Another Quick House Project

We are starting school at our house this week....so, in case I am too busy filling little minds with all sorts of facts and figures....here is another quick house project....

I am trying to lighten up my house, including the kitchen, which has really nice, granite countertops....but, they are black and the cabinets are a dark, cherry stain.

Before....I know I need to clean off that counter....

So, I removed some of the doors and wanted to put something pretty and bright in the back.

I got a partial roll of wrapping paper from the Habitat for Humanity Restore site for $.25.  I carefully measured my space....measured again.....marked up my cardboard....measured once more....cut  the cardboard......carefully placed the cardboard....it wasn't perfect....but it was pretty good.

Then I wrapped my cardboard in my pretty, partial roll of wrapping paper.....put the backs in and then went to put the first shelf in....

Yup.  It ripped.

The shelves were too tight.

So, I started the process all over.....measured my separate shelves....a few times each....cut my cardboard.....re-wrapped my pieces....being very careful not to use too much because I just barely had enough the first way.....and...

It worked!!!

This quick, easy, DIY project took me over 4 hours to complete. 

I know. 

4 hours.

I was pretty crabby by the time I was done....and sore from climbing up and down the ladder.

So, I just put my dishes in and they are going to stay that way for a while.  I am sure I could have arranged them more artfully....but, oh, well....

Really, my new lighter, brighter, fun colors do NOT go with the earth tone backsplash at all....but I have decided I don't care about that right now either!

Oh, here is one more tidbit of a project.

My new colors are a pale yellow, a citrus-y green and aqua.....my living room is yellow, the dining room is the citrus-y green and I was thinking my bathroom would be the aqua.

It is a really little bathroom right next to the front door.  It is a very good thing we don't get much company, because if we did they would get lots of views of little hineys going potty with the door open!

Anyway, it is little and dark....just like lots of parts of my house.  So, my thought was that I would brighten it up with a fun color.

Before....just a blah, tan, bathroom.

Here is what happened....

It sort of glows in the dark.  It really does.

The kids all love it.  I just think that it is just too much.  It is really bright and sort of claustrophobia inducing at the same time.

But, the kids really love it.....so before I totally paint over it, I am going to try a white wash technique to tone it down a bit.  We will see what happens.

But, again, you can see how fancy this house is based on the mirror and the sink stand....so not me....I am really NOT a fancy schmancy person.

So, those are my updates for now.  I will show you what my school portion of the basement turned out like once I get my students in there!

A Thomas Jefferson Education

Any idea what that is?

Have you ever seen the quintessential homeschooler T-shirt?  The one that lists all the famous/successful people that have been homeschooled?

In addition to listing people like:

Agatha Christie
Benjamin Franklin
Abraham Lincoln
George Washington
Alexander Graham Bell

or the more recent names:

The Jonas Brothers
The Williams Sisters (Venus and Serena)
Hanson

....there is always one other name:

Thomas Jefferson

So, what would the definition of a Thomas Jefferson Education be?



Well, very simply put (there are a lot more details on the tjed.org site), it is the philosophy that every person has inner genius. And, a Thomas Jefferson Education consists of helping each student discover, develop and polish their genius.

It encourages parents to apply the 7 keys of Teaching:

1. Classics, Not Textbooks
2. Mentors, Not Professors
3. Inspire, Not Require
4. Structure Time, Not Content
5. Simplicity, Not Complexity
6. Quality, Not Conformity
7. You, Not Them

This type of education is also sometimes called "Leadership Education". In its basic philosophy, it explains the three different kinds of education styles:

- they are forced to study long, hard and effectively
      aka......the “Stick”

- they are convinced or manipulated to study long, hard and effectively
      aka......the “Carrot”

- they love to study long, hard and effectively
     aka.....the "Love Affair”


If this concept interests you, there is a book available, that explains this concept in greater detail.  A Thomas Jefferson Education is available for $15.95.


The author of this book, Oliver Demille, is of the mindset that the "Love Affair" method is the one that leads to greatness.

It is hard to argue with that logic....if you look at the people throughout history that have had this approach to their own education.

I had never really heard of Thomas Jefferson Education before I got the chance to review one of their subscription products put together by Oliver Demille's wife, Rachel, called This Week In History.


This Week In History is something that comes to my e-mail box weekly with....you guessed it..... things that happened This Week In History....for each day of the week.

Let me give you some examples of what scholarly things are included in their e-mails.



The leaning tower of pizza!  

Ha!  They were just kidding....it was actually about the construction of the campanile of the cathedral of Pisa that began back in 1173.

They go on to help you understand the words campanile and cathedral....then there are lots of facts about the Leaning Tower of Pisa.  Then it gives you ideas on constructing your own campanile or finding ones near your home.

Then it goes on to talk about important people who had been born or died this week in history as well.  Telling you why they or what they accomplished was important.

Or how about this.....


 Did you know there was such a thing as a zedonk?


Or really helpful information like July 29th was....



National Lasagna Day!  Complete with a quote from Garfield the Cat.


