Building More than Buildings

Welcome to Word Nerd!

We'd love to have you join the fun, either blogging with us, or simply visiting. =) We dearly love visitors.

This week's word is Construction.

If you're joining in the meme, be sure to link up with us at the end of this post. Since this is a blog hop, you can grab the code for the linky down there too. Find more info about the Word Nerd meme here.

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Being married to a contractor, my life is still full of building things...every aspect of building things, including the demolition part.

We bought this house. Really. It looks good here compared to when we got. Saying this place was gross is an understatement. You know the 10-second rule? It did not apply here. If food hit the floor here it was contaminated with "dirty dirt" and could be brushed or rinsed off and eaten--no matter how hungry you were.

Working together, we gutted it and remodeled the house (and it's neighboring house that was just as bad). It was an education for my kids--one they still talk about. It had a big impact on our family--more than just coining the concept of clean dirt and dirty dirt.

(More pictures of this project are here.)

Construction isn't just my husband's occupaton, it's a way of life for our family. It's molded all of us into the people we are today.

So much of life has been taught through one construction project or another. And not just carpentry skills, although all our kids can hold their own on a job. We're talking about life lessons and spiritual lessons--for the kids and for me and my husband.

And at the end of a long hard job...

Our kids learned the value of hard work and team work...and sooooo much more. They saw what can be done to trashed houses...and trashed lives. They had a hands on, graphic example of what God can do.

Construction. It's good for more than just building things.

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Next week's word is GLASS. Hope you join us!

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Children's Book, The Potowatomi Boy

As a homeschool mom, finding good historical fiction for my kids has always been a priority. I've found it's the best way to teach history because it makes it come alive to the kids, and these books by my friend Lisa Lickle are great for just that. I've read and reviewed them and wish they had been around when my kids were younger. Green Leaf is perfect for boys, and that's a true treasure because it seems there's more books geared toward girls than boys. A story about an Indian boy has always been a sure way to capture the interest of my boys.

These books have my recommendation and I'm so glad I get to share them with you!

Green Leaf

The Potawatomi Boy

Lisa J Lickel, illustrated by Brenda Hendricks

About the Book:
Green Leaf’s cousins are all older than he and don’t like to play fair. He longs for a friend his own age he can play with, explore and fish with. When he meets a Luxembourger boy, Henri, Green Leaf is sure they could become friends, but Henri’s words are strange to Green Leaf. How can they play and explore together?

Green Leaf’s mother says, “Friends learn to speak one another’s words.” But will Green Leaf learn to say his friend’s words well enough to save Henri when he falls into danger?

Kindle - on special sale during December 1- 16, $.99
Also available in print from online retailers or from your favorite bookseller. $5.95

Ten years in the making, The First Children of Farmington series of early reader books has finally reached book sellers. I spent two years researching and writing this series. Several years after I worked with other community historians to collect and record our early pioneer history, I realized that we had quite a diverse ethnicity to Farmington, Wisconsin. Although these stories are based on real people and real events, they are representative of issues and struggles and joys families face every day everywhere.

The Potawatomi Boy is a character with a running thread through all the books. When I first started out with the project I was taking classes from the Christian Writers Guild. I set out to put together a series of picture books and connected with a couple of different artists. I wrote the text, but learned over several years that it’s harder to get the attention of a publisher for children’s books than it is for adult books. I’d never considered self-publishing, but through connections with my current illustrator and publishing partner, Brenda Hendricks, and others at the John 316 Marketing Network, learned a lot about not only self-publishing options, but how to publish well.

The second book in the series, The German Girl, is now available, as well, about a curious young girl who becomes lost while searching for the family cow, and the third book, The Saxon Boy, about a young boy who must learn to accept a stepfather, may be out by Christmas. I was quite surprised and pleased to have won a prestigious Jade Ring award for the Saxon Boy from the Wisconsin Writers Association. The other three stories, The Yankee Boy, The Irish Girl and The French Girl, are planned for release in 2014.

