"Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times ..."

Over the past school year, we have really gotten into listening to audiobooks.  I am horrible at reading aloud, especially books that have more than one main character, who all need to sound different.  In fact, I struggle with this issue even when reading silently to myself.  (On a side note - I have found that watching a tv/film version of said book helps immensely by giving me the voices in my head, though of course I cannot reproduce them aloud.)

Enter: audiobooks!  The first audiobook we listened to, about a year and a half ago, was The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien, narrated by Rob Inglis, and from then both SC and I were hooked on having a professional read to us.  As SC's reading skills began to develop, she even began to follow along with her own copy of the book, which exposed her to more words (and what they look like) than just listening alone would have.  Over this past year, she has gotten to where she can follow along without getting exhausted (which frequently happened when we started out), and we have found some great books that we love.

Many of the books we were able to find on audible.com, which is a monthly subscription service.  Each month we get 1 credit toward the purchase of any digital audiobook (they have larger packages), and considering the 1 credit costs only $16, and most of the audiobooks are $20-$30, it is a great savings.  We have also been able to find some at the public library (like the Harry Potter books), because they are not available digitally.

So, in reverse order of listening, here are our "read-alouds" for this past school year.

1. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, by J.K. Rowling, narrated by Jim Dale(currently listening)

2. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, by J.K. Rowling, narrated by Jim Dale

3. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, by J.K. Rowling, narrated by Jim Dale

4. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, by J.K. Rowling, narrated by Jim Dale

5. The Mysterious Benedict Society, by Trenton Lee Stewart, narrated by Del Roy

6. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum, narrated by Anne Hathaway

7. Coraline, by Neil Gaiman, narrated by the author

8. A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeline L'Engle, narrated by Hope Davis

9. Zorgamazoo by Robert Paul Weston, narrated by Alan Cumming

10. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, narrated by Jill Clayburgh

11. The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo, narrated by Juliet Stevenson

I should note, SC is very interested in fantasy/sci-fi stories, especially the darker ones.  In fact, the book from the list she liked least was From the Mixed-Up Files.  While these books are appropriate for her (and we spend quite a bit of time discussing them), they may not be appropriate for all 5 year olds.


*Are you making a list of the books you have "read aloud" this year?  Join me, as I will be adding this list to the "List it Tuesday" link-up here:

**This post contains affiliate links.  Please read my disclosure statement. 

Top Ten Tuesday: "Any glimpse into the life of an animal ..."

"Any glimpse into the life of an animal 

quickens our own and makes it 

so much the larger and better in every way."

-John Muir

A few weeks ago SC and I had the opportunity to tag along with AC on a trip to New York City, and one of the things we did was visit the Bronx Zoo.  As I was planning this zoo visit, I realized that in SC's five short years of life, we have visited quite a few zoos in the US already.  For this week's Top Ten Tuesday, I want to highlight the zoos we have been to, as well as a few we have yet to get to.

Zoos We Have ALREADY Visited:

1. San Diego Zoo

2. Houston Zoo

3. Los Angeles Zoo

4. The Bronx Zoo

*I think I would have loved The Bronx Zoo much more if we had not gone on "pay what you will" day.  There were so many people, including many large summer camp groups, that it was unmanageable for SC, and we didn't get to see even half the zoo before she insisted we leave and refused to look at any animals on our way out.

5. Fort Worth Zoo

6. Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma, WA)

Zoos We Have YET TO Visit:

7. Smithsonian's National Zoo (Washington, D.C.)

8. St. Louis Zoo

9. Woodland Park Zoo (Seattle, WA)

10. Audubon Zoo (New Orleans, LA)

PLUS, two foreign zoos I would love to visit:

Edinburgh Zoo

Toronto Zoo

What is your favorite zoo to visit?  Leave a comment below, then check out other Top Ten Tuesday posts here:

"The only tolerable state is having just written." Happy 1st Blogiversary!

“It's hell writing and it's hell not writing. 

The only tolerable state is having just written.”

-Robert Hass

Today marks the first "blogiversary" of Proverbs 2 Pursuit :: Wisdom.  As I look back on the last year and some of the posts I have made, I realize that I have grown in ways I did not expect.  Initially, the goal of this blog was to focus on my breakdown and learning about education, specifically as it relates to SC, and to chronicle our baby steps into homeschooling.  However, though we have done some of this, it has also been a place to talk about struggles with SC, to share the blessings God has bestowed upon our family, and a place to hash out what being a parent to SC really should look like, considering the uniqueness God created within her.  

