Free Garden Lapbook

I don't know if you are like me and start seeds every year as part of a science lesson and then end up putting these seedlings into a backyard garden, but the process is always exciting in our household.  I logged onto email yesterday and was delighted to find a link to a free gardening lapbook.  I then went searching to see how I could share this link with you, and this is what I found:

Free Gardening Lapbook

Flower File Folder Game

More Garden Lapbooks

More Lapbooks from Currclick

This year, we have started our seedlings and they have been rapidly growing inside our house by the window.  Yes, we need to get them into the outside garden.  However, our weather has been so strange that the motivation just isn't there.

We never really had a winter to speak of.  Many people were excited about this, but I remain concerned that we will pay for the mild winter with extra bugs, mosquitoes and hot humid summer days.  Then again, I prefer it a bit chilly and should probably just go ahead and move up north to make everyone around me a bit happier.

When spring sprung early despite the ground hog's predictions (I guess that's what happens when a sleepy rodent is allowed to become meteorologist for the day) it suddenly became hot.  We had 90 degree days, or close to it, in April and May.  This did nothing for my motivation to go outside and weed a garden.

This week has been resort weather - Perfect temps and low humidity, but it was also my son's birthday and Mother's Day weekend coming with plans to celebrate with  my mom and sisters.  So, once again weeding and preparing the garden for planting got pushed down on the list.

Don't worry!  It's o.k. with me if we don't actually get much of a crop out of what we planted, though it is mighty fun to pick a pepper from a plant we started.  It was a fun science endeavor as is.  Though, as I type and glance over at our greenery bending toward the morning sunshine pouring into the window I feel a twinge of motivation to get these plants in the ground.

Day 5 Advent Jesse Tree

Today is Day 5 of the Advent Calendar Jesse Tree devotions. The symbol, or ornament, for Day 5 is that of a lamb.

The scriptures are Genesis 22:1-19 which is the account of God asking Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac; and

Isaiah 53:7 - "He was abused and punished, but he didn't open his mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. He was like a sheep that is silent when its wool is cut off. He didn't open his mouth."

John 1:29 - "John saw Jesus coming toward him the next day and said, "Look! This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."; and

1 Peter 1:19 - "Rather, the payment that freed you was the precious blood of Christ, the lamb with no defects or imperfections."

The Old and New Testament readings tie each other together by explaining that God tested Abraham's faith by asking him to sacrifice the son he had been promised. When God saw that Abraham would obey God even unto death, He stopped the sacrifice of his son and substituted a ram that God had supplied on the mountain. This was a foreshadowing of what would take place with the sacrifice of the promised Messiah, who died to take away the guilt of our sins.

The Advent Jesse Tree book points out:

It is interesting to note that the place Abraham was to sacrifice Isaac (Mt. Moriah) was the exact mountain in Jerusalem where Solomon's temple was built. When Christ died on Calvary, the veil of the Temple was torn, symbolizing the final end of the sacrificial system. Today the Moslem mosque, the Dome of the Rock, is located on this site.

Activity: The lesson and idea of a father being asked to kill a son is a hard one to share with children. It's a difficult concept that sin causes death including the death of an animal for a sacrifice for those sins. But, then add to it that God promises a son to Abraham and then asks him to sacrifice that son. Of course, God knew all along death would not come to Isaac through the hand of his father. It was an ultimate test for Abraham: Would he obey God or did he love the gift of his son, Isaac, more than he loved God who gave the gift. This Bible Lesson by Suite 101 is really a cute way to get this hard lesson across. It has a Red Light, Green Light game and even a recipe for an edible altar.

Today's ornament for the Jesse Tree is the symbol of a lamb. Of course, the first thing that comes to mind in making an ornament of a lamb is cotton balls. So, be creative. There are other options as well. Here's a nice fluffy lamb ornament from Kaboose.com. And, Joshclay.com describes how to make one out of polymer clay.

Day 3 Advent Jesse Tree - Rainbow Over Noah's Ark

Today is Day 3 of the Advent Calendar Jesse Tree devotions. The symbol, or ornament, for Day 3 is that of a rainbow over an ark as in Noah's Ark. The scriptures are Genesis 5-9 where you find the story account of Noah and the Ark. It is a lengthy passage, so you can read the story of Noah's Ark from a Children's Bible if you prefer for small children.

The scripture in regard to the promised covenant represented in the rainbow - Joshua 23:14 - "And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one thing has failed of all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you; all have come to pass for you, not one of them has failed."; and

The New Testament scripture: Romans 6:23 - "For the wages of sin [is] death; but the gift of God [is] eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

The Jesse Tree ties together the Old and New Testament readings by explaining the result of sin is death. Mankind had become so evil that God was about to destroy them (death). There was one man, however, who was faithful - Noah! Because of his righteousness and faithfulness, God provided a way for this man to be saved from the destruction that was about to take place. He instructed Noah how to build an ark (a big boat) that would save him, his family & animals from the destructive waters that would flood the earth. God, then sent a rainbow to signify His promise to never destroy the entire earth again with a flood. There have been floods since the time of Noah's Ark, but none have covered and destroyed the entire earth such as this one did. God has been true to his promise (rainbow).

