Home Educator Week Colonial Williamsburg 2009 September 29, 2009

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Daddy, Fairy Girl, Lego Boy, Sunshine, and Jelly Bean all took turns sawing the wood until finally Jelly Bean, Sunshine, and Daddy were able to saw the wood slice off.

We learned that America was built on Slavery and Tobacco from the story tellers

Re-enactment in Colonial Williamsburg

Hmmmm…..

We went to the press room- for related photos look at the slide show above.

Jelly Bean spent quite a bit of our vacation on Daddies shoulders.

Lego Boy spent his allowance on a Colonial Williamsburg musket.

My Jelly Bean

Homeschool Family Vacation Washington D.C. 2009 Day 1 September 29, 2009

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This was our first day in D.C. after checking in to the hotel, finding parking (not a fun thing to do), we then headed out to venture around D.C. First stop the Washington Monument.

A view from the Washington Monument- you can see the Capitol Building in the distance.

WWII Memorial

WWI Memorial

Vietnam Memorial

In front of the Abraham Lincoln Memorial – viewing the Reflection Pool

Standing in Awe at the Abraham Lincoln Memorial- one feels like a tiny ant next to the vastness of the Memorial.  President Lincoln is one of my favorite Presidents : )

Standing in front of the grandness of Abraham Lincoln.

It was REALLY hard to get a group photo as everyone kept stepping right in front of us- I will have to photo shop these two photos into one later : )

One of the most memorable locations we saw along our 3 day family vacation.

The Korean Memorial- Papa served in this war when he and Mama were first married.  He tells stories of the boat ride over with him and his brother, who served together in this war.

A Reminder to us all- especially those who tend to forget! You can see David and Lego Boy’s reflection- Though we did not plan it this way, I think it is symbolic of Father and Son : ) and how precious it is to fight for our FREEDOM!

After a VERY long day of traveling, and touring D.C. we paused in front of the White House.  This is about as close as you can get since 9/11.  I believe we were two streets over.  There were police officers everywhere.  We even spotted a sniper on top of the White House.

Jelly Bean was our Sheriff for the day- we stopped at a Crackel Barrel along our driving route and this is what Jelly Bean decided she wanted from the gift shop- see the shiny badge?

Heading back to the hotel where we promptly landed our heads on the pillows and fell fast asleep- no exaggerations here!

Homeschool Field Trip Day 2 Mount Vernon September 29, 2009

http://www.mountvernon.org/

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My Darling Husband and Me at Mount Vernon.

A tree planted at Mount Vernon with the Potomac River in the back.

I Love this picture of Lego Boy and Dad- I LOVE my Guys : )

Fairy Girl with Mount Vernon behind here, which is George Washington’s house (The United States of America’s first President).

Peace Sunshine- Peace.

Mount Vernon’s information center.  The staff was VERY welcoming and VERY nice and informative.  Visiting Mount Vernon was a pleasant experience I would recommend to anyone.

George Washington’s garden- it has been maintained to uphold his original garden.  George Washington was our first president but he states he was first and foremost a farmer.  George Washington also surveyed land.  In addition, an interesting fact is- from the age of 11 he self taught himself (YEP- he was homeschooled).  His father died when he was 11 and George Washington learned everything he knew from the collection of books he had.  The reason we know so much about him is- he kept a daily journal.  George Washington inherited Mount Vernon from his brother, Laurence when Laurence died of tuberculosis.  George Washington himself died of Quinsy, which was pretty much a severe throat infection.

One of George Washington’s last testament was he wanted a new tomb built and he wanted his family and himself relocated to this tomb.  His last testament was fulfilled and the new tomb was completed and Washington and his family was relocated.  After Washington’s death, someone approached Martha (George Washington’s wife) and asked if he could be buried at the Washington Monument.  Martha verbally agreed but when the time came for Washington to be relocated the trustee’s of Mount Vernon refused and today George and his family lie in this tomb located on the Mount Vernon property.

The Front of Mount Vernon’s mansion.  We were lucky enough to get a tour- sorry, no pictures allowed inside : (

We went on the National Treasure 2 tour while at Mount Vernon.  The first picture is a picture of our guide.  The second picture is the front of Washington’s basement, which is where Nicholas Cage took the President to show him the “Secret” tunnel.  The third picture if you recognize is where Nicholas Cage enters with the President.  The fourth picture is the place where they discovered the tunnel (which does not really exist : ), and the fifth is a picture of Washington’s cornerstone, which is located in his basement.

Along our tour- we visited the “Ha Ha” wall.  Look it up to see why it is called this : )

If you recognize this- it is where Nicholas Cage exits with the President, where the President tells Cage about his “President’s Book”.  This is really Washington’s Ice Cellar.  Washington would send his servants down to gather ice from the Potomac River during the winter.  He would store his ice in the cellar in a deep well and use it for the rest of the year.

