A Song for Saturday

This is a great video, using a song that always moves me. Don't just listen, be sure to watch and read the captions! Only Jesus offers us the Way to come alive again from the depths of our sins and sorrows!



Here's the full version of the song:

TOS Crew Review - MathRider

MathRider is an computer "game" that helps children master their math facts in a fun and adventurous way! While children learn, practice, and eventually master math facts for all four math functions, they also enjoy riding their horse Shadow through mythical lands on a Quest from the king to rescue the princess. Along the quest, they gather magical flowers, precious gems, and other rewards - eventually finding the princess and being awarded a castle!

Each math operation has three levels - easy, medium, and hard. Each level takes the child on a different quest, however, for each operation, the quests are the same (ie. the quest (or storyline) for easy addition is the same quest for easy division), however, the rewards vary which kept the boys motivated. The program is designed to keep track of the child's progress and present problems that they've struggled with more frequently, until each problem has been mastered. Once the child achieves mastery (100%) on an operation, they rescue the princess and their final reward is a castle!

To actually play the game, there is a horse and a series of 30 jumps. Under each jump is a math problem, and to get their horse to clear the jump, the child must answer the problem correctly.


If they answer it incorrectly, the horse stops and the jump and they have to try again. After clearing all 30 jumps, the child is awarded points based on accuracy as well as speed. There is also a graph that shows how well they did on each problem and how fast they answered it. As they progress through each quest, their progress is shown on a map, like this:



This was actually part of the fun for my boys, they loved to see how far their line would move along the map after each round.

For me, I enjoyed being able to see at a glance how well each boy was doing, as well as which problems they were struggling with the most, on the Statistics Page:



This year of being on the TOS Crew has brought us the privilege of exploring many different math products, including several that teach and drill math facts. MathRider, by far, has been my boys' favorite! They are given 15 minutes a day to "play" it and are always asking for more during their free time. Something about horses, castles, quests, fantasy, and rescuing a princess is right up their alley - go figure! ;-) Their math skills were sharpened, and I appreciate that they aren't looking at math practice as drudgery!

MathRider is available for instant download for $37. Here is their video demonstrating the program, so you can get a better feel for what I've tried to describe!



Be sure to check and see what other reviewers thought by visiting the TOS Homeschool Crew Blog!

Disclaimer: I was given this product specifically for the purpose of reviewing here on my blog as a member of TOS Homeschool Crew. I received no other compensation in regards to this review.

Wordless Wednesday - Little Miss

(Many, many thanks to my friend Stephanie for the sweet dress! Be sure to check out her etsy shop at Ruby's Vineyard to see more of her adorable work!)

Rachel's (Home) Birth Story

I apologize for taking so long to finally type this up. Go figure, life with 5 boys and a newborn is keeping me busy ;-) So... as for the details of Rachel's birth - here it goes! Just a warning, though - it's a bit long!

My due date with Rachel was January 29. My parents came to stay with us to help with the kids the week before, and were planning on staying about 10 days. Well... January 29 came and went. It was the very first time I'd ever seen my due date and still been pregnant! I was trying to keep a positive outlook, but when you add up all the people who were staring at me all day long (Michael, the boys, my parents...) and asking if I were in labor yet... it wasn't always easy!

Two things my midwife had mentioned had stuck with me - that babies tend to come on new moons, and that low pressure systems (storms) tend to bring babies, too. I checked the calendar and saw that the new moon was Wednesday, February 2. As I watched the weather, it also happened that a low pressure system was coming through that day, as well! So I started telling people that I thought Wednesday would be the day (half jokingly, but totally hopefully!).

Sure enough, Wednesday early morning, a little after midnight, I woke up to use the bathroom and noticed I was having some uncomfortable back pain. I took notice of it and went back to bed. I woke up about an hour later with the same feeling and knew it was the beginnings of labor! Knowing it was still really early, though, I went back to bed to get some more sleep. At about 3:30, I woke up, and couldn't get back to sleep. Instead, I got up and starting walking around and timing contractions. They were coming every 6-8 minutes! After about an hour, I woke Michael up and told him that it was the day! He wanted to me to call Debbie (my midwife) just to "put her on alert", so I did, and she said to call when we thought she should come over. After that, I tried to get more sleep, but discomfort and excitement didn't allow me much.

Another hour went by (it was 5:30 am or so by this time), and contractions were coming every 4-6 minutes, so we decided to start making official notifications. We called Debbie back, who said she was on her way, and I called my friend Jennifer, who I had invited to come to be a part of things, and we woke up my parents. There was lots of excitement! We had already had the pool I wanted to use for labor inflated, so we started filling it with nice hot water. We ran out of hot water when it was about halfway full, so we heated some pots of water on the stove to add to it. And, yes, we joked about having to boil water to have a home birth! ;-)

Debbie, her apprentice Whitney, and Jennifer all arrived, and there was lots of chatter and joking. Even though the contractions were coming more frequently, the intensity of pain hadn't gotten too bad (meaning, I was still smiling and being friendly, lol!). Here's Debbie checking the baby's heartbeat, notice my happy face?


