The Cow Queen

Ugh

Last week, I wasn't feeling well. We had a head-cold or allergies or something yet undetermined. There were Tornado Watches and Warnings all over our area. I'm sure the weather system that brought them was not helping my sinus issues.

We were trying to get through some schoolwork. The morning started off well. (That means everyone was cooperating and in a good mood.) After lunch, I decided that we would do just a little more school and call it a day. During that time, I was trying to hold my head up and breathe. I made a noise like, "Ugh" with a sigh.

Prince: Are you o.k., Mama?Me: Yes, I just don't feel good.Princess: From all this schoolwork? I know how ya feel.

I'm linking up to Tiny Talk.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Tiny Talk on Adopting

Sometimes, just the prince and princess have the most interesting, insightful conversations. Just this week, they were working on school work when this gem popped up.

Prince: When I grow up I'm going to adopt a boy, but not get married.

Princess: If you get married, you get a gold ring.

Prince: You can buy one of those.

Princess: Well, if you adopt, you have to sign a lot of papers.

Where do they get this stuff?

I'm linking up to Tiny Talk.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

2 Comments

The Grass Is Green ...

I'm linking to Wordless Wednesday, Project Alicia, Five Minutes for Mom, Live and Love Outloud, Seven Clown Circus, Dagmar's momsense, and Better In Bulk.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

8 Comments

Hubcaps and School Pictures

Last week on my Tiny Talk Tuesday, I said, "It has been a while since I've posted any of my Tiny Talk Tuesdays. I hope I remember all of them to share with you." Well, I forgot to tell you two of them.

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On the princess' birthday, Prince Charming was teasing her about not having a present for her. He was seated on a bench and she was standing on it beside him. She had one hand on the back of his head, had her head side-by-side against his, and was stroking his beard on the other side of his face. He was denying that he had a present and she was gently insisting that he did. I was laughing at the whole scene. Prince Charming said, "I'm going to miss this when you're married." To which the princess replied, "Daddy, I'm only five!"

****

While we were at the Civil War Era school, we saw a bush with beautiful pink flowers on it. One of the other moms gardens a lot. So, I asked if it was a Camellia. She said that it was and the prince said, "It's not a chameleon. That's an animal."

****

Fast forward to this week:

We were in the local "mart" getting a few things. As we walked past an aisle, the prince stepped in a few feet and said, "Look Mama, hubcaps." That would have been a great find for him ... had we been in the auto department. However, we were in the kitchen area, and he was looking at drip pans for an electric stove.

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The princess was watching a cartoon about school pictures this week. I knew the show was okay for them to watch and just listened from the other room. When the show ended, the prince said, "Mama, can we have school picture day?" Then, I said, "Sure. We can have school picture day." Then, I thought, "with all two students in your school."

****

I'm linking to Tiny Talk Tuesday so you can see what other cute things the children are saying.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Civil War & A Birthday

It has been a while since I've posted any of my Tiny Talk Tuesdays. I hope I remember all of them to share with you.

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Back in February, we were studying the Civil War. Coincidentally, some homeschool friends of ours were also studying the Civil War. They borrowed a chest of Civil War memorabilia and invited other homeschoolers to come for a day of sharing. Homeschoolers were invited to study about a figure during the Civil War, make a poster and speech about that person, participate in a debate about an issue relevant to the war, and have a re-enactment. Unfortunately, the prince had a fever the day before the event. So, we stayed home that day.

As I was telling my father-in-law about the sickness and the missed event, he mentioned that his great-grandfather was in the Civil War. The conversation went like this:

Father-in-law: My great-grandfather was in the Civil War. He got shot in the back of the head.

Prince (indignantly): That's not fair.

My father-in-law went on to say that the Union doctors put a silver dollar in the bullet hole and put him in prison. We are still trying to determine why they would put a silver dollar in the wound.

Fast-forward to today: The students who made posters took them to a Civil War Era school in our town. The posters will be on display for visitors to see. Since we didn't have a poster, we met them there to see their posters and see the school for the first time. As they got their posters ready for display, we looked around. I pointed out some costumes and such that were on display. We started in the parlor and went to the dining room. When we got to the dining room, the prince became the tour guide. Gesturing to the exterior door, he said, "Mama, this is what they would called the 'back door.' "

I was looking at a poster on top of what I assume was the buffet for storing the precious china and silver. The princess noticed the key in the buffet. She said, "Look Mama. It is just like The Indian in the Cupboard." Yes, it was very similar to the key in the movie and only she would notice.

