Free Resources

I just had to let you all know of these free resources. I have been using the McGuffey Readers for L/A and was looking into buying the next ones when I thought maybe they were on the website that has free books on it that I put on a post a while ago. Sure enough, all the readers were there and are for free because they are part of the public domain. You can download them as an ebook, word or pdf format. Here is a link to the webpage - http://oldfashionededucation.com/reading.htm You just have to scroll down to the bottom.

A DVD Review

I have been telling my friends about this DVD set we purchased from http://www.christianbook.com/ and, now that we've watched most of it, I wanted to give a little review. This was a TV series from Canada in the '70s and they only made this one season.


Over all, this is a very wholesome show. The Robinson's read their bible, pray and quote scripture in a few episodes and work together to survive on their island.


Almost all the episodes could be scary, but it always has a happy ending and if something seemed scary, it is all explained in the end. There are skeletons, a live birth of a goat, and wild animals.


Jacob, who is 5, loves this show. He watches it with a blanket pulled up to his eyes and I can tell he's on the edge of his seat with excitement.


If anyone is interested, you can go to this link, http://www.christianbook.com/the-swiss-family-robinson-3/pd/106654?product_redirect=1&Ntt=106654&item_code=&Ntk=keywords&event=ESRCP and check it out.

The Kid's Christmas Crafts

So, I'm not the only one who's been busy in our house. You can see in the picture above that Rebekah and Ben like to make things for the craft show too. Ben is busy making Birdseed Ornaments. They are to hang on an outside tree and come in a package of 3. This will be a great gift for grandparents, parents, teachers or anyone who likes to watch birds.

Rebekah has been making the glittery birds hanging in the tree. They come in red or blue. She is also putting together mugs & hot chocolate gift packages. These would be great for young friends or teachers.

Upcoming Christmas Events

With Christmas coming up, there are so many things to do around the Central Alberta area. Here are a few of the things we are going to enjoy in the next few weeks.

November 25 @ 5pm The Town of Ponoka is having the tree lighting with carol singing and fire works at 6 pm.

November 26th 10-4 Lacombe Christmas Craft Show at LMC

November 30 11-3 Ponoka Christmas Farmer's Market at the Legion. They will also have markets on Dec. 1 3-7, Dec. 7 11-3 and Dec. 8 3-7.

December 2 9-1 I will have a table at the Lacombe Christmas Farmers Market at the LMC.

December 8 @ 7pm The Freedom Singers will be performing at The Church of the Open Bible in Ponoka. These are 3 men, 2 of which, escaped from Romania because of persecution. They had an awful time getting to Canada and they share their story and sing. It should be very powerful.

December 9 9-1 I will have a table at the Lacombe Christmas Farmers Market at the LMC.

December 9 @ 1:15 The Word of Life Church in Red Deer is giving a free matinee of the play, "The Search of The Wanderer". This is for schools and is offered to us that home school as well. If you wish to attend, you need to email Iris Reimer at tworeimers@gmail.com by NOVEMBER 25th to let her know.

December 9-11 @7pm The Calvary Baptist Church in Wetaskiwin is having an "Evening in Bethlehem". This is outdoors and indoors. They will have live actors and live animals! They ask for a food donation to the food bank. They are located at 4910 Northmount Drive, 1/4 mile west of the hospital.

December 16 @ 7:30 The Central Alberta Homeschool Choir is having a concert at the Mission
Church in Wetaskiwin. This is our first time attending this event. We hear it is absolutely magical and we are so excited.

December 17 @ 4pm If you missed the Homeshcool Choir concert yesterday, you can catch them at College Heights SDA Church.

December 25 @ 11 am The Church of The Open Bible is having a Christmas Service. We are so very happy to be able to focus on the true meaning of Christmas on Christmas morning. What a blessing this will be.

OK, now I'm a little tired thinking of all the things we are going to do! But it will be a wonderful way to really enjoy the whole Christmas season. Even if you don't live in this area, there are probably some great things happening around you. Check your newspaper, community boards and local churches to find out what's going on. God bless.

