Journey to Excellence

Moving Beyond the Page is an incredible unit study based product that we had the immense pleasure to review during the past several weeks. This product just might be my favorite product we have reviewed this year. Yes, it has something to do with the fact that we thrive on literature unit studies. But, additionally, this product was just that good! We reviewed the language arts study on the book Poppy and the corresponding science study on Life Cycles . Both products are recommended for children ages 7-9. Product Description Let's get through the logistics first, so you know how things work. The thing to do is to go the Moving Beyond the Page website. You will immediately see that the products are broken down into age ranges (from 4-6 coming soon all the way up to 12-14). You simply choose your appropriate age range. Our children are ages 7 and 9, so we clicked on that age range . This takes you to the screen with all of the product and price options. You can ...

In our regular life this week… This was a hot week, that's for sure. But my kids are troopers and we survived! Yesterday was the last hot day for at least the next 10 days. Temps reached 99 on Wednesday and about 93 yesterday. But by tomorrow it's supposed to be in the upper 70's and then not get above 85 through the 4th of July. Hallelujah!! With keeping the house dark and running the fans, we have been just fine. The dogs, on the other hand, think they have been thrust into the 7th Circle of Hell. I didn't realize their tongues were so long! This is pretty much the position they have been in all week. In our homeschool this week… Our big accomplishment was finishing Poppy by Avi and the Cycle of Power unit we have been doing through Moving Beyond the Page (see my review coming up!). We absolutely LOVED this book. One day Brynne actually started crying when I would not read more chapters. There are several more books in this series and we went to...

This week I was short of time, so I just read the next three chapters. These are the chapters that explain the plan, however, so there was lots of information! And now I am sold. I am loving the science behind this way of eating, and I am already noticing a difference in my waistline. (In all fairness, I have been doing some extra work outside in the yard each day and doing lots of sweating, so that might be helping.) But, I definitely feel GREAT eating the foods and on the plan. I am excited to share with you what I learned in these chapters. In a nutshell: Never start your morning with a fruit only breakfast. S meals are satisfying meals which means they are heavier on fat, have a protein as a base, and have extremely minimal carbs (and all non-starchy). E meals are energizing meals which means they are heavier on carbs, have a protein as a base, and have extremely minimal fats. You should alternate these meals and eat them 3 hours apart. So, like yesterday. I had an ...

Do you have a dog who has dry skin and is constantly itching and scratching? Our three little dogs are Chi Poos .. chihuahua/poodle. They are notorious for dry, itchy skin and they drive me CRAZY with all their scratching. In fact, they scratch so bad that they will just tear out hair and cause sores. Then I have to bring out the hydrocortisone and tea tree oil (which they hate!). I have switched their food to lamb and rice meal, which I was told would help with skin allergies and such, and even give one of our dogs a Benadryl before he goes to bed at night because he obsessively scratches. Out of sheer desperation one day I did another Google search. And I kept reading about how olive oil added to a dog's food helps with the itching problems. Desperate, I gave it a try. And within one day the itching was SO MUCH BETTER! I just add a capful to their dry food and mix it in. They seem to like it and it hasn't caused any bathroom issues, which I was worried about. If I for...

Last night I was actually able to lay on the couch and enjoy the cool night air. We had a change of wind direction and a drop in temperature and it was wonderful! I was thankful for a reprieve from the sticky heat of our house. But, this week it's supposed to be even hotter, getting up into the mid-90's. So, I need to do things to keep us as cool as possible. Monday Schoolwork: Morning work at home before the house heats up. Housework: Laundry and clean the floors Activities: Lunch at grandmas and then hitting the pool. Dinner: Mini meatloaves, quinoa, steamed broccoli Tuesday Schoolwork: More morning work at home (will we have more froglets this week?) Housework: Clean the bathrooms Activities: Another afternoon at the pool. Dinner: Crabby patties (salmon patties) from Trim Healthy Mama , mac and cheese Wednesday Schoolwork: And more morning work at home (hoping our butterfly larva will be here!) Housework: Dusting! Activities: A short time at the pool bec...

I grew up in a small town in Missouri surrounded by a thriving Amish community. It was not uncommon for us to see the buggies hitched up to the post at the grocery store. I was fascinated with the Amish children when I was a child. My dad would barter his plumbing services to the Amish in exchange for us being allowed to fish in their ponds. I just stared and stared at the little girls wishing they could be my friends. We have just recently moved back to my hometown and my kids have an equal fascination with the Amish families that trot by our house multiple times a day. When we received an opportunity to review the books Life with Lily and A New Home for Lily by Mary Ann Kinsinger and Suzanne Woods Fisher and published by Baker Publishing Group , I was thrilled! The authors have pulled from their personal experiences in the Old Order Amish culture to share the lifestyle of the Amish and stories based on true events. We received the first two paperback books in The ...

In our regular life this week… Things are warming up here in Missouri, which wouldn't be a bad thing except we have no air conditioning right now! It hasn't been bad, at all, until today. Wowzer! It's been a little toasty! But, Dawson has a window unit upstairs in his room because it is an oven situated right off the attic, and the kids can all sleep up there. And we have a nice cool basement (unfinished, but still functional) that we can retreat to if necessary. (In fact, I spent a few hours down there this afternoon.) We just keep the fans going, keep the lights off, keep the drapes drawn, and stay calm as much as possible. We are hopeful that it will be up and running in a little over a week. **fingers crossed** In our homeschool this week… We were back into our regular Monday-Thursday morning summer school schedule this week doing cursive handwriting, multiplication, our unit study on life cycles and the book Poppy by Avi, and lots of reading. It was a ...

I am addicted to Sonic's Peach Diet Green Tea. I can get a Route 44 every day from 2-4 p.m. for a little over a dollar. Yum! It's so refreshing! But I don't want to spend $1 a day and I don't really know what's in it, you know what I mean? And I have noticed that the tea tastes kind of skunky most days, which tells me that it's not fresh. I figured out a way to make my own Peach Green Tea. I brew a small pitcher of green tea, with no sweetener, and put it in the fridge. Then I purchased Mango Peach flavored MiO Liquid Water Enhancer. When I am ready for a glass of Peach Green Tea, I just pour myself a glass of tea and add two squirts of MiO. It's healthy, pure green tea. Yes, it has an added artificial sweetener (Boo), and I have tried my best to eliminate artificial sweeteners from my diet (mostly aspartame). But, I feel like it's better than buying it from Sonic . At least I know exactly what's in it. It tastes great and it's CHEAP!!! ...

I am starting to gain more insight into the Trim Healthy Mama way of eating, and I like it! It makes sense to me. I know that it will be several weeks before I have the full picture, but I have started piecing it all together and it is very exciting for me. Chapter 5 - Get Ready for the Plan The "S" and "E" code letters were explained in this chapter. S stands for "satisfying" and E stands for "energizing". The E foods allow you to have some of carbs that your body needs and the S foods allow you to have some of the fat that your body needs. The key? Don't eat your fats and carbs at the same time! And here's why ... Your body can only burn one fuel at a time, and you want it to burn your fat. If you eat fat AND carbs at the same time (and usually loads of it), your body burns through the fat in your meal and then has to move to trying to burn the glucose out of your fat cells that has been deposited there by the rush of in...

I know those bees are scary when they are buzzing around your head. But, I also know that I need them if I want my flowers to grow and my gardens to flourish! The benefits of bees are never-ending. Burt's Bees is giving away a FREE packet of wildflower seeds to help boost the bee populations and increase pollination, not only for the beauty of our world but also for our health. Those foods we eat from those pollinated plants are what keep us healthy! Head over to Burt's Bees to request your free packet of seeds.