachers

2010-05-05T05:21:00.000-07:00

Product: Lesson Planet
Price: 39.95$US/year
Additional Information: 10 day free trial available

I'm a little addicted to the Internet. I LOVE search engines. I appreciate being able to find just about anything online. I was happy to be able to review Lesson Planet as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew. Lesson Planet is a search engine designed specifically for teachers which allows you to search for lesson plans by topic and then narrow down the selections by rating, age/grade and method of teaching. With 225 000+ worksheets and lesson plans there is an abundance of material available.

I found that this search engine was quite easy to use. The material that I did find seemed to be mostly geared towards the age range that I was looking for and most everything came from reputable sites so I was not concerned about the information that I'd be sharing with my children. However, I did find that most of the lesson plans were geared towards a classroom setting and while they could be modified for the most part they were not lessons I would use in a home school environment. As things often change on the internet I also encountered quite a few dead links in my search and while they are easy to report (and hopefully have fixed) if I'd been particularly in a hurry I might have found them frustrating. As a Canadian, I found Canadian content to be severely lacking and for that reason in addition to finding the lesson plans much more geared towards a school setting, I would no really be will to pay the 39.95$US/per year.

Lesson Planet offers a free 10 day trial so I would encourage you to check that out if this search engine interests you. Please be sure to check out other Crew Members' reviews here as I know that there were several members who really liked this program and perhaps reading their reviews will give you a more balanced review of the product.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Cooking With Sue Gregg

2010-05-01T14:06:00.000-07:00

Product: Meals in Minutes
Company: Sue Gregg Cookbooks
Price: 9.00$US

As many of you who read my blog regularly might know, we are currently away from home because we needed to travel to have the opportunity to birth our baby with a midwife. We've been living away from home for the past month, but sweet baby has been born and I will be returning home to a freezer filled with healthy meals. Nope, the neighbours haven't been bringing casseroles (or I hope not 'cause they'd be getting rather gross sitting on our steps by now) but I managed, with Sue Gregg's help and Meals in Minutes to prepare several dishes to freeze before leaving.

After realizing that her family's chronic health concerns might be a result of a nutritional deficient diet, Sue Gregg started experimenting with nutritionally dense foods and whole grains. She start eliminating questionable foods from her pantry and has since begun teaching others how to eat the way we were meant to. Though several cookbooks Sue Gregg has made it her mission to teach us how too cook with whole grains, introducing such techniques as soaking and blending.

Meals in Minutes is a cookbook of make ahead meals that can be conveniently frozen and then pulled out as needed. Sue Gregg describes in detail how to cook with whole grains, the best canned/frozen goods/spices to purchase, and the best ways to thaw and reheat her meals. She then shares 25 recipes/meal plans with us broken down into the following categories:

5 Timesaver Meals

5 Convenience Meals

5 Quick Meals 5

Make-Ahead Meals

5 Ready-to-Serve Meals

Each section comes with a grocery list for the week as well as suggested side dishes that could be served along with the recipe. While I was not initially fond of the format of the recipes (with the ingredients listed throughout the recipes as opposed to at the beginning of each recipe) I soon got used to the idea of reading through the whole recipe before beginning. I have not tried any of her meals from frozen as of yet but we have been happy with what we've tried freshly prepared.

The only real issue that I have with the recipes in the cookbook is that I do find that they rely a little heavily on canned/frozen foods and as a little bit of a "foodie" if I am going to cook from scratch I really want to cook from scratch and not have to pull out my can opener. All in all, though, these recipes were easy, healthy and turned out good. For 9.00$US you cannot go wrong if you are on the path to healthier eating (or want to be).

There are numerous free recipes on Sue Gregg's website so be sure to check them out and while you are there read more about her journey to healthier eating.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Fit Mama Friday-April 23rd

2010-04-23T11:24:00.000-07:00

Well Mamas, I'm BACK!!! (with a wee baby in tow)

As promised, here's a post-partum belly shot for you.....

5 days post-baby.....

Not bad, I'm thinking. As of my last midwife appointment, I'd gained 21 pounds this pregnancy (a far cry from the 45-60 I gained with each other pregnancy). I actually think that in the end my total weight gain would have been less that that are there was nearly 2 weeks between appointments and during those two weeks the whole family was sick and while the family is sick Mama doesn't eat well. I would not be surprised to be at my starting weight already with some of my stores having been taking from elsewhere and deposited around my middle.

That being said, there is still work to do. My eating habits have really gotten pretty horrible so I will likely be focusing on that when I post my weekly goals and plans. We'll likely move back slowly to the 100 Mile Diet and I'd love to talk about that more. As I originally said, this for me is really about getting healthier and not thinner so I hope to still be able to participate regularly.

As always, exercise is a problem. I don't like it. I don't do it. That's it. I do hope to change that but for now let me enjoy that baby and maybe a bite of chocolate or two!!

Until next time (likely 2 weeks from now)! Be sure to check in on my other Mama friends over at Got Chai?

Alphabet Beats

2010-04-22T08:44:00.000-07:00

Product: Alphabet Beats Lower Case Letters
Company: The TV Teacher
Price: 35$US

As part of the TOS Homeschool Crew, I am happy to bring you another review of a product suitable for the youngest students. With Alphabet Beats your 2 1/2 year old-8 year old learns the proper way of printing letters with Miss Marnie, the TV Teacher. The DVD offers 5 minute lessons on each letter on the alphabet. At the start of each lesson, your child is taught a chant that teaches the correct way of writing the letter. This chant is combined with vocabulary starting with the letter being learned and other visuals while Miss Marnie repeatedly shows your child how to write the letter.

Morgaine quite enjoyed Miss. Marnie (she's quite engaging and personable, I must say) who was able to hold her attention for several lessons at a time. In terms of printing, I found that Miss Marnie did not leave enough time for Morgaine to follow along with her in the lessons and that was a little frustrating for my daughter. However, the chant will be quite handy for when we are practicing printing on our own. Morgaine, as a non reader/writer told me she didn't know why she had to write letters over and over again if she couldn't read and for the most part I agreed with her. However, the nice thing about this program is that it is bringing my daughter closer to reading. She's seen some of the letters we've worked on in books we are reading and has said, "Look Mom, it's an 'a'. It goes 'up and around. Back up and down.' " This coming from a child who had no idea that letters had anything to do with what I was reading a month ago is HUGE!

Overall, I am quite happy with this program though I would likely buy it more for a letter recognition program as opposed to a printing program. My daughter seems to be getting more benefit out of it that way but I think it would work well as a printing program for those children that can already recognize the letters of the alphabet and need some extra practice with printing. In terms of the ages specified on the DVD, I think that it could be used with a 2 1/2 year old as a letter recognition program and perhaps a printing program if it was kept fun (for example, writing the letters in shaving cream or with finger paints). I'd never expect a 2 1/2 year old to sit with a pencil and paper! I think that the upper age range on this DVD might be a little high. My six year old would not enjoy these lessons very much and would likely find them "babyish" so it wouldn't work well with him. I think this might be the case with many older children so my age recommendation for this program would likely be mostly for 4 and 5 year olds. However, I don't know your child so you'd have to check it out for yourself to see if it might work well. The TV Teacher offers a demo on their website which would help give you an idea of what the lessons are like.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

An Earth Day Picnic with my Three Lovely Children

2010-04-22T05:40:00.000-07:00

It's a lovely day out there today and my little family and I just enjoyed our first picnic together.

A simple menu....it's been a long time since I've done anything with a newborn in tow.

Morgaine being her adorable little self (she still loves the camera...a little too much!)

The best we're going to get of our camera shy little guy, Liam.

There's a baby in there...

Happily enjoying his thumb!!

What a glorious way to spend this Earth Day!

Wee Baby Boy's Birth Story

2010-04-20T12:01:00.000-07:00

It's the first time I've been back to my blog in a week or so and I was surprised to see that Sunday, the 18th of April was the busiest day on my blog EVER! Well, I was a little bit too busy that day to be posting! We welcomed the newest addition to our family at about 3:45pm that afternoon and well, I was too busy admiring him that evening to post anything else!