Amazing Concert!

My family and I had the awesome blessing of seeing Double Portion, from North Battleford SK, in concert last night in Ponoka. We really didn't know what to expect, but we were all blown away! They are a country gospel group and they are all one big happy family. It was the parents with their 8 children. The oldest had stayed home to spend time with his wife before going on tour with the band opening for Paul Brandt. And can you believe they have another baby on the way? What a blessing. The whole family, right down to 2 year old Emerson, had a part to play.

Half way through the concert, Ben, who doesn't always like to share his feelings, leaned over and said, "These are good songs". In fact, my whole family had good things to say about the group.

If you ever have the opportunity to see them, or are in a position to bring Double Portion to your area, you won't be disappointed.

Some More Crafts

I am slowly finishing some projects for the craft show. Here are some more. Above, I have put together a mini tree in a wood box. I have secured little rusty bells with homespun and little red berries all over the tree. And on top, I have put the cutest glittered cinnamon star and a grungy tag at the bottom. And in the background, you can see the "Joy" snowman sign ornament hanging on the tree. I will also be selling ones that say, "Noel"

Here I have put a pillar candle in a rusty pan with a grungy tag tied on with homespun. In the pan I have my home made rosehips that have a cinnamon scent along with some glittered cinnamon stars.

Here is the same wreath that was on my last post, but I have added some glittered cinnamon stars and some grungy tags.

Above is the candy cane wreath. It has some primitive candy canes, glittered cinnamon stars, pip berries and a grungy tag.

Newspaper Article

This is a little late, but I promised some people I would put the newspaper article about our pumpkin patch on my blog. So here it is. It was so nice of the newspaper guy and his family come out to our patch. This is a link to the article http://www.albertalocalnews.com/ponokanews/community/131151098.html and I have added the picture of Jacob pumpkin bowling that was included in the paper, but is not on the Internet article.

Christmas Crafts

The annual Lacombe Christmas Craft Show is coming so fast for me. I thought I would post pictures of items I've completed as I go. So, here are my first creations. Above, I have made primitive chenille candy cane bundles with rusty bell, old fashioned tag and sprig of greenery and jars of primitive chenille mini candy canes is mason jars with galvanized metal lids. Also shown is the cute gingerbread ornie that I will be making more of once my rusty bells arrive in the mail.

Here I have a sweet ceramic lamb with green wreath and bell around his neck.

This wreath is hard to see. It has bells tied on with homespun fabric, sprays of pip berries and an old fashioned paper tag with a sleigh stamped on it. The tag also says "Sleigh Bells Ring"

Christmas Is A Comin'

I love my husband for telling me about this radio station he heard while driving through Detroit this week. It is Christmas 105.1 FM Detroit. And, yes, you guessed it, it plays all Christmas music!! How awesome, eh? Now when I'm in the office, or even the kitchen, I can listen online. Right now I am listening to Amy Grant, "It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year".

This is just what I need to help me finish my crafts for the craft sale and to finish decorating.

Turkey, Turkey, Turkey

I wanted to post this post after Thanksgiving, but we ate at our dinner at our family's house, so I never thought of leftovers. I still wanted to share some things I do with leftover turkey.

First, (other than sandwiches, yummy) I usually keep the leftovers in my second fridge, or just outside, if it's cold enough. About 3 days after the big supper, I usually make Turkey Shepherds Pie. I always make a few extra veggies and gravy on the big supper night just for this recipe.

Turkey Shepherds Pie

First I cook a chopped onion and chopped celery in a big dutch oven in margarine. To this I add the leftover turkey, carrots, corn and what ever other leftover veggies I would like to add. Then I add the gravy. Just keep all this on the stove top on Med-Low to kind of warm it up. I always like to add a pinch of poultry seasoning at this point as well and maybe some chicken oxo if I think it needs some extra flavour. Then I warm up the leftover mashed potatoes in the microwave and then spread them over the veggies and gravy. Then I smear margarine all over the potatoes, cover and bake for about 1 hour at 350.

