Flanders Family

Lost and Found

Jennifer Flanders — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 22:54:48 +0000

As every mother knows, assigning “a place for everything” does not guarantee we will always find “everything in its place.” Items will inevitably turn up missing from time to time, and our family is no exception. The things we are most likely to lose at our house are winter coats, van keys, our six-year-old’s glucometer, and matching shoes for every child under eight. This, despite the fact that each of these items has a very clearly-defined and easily-accessible home.

So what are we to do when our stuff goes AWOL? The strategies I’ve found to be most effective are as follows:

Retrace your steps – If you’re the one who’s lost something, think back to where you last saw it, then check there and everywhere else you’ve been since you misplaced the item. If it’s your child who is missing something, walk him through these same steps.
Pray for God’s help in finding it – This should really be what you do first, but if you are anything like me, you may not remember to do it until you’ve already tried step #1 without success. The advantage to praying straight off the bat is that:

Nothing is hidden from God. He already knows where to find what you are looking for, and it’s a small matter for Him to steer you in the right direction.
Prayer has a calming effect, which is especially important if you were running late already.
Voicing a prayer keeps your tongue busy, so you are less likely to chew out the (ir)responsible party or to say something you’ll later regret.

Solicit help from family – The more people searching, the faster you’ll find it. You might even offer a small reward to the child who can locate it first.
Straighten as you go – Instead of ransacking the place, use the opportunity to tidy things up, and teach your children to do the same. If there are clothes or towels on the floor, don’t just leave them lying. Pick them up and put them on a hook or in a hamper while you are searching. Same goes for toys, books, coats, caps, pillows, blankets, etc. As other items in the room are picked up and put away, it will be easier to tell whether the lost item is there. If it isn’t, go to the next room and repeat the process. If you’re lucky, you won’t find what you’re looking for until the entire house is in order!
Buy duplicates – To avoid unnecessary delays in the future, you might also consider keeping extras of important items. That way, if your child can’t find his shoes or you discover a missing set of car keys on your way out the door, you can use the back-up pair now and search for the lost ones later.

What about you? What do you do when you can’t find something you need? If you’ve got other search-and-rescue strategies, please share!

Kids Eat Free at What About Kabob’s

Jennifer Flanders — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 22:20:37 +0000

Our family developed a taste for gyros while backpacking Europe several years ago. We ordered them everywhere they were served from London to Rome, but our favorites were the ones we ate at the train station in Munich. Mmmm-mmm! When we returned to Tyler, Doug went through withdrawal pains. We tried making them at home for awhile with supplies Doug ordered off Amazon. Doug maintained that what we really needed was a gyro shop right here in Tyler. He started pricing industrial-strength equipment and toying with the idea of opening a restaurant himself–in his spare time!

Fortunately, What About Kabob soon set up shop and saved us the trouble. Which is great, because they really know what they’re doing. Their menu is varied and everything on it is delicious, although my personal favorite is still the OG (Original Gyro). Doug likes the chimicanga gyro and drops in to eat one whenever he’s in the neighborhood. I’m hoping he’ll start bringing the rest of us along, as well, now that Kabob’s is letting kids eat free all day on Tuesday. One kids pita and fries per adult meal purchased, dine-in only. Come check it out! Maybe we’ll see you there.

How Do I Make a Home School Diploma?

Jennifer Flanders — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 15:01:05 +0000

Hi, Jennifer.

My homeschooled son will be graduating from high school in May. I’ve just about completed his transcript, but am wondering how to go about getting him a diploma. I remember seeing the ones you gave your kids at graduation, and I really liked them. Where did you order them?

- Kaye
Hi, Kaye.

I’ve always enjoyed calligraphy, so the diplomas we’ve awarded our graduates were handmade. You are welcome to use it as a pattern for your own if you like doing that sort of thing yourself.
If calligraphy is not your thing, you can also order a diploma online. The Diploma Store has several styles from which to choose, all for about $10 to $20, including shipping. If you prefer to print it yourself, you can download customizable templates (currently $2.95) or use this free diploma template and only be out the cost of your paper.

Congratulations to your son on his graduation and to you, Kaye, for persevering to the end!

Blessings on you both as you begin a new chapter of your lives.
Jennifer

Free Scrapbook Calendar

Jennifer Flanders — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 13:46:05 +0000

For years I’ve used copies of handmade calendars in all my children’s scrapbooks to save time on journaling. Now that my oldest son is married, his wife is continuing that tradition. She prefers to use the calendars I’ve drawn, but is much better at keeping her scrapbooks up-to-date than I am, so this year, I’ve made all twelve months in advance so that my daughter-in-law will have them when she needs them. I’ve uploaded them to our website, so feel free to print copies for yourself. And if you have any time-saving, scrapbooking shortcuts, please share back. Happy scrapping!

