Science Ninjas "Big Trouble with Simple Machines" Book Review

I'm gonna be transparent here.  Make an honest confession.  I'm not a "science-y person." I think its interesting.  I love watching people explain experiments, etc.  But I feel completely inadequate when it comes to explaining it myself.  Especially when the aforementioned "it" is something like physics or chemistry. That's why I was THRILLED to receive a review copy of Big Trouble with Simple Machines, from Science Ninjas!

Great Books From Christian Focus Publications

I'm constantly looking for great books for my kids and I to read together.  It's kinda my thing.  My husband says I may have a bit of an addiction.  Haha!  But I was thrilled when Christian Focus Publications sent me some books to review!  What do I love about these books?  Well, they're beautiful!  Just scroll down and check out some of the pics!  They're also easy for kids to understand and full of great information!

Great Medieval History Books from Getty Publications (For Children AND Adults)

I'm gonna be completely honest.  I've been pretty giddy planning this year's homeschool curriculum.  As Classical Conversations homeschoolers, we're currently in the midst of Cycle 2 - Medieval History. That happens to be my "thang." I LOVE LOVE LOVE medieval history, literature, art!  I can't get enough!  So when the fine folks at Getty Publications offered to send me some books to help with our lessons on the Middle Ages, I jumped at the chance! And I was not disappointed with the wonderful titles they sent!  Let me introduce you to some fascinating books!

First up: Don't Let The Beasties Escape This Book! -

Pick And Draw Card Game and Book Review

Hello lovely readers!  Its been a little while!  But we've been getting our homeschool rhythm!  It takes a while.  Haha!  But I had to stop by the blog and introduce you to one of our new FAVORITE games! Pick and Draw!

Great Advent Reads From New Growth Press

If you read my blog or follow my Instagram account or my Facebook page, then you probably know how much I LOVE Christmas!  It's my favorite time of year!  I have so many decorations that I have to start in November with the decorating.  I love to find great Christmas-themed books and devotionals to read during the holiday season. One of my FAVORITES is Prepare Him Room, by Marty Machowski!

Why I LOVE the Logic of English Curriculum And Our Experience So Far

Well, as promised, I am back with another Logic Of English review!  And, ladies and gents, my opinions have not changed!  In fact, I may be MORE in love with this program now than I was in June of last year when I first posted about it!  If you are a reader of my blog, you may remember that I wrote two separate posts last year: one on why I chose the Logic of English curriculum for my kids, and one on what I thought were the necessary items for Level A of the program.  So let me go back to that review and tell you our experience with the different products.

Logic Of English Foundations Language Arts Program (Level A) - What Do You Need?

Yesterday, I posted an introductory review of the Logic Of English Foundations Program (Levels A and B). This is the program I've chosen to use to teach my kids to read and write,  Its a FANTASTIC program and I cannot wait to get started!  My review included lots of pictures and lots of reasons why I chose the program, but I decided I'd write a separate blog post discussing all of the curriculum necessities and supplemental materials to help anyone else who, like me, is shopping for curriculum and feeling a bit overwhelmed.  There are a couple of ways you can purchase and I'll try to explain them in detail.

Foundations A Curriculum and Reusable Resources

Teaching My Kids To Read And Why I Chose The Logic Of English Language Arts Program

You guys!  I'm REALLY excited about this review! As a homeschooling mom, the curriculum choices I make are VERY IMPORTANT to me.  I spend a lot of time now researching these decisions. Truthfully, I can often become a little obsessive - spending hours upon hours reading articles, evaluating pros and cons.  But that's why, when I find something I believe in - something I believe is exceptional - I have to tell my friends about it!  That's the way I feel about Logic Of English! 

Now, I need to preface this by saying that we haven't officially started Logic Of English yet.  I recently discovered it during my hunt for a good reading curriculum.  I've done a lot of research online, read a lot of articles, done a lot of investigating on their site, and used one of their sample lessons to teach my kids and get a feel for how the program works.  After all of this, I was thoroughly convinced that this was the program for us! I purchased both their Foundations Level A curriculum AND their Rhythm Of Handwriting Cursive curriculum (for my oldest) on my own.  It was after these items arrived and I got them in my hands - and became even more convinced of their awesomeness - that I decided to contact the company and discuss the possibility of a review.  I just needed to share what I'd seen.  Since its very common for kids to complete Levels A and B in one school year, the awesome folks at LOE sent me Foundations Level B so I could do a more complete review!

Zondervan Gift Ideas for Easter

You guys!  Does it seem like Easter sneaked up on us this year?  I feel like we JUST had Christmas! But that's ok!  We LOVE Easter in our house! And we love to give meaningful gifts!  So we almost always put some great Bible-related books in our kids' Easter baskets!  This year is no exception!  And the wonderful folks at Zondervan have sent me a few of their latest to share with you!  Whether you've got a little girl or boy - or a teen that still loves a good Easter basket - Zonderkidz has something for you!  SO let's get started!

The first one I'm sharing is one of my very favorites!!!  Its the NIV Beautiful Word Bible for Girls!

Christmas Gift Ideas from ZonderKidz

Hi folks!  It's been a little while.  I know.  I'm a bad blogger!  But I'm back!  And I've got a list of some of the best new books from ZonderKidz!!!  At our house, we LOVE to give books for Christmas! Why?  Here are some reasons:
1.) They aren't toys!  Between grandparents and aunts and uncles, our kids get plenty 'o toys for Christmas!  We give them fun things.  We aren't Scrooges!  But we try to find learning toys, creative crafts, and fun books!
2.) When you get a book for Christmas, you get fun AND learning.  That's always a plus!
3.) Books are communal.  When we give our kids books for Christmas, we're giving them something that we can do together - read as a family!

