I just love learning about the different states so I was excited to receive Chronicles of  ... State History Notebook by Gladys Whitted from Hewitt Homeschooling Resources. 

This research notebook is perfect for a third-eighth graders. We wanted to study our home state of Florida so we checked books out from the library and also used the internet to gather information. 

Called "Chronicles of .... State History Notebook," I believe that title is misleading. It covers so much more than state history. I loved it! 

The worksheets are divided up into the following sections: 

• Symbols, Emblems
• Geogeography, Population
• Industries, Jobs
• History, Government
• Misc, Fild Trips, Photographs

My children always enjoy drawing or coloring the flag, state bird, state seal, state tree, and state flower. This time, though, we printed a photograph of the Florida flag from the internet. A big surprise to me was a page of sheet music to write the notes and lyrics of the state song. What a great idea! We also drew the first of many Florida maps to put the state capital on, as well as the city where we live. Other maps included several natural resources maps, climate map, relief map, counties map, and state border map. 

It was nice to look at jobs and industry in Florida. We focused on agriculture, tourism, citrus industry, and space. 

The history section focused on state and local history, Native American tribes, immigration, and religious history. Naturals disasters are many when we study Florida. We looked at famous hurricanes! 

There are field trips which are wonderful. I really like to go on lots of field trips when we study Florida, so I loved all the field trips pages which are divided by historical sites, museums, cities, and misc. There's even a place to list resources used at the end. 

Memoria Press is one of my favorite publishers, so I couldn't wait to explore The Story of the 13 Colonies & The Great Republic Set and 200 Questions about American History they sent me to review. 

I didn't realize how much was in the set for teaching American History to fifth through eighth graders. The Story of the Thirteen Colonies and The Great Republic is the textbook with an accompanying Student Guide and Teacher Guide. There is also another set: 200 Questions about American History Student and the accompanying Teacher Guide. Both student guides are consumable, but you can use the teacher guides over and over again. 

The Story of the Thirteen Colonies and The Great Republic are classic books combined in one volume. Written by H. A. Guerber in 1899 and edited by Meoria Press, this book moves quickly from the landing of vikings in Newfoundland to the Spanish-American War. 

Each chapter is short and full of information. The writing is clear and concise. 

Now, I have been teaching American History to my children and in homeschool co-ops since 1991. Plus I read all kinds of American history resources biographies, living books, and textbooks for fun. I honestly didn't expect to learn anything when I sat down to read the entire book. I was pleasantly shocked to learn little details I never knew before such as: 

• Leif the Lucky went home in 1012 because of Native attacks
• Columbus' wife's father worked for Henry the Navigator and wrote about his voyages, so Columbus had access to that information
• It was in Cuba that Columbus and his men were introduced to tobacco
• The reason that Frances Drake sailed around the world was to avoid the Spanish who were laying in wait for him in the Atlantic, so he turned the other way, crossing the Pacific and returning back to England
• Captain John Smith sent a letter to the company sponsoring them to sent blacksmiths, masons, carpenters, farmers, and wood cutters, instead of gentlemen
• Between 1630 and 1640, over 20 thousand folks traveled from England to New England, creating 50 little villages and towns
• The first person to speak out against invasive search warrants in Boston was James Otis

Now, that may seem boring to you, but I was super-excited to learn these little details. 

​We set up our homeschooling plan to follow the suggestions by Memoria Press. 

I'm all for pedicures and bubble baths. 

However, if you feel overwhelmed, drained, and at the end of your rope, a bubble bath and pedicure just won't cut it. 

You need something more. 

You need life imparted to you from the One who was there at Creation, gladly embraced the horrible crucifixion, and conquered death by rising from the dead. This is the same Lord who has pursued you and if you have surrendered to Him, has filled you with His Spirit. 

Jesus loves us and offers life. So simple, yet so profound. 

If you are feeling overwhelmed, you need life and joy from Jesus. And the Good News is that He longs to love you. He promises that if you are weary and burdened, you can surrender your burdens to Him and He will exchange them for His burdens. I

Isn't that exciting??????

Refreshment comes when we fix our eyes on Jesus and surrender to Him, allowing Him to fill us to overflowing with His grace. What I am going to share with you are some ways to position yourself to receive His grace and fix your eyes on Him. 

Summer is a great time to relax. 

The weather is warm, the skies are blue, and sunshine is smiling on everything. 

Summer is the perfect time to curl up with a book or have an Anne of Green Gables movie marathon.

Nothing relaxes me more than lying on a beach chair listening to the waves crash on the shore. Soon, I am far away in a happy places. Oops! I hope someone is watching my kids!

Summer is a great time to make memories. 

We love to swim in the pool, play games, craft, scrapbook, enjoy museums, and visit amusement parks in the summer. Afternoons at the playground or discovering where a dirt road leads are fun, too! 

Summer is a great time to learn. 

We always take a break from formal schooling in the summer, but learning continues on. After all, we live a lifestyle of learning as homeschooling families. There is always something to discover and investigate!

With all of this in mind, here are some happy ideas to celebrate summer, make memories, learn new things, and have a blast this summer!

Here in Florida, swimming is part of life. There are lakes, pools, springs, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Gulf of Mexico to swim in. 

I remember taking swimming lessons as a little girl at a neighbor's pool. I blew bubbles underwater and learned to float. 

