Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Bling-Bling!
I couldn't resist! I had to post this pic of my girly-girl. She's all about the BLING! Miss Rachel is rockin' the pink clip-on earrings. I LOVE THIS GIRL!
Monday, November 22, 2010
Thanksgiving Festivities
Still recovering from the go-go-go of the weekend, I'm behind in posting about some of our Thanksgiving festivities. Here is the re-cap of the many things we've been involved in. A lot of fun was had, and by looks at my expanding waistline, even more food was consumed!
Nov. 14th - Graefenburg Christian Church Thanksgiving Meal
I neglected to mention this earlier, but our church gathered for our annual Thanksgiving Meal a couple Sundays ago. The company was wonderful, and as usual, we succumbed to gluttony. That much food in one place is sinful, but oh so delicious. I made one of my "potluck" staples - GREEN BEANS. I didn't bring too many home, and Jeremiah was quite eager to take care of the leftovers.
Nov. 17th - FIAR Co-op: Cranberry Thanksgiving
We met with our co-op friends to complete activities relating to the book Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende and Harry Devlin. Usually, I have pictures, but since I was leading this session, no pics :( Too focused on other things. In fact, the camera didn't even make it out of the house with me. Instead, I packed out coloring sheets and crayons, a large map, markers and poster board for making a graph, 9 pre-formatted lapbooks, 5 gifts, supplies and paint for turkey creations, 48 mini cranberry orange muffins, and a case of water. Amazing, the three kiddos were in tow as well. We had a good time with this story, and it was great to share with the other mommies and children. Fun for all - educational too :)
Nov. 21st - Community Thanksgiving Service
Our church once again hosted the Community Thanksgiving Service. It was nice to have members of the Baptist and Methodist join with us for worship and a dessert fellowship. We had a special speaker, and another lady and I provided special music. I'm not sure how "special" my song was, but I absolutely LOVE the words to Nichole Nordeman's Gratitude. Give it a listen - it is profound!
Nov. 22nd - Thanksgiving Activities with friends
Running a little late due to the fact we were still somewhat sleep-deprived, we headed to Miss Gretchen's house to join Rebecca, Libby, Abby, Miss Cara, and Gracie for some Thanksgiving fun. We read stories, sang songs, painted pumpkin pies, made foam craft turkeys and pilgrims, thumb-painted turkeys, ate pumpkin spice muffins, and decorated cookies. We even stuck around for lunch so the kiddos could have some play time and the mommies some chat time. We had such a good time that Christmas plans are already in the works.
Nov. 14th - Graefenburg Christian Church Thanksgiving Meal
I neglected to mention this earlier, but our church gathered for our annual Thanksgiving Meal a couple Sundays ago. The company was wonderful, and as usual, we succumbed to gluttony. That much food in one place is sinful, but oh so delicious. I made one of my "potluck" staples - GREEN BEANS. I didn't bring too many home, and Jeremiah was quite eager to take care of the leftovers.
Nov. 17th - FIAR Co-op: Cranberry Thanksgiving
We met with our co-op friends to complete activities relating to the book Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende and Harry Devlin. Usually, I have pictures, but since I was leading this session, no pics :( Too focused on other things. In fact, the camera didn't even make it out of the house with me. Instead, I packed out coloring sheets and crayons, a large map, markers and poster board for making a graph, 9 pre-formatted lapbooks, 5 gifts, supplies and paint for turkey creations, 48 mini cranberry orange muffins, and a case of water. Amazing, the three kiddos were in tow as well. We had a good time with this story, and it was great to share with the other mommies and children. Fun for all - educational too :)
Nov. 21st - Community Thanksgiving Service
Our church once again hosted the Community Thanksgiving Service. It was nice to have members of the Baptist and Methodist join with us for worship and a dessert fellowship. We had a special speaker, and another lady and I provided special music. I'm not sure how "special" my song was, but I absolutely LOVE the words to Nichole Nordeman's Gratitude. Give it a listen - it is profound!
Nov. 22nd - Thanksgiving Activities with friends
Running a little late due to the fact we were still somewhat sleep-deprived, we headed to Miss Gretchen's house to join Rebecca, Libby, Abby, Miss Cara, and Gracie for some Thanksgiving fun. We read stories, sang songs, painted pumpkin pies, made foam craft turkeys and pilgrims, thumb-painted turkeys, ate pumpkin spice muffins, and decorated cookies. We even stuck around for lunch so the kiddos could have some play time and the mommies some chat time. We had such a good time that Christmas plans are already in the works.
