No Need For The Sunday Paper

photo via No Time For Flashcards

Happy Sunday to you all! Here are this weeks links! Oh, but before the links, don't forget that tomorrow is Muffin Tin Monday! The theme this week is Letters of the Alphabet. Feel free to take this theme and run with it anyway your hearts desire. Do just one letter, do a series, or even spell out a word with your foods! It's up to you! Hopefully tomorrow, Mr. Linky will be behaving himself. There are quite a few blog carnivals and link ups, so that could be the reason!



Now, where were we? Oh yes! The Sunday links!!



Parent Hacks: Use a sticky backed index card (yes, Post-it makes them!) to designate the cleaning tasks for each room in your home, that way, whoever is cleaning said room has a clear list of what needs to be done! Love it!



Let's Explore: Alter a cork coaster using painters tape and acrillic paints. This craft is so simple a preschooler could do it and yet chic enough, parents will want to make them too!



No Time For Flashcards: Unleash your child's inner Barista with this clever coffee inspired dramatic play idea from Allie....Makes me want a cup o' joe right now!



Wee Toes and Noggins: Wendy is giving away an absolutely gorgeous hand knitted scarflet to participate in Sew Mama Sew's May Giveaway Day as well as to raise awareness for the local Start! Heart Walk in her area! The winner is chosen June 1st, so there's still time to head over there and enter to win it.

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No Scripture today...

My heart yearns for you to go and open up your bibles and just start reading. The Psalms are a great place to get refreshed.

From The Archives: Make A Difference & Lead By Example

As parents, we are sometimes oblivious to the example we set for our children. Often times this point rears its ugly head when our children repeat a word (said by you) they should not say at the most embarrassing moment; like Christmas Dinner with your dear Aunt Betty sitting two chairs down. I truly madly deeply desire for my children not only to come to know God, but also have a core value system that reflects that knowledge of God. I want them to see integrity, honesty, and love emulated at home so that when they go to school, they have a foundation from which to draw upon during those moments when a tough choice needs to be made. I want them to have a love for others, their country, for the widow, the orphan, and the homeless. I want them to treasure the gift of creation and yet always be looking toward heaven. I want them to know what a healthly marriage looks like.

But it's not enough to just want those things.

How am I putting my words to the test? What kind of example am I setting for my children? What are my expectations of them? Do I need to adjust my value system in order to be teaching my children the right things? Are my words matching my actions?

Something to ponder today (or tonight).....

Your Kids Can Build It With Home Depot and Lowe's

Your local Home Depot and Lowe's both have fantastic free kid's workshops on Saturday mornings (Lowe's is every other Sat. and Home Depot is the first Sat. of every month) where kids can build a pre-fab project and gain not only a beginning knowledge of real tools, but also a sense of accomplishment and confidence!

At your child's workshop, they will recieve an apron (just like the grown up employee's wear) and a set of goggles to take home and bring back for every project they do! Upon completion of their project, they recieve a certificate and a patch or pin to adhere to their apron.

(every project comes with well documented instructions!)

As a non-handy parent, I find this oppurtunity wonderful and it allows me to provide them with the experience, without, ahem, being handy myself! To sign up for a workshop, visit your local Home Depot in person or Lowe's online or in person as space is limited from week to week.

"Five Green and Speckled Frogs" DIY Hand Puppet

If I am honest, I can't decide if this idea is super cute or kinda freaks me out. My sister-in-law (the one without kids) said she thought they looked like snakes and I have to agree a little! But, when I showed it to my kids, they were all over it! They tried it on, singing the song "Five Green and Speckled Frogs" and were having a ball together! So, I am back to thinking it's cute. Super simple execution, it's a gardening glove from the dollar store with googie eyes hot glued on!

We sang several rounds of the the song and I think I will keep it in their puppet/doll basket and they can pull it out whenever they fell the urge to sing "Five Green and Speckled Frogs" comes along!