After we've eaten this meal and sandwiches, the turkey is ready to be boiled into broth. A secret ingredient that my family has always added to their broth is 1 Star Anise. I also add lots of salt and peppercorns. After I've boiled all this for a long, long time, I let it cool, then separate the rest of the meat from the bones and strain the broth. Of course at this point I have to make Turkey Noodle Soup.

Turkey Noodle Soup

Cook 1 chopped onion, carrots and chopped celery in margarine in a large pot. When this is cooked, add the turkey and broth and bring to a boil. Then add homemade noodles and enjoy.

Homemade Noodles

Mix together 1 c flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 egg and 1 Tbsp milk. Let sit, covered, for 10 mins. Roll out on floured surface. (If using a big chopping block like I do, put a damp cloth under it to help it from sliding everywhere) Let dry for 1/2 hour. Sprinkle more flour on top, so that it doesn't all stick together and cut into noodles. Boil these for 10 mins in salted water and drain before adding to the soup.

After we have enjoyed these meals, I still usually have turkey and broth left. So I freeze them in large containers to make soup again and in smaller containers of 1 cup broth and 1 cup turkey meat to make my kids favorite meal, Thai "Chicken" Pasta.

Thai "Chicken" Pasta

Fry 1/2 red pepper, sliced, in 1 Tbsp oil. Add garlic. Turn down heat and add; 2 Tbsp honey, 1 Tbsp soy sauce, 1/4 c peanut butter and 1 Tbsp ground ginger. Turn heat back up to Med. Then I mix 1 Tbsp corn starch into the container of turkey and turkey stock I took out of the freezer. Once everything is hot in frying pan, I add the turkey mixture and cook until sauce thickens. Serve this over spaghetti noodles garnished with chopped green onions. (Snow peas and carrots are also yummy in this.) This is such a quick meal. The sauce is done by the time the noodles are cooked!

Now I think I need to make a big turkey dinner next Larry is home, so that we can enjoy all these delicious meals!

Annual Pass to Alberta Museums

Hello. This is for all my homeschooling friends in Alberta. I heard about this deal on a commercial recently and wanted to pass it on. This is what the Alberta Government calls, "Experience Alberta's History." You can purchase a year family pass to 18 of Alberta's museums for only $75! (And only for $69.30 if you have AMA)
I have enclosed some of what is on the website, www.history.alberta.ca below, which also has a list of the museums included.

Experience history all year long with an Annual Pass This easy-to-use pass provides unlimited access for one year from the date of purchase and opens doors to the fascinating world of Alberta's rich history and culture. Besides offering a variety of educational and learning activities for visitors of all ages, many heritage facilities have a wide range of special events and interactive programs throughout the year. They are exciting places to stop on a vacation where visitors come to learn and have fun.
Purchase an Experience Alberta's History Pass and receive unlimited admission to 18 provincial historic sites and museums in Alberta for one full year. Experience Alberta Passes are available at all major facilities, at all AMA offices and now at the two Edmonton Visitor Information Centres.
Family $75
Adult $30
Senior $25
Youth $15
Under 7 FREE
Please note: Turner Valley Gas Plant is not open to the public at this time. Okotoks Erratic and the Carmangay Tipi Rings do not charge admission.There may be additional fees charged for some special exhibits or events at some museums or interpretive centres.
For your FREE GUIDE call: 1-800-ALBERTA (1-800-252-3782)
Brooks Aqueduct
Father Lacombe Chapel
Frank Slide Interpretive Centre
Fort George and Buckingham House
Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump
Historic Dunvegan
Leitch Collieries
Lougheed House
Oil Sands Discovery Centre
Okotoks Erratic
Remington Carriage Museum
Reynolds-Alberta Museum
Royal Alberta Museum
Royal Tyrrell Museum
Rutherford House
Stephansson House
Turner Valley Gas Plant
Ukrainian Cultural Heritage Village
Victoria Settlement

Thank Heaven for 7-11

I just have one thing to say, "Pumpkin Spice Latte". I have always had some form of these delicious drinks this time of year, but Starbucks isn't as close out here in the country, so I've had to look elsewhere. Then I saw it. A sign in front of 7-11 that said, "Spiced Pumpkin Latte" and I just had to try one. Now I'm trying to think of excuses to go to town so I can have another.

