Madeline's First Day of School**

**And no, I didn't cry. Madeline did a great job on her first day of school. She wheeled in there like she owned the place, and didn't fuss at all when I left.

For those who may have missed it, for now, preschool is how she is getting her needed therapies, since she has aged out of First Steps. She's growing up!

By the way, you can see a bit of Annie, Maddy's little friend who also has spina bifida and a plethora of lots of other serious issues. She's a precious little girl and I'm thrilled she's in Madeline's class. Besides Annie and Maddy, there are three other little ones in the class, and I had met or knew of two of the others. It made me happy. :)

I Can't Help It; It Makes Me Happy!

{this moment} Olivia, First Thing in the Morning

Joining SouleMama in {this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Walter de la Mare's "Some One"

Ambleside Online's poet pick for Year 2, Term 1, is Walter de la Mare. I have selected "Some One" as a starting point for recitation, since it is simple enough that Olivia will enjoy learning it with us during circle time.

I have made up a simple printable of "Some One." You are welcome to use/change it however you wish. Enjoy...


Or copy and past this into your browser: https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B0YDQ0DNEZODMTBlYjBkODMtNzlmMC00ZDI0LWEyYzItZTVlZDEyYmM3YzM0&sort=name&layout=list&num=50

14 Years and Counting!

Yesterday, Glen and I celebrated 14 years of marriage. I know this may shock you, because I look like I couldn't possibly be a day over 25. (Ha!) I was married at the tender age of 18 (and a half, but who's counting?). I'm ever so grateful God chose Glen to be my partner in this journey called life. I find it amazing to see God at work in our family, through the joyous and the stressful days, knowing we can depend on Him for His wisdom and leadership through the next 14 years and beyond.

Last evening, my lovely friend Diana Metz kept the girls (even Madeline for a few hours!) while Glen and I went to Outback for supper (forgot to use our gift card, if you can believe that!), relaxed and enjoyed our evening (mostly) kid-free. This morning Carli and Olivia were so excited to share their "project"...a wedding anniversary cake, complete with hand-drawn cake toppers. They were also eager for us to open generously decorated cards and bookmarks. I already have dates and names on the back so that I will always remember. They made our day for sure, and chocolate cake for lunch was a special treat! Mmmm...

Thank you, Diana, and thank you, Carli and Olivia. You made our day extra-special! Thanks for helping us celebrate!

WonderMaps--Chance to WIN!

Having spent this week pulling all the pieces together for our upcoming homeschool year, I know how valuable WonderMaps would be for me. I spent a lot of time looking up medieval maps, partly so I know what I'm talking about, and partly because Carli loves mapwork.

Here is an awesome giveaway... http://homeschoolgiveaways.com/2011/07/giveaway-wondermaps/#comment-6763

I'd say I hope you win, but really, I just hope I do! :)

Can't Get Much Better than FREE

One of my favorite aspects of Ambleside Online is that it uses many texts that are now public domain and can be found as online texts for free. Yes, I still love the feel of a book in my hand (and sometimes even the smell. I'm strange, but at least I know Kirsten is there with me!). But we still have way too many books to chose from both here and at the library if we need a feel-a-real-book fix, and we do...often.

There were a few books I found cheaply on Amazon, AbeBooks, or Half, and I bought them since they were ones I thought we would enjoy having in our hot little hands. But Glen bought me a Kindle for my graduation a couple years ago, and I really enjoy the feel of it in my hot little hands too. I love how easy it is to throw in my purse and have whatever book I'm in the mood for at my disposal.

All that being said, there are some incredible sites out there that have FREE eBooks, many of which I can transfer to my Kindle. The ones I can't transfer can be read from my laptop and often can be printed and put in a notebook.

Here are my favorite eBook sites:
:: Google Books
:: Project Gutenberg
:: Baldwin Online Children's Literature Project (There are a lot of free ones here, but some to pay for too, so make sure you know what you're clicking on!)
:: ManyBooks.net

:: Amazon Kindle Store You can get a free Kindle ap for your PC (or practically any other electronic device) too!


I've recently discovered a couple sites for free audio books as well! I love to have my (ok, Glen's) MP3 on while I'm cleaning. I load audio books from our library site, podcasts, whatever, and clean/cook/fold laundry and feel like I'm not doing anything quite so mundane. Carli may use audio books from these sites to "read" from Ambleside Online's Free Reading list, though I'm still enjoying the stage where I read most of her literature to her since I enjoy it so much.


Anyway, the sites:


:: Librivox
:: Books Should Be Free (Amen!)


What are your favorite sites for free resources?