The second picture is the shot  that “National Treasure 2″ used in the movie.  A side note- they shot the movie in 30 degree weather, so when you see the cocktail party and everyone laughing and having a great time- they were actually FREEZING! So, look for the goose bumps : )

Mount Vernon’s education center : ) It was also one of my favorites.

A replica of George Washington’s house.  It was very detailed and very comparable to the real one.

A glimpse inside the replica house.  A peek inside the front room : )

Our tour of Mount Vernon served a dual purpose- it was Sunshine’s birthday and her choice to include the tour and visit to Mount Vernon for her birthday.  Happy Birthday Sunshine!

Homeschool Family Vacation 2009 Washington D.C. Day 3 September 29, 2009

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Day 3 of our Family Vacation to Washington D.C. We headed out to explore the Smithsonian Museums.  Our first destination was the information center, commonly referred to as the “Castle”.  You may recognize some of the below pictures from the popular movie, “Night at the Museum 2″.  A theme for our trip was the two films, “National Treasure 2″ and “Night at the Museum 2″.  The second picture is the information sign of all the museums.

The “Pile of Loot” from the film “Night at the Museum 2″.

We are now at the Smithsonian’s “National Art Gallery” where we viewed Presidential Paintings.

We are now in front of the National Archives where inside we head to see the Bill of Rights, Constitution, and Declaration of Independence.

With a few stops along the way : )

Shhhhh… no playing around here.  You can sense the awe in the room and the understanding of what our nation is built on.

Off to the Smithsonian’s Natural History Museum where you may recognize “Easter Island” from the movie, “Night at the Museum 2″.  No Gum, Gum for the Dumb, Dumb : )

While at the Natural History Museum- we got more than we bargained for as Evolution was everywhere.

As you walk up the stairs to the museum you notice a huge Darwin sign hanging with EVOLUTION on it. As you tour through the museum it is a sickening feeling as everyone is walking through and reading the signs and displays. It says millions of years and we were created from chemicals. It is so sad to see the people wandering around as lost souls believing this. I wanted to yell out- do you not see the truth? As my husband, my children and I walked through the museum I explained to my children the wrongness of the explanations within the museum. I carefully explained to my children that if you are a bible believing Christian then the bible clearly states that God created us- Adam from Dust and Eve from Adam’s rib. That the dinosaurs were created on the sixth day and if we believe in the bible then Dinosaurs could not have roamed the Earth before then as there was no Earth until God created it.  Earth is a little over 6,000 years old.  I know this as I am a bible believing Christian.  You are either with God or against Him- the choice is yours.

I left the Smithsonian with a heavy heart and tears in my eyes that this untruth was being spread and thousands of people were being fed lies and being lead down the wrong path. We will be visiting the Creation Museum soon in Kentucky to further instill the “Truth”.

http://creationmuseum.org/

NEMO!

Notice the dating of the sign behind Lego Boy “Millions of Years”.

Last stop- Arlington Cemetery to pay our respects.

The changing of the guard.  A truly moving experience.  In the second photo you will see David explaining the significance of this to the kids.

That is it for this family vacation.  We are looking forward to many more family vacations and memories as we work our way across the United States.

Dove Campaign for Real Beauty September 21, 2009

For more information- www.campaignforrealbeauty.com

Sunshine and Jelly Bean September 20, 2009

Sunshine and Jelly Bean dancing to a song from the Hannah Montana Movie.

Electric Power Homeschoolers Field Trip September 20, 2009

Static Electricity is a natural form of electricity.  Lightning is the most spectacular result of static electricity.  In 1752 Benjamin Franklin performed his legendary kite experiment.  He suspected that lightning was a natural form of electricity.  With the experiment, he was able to conclude that lightning was an electrical current.

I have an * IDEA *

Two Great Minds are better than One

Jelly Bean quickly learned that her legs were just not long enough to peddle the pedals.

Sunshine and Lego Boy to the rescue- they peddled (one on each side) to assist Jelly Bean in reaching energy transformation- chemical (power from the food you eat) to mechanical (bike’s generator) to electrical and finally to radiant energy (light).

Within this experiment the kids were given a bag which contained batteries a conductor and a light bulb- the goal was to light the light bulb- AHA! they did it!

Transferring Electrical Energy to Light Energy

Almost School Time- Homeschooling in the Fall September 20, 2009

Here around the Blessed Family of Flowers household we truly set Summer aside for Summer Vacation time from school.  Although, learning never ceases as we continuously find education in everything we do : ) The Blessed Family of Flowers does not head back to school until Fall has officially set in.  We are gearing up for another year of school but before “officially” getting started we still have a few more trips ahead of us- we are going to Colonial Williamsburg for the Homeschool Days and then heading to Washington D.C. to learn about our Nation’s History.  Stay Tuned for photos on our trips.  The Blessed Family of Flowers will start the “official” school year in mid-October.  Of course by this picture of Sunshine and Jelly Bean- the excitement of another fun year of learning and the anticipation to get going has already set in : )

Lego Time with Lego Boy September 20, 2009

Armor of God September 18, 2009

A Lesson Taken from Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians

…God planned to send Jesus to save us!

