Not in the Market

What with Laura being gone for most of the summer and Becky missing her big sister, we have used up our allotted cell phone minutes for the month. So when my phone rang this afternoon I checked Caller I.D. to see who was calling. It wasn't anyone on my contact list but it was a local number. I decided to let it go to voice mail, thinking whoever-it-was would leave a message and I could call them back. A few minutes later I got an email from my friend, Anna, asking about a book. I replied and asked her if she had just tried calling me, explaining why I didn't take the call.

"Yes, that was me," she said. "Next time I'll leave a message." I entered her number on my contact list so I would know it was her.

Half an hour or so later the phone rang again. It was a local number again, but not Anna's. Maybe she's calling from a different phone this time, I thought. Well, she said she'd leave a message, so I'll wait and see.

Sure enough, in a few minutes the voice mail alert tinkled at me. I dialed in to listen, fulling expecting it to be Anna. Instead, it was a man's voice.

"Um. Hello. I think I got the wrong number. I'm calling Bill Barry, but I got Karla. God bless you. Have a nice life. This is Joe."

Please tell me. If you dialed the wrong number, would you leave a message? Why wouldn't you just hang up before the beep?

I betcha Joe is my secret admirer. He called back a little later, but didn't leave a message the second time. I guess he was just devastated that I didn't answer or return his call. I've been noticing ads on my Pandora account assuring me there are nice single men in my area (in the 50+ age range!) who want to meet me. The stock photos of models in the ads would lead one to believe that all these handsome men live right in my neighborhood! One of them is Joe, probably.

I guess Joe (and Pandora) didn't get the memo that I am blissfully married. I'm perfectly happy with the real man who faithfully brings home the bacon and adores me. (Not to mention that he's still in the under 50 age range!)

Sorry, Joe.

Flea Circus game - review

Flea Circus, from R&R Games, has been a hit at our house this summer. It's definitely a kids' game, and not particularly educational (though there is a little strategy to it), but the kids love it. Becky has played endless games with anyone who was even slightly willing. That included me on several occasions, but more often, the neighbor kids (ranging from age 5 to 11) who, no doubt, enjoyed it even more than I did.

The write-up on the R&R Games website describes it best:

STEP RIGHT UP! Calling all Cats and Dogs! The Flea Circus is about to begin!

It's a wild time under the Big Top as dogs and cats race from one show to the next. Players use their best Flea Circus acts to attract the most cats and dogs. Play your cards right and you can steal the audience away from your neighbor! But watch out for the Animal Catcher... He'll snatch your cats and dogs away!

With all this excitement, how's a Flea Ring Circus supposed to keep up? When all the cats and dogs are gone, whoever ends up with the most animals at their show wins the game!

 My favorite thing about it is the cute pile of cats and dogs that are part of the game.

Each dog is worth 2 points, and the cats are worth 1 point each. Just to make it a little more interesting I would try to see how many dogs I could get each game, while avoiding the cats. That's not part of the rules or strategy of the game, just something I threw in for fun.

Flea Circus is intended for 2-6 players, age 6 and up. The price is $15.95 and it is available on the R'n'R Games website. I received this game in exchange for my honest review as a member of TOS Homeschool Crew. See what other members thought of Flea Circus, and another R&R game, Pig Pile, on the Crew blog. R&R Games is graciously offering a 20% discount to anyone purchasing Pig Pile or Flea Circus through the TOS Homeschool Crew reviews.  Just enter the coupon code, CREW20, to receive the discount now through December 31.

My Memories Scrapbook - review

Over the years I have enjoyed organizing my photos and memorabilia into scrapbooks. It's an ongoing project that I've had to set aside as other activities have priority at this season of my life. I still have two or three boxes of photos and supplies that I plan to get back to some year, but for now digital scrapbooking is much more practical for me. It is a lot faster than the traditional cut-and-paste and it's so convenient to be able to just print out completed pages.

Recently I was offered the opportunity to review and give away scrapbook software from My Memories. Naturally I was interested. I have downloaded My Memories Suite and played around with it some. It's a little different than what I'm used to, but it seems pretty intuitive and offers lots of options for customization. I like that about it.

I was asked to post my review within 2 weeks. Unfortunately, this is a very busy time of year for me, so I haven't had as much time to spend learning a new program as I would have liked within the past 2 weeks. I did sit down with it and load some pictures to try to complete one page. There were so many options (which is a good thing!) that it took longer than the time slot I had available, so I don't have a completed page to show you. I think it will go a lot quicker once I am more familiar with the program. But that will have to wait a few weeks.