I love what the blog has become, and while when I first started I was consumed with posting regularly in blog hops and getting my voice out there, I am much less stressed if I miss an "appointment," because I just don't have anything of quality to contribute that day.  I am okay if I don't post for a week because we were busy, or on vacation, or if my post is mostly pictures, or a brief bit of thankfulness.  I think over the past year, the blog has become less about "having a blog" and more a representation of me and our life, which is exactly what I want it to be.

So, in looking back today (which is Top Ten Tuesday), I wanted to highlight ten of my most-read/commented-upon posts, and I hope you enjoy them.

1. "Most people would walk along a path beside the river."

2. Thankful Thursday: 

"How Not to Have to [Wash] the Dishes"

3. Top Ten Tuesday:
PBS Kids Shows

4. Top Ten Tuesday:
"Home is home, though it be never so homely."

5. Top Ten Tuesday:
"Books and movies are like apples and oranges."

6. 2013-2014: K5/1st Curriculum:
"Look what a lot of things there are to learn..."

7. What 2 Read Wednesday:
"She was expecting something empowering."
Book Review: What We Talk About When We Talk About Anne Frank
stories by Nathan Englander

8. What 2 Read Wednesday:
"is the fleeting jolt of meaning that art gives us valuable?"
Book Review: The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

9. "...come to this hallowed place/ Where my friends' portraits hang and look thereon..."

10. "Once you learn to read, you will be forever free."

Which of these posts was your favorite to read, or is it one that I have not listed?  Leave a comment below, then check out some other Top Ten Tuesday posts here:

Top Ten Tuesday: "...it’s what we all carry with us on this trip we take"

"Their story, yours and mine -- 

it’s what we all carry with us on this trip we take, 

and we owe it to each other to respect our stories and learn from them."

—William Carlos Williams

This week I am excited SC and I are travelling along with AC to New York City.  I have been to NYC twice - once in 2005 when AC proposed, and once earlier this year when just I tagged along for a quick weekend.  However, many of the things I am going to be doing with SC will be things I will be doing for the first time.  It is disappointing that AC will have to be working during the days and miss experiencing many of these places with us, but I am thankful that we get to go with him and that it is much less expensive for us to take this trips since he will be working.

SC and I have prepared for this trip by reading From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg, which won the Newbery Medal in 1968, and I have reviewed on my latest What 2 Read Wednesday post.  We have also read a number of picture books, which you can see a list of here.  Finally, we watched Night at the Museum, Muppets Take Manhattan, and Ghostbusters, all of which take place in New York City and have places which we will be seeing while there.  Here is a list of ten places we will be going to while in NYC this week.

1. NY Public Library - Children's Book Exhibit 

http://www.nypl.org/events/exhibitions/abc-it?hspace=1

2. Central Park (SC really wants to ride on the carousel)

3. FAO Schwarz 

http://www.fao.com/shop/index.jsp?categoryId=3810526

4. Guggenheim

http://www.guggenheim.org/

5. Metropolitan Museum of Art

http://metmuseum.org/

and

The Cloisters

http://metmuseum.org/en/visit/visit-the-cloisters

6. American Museum of Natural History

http://www.amnh.org/

7. Cinderella (on Broadway)

http://www.cinderellaonbroadway.com/tickets

8. Bronx Zoo

http://www.bronxzoo.com/

9. Museum of Modern Art

http://www.moma.org/

10. Empire State Building

http://www.esbnyc.com/

We will also probably attempt to get a view of the Statue of Liberty, but will not travel over to it and Ellis Island this trip simply because they recently opened it back up and I think it will just be too busy and take up more time than SC has patience for.  Most of the places we will be going to we will spend just a couple hours before moving on.

Finally, after SC saw pictures of our having tea in London, we decided we are going to go to a special place for her to have proper tea while in NYC.  We found this cute little place called Alice's Tea Cup and have made reservations for a late afternoon tea.

What are some of your favorite places for families in New York City?  Leave a comment, and then check out more Top Ten Tuesday posts here:

Top Ten Tuesday: "Teaching a child not to step on a caterpillar..."