Pumpkin Patch a Great Success!!!

We had so much fun this year at our pumpkin patch. First of all, we invited the Ponoka Homeschoolers for an afternoon. That was great fun. Then we had our patch open to the public yesterday. It was great how many people actually came and some from quite far away.
Here is our little Jacob on the wagon ride with the homeschoolers. You can see one of our pumpkins at the front. It was a very windy day, but at least there wasn't any snow like past years.





This is the sign Becky and Jacob helped me paint. All the parents enjoyed taking pictures of their kids in front of it and I hope they all come back next year to see how much their kids have grown.








I set up this little place to take more pictures. For some reason Jacob kicked off his shoes right away. I just love his smile!










Here are some of our jack-o-lantern pumpkins.









These pumpkins are called Jamboree and they grew very well here. Not only are they pretty, they are good for eating. Yay, because I have 3 times as much as in this picture left. We also grew Goosebump pumpkins and Orange Smoothie. I also grew gourds and I'm happy I remembered to put them out in the middle of the day, because I sold almost all of them! I was so happy to have Becky and Larry helping take everyone on the wagon rides. They took them ALL the way around our farm and all the kids loved it. Some went on more than one ride. The newspaper reporter from Ponoka was assigned to come out and do a story on our pumpkin patch. (Not much happens in Ponoka) I will post the story when it comes out. It will probably just be a picture or something. So all in all we had a great success.

Riding Little Joe

I am so excited to post these pictures of Ben and Jacob riding Little Joe our miniature donkey. I was practicing in the barn a few weeks ago. I had Little Joe tied up really tight. Then I would put Jacob on his back for about 5 mins at a time. But then along comes Larry! He just gets the donkey and plops a kid on top and leads him around. Little Joe did really well.
This morning (which is actually October 24th) we had a daycare come for a field trip to our pumpkin patch. Little Joe was at the fence and the kids were just petting him and poking him in the eye and putting their fingers in his mouth. He just stayed there, loving every minute of it. I hope one day we can offer rides on him. I'm sure he would love all the attention.

Homeschooling on a Budget

I have been amazed at how many homeschool resources are available for free on the Internet. There is a company, In The Hands of a Child, who always has a free lapbook/unit study on their website. That is where I got the lapbook on Winter. Right now they have a unit study on the book, "The Island of The Blue Dolphins" available. This is the link - www.handsofachild.com/freebie.
I have also come across a website that has all free e-books. These are books that are now in the public domain, which means they were published before 1923. More often than not these books have good moral values, while still being a good resource.
Another great resource for encouragement and ideas in homeschooling are homeschooling blogs. I must confess, I have been reading quite a few blogs lately and I am always encouraged. One of these blogs is Abundant Blessings. This is found at - www.homesteadblogger.com/handsnhearts. On this blog I found a link to a website that offers all free books in iTunes and MP3 format. Oh my goodness! They have some amazing books! Like, The Swiss Family Robinson, The Anne of Green Gables Books, The Bible in KJV, history books, Moby Dick. Just so many. I downloaded a book called, "Beautiful Girlhood". I listened to most of this book. It is beautifully read and is so glorifying to God in encouraging young girls to live a pure, Godly life. I will put it on Rebekah's MP3 player soon, as she is at the perfect age to hear the words of this book. Oh ya, the website is www.booksshouldbefree.com. Again, these are books that in the public domain.
As much as I love reading blogs, I still try to limit the time I spend doing so. It is easy to lose track of time while on the computer.

Acts 3:19

"Repent therefore and be converted, so that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord."

