DISCLOSURE: I RECEIVED THIS COMPLIMENTARY PRODUCT THROUGH THE HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW.

As a 42 year old woman looking back at my adolescence, it is incredibly easy to see all the lies I believed, especially those that would shape the rest of my development. But that was 30 years ago. The amount of media that our kids consume - often without even trying to - is enormous and not going away on its own. As parents, we have to equip our children with proactive defenses against all these ideas that undermine God’s place in this world and our children’s true value. To that end, it is important to have tools that can help equip them. I’m so grateful that the Homeschool Review Crew makes it possible for our family to explore resources that are designed to feed and fuel our families for the future. Today, we are reviewing Lies Girls Believe and A Mom's Guide to Lies Girls Believe from True Girl.

What We Received:

We received to paperback books, Lies Girls Believe by Dannah Gresh and A Mom’s Guide to Lies Girls Believe & the Truth That Sets Them Free by Dannah Gresh.

How It Works:

Lies Girls believe is a book intended for girls age 9-12 to read on their own. From the first page, where girls are invited to write their name as co-author of the book, it is a very interactive book that encourages colored pencil writing throughout the chapters. Through quizzes, questions and quality interactive illustrations, girls get the chance to take a look at themselves, how they feel and possible lies they could be believing without even realizing it. This book appropriately hits on subjects like God being good enough, mean girls, the value of our family, genders, periods, and friendship, to name a few. Girls are walked through relatable examples and questions that can show the danger of believing lies and ways to avoid it.

While girls can read their book independently whether mom has this companion or not, A Mom’s Guide to Lies Girls Believe is intended to be read at the same pace and at the same time as their daughters are reading their book. Mom’s book explains the necessity of the Girls book, shows glimpses of what the girls are reading about, questions to discuss with their daughters at the end of chapters, suggested prayer prompts and discusses lies mom’s believe. In both books there is an emphasis on our feelings and how they can swing too far on the pendulum in both directions, which usually gets us in trouble. The first lie she addresses for mom’s is this idea that either we have supreme control over the influences our daughters experience or that we have zero control over what happens to our daughters. Both are lies and truth lies somewhere in the middle, as it usually does. The Mom’s Guide is a valuable tool in reinforcing the truths found in the girls book but especially in deepening the mother daughter relationship as they face adolescence.

What We Thought:

My daughter, Zoey just turned 9 last month. She immediately dove into the book and LOVED it. It was extra special that the main character in the book is named Zoey too (and they spelled it right, she loves to remind me!) Anything that we are supposed to do together, she gets excited about. She immediately got out her colored pencils, underlined and wrote in all the things as she read along. From a mom’s perspective, there are some topics that aren’t necessarily on her radar yet, but that’s all the better to me. She’s close enough that I would much rather her have a healthy perspective on subjects - like her period or gender questions - BEFORE she’s in turmoil about them. With us discussing things at the end of every chapter, it gives her a safe space to ask questions and for me as her mom to connect with her on the individual topics. Before I had a daughter or even 5 years ago, I might of had a take it or leave it kind of attitude for something like this. It’s easy to convince yourself that if you have a good relationship with God and your child, nothing much more is needed. After looking at a resource like this and having a 9 year old daughter who is staring down adolescence, I feel very differently. I know that I can’t ensure the ultimate protection for my daughter, just like my mother couldn’t for me, but going through books like these can give you a head start and a great defense against the devil’s arrows that are certainly coming. I recommend every daughter and mother read these books together!

Follow True Girl on Social Media:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/truegirlofficial
Instagram: www.instagram.com/truegirlofficial
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3iKzBBy2jjAwPzweKNbpCw

Is Lies Girls Believe something your daughter could benefit from? Click on the link below to read other reviews of this product so you can make an informed decision.

DISCLOSURE: I RECEIVED THIS COMPLIMENTARY PRODUCT THROUGH THE HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW.

You don’t have to be an expert to provide your children a solid education. Those saying otherwise clearly aren’t paying attention. Aside from a stereo-typical inner-city public school art education, I have zero training in drawing, painting, water colors, clay or any other hands-on art. It never came naturally to me so I generally avoided it growing up. Despite that, my kids have a decent understanding of the subject and are producing works far beyond my ability. A lot of that can be attributed to being exposed to some great instructors and resources along the way. One of our favorites is ARTistic Pursuits! Thanks to the Homeschool Review Crew we now own at least 4 of their products. Last year we reviewed Drawing with Graphite Pencils, Art Core 1 and this summer we have been enjoying Painting with Watercolor Pencils, Art Core 2.

What We Received:

We received Painting with Watercolor Pencils, Art Core 2 which included a hardback textbook, 2 DVDs, and access to the digital course on the Artistic Pursuits’ website.

