Mommy Octopus

Officially 18 more days of homeschool left for our family this school year!  Woo hoo!  We spent the weekend rearranging the school room and trying to make things work a little easier.  It was getting crowded with 5 kid desks plus my desk and our book shelves and computer desk.  I think come fall we will have it looking a lot better.  I also gave everyone including grandma haircuts this weekend.  I’m definitely not a professional, but it works okay.  The week ahead brings more of the same, but we plan to pressure wash the driveway, too.  Anyone else find themselves doing more cleaning or organizing?  I haven’t done as much as I hoped during this season, but when school is over it will be on!  Hope you all have a great and healthy week!

Monday: Hot dogs, zucchini fries, beans

Tuesday: Quesadillas, nachos

Wednesday: Grilled chicken, squash

Thursday: Homemade pizza

Friday: Egg Casserole

Saturday: Tacos

Sunday: Fried Chicken, veggies

Hunger Games fans!! You’ll be excited to know that it’s time to pre-order The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, the Hunger Games prequel!! My teens are excited.  This title will be released on May 19, 2020.  You can go ahead and pre-order now from Amazon.

It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate hanging on the slender chance that Coriolanus will be able to outcharm, outwit, and outmaneuver his fellow students to mentor the winning tribute.
 
The odds are against him. He’s been given the humiliating assignment of mentoring the female tribute from District 12, the lowest of the low. Their fates are now completely intertwined — every choice Coriolanus makes could lead to favor or failure, triumph or ruin. Inside the arena, it will be a fight to the death. Outside the arena, Coriolanus starts to feel for his doomed tribute . . . and must weigh his need to follow the rules against his desire to survive no matter what it takes.

 

Looks like backyard fun will be where it’s at for most of the summer.  Academy has this Intex Easy Set Pool for $49.99 and free pickup at the store. Made from puncture-resistant material for durability, this pool has an easy setup design, so you can start enjoying the water right away.  We used to have one of these many years ago and we were very happy with our purchase.

Woo hoo!  I’m so glad they have hammocks again available.  It’s time to get a few more!  Head on over to 13Deals.com and score a single parachute hammock for $10.98 shipped and $14.97 shipped for double parachute hammock.  This price will be cheaper if you purchase 3 or more as shipping will then be free!  This is where we have bought our hammocks from year ago and they are still in use around here.

Offering lightweight comfort, this parachute silk hammock is perfect for camping or backpacking. This unique hammock is easily accommodated by a large pocket and weighs just a pound. Two hanging hooks and rope are included. The Parachute Silk Hammock is perfect for outdoor adventurers who like to travel light, but still want a comfortable place to sleep and relax.

Please Note: Color will be selected at random and Pink is NOT one of the colors.

 

This is exciting!  As part of the partnership between the University of Georgia Center for Continuing Education and Education To Go, the University of Georgia is pleased to announce the availability of 10 free self-paced tutorial courses.

These courses offer career leverage for a range of students as well as professionals seeking career development opportunities as circumstances around employment continue to change. The courses will be available through June 30, 2020.

Head on over to check out what is available.  I think I will be taking the Personal Finance course.  There’s always opportunity to grow!

We did a book swap with some friends a few days ago!  My friend messaged and said her kids had some books they’d love to swap for some other books since the libraries are closed.  My kids instantly jumped on that idea. They quickly ran around the house collecting some of their favorite books to loan to their friends.

We took pictures of the books we had to offer and texted them to our friends so they could pick out what they wanted to read.  Then we put our books in a bag out by our garage and my friend came by to drop off her books and pick ours up on her way to an errand.  It took just a few seconds and no interaction was needed.

Kids are thrilled with having new books to read and it didn’t cost us a thing. They also enjoyed waving at their friends through the windows.  I thought this was a great idea that maybe some of you would enjoy as well.

One way to support your local entrepreneurs is by shopping Etsy.  There are plenty of great gifts for Mother’s Day made by American small businesses.  Below, I’ve put together some that caught my eye that you might want to consider.

First up, I absolutely love this Handwriting Keychain, that will be engraved with the words or drawings that you provide.  How precious would this be with your little ones’ writing or from a dearly departed family member.