****

Last week, the princess had a birthday. She was really excited about turning 5. At one point, she asked if she could have some juice. I went to the pantry to get a new bottle of juice, and the conversation began:

Princess: Mama, there is some right there. (pointing to the kitchen counter)

Me: Yes, there is. I did not see that.

Princess: It's a good thing you have a 5-year-old to tell you.

Later in the week, we went shopping. As she trailed behind the prince and me, I kept hearing, '"Wait for the 5-year-old."

****

One day that week, the prince complained of his ear hurting. He kept touching it, and I decided that we needed to go to the doctor. Yep, he had an ear infection. While at the doctor, we saw several cute babies. During the visit to the pharmacy, we saw more cute babies. The princess has "baby radar." She can see them before I realize that anyone is around. On the way home, she said, "Country kids can track down babies by the sounds of their screams ... but not me. I can scream really loud." I'm not sure that it was a logical sentence, but true nonetheless!

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I'm linking to Tiny Talk Tuesday so you can see what other cute things the children are saying.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Tuesday, March 22, 2011

I See Sam -- Review

Title: I See Sam Little Book Reading Program

Vendor: Academic Success for All Learners

Target Ages: Grade K - 3.6 reading level

Format: books
Price: $150.00 or priced separately

The Early Childhood Reading sample pack includes:

Little Books Sets 1-4 (91 different books)
Little Books Instructor's Guide
Little Books Placement and Assessment Manual
Four Little Books Set Holder
Tracking Sheets and Completion Certificates

The Instructor's Guide and YouTube video will help to guide you in using this reading program.

Each short book begins with practice of sounds and words that will be used in that book. After the story, there are words to practice before moving on to the next story. In certain books, there is also a "Looking Back" assessment that will review sounds and words from previous books. Each book also has margin notes to remind the teacher to give positive praise and to ask questions to make sure the student is understanding the passage he read. You can get a free sample book here.

The Queen's Assessment:

Having never used a formal reading program, I didn't know what to expect with this review.

It was very easy to use. The placement and assessment manual was very helpful in helping us determine with which set of books to start. The prince originally tested lower than I thought he would. After a couple of books at that level, I re-assessed him and placed him higher.

We both loved this program. The prince enjoyed the stories, and I enjoyed watching him read without complaining. We made it part of our regular school time and not something that we would get to later in the day. Many times, he would choose to do reading as his first subject of the day. I've also noticed that he is attempting to read bigger words in everyday life ... without being prompted.

The prince did not like the "Looking Back" assessments. I think this had more to do with his not liking "timed" events. He could read fine and often finished before the allotted time with few or no errors.

I'm already thinking about when to start the princess on this program. Right now, she is learning some 3-letter words and trying to read books and papers that are meant for much older students. I think I feel a summer school project coming on!

Other Homeschool Crew Members reviewed this product. Be sure to find out what they thought at The Homeschool Crew Blog.

Disclaimer: This was a review of my experience with the product described. I tried to give a complete and honest assessment. In order to review the product, I received a free trial of the program with no additional compensation. This in no way influenced my review of the product. The opinions expressed are my own and were not affected or edited by anyone prior to publishing.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Monday, February 28, 2011

Math Rider -- REVIEW

$Photobucket$
Title: Math Rider Computer "Game"

Vendor: Math Rider

Target Ages: anyone needing to learn or sharpen basic math facts

Format: downloadable program
Price: $37.00 with a 30-DAY MONEY-BACK GUARANTEE

I have been looking for something that will give the prince some math practice without being all worksheets and flash cards. I was so glad to get the chance to review Math Rider. This fun computer-based game gives students a chance to practice basic facts of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. The game is set up as a student riding a horse through the MATHLANDS on a quest for various things. In the way, are hurdles that must be jumped. Each hurdle has a math equation attached to it. For the horse to successfully navigate the jump, the rider has to solve the equation before the rider gets to it. The computer responds to the student. If the student is answering quickly, another hurdle will appear. The faster the student answers, the more points he receives. There are bonus points for answering a certain number of equations in a series and for answering all questions quickly.

$Photobucket$
The Queen's Assessment:
Like I said, I was really looking forward to this review. I thought the prince would jump at the chance to do "computer games" instead of worksheets.