Since I don't have much personal experience with it to tell you about yet, I'll post this "first look" video that My Memories provided:


Welcome to the Family! from Lisa Jurrens on Vimeo.

As part of this review I am also able to offer a give-away of My Memories Suite software (a $39.97 value) to one of my blog readers. To enter visit My Memories, then come back and tell me what your favorite scrapbooking kit is of those posted on the front page. (I like the "Outside My Window - Summer" kit myself.) For extra entries, follow the My Memories Blog, Facebook, and/or Twitter. Be sure to mention each one you did in a separate comment. And as always, mention you follow my blog for yet another entry. This give-away will end September 6, 2011.

Not only that, I am also able to offer a special discount to my readers as well. For $10 off the purchase of the My Memories Suite scrapbook software and a $10 coupon for the My Memories.com store, use coupon code: STMMMS261.

Amish Values for Your Family - review

Suzanne Woods Fisher is currently my favorite author of Amish fiction. Her books are well-researched and intriguing. I have also enjoyed her non-fiction titles. Her latest book is Amish Values for Your Family in which she offers ideas and inspiration, for ways we can all apply aspects of the simple lifestyle of the Amish to our own daily lives. I was encouraged to slow down, savor the moment, and remember what my true priorities should be.

Each chapter begins with an Amish proverb, then tells a short anecdote about a real Amish family, wrapped up with how their experiences relate to us who aren't Amish. At the end of each chapter is a section called Road Map: Getting There From Here where the author offers practical suggestions for applying the ideas. And then, just for fun, she includes a few quotes from the Amish newspaper, The Budget, in a section called In Their Own Words. One of my favorite quotes in the book was of what the old Amish woman replied when someone asked her the secret of her long (70 year) marriage. She said, "Well, neither of us has died." Isn't that a good example of what commitment is all about?

Here's the publisher's synopsis:

Award-winning author Suzanne Woods Fisher inspires readers to slow down and understand the values that help build a strong family in Amish Values for Your Family (ISBN: 978-0-8007-1996-8, $12.99, 192 pages August 2011). Studies are finding some alarming trends in the daily life of modern families –family time is a vanishing commodity. Compared to thirty years ago, today’s parents spend 40% less time with their children. This decline coincides with the rise in internet use, the popularity with social networks, and the swell of children’s organized sports and activities. What is competing for your family time? Who is winning?

The Amish have maintained one of the strongest and most stable family systems in America. Harvard School of Medicine recently found that Amish people have a lower rate of heart disease than do average Americans as well as lower rates of cancer. Could their simple way of life, hard work, and value of family contribute to a healthier way of life? And, if so, how is it possible to incorporate some principles of the Amish into a modern family without “goin’ Amish?”

In Amish Values for Your Family, Fisher shows how you can adopt the wisdom of the Amish when it comes to family matters. In this inspiring and practical book, readers will find true stories interlaced with solid, biblical advice about parenting, marriage, and all aspects of family life – without selling your car, changing your wardrobe, or moving to the Amish countryside. Readers will learn to prioritize what's truly important, simplify decision-making, slow down as a family, safeguard time together, and letting go when the time comes.

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for my honest review. Available August 2011 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Blue Skies Tomorrow - review

I can't remember when I've enjoyed a fiction trilogy as much as Sarah Sundin's Wings of Glory series. I just finished the third book, Blue Skies Tomorrow. The first two books, A Distant Melody and A Memory Between Us, were so good that I was a little bit afraid that the third one might not be. (Of course, that was completely groundless. I do worry about the dumbest things.)

The Wings of Glory series is about 3 brothers and the women they marry during World War II. I am fascinated by the history of that era, and I always enjoy a good love story. The characters are so real and have problems and issues that any of us can relate to. I especially appreciated the spiritual lessons that were woven throughout (without being preachy).

I decided to try to savor Blue Skies Tomorrow, knowing it was the last book in the series. For a week or so, I only allowed myself to read one chapter a night. I got about half through the book and lost my self-control! I just had to find out what happened next, so--yep, you guessed it--I stayed up too late reading so I could finish the story. *sigh* These are definitely going on my Keeper shelf.