The books include references, glossaries, and special illustrations and a picture search. They are suitable for early to middle grades, ages 7-9 or so.

Also at Barnes and Noble and Booksamillion

From December 1 through December 16, the John 3:16 Marketing Network is hosting a Christmas Book Launch and The Potawatomi Boy is a featured book. As part of the event, the Network is offering a $200 Amazon gift certificate to one lucky winner. For a chance to win, go to Christian Books and enter the Rafflecopter toward the bottom of the page.

About the Author:

Lisa Lickel is a Wisconsin writer who lives with her husband in a hundred and sixty-year-old house built by a Great Lakes ship captain. Surrounded by books and dragons, she writes inspiring fiction. Her published novels include mystery and romance, all with a twist of grace. She has penned dozens of feature newspaper stories, short stories, magazine articles and radio theater. She is the editor in chief of Creative Wisconsin magazine. Lisa also is an avid book reviewer, a freelance editor, a writing mentor, a hostess at Clash of the Titles.com, and enjoys blogging at theBarnDoor.net and AuthorCulture.blogspot.com. She loves to encourage new authors. Find more at LisaLickel.com.

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Are We There Yet?

Welcome to the 

third round of A to Z!

We'd love to have you join the fun, either blogging your way through the alphabet with us, or simply visiting. =) We dearly love visitors.

Naturally, this week is the letter A.

If you're joining in the meme, be sure to link up with us at the end of this post. Since this is a blog hop, you can grab the code for the linky down there too. Find more info about the A to Z meme here.

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The other day we (re)watched one of the Mummy movies. One of my favorite scenes is when the kid drove his captor crazy on a train ride by asking Are we there yet? It totally cracks me up every time. I understand the man's extreme aggravation by that phrase! In fact, it's one of the forbidden lines in my family. Really.

In the past year or so we've spent a fair bit of time on the road. Our longest trip was last December. Five kids, two adults, and a monkey, in one van from Illinois to Arizona. Thank God for 15 passenger vans!

All those miles and the only time I heard Are we there yet? was when it was said jokingly to harass me. But their body language said all...

Of course, at the beginning of the trip everyone is eager to get on the road. But it doesn't take long before this happens...

Boredom!

Reading a good book.

Dad likes it comfy cool in the van...much to Mom and Toby's dismay. When Toby was in the first bench seat, this is how he ended up. Bundled in his blankies. LoL.

Lotsa picture taking.
Pictures inside the van and outside the van.

Time to draw and write.

Toby's second favorite place to ride--the top of Mom's seat where he could keep an eye on everyone and everything.

Play stop. Yes, those are my kids on the playground meant for LITTLE kids.

Because you're never too old to play on a playground. (This one was just a couple weeks shy of turning 20 in this picture! LoL)

Status update time...

Why'd ya wake me up?

Are we there??







Craziness of all kinds!

All's fair and love and war. hehe.
This is where Mom whispers desperately, Are we there yet?

Touch my seat and I'll tell Mom.
Go ahead.
I dare ya.

Yay!! Rest stop! Wahoo!

Movie time. Computers and tablets are great on long trips!

My husband is great.

So, can you tell how I spend all my time when we're traveling?

LoL. Give me a monkey and a camera and I'm happy for hours on end. Good thing too because writing with a monkey on my lap is almost impossible since Toby likes to lick the pen and paper and play with the pen. sigh.

Toby's Are we there yet? look.

Just

can't

keep

my

eyes

open...

Guess what?
Okay, besides how much fun this mom's revenge has been. LoL

We made it to Grammy and Pappy's!!

So tell me, how does your family fight the Are we there yet? syndrome?

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If you're joining us for the A to Z meme by posting on your blog this week about the letter A, be sure to add your name and the link to that particular post in the linky gadget here. Also, if you don't have the linky gadget on your site, click the link to get the code so you can add it.

