This is Just Gross

For those of you fearful that I am a perfect housekeeper or super mom or some such myth...

here's your proof that I am not:

 

That, my dear friends, is the filter off my vacuum cleaner...

EWWWWWW!

The Homeschool Schedule Blues

Homeschooling schedules got you in a tizzy?  Feel like hiding under a chair and pouting (what my son happens to be doing in the photo above)?  Wonder if you'll ever figure out a workable homeschooling schedule in this lifetime?  I have definitely been there and done that!

So, what are some things you can do to beat the homeschool schedule blues?  In the coming weeks I'll be working up some posts that go a little more in depth on the subject, but until then, here's a quick list to get you started.

1) Pinpoint the problem areas.  Be specific.  What parts of your homeschooling day drive you nuts?  What subjects are you finding the most difficult to work in?  Make a list.

2) Brainstorm ways you can overcome these problems.  Don't be afraid to list even seemingly outrageous solutions.  Ask friends to help you brainstorm and LISTEN TO THEM.  Sometimes the answer is only a phone call away.

3) Try each suggestion on for size (preferably one at a time).  Give each one at least a week before deciding whether it works or not.

4) Discard those that do not work.  Do not worry about the fact that Susie-so-and-so made it work for her family.  You are not Susie-so-and-so, and your family may have different needs than hers.

5) Keep those that do work for you.  Write them down, implement then, enlist the kids to hold you accountable to the schedule.

6) In a few weeks, reevaluate.  Is it still working for you?  Did it end up being as great as you had thought it would be?  Do you need to try something else from your brainstorming session?  Has the new schedule created a new problem area somewhere else?  If so, is the new problem worth keeping the new schedule?  Do you need to brainstorm a solution to the new problem?

7) Don't be discouraged.  The process may be long and involved, or you may find a workable schedule only to realize that a new baby or a new move or something else puts a kink in it and you have to rework it again.  If you stay calm and just methodically work through finding a new solution, you'll make a lot more headway in a lot less time than if you fly into a frenzy and end up burned out (or on the floor, under a chair, pouting).  Remember the adage, "Slow & steady wins the race."

and

8)  My very favorite reminder...Pray for the Lord to fill in the gaps.  You WILL have gaps.  There is absolutely no way around it.  Remind yourself, if you must, that your own schooling had gaps and yet, here you are, following the Lord's will.

How about we do a little Schedule Show & Tell here.  If you have a post or a link to a homeschool schedule, link it up here!  Also, here is the link to the scheduling posts I promised earlier.

Make Your Own Liquid Hand Soap

For many years I made our own liquid hand soap from just a few simple ingredients.  I'm not as diligent with it as I once was, but I still enjoy how quick and easy this recipe is.

 

These are the ingredients I use:

Glycerin (tall bottle)

Essential oil (small bottle)

Bar of Soap (purple bar)

A little bit about each ingredient and how you can change it up a bit:

I purchased the glycerin from Hobby Lobby for under $4 and it lasts me at least a year.

The essential oil I use is peppermint oil, but this is really up to you and what fragrances or healing properties you like.  The soap shown here is a castille soap our family made during a soap-making party.  You can use any soap, but I recommend something natural like Fels Naptha, castille, or even Ivory.

Now, you need to grate your soap:

I use my Bosch Slicer/Shredder that I purchased from MarmeeDear.com.  I originally purchased the slicer/shredder in order to shred the bulk cheese we were getting wholesale.  It proved to be fantastic for this job as well.  However, if you don't own something like this, use an old fashioned grater and use the fine side so your soap will melt faster in the next step.

Put 1 cup of soap flakes in a pot.

You can choose to only grate 1 cup of soap at a time or you can grate the entire bar and save the rest for your next batch (that's what I do).

Cover the soap with 4 cups of water.  Add 1 Tbsp of glycerin and about 5 drops of essential oil.  Warm the pot on the stove until the soap flakes melt, stirring regularly.

 

 And you're finished!

From here, all I do is fill all my old soap dispensers with the warm soap (a funnel comes in quite handy here!)  

You may need to experiment with the glycerin amounts depending on the bar soap you use (a castille will possibly need more, a regular bar of soap may not need any at all!)

Try it out and come back and let me know how it turned out!

This post is linked to Works For Me Wednesday.

I'm Pregnant and Huge - A Diastasis Recti Story

I said I would NEVER do this. 

But, the more I think about it, the more I wonder if there are other mamas out there dealing with what I have dealt with for several years and several pregnancies.  Maybe this will help...even if all it does is help you know you are not alone.

OK, so what would I never do?  Post a belly shot early in pregnancy.  But, here it is:

 

This is me at 9 weeks.  Scary, huh?

Why do I look so huge so early?  Same reason I look pregnant most all the time...I have what is called a diastasis recti.  The basic definition of this condition is a split in the stomach muscles, but you can find a more in depth definition here.

For some women, some simple exercises will completely heal a diastasis.  For this, I highly recommend Julie Tupler's Lose Your Mummy Tummy
book (you can visit Julie's actual site at www.maternalfitness.com where she has several other books and products I know nothing about, but might be of interest).  However, even she says that a diastasis of my severity won't be fixed with her methods (although I do see some closure when I use her exercises).  Someday I will need surgery to pull the muscles back together.

You might be wondering how to check for a diastasis.  It's actually very easy.  
1.  Lie on your back on the floor.
2.  Put your fingertips near the center of your belly (horizontally above your belly button).
3.  Curl up as if doing a crunch.
4.  Feel with your fingertips the center of your belly.  Is there a gap?  If so, how many fingerwidths is it?  Diastasis is measured in fingerwidths placed side by side.  Mine is usually somewhere between 6-8. 

Julie Tupler says even a diastasis as bad as a 5 can be repaired.  Beyond that, you can only work to strengthen those muscles and consider surgery at some point.

OK, so what is the bulge you see that most people would assume is a 6 month pregnant belly?  What I am about to tell you is not for the weak-stomached...

It's my internal organs bulging out.  There are no stomach muscles to hold them in place, so they sort of just flop out there.  Gross, I know.

Is it dangerous?  No.

Is it uncomfortable?  Sometimes.

Is it embarrassing?  Yes.

I always say I look better pregnant because at least the bulging belly doesn't look out of place.  When I'm not pregnant I wear a brace.  Not the one Julie Tupler sells (she calls it a splint), because it isn't wide enough (my diastasis is complete, from top to bottom).  I wear something similar to this:

 

from PainReliever.com

I have to choose my clothing carefully.  Jeans don't fit well and shirts have to be long enough and loose enough to cover properly.  I don't wear dresses because they are not tailored enough.  I try to wear shirts that have something interesting going on near my face to keep the focus off my belly.  Other than that, I just put up with the comments.

It is what it is.