I needed to hear this from God this morning. I've been so busy, that I've not been the mom I want to be. So, I had to repent of my bad attitude and receive my times of refreshing from the Lord. Isn't this beautiful. That's all God wants us to do. Repent and then He's there just waiting to put His arms around us and give us the strength to carry on.

Why Boys Need Dads

I could not believe my eyes the other day. This is the sight I saw from my kitchen window. When I went out side to find out why my boys were rolling around in stagnant, stinky, slimy, froggy mud, they said, "Daddy said we could".
I am glad my hubby was home that day, because, of course, I would have said, "Get out of that mud!!!" What are you guys doing?!" But a man understands what it is to be a boy. It was so hard for me to know that they were in that gross water and even harder to help them clean off in the tub later. (because they stank so bad). My hubby knows what God was saying in Proverbs 15:13; "A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit." Oh, how I don't want to "crush" my boy's spirits by not letting them just be boys. Help me Lord to not sweat the small stuff, but to love and encourage my amazing, wonderful boys. That they may have happy hearts.

Trying to Make Ends Meet on One Income

I have to say that my husband does a great job of providing for his family, but even so things are tight around here. God is amazing at helping us along as we look to Him in our lives as well. I have been learning (very slowly) ways I can help instead of hinder our financial situation. I wanted to share some things I do to make our money go further.

I found these drying racks at yard sales for $2 & $1. They are the perfect size for a load of laundry. We also have an enclosed porch that I can put them on in not so good weather. I have seen these racks at Home Hardware. It might be an option for people that live in a town where you're not allowed to have a clothes line. Just put them on your deck and start saving on the electric bill.
Also in the picture below, if you look really hard, (but please don't) you will see a garden in the background. With the price of fruits and veggies I think everyone should grow at least some things themselves. Plus, nothing tastes better then fresh produce right from the garden. I have also planted sunflowers all around my property to save for our chickens for winter. I'm going to try hanging the whole flower down in the barn so that they can peck at the seeds. It will give them something to do when they are stuck in the barn and sunflower seeds are very good for them.

I found a recipe online for home made dishwasher soap. I was out and I wasn't going to be going to Costco to buy our brand of soap for a while, so I thought I would try it out. It is so simple. Just equal parts of Baking Soda and Borax. I used the whole box of Baking Soda, then used the box to measure the Borax into a used margarine container. I made it almost 3 weeks ago and I've only used about half. To use, you put 2 tbsp in your soap dispenser. But what makes it really work is you put vinegar in the rinse cycle. I found it worked just as well as the Kirkland brand. Our coffee mugs never have come clean in our dishwasher, so I wash them buy hand. I think the cost will be about $2.00/month and a half - 2 months and we use the dishwasher everyday.



Other things I do to help are;
-Make our own bread
-Make our yogurt
-I went through some of our bills and found that I could cancel some of our telephone services that we don't use, which will save us $20/month and of course, I am really trying to cut our electric bill by $50/month
-Try to only buy things on sale and stock up if it's a great sale. I look in the flyer and plan our meals around what's on sale.
-We don't eat out a lot. I try to have a plan for meals so that we eat at home
-We buy a lot of our clothes at the thrift store or on clearance at the end of the season
-I preserve all our own jams and jellies,as well as fruit, meat, soups, etc.
-I stay away from stores as much as possible, because once I'm in a store it's hard not to buy anything
-I really try to utilize each trip to town and get as much done as I can, so that we're not driving back and forth a lot.
-I make our laundry soap. It costs about $0.75/year
-I haven't used a credit card to buy things in a few years (other then online)

If you are from a one income home and your husband is the one working, I encourage you to really think about how you are spending the money your husband makes. If you can master this end of your finances, it would be like having a part time job for all the extra money you could save your family. These lessons I have been learning were after we made some bad decisions and I had to learn them. I really wish I had been doing these things all along, but I guess that's how God teaches us. He lets us stumble, then when we're willing to look to Him, He is there to guide and help us. Praise the Lord!

