Friendly Reminder (for kids)

Posted on April 22, 2014 by fromthecommittedheart

Getting into a routine can be challenging at times for anyone, especially kids. They wake up sleepy and forgetful. Parents are busy with their own routine and can also forget to remind their kids of the things they should be doing. By pinning up a “Daily Reminder List”, I am able to take the stress off of myself and the kids. Now they can check the list instead of me asking them if they have done x, y, z.

Are you wanting to set your family up for success? Then give them the tools to do so. Click this link,The Friendly Daily Reminder List, to see our list up close. You can revise it to fit your family’s needs.

Changing It Up (Homeschool)

Posted on January 27, 2014 by fromthecommittedheart

We are halfway through our school year and things are getting a little redundant, so last night I planned two fun surprises!

First, the girls went shopping at BB’s Boutique, where coupons aren’t allowed, but returns are accepted. They took turns purchasing merchandise in the store and paying with quarters, nickles, dimes, and pennies. They were able to work on addition, subtraction, counting by 2’s, 5’s, and 10’s. Each shopper received a lovely gift bag to put their merchandise in when they checked out. Needless to say, they enjoy their morning at the BB’s Boutique.

After cleaning up the shop, I took out dry erase boards and shaving cream. The girls spelled out each of their words, by writing with their fingers and paint brushes in the shaving cream.

I’m a worksheet kind of teacher (I use A Beka and BJB), but kids need change and so do moms (teacher).

Happy Monday everyone, make your school week a great one!

Our Morning Snapshots

Posted on January 23, 2014 by fromthecommittedheart

“But the fruit of the Spirit is….joy” Galatians 5:22
This is my joy!

A and JJ staying dry under the awning at Starbucks.

K picking out her shirt for school…excuse her messy closet…we are still working on keeping things neat, including our closets!

JJ playing on the Leap Pad while A works on her English paper.

V decided to do her school work on the couch this morning…whatever works 🙂

Happy Thursday Everyone! I hope you make it a GREAT DAY!!!

Wacky Wednesday

Posted on January 8, 2014 by fromthecommittedheart

Today is our second day back of “schooling”. Let’s just say after three weeks off, it’s been a little rough. To break up the tears of frustration, we have had slipping and sliding sprints downstairs, with our socks and crazy people runs around the house, upstairs. To stay sane you have to get a little wacky.

Happy Home Schooling!

Just a Peek…

Posted on November 21, 2013 by fromthecommittedheart

One of the reasons I started this blog last year was because people kept asking me, “how do you do it?” “How do you homeschool three kids with a newborn?” Well, here’s a little peek into one of our mornings at the Boy’s Home. Alayna is taking a math test (multiplication and division), Victoria is working on special sounds “sw” and “str”, Kayla is at her VPK class, Josiah is taking a nap, and I’m couponing!

I am big on multitasking! There’s just not enough time in the day to do one thing at a time! So, here I am able to sit by Alayna and clip coupons for our grocery visit today (by which I saved over $70), while she works on her test. Our homeschool table/desk is nice because it provides enough space for independent study, but also encourages group work.

Disclaimer: Though the picture above portrays a calm setting, this is not always the case!

30 Acts of Thanksgiving (Day 7)

Posted on November 7, 2013 by fromthecommittedheart

Day 7: Our Home/House

Whether you live in a one bedroom shack or a 15 bedroom mansion, it’s important to be thankful for what you have. My husband and I started with a 1200 square foot house. We loved this house and it was perfect for us, it was just what we needed when we got married. Fast forward ten years later and we have just closed on a house that has a bedroom for each of our kids, a large enough family room for our family plus large enough for our guests and my favorite, a school room!

It is important to teach your kids to be thankful for what they have and by doing that, you show them how to take care of the things they are blessed with. Today we are going through each of the bedrooms, from top to bottom, straightening and cleaning everything! It’s easy to take your blessings for granite, which shows God your lack of gratitude.

I know as a parent, my heart would be hurt and upset if the kids took a brand new toy we gave them for Christmas and left it outside in the dirt. Why would we want to bless them with another one when they couldn’t take care of the first toy we gave them! When we are thankful we see the value in our blessings, we cherish them, and take care of them. Today we are very thankful for our home (house).

“..always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.” ~Ephesians 5:20

“He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much;” ~Luke 16:10

30 Acts of Thanksgiving (Day 6)

Posted on November 6, 2013 by fromthecommittedheart

Day 6: Our Wednesday Night Club Teachers

Every Wednesday night women volunteer for our Mpact Girls Club. The Girls Ministries is about intentional outreach and Christian discipleship for girls. They teach girls biblical truths that will help them learn to make God-pleasing decisions. Most of these women go straight to church from working all day. These volunteers don’t get paid but do it because they see the big picture of investing in our youth.

Tonight we gave the girls’ teachers individual roses and thanked them for their commitment and dedication to the children’s program.

Thanks again ladies for all you do!

30 Acts of Thanksgiving (Day 5)

Posted on November 5, 2013 by fromthecommittedheart

Day 5: Our Christian Radio Station z88.3

Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

In a world that displays so many negative messages about life on tv, billboards and the radio…where can you find noble things to think on? Here in Central Florida, we have a Christian radio station, Z88.3! I can play this station at any time and know it’s safe for my children. When running our errands around Orlando, I tune in and songs of praise come from the back seats.

To show our thanks to a radio station that plays encouraging, uplifting, and inspiring music 24/7, we donated to the Z’s Fall Fundraiser. Alayna and Victoria each gave $5 dollars and I matched it times two…which equals a total of $30 dollars for this month…$30 dollars representing our 30 Acts of Thanksgiving!

Thank you z88.3 for making a difference in so many lives. We pray God continues to bless this station and uses it to encourage others around Central Florida as you have encouraged us!

If you are a Z listener and would like to donate, click here.

“Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;” ~Ephesians 5:19

Our NEW CLASS ROOM

Posted on October 30, 2013 by fromthecommittedheart

Let’s get organized…

IKEA:
(1) Expedit Wall Shelf
(4) Alex Drawer Units
(2) Linnmon Table Top
(4) Jules Jr. Chairs
(1) Document Magazine File, Set of 2, pink (on SALE)

Target
(8) Storage Cubes (bought these when they were on SALE)
(1) White Board

Wayfair.com
(3) Wall Posters (Trend Enterprises, Inc.)

“Mom’s Hub” (still working on this)
(1) Malm Dressing table
(1) Teal Trash Can (Bed, Bath & Beyond on SALE)

Joss & Main Wall Art

We are very thankful for our school room. Some home-schoolers laugh at the idea of having desks and rooms set up like a class! But you have to do what works for YOU….and for me, I like to be organized! I’m still working on the details of the room but at least it’s functional!
Thanks for stopping by today and checking out our class room hub!

Adventure is Out There

Posted on September 23, 2013 by fromthecommittedheart

After two weeks of packing, moving, unpacking and building things, we decided to take a break. We planned a Boy Family Adventure through Split Oak Forest Mitigation Park.

Alayna and Kayla brought their notepads to document all the interesting things they found along the trail.

We found this little guy hanging out on one of the info signs.

Josiah had a blast running free and playing in the dirt!

Our adventure took us 3.1 miles through one of Florida’s deep wooded forest. Thankfully it was cloudy, low humidity and a gentle wind kept blowing through the trees. We took many water breaks and were all able to complete the North Loop trail! I’m so proud of all our adventurers for not giving up!