OK, so how does this translate into later pregnancy?  Well, I get huge.  No, not the kind of huge the rest of you get.  I mean HUGE.  With no stomach muscles to hold in my growing uterus, it too just flops out there and I end up looking like this:

Note:  I was still 2 months from delivery!

In addition to just looking huge and miserable, I also now have to deal with babies who do not stay in place.  My last two babies have been transverse breech.  Their birth stories can be found HERE and HERE. 

Because there are no stomach muscles to help the uterus stay in place, the baby can swim and flip freely even when said baby is over 10 pounds!

So, how did my diastasis get so severe and what can you do to avoid what has happened to me?

First off, I've never had strong stomach muscles.  This was probably inevitable.

Also, diastasis happens to some degree to all women during pregnancy and a severe diastasis can happen to you no matter how many children you've had or what their birth weight was.

You can follow the exercises in Lose Your Mummy Tummy, you can wear some sort of support through pregnancy, and you can be careful how you move (that is explained more in Tupler's book as well), and once you've had your baby, you can get to work closing the gap.

Things not to do:
pilates,
sit-ups and crunches,
carrying a car seat (the book explains this better than I can, but at all costs avoid carrying that pain-in-the-stomach car seat with baby in it!)

I'm anxious to some day have the surgery to bring my muscles back together, but until then, these are the battle wounds I bear.  I am a mother many times over...the bulging belly is worth it all!

Web Designer to the Rescue

If you blinked, you just totally missed all my web design issues because...

Abigail 

at

has come to my rescue AGAIN!

 My nightmare is over!  Hip, Hip, Hooray!

Oh, but that's right...I wasn't the least bit worried.  It didn't cause me any angst.  It is JUST A BLOG after all...*cough, cough*

Yes, Something is Amiss

Perhaps you landed here wondering what in the world happened to Raising Arrows.  Perhaps you are new here and just figured this was my design.  Perhaps you thought I had lost my mind.

The latter is probably the closest to being true.

In my efforts to help another blogger, I accidentally changed the template settings for this blog rather than on my test blog.  Pregnant brain strikes again!

After hyperventilating and contemplating running away, I decided to try to fix it since I did *just* back up my blog. 

Well, let me tell you something...

Blogger's "backup your blog" button isn't enough.

*IF* I ever get this fixed...Abigail, please tell me this is fixable...PLEASE!...I will be copying and pasting the entire code to a document file.  Every. single. time. I. change. something.

This is the second time I have tried to break my blog.  I really thought I had probably actually done it this time for good.  I retrieved some things, but as you can see my sidebars have gone from plural to singular.  And my gates are no longer in the menu bar because when I added them back in something just wasn't right, so I pulled them back off again until a real web designer can save me from my plight.

All of you reading me in a reader and via email...well, good for you...you are oblivious to the chaos that is currently Raising Arrows.  The posts will continue as scheduled.  You are welcome to come to the blog and try to navigate the mess I have made.

All in all, it is not the end of the world.  For a moment in time, it seemed like it.  But, it is not.

Now, I must go inform my poor husband and children that I am okay and I will not pass out.  I think I scared them when my eyes glazed over and I started breathing into a paper bag.

If nothing else, I learned a much needed lesson...

It's just a blog.

Homeschooling - Taking the Plunge

 

photo credit

When I put a call out for your homeschooling questions, Nicki really delivered!  Here's her first question: 

[How do I take] the leap....just start and stop thinking about doing it! (my problem)

OK, I am going to answer this, not as a direct comment toward Nicki, but as a generalized discussion of this issue.

Here's an analogy for you...
I'm the kind of person who puts together a bookshelf by dumping out all the pieces, then looking at the picture and slowly working my way to the finished result.  Jumping into things isn't difficult for me.  Jumping into things is sometimes my downfall.

If you are a planner then you are probably the type of person who puts together a bookshelf by looking over the directions first, checking to make sure you have all the pieces and the time to put the thing together, and then (and only then) beginning work on the bookshelf.  Jumping in to homeschooling without a 10 page thesis on how you will homeschool for the next 12 years will seem like a ridiculous, if not reckless, idea.

So, what do you do when you just can't seem to step foot off dry land and head into that vast ocean of scariness otherwise known as homeschooling?

First off, you need to figure out what precisely is holding you back.  What terrible, awful thought is keeping you from jumping in?  Perhaps it is that you won't do a good enough job.  Perhaps you fear you'll warp your children (remember, I told you you will not warp them!)  Or maybe you are just wanting to see the finished result before you start..kind of like the bookshelf directions.

Once you know some of the things holding you back, you can address them.  But, remember, there are pros and cons to everything and you will never hash out every single thing that is scary to you.

My advice is to work within your comfort zone as much as you can, but know that if you hem and haw too long, something may come along and PUSH YOU IN! (convictions have a way of doing that!)

The great thing about being a Christian is we don't have to wait for a sign from God before we step out and do something.  We can look to His Word and step out in faith.  Even if we do it all for the wrong reasons and all the wrong ways, God has a way of cleaning up our messes.

I can't make you jump, but I can tell you that choosing to jump is a whole lot more pleasant than circumstances pushing you in.

Now, I want to turn the tables...
Readers, I want to hear what you think.  I want to hear your stories.  What made you "take the plunge?"  Did you choose to jump or did circumstances "push you in?"  What encouragement and advice can you offer?

Assumptions Rarely Equal Understanding

photo credit

"Don't assume I'm the black sheep of the family."

Let me tell you a story...three to be exact...

1.  A married couple of 15 years has no children, a sporty car, a gym membership, and passports bearing the marks of several countries.  You assume they selfishly don't want children because it would mess with their lifestyle.

2.  The oldest child of a white family has much darker skin.  She is obviously of a different race because she doesn't "match" the rest of the children.  You assume she was born out of wedlock before the couple married and had children together.

3.  A family with several small children makes frequent 3 hour trips out of town to visit the grandparents.  They rarely give any notice to anyone and sometimes miss important events.  You assume they are irresponsible and thoughtless.

Misunderstandings happen every day to every person.  I'm sure everyone reading this has been misunderstood at some point or another.

On the flip side, I would venture to guess every single person reading this has also misunderstood someone else.  It is human nature to make assumptions based on what we see and hear.  We rarely just come right out and ask a person about our assumptions because that would just be too embarrassing.  It is much easier to assume.

However, assumptions rarely equal understanding and truth.

So, what is the truth behind the 3 scenarios above?

1.  The couple is not childless by choice.  Every effort has been made to conceive and bear a child of their own, all to no avail.  Their trips abroad usually involve some sort of mission trip to orphanages overseas in the hopes that someday they will be able to adopt.  They choose not to tell anyone because they feel ashamed and fear rejection.

2.  The oldest child of the white family is adopted.  It took 3 long years to finalize the adoption.  They are thrilled to have her as a part of their family and pay no attention to the color of her skin.

