Day 30 Gratitude Challenge 2011

Today is the last day of the Gratitude Challenge 2011 and today I am thankful for the challenge and for Brenda for hosting it.   I think if we all remembered every day to keep our focus on all the good things in our life that we have to be thankful for, we will have much happier lives!

Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus  1Thesallonians 5:18.

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Chelsea's Sew With Cotton Contest Entry

Every year, the Arkansas Farm Bureau sponsors a Sew With Cotton competition to promote the use of cotton by requiring 100 percent cotton in all materials used.  There are 3 divisions, youth 14-19 and adult (no professionals allowed)  and special. The entrant must construct all of their garment and model it themselves.  There is prize money for the top 5 placements in each category and the sweepstakes winner can also win a portable serger.


Chelsea is the only youth in our county that entered.  She has been working for months on her dress along with the help of our county extension agent and our 4 H program assistant.  She has been spending 8 hours every week in the office working on the dress.  It has been so good for her to work with the 4 H ladies especially since my sewing skills are no where near theirs (or even Chelsea's now.)  I am so proud of how much work and effort she put into her entry and how well it turned out.  She headed off to Little Rock today and the competition is in the morning.  She is excited but also a bit nervous so say a prayer for her.  She doesn't expect to win anything, she said she was doing it to gain the experience and at 14 will be one of the youngest entrants.  Here is her dress:

 Didn't she do a great job?  (Sigh)  My baby is growing up way to fast!  We will know tomorrow afternoon how it went.

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Day 29 Gratitude Challenge 2011

Today's school day some how started with a conversation about what I did, did not have when I was a kid.  One of the boys wanted to know if there were telephones when I was little.  I explained that yes there were but they were attached to the wall and had a rotary dial (I showed them Emelia's play phone so they would know what that was.)  The conversation went on to cover whether or not I had other things too.  It made me think about how thankful I am for the technology we have today.  Information is literally at the tips of my fingers when ever I need it.  When the children ask me a question I do not know like what a peanut plant looks like or what kind of spider is more venomous a black widow or brown recluse.  When studying birds we can hop on the web and watch different kind of birds hatching and map their migration route.  If we forget where to find information on the Bible, we google it.  I can access audiobooks and download them in moments for my son to listen to (the one he downloaded today made him so happy!)  Technology is truly an amazing thing.

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All About Reading Level One!

If you are a regular reader of my blog, you know I am using and having great success with All About Learning's All About Spelling program and corresponding readers.  All About Learning Press has now created All About Reading, a program designed to teach reading in the most effective way possible.  The readers used in this program are the same readers that go along with the All About Spelling Program that we use for level one and I can't recommend them highly enough!  They are beautiful hard covered readers with adorable illustrations that my 8 year old is so proud to read!  They are sturdy enough to last a long, long time.

To celebrate the newly released All About Reading Level One, from now until December 6th all  Reading Level One products are 10 % off  and any orders of All About Reading Level One that includes a Teacher's Manual will get free A Taste For Outer Space ($8 value.)  Click here for more information and to order.

Looking for a reading program for preschool or Kindergarten?  Check out All About Reading's Pre Level One here.


Links used in this post are my affiliate links.

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Day 27 and 28 Gratitude Challenge 2011

Day 27-  I am so thankful for our country and the freedoms we have here that we take for granted everyday.  Sometimes I think we forget how good we have it.


Day 28- Pancakes.  I am thankful for pancakes on a day when I completely forgot to take meat out of the freezer for supper.  The children love breakfast for supper and they enjoyed it even more with the leftover whipped cream and strawberry pie topping!

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Review: His Mighty Warrier by Sheri Rose Shepherd

How Do You Captivate the Heart of a Boy?

With words from a loving God about the courageous man of honor he will one day be.  Little boys love to play pretend and imagine they are daring knights slaying dragons and searching for mighty adventures.  The truth is they are really the child of a real King and an important part of a real kingdom.  His Mighty Warrior is written as a two way conversation between that King and his warrior-child. 

The book covers very important areas that our sons need to face: having good character, keeping promises, powering up with prayer, being courageous, a protector, being loving to your family, always being your best, fighting the good fight, honoring others, money, being a leader, dealing with disappointment and anger, greed, telling the truth, not to seek revenge, and many more.  Each page is written as a letter from the King on a particular topic and followed by scripture backing up the perspective on the letter.  The next page has a prayer that the child can pray about that specific topic.  For example When Anger Happens a short letter is written telling the child to call out to God in anger and He will change your heart and help  you through it.  The scripture reference is Psalm 4:4 In your anger do not sin: when you are in your beds, search your hearts and be silent.  Then there is a prayer: Dear God, Thank you for not getting mad at me for how I feel.  I like having a Father in heaven who understands my heart.  When I feel angry help me to still do the right thing.  In Jesus's name I pray, amen.

His Mighty Warrior is a beautiful (in a manly way) book.  I loved the illustrations that go along with each page, although the same ones appear over and over again.  The book is hard covered and sturdy enough to last a young man for a long time.  The book is written in a very conversational easy to relate to tone and covers very important areas of a boy's life.  This book would make an excellent gift for the young man in your life.

I received a complimentary copy of His Mighty Warrior from Waterbrook Multnomah for the purpose of writing a fair and honest review.  I received no other compensation.

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Day 26 Gratitude Challenge 2011

I am so thankful all of the good desserts are gone!  Birthday cake, pie, fudge, and birthday cake again was just a little too much of the sweet stuff this year.  I need to stock up on fruits and veggies tomorrow.  Holidays are a terrible time to loose those last few pounds of baby weight, but I will admit the fudge was delicious!

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