I’ve dabbled in art since I was a child. There always seemed to be other interests and priorities which prevented me from pursuing what talent I may possess. One of those other interests was homeschooling my children. As we worked through the years I met a few promising artists who were just not sure where to get training. Art school, after all, is very expensive, right?

This year I was blessed with the opportunity to take an acrylic painting class with the students in our homeschool co-op. I started learning so much after just one class.

However, what do you do if you don’t have access to a professional painter who will teach you or your children?
You go online!
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One of our homework assignments was to paint a cherry using the Beginners Acrylic Still Life Course at the Will Kemp Art School. You can read about the project and watch this series of YouTube videos by going to his website: http://willkempartschool.com/beginners-acrylic-still-life-course-part-1/.

​This page includes a list of supplies needed, some pictures of the project in process and loads of links and helpful suggestions. I didn’t have access to exactly all the same products and he used but my local Michael’s had acceptable alternatives.

"So what differences do you notice in these TV shows?" I asked my children. 

We had just watch six TV shows back to back: Make Room for Daddy, Leave it to Beaver, Dick Van Dyke, Brady Bunch, Family Ties, and Home Improvement. 

"In the older shows, they were so polite to each other, but as time went on they became rude to each other." 

I was shocked. I was expecting them to notice rebellion to parents or fashion or hair styles. Out of the mouth of babes. 

We were studying the 20th Century and watching TV shows back to back from different decades in chronological order as our history lab for the week. 

While I wanted to show something to the children, I learned a valuable lesson myself: TV shows can be a great way to travel back in time in history class! 

Raggedy Ann and Raggedy Andy made their debut in 1915 and three years later starred in their own book. Created to look like an old-fashioned rag doll, the toy was an instant success, a reminder of the good old days when the world was turned upside-down by World War I. 

Barbie was introduced to the world in 1959, named after the daughter of Ruth and Elliot Handler. She was tall and glamorous, fascinating little girls' hearts everywhere who bought clothes, houses, and campers. Ken, named about Ruth's son, joined Barbie in 1961. I remember playing Barbies with the neighborhood girls in the 1960's. 

When we studied the 20th Century, we played with Raggedy Ann during our 1910's study and Barbie and Ken for the 1960's. For boys, G.I. Joe Action Figures were marketed in 1964. I often used friend's brother's G.I. Joe as an extra Ken doll. G.I. Joe is a soldier with very cool weapons and vehicles. Boys love to play with them, but don't call them dolls--they are action figures.

One thing that's fun with Barbie dolls is to see how fashions changed during the second half of the 20th Century. 

Even today, 100 years later, you can still purchase Raggedy Ann dolls and Barbies for little girls. 

Dolls go all the way back to the beginning of history. Adam probably made dolls for his daughters. Paddle Dolls were found in Ancient Egypt archaeological digs. The Ancient Romans used clay, wood, ivory, or rags to create dolls for their children to play with. 

Pioneers and Native Americans made dolls from dried apples or corn husks. During the nineteenth century porcelain dolls became popular. Paper dolls made a comeback too in the Victorian Age. Paper dolls have been popular at various times in history.

​Tommy, an only child, smiled politely at the mention of his 51 blue and 3 red ribbons from the State Fair. He confidently spoke a phrase in Latin (one of the seven languages he spoke fluently) which I did not understand. A homeschooling mother interrupted him and "yes," he replied, "I would be glad to tutor your sons in physics and calculus. Oh!  No charge! I just want to serve your family."
     
A lump rose in my throat. If only I had just one child to focus on, to plan studies for, to buy curriculum for. Were my girls missing out because I keep having babies (preceded by difficult pregnancies)? Was it selfish for me to want a big family?
     
It’s true. There are things my children will miss out on due to our family size, annual income and my limited abilities. But I believe in God's sovereignty. "From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek Him and perhaps reach out for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us" (Acts 17:26-27). He chose to put my children in our home for a reason and Mike and I are the parents they need to become what God has called them to be.
 
Large families are a blessing! Children are a gift and a reward. In a large family, members can learn to serve, love, protect and sacrifice for one another. Every person in our family has different strengths and weaknesses that bless or build character in all the other members. Large families are fun! There is lots of laughter in our home.  And there is always someone to play with. We are so thankful for our children, God's blessing!     

I don’t know what I was expecting, but I was blown away when I entered the SchoolhouseTeachers.com world to review their yearly membership.

​I felt like I Alice dropping into Wonderland: amazed and a little overwhelmed.

Where would I start?