3.  The grandfather of the family in question is dying of cancer.  The family had to move away, knowing full well it would be the last years of his life.  Because of this, they decided as a family to never let miles hinder them from visiting and spending what time they could, allowing their children special memories with their grandfather.  They are neither irresponsible nor thoughtless.  Their priorities simply preoccupy their lives.

I recently read a blog that suggested what you read on people's blogs is only 1% of who they really are.  While, I wouldn't place the percentage quite that low, I would agree that what you read and see of others, even those you think you know well in real life, is not their full story.

Everyone has a story.  Don't be afraid to ask.  And if you choose not to ask, avoid assuming you know.

This weekend, think about who you see at church or other places that you have made assumptions about.  Consider striking up a conversation with them and learning more about their story.  It might be the family with the Down Syndrome child, or the man in the wheelchair, or the family who hasn't been in church for two months.  Strike up a conversation.  Build a relationship.  Gain some understanding.

Music Education in Homeschool - Guest Post

Today's guest post is from Kate at Modern Alternative Mama showing us just how easy it is to include music in our homeschool.  Don't forget to stop by her blog and show her some love.

 

photo credit

Back before I had kids, I was a music teacher.  Since they were born, though, I haven’t been so interested in teaching other peoples’ kids, and recently stopped entirely.  But I did get a lot of experience in music during that time!  I worked almost entirely at home, teaching private lessons and small group classes, and I worked with a lot of homeschooled kids.  So, I thought I’d share some tips about teaching music to homeschooled kids.

A lot of early music education can be replicated at home, by parents, even if you have NO experience with music whatsoever.  Exposure to a lot of different musical styles is good, playing musical games, chanting rhythmically, and more.  Based on Ohio’s benchmarks for music education, here is what I recommend for the non-experienced home music educator:

1. Go to the library and get a CD of kids’ songs.  Sing them often.  If the songs have accompanying games (like “Eensy-Weensy Spider”), do those games with your kids.

2. Get a book of children’s easy music games, or use music game websites, like this one: DSO Kids! (http://www.dsokids.com/)  Encourage your kids to play these games to learn about different instruments, musical sounds, rhythm patterns, etc.

3. Play many different musical styles for your children and help them recognize which one they’re listening to.  Include classical, jazz, musical theater, and popular music.  Encourage them to sing along if there are words to the music.

4. A lot of local areas, especially large cities, have symphonies (but so do many small towns).  Many symphonies do free childrens’ concerts a couple times a year.  Seek one out and take your children.  Some areas also have summer band concerts, so take your children to these.  Any live music you can take your children to is great!  Encourage them to write down how they felt about the music, or to draw what they think the music is about, either at or after the event.

5. Invest in some rhythm sticks and other fun musical toys like handbells, small xylophones, drums, etc.  There is a great selection of these (and musical games) at Friendship House (http://www.friendshiphouse.com).  Encourage your kids to play the musical instruments and make up little tunes, play songs together, create their own rhythms, and more.  If you happen to read music, you can help them write down their compositions!

6. If you can’t afford instruments, get a set of tennis balls and encourage the children to bounce them in a steady beat.  Wooden spoons work well too as “rhythm sticks.”  (Kids can play “follow the leader” with rhythm games, where they try to match the leader’s beat, and even walk to the beat, clap to the beat, jump to the beat, etc.) Encourage your children to create their own instruments based on art and household supplies (paper plates, tape, glue, markers, glitter, empty oatmeal containers, beans, rice, nails, paper towel tubes, etc.).

7. Listen to some basic children’s songs (like “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star”) and ask your children to write a parody to this tune.  That is, they can create their own words.  This is a way that anyone can “compose” a new song, even if no one can read music!

8. Once your children are officially school age (6 or so), invest in a good basic music theory curriculum.  I like Master Theory (http://www.sheetmusicplus.com/title/Master-Theory-Book-1-Lessons-1-30/293592), personally, as it is general and not linked to any particular instrument (most theory courses are either too advanced or are piano-specific).  Do a couple of lessons per week and make a game of the answers.  The first book is appropriate for kids ages 4 – 10 and there are 6 levels.  If you don’t read music, don’t worry, all of the answers are in the book!

9. Buy or borrow CDs of ethnic music, look up pictures of foreign instruments, look at pictures or videos of other cultures performing on their traditional instruments.  Encourage your children to play or pretend to play these instruments (this is where “making their own” can really help!).

10. If your children show a specific interest in music and would like to learn a particular instrument or are just generally interested, find a qualified music teacher in your area (even if you ARE musically inclined, you will want to find a teacher, so that it is “official.” When I was a teacher, I had plenty of experienced parents hire me because once their children were started, they needed something more formal).  There are many great private teachers out there, and some offer general music classes for kids who are not yet ready for specific instruments.  In general, children as young as 3 can study a string instrument (violin, viola, cello, or string bass) or piano.  Children ages 9 and up can choose a band instrument (flute, clarinet, trumpet, trombone, drums).  A local private teacher should be able to guide you towards an appropriate instrument.  Please select a teacher whose primary performance instrument is the one your child would like to study, one who has experience, and preferably a degree in music.  Any teacher who says, “I teach everything!” specializes in nothing, so find someone else.  It’s also important that your child feel comfortable with the teacher.  Don’t be afraid to interview the teacher, schedule a trial lesson, and call references.  (Having been a private teacher, and knowing that any talented high school student can set up shop as a private teacher, I want to guide you towards someone who can really help your child!)

What about “mommy and me music classes?”
These days, the “mommy and me” style music classes are extremely popular.  Gymboree has them and so do many rec centers and local companies.  While they can be a good place to get out and have an activity, and meet other moms, I don’t think they are necessary or even particularly beneficial.  I don’t think there’s anything there that you can’t do for free at home, they are expensive, and they are not always taught by qualified professionals.  Skip them, and get together with other homeschooling parents if you want to do group music classes.  You can have a musically-inclined parent select some musical games, pool small instruments together, or even hire a qualified music teacher to come to you and teach a custom course. (I used to do this, so yes, it does exist!)

Hopefully you’ve found some new ideas you can use in your home music educating efforts!  Hop over to my blog and ask questions if you have any!

Kate blogs at Modern Alternative Mama.

Enjoying Your Pregnancy - Soothing Music

 

His Master's Voice

Lately, evenings have been hard.  Really, really hard.  Here is a picture of me languishing on the couch trying to have a happy birthday... 

 

This part of pregnancy is difficult to "enjoy."  I started this series on Enjoying Your Pregnancy back when I was pregnant with Micah because I wanted to enjoy every second of his precious life.  I knew just how fragile life could be and I was determined to not just survive, but enjoy my pregnancy with him.

I figured I'd just keep going with this series during my new pregnancy, more for my own encouragement than for anyone else!  But, I'm pretty sure there are others out there who aren't finding pregnancy all that enjoyable these days.