How It Works:

As the second book in the Art Core series, Painting with Watercolor Pencils is designed for students in 4-6th grade, upper elementary ages. To complete the lessons you are required to obtain supplies on your own that includes, watercolor paper, watercolor pencils, and certain brushes. This course gives students a strong introduction to color theory and watercolor painting techniques. The book is designed to be used in conjunction with either the DVDs or the online videos. There are 27 text lessons in the book and 9 video lessons online or on DVD. The text lessons are simple and direct, incorporating art history, painting techniques and other student examples that gives you a variety of levels to compare your work to. The book recommends 2 lessons per week and allows for students’ independence or parental involvement.

What We Thought:

My 11 year old boy and 9 year old girl both used this program. My 5 year old really wanted to be involved but I opted to leave him out mostly because I didn’t want to buy supplies for him when he may or may not utilize them very well and he’s far below the recommended age. My older two have used Artistic Pursuits before so they were familiar with the format and the instructor. Getting started was very simple and they enjoyed all the lessons and creating. Their biggest complaint was about their sibling not going at the same pace as them, but that’s a not a curriculum fail as much as a family relations issue. When I am not involved they are inclined to skip the text lessons unless it directly applies to the video simply due to ease of use. It is easier to sit and watch a video rather than reading the page to your sister! Still, even if students never touched a text lesson, which is not recommended, students can still gain a big understanding of painting with watercolors and spark an interest in the subject. I am so thankful to have books like these on my bookshelf that we can utilize at any time, not just a one time course.

Follow ARTistic Pursuits on Social Media:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/artisticpursuitsinc
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ARTisticPursui1
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/artisticpursuitsinc/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCk75eIpDhZUqbr1On5xEQJQ

The Homeschool Review Crew used a variety of products from ARTistic Pursuits. Explore all they have to offer your family through the link below.

DISCLOSURE: I RECEIVED THIS COMPLIMENTARY PRODUCT THROUGH THE HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW.

Once a parent makes the big decision to homeschool, the next big choice is what curriculum to use. And that, my friends, is a loaded question! Every family has different ages, different paces, and different financial abilities so picking curriculum isn’t exactly a simple endeavor. In many cases it can take a few years to truly understand what type of programs your family needs and what you should avoid. Today we are talking about Ancient Greece and the Project Passport World History Studies from Home School in the Woods he and some lessons I’ve learned about what does NOT work well for our ADHD heavy family.

What We Received:

We received a digital file of the Project Passport World History Studies for Ancient Greece. This file includes instructions and content for a variety of small and large projects designed to be printed out and assembled in some way.

How It Works:

Since this is only a digital file, this is very parent-involved at the beginning due to a large amount of printing, cutting and constructing. For this ADHD mom, that is a red flag that I should listen to in the future because I am prone to putting off large printing jobs and struggle to keep up with multiple moving parts. For this program, since you are printing it all yourself, there are a variety of ways to use it. The complete intension is to experience Greece as a traveler complete with a passport, itineraries, traveler’s notes, scrapbook, audio tour, newspaper, maps and a variety of historical topics to explore. Homeschool in the Woods offers this Project Passport for multiple locations including Ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, The Middle Ages, and the Renaissance & Reformation. For Ancient Greece, the itineraries provide a helpful overview of all the 25 “stops’ travelers will take, labelled with a location or aspect of Grecian life that will be focused on. Each stop also includes which activities are included, like adding to the “Greek Weekly” newspaper or “A Visit to Sparta” on the Audio Tour. There are several things to print at the beginning to set up the whole experience, but once that is established, you could pick and choose or reorder the various stops’ activities as you see fit, but it does have a natural flow as it is that works well. All of these activities include printing, coloring, cutting, gluing and attaching in some form or another. All of these hands-on projects offer students the chance to engage and interact with history and information while also being creative. This combination often leads to questions of curiosity and clarification that help build historical context and understanding.

What We Thought:

One of the hallmarks of my ADHD is that if a (non-autopiloted) task of any kind has too many steps to it, it s likely that I will not finish it. Sometimes that is due to distraction, disinterest or simple frustration. Digital projects often require step-by-step instructions (that have a tendency to overwhelm me) and a moderate level of organization (something that takes a lot of concentration that I don’t always have). In this case, both things worked against me to create a large sense over overwhelming dread and frustration at all the different things going on. However, that was just at the beginning when there are several things to print, organize and setup before the kids every really get involved. Once I could get things clear in my head, the kids involvement went smoothly. This is the lesson to learn about your strengths and weaknesses as a person and homeschool parent. It doesn’t matter how wonderfully made and popular a curriculum may be. If it doesn’t work well for you or your kids, (meaning you never get around to using it maybe or it makes someone cry) it’s not going to work well.

That being said, the Project Passport World History study is very well setup and thought out. My 9 and 11 year old are always happy to color, cut and glue anything. We have been working through aspects of Greece in our regular history curriculum so interacting with major places and people helped reinforce many of the things they had studied this year. The program could easily work as a full history component or as a supplement to any other program. Last year we reviewed History Through the Ages: Creation to Christ (Beginning - 100 AD) Timeline Figures from Homeschool in the Woods and right now many of our Review Crew families are reviewing Printable Essential Timeline Library which combines all of their timeline figures into one package. If you are looking for something to connect with all of your history lessons, this is something to consider.

