Category Archives: Uncategorized

Exploring the Universe with my kids (A Mom of Master Books Review)

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So we got this book and we are extra thrilled to review it this month because we’ve been able to do some in the series already!  WE did Water & Weather before and these 2 combine in an AWESOME package called Science Starters: Elementary General Science & Astronomy which includes a full year of science for 3-8th grade.

We are DONE with school for the summer so I let the kids read out of the book and look at the experiments to do also. Busy moms are going to LOVE that you can do these experiments with things that are already around your house!    Moms of many are going to love that your family can do this as a group, my 1st grade boys hung through our reading!  Moms who have made Creation a priority are going to love that it is 6 day Creation Science and it constantly brings what other people have thought about astronomy and astrology back into line with what God’s Word says.

My favorite part is the making connections – constantly tying the pieces together of the Bible, History and Science together.

While my children definitely do not want to do more science right now ~ this is a book I can see us using in the fall! If you haven’t pulled your science books for next year yet – Check out the amazing sets that MasterBooks has pulled together.  They are impressive!

PLP

 

Thanks to Master Books for letting us review their curriculum!

moms

Blessings, Amanda

 

 

 

 

 

 

Moms Of Master Books Review ~ Illustrated Family Bible Stories

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I had the neat opportunity to review ~ Illustrated Family Bible Stories.

family illustrateed bible

 

This is what Master Books has to say about it:

We live in a visually oriented society where people learn from a blend of both text and images. This collection of events focuses on balancing both to bring new life to teachings from Scripture. Illustrated Family Bible Stories is a full-fledged spiritual and educational work of art highlighting:

More than 200 Biblical accounts, psalms, proverbs, prophecies, laws, and letters
The daily life of people living in the Old and New Testament times, as well as plants, animals, and Bible landscapes
Who’s who in the Bible, maps and diagrams, a Bible quiz, and more!
With the help of maps, photographs, and diagrams, the ancient cultures of the Bible are set in a context that can be readily understood. In addition, specially written teaching helps to educate today’s young readers and new believers in understanding the Bible’s meaning and its relevance for everyday life.

 

This book was given to me to review by Master Books

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This may not be my deepest posting.  We read most of the book.  We enjoyed the parts that explained the Old Testament and the New Testament and what made them.

As far as the Bible stories themselves go, i prefer to stay away from Bible “stories”  because

a) I don’t want my children to think that the Bible is made up of make-believe

b) I am always worried, frustrated, etc. to look at what is added or subtracted to/from the Word of God.

However, Master Books publishing has always been true to the Word of God and publishes authors I really respect so I read it.   What did I think?

I felt this is a book that could be used with little children that does not distract them from the Truth of the Word.  In each section, it tells which scripture it is pulling the abstract from.  I and the children alike enjoyed the pictures – they were ethnically appropriate to the area geographically.

The older children really enjoyed all the added geographical and historical information that gave back ground to the story.

I personally like to stick to reading just from the Bible itself but i could see this being a good addition to a family study, or  a GREAT place to start. We read our Word daily, and i praise God that even the youngest boys recognized the stories.

There is a Book and a Treat Facebook party coming up later this month, April 29 at 7 pm Central Time, where you could win cool prizes — and discuss the series too.

Disclaimer: I received this book for free from New Leaf Publishing Group as part of the Moms of Master Books program. No other compensation was received. The fact that I received complimentary products does not guarantee a favorable review.

Young Living Safety Guidelines

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Source:   https://www.youngliving.com/en_GB/discover/safety-guidelines

This is such important information.  Keep in mind that ultimately we all take personal responsibility for our oil usage.  This is the official Young Living Safety Guidelines and a great piece of information to save!