So, today I wanted to talk about one thing that helps me tremendously in the evening hours when my stomach is reeling and my body aches.  It's music.  Soft, relaxing, flowing music.  It eases the tense muscles, gives me something else to think about for a while, and soothes my soul.

I've used music in varying degrees in all my pregnancies.  With my oldest child, it was at the end of pregnancy when the restless legs were making me crazy and sleep always seemed just out of reach.  I listened to Enya's Watermark cd over and over and over.  It was enough to lull me into a decent sleep.  I was grateful.

My current favorite is David Nevue's Whisperings.  I rarely make it past track 4 before I am sound asleep, no matter how bad my stomach aches.

I also use music while I soak in the tub.  It makes a tubby just that much better. :)

Maybe it's because music has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember.  Maybe it's because my mom used to put classical music cassettes on for me to sleep by.  Maybe it's because I hear music in everything.  

But, I actually think it's because God designed music Himself.

Notes, taken by themselves to be plain and often discordant, suddenly resolve into unimaginable beauty when linked together in harmony.  Music is not random and accidental.  Even people who are tone deaf still hear beauty in melody.

My aching pregnant body relaxes when I hear music because God designed music to be a tool with which to praise and worship.  Even when music is not used to honor and glorify God, you can't deny that He created the notes.  They are still His, no matter what someone does to pervert them.

So, as I lay here, growing this itty bitty human being, I am enjoying not only the pregnancy itself, but the soundtrack of this pregnancy.

*****

Another thing I enjoy in the bathtub is my Homemade Bath Oil~especially during this cold, dry winter weather.  And don't miss tomorrow's Guest Post about music education in the homeschool classroom.

I Seriously LOVE This Spelling Curriculum!

 

OK, I toyed with the idea of calling this post

"Phonetic Zoo - A Review"

because it rhymes, but that title does not do justice to how much I love this program!  "Review" always sounds so stale to me, so I thought I would just title this precisely the way I feel!

You heard me mention it back when I did the SpellQuizzer giveaway; however, I didn't really tell you much about it except that SpellQuizzer meshes well with it.  So, let me explain a bit about Phonetic Zoo itself, and hopefully, you'll see why I LOVE this spelling curriculum!

Quick Background:
Last year, my almost 10 year old son was struggling at spelling.  Voracious reader.  Horrible speller.

I happen to believe that spelling is important.  I'd be one of those people who says poor spelling makes you look ignorant no matter how intelligent you are.  I know there are people who struggle terribly with it and I am forever grateful for spellcheckers; however, you honestly have to have some basis of correct spelling or even the best spellchecker in the world won't figure you out.

So, this child who speaks well, writes well, reads well, needed help.

Yet traditional spelling programs weren't working.  Sure, he could get the test right (eventually), but he wasn't retaining a thing!

I'd all but given up when I got my Veritas Press catalog for the year.  In it, they recommended Phonetic Zoo from Institute for Excellence in Writing.  Now, I had heard Andrew Pudewa speak at a homeschool conference years ago, and I loved what he had to say about spelling, but I somehow missed the fact that he had actually created a spelling program.

Anyway, the review in Veritas Press convinced me this was worth a try even with the $100 price tag.  I ordered the product, watched their Spelling & The Brain DVD that explained why this method works, and set my son loose with the curriculum.  I immediately started seeing steady results and it has continued into this year!  He is retaining the information.  He is more confident in his ability to spell correctly.  All this done with very little effort on my part.  Spelling well without cramming it down his throat is worth $100 to me!

So, let me give you a quick run down of my favorite aspects of this curriculum:

*Independent learning - Very little is required of me.  In fact, I no longer go over his words at all with him.  He is entirely in charge of his learning.

*Auditory - My son uses the CD player and headphones.  The CDs follow a pattern similar to spelling bees.  My son hears the word, sees it in his mind, then writes it.  The words are even checked orally, which solidifies that concept of letters being put into the correct order to form the word.

*Simple & Non-consumable - No workbooks.  Let me just say that again...NO WORKBOOKS!  As you see in the picture at the top of the post, there are some cards that introduce the child to the words and cards you can hand them as they finish each lesson, but these are non-consumable.  The simplicity of it means I'm not storing and finding places on my school shelves for a monstrosity of a curriculum.

*Repetition of all words - The child must master the entire spelling list twice in a row before moving on.  So often a curriculum lets them off the hook if they ever once get a word right.  Speaking from past experience, that does nothing to cement the word into the child's brain.

*No need to rush - Spelling levels are not age graded.  You start at A no matter who you are.  Each level can easily last longer than a school year.  When A is complete, you move to B.  No one thinks you are behind.  It is truly a go-at-your-own-pace curriculum.

I'll be honest. this was the first time I purchased something for school and immediately sighed with relief.  It was perfect and I am so glad I went ahead and bought it!  I love it and it Works For Me!)

OK, your turn!  What  piece of curriculum have you purchased that was a sigh of relief to your homeschool?

I Would Nurse Them Here or There, I Would Nurse Them Anywhere!

It's not green eggs and ham.  It's something even better!  Mama's milk!  This post is an ode to all the odd places I've nursed...

CHURCH

CUB SCOUTS

ON A TRAIN

ON A BOAT

WHILE GETTING A HAIR CUT

SPIRIT OF THE DANCE SHOW IN BRANSON

WHILE MAKING JEWELRY IN A BEAD SHOP IN COLORADO

HALFWAY UP A MOUNTAIN BESIDE A WATERFALL (here's the pic to prove it!)


IN A CAVE (my favorite because it was Emily)

LEANING OVER THE CAR SEAT (not my favorite!)

WHILE REHEARSING FOR A BROADWAY REVIEW

WHILE TAKING MY DRIVER'S LICENSE TEST (the written part!)

WHILE IN LABOR

ON A THRONE IN A MUSEUM (see picture above!)

DURING A CONCERT

IN THE BATHTUB

IN A MOVIE THEATRE

WHILE TYPING THIS POST

So, there you have a less-than-exhaustive list of the places I've nursed (cuz frankly, I will nurse them anywhere, but I won't always remember it!)

How about you?  Any "interesting" places you've nursed???

Homeschooling - What Do I Teach?

 

photo credit

OK, next homeschooling question...

This is from Angela:
I think one of my biggest fears as my oldest closes in on the preschool age is how to know if I'm teaching the right thing and enough of it. Also, with as many curriculums as there are out there, how do you ever decide which one is right?

Let me address the second part of Angela's question first.  I continue to believe wholeheartedly that there is no such thing as a perfect curriculum.  However, you do have to find your groove.  That's what Sonlight has become for us...a groove that fits well.  So, start with those goals I told you about, ask others what they use, get your hands on some of the curriculum, and then close your eyes and JUMP! 

Now, here's my caveat...

It could take 3 years before you feel you've hit a groove.  Don't expect to get it right the first time.  The great thing is homeschool curriculum resales really well!  And if you do hit your groove before the 3 year mark, then kudos to you!  If you still don't feel settled after 3 years, don't despair.

