One Less, One More

 

 

One Less, One More by crisis expert Robbie Vorhaus is a simple guide to living a happy life. In this book he outlines seven steps for lifelong change, leading you to a life of happiness.

1. Start Now
2. Come Present
3. Consciously choose to follow your heart, be happy, and change slowly
4. Choose one less negative thought or action and let in go
5. Choose one more positive thought or action and embrace it
6. Celebrate your progress
7. Repeat tomorrow

The Pro’s:

The premise of this book is to get you to look past your current crisis, whatever that is, and choose to move forward instead of staying there and wallowing in sorrow. I can fully respect that, and agree. We could all stand to move on and let things go. I felt like the author gave practical real life examples of despair and joy, failure and success, staying put and moving on. I agreed with the basic thoughts the author was trying to portray. Throughout this book I thought of things in my own life that are holding me back and keeping me from moving on. I was able to apply more positive thinking to several areas of my life.

 

The Con’s:

The thought of following your heart in al areas of your life is a wonderful thought, but the heart can be deceitful and lead you astray. It can also push aside practical things. So while I agree that we should move forward, think positive, forgive and seek joy, I don’t believe our hearts will always lead us there. The author to me seemed to not take into account mental illness and things that make moving forward more difficult. The first few chapters make it seem like all it takes is choosing. That is a wonderful thought and is true in many cases, but sometimes it’s harder than that. I also felt like the most important piece of experiencing joy was left out of the book, a relationship with God. Lastly I felt the writing was very choppy, and repeated A LOT!

Over all I did enjoy this book. I received two copies of this book, one to review, and one to give away. I chose to give this book to someone I know who is personally living in crisis right now. I am hopeful that this book will give them some practical steps to move forward. 

 

*I received this book for free to review. The thoughts and opinions stated here are my own. I was not paid for this review.

Book Review – Distant Dreams

This book was the first book in the Ribbons of Steel book series by Judith Pella and Tracie Petterson. I got this book as a free download on Kindle books. I could not put it down. The book included a lot of history about trains, politics, and banking.  While it was fictional, with a little fact checking you will find much of the history to be fairly accurate.

The story is mostly about young Caroline Adams. She is 15 years old and has an interest in locomotives, math, science etc. At that time these subjects were unfit for a “proper” women to learn about. However, Caroline’s father like’s to indulge his daughter, this leads him to hire a tutor to teach Caroline. The problem is that Caroline finds herself in love with her tutor who is betrothed to her older sister Virginia.

By the end of the book I found myself in laughter and tears. I was sorely disappointed that the story never truly came to an end. I will be getting the second book. When I was younger and read series of books each book was a stand alone book  and brought at least some closure to the story while leaving you hanging just enough to want to read the next book. I have recently started back reading these type series and have noticed that the books are NOT stand alone books. It is irritating that they just end with no closure at all. There have been a few books that have left me wanting the next book though, and this is one of them.  

Curriculum Review–Teaching Textbooks 4

Last year I wrote a raving review of TT3 you can view it here: http://jacksacademy.blogspot.com/2012/03/teaching-textbook-3-review.html 

I am sad to say that this years review is not as positive. My daughter started using TT4 in July. She loved it. She loved that it was on the computer, that it was  visual. that it was interactive with the characters. She also loved that it was “easy”. I was not concerned at all as she aced every quiz, and really seemed to be doing quite well. However, I began to notice that she was not able to complete seemingly any math problem on paper, or verbally. It seemed as if she had never done any math other than basic addition. Now, I will not leave that negative as TT does offer workbooks, which I chose not to use, and had I used them this either would not have been an issue, or I would have caught the issue sooner.

She became increasingly frustrated that she could not do math, yet continued to ace all of the quizzes. This is something I simply cannot explain. On paper and verbally my daughter had dropped two grade levels in math, but was answering every question correctly on the computer. So, I downloaded a few math games on her iPod. Guess what? She was not very good at them, and became very frustrated. So, we switched gears in December. We went with a different math program, and with a little catching up to do things are going really well.

