My parents have several bird feeders, and many hungry birds thank them for it. c-: The red cardinals are my favorite to watch. One day when we were visiting, Bradley became very concerned that we feed the birds. He asked several times a day if the birds had enough food. So I decided to do a little activity with him and make birdseed cones.

Here are the supplies you’ll need:

• Birdseed
• Ice cream cones {Or use pine cones for a more frugal option, like Sarah at Frugal Fun for Boys did!}
• Peanut Butter
• A Knife To Spread the Peanut Butter {Or use your finger like I did!} c-:
• A Bird Feeder {This is optional, too. You could just put them out where the birds can get to them.}
  

~ Smooth peanut butter all over the cones.

~ Roll the cones in birdseed until they’re covered.

~ We put the cones in a bird feeder and hung them on a shepherd hook outside my bedroom window.

~ Since we got such a big bag of birdseed, we put a little extra out for the birds to enjoy {or, quite possibly, the squirrels}.

~ Bradley is happy the birds are taken care of, AND he got to play in the snow while we set up everything. Bonus! c-:

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So a few days ago, Bradley and I did something we don’t do every day. {In fact, we’ve never done it before.} We made chewing gum!

I don’t remember how I found out about Glee Gum, but I was immediately drawn to it because it doesn’t have any aspartame in it. I’m allergic to NutraSweet, and it’s really hard to find gum that doesn’t have aspartame. Even the brands with regular sugar often have a mixture of aspartame. It also doesn’t have any artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives. When I read more about Glee Gum, I found out they’re the only company in the U.S. that still uses chicle in their gum {the material gum was made of originally}.

So I asked Glee if I could try out their Make Your Own Chewing Gum Kit. It came with all the ingredients we needed to make our own gum, plus they sent a few samples of Glee Gum. Basically, we softened the chicle gum base in the microwave until it was good and sticky. c-: Then we added the packets of sugar, corn syrup, cherry and cinnamon flavoring. We kneaded it a little, which was definitely Bradley’s favorite part, rolled it out, and cut it into pieces.

We put all our gum pieces in a bowl, and Bradley kept telling me we were saving some for Dada. But Bradley kept chewing it throughout the day. He started getting a little nervous as the supply dwindled. c-: Finally, he took a little nibble of the last piece and said there was still enough for Dada. He kept doing that until there was just a tiny, tiny piece left. I told him to go ahead and chew it. c-:

Glee also makes a Chocolate Kit and a Gummies Kit. I think making your own gum is a great activity for the kiddos, and you can study about the history of gum, too. They have an educational kit to help you with the details. They also have a cute slide show of how gum gets from the tree to Glee.

You can find Glee Gum and Kits online and in stores. I noticed my Kroger sells the gum. If you get some, be sure to use this Buy One, Get One Free coupon. You can also enter to win a kit of your choice here at Frugal Femina. You can choose from the gum, chocolate, or gummies kit. Find out how to enter below!

WAYS TO ENTER:
{Please remember to leave a comment for each one you do!}

1. Leave a comment. Which kit would you choose?

2. Follow Frugal Femina on Facebook and/or Twitter, or get a free subscription by RSS or e-mail.

3. Follow Glee Gum on Facebook and/or Twitter.

This giveaway is for U.S. residents and closes at 11 p.m. EST on Wednesday, December 8, 2010. The winner will be chosen randomly and notified via e-mail.

Full Disclosure: Glee Gum gave me one Gum Kit to facilitate this review, plus one kit to give away to a Frugal Femina reader. See my Disclosure Policy.

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Yesterday I got a package from New Leaf Publishing Group that was filled with all kinds of great books for the kiddos. New Leaf’s mission is to glorify God through the power of the printed word. They have three areas: Master Books {apologetics, creation science, home school supplements}; New Leaf Press {Christian living and inspiration}; and Attic Books {Christian reference books from the 18th century}.

The book set they mailed me includes:

• Passport to the World
• Charlie & Trike
• The Children’s Illustrated Bible
• Dinosaurs for Kids
• The Answers Book for Kids Set

We LOVE books in the Hostetter house. It is not unusual for Bradley to ask to read 15 books at bedtime, and I usually oblige! c-: I  know he would love all of the books New Leaf Publishing Group sent me. I am going to donate them to my local library so lots of kiddos can enjoy them. I also have one set to give away to one of you! Find out how to enter below.