OK, so on to WHAT to teach.  Well, I'm going to assume you've read my Homeschooling Preschoolers & Toddlers post.  If not, go there NOW!

You'll see in the early years I only "teach" the 3 R's.  Beyond that, it's all about living life and keeping a running dialogue with your children.  Teach them to love learning!

In fact, the main thing I concentrate on in the early years is getting the child reading.  After that, their world opens up!  So, until your child is reading, I'd really just relax, read a ton to them, teach them what you know along the way, but avoid too many formalities.

If you want to be doing something with the younger children, then I highly recommend Rod & Staff's A-B-C series.  All my children have loved this series!  It teaches many elementary skills in fun ways.

So, back to teaching them to read...
When should that occur?  That's a tough question because every child is different.  My rule of thumb is to start when I see them take an interest in words.  Give them a solid phonics start, but if they just aren't retaining it...STOP.

The beauty of homeschooling is that there really is no timetable.  You, as the parent, are in charge.  Don't ever forget that.  Whenever you begin to fear the scope & sequence charts or the local testing center, tell yourself they are not in charge...you are.

There will come a time when you see your child retaining information better.  Jump in there and start offering them spoonfuls of phonics at a pace they can handle.  Remember, slow and steady wins the race.

For my final bit of encouragement, I just want to say...

You won't warp them.

I know you think you will.  I sure did.  But, trust me...they're resilient little people!  There will be gaps in their education, just like there were gaps in your education.  If you've instilled a love of learning, those gaps will be filled in their own time.  Nobody knows it all.  Don't kid yourself into believing you somehow have to teach it all.

You can do this!  Really, you can!

To My Dear Readers

Bear with this sorry soul...

I took a tussle with morning sickness and morning sickness won.

I am answering some emails, but I am not visiting blogs or reading much of anything these days. 

I post here, I twitter, I collapse.

So, until the morning sickness is lessened, I beg your humble forgiveness for not being my cheery, blog-hopping, email answering self. 

I know you'll understand...I'm sure many of you have been there yourselves.

Keep reading!  Keep commenting!  Keep chit-chatting (you can even head over to the blogfrog community and start your own conversations!)

The normal me will be back shortly. :)

Three Little Goals - Guest Post

Today's guest post is by Celee at Miscellaneous Musings of a 5x Mom.  You already know how important I think goals are in the homeschooling family.  Celee gives you an opportunity to peek into her family's list of goals and see just how easy making goals can be.

 

 Three little icterics!! by Astarr™

Do you ever feel overwhelmed by the myriad of home school materials out there?  I recently got my new CBD home school catalog in the mail and started my semi-annual tradition of bending down the corners on practically every other page.  Just when I think I’ve settled on our curriculum, I go and buy something else that promises to be even better than what I was using before.  This year alone I’ve tried Grammar Ace, Wordly Wise, Sequential Spelling, Horizons Vocabulary, and Lifepac for Language Arts, not including our many Handwriting books.  And this is all for one subject.  It seems I have a little case of wander lust.  Will I never be satisfied?  Not that there’s anything wrong with trying out new products, but I’ve had to take a step back and ask myself what I’m trying to get out of this.  What are my home school goals?  What if there is some great, yet elusive product out there that I never learn about and never implement in our home school?  Is it really going to make or break us?  The answer I arrived at is “no”.  What do my husband and I want to accomplish by home schooling our children, anyway? 

1.  We want to mold and shape our children’s character by instilling in them a love for God and His Word first and foremost.  We want our children to possess true wisdom, the ability to navigate through life making the right decisions.  We want them to please God, not man.  We want them to live for Him and to glorify God in all they do. 


2.  We want to encourage in our children a thirst for knowledge so that they will always ask questions in life and seek to have them answered.  We desire to help them develop critical thinking skills so that they will not be brainwashed by the culture around them, but will carefully think through each issue they’re presented with and be able to give a defense of their beliefs.
 
3.  We want to pass on to our children a deep respect for and love of books.  I firmly believe that if our kids are inquisitive and they love books, they will never stop learning their whole lives through.  If we can give them the desire to pick up a book and the tools to understand it, then the sky is the limit to what they can learn. 

That’s not a very long list of goals.  It was rather anticlimactic, in fact.  I was a little surprised by just how simple our home school goals are.   

Upon reflecting on our goals, I realized that instead of the large break front turned home school warehouse, and dining room server, also used to house our many workbooks, we could accomplish our aims with only the Bible and a steady supply of great books.  

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not going to toss out all our workbooks and I’m still going to make our kids do math, but this has certainly given me a new perspective.  It’s taken a load off to realize that we don’t need every single possible product to educate our children.  If we rear godly children who love the Lord, love learning, and love books, then I will consider our home school a great success.  End of story.  

How about you?  What are your home school goals?  Have you ever found yourself having to take a step back and remind yourself of why you decided to home school your children?  It’s done wonders for me this week and I know it won’t be the last time!   

Celee @ Miscellaneous Musings of a 5X Mom is a happily married, stay at home, homeschooling mom to 5 brilliant, adorable, and hilarious kids.  Topics she loves blogging about include homeschooling, Bible study, family worship, adoption, and creation science.

The Blessing of Other People's Children

 

photo credit

"I love my own children, 

but I'm not as fond of other people's children."

Psalm 127 tells us that children are a blessing, a reward, something to be sought after and cherished.  Once the Holy Spirit opened my eyes and heart to this passage of Scripture, I never looked back...at least where my own children were concerned.

HOWEVER...
The quote above is a direct quote from...(nervous cough)...me.

MY children are great!  MY children are blessings!  But, other people's children?  Well, SOME people's children are blessings.  But, SOME people's children are, well, um...not so, um...well, you know.

Wait a second!  Am I really saying I think God only uses children as a reward and a blessing for SOME people and that for OTHER people they are a curse, or at best, a natural consequence?

Oh, I probably never truly spelled it out in those terms, but I do know for a fact I have been guilty of thinking there were people out there who "got pregnant on purpose" or people who had babies "they didn't deserve" or people who "should really stop having children."  All this from a woman who calls herself QUIVERFULL?  Apparently, I thought only myself and a select few were truly BLESSED by God...the rest ACCIDENTALLY got His blessings.  YIKES!

We embrace as blessings the children that enter into our own families, but shouldn't we also be embracing as blessings the children who enter into other people's families?  And shouldn't we, especially those of us who call ourselves quiverfull, be looking these children in the eye and telling them what little blessings they are?  Shouldn't we be speaking this aloud to their families?  If we truly believe the Lord is the one who opens and shuts the womb, then shouldn't we rejoice with every new life?