Safety Guidelines

Young Living essential oils are cultivated to be as pure and potent as possible. We strongly recommend you read individual label instructions and the following guidelines to ensure safe use of essential oils:
The orifice located in the oil bottle opening helps you follow correct dosages. It also helps prevent small children from accidentally swallowing large amounts of essential oil. If you suspect that a child has consumed a large quantity of oil, give them milk and seek medical advice.
Seek the advice of a health professional before topically applying any red-drop oils to children (see application chart).
When applying a new oil, test 1 drop on a small patch of skin first (e.g., on the underside of the forearm). Skin sensitivity is highly individual. If the skin feels hot or turns red, apply a vegetable oil (V-6™ or olive) to the area to dilute and follow dilution instructions on the bottle for future uses. Washing the area with water is less effective.
Use only 1 new oil at a time to determine how your body responds. Wait 30 minutes before applying another new oil.
Certain oils may sting the eyes and other sensitive areas. Essential oil residue on the fingers may damage contact lenses or cause eye discomfort. If accidental stinging does occur, put 1–2 drops of pure vegetable oil into the eye.
Avoid putting essential oils directly into the ears.
Pure citrus oils may compound the effects of sun exposure. Limit prolonged exposure to direct sunlight for up to 12 hours (up to 24 hours for angelica and lime; up to 48 hours for bergamot) after applying these undiluted essential oils to the skin (see orange-dot oils on the application chart).
Cosmetics, personal-care products, or cleansers with synthetic ingredients penetrate the dermal layers of the skin. Avoid applying essential oils to areas you use these products, as it may take these chemicals deeper into skin, fatty tissue, or the bloodstream.
Avoid using essential oils on skin that has been damaged or affected by chemical burns.
When adding essential oils to a bath, first mix 5–10 drops of essential oil to 1/4 cup of Young Living Bath & Shower Gel Base or Epsom salt and then add to running water.
Limit the diffusion of unfamiliar essential oils to 10 minutes/day, increasing the time after determining their effects. The length of time should depend on the size of the room and potency of the oils (see application chart).
See individual label directions or check with a health professional before using essential oils if you have a serious medical condition or are pregnant, nursing, or planning to become pregnant. DO NOT use wild tansy, clary sage, sage, fennel, wintergreen, or hyssop during pregnancy.
Consult a health professional about any serious disease or injury. DO NOT attempt to self-diagnose or prescribe any natural substances for conditions that require professional attention.

Vacation ~ Great memories

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We’re home now! We’ve even been home long enough to catch up on laundry and for 14 people that is amazing!

 

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We took the tunnels down to Virginia Beach! We loved the tunnels.4.5.14 036

 

Both grandsons LOVED the sand.  We picked a gorgeous day to find the water.  It was the warmest day of our vacation!   This was a fun first!

 

4.5.14 110The horse girls from Iowa loved the horses on the ocean.  This might be on the list for next time!

 

 

Reality show??

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Well we are finally on our way home. My friend tells me we need a a reality series. Our vacation was a series of disasters!

We said goodbye to what was affectionately called the green pickle after we put $400 worth of parts in, when we determined it was going to cost is 2500$ more and we weren’t sure that would fix it!!

Our vacation was held up for many days until we found a replacement but we were at a gorgeous place with good options and nice friends 🙂

We are finally on our way home –

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In meantime, we has troubles with the hitch, ended up taking us 3 days on 2 different states to get done! This was not our plan. Good thing we continue to rest in His plan alone.

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Traveling :)

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We are on the road!  Hitting a little pre-planned vacation. We hit the road for the coast.Image

Hitting hills lots bigger than Iowa has to offer! Image

Finally arriving at our resort ~ this is a MOMYS vacation.  MOMYS stands for Moms of Many Young Siblings.   We’re here with approx. 20 other families that are all big! What a treat 🙂   I’ve been a member of MOMYS since my 13 year old was born! (having at the time 4 kids in 7 years!)  MOMYS has been a huge resource for me in parenting and godly exhortations.  If you qualify for MOMYS -check out either the yahoogroup or the boards.  We are thrilled to be able to help MOMYS earn money for the Care & Share through Young Living Essential Oils!

Stay tuned for more vacation pictures!