I’m not sure whether this issue was an issue with TT or if it was simply one of those “things”. Either way, I was sad to see it go, but it did not work out for us. I know MANY families that are still using and loving this math program. So, please research for yourself if this will be a good fit. I hesitated about writing this review, but I think it is important for people to hear both side. Positive, and negative. I hate when I read nothing but positive reviews, and then we start to have an issue, and suddenly people come out of the woodworks with the same issue.

So there it is. I will make a suggestion. Should you decide that this is a good fit for your family, add some sheet work so that you can catch a potential problem before it get’s to where it is a big deal.

Book Review–Don’t Feed the Boy

When Author Irene Latham contacted me about reviewing this book I was very excited. Not only is this book about a homeschooled boy, but written by a homeschooling momma. I love supporting local homeschooling mom’s. I also love that Irene Latham has managed to not give up on her talents simply because she has kids and homeschools. It was just the inspiration I needed to get my act together and  work a little more on my own book.

I really wasn’t sure what to expect with this book, but found myself  pleasantly surprised as I read this book aloud to my oldest two children. They sat glued to my every word, and as I finished a chapter they were anxious to hear more. This story is about a boy named Whit who lives at a zoo. He has a tutor, and was never allowed off the zoo grounds. Whit’s parents were so focused on caring for the animals at the zoo that they were often to busy to care for Whit’s needs. This life Whit had grown accustom to would soon change as he met the Bird girl, and made a promise to help her. This would be breaking the rules.

At first I wasn’t so sure about the story plot, I was thinking maybe it was a bit over my kids heads, but my daughter really seemed to grasp some of the underlying lessons that were to be learned in this book. Each chapter was well thought out and well written. It had a great combination of adventure, and reality, and was very well written. This book would be an easy read for students who are reading chapter books. It had a nice flow.  I think this book would be great for ages 8-13. Girls and boys would both enjoy it.

If you are looking for a book for your child to read this would be a great consideration.

Good Night, Sleep Tight

 

Hi,

Today I did a guest post about the Good Night, Sleep Tight chart by www.VictoriaChartCompany.com over at A Mom’s View of ADHD.Be sure to check it out.

WTOW- Easy to Love but Hard to Raise Giveaway Results

We had several wonderful entries for this giveaway. I entered the number into a random results generator at Random.org and came up with comment number 1 as our winner. Here’s what she said

Kristina Osgood said...

Trying to explain the issues with family or friends and their comment "but she looks normal to me" has got to be one of the most discouraging things ever. It's frustrating to try making people understand what is going on when they can't see it themselves. And when they see a behavior or are with her during a seizure they pretend it a)didn't happen or b)"All kids do that".

Congratulations! I will be contacting you to get your book to you.

 

WTOW- Easy to Love but Hard to Raise (Giveaway)

Invisible disabilities. HMMMMM……… My family has our fair share of them. “Invisible? Huh?” An invisible disability is disability that majorly affects a persons life, yet may not be immediately apparent to an onlooker. You may not know this, but about 80% of all disabilities could fit under this category. For parents this can be so difficult. If I had a penny for all the times I have heard someone say something about my children “looking normal” I would be rich. (yes I said penny) For my family I faced my first challenges with professionals. ie; therapists, Pediatricians, etc. After we jumped over those hurtles, we still have to jump through hurtles of friends, church members, random stranger . This can make a parent feel lonely. So, we look for other mom’s with kids like ours, web sites, forums, support groups, books etc. When we find them it’s like a breath of fresh air. we realize we are not alone.

Easy to Love but Hard to Raise is like a breath of fresh air. it contains real stories from real parents. Parents in the trenches. this book contains tips, statistics, advice, hope, laughter, tears, and much more. The over all message of the book is to let you know that, YOU ARE NOT ALONE!

I am excited to announce that the wonderful people at Easy to Love Hard to Raise have offered to give one of you lovely readers a copy of this book. You have three days to enter this give away.

To enter the giveaway simply leave a comment telling me how your life is affected by an invisible disability.