Here's his story to add to Morgaine and Liam's birth stories......ENJOY!

~~~~~~~~~~

We arrived at Prince's Inlet Retreat in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia nearing my 38th week of pregnancy. I'd had a feeling that perhaps things were going to happen a little bit of the earlier side of 40 weeks as opposed to later so we'd decided to head down to the cottage a few days earlier than planned in order to get some time to enjoy the area before the newest arrival. I was picturing walks along the water and just relaxing as a family of four. Unfortunately, within a couple days of arriving we each got hit with a flu bug one after the other. Liam, Mommy, Morgaine, then finally Mike. It was not a fun time for anyone dealing with fevers, chills, coughing, gagging, stuffy noses and all that jazz while I continued to have pre-labour symptoms. I felt like my body was ready but I just couldn't let go because everyone else was so sick..

Finally, by Friday, the 16th of April, Mike was making some improvement and I started to get into somewhat of a regular contraction pattern later that evening after having a nice day out and about. By Saturday morning I had the feeling that this might actually progress into real labour eventually. I had a home visit with the midwife that morning and I asked her to give me a little check for curiosity sake (I'm interested and I wanted to see if we'd get the same measurements). At that point I was a good 2 cm and stretchy to 4cm and 50% effaced. The baby was very low and in a good position at that point. We talked a great deal about having the midwife present just to be there and for her to be VERY hands off. We'd let her do what she needed to do to allow us to birth at home being "high risk" but otherwise she was to do nothing at all unless we asked her. Being totally cool she was into that and encouraged us to do so.

After she left my contractions started coming every 15 minutes and I started loosing tons and tons of show. By Saturday evening they gotten to about every 8 minutes or so and had gotten somewhat stronger. Mike and I pulled out the hide a bed and watched After Armageddon (what a wonderfully enlightening show to watch in labour *lol*). I tried to get to sleep after that but laying down wasn't working so well for me so I got into the tub where the contractions quickly started coming every 3-4 minutes but I was quite able to rest in between them. I tried to get out of the bath to sleep a little but once out I just couldn't fall asleep so back into the tub I went (it must have been close to 3:30am at this point). This time while resting I felt the baby completely shift and go posterior. One of my worst fears and what I'd try to avoid the whole pregnancy. The contractions got intense and close together at that point but really not that effective at doing much. At 6am I woke Mike and we hung out in the bathroom for the most part with tea and Cheerios. I was handling things well but we decided to call the lady we had helping with the children and the midwife as well. The midwife had 4 births in the previous week and was to be all over doing post-partum visits so we'd be warned to call her early. She arrived at about 11:45am and we just hung out in the bedroom. Mike spent some time preparing lunch for the family and things were quite chill. The midwife was very discreet and let me do my thing observing from her little nest on the floor. We did end up placing a saline lock in case of hemorrhage but that was about it in terms of intervention. I did have her check me a little while after she arrived to confirm that the baby was indeed posterior (though there was no doubt in either of our minds). At that point, I was 4-5cm and completely effaced but the baby's head was not effectively pushing against the cervix. Her feeling was once it did then things would fly. I was completely sick of short little intense contractions and discouraged but took some homeopathics to help turn the baby and hopped into the tub.

Mike and I continued to hang out in the bathroom but the contractions slowed down significantly in the water and at that point I was ready to tell everyone to just go home. In my head I was only contracting to get that baby to turn and once he did every thing would stop and we'd have a baby a couple weeks later. I pretty quickly got out of the water and the midwife left us together in the bedroom for a while. I hung out on the birthing ball while Mike looked at one of the board games we like to play and discussed some of the cards with me. Nothing much was happening so I was happy for the distraction. I had a couple longer contractions that found me hoping off the ball and sinking low to the ground and the midwife must have taken notice of the change in my voice because she quickly came into the room. I think that our help for the kids took notice too because she got the children dressed up and took them out for a walk.

As soon at the midwife walked into the room the contractions started coming one on top of each other. Again, not too terribly long but intense, and almost constant just because of how frequent they were. I was NOT a calm birther in the least and despite knowing that everything was normal and having a ton of doula tricks that I felt like I should totally be capable of using I just couldn't relax into this birth at all. I was totally in my head the entire time and that was very obvious. We soon started pulling out the Rescue Remedy and other Bach remedies. I started to get somewhat pushy and it felt like I was sitting on baby head but I knew that it wasn't time and was likely a result of the baby being back on. I mentioned this to the midwife and she said things would be much better once my waters had opened. At that point, I told her to just break them and she said she could. However, she didn't get up to do it so after I has a couple calmer contractions I told her that I would just like to have the waters opened. She told me that the baby would just melt away the cervix when his head got applied to it but I was completely unaware that she really, really meant what she said.

I was still only about 5-6cm when she checked me and while using some gentle hand maneuvers as she was breaking my waters the baby turned into an anterior position and I went from 5cm to fully dilated under her fingers. I was completely freaked out. I wanted to get to the toilet for my customary first couple pushes but the midwife said there was no time and the best thing I could do was get on my left side and just let the baby come. I COMPLETELY clamped down at that time. There was NO WAY that the baby was going to come out of me while I was laying down. I NEED my two feet firmly on the ground to birth. Nope, no baby today....thank you very much. I had Mike in such a tight grip and the midwife telling me I was doing it all on my own (at that point, it felt to me, like SHE had accomplished the whole labour). FInally, some Rescue Remedy was shot under my tongue and didn't that leg lift up and onto the midwife's shoulder. I begged the midwife to just get the baby out and out he came. A massive, MASSIVE head and a little tight shoulder and I had the baby in my arms. 8 minutes to go from 5cm to baby in arms! I felt a tad shell-shocked but that completed passed almost immediately.

The kids came in right away to see the baby but at almost that moment the placenta separated and some bleeding started so fearing the worst I quickly shooed them from the room. I was given a second injection of pitocin but the bleeding was pretty controlled though the midwife did feel the need to help the placenta deliver just because she really wanted to allow me to stay home after this birth. She tried to get the IV flowing but it just wasn't working for her and at that point she actually relaxed and said "you know, you are holding up your end of the bargain and aren't going to bleed too much and your body is telling me so by not allowing me to start this IV. You are going to be just fine." I did ooze a bit like in Morgaine's birth but NO WHERE near the same extent and things were pretty chill. The kids came back in....Liam was quite smitten with the baby but Morgaine thought that the room smelled bad so she was a little less sure of things. We did the newborn exam with the whole family assisting and it was lovely to have everyone involved. The baby was a lovely chunky 8 pounds 7 ounces, and 21 inches long with a 37cm head (that's the 90 percentile folks!!). The consensus was that the baby was probably about a week "early" despite my calculation that he was born on his due date. We all hung out for a while and by 3 and a half hours after the birth everything was looking perfect and the midwife was on her way home. I got up and looked at the photos we'd gotten (none of the birth this time) and posted a little welcome to the world message on Facebook and then snuggled up with the newest addition for a glorious long night's rest.

I did not get birth photos this time around but these are just a few of the photos we took during his first couple hours of his birth.

First glimpse of my beautiful baby.

Seeing their brother immediately after birth.

Nursing within the first 30 minutes.

In Daddy's arms.

Looking intently at the midwife looking at him.

The children helping with the newborn exam.

This story is in it's beginning phase and may undergo some changes over time but I know that there were a few out there that were anxious to hear it so I felt it best to get it posted sooner rather than later.

Time 4 Learning

2010-04-12T11:45:00.000-07:00

Product: Time 4 Learning PreK
Company: Time 4 Learning
Price: 19.95US$ for first child/month, 14.95US$ for each additional child/month
Additional Information: Prices vary on this product from time to time so please refer to the company's website for current price.

Morgaine was thrilled when she found out that she would be getting her very own product for Mommy to review as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew. She'd been able to follow along with some of the products that I received for Liam's age range but there was never anything specific to hers until we received a one month subscription to Time 4 Learning to try out their online PreK curriculum. Time 4 Learning offers online educational activities and games geared towards your PreK-8th grade student (you choose your child's level when you register). The focus is primarily on English and math with "bonus" material in history and science included in most grade levels.

Morgaine was eager to try out Time 4 Learning and I was happy to see that the PreK curriculum was easy enough for my her to follow being a non-reader. All activities were explained aloud or used easy to understand symbols like smiley and sad faces. There were a variety of topics to choose from and for the most part I was pleased with how in depth some of the material was for PreK (however, there was other material that I found much too easy for her...but I suppose some children might still need work on those skills and Morgaine is at the older age range for PreK).

When your child logs in they are greeted with a menu of topics to choose from....

Other topics include:

the alphabet,

colours,

shapes,

numbers

weather,

the human body,

and much more.

Each topic contains a variety of activities including stories, videos, puzzles and more. At the end of each activity your child can rate whether they enjoyed it or not which is not only valuable to the company but also to the homeschooling parent. For example, I learned that Morgaine enjoyed the story books much more than videos so as a result we will likely look for more written material for her kindergarten year as opposed to visual/auditory material.

While we did enjoy Time 4 Learning, the cost of 19.95$US per month would prohibit me from purchasing it, especially because my son would likely want his own membership as well and I could never justify 35$US dollars a month for this curriculum. The company occasionally offers rebates and other specials so it is important to check their website for their most current offers. In my opinion, this program is not complete enough to be more than a supplement to other material. The activities are fun and educational, however, I can find similar activities out there for free with just a little extra searching. If you do not want to spend time searching around the internet and want all your student's activities in one location then this online curriculum may work well for you.

There are free lesson demos on the Time 4 Learning website so be sure to check them out if you think this program might work well for your family. To hear what other Crew members have to say about this product please click here.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

38 and a half weeks-Belly Photo

2010-04-08T02:16:00.000-07:00

There you have it! 38 and a half weeks now and still waiting around, like expected. I saw the midwife on Tuesday and the baby is very, very low right now (explains why it has gotten significantly more difficult to enjoy walking around). I'm measuring "small" because baby is engaged. Even though it's my third and this doesn't usually happen until labour I like to break the "rules" so it could still be a couple weeks, yet.

I woke up with some really strong contractions on Wednesday early morning topped with severe nausea and was expecting that I was going places so I took a little check and my cervix is doing pretty much nothing. Note to self: keep hands far away from cervix as it is just disappointing! I feel so early labourish that I can't really imagine feeling this way for another couple weeks but that could be the case so I am trying to stay busy and somewhat active. We've all managed to come down with chest colds so really, it would be best if the baby were to hold off for a little while, yet, and will neither be coughed out or coughed on by his loving siblings!!

Internet (therefor telephone as we are using Skype) is very temperamental here and very intermittent and that makes me a little antsy. For those that are following me on facebook there will be a really obvious update when I am in actual labour (if I get on the computer at all). Something along the lines of "we'll meet the baby very soon." or "having a baby", etc.....anything else is just my not quite ready to have a baby ramblings!

We'll keep you updated!

Nova Scotia Place of the Week-Prince's Inlet

2010-04-06T10:06:00.000-07:00
We've made it to the cottage and no, there's still no baby! 38 weeks and a bit now and we are patiently (for the most part) waiting to welcome the newest arrival. I must say that we have a great location to wait! We are staying at Prince's Inlet Retreat near Lunenburg, Nova Scotia and are finding it quite enjoyable. The owner of the cottage has been very helpful and informative and the setting is just picturesque.

Sunrise over Prince's Inlet (view from the front door).

Baby deer in the yard.

The cottage is just remote enough to make you feel like you are getting away yet it is close enough that it doesn't take much time to get to several larger towns to visit (and what beautiful historic towns they are). I'm sure that I'll be able to feature a couple of those towns over the coming weeks here on my blog so I hope that you will check in and see what we are doing while we are waiting for baby!

Family Mint-A Financial Planner's Perspective

2010-04-04T09:22:00.000-07:00

Product: FamilyMint
Price: Free

My husband, Mike, is a financial planner and for years he has been telling me that there should be a program out there to teach young children how to save money. I was very excited when I found out that I would be reviewing FamilyMint.com as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew. Perhaps this would be the program that we were waiting for!

FamilyMint is an online money management program designed to teach valuable financial skills and saving habits to families and their children. With FamilyMint you are able to set up a profile/account for each of your children, help them set financial goals (whether it be for a special purchase or for a larger goal like university), track their deposits and as an extra incentive, if you wish, set an interest rate that you are willing to pay them for their deposits or even match there deposits.

While we did not use FamilyMint with our children (neither receive any money as an allowance at the current time), both Mike and I think that this is a valuable tool. The interface is very easy to use, for both the child and the parent and the extra features, such as the goal setting tools and being able to set an interest rate for the different goals, are an added benefit. Mike thinks that this tool teaches valuable saving skills that many adults are lacking but feels that a child needs to be a little older than ours in order to appreciate the value of money and get the full benefit of this program. Ideally he feels that parents would start using this tool when the child is about 8 years old and has more of a grasp of how much things costs and might be making/receiving money of their own. This tool would be especially useful to older children that are getting ready to go out into the world on their own in a few years. There are so many adults out there that find themselves in trouble because they never learned to budget so teaching your children this valuable tool is a must! Mike even said that this program would be good for just those adults to help get them back on the right path!

Currently, FamilyMint is a free program with all the features that I have mentioned but in the future there may be a charge for certain features (though, we have been assured that there will always be a free membership, with less features, as well). I invite you to go to FamilyMint.com to check out this program for yourselves. The quick set-up and easy to use interface make it definitely worth taking a look at.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

All About Reading-"What Am I?" Review

2010-03-29T09:12:00.000-07:00

Product: What Am I?
Company: All About Learning
Price: 19.95$US

This year I was given the opportunity to review All About Spelling Levels 1 and 2 as well as Beehive Reader 1 (soon to be renamed "Cobweb the Cat.") The Beehive Reader was especially a big success in our house so we were happy to receive the second in the Beehive Reader series entitled "What Am I?". This delightful reader introduces your child to a whole cast of characters through 10 new short stories. Rob the Robot wrecks havoc on the household that orders him in the mail and Deb the Dog learns that maybe a smelly musk ox isn't so bad. As with the first reader, the stories are delightful and captivating and the pencil drawn pictures are just beautiful.

This reader correlates with the second level of the All About Spelling spelling program and helps further your child's reading skills by increasing the story length and enriching the vocabulary included in the text. There are plans in the works to include two readers for each level of All About Spelling (after the first level) and I know that my family will anxiously be awaiting each new addition to the series. These high quality books are a welcomed addition to my homeschool as I know that they will be enjoyed for years to come. There is no doubt in my mind that because of their high durability and timelessness they will be enjoyed by my own grandchildren years down the line.

"What am I?" will be available for purchase for 19.95$US starting on April 1st, 2010. To find out what other Crew Members thought of this reader be sure to visit the TOS Homeschool Crew Website here.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Belly Pictures-37 weeks

2010-03-28T13:34:00.000-07:00
Full term, Baby!!

Mama is feeling REALLY full of baby right now. It feels like in the past week my belly has gone from lots of squishy areas to hard baby all over!! Yes, maybe the baby moved into a better position BUT I'm thinking a major growth spurt happened, too. I'm pretty sure we'll have a near 9lbers again this time.

We'll be heading off in the next 3 or 4 days to Bridgewater in order to have the baby with the midwives. It's an exciting time. We've never really gone on a "vacation" as a family before so we are hoping that we have a little while there just to enjoy the family of 4 before baby #3 arrives but at the same time don't want baby to hold out 'til last minute either. Let's face it, the last few weeks of pregnancy aren't the most comfortable and neither would be traveling home within a couple days of birth. A nice 39 weeks baby (smack dab the middle of our stay) would be much appreciated but really, baby has the final say!

Not really much else to report on the baby front. I may not have internet access while at the retreat (we are debating bringing the computer) so I am not sure if you will get another update or not before wee baby arrives. We will find ways to let folks know when sweet baby comes earth-side.

Until then, I am signing off (besides my million and one reviews due before I leave) and wishing my other pregnant mama friends lovely birthing energy and much love.

The Critical Thinking Company-Language Smarts Level C

2010-03-26T12:18:00.000-07:00
Product: Language Smarts Level C
Company: The Critical Thinking Company
Price: 39.99$US

I am feeling incredible blessed (yes, AGAIN) to have been selected as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew to review material from The Critical Thinking Company. As a relatively new homeschooler, I had not heard of this company that uses both high quality printed workbooks and software to teach children how to look at problems logically and work them out. Along with my order confirmation, I received a link to their product sampler and I was taking a look at it when my son announced "I LOVE it! It is the BEST day of my life!" Shocked, I looked at him and he said, "You just HAVE to print it for me, Mom!"

So I print off the samples and my 4 year old daughter sees the activities at the beginning of the the book and says, "Mom, it's the best day of my life, EVER!" An argument ensued over who was having the best day and needless to say I knew that this product was going to be a hit in my household!

A (long) couple weeks later we received Language Smarts Level C to review. This grade 2 level workbook teaches a wide variety of language arts topics that help improved your child's grammar, vocabulary, comprehension and writing skills. Logic activities, rhymes and riddles, and other FUN activities are used throughout the book to encourage critical thinking skills as opposed to just recalling facts. The kids must use what they have learned to demonstrate further problem solving skills and this is what, in my opinion, makes this program a step above other language arts programs out there. At 320 pages long, there are a variety of topics to keep your child busy all year long either as their core language curriculum or as a supplement to the curriculum you are currently using. Most activities were challenging enough to keep my son engaged but, if read aloud, many of riddles could be answered by my younger daughter keeping them both interested in the program (a rarity in this house!)

