Just a heads up that we will be providing you guys with a list of Atlanta Summer Camps for 2016! Many are already registering and even filling up! To be taken to the Atlanta Summer Camp Guide 2016 page, click the banner below:
Review & Giveaway: CAPTIVE DVD #CaptiveMovie #FlyBy
I was recently asked to review the movie CAPTIVE for you guys. Based on a true and local story, I eagerly accepted! My local readers will most likely recognize the name Brian Nichols. He was an inmate who escaped from the Fulton County Courthouse in 2005 and killed a judge, court stenographer, deputy, and federal agent.
The movie CAPTIVE is based on a true story of the woman Brian Nichols held captive during his murderous escape. Fearing for her life and desperately hoping to see her daughter again, she turns to Rick Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life for guidance. Ashley and her captor face a crossroads where they discover hope and light in the midst of despair.
My husband and I sat down and watched CAPTIVE together. We both think it was very well done and we will likely watch it again. I appreciated the fact that the faith aspect was very subtle and so it would be a great movie to share with non-believers without being overly “preachy”. I don’t want to tell too much, but it follows the real events as close as possible.
Interested in winning a copy? Fill out the Rafflecopter below for your chance:
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.
Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller / FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, you are not eligible to win. Or if you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.
Meal Plan Monday
It’s Monday again! We had a pretty good weekend here and a refreshing day at church. My husband is getting closer and closer to having our rental home ready to be listed for sale. I’m so excited about that! For the week ahead, we will be celebrating my mom’s birthday, my nephew’s birthday, our youngest son’s baptism and of course the normal weekly chaos that surrounds being a homeschool mom of 5. Here’s what we are making this week:
Monday: Chili (never got a chance to make it last week)
Tuesday: Grilled Chicken Salads
Wednesday: Spaghetti Squash Casserole
Thursday: Chicken Alfredo with broccoli
Friday: Burgers, veggies
Saturday: Dinner at my nephew’s party
Sunday: Leftovers!
Double Chocolate Chunk Lactation Cookies!
As you all know, we had our son 4 months ago. Often during a growth spurt, it may be hard to keep up with his demand to nurse. Today I whipped up a batch of Chocolate Chunk Lactation Cookies filled with goodies to help boost my milk supply. Of course, I’m not a doctor, however these always work for me! Many midwives say oats, coconut oil, flaxseed, and Brewer’s yeast can all help. Of course we have to throw in the chocolate to make it taste extra great! These are some of my favorite cookies!
Ingredients
3 Tablespoons flaxseed meal
4 Tablespoons water
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup coconut oil
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups self rising flour
1 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 Tablespoons brewers yeast ( do not substitute this ingredient )
3 cups old fashioned oats ( do not use quick oats )
2 cups chocolate chunks
1/2 cup pecan chips
Directions
Preheat oven to 375 °
1. Combine the flaxseed meal and water in a small dish and set aside.
2. Cream together butter, cream cheese, coconut oil and both sugars. Add vanilla.
3. Add eggs one at a time mixing well, then add the flaxseed meal.
4. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, brewers yeast and oats in a medium mixing bowl then gradually add to the wet ingredients.
5. Mix in chocolate chunks and pecan chips.
6. Scoop by heaping tablespoon onto an ungreased cookie sheet spacing 1-2 inches apart and bake for 11-14 minutes.
7. Allow them to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
Store in an airtight container. These make wonderful gifts for nursing mamas! Enjoy!
Double Chocolate Chunk Lactation Cookies!
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons flaxseed meal
- 4 Tablespoons water
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1/2 cup coconut oil
- 4 oz cream cheese, softened
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 cups self rising flour
- 1 cup cocoa
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 Tablespoons brewers yeast ( do not substitute this ingredient )
- 3 cups old fashioned oats ( do not use quick oats )
- 2 cups chocolate chunks
- 1/2 cup pecan chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 °
- Combine the flaxseed meal and water in a small dish and set aside.
- Cream together butter, cream cheese, coconut oil and both sugars. Add vanilla.
- Add eggs one at a time mixing well, then add the flaxseed meal.
- Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, salt, brewers yeast and oats in a medium mixing bowl then gradually add to the wet ingredients.
- Mix in chocolate chunks and pecan chips.
- Scoop by heaping tablespoon onto an ungreased cookie sheet spacing 1-2 inches apart and bake for 11-14 minutes.
- Allow them to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
To the Frustrated Mom Whose Child Can’t Read…. Yet
As a homeschooling mom, I feel the pressure. My kids are supposed to be smarter than the public school kids, right? They should be farther ahead than their peers and about ready for college by age ten. Except that they aren’t.
With child number 1, I was right on the money. She could read by age 4. Reading was a breeze for her! Of course I just knew my other children would easily follow suit and read by 5 or 6. Except that they didn’t.
