I love this site! I've catalogued all of my daughter's books so I can tell in an instant if we own one, or can pull out any on a related topic for homeschooling. It's been WONDERFUL. And it recently got even better!

We were chosen to review a new book and they sent us an advance copy! I've registered for a lot of these opportunities, but I was thrilled that the first on that came through was for a children's book. And it fit nicely with our recent study of the Plains, and the Environment, and Natural Resources. OK, it didn't fit perfectly; but nicely.

The book was The Prairie Dog Prince adapted from a story by Eva Katharine Gibson and illustrated by Carolyn Digby Conahan. It is part of the Prairie Tales series from the South Dakota State Historical Society Press. Originally published as Zauberlinda: The Wise Witch in 1901, this adaptation was crafted by Nancy Tystad Koupal.

My surface thought during our first reading was, "What a refreshingly unique book!" Here we were reading a children's book with vibrant and evocative language! No watered down vocabulary; no minced and chopped sentences.

"...So you are a greedy little girl. You ate up all the strawberries."

No sooner had Annie spoken this wish aloud, than the water wagtails began to squawk. They fluttered around her as though in great fear or distress. The prairie dog seemed pleased, but the size of the strawberries Annie spied next to the creek was alarming.

As you can see, the story is fantastical and, as all good children's stories should, leaves us with a moral in which to ponder and grow.

The illustrations are not typically what I care for, but truly do the story justice. They are a misty watercolor look into a world as brightly colored as the characters gracing it's pages.

Well done, all around! I highly recommend the story, and the series. I found it available on pre-order from Amazon: The Prairie Dog Prince

© Carolyn ~ The Learning Nook for The Learning Nook, 2008. | Permalink | One comment

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2 glorious weeks, you ask?  Oh yes.  I love Disney for many reasons.  But one of the biggest is because of how they handle my daughter.  Yes, they are a huge mega-corporation.  Yes, they own most of Orlando.  Yes, they border on a dictatorship.  But they care.  

Is that possible?  I didn't think so until I experienced it myself.

Someone (a better writer than myself) recently wrote a piece that could have flowed from my own pen.  (Except that I use a keyboard and much less evocative language.)  I am posting it here so others can know *exactly* why I love Disney.  Because everything, EVERYTHING this woman wrote has happened to us.  

I truly cannot wait to go back.... 

We Were Not Disney People... But We Are Now!

(How Catering to Our Special Diets Won Us Over)

by Laura Schmitt

AllEars® Guest Columnist

We were not Disney people. Far from it, in fact. When Eric and I started dating 15 years ago, we considered ourselves a bit individualistic. We watched foreign films, ate ethnic food, listened to music you'd never hear on a radio and so on. With all our might, we ducked and weaved away from the flow of mainstream. When we became parents, we used cloth diapers, I nursed our babies. Heck, I made their baby food, sewed their dresses (OK, only some of them) and we made their toys! Notice a trend here?

So how did we end up in Walt Disney World? When did the first addictive bite begin? It all started with a little grain called gluten... let me explain.As our girls reached the ages of 3 and 6, I began talking to Eric about a family vacation. A BIG one. One that didn't involve us sleeping upstairs from my parents or his. Hmm... this was going to take some planning.

I began researching places and we had two BIG criteria to meet.First, it had to be a place we could drive or fly to affordably. We are smack dab in the center of the country and I was not about to spend $2000 to get to our destination! Chicago and St Louis were both in driving distance, but boy -- wouldn't it be nice to go to a beach?

I started looking and wouldn't you know that flights to Orlando, Florida, were cheap. Very cheap! We're talking a fraction of the cost of flying anywhere else in the country! Hmm... maybe the airline was trying to tell us something? Hey! Isn't DISNEY WORLD in Orlando? My husband protested, "We are NOT going to Disney World when Bella is only 3. She is too young. She'll be overwhelmed, overtired, over cranky... over it. No."

As any dedicated organizing mom would do, I started searching. Where, oh where, can a gluten-free, dairy-free family go for vacation? I found two places. A ranch in Wyoming and -- what is this? DISNEY WORLD!