Here's the synopsis from the publisher:

The country is still at war in Blue Skies Tomorrow (ISBN: 978-0-8007-3423-7, $14.99, 448 pages, August 2011) by award-winning author Sarah Sundin. It is 1944 and America longs for the war to be over so their boys can come home. This war has taken too many lives and made too many widows, orphans, and broken hearts. However, the homeland continues to pull together and buy bonds to support the troops, and Helen Carlisle has become the town’s war widow heroine. Doing her part with her son, she faithfully appears at community events asking people to support the troops. But deep down she is troubled. How much longer can she do this? Is she living a lie? Was her dead husband a hero? How can she live with the past?

Lt. Ray Novak prefers to follow his calling into ministry rather than the cockpit. But his current position offers him the luxury of a personal life since he is stateside training B-17 pilots. His interest in Helen, the young war widow, grows, but he knows she is hiding a painful past under a frenzy of volunteer work. Ray is called to fly a European combat mission at the peak of the air war. Their romance is tense because Helen is afraid, but Ray cannot help because he is in Europe. As Helen tries to make ends meet and confronts the past, Ray encounters a deadly enemy of his own. Will they find the courage to face their challenges? Will the truth come out? Will hope and redemption ring true for Helen?

The great era of World War II in Blue Skies Tomorrow is brought to life by Sundin in this emotion-packed novel.

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review. Available August 2011 at your favorite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Just Average

Today I'm blogging about my "average" kids on the Sonlight Blog. If your kids are "just average" like mine are, I hope you'll be encouraged!

August Monday

The weather in my neck of the woods:
About as close to perfect as possible. We have had an incredibly mild summer this year. Lyle told me he heard we've only had something like 4 days where the temperature got over 90 degrees. We never even bothered putting in the window a/c unit this year. We've just had the windows open for months. I love living in the northwest!

Things that make me happy:
Standing out in the parking lot after church visiting with friends for hours.

Books I'm reading:

• More Treasures from Grandma's Attic by Arleta Richardson (in the upstairs bathroom)
• The Old Schoolhouse Magazine (not a book, I know, but it's what I currently have going in the downstairs bathroom)
• I'm sorta between books on my Kindle. That is to say, I have several started, but I haven't gotten into any of them yet. I just finished Reinventing Leona by Lynne Gentry.

On the menu for dinner:
Hamburgers on the grill, I think.

On my To Do List:
(You really don't want to see my whole To-Do list... but here are a few things I need to do today.)

• Divide and wrap 40 pounds of hamburger meat we picked up Saturday evening.
• Package and mail several packages.
• Work several hours as a Sonlight Advisor.
• Clean the kitchen.
• Get some writing done.

New Recipe I tried or want to try soon:
I want to try making The Pioneer Woman's Iced Coffee. I've been afraid to make it, though, because I'm very sure I would quickly become addicted to it.

In the craft basket:
Cotton yarn for washcloths. I've been making these up to sell. One of my friends makes soap and has been selling it at the farmer's market. I sent her a batch of washcloths to offer with the soap. I have also set up an Etsy shop. Not many listed there yet, but it's a start.

Looking forward to this week:
Laura is coming home Wednesday evening! She's been gone all summer, and we have missed her!

No words needed:

Lesson learned the past few days:
God is faithful. Always.

On my mind:
Plans for the upcoming school year. (Don't miss my Back-to-School giveaway!)

Scripture:
No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it. I Corinthians 10:13.

More Happy Homemaker Monday posts @ Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

Back-to-School Giveaway

Is it back-to-school time at your house? We usually start the day after Labor Day so we have a couple more weeks of summer here, but it's getting close. This year will be a new experience for me with just one student in my homeschool. We plan to continue our study of world history, using Sonlight's Core G as our main curriculum.

In celebration of the new school year I decided to host a giveaway of this gorgeous Norman Rockwell print, The Land of Enchantment. I have one hanging in my office/library... and I have three to give away!

I also have an extra heavy-duty Sonlight tote bag to give away. It is the perfect size to "take school" along whenever you need to be out-and-about. I carry mine all the time.

For your chance to win just leave a comment telling me something about your plans for the upcoming school year? Will you be homeschooling? Or do you have other plans? I'd love to know! Also, mention whether you would like to win the Rockwell print or the tote bag.

Any of the following will also get you more chances to win:
~ blogging about this giveaway
~ sharing the link to this giveaway post with your friends on Facebook
~ tweeting about this blog giveaway
~ following my blog
~ liking my blog page on Facebook (just click the "like" button on the Facebook widget on my sidebar)

Leave a separate comment for each entry. US addresses only, please. I will be drawing a winner on our first day of school, September 6.

