Happy National Candy Day

 

It's crazy that this is so close to Halloween (or possibly that's strategic) but Happy National Candy Day!

Happy Halloween & November

Hope you had a great Halloween!  We ended up staying home and handing out candy.  We were hoping to watch the World Series game but it was postponed due to weather.  I can't believe it's November.  

Inspired by Vincent Van Gogh Review

I have a fun art product to share with you today from Timberdoodle, Inspired by Vincent Van Gogh.  Inspired by Van Gogh is manufactured by Djeco and is recommended for ages 5-99 or Kindergarten and up!

Our artboards

What's included in our kit?  Our kit includes 4 artboards or cards (inspired by Van Gogh's paintings), 1 double-ended wooden stylus, and a full-color instructional booklet filled with design ideas.  Each artboard is a separate project taking anywhere from 30-60 minutes to complete.

I decided to use this art kit a little differently in that I wanted several of us to complete our artboards instead of one kid completing all four.  I thought this would be a good way to demonstrate the end product with a larger age range, so the girls and I have been enjoying making our boards.  D made one, E made one, B and I tagged team on one and we are saving the last one for A (we want to see what a college art major can create).

Above you can see a collage of the artboard D created.

I absolutely love her final product.

Above you can see a collage of the artboard E created.  I love the flowers!

I love the way it turned out and that she signed it up near the left top corner.

Above you can see the collage that B and I did together!

I am pleased with the way it turned out.

Above is the artboard we are saving for A to do when she returns from college over the break.  Stay tuned to see her masterpiece.

These artboards are a great way to boost both fine motor and visual discernment skills.  The stylus is used to scratch through the ink to uncover a colored layer beneath.  I like that you can scratch simpler patterns or scratch off larger areas to reveal hidden surprises.  And honestly, these artboards are just relaxing and fun to complete!

Inspired by Vincent Van Gogh is currently included in Timberdoodle's 6th grade curriculum kit.  This fun resource will help children develop artistic skill and art appreciation.  Don't be afraid to complete one yourself as well.

Disclosure:  Huge shout out to Timberdoodle for selecting me as a Timberdoodle Blogger.  I received Inspired by Vincent Van Gogh in exchange for my honest review.  All opinions are my own.

E's Cookie Decorating 11th Birthday Party

 

We had E's birthday party over the weekend and it was so fun.  She had some friends come over and they decorated cookies.

We had lots of sugar cookies and chocolate chip cookies with a few M&M and oatmeal raisins as well.  And the kids had lots of toppings to choose from: icing, chocolate chips, various sprinkles, marshmallows, gummy bears, M&Ms, and more!

A was in town very briefly and I love her college cookie that she made!

And B's snowman cookie was super cute.

E wanted an cookies and cream ice cream cake so David made her one!

E with her cake

 

And I found these super cute chocolate chip cookie balloons.

If you are looking for a fun and easy birthday party theme, cookie decorating works really well.  Happy Birthday E, hope you thought your party was sweet!

Austin Royals Pajamas Now Available

Ok Austin Royals fans - this Thursday evening (October 13th) is your exclusive opportunity to get Austin Royals pajamas!  Unisex Austin Royals logo purple pajama shirt with flannel pj bottoms – available to all Royals sports teams, alumni, and families!   Proceeds help support AR Varsity Volleyball national tournament travel expense.

 

Download the Haute, LLC app linktr.ee/hautellc -OR- shop The Mercantile on Main & HAUTE Boutique on facebook!  Thank you!

Light of Mine Unit Study - Premium from Towers of Light Christian Resources LLC Review

Disclosure:  I received this complimentary product through the HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW.

I was so excited to receive Light of Mine Unit Study - Premium from Towers of Light Christian Resources LLC to use with our family!  This specific unit study is geared for kids grades 3-6+.  

Our Premium package includes the paperback novel, unit study workbook, USB flash drive and the Pathway Personal Player!  This is a truly impressive set.

Our Pathway Personal Player is an audio book MP3 player that includes our novel + bonus tracks.  The audio book is narrated by Stacey Bradshaw.  What a bonus to receive!  There are so many different ways to utilize this - if you have a struggling reader, you are traveling in the car, you just want to hear the story again, etc - such a cool addition to this premium package.

E (5th grade) has really enjoyed both reading our book and listening to it.  The audio is done extremely well.  I can hear her singing along with the music (This Little Light of Mine, etc.).

Light of Mine is the first book in a six-book series written by Allen Brokken.  This christian fantasy adventure is 222 pages and this includes 19 chapters, reading comprehension questions, an about the author page and more information about the other books in this series.  There are no illustrations within the text.  When Lauren, Aiden and  Ethan find themselves alone after The Darkness has taken their parents, they need to discern who to trust and how to navigate life.  They must stop the agents of The Dark One from putting out the Light and dooming the heathlands to eternal Darkness.  This first book specifically focuses on the christian value of discernment and E loves it.  It is gripping and adventurous.  The boys are now listening to it and they are very enthralled.  I love the questions it generates and how it really gets them thinking.  We are really looking forward to getting the additional series books!

How is the workbook set-up?  This unit study is specifically designed to be completed in four weeks.  Each week there is ~ 50-60 pages of reading because students are reading a chapter each day.  This reading can be done independently or aloud (this works great when multiple kids are listening, or if you have a struggling reader).  They can just listen or follow along in their book.

Above you can see a peek into our workbook with a peek into E's reading journal as well.

Students are encouraged to keep a reading journal and I love this!  For the first 4 days students will copy their memory verse and complete the vocabulary exercise, read the story passage aloud and discuss this as a group, complete the daily reading assignment (either independently or aloud), after reading, students will answer the reading questions in their journal - all of this will be done each day.

Here you can see E's answers to the reading questions.  After she completes them, we discuss them.

On the 5th day, students will complete the daily reading assignment (as all other days), recite their memory verse and wrap up the week with the coloring page, puzzle, and hands-on activity.  There is an answer key in the back of the workbook for every day of all 5 weeks.  I appreciate that this workbook has all the information for parents and students to complete it.  This workbook is a great way to encourage kids to dig a little deeper into the book and think about what they are reading while having fun.  And because of the christian worldview, they learn about God - what a win!

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Happy 11th Birthday E

E is now 11!  We had a great time celebrating with her.  She had Chick-fil-A Chick-n-Minis for breakfast.

And Bev brought home donuts and kolaches from her volleyball practice!

We went to Red Lobster for dinner, E's favorite restaurant.

 

And E finished everything off with a yummy treat!

We love you to the moon E, I hope you know that you are very loved!