*please make sure to include your e-mail address in your comment.

Book Review- A Heart Like His

It’s no secret that I love Beth Moore’s books, and Bible Studies. So when B&H Publishing Group contacted me about reviewing A Heart Like His, I was super excited. I had done this bible study many years ago, but had not read this book.

Most Christians know David  as a man after God’s own heart, or from David and Goliath. I like this description of David;

He was a man loved and anointed by God, and his life serves as an example—both good and bad—for Christians in every time and place.

This book takes an in-depth look at the life of David, both the good and the bad. David did some really bad things in his life, yet God calls him, “A man after my own heart”. I found it very encouraging to look at the life of David, and to see the power of God’s grace throughout his life.

if you are looking for a great book to read, this is it!

Teaching Textbook 3- Review

Last year we had a terrible time with math. Hailey was more than capable of doing the math, but it would take hours just to do one worksheet. There were many tears over said worksheets, yet when I asked her the questions verbally, she could always answer correctly. I knew we had to do something different. After much prayer, and looking around, we ended up with Teaching Textbooks 3.

About the program:

• This is a full-year curriculum designed for the typical 3rd grader or an academically-advanced 2nd grader.
• The product includes a 604-page consumable workbook, a print answer booklet, and 4 PC & MAC-compatible CDs that contain step-by-step audiovisual solutions to every one of the thousands of homework and test problems.
• All the standard topics are covered in the curriculum.
• Math 3 also comes with a digital grade book that grades answers as soon as they are entered and calculates percentages for each assignment.
• There is a video instructor who teaches each lesson

What we liked:

• The instructor for the program is not boring.
• No more fighting over Math. She asks to do it.
• She loves using the computer for Math
• I like that I can check her grades, and see what problems she has missed. if I notice that she is missing the same type of problem every time, I know that we need to stop and work on that concept.
• I like that when she misses a problem she can watch a clip of how to work the problem.
• She can do this independently.
• The graphics are fun
• The print is big, so she has no problem seeing it.
• It has built in tests, and speed drills. (bonus rounds which are fun)

What we didn’t like:

• We purchased the workbook and that has been no use to us.
• It is pricey.

Overall Thoughts:

This is a keeper in my book. Both of my older kids are very visual, and love the computer so, this program will be around for a while. There have been no negatives in using this, so we will move on through TT4, and see how that goes.

Here is a clip of my daughter telling what she thinks about it.

Review- Writing With Ease Level 2

About the book:

• This book uses passages and sentences from classic children's literature, Workbook 2 allows young writers to practice their skills while absorbing the style and grace of great authors. Charming illustrations by Jeff West add a visual element that will spark your child's imagination.
• This book is scripted
• It provides dictation exercises
• This book helps your child summarize passages, focusing on the main topics.
• Each week is broken into 5 days, with each day building on the next.

 What we liked:

• I like the way the book is laid out. It’s easy to navigate through, because it’s broken down into small chunks.
• I like the passages that have been chosen. They are fun and quirky, and usually teach a moral of some sort.
• I like that the passages are not simple and kiddy, but rather pieces taken from classical books. There were times that I would read a passage and think, “that’s way above her head”, but she understood it.
• I liked how it challenged Hailey to think about the important details of a story, rather than rattling off the entire story.

What we didn’t like:

• I really like this book, and feel that it is a great component to our curriculum. But, Hailey did not do well with it. She has an extremely hard time summarizing the passages. She can tell me the entire passage, but to summarize seems very difficult for her. I continued on with this book hoping that would get better, but it was only a source of frustration for both her and I. So we discontinued the use of the use of this book. That said, I don’t have any real negatives about it.

My thought overall:

I think this book is very well laid out, and I love the thoughts of using it. I plan to keep it on my shelves, and maybe start with level 1 with my son, moving on to level 2. I would recommend this book. As always, my suggestion is to follow the child’s lead. I did not feel that it was worth the frustration it caused my daughter, and would not force it at such a young age. There is still time to work on summarizing in a way that works for her.