Make your own Liquid Castille Soap and SAVE $$$

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This is a silly post… except it isn’t – it’s been a huge cost saver and an AWESOME help to my DIY compulsion.

Why do you need liquid castille soap?  If you make your own dish soap, shampoo or pumping hand soap – you do!

but – it’s expensive.. Hey if you want to buy it – here is my affiliate link. I’ll post some recipes in just a bit.

Castile Liquid Soap-Lavender Dr. Bronner’s 1 Gallon Liquid

or you can do it my way and save LOTS of $$$ for more soap.

Buy this :

Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps Pure-Castile Soap, All-One Hemp Citrus Orange, 5-Ounce Bars (Pack of 6)

take that one bar and shred it – you know, on one of these

Cuisinart CTG-00-BG Boxed Grater

and then boil it in a pot of water I do just less than a gallon..  all the shredded soap until it dissolves.

Then I store mine in a pickle jar.  Image

This is a previously made set of soaps from fancy shower gels meant to replace fancy shower gels.  I made these GALLONS of liquid soap for 1.50 each and when I make castille soap, a GALLON costs 3.50-4.50 depending on how much I end up paying for the bar 🙂

Isn’t that awesome?!

add it to a little pumper jar and add some of your favorite essential oils 🙂

You can get Young Living Essential oils here  ~ http://www.youngliving.org/mommaplus   ~ affiliate links for Amazon enclosed.

I cannot believe how much money this has saved us and I hope you give it a try!

Blessings!

Amanda

Spring Cleaning? Try this! (non-toxic!)

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Hello ~~~ are you spring cleaning today?! Guess what I found – an awesome recipe for homemade furniture polish!

The Essentially Southern Mom’s Lemon Essential Oil Furniture Polish!

1/3 cup melted coconut oil

10 drops your favorite YL EO

1/2 cup distilled water

Mix well, put into a glass jar and then use a microfiber cloth!

You can get the YLoils at my webpage http://www.youngliving.org/mommaplus

blessings!

Amanda

sadness on the homestead

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Last night I was doing an online event when supper was running late so I was running back and forth, by 7:10 they were all sitting at the table and I was back at computer, at 7:15 (central time) my 3 year old looked out the window and our small barn was on fire!! It was a blistering -20 with windchill and our excitement took 7 firetrucks! (2 departments) and 1000 gallons of water! That does explain WHY my garden hose couldn’t put it out  Yes all of our heirloom breeding turkeys perished but 1.  Sad day 😦 

 

When You Aren’t Ready!

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Today a Blizzard hit us.  My momentary panic of the fact that we just aren’t ready was preceded by the conversation with my husband.

“Hey Bri, we have an hour free,  do you want to talk about being ready in case we don’t have power in this blizzard?”

And life ensued.  and we didn’t talk.  and then the power  flickered  shut off.   The first time it was off several minutes and we remembered we were going to talk about being ready for no power.

So – where were we, us and the tons of kids at home today (15?)   Thankful that we had a prepared mentality and had done some preliminary work!  We just needed to dig them out.   (and funny thing is, once we did dig them out, we haven’t lost power since even though it shut off 7 times today!)

1) Heat –  Well, we have a woodstove, it is not yet installed in this house. We have a wood pellet stove which requires a fan 😦   We have back up kerosene heaters,  least prepared area.

2) lights – we have the 3 (always have 3 backup options)  1) lamps 2) candles and 3) flashlights

3) food – we popped the roast in the oven quick for supper and I made a soup I could cover in towels,  we have lots of ready to eat. We do have a camp stove 🙂

4) water – this was my panic mode – we filled everybucket in proximity,  we need water for drinking, cooking, flushing, washing, and animals…  I’ll be working on this a bit more come a thaw!

5) Entertainment – I was a bit more prepared with this one, we have lots to do that doesn’t require electronics. That being said, Mom might have the most withdrawal symptoms!

What are you preparing for?  How ready are you? Where are your gaps?

Blessings!

Amanda