We kicked off our 2023-2024 school year with some new things this year…
The biggest change is that Rose has now graduated! Because she completed her AA degree from community college her senior year of high school, she’s entered Liberty University as a junior. She is currently enrolled full-time in online classes and is working 2, part-time jobs during the week. For three days she is as a teacher’s aid at a local school and on one day she is the site assistant at our homeschool learning center. She stays busy with all this plus clogging and a wonderful Bible study for those post-high school. She made the decision to stay home for her first year of classes to also work and is praying about next year. She is pursuing a degree in Teaching English as a Second Language.
Beth also has some new things this year as she is starting her journey at community college! She’s also a full-time student and working as part of the set-up crew for our homeschool learning center where she also is volunteering as an aid in the youngest classes. Beth dreams of training animals and is pursuing an Associates in Science degree which she plans to complete by high school graduation. In addition to those classes (Pre-calculus, Chemistry, English I and English II), she’s also working through World Literature I and Apologetics at home with me.
Grace is in her last year of middle school and I cannot believe it! She was just 2-years-old when we started our homeschooling journey. She is following much the same path as her sisters and plans to use her last two years of high school to complete an associates degree at community college. For this year she is working through the end of Hearts for Him Through Time: Revival to Revolution and will soon start Hearts for Him Through Time: Missions to Modern Marvels, both from Heart of Dakota Publishing. She’s also completing an 8th grade literature course I compiled and Algebra I from Math Essentials.
As for me, homeschooling looks SO different than it did just even 4 years ago. My girls are great about getting their work done and while they don’t love every minute of it, they rarely complain which is indeed a blessing! I can see all the ways the Lord has been gracious to us along this journey as I look back over the past 12 years. I realized I have just 5 more years to wear the label homeschool mom and I want to wear it well.
I’ve not updated much since 2020 as I took time to help my kids adjust to the many changes around them and to high school. Life is hectic in many ways, but we still take fun field trips…
Play games…
And generally just have fun hanging out as a family!
I am planning to update more regularly as the year progresses and I might even just go back and share some of what’s gone on the last few years!
When the girls were little I found blogging about our homeschooling adventures super easy! There was always something fun to talk about and share. My girls are still super fun, but the homeschooling aspect has just changed so much over the years. As of this summer I now have a senior, a sophomore, and a 7th grader. WHAT!?!?! How did that happen anyway? You know the saying that the days go slowly but the years so fast? Yeah, it’s true!
Our first year homeschooling
Easter Sunday, 2022
Grace, 12 years old – finishing up 6th grade Grace is getting SO tall! The recent photo was on Easter Sunday and she’s grown another inch or so since then! She’s excited to be moving into the middle school division of our homeschool learning center for science next year. She is a busy, busy girl and enjoys board games, basketball, clogging, cooking, hanging out with friends, and generally being active!
Beth, 14 years old – finishing up 9th grade Beth is growing in grace and beauty. She shared with me the other day that her two greatest dreams are to be a mommy and to take care of animals. She’s particularly interested in animal training, breeding, and raising goats. She recently completed driver’s ed and is waiting for her 15th birthday to be able to complete the driving portion. She loves clogging, hanging out on our friends’ farm, writing novels, reading, and hanging out with friends
Rose, 16 years old – finishing up 11th grade This year has brought a number of major changes for Rose. After the pandemic restrictions limited availability for driver’s ed, she was able to obtain her permit a week after her 16th birthday. She got her license 6 months later after completing the 60 hours of driving. That seems like A LOT, but in the fall of 2021 she started classes at a community college 45 minutes away. 3 drives out and back a week helped rack up those driving hours! She has absolutely soared in that environment, has a 4.0 GPA, and was inducted into Phi Theta Kappa, the National Honor Society for community colleges. She also volunteered as a teacher’s aid at our homeschool learning center with a fabulous master teacher. This has only cemented her desire to study education after high school. In addition to ALL of these things, she enjoys clogging, teaching clogging to young kids, basketball, research, and all things artistic.