My children grew up in the water, too, but we taught them to swim ourselves, introducing them to the water while they were still in diapers. 

I definitely recommend swim lessons if you can afford them. All children should be safe near water. You never know when you will have to swim to escape danger or help rescue someone. 

The other day, we were swimming with my grandchildren and children in their neighborhood pool. Rusty got out of the pool, took off his floaties, and jumped back in. "He can't swim!" my son-in-law said sharply as I was watching him struggle in a state of shock. That jolted me and I scooped him up. My heart was pounding as I realized how quickly accidents happen. 

It reminded me of my baby sister who did the same thing. Took off her floatie and jumped right back into our next-door neighbor's pool. My neighbor Tommy jumped in and saved her life. She had quickly sunk to the bottom of the deep end. 

All children should be able if they jump or fall in a pool, lake, or other body of water to swim, escaping to safety. 

If you are looking for lessons or teaching children yourself, here are some steps to take babies and toddlers on their first steps to swim proficiency. 

​The beach is a great place to explore. You and your children can have all kinds of learning adventures along the shore, in the tide pools, and climbing the sand dunes.

Here are some great ways to learn at the beach.

Engineer a Castle that withstands the Waves

Here’s a great STEM project. Construct a castle with a moat that will withstand the occasional wave. This might take several tries.

Mark Off the Tides

Place a sturdy stick that will withstand the waves every hour at the average place where the waves stop before rolling back. Then figure out how many feet the tide changes each hour. Estimate where it will be in 2 or 3 hours. 

Explore a Tide Pool

When the tide goes out, a tide pool is often left behind. Explore the tide pool for little creatures.

Sketch Nature

Bring along a sketch pad, or easel with paper and pretend you are a world famous artist working on your next masterpiece. You can sketch the waves and the sky or zero in on a bird. 

Life with Dog is a family movie from Mill Creek Entertainment.

Corbin Bernsen does an amazing job portraying a bitter man who has lost his wife to a hit and run accident.

I was impressed with Corbin Bernsen's acting in the movie and then found out that he wrote, directed, and helped produce the  movie! My family enjoys watching him in old Psych television reruns where he plays Shaun's father.  

Anyway, back to the movie. Joe Bigler, the main character, is struggling with depression after his wife dies unexpectedly. He is determined to find the driver of the truck that hit his wife. His temper gets the best of him in several scenes and he ends up being hauled off to jail twice. Still, you have compassion for this angry man who has lost the love of his life. 

The movie was excellent as far as acting, settings, scenes, and camera angels. It was very professional. 

I watched it with two adult children and two younger children. Let me be honest. It was a sad movie. I kept waiting for it to get bright and sunny, as did the younger children. 

However, Life with Dog is an amazing look at grief and how it turns you inside out. He has conversations with his dead wife and I explained to the children that it's hard to realize your spouse is gone so widows and widowers often continue to talk to their spouse after they die. In fact, it reminded me of a time after my momma died and I was waiting for Daddy to wake up from a nap. He called for Mom! I sobbed like a baby. My sorrow mingled with his. Watching this movie brought back sad memories for me, but I'm glad I saw the movie. ​

It reminded me of the process of grief and was an honest look at the process of grief. 

It was also an honest look at those who have no hope in Jesus. Joe Bigler doesn't believe in Jesus even though his wife was a devoted Christian. His daughter has found faith in Christ, too and tries to share that faith with Joe in the movie. She even sends her pastor to see him. 

I was so excited when my Hey Mama! Homeschool Planner for the 2019/2020 Year by Gene Suerez arrived from The Old Schoolhouse(R)! 

I love planners and this planner has it all. From transcripts to attendance records, from goal sheets to curriculum lists, and from calendars to devotionals from Gena. 

​We can all use help getting organized! However, some planners are so big, they seem overwhelming. My first homeschool planner was a 4" thick notebook with tons of pages and sections. I could barely lift it. When I saw the Hey Mama! 2019-2020 Schoolhouse Planner, I thought, "Oh, no, it's so thin and light--what did they leave out?" 

I'm happy to report that nothing was left out! 

We have planning pages galore!

It opens with directions on writing a transcript followed by a transcript page and skills and courses checklist. 

The next section is calendar section which opens with 3 one page year calendars: 2019, 2020, and 2021. This is followed by a terrific section: a room for monthly notes (e.g. "July 2019 Notes"), a full 2 page calendar (e.g. July 2019 calendar on 2 pages). This section covers July 2019 to July 2020. 

The next section is a series of 2-page weekly calendars with sections for each child. Wow! I love this section! This is the longest section of the planner which will be the most helpful to me. 

The child section follows where there is a section for each child with a page for notes, another page for curriculum planning, an attendance sheet, a books read list, yearly goals page, first semester page, and second semester goals. This is my FAVORITE SECTION because I am a big-picture person and I love to make big-picture goals. 

There is another thing in the planner that is my FAVORITE THING! I love all the blogs from Gena! She writes weekly in the Homeschool with Heart Blog where I find myself challenged, inspired, relieved, and encouraged. To find her practical encouragement sprinkled throughout the planner is such a blessing! Wow! I am so excited! 

Since this planner has everything I need, but isn't too heavy to carry around, I plan on using it all year long. It's just perfect for me. It would be just perfect for you, too.