Mama’s Mission of the Month {March Mid-month Reminder}

Alright, all you mama’s who are participating in Mama’s Mission of the Month for March! This is the March 2012 Mid-month reminder about the goals that we set for the month of March. With the month half-way over, I just wanted to check in to see how you all are doing!

As for me, I am trucking right along. I have had a few bumps in the road but I am slowly, but surely making progress. After I recuperated from surgery, I pulled a muscle in my back and was out of commission…again! Despite all that, here is my progress so far:

Personal:

1. Get up before the kids during the week to have my devotion and prayer time. Oh my goodness, I had an epiphany with this one and so far getting up before the kids is actually working this time! Don’t worry, I do plan to share what has essentially transformed our whole day!!!

2. Finish reading Eat That Frog!

3. Read Sun Stand Still: What Happens When You Dare to Ask God for the Impossible. Just started the book, but I can tell already that it is going to challenge me…in a good way!!

4. Complete 10 scrapbook pages.

Marriage:

5. Remember to flirt with my hubby everyday. This is STILL a tough one to remember to do…still haven’t implemented my little “something-something” to help me not forget…

Parenting:

6. Diligently implement The Child-Training Bible into our method of discipline. Review coming soon!!!!

Homeschooling:

7. Complete two read-alouds to the kids. We are currently reading George Muller: The Guardian of Bristol’s Orphans.

8. Finish making the alphabet bean-bags that I started about a year ago!

9. Decide on our Science and Art Fair submissions for our homeschool group. We are using some of our See The Light projects for the art submission. The kids have decided to make a model volcano for science…we better get to work! LOL!!

Homemaking:

10. Finish purging the remaining rooms in the house. We are planning to finish up this weekend! Yay!!

Ministry/Friendships/Extended Family:

11. Write 2 letters.

12. Decide on a volunteer activity at church. For those of you who don’t know, my husband’s job moved us to another state about a year ago. Now that we have found our new church family, I wanted to get more involved serving. Our church delivers fresh-baked cookies to every new family that visits our church and now I am officially one of the cookie bakers!!

Financial:

13. Finish gathering documents for tax preparation. So happy to be done with this! I got a little help from Your Blogging Business!

Blogging/Online Activity:

14. Begin writing and scheduling blog posts @ least 1 week in advance. I have created a printable to help me with this…just need to actually use it! LOL!!

15. Continue to stick with my new schedule for online activity.

16. Transfer all of my printable files over from 4shared to my MamaJenn.com site.

With that said how are you coming along with your March Mission of the Month? Feel free to leave a comment letting us know how your mission is going! {No, you don’t have to leave an update comment. And yes, you will still be able to write your complete Accomplished post and link it up at the end of the month. The update comment is simply a way of keeping you on track with completing the goals you have set for the month.}

If you have no clue what the Mama’s Mission of the Month is all about, it is basically a monthly blog carnival designed to help me {and you} follow through on some of the goals that we have set for the month! For more information or if you want to know how to join in next month, check out the intro post!

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ArtObet DVD Review & Giveaway

My oldest three kids are developing quite an interest in art. When I was contacted about reviewing ArtObet, I knew my kids would be interested in the art DVD. What I didn’t expect was for them to absolutely LOVE the DVD! In fact, they have requested to watch it a number of times since we first previewed it! ArtObet has re-introduced my children to art in a way like no other!

ArtObet: A Magical Adventure of Artists from A to Z!, is a children’s narrative
film that takes you on a journey visiting 26 artists from “A” for Anguissola to “Z” for 
Zorach. The genius behind ArtObet are two moms: Carol Pineau, an award-winning filmmaker and Eleanor Palm, an innovative first grade teacher who questioned why in most reading programs “A” was for “Apple.”  Palm, deciding that “A” should be for Anguissola, (Louis) Armstrong, or Antonio Vivaldi, subsequently created a unique early reading program that effectively teaches children that we come from a long line of great thinkers! The little video clip below says it all!

More about the DVD:

Five children sit on a sunny porch with a favorite babysitter.  When the babysitter’s skateboarding cohort whooshes in, the fun begins!  Out comes the box of special beads and a jewel-crusted magnifying glass.  Looking through the glass at each bead they see a letter, starting an adventure into the world of an artist whose name starts with that letter.  When the bead goes on a string, the magic begins. –from the ArtObet website

Our Thoughts: To say I was impressed with this DVD is an understatement! My kids were exposed to famous artist in a relevant, yet memorable way. I was amazed that even my 4 year olds were chanting along with some of the poems written for each of the artists! 

I was most impressed when, thanks to ArtObet, my daughter recognized one of Edgar Degas’ paintings in her dance class! I just love when my kids are able to take something that they have learned and associate it with their everyday interactions and experiences!

In fact, we so far as to take one of the suggestions from teacher Eleanor Palm. We talked about how Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel and experienced what it was like painting upside down!

   

My daughter had a blast, although she did say that she could not imagine painting the entire ceiling upside down! 