Me… So what am I doing now? I’m overseeing their education. It’s a weird season if I’m completely honest. Gone are the days where we snuggle on the couch for a reading lesson or lay out counters for mathematics. I’m finding I’m packing up a lot of my teaching materials (being saved for the future for their children at their request!) because we haven’t used them in years. My role has changed. I’m more of a facilitator of learning than direct teacher. I’m also finding our conversations of late are much deeper and about harder things. Do I miss the old days? Sometimes, but these moments are even more precious as we look and plan for the future together.
This summer was an incredible reset for me. We usually do light school through the summer (literature, math, and unit studies), but this year I decided we all needed a full break. While I’m sad to see this fun summer end, I’m excited as we are walking into fall.
Here is a little peek at some of our summer fun. I’ll do my traditional back-to-school post next week! Yes, we’ve started already, but I wait until the girls’ classes have begun to take their “first day” photos.
While things seem like they are falling apart all around the world, I’ve taken comfort in Psalm 142 this week, particularly this verse…
I cried out to you, O Lord, I said, “You are my refuge, My portion in the land of the living.” Psalm 142:5
There are not any quick fixes to the problems of this world and as our family strives to walk in the Lord we continue to cling to Him for our hope and stay.
It has been quite a while since I have popped back onto the review scene and I am excited to have this as the book to get restarted! The Silver Shadow, by Liz Tolsma, was a well-written mystery that keeps the reader guessing all the way to the end.
About the Book
Book: The Silver Shadow
Author: Liz Tolsma
Genre: Christian Historical/Suspense
Release date: May 2021
A Shadowy Figure Is Intent on Harming Denver’s Women
Book 11 in the True Colors series—Fiction Based on Strange-But True History
Denver of 1900 is still a dangerous place to be following the silver crash of 1893. And of out of the dark comes a shadow intent on harming women. Ambitious young Denver newspaper reporter Polly Blythe is searching for the big story that’s going to launch her career. On Friday evening, August 24, 1900, she gets her break when two women are cracked over the head within a two-minute walk of each other. But policeman Edwin Timmer thwarts Polly’s ideas of a serial criminal. . .until the shadowy figure strikes again. Will the reporter and the policeman team up to find the culprit before he strikes too close for comfort?
My Review
The Silver Shadow is a mysterious story taken from an actual historical series of attacks in Denver, CO between August 24, 1900 and April 19, 1901. I very much appreciated the author’s attention to historical detail even while taking some creative liberties. I also really enjoyed reading what historical facts exist in public record about this series of crimes at the end of the novel. While quite the sensational story, the actual culprit was never found historically speaking.
I appreciate Liz Tolsma’s easy style as a writer. The narrative never feels forced or awkward and the dialog between characters is quite natural. Sometimes I did feel like there were awkward jumps between scenes, but I did enjoy the way the characters evolved from start to finish.
Polly Blythe is quite the spitfire of a heroine! I loved her tenacity and spirit as she pushed forward to do what she felt she was created to do. It was certainly not easy for a woman to break into the word of news reporting at the turn of the century, buy she kept pressing on. Her dogged determination did have some deeply personal roots which are revealed as the story progresses endearing her all the more to the reader.
The hero, Edwin Price, was easy to like and root for as he searched for the culprit plaguing the women of the city. His desire to clear his conscience from a regret from childhood drives his passion for justice. I appreciated this character development in particular and enjoyed how this particular individual grew throughout the ordeals he faced.
I also very much appreciated the way faith was handled. I pretty much only read Christian fiction or children’s literature as I try to keep what I read clean. Still, I don’t really appreciate a book that forces the faith aspect of the story. Tolsma did an excellent job of weaving the faith of the main characters seamlessly throughout the story. She kept it believable and relatable, while still bringing the reader closer to the Lord in their own faith journey.
The love story between the two main characters progressed in a sweet way and with much more grace than I sometimes read in novels. I appreciated that Tolsma does not feel the need to focus on intimacy, especially as my own teen daughters are reaching the age to enjoy reading stories with romance. I am excited to recommend this particular title to my 15-year-old who really likes a good mystery.
This is a light read, great for summer vacation. I highly recommend this title and look forward to reading more from Liz Tolsma!
