Enjoying the Chaos

Captain loves to color! You all know we love our KwikStix paint sticks, so when we were approached by the same company to try them Captain was super excited. What I was excited about was the 7 day cap off guarantee. Now I don't normally find markers all over the house with the lids off. What normally happens in my house is that "someone" swears they put the caps on correctly - but they don't click it all the way and the marker dries out. Well these new markers from  The Pencil Grip called Magic Stix  are awesome! They are available on prime from Amazon and I would definitely recommend them. The colors a bright and believe me I am a marker snob. There are no 'non' named brands in my house. I just can't stand wishy washy markers. When we use them I like to see the color and want it to last. You can see my Instagram post as soon as they came in the mail Captain started coloring with them. I left him on his own to see what he would create and we weren...

Pop over here to see some more  Wordless Wednesday Posts . Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” ©2011-2017 Chickensbunniesandhomeschool. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author Chickensbunniesandhomeschool.blogspot.com

At the end of November we welcomed a new family member into our home. She is adorable and has won the hearts of everyone here. She is such a loving little fur ball and is such fun to have around.  Isn't she just adorable! She lives in a a safe area of the house when we go out (she is still a puppy after all) Well last night we had an adventure. Hubby and I popped out with Captain and the older kids were at swim practice. On our return home, I was chatting on the phone with my mom who is on vacation so hubby went into the house first. He could hear the puppy jumping around excited for us to be home, but couldn't see her and she didn't come up to him. Finding it strange he looked around only to see this little fur-ball on the wrong side of the baby gate. Now this gate has small holes so there is no way she could have squeezed through. So after putting her back over the other side (to see if she tried to get over again). Yep within a few minutes she backed up as far...

I was invited by Hormel Gatherings to try some of their party trays! I am sure you all are always looking for an easy way to impress at your next gathering! My kids love the party packs from Hormel that include the pepperoni and salami choices. They are not as keen on the ham version. I am going to try the deluxe tray next. These packs can be kept in your refrigerator until you are ready to use them. The tray is perfect for storing and serving, which is perfect for when you don't want to worry about forgetting your special serving dishes. The packs we chose for our Thanksgiving get together had two kinds of cheese, 2 packs of crackers and a packet of salami and pepperoni. Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers...

While on a scavenging trip with her father, Amy is accidentally trapped in New Lithisle in Rondi Bauer Olson's All Things Now Living . At first her only goal is to escape, but when she meets Daniel, a New Lithisle boy, she begins to question how less-than-human the people of New Lithisle are. Amy's feelings grow even more conflicted when she learns she didn't end up in New Lithisle by mistake. Her father is secretly a sympathizer. Time is running short and Amy has to decide if she will bring the computer program her father wrote to his contact or save herself. Installing the program could prevent the dome's collapse, but if Amy doesn't find her father's contact in time, she'll die, along with everyone else. Stay up all night reading this thrilling new book from Rondi and enter to win a Kindle Fire! One grand prize winner will receive: A copy of All Things Now Living A Kindle Fire Enter today by clicking the icon below, but hurry! The giv...

This has been one of the best books I've read in a long time! It's a fun mystery with just the right amount of suspense for me! Plus I was fooled at the end I didn't guess who did it! Which is amazing because normally I know straight away. It's not full of all that junk stuff I don't want my kids to read so Boo got to read it too which is nice! She really enjoyed it as well. Here's a little blurb about the book! In the biggest case of her career, attorney Kate Sullivan is tapped as lead counsel to take on Mason Pharmaceutical because of a corporate cover-up related to its newest drug. After a whistleblower dies, Kate knows the stakes are much higher than her other lawsuits. Former Army Ranger turned private investigator Landon James is still haunted by mistakes made while serving overseas. Trying to forget the past, he is hired by Kate to look into the whistleblower's allegation and soon suspects that the company may be engaging in a dangerous g...

Boo and I have already started our Christmas cheer! Boo made her first pumpkin pie and then I helped deliver over a hundred pies to our local Salvation Army in time for their Thanksgiving dinner. It was a a very simple thing but one that hopefully brought a few smiles. I'm a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. My church is promoting the #LightTheWorld campaign again this year. Last year the kids and I followed along. We weren't perfect at doing something everyday but we tried and I think it helped improve the feeling of Christmas. This year I'm going to try and be more diligent. Boo and Captain have already printed off their calendar HERE   I don't believe in recreating the wheel - so I didn't make my own! You can also find all 25 videos HERE. You can have some fun with some Christmas GIFS HERE . I am so excited to see the joy this will bring to our family this Christmas season! We are already busy collected stuffed toys and socks to d...