WAYS TO ENTER:
{Please remember to leave a comment for each one you do!}

1. Leave a comment. Do your kids have any favorite books?

2. Follow Frugal Femina on Facebook and/or Twitter, or subscribe for free by RSS or e-mail.

3. Follow New Leaf Publishing Group on Facebook and/or Twitter.

This giveaway closes at 9 p.m. EST on Sunday, November 28, 2010. The winner will be chosen randomly and notified via e-mail.

Full Disclosure: New Leaf Publishing Group gave me one book set to donate to someone in my local community, plus one to give away to a Frugal Femina reader. See my Disclosure Policy.

The other bloggers leading the 30-Day Giving Challenge are also giving away gift sets!  Stop by each of their sites for more chances to win!

• My Blessed Life
• Kingdom First Mom
• Amy Loves It
• 4tunate
• Saving And Giving
• For The Mommas
• Life…Your Way
• Resourceful Mommy
• Amy’s Finer Things

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Bradley keeps asking me if he can color certain things, so I quickly discovered the power of searching “free coloring pages” through my Swag Bucks toolbar. This morning I found alphabet coloring pages at Fisher-Price, and I thought I’d pass them on in case you all are in the same boat.

Bradley says his favorite today is the grasshopper. He must not have realized yet that there’s a train!

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If you’re a homeschooler with a kiddo from grades K-6, you can fill out an enrollment form for the Book It! program. It’s a six-month reading incentive program that begins on October 1st and ends on March 31st. The deadline to enroll for this year has already passed. However, they are going to keep accepting applications while supplies last.

If your children reach their monthly reading goals, they can get a free personal pan pizza from Pizza Hut through this program. You’ll just want to make sure your local Pizza Hut participates in the Book It! program.

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Sonlight Newcomer P3/4 Curriculum

Let me start out by telling you why we homeschool. First, with God’s grace we are trying to raise godly children. We want our children to be planted firmly in their faith. We want them to know what we believe, and why. We do not want someone pushing an agenda that we may not believe in. The second reason that we homeschool is because study after study has shown that students do much better when the curriculum can be taught at a pace that suits the child. If they grasp a concept quickly, we move on quickly. If they are slow to understand, we can take our time and go over principles again until they master the concept. This is a beautiful thing. It takes so much stress off of the children. Third, we homeschool because our children are able to learn various life skills at the same time they are learning “reading, writing, and arithmetic.” Not only do they complete studies in the typical school subjects, but they learn how to run a home. These are skills that many people are lacking today. They are assigned daily chores, can cook meals, do laundry, and care for the sick. They know how to garden, cut grass, and make general repairs. Lastly, we homeschool because we LOVE to be around our children. I’ve heard so many moms long for the first day of school because the children are driving them crazy. That is not the case here. I don’t think that I am a better mom than any of these women. Perhaps their children drive them crazy because they have picked up bad habits and character traits at school.

Am I qualified to teach my children? This is a question that I hear very often. I’ve had high school teachers tell me that they would not feel qualified to teach their children at home. I wonder, how should this make me feel? Why do they feel they are qualified to teach 25-30 children if they don’t feel qualified to teach one, two, or four? My answer when someone asks me this is, “Yes. I am qualified.” I do NOT claim to know all that there is, but the beauty of homeschooling is that we can learn together. I can read, research, and ask questions. Are you thinking about homeschooling and wondering, “Will I be able to teach?” Have you potty-trained your child? Did you teach them how to eat alone, dress themselves, make their beds, tie their shoes, and so on? You have been teaching them since they were born. God entrusted YOU with this child. With His strength and grace, you CAN do it.

That all being said, we need materials to teach. The choices are endless, and it can be very confusing. Everything looks so good. You hear wonderful things, buy the curriculum, get it home, start using it, and hate it. Or, you LOVE it. I want to make it very clear that I am in no way trying to discourage anyone. I want to encourage you, dear reader. If I say that I have tried something and I do not like it, but you do, GREAT. Really. We are all individuals, and what does not work for you may be my favorite thing. And, what I have tried with no success, you may love. That’s okay. The purpose of this post is to give you ideas, and my opinions. That’s all that they are. Nothing is written in stone. If you love something, stick with it. I am not wanting to make anyone second guess what they are using.