About the Author
Liz Tolsma is the author of several WWII novels, romantic suspense novels, prairie romance novellas, and an Amish romance. She is a popular speaker and an editor and resides next to a Wisconsin farm field with her husband and their youngest daughter. Her son is a US Marine, and her oldest daughter is a college student. Liz enjoys reading, walking, working in her large perennial garden, kayaking, and camping. Please visit her website at http://www.liztolsma.com and follow her on Facebook, Twitter (@LizTolsma), Instagram, YouTube, and Pinterest. She is also the host of the Christian Historical Fiction Talk podcast.
Disclaimer: I received this title for free as a part of the Celebrate Lit team. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions and statements are my own.
This is such a funny holiday to me, but one I enjoy. There was a pretty famous movie by the same title as well where a man relives the same day over and over. That day happens to be February 2! The idea of reliving the same day may sound great or awful depending on what that day was like. I watched a short portion of the video from Pennsylvania this morning. The gentleman speaking mentioned that this year has felt a lot like that movie in many ways, but there is hope. A new day is rising every day and we can look forward to what that day can bring. I loved that perspective as a Christian, knowing that the Lord consistently gives us new days!
I love that Adventures in Odyssey has a couple of fun episodes along this theme. Even if you don’t really think about this silly little holiday very much, it is a great day to listen to them if you have never done so! You can find both on the Adventures in Odyssey Club.
From Album 56: The Grand Design Groundhog Jay After Jay pushes Priscilla into an unexpected trip in the Room of Consequence, the two of them experience the same event over and over again.
From Album 33: Virtual Realities The Eternal Birthday Liz experiences her birthday over and over again.
Is there a day you would like to experience again?
Disclaimer: In exchange for promoting The Adventures in Odyssey Club I receive a membership to The Adventures in Odyssey Club. I am not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.
We absolutely love working our way through the Adventures in Odyssey Christmas episodes! Have you listened to the Countdown to Christmas Album? If not it is the perfect place to begin! Once you are done with that one, pop back here and take a lot at a few more Christmas episodes from the Adventures in Odyssey Club to enjoy!
(I also happen to know the newest album, only available on the Adventures in Odyssey Club currently has a Christmas episode! A new episode will be featured each week from now until January 19!!!!)
Prepare for Christmas with 24 Adventures in Odyssey episodes designed to help your family understand Christmas in a new and meaningful way.
Club Season 1 All By Myself Wooton is quarantined in his house and has to find ways to entertain himself. Meanwhile, Penny tries to re-create a mountaintop experience in her faith.
Club Season 3 Un-Tech the Halls The Parkers decide to unplug their gadgets and make family memories by searching for a Christmas tree.
Club Season 5 Beyond Repair With Pastor Knox along for support, a nervous young woman finally visits the prisoner who betrayed her.
Disclaimer: In exchange for promoting The Adventures in Odyssey Club I receive a membership to The Adventures in Odyssey Club. I am not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.
Travel back with me to Christmas 2006. I had one sweet 16-month-old daughter, busy as can be. I had joyfully discovered during Thanksgiving a few weeks earlier that I was expecting another baby, due the following summer. My sister-in-law (also my best friend) was showing me her beautiful scrapbook of her own 16-month-old daughter, my niece. I was in awe of what beautiful books of memories she had created. She took a lot of time to tell me about her process. For Christmas, she and my in-laws outfitted me with everything I would need to start traditional scrapbooking, and oh how I dove in!
Fast-forward to 2010. I had now had three daughters, ages 5, 3, and 1. Traditional scrapbooking had become rather non-existent in this wonderful world of mine with three busy little ladies around me all the time. I was saddened by this but figured I would get around to it again…eventually.
I honestly have no idea how I discovered digital scrapbooking, but I stumbled upon it somehow and researched it until I felt comfortable giving it a shot. I purchased a now obsolete program and set off on my journey into digital scrapbooking. Now, 10 years later, I have created hundreds of layouts, full scrapbooks, and more. When I began, I looked for what I could find for free. It was a lot of random searching, and not the easiest way to start. Still, I did not have a lot of extra money to invest at the time and it was the best choice.
I discovered Digitalscrapbook.com in 2015. I believe someone mentioned it in a thread on a message board for digital scrapbookers. It was like a dream come true! This treasure-trove was a discovery I couldn’t believe I had been missing out on this wonderful site.