Save us from what?

Well, when God made the world it was perfect in every way.

And then Adam came along and ate the fruit God told him not to eat. Bad idea! At that moment God’s perfect world wasn’t perfect anymore. Adam decided to do things his way and not God’s way, and that never works. Sin got in. And sin ruins everything.

God tried to warn Adam. He told him that if he ate the fruit of that tree he would surely die.

And that’s exactly what Adam did- he ate the fruit!

Well, he didn’t drop over dead right there! He lived for a long time afterwards physically.  When God told Adam he would die this meant that Adam was separated from God Spiritually.  God knew that’s what sin does and tried to warn Adam.

We all sin.

We all do what we want to do instead of what God wants us to do. So we are in trouble! Sin is like a terrible disease, and we all are going to die from it unless we accept Jesus Christ and trust in Himpa.

And that’s what Jesus came to save us from!

God loves us so much, He sent His Son to make things right again.

And the price was very high. Sin brought death into God’s perfect world. The only price to make it right again is for the guilty ones to die – and that’s us.

But Jesus died FOR us. Jesus id our penalty and took the punishment we deserved. What amazing, awesome love that is!

That’s not the end of the story!

Three days later, Jesus rose from the dead!

Jesus defeated death! So now, even though we all are going to die just like Adam physically – we all can rise from the dead just like Jesus and live with God forever!

If we believe in Jesus, and we believe that he died for our sins, God will raise us from dead just like Jesus rose from the dead! That’s something we just can’t do ourselves no matter how hard we try – but God can. And that is God’s gift to everyone who believes and trusts in His Son.

And now God can adopt us as His children. One day, everything God has will be ours, and we will live with God forever!

That is the Good News!

Now, since we ARE God’s children, we should live like God’s children. Always be good and honest and loving. Let’s not be like the people who don’t care about God, who do mean and terrible things.

But we all know, it’s not always easy…

We are in a battle!

We have an enemy who wants to steal away everything God wants us to have. Only it’s not a battle we can see. Our enemy is Satan – and Satan lives in the invisible world of the spirit. Even though we can’t see him, Satan is very real. And he wants nothing more than to take us away from God.

And Satan is sneaky. He will use every trick to get us to turn away from God.

You don’t have to be afraid of Satan – but you have to be ready to fight him!

Make God’s strength (He has a bunch!) your strength! Like a great warrior, you need to put on your armor. Because your enemy is a spirit, God will give you spiritual armor.

So put on the whole Armor of God!

Tie the Belt of Truth around waist. God is real. God loves you, and Jesus died for your sins. God is on your side – that is the Truth!

Hold on to the Truth, and like a good tight belt, the truth will hold you up and keep you strong when Satan attacks.

The Belt of Truth means you as a Christian are committed to live your life- God’s Way!

Guard your heart.

Put on the Breastplate of Righteousness. Always do what is right and good. That way, Satan won’t have anything to grab onto to worm his way into your heart. You will be able to stand straight and tall, with your head held high.

The Breast Plate of Righteousness means you as a Christian are to live Holy Today and Everyday!

Next, put on the Shoes of The Gospel of Peace.

Be ready to go wherever God sends you to tell the Good News of God’s amazing love for us.

The Shoes of the Gospel of Peace means we as Christians
relish our peace with God.

And then, to protect yourself from Satan’s flaming arrows, take up the Shield of Faith!

The God of the Universe is on your side. God is your protector. Put your faith in Him and Satan cannot hurt you!

The Shield of Faith means we as Christians have an unwavering trust in His Word.

Now, put on the Helmet of Salvation.

You are saved! You are God’s child! Satan has already lost, death is already defeated, and nothing can ever take you away from God. Keep your thoughts always on that!

The Helmet of Salvation means we as Christians are looking to our future in Heaven.

And finally, take up the Sword of the Spirit.

God has given us a weapon to fight back against Satan’s lies and accusations. Our weapon is the truth of God’s Word. It is the Bible. God’s Word can cut Satan’s lies to pieces. Use God’s Word to fight Satan just like Jesus did when Satan tempted him in the desert. The words of the Bible are your sword.

The Sword of the Spirit means we as Christians study everyday God’s Word, so we have a thorough understanding of God’s Word.

You are God’s child. He will never let you go! Hold onto that Truth!

Always do what is good and right.

Be ready to tell anyone you meet about God’s amazing love.

Put all your trust in Jesus, and know that he has saved you.

And finally, fight Satan with God’s own Word.

Satan is going to try to take away all the good things God has for you – but don’t worry – God is on our side! And with God on our side, no one – not even Satan – can defeat us!

Be bold! Be strong! For the Lord your God is with you!

Partially Adopted and then Revised from

http://www.essex1.com/people/paul/bible-armor-of-god.html

This and other activity sheets for kids can be found at-

http://www.dltk-bible.com/jesus/armor_of_god-index.htm