Gift Certificate giveaway

My young friend, Kellie, is hosting a blog-warming giveaway of a $15 gift certificate to ModCloth. Visit Accordion to Kellie to find out how you could win. You'll probably want to "follow" her, too, if you like vintage, crafty things.

Poster Giveaway

In honor of the release of her last two books in the Circle C Beginnings series, my friend, Susan Marlow, is hosting a giveaway of three 11x14" prints of the water color painting for the cover of Andi's Lonely Little Foal (autographed by the illustrator). I love the sweet illustrations in this series. It would be neat to frame that print for a girl's room. My daughter would love that, I'm sure! Visit Andi's Blog to find out how you could win. But hurry! Because Susan will be drawing the winners on August 22.

More Little Doilies

I have taken a break from my "99 Little Doilies" frenzy to crochet a batch of washcloths to sell. However, I have a few more of the doilies worked up that I haven't shown you yet.

Doily #18.

Doily #19.

Doily #20.

(I worked this one up around the 4th of July.)

Doily #21.

And while I was in the holiday mode I made this one in Christmas colors.

Which one is your favorite of this batch? I think I like #18 best.

Growing Toward God - review

Growing Toward God is a sweet little devotional book with "life lessons inspired by the wonderful words of kids." Each devotional begins with a Bible verse, then tells a cute real-life anecdote based on something funny a child said. The authors, Doreen Wright Blomstrand and Barbara J. Koshar, have added a spiritual application to each anecdote, and then close with a sentence prayer. It's a nice little book to keep on a side table, to pick up for a quick inspiring thought and a smile. It's amazing what little children can teach us!

I met Barbara at the Northwest Christian Writers' conference in May. I enjoyed hearing a bit about how she and her co-author collected the cute stories in Growing Toward God.

A Bug Collection - product review

Max Lucado's Hermie and Friends: A Bug Collection DVD is a cute cartoon for preschoolers. The idea is to present and reinforce "life lessons" for little ones, but it seemed to be stronger on the entertainment than it was on the lessons, which is okay, I guess, if that's all you're interested in. And while it definitely did not keep the interest of the adults and older children in our family (like Veggie Tales does), I'm sure preschoolers would love it. The set includes 3 DVDs:

• Buzby and the Grumblebees—it’s about bee-having.
• Haily and Bailey's Silly Fight—it’s about getting along.
• Milo, the Mantis Who Wouldn't Pray—it's about prayer.

Timberdoodle games

Timberdoodle is my second-favorite homeschool company, but really, to say it's second is like having to choose between apples and oranges. I like Sonlight for my main curriculum, and Timberdoodle for fun supplements and thinking games and activities.

A few weeks ago Timberdoodle had a fun contest/promotional running on Facebook. They were giving away all kinds of goodies. I didn't enter every drawing because we already own some of the products, and some were more for younger kids... but there were several giveaways I was definitely interested in. I ended up winning the Word on the Street game! I love word games and I thought it would be a fun game to take camping.

The first time we played it with just 2 players. We could tell it would be more fun with more players as it's designed for 2 teams of any number of players. Last weekend when we went camping with another family we tried it again with more people. The idea is to think of words that fit a particular definition using letters on the board. Your goal is to work the letters off the board, and as the game progresses it gets harder to think of words that use the letters that are left and still fit the definition. The first team to work 8 letters off the board is the winner. All of us thought that the timer was too short. It's set for 30 seconds. We tried flipping it twice per turn. That was better, but probably a 45-second timer would be about right. It would make a great party game.

Earlier this summer I invested in several single-player games from Timberdoodle to give Becky something constructive to do while I was working, with Laura being gone. I was really impressed with the selection of single-player critical-thinking games that Timberdoodle offers. We got Lab Mice, Anti-Virus, Titanic, Hide and Seek Safari, and Color Code and have enjoyed all of them. My favorite is Lab Mice, though Anti-Virus seems to be the most popular among the kids. Some of our friends who have had a chance to play with them while camping have also been impressed and asked where to get them... so there you are!

And just so you know: These weren't truly "review products" as I won Word on the Street and bought the other games, but I may be posting more reviews from Timberdoodle later as a member of Because Mom Said.