Now, I am sure some of you are saying, "What about those babies born out of wedlock?"  Well, let's take a moment to put this issue in perspective.  What was the sin?  The child being born?  NO!  As Christians, we really need to examine how we deal with these types of situations.  If we ever expect to effectively fight against abortion, we have got to stop seeing the children as part of the sin.

And what about those Christian families who just don't seem to be able to handle the children they have?  If they are letting the Lord build their house, then who am I to say how many children they should or shouldn't have?  I wasn't winning any parenting awards when the Lord gave me more children!  For that matter, I'm not winning any parenting awards right now, either!

So, my perspective has changed.  Not only are MY children little blessings, but so are OTHER PEOPLE'S children.  And I intend to tell them so!

*****
You can also find me today at The Homeschool Classroom!

Glimpses of Emmy

I've been going back through the blog posts from my Homeschoolblogger account and reworking some as new posts here and adding any to my archives that I would like to have here.  I'm not moving them all because something within me doesn't feel like that is right.  She was born there on that blog, not here.  However, she died on both blogs.  Her life is not here and I don't want to pretend as if it ever was.

 From these old posts, I've gotten glimpses of Emmy...long before she was sick.  I smile.  I remember.  And I long to share that part of her with you...the LIFE part.  Who she was before malrotation ravaged her tiny body and eventually took her life.  I want you to know the little girl whom we all believed was perfect and who now, truly is.

Here are some excerpts from posts I've been visiting:

Our little firecracker is here!  I am having one of the easiest recoveries ever and our beautiful little daughter is here--born on the 4th of July just as her daddy had hoped.

 *****

At one week:
Baby only gets up once in the night, making up for all the sleep I lost while pregnant with her. 

 *****

My first day alone following Emily's birth:
I "made" yogurt & granola bars for breakfast.

I burned the meatloaf because I forgot it was in the oven.

I bonked baby's head on the door jam because I was chasing after the 1 year old who didn't want his diaper changed.

I said 'NO' 632 times to the 2 yo who thinks the baby actually likes to have her eyes poked.

A nice little old Jehovah's Witness lady came to my door and eventually asked if I ran a day care.  To which I replied, "No, they're all mine and there are more."

I realized shortly after that that I had neither changed out of my pajamas nor had I combed my hair.

Ah, but who cares!  Made it that much easier to get ready for bed at night!

 *****

She [Melia] is very affectionate toward the new baby.  Maybe a little too affectionate.  In her effort to show love, she tends to grit her teeth, widen her already big eyes, and growl, "Squish, squish little baby" through her teeth while she squeezes the baby's arm.  When I ask her to be gentle, she unclenches her jaw and pets baby nicely once, twice, then it's "Squish, squish little baby" all over again. [and Emily never cared one little bit]

*****

And then there is our precious little bitty one.  Her beauty is surpassed only by her happiness.  She'll *talk* to anyone who will listen.  Our little 4th of July baby is a sparkler, a dazzler, a joy.

 *****

Today, February 10th, marks the 2 year anniversary of Emily's home-going to Heaven.  Today she slipped out of my hands and into Eternity.

I rejoice for her.  I mourn for me.

I mourn for all of us left behind to wait.

We wait until someday when pictures and memories will finally give way to our Eternity.

To learn more about this path I walk, visit The Grieving Mother page of this blog.

Homeschooling - Begin with a Goal

 

beginnings...

I'm going to start working through the questions from the homeschooling post I wrote a couple of weeks ago. I'm going to start at the top and work my way down, so never fear...I will eventually get to your question. :)

This question came from Allison:
My biggest question is "How do I begin?" What is the very first thing that you did when you started this process. With so much to choose from, I can't seem to focus on any one thing.

My beginning is a bit different.  I didn't know there was so much to choose from.

Ignorance is indeed bliss!

I had one catalog and it was NOT Rainbow Resource!  It was a small publication from Keepers of the Faith.  I purchased their Rod & Staff Preschool Books, their McGuffy Reader, and their Ray's Arithmetic.  Somehow I managed to teach  my son to count and read. (said with a hint of sarcasm...)

The next year I was introduced to Rainbow Resource and I read that catalog...all 2000 pages of it...cover to cover.  But, alas, money was tight and I knew I could not afford much from it.  So, I purchased an all-in-one curriculum that is no longer published and once again, "made do."  My son continued to thrive.

However, I kept feeling the need to change things up...try new things I was seeing at all those homeschool conventions...and ultimately, make my life miserable.

Yes, miserable.

I give you this sad tale for several reasons:
1) To say that there is no perfect curriculum.
2) To say that you can teach your child with anything.
3) To say that if you don't know where you are going, you will end up miserable.

The first two are fairly self-explanatory.  I had one curriculum choice when I started and yet, my son learned to read.  I was not discontent until I knew there were choices.  Prior to that I just used what I had.  Like I said earlier...ignorance is bliss!

But let's work through point #3:
I'm going to just lay it out here...
Without goals, you will eventually get terribly muddled and confused.
I did.

And goals are not as scary as they might sound.  This Friday, I'll be featuring a guest post from Celee @ Miscellaneous Musings of a 5x Mom.  In it, she writes about her family's homeschooling goals.  I promise it will be an excellent read and you'll see just how simple it is to list your family's goals.

So number one thing you should do when you set out to homeschool?

Pray and ask the Lord to define your homeschool.
Ask what His goals are for your family.  Who are you as a family and how does homeschooling support who you are?  You don't have to have some fancy document signed and notarized, but I would encourage you to write it out, post it, refer to it often.

Do you need a certain curriculum that works with your goals?  Perhaps, but more than likely ANYTHING you use will work if you master the curriculum and don't let it master you.  Yes, there are styles that fit better with certain personalities, but you truly can use just about anything if you keep your goals at the forefront of your homeschool.

So, THAT is what I wish I had done when I began homeschooling.  I wish I would have had direction.  I wish I would have stopped looking for the perfect curriculum instead of spending years searching for an animal that does not exist.  I wish I had known that in God's eyes, academics are secondary.

Start the journey with an end in mind!

I Know Nothing

photo credit

Six years ago, we moved away from our home in my husband's home town.  We had lived in this particular home for 3 years (the longest we have lived anywhere).  It was very hard to leave.  The hardest thing about leaving was leaving the man next door. 

Yes, you read that right.  The man next door was our 79 year old landlord.

Yes, you read THAT right.  He was our LANDLORD.  I don't know a whole lot of people who LIKE their landlord, let alone, miss him when they leave.  But, this man was special.  He was another grandfather tp our children, he was a sounding board for my husband and myself, and he was an inspiration in living the Word of God, no matter the circumstances. 

I would wake up in the middle of the night, look out my window and see his light on.  It was not uncommon for him to get up by 3 or 4 am and read in his Bible until morning's light.

We still regularly talk to this man and I always walk away from our conversations encouraged.  It is one of our conversations I want to share here...