I was excited to review another Amish book! I had read books by  Shelley Shepard Gray  before. This was was a fun read. There's a little love story and a gentle mystery going on. The story starts with Susana Schwartz hearing gun shots that cause her buggy to overturn, she is rescued by a single Amish guy (Neil Vance) with amazing eyes (of course). The story is full of miscommunication, jealousy, and of course Amish Christmas traditions. Other accidents happen; Susana's sister falls through the ice on what used to be a perfectly safe bridge, a barn burn down and then there is a disappearance on Christmas Eve.  Neil Vance has been heartbroken ever since his parents lost their family farm. He can't help feeling resentful; until he meets Susanna that is! He thinks the accidents are that - accidents. Will they be able to solve the mystery behind the accidents or will something more serious happen first! This is a fun read. I have read it and then passed it on to...

Last weekend I heard that our local Home Depot was offering an extra kids crafts clinic. These are quite a high priority in Captain's schedule as he LOVES them! It's so fun to collect the pins and add to his collection. This week it was a simple tree photo ornament, with a few nails and a bit if painting. They even let Boo do one. Captain got super excited for next week's craft! A Gingerbread House, even Boo want's to go back and do one! Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” ©2011-2017 Chickensbunniesandhomeschool. All rights reserved. ...

You have all heard about "Switched at Birth" stories. What if, you switched with a completely different life. Raised with completely different values and beliefs.  That's what happened in the series by Cindy Woodsmall. Her latest book  The Gathering Threads . It's the third book in the Amish of Summer Grove series.  I was chosen to review the third book; however, one look at the back cover sent me searching for the other two in the series. I found the first on another review site and then paid full price for the second on Amazon kindle - yes they are that good! The stories are spellbinding. I love how the relationships play out between the characters. The two families that are caught in the middle of the 'switch' mess are so different. The girls are raised so differently but each have their own struggles they are dealing with. One raised with basically no boundaries. Parents who have been separate all her life. In fact, they were never even married...

If you haven't tried any of the curriculum from Writing with Sharon Watson you are missing out! We have used Illuminating Literature - When Worlds Collide , and  The Power In Your Hands previously so Boo was super excited to receive  Illuminating Literature ~ Characters In Crisis to review. She is super impressed and will work on it for the rest of the school year! We received: Illuminating Literature : Characters in Crisis - Teacher's Guide Illuminating Literature : Quiz and Answer Manual Illuminating Literature: Text Book You can also download a Novel Notebook here. Boo loves this program. The first book covered is actually found in the text book and so it's really easy to get started with this program. We printed The Novel Notebook as it contains extra questions and ways to get the students involved in the book. Since we have used some of Sharon Watson's programs before I knew to do this straight away. The added questions in this notebook reall...

Boo is trying hard to memorize scriptures. We heard that the  Forbrain  from Sound of Life LTD could help with concentration and memorization. Boo was really excited to be chosen for the review. Captain has gotten some use out of it too. We have found it very adaptable for different situations. So carry on reading to find out more! What is  Forbrain  I hear you ask. It's a device that helps you use you own voice to help your brain be more attentive. It is a little head set that has a microphone. You speak into the microphone and you can hear yourself very loudly. It is perfect for using daily when reading aloud. Captain has been using this when he has to read aloud for school. He hates reading school texts and finds it hard to stay on task. Of course it's a different story when he reads for fun! Although Captain doesn't suffer with ADD or ADHD I have noticed that it helps him stay focused, I can really see the benefit for a child suffering with these condition...

It's been a crazy few days. We have some exciting changes on the way. Let's talk about a few. 1. Boo had her piano recital this last weekend and she did an amazing job. I'll be posting a video on our YouTube  channel soon! 2. We are having some trees cute down today. We have lived in our current house for about 6 months and have a ton of trees. There are a couple of problems with two of them. After getting some advice from a couple of tree experts it was decided we would remove two of them. Although it wasn't the reason a nice bonus is that I get sunlight in my house now!!! This may seem like a little thing but we used to live in a super bright house so it was a shock to have no direct sunlight! 3. BIG ANNOUNCEMENT coming on Friday!!!! Have a great week everyone!!! Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission....