So here are some fabulous new books that your kids will love this Christmas...

 The Beginner's Bible Collector's Edition - The Beginner's Bible is a favorite in our house.  In fact, my oldest just read the whole thing in school this year!  This Collector's Edition is fabulous! Not only does it include the beautifully illustrated, hardcover Bible storybook, but it includes the entire Bible on CD's AND a DVD with animated story videos!

Zonderkidz March and April 2017 Releases - Great Easter Basket Gifts For Kids!

Zonderkidz has some AMAZING new releases for kids of all ages!  These books and Bibles would make great additions to your child's Easter basket!  SO make sure you run out to the store or jump on Amazon and snap them up!!!  Let's dive in!

Ready, Set, Find Easter - We have the Ready, Set, Find Christmas book and love it, so I knew this one would be a hit! Its a board book, so it's perfect for little hands!  Each page has a very small part of the Easter story on it (just 2 or 3 sentences), a cute illustration, and a group of objects for you to find in the picture!  So great for little minds!

Zonderkidz February Releases - Great Books For Kids!!!

Zonderkidz has some GREAT books releasing this month and I wanted to share some with you!  The first one is AH-MAZING!  The Jesus Storybook Bible is celebrating its 10th anniversary this month!  Can you believe it!?!  If you don't own this book, you need it!  Even if you don't have kids!  The stories are so beautifully written and the illustrations are so unique and colorful!  I NEVER make it through reading one of the stories without choking up!  That's how good this book is!  And just in time for the 10th anniversary, ZOnderkidz has released The Jesus Storybook Bible Gift Edition!  This book is a beautiful robin's egg blue!  Perfect for boys or girls!  And now that I think of it, its the PERFECT EASTER GIFT!!!!!

Zondervan Christmas Books for Kids

We You guys!  Its almost November!  I can't believe it!  I'm usually ready MONTHS in advance!  But I still have presents to buy and I haven't gotten a thing for the hubby yet!  LOL! I can't wait to decorate!  We usually pull the tree out right before or right after Thanksgiving!  ANd I collect nativities, so I pull all those out!  And one thing that we have TONS of - CHRISTMAS BOOKS!  With three little kids, we have lots of Christmas books!  I just can't get enough!  So when Zonderkidz asked me me to review several of their latest Christmas titles, I jumped at the chance!  Let's see what's new for this year:

1.) Ready, Set, Find Christmas

Bible Journaling Together: The HCSB Illustrator's Notetaking Bible andthe Illustrator's Notetaking Bible for Teens

I started my Bible journaling adventure last year.  Its been amazing.  Its wonderful to really meditate on a passage or verse - or even a point from the Sunday sermon - and then illustrate it in my Bible.  I do mostly "creative lettering" and some very basic illustrations.  But sometimes I just can't think of a way to illustrate a verse.  The Illustrator's Notetaking Bible & Teen Bible are the perfect Bibles for days like that!

Great Bibles for All Ages! (Multi Bible Review)

I'll admit it.  We own LOTS of Bibles!  Study Bibles, Reference Bibles, Journaling Bibles, Children's Bibles, etc.  I can't get enough!  They each have great information to help us better understand God's Word!  And there are some FANTASTIC new Bibles that have been released recently!  Any of these Bibles would make a great gift for someone you love!  And with Christmas coming, what better gift to give than the gift of God's Word! So let me share some of them with you!

Study Bibles:

1.) American Woman's Bible: Women, Godly Virtues, and the Making of America

Great Kids' Resources from Zonderkidz

I love when its time to review the newest books from Zonderkidz!  They have some wonderful resources for kids!

From Children's Bibles, to board books, to chapter books, to coloring books!  So much to choose from for all ages!  Here are a few of their newest:

NKJV American Woman's Bible Review

As you know if you read my blog with any regularity, I LOVE reviewing study Bibles! It always fascinates me to see what Bible scholars have to say about certain passages.  That's why my family owns so many different study Bibles.  Each one is interesting and helpful in its own way. For this reason,I was THRILLED when Thomas Nelson Publishers released the American Woman's Bible last month!

Punderdome Card Game Review

Once upon a time, there was a comedian named Jo Firestone.  She and her dad started this super cool, monthly pun competition in New York City, called "Punderdome."  FOlks battle it out to see who can tell the most puns.  Now, if you know anything about me, you know this is a competition I can totally get behind!  So I was so excited to see that the Firestones have turned their competition into a card game!

Summer Reading (from Zonderkidz) for You and Your Child

Its summertime!  That means swimming, playing outside, barbeques, and ice cream!  But it can also mean extra time for snuggling and reading with your little ones!  The fabulous folks at Zonderkidz have sent me some of their newest releases to share with you!

The Fourth of July is quickly approaching!  And that means lots of red, white, and blue decorations and patriotism!  God Bless America is a wonderful little board book to help you share your love of this country with your little one! Follow Henry and his family as they travel across the USA and see the Statue of Liberty, Mount Rushmore, Hollywood, and Washington, DC!

"Starter Bible" Book Review

My kiddos love to be read to!  And they love to read!  (Well, the oldest is learning to read like now.  The two youngest are still in the "pretending to read" category. Or, as my oldest says, "reading the pictures." So we love colorful, engaging books.