Are you getting ready to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day with your kids in January? Wikipedia states that Martin Luther King Junior was a champion of non-violent activism in the Civil Rights Movement. On the third Monday of January, we, the United States of America celebrate both him and the cause he championed with a paid Federal holiday. I have compiled a list of free and inexpensive Continue Reading >>
Homeschool Encouragement: Best of 2013
2013 has been a fabulous year. While we spent most of the year posting at Bow of Bronze, we saw steady growth and increased readership. On November 5th, we migrated our site and store over to Homeschool Encouragement and the growth explosion has been amazing! With the move comes a new focus on content. I am so excited to see where God takes Homeschool Encouragement in 2014! As we close Continue Reading >>
Flying with Children: Air Plane Travel – Preparation and Supplies
Last summer we traveled from California to Ohio by plane. With six children. Two adults, six children in fact -- which could be simple -- if all the children were teens. However, we were flying with not one, but two four-year-olds. Twins. Plus, we had a seven-year-old and nine-year-old in the mix. On the helpful end of the mix, we had a fourteen-year-old and twelve-year-old. I figured a little Continue Reading >>
Jane Austen: Ultimate Homeschool Resource List
This week was the anniversary of Jane Austen's birthday. I am in the process of creating beautiful and motivating copywork practice sheets for tween and teen girls using the quotes of famous authors. Yesterday I had the pleasure of sifting through her quotes to pick the best of the best. It was quite fun and made me want to read Emma, which I do not think I have ever read. Of course, I also want Continue Reading >>
Cool Whip Cookie Variations – a round up with printable
We love to bake during Christmas time -- it is a tradition passed down through generations of mothers in my family tree! Here's the thing though. I have six children. When I am ready to bake with them, I need quick and easy. Mixes are my friend. I first encountered these Cool Whip Cookies when we made them for my sister's graduation party. Then we lost the recipe and it was years before we found Continue Reading >>
See The Light: The Gift of Love Review and Giveaway
When we finished up our first review of a See The Light DVD, I asked my children their opinion. "Do you want me to request another dvd for review, or would you rather I not?" I asked each child one-on-one (so they didn't influence each other.) I was surprised to get 100% positive response from the five children who were involved in the art lessons. Even though the two little ones didn't even Continue Reading >>
C.S. Lewis – Ultimate Resource List for Homeschool Families
C.S. Lewis has been a family favorite for a long time. The first time I read The Chronicles of Narnia and knew anything of C.S. Lewis was after Dan and I were married. He was always horrified at first to hear of famous classics I had not read, and one particular Spring Break he gave me the boxed set of the series to read. Naturally, I read them straight through from morning to night until I Continue Reading >>
The Fine Line between Balance and Chaos
It has been a busy week at Encouraging Moms at Home. We are knee-deep in the 30 Days of Giveaways series -- about half-way through and still trying to get the word out about all the awesome prizes up for grabs and at the same time launching the brand new website into internet-land. That translates into a lot of extra work or this Mama. My children need me more then ever though! I found Continue Reading >>
What If You Can’t Read Aloud?
It's been a long time since I had my first surgery on my trachea. At two per year, I am up to 18 surgeries now. And every time they stick a pipe down my throat so that I can breathe again, my vocal chords take more damage. Reading aloud to my kids is hard for me, and reading aloud when during allergy season, or cold season is next to impossible. But I want my kids to hear Continue Reading >>
Before you Draw Conclusions
I put my four-year-old twins back into nighttime diapers this week. I feel like a total Mommy failure. I switched them over to diapers on the day they turned three -- cold turkey. We did some of the methods from Toilet Training In Less than a Day, but other than that we were all good. Except for night time wetting. For the last year and a half, I have been getting up at least once a night to Continue Reading >>