While the 39.99$US price tag may seem expensive, my husband and I both really liked the thinking skills emphasized in this workbook. Both children continue to be interested after over a month of daily use and look forward to critical thinking time. The only issue we have found with the book, especially in the earlier sections, was the phrasing of some of the questions. There were times that we had to read through the directions a couple times to fully comprehend what was being asked but that is something that we can live with. We've enjoyed Language Smarts Level C so much that we are planning on using several of their other workbooks as part of our homeschool for next year!

I encourage you to take a look at The Critical Thinking Company's website and try out any/all of their numerous printable samples or software demos. There is a lot to choose from but the company really gives you a good idea through their samples what you can expect from their award wining products.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Fit Mama Friday-March 26th

2010-03-26T09:30:00.000-07:00

Well, this is likely to be my last Fit Mama Friday update before I become the mother of THREE! No, no, NO there's pretty much no chance that I'll have the wee baby by next week BUT we will be at the cottage where we will be birthing and I do not think that we will have internet access there (what's a retreat if we don't actually retreat from anything?).

There really isn't much of anything to report here this week AT ALL. I deal with facial neuralgia that was doing pretty good though the pregnancy but hit with a vengeance on Monday and has plagued me all week. So basically, moving hurts so I haven't done much of anything at all. I didn't walk anywhere and our one outing out yesterday, I ended up sitting in the car. Fun stuff. Good for getting in shape for labour, I tell you!

Food wise, I haven't been terribly hungry but have started to put on a bit of weight again. I certainly will NOT go over my expected weight gain this time around and that is almost shocking to me. Once baby is out, I won't have all that much extra to loose (though, I tend to hold on to everything while nursing so I will have to work myself to get back into shape if I intend to do so). I haven't been having snacks like I planned on doing. I tend to graze when my husband is out of the house but with him home full time now, I find myself only eating at meal times. I still really, really want to do better in that regards as having good energy will be more and more important as that due date sneaks up. I'm thinking some nice cheeses and crackers maybe. My good ol' standby of nuts isn't that appealing so finding their replacement isn't easy. I think I'll blend up some humus as well for the week.

So, I will be back after this wee baby has arrived and will share a post baby belly shot so I see my new starting point as I get back into shape as the Fit Mama to 3.

Wishing all my other Fit Mamas over at Got Chai? a wonderful month of April. I will see you come May!

Wordless Wednesday-Refuge chez Mama Manuscripts

2010-03-24T11:20:00.000-07:00

Math Galaxy

2010-03-24T05:59:00.000-07:00

Product: Word Problem Fun, Whole Number Fun, Math Galaxy Riddles-Whole Numbers (worksheet generator)
Company: Math Galaxy
Price: Worksheet generator 29.95$US, software games 29.95$US, riddle e-book 14.95$US

As part of the TOS Homeschool Crew I had the opportunity to try out several different products from Math Galaxy. This company provides both software (Mac friendly as well as for PC) and computer generated worksheets on a variety of topics from basic addition/subtraction to algebra. We chose to review both the software and worksheet generator on whole numbers and word problems.

The worksheets include problems that your child needs to solve in order to find out the answer to riddles (each answer ends up representing a certain letter in the answer). My son did enjoy this activity to a certain extent because he has just been introduced to the world of jokes and riddles. He didn't mind solving the problems in order to answer the questions but wasn't terribly enthusiastic about this activity, either. This product sells for 29.95$US and can generate 500 worksheets that can be printed and completed by your student. This may be a good option if you have a child that is very much into riddles and jokes and who would be motivated to complete the worksheets to learn the "punch line."

The other program that we reviewed was the Word Problems fun software which also sells for 29.95$US. In this game for 1-4 players, the students solve math problems, complete mazes (in order to "own" that maze, much like monopoly) and race around a virtual game board trying own as many caves as possible in order to collect money from the other players in the game. This game would be especially fun as a multi-player game but can be played alone as well. Students gain robots to complete mazes as they answer the questions correctly. While the math questions were appropriate for my child's comprehension level then mazes were very difficult (even my husband found them hard and he is an avid gamer). Therefore, my son was not motivated to answer the questions in order to play do the mazes. If you have a child that has really good hand-eye coordination then this game might be more appropriate but it just did not work well in my family.

At the 29.95$US price tag, I would not be willing to buy either the worksheet generator or the software CD-Roms. They may be more appropriate in a larger family where they would get used by various students at different levels but that is my the case in my family and my son is just as motivated to complete complete worksheets that I can find for free online to practice his math facts. Math Galaxy offers many free samples on their website so I encourage you to check them out and try some of their programs to see what your child things of them. You can also read more reviews of these programs (along with other math galaxy products) on the TOS Homeschool Crew Blog.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Don't Forget the TOS Homeschool Expo

2010-03-20T05:28:00.000-07:00

There's still time to preregister and get in on the 5 dollar savings that they are offering until March 31st.

For more information check out last week's post here.

I think that this is a wonderful opportunity and I don't want you to miss out on it so I'll likely mention it from time to time in the coming weeks! Mark your calendar for May 12-14 and join me there!

Fit Mama Friday-March 19th

2010-03-19T15:12:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I might be eating a little too much of that Easter chocolate (and before Easter, at that!).....

but I am eating quite a bit of fruit and vegetables and getting a decent amount of protein (can I count the leftover salt beef I've been eating all week?). Water intake has been really good this week and I didn't have any soda until last night....opps.

Exercise has been as good as it gets for almost 36 weeks along. Everything is starting to ache a bit more and loosening right up for labour so I haven't been pushing it too much because with my extra energy this last week or so I fear that I am going to push too far and hurt something. At nearly 40 weeks pregnant with my son I was out walking and twisted my ankle and I don't want the same thing to happen this time around. Thankfully, I went to 42 weeks so I wasn't hobbling around in labour!

No real goals for the next week besides to make it through it. I'll walk a bit and continue to eat well. I'd still like to cut back on the sugar but I'm not sure I can make it happen!

Please join me and check in on my other Fit Mama Friends on Got Chai?!

What we are up to...

2010-03-19T07:00:00.000-07:00
1. Packing up to have a baby and enjoy some time away.

2. Painting the house "wild horses." (pictures to follow soon)

3. Enjoying the spring like weather.....and our first picnic of the season.

4. Filling our freezer with food from Sue Gregg's :Meals in Minutes." (review to follow soon)

5. Trying to get as much school work done as possible while keeping it easy and fun.

6. Fighting over who gets to use the sewing machine (with its newly found foot peddle) to work on their projects for baby.

Decisions, Decisions-Cloth Diapers

2010-03-14T13:40:00.000-07:00
Well, we will most certainly be cloth diapering this little one when he comes earth-side. I've been waiting for it for ages if you recall here, here and here . However, we haven't decided that if the first thing to touch his sweet baby bum with be cloth or if we'll do the disposables for the first couple of days. I actually went out and bought some organic, non dyed/scented disposables but as I was braiding up some umbilical ties.....

I got thinking....

I don't really want icky plastic touching his cord/belly, I'm making up some lovely cloth for myself for post-partum so really does it make sense to put him in a disposable? With Liam we were totally unprepared for meconium. We put him a cute little outfit and then he blew up and there was poo (okay, roofing tar...how come no one told me about that?) EVERYWHERE. Without question we threw diaper, outfit and baby (wait, not baby) in the trash! With Morgaine we were better prepared....disposable and older clothes but she passed meconium before birth and then as soon at she was born so we didn't have to worry about the clean up. We don't have all that many prefolds/inserts and I don't know if I want to sacrifice them to baby's first bowel movement and I am not sure that there is anyways to get that stuff out satisfactorily.

So I'm asking my cloth diapering Mamas, did you use cloth right from the beginning or did your baby experience disposables for a couple days first? If you used cloth did you try to clean them off or did you just toss the works?

(and yes, I'm a Mum, and this isn't likely to be the last post about poo on my blog!)

Baby Belly-35 weeks!!

2010-03-14T12:22:00.000-07:00
WOW!! There really isn't all THAT long to go now!! Things are pretty much the same ol', same ol' over here. If you've been reading my Fit Mama Friday posts you've pretty much gotten your update on the pregnancy! I've been able to see a naturopath a few times and getting some body work done has been wonderful. She's also used some acupuncture and we've looked into homeopathy so I feel very well taken care of! We'll be heading to Bridgewater in a couple weeks, though our chances of having a home birth with the midwives is pretty slim (due to scheduling and risk factors). We've decided to go for it regardless because we think it will be nice just to get away from the house, renovations and all that jazz in the weeks before the birth. We'll be able to focus on the little family!

No complaints from me. Enjoying the last few weeks but looking forward to meeting the little one as well!

Fit Mama Friday-March 12th

2010-03-12T11:19:00.000-08:00

All is well over here in the land of the very pregnant. I've had a couple days of lowish energy but that has been improving each day so for that I am very grateful. Spring has sprung in Cape Breton making it more appealing to get outside with the kids or go for a walk (that doesn't involve going to the library....my husband has been giving us rides there as he thinks it is getting far for me to cart the kids). I feel like activity wise I am doing well and cannot expect much more at this stage in the game. I really want to start dancing around the living room but I can't bring myself to do that at the moment!

Mike has been preparing supper most days for us (I am so blessed) but his choices are usually a bit fattier and certainly saltier than what I would normally make. I'm not going to complain, though, because I get to retreat to my room with a book or take a shower (by myself, IMAGINE!!). I've been trying to balance it out with a fair amount of fruit, veggies, and unsalted nuts in the day. I haven't been gaining much weight at all these days and I am afraid a lecture might be in store the next time I see the doctor. Baby is definitely growing well, though, and I feel healthy. Just lacking in space for a whole bunch of food at a time. I need to be even more conscious about snacking all the time to get enough throughout the day. My goal of drinking water has been going well but I have thrown in the occasional soda.

My goals for next week will be to snack even more through the day on healthy protein foods, continue with the water and try to cut out that soda again. I might even try to sneak in a couple dancing sessions in the living room as well. I always feel like dancing and moving near the end of pregnancy....I can't believe how close we are getting!

Be sure to check in with my other Fit Mama friends over at Got Chai? and leave a word or two of encouragement!

Something BIG over at The Old Schoolhouse!

2010-03-10T01:55:00.000-08:00

If you're looking for homeschool encouragement, resources, and fun, check out all that is going on at The Old Schoolhouse!

Right now March Madness and Win Big are going on in the Schoolhouse Store. During March Madness, over 240 items are 10 to 40 percent off!
Click here to read the details.

Then, if you're customer 139,000, 139,500, or 140,000, you will win over $348 in prizes. Prizes include a 5 year subscription to TOS (U.S.
only), Scripture Sleuth literature series, guitar lessons on CD, and more! Hurry, they are just past customer #137,818.

The BIGGEST news of all--The Schoolhouse Expo is coming in May!
Pre-register now and save $5!

As homeschool teachers what do you need to learn? More about teaching multiple grades? All about different homeschool methods? Transcripts? Could you use some help with reading, language arts, math, and more?
Are you intimidated by the idea of teaching middle school and high school? Would some encouraging words and motivational Scripture help you on your way? Get answers when you attend The Schoolhouse Expo, an 3-day, online conference, presented by The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine and The Old Schoolhouse® Speaker's Bureau.

Pre-register today for only $19.99 through March 31.You do not want to miss this unbelievable, virtual homeschool convention! PLUS, you'll receive over $300 in free gifts when you register.
Get the details and preregister here!!

Okay, I'll bite....10 reasons to enjoy the 3rd trimester!

2010-03-09T11:58:00.000-08:00
My friend, Ilana (co-founder of the amazing Apple Cheeks reusable diaper, BTW) over at A Reusable Diaper Revolution, posted her 10 reasons to enjoy the 3rd trimester and I told her that instead of embracing the 3rd trimester I thought I'd just sulk instead....well, sulking isn't all that much fun so here we go....

My 10 reasons to enjoy the 3rd trimester:

When I sulk, I generally get left alone and no one bugs me to know what's wrong because I'm most obviously "just hormonal".

I can disappear in the middle of the afternoon and lay in bed with my iPod and have my daughter (who has been known to repeatedly come into the room when I am resting to say "hello") actually warn the rest of the family to stay away because "Mommy needs some time alone to rest."

The kids love to talk about what the baby will be like when he is born and also come up with crazy questions and some off the wall comments about the pregnancy as well (Morgaine's latest...we shower together...."oh, Mommy, your nipples are so brown now."......all the better for the baby to see, my dear!

When the baby moves now we can "play." You kick? Okay, I poke.....your turn!!

Finally, my older children are sleeping (mostly) through the night so I am enjoying uninterrupted sleep for the first time in almost 7 years......if he is anything like his sibblings it will be a LONG time before I sleep this well again!

I'll soon get to cover the wee baby's bottom with all the little wool projects I've worked on over the last 8 months.

I almost always feel full so overeating is a thing of the past!

However, if I am craving chocolate (or ice cream) I feel totally fine indulging!

If I ask for help, it's almost always met with a "yes, dear!" Even the children are beginning to see that once Mommy gets down it is hard to get her up so they might as well pick up their own toys/books/rooms/dishes/dirt clothes/crumbs, etc.

There's only a little over 6 weeks (hopefully) before this week baby comes earthside and then all the fun will begin!

Graphics Toolbox-Informational Post

2010-03-08T12:32:00.000-08:00

Product: Graphics-Toolbox
Company: Great Software Tools
Price: $149 US

Over the past month or so, I've been delighted to see some of the graphics my friends over on the TOS Homeschool Crew have made using Graphics-Toolbox by Great Software Tools. When I received an e-mail from Lynda Hollar telling me that I would be reviewing her graphic software program I was thrilled. I have always been interested in graphic design but could never afford to purchase one of the photo-editing/graphic design programs on the market. We were out the door for a weekend away when I received the e-mail and I chattered happily to my husband about being able to review this product for a good part of the car ride (that's how impressed I was with just the initial e-mail). Unfortunately, 3 days later when we arrived home, I realized that I would not be able to use this program with my Mac (you need a Windows operating system). SO DISAPPOINTING!!

I have, however, been able to look at video tutorials and see the progress of other crew members' work and think that this looks like a fun and handy product. I cannot talk about ease of use or compare it to other software because obviously, I haven't been able to try it out myself. I know that many other crew members had a lot of fun with this program so I invite you to visit the TOS Homeschool Crew blog to find out more about what they thought and sometimes even see some of their creative projects!

Graphic Toolbox provides you with a power tool to create your own:

banners and signatures

cartoon characters (or add crazy characters to your own photos!)

personalized cards and letters

scrapbook pages

much more

You can edit all your own photographs and add borders and text, change colours, add textures and shading and more (however, this program is known for it's graphic design functions more than it's photo editing capacities as there are other programs available out there for photo editing and not much in terms of offering graphic design tools to the general public.

If you are overwhelmed with this program, Great Software Tools offer video tutorials and a user manual on their website. It is also possible to register for an hour long one on one training session that you might find useful (it is not cheap, BUT most people get a good overview of the program and are able to complete the project they are thinking of with this training). You can get a good idea of what this program is like by checking out their website so I strongly encourage you to take a look for yourselves! I know that this is a product that I would have loved to get my hands on, even for a limited time!

Fit Mama Friday-March 5th

2010-03-05T12:43:00.000-08:00

Wow, 8 weeks already and most of the girls who started out on Got Chai? are holding strong and sticking in there with weekly updates (even when they aren't doing so well). I love that I can post here and get encouragement and am hoping that some of my other Fit (and want to be Fit) Mama's will join in the fun as well.

This week has been going alright. There's been some stress but I am glad to say that I haven't succumbed to emotional eating (I've been doing well with just 1 or 2 mini chocolate eggs that I bought a day...I mean, a pregnant lady needs a little bit of chocolate). Eating has been a bit of struggle, healthy or otherwise. At only 33 and a bit weeks I am feeling really ready for labour and my body seems to be ready too, only allowing me to eat a little at a time. Most foods are getting unappealing so finding things that work has been difficult. It feels so early to be feeling that way so I am hoping that my appetite improves soon!

Exercise has been alright this week. Of course, most of it has been from our treks to the library (I've walked so much that I broke the heel off my shoe on my last excursion out *lol*) but I did do a little painting this week and I am hoping that knitting will be an Olympic sport one day. My fingers have certainly been getting a workout!

Next week my goal is to find a couple of appealing healthy foods and again to drink more water.

Be sure to check in to Got Chai? and lend your support to the other Mamas on this challenge (and join in if you haven't already!!).

Homeschool Library Builder

2010-03-05T05:58:00.000-08:00

Company: Homeschool Library Builder
Price: Membership Free

I love books! I love using my library! However, there are times when I find books that I just want to hold in my hands and keep forever and that is where Homeschool Library Builder comes in. This company is opperated by a couple of homeschool families that love books (and great deals) as much as I do! Homeschool Library Builder offers a huge array of books (much in Christian content) at a fraction of the cost (I've seen several at 95% off the cover cost) you'd find elsewhere. There is a wide variety of living books available on this website. You can find fiction and non-fiction books, anthologies, reference books, picture books and much more. There no shortage of titles with new books being added frequently. These new and gently used books are a great deal for family that love to read and love having a variety of books on hand. In addition to already great low prices, Homeschool Library Builder often runs other promotions so you get deals on top of great deals! Who could ask for more!

It is definitely worth checking out and getting your own free membership. There is nothing to loose. I know that I will be checking back when I have a little money that would love to be spent on books!

It's About Time.....

2010-03-04T11:25:00.000-08:00
the kids have been waiting for this moment since November!

Belly Picture-33 1/2 weeks

2010-03-03T10:01:00.000-08:00
Well, we are slowly getting there folks. I'm feeling a little more balanced than I was a couple of weeks ago so that is good. I am beginning to feel ready to meet this little baby, though. It's the first pregnancy where I've felt really done this early. Maybe a sign that the baby won't hang in there too long past its due date, but probably not! My babies like to bake a little longer! Now that we are in March the time seems like it is getting close. I can buy eggs now that are good until my due date *lol*. I have everything all set up for the birth (besides wanting to stitch up some receiving blankets on my non-functional sewing machine!) so we are good to go. I'm enjoying knitting in the evenings (little things for baby and for Morgaine's teddies, and a special blanket for my big boy, Liam). I'm hoping to take things mostly slowly and quietly over the next month and a bit and enjoy these last weeks of a Mom of two. With spring coming, Mike will be around a bit more in the days now so I'll have a little less to do so we can focus more on fun school and just hanging out. I need to pull out my camera a bit more and actually capture some pictures of them!

The baby belly seems to be our main subject these days so without further ado, here I am at 33 1/2 weeks!

The Things She Says

2010-03-01T03:01:00.000-08:00
Despite being occasionally mortified by my daughter's outspoken personality, for the most part I have to laugh at some of the things that she says.