But wait -- I could remember hearing the voice of my husband in the back of my joy. What was it he was saying? No Disney? Not Disney? Now Disney? Yes, that was it! He must have said NOW! Book that Disney vacation pronto! Of course that is what he meant. So, off I went to find a resort.

I approached Eric in the evening when the girls were in bed. I came armed with my information on where to stay and when. I told him in my sweetest voice that while I respected his decision to wait until Bella was 5 years old to go to Disney World, my hands were tied. It was the only place we could go where I didn't need to bring a kitchen along with me. And furthermore, Bella would be turning 4 that same month so she would be ALMOST 5, and that is when he said we could go, so it really is about, almost, exactly what he wanted!He started to protest a bit, I recall, and he repeated his concerns about Bella being too young. But I started showing him pictures of the resort and details of the low allergen foods and a recap of the discounts! My joy was just beaming from within. He was quickly convinced. While Eric doesn't like crowds, he loves his family of women, and he thought that Animal Kingdom Lodge was looking pretty cool. So we were officially booked!

Getting food figured out was as EASY as a gluten-free pudding pie! I just emailed the Executive Chef department of Magic Kingdom and they sent me an email attachment that I treasure as a piece of Disney Magic right in my very own inbox. It was a listing of where and what we could eat that was gluten-free and dairy-free in the World. Wow. It listed restaurants that could easily accommodate us and spots for finding snacks. Oh, how I loved that happy email attachment. Life was looking fine! Now all we had to do was wait a few weeks and we would be on our way.

While we were dining in Disney World, the chefs came to our table at the start of every meal. We found that there were plenty of gluten-free, dairy-free choices and we were feasting like kings and queens. Often, the chefs seemed to enjoy our food restrictions as a fun challenge to mix it up a bit. Maybe cooking the same ol' steak night after night gets boring? Who knows, but everywhere we went, the chefs always made us feel incredibly special and well taken care of.

In the mornings, we headed down to our hotel quick service restaurant, called Mara, for breakfast. I would start by going up to the counter to let them know that we'd need gluten-free dairy-free breakfast. This was the cue for the chef to come out and greet us. Now, I always feel badly about this. I KNOW they are busy back there in the kitchen and I KNOW they really don't love to just up and drop everything to come talk to me, but you would never know it for how nice the chefs are at Disney World. And let me tell you something -- Chef Eddie at Mara was no exception! He brought my daughter gluten-free, dairy-free waffles and he made me dairy-free eggs with fruit. Not only did he hook us up, but he came out to check on Taylor, he asked her if she liked her food, complimented her on her cool endangered animal t-shirt and found out if she was available to date one of his sons in the future.

I liked Chef Eddie. I like people who treat my family so special. I like it when my little girl doesn't have to be the only one left out of things at social events involving food. I liked that she got some extra positive attention in Disney World. And I liked that everyone in my family was happy. What's not to like? (And did I mention I liked the vacation from my kitchen duties? Oh yeah. That was a BIG bonus!)

One of our dinners was a character meal at a place called Liberty Tree Tavern. Now, we come from Iowa, where a good meal consists of lots of meat, potatoes, corn, butter, and probably some sort of pie or cake. We are farm food kind of people, even with our love of ethnic foods. Some things you just can't change. Give me a Thanksgiving dinner and I'm a happy girl. I told our server about our food allergies and a chef came out promptly.

They brought us a ton of gluten-free, dairy-free food. We had ham, turkey, potatoes, gravy made with rice flour, buns, you name it! It was like Thanksgiving on steroids! I was in my childhood joy with a feast before me that was so yummy and nostalgic. Taylor was so easy to feed here, as there were so many gluten-free, dairy-free options to be had! She paused from her eating to say, "Mama, they sure have a lot of gluten-free bread in Florida!"

It was at this meal that we were celebrating Bella's 4 (almost exactly 5) year-old birthday! I asked, with all the hope I could muster in my voice, if they had a cupcake for Bella and a -- gulp -- gluten-free, dairy-free dessert for my other daughter.