For today, I thought that I’d give you my opinion on complete curriculums. This means that one company supplies the material for every subject to be covered. This can be such a blessing, especially for new homeschoolers, or moms with many of children. There are many companies out there who schedule each day of the year, taking away all guesswork for the mother. My very favorite complete curriculum is Sonlight. This is a very rigorous, but highly enjoyable way to learn if your family loves reading. Each day of the year is planned out completely. The children seem to learn without excessive testing, and everything is very hands-on. We used this company for about 4 years. It took us around 5-6 hours everyday to complete our lessons. I suffer from severe migraines at times, and could not keep up. That being said, if my health were perfect, this is my curriculum of choice. I still scour the catalog, and we read most of the books that are recommended for the appropriate grade levels. Other noteworthy companies are Alpha Omega, Covenant Home, Veritas Press, Konos, Christian Liberty Press, and ABeka. I am currently using Switched on Schoolhouse by Alpha Omega for the majority of our learning for my youngest child. I do supplement , though. For my oldest child at home, I’m using a variety of resources from video tapes to classic literature, to textbooks. The curriculum is something that I’ve pulled together over the years. Veritas Press recommends most of the same books as Sonlight, but there are a few differences.

I tend to think that more is better. That being my philosophy, I tend to like the curriculums that expect more, cover more material, etc. For that reason, popular as it is, Abeka would be my least favorite out of these curriculums. I tried using it and found that there was not enough material for my liking. I felt like I had to do more work by going to the library to supplement every unit. As I said though, it is a very popular company, and it does have some strong points.

So, how should you choose a curriculum? Take a look at yourself. What do you enjoy? What will you stick with? Take a look at your child. Do you like to read out loud to your children? Do they learn by hands on experience? There are many good books at the library as well as on-line resources that are free to use. Ask around. But don’t be afraid to choose something that you think looks interesting just because someone else doesn’t like it. That’s what homeschooling is all about!

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I promised a post giving you a little peek into our day. This schedule works pretty well for us over the summer when I’m not in nursing school. (Only 2 semesters to go!) I do plan out the entire day so I can make sure I include all of the things I hope to get accomplished. But don’t be alarmed! Life happens, and we don’t follow the schedule exactly. It’s just a general guideline that gives us something to aim for.

5:30 – 6:30 – Study time

6:30 – 7:00 – Computer time

7:00 – 7:50 – Exercise

7:50 – 8:15 – Breakfast
Bradley usually wakes up about 7:30. We usually read the Childhood of Famous Americans or Redwall books during this time.

8:15 – 8:30 – Dishes

8:30 – 9:30 – Get ready for the day. Make bed.

9:30 – 10:00 – School time
I originally scheduled this for an hour, but Bradley does better with half-hour segments at this age. I’ll write up a future post about what resources we use during this time.

10:00 – 11:00 – Cleaning time

11:00 – 11:30 – Outside time with Mama

11:30 – 12:00 – Lunch

12:00 – 12:30 – Read

12:30 – 2:30 – Nap
I use this for more study time.

2:30 – 3:30 – Free time
Bake for freezer, shop/errands, play, go to the library, etc.

3:30 – 4:00 – Tea and Chocolate time
We have a snack and read a book or do a puzzle/craft, etc.

4:00 – 4:30 – Quiet time with bins
I don’t have the bins completely done yet, but I’ll post more on these when I do. I use this time to catch up on e-mail, make phone calls, pay bills, etc.

4:30 – 5:30 – Video time/Fix dinner
Bradley usually helps me cook, but he can’t help with some things, so I let him watch Classical Baby, John Deere, or Sesame Street. (We don’t have tv right now, so these are the DVD’s we have.) Don’t worry! I can watch LOST online.

5:30 – 6:00 – Dinner time

6:00 – 7:00 – Outside time with Dada
I make grocery lists, etc., during this time.

7:00 – 7:30 – Bath/music/language time

7:30 – 8:00 – Read, brush teeth, pj’s, devotions, pray, sing, cuddle

8:00 – 8:30 – Bradley asleep

8:30 – 9:30 – Evening routine
Take vitamin, do dishes, plan meals, spend time with Xon, read for fun.

9:30 – Asleep

So there you have it!

I’d love to hear if you have a general schedule you try to follow and what works for you. Leave a comment below and let me know!

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