Our first attempt at Math Rider was met with excitement. We tried for one session. He made it through 2 parts of the first quest. Remember how I said the computer responds to the speed of the answers given? Well, once the horse reaches the hurdle, the next problem is presented. This proved to be a challenge for the prince. During the third part of his first quest, the computer actually suggested that he ask for help. I think he gets a little anxious about timed events. Add to that a struggle to get the right answer, and he was frustrated.

So, we took a break for a couple of weeks and focussed just on getting the basic facts right with worksheets, flashcards, and a homemade game. I studied the simple user's guide for Math Rider, and found out how to re-set it to start at the lowest level. When the prince came back to Math Rider, he was much more confident and was able to continue. He found that he was getting extra points for answering quickly and that made it all the more fun.

A report of progress is listed at the top of each quest as you go. In addition, as each ride is completed, a series of bars is presented to show how the student did. The green bars are for problems completed with no problems and red bars are for problems missed. The student can click on the red bars to see which problems they should work on. By just rolling over the bars, a window will indicate if you were slower than your previous time answering that problem.

At the starting point, there is a map of how far the rider has gone on the present quest. There is also a cue for practice runs, and a progress report. Again, parent/teacher and student can see which problems need more practice.

When our review period is over, I will seriously consider using this for more math practice. We do have subtraction, multiplication, and division to get to.

You can find a video of the game here.

Other Homeschool Crew Members reviewed this product. Be sure to find out what they thought at The Homeschool Crew Blog.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Friday, February 25, 2011

The Prince is still coming up with the witty comments.

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This week, he was watching Sid the Science Kid. Prince Charming came in and and a conversation started about the show. I can't remember what Prince Charming said, but I said something about how Sid likes to learn. The prince said, "He's not real AND he's a muppet."

****

The big excitement of the week was the truck that Prince Charming picked up for a friend. We are babysitting the truck and Prince Charming will deliver it to his out-of-state friend in a couple of weeks. In the meanwhile, the prince is keeping a close eye on when the truck comes and goes. He has been airing it out and even checked under the hood. Then, he asked Prince Charming, "Why does it have a joystick?" I guess he was too young to remember Prince Charming's previous truck that had a manual transmission.

Several times, he asked about Prince Charming's previous trucks and why we don't still have them. So, we discussed trade-ins and why you don't keep everything. Prince Charming made some crazy comment about it being time to trade me in. The prince looked at me with wide eyes.

Me: Do you want to trade me in and get a new mommy?

Prince: (thinking)

Me: (indignantly waiting)

Prince: We'll come visit you at the orphanage.

****

I'm linking to Tiny Talk Tuesday so you can see what other cute things the children are saying.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

The Lab Rat and Other Things Funny

The Prince has been up to some of his funny thoughts again. Really, they are never-ending, but these stand out to me from the past week:

We were doing some Science experiments in the kitchen. The lesson was on taste buds. So, we were tasting things. A part of the lesson even involved a blindfold. After saying three times that he didn't want to be a lab rat, I thought we were doomed. Prince Charming was home at the time and made some comment about how Dr. Jekyll had to taste a lot of things for his experiments. I made some comment about how that probably wasn't the best argument for science, and continued to lure the prince back to our lab. He relented and we finished the lesson.

It just so happened that this was also the day that we were going to have an introduction to the state of Florida (my home state). In our literature, we learned that Gatorade was developed at the University of Florida in the 1960s. The conversation went like this:

ME: Ya know what? I know somebody who tasted the Gatorade when they were first inventing it.

PRINCE: HO-LEE! Is he alive or dead?

ME: (half chuckling) He's alive.

*****

In a Grammar lesson, the instructions said to "write an argument to convince your parents to take you to the park. Use as many thinking and feeling verbs as you can." Not wanting him to actually ARGUE with me, I paraphrased:

ME: What would you say to me to talk me into taking you to the park?

PRINCE: How do you write, 'Let's not go to the park." ?

ME: (thinking he just wanted to get out of the assignment) No, you have to write about how you would talk me into taking you.

PRINCE: You know, Reverse Biology.

ME: (really trying to keep my composure) You mean "Reverse Psychology."

As he worked on it, I ran to the other room to tell Prince Charming.

Over the last few days, we have been working on math assignments that involve adding and subtracting 2-digit numbers. One day, we reviewed the previous day's assignment of adding 2 digit numbers. Then, we started doing subtraction. The Prince was having lots of daydreams during school that day. When I finally got him to focus on the assignment, he would add instead of subtract.