Kids number 2 has a speech impediment that also has affected his reading abilities. He had so much trouble speaking that we could forget reading out loud. After a couple years with a super fantastic speech teacher, he made progress and was reading more and more at almost age 8. I believe what caused the sudden trigger in his reading was finding what he was interested in reading. For him, it was A to Z Mysteries and Magic Treehouse books. Once we started reading one he wanted to quickly finish it and I didn’t have the time to sit and read an entire chapter book with him every evening. He found the desire and ended up wanting to learn to read. I know at almost 8, that’s not too “old” for learning to read, but compared to his friends, it was much later. Now at age 9, he’s competing with some friends on reading the entire Bible! Big difference a year makes!
With kid number 3, she just would rather play at this point. I’m okay with that for the most part. She’s 6 and a half. I’m not one to force school before they are ready. The only problem we have run into is people expecting that she can read since she is much taller than the average 6 year old. When they find out that she can’t read, I get those looks. You know, the “you’re one of THOSE homeschoolers”. But whatever. She’s my kid and she will get it in due time. She’s SIX! As with her brother, there will come a day when she has the desire to learn and then reading will be picked up very quickly.
Don’t get me wrong, though. I still work with her on flash cards. We read together daily. We are fostering learning but we will not force it to the point of tears.
So I say the following to the frustrated mom whose child isn’t reading according to the standards of their peers:
- Don’t make reading your only focus. It can be as frustrating to your child as it is to you!
- It will happen. One day it will click and they will be reading chapter books very soon after!
- Don’t make reading a source of tension in the house. Keep making it light and fun.
- Read, Read, Read.
- Go to the library and get new books. If your child likes frogs, find all the fun books on frogs. Help foster the desire to read.
- Find books on tape and have your child follow along with the book.
- Don’t compare your child to other children. It’s so easy to fall into this trap. It’s not worth it. Every child learns at their own pace.
- If needed, contact a specialist to check for dyslexia or other conditions that could be causing the delay.
- Check out websites like Reading Eggs, ABCya.com, and the Getting Ready program on Allinonehomeschool.com.
As a final thought, take heart. Every child is so different in the way they learn and process. Find what works for them and run with it. They come with their very own timetables and do not learn at the exact same pace.
Do you have any other tips to add? What age was your child when they started reading?
Meal Plan Monday!
Is it just me or are Mondays coming faster than ever? I do have to admit that I enjoy Mondays. I like getting back into the swing of our routine and making progress through our homeschooling books. I really enjoy meal planning as well. I like to try new recipes and bring back old favorites. Actually going to repeat a few meals that were on our plan last week as we didn’t get the chance to make everything! Here’s what I’m making this week:
Monday: Beef Stew
Tuesday: Salsa Chicken
Wednesday: Dinner with friends
Thursday: Poppyseed Chicken (Frozen from double batch last week)
Friday: Kielbasa, brussel sprouts
Saturday: Chili
Sunday: leftovers
What are you making this week?
The Accidental Homemaker
I never intended to be a homemaker. I had dreams of growing up, marrying a cowboy, living on a ranch way out west, and maybe having a kid or two. If you would have told me in my teen years that I would be married to a cop, have 5 homeschooling kids and living in a neighborhood, I would have thought you were nuts! Perhaps I’m the nutty one after all.
I’ve noticed in the past year or so that I have become the go-to person for many new moms – both new to parenting and new to the homeschool world. It makes me laugh. When did I become old enough to be giving others advice? And how the heck do they think I know what I’m doing? Most days I totally just wing it! Other ladies have been asking why we homeschool and how we decided for me to stay at home. It all kinda happened on accident. It definitely wasn’t my intention.
When I found myself pregnant with our oldest, I totally thought I would go back to work. I was teaching at a preschool at the time. The plan was for me to take a 6 week maternity break and return as the lead 4 year old teacher. When my baby girl was 5 weeks, I called and said I wouldn’t be returning. I just couldn’t go back and leave someone else in charge of my infant! I took odd jobs as a babysitter for a couple families and was blessed with being able to take my daughter with me. A couple years later my son was born.
There were times that money was super duper tight. It is hard to raise a family on one income at a “starting out” job and have a house in a safe area. We did it the best we could. I started couponing, I crocheted items and sold them, I babysat, whatever we could do. We went down to only one car for over a year. My husband worked full time, took overtime, and worked odd jobs as well. I remember a month where he worked the entire month full of 12 hour shifts without a day off. We did what was needed. We were flipping through pictures the other day and my oldest saw a doll that she had when she was younger. She asked me whatever happened to that doll. I had to tell her the truth – there was a time where we couldn’t make the mortgage payment and feed everybody. The doll was sold along with almost everything we could find to sell to make ends meet. That was a very dark time in our lives but we made it through.
As my kids grew, homeschooling just kinda happened. Again, I would have thought you were nuts if you told me this. When I say it just kinda happened, it did. I just decided since I taught her to walk, talk, eat, I might as well try this homeschooling thing. I figured we would do it for just a year or so.