For more frog ideas visit No Time For Flashcards. Allie has a video of the song, so if you are not familiar with it, you can see what it sounds like!

DIY File Folder Activity: Alphabet & Shape Match Up

I have a serious liking for all things that cost a dollar! Whether it's the dollar store, the dollar spot at target, the dollar section at Michael's Arts and Crafts, or even one of my fave online stops: Dollar Store Crafts, I am always on the lookout for ways to make learning and crafting not only fun but inexpensive!

Today's activity is no exception! It comes courtesy of my master teacher at the preschool I work at. We used Alphabet Wall Clings to make a File Folder Matching Activity. I don't normally use embellished fonts with my alphabet activities, but I couldn't resist as these were so cute! A bonus, the kids can match the letters and shapes! We used one cet for the file folder and one set for the pieces to match up. The kids loved it!

If you are wondering where you can find the Wall Clings I used, they're from the Dollar Tree and they look like this...

Because I already had the file folder and contact paper for "laminating", the entire project cost $2!! Woo-hoo!

Muffin Tin Monday

Welcome to Muffin Tin Monday! It's a low key day today seeing as it's Memorial Day!

We enjoyed another round of "fishing" using pretzel sticks for fishing poles,frosting for bait (we were out of peanut butter). It was sweet to hear the kids ask to "go fishing for plankton".



What did you make for Muffin Tin Monday? Share with us! Add your link to the form below!

No Need For The Sunday Paper

Tomorrow is Muffin Tin Monday and I am so glad it is a non-theme week because I am pooped from all of life's craziness! Stop by tomorrow and submit your posts/pics via Mr. Linky

This week's links promote fun, learning, and family togetherness and awareness:

ABC/123 Learning Cooperative: Gather some tips and learn a new thing or two about talking to your kids about respect.

Preschool Playbook: Make these super fireworks using paint and doilies! I know my kids would love this!

No Fuss Fabulous: I think I may have linked to this idea before, but I can't help but do it again! Maybe it's itch to nest, or my itch to create, or my itch for just plain cuteness....but these altered cans turned craft/play storage are so fantastic. Go check 'em out!

Teach your kids to "stay on the safe side" when it comes to interacting with strangers and people they "kinda know" with this fantastic DVD and website called The Safe Side. Produced by John Walsh of Amercia's Most Wanted and Julie Aigner-Clark of Baby Einstein, this series is well produced, highly educational and yet entertaining for kids. We watched the DVD this weekend after checking it out from our local library and I cannot recommend it enough as an excellent tool to use in teaching our kids about personal safety!

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Scripture for Sunday:

Hebrews 12:1-3

1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

Friday Find: RoseArt Molding Clay For $1 At Michael's Arts and Crafts

Modeling Clay is a great way to allow your child to explore such concepts as texture, design and an awareness of self accomplishment, all while strengthening the hands and fingers to increase fine motor skills! And for $1, this Friday Find can't be beat! (Note: Not for children under 3).

Rock Star (his new pet name, per him) made a pancake

How To Wow Your Infant, Toddler, & Preschooler In Under 1 Minute Or Less

Make an I SPY bottle! This standard kid craft is so clever and ingenious, it has stood the test of time, wowing children since the birth of the plastic water bottle (if not before!). It's allure is nigh unbeatable and I can see why! An I SPY bottle is so simple to make! Kids can even help.

The idea includes these simple materials:

Empty (and dry) water bottle, rice, small trinkets that fit inside, tape or glue to seal the opening (So little ones don't choke on trinkets).

And Presto-Chango! You have an instant activity that is cheap, fun and portable!


Here's a few ways we rock the I SPY bottle:

~We always play supervised-even when it's sealed...my daughter swallowed a dime recently, so I'm not taking any chances!

~We like the Voss Water Bottle brand (pictured above) for it's wide mouth opening and sleek symmetrical design.

~We only fill our bottle 2/3 full-perfect for shaking it up!

