The Spring Garden

May flowers - tall white iris(ebay) in our backyard


Carrots(over-wintered)







Radish(Dollar General seed)






Tomato (Dollar General seed) and sage(over-wintered)


DIY silver plated spoon garden markers.




DIY spring wreath - lily of the valley.

Better Home and Gardens: Free Admission to Botanical Gardens 5/6/11

Nice freebie! I guess Friday will be field trip day. These printed out easily from a PDF download. See here for link to coupon and list of participating botanical gardens(nationwide)

Printable History of May Festivals for Children(Vintage)

From Our Boys and Girls children's magazine, Oliver Optic editor, Lee and Shepard, 1870:

Have any of our readers been "a-May-ing," as the common expression is? Have they found any of those sweet-scented May-flowers that are among the first of Nature's harbingers of green leaves and bright blossoms? But kings and princes went "a-May-ing" many generations ago, and with them went, as the old poet Chaucer says, "all the court, both most and least, to fetch the flowers fresh." In those early years, when Henry VIII. of England and Catharine of Arragon rode from their palace in Greenwich into the country to meet the people, and join with them in their festivities, there were jolly times on May-day, and, in fact, the whole month was joyful. Our May is colder and more disagreeable than that of England, and therefore our celebrations of May-day are usually very uncomfortable; but our ancestors brought the custom with them across the ocean; and, ever since, we have tried to have a good time with paper flowers, blue arms and noses, chilly processions, and bad colds.

Entire page here. To save and/or print, right click on the image of the page at the link. Free and in public domain.

Take a peak at the Table of Contents.

2011 Entertainment Coupon Books Now $15.00

I just purchased an "Entertainment" coupon book for South Jersey(vacation) and one for my area. The first book was only $15.00(retails for as much as $40.00), and the second book was only $10.00 with free shipping. Depending upon your area, these usually have some very usable coupons to local stores, entertainment, and dining.

The books probably have the best coupons in larger metropolitan areas and/or in tourist areas. I know for South Jersey there are some great discounts for museums, historical sites, fun parks, and family restaurants. These are all places we usually go, so the discounts will be worth the price of the book. This is the first time that I've purchased a book for my area. I'm hopeful that the coupons will at the very least cover the cost($10.00). We don't dine out much at all, but there are quite a few attractions and family fun activities near us where a discount would be a help.

I noticed that once you sign-up, they offer online coupons, a membership card for more discounts, and phone apps.

I'll update this post after I receive the booklets.

Printable Royal Tudor Family Paper Dolls

See more here. Click on images to enlarge and save.

A Few Children's Newspapers Online

New York Times Learning Network(We use this one - middle school and up)

The Learning Network provides teaching and learning materials and ideas based on New York Times content.

Teachers can use or adapt our lessons across subject areas and levels. Students can respond to our Opinion questions, take our News Quizzes, learn the Word of the Day, try our Test Yourself questions, complete a Fill-In or read our Poetry Pairings.

Weekly Reader(brief coverage) See top tabs for news by grades pre-K - grade six, and teens.

Scholastic News(elementary)

National Geographic for Kids(science: elementary-middle school)

Time Magazine for Kids/Classroom(K-6)

Amazon's Trade-in Program

I recently noticed that Amazon has a trade-in option! My son had been cleaning out his media, and I thought I'd check to see if I could list them on Amazon. The items were too common and selling for pennies; however, they were offering trade-ins for no less than a dollar each. So, I printed out the pre-paid label they provided, mailed the books and DVDs, and very soon had about $6.00 deposited into my Amazon account.

To find trade-in items simply enter your item in the Amazon search box and look for the "More Buying Options" window on the right. In that box, you'll see a button labeled "Trade in Here" with a price. It is located under the "Sell Yours Here" button.

Hereis an example listing.

I used my last balance to purchase a non-Amazon gift card.

Waning Interest in Cursive Writing

Students nationwide are still taught cursive, but many school districts are spending far less time teaching it and handwriting in general than they were years ago, said Steve Graham, a professor of education at Vanderbilt University. Most schools start teaching cursive in third grade, Professor Graham said. In the past, most would continue the study until the fifth or sixth grades — and some to the eighth grade — but many districts now teach cursive only in third grade, with fewer lessons.