ArtObet is the first in the Little Great Thinkers™ Series created to inspire the great thinker in us all. I, for one, cannot wait for more DVDs in this series!

Giveaway Info:

{Giveaway has closed}

Would you like to win the ArtObet DVD? I have the opportunity to give away a copy to one of my readers! The first and mandatory entry is to visit the ArtObet site and leave a comment telling me your favorite artist included on the DVD. 

Optional (Additional) Entries: The following are additional ways that you can enter to win. However, you MUST complete the mandatory entry above. (Be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry!)

• Subscribe to Mama Jenn via RSS and/or via email and leave a comment letting me know that you do. Leave a comment for EACH follow or subscription. (max 2 entries) 
• “Like” ArtObet on Facebook AND/OR “Like” Mama Jenn on Facebook. Leave a comment for EACH like. (max 2 entries)
• Follow @ArtObet on Twitter AND/OR @MamaJennBlogs on Twitter and leave a comment letting me know that you do. Leave a separate comment for EACH follow. (max 2 entries)

The giveaway ends at midnight on Wednesday, March 21st! Giveaway is for US residents only. Winners will be randomly selected and emailed. Be sure to leave a separate comment for each entry and a way for me to contact you in case you win!

Can’t Wait to Win?

You can purchase ArtObet on Amazon or from the ArtObet site for $19.95.

This product was given to me for review/giveaway purposes. I do not have to return the product to the vendor and I was not paid for this post. All opinions expressed in this post are my own.

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Moments to Remember: Notes from Principal Daddy

Moments to Remember is a linky for homeschoolers hosted by my pals Carisa from 1+1+1=1 and Jolanthe from Homeschool Creations!

Moments to Remember was developed as a simple way to look back on our week as homeschoolers and find photos that encompass the memories we want to remember. The week may have been tough, there may have been more bumps than smiles, but in the end these are the moments that keep us going, the ones we need to remember.

I LOVE when my husband is able to take an active role in homeschooling our kids! One seemingly small “thing” that he occasionally does means so very much to me and the kids. He leaves notes of encouragement for the kids on our whiteboard. The kids just LOVE walking into the classroom in the morning to see a note from “Principal Daddy!”

Here are a few of his notes:

It reads:

Good morning students!
Have a great day using those wonderful brains God gave you
and fill them with knowledge.
Obey your teacher! Have a great day! I love you all!
–Principal Daddy

It reads:

Good morning students!
Aren’t you excited to learn something new today!
I am so excited to hear about what new things you learned when I get home.
I love all very much. Enjoy learning today.
Love, Principal Daddy

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Ii for Insect {MFW Kindergarten Printables}

As much as I love the hands-on activities and crafts in our My Father’s World Kindergarten Curriculum, I was not very good about doing the Words to Remember badges with my daughter. So, I came up with something a little different for the boys. I created printable  art/copywork pages for them to work on their penmanship while creatively depicting the Words to Remember.

 

This is the Lesson 11: Ii for Insects page from one of my older boy’s kindergarten school year. They used their fingers to make ants, ladybugs, and bumble bees using to brown, yellow, and red paint. (Or, you could use a stamp pad with the required colors.) Simply dip your finger into the paint to make the body of the insects.

Once the paint is dry, use a black pen or marker to add details. Super easy and lots of fun! This idea was inspired by Ed Emberley’s Fingerprint Drawing Book.

Visit the MFW Kindergarten Words to Remember blog post for information on downloading all of the Words to Remember copywork pages.

PLEASE NOTE: These copywork printables are only for students who are reading and writing easily. This type of copywork is not a regular part of My Father's World Kindergarten curriculum.

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Customizable Spelling List Word Search

I am always on the lookout for fun ways to help my kids practice their spelling words. One of our favorites are the customizable word searches from A to Z Teacher Stuff.

Not only can you choose your own word list, but there are lots of other fun ways to customize your word searches! Here are just a few of the options available: font size, font style, lowercase or uppercase letters, grid shape/style, title, etc. Aside from the cool grid shapes, I LOVE that I can set the word placement so that none of the words are backwards. I prefer for my kiddos to practice spelling their words forewords…not backwards!  LOL!!

Shown above is the word search that I created for my boys from our Spell to Write and Read List I-2. Check out the cool car shape and the customized title! LOVE IT! Want to create your own customizable word searches? Head over to A to Z Teacher Stuff!

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Mission of the Month: March 2012 {and Feb Accomplishments}

Welcome to Mama’s Mission of the Month! My hope is that this will help me {and you} follow through on some of the goals that we have set for the month! So, if you are a mama and you want to join in, check out the intro post! (If you have already read the rules, you can easily grab the buttons from the Buttons Tab on the top of the sidebar.)

February Mission Update: My mission for February was quite extensive. But, it stemmed from the goals that my husband and I prayed about and committed to for 2012. Here is how I did:

Personal:

1. Commit to daily quiet time (Bible reading & prayer) each morning. I’ve been doing this one…still need to work on getting up earlier though!