~ We like color, texture, shapes, letters and numbers when it comes to putting trinkets inside.

~Some good objects to start with are assorted beads and Mylar confetti- they're both small can carry that "wow" factor.

~We throw in a few familiar objects, so they can squeal "Hey, there's my..." and take ownership of what's inside.

This post is also part of I Blame My Mother's Kid Friendly Friday!

Wordless Wednesday

Brother and Sister sharing a private moment together. I was able to capture it...

Preschool Sensory Activity: Washing Rocks!

Shoe box size plastic container + a little soapy water + an old toothbrush +

a handful of rocks = washing rocks is tons of fun!

They had a blast washing away and sorting the clean rocks into containers!

Muffin Tin Monday: Choose Your Own Theme!

Muffin Tin Monday is a weekly blog carnival (here at HCO) of mommies, daddies, and caregivers who serve one meal a week (or more:) ) in a muffin tin! We post submissions (via Mr. Linky) every Monday and enjoy sharing and encouraging each other with simple and fun muffin tin meals. To submit your muffin tin meal, just add your blog post's URL in the form below. If you don't have a blog, post it to the Muffin Tin Meals Flickr Group. We try and do themes several times a month - so come join us! And remember, as always, you can be as basic or as detailed as you want!

This week's Muffin Tin Monday theme is "Choose Your Own Theme"

Our theme could go two ways:

Muffin Cups and Liners or Fruits and Veggies!

I first spotted these adorable Wilton Flower Fun Cups when Amanda used them to serve her daughter a muffin tin meal in them. They are so sweet, aren't they? We enjoyed a wonderful afternoon snack of fruit and veggies. Coach was home, so we made it a family affair and the kids were delighted to share their snack! It did mean that there was a round of seconds!

Click on the links below to see what other "Muffin Tin Mamas" are serving for Muffin Tin Monday! And to join us, just add your muffin tin meal post to the links listed below!

No Need For The Sunday Paper

Muffin Tin Monday is tomorrow! Woot Woot! The theme is "choose your own", if you need help picking your theme, be sure to check my post last week on muffin tin monday theme ideas! So stop by tomorrow with the link to your muffin tin monday post or photo from Flickr. Can't wait to see ladies!

Now, on to the Sunday links...Who needs the paper when you have links like these? And if you want even more links, be sure to check out my other No Need For the Sunday Paper Posts .

Joy's Hope: These cupcakes in a mason jar are so cute I practically licked the screen when seeing them for the first time. I held myself back, but am secretly looking for an event/reason to make them! Do I need a reason?

Chica and Jo: DIY CD/DVD Case. So cute and clever! They even offer up a free template for you to use! I am a mixed CD junkie and am always giving them a way to friends and family-I think this would be perfect!

Joy's Hope: She's having a custom cupcake stamp giveaway! Ack! So cute! Go check it out and enter to win!

Go Blog Yourself: I needed a laugh more than once yesterday and I can't believe (well, yes I can) how God provided this hilarious post about fun with pie charts for me from a woman who needed the laugh more than I did!


Indexed: I needed more humor yesterday...I needed A LOT of humor actually and this site was just the remedy. More fun with statistics, graphs and charts!

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Scripture for Sunday:

Psalms 25:6-7
Remember, O LORD, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses; for they have been ever of old.7 Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions: according to thy mercy remember thou me for thy goodness' sake, O LORD.

Psalms 27:7
Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me.

Psalms 30:10
Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me: LORD, be thou my helper.

Psalms 31:9
Have mercy upon me, O LORD, for I am in trouble: mine eye is consumed with grief, yea, my soul and my belly.10 For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing: my strength faileth because of mine iniquity, and my bones are consumed.

listen to this...it blessed my soul

Craft Giant Lacing Beads From A Foam Swim Noodle!

We played with this fun lacing project using some pretty unusual beads! It was a great way to take a fine motor skill activity like bead lacing and make it larger than life! The kids had fun, and the laced up beads quickly became "snakes" that they dragged around the house!

