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Colorado Symphony ~ field trip

Colorado Symphony ~ field trip

We were able to go to the Colorado Symphony this last week.  I don’t know who was more excited, my husband and I or the kids!  My husband and I were in band when we were in high school and played in a concert group.  I played the french horn and my husband played either the tuba, baritone or drums, depending on where he was needed the most.  Our family has a love of music and this was just an amazing experience for our family.

French Horn player making notes before the start of the concert.

I loved how this group did the concert for all the kids.  The conductor of the symphony explained the different groups of instruments and introduced them in a way that highlighted the instruments.  He also talked about different composers and their music.

Trumpet player warming up.

The seats we had were amazing!  We could have reached out and touched the guy that was playing the Timpani’s!

The view from our seat.

They opened up with two groups of brass playing.  It was beautiful and brought back a lot of memories from when we played in high school.

Brass waiting for the conductor to begin.

The symphony ended with the 1812 Overture.   This overture was written by the Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.  He wrote it in 1880 to remember Russia’s defense against Napoleon’s invasion in 1812.

This was a great field trip for our family, since we all love music so much.  It also got our kids to talking about what they would like to learn to play.  So far, they have mentioned a cello, violin and upright bass!

The best part about the field trip, besides spending time together?  The kids wanting to go again and soon!

Have you ever been to a symphony before?  What are your favorite instruments to listen to?

Snow Day!

Snow Day!

Union Ridge Park

This was the 2nd snow of the season.  We woke up to 4-5 inches of snow on Thursday morning.  The kids were so excited!  Since we didn’t take a snow day on the first snow (only about 1-2 inches), I decided we would have one today.  The first thing the kids wanted to do when they got out of bed was go outside and play.  Then the hunt was on to find all of our snow clothes!

throwing a snowball at his sister

We are very blessed to live in an apartment complex that has a park right across from us.   One of the joys of homeschooling is having a park all to ourselves!

throwing a snowball at her brother

The kids had fun throwing snowballs at each other.  They asked to take the sled, but I said no.  I may have to say yes to that next time!

trying to figure out who to throw this snowball at.

The youngest may be small, but she sure did give the older two a few good shots to the body!

Union Park

We loved walking around the park and looking at the snow on the tree branches.  It was so beautiful outside today.

Freezing!

While it was beautiful, it was also very cold!

making snow angels

Our family loves the cooler weather and especially love the snow.

snow covered trees

We are looking forward to many more days of snow to play in!

 

The Homeschool Mother’s Journal

The Homeschool Mother’s Journal

  • In my life this week…

     In my life this week, I finally feel like I am on track with schooling and keeping up the house.  I think we have found a system that works for mom and the kids.
  • In our homeschool this week…

     In our homeschool this week, we have talked more about the sun and how Elisha performed so many miracles and what some of those miracles were.  My son finished up his math book and we are moving on to the next level.  We visited the Colorado Symphony and have played in the snow!
  • Helpful homeschooling tips or advice to share…

     My tip for the week is if you are having a bad day, set aside the books and take time to figure what the problem is.  Pull out a favorite book to read or snuggle on the couch to watch an educational film.  It is okay to put the books away for a day.
  • I am inspired by…

    I am truly inspired by my friend, Lena.  She blogs at Lovin’ My Crazy Life.  Her heart is pure gold.  Best of all?  She loves Jesus!  She uses her blog to talk about her life with a child who has autism.  I am telling you, she is a sweetheart!  Stop by and tell her hi!
  • Places we’re going and people we’re seeing…

    We actually had tickets to see Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan speak on Tuesday evening.  When we got there, there were about 20,000 people ahead of us!  Yes, they gave out 25,000 tickets to a place that only holds about 10,000 people.  We were about 50 feet from the gate when they closed it, due to fire code capacity.  We did get to see Paul Ryan pull up late in his bus!
  • My favorite thing this week was…

    We had our 2nd snow of the season on Thursday.  We got around 4-5 inches of snow.  We are supposed to get 2-4 more inches of snow through Thursday night and Friday morning.  I had a wonderful time watching the kids play in the snow together!
  • What’s working/not working for us…

     I am thoroughly enjoying our curriculum this year.  I am loving our Science and History lessons we have been doing!
  • Questions/thoughts I have…

     Since moving, I have been wondering what plans God has for me.  Where does He see me serving at in our new community?
  • Things I’m working on…

     I am working on reviews for Knowledge Box Central, Jim Hodges Audio Books and Heritage History.  I can’t wait to share with you all about these amazing products!
  • I’m grateful for…

     I am so thankful and grateful for those who have been lifting my family and I in prayer.  It is always a transition when you move and having people pray for you always makes it a little easier.
  • I’m praying for…

    One thing I am definitely praying for is this election.  As we get closer to election day, the words being slung around are getting a lot worse.  We need a miracle to get America  back on the foundation it was built on and only God is able to do that.  I am praying that other Christians are also lifting this Nation up in prayer.  Yes, we need a miracle!
  • A photo to share…

    We went on an amazing field trip to the Colorado Symphony on Tuesday.  I can’t wait to take the kids back to another concert!
    Colorado Symphony field trip.