P.S. If you want to do some of these things yourself, but don't know how, ask a friend (like me) to show you how. I'm sure they would be very happy to share the things they know with you.

Homemade Frozen French Fries

I was very blessed to move next door to a potato farmer. So we have figured out it works for us to trade our eggs for his potatoes. Anyway, the other day he brought over about 15 lbs of potatoes that were going to be bad very soon. I had to think of a way to use them all very fast. Then I came up with frozen french fries.
To make them, I peeled and cut the potatoes into fries. Then I boiled them for about 10 mins. After I drained them, I put them on cookie sheets in the freezer until frozen. Into Ziploc bags they went, ready to be cooked up when needed.

To cook, I put them on a cookie sheet and coated them in oil and put salt on them. On my clay cookie sheet they take a long time to cook. About 40 mins at 425 degrees. I think next time I want to try thawing them a little while first and maybe try using a metal cookie sheet so that they won't take as long. I also cut them very big because I didn't want to cut potatoes all day. Oh well, my family likes them and now I don't have to buy french fries at the grocery store.
My neighbour just brought some more potatoes that need to be used right away, so I guess I know what I'm doing with them.

Awesome Kellogg's Give Away!!!!

We just came from the grocery store, (Extra Foods) and they have Kellogg's cereal on sale for $5.00 for the medium box. BUT that's not the good part. With the purchase of 2 participating boxes of cereal, you get to order one of the t-shirts shown in the picture for free. They come in all child and adult sizes and they are totally FREE. You don't even have to pay shipping and handling. I ordered myself the rooster one. I can wear it when I sell eggs at the Farmer's Market. If you can't see the picture, go to www.kelloggs.ca/vintage.

Ahhhh, soccer is finally over, but I wanted to post some pictures for our own memories. Here Becky is going after the ball. She played defence and I must say, this is the best she has ever played. But is also her last year.

This was Jacob's first year playing and he seemed to really like it (although, I think he liked snack the best).

Jacob is kicking on net here. Half way through this game, Jacob was on shift and he told everyone to "wait a minute". He then proceeded to pick a honeysuckle and ran over to me and said, "Here Mommy."

It was so sweet. Even his coach whispered over to me, "Did he just give you a flower?" I nodded yes and she made the, isn't that cute face.

Unfortunately, I couldn't get any good pictures of Ben, but he did play as well.

One of Life's Hard Lessons

Today, unfortunately, we had to go through one of the hard lessons in life. We had to put our cute little Jack down. We were gone all day yesterday and when we finally got home, Jack came over to us really whimpering and we knew something back had happened. We thought he might have been hit by a car. We let him sleep on a pillow, because it was late. We hoped that he would be better in the morning, but unfortunately he wasn't. He was in lot's of pain.
Jack was so sweet. When I went to the pumpkin patch to work, there would be Jack just laying on the edge of the patch watching me. Or when we all went for walks on our property, Jack would come bounding along with us. If he had to run to catch us, his back legs went out to the sides like they were doing the breaststroke while he ran. It cracked me up every time. I will miss him and the rest of my family will miss him and our dog Sandi misses him. He was a good dog.

"Bacon Cheeseburger Potato Pie"

I just had to share this recipe that I found on Pillsbury.com for Bacon Cheeseburger Pie. Oh my, but it is good!

We still have quite a bit of hamburger from a bulk order from a local butcher. I needed to try something new and this looked great. Plus, I usually will always have all the ingredients on hand.

Plus it makes 8 servings, so it's great for a big family.

Ingredients for meat mixture:

1 1/2 lb ground beef

1/2 c bread crumbs or crushed saltines

1/4 c chopped onion

1/4 c ketchup

2 tsp mustard

Salt & pepper

Mix this together, then press into pie plate and make sure you press it all up the sides. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 deg. F for 20 mins.