ME: We are doing subtraction.

PRINCE: UGH!! Bless you evil curses of math.

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I'm linking to Tiny Talk Tuesday so you can see what other cute things the children are saying.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

5 Comments

"Sunny" Florida

Yesterday, I told you about the Christmas trip home to visit my family. I think somebody forgot to tell Central Florida that we were coming and to roll out the sunshine.

I also told you about the prince taking a trip with his grandfather. They were going to visit the local strawberry growers. This is what they found:

That's ice!!! In Florida!!! The strawberry farmers are in the midst of harvesting their berries. To protect the crop, they use overhead irrigation when cold weather threatens their production. This was the 8th or 9th freeze this year. They will lose all the ripe berries, but the ice "blankets" will save the plants to continue production.

Prince Charming was able to go back a few days later. He spoke to the farmer and learned more about his production of 200 acres of berries (compared to our one acre).

I'm linking to A Beautiful Mess, Miles to Go, and Five Minutes for Mom.
The grass is green. It’s good to be

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

4 Comments

The Road Trip Funnies

On Christmas Day, we got up bright and early and left to visit The Queen's family for a few days. The day-long trip would take us to "Sunny Florida." We opened gifts along the way to keep things interesting.

On Tuesday, the prince grabbed a biscuit and juice and ran out the door for an adventure with his grandfather. He invited Prince Charming to go too, but Prince Charming just said to report back to him. So, they left. When they returned, I asked the prince what he learned. He said, "Grandpa knows more than you think he does."

*****

On the return trip, we again left early. We skipped breakfast and were going to get it on the road. As we got about 5 miles into our trip, Prince Charming and I were discussing if we wanted to get fuel and food before or after the big metropolitan area. We already decided that we wanted to get through that town before rush hour traffic. Then, the princess said, "Can we just get to Georgia already??"

*****

The next morning at breakfast, the prince asked, "When are we going to Florida?" Say what????

I'm linking to Tiny Talk Tuesday so you can see what other cute things the children are saying.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Best Blog Design at the Homeschool Blog Awards.

Monkey Business

Time is running out: Don't forget to vote for
The Cow Queen for the

The prince has been in rare form with his Tiny Talk lately. Here is just a sampling of the funny things:

We were working on his Latin assignment (watch for the review on this one). The directions said "circle yes or no" The question was "sunt means there are".

Prince: I'm just going to circle both.

Me: No, you can't do that. It is either "yes" or "no".

Prince: Is there a "not really sure?"

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We were on the way to church, and the princess asked if I knew any monkey songs. The closest I could come to a monkey song was "10 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed." (In hindsight, I should have made it 5 Little Monkeys) We I sang through all the verses. As I got to the last few monkeys, I would stop to let the children say what the doctor said. The last monkey to fall of the bed became the prince's turn to be the doctor:

Me: Mama called the doctor and the doctor said ...

Prince: I'm tired of you calling me all the time.

(laughter)

Prince: ... and how do you get Monkey blood out of the carpet?

****

As we were talking about Veteran's Day, the prince asked who we knew who were veterans. We listed a few. He knew that Prince Charming's dad was in the Army. He asked about my dad.

Me: He was in the Reserves.

Prince: What are the Reserves?

Me: They train people to be like people in the Army and keep them ready. If they don't have enough Army people, they call the Reserves to help.

Prince: So, he just sat around playing video games until they called?

Me: No, they didn't have video games back then. He was farming.

Later that night as he was preparing to brush his teeth...

Prince: So what do the "preserves" do?

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I'm linking to Tiny Talk Tuesday so you can see what other cute things the children are saying.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

3 Comments

Best Blog Design at the Homeschool Blog Awards.

The Stowaway

Don't forget to vote for The Cow Queen for the

Why would you possibly think anyone had access to my luggage without my knowledge?

I'm linking to A Beautiful Mess, And Miles to Go, and Five Minutes for Mom.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

5 Comments

A Big Responsibility

With elections quickly approaching, campain signs are e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e. One day, Prince Charming's father was riding with us when he noticed that one of the signs he put up the previous day was missing. Since then, the prince has been on the look-out for other signs for that candidate. One day, he noticed the smaller print on the sign.

Prince: "Mama, what does 'U.S.' stand for?"