Harvest of Hope
Our whole family attended the 2010 National Missionary Convention - Harvest of Hope. This is the first time I have had the privilege of attending such an event, but I'm pretty confident it is foreshadowing of things to come in the Wells' future. When? Where? How? all to be determined, but God is stirring. I must admit, while exciting, the feeling is still uncomfortable at times and fears exist. I'll pray that I am open to wherever God leads our family. I assume it is still a few years in the future as Jon has more schooling before he reaches nurse practitioner status. However, I'm learning my time is not God's time, my ways are not His ways, and well... assumptions are just that :) Seriously, would we really want it any other way???
At the convention, my kiddos had such an incredible time. They hung out in the preschool department Thursday evening, all day and evening Friday, and Saturday afternoon and evening. They were the regulars at the "Big House" as they referred to Rupp Arena/Convention Center. Puppets, crafts, lessons, music, movies, playtime, and snack. It doesn't get much better than that. Caring adults + planning + engaging activities = My kids truly experienced children's ministry, and they were enthralled. Saturday night, when I put Rachel to bed, she asked, "Big House again, Momma?" "No baby, you are all done at Big House." With big crocodile tears Rachel whimpered, "But I LOVE IT!" My thanks to all who had a hand in the preschool programming for the convention! A huge impact was made on my little ones.
With the kids tucked away in their area, Jon and I heard some great speakers and attended some breakout sessions on clean water, human trafficking and sexploitation, and refugees. We wandered through the exhibits soaking in the many missions efforts here and abroad. We spoke with passionate people who reflected God's heart for all people... diverse and wonderful as He created us to be! I was able to meet several of the CMF people from Jon's internship in Ethiopia. It was nice to put faces with the names of those he has spoken so highly of.
Also at this event, the Restoration Revolution was launched. This is a 10-year collaboration that desires to share Jesus with all peoples in four primary areas. We can close the gap through prayer to the Almighty, Churches, Tools, and Service. It will be interesting to follow this movement. We pray it is effective as the harvest is plenty and the workers are few. Come church - it is time to arise!
The National Missionary Convention was great! We had family members and church members in attendance. We saw friends from neighboring churches, college professors, and friends from KCC. We were exhausted by the close of the weekend but oh so very blessed!
At the convention, my kiddos had such an incredible time. They hung out in the preschool department Thursday evening, all day and evening Friday, and Saturday afternoon and evening. They were the regulars at the "Big House" as they referred to Rupp Arena/Convention Center. Puppets, crafts, lessons, music, movies, playtime, and snack. It doesn't get much better than that. Caring adults + planning + engaging activities = My kids truly experienced children's ministry, and they were enthralled. Saturday night, when I put Rachel to bed, she asked, "Big House again, Momma?" "No baby, you are all done at Big House." With big crocodile tears Rachel whimpered, "But I LOVE IT!" My thanks to all who had a hand in the preschool programming for the convention! A huge impact was made on my little ones.
With the kids tucked away in their area, Jon and I heard some great speakers and attended some breakout sessions on clean water, human trafficking and sexploitation, and refugees. We wandered through the exhibits soaking in the many missions efforts here and abroad. We spoke with passionate people who reflected God's heart for all people... diverse and wonderful as He created us to be! I was able to meet several of the CMF people from Jon's internship in Ethiopia. It was nice to put faces with the names of those he has spoken so highly of.
Also at this event, the Restoration Revolution was launched. This is a 10-year collaboration that desires to share Jesus with all peoples in four primary areas. We can close the gap through prayer to the Almighty, Churches, Tools, and Service. It will be interesting to follow this movement. We pray it is effective as the harvest is plenty and the workers are few. Come church - it is time to arise!
The National Missionary Convention was great! We had family members and church members in attendance. We saw friends from neighboring churches, college professors, and friends from KCC. We were exhausted by the close of the weekend but oh so very blessed!
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Ben Franklin DNG
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember.
Involve me and I learn.”
—Ben Franklin
There is sooooo very much we can learn from Ben Franklin, and the Wells kiddos just tipped the iceberg this week using Amanda Bennett's Ben Franklin Download N Go. The Download N Go series is comprised of week long units on varied subjects including: animals, continents, countries, people, and food. The units are cross-curricular as they include history, geography, science, math, literature, art, etc. Each unit is designed with K-4th grade students in mind, so it is engaging, hands-on, exciting, and entertaining. The graphics are fabulous and the embedded video clips and websites are equally wonderful.