Around this time, we found out my son had a severe allergy to all things soy. Almost all things processed are completely out of the question for him. We decided that it would be easiest to continue homeschooling to ensure his wellbeing.
The kids grew and grew and multiplied into 5 children now. Even still, most times I can’t even believe what I am doing now. God had a much better plan for me than I could have ever imagined.
Instead of relaxing in the mountains, I’m running the kids to their activities. Instead of training horses and riding all the time, I am teaching and guiding my children into young adults that will hopefully love the Lord with all their hearts. With that, I am truly thankful that His plan far outweighed my own.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:9
Review: SchoolhouseTeachers.com
For the past few weeks, my children and I have been reviewing the Yearly Membership at SchoolhouseTeachers.com. SchoolhouseTeachers.com is an excellent resource for homeschooling families with over 200 courses from preschool through grade 12. With the low monthly fee, you get access to all of the courses for your entire family, no matter the size! Perfect for our large(r) family!
Once you are logged in to SchoolhouseTeachers.com, the best place to start on the site for a new member is the New Members Hub. From there you will be brought to a page where you can start looking for courses. The courses are divided up into Preschool/Kindergarten, Elementary, Middle, and High School. Click on the category that you are looking for and then you’ll have an abundance of courses to choose from! One you decide which courses to take, just click and you’re there!
Once I was logged in, I was overwhelmed at all the classes that were available! So many choices and so little time! I narrowed it down by choosing which child I wanted to find a course for first. I went with my preschooler. I decided to use the Beginning Handwriting course with my almost 5 year old daughter since she’s been wanting to do more school with the “big kids”. This was the perfect way to ease into it without buying lots of extra workbooks. Everything was clickable and easy from there. The lesson plans come with an introduction to the course and show you exactly what to print and even tips on how to teach. I loved seeing all the helpful hints and having everything accessible at the simple click of a button. In this particular course, each lesson is work for about a week. The activities combined fun and learning all together to make it exciting for my daughter.
After we got her settled, I decided to go to my oldest and check out the middle school lessons! Holy smokes! They offer classes for Art, Bible, Computer and Technology, Drama and Speech, Electives, Foreign Languages, History, Geography, Social Studies, Language Arts, Math, Music, Nutrition, Health, Fitness, and Science! We ended up deciding on Math since she could use a little extra encouragement in that subject. More specifically, we went with Pre-Algebra. We actually skipped ahead to what she is currently working on in her math book, which is percents. It had simple explanations that we easy to understand and some problems to work on. It was a great supplement to our current curriculum. In this case, I don’t think I would use this particular course as a stand alone, but am definitely going to use it as a supplement.
My final thoughts is that SchoolhouseTeachers.com is an excellent program to supplement homeschooling. Although it may be hard to narrow down your selections on courses, the fact that there are so many to choose from make it a fantastic resource.
I am now a member of the Schoolhouse Review Crew and as such I’ll be brining you more homeschool information and reviews over the next year! I think many of you will really enjoy this addition to MommyOctopus.com.
Since I’m a crew member, I have an exclusive code for you guys! New members can use code CREWFOLLOWER on SchoolhouseTeachers.com through 1/31/2016 to save 50% off a year’s membership! That’s quite the deal! A year membership is $139, so only $69.50 after the code! For more information, head on over to SchoolhouseTeachers.com and check it out!
Silicone Rings for Law Enforcement Officers
My husband just sent me an article on PoliceOne that talked about how silicone rings were better for law enforcement officers. There have been times where his ring has gotten caught on something and he could have lost a finger or broke it! I’m grabbing him these now – only $8.95 for 2!
My New Years Goals 2016
I know my blog is taking a slight turn – less deals, more info and random stuff. It is definitely warping into something different or perhaps back into what it was when I first started. More local stuff, less online deals, more recipes. Less rush, more actual content. This year I have decided to write down my goals for you guys, mainly to try and keep myself accountable. Here goes:
First up, I am aiming to stop people pleasing. Yes, making other people happy is important, but not at the cost of myself or my family. Ultimately, people pleasing doesn’t matter. I need to be aiming to please God and not others. I’ve definitely struggled with this lately.
Next, I plan to put my blog more on the back burner and move my family forward more. Honestly as a working from home mom, it’s hard to create that balance. For too long my blog/work has taken the front line. Moving it back more and more.
Thirdly, I hope to get rid of 5 kids worth of baby weight. Upping my protein and getting rid of sugars and junk carbs. Exercising with a friend once a week to hopefully have some accountability.
I also want to work on eliminating negativity. I’ve seen God work absolute wonders from horrible situations and I need to remember that throughout hard things, God is still working.
My big goal for the year is also my “word of the year” and that is Minimizing. By this I mean getting rid of useless stuff. Clutter. Both in my home and in my personal life. I’ve already started getting rid of clutter! Feels good!
What goals do you have for 2016
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