Me: "United States is one thing that it can stand for. (gramatically incorrect, but that's how we roll sometimes) Where did you see it?"

Prince: "On the (candidate name) sign."

Me: "Yes, it stands for United States. He is wants to be a United States Senator and help make the laws."

Prince: "Wow. That's a big responsibility."

Me (half chuckling): "Yes. Yes, it is."

And who says "wisdom comes with age."

I am The Cow Queen and I approved this message.

*****

This past week, we started reading Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder. I grew up watching Little House on the Prairie on t.v. and have the boxed set of books from my childhood. The prince has seen an episode or two.

I love the family-value stories from childhood that have been replaced with mindless drivel in books and t.v. When we read or view something that is not appropriate behavior, we talk about how it is disrespectful or "not nice."

In the second chapter of Farmer Boy, Almanzo is told to leave the pie alone, or he will spoil his supper. Almanzo didn't think that made any sense. Then came the line:

"But of course, he could not say this to Mother; he had to obey her without a word."

Just then, the phone rang. As I went to answer it, I said (sarcastically), "Gee. Imagine that. Obeying without a word." (something we have been working on). Then, the prince said, "Mama, that was back in the old days." Oh, yeah?

I'm linking to Tiny Talk Tuesday so you can see what other cute things the children are saying.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

4 Comments

TAG!!! I'm IT.

I was never good at sports. I'm just not the athletic type. I don't even like watching sports. Well, Very Blessed Mamma over at Training Children Up For Christ tagged me. Now, I have been sucked in to a game of cyber-tag.

Here's how it works. I answer 8 questions and then tag 8 others and ask them 8 questions as well.

Here are the questions that I am to answer:

1. Why do you homeschool? When it was time for the prince to start Kindergarten, we didn't think he was ready. Compulsory age in our state is 7, so we decided to keep him at home and see how homeschooling would go. He had also been to speech therapy at the public school he was to attend. I was not happy with the level of security that I found there.

2. How do you make time for reading the scripture? Unfortunately, I don't find a lot of quiet time to spend in reading scripture. We use a bible-based curriculum, and I get a chance for discussion and reflection from that. I also joined First Place 4 Health through our church. It is a bible study weight loss class that meets once per week.

3. What is your favorite subject to teach to your children? I love reading with them. I don't love all the complexities of our language, but love helping them find joy in a book. Their imaginations can take off from there.

4. Do you like to cook? I like to cook, but I'm allergic to eating.

5. Do you have a home business? I guess you could say we have two home businesses. We have a service industry that puts Prince Charming on the road a lot. We also have a farm from which we sell 100% Grass-fed Beef and U-Pick Strawberries.

6. How do you incorporate family bible time? We use a bible-based curriculum. I like to include Prince Charming when we can, but mostly this is during school time. We use a bedtime devotional that the children love. We also discuss "what would Jesus do" when a situation arises that needs biblical direction.

7. Do you have a specific verse that you hold to for your home or homeschool? There is not one specific to our homeschool. For our home, there are probably many. We try to raise our children to be good Christians and good Americans.

8. What is your favorite thing to do as a family? Believe it or not, farm. During the summer, we like to go to the corner store (about 5 miles away) to get a cold drink and a snack. We, then, just drive around the farm looking at the cattle and the grass that they need to grow. The prince actually learned to count, by counting cows to make sure they were all there. The prince's favorite outside time is when he can help Prince Charming "do stuff."

Now, I'm going to tag these ladies. I hope they'll play along:

Simply at Home
The Joys of Homeschooling
Homeschooling, Autism, & "Stuff"
Peace Creek on the Prairie

Now, for the deep, dark secrets that I want to know:

1. Do you plan to homeschool "forever" or just for a season?

2. What is your biggest homeschooling challenge, and how do you handle it?

3. If you have multiple children, how do you find one-on-one time for instruction? (I mainly mean for younger children and reading.)

4. How do you find time for your own pleasure reading?

5. How do you find any time for yourself?

6. What is your favorite kid-friendly recipe? (you can just put the title, if you want -- I know where to find you ;) )

7. Why do you blog?

8. Boxers or briefs? Just kidding ... sweet or salty ... your favorite snack.

See, I told you I wasn't good at sports. This game of tag has taken me 5 days to do, and I still feel like I didn't make it worth the price of admission. Let's see if the folks I tagged can pick up the game.

The grass is green. It’s good to be

Monday, October 18, 2010