Cheap Date Night Ideas - Part 2

Still looking for more great "Date Night" ideas that are cheap?  I have a few more.

Fancy and Romantic "Date Night" - Wanting a fancy "dress up" date that won't empty your bank account?      You can make a romantic DINNER at home: candle light, soft lights, music.   For DESSERT , get all dressed up and go out to that expensive restaurant.   Enjoy all the ambiance of a romantic evening out without all the cost.   You might even want to think of sharing a dessert, too. 

Something New "Date Night" - Is there a ethnic/cultural food you have been wanting to try?  Immerse yourselves in a cultural evening.  Each research different aspects of your evening:

country/culture

food

clothing

table decorations

entertainment

-Find out what country the food originates from and learn as much as you can about the background of the culture/dishes.  The library has great travel DVDs about different countries you can borrow for FREE.  

-If you don't want to try making a new recipe, find a restaurant and get some appetizers so you can try a few different dishes.   -Hit a thrift store to find garments that go with your cultural theme.  
-Go to a dollar store and find some items you can use to make great themed decorations for your table and more.   
-For entertainment, see if there is a specific music and/or a dance that goes with your theme get a CD (library would be resource, again) for "mood music" and practice doing the dance together.(Library might have an instructional DVD) 

Pete the Penguin - Language Worksheets

My girl made such an adorable penguin that I needed to make some great worksheets for him...yes "him" - Pete the Penguin is what I have chosen to call him. 

This set of 5 worksheets are all about language skills:

ABC Order

Proof reading

Parts of speech: nouns, verbs, adjectives

You can each set at my TpT Store - B/W set ~  Color set
You can get each set at my Etsy Store - B/W set ~  Color set

Slow Cooker is a Homeschoolers Best Friend!

I have discovered a great new friend  - my crock pot.  

I have used my crock pot before, but this year, it has become my "go to" friend.   With having to be by BubbyDooDoo Bear's side throughout the school day, it limits me to how much time I can spend preparing dinner.   That is where my new friend comes in.  I can put all the ingredients in there and ...voila! - DINNER.

I found these great  crock pot recipes AND for added joy, they are all under 375 calories!!!!   MyFitnessPal thank you!!!!

Just click on the picture below to get all 15 recipes.

A Homeschooler's Life - Homeschooling Isn't For Cowards

I just loved this cartoon by Todd Wilson.  If you hadn't noticed, I have been using his cartoons in all my "A Homeschooler's Life" posts.   I adore them, so when I see one come across Facebook, I just must share with all the other homeschooling mamas out there.  

I have many books about homeschooling and I think I can even remember a time when one morning I was doing this....just not hid under the covers!!!   

If you want to find out more about Todd Wilson check out his site Familyman  Ministries.

He also has written a book that I just recently purchased - "Lies Homeschooling Moms Believe".  I can't wait to steal some time and read it!!

Recycle Your Old Jeans - 50 DIY Denim Crafts

I am sure you have at least one pair of jeans that no longer fit you anymore, or maybe even more!   If you love to recycle then I have a wonderful site for you to check out. 

Johnnie at Saved By Love Creations has put together 50 fabulous DIY crafts you can make with denim.

So go get those jeans and head on over to her blog and make something fabulous!

(picture from Saved By Love Creations)

Favorite Pins of The Week - 1/18/15

Time for this week's "Favorite Pins"!

You can also find these on Learning As You Go's Pinterest page.  Come follow me.

To go to the pin, just click the picture.

Going to start with this little treasure.   A wonderful set for your love to use during their alone time with God. 

This made me all warm and happy inside!  Now someone just needs to make me this...STAT!

Started a new board this week, can you guess the name of it?  I have two "addicts" of my own. 

What's for dinner???  I say this!!!

I think I was/am having a sweet tooth issue this week.

And more Minecraft

This is a great Mother's Day, Father's Day idea for co-ops, Sunday School classes, Youth Groups, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, etc. 

And ONE more sweet, delish thing before I end this week's favs.