First Language Lessons for the Well Trained Mind-Review

           

Going into this school year I had to make a few tough curriculum choices. I have been used to getting a boxed curriculum. However, things were not working for my family, so I considered carefully each choice that was made, and tried hard to pick what would be best for the kids and me. A few of my friends were using First Language Lessons, so I was able to look at these books before purchasing them. After looking them over and praying and asking for Christ’s guidance, I took a leap and purchased these books.

About the books:

• Level 1 is a complete grammar text for the youngest student. It uses copywork, narration, picture study, and other classical techniques to develop the student's language ability.
• Level 2 is also a complete grammar text, and uses dictation, narration, picture study, and other classical techniques to develop language ability.
• Level 3, reinforces the grammar and writing concepts introduced in the previous levels. It also introduces new material, including sentence diagramming. Level 3 has two parts: the instructor book and the student workbook. The instructor book has the same simple-to-use, scripted format as the previous levels.

Each of these book are scripted so you never have to wonder if you are using them correctly because all you have to do  is follow the script.

What we liked:

• My kids loved the scripted narration, and the one on one lessons they received.  It made them feel like I was focusing on just them and no one else, which was extremely important to them.
• I loved the scripted lessons, because I  didn’t worry about teaching it wrong, or missing something.
• I love the passages that were in the book, I don’t know that I had heard of many of the books, and they always seemed to teach a moral lesson, not just a language lesson.
• The lessons only took about 5-10 minutes, so we were about to double up often.
• I liked how quickly they were able to memorize the poems. Memorizing the poems helped with scripture memory.
• Hailey has a Working Memory delay, and the repetition was great for her.
• I was able to start introducing concepts to Christopher in Kindergarten.
• I liked the added  workbook in Level 3, It broke up the monotony

What I didn’t like:

• There is so much repetition, that I could not see trying to do book one and book two the same year. We started Christopher early, so that it wouldn’t seem like pointless repetition.
• Had this not worked so well, and had the children not enjoyed it I would have given it up because it is really dry at times. At least in my mind.
• I loved the picture studies, but there were not enough of them.

My thoughts over all:

This is a solid language curriculum that I would suggest to anyone. But, I don’t think it’s for everyone, and that’s ok. My kids, LOVE it, and ask for it. Overall, I plan to keep these books on my shelves for the younger ones, and I plan to move on through the curriculum offered by Peace Hill Press. I may skip Level 4 though, and add Easy Grammar. I am glad we went this rout.

-I was not compensated in any way for my opinion of this curriculum. I purchased these books, and the opinions stated are my own.

Book Review–Tell your time

I read Amy Andrews book “Tell your Time” about a month ago. I had been looking for a good book to read ad several people had recommended this one. I am so glad they did.

This book was short, and to the point. Yet powerful and life changing. in one chapter she wrote,

“Whether it’s an inability to say no, the fear of missing something, the need to keep up with the Joneses, or just careless planning, many of us are masters at committing to things that sound good, but do not get us closer to our life’s finished picture. Frankly, if they’re not moving us in our intended direction, they’re a waste of time, no matter how amazing they are.”

This is not a new concept but the way it was presented has really clicked with me, and completely changed the way I look at things.

Not only does Amy take you step by step through her scheduling process, she gives you the materials to make it happen. You can print the forms to go along with the book on her website. (links are at the bottom of this post) I have not used her forms as of yet, though I plan to, yet this book has helped me in more ways than I can  count.

Tell your time comes in the form of an e-book, and is available for all types of e-readers, or you can simply read it on your computer. You can purchase this book for $2.99.

Click the links below for more information, or to purchase your copy today.

-About the Author

-About the book

-To purchase the book

-To print the forms for the book

Heroes & Villains of the Bible- Book Review

"Being a hero isn't about capes, or special powers, or being faster than a speeding bullet--it's about choosing to follow God."

I’m always wary of books like these, because they often distort the stories, and confuse my concrete thinkers. However, I had heard several other mom’s rave about this book. I had just found a great bible study about hero’s, so my hope was that this book  would be a great addition to that. Guess what? It has been the perfect addition.