~~~~~~~~

I'm trying to use up some left over wool by making a very multicolour blanket.

Me (when asked what I was doing): "Oh, I'm just fooling around with the wool making a blanket to get rid of the scraps."

A few days later, sitting in the car waiting for Mike, knitting.

Morgaine: "Hey, Mom, are you still fooling around?"

Same afternoon, walking through the store past the knitting section.

Morgaine (at the top of her lungs): MOM, I LOVE IT WHEN YOU FOOL AROUND!!

~~~~~~~~~

Driving down the road.

Morgaine, out of the blue in a small voice: Mom, the people told me they love my nipples.

Me: Your nipples? Who told you that?

Morgaine: They told me they liked my nipples.

Me (feeling rather concerned and racking my brain trying to think when anyone would ever get the occasion to see her nipples): Morgaine, when did anyone see your nipples?

Morgaine: They did see them.

Me: But who, Morgaine?

Morgaine: The people at Tim Hortons. They looked at me and told me they love my nipples. They made me come show them.

A few days earlier we'd been at the coffee shop where an elderly couple loved Morgaine's DIMPLES and asked her to come over and show her smile to their friend.

~~~~~~~~~~~

At a friend's house, squash left in a pile on the side of her plate.

Me: Morgaine, are you going to eat your squash?

Morgaine: My squash is just too squashy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Fit Mama Friday-February 26th

2010-02-26T12:24:00.000-08:00

Hello there, fellow Fit Mamas!!

I am happy to say that this week was MUCH better than the previous week. I do want to clarify, though, that when I was complaining about my diet last week it was purely from a nutritional perspective because I got several messages telling me not to worry about the calorie content of the food I was eating and to enjoy. Honestly, I likely was NOT getting ENOUGH calories and the ones I was getting were unhealthy so that is where my concern lay. I usually eat pretty healthfully so the indulgence in junk without much of anything healthy to balance things out was my concern. I have no worries in terms of calories in the least, my goal is to eat eat HEALTHY and get some exercise and I have no concerns about weight in the least.

So, as I was saying, this week was better than the last. There was a 20% off sale on fresh produce at our grocery store last week so I managed to get a lot of fruit and vegetables. I ate a whole wheat pita/tortilla (or two) every lunch hour stuff with salad, cheese, roasted vegetables, meat (sometimes), and my spicy sour cream. I had fruit for breakfast each day and nuts to snack on throughout the day. There was also lots of veggies left for supper time as well. I did not indulge a lot in extras, though, I have been enjoying a chocolate or two from the box Mike brought home for us on Wednesday. Yummy. We've already purchased our groceries for the week so I'll likely do something similar next week with a nice soup or two thrown in as well. I would like to get back to drinking just a tad more water a day, too, so that's something I'll need to keep in mind. I think I'll fill up some jars and put them in the fridge so I see them when I open the door up.

I also did pretty well in the exercise department this week. We spent a fair amount of time at the library this week so I walked there and back frequently and we took the kids out to the park this afternoon. I feel pretty good with the amount of exercise I am doing. I'd like to do a bit more but baby is making it more uncomfortable. He was transverse (sideways) for the better part of the week, lessening my aches and pains and giving me some room to breathe but he is flipped again (HOORAY!!!!) now making things a little bit harder. I'll try to get in one walk this week by myself to just enjoy a little bit of quiet as that can sometimes be quite refreshing.

I'm wishing all my other Mama friends a wonderful and healthy week!! To see how they are all doing be sure to check out Got Chai?

Beehive Reader 1

2010-02-25T01:21:00.000-08:00
Product: Beehive Reader 1
Company: All About Spelling
Price: $19.95US

Earlier this school year, I had the opportunity to review All About Spelling (see my review). In January, I was delighted to come home from a family vacation to find a beautiful hard-covered book waiting in my mail box from All About Spelling. Their new Beehive Reader 1 was created to compliment the first level of the company's spelling program but is a lovely addition to any reading/phonics/spelling program. This isn't your typical reader with babyish and disjointed stories (Cat has a hat. Cat on a mat. Hat on a mat........zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.........boring). The dedication of this book reads:

To the reader-may you find yourself among friends.

That is exactly what happened when my children opened this book. My son, Liam, is reading MUCH above the reading level of this book but he really enjoyed the 10 stories included in the book and delighted in reading them over and over again to his little sister. Little sister, Morgaine, fell asleep night after night with the book in her bed because she loved looking at the beautiful artwork that makes this reader extra special. I am convinced that this will be a book that will be treasured in our house for years to come!

I think that the exceptional pencil drawn images and the fact that the book just seems so much more special being in durable hardcover makes this book worth the $19.95US price tag. The stories are captivating and the characters easy to relate to. It's just a really fun book to read. Yes, it is more expensive than some early readers out there but when you factor in quality and the fact that the book contains 10 stories then it really is a reasonable price if other readers you have tried are causing you to doze off!! Either with or without the complete All About Spelling program this book is delightful. Be sure to check out the sample pages of this book. I think you will be impressed!

2010-02-24T01:37:00.000-08:00
As we haven't kept up with Liam's Blog I've decided to let Liam "guest" blog on my website. He still loves lego and wanted to tell you about his creations! I oversaw his spelling when he was writing too quickly but didn't really have him fix a lot so you could see how his spelling is improving (funny, how he can spell the bigger words no problem but has trouble with some smaller words). Enjoy!

~~~~~~~

Hi, I am Liam. I've got lots of legos and lots of creations too.

My sisters name is Morgaine and shes waring her blue dress.

Some of my creations are a town, a speed car, a skiing flying car, even a realy funny thing I have no idea what to call, a plane that only fits 2 pepole (with 2 or 3 k'nex peices), a floting truck with 4 homing missiles.

I hope you like the picthures.

What is that, Stuff.....Well....

2010-02-22T13:36:00.000-08:00

A lot of you mentioned that it was some kind of yeasty substance and well, yes, it is but it is so much more than that! It's a pregnant women's dream come true! 5 minute bread that you don't even have to knead! Take some water and add a little salt, sugar and yeast. Stir in flour until the mixture gets somewhat stiff and that's about it. Let it rise for a couple hours and then you can store it in your fridge for a couple weeks (or use immediately) and then just saw off a hunk of it whenever you have a craving for homemade bread. Flour the dough lightly and toss it in the oven and that's it (it's a tad wet, okay sometimes quite wet, and a different texture then what you'd be used to from traditional bread but it cooks up just as nicely). If you are feeling creative them you can indeed add whatever you would like to the mix as well and make all sorts of shapes of loaves (I do knead the bread a small (really small) bit to incorporate whatever I want to add just before I toss it in the oven). So simple and such a relief as a couple weeks ago I was thinking I might have to give up homemade bread because working to knead the bread was making me feel light headed and short of breath!

Here are this week's creations...

Focaccia, cinnamon buns, maple flax breakfast bread and a loaf of white bread all from that goop in a big ol' pot!

Even More Math-A Math Mammoth Review

2010-02-22T02:16:00.000-08:00

Product: Math Mammoth Light Blue Series Grade 2 Complete Curriculum (249 lesson pages)
Company: Math Mammoth
Price: $29.70US (various other programs available)

Last year, my two brave little cavemen captured a woolly mammoth not knowing that mammoths had anything to do with math. Well, I just have to say that we've been introduced to Mammoth Math and while the mammoth's involvement is still a mystery we could not be happier with the program. As part of the TOS Homeschool Crew we were able to choose pretty much anything from the Math Mammoth website to review and with Liam's help we decided on the complete grade two curriculum (we could have received worksheets with, or without, explainations, on a specific topic instead). This workbook is broken down into chapters and covers a variety of topics:

Addition and subtraction with carrying and borrowing

Time

Money

Fractions

Geometry

Place Value

Multiplication and more

Each unit/section starts with a clear explanation and examples and then is followed by questions for your student to answer. Each section ends with a review so that you can gauge what your child has learned and be certain that he has retained the information that was taught earlier in the unit. I was surprised to see how much Liam enjoyed this method of instruction and how little involvement I had to have. Besides the occasional time I had to pull out a manipulative from our current math program or rephrase a question, Liam was able to work through the questions on his own. It was fun to just sit nearby and listen to him make the connections with a little help from the explanations. The only drawback I found was that there wasn't always a lot of room for Liam to write his answers on the worksheets so a few pages looked a little sloppy and crowded. It did force Liam to start writing a little smaller and that has also translated into him writing smaller in other subjects as well. For $29.70US for enough worksheets to keep Liam busy for a whole grade level (though unlikely a full year) we will be purchasing the next grade level for Liam when he has completed the one that he is working on.

In addition to selling complete curriculum by grade level (the light blue series) Math Mammoth also sells the:

Blue Series (worksheets focused on one topic WITH explanations) for grades 1-5

Gold Series (worksheets by grade level WITHOUT explanations) for grades 3-8

Green (worksheets by topic WITHOUT explanations) for grades 3-7

Prices vary between series, topics and grade level but all seem (to me) to be well worth the price (you can find some subjects for as little as $3.35US). You can order the PDF files and receive the worksheets immediately to print at home or for an additional price order the printed copy through Lulu (linked on the Math Mammoth website). In addition, you can sign up for Math Mammoth virtual e-mail course Math Teaching E-mails and receive:

280 free worksheets and sample page;

7 math teaching articles ;

2 emails discussing the books;

Homeschool Math newsletter

I suggest that you take a peak at the Math Mammoth website and sign up for the teaching e-mails and also read what other Crew Members have to say about the product (a wide variety of products were reviewed this year).

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Fit Mama Friday-February 19

2010-02-19T09:02:00.000-08:00

No, I haven't given up (though, I might as well have!). My computer died so I was out of blogging action for a while and missed two check ins.

There's not a lot to report on the fitness front here. The only exercise I've been getting is house cleaning (our furnace exploded...so there was plenty of soot to wipe off walls), vacuuming (5 cats remember) and painting. I guess you could say I am getting ready for baby. I would, however, have preferred to have spent more time walking (we are having beautiful spring like weather) but I could be bothered to dress the kids to take them out and by the time Mike gets home it is the kid's bedtime and then we've been sitting down in front of the Olympics for the rest of the evening (you think that might inspire me). I hear birds outside my window at the moment and Mike might get home at a decent hour today so perhaps I'll leave him with the kids this evening for a bit.

If things can get worst than my lack of exercise then diet has. I've been hit with third trimester sickness and the ONLY thing that appeals to me at all is store bought breaded chicken fillets (at least they are white meat). Not only have I been eating those (the kids and I have gone through a 1.5kg box this week) but I've been smothering them in a spicy salsa sour cream (I throw my salsa spices into sour cream). Yep, caloric....yep, not much nutrition. I've tried salad, I really have, but even the thought of greens has made me rather, well, green. I had a lovely meal prepared for me by my husband last night of asparagus, mushrooms and steak and it was divine and didn't threaten to cause problems so maybe the cure is to have HIM cook for ME! The only good thing I can say about anything this week is that I am consistently drinking water both in the day and at night.

My goal for this week is a lot of fresh produce (I'm thinking fruit might be nice). There's a 20% off sale at our grocery store on all fresh produce so I plan to stock up. Continue drinking the water. Find a healthier substitute for the breaded chicken....EWWW (what else can I smoother in sour cream? I don't think I can give up the spicy sour cream) and to take advantage of the spring like weather.

Be sure to check in with the other Fit Mama's out there on Got Chai?

Hoping for (no, I WILL have) a better week next week!

The Blog Frog-Trying Something New

2010-02-19T04:38:00.000-08:00

Because I don't have near enough to do, I've decided that I would try out another social networking tool. Unfortunately with Wordpress (my blog host) I cannot use Blog Frog to it's full capacity BUT I would still like to grow somewhat of an active community for my blog on their website. In summary, Blog Frog allows members to create a forum for their blog where you can go and chat about what you've read (or basically anything at all...ideally having something to do with the blog). Basically, it's a message board and I've set one up for Mama Manuscripts to see if I can get more readers onto my website.

I invited you to check it out here. I welcome pretty much anything as discussion. My website focuses mostly on homeschooling and parenting. I'd love to hear your views on different curriculum. I have quite a few members who have reviewed homeschooling products so if you have any questions, ask away. I'm very interested in pregnancy, breastfeeding, post-partum care, herbs, homeopathy (natural healing), healthy living, living green and frugally so those are topics I'm always open to discuss. I love to cook so recipes are always fun, too (and I might share some on my blog).

Feel free to check it out and start a topic of your own!

What is that stuff?

2010-02-18T06:23:00.000-08:00

When Mommy is Reviewing.....

2010-02-18T05:51:00.000-08:00
my house goes to shambles.

This is after we picked up half of the wooden blocks!

We must have a new delivery person. We NEVER get flyers and Morgaine was impressed!

Yes, I'm attempting to post more than just reviews.....the theme this week? My messy house!!

The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling

2010-02-17T08:23:00.000-08:00
Product: The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling by Debra Bell
Company: Apologia Press
Price: $20.00US

Anyone who has been a Christian homeschooler for any amount of time has likely heard of Apologia Educational Ministries Inc. because they are well known for their creation based science curriculum. Not knowing what we were going to do for science this year, I decided to hold out on science altogether when I noticed that Apologia was on our review list for the TOS Homeschool Crew. Imagine my shock when I received The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling by Debra Bell instead of a science textbook! I'll admit that not only was I shocked but I was a little bit distressed! What was I going to do for science now?

After scrambling around to come up with an alternate resource for science, I settled down with The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling. This 500+ page book has a wealth of information to share with new and even veteran homeschoolers. There are parts covering everything from deciding whether homeschooling is right for you and selecting a curriculum to working with reluctant students and dealing with/avoiding burn out. There are new sections dealing with older students and how to use computers in your homeschool. What to teach, when to teach it and how to measure progress is another topic covered in depth in this book. Written from a Christian perspective in an easy conversational tone this book is actually a much quicker read than it appears to be. In the fashion on the "...For Dummies" books, the Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling has icons that alert you to important information and resources such as:

Suggested Reading

Websites

From the Bell Files (personal stories from the author)

Voices of Experience (stories from other homeschoolers)

Buying and Resource Information

The parts, chapters and sections are organized in a logical manner and the icons make it especially easy to find what you are looking for. There is a wealth of information in this book and the many numerous resources pointed out in this book make the $20US almost worth it.

I did, however, find that this book was lacking. If you homeschool using the same method as she does, and share the same values and beliefs then this is the perfect book, however, if not then you may be better looking elsewhere. Written from a Christian perspective, I believe that many secular homeschoolers would benefit from choosing a different guide book. There was a lot of mention of putting fate in God in helping you make decisions and well, if that isn't your cup of tea then this book and actually be off putting. I was hoping to see more information on different homeschooling styles (Waldorf, Montessori, Classical/Charlotte Mason/Unschooling) but was disappointed to see that the author stuck to her type of homeschooling and didn't go through the trouble of speaking about other styles. I was also put off a little but the amount of emphasis that was put on homeschooling co-ops and being involved with other homeschoolers through lessons outside of the home and other events. At one point, I even got to the point of questioning my ability to successfully homeschool my children in an area of Canada where there are literally 5 homeschooling families all spread in different directions from each other. Not too many opportunities for a homeschooling community here! Reading about the accomplishments of the author's children (they've done incredibly well for themselves and for the world) was also somewhat depressing because while I strive to have children that are as successful as hers sometimes the resources just aren't available to me or I question my abilities when I hear such incredible success stories (ah, yes, I struggle sometimes to see the light at the end of the tunnel when we are going through a particularly trying period in our homeschool!).

While there was a wealth of information in this book and I would recommend buying it, if only for the lists of resources peppered throughout the book (and the 61 pages of various resources listed at the end of the book), I think that you have to take what you can from the information and be able to leave the rest behind. As mentioned, there were certain aspects that did bother me but for the most part, after talking to my online homeschooling community (thank you TOS!), I was able to see that I was doing to best I can for my family and there are many, MANY families out there that are unable, or do not feel the need to, take advantage of some of the things that this author credits her homeschooling success to. Overall, a good resource book with some really interesting sections that make it well worth the $20US price tag.

To see what other Crew members think of this book be sure to check out the Crew Blog.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Sweet Liam's Birth Story

2010-02-17T03:05:00.000-08:00
Well, I posted Morgaine's birth story and said that I would post Liam's as well but then the computer died. It's a little late coming but here is Liam's birthing center birth story (I cannot believe that this wee boy is going on SEVEN!!)
~~~~~~~