Here's how I did it. Gather your supplies: 1-2 foam noodles purchased from the dollar store. Yarn in any color, 1 chenille pipe cleaner (to make a "needle"), something to cut the foam with.

I used these household utility "scissors" that cut through virtually anything. They worked well. You could also try a hand saw, regular scissors, or a serrated knife...be willing to experiment, if things don't go well! :)

After you have cut all the "beads", tie one to the end of a length of yarn to stop the beads from falling off the end after they have been laced.



Make a lacing "needle" by doubling a piece of chenille pipe cleaner in half and twisting it around the same piece of yarn.

You are ready to start lacing! Thread the giant bead through the needle and along the yarn to make a "beaded" masterpiece!

We chose to use two foam swim noodles with different colors so that we could also work on ABAB patterning as well as fine motor skills. My only problem now is how and where to store them! got any ideas? :)

*This post based off a project seen in The Mailbox Magazine

How to Create Your Own Muffin Tin Meal Theme

"Ocean" Theme - we recently went "deep sea fishing" for clams, plankton, and starfish

Coming up this week, the theme for Muffin Tin Monday will be "Choose Your Own Theme". It must be a theme based tin (although as you know I am pretty lenient where this is concerned and always allow non-themed tins to add to Mr. Linky!). I thought I would take a minute, show you how I come up with theme ideas, and subsequently food ideas for the themes. This is really just get your own creative juices flowing!

1. I try and write down on paper (cuz that's how I roll...) themes that we haven't yet done both here at Her CUp Overfloweth and at the first MTM home, Sycamore Stirrings. We done so many themes over the past year that it's hard to remember what we haven't done!

2. Once I choose a theme for the upcoming week, I brainstorm (again, on paper), what possible foods could correspond to the theme. I think in terms of shape and color first and then try and think how I could alter the foods I have on hand to make my theme work.

3. For both theme and non theme tins, I always try and work with what I already have in the kitchen. I try and get very creative. If I have to buy a food, I make sure it's something we can eat later that week or something we already buy, but we are out of. There have been a few exceptions to this, but I try and make those very few and far between (and they usually involved sugar or candy:) ). I also try and make a few items my kids are not used to eating, so they can try something new!

Here are some theme suggestions for you,
if you are struggling with deciding what to do:


Circus
Outer Space
Shapes
Children's Books
Colors/Rainbow
Foods from a specific culture or heritage (i.e. mexican, italian, japanese)
Seasonal
Holiday
Insects/Bugs/Butterflies

Toppings

Breakfast

Monsters and Aliens

Cowboys and Indians

Fairytales

Favorite Movie

Letters of the Alphabet

Numbers/Counting

Hope this is enough to get the ideas flowing for next week!

Construction Paper Weaving

I thought this craft was going to turn out so great! It was colorful, spontaneous and the kids were really into helping me set up. The finished product looked so cute! They wanted to do one and I wanted to do it with them.

Until.

It became too difficult. They became frustrated and quickly lost interest and at one point my daughter even said "No, Mommy, you do it, you are better at it." That just broke my heart! So, I quickly discarded the weaving project and brought out our handy dandy creative memories small paper cutter and the kids went to town! Slicing and dicing little strips of paper to their hearts content. (Don't worry, the CM Paper cutter is specifically designed not to cut appendages and you can actually grip the blade with your hand and not get cut!) I was still supervising, however. :)

What I love about art projects that go horribly wrong is the opportunity it presents to talk to my kids about success and failure and trying hard and to focus on what really matters about creating something out of nothing. Yes, a finished project is nice. But, half of art is the process by which it happens-the creating is part of the fun! When something wasn't working (as in the paper weaving) we turned to what did work and made that work for us. I followed their lead this time. I understood that I was attempting something that was a little too complicated for where they are skill wise and that's okay too-it gave me a good read for future projects!