"Teaching a child not to step on a caterpillar 

is as valuable to the child as it is to the caterpillar."

-Bradley Millar

A few weeks ago I was mowing the lawn (something I love to do, by the way) and I noticed there were hundreds of fuzzy caterpillars all over my sunflower plants.  Worrying that they may be poisonous (as they were fuzzy), I ran inside and looked up "what caterpillars eat sunflowers" on Google and discovered that not only were they not poisonous, but that they are fairly easy to raise in jars through to butterflies.

Ten Easy Steps to Raise
Gorgone Checkerspot (Chlosyne gorgone) Butterflies:

1. Plant some sunflowers and wait for them to bloom.

2. Set up a jar with cut sunflower leaves and a stick or two, using cotton cheesecloth (or netting) for the top.

3. Look for the tiny, bright green caterpillar eggs that butterflies have laid on the underside of the sunflower leaves.

AND THEN

4. Go searching for evidence of caterpillars that have hatched.  Gorgone Checkerspot caterpillars will congregate to eat when they are really young, but venture out on their own as they get bigger.  They also kind-of skeletonize the sunflower leaves, which will be an indicator as well.

5. Gather a few caterpillars munching on the leaves and drop them carefully into the jar.

6.  Watch them eating.  Also, you may have to clean out their excrement (called frass) after a few days if you get them while they are very young, as well as provide them with new, fresh sunflower leaves.  Carefully remove the leaves they are on and wipe out the tiny frass with a damp paper towel.  Remove any mostly-eaten leaves, and then place new leaves into the jar.  Carefully place the leaves with the caterpillars on them back into the jar as well. **See #7.

  

7. When they are ready to perform metamorphosis, they will find a nice spot to curl up and hibernate   **Be careful if you are moving them around to clean inside the jar after they have started to curl up.  I had one adhere to the top of the cheesecloth a day before the others even started to slow down eating, but was able to lift it off carefully, place it over the mouth of a cup, and then replace it without disturbing the pupa.

8. It will only take a few hours before the outside of the pupa forms around them.

9.  Wait and watch the transformation.  This took at least a week.  Then, one afternoon, we noticed one of the pupa was transparent.

Upon further examination of our jar, we had one Gorgone Checkerspot butterfly ready to be released!  (It the below picture, you can see it drying its wings and waiting on us, but you can also see one of the other pupae as well, yet to emerge.)

10.  Release the butterfies back toward the sunflowers to do it all again.  I had to reach into the jar and let it ride up on my hand because it could not climb the glass and was not utilizing the stick, but that was okay.  After it flew away, it came back to say hi again and SC thought that was amazing.

Sorry that some of the pictures are blurry.  My nice extra-zoom camera only wanted to take pictures of the glass of the jar, so I was stuck using my phone, which only barely focused through the glass.

Sunflowers also attract other butterflies similar to the Gorgone Checkerspot; in fact, at first we thought we had Bordered Patch butterflies!  You could also plant parsley, dill or fennel to attract some Black Swallowtail butterflies, which produce long, fat, beautiful caterpillars, and of course planting milkweed will attract the Monarch butterfly and its offspring.  

Also, there are a number of companies that sell live baby caterpillars and will ship them to you, complete with a food substitute, small jar for them to pupate in, and a large cage to observe the butterflies once they emerge.  However, I don't think this is nearly as fun or educational as creating a home for them based on what they eat in the wild.

Finally, here are some early reader books that go along with learning about the life cycle of a caterpillar/butterfly:




        

Have you ever tried raising butterflies at home?  Leave a comment with how it went, and then check out some more Top Ten Tuesday posts here



**This post contains affiliate links.  Please read my disclosure statement.

Top Ten Tuesday: "Happiness is excitement that has found a settling down place..."

“Happiness is excitement that has found a settling down place, 

but there is always a little corner that keeps flapping around.” 

― E.L. Konigsburg, From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

This past year I had high hopes for read-alouds, but because I am just not very good at it, we really only read a couple of longer books.  Now that I have found that both SC and I do better for long read-alouds when we are both listening (i.e., audiobooks), the list for us to listen to for next year is getting long.  The books are, literally, piling up!  So, for Top Ten Tuesday, here are ten books already on our list of read-alouds for next year (in no particular order).