2. Finish reading Eat That Frog! I haven’t finished this one, but it is full of LOTS of great nuggets for getting more done in less time and avoiding procrastination!

3. Finish reading Organized Simplicity.  DONE!!! This book not only inspired me to do a whole-house purge, but to totally change around the rooms (furniture) in our house so that they better suit our needs!

4. Complete 10 scrapbook pages. I am over 5 years behind! I’ve got a lot of catching up to do!

Marriage:

5. Find and begin a couples devotional. Rather than selecting a couples devo, we have put a night of the calendar each week to go over what our pastor taught on the previous Sunday.

6. Flirt with my hubby everyday. This was harder than I thought it was going to be because I kept forgetting. But, I am working on a little something to help me remember!! {wink, wink}

Parenting:

7. Decide on and begin a weekly family devotional. We decided on the downloadable family devotions that go along with The Hands-On Bible and we are LOVING them!

8. Gather scriptures so that I can discipline consistently with The Word. I didn’t have to come up with the scriptures for this one because we discovered The Child-Training Bible!!! What an incredible tool for disciplining with The Word! (I have a review coming up this month!)

9. Find a feasible way to have one-on-one time with each child daily. This one is a work in progress. I feel like I struggle with this one because I want to have structured, planned one-on-one time when the reality of the situation is that the kids just want my undivided attention…whether it is planned or not…even if we are just talking and folding laundry together! 

Homeschooling:

10. Read The Toothpaste Millionaire aloud to the kids. The kids LOVED this book. In fact, they want to try making toothpaste!

11. Read/watch Hans Brinker and take the kids ice skating. We ended up watching the movie, Hans Brinker…. and the kids had a blast ice skating!

12. Find and begin a new daily devotional with the kids. I decided on Long Story Short to use with the kids daily…well Monday through Friday, before we start our schoolwork. We still incorporate our Grapevine Studies, but they are part of our “schoolwork.” We LOVED Grapevine Studies, but I am not sure if Long Story Short is going to work for us. We plan to continue plugging away at it to see if it will be a good fit or not.

Homemaking:

13. Finish completely re-organizing the furniture to suit our needs. I can’t begin to tell you how great it feels to now have my home organized! Once we started thinking outside the box, we were able to come up with some pretty ingenious ways to create more space!

14. Finish purging each room in the house. Again, thanks to Organized Simplicity, I was inspired to completely purge our home (and my hubby was TOTALLY on board)! We cleared out TONS of stuff and it felt great to be able to bless someone else with it! But, due to my surgery, I have not quite finished…but we are almost there!

15. Start up SHE Method again. Why oh why do I stop using this system? It works so well for me and I am glad to be back with it! It keeps me from having to think about every little thing that needs to be done to maintain my home!

Ministry/Friendships/Extended Family:

16. Write 2 letters.

17. Start sending birthday cards to extended family & friends again.

Financial:

18. Gather documents for tax preparation. Still working on this one…

Blogging/Online Activity:

19. Begin writing and scheduling blog posts @ least 1 week in advance. I truly enjoy blogging, but I don’t love the pressure of “needing” to post something! Writing and planning my posts ahead of time relieves me of that pressure so that I can truly enjoy blogging and blog about what I enjoy! I even created a printable planning form to help with blog planning and scheduling. But, life has thrown me a few curveballs and I have not yet been able to get ahead and begin scheduling like I want to.

20. Stick with my new schedule for online activity. The computer can really suck away valuable time if you are not careful…and that is what was happening to me! I want my kids to remember me as a fun and present mom…not as being glued to a computer! So, I have restricted my online time and so far it has been working well!

So, while I did accomplish quite a bit, I still left a few things undone. So…

My Mission for March 2012: 

Personal:

1. Get up before the kids during the week to have my devotion and prayer time. (This means well before 7am.)

2. Finish reading Eat That Frog! 

3. Read Sun Stand Still: What Happen When You Dare to Ask God for the Impossible.

4. Complete 10 scrapbook pages.

Marriage:

5. Remember to flirt with my hubby everyday.

Parenting:

6. Diligently implement The Child-Training Bible into our method of discipline.  

Homeschooling:

7. Complete two read-alouds to the kids.

8. Finish making the alphabet bean-bags that I started about a year ago!

9. Decide on our Science and Art Fair submissions for our homeschool group.

Homemaking:

10. Finish purging the remaining rooms in the house.

Ministry/Friendships/Extended Family:

11. Write 2 letters.

12. Decide on a volunteer activity at church.

Financial:

13. Finish gathering documents for tax preparation.

Blogging/Online Activity:

14. Begin writing and scheduling blog posts @ least 1 week in advance.

15. Continue to stick with my new schedule for online activity.

16. Transfer all of my printable files over from 4shared to my MamaJenn.com site. 

Whew…that’s a lot!

What is your March mission of the month?

If you participated last month, how did you do?

Feel free to link up and share! It is a great way to hold yourself accountable! For more information on how to join in, please read the intro post. The linky will be open until midnight, March 5th.

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{This post may contain affiliate or advertiser links. Please review my disclosure policy.}