I'd gone into the birthing center that morning to have a herbal
induction as I was 41 weeks 5 days and the birthing center could not
have me as a client past 42 weeks and there was no way I was going
to have a hospital birth. I chose the lovely pink room though I knew
I was having a precious baby boy and I started taking the required
herbs to get things going. Unfortunately things didn't really get
going and I was about ready to head for home at noon. The midwifery
student who I'd been close to during my pregnancy asked me to stay
for lunch then recommended that I lay down and have a rest and she'd
drive me home after her 1 o'clock meeting. I decided that sounded
like a plan as the bus ride home didn't appeal too much to me being
HUGE and very VERY pregnant.

I went to lay down in my bed and POP, SPLASH my waters opened (like
REALLY opened) and I knew the fun was about to begin!! I waddled out
to the kitchen with a towel between my legs and found the first
person I could (hoping and praying she was a midwife, or an aide
natale NOT some other clients family member). "Um, I think my waters
have broken," (there's was no mistaking it) "could you maybe, umm,
get my midwife?" So out of their meeting come my midwives to
announce that indeed by waters had opened and to compliment of the
HUGE amount of waters I had. I was slightly mortified, but only
slightly. Mike had brought my "hospital...umm, birth center" bag to
work with him that morning so I waddled around my bedroom semi
(mostly, actually) nude while the aide natale washed and dried my
clothes. It was a nice chill time. I read some mother magazine. Did
some needle point.

At about 3:30 I decided that I should call Mike and let him know
that we'd indeed be having a baby in the forseable future. He said
he'd finish up and be on his way. I don't remember what I did
between that time and the time he showed up (which was like 7ish)
bearing gifts (well, McDonald sundaes...which I couldn't bring
myself to eat even a couple days AFTER Liam was born). I imagine I
chatting with the midwives and undoubtly did MORE needle point.

So yeah, I decided that I wanted a green salad for supper (which the
aide natal promptly whipped up for me to take one look at it and
decide I didn't want it). This brings us to nearing 8pm and the
park. Mike and I decided to get one last walk as a couple sans
children and we spend quite a bit of time befriending a stray cat
that looked to be living behind the birthing center). Then we went
to the park and swung, and swung and swung. By this point I was
beginning to get little contractions but nothing too alarming.
Nothing near the preterm contractions I'd gotten thoughout the
pregnancy. However, knowing that the real deal was emminent we
decided to hear back to the birthing center.

10 pm found me pacing back and forth, back and forth in the kitchen
and prowling around the dining room (probably making the midwives
very nervous *lol*). I finally walked up to Sinclair and said, "Can
I have a hug? I don't know what's wrong with me, but can I have a
hug?" She took me in her arms and said, "There is nothing wrong with
you. You are just like a Mama cat looking for a place to have her
kittens." With that I proudly went to announce to Mike (who was
trying to rest) that I was "just like a Mama cat." I tried to lay
down with him but that wasn't so relaxing. I bounced around on the
birthing ball with him talking to me and then tried to rest some
more. Around midnight Sinclair came in to tell me she was off (off
to England to see her father who was turning I think 80...she had an
early flight but wanted to stay with me as long as possible as my
main midwife was out of town as well and I was going to be with a
midwife I hadn't really met). They checked me at the point and I was
at something quite rediculous like 2cm (which is what I was at at
like 28-30 weeks).

They left us alone again and I bounced around on the ball some more
and tried to sleep in between (yeah, right). At 3am, I'd had enough
and really wanted a female presence so Mike ran to fetch the student
midwife. She made us a lovely cup of Chamomille tea and pour me a
bath and lit some candles. We all went into the none to big
bathroom. I was feeling somewhat watched so Mike shooed her away
again (poor woman). I didn't spent a lot of time in the water as I
was having a lot of back pain and I couldn't get into a position
that was more comfortable.

By 3ish I was feeling quite nauseous and the midwife came in to give
me some Nux Vomica (because seriously my only fear about birth was
that I was going to puke, SERIOUSLY *lol*). At about that point I
started bearing down at the end of the contractions and my midwife
asked "Are you pushing?" and I was was was like "No"----bearing down-
-- "I'm not pushing" and she was like "You are soooooooo pushing".
So I was checked and found to be 8-9ish.

Unfortunately I stayed at 8-9ish for a loooooooooooong time (the
whole time having urge and involuntarly pushing). The sun came up,
the birds started singing, the center started coming to life but
still I didn't progress. Finally at 9am the midwife decided that she
was going to hold back that little lip of cervix while I pushed that
baby on past it (it was nearing the time where they "have to" worry
about getting the baby out as my waters had been open near 24 hours.
This was torture, it was painful and totally unpleasant and I don't
recommend any of you to EVER have this done. Then to make matters
worst after they finish and I was laying flat on my back with both
my legs held waaay back they yelled at me to push. I completely
COMPLETELY flipped out!! Mike shooed every from the room VERY
quickly. I jumped up and started pacing around like a mad women
(what the h*** were they trying to make me do?). I found a nice
comfy stop on the toilet where I pushed ever so slowly for the next
two hours. The student midwife (who I love love LOVE) was awesome.
She was very encouraging. When it was near the end the other
midwives came into the room as well and I moved out of my bathroom
and sat on a birthing stool. 30 minutes later out popped a beautiful
and healthy 8 pound 2 ounces baby boy.

Unfortunately, I bleed and the right after his birth is a bit of
blurred still (though it wasn't a severe hemmorhage like it was in
Morgaine's instance). It was really traumatic for me and I felt a
little battle weary after. Nice thing though was by 2pm I was
sitting up eating meat lasagna (yes, dying for meat and I was soooo
on a very limited meat diet at that time). We all cuddled down in
bed together until 7pm when we then started making the calls to let
the world know about our newest (okay, new arrival..as he was our
first).

The new family almost 7 years ago....home from the birthing center and introducing Liam to the family.

Liam today....loving his little sister.

Presidential Penmanship-HWOT Style

2010-02-16T09:27:00.000-08:00
Product: Presidential Penmanship-HWOT style complete program
Company: Zeezok Publishing
Price: $39.99US for complete program (primary to highschool) or $9.99US/grade

As a Canadian, I was surprised to receive Presidential Penmanship (Handwritting Without Tears style) from Zeezok publications to review as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew. I groaned at the thought of my son having to copy quotes from speeches that are not relevant to him as a Canadian. Thankfully, the earlier grade levels of this program contain mostly uplifting or thought provoking quotes from various American presidents which focus mainly on character traits and leadership. As you progress through the levels there gets to be more and more quotations from speeches and the Declaration of Independence but that is not until several years into the program. It is important to note that this is not a penmanship program in that it does not teach penmanship but rather gives children material to copy in a specific style (there are 6 different styles available).

While I had been planning to start Liam on cursive writing this year, I decided to keep him working on his printing with this program. I am not a fan of the Handwriting Without Tears cursive style (it just looks so different to me) and without the proper instruction on how to use Handwriting Without Tears I felt it in Liam's best interest to stick to printing. I choose to print out the quotes that I felt most appropriate for Liam (from the grades 1 and 2 level) and he worked on those and then we discussed the quotes a little when he was finished. It led to some thought provoking discussions and for that I am grateful. One improvement in the actual copy work that I think could be made would be for the company to use a more traditional trace over the dots to practice the letters as opposed to writing inside an outline of the letters. Despite repeated instruction, Liam still felt inclined to colour in the outline instead of making one smooth line in the outline. After several lessons he finally did get it but I am sure that many students do the same thing that he did and that could be avoided with the more typical method of instruction.

As a Canadian, I would not be interesting in purchasing this product. I am not a huge fan of copy work and if my son is going to have to copy material I would rather it be something of my choosing that is also relevant to what we are studying. I'd rather purchase a complete penmanship program with instruction if I were to find my children struggling to print/write. I can see that this would be a nice addition to a study on the presidents or American history so I would be more inclined to purchase this product if that was an area that we would be studying. It is nice that you can purchase the complete product as either an e-book or on CD for $39.99US allowing you to print whatever pages you'd like as many times as you would like to (especially a plus for a large family with children at various levels). You can also choose to purchase one level at at time as an e-book for $9.99US which would be great if you wanted to test this product out before committing to it. You can also choose from 6 different styles of writing which you can view on their site here.

While this program would not work well for my family I encourage you to read some reviews from other members of the TOS Homeschool Crew here if this product interests you.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Ray's Arithmetic

2010-02-16T06:08:00.000-08:00

Product: Ray's Arithmetic Complete K-12 curriculum
Company: Dollar Homeschool
Price: $59US

If you've ever wanted to go back in time and see what was taught over 100 years ago in a one room school room then Ray's Arithmetic may be the program for you. I received this complete curriculum from Dollar Homeschool to review as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew and I have to say that I was impressed. Despite being written well over 100 years ago these textbooks felt warm and familiar to me (though I would have LOVED to have them in print, Dollar Homeschool offers the program on CD so I couldn't quite snuggle up with the computer).