1. Zorgamazoo by Robert Paul Weston

2. Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman

3. Coraline by Neil Gaiman

4. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

5. Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George

6. The Apothecary by Maile Meloy

7. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konisburg

8. The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate

9. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle

10.  The Borrowers by Mary Norton

You may notice there are three books from author Neil Gaiman on the list, and that is because I got to hear a little of Fortunately, the Milk when I saw/heard Gaiman last week and it sounded incredible.  Coraline is one of SC's "favorite" (this is a right-now type statement for her) movies, and The Graveyard Book won the Newbery Award.  I don't think including three books from Gaiman waters down the list in any way.

Also, we are currently planning a trip to New York City (another tag-along with AC while he works), so we may try to read/listen to The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler before that trip at the end of July since the setting is the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and SC and I will be visiting it while we are there.  It is also one of my favorite childhood books and I cannot wait to share it with her!

Have you started your read-aloud list for next year yet?  Leave a comment with what's already on it, and then check out some more Top Ten Tuesday posts here

Top Ten Tuesday: "...we should ask him what books he read."

"If we encountered a man of rare intellect, 

we should ask him what books he read."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson, Letters and Social Aims (1876)

SC has really gotten off to a great start with her summer reading challenge, and for Top Ten Tuesday this week I am going to highlight some of the books she has read on her own to get through the first 15 points.  I have included how many points I awarded for each book, in case you want to do something similar.  Our reading challenge log is from Homeschool Creations.

1. Today I Will Fly by Mo Willems (1 point)


2. I Will Surprise My Friend by Mo Willems (1 point)

3. Penny and her Doll by Kevin Henkes (3 points)

4. Penny and her Song by Kevin Henkes (3 points)

5. That is Not a Good Idea by Mo Willems (1 point)

6. Sammy the Seal by Syd Hoff (3 points)

7. My Friend Rabbit by Eric Rohmann (1 point)

8. Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman (3 points)

9. Ten Apples Up on Top! by Theo. LeSieg (2 points)

10. Grandma, Grandpa and Me by Mercer Mayer (1 point)

What books have your kids read so far this summer?  What would you recommend for a beginning reader?  Leave a comment below, and then check out some other Top Ten Tuesday posts here:

**This post contains affiliate links.  Please read my disclosure statement.

Top Ten Tuesday: "I didn't want normal until I didn't have it anymore."

"I didn't want normal until I didn't have it anymore."

― Maggie Stiefvater, Lament: The Faerie Queen's Deception

I am not typically one for branding or advertising, but I read a good list last week of ten things one family uses all the time and realized I might have a few helpful hints that I have picked up as I have grown up in the past ten years.  So, for Top Ten Tuesday this week, here are ten things we cannot live without in our house:


1. Electric Tea Kettle:  My in-laws gave us this tea kettle for Christmas this year and I don't know how we lived at all without one.  We use this on a daily basis for coffee in the morning and tea later in the day.  This one is very simple and it works great.

2. Mrs. Meyer's Laundry Detergent: This is the only laundry detergent we have found that will really get out the smell of urine the first time through the wash (if you have potty trained, you will know this is a must).  I have only ever used the geranium smell, and while it seems overwhelming when the clothes first come out of the wash/dryer, it is barely lingering when I pull them from the closet to wear.  They just smell clean.  I have read that some of the other scents will stick around for a long time and smell horrible, but I can attest this is not the case with this one. 

3. Greenling:  This is the local farm-to-consumer delivery service, and if you live anywhere in Texas, please check them out to see if they are delivering to your area.  They deliver local produce, meats, eggs and other goodies weekly, and their prices are comparable to those you would find at Whole Foods or Central Market.  For me, the nearest Whole Foods is almost an hour away, so having my "green box" delivered to my doorstep has been a huge gas-saving blessing.  They also give information about each of the farms/ranches that provides them with products so you can make an informed choice. You can shop by a pre-selected "local box" that changes weekly, or you can create your own box by choosing items individually.  They even offer "meal kits" for those short on time, complete with recipes.
Check out Greenling here.

*If you are not in Texas and/or Greenling does not deliver to your area, I urge you to seek out local farm co-ops and meat producers and give them a try.