An overview of our week studying the Ben Franklin DNG is included below as well as a small sampling of the activity pages found in this unit. The DNG series is complete with both notebooking and/or lapbooking options. The need to hunt for materials is eliminated because everything required to complete these tasks are provided for you. You can literally download the unit and go directly into quality learning. However, I highly encourage you to take a trip to your public library with the recommended reading list in hand. I know we have found some wonderful supplemental reading each of our units.
Day 1: Who Was Ben Franklin?
Day 2: People and Places in Ben Franklin’s Life
Day 3: The Accomplishments of Ben Franklin
Day 4: Lessons to Learn From Ben Franklin
Day 5: Remembering Ben Franklin
Some highlights of our week...
On Day 1, the kids drew pictures of themselves as what they wanted to be when they grew up. Caleb drew himself as an "animal doctor" - Papaw, the veterinarian, will be proud. Jeremiah decided to draw himself as a "people doctor" - a happy Daddy may live vicariously through him. Finally, Miss Rachel created a drawing of herself as a princess. Hahaha - I told her she was already our princess, but she wants the castle, gowns, jewels, and the whole 9 yards. My babies can dream :)
Day 2 had us pouring over the map locating the great travels of Ben Franklin. As we always do, we compare the distance of the location to both Kentucky and Ethiopia. We then determine to which it is closest :)
We talked about electricity and inventions. The kids discussed what they wanted to invent.... Rachel wants food. Guess she will be the gourmet chef? The boys got out their TRIO blocks and created some interesting things. We shall see if there are any patents in the boys' future.
Best of all, we were able to study character traits. I find great value not just in learning about the achievements of historical figures, but the character which they possessed. We talked about honesty, courage, and bravery. This sparked some great discussion and real life applications were made.
My only issue with this particular DNG was the inclusion of a Family Tree. These very common often very popular activities are difficult for adoptive families. Even though we have more information about our children's family than most, this is not an activity we could complete tracking the biological family. Instead, we have to focus more on the children's people group and even then, it is so remote, that we are very limited in the information we have to share. I understand the importance of genealogy, family history and pride, and the historical implications of our forefathers and knowing where we came from. However, I feel this study could be equally as educational and wonderful without the inclusion of a family tree project. While I know this is something we will address more in the future as we have very open discussions in our home regarding our children's first family, this was an activity I opted not to use this time.
I encourage everyone to spend some time getting to know Ben Franklin. I believe a week would be a perfect start, and you would be at a real disadvantage if you tackled this project without the help of Amanda Bennett's Ben Franklin DNG Until November 22nd, you can purcase the Ben Franklin DNG from The Old Schoolhouse for $6.25 instead of the usual cost of $7.95. The unit can also be bought in a patriotic package including DNG's studying George Washington, Constitution Celebration, and Ben Franklin for $23.85.
Finally, I suggest you click here to read what other reviewers have to say about the Ben Franklin DNG. I always gain such insight from these reviewers and learn new way to expand our DNG studies. They all offer terrific ideas to use DNG's with your children.
Involve me and I learn.”
—Ben Franklin
An overview of our week studying the Ben Franklin DNG is included below as well as a small sampling of the activity pages found in this unit. The DNG series is complete with both notebooking and/or lapbooking options. The need to hunt for materials is eliminated because everything required to complete these tasks are provided for you. You can literally download the unit and go directly into quality learning. However, I highly encourage you to take a trip to your public library with the recommended reading list in hand. I know we have found some wonderful supplemental reading each of our units.
Day 1: Who Was Ben Franklin?
Day 2: People and Places in Ben Franklin’s Life
Day 3: The Accomplishments of Ben Franklin
Day 4: Lessons to Learn From Ben Franklin
Day 5: Remembering Ben Franklin
Some highlights of our week...
On Day 1, the kids drew pictures of themselves as what they wanted to be when they grew up. Caleb drew himself as an "animal doctor" - Papaw, the veterinarian, will be proud. Jeremiah decided to draw himself as a "people doctor" - a happy Daddy may live vicariously through him. Finally, Miss Rachel created a drawing of herself as a princess. Hahaha - I told her she was already our princess, but she wants the castle, gowns, jewels, and the whole 9 yards. My babies can dream :)
Day 2 had us pouring over the map locating the great travels of Ben Franklin. As we always do, we compare the distance of the location to both Kentucky and Ethiopia. We then determine to which it is closest :)
We talked about electricity and inventions. The kids discussed what they wanted to invent.... Rachel wants food. Guess she will be the gourmet chef? The boys got out their TRIO blocks and created some interesting things. We shall see if there are any patents in the boys' future.
