Sew Crafty Friday-Quilt Squares

This week I am working on quilt squares for my homeschool group's quilt. Several ladies are making squares. We will each get a square and make our own quilt. I'm excited. This square has not yet been sewn together. I just laid it out. I cut out all my strips, but need to finish cutting the individual squares. Then I will sew them all together!

Have you been crafty this week? What are you working on. To see more crafty projects, visit Shereen at Waiting for Him.

And a Little Child Shall Lead Them

As a part of our homeschool curriculum, we study character qualities. The current character quality is humility. In health we discussed how the bladder exhibits humility in its function. We talk about what humility is and what it is not (antonyms).

My son is a part of the Adventurer Program and as a fundraiser, the club is having a fashion show. The club practiced on Sunday afternoon and Sunday evening my son said that he did not want to participate in the fashion show. My first thought was that something had happened. Maybe he had gotten into a disagreement with one of the other little boys. Upon further questioning, he said that he did not believe that Jesus would be in a fashion show. He said that when he posed in the clothes he felt that he was being showy. Immediately I tried to imagine Jesus showing off His clothes. Wow, not good fit.

I was filled with emotion. My 8 year old son, recognizes pride when he experiences it and has the courage to stand against it. My prayer is that I will be bold enough (through Christ strength) to stand for the things I believe in.

May God continue to give me the strength and wisdom to teach my children to be like Daniel. But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself. Daniel 1:8

The Moore Formula

I got a question about the Moore Formula so I would like to take a minute to write a little bit about how it works.''

The Moore Formula in a nutshell says that the time student spends on academics, should equal the amount of time they spend on work and service.

There is a six point prescription for academic excellence

1. Scripture Memorization

2. Observation Skills

3. Work and Service Education

4. Building Academic Skills

5. Guided Questioning

6. The Study Buddy

In the Manual, each point in spelled out in detail.

One thing that I love about the Moore Formula is the use of schedules. They decribe what they call "anchor points". Set a time for Rising and going to bed, bath time and bed time, meals and school and fill in everything else around these major items. Be consistent but open and flexible enough to allow change.

They use unit studies and give examples of how to create them yourself. I try to create our units based on what's going on in our area. With spring around the corner, we will visiting the pond to look for tadpoles, observing birds build their nests, identifying trees etc. We will also be gardening and using it for spiritual lessons as well as physical activity.

I hope this sheds some light on this method. Feel free to ask any specific questions you may have. I am more than happy to answer them

Homeschool Snow Day

A few days ago I woke up to huge snowflakes falling outside of my window. What a beautiful sight. It doesn't snow much where we live, so I told the kids to hurry up and get bundled up so they could play in it before it all melted. They did just that and had a blast.

The kids enjoyed snowball fights with Daddy

And making miniature snowmen. :)

I incorporated learning by talking about the difference between sleet and snow, and the next day when it melted we talked about why it was easier to make snowballs out of freshly fallen snow.

It's days like this that make me extra thankful that we homeschool.

My Natural Hair Journey

From a very young age, I got my hair hot combed (straightened). As early as 6 I was getting the "Just For Me" perms from the box and for a long time I didn't know what my hair really looked like.

When I started making better choices in my eating and become overall more health conscious, I couldn't help but being bothered by putting harsh chemicals on my hair. I felt like I should stop getting perms, but what in the world was I supposed to do with my hair?!

Since natural hair is so different from chemically treated hair, there is really no way to answer that question before chopping all of the the relaxed hair off. Well I had seem women with really cute short natural styles, but I didn't know what my hair looked like underneath and I wasn't confident enough to rock it if it wasn't extra cute!

My last perm was April 24th of 2008 and after that I flat ironed my hair. I asked my hairstylist to trim my permed hair as my roots grew out. So for every inch of new growth I got, I cut an inched of permed hair . A year later my relaxer was almost completely gone and I did the "Big Chop" (which wasn't so big after all because I was cutting all along).

I have not looked back. I love my hair! I received a lot of negative comments "I like your hair straight" "Why in the world would you do that to your hair. It's so beautiful when you perm it" and my Aunt just flat out told me "I do NOT like your hair like that and you need to get a perm or do something!" Now I'm the kind of person that would have buckled under the pressure. The thing that kept me is that my mind was already made up and I knew exactly why I was doing what I was doing.

I must embrace me and that includes my hair. My hair is the healthiest that is has ever been and I get far more compliments than I do negative comments.

So if you are thinking of going natural, first know why and stay committed. Do research and find products that work for your hair. ALL natural hair is different. Even on my head I have at least 3 different types of hair. Know that God made you beautiful!