My Teachers Pay Teachers Store

It have made the move to Teachers Pay Teachers.   I use them alot when searching for different worksheets and science experiments.  I now am going to add my worksheets in, too!!   I will still have many FREE worksheets for you all.  

Remember, you have to be a member to get the worksheets, but the membership is FREE!   

Thank you for your support and please share my store with others.

Let's Write A Sentence - Writing Prompt Worksheet - Winter

A great winter themed writing prompt worksheet.  This will help get your love's imaginations working and them writing some wonderful sentences.

Get this worksheet at my Etsy store or my TpT store. 

Martin Luther King - CurrClick

I am an affiliate  of CurrClick.  I have actually used CurrClick long before I ever started this blog.  I love the wide variety of not only subjects but publishers they provide.  I always seem to find JUST what I want and the prices are great.  What I love the MOST is that they there is no waiting for the material.   It is just a "click" away!!!  Downloaded in minutes and able to use in a moment.   I can't tell you how many times I have downloaded a lapbook or mini unit study in the morning to use a hour later. It has become my "go to" place for those times I want to take a sidebar from our regular path. 

I noticed that they had a FREE Martin Luther King quick study.

"In this Quick Study, you will get a general overview of information about Martin Luther King, Jr.  You will also create a booklet that you will assemble.  Time for some hands-on fun in a Quick Study! "

There is this unit study for grades 3-12.  Lots of information covered for only a few dollars. 

Lesson Plans Included:

• Jim Crow Laws (Grades 6-12)
• Dr. King's Life and Times (Grades 3-12)
• The Montgomery Bus Boycott (Grades 3-12)
• Letter from Birmingham Jail (Grades 6-12)
• I Have a Dream (Grades 9-12)
• Jim Crow Laws II (Grades 9-12)
• Memphis (Grades 3-12)
• The Final Conflict (Grades 9-12)

This is a "Read Aloud Play"- We Shall Overcome.  

" Based on real events, "We Shall Overcome" tells the story of Martin Luther King's Birmingham Children's Crusade, the 1963 march in which authorities used fire hoses and police dogs to suppress crowds of students. This six page, twenty minute classroom play script is suitable for reader's theater or stage performance, and can be adapted to include music from the Crusade. From eight to fifteen parts, including Addie Mae Moore (the heroine), News Reporters, and Dr. King. Read it once or practice it daily with students in grades 4 through 8 to improve fluency, build comprehension, meet the CCSs, and inspire interest in Civil Rights. " 

These are just a few of the products available to you at CurrClick.  

Phonics Fun - "SL" Words

Playing with my InDesign again so that means worksheets!

Another phonics sheet for you to download for FREE. 

Hey Mamas, if you download this,  could you please let me know in a comment?  I am trying to figure out how many worksheets are being downloaded.   Hoping they are being a helpful resource for you and your loves. 

Our Favorite Cookies - So Easy - No Baking - Kid Friendly

My mom always made these cookies.  They were my favorite.   Lots of great memories are associated with them.   So of course, I have shared these with my loves so that we, too, can make great memories.  They are a huge hit in my home.

We call them - Peanut Butter Oatmeal No Bakes

What do you need:

oatmeal

peanut butter

sugar

butter

waxed paper

We couldn't find our recipe card, but my girl found this which IS the exact recipe from cooks.com

In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, milk and butter on medium heat.   Bring it to a boil.  At THAT point, let it boil for ONLY 1 1/2 minutes.   

After the 1 1/2 minutes, take the pan of the heat completely.  Immediately stir in the peanut butter and oatmeal.   Mix WELL.   Place large sheets of waxed paper on a flat surface.  Using a medium sized spoon, drop spoonfuls of the cookie mixture onto the waxed paper. 

Let them set for about 30 minutes to an hour.  If they are still "wet", let them set longer.  They still taste good "wet" but just messy!   The first batch we did was "wet", we let them sit overnight and they were fine.  The second batch turned out perfectly and set much quicker. 

We Celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr.

We just finished our mini unit on Martin Luther King.   