Pixel Scrapper describes itself as… “friendly community site for digital artists and scrapbookers.” It uses a system of active participation to earn credits which can be used to download individual items for free. This is a unique system that allows users to engage in a meaningful way with a reward. You can also become a patron where you have access to download full kits for a very small amount each month.
The templates, papers, elements, and actions are all high-quality creations from top-notch designers. The kits are packed full and there is so much variety! I love the search function, super easy to access at the top of the home page and the left sidebar allows more narrowing of your search by item type.
I really think the best part of Pixel Scrapper is the community. It is encouraging, affirming, and honest. There are many opportunities to engage in conversational threads where you can ask for help, look for answers and inspiration, and just have fun conversations with people who love to scrapbook too!
This is an excellent place for beginners as well. This summer I had the chance to Zoom call with a couple of friends who want to learn to scrapbook digitally. You better believe the first place I pointed them to was Pixel Scrapper! You will find all the resources you need from tutorials to materials. Don’t be nervous! The community is kind and you will be thrilled with the results of your memory making endeavors.
You may not recognize this pup below unless you have watched through the Adventures in Odyssey Animated series.
This is Sherman and he was a major part of the cartoon series created about the town of Odyssey. Although animals are not main characters in the audio series, there are a number of stand-out episodes that feature animals!
Album 08: Beyond Expectations All’s Well With Boswell When Robyn gets her first real babysitting job, it turns out to be more of an adventure than she could ever imagine!
Album 20: A Journey of Choices Pet Peeves Donna Barclay tries to cope with all the change going on in her life by adopting a stray dog.
Album 29: Signed, Sealed & Committed Viva La Difference The Mulligans take in some of the animals when the Connellsville Zoo closes down.
Album 30: Through Thick & Thin Leap of Faith The Mulligan family and their animals are threatened when heavy rains wash away a levee upriver from their farm.
Album 34: In Your Wildest Dreams The Lyin’ Tale Aubrey’s tale of being scared by a cat seems to become more life-threatening with every telling.
Sunset Bowlawater Mandy Straussberg’s goldfish narrates the story of his untimely death.
Album 43: Along for the Ride Potential Possibilities When Trent is put in the gifted class at school, he wonders if he’ll survive his first week. Meanwhile, Aubrey Shepard learns that she has a real talent with horses.
Album 44: Eugene Returns! The Invisible Dog Eugene teaches at Odyssey Middle School as a substitute. Meanwhile, Lester shows everyone his new pet–an invisible dog.
Album 51: Take It From the Top For the Birds Camilla Parker desperately wants a pet, but her family seems to suffer from the “Parker Family Pet Curse.” To prove her responsibility, Camilla takes care of a baby blue jay
Album 63: Up in the Air Crash Course When getting lessons from Connie is a disaster, Jules turns to Odyssey’s newest licensed driver Buck Oliver to teach her how to drive.
Club Season Seven Badges of Honor Lagging behind other girls in their troop, Olivia and Zoe set out to earn as many merit badges as they can.
Disclaimer: In exchange for promoting The Adventures in Odyssey Club I receive a membership to The Adventures in Odyssey Club. I am not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.
Are you looking for something new and engaging than the traditional episodes of Adventures in Odyssey?!? Some of my favorite and extremely different Adventures in Odyssey stories are the Passages episodes. They center around an alternative world, called Marus. Individuals from our world find themselves transported unexpectedly into a world they’ve never known, yet seems strangely familiar.
Passages: Fletcher’s Rebellion, Part 1 of 2 A woman named Alice tells an incredible story about how she and Tom Riley’s son, Timmy, traveled to another world called Marus.
We are first introduced to the Passages stories in the first two episodes of Album 34, In Your Wildest Dreams. Another extremely unique aspect of this episode is that we hear more about Tom Riley’s son, Timmy, who drowned when he was young saving another young man’s life. It is a sad story that is sometimes referenced, but until these episodes we have not really encountered Timmy.
As you listen to the story you will begin to recognized hints and shadows of stories you have heard before from Scripture. In many ways they are similar to the tales from Narnia in this. God is referred to as The Unseen One. Events, although not categorically exact, echo those from biblically historical accounts. It definitely gives a new perspective and appreciation for things you may have known for years.