What I also love about failed projects is what happens afterward. The kids got out the paper cutter, which lead to getting the scissors out, which lead to also bringing out the glue and crayons! The failure of the weaving sparked their imaginations to play with the materials in such a way as to create their own masterpieces, their way. It was definitely a teachable moment! I don't have photos of much more, because as soon as they starting pulling out all their crafting supplies, I joined them in the fun!

Muffin Tin Monday - Theme: Children's Literature (2nd Edition)

Muffin Tin Monday is a weekly blog carnival (here at HCO) of mommies, daddies, and caregivers who serve one meal a week (or more:) ) in a muffin tin! We post submissions (via Mr. Linky) every Monday and enjoy sharing and encouraging each with simple and fun muffin tin meals. To submit your muffin tin, just add your blog post's URL in the form below. If you don't have a blog, post it to the Muffin Tin Meals Flickr Group. We try and do themes several times a month - so come join us! And remember, as always, you can be as basic or as detailed as you want!



Now, on to my terrible photos of our "Princess and the Pea" muffin tin meal!






(clementines and pretzels{fire by which the princess warms herself}, Turkey Sandwichs {matresses}, Peas, and Cheese {shaped like crowns}




Below is a page from the book as I read to them over dinner...

For fun, we put a pea inside our "matress" sandwich. Little Miss put a "crown" slice of cheese on top to represent the Princess Annasara sleeping on top.

We had so much fun! What children's book, story, or poem did you choose for this week's Muffin tin Monday Theme? Share it with us by entering your link in the form below!

Family Fun Magazine Winners

I used Random.org to generate my winners, I counted the twitter follows, tweets, and blog follows, subscriptions, and comments...



True Random Number Generator Min: 1 Max: 69 Result: 22 Powered by RANDOM.ORG



True Random Number Generator Min: 1 Max: 69 Result: 33 Powered by RANDOM.ORG

The Winners of the Family Fun Magazine Subscription Giveaway

are

Holly Noelle of Domestic Dork

and

Clemencia of Storytime and more

Thank you to everyone who participated!! Ladies, please email me (see my sidebar!) with your address and info so I can get your subscription in!

No Need For The Sunday Paper

photo via Just a Girl

Happy Mother's Day!!!

I know all of you are out and about, covorting with your wee ones and possibly even some extended family, so if you happen upon Her Cup Overfloweth today, then by all means...Happy reading and a very Happy Mother's Day to you all! May God bless you all for your daily sacrifices! My Mother's Day Family Fun Magazine Giveaway ends tonight at 11pm, so there's still time to enter!

Tomorrow is Muffin Tin Monday - the 2nd Children's Literature Edition -so if you would love to particpate make a muffin tin meal for you kidlet centered around a children's story and be sure to stop by tomorrow to share it with us! Can't wait!

You can read about my wonderful mother Robyn here!

Let's Explore: Interview Your little one (or big one!) on Mother's Day (that's today!) with Amy's charming (and sometimes hilarious!) Child's Interview of Their Mother- wouldn't it be fun to keep a catalogue of these from year to year and see how they change!

Divine Caroline: Article author and respective "Cool Mom" Julie Mahoney divulges some pretty perceptive and poignant stuff when it comes to "mom-bloggers". It's a great read!

Gidget Goes Home: Fellow San Diegan, Gidget, offers up some important and sage advise on the right sunscreen to buy for your child. YOu would be suprised to know which ones are on the "dangerous" list!

Get The Bean is hosting a giveaway of free coffee! Woot! Woot! Head on over and check them out! they have Teas too! There are lots of ways to enter and win!

Just A Girl: This welcome to the neighborhood gift is fabulous and thoughtful and at the same time practical! Go see for yourself what she came up with!

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And on this fine Mother's Day I offer you a portion of Proverbs 31 for today's scripture.

