Happy Thanksgiving!

To my family and friends:

"I thank my God every time I remember you."
~Philippians 1:3

Have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Fantastic French Toast

For "F" week, Ainsley made "Fantastic French Toast". 1 egg
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp. sugar
1/8 tsp. vanilla
dash of salt
2 pieces of bread

Whisk egg, milk, sugar, vanilla and salt until smooth.
Dip bread into egg mixture and place in non-stick skillet over medium-low heat.
Cook about 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown.

After the toast was ready, Ainsley cut it into slices and made the letter "F".

She tried the toast "plain" and didn't care for it...so she spread it with grape jelly and thought it was "mmmmm....GOOD!"

Thirteen on Tuesday: Things Ainsley is thankful for

1) My house

2) My family

3) My room

4) The world

5) Christopher Columbus

6) My mommy

7) My daddy

8) TV

9) My Grizzlies blanket

10) Food

11) My friends

12) God

13) Myself

Geography with the Grizzlies - Part 2

You might remember this post where I discussed incorporating Ainsley's love for the Grizzlies and her love for finding places on the map.

Ainsley had a new idea today. She wanted to look on her maps and find where each Grizzlies player was born.

She discovered that the Grizzlies have players from all over the world.
Dallas, TX (2 players)
Hopkinsville, KY
Indianapolis, IN
Atlanta, GA
Chicago, IL
Baltimore, MD
Philadelphia, PA (2 players)
Huntington, WV
Barcelona, Spain
Ahvaz, Iran
Belgrade, Yugoslavia
Novi Sad, Serbia-Montenegro

Ainsley really enjoyed doing this!

Potato Turkey

Here is the turkey Ainsley made out of a potato for Awana.

(It is now proudly displayed on our fireplace mantel.)

Gobble, gobble!

Apple Tasting

To go along with our FIAR book this week ~ "How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World" ~
Ainsley and I had an "apple tasting".

I cut up 5 different types of apples. As Ainsley took a bite of each one, I wrote down her comments about each one. Her favorite apple...by far...was the Honeycrisp.

We also discussed the parts of an apple (stem, core and seeds) and some of the states that grow apples. (Vermont, Michigan, Washington and Oregon)

~ The apple of my eye. ~

Wordless Wednesday

Ice Cream in a Bag

For "I" week, Ainsley made "Ice Cream in a Bag". 1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons sugar
4 cups ice
1/4 cup salt
1 gallon ziplock bag
1 quart ziplock bag

Pour the milk, vanilla, and sugar into the small ziplock bag. Squeeze as much air out as possible and seal the bag tightly.

Place the small ziplock bag down into the large bag. Cover with ice and salt. Seal the large bag tightly.

Shake, toss, and flip the bag for 10 minutes. (We wrapped the bag in a towel because it got very cold.)

Open both bags and spoon the ice cream into a bowl. Enjoy!

(Ainsley thought this ice cream was very good. She topped it with chocolate syrup to make it extra yummy!)

Playing in the leaves

Happy Fall!

Lovely Lemonade

For "L" week, Ainsley made "Lovely Lemonade".

1 cup of sugar
1 cup of lemon juice
2 quarts of water

Let the sugar dissolve in the lemon juice. Add the water. Mix well. Serve over ice.

Ainsley thought it was "mmmmm...very good". She made enough to take to Veritas to share with her friends during "sharing time" today.

Geography with the Grizzlies

You might remember the maps Ainsley has for school. She really enjoys using them to find states and countries.

I decided to incorporate her love for the Grizzlies and her love for finding places on the map. Each day we check the Grizzlies' schedule. If they are on the road, we look on the map to find where they will be playing. Ainsley then places a small basketball on the map to mark their location. This is making geography a lot of fun for her!

This photo shows where the Grizzlies played their first road game.
Do you know what team they played?

Thoughts on the election

My political "advisor" ~ Mick Wright ~ posted some very good thoughts on the election and our new president.

My favorite part of his post is the last few sentences:

"Furthermore, I also recognize that God is at the helm, and he has a purpose
in all things, in all people. That’s something no man and no government can
change."

Click here to read more.

Ten on Tuesday: Homeschooling in October

Homeschooling continues to go very well.
Ainsley can't get enough of her school work/activities.

Here is an overview of October and a few of the things Ainsley did/learned:

1) Memorized four Bible verses:

"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."
~John 8:32

"A gentle answer turns away wrath, but harsh words stir up anger."
~Proverbs 15:1

"And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you."
~Ephesians 4:32

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Lean not on your own understanding, but in all ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths smooth and straight."
~Proverbs 3:5-6

2) Read the books "A Pair of Red Clogs", "The Rag Coat" and "Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel" (We did activities each day using "Five in a Row".)

3) Found the country of Japan on the map and made the Japanese flag. Also learned about Japanese culture.

4) Discussed weather, forecasting and who meteorologists are.

5) Learned about steam and steam power. (Ainsley made a pinwheel and held it over steam. The steam caused the pinwheel to move.)

6) Learned about mountain ranges (Appalachians, Rockies and Cascades)

7) Covered the letters "G", "A", "D" and "S"

8) Learned about "reminiscing" by writing a true story that happened a long time ago. (Ainsley reminisced about a time when she fell on the concrete and hurt herself.)

9) Learned about Christopher Columbus.

10) Learned about the significance of quilts and created a quilt block. (by painting)

Ainsley received an 8 week progress report from Veritas. It was glowing! Dan and I are so proud of her.