Fletcher’s Rebellion parallels the story of Gideon. As you listen with your kids encourage them to try and guess what Bible passage this reflects. Help them to pick out clues and see what they notice is different.
Enter a world where ancient history comes to life . . . and faith in God becomes the adventure of a lifetime! Introducing Passages, the legendary audio series from the creators of Adventures in Odyssey. One minute, Anna and Kyle are exploring a creepy old house outside Odyssey. The next, they’re transported to the mysterious land of Marus–and caught in the middle of a dangerous conflict between a brave army general and a powerful king. Will their newfound powers be strong enough to save the rightful heir to the throne . . . and return them safely home?
The album Passages: Darien’s Rise is our next encounter with this strange world of Marus. This episode opens with Jack Allen bringing an old manuscript he found in a trunk from an estate sale to Mr. Whitaker. He asks Whit to read it and to let him know what he thinks afterwards.
Kyle and Anna, two children not previously mentioned in Odyssey, are transported to Marus through an abandoned house. Once there they are immediately thrown into a perilous adventure, once again in parallel with biblical history. Darien is a parallel to David from the Old Testament. This is a longer storyline as it takes up an entire album of 9 episodes. I loved the characters and once again the ability to pick out little bits that helped to identify which story is being represented.
If these two sagas interest you, there are also 2 collections called Passages: The Marus Manuscripts, each containing 3 books about Marus. While these stories are not Odyssey-centric, they are true to the nature of Adventures in Odyssey and might be very appealing to middle schoolers and older.
Disclaimer: In exchange for promoting The Adventures in Odyssey Club I receive a membership to The Adventures in Odyssey Club. I am not required to write a positive review. All opinions are my own.
Grace is reading Little Women while Penny keeps watch.
Our routine is smooth Our flow is back Now all I ask Is we stay on track
Sometimes a little poetry is cathartic. This week was good. There were bumps…there always are…and we press on. If anything I’m the one feeling a little off these days. Maybe it’s the state of our country and world…maybe it’s the political angst…maybe it’s the fact that I’m realizing how soon my nest will be empty. The last decade brought us into this homeschooling adventure. This next decade will bring a totally different season. I’m honestly not comfortable with this idea yet, but I have time and try not to dwell too much in these things.
Many of our activities have (safely) started back. I hate having to add that commentary. I feel we will be heavily chastised if I do not. I find myself adding phrases like …while socially distanced… and …while wearing masks… to almost everything these days just so there are no rushed assumptions. But I digress…
Many of our activities have started back and this has been a huge boost to smoothing out any of the routine bumps that were still there. The girls have missed face-to-face interactions and to have even a few return is a solid win. Here are updates on each of the gals.
Beth studying Awana.
At 13 Beth has become a most studious young lady. Her favorite place to work is often in our bedroom sprawled across our bed. Many times I will enter the room to put something away to find her with work all around and listening to a musical soundtrack. These days she’s enjoying Esther from Sight and Sound Theaters or The Sound of Music.
She is zipping through Algebra 1. We are using No Nonsense Algebra from Math Essentials. It is excellent, no frills, and a great fit for her. She also studied pre-algebra from the same company.
For literature she is using the 8th grade curriculum I wrote for Schoolhouse Teachers.com {aff. link} a couple of years ago. It is good for me to see this in action and I’m so pleased with the outcome for her. She’s covering a variety of genre this year and seems to be enjoying the pacing. To round out this subject she’s working on Caught Ya! grammar, All About Spelling, and Writing Strands.
History with Heart of Dakota is the best preparation for independent learning I have ever encountered. I love the notebooking, research, living history, map studies, and more. Although I have deviated from a few things from the curricula as the girls got older to fit their personal needs better, I cannot say enough good things about this company!
Finally is science. Beth is continuing to take a science class with our local homeschool learning center. While it is online this year, it’s still such solid content. She’s had the biggest adjustment here this year as she’s moved up into junior division and the workload is significantly more. Learning to balance her time in this has been challenging, but so very rewarding!
Grace studying math with lots of books as her cushions!