Hero’s & Villains takes stories straight from the scripture, and categorizes them into Hero, or Villain. After you read a short passage of scripture, you read a short little devotion focusing on what a true hero is.

We are still using this along with our study, and the kids are loving it! I would absolutely recommend this book if you are looking to enhance your kids Bible study time.

Book Review- The Blessing

I typically love every book written by Gary Smally. So it should be no surprise that I chose to review this book. I also love Parenting books (yep I’m one of those). I thought for sure I would love this book.

The book is broken down into the following parts:

1. Why Is The Blessing So Important?
2. Understanding The Blessing
3. When The Blessing Doesn’t Happen
4. Living The Blessing Challenge

There is a lot of good information written throughout the entire book. But I had a really hard time reading it. At the beginning of the book the authors wrote about what the biblical blessing was, and while they were writing they talked briefly about Attachment Disorders. I was taken back when they stated that an Attachment Disorder could be cured simply by receiving “The Blessing” from their parents. Having 2 adopted children with attachment issues, I know that it takes more that a few simple words etc. to help a child heal from attachment issues. Every child is different and has a different level of things to overcome in regards to attachment. Now, I am the first to agree that GOD in all his power is able to heal ALL people, with just one word. But I just had a hard time getting past the way attachment disorders were portrayed in this book.

That being said, The Blessing is a good book with good intentions, it just fell short, and hit a nerve.

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Review- My Memories Suite

A few weeks ago I was contacted by My Memories about reviewing and giving away this wonderful digital scrapbooking program. I have be creating digital scrapbook pages for years now, so I decided to give the program a try. I also knew that there were several of my readers that would love a free copy of this program.

Review:

 

The initial download of My Memories Suite went well, without any glitches, so I was able to start using the program immediately. At first there was a small learning curve for me, because I am used to using Photoshop. That said, the layout of this site is very simple. Had I not had to re-train my mind, this would have been a synch. My 8 year old daughter was able to create a photo book using the pre made templates offered. She was so excited to have created such a beautiful book.

 

This program has many great features, and is so easy to use. It has tons of great templates, papers, embellishments, Fonts, etc. That are already built in the program for those in a time crunch. Or maybe you are a person who loves the thought of those cute coffee table books but you simply do not have the time to create them. This program is perfect for you, all you have to do is drag and drop your photo’s on a pre-made layout. It is advanced enough so you could also easily create your own pages.

With this program you can create,

• Photo Books
• Scrapbook Pages
• Mugs
• Calendars
• Greeting Cards
• Post Cards

And much more…

This program is a keeper and well worth the money. Check it out at, http://www.mymemories.com

Want it for FREE? Be sure to check out tomorrows post!

Review- A Young Scholar's Guide to Composers

This year I decided to have Hailey take piano lessons. Her teacher is an old soul. An extremely classically minded person.  I noticed that she was playing a “Go Fish” game with Hailey, using cards she had made featuring classical composers. Hailey seemed really interested, so I decided I would do a study of composers this year. Needless to say I was excided when I was asked to review A Young Scholar’s Guide to Composers from  Bright Ideas Press.

 

A Young Scholar’s Guide to Composers is a 32 week multi-level study of composers intended for grades 4-8 (The lessons in this book were easy to adapt to teach my third grader, and could be adapted for even younger grades)

This program includes:

• 32 Weekly Lessons
• 26 Bios of Famous Composers
• 6 Eras of Music Explained
• Easy-to-Use Comparative Timeline
• Easy-to-Use Maps
• Composer Info-Cards & Game Directions
• Note-taking Pages
• Quizzes
• Answer Keys
• Listening Suggestions
• Intricate Coloring Pages
• Resource Books

Each week you study a different composer, listening to his music and learning about his life. Click the link below to view a sample lesson http://brightideaspress.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/a-young-scholars-guide-to-composers-sample-opt.pdf

We found the lesson plans easy to follow, and the information given about each composer was just enough as to not overwhelm Hailey. We did not purchase music from each composer, but found some great resources on YouTube.