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The Nut House Residents

Welcome to this week's a 2 z
and the letter

N. If you're joining in the meme, be sure to link up with us at the end of this post. Find more info about the a 2 z meme here.

Residents of The Nut House...

My husband and younger boys.

My daughters.

Me and Toby.

Below is my oldest, playing with one of his toys.

Yup. That's all of us.
Some of us in our normal state and
some of us in our goofiness
and for some of us, goofiness is our normal state.

Not that I would ever mention any names...
but a picture is worth a thousand words.
hehe.


If you're joining us for the a2z meme by posting on your blog this week about the letter N, be sure to add your name and the link to that particular post in the linky gadget here.

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Homeschooling Younger Children

A couple weeks ago on the Homeschooling for the Challenged post, Kate asked a great question...

Patty, what do you do with kids younger than third grade? My three are ages 3-7 and I'm struggling to finish the school year from last year (we did just adopt a 3 year old in March, so that got us way off schedule)... It's hard to homeschool with a three year old around, especially since she doesn't speak English very well yet and we're still working on learning obedience and just everyday living. Any advice is much appreciated.

Kate's question reminded me what I did when the kids were little, but Kate, with a new daughter who's just learning English, that totally changes everything. Hold on to the last point I make. ;-)

Homeschooling for the Challenged is what I do with my older kids, but until they've learned to read we sat and did school together—whether it was at the kitchen table or on the couch, we were together. To change things up, we used both locations throughout their school day, going back and forth as needed.

My sister Cheryl happened to have Christ-Centered Curriculum and since her boys were beyond it, she passed it on to me. I laminated the flashcards and have used it to teach my kids to read. When they were ready for it, I moved them into Abeka's Language Arts third grade book. Christ-centered Curriculum gave them a great foundation.

For readers, we used Abeka's readers (which I purchased at used curriculum sales—one here, another there), and Pathway Readers , all of which the kids loved. Pathway Readers are about Amish families but do not put forth Amish beliefs or doctrines. Both sets are wholesome stories. I've spent hours listening to kids read to me—at the table, in the living room, as I fold laundry or cook. Anytime I could listen while my hands were busy was fair game for reading time.

The first year or two...

we only did phonics and math. It was enough. When they could read well enough to muddle through a paragraph of History or Science, those were added in. It was completely based on the child's readiness.

That meant my oldest went through that first “school year” twice (he wasn't ready the first time and neither was I), my older daughter (#2 in the line-up) went through once, and my younger daughter (#3 of 5 kids) went through zero times, officially. That was when I finally wised up.

See, while I was doing school with older two, the little ones played on the floor nearby. I thought my daughter was just playing with her toy dishes on the floor, but she was listening too. She listened as we drilled phonics, read History and Science lessons together, and as I asked them questions about what we had read. And then she answered those questions. After I was done with her older brother and sister, I sat down with her and the flash cards. She knew them. So, I pulled out First Steps—the first reader—and we began to work through that. I didn't have to teach her—she already had it figured out because she played quietly, nearby, during school.

Break times...

They happened when I needed to help one child but not the others or when I had to take training time with the toddler. One on one time with the kids happened while the others were doing things in school that they didn't need my help for—worksheets, penmanship, running around the house. Yes, there were days I sent my son out to run around the house two or three times. He loved it and it cured his wiggles.

Did things always go that smooth? 

Of course not. I was schooling three kids with an infant in my arms and a toddler playing on the floor. Some days we quit after an hour and other days we caught up because everyone was co-operating. Some days it took three tries to get school done and Jim was walking in the door when we called it a wrap. Life happens. Especially when you have little ones.

Be willing to try different things to find what works for you, realizing what works one week might not work the next.

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Children and Volunteering

My younger boys with some of the clothing room ladies.

A few years ago my daughters began helping in our church clothing room. It was to be for only three or four weeks, but it's grown into three years now and my boys have joined the team. It's been a life changing experience for all of them.