Ray's Arithmetic was used for over 50 years in pioneer schoolhouses all over America and millions and millions of students have been taught using this method. Does this make it a good program? Well, for the most part it aligned with my view of math in that the youngest of students are taught to recognize numbers by sight and not to count on their fingers to solve problems. The abacus and other manipulatives are used heavily in the first year (with absolutely NO written work for the first year). As the child progresses through the program, it changes so that the teacher can assign pages of the text for the students to work on individually while she works along with the younger students making it ideal for a school setting with numerous children of different ages. Math doesn't change much over the years so it is just a valid today as it was over a century ago. As you progress into algebra/calculus some solutions get long winded and better methods for solving these equations have come to light since the text was written but for the most part this text is just as good today as it was when it was first being used. At a price of $59US even if you just use the product for elementary school then you have well spent your money.

While we did not, and likely will not, be using this program in our homeschool I do think it is a valuable resource if you want to teach your children from classic texts. I cannot think of a better price for a complete math curriculum out there anywhere. I very much enjoyed reading the Manual of Methods and A Manual of Arithmetic as it emphasized to me that the way that I naturally teach my children math is actually a proven method of arithmetic instruction. I will likely use some of the worksheets for my children as they continue along in their study of math. For $59US you get 38 .pdf files including complete textbooks covering a wide variety of topics, answer keys and two manuals on how to teach the program to your students. The manuals are invaluable and the texts are clear so that once your children are on the road to independent studies then they should be able to complete most of their math work on their own. For the price, all this is really an exceptional deal that I encourage you to look into on the Dollar Homeschool website.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

I Most Certainly Did NOT Just Post This.

2010-02-15T04:20:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

My husband is an oil burner mechanic. He is highly dedicated to his craft. He is so dedicated that when our furnace started blowing black soot onto into our living areas last week he went down into our scary crawl space of a basement at midnight to fix the problem.

I, on the other hand, am not as dedicated to my craft as a housewife.

I most certainly did not leave the soot on my walls for a week and draw cheesy hearts in it on the bathroom wall. No, not I.

I most certainly did not also draw hearts on the living room wall and the top of the shower stall as well. No, not I?

I most certainly did not start cleaning the wall in Liam's bed room, look at it and get totally discouraged and decide to take a picture of the mess instead. No, not I?

I am most certainly not dreading having to actually get my act together to get the walls cleaned down today. No, not I.

Oh, yes, I most certainly did not let my kids leave the house looking like someone from Oliver Twist. No, not I.

I as a perfect housewife took care of it immediately while my husband was fixing the furnace so my family could have a nice clean home, right?

31 Week Belly

2010-02-15T02:03:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I posted a belly update. Here I am at 31 weeks! Unfortunately, I'm feeling rather done with this pregnancy with still quite a ways to go. February isn't the best month in the world and I'm struggling some with my emotions in relation to having another baby as we've been dealing with some serious attitude from BOTH of our children these days and my patience is so thin that I am sure I am not helping matters much (my daughter is throwing a major fit behind me as I type). Mike is tired and I am tired and the kids are tired and the tension in our house is thick at the moment and honestly when I think about throwing a third child into the fray I want to run screaming to the hills!! I am POSITIVE that this will pass given a little bit of time (and some sunshine and warmth) but currently that is where I am at at the moment.

Wee baby, on the other hand is doing wonderfully well. He is active and already in a favorable birthing position (and has been there for a couple weeks already). My blood pressure this week was significantly lower than it is has been since the start of the pregnancy (where it was on the higher side....especially for me). My blood sugar levels came back excellent (I refused GTT but did a fasting glucose level). My hemoglobin is actually on the high side. Not high enough to be a cause for concern but I will be stopping my supplements as my body seems to know what it is doing this time around. The baby hates the doppler at the doctor's office and goes into erratic uncontrolled constant movement for the rest of the day after the doctor checks in on him. I've never felt anything like it and it is really rather freaky. Besides that day, he sleeps well during the day and is VERY active after the kids go to bed (so they are always keeping me busy!! *lol*)

Still looking forward to the cottage.....44 days to go!!

Math Tutor DVD

2010-02-13T14:32:00.000-08:00
I have heard wonderful things about Math Tutor DVD over the years so I was happy to hear that we would be reviewing some of their material this year on the TOS Homeschool Crew. I was sent their Basic Math Word Problems DVD and their new Young Minds Numbers and Counting DVD. The children were excited that they each got a DVD that was geared towards their abilities so there was a bit of a fight over who would get to use the DVD player first!

Young Minds: Numbers and Counting

In the end, both children agreed to watch the Young Minds: Numbers and Counting DVD first. While both children have progressed beyond counting to 10 and recognizing numbers they enjoyed this DVD. Set to classical music (Bach, Beethoven, Mozart and more) this DVD teaches counting and number recognition from 1 to 10 as well as animals, machines, fruits and vegetable names, colours and more. Geared towards the youngest of students I can see this DVD being used in households with 2, 3, and 4 year olds mostly. The video quality and bright pictures captured my children's attention and the music held it despite the fact that they were already familiar with the material. My son even asked to watch certain sections again because he loved the music that was playing in the background. If you are not opposed to using DVD material with the youngest children in the family then I would recommend this DVD which sells for $19.99US. This will likely be a DVD that I will pop into my player when the the wee one in my belly reaches the age when I feel a little half hour of TV from time to time is alright (it's better material then I'd find on TV for him!).

Basic Math Word Problem DVD

The next day, Liam was able to take a peak at the Basic Math Word Problem DVD. This 8 hour CD is guaranteed to increase your students grades in math by teaching them how to understand and break down math word problems. Liam watched the first two sections of this DVD and was a little bit appalled to see that the teacher was using drawings and counting on his fingers to add simple math facts. He was yelling out the answers to the questions long before the teacher explained and solved them. The math program that we use (and his Mama) discourage counting on fingers (or counting in general) so he was surprised by this teacher. As a parent, I did like how the teacher pointed out certain keywords in math word problems that help the student understand what is being asked in the question. The teacher broke the questions down in easily digestible sections and made the material easy to understand. The DVD covers word problems involving whole numbers, decimals, fractions, percent and ratios/proportion and each section gets progressively harder. This DVD can be purchased for $26.99US on their website and I would recommend it for those students that have a hard time grasping what is being asked in word problems.

It is worth mentioning that Math Tutor DVD sells products that will help your children from elementary school right up into college with such topics as basic math, algebra, advanced calculus, physics and more. I have heard wonderful success stories from families that have used these DVDs with older children and because of that (and their relatively affordable price) I would not hesitate to purchase these DVDs for my children in areas where either they (or I, as the teacher) feel like they could use extra help beyond what I can teach. No matter the age of your child, be sure to check out the Math Tutor website and see what they might have to offer your math student. Whether homeschooled or schooled in a more traditional setting, I believe these DVDs would be beneficial to many students that are struggling).

To find out what other Crew members think be sure the visit the TOS Homeschool Crew website here.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Kinderbach-An Online Introduction to Music for Your Little Ones

2010-02-13T08:52:00.000-08:00

Program: Kinderbach-Online Lessons
Price: $19.99US/month or $95.88US/year

For the past year Liam has been asking me if he could take piano lessons but for financial reasons I have always been forced to tell him no, despite believing that music is an important part of a child's education. I was very happy to be chosen this year to review Kinderbach-an online introduction to the keyboard for 3-7 year olds as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew. Using creative characters, engaging videos and a passionate teacher this online program actually teaches your young ones to read notes, learn intervals and rhythm and actually play simple songs.

My children, 4 and 6, really enjoyed using this program. The teacher is very enthusiastic and the kids were captivated by her energy (I wish I has some of her enthusiasm for some of the other subjects that I am teaching the children!). They enjoyed trying to sing along to the little songs and banging on their rhythm instruments. There was a fair amount of "busy work" in this program and while I did not like having to print out copies of worksheets for the kids (when they could easily call out the answers without wasting paper) the kids enjoyed these extra colouring activities as well.

While I think that this program is worth it for the youngest of students as a basic introduction to music, I would hesitate to buy this for a student that is very eager to play piano. My son is very interested in classical piano and this program, while fun, does not prepare a student for continuing further along in their musical career. There is no real emphasis on proper fingering or sitting at the piano correctly. It takes quite a while before the children are introduced to the simplest of songs and after a while my son, while enjoying the program, started asking when he would actually learn how to play the piano. I also found that while the sing-a-long songs were fun, they were often quite fast or the characters had a voice that was not easy to understand so the children often ended up stumbling over words or asking me what the character was saying.

For the price, I would happily pay for this program if I was looking for a program to see if my children have a real interest in piano or if it is just a passing phase. I think, however, that it is best suited for the preschool age group, even though my son did enjoy using the program because it was "fun" school. You can test out the first two lessons for free on their website or for $5.95 you can purchase a day pass to view the entire site to decide if this program might would for you and your family. DVDs and workbooks are also available on their website for those people that wish to use that format instead of the online membership. This is especially beneficial for families using dial-up internet or those that have many children that will use the program over and over through the years.

I encourage you to check out the Kinderbach webiste and see what their program is all about. There are many different options available and you might find one that works well for your family that will bring a whole new world beyond music appreciation to your little ones. Be sure to check out what other Crew members have said about Kinderbach here.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Mac has died

2010-02-06T13:48:00.000-08:00
yes, the computer! Easiest to post here. Reviews will be late. Blogging on hold. I hope to be back really soon but using the PS3 as an internet browser is not so practical. Talk to you all soon, I hope!

I've decided to just do it!

2010-02-04T09:50:00.000-08:00
Some of you may have recognized the text on my lap in this post. For those of you that are familiar, well, it's Varney's Midwifery. One of the textbooks to read for midwives to be. I spoke a little while ago about how I used to hope to travel to areas less fortunate than Canada to help out women and children who have MUCH less than I do. I talked about how excited my friend and I would be when we discussed how we could to this, but how, in the end, it just seemed totally impossible and well, HARD!

At about the same time, my friend mentioned a midwifery training that allowed students to travel to the Dominican Republic to get some of their clinical experience and I though, that is EXACTLY what I am looking for. I looked into the training some and spoke it over with my husband and he told me that he thought it would be a good idea. Before I had time to come up will a million and one excuses NOT to take this training (some of them very relevant in this case) Mike sneaked off and registered me for the classes (online) and purchased the first textbook for me. So it looks like it has been decided and I am slowly going to work on my goal of becoming a midwife.

Now, this certainly will not be easy and honestly I am not sure that I'll ever be able to certify as a midwife in Canada with this training. It is my understanding, in the end that I will be able to take my NARM examination BUT to do so I have to attended a whole bunch of births in attendance of a NARM certified midwife and that will be next to impossible with the regulations in Canada. While in the beginning I will be able to use the births I attend as a doula as part of my clinical experience eventually I will need to find a mentor and apprentice with a midwife and considering that there are virtually no midwives in Cape Breton that could prove difficult. Even elsewhere in Canada it will be next to impossible to train with a midwife that is NARM recognized because the only recognized midwifery training in Canada is provided at the university level. Midwives will not want to work with (and even if they did...they wouldn't be allowed to) work with midwives getting training any other way. There is the option of traveling to America and other areas from time to time to get clinical experience but that is about it.

I'll keep you updated but for now, at least I am taking the first little baby steps.....

Factsfirst by Saxon Math

2010-02-03T10:38:00.000-08:00

Product: FactsFirst
Company: Saxon Math
Price: $49.99US per family/year (up to 4 students)

As I have mentioned a few times already, I've had the pleasure of reviewing numerous math drill online programs this year as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew. Next up for review is Factsfirst.com developed by Skills Tutor and distributed by the well known company Saxon Math. Factsfirst strives to do just that, teach proficiency in math facts (addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division) first by repetition of basic math facts. Progression in levels is based on both on accuracy and speed.

First up, your student creates an avatar that they will use throughout their learning adventure.

This character is used to answer a variety of questions as quick as possible. At the end of each set of questions there is an overview on how the child did and a recommendation to either continue on the same level or to progress to the next depending on how well they did. In Factsfirst speed is as important as accuracy when it comes to advancing levels.

Every so often, the child will get a 5 minute bonus time to play an arcade style game that also drills math facts.

For the adults/teachers there is a a chart that helps you see what facts your child has mastered, which can come in handy and also helps you know which questions to ask if you are the type to throw out random math questions around the kitchen table (I am and the kids love it).

While this math programs looks nice (good graphics, custom avatars) and has a lot of the little extra "frills" like arcade games and such, it did not really appeal to my children. As mentioned in previous posts, my son is not quick when it comes to keyboarding skills and because speed is so important in this program he'd never ever get any facts "excellent" on his chart (no matter how long he worked on a topic level his results were always "not sure") and he'd be told to repeat the same set of questions over and over despite having "mastered" them years ago. It was frustration and there was a lot of tears. I have since learned that you can change the time setting on the program (it is set at 2 seconds per question) but by that point the damage was done and Liam wanted nothing to do with this program.

For $49.99US for family (up to 4 students) per year, I think that that this is a worthwhile program to invest in for the price (especially if you have more than one child). I think that most children would be motivated by the games between levels and making your own avatar is fun as well. The tracking is nice for the parents/teacher, if you take the time initially to find the average amount of time it takes your child to find and type the answer and adjusting that setting, otherwise in my opinion, this feature isn't accurate. There's a difference between taking a long time to come up with the answer and just taking a long time to type in that answer in my opinion, so be sure to check in the the time limit option. In terms of price this program seems to be one of the better deals that I have found so if money is an issue this may be the program that works well for your family.Unfortunately, my son has been scared away from this product so it is not one that we would, personally, purchase at the current time.