“Schools today, we say we’re preparing our kids for the 21st century,” said Jacqueline DeChiaro, the principal of Van Schaick Elementary School in Cohoes, N.Y., who is debating whether to cut cursive. “Is cursive really a 21st-century skill?” Read more here.

I gave up on cursive with my son. He prefers print, and we didn't pursue cursive past fifth grade. I was the same way in giving it up in middle school for print. I do miss seeing it, but not enough to pursue it in our homeschool. My parents and older sister still write letters in cursive. Sometimes it's difficult for my son to read the letters. We just don't see it enough in our everyday life to keep it as a practiced skill.

Family Circus Classic

More here.

How To Use A Sewing Machine

An easy free series here.

Swimming Weather and Our DIY Stock Tank Pool

It has been warm enough on a few days to swim, so we put out our stock tank pool. We have too many trees to have a regular pool, and the area that is free is quite unlevel for an above ground pool. This rigid 300 gallon Rubbermaid stock tank can take the water pressure from the uneven rough ground. This is our second year with this pool. It was stored outside during the winter with no ill effects. The drain is a big plastic screw bolt which is replaceable if broken or lost.

In the summer, I put up an inexpensive netted lawn tent around the pool to keep the mosquitoes at bay.

Dollar Tree T-Shirts and DIY Decals

Picked up a few children's t-shirts at the Dollar Tree for my DIY decals. The shirt I made in March has washed well, so I thought I'd make more. Super deal! These are thick and without any noticeable flaws.

A few decals I'd like to add to t-shirts:

Vintage Book Finds

Some great finds at one of our local used book stores, about $5.00 each:

Misericordia Readers, Sixth Reader, 1934(Nihil Obstat Catholic school reader, Sisters of Mercy, Baltimore, Md)

1952 early reader, What's Next(third grade? - need to research) , Scott, Foresman and Company
Young Folks Library, 1902, Thomas Baily Aldrich, Hall & Locke Company.

Treasury of Life and Literature, Volume Four, 1937, Rollo Lyman, et al; Scribner.

The Lion of the North(30 years war), (first edition?), G.A. Henty, A.L. Burt Publisher

Some of these we'll use for summer reading.

World Stories Retold for Modern Boys and Girls

"World stories retold for modern boys and girls: one hundred and eighty-seven five-minute classic stories for retelling in home, Sunday School, children's services, public school grades, and "the story-hour" in public libraries, with practical suggestions for telling."

A 1914 free public domain book -a super story telling book for ages pre-K through age twelve.

See here for an alphabetical list of stories. Book is downloadable as a PDF, and pages are printable by right clicking on the images of the pages.

DIY Orange & Fennel Toner

"Fennel seeds & fennel essential oil contain plant estrogen & phytohormones that firm and rejuvenate the skin by stimulating the dermal cell metabolism... This lovely balancing, rejuvenating fragrant toner is especially beneficial for sluggish, untoned, lined skin whether it be oily or dry. Perfect for us oldies.."

Easy recipe here. I'm trying this tomorrow.

Ebook Reading Experience

After Christmas we bought a Kindle to read ebooks - classics and others available in public domain. It turns out none of us like reading virtual books on a small device. Fortunately, my husband found the Kindle very useful for his audio books, music, and random internet access from work. I've decided that nothing beats the sensory experience of holding a book in your hands, the crisp sound of turning pages, the smell of an old library, and their constant visual presence in the bookshelves. They become a part of your home, beckoning you to come visit. Similarly, public library visits have become a part of our routine, an enjoyable outing, and a stress reliever to quietly browse and wander among the stacks of books.

We still access school materials online, but when it came to reading for pleasure, the ebook readers just didn't cut it for us. The physical presence of books feels more like home.

Richard Norquist of About.com Grammar and Composition ponders:

"My dad never made it beyond Andrew Jackson High School, but the books he lovingly collected set me on a course that led to grad school and a career teaching English. So I'm not surprised by the results of the study.

But I wonder about what lies ahead--after the bookcases have been dismantled to make room for wall-sized LCD panels and all the books have been replaced by Kindles and iPads.

Sure, every book you can imagine will be available for download (along with every movie, TV program, and video game). But without the physical presence of books in the house, will kids experience the same sense of discovery and adventure? More importantly, will they still feel at home with books?"

Vintage Children's Cut Out Post Office Template

Original template here from a 1917 Primary Education Magazine. Free and in public domain.