The ladies they work with could easily be their grandmothers and great-grandmothers, and the love that's grown between them is comforting to everyone involved. There have been times I've not been able to accompany the girls to the clothing room, but I've never had to worry about them. I know their adopted grandmothers keep a close, loving eye on them.

Through working at the clothing room my children have seen and heard things I would've protected them from. The attitudes, language, tattoos and dress (or lack of it) they've been exposed to is enough to make me cringe, but it has been good. They now see a different side of life than what they see within the safety of the four walls of our home. It's opened their eyes and help them truly see the difference God makes in a person's life. It's also given them compassion to temper and displace the judgment they once felt.

My older daughter with some Clothing Room ladies.

Volunteering at the church clothing room has been a conversation starter for topics I wouldn't have thought to talk about with my children. As we work there, we often over-hear conversations of patrons and get a glimpse into their broken lives. We've talked about what's gotten people into the situation they're in and how to avoid such things. The kids have seen a glimpse of the dross of the world as it is, not the shiny face Satan tries to portray, and it's made a difference in their lives.

Instead of seeing those times as unwelcome exposure to outside influences, we use them as teaching moments. They've convinced me of a few things we need to do for our children, things that aren't always comfortable.

We should provide our children with...

• ways to interact with others different than they are.
• ways to serve others, both those less fortunate and those “better off” than they are.
• ways to contribute meaningfully to the world around them.
• a view to see the difference God makes in lives.
• opportunities for volunteering, expecting nothing in return.

These opportunities are eye-opening for children and can help them develop into well-rounded adults who care about others and who are less judgmental of those who are different or less fortunate than they. It can safely show them the difference Christ makes in a life.

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Better than Magic

Welcome to this week's a 2 z
and the letter B.If you're joining in the meme, be sure to link up with us at the end of this post. Find more info about the a 2 z meme here.


My family is NOT a quiet family. We all have strong personalities and even the two of us who appear "easygoing" are not--it's just a thin layer of easygoing over a mile-wide stubborn streak. Needless to say, tempers flash often here.

One day, recently, one of my sons came stomping into the house. He wears big boots so everyone knew he was ticked. Even Toby. Being the loving, kind, gentle mother that I am NOT, I wanted to get through his thick skull and remind him there were better ways to handle his anger.

Thankfully, the girls were goofy and their goofiness infected me right before he snarled "Yeah? How?!" (or I might have snarled back at him in my best mean-mom voice)

I said the first thing I could think of...

Bummer!

It worked better than magic.
His anger fizzled and the girls giggled.
Music to this mom's ears.

So, the next time you're tempted to blow your top, try Bummer! instead. And for extra oomph, get the twang in there too.  The short version is sooooo much better. LoL.

And that anger management tip I learned from Tim Hawkins. Here's just a short minute-and-a-half clip of the song that still makes me snicker...even while listening to the long version by ol' Gordon. (Thank you Tim for making something good from poor Edmond Fitzgerald! LoL)


If you're joining us for the a2z meme by posting on your blog this week about the letter B, be sure to add your name and the link to that particular post in the linky gadget here.

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Children and Service

Teaching our children about God and living out our faith before them is important, but there's another thing we want to teach them, and that's to serve.

My oldest, just left of the shark--on a fun day on their missions trip.

Recently my four older children went on a youth missions trip with our church youth group. This is something they do every year instead of going to a church camp, and I love it. They get to meet other kids their age, attend fun youth Bible meetings once or twice a day where they hear God's word and have those mountaintop experiences, and do something good for others. Often they're roofing or painting a house and, through teamwork, they get the job done in the five days they're on the job. They work hard, but they also see the joy of the homeowners, and have seen people saved as a result of their work. Many of our church kids have been saved on these missions trips and others have rededicated their lives to God.

As easy as it is to help my kids pack for that trip every year...

It's not the church's responsibility to teach my kids to serve. It's ours as parents. 