Stop by iHomeschool Network and see what all the other homeschool moms have been up to this last week!

Apple Pie ~ Recipes

Apple Pie ~ Recipes

Autumn has arrived and along with it, my love of baking has returned.  There is just something about the cooler weather and the leaves changing that makes me think of baking and warming the house with the smell of  sweet and spice.   In the last week, I have made a Tiramisu and Pumpkin Spice Banana Bread.  Today, I made an Apple Pie.  My husband and kids are really loving me at the moment.

Apple Pie

 

5-6 medium tart apples

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

1/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar (packed)

3/4 cup flour

2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice

2 9-inch pie crusts (or you can make your own)

Preheat oven to 325.  Place one pie crust down in a pie pan.  Set aside.  Peel and slice the apples to about 1/4 inch thick.  In a bowl, mix the apples and the pumpkin pie spice. Pour that mixture into the pie pan.  Mix the butter, brown sugar and flour together in a bowl.  Pour that mixture over the top of the apples.  Then put the 2nd pie crust on top of the apples.  Make a small slit in the top of the crust.  Bake in the oven for at least an hour or until the crust is a nice golden brown.

 

 

Mystery of History ~ Elisha helps a widow…

Mystery of History ~ Elisha helps a widow…

My kids and I are really enjoying the Illuminations by Bright Ideas Press.   We are using Illuminations Year 1 and have chosen Mystery of History as our history spine. We started using Mystery of History Volume I, last year, but never finished it.  So I figured we would start over and reuse it this year with the Illuminations Year 1.  I am glad we did.

We just finished up lesson 37 on Elisha (Israel’s Prophet).  During this lesson, we read that Elisha was compared to Jesus.  They both loved being around people and performed many miracles.  A few of the miracles that we talked about Elisha performing are; Elisha telling soldiers to dig pools in the earth and they would be filled, the healing of Naaman, and miracles for the Shunammite woman (her having a baby and then Elisha bringing the boy back to life after dying) and the widow who had a debt that needed paying.   Those are just a few of the miracles that Elisha performed!

The Mystery of History activity for lesson 37 was doing an experiment with water and oil.  During this experiment, we were able to talk more about how Elisha performed the miracle for the widow woman in 2 Kings 4:1-7.

Samuel pouring oil in a measuring cup.

First, Samuel took the oil and poured a 1/2 cup in a measuring cup.

Claire getting a bowl of water.

Next Claire, got a bowl and filled it with water.

Claire putting drops of purple food coloring in the bowl of water.

She then put purple food coloring in the bowl to tint the water.

Putting drops of colored water in the oil.

The next step was to put drops of the colored water in the cup of the oil.  We were to watch and discuss what the reaction of the water to be in the oil.

The results of adding the colored water to the oil.

The results of adding the colored water to the oil.

The kids noticed that the water drops stayed in balls and dropped to the bottom of the cup of oil.

We also talked about why Elisha would tell the lady and her sons to go get as many empty vessels as they could find and to keep pouring the oil in the vessels.  When they could not obtain any more vessels to pour the oil in, the oil stopped flowing.  Elisha then told her to go and sell the oil to take care of her debts.  She did.  It is so amazing how God provides right when you need it!  I have seen many miracles in my lifetime and they do still happen!!

I am thankful for this opportunity to have found this amazing curriculum that has been published by Bright Ideas Press.  I am also thankful they have allowed me to be an affiliate for them.  You will see their buttons on the side of my blog. If you click on those and order any product, I will get a small portion of that purchase.  The links in this post also contain affiliate links.  Again, if you click on those links, I will get a small portion.

However, even if I wasn’t an affiliate, I would still recommend this amazing curriculum to you.  I always enjoy sharing curriculum I love and is working with us.  I am hoping to share more throughout the year as we go through this curriculum.  If you have any questions,  please email me at jumpforjoy at gmail dot com or message me on my Facebook page A Journey of Joy.

 

This post contains affiliate links.