27 She watches over the affairs of her household ,and does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children arise and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her: 29 "Many women do noble things, but you surpass them all." 30 Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. 31 Give her the reward she has earned, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate.

May God show you today how much he treasures you not only as Mother's but also as His beloved child.

Mother's Day Giveaway: Family Fun Magazine!

This is a 2 day giveaway that ends Tomorrow (Sunday) night at 11pm PST. I am giving away 2 (two) 1 year subscriptions to Family Fun magazine!!

The world is going digital, I know and you can get a lot of what you want at the Family Fun website. However, wouldn't you agree that there is something intangibly special about sitting down on the couch, relaxing with a great magazine? What about the mommy-coveted privacy of the bathroom? Computers don't fit in there (well, unless you have a laptop-tee hee!)



So, there are three ways to enter to win:



1. Comment here and if you want, tell me the BEST thing about being a Mother!



2. Become a "follower" or subscriber via your favorite feed reader.



3. Become a follower of @HerCupOverflows on twitter.



4. Tweet about it on your twitter account and be sure to include @HerCupOverflows in the tweet.


Happy Mother's Day!

Toddler Time: Art At Their Level (Literally!)

Little Miss, circa late 2005

Toddlers (and older kids too!) love to be down on the floor, playing and exploring what is immediately in front of them. They are active, joyous little sponges and are only a glimpse of the bright little preschooler they will soon be!

My first born was barely able to walk it seemed before we had the arrival of our second and I was always looking for ways to spend time with and enterain my little toddler while the baby slept, er...ate, er...well you name it!

We had purchased a role of butcher paper from a teacher supply store (They now sell them by the role at places like Target). I didn't want to put it up on the wall because I knew...I just knew she would then want to color on the wall when the paper wasn't there.

So we spread it out across the floor (Sad but true, our old kitchen apartment was so small, the small section of paper almost covered the entire kitchen floor!). We grabbed some crayons and colored on the floor to our hearts content! Ironically, at that age, my daughter loved watching me color almost more than she loved coloring herself! She would beg me to create horribly ugly likenesses to Elmo (It's the one she's bending over to touch!) and other lovable characters. We kept our colored masterpiece on the floor for a whole week- adding to it a little more every day!

So, the next time you and your toddler are out of ideas for playtime, get down on their level, literally!

Handprint Fish

Celebrateall things Ocean and specifically, those little guys in the sea

with this sweet Handprint Fish!

Better yet, put this handprint on a card for mother's day with the caption:

"Of all the fish in the sea, YOU are one in a million!"

Preschool Science: Topics, Themes & Areas of Study

Playdough Volcano

I've compiled a list of topics and themes related to science for preschoolers. If there's anything I've missed feel free to leave a comment.

1. The Human Body & Healthy Habits (Also promotes self-awareness!)
2. Colors/Rainbows
3. The 5 Senses (Sight, Smell, Touch, Taste, Hear)
4. Insects (Bugs, Butterflies, Spiders,etc.)
5. Animals (including categories: mammals, reptiles, fish, etc.)
6. Dinosaurs
7. Weather/Seasons
8. Astonomy - Stars, Sun, Moon, Planets
9. Magnets
10. Plants and Gardening
11. Habitats
12. Geology - gemstones, rocks, dirt, soil
13. Motion/Gravity/Weight
14. Cause and Effect (Chemical reactions like oil and water or vinegar and baking soda)
14. Water and the Water Cycle

Teacher Gift: Upcycled & Altered Starbucks Frappucino Bottle

This week is Teacher Appreciation Week, tomorrow being the official day (as well as Cinco De Mayo). I made a few of these for the Teacher's in my and my children's lives! We hope they enjoy their special treat and know how much we appreciate them! My scalloped punch came in handy as well as foam adhesive circles and glue dots. Looks like I need to add another glue dot-the paper is lifting a little in that photo!

For a tutorial on how to alter not only the bottle but the cardboard carrier as well, visit iStamp/aka stampin at 6213. She puts my little piece to shame!