Best of all, we were able to study character traits. I find great value not just in learning about the achievements of historical figures, but the character which they possessed. We talked about honesty, courage, and bravery. This sparked some great discussion and real life applications were made.
My only issue with this particular DNG was the inclusion of a Family Tree. These very common often very popular activities are difficult for adoptive families. Even though we have more information about our children's family than most, this is not an activity we could complete tracking the biological family. Instead, we have to focus more on the children's people group and even then, it is so remote, that we are very limited in the information we have to share. I understand the importance of genealogy, family history and pride, and the historical implications of our forefathers and knowing where we came from. However, I feel this study could be equally as educational and wonderful without the inclusion of a family tree project. While I know this is something we will address more in the future as we have very open discussions in our home regarding our children's first family, this was an activity I opted not to use this time.
I encourage everyone to spend some time getting to know Ben Franklin. I believe a week would be a perfect start, and you would be at a real disadvantage if you tackled this project without the help of Amanda Bennett's Ben Franklin DNG Until November 22nd, you can purcase the Ben Franklin DNG from The Old Schoolhouse for $6.25 instead of the usual cost of $7.95. The unit can also be bought in a patriotic package including DNG's studying George Washington, Constitution Celebration, and Ben Franklin for $23.85.
Finally, I suggest you click here to read what other reviewers have to say about the Ben Franklin DNG. I always gain such insight from these reviewers and learn new way to expand our DNG studies. They all offer terrific ideas to use DNG's with your children.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Operation Christmas Child
I love the short video below of a boy from Angola receiving his shoebox. The exhileration, excitement, and utter joy moves me to tears. Oh how happy this little one is by the gifts inside, and how happy I am that he will learn of the love of Jesus. Operation Christmas Child is a project that my kiddos and I will continue to support in the coming years. Would you please consider doing the same? It is so very easy to do!
PSPL Storytime
The kids have been attending Storytime at Paul Sawyier Public Library every Tuesday morning the past 6 weeks. While reading and learning about pumpkins, fall, the moon, dinosaurs, and shoes, they have had an absolute blast. Of all the library programs, I have attended with Caleb and now all 3 kiddos, this has by far been the very best experience. Ms. Lynn was phenomenal with the kids. She had interesting stories, music and movement, engaging activities, and creative crafts. The kids will be lost next Tuesday when we don't get to go to Storytime. We will anxiously be awaiting the spring program and really hope that Ms. Lynn is leading the session.
Monday, November 15, 2010
Change of Plans
It was one of those days... Mommy had an agenda, but the kiddos plans didn't jive. Unfortunately, more often than not, Mommy overrides, but not today. Instead, I embraced the change of plans my kiddos presented. Lesson learned - I should really do this more often!
Caleb brought me a Lego car to build. It was not as easy as I'm sure it should be due to the fact that I am constructional and spatially challenged. After I managed the amazing feat, Jeremiah had one in hand. I should have started with it because it was much easier. Uh-oh... no Lego car for Rachel better think fast Momma! I had picked up some clearance craft kits awhile back, so I dug in the stash. Sand art sounded good to me, so I got Rachel started on her masterpiece. As always, her solitude was short lived. The boys invaded, grabbed some glittery sand pens, and went to work painting butterflies and flowers. At least, they were all working well together!
I had 3 very happy little ones and was honestly I was quite pleased as well. Yes, I still have a messy living room and laundry to do, but that will always be there. Legos, sand art, and little smiles will disappear way too soon.
Caleb brought me a Lego car to build. It was not as easy as I'm sure it should be due to the fact that I am constructional and spatially challenged. After I managed the amazing feat, Jeremiah had one in hand. I should have started with it because it was much easier. Uh-oh... no Lego car for Rachel better think fast Momma! I had picked up some clearance craft kits awhile back, so I dug in the stash. Sand art sounded good to me, so I got Rachel started on her masterpiece. As always, her solitude was short lived. The boys invaded, grabbed some glittery sand pens, and went to work painting butterflies and flowers. At least, they were all working well together!
I had 3 very happy little ones and was honestly I was quite pleased as well. Yes, I still have a messy living room and laundry to do, but that will always be there. Legos, sand art, and little smiles will disappear way too soon.
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