Follow Homeschool in the Woods on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/homeschoolinthewoods
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/homeschoolinthewoods/
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/hsinthewoods/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrKq6iLty2fpB6R6ZpcUb8A

Homeschool in the Woods offers a lot of different projects. Click below to read all the other reviews of several different products.

DISCLOSURE: I RECEIVED THIS COMPLIMENTARY PRODUCT THROUGH THE HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW.

Among the many lessons we have learned over the past two years, the importance of healthy habits is certainly one of the more important ones. The choices we make on a daily basis create or destroy health and teaching our children this fact is an important part of our jobs as parents. The messages they receive from society are mixed at best and almost always biased. How to care for their bodies and health has to start at home. American Coaching Academy works to equip educators, coaches and parents with some versatile tools to make daily choices become habits and those habits fun to keep track of. My review today is of Healthy Habit Trackers from American Coaching Academy.

What We Received:

We received Healthy Habit Trackers, a digital file of 12 different 30 day healthy challenges and a file of empty habit trackers that allow you to enter in the tracked tasks.

How It Works:

When you purchase this product you receive two files, one has the tasks already set for you to keep track of and the other allows you to fill in tasks of your own choosing. The files are essentially the same except one is lacking all habit designations. The pre-made tasks consist of things like exercises, water drinking, fruit and vegetable consumption, good hygiene, sleep, and kindness. Many of them include movement and exercise in timed elements. For example, there might be a minute of running in place or jumping jacks. The trackers are not in any particular order so there is no plan or value to use them in a particular way. The pre-made trackers certainly give you good ideas if you aren’t sure where to starts. On each of them there is some way to colorfully or plainly keep track of habits. The different designs, especially once filled out, can be quite motivating all by themselves depending on the age of the students.. Using different colored markers or pens.

What We Thought:

Since there were 12 different pre-made options, it was a little overwhelming to decide which one to go with. I let my kids pick what they wanted at first, but they needed help narrowing their options down. Making your own in some ways seemed a little more desirable just because it can accommodate a number of habits into one sheet. The concept of coloring in boxes or shapes daily, especially with different colors is a lot of fun to my 8 (almost 9) year old daughter. My boys (5 and 11) went along just fine, but coloring didn’t seem nearly as motivating. There is no reason that an adult can’t use these, especially the blank ones and from an ADHD perspective, their novelty could be highly motivating for a while.

Making regular healthy choices is not an easy conviction to have or change to make. These fun habit trackers encourage personal responsibility and good level of independence that is always needing in growing families. And as a digital file, you can use them again and again! When you’re looking ahead towards the next school year, Healthy Habit Trackers are a great option for commitment and creative organization!

Find American Coaching Academy on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AmericanCoachingAcademy/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/americancoachingacademy/_created/

How did this product work in other families? Check out the Crew’s reviews through the link below:

DISCLOSURE: I RECEIVED THIS COMPLIMENTARY PRODUCT THROUGH THE HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW.

As a new homeschooler, I remember thinking that if I just taught them how to read, I would have accomplished this huge thing. Now that I have a 6th grader this fall, that feeling has long since faded, but it has been replaced with a deeper understanding of how that desire and ability to read has exploded into a million questions and interests. Reading is a springboard for all the stories and lessons of life. I know for some kids, reading, much more loving to read, is such a struggle. In other cases, finding interesting, clean and age appropriate content can be such a struggle too. Cultivating a love of reading and stories in your home is so important and whether it is in your lap, through audiobooks or a zillion trips to the library, this consumption of words feeds your family on all the levels. One of the best ways to encourage literacy in a home is by having good quality books available to your family. Today’s review highlights a new installment of a popular series that every Christian parent should know about and have available when their children are ready for it. We’re talking about Book 28 in The Imagination Station Series: Islands and Enemies from Tyndale and Focus on the Family.

What We Received:

We received one hard back book, Islands and Enemies , Book 28 in The Imagination Station Series from Tyndale and Focus on the Family. This 150-paged book is part of a series that has its origin in Adventures in Odyssey, an audio drama that has been produced by Focus on the Family since 1987. It is not necessary to have listened to the audio drama to read Islands and Enemies, but it is a fun link that readers enjoy. This chapter book is recommended for ages 7 and up and includes black and white illustrations every few pages.

Who Would Like This Book:

This book and those in this series are full of adventure, history and moral values. Parents looking for books with a Christian worldview will certainly approve. In this book, the main (cousin) characters are in a fight about a broken project and explore loyalty and well-spoken words over the course of the book. Parents will appreciate the focus on character building concepts. Readers who enjoy the time machine effect and getting to ‘visit’ another place and time will