This year, BubbyDooDoo Bear started to really understand more who he was and what was going on at that time.   It hit me that none of my loves can remember when there wasn't equality.   The thought of separate bathrooms, water fountains, and schools blows their minds.   One of the many blessings of homeschooling is watching their minds open with these "new" pieces of information and listening to them share their emotions about the events.   Mr. Man wrote an essay after watching the videos today.  I asked him to share HIS feelings in the end.  It was one sentence - "I think the white people were very wrong for being jerks to the black people."    HE is a man of few words. 

So this is what we used:

BrainPop -(click to watch the free movie) I downloaded BrainPop to my Kindle Fire.   They have a free movie about Civil Rights and Martin Luther King.  We watched this and took the quiz. 
There is a great, FREE resource set from Teachers Pay Teachers to go along with the BrainPop movie.  We didn't use it as it was for 3rd-5th grades.  It looks wonderful though. 

Then we watched part of his famous "I Have A Dream" speech.  

We used this FREE timeline resource from Teachers Pay Teachers.  This was awesome as there were two different timelines.  One for older kids and one perfect for BubbyDooDoo Bear. 

We used this FREE resource set from Teachers Pay Teachers to:

1. Describe Martin Luther King

2. "I Have A Dream" craft. 

BubbyDooDoo Bear wrote what his dream would be "one day".  I had seen a few different crafts on Pinterest using hands for Martin Luther King Day, like the one below.  

We did a blend of a few of them together.   Using the "I Have A Dream" sheet,  BubbyDooDoo Bear wrote his dream.   We traced one hand on a white sheet and one on a brown sheet of paper.  We used the hands and the trimmed "dream" paper and set them on a piece of construction paper.  I think it came out very well.

A Homeschooler's Life - Finishing The Race

We are all reaching the half way point of our homeschool year.   If you are anything like me and many of my homeschooling friends, this is the hardest time.  You have just finished with the holidays and you are tired.  You are now faced with getting "back into" the schedule again.   If you live in the north, you are now dealing with bitter cold and snow...and snow...and snow. 

Every normal "bump" in the homeschooling road becomes a small thought - can't we be done?  

Spiritually we can be drained, physically we can be drained, and emotionally we can be drained.   Not wanting to finish....anything.  

A perfect time to be in His Word.   

2 Timothy 4:7 " I have fought the good fight.  I have finished the race, I have kept the faith."

God is there at these moments, holding you up.  Giving you the strength you need to continue on.  

In return,  pass that wisdom on to your loves.   We are always an example in deeds so much more than in our words. 

So thankful for Dr. James Dobson and how God uses him and his ministries to encourage so many. 

Favorite Pins of The Week - 1/11/15

Here are my favorite pins this week:

Mr. Man got a waffle maker for Christmas so we HAD to try this.  They were delish!

This is ingenius!!!

BubbyDooDoo Bear did something similar.  I loved how this looked!

A little shot of encouragement.

Replacing Eggs in Baking.

Minecraft is everywhere!  This is an adorable craft.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

DIY Yarn Letter Craft

 In my post "Favorite Pins This Week - 1/4/15" I showed a cute craft about yarn and a large decorative letter.  So I got the  letter and had my girl pick out some items to decorate her letter with.  The letter was only a little over $2. I got it at  A.C. Moores.  We chose $1 yarn.  The stickers cost $1.97 and the hair bows were $3. The only thing I wasn't happy with the price, were the hair bows.  But we could't find anything else that she liked.   All in all, not that expensive of a DIY craft. 

Here are the supplies she used:

Use glue to help the yarn stay in place. 

Then "just" start winding the yarn around the letter. This wasn't as easy as it appeared to be.  We aren't sure if it was because of the font of this "S" or that it WAS an "S".  The yarn wouldn't stay, even with glue, at the ends of the letter. 

Finally the yarn part is finished. The worst parts were winding it around the curves.

Now time to decorate.  She chose these awesome "Artist" stickers and some flower hair clips. 

Next, she decided to paint the ends of the letter.

She did a great job.