After our usual chit-chatting about the children and my husband's job, he said something profound...something I needed to hear.  He said he knew NOTHING except for what the WORD OF GOD has taught him.  He said he may know how to comb his hair and tie his shoes and how to cook, but those aren't the things that REALLY matter.  Now, this is a man who has been an officer in WWII, a professional photographer, a preacher, an avid antiques collector, a classical music buff, and a gardener extraordinaire.  Yet, he knows NOTHING except for what the WORD OF GOD has taught him! 

So often we neglect our daily Bible reading.  We get edgy and harsh with the children.  We feel uneasy and sad and don't know why.  We spend copious amounts of time focusing on ourselves.

In school, we've been learning about Unitarianism and Deism.,  Their faulty thinking is all the same...SELF is their answer ~  *I* can think through anything and arrive at the proper answer for ME ~ I don't *need* God.  While I would NEVER say this is what I believe, my actions were saying this.  If I am not reading daily and learning through His Word, then I am basically saying that I can figure it out on my own.

But, guess what?

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and discipline.
Prov 1:7

I truly know NOTHING, except for what the WORD OF GOD has taught me!

So, what has your daily Bible reading been teaching you?

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Subduing Art Guilt - Guest Post

I decided to have some guest posts to help ease things on my end while I'm not feeling up to par.

Today's guest post is from Tracy @ Higher Education.  

As you well know, I'm all about getting rid of guilt.  Tracy explores eradicating the guilt that comes when you realize your homeschooled children have had no formal art education...

There are a number of things a homeschool family can do to subdue the guilt monster when he sneaks out from among the curriculum guides. The first thing we did was create a craft box. (Now, our crayons, colored pencils, markers, pencils, blank paper, scissors and glue sticks are such a part of our everyday school and afterschool life that I don't include them as special art supplies.) I filled the box with all of the supplies that had previously been floating around the house. This included finger paints, water colors, pipe cleaners, felt and fabric swatches, buttons and brayers, the hot-glue gun, Elmer's brand glue, googly eyes, stickers and old magazines. There is a surplus of craft-based idea books and websites to choose from so that you can best utilize these supplies. However, this only worked to squash the guilt for a short time. I was concerned about real art skills, not opportunities to make crafts.

Next, I tried to assuage the guilt by getting How-To drawing books from the library. It was during this time that I researched art lessons in our area. I also looked through the excellent Rainbow Resource catalog for art curriculum. I soon got two new kinds of guilt: Can't Afford Lessons Guilt and Don't Want to Teach Entire Art History Curriculum Guilt. Great! I had found an excellent art history and appreciation course that even incorporated art skills, but I was not going to use it. In this season of our homeschool career I am unwilling to teach an entire art course, even once a week. Committing to that and then falling behind on it or, worse yet, teaching art while shirking our phonics would lead to entirely new kinds of guilt.

I found out that I just wanted the kids to magically be exposed to art. I wanted them to absorb art history and learn art skills without any more from me than driving them to lessons. I mainly wanted to be able to say, "We homeschool and we have time for everything! Look at their art knowledge and skills! See how amazing I am as a mother and teacher!" Finding the source for our guilt is crucial to subduing it. So on this journey so far, I had already learned a few important things:

1. I wanted the kids to learn new artistic skills if they loved to draw

2. I couldn't afford lessons

3. I didn't want to commit the time to teach a course

4. I thought a well-rounded education should include a
a)knowledge of art terms and styles
b)basic artistic skills/ experiences in a variety of medias
c)exposure to the development of art in history d)exposure to major artists and types of art (sculpture, paints, etc)

5. There is a season for this kind of learning

6. I had to deal with my own pride issues and not foist them on my kids

What did I end up doing to eradicate the guilt? For our family, for this season, what works for us is art software for our computer. I purchased a program for $26. Now, my kids are learning about appreciation, history, and skills on their own. I don't let them watch tv in the early mornings, so I'll frequently come out in the morning to get my coffee and they're already learning. Later, I'll be in the kitchen and be overhearing their lessons and learning something myself! They use it whenever I say "No tv" but they don't want to go outside. For us this works.

For your family, you may want to take a different approach. The software I chose has 16 lessons with 2 subtopics for each lesson, and additional skill-builders on the side, and a decent library of works of art with artist bios and dates. What's 16 X 2 if not an entire year of weekly lessons?

Maybe you'd like a more structured approach to the same software, such as assigning each lesson and limiting when to use the software. Or, you could use the software as an intensive summer course. Use the vacation time to focus on 'extra' subjects like this. This kind of subject lends itself easily to a unit study.

The last point I'd like to make is that like so many other things, homeschooling has its seasons. Our family is in the elementary age season, I shouldn't worry about the development of painting in the history of the world. Let them use tissue paper and paper towel rolls! However, when everyone has mastered reading and writing and math, then there will be time for the more intensive (and fun) courses.

I'm honored to be a guest here at Raising Arrows. Come visit my blog, Higher Education, where I explore Classical education in general and our homeschool lifestyle in particular. 
Teresa (Tracy) Dear

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Building a Family Library on a Budget!

Can't Keep Your Prenatal Vitamins Down? Drink Them!

Years ago I looked for a way to get my prenatal vitamins in without having to actually take those monstrous yucky pills that inevitably just made me sicker.  I tried taking the kids' vitamins, but that was only slightly better.  My usual method of choice was to just not take them at all.

I know, not a real healthy choice, but when they come right back up, what's the point?

This is where Twitter comes in.

Yeah, you read that right...Twitter.

Somewhere along the line I start seeing tweets from a company called Be Nice, and lo and behold, they sell prenatals you can drink!!!

So, I asked for a free sample and loved it!

It's great!  (I'm especially fond of the lemonade!)  All you do is dump a packet in a big glass of water, stir, and drink (I add ice, because I love ice!)  I plan on trying it in a smoothie too!  Yum!  And all the while, I'm getting vitamins that I simply am not getting any other way.

Now, in order to get a full dose of daily vitamins, you would need to drink 4 glasses, which I'm just not capable of doing; however, I figure, even one packet a day is better than I've been doing.  In fact, one packet a week is better than what I've been doing!

Interestingly enough, Be Nice Prenatal Vitamins started more as a healthy drink for expecting mothers than a way for morning sickness plagued mamas to get their prenatals down.  However, after my experiences with the company, I let them know how impressed I was with the product for that very purpose.  I'm hopeful, they'll market in that direction because I'm thinking I'm not the only one who has looked for years for an easier way to take my prenatals.

And for all my green friends out there...
Be Nice Prenatal Vitamins uses recycled paper to package their product, and the plant the product is manufactured in uses 100% wind generated power!  How awesome is that?!

I've got a button to their site in their sidebar or you can click one of the links within this post to go check out their site.  I'd love to see this company get up and running with its awesome product!

AND GUESS WHAT!!
Just got word from the company that if any of my readers order and mention Raising Arrows, they get a FREE BOX!  Woo Hoo!