Grace is showing much maturity this year. She’s 11 and working on studies much deeper than many her age. With this year came an increase in work-load which was a lot for her to handle. I was tempted to back off a little bit in the first few weeks, but I’m glad I didn’t for her sake. I knew it wasn’t too much, but for her it was the greater amount of time. I just chose to sit with her while she worked and encourage her to stay focused. Now she is zipping away through most of it, has learned to budge her time, as well as the benefits of working ahead if she has extra time.
She is working through Math Mammoth and will be fully prepared for pre-algebra at the end of the material. She understands the concepts and is learning to slow down a bit and pay attention to what word problems are asking. She is also enjoying Life of Fred as a supplement 2 days a week. That is what she is working on in the picture above. Many families use this as their core. I like a more traditional approach and use it as a supplement, giving my girls a different way to look at mathematics.
In elementary school I have my girls read quality literature without a lot of extra instruction. Right now she is reading Little Women as an abridged classic. I also really advocate introducing kids to abridged classic stories all through elementary school so they are excited about the story when they approach it later on in schooling in it’s full rendition. I have an entire shelf dedicated to abridged classics and they titles from Dickens, Shakespeare, Austen, Melville, and more. This has proven to be an excellent approach for the older girls so I’m continuing it with Grace. She rounding out this subject with Rod and Staff Grammar (We LOVE the simplicity and traditional structure!), All About Spelling, and Writing Strands.
Heart of Dakota’s Creation to Christ has been the most challenging for Grace as it’s workload intensifies from previous guides. She’s also using notebooking, learning research and map skills, and studying harder things. Just like her older sisters the adjustment and challenge is worth it! I’ve not been great at doing the art studies with my kids through this guide, so starting next week we will all 4 be working on the water color tutorials. I am hoping this is a good way to pass the cold winter days coming, knowing we may be facing more activities closing down again.
Just like Beth, Grace is studying science at our local learning center. Her teacher raises the bar in quality remote learning. She has such an excitement about learning and it’s a beautiful thing to watch!
Rose learning The Grinch for recital.
Rose loves music. She (as her sisters) have studied piano since they were 3 or 4…it makes it easy when you live with your piano teacher! I have 19 other students, but these three are my favorite. She is also self-taught on the ukulele and is working to learn how to play the mandolin. Beth is learning to play the glockenspiel (mallet bells) and Grace has dabbled in hand drumming and guitar. It’s fun to see them really embrace learning music.
This year has been a very different learning structure for Rose. Just like everyone else she’s our oldest experimental child so I wasn’t certain how our plan would work out, but so far it’s going very nicely! At the beginning of the year we sat down and talked about her goals and what classes she would need to meet those goals, namely begin dual enrollment next year.
For literature she is using another curriculum, American Literature, I wrote for Schoolhouse Teachers.com {aff. link}. Again, seeing this in action in our home has left me feeling very good about the job I did in creating it. The structure is to study American lit through the lens of history. I spent intensive amounts of time studying American history alongside American literature to see how one impacted the other. I’m very pleased so far with how much she is grasping. Rose is using Jenson’s Grammar, All About Spelling, and Writing Strands.
Math…oh math. Math has been the most intense for Rose all through schooling. This year she asked to study both Geometry and Algebra 2. We were given Algebra 2 from Teaching Textbooks as a hand-me-down (What a blessing, right?!?!) and we are using Geometry from Schoolhouse Teachers.com {aff. link}.
Chemistry has been a raging success with Mater Books. I’m so very pleased with the strong material without being overwhelmingly complicated. There is a significant emphasis on observational science rather than theoretical and a grounding in how these observations continually point us back to the Creator. Rose is also studying World Religions from Master Books with which we have also been very pleased.
More Schoolhouse Teachers.com {aff. link} courses are rounding out the year with Economics and Government. Rose is reading excellent material by Thomas Sowell. I had never heard of this man before, but I’m impressed over and over again with his common sense approach to economics.
Final Thoughts on the Week…
As we begin the approach the holidays I am grateful for our little family and extended family and friends. This year has not been what anyone wanted, but the Lord is good and faithful. I encourage you to not dwell too very long on the losses, but instead focus on the blessings and ways we can thank the Lord, even if the year has brought pain.
gracefilledwriter.com 