My younger daughter and a church lady she helps.

To do that there are several things we've done. Our church has a clothing room for the community and we spend one morning a week there helping the ladies who run it.

Another way to teach your children to serve is by helping with the set-up and clean-up for church dinners. Wiping tables and putting away the tables and chairs isn't the funnest job around, but it's a great way to teach the kids to help in any way they can, even if it seems small and insignificant.

Last Spring we discovered another way to serve. A well loved man in our church died, and as is custom, one of the Sunday School classes was in charge of the funeral meal for their large family. They needed help and contacted a younger class, the one I attend. We not only prepared dishes to bring, but we spent the day serving the meal. Set-up, serving, and clean-up. The older ladies were thankful for young legs to do much of the running and, once again, my girls saw another side of christian women in action. It means giving up a day of working at home and a day of school for the girls, but it's worth it.

My older daughter, roofing on a missions trip.

As we've served together, we've noticed something. There are two kinds of servants: those that serve out of duty and those that serve with a smile. We've spent time talking about this in our family, and we've talked about the results. Sadly, the kids have noticed those that serve out of duty because they tend to snap at others or are sullen as they serve, but it has made them see the importance or serving with a smile and with a good attitude. They also have seen people that serve out of love and the difference that love and their smiles make.

Let's be sure to teach our children to serve God in every way, and in any way they can. And more importantly, let's teach them the importance of serving with a smile.

Serving out of love for God and love for others is the key to serving.

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a2z Starts with A

Yes! a 2 z is starting up again today! I'm so excited! This is one of my favorite posts every week--it's a bit of a free-for-all for me. A time when I can post about anything I want...as long as it relates to the week's letter. This week, of course is the letter A.

Me and a bucket of apples.

Welcome to the a 2 z meme!

This is our third round, and if three times is a charm, then this is the charm round. *eye roll* (I did mention free-for-all, didn't I? LoL)

If you're joining in the meme, be sure to link up with us at the end of this post. Find more info about the a 2 z meme here.

This summer has been busy here. We haven't gardened for years but this year we did, changing my summer plans because a garden isn't just a garden for us, it's canning too.

Our oldest son took an interest in our orchard this year too. He did some research then set out to care for the trees. For the first time ever, we have fruit from the trees! A storm blew down a bunch of small apples and I was able to pick up three five gallon buckets of them. They were too small for anything except applesauce.

So, we sauced them. It was scorching hot and the thought of cooking down apples in my kitchen wasn't too appealing. My wonderful, out-of-the box thinker husband suggested pressure cooking them on the fish-fryer burner on the deck. He didn't have to say it twice!

After washing and chopping the apples in half, I filled my jumbo pressure cooker--it's only 16 quarts. ;-) In seemingly no time the apples were cooked. So much faster!

When Jim and I married, he was smart enough to invest our wedding gift money into a KitchenAid mixer and attachments. We've had one ever since.

My three boys, helping.

This was an all-hands-on-deck project because while we were saucing the apples, Jim was in the kitchen cutting corn from the cobs.

The KitchenAid attachment is great. Someone spoons cooked apples into the hopper thingie, they funnel down and are pushed through a through a sieve tube, squishing the sauce out one direction while pushing out the peels and seeds at the very end. Kids love watching it and helping.  But you do NOT need a KitchenAid to make applesauce! It's been so long since I've made applesauce that I did some quick research to refresh my memory before I started. I found a great site that gives alternatives to the KitchenAid. Click here for a great post about the different tools you can use to make applesauce.

Those three buckets of small apples gave us 24 quarts of applesauce that will be doubly delicious this winter.

So, when life dumps apples on you, sauce them!
*eye roll*

If you're joining us for the a2z meme by posting on your blog this week about the letter A, be sure to add your name and the link to that particular post in the linky gadget here. This is also a blog hop, so go ahead and grab the code and post it on your site so others can join in too.

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