The Old Schoolhouse Magazine - A Labor of Love! Mood:
a-ok Topic: Homeschool Helps
Unless this is the first time that you have come to my blog, you are well aware that I review homeschool items for The Old Schoolhouse (TOS) Homeschool Crew. Last year was my first year on the crew, and when I was asked to come back again this year, it was a no brainer for me. Not because of all of the great homeschool stuff that I get to review. Yes, that is a perk, but the real reason is because I have grown to love TOS and it's people. They have become more than just co-workers or leaders or bosses, they have become my friends. My lifelong friends. That's just the way that TOS is. It's not a company of cut throat individuals that are just trying to climb the ladder. It's a company of people that have a real heart for homeschooling and for homeschoolers. When you talk to the people at TOS it is like talking to friends over a cup of coffee. And that attitude carries over into everything that TOS does. From the homeschool materials that they produce, to the TOS Homeschool Crew, to the magazine that they produce. All are done with a loving caring attitude.
That's why I was so thrilled to hear about this most recent offer. I always thought that The Old Schoolhouse Magazine was reasonably priced for everything that is packed into each issues, but now the price is unbelievable. From now until September 15, TOS is offering a one year subscription (beginning with the winter issue) of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine for only $7.95. Or, you can add the fall issue to the deal and it will only cost you $12.95. That would be five total jam packed issues for just a little over $2.50 a piece. And, believe me, the TOS Magazine is jam packed. All you have to do is click here to get to the subscription page.
This campaign is cleverly called "A Labor of Love", obviously because of the Labor Day holiday coming up, but, more than that, because the magazine really is a labor of love. If you haven't tried the magazine, now is the time to try it out. I think you'll find out that what I am talking about is true. Just click on the link above to experience The Old Schoolhouse Magazine for yourself!
No Post Tonight - Just a Prayer Request Mood:
sad Topic: General
I got word through facebook, today, that one of my high school classmates is dying of cancer. As I sat here this evening thinking about a blog post all I could think of was how trivial anything I put here would be compared to what her family is going through right now.
So, this evening I'm forgoing my usual blog post just to ask for prayer for my classmate. Her name is Cathy Lingle Stevens and I believe that she has three teenage sons. She is under hospice care and could die at any time. Thanks for all of your prayers and thanks, Lisa, for passing the news on to me.
Life's Adventures and the Consequences of Disobedience Mood:
caffeinated Topic: Family
Ah yes! It's been one of those days. We were up early because this was the first day of Upward Flag Football. It wasn't that we had to be up early, mind you. Our game wasn't until 10am. It wasn't even that we wanted to be up early. I had every intention of sleeping in until at least 8 or maybe even 8:30. You must remember that we have an interesting creature living in our household. A creature named Joshua. Joshua is our aspergers (autism spectrum) child and has been going through a difficult time of it recently. He has been on medication for a few years and just switched medicines. He went from one family of medications to another and it has not been working well. Nothing major, he has just been off the wall. Talks continuously, has no attention span, laughs at inappropriate things. Needless to say, a doctors visit is in order for this coming week. Anyway, another reaction to this new medicine is waking up way too early. Hence the no sleeping in part.
Well, after the big first game (he did great) we came home for a short rest before we went out to a benefit fund raiser for a local charity that we work closely with. Only, we never made it to the benefit. Joshua, in his exuberance from the earlier game, decided that he wanted to go over to the next door neighbor's house to play football with one of his friends. However, he wasn't supposed to leave the yard. So, I sent John Allen over to get him only to have Jacob tag along with big brother. A few minutes later a screaming four year old comes running into the mission where I was working. He had fallen into the neighbor's cactus and...you guessed it...his hands were full of needles. Forty-five minutes of screaming and tweezer picking made us realize that our feeble efforts were not working. Off to the hospital went Sarah, Jacob and big brother John Allen while I stayed home with the very repentant Joshua. It's amazing what one of those magnifying eye pieces can do. The doctor had the rest of the needles out in short order and Jacob called me on Mommy's phone to tell me four words, "I feel better now" before handing the phone to Sarah and getting back to his popsicle.