The e-mails really cover all the bases.  Science, math, history, literature, architecture, sports, entertainment.....and the content is probably for around age 6 and up.

Here, go click on this picture, and take a look at a sample week:



The great thing about this subscription is that I sort of don't have to do any work.  I don't even have to remember to go to their website because they send me everything I need in the e-mail.  Including links to activities and other resources right there.

I can't tell you what a time saver this is, number one to have it come to my e-mail box and that they have done all the research as to what happened on This Week in History, but all the other links and information are already in place too.

This subscription would meld well with just about any kind of curriculum you are currently using.....even if the curriculum you are using is....gasp.....public school.

I can really see it working great with the Charlotte Mason, unschooling mentality or delight directed learning styles, because you could just sort of wander through these e-mails and click on all the stuff that interested you, which would lead to more clicking and discovering....all without a textbook.

We use traditional textbook learning for most subjects, but I am using this as a "fun" supplement.  Usually, I will just have them sit down and take a look at the e-mail and see what interests them and sometimes I direct them to a specific part I think they will find interesting.

Quite honestly, I am the one that is  probably learning in more of the unschooling/delight directed learning style, because I can't seem to help clicking on the stuff I find interesting as I scroll through the e-mail. 

I guess you are never too old for delight directed learning.....or, maybe, somehow it is more acceptable when you are older.

You can also search through their archives for specific dates or events.  I think I will search each of the kid's birthdays and see what sorts of things have happened on those dates throughout the years.
The This Week in History subscription costs $9.99 per month.  You can access the information on their website or you can wait for the weekly e-mails.  I preferred getting the weekly e-mails so I didn't have to remember to go check out their site.

See what others on the TOS Review Crew thought of This Week in History.


Disclaimer:  I recieved a year long subscription for This Week In History in exchange for an honest review of their product.

Math Made Easy

Do I need to remind you about me and math at this point?  Or should it be, Math and I?

Yeah, I didn't think so.

However, this math product was a bit different than the higher math I have been looking at lately, because it is about making math easier for my younger kids.

It is called Math Made Easy.

Nice, sweet, simple, to the point.

And, true.

They have products for the classroom, but, I got to try out something that was created specifically for homeschoolers, Addition Teaching and Learning Made Easy .



The basic premise is sort of brilliant, in my opinion.


Their teaching philosophy is that kids need to memorize the math facts and not count on their fingers (which, I will admit, I sometimes still do).

The first step is to eliminate the easy stuff....like adding 1's and 0's....then you reduce redundancy because 3+2 is the same as 2+3 every time.

So, once you get those out of the way, that only leaves 36 facts to be learned.  You divide those into 6 weeks, with 6 facts being mastered each week and, "voila" you are done!

This approach presents the facts randomly to encourage actual memorization and not finger counting.

I love this little nugget of a book. 

Just like King Alfred's English, this is a small book, packed with a lot of good information.  TOTALLY different information, but they both surprised me because there such skinny books!  Apparently I am of the mindset that the thicker the book, the better the information!

I didn't know it, but their philosophy has been what I had already been trying to teach my kids with their current curriculum.

Like, the zeros and ones stuff being "no brainer" kind of facts.....or that 4+5 is EXACTLY the same as 5+4.  But, most times I would get a bit of a blank stare back from them.....and they would count it out on their fingers just to make sure I wasn't lying to them.

But, I have been more successful and getting rid of those blank stares, from A-man, at least.  This book is designed for grades 1 through 6, but even though S-girl will only be in Kindergarten this year, but I am going to use this approach with her when we start adding and see what happens.  I suspect there will be a huge difference in the results I usually get.


This book includes flashcards (already printed on card stock!) so you can drill your kids on the facts.  There are little addition games sprinkled throughout as well, so it isn't just jamming the facts into their heads.  They get to have a little fun too!

From a teacher perspective, it is really truth in adverstising, because they honestly couldn't have made math any easier for me to teach either.  The book has it laid out with a total overview of what you should do for a 6 week period....AND, then has it broken down by weekday for you. 

Usually, this is what Rainman and I end up sitting down to do on our own, when we find a good book or curriculum...breaking things down in what we think are the right sized pieces of information for the kids. 

Math Made Easy, already has it done.  I can't tell you how great that is, when I have five kids in school....in 5 different grades.  It may seem like a small thing....but, really, it is a huge thing!

Like I said, I think this approach is brilliant and cannot wait to see how it changes the way S-girl and, eventually, V-girl pick up on their math facts.  You are allowed to make copies for use within your immediate family, so these can be used for more than one kid! This makes the price even better for this little book.


You can get Math Made Easy Addition for $24.95, which includes the lesson plans, pre and post tests, the daily activities, games and flashcards (already on card stock!).

They also have a Math Made Easy Multiplication book for the same price, that I am going to buy, because I love the Addition book so much. 

See what other members of the TOS Review Crew thought about Math Made Easy Addition or Math Made Easy Multiplication.

Disclaimer:  I received a copy of Math Made Easy Addition for free, in exchange for an honest review.