To try a trial version of this program please visit FactsFirst website. To find out what other TOS reviews have to say please click here.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

Morgaine's Birth Story (August 2005)

2010-02-02T11:46:00.000-08:00
I have birthing on the brain these days (for a variety of reasons) so I figured that in the next few days I would share the kid's birth stories for those of you that haven't heard them yet. Beware, Morgaine's, up first, is especially long!

THE JOURNEY TO MORGAINE ELIZABETH

The Freezie Countdown

This birth story actually starts 75 days before my due date when on a humid June evening we bought a box of 64 large Freezies. On the way home from the grocery store I said to Mike, “Wouldn’t it be funny if I ate a Freezie every day and then ended up delivering on the day that I had the last one?” Mike agreed that was possible and would be pretty neat. From hat moment, the box of Freezies became our due date countdown.

Big and round, enjoying a Montreal summer with my baby boy (July 2005)

I started religiously eating one Freezie a day, with Mike having one here and there for good measure, but, anyone knows that you cannot eat a Freezie a day without getting totally disgusted by their sickly sweetness. As the summer went by my bump grew and grew, my due date got closer and closer but the number of Freezies did not go down near as quickly…

37 weeks came and went. Morag (my midwife) told me I had the perfect home for a homebirth. I cooked. I cleaned. I made my birthing bed. We bought/collected candles, stones, sand and seashells. I ate Freezies.

38 weeks came and went. I cooked. I cleaned. I made my birthing CDs. We prepared my birthing
"alter" (with the above mentioned stuff). I ate Freezies.

39 weeks came and went. I ate the food I’d cooked at 37 weeks. I remade my birthing bed. Liam played with the items on my birthing alter. We made a birthday cake. I also became more reflective. I listened to my birthing music everyday while praying and talking to my Precious One, letting her know that we were ready for her arrival. I cried…I laughed hysterically…sometimes I screamed.

As for my Freezie situation, 10 days before my due date we had 18 left. Mike said that we should throw a barbeque and have Freezies for dessert. I was adamant. No, we couldn’t do that. Only Mum and Dad could participate in the Freezie countdown, it was an unwritten rule. We doubled our Freezie eating efforts but not enough to be done before our due date.

A Practice Run

At 39 weeks 6 days Morag did a sweeping of my membranes but told me that I probably wouldn’t deliver on the weekend but to feel free to prove her wrong. That night I had a lot of contractions and lost what I thought was the elusive mucus plug. Now, according to Dr. Sears most women go into labour within 48 hours of loosing it. 48 hours. I was ecstatic. I told Mike. I was SURE that it was going to happen that night. I contracted regularly all night.

The next morning dawned dark and dreary, not a contraction to be felt. Liam was extremely grouchy and clingy; Mike didn’t feel like working, I just wanted the baby OUT. We nearly drove each other crazy all day until Mike decided that we had to get out of the house. We ended up going to Mike’s parents’ place where Mike’s brother was in visiting from Hull. We had a very relaxing evening with them. Good food. Good wine. Good conversation. Low and behold my contractions started up again during the meal and we decided it was time to head for home.

This time the contractions did not let up over night and actually intensified when I took a bath the next morning. We decided that it was a good time to bring Liam to the inlaws. On the way there we timed the contractions at 3-4 minutes apart and lasting about 45 seconds. We kissed our precious baby boy good bye figuring that the next time we saw him he’d be a big brother. Mike and I decided to do some last minute errands and bought some healthy labour snacks and chocolate to celebrate with after. We also rented a video game to keep our mind of the long day ahead of us. By that point I had to ask Mike to slow down when I was contracting and on the way home we timed the contractions at consistently 3 minutes apart and lasting close to a minute each.

Those video games got annoying after a little while and the floor was hard! At home I decided it was time to call Sinclair (it was Morag weekend off) to let her know what was going on. She was finishing up at another birth and I reassured her that I did not feel that she needed to come over right away but that I thought that something was probably happening today. Mike and I took turns playing the video game but by 3pm I was finding the video game more annoying than distracting. At this point Sinclair called to let us know she was home and would be over soon (her husband had a quick errand to run).

By the time Sinclair arrived the contractions were becoming erratic albeit more intense. I’d have two or three on top of each other and then not another one for 3 or 4 minutes. An internal check showed that there was noticeable change from my last exam two days earlier but that she didn’t think I was in active labour. She said she felt either my water would break and things would get more intense or things would putter out. Either way Liam should stay with the inlaws because tonight could be the night. “However,” she said, “second time babies like to make a practice run.” She then left for home.

Not long after she left, I got a call from my sister saying that they were having a get together the next day as my father and sister were in town and we never get to all be together. I told her that I wouldn’t be making it as I was probably in labour. Not long after my contractions started to fizzle out some so Mike and I went for a walk to the park and went swinging (we’d gone swinging at the park near the birthing center while I was in labour with Liam). Things didn’t really pick up nor did they stop so at home I had a bath, a glass of wine and went to bed.

I woke up the next morning at 5:30 feeling extremely positive and refreshed. I had a long soak in the tub then got out and put on nice lavender lotion and also gave my bump a nice long massage all the while telling the baby that I understood that she wasn’t ready to come yet. I told her that we’d be patiently waiting for when she was ready. I then got dressed, Mike got up and we went for another walk. From the park we called Mike’s parents to let them know that it had been a false alarm and we went over there and had a very nice family breakfast.

We debated long and hard over whether or not we should make the two hour trip to my sisters. I was not really comfortable with the idea (and I am sure that the midwives wouldn’t have advocated the trip) but I hadn’t had a contraction all morning so we decided to take the chance figuring that we’d have time to make it home should labour start. When we got to my sister’s we realized that it was an early birthday party for my father (who is turning 70 in December). We had a nice time visiting with family and I think that there was Divine Intervention in my “labour” stopping the night before allowing me to make it to the party. It was one in maybe half a dozen times in my life when all my siblings and father were all together at once. I was thankful that I was able to be a part of it.

Time for a Gentle Nudge

Both Sunday (after coming home from my sister’s) and Monday nights I was kept awake by contractions that would diminish by the morning (but never go away completely). We figured that it was time to try and kick things into gear as I was getting tried and very discouraged. I decided to call my osteopath and see what she could offer either to get things going or get them to stop (so I could rest cause inevitably I’d be giving birth sometime in the next week or so and wanted to be ready). I had a nice relaxing treatment with her that same afternoon and after we took Liam to spend the night with the inlaws again so that Mike and I could have a final evening together. We went to McGibbon’s Pub and had a little snack while listening to some good music and then came home and watched television together. We then sat together eating Freezies and talking about the future.

The next day we worked together getting envelopes ready to deliver for Mike’s work and then we went to a really terrible movie together (as Mike said it’d be years before I could go to the theatre again). We then delivered the envelopes together which consisted of going up quite a number of stairs. We picked Liam up from the grandparents and by that point I was feeling tired, achy and not too happy. On the way home Mike and I got into a discussion in which I was lectured on not being appreciative enough of his parents (because I chose to sit in the car while Mike got Liam and I “didn’t sound pleasant enough” when I thanked his Mum). Well, I got very angry and cooked Liam and Mike their supper without sitting down to eat with them. I then asked Mike if he could give Liam a bath and he said he would but not right away (and I wanted it done just then) so I got even more upset and stomped around getting Liam ready for his bath. I’d been having contractions and hadn’t wanted to bathe for fear they’d go away (I always get into the tub with Liam when I bathe him). When I got out I was still feeling angry and maybe a little bit irrational and I ate the LAST two Freezies by myself. I stomped around some more cleaning the house and trying not to scream.

I managed to calm down and some point while watching mindless junk on television Mike and I started talking again. At that point I started doing a wee bit of nipple stimulation to help along the contractions that I was having. Mike and I went to bed around 11 o’clock and for the first time in weeks I didn’t give Mike a list of things to do should I go into labour that night. With my angry energy earlier in the evening I had tidied things to my liking.

The Real Deal

Not long after going to bed I realized that my contractions were getting more intense and closer together. I found that lying down was hard on my back s I got up and went to the washroom where I noticed I was having some bloody show. I then went downstairs to play a couple online games and see if the contractions would continue to pick up. After about an hour I thought I’d like to take a bath and started to try to clean it out myself. After a few minutes I was finding that impossible so I woke Mike up and asked him to help. He was like “you want me to do that NOW?” and I was like, “tonight is THE night.”

I got into the tub and Mike lit some candles and we sat together in the silence. After about half and hour I decided that though it was only quarter after 3, we should call Morag as I was not sure how fast things were going to progress. Mike did the honours of waking the midwife and we spoke briefly and she was on her way.

Early labour....loving the fabric I saved for the birth. She arrived 30 minutes later while I was still in the tub and we talked a few minutes and I briefly sat on the edge of the tub so she could take a listen to the baby (who was perfectly happy). I got back in the tub but Morag said that it might be a good idea for me to get checked. She said that she could do it while I was in the tub but that did not appeal to me so while she was getting her stuff ready in my bedroom I got out of the tub and wrapped myself in the fabric I’d been saving for the birth. Right away I realized that this better be the real deal, Morag was getting all her birthing supplies set up! A few minutes later an internal exam revealed that I was 3 maybe 4 cm, 50% effaced and the baby was still high up there. Discouraged I looked to Morag and asked “Is that good?” “It is good” she replied in her soothing voice as she continued to unpack her stuff.

The next hour or so I was quite restless as Morag got my room all set up for the birth. I wasn’t in pain so much as I didn’t know what to do with myself. Morag tried to give me some suggestions of positions that I could try but nothing really appealed to me. I ended up in the bathroom as my body began cleansing itself in preparation for the birth. As a private person I was shocked when I invited Mike to spend this time with me. For some reason I was quite nervous and having him with me helped.

After a time the 3 of us sat in the living room, me getting up to sway or walk around during contractions, while the sun came up. The contractions were coming about every 3 minutes by this point but I was still able to talk and even laugh at our neighbours who happened to be outside at the crack of dawn painting their patio. I only needed to be free to get up and move around during contractions and I was fine.
Liam checking in with Mum before heading to Grandma and Grandpa's At 6am we decided that it was time to call the inlaws to get Liam (as I didn’t want Mike leaving to bring Liam to them when I was in active labour). We got Liam up and he came to cuddle with me on the couch where I was trying to take a break. The grandparents arrived 6:45 and were insistent on finding the jacket Liam had worn the previous day (“it was a nice one” Grandpa said) despite me bringing them two other equally suitable jackets. At that point I had enough and went into the bedroom with Morag and only after they left did I realize that I hadn’t even said good-bye to Liam before he’d left. Talk about a guilty Mum moment.

After they left, Mike and Morag had some breakfast while I tried to eat some frozen fruit that before labour I thought would be wonderful. However, sitting at the table while they ate was making me antsy so I went down stairs to see if my sister was online to let her know that she was going to be an aunt again that day. She wasn’t around but I change my user name to “Having a Baby” so all those in cyber space would know that today was the day (I had every intention of updating it or having Mike update it to “Mum and Baby are Fine” as soon as possible after the birth but that didn’t happen so to those in cyberspace I was having a baby for 5 days!!)

Morag decided that she would leave to make a very quick visit to her daughter, who lives in my area. During the 45 minutes that she was gone I had quite a bit of bloody show and the contractions definitely picked up a notch and I got back into the tub. I laboured in there for a while and then felt that I wanted to get checked to see where I was at. The verdict was that I was 4 closer to 5 cm and was completely effaced. Hearing that I’d only dilated 1 cm was discouraging but I knew that going from 50 to 100 percent effaced was a good start. Besides labour hadn’t been too hard up to that point and I was even able to give Mike a quick anatomy lesson regarding the functions of the cervix and what happens during labour (with Morag backing me up).

Not that long afterwards though I felt that being vocal was the thing to do during contractions and I sat in the kitchen and moaned through contractions and also told myself to relax out loud. So it kinda sounded like a deep “Hmmm” and “Relax, just relax”. After a while I moved to the bedroom and sat on my birthing ball and turned on my birthing CD and continued with my moaning that on occasion was getting high pitched to which I immediately said “No” and corrected to return to deep moans.

Somewhere around this point Morag made the call to the aide natale and her assistant midwife and I remember sitting on the toilet trying to tell Mike (who is the driver in our household) the directions for the assistant midwife to take coming from a different highway then the one that the birth center was on (where the original directions I’d written up were from). There seemed like there were so many phone calls being made and coming in (the assistant midwife got lost) and it was breaking my concentration and making me nervous so I decided that it was time begin using some of my birthing aides. I went into my bedroom alone and put on my birthing CD (Enya’s “The Celts” and “Memory of Trees” for those that are interested…..incredible for birth) and sat on my birthing ball facing my birthing alter (on which half the items where missing thanks to Liam). I vocalized through contractions and told myself to relax out loud whenever I could feel my body tense up. The aide natale and assistant midwife arrived and came in to give me and hug and kiss. The assistant midwife sat with me for a couple minutes just holding my hand and then they both made themselves invisible to let me do my thing.

I laboured for the next couple hours using the same method of moaning, telling myself to relax when I tensed up, and changing my vocalizations when they got too high pitched. I spend some time in the tub, in my room and at the kitchen table. Mike was around but at this point things get more fuzzy in my head. I think it was around this point I started holding his hands when a contraction would come on but I am not positive. I know that I’d stand up and lean into him during some of the harder contractions and he asked if I wanted my back rubbed but by this point the contractions were all in my abdomen (with Liam I had back labour the whole time).

I was beginning to feel sick and I thought that eating something might help but when Mike brought out my fruit and apple sauce I knew that it wasn’t what I needed. Morag told me that by this point I should be able to do fine just having sips of water. We were getting close. I started to vocalize that I couldn’t do it any anymore and that I wanted it done (I hate feeling nauseous more than anything else in the world). I took Nux Vomica and that took away most of my sick feelings but I was still saying that I had enough so Morag took me into my room and told me that if the baby was positioned well and her head was engaged then we could break my water and that would speed things up. I thought that would be best because I was wondering if my water was ever going to break. Being born in the caul is supposed to be lucky and chances are my waters would have broken before that point but I was still uneasy about the very slight possibility. I was tired, not so much from the labour which wasn’t intensely painful or lengthy but just from being up much of the night for several nights before hand. Morag checked and I was 7 centimeters, 100% effaced, and the baby was in the correct position. We decided to break my water so Morag went to get Mike and the back-up midwife. At this point I went into the washroom and checked myself (as I really wanted to feel my baby and after the water breaks it isn’t recommended to do internals) and it was amazing to be able to feel my precious wee one’s head and even her hair. I’d checked a couple times through the labour but this was definitely the most impressive cause she was right there.