I wanted to see EVERYTHING! Every photo, every course, every video, and every lesson plan was beautiful and professional-looking.

I decided to investigate high school online classes first. I picked out several courses including Spanish I, an online elective, They Lived for God, and American History: Columbus to 1914 with Socratic Method.
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Next, I headed to a focused area.

Since I’m a history buff, I chose history. I felt like a kid in a candy shop. So many choices, so little time. 

For younger children, my favorite course was American History in Picture Books by Cindi Allison because that’s the way I taught my children when they were little. Using classic picture books like Leif the Lucky by Ingri and Edgar Parin D’Aulaire, Squanto’s Journey by Joseph Bruchac, and The Babe and I by David A. Adler, we explore history by reading picture books and engaging in hands-on fun. I am planning to do this course on Grandma Day with my grandsons.

Delving into Classical Archaeology with Regan Barr, I was excited because so much of what we believe about ancient cultures is based on archaeology, but it has limitations, too. This course doesn’t just focus on history, but how archaeology is used to learn about history and what the limitations of archaeology are. The reading was interesting with lots of color photographs. Review questions and ideas for further exploration were at the end of each unit. My favorite part was digging into Pompeii, a fascinating trip to the past when a volcano explored rapidly freezing an entire city in time. We can also read about it from Pliney the Younger. This material stirred up a greater hunger to learn more!
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Remembering my sweet grandsons, I decided to head to the Preschool Playground to get more ideas for Grandma Days. 

The 20th Century is an exciting time to study. Would you like to time travel to the 1910s with your younger children? 

HIS Story of the 20th Century Lapbook & Timeline is a special gift from Powerline Productions to you. 

Jump into the second decade of the 20th Century with me to learn about building the Panama Canal, exploring the North and South Poles, the Balkan Wars, World War I, Trench Warfare, and changes after World War I. 

Easy-to-understand reading is followed by fun lapbook booklets to make. There are also beautiful timeline  figures to paste onto the timeline pages. 

Make a beautiful lapbook and complete a ten-year timeline. In addition, there are history labs and a great book to read: Who Was Ernest Shackleton? by James Buckley, Jr. 

​Your kids will have a blast!

​You can download HIS Story of the 20th Century for Young Folks 1910s Lapbook & Timeline here.

This FREE Offer is good until the end of January. ​Don't forget to download your free E-book!

Happy History Homeschooling!

Warmly, 
​Meredith Curtis

Have  you ever bought a new pair of shoes because you are having a bad day?

I have. 

Is this the best way to comfort our hearts?

Sometimes we spend money to reward ourselves for a job well done, but more often we spend money frivolously when we are struggling emotionally or just worn out from the cares of life. 

Unfortunately, when we spend money we haven't budgeted for, it has to come from somewhere. It may postpone something we are saving for like a new house or family vacation. Or it may add to our growing debt. Then we deepen the frustration or sadness we are struggling with. 

Hey, I get it. There's something that feels good about whipping out that credit card to purchase things you don't really need. But, like all quick fixes, the momentary delight soon vanishes. 

I think we live in a battle zone. We face real pain, real discouragement. But those things are not our enemy--that's just the result of living in a fallen world. 

The real enemies we face our satan and his demons who lie to our hearts and through the world we live in. We are bombarded with lies that buying something will help us feel happy. We spend our money on what is not bread--it will not feed our souls. 

God has a different plan. 

​We started homeschooling with a goal in mind. We had a reason to homeschool our children. We wanted to raise children who loved the Lord and were wholeheartedly committed to Him. 

With our reason for homeschooling, and really parenting in general, in mind, we wrote out measurable goals and taped them on the wall. They reminded us each day why we were homeschooling. 

Here our goals for our children:

My Child will experience salvation through Jesus Christ and walk in assurance of that salvation all the days of his/her life. 

My Child will Love God & Enjoy Worshiping Him. 

My Child will Love, Understand, and Obey God's Word.

My Child will Understand & Participate in the Power of Prayer. 

My Child will Know & Willingly Obey God's Rules of Right & Wrong.

Powerline Productions is excited to announce that we are the January Sponsor for Thrifty Homeschool's Facebook Group. 

You can visit their Facebook Group here.

You can visit Thrifty Homeschool website here. 

You will find Powerline Productions offering all kinds of gifts and freebies this month as the January Sponsor. 

Today, I am freezing to death in Central Florida as a cold front has swept away our sunny blue skies. Ah, it's the perfect night for hot soup! 

Which brings me to our first gift :)