(I wanted to jump in here really quickly and say that there's something to having some female company during birth. Michael is a great, great labor partner - he keeps me comfortable and keeps me laughing, but having a woman who has been through it before herself is such an added benefit! I really appreciated having Jennifer there, acting as an unofficial doula! She helped me keep my mind off of things, and when labor finally kicked into high gear, was so encouraging! My mom was also great - she helped keep the kids occupied for a bit, and then held my hand (or, was in my death grip) for the actual delivery. She wasn't sure she wanted to actually witness the birth at first, but when the time came, she was brave!)

Eventually, time became a bit of a blur, but at sometime after 8, there was a change. I had to use the bathroom, and when I sat down, a really hard contraction hit me - I had to moan through it and it felt like it lasted forever!! I knew transition was happening, and sure enough, the contractions picked up to about every 2 minutes, and some lasted nearly that long, too! I was having to moan through them, and my "labor support team" took turns rubbing my back as I leaned over my exercise ball. I decided I'd better get into the tub before it was too late, so I told the midwives that's what I'd be doing, and got in. The hot water felt SO good! And it immediately took away my back pain, too. I'm not going to lie, though - the contractions were still painful! See my "not so happy" face?


Once in the pool, I knew I wasn't going to get out. I had been on the fence about having a water birth - I had heard great things about it, but hadn't really decided that was what I wanted until that point. I had a few more contractions, and then suddenly, while I was kneeling and leaning over the side of the pool, I felt the baby drop! It was such an interesting sensation - in all of my hospital births, I've never experienced the "urge to push" - I always pushed whenever the nurses, midwife, OB, whoever, said I could. So allowing my body to be the one to tell me was amazing! There was one more contraction and I felt the baby about to crown... another contraction, and her head was out! My water broke at that point, although I couldn't tell. One more contraction, and I had to work hard to get her shoulders out, and then... she was in my arms! Michael and I looked right away to see who our new baby was...


And were SHOCKED!!! to see that she was... a she! Shocked really doesn't even describe it, actually. Amazed, delighted, awe-struck, stunned, thrilled... so many emotions all at once! I honestly never truly thought it was possible! The room was filled with tears, shouts of joy, excited exclamations... it was beautiful!

One very elated Daddy!

After a few minutes, I decided I wanted to get out of the pool (I'm going to interject here and share something that I've never seen or heard anyone else talk about when it comes to the whole waterbirth thing. There is, what I call, a "mess factor" involved. Birth is messy. It can be gross. Sitting in water in that mess - definitely a little gross for my taste. During labor I didn't care. Once it was all said and done, though, I wanted out! So there you have it, the plain truth from my perspective. Would I do it again? Absolutely! But just so y'all know, there was a definite yuck aspect to it.).

I got dried off and into my nice, warm bed. I tried nursing her, and she latched on right away and has been a great nurser from the very start! Then, Michael and I cuddled up together to get to know our little daughter.

After a little while, I was able to get up and take a shower while everyone passed around the baby and took pictures.

My mom and Rachel

Jennifer and Rachel

At that point, too, the sheets were changed, so my nice clean self was able to climb back into my nice warm bed with nice clean sheets. Heaven!

The kids came in right after that and were over the moon to meet their new sister. Isaac has been wanting a sister since, oh, about 4 babies ago, so he was almost in tears, and literally jumping up and down and shouting about how excited he was! It was so awesome, lol!

Judah, especially, is in love with her. He asks about her whenever she's not in the room, and is so gentle and sweet with her. I can't wait to see how close they'll be as they grow up together.

The midwife did the newborn exam while all the kids were in the room, and I loved being able to watch everything she did, and listen to her explain everything she was doing. The whole time, Rachel was quiet and peaceful. In fact, I don't think she cried at all for the first 3 hours of her life!

Rachel's in there! It's how she was weighed!

The homebirth experience was really everything I had hoped it would be. The best part is, Michael really enjoyed it, as well. He had said from the time he agreed to allow me to have a homebirth that it was a gift to me, because I wanted it so badly. Now, he's fully on board and told Debbie himself that we'd be calling her again for any future babies! I've also overheard him telling others about how great it was and how we'll do it again... awesome!! I truly never, ever thought I'd see the day!

The 8 of us!