In very active labour...only about an hour before Morgaine made her appearance earthside.

We broke my waters and the water was tinted with meconium and it was at this point when I lost control in my so far smooth labour. I had a dear online friend with whom I’d conversed a lot with while we were trying to conceive and she had lost her baby the week before at 3 days old from heart problems. The only warning sign that anything was wrong was meconium staining. I wanted the baby out and I wanted the baby out NOW. I needed to see with my own two eyes that she was alright.

The contractions actually began to space out immediately after they broke my waters and Morag said this was not the time to prove her wrong (she’d said that they usually get stronger and closer together after the waters are gone). However, after 15 or so minutes it was obvious she wasn’t wrong. I started to get the urge to push and Morag was sitting in front of me rubbing my legs and letting me know that I was really close. Again, I’m not 100% sure where Mike was but Lynn, the aide natale was behind me applying counter pressure to my back as the pain was radiating back as the baby moved its way lower.

I wasn’t quite ready to beginning pushing in earnest and at some point I moved to the washroom to push on the toilet. I was getting quite panicky at this point as things were moving quicker than what I had anticipated and I was well into transition. I didn’t know what I wanted but what seemed to work was holding onto Mike’s hands while I was contracting but as soon as a contraction was over I’d let go and shake my hands like holding him was something that I didn’t want to do but as soon as another contraction hit I NEEDED him right there to hold. Morag was right beside me rubbing my leg and encouraging me and I started to chant (well, nearly cry) “Mike. Mike, Mike, Morag” during contractions like I was begging them to make it all stop. At some point Morag start to hold my perineum in case the baby came down suddenly and it was decided (though not out loud) that I wasn’t going to make it back to the bedroom to give birth so both the aide natale and the assistant midwife brought in the equipment that would be needed to birth into the bathroom and Mike sat on the edge of the tub and I got onto the birthing stool in front of him.

As soon as I was on the stool I started to shake and start pushing with all my might while leaning back into Mike and holding his hands. With just one push I began to feel the baby move down and past my pubic bone. As this was not a sensation I’d felt with Liam it was both thrilling and a little scary at the same time. Things were moving so quickly and remember wanting to slow things and just breathe through a contraction but the urge to push was so strong. I couldn’t stop shaking.
Crowning but not really feeling it.

Hard Work!

Holding her head in my hands

With just three or four pushes the baby was right there and then she was crowning and the next moment I was hold her wee head in my hands. I had to wait for another contraction for her body to be born but I didn’t have the urge to push while I was “holding” her so Morag had to guide me and tell me to keep pushing her out. Seconds later I was holding my wee one in my arms and all the pain/panic was gone. “That wasn’t so bad” was one of the first words out of my mouth. Mike and I just marveled at the beauty of our wee one and the speed of the arrival. It took us several minutes to check to see if we’d been blessed with a boy or girl. When we took a peak Mike announced that it was a girl and I was like “Oh, my God, a girl…my Precious One”.

Welcome my Precious One

The Afterwards

After this, I noticed that I was bleeding and I matter of factly said “Oh, I’m bleeding.” The afterwards of the birth was not something that I was prepared for (even though I’d bled with Liam I was not prepared for how serious bleeding could be) and don’t feel the desire to put the details into this birth story. To sum it up though, I bled severely initially but the midwives were able to get that under control with 2 different injections, an IV of a third medication, and lots of pressure applied to the uterus. However, over 3 hours later I was still bleeding much heavier than I should have been and with a second bag of IV meds and more pressure on the uterus I continued to bleed so our only option at that point was to call an ambulance and be transferred to the hospital. Even an hour or two more of blood loss at that rate could be really bad. So 911 was called and within minutes I was on my way to Lasalle Hospital. At the hospital I had two more bags of IV meds and lots of poking and proding (including a catheter) and then just IV fluid to see if the bleeding would stay stable without the medication. 18 hours later I was on my way home with my sweetie though I was very weak and had the wheel chair escort and the works you always see on television.

My midwives were very professional, calm, and compassionate and though I didn’t get the “gentle” third stage I’d longed for it was less traumatic to me then the blood loss with Liam’s birth (I’d had a different midwife I didn’t know, there were students present, the assistant midwife had been trying to keep me present by forcing me to call Liam by his name…with no regard to what I was feeling/wanted to say to him). For Morgaine’s birth, though she actually had to be taken away from me, I was less stressed. As soon as they could the midwives lay her on the bed so I could see her and I focused solely on her while they did what they had to do. Morag was very gentle and kept apologizing for not giving me the third stage I desired. The aide natale brought me warm blankets which felt like I was being hugged by an angel and Morag gently washed the blood off my legs, arms and face and I’ll never forget that (have to say that I think it was the nicest most thoughtful thing anyone has done for me in a long time). There was never a time when I felt truly scared.

Of course, I was upset to not have the afterwards I wanted and having to have Liam meet his sister and see me all hooked up in the hospital was disappointing. I felt mad because I couldn’t take care of myself/Liam or even Morgaine the first days home. I was made to be 100% dependent on others. There were many plans that needed to be changed. However, after a couple days when I started to gain more strength I started to cherish the special time I was given to just be alone and get to know Morgaine.

How on Earth do You Know What to Teach?

2010-02-01T07:25:00.000-08:00
This post has been written as part of TOS Blog Cruise, a new venture that the TOS Homeschool Crew has set sail on. Each week, TOS Homeschool Crew members will be given a topic to blog about and you will have access to their replies each Tuesday as part of a blog carnival hosted both on The Homeschool Crew blog and on the TOS Homeschool Crew Fan Page on Facebook.

Even more than the ever dreaded "what about socialization?" question I get the "how do you know what to teach?" question. People ask me ALL THE TIME if the government provides me with the textbooks/workbooks to teach my children at home. Ha, yeah right! Considering that the main reason I have chosen to home school is for academic reasons it is highly, HIGHLY unlikely that even if the school board wanted to provide me with a complete curriculum I would refuse it (or maybe, if it was FREE, accept it, look it over and toss it on a bookshelf-I have a hard time refusing free books *lol*). People look at me aghast when I tell them that I am the one that decides what I should teach my children and THAT, my friends, is the one of the best reasons to home school, in my opinion! My children are bogged down with material that they are not interested in, or ready for, or bored of, because I get to custom build their curriculum myself.

So, how do I decide what to teach my children? I'll let you in on a little secret, for the most part, I DON'T. I do start the year knowing what areas are important to me. I want my children to love books so I know that the majority of my home school curriculum will revolve around quality literature. If Liam is reading a book set in the medieval period and shows an interest in knights and castles then our history will revolve around that period of time. We'll read other books set at that time, we'll research it at the library, we'll cook foods common in that era, we'll look at art from that period, our geography will focus on the areas that we've seen in our research of that period. Even science can revolve around good literature. When we read Charlotte's Web we learned about spiders. When we read Owls in the Family we learned about owls. I feel that children need a strong foundation in mathematics so I do choose math program at the beginning of the year (with very little concern about what they should know (according to the government) by the end of the year). I have no worries. They will find themselves were they need to be and beyond. I want my children to receive some kind of religious/moral instruction so I do have an action plan in place for studying in these areas but, beyond these basic plans, I am very open to going wherever the wind takes us. I don't particularly worry about what the government of Nova Scotia wants my children to know. They don't get to dictate how I run MY home school.

I also have no fears about changing things around if I see that our plans just aren't working. In general, when things start going downhill (bad attitudes, lack of motivation, things just "not clicking"), I take some time to meditate on what I really want my children to learn in that particular area. Most of the time I see that my children are learning what they really need to know as part of their daily living and if not, then the vast majority of the time an idea will come to me in the middle of the night that I will work on implementing in my homeschool. Most times, these ideas feel like divine intervention and things just happen to have a way of falling into place in the end. My children are still young and are eager to learn so it is my role to facilitate that process without making it TOO MUCH of a chore *lol*.

I am happy to let them take the reins and direct us where to go!

I Hope you Like Math-A Mathscore Review

2010-02-01T03:24:00.000-08:00
because over the next week I have several math reviews to post!

Product: Mathscore
Company: Accurate Learning Systems Corporation
Price: Various pricing options that will be explained in further detail below (starting at $14.95US monthly for the first child, though there are some other options and it gets significantly cheaper per student after the first child).

Mathscore in an online math drill program developed by MIT graduates who wanted to develop a math drill program that adapted to the student's level and progressed according to the student's results. They found success with Mathscore which has been proven to increase math scores. Developed for students from grade 1 through to Algebra 1, covering a wide range of topics, there is something for most students whether they want to brush up on their skills or advance to the next level. Students choose a topic and progress through timed worksheets until they have reached a rating of 100 but unlike other math programs they are not locked into that topic until they acheive their rating of 100 and can work on another topic and come back to the previous topic at anytime. The worksheets progress according to the child's skill level/results so that child isn't suddenly shocked by a huge increase in difficulty. In addition to worksheets each topic also includes mini-lessons and sample questions so theoretically, this program could be used a complete math curriculum (especially for the younger years).

We've had the opportunity to review several online math drill programs this year, and my son has favored the "no-frills" worksheets of Mathscore. There isn't anything (graphics, huge acknowledgment of PERFECT scores, games) to distract him from the worksheets. He loved the scoring method used with Mathscore and was very excited to progress in levels with this program despite nothing more than a sentence telling him that he's advanced to the next level. Both he and I appreciated that more than enough time (for my son) was given for each worksheet so that Liam didn't end up panicky about not finishing "in time". Liam's confidence in math (especially keyboarding skills) has increased phenomenally since he no longer feels pressured to answer (type) questions faster than he is able. It is such a joy for me because it was hard for me to see that he felt "stupid" because he could not type fast enough to progress in other programs we've tried. As a result, his keyboarding skills have also improved because he knows that he CAN indeed do it! THANK YOU!

There are several payment options for this program.

First child: $14.95/month
Second child: $5/month
Each addition: $3.95/month

First 2 months the first child only costs $9.95/month

You can purchase (prepaid) a 9 month subscription lowering the cost for the first child to $9.95/month (which will be locked in for each additional month purchased after that point).

You can make a lump sum payment. If you prepay $50, you can get $60 account credit (20% bonus credit). If you prepay $100, you get $140 account credit (40% bonus credit).

It is also noteworthy to mention that you can freeze your subscription if you and your family are going on vacation or otherwise will be unable to use the product just by contacting the company. You account will be inactivated until such a time as you are able to use it again. It such a nice benefit to only have to pay for time used!

I look forward to using this program with Liam (and likely Morgaine as well) over the next several months and will be sure to update you on the success that we've seen. This program has been a welcomed addition to our homeschool math curriculum (though, at this time, even with the mini-lessons, it is used as a supplement to our current math curriculum of choice). I am uncertain as to whether I would purchase a subscription to this program at the current time but if money was not an issue then I believe that this would be an ideal purchase for my family. To see if this program might work for you please visit the Mathscore website and sign up for their two week free membership. Also be sure to check out some other reviews of this product here.

***Any products reviewed by me as a member of the TOS Homeschool Crew have been given to me free of charge in order for me to provide you with an honest review of the product and/or how we used the product within our family. I do not receive any other form of compensation for the reviews posted on this blog.

My Weekend

2010-01-31T13:28:00.000-08:00
Feet up....

Textbook ready...

Homemade cheddar cheese and apple scones....

Mama tea for two (and a wee one)....

Finally, board games with the family.....

PERFECTION!!

Fit Mama Friday-Week 3

2010-01-29T04:40:00.000-08:00

Oh my, Oh my! The weight is piling on......

BUT, I actually had a pretty good week in terms of healthy eating/exercise. I didn't let going out of town blow my healthy eating plans to smithereens. While we were away we only ate at the restaurant twice. Both times I made healthy choices with salads. I'll admit to having one not so healthy TV dinner in a hotel room on Sunday. I only had a soft drink once and I chose one that wasn't a cola because I figured at least I'd be cutting out the caffeine that way. Otherwise we snacked on whole wheat pitas, cheese, nuts, yogurt, granola and fruits for the 4 days we were away. It's the way I normally like to eat (graze through the day) but most often at home we do not have a lot of healthy snacks in the house (so I dig into the jelly beans.....which got into an accident earlier in the week and ended up ALL OVER the bedroom floor so they aren't a worry any more!)

As far as exercise goes, I think I did fairly well this week. I walked briskly 3 times for about 45 minutes to an hour each time. I've been forced to stretch quite a bit just to stay comfortable so I try to make that into an actually "work-out" a couple times a day (only 5 or 10 minutes at a time, though).

Next week brings the beginning of February so no more soft drinks for me (as my initial goal was to cut them out by the end of January and I think I've succeeded). I'll continue on with my salads and would like to cut out even more sugar by adding the protein that I know my body is craving. I need to go into town and pick up a bunch of nuts and healthy snacks, I think! In terms of exercise, I'll have to find some indoor activities because it is supposed to be colder next week so I may not feel like walking too much. I'm wondering if banging on the drums (in Rockband) is considered legitimate exercise. Drumming is an ideal position for fetal positioning (which I need to work on because my placenta is taking over the side and area where I want this sweet babies back to be!!) and it also let out a whole lot of tension! I'm not feeling particularly drawn to yoga this time around (though I would love to be) so I think I will have to nix that idea for now.

Not so exciting but that was my week!

Be sure to check in with my girls over at Got Chai? to see how everyone else faired this week!