In the Old Testament, the ark was what literally saved Noah's life. In the New Testament, that same kind of salvation comes from the Messiah, Jesus in a spiritual form.

Activity: A lot of fun can be done with Noah's Ark. Veggie Tales has a fun DVD out called Minnesota Cuke: In Search of Noah's Umbrella. Another interesting study can begin with reading about a real-life sized (almost) Noah's Ark that was built by a man in the Netherlands. If you have long colorful ribbons, dance around waving your ribbons in praise, forming arches of colorful ribbon rainbows.

The ornament for the Jesse Tree - the symbol of a rainbow over an Ark could be made with clay as you did with the ornament of the earth. This would involve many beautiful colors and the forming of a rainbow, then use brown clay to form the shape of an ark. Or, you could cut out pieces of felt in the shape of an ark and bend colorful pipe cleaners or ribbon in the shape of a rainbow over top. Another fun idea is to purchase wooden cutouts of Noah's Ark. Paint it, decorate it & then add the colorful ribbons on top as a tree hangar.

Trick Or Treat Safety Tips

Many homeschooling families opt out of Trick Or Treating and either avoid Halloween all together or choose to attend a Harvest Fest party instead. If you do choose to Trick or Treat this year, here's some tips for safety:

Trick Or Treating through the neighborhood has been a Halloween tradition for many years.  Though, emergency rooms across America report injuries on Halloween night including accidents from trips and falls and pre-Halloween pumpkin carving finger and hand laceration injuries.  Of course, there are other possibilities of danger when you cover up a child, inhibit their vision with a mask and send them out onto a busy street to walk to and from stranger's houses to gather candy and food items.  Still, families continue to pass down this tradition.  If you plan on sending your ... From: 11 Halloween Tips To Keep Your Kids Safe

How do I get a good picture at the pumpkin patch?

Smile - O.K. - Say cheese!  No, no - Look at mommy!  Smile!  Run, run, go get little Joey.  He just ran off!  Everyone at the same time - Smile!  Put the pumpkin down!  Now, put your hand down.  Move your head out of the way of your sister's face.  Look at the camera, look up here, up here!  Squash!  Mommy, Jimmy just sat in a rotten pumpkin!  If any of these sound familiar, you know you have tried to capture a special moment of your children on film.  If you've ever visited a pumpkin patch with a new baby or young children in an... From: 12 Tips for Taking Great Pictures of Your Children in the Pumpkin Patch

Back yard children garden producing more than a first bloom

Woohoo! We managed to get our garden set up and plants in the ground this year after extremely rainy days last year that prevented us from doing so.

We logged science hours as we got our hands dirty planting seeds in a little tray inside our house in early spring, watering the seedlings, watching them grown & then transferring the seedling plant into the ground inside the garden gate once we thought the last frost had passed.

Today, when the children went out to water, they were so excited to discover a bloom on one of the squash plants. They were jumping up and down and so happy. The fruit of all their work and waiting is starting to show in the form of an orangish yellow flower.

All this reward and excitement over a bloom of a vegetable they won't even eat. It leaves me to wonder how excited they would have been if they liked the taste of squash!

The kid's Recycled Organic Back Yard Garden in a 30 Second Video

We've actually got the seedlings into the ground in the garden and have been watering every day! Here's a 30 second video of our progress:

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

We had a good week in regard to progress on the backyard garden. But, also had our first disappointment. After getting everything in the ground, and watering for a few days, we went out today to find two tomato plants broken off. We have not yet determined if it was due to over zealous children watering them or from a bird or squirrel or such. But, we hope the remaining plants grow.

We used an online program where you can click and drag plants onto a virtual garden to help plan it, along with a book called Good Companions, about what to plant side by side to prevent common pests and help specific vegetables grow. Now, all we need is advice on a lemon tree as that's what my son wants.

In our effort to stay organic and recycle, we used the sides of a plastic milk jug to write the plant names - And, as strange as it sounds, they turned out really cute. I cut the circle section of the sides and then formed a tear drop shape to stake it into the ground.

Once again:

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

Going Green with Back Yard Kids Garden Saving Money on the Food Budget

Last year we started a project at our house: A Kids' garden. We thought it would be a great project to not only save money on vegetable expense eventually but also a great Science lesson and learning experience for the kids. We began by painting a fence to go around the garden.

But, last year brought tons and tons of rainy days making it very difficult to get this accomplished let alone get any seedlings into the ground.

We ended up planting our seedlings in containers and watching them grow on our deck. We even managed to get a little corn on the cob out of those containers.


As amazing as this was to watch grow and to even eat a small portion of what was edible, we still wanted to have an actual plot of ground set aside for the kids to have their own piece of the earth to plant things and watch them grow. This year, we started our seedlings which are flourishing in the house by a window and ready to put in the ground.



Meanwhile, we've managed to get the garden almost completely ready for their new plant residence.




We've painted the garden fence and added a screen to, hopefully, keep out rabbits and such.

We also plan on going green completely as we do not plan on using pesticides or weed killers, and we plan on planting specific herbs and flowers to keep away pests such as marigolds to keep dogs away & basil to assist in the growth of our tomatoes. Our hopes is that our children will enjoy this and actually want to eat their green veggies by the end of the season.