Muffin Tin Monday

Muffin Tin Monday is a weekly blog gathering (here at HCO) of mommies, daddies, and caregivers who serve one meal a week (or more:) ) in a muffin tin! We post submissions (here) every Monday and enjoy sharing and encouraging each with simple and fun muffin tin meals. To submit your muffin tin, just add your blog post's URL in the form below. If you don't have a blog, post it to the Muffin Tin Meals Flickr Group. We try and do themes several times a month - so come join us! And remember, as always, you can be as basic or as detailed as you want!

Not your typical Muffin Tin Meal...In Fact I made, ahem, asked my kids if we could share this Muffin Cup Dessert together and they happily agreed. Butterscotch chips, green srinkles, christmas sprinkles, white chocolate chips and vanilla ice cream! It was yummy! Next week's theme is a reprise of the Children's Literature theme. Choose a children's book or nursery rhyme and build a muffin tin meal around it!

What did you make for Muffin Tin Mondaytoday? Come a share it with us!

No Need For The Sunday Paper

Muffin Tin Monday is tomorrow! How fun was last week's theme? You all have the best ideas! There is no theme this week, so bring whatever you like! Mr. Linky has been working out pretty well I think! We were mentioned on a wonderful blog called the Daily Digi-in the Un-Digi section. :) Go check them out!

After you are done there, come back and check out this week's links!

Ramblings of a Crazy Woman: More ways to re-use a cereal box-Make flipflops! Ack! These are so cute!

Folding Trees: Found via One Pretty Thing. Um, I think I have weaving fever! Make a weaving project using white paper and strips of magazines!

Katie's Nesting Spot: Katie encourages us as moms to use those everyday moments to teach our little ones even the simplest of tasks-like sorting babies!

Bookworm's Booklist: This wonderful blog has so much to offer when it comes to children's books, promoting literacy, and has great ideas for storing and displaying books-including a clever raingutter bookcase!!

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Scripture For Today:

Micah 6:6-8

What does God want from us?

Justice. Mercy. Humility.

6 With what shall I come before the LORD

and bow down before the exalted God?

Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,

with calves a year old?

7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,

with ten thousand rivers of oil?

Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,

the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

8 He has showed you, O man, what is good.

And what does the LORD require of you?

To act justly and to love mercy

and to walk humbly with your God.

Friday Find: Word Strips (Oh, how I love The Dollar Tree)

I know the "school year" is almost at an end, however, here in our household, we will be continuing our learning throughout the summer. One of the things we will be working on is beginning "sight words" and beginning reading. Our Little Miss is eager to absorb as much information as her brain will take in (although she prefers Art time over Language any day!).

It was also brought to my attention, after she was put in a "combo" class at her preschool that she is not getting the kind of education we believe she is capable of. She is with students a whole year younger and her current teacher (she moved half way through the year) is focusing primarily on the younger set....So, to help Little Miss at home, I have tapped into the great resources that the Internet has to offer as well as offering some "hands on" work. For the hands on portion we purchased some word strips from the Dollar Store (At the Dollar Tree, they have a whole section dedicated to teaching materials!).

For Internet Resources we like: Starfall and Sight Words With Samson

I cut the strips in half (or in thirds) and wrote common "sight words"- words that are common in books at their reading level, but cannot be sounded out phonetically. For a listing of sight words for the Pre-k age, do a google search.



I started with her name and then moved on to Little Dude, Mommy and Daddy

I then wrote out a handful of beginning sight words for her to practice. what's also great about word strips is that, as we add more, we can use them to form sentences as we talk about the words. For nouns that they have not yet learned we will be using pictures from magazines and photographs.

And of course, every hard worker and student needs a (banana) slurpee to keep them going! :)

**Disclaimer: Every child is different and develops differently, so take cues from him/her to know where they are developmentally (in other words, not all five year olds are ready to read and write, but yours might be).