 

You can purchase this book from Timberdoodle.com for $31.50, that’s $3.45 cheaper than most other places. Timber doodle also offers other music resources for Homeschoolers.

http://www.timberdoodle.com/homeschooling_music_s/32.htm

Final Thoughts:

We have been using this as a curriculum for two weeks now, and we have thoroughly enjoyed it. Hailey told me she loved the music we have listened to, and has now decided she want to be a composer when she grows up. As stated before, we found the lessons easy to use and to adapt as needed. We loved the coloring pages, and the map work. This book gets a high recommendation from me, and we are going to continue using it this year as we study composers.

 

For more great Homeschool Recourses visit:

  

 

As a member of Timberdoodle's Blogger Review Team I received a free copy of A Young Scholar's Guide to Composers in exchange for a frank and unbiased review.

Book Review- When The Hurt Runs Deep

 

When the Hurt Runs deep was written by one of my favorite authors, Kay Arthur. I had read this book before, but wanted to read it again. i was thrilled when I saw it on the review list.

Everyone experiences hurt in some way in their life. This book talks about those hurts, and gives practical thoughts on overcoming that hurt.  But, let’s face it, some hurt runs deep, very deep. What then? What do you do when the, “Why Me’s”, and the, “Will this pain ever go away?” creep up? In this book you will find scriptural guidance, and encouragement to help you overcome those times. This book was such a blessing to me, and I know it will be to you as well.

 

“I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review”.

Book Review- Voices of the Faithful

Book Description:

A new year's worth of inspiring stories from the front lines of faith.

"A willingness to go is all they have in common," says Beth Moore and Kim P. Davis, speaking of their friends on the front lines who are spreading the gospel around the world and with whom they collaborated to create this book. This second book of 366 daily devotionals features stories of God's faithfulness, written by hundreds of missionaries worldwide.

From stirring miracles to heroic adventures, this second volume highlights those who daily go to the outer limits of spiritual devotion.

My Thoughts:

When I chose to review this book, I thought it was going to be like the Jesus Freak books. Boy was I wrong. This book is 365 devotions, full of amazing stories shared by everyday Missionaries, serving on the mission field. These stories are challenging and inspiring stories from real people sharing about struggles they encounter in their Walk.

I don’t think you could go wrong with this book. If you read it unchanged, and uninspired, I would be shocked. Definitely a book I would recommend.

CSN Stores- Review

As always we had a wonderful experience reviewing for CSN Stores. I’m always amazed at how fast our items ship. I usually review school items, or play items for my children, but this time I took a different approach. Take a look at these great things I got from CSN Stores, and if you find yourself in need of anything I would highly recommend checking their store out first.

 

     J Fit  - 18" Stability Exercise Ball

    This exercise ball has been a great asset to our home, and we use it in many different ways. My daughter has low muscle tone in her hips, and this ball has been a great tool to use with her physical therapy. I also use it for various exercise videos that we have. Plus it holds up to 600lbs, so I can sit on it holding a child, and I don’t have to worry about it popping.

 

The FIRM Balance Trainer Kit

Do want an intense workout at home? This is the item for you. I got this as a part of trying to lose weight, and all I can say is WOW! This thing is unbelievable.

 

 

       J Fit  - Small Balance Pods

   We have not used these at home yet, but Hailey uses these at Physical Therapy, and loves them. They came highly recommended by her PT. and we will begin using them  at home as soon as we get that set of exercises from her PT. However, since Hailey uses them at PT. I asked her what she likes about them. She said that there are all kinds of balancing games that they play using these. She likes the grips on them, because they help her to feel more stable.

 

              Fitball Kids DVD

This DVD has been great for our P.E. The kids love it!

CSN Stores

You may remember a review that I did a few posts back for CSN Stores. I am excited to say that I have been given another opportunity to review a few products for them. I have been looking through their site trying to decide what products to review, and I came across this great laptop messenger bag. I’m not sure if that is what I will choose to review, but isn't it great?