Another great one that is made right in my town are these Custom Watercolor House Portraits.  They are absolutely stunning!  You simply provide a photo of the house you’d like done and it will be done just for you!  Great way to remember a childhood home or as a housewarming gift.

I actually own a family portrait done by Badger and Wren and we get so many compliments on it when people come over.  It’s hanging right in our living room.  Badger and Wren offers family portraits and other designs and these would make a wonderful mother’s day gifts.  You can have a portrait drawn of 1-2 people, all the way up to 10+!  You won’t go wrong with this one!

These “Mom Juice” wine glasses with lids are so cute and are sure to make Mom smile!

I absolutely love these!  I like that you could add many charms for a Grandma and it not be too bulky-looking.  How precious of a keepsake this Charm Necklace would be.  Up to 8 charms and leafs can be added.

Another precious necklace is this Lovebirds necklace with up to 8 baby birds.  This is probably my favorite necklace that I’ve seen in a while!

There are also really cute Mother’s Day cards that are appropriate during this socially distancing season.  If your mom loves a good laugh, this is definitely one you’ll want to grab!

And again – there are cute things for moms during this COVID-19 season.  Gotta love this one, even though I am a homeschooling mom 😉 Promoted to Homeschool Mom…… Against My Will!

If you’re looking for something for Mom, head on over to Etsy and browse around.  Support local and shop Etsy!

Whew.  This morning, my husband and I ran errands around Athens for our family and for my mom’s needs.  Finally after 4 stores, we were able to get everything needed.  This was my first time out shopping since all this started and it’s so different!  I’ve been doing some Walmart Grocery Pickups (get a FREE $10 off discount for that here!) but for the most part just using what we had at the house.  It was so nice to get out without the kids for a few minutes.  We even went all out and got Chickfila for breakfast.  The week ahead of course is more of the same – school, cooking, cleaning, etc.  We also plan to do our homeschool testing later this week.  Hope you all are doing well!  Here’s what we are making this week:

Monday: Butternut Squash Lasagna 

Tuesday: Eggplant Pizza Bites

Wednesday: Buffalo Chicken Dip

Thursday: Roast with potatoes and carrots

Friday: Grilled Chicken and veggies

Saturday: Sandwiches or leftovers

Sunday: Burgers

Disclaimer: I received a FREE copy of this product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way.

We love reading books together as a family and since we have been staying home, we have been reading even more books.  We were recently sent the beautiful children’s book Psalms for my Day  to review, published by Christian Focus.  Fresh out of the shipping box, I was fascinated by the amazing illustrations and the beauty of the book.  It is hardcover so it should last through many years and even be able to be passed down to future generations.

Psalms for my Day features a short, kid-appropriate devotion for 31 of the Psalms, followed by a simple prayer.  Some of the devotions it covers include  Psalm 1 – God’s Teaching, Psalm 8 – Majestic God, Psalm 23 – Caring God, Psalm 40 – God Saves, and Psalm 133 – God the Father.  Of course this is just a small sampling of the 31 sections, but it should give you an idea of how it points back to God in each Psalm. References are also included on each devotional page along with the printed verses.The translation included in this book is by Biblical scholar Alec Motyer.

Geared toward children ages 4-6 as a read-aloud with their parent and ages 7-11 as a read-to-myself, I feel like this book is right on track with those ages.  My youngest is 4.5 and it’s absolutely perfect for him.  Older children may find it to be a bit simplistic, but much can be learned from the devotions.

My husband and youngest son have been reading this book together on the nights that he is off from work.  The book also includes a ribbon bookmark, so it is easy to keep their place in the book.  It’s been such a sweet time together as they read and study God’s word together.  It’s a great way to end the day focused on God and what he has done for us.

Below you can see the devotion for Psalm 117 to get an idea of how short the devotions are and how they flow.  The printed verses are on the left page followed by the devotion and prayer on the right.  Aren’t the pages just gorgeous!! The whole book is super colorful.

We have really enjoyed this book and plan to continue using it as a devotion for our youngest son.  I would recommend this book to any family that has younger children and are looking for a good devotion that will keep their attention without being too long.

 

For More Information:

For more information, please visit the Christian Focus website.  You can also find out more on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.  You can also read more reviews on this product and 2 other books from this company by clicking the banner below.