I am so thankful to the Lord for our new, healthy, beautiful addition, Miss Rachel Susannah! She is already cherished and adored by all of us! :-)

A Song for Saturday

I love this song. Like, really, really love this song. I love the truth it tells, so beautifully! This song expresses everything I am grateful for, and the reason I am living today. What incredible, awesome freedom there is in the gospel... I don't think I can even express how changed my life - not just my life, but my heart - is because of Him. Jesus is everything to me.

Be blessed!

TOS Crew Review - TOS Curiosity Files - Zombie Fire Ants

I am either a really mean homeschooling mom, or perhaps a reasonably wise one. Before Rachel was born, I promised the kids a month of no school once she was born. I lied. OK, I didn't *totally* lie - we haven't done any regular, formal-type school. But, they have been working through The Old Schoolhouse's Zombie Fire Ants Curiosity Files eBook. They think its a fun activity book about really cool ants. Which it is... but it also happens to include things like vocabulary, copywork, spelling, math, science, history, crafts, Bible study, and more! So... in my mind, it is still "school". In their minds, it isn't! Perfect combination, if you ask me!


Curiosity Files are a series of eBooks available through The Old Schoolhouse Store, and come in a variety of topics. They make a great supplement to a unit study, a fun unit study on their own, or even just a light "schoolwork" activity for those times when schoolwork needs to be light (such as, after the birth of a baby!). Many age ranges can use Curiosity Files, and they can be modified for more or less independent work if necessary - they're very flexible! All 9 titles can be purchased as a bundle for instant download or on CD, or each can be purchased individually. The price for the bundles are $46 for instant download, or $49 for a CD. Individual prices vary, so check the website for those prices. For the immense amount of information and acitivties contained in these eBooks, the price is great! Also, all eBooks from the TOS Store come with a 7-day money back guarantee! How awesome is that?

Here's just a small glimpse of what's inside the eBook:

If you'd like to see some sample pages, check them out here!

We all love the Zombie Fire Ants eBook! My two older boys (ages 10 and 8) are working through it independently - I simply sectioned off a few pages for them to do each day, and they are able to work through it on their own. I've heard all sorts of interesting conversation about these crazy ants they're studying - which shows me that they're actually retaining the information they're learning, and finding it interesting enough to discuss later on. There were a few pages of things that I didn't print for them, such as portions that are intended for older grades, or crafts/projects that would need more of my interaction, but overall, the book has been engaging, fun, and challenging enough for it to be a great learning resource. I'm so glad to have had the opportunity to review it, and at just the right time, too. I will definitely be keeping the other Curiosity Files eBooks in mind for future "fun" school!

To see what other TOS Crew Members thought of the Curiosity Files, be sure to check out The TOS Crew Blog!

Disclaimer: I was given this product specifically for the purpose of reviewing here on my blog as a member of TOS Homeschool Crew. I received no other compensation in regards to this review.

Wordless Wednesday - Laundry of a Different Color

Worth the Wait

Introducing our first daughter!!!!!

Rachel Susannah

Born February 2, 2011 (4 days late)
9:25 am
Born perfectly in every way at home and in the water!

8 pounds and 21 inches

Needless to say, we are are thrilled to pieces - not to mention a little shocked!
Who ever thought a girl would finally join the family?!
I'll post more pictures and the birth story soon!
Meanwhile, we're enjoying her sweetness and the overflow of pink coming into the house ;-)

Treasures of January

A Homeschooler's New Year's Resolutions at The Homeschool Mom

From ...to Love, Honor and Vacuum:

• Have We Forgotten How to be a Mommy?
• Demography and Destiny
• How to Support your Husband
• 50 Most Important Verses to Memorize
  

From Raising Arrows:

• Enough of Me to Go Around
• Practical Ideas for Having Enough of Me to Go Around
• Potty Training My Way
• Praying Deep with Our Children
  

From Inspired to Action:

• Jesus Wasn't Radical
• Sometimes "Lame" is Better than "Best"
  

Choose the Better Things, Part 2 at Raising Homemakers

From A Wise Woman Builds Her Home:

• When We Fail
• The Thief Comes to Steal
• The Homemaker's Heart
  

How to Find Real Food at the Supermarket at Summer Tomato

Why You SHOULD Cater to Your Husband at Breathing Grace, A Life in Bloom

From At the Well:

• Prayer for a Tired Mom
• Can I Follow Christ's Example?
  

Simple Solutions at Preschoolers and Peace

Thankful at The Family Revised

Are You Sure You Want a Husband Who... at Pyromaniacs

Little Feet at Storing Up Treasures

Q and A's for Mission-Minded Families: Simplicity at Passionate Homemaking

The Life I Deserve at The Making of M.O.M - this month's "must read"!

The Pregnant Prizefighter at The Nervous Breakdown

A Mother's Comfort at Pursuing Titus 2

How to Make a Marriage Bed at a holy experience

Help! at Large Family Mothering