Did they ever. I could kiss every person in that place! They brought Bella a chocolate cupcake with sprinkles. She LOVED it with all her might. Chocolate is her favorite, of course. Here was our little Bella. Turning 4 in Disney World. How could we EVER top that? We were so happy that we could give her that moment. That memory. Pluto clapping as her birthday song was sung -- chocolate cake, sprinkles, Mom, Dad, big sister, and Bella in her finest princess style sporting her extremely large birthday button. Her face was pressed back in such a determined smile that new dimples were established on her cheeks that very night. She was so beautiful, perfect, and happy in that moment.

And as if a mama needs more than that to fill her cup of joy -- well, as if I needed or could even withstand any more happiness -- out comes the chef with a gluten-free, dairy-free chocolate brownie in the shape of a little Bundt pan. It was served warm with one large scoop of Vanilla Rice Dream on top.

Perfect. I love those people and those mice, and the dogs, and that Goofy -- all of it. Taylor was so happy to NOT be left out of Bella's birthday dessert. Really, so happy. Taylor is always left out of what the other kids have for desserts. Of course I send her desserts, but hers are always different and not the same. Well, this time she felt that hers was even BETTER! She was so enjoying herself. We all were. I hated for that dinner to end.

With as much fun, joy, and inclusion as we had during our five days at Disney, it was a no-brainer that we'd be going back again. We've been twice since 2007 with another trip planned in 2008! I'm sure it will be our family staple for vacations for years to come. I would like to say we're there because of the rides, the castle, the characters. I'd like to say it is purely for my children. True, the joy that beams from their faces is worth its weight in gold. But how could I be honest without mentioning that Disney World is the ONLY break I get from my kitchen all year long? And what a break it is! We dine like royalty. We are never without a thing when we are in Disney World and my daughter is always included in all aspects of our family vacation. I am so thankful the chefs are capable and willing to handle our allergies and I dare to hope that other restaurants, maybe even here in Iowa, will pick up on Disney's approach to dealing with allergies.

So, we started off in January 2007, skeptical about Disney, but ready to eat some good gluten-free and dairy-free food. Little did we know that we had bitten into a newfound travel addiction that would stretch our imaginations almost as much as it would stretch our budget! What's in store for our family in 2008, 2009? More Disney.

You can bet I'll be back to tell you! We are officially Disney people, now, and there's no stopping us. We have to feed our addiction with small bits of magic, pixie dust, and the occasional overwhelming heaping of joy. You know the kind. The kind that melts tall strong fathers and brings them to a pile of mush... the kind that brings families and friends together... the kind that makes new dimples appear on little cheeks from excessive smiling... the kind that warms my heart and brings a mist to my eyes whenever I think about it. Yeah, we are gonna need more of that kind of magic. 

© Carolyn ~ The Learning Nook for The Learning Nook, 2008. | Permalink | One comment

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Do you know what Girl Scouts is all about? Oh, I know what you're thinking - the 3 C's. Cookies, camping, & crafts. While Girl Scouts CAN do those things, that's not really what Girl Scouts is all about. At least in my book. It took a lot of research, and quite a bit of soul searching to figure that out.

Instead, I have embraced the REAL 3 C's of Girl Scouts: Courage, Confidence, Character. Isn't that what we want for our daughters? To be courageous in the face of the unknown, to have confidence in herself and her ability, and to maintain her ideals to the highest moral character. How do you pull that off, exactly?

Girl Scouts has the answer with the Girl Scout Program. The 4 Program Goals are:

Relating to Others

Contributing to Society

Developing Values

Developing Self-Potential

See, for me and my daughter, I would like a focus on the learning, leadership, responsibility, and selflessness that the goals represent. How do I provide that to a troop of 5 thru 12 years olds? (Good question! If you have any answers for me, let me know!) I'm holding a Parent Meeting in a week or so to talk with some other Moms about this new troop and it's goals. I'm hoping that I am able to convey my belief in what Girl Scouts can accomplish for our girls. Because, from my vantage point, the sky's the limit!

When I was first tossing around the idea of a new troop, I sat down and focused my energy on what I want. I came up with a Wish List. Some have scoffed at this list because they think it is overly ambitious. Naively, I disagree. I have already witnessed some phenomenal Brownies making decisions that affected the whole troop (20 girls) with alacrity and respect. And they said it couldn't be done!