4. French Press: We make coffee most mornings, but neither AC nor I drink it all day long.  This means that the typical 10-cup or 12-cup coffee maker is just too much for us.  We tried a Keurig machine for a while, but it was so much mess because we never really liked the coffee (or teas) that came already in a pod, so we had to use the pods where you pack it in yourself.  Eventually we just gave up.  We discovered a French press and are immensely happy now.  It is very simple to use, makes the perfect amount for a cup or two of coffee in the morning, is easy to transport the grounds out to the composter, and cleans up in the dishwasher.

5. Netflix: Before SC was born, and before streaming movies over the internet was a "thing," AC and I have had a Netflix account.  However, we no longer have the DVD account, and what I really love most about it now is that it will open into a split adults/kids section.  I can choose the kids version, SC could navigate it by the time she was 3 because it has a scrollbar at the top that is just pictures of recognizable characters, and it includes many of the PBS shows we like to watch (at the most convenient time for us).  We can also stream it on a phone or iPad anywhere we have WiFi, which has been great for eating up time in airports or other non-productive places that SC needs to sit still.  It has also been nice to catch up on shows AC and I like to watch, but not be glued to a set TV schedule every week.
Check out Netflix here.

6. Apple TV: We have had an Apple TV since they were first introduced, and it is an item we could not live without in order to stream music from the computers to the stereo speakers.  It has also been great, since SC was born, to be able to stream photos onto our large-screen television for viewing by family instead of having to all huddle around a 13" laptop screen.

Find Apple TV at Amazon's Apple Store Here

7. Canus Orange & Clary Sage Goat's Milk Soap: I will admit, I have always been a fairly stinky person.  I am pretty sure I got my dad's sweat/stink genes and it has been a long time coming where I feel comfortable when the 100 degree temps arrive in Texas.  However, about two years ago, I was doing research into essential oils, soap making, and deodorant making as a last-ditch effort to find products that really worked at getting me clean and controlling my body odor without using a ton of chemicals that would just cause other problems, I came across this soap at Whole Foods.  It has changed my life.  It is the only soap I have ever used (since I was a teenager at least) that I get out of the shower not already smelling myself.  I may have an oversensitive sense of smell (especially when it comes to my own body odor), but for as long as I can remember, I have always bathed, washed certain areas three or four separate times while in the shower, and stepped out only to rush to the deodorant and slather it on because I still could smell myself.  This soup is superb, does not dry out my skin, and the essential oils get rid of the body odor in a major way.

8. iPad Mini: We gave in around Christmas and bought a "family" iPad Mini and it has been a great purchase for the whole family.  SC gets to play a ton of cheap, educational games, AC gets to use it for some grown-up games, tracking travel and sports scores, and I have my recipe app on it that I use while cooking.  We do not have 4G on it, so we can only use the internet when we have WiFi and that has not been a problem at all.  Also, the size of the iPad Mini is perfect of SC to hold.  I think the larger one would be ungainly and would end up being dropped quite often.

9. Charcoal Grill & Smoker:  A few years ago for Fathers' Day AC got to pick out a new grill/smoker.  We had a gas grill but he really wanted to try his hand at smoking, specifically brisket.  After a few uses of the smoker and its subsequent grill attachment, we gave the gas grill away to a family member.  Though it seems like it may take longer to get a charcoal grill going for dinner, it really doesn't, and the exquisite flavor of a charcoal grill (and the mesquite wood we throw in) makes any extra work (the steps to start the fire) worth it.

10. PlayStation 3:  Last, but definitely not the least on this list, is our PS3, which has grown and changed in usefulness as media forms have grown and changed.  It is a gaming device (which both SC and AC use equally, if not often), but it is also a BluRay player and our Netflix and Amazon Prime streaming player.  Though we initially only purchased it so AC could play video games (pre-SC) and watch movies once in a while (before everything came out in BluRay), it has changed and grown as our family has.  At this point we have no plans to buy the soon-to-be-released PS4 and will probably hold off until the PS3 no longer works.

Obviously we are technology bugs over here, which I suppose is appropriate considering AC's job in the technology field.  What are some of the items that your family cannot live without?  Leave a comment and then check out some other Top Ten Tuesday posts here

**This post contains affiliate links.  Please read my disclosure statement.