Rest of ingredients;

4 medium cooked potatoes

2 tbsp butter

1/2 c milk

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 c cheese

3 slices cooked bacon, crumbled

2 tbsp green onion, chopped

While meat is cooking mix;

Potatoes, butter, milk, garlic power, salt and 1/2 of the cheese.

When meat has cooked 20 mins, remove from oven and pour off any drippings. Then spread potato mixture over it. Bake for 20 mins more.

After 20 mins, remove from oven and sprinkle remaining cheese and bacon. Bake for 10 mins.

Remove and sprinkle with green onions.

Slice and serve with salt and pepper and sour cream. I think it was the sour cream that made this my favorite way to eat hamburger, because I really don't like hamburger. But you can bet I'll eat this again!

Here we are in Ponoka, AB in April and here is a picture of my apple orchardfrom yesterday. One row of trees is under water. It's so funny, because I look at pictures on other peoples blogs and they have pictures of beautiful apple blossoms, with green lush grass in the background, (which I can almost smell in my mind) and the sun is shining wonderfully. Then I look at my little trees, which lost all their blossoms last year due to frost and I pray that God will allow them to grow and produce wonderful, yummy fruit. As I type this, the sun IS shining and has now melt the extra 3 inches of snow we woke up to this morning off the road and our driveway. My husband is watching hockey and the boys are outside in the mud, so I feel like I can take a moment to make this new post. I think God is trying to teach us here in Ponoka, AB to be content in all circumstances and to glorify him all the same. And that's what I'll do, praise God!

Striped T-shirt skirt Part 1

Rebekah did the neatest little project the other day that we got from a website. Here is a link to this craft; kids-sewing-projects.com/t-shirt-skirt. It only took us about 4 hours and it turned out pretty cool. Here are the instructions on how we did it. First we cut 7" bands of t-shirt. To get the t-shirts, we just went to the thrift store for bag sale and got tons for $5.00! So, we cut strips of all the colours we wanted in the skirt. Becky wanted to make it 4 stripes long.

So here is her colour scheme. Light blue, white and black. We cut all the bottom hems off the the bands, except for the strip we were placing on the bottom of the skirt. That way the skirt was already hemmed.

Before we started sewing them together. We measured Becky's widest spot and sewed side seams on all the bands to be that width.

Please see Part 2 for the rest.

Striped T-shirt skirt Part 2

This how we were going to sew the bands together.Rebekah is sewing the first 2 bands together. We over-lapped them with right sides together, making sure we sewed on the opposite side of the hem. Also, we had to make sure we lined up the side seams. (After we had finished this project, I thought it might have been easier to make the bands1" too big, then when we were done, just sew 1/2" seams on both sides. That way it would be a very neat seam along the side.)

Here she is sewing the next band on.

To finish the skirt, we just used an elastic waist band, which Becky is pulling through the area we sewed for it.

And voila! Here is a new skirt made out of recycled t-shirts. It's so cool because you can do any colour combo and any size. Now we are looking forward to offering this as a class for the homeschooling girls next month.

After much research, we have been able to name our friendly owl visitor. It was a Northern Saw-Whet Owl. This owl only weighs between 2 1/2 - 3 1/2 oz and only stands 7-8 inches tall. It can live up to 16 years, although with this long winter, there may not be enough food for the owls. This is part of it's permanent, natural habitat. Our little owl stayed 3 days in our barn, but now it's gone. My husband was able to touch it and stood a few inches from it.

Winter Lapbook - Snowflake Window Clingers

We did a fun, quick project as part of our winter lapbook that we are working on. We learned a little bit about snow, so we made snowflake window clingers.


It was so easy! We printed templates of snowflakes off the internet, or if you are more talented than me, you can draw snowflakes on paper. Then put a clear zip lock bag over the template. Next, using fabric or 3D paint, go over the lines of the snowflake, squeezing as you go.



Now let dry and then peel the snowflakes off. We used white and silver paint.




Stick them on your windows and they really do stick! We might try this for different holidays as well. Like leaves for fall or pretty flowers for spring.