A trip to the McDonald's play place was in order for all of us. Sarah and I needed the kids to run off steam, Jacob needed to celebrate hands that feel better, John Allen needed a reward for standing by Jacob in need, and Joshua needed to know that his brothers still loved him. It was a lesson well learned as to what can happen when you disobey.
So, tomorrow's another day. Up early for church, the mission in the afternoon, then church again in the evening. Intermingled, of course, with life's adventures!
Blog Hop Week 9 - Keep Hopping...or Walking...or Whatever! Mood:
happy Topic: TOS Crew Blog Hop
I still haven't figured out what you are supposed to call this thing, but the name really isn't important. It's finding new and different blogs to follow and learn from that counts. Once again, this week is all First Mates from the homeschool crew. These are the ladies that I have gotten to know over the past year and many have become great friends and prayer warriors for our family and ministry. Please check out their blogs and give a hello to them for me. Thanks ahead of time!
Lockrobots - A Well Kept Secret Mood:
a-ok Topic: Homeschool Product Review
I've written before about our experience at our first ever homeschool convention in Cincinnati last spring. John Allen came with me every day and we had blast! One of the neatest things about any homeschool convention are all of the vendor booths that are set up. There were dozens and dozens of vendors. Some were vendors that the homeschool crew had the privilege to work with last year. We had a fun time getting to know them and talking with them face to face about their great products. Other vendors were new to us but were equally as nice.
One product that was brand new to us was Lockrobots. Their super nice guys had a booth set up with lockrobots for the kids to play with. John Allen was so enthralled by the Lockrobots and the booth workers (which ended up being the inventor and educational consultant Mike Teel and Dan Olson) that he visited their stand over and over again. In fact, if we ever got separated, we had a standing agreement that we would meet at the Lockrobot booth. During our time at the convention John Allen learned how to make every model that they had and he even invented a few things of his own. Mike and Dan were so nice to John Allen that they ended up giving him a free set at the end of the convention.
I, in turn, was so impressed with Lockrobots that I decided to write a review of them on my blog - not because John Allen was given a free set, mind you, but because I really do like the product. Lockrobots are so much more than a toy, they are super educational as well. But, before I tell you more about them, John Allen wrote a review of them himself:
Lockrobots are a connection kind of toy that are shaped like a person. I saw their booth a the home school convention and totally fell in love with them!! You can create many things with them like an elephant, giraffe, plane, helicopter, and many more!! there are 4 ways to lock them together. See if you can find all 4!! They are also very good for homeschooling, and therapy. They have 4 different sized cases, a 15 Lockrobot case, for toddlers, a 30 Lockrobot case, for a little more experienced builders, a 70 Lockrobot case, for advanced builders, and a 150 Lockrobot case, for master builders. This person shaped toy is fun for kids of all ages, and their parents too!!
One of the great "extras" of Lockrobots is their website. They have instructions for all kinds of neat structures that you can build with them. They also have directions for some fun family games that you can play with them as well as two great educational pages that talk about using Lockrobots in homeschool or in a classroom. It's amazing how you can incorporate them in whatever you are learning. Just the other day Joshua and I used them to talk about cause and effect. This is truly a toy that is an all around toy. It's fun to play with on its own, and a great learning tool as well.
Lockrobots range in price from $11 for the 15 piece set to $69 for the 150 piece set. Each set comes in a bucket or storage box and comes with instructions. To find out more about this great product, just click here or on any one of the hi-lighted links above. Have fun!
I wrote this review because of my impression of the Lockrobot product. No compensation was given and, although my son was given a free set, it was not done as a payment to write this review. Everything said in this review is a direct reflection of how I feel about this product.