Beyond Bedding - product review

We're counting down the days until Laura gets home. According to Li'l Sis it's just 11 more days. We've missed her this summer. But while she's been gone we've taken the opportunity to re-decorate her room. Don't worry. We had her permission.

AFTER

When we first moved into this house 3 years ago, Laura wanted her room to be green and purple and blue. Her PaPa helped her paint it and she had it all fixed up just the way she wanted it. It was very cute for a young teen.

BEFORE

A few months ago she began to talk about redecorating. It seems she has outgrown the "bubblegum" colors and wanted something softer and more feminine. We got her different bedroom furniture for graduation, but she hadn't made any definite choices as to color and theme. As she began to consider what she would like to go with, I was offered the opportunity to review a bedding set from Beyond Bedding. It's primarily a children's bedding company, but as I looked at their selections I saw a few designs I thought Laura might like, so I sent her the link and told her to let me know her choice. She was thrilled!

After considerable discussion and contemplation we settled on a lovely pink-and-brown set. It came with the bed skirt, the comforter, pillow sham, and window valance. We love the toile design accented with the polka dots. My favorite feature is the pink chenille edging. (They also have polka-dot crib bedding, so you could go with this same design for a baby's room, if you wanted.)

So... the design is lovely. Laura and I are both very pleased with how her "room makeover" turned out (though, of course, she has only seen pictures so far). The main downside so far is that the fabric seems to wrinkle easily. It was wrinkled when I took it out of the bag and I had to iron it pretty hard to get it to look nice, especially the valance and bed skirt. I expect that will need doing every time it's washed, which won't be all that often, but still... The overall quality is about what you would expect for the price. Not top-of-the-line, but adequate for children's bedding which they will probably tire of or out-grow before it wears out.

In exchange for the bedding set, I was asked to give an honest review and to mention that Beyond Bedding also carries toddler sports bedding, western cowboy bedding, and zebra print bedding. Something for just about everybody's taste!

P.S. The net "canopy" is leftover from Before. I'm trying to decide how to disguise the splashy flowers with something more "vintage." Any suggestions?

Montana Camping Trip

This past weekend we went camping in northwestern Montana with friends. Mostly we go camping by ourselves, but this is the second time this summer we've had the privilege of sharing the fun with another family.

Lyle was able to take off at noon on Friday so we got to the campground in the early evening. We got our campsite set up and built a fire. Our friends arrived later, after dark. Then we sat around the fire visiting. Before long the kids and teens wandered off to bed. The adults kept talking. And talking. After awhile I wondered if it was getting to be about bedtime. Lyle looked at his watch and said, "You don't want to know what time it is." We guessed it was getting on towards midnight. "Try 5 minutes till 2:00!" he said. Funny how the kids and teens had sense enough to go to bed at a reasonable hour and it was the forty-somethings who stayed up till the wee hours.

On Saturday, some of us slept in. Later in the day we drove to Kootenai Falls for a hike. Kootenai Falls is the largest undammed falls in Montana.

In this shot I played with the panoramic feature on my camera. It's actually 3 frames "stitched" together. Pretty cool!

Most of our group had the courage to go across the swinging bridge. I was not among them. I expect I could go across it if I had to, but it wasn't exactly something I wanted to do for fun.

And here's a view from under the bridge.

On Saturday evening we cooked our meal over the campfire. It was especially tasty with the birch bark smoke flavoring. After dark the moms and some of the kids played Dutch Blitz at the picnic table. The dads sat by the fire and talked. And talked. We don't know what they were talking about. We were having too much fun slapping our cards on the table and whining about bad hands. We did go to bed a little earlier that night.

On Sunday afternoon, on our way home, we stopped for a hike at Ross Creek Cedars. We have been here several times, but we never get tired of the lush forest and giant trees.

Mikey found a odd growth on one tree and declared it was a steering wheel!

Believe it or not, five kids and one dad crawled into the space under this tree all at one time. They said it was bigger than their tent inside!

The kids had a great time climbing and exploring. It's better than a playground.

We thoroughly enjoyed the weekend.

Picking Huckleberries

Down the forest path we went...

...in search of the elusive but oh-so-desirable huckleberry.

They don't usually grow quite this profusely, so you can bet we picked like crazy when we did find the bushes loaded.

Three hours of hand picking garnered about a half gallon of the luscious berries. Now I understand why they sell for $40 a gallon. But the morning spend with sweet new friends in the beautiful forest was priceless. And the berries are pretty yummy, too!