Read through the Bible in 2012

Jennifer Flanders — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 12:48:39 +0000

Our daughter Bethany found this 52-week Bible reading plan online, and we love it. Daily readings rotate through the epistles, history, gospels, poetry, prophesy, proverbs, and law, so readers get a nice variety throughout the week. No getting bogged down in Leviticus and Deuteronomy for a solid month! If you follow the source link, you can even sign up to have each day’s reading passage emailed to you–all for free. Users are also eligible for a 25% discount on Logos Bible Software, for more in-depth study. So sign up and start reading today.

view source

Hip-Hop Christmas Elves

Jennifer Flanders — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 12:33:43 +0000

And here’s another short from Jib-Jab. Aren’t they cute?

Hip-Hop Christmas Elves

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Singing Christmas Elves

Jennifer Flanders — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 11:50:50 +0000

Our little ones have had a great time making these JibJab videos this Christmas. Enjoy!

Singing Christmas Elves

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Overload Syndrome

Jennifer Flanders — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 17:22:23 +0000

If your stress level skyrockets this time of year, if your calendar’s over-committed, if the festivities leave you feeling frazzled, then this is the book for you. Subtitled “Learning to Live within Your Limits’, this book offers hope to the weary and worn. The author, who also wrote the equally helpful Margin, as well as one of my husband’s favorites, More Than Meets the Eye, is a Christian physician who “provides practical life-changing perscriptions” to the pervasive problem of spreading oneself too thin. That’s something most of the moms (and dads and kids) I know do routinely. How about you?

Advent Conspiracy

Jennifer Flanders — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 02:31:34 +0000

This book is subtitled “Can Christmas Still Change the World?” The world needs the good news of the gospel now more than ever, but as James admonishes, it’s of little use for us to tell the cold and hungry to “be warmed and filled” while making no attempt to meet their physical needs. This small volume encourages us to put our money where our mouth is and to use the abundance with which God has blessed us to improve the plight of those less fortunate. For a 2½-minute synopsis of what “Advent Conspiracy” is all about, watch the YouTube video by the same name.

Do You Have a Good Assignment Chart?

Jennifer Flanders — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 13:17:01 +0000

Hey Jennifer!

I have been trying to come up with a new homeschool chart for my kids’ actual school subjects… thought you might have something fabulous!! What are your favorite places to research new homeschool ideas??

- Ginger

Dear Ginger:

“Fabulous” is a tall order, but there might be something in the printable charts page of our homeschooling section that you could use. You’ll find weekly charts as well as semester planners there.

Honestly, though, I think a straightforward list is hard to beat. Here is a sample of the one I use for myself to keep track of the subjects I teach directly (both one-on-one tutoring and multi-level instruction). I print it off the computer as-is, then fill in the lesson numbers by hand at the beginning of each week. It helps to break down the assignments in such a way that I can check off each day’s work as I go (e.g., instead of writing “Lessons 1-5″ I’ll write out “L1 L2 L3 L4 L5″).

I do similar lists for the older kids with 4-6 weeks of assignments at a time so that they can work ahead if they want to (this example is from several years ago… David will be graduating from UTTyler this spring). The kids’ lists contains only their personal assignments, both for the courses I teach them directly as well as for reading and other coursework they are responsible to do independently. For the little kids, I print a simple chart for them to mark as they do their chores and lessons, but I keep track of the actual page and lesson numbers.

As for researching new ideas…. honestly, Ginger, I guess I try not to worry about that too much. Once I find a curriculum that works for us (like Saxon Math or Apologia Science), I just keep using it and don’t worry that there may be something bigger, better, or brighter elsewhere (I don’t believe there is, anyway). You could drive yourself crazy and possibly bankrupt with too much second-guessing and switching methods mid-stream. If I encounter an area in which the method I’ve picked does not get the results I want (like I had with spelling a few years back), then I ask browse around at The Scroll (grand re-opening today at their new location on Broadway) or ask other homeschool moms what they use (one of whom recommended Sequential Spelling, which has been WONDERFUL).

That said, word-of-mouth is a powerful endorsement, and if I hear very many people talking about a new idea, I will usually investigate. I also enjoy thumbing through issues of THIS OLD SCHOOLHOUSE and PRACTICAL HOMESCHOOLING. I often spend as much time reading the ads as I do the articles. And I also like to browse through the offerings at Timberdoodle and Vision Forum and to the read homeschool ideas on The Pioneer Woman and Large Family Logistics.

Hope that helps. Thanks for writing!
Jennifer