You know how much we love  Kwik Stix from The Pencil Grip, Inc so we were super excited to receive the Thin Stix Creativity Pack to review! We have used and reviewed these so many times on the blog. You can see some of our creations here , and here I am sure there are a lot more too! Captain is a little older now but I still don't want him getting regular paint out unattended. Sometimes you need to be doing things while your kids paint and relax. I have no issues with him getting the Kwik Stixs out while I'm giving lessons in the morning, as I know there will be no mess. The pack we received this time is amazing. It comes with 24 different thin stixs. Captain loves the thin sticks as it allows him to be a little more creative and detail oriented now he's getting older. The 24 stixs are made up of 12 classic, 6 metallics, and 6 neon. The company claims that these stixs are dry in 90 seconds - I think they are dry in about of 60 seconds. In fact as soon as you paint...

We had such a fun time Saturday during our Home Depot kids craft morning. Captain was so excited to complete this craft. This kid loves cars and the fact he was going to make on out of wood had him intrigued. We arrived and picked up our kit, and Captain's pin. He remembered his apron this time! Sometimes he needs a little help understanding the kit but he had this one done before I remembered to grab my phone to take pictures. It took 4 nails and he decided not paint it as it came with some excellent stickers. This Humvee was chosen to represent Veteran's Day. My older children go to an online charter school now and they a great thing set up for Friday. They are having a ZOOM meeting with a Veteran from World War II. My kids are really excited to watch this video. They can also ask questions, so I already have them thinking about what they would like to ask. My Dad served in the British Military. However, we were very fortunate that he never had to serve during a war. Howe...

Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” ©2011-2017 Chickensbunniesandhomeschool. All rights reserved. All text, photographs, artwork, and other content may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written consent of the author Chickensbunniesandhomeschool.blogspot.com

I was recently sent a copy of Elder David A. Bednar's book  One by One . When this book arrived I was going through a few things and it actually sat by my computer for a few days. This last Sunday we had a lesson in Relief Society about the Holy Ghost. I don't know if it's related but for some reason today, I found the time to pick up his book and read it cover to cover. It was just what I needed and actually spoke to my heart today. So although I was sent this book to review, it actually touched my heart in a way today that I wanted to share with you. I don't think it was a coincidence that I picked up the book today. In fact it reaffirms the whole point that Elder Bednar is making. That Heavenly Father knows us as individuals and that he loves us individually. Elder Bednar shares many experiences to express the truth that we are important to Heavenly Father as individuals. He knows us and he knows our needs. I was reminded of a tender mercy through reading this...

I am already looking at school curriculum for next year. One thing I want to change is our science curriculum. Captain still loves the Magic School Bus and was super excited when they came back to Netflix. He also loves doing science experiments! I recently re-looked at the  Magic School House Science Kit.  There are so many topics available and I am sure that Captain would be super excited. Not only is there some fun projects to do it also comes in the MAIL - that's exciting in itself! Captain would be super excited just waiting for the new box to arrive each month! Look at those fun topics listed. I think if I had been taught science in such a fun way I might have enjoyed it more. I found that Educents is having a super sale and you can get the kit for just $119.99. For this you get one kit delivered every month! The kits themselves were developed by Harvard graduates and scientists! The website says they are suitable for kids 5-12 years old and since Captain fit...

We have been fortunate to be able to use  CTC's Family Plan  for the last few years. All of my kids love it. Captain is using grade four for his main math program and Boo and Jam have been using it as a supplement. Don't just take our word for it - you can  TRY IT FREE  to find out for yourself why we like it. Also Homeschoolers get a huge discount and 6 months free until November 15th! CTC's Family plan covers more kids than I have. It's one of the reasons I love this company. They don't expect everyone to have 2.4 kids! I think you can sign up at least five without any problems at all. I also like that this program is so easy to navigate that Captain and do his math, have it graded, and print out a reward certificate all by himself. Captain has used this program since kindergarten and so his is pretty used to it. I don't think there is a big learning curve though it's pretty straight forward. We have a teacher account and student accounts. If I...