Disclosure: I received a case of Be Nice Prenatal Vitamins, but that fact does not influence my wholehearted endorsement of this product.  I've got my integrity to uphold here.  I just want to see a really great product do really well!

It's a Case of Monkey See, Monkey Do

 One of the "monkeys"

I was giving him what for.  He was 5 years old and should have known better.  I didn't have time to deal with such childishness.  Next time he had better think before he pulled some crazy stunt like that again.

My finger was wagging as fast as my tongue.  I was on a roll giving this little blond-haired, blue eyed bundle of mischief a piece of my mind.

And that's when I looked down.

Standing right in front of me, so close she was on my toes, was my 2 year old daughter, wagging her little finger and mouthing my words right after me.  She put her hands on her hips, she leaned in toward her brother and she let him have it.

I began to reprimand her for being mean to her brother when I realized she wasn't being mean...she was being ME!

It's a strange phenomena.  These little people with whom we reside day in and day out quite often sound just like us.  And usually what they say and do is the "us" we aren't all that fond of.

When they are little, it is cute and funny {sometimes}, but as our children grow, they catch more of the things we'd rather they didn't catch.  This can be a sobering lesson.  One you  must be willing to learn.

Several years back I read The Heart of Anger by Lou Priolo.  The very first thing he does when he has an angry child come into his office is to interview his parents.  He asks them to take a hard look at themselves.  Did the anger start with them?

Maybe it's not an angry child you are dealing with...maybe it is an apathetic or lazy or complaining child.  Not that every personality trait we see in our children is something we've directly contributed to...they ARE unique individuals...but it merits serious reflection on our own attitudes and behaviors.

Monkey see, monkey do...whether we like it or not.

Blogging on a Budget

When I first started blogging in 2005, blogs just weren't what they are today.  They were pretty plain jane and most people were just writing for the fun of it.  Today, it's become a business, and for some, a burden.  As with all change, some is good and some is bad.  This post is about the good and how to do it on a budget.

1.  Pretty Blog, Pretty Blog.
I have to admit, I like me a pretty blog.  Not fussy (I am so NOT a fussy person), but definitely not so plain and boring you aren't sure the person writing the blog is real.

You don't have to spend a fortune to be yourself.  You can say a lot about who you are with headers and labels and backgrounds.  And you can do it for free.  Try a ready-made template for blogger at one of these sites:
Butterflygirlms
Simply Fabulous
Easy to Scrapbook 
The Cutest Blog on the Block
(this list could literally go on and on and on...do a search for "Free Blog Templates" or "Free Blog Layout" and see what turns up!)


Ask around and find someone new to web design and ask if they'd be interested in doing a blog makeover to build their portfolio.  Check with homeschool groups or public school entrepreneurship programs or computer classes.

And if you do decide to go the paid-route, check out my friend Abigail who did my blog at 32nd Street Blog Boutique!

2.  Have a Picnik (.com that is)

I LOVE this site!  You can get a paid membership for full benefits, but the free side has lots of great stuff too.  For instance, my watermarks on my photos were done at Picnik.com.  The site will even link up to your Photobucket or your Picasa web albums (and other sites as well) where you can work on your photos and then save them as either copies or replacements of the originals.

Take at look at the Learn More section in my left-hand sidebar.  Those photos were done in Picnik.  I chose a photo and then clicked on the CREATE tab, then the TEXT tab and typed in what I wanted to say.  You are able to choose from several different fonts as well as rotate, fade, or change colors.

You are also able to edit your photos with some basic editing tools in Picnik (the paid membership allows for a full range of editing tools, but you can do quite well with the free stuff) which leads me to my next point...

3.  Photos make all the difference.
I am a very visual person, so when someone writes about how to do something I NEED pictures to complete the story.  Perhaps you've seen blogs with really wonderful photos on them and laid awake at night wishing your photos looked like that.  But, alas, the budget won't allow for a new camera.  What do you do?  You edit!

I don't own a fancy camera...yet.  I just can't fit it into the budget at this point, but I think my photos aren't too shabby.  I've spent a lot of time studying other people's photos and taking hints from these blogs:
Dancing Barefoot
A Familiar Path (Using Your Camera series)
Better In Bulk (she has a Bloggography series you should check out!)
I Heart Faces (Tutorial section)

And hey, if you don't like your photos, use someone else's! 
Flickr Creative Common
Public Domain Pictures

4.  Add Pages
Originally, I added pages by adding new blogs, but realized recently just how much traffic was leaving my blog to go to my other blogs when I could just as easily incorporate the pages into my existing blog.  My gates in the menu bar lead to other pages on my blog that are specifically designed to offer a plethora of information on those particular subjects.  I keep them updated as I receive new information.

5.  Learn about your readership
I have Google Analytics attached to this blog so I can see where people are coming from, how long they stay, and a myriad of other things.  I'll admit, Analytics is still a bit of a mystery to me, but I'm learning...I think.

A couple of other things I've added here that help me understand my readership is the Feedjit live traffic widget which allows me to see in real time the last 50 hits on my blog (including how they got there and how they left) and my Lijit search feature that gives me weekly stats on who is searching for what on my blog and what they are landing on when they do search.  (That's how I found out my sister-in-law was desperately searching for some sort of Christmas present idea for us this year!)

6.  See something you like?  Borrow it!
As you're surfing, you see a blog feature you like and would love to incorporate on your own blog...then do it!  Google it, ask the other blogger how they got that feature, do whatever it takes to find the answers.  You're not stealing!  The only way you could ever be accused of stealing is if your blog begins to look EXACTLY like another blog OR you flat-out plagiarize.  Now, that my friends is wrong...but borrowing great ideas and making them your own (especially in bloggy land) is called resourcefulness!  For instance, I saw Link Within on another blog and loved it!  So, I clicked on the link in the corner, went to the site and signed up...for free

The gals at SavvyBlogging.net (#savvyblogging on twitter) have some excellent advice on all things bloggy.  However, remember as you are tweaking your blog...

7.  Stay true to you. 
I cannot stress this enough.  Don't get so caught up in becoming a blogging empire that you forget your peasant roots or forget YOU!

I hope this blog never runs away with me.  I hope you never stop seeing Amy written all over this blog.  I hope those who know me best come here and say, "Wow!  That really is just like Amy!" (good and bad!)

You can spend all the money in the world on your blog and make all the money in the world off your blog, but once you lose you, that's it.  You either lose the true joy of blogging or you start a private blog to pour your heart out to because you have no where else to turn.

Are there things I can't say here?  Absolutely. 

However, they are things I've made the choice not to say.  The blog didn't make the choice.  I did.  I do.  I will continue to do so.

And that, my friends, is priceless...

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This post is linked to Works For Me Wednesday.  This week's meme is about all things blogging.
You can also find me At The Well today with my post on Child Rearing entitled: "Monkey See, Monkey Do"