Anyway, I'd love some input from some seasoned pro's. Here is The Wish List...

A Girl Scout troop should stress the program goals. Supporting the mission statement and the program should be the focus of most meetings.

Badge work should be secondary to the meeting.

1. Spend time on The Law and have the girls talk about each partof the Law and how she can make it a part of her daily life.

2. Have girls determine how many badges they want to earn in ayear as a troop (encourage them to focus on program andlimit badge work to 4 or 5 - but be flexible!).

a. Each girl chooses 2 badges from the book

b. discuss them all as a group

c. Determine as a group which will be done togetherd. Maintain a list of all others suggested – they will be added to the schedule as time permits.

3. Additional badge work can be done at home. Girls should beprovided with a Badge checklist for them to keep a record.

A Girl Scout troop should focus on Service Projects. Have the girls discuss possibilities for a year-long Service Project. Girls can research, present ideas to the troop, and vote on which Service Project the troop adopts.

Ideas:

1. Adopt an Assisted Living Center facility – monthlyvisits, make cards, holiday party, Game Day, Show &Tell, COA

2. Storytelling to younger kids – coordinate with library?

3. Volunteer at Humane Society – collect supplies,promote adoptions

4. Random Act of Kindness – at troop or individual level; be sure to share during circle!

Have the girls choose at least 4 or 5 activities to do as a troop outside the meetings (examples):

Songfest

Sea Turtle

Workshop

KSC GS Day

Women in Engineering

Planetarium Overnight

Nature Hike

Family Picnic/Sports Day

Museum GS Day

Host a tea party

Father/Daughter Dance

Suggest having 2 camping trips a year. One for just the girls, the other for the families. Camporee would be in addition to these, if desired.

The girls determine funds needed to accomplish their goals and activities. Create a budget, choose money-earning activities, set fall product & cookie sale goals. Hold additional money earning projects as needed (car wash, craft sale, etc.). Vote on dues and activity fee annually.

The girls vote on whether their annual GS registration will be paid for by the troop. Will the adult volunteers (Mom’s) be paid for by the troop?

Recognize and celebrate important GS dates:

Juliette Low Birthday

Thinking Day

GS Birthday

The troop members birthdays

The leaders regularly meet with each girl individually (5 minutes at the end of a meeting?) just to touch base on badges being worked on at home, questions about program, goals, larger projects (Junior Aide, Silver Award, etc.)

The girls will create and use a Kaper Chart or “In” and “Out” bags.

Each girl gets a chance to moderate the meetings. Use a “talking stick” so each girl knows who should receive the attention.

The girls will develop a Code of Conduct and sign an agreement to follow it.

The girls can create an opening and closing to the meetings that they like: flag & Promise/Law should be in it. Could also include 1 or 2 songs, sharing time, etc.

The leaders should always participate in the opening circle.

The girls should take ownership of all Investiture, Court of Awards, and Bridging ceremonies. They can create ceremonies that are meaningful and signify the Girl Scout mission. Ceremonies should be practiced, invitations sent, and all the girls should feel ownership. These are AWARDS for their hard work!

The girls will collect & record dues, take attendance, and rotate acting as treasurer.

Give the girls the option of working on a Cultural Awareness Patch each year.

Have a troop Dream Box where each girl can add ideas of what to do as a troop – when in need of ideas, we can dream.

Never make a decision for the girls that they can make for themselves. Never do a job for the girls when they can do it for themselves. Above all, never make the girls do what the leaders have planned because, after all, the girls should have done the planning.

_____________________________________

The Leaders should:

Communicate constantly with parents – handouts to girls at meetings, email, Yahoo group reminders, parents meetings, follow ups if a girl misses a meeting, etc.

Automatically provide each parent with a copy of the Financial Statement completed for the Service Unit 3 times a year.

Be on time and prepared for all meetings.

Participate in all opening and closings at meetings.

Get to know each girl individually.

Recognize strengths and encourage overcoming weaknesses.

Support the girls decisions NO MATTER WHAT. If something they choose will “fail,” let them fail and help them learn from it.

Be democratic and fair.

Ask Mom’s for help if needed – be specific and provide resources inadvance. Follow up.

Meet with new leaders and co-leaders to discuss training and scheduleclasses. DO THIS FOR THEM IF NEEDED.

Provide new leaders with needed resources within 2 weeks: leader manual, training schedule, age-level handbooks.

Organize group orders for needed GS products: uniforms, shirts, books, etc.

Remind the girls of their goals and objectives if they seem to be straying.

Promote Girl Scouting and the troop in the community (newspaper, SUwebsite, etc.)

Treat each girl fairly, with respect, and with the expectation that she contributes a vital part to the troop. Require others to do so as well.

Require each girl to live up to the Girl Scout Law & Promise. Encourage (but not force) her to assume responsibilities and leadership roles within the troop.

Provide a list of Citrus Council GS Program Activities going on in Central Florida for the girls to do on their own (if not doing as a troop)

Keep an updated Yahoo calendar so parents will get automatic updatesand reminders.

Invite sponsors, friends, sister troops, to parties and COA.

© Carolyn ~ The Learning Nook for The Learning Nook, 2008. | Permalink | One comment

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The stars were traced onto WallPops and then cut out. Lots of the smaller stars and stuff were made with punches. Everything, rhinestones included, were put up on the wall one by one.

Sydney got a new dresser recently and I almost sold her old one at the garage sale. Then I realized it would make a great art & sewing cabinet!

Look at that! Empty bookshelf space! Looks like a trip to the bookstore is in order.

A close-up. The pictures don't do it justice, really. When the sun hits the room (most of the day) everything just sparkles!

© Carolyn ~ The Learning Nook for The Learning Nook, 2008. | Permalink | 3 comments

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The Girl Scout Promise & Law (read it sometime - words to live by!)

What is Girl Scout camping without the S'mores?

The Brownie Mice watching a game of Red Rover

Our Pirate themed Camporee came with a real pirate (I question whether he hit the rum once too often during the day, but trying to entertain 400 girls can be no easy task!)

© Carolyn ~ The Learning Nook for The Learning Nook, 2008. | Permalink | No comment

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Well, turns out most of it (in it's many variations) is derivitive of Cockney English and essentially means people were pawning their coats, or even tools of their trade, in order to get a few bucks to go to the pub.  We've had a rousing good time pondering over the hilarity of exactly what Moms everywhere are singing to their wee babes.

Care for a pint?

Pop Goes the Weasel Lyrics & Origin 

© Carolyn ~ The Learning Nook for The Learning Nook, 2007. | Permalink | 2 comments

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Singapore Math 2A - text page 98 & 99; workbook page 33

Practiced piano - 30 min.

Time 4 Learning - 1 2nd grade Math section

Building Thinking Skills, Grade 2/3 - page 194-195

Wrote assigned sentences

Chose 2 pages from The Anti-Coloring book

Independently read a chapter in Nancy Drew #2

Card Making

Cursive Writing Practice Book - 2 pages (discussed form)

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Writing Skills, Grade 1 - page 70-71

Singapore Math 2A - workbook pages 145-147

Wrote assigned sentences

Practiced piano - 30 min.

Read Welcome to Josefina's World, pages 22 - 25 and answered comprehension questions

Thinking Skills, Grade 3 - page 66-69

Time 4 Learning - 1 3rd grade Language Arts & 1 2nd grade Math section

Read 1 chapter in Who Was Anne Frank?

Worked on Flat Traveler journal

Swimming

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Singapore Math 2A ~ workbook pages 142 - 144

Welcome to Josefina's World, read pages 18-21 and answered comprehension questions

Spelling Skills, Grade 2 - page 76 & 77

Practiced piano - 30 minutes

Read aloud from American Girl - Josefina's Surprise while Syd played with paper dolls from the story.

Time 4 Learning - 1 2nd grade Math and 1 3rd grade language arts section

Visual Perceptual Skills, Grade 2-4 ~ pages 81-90 and 174

Choose Who Was Anne Frank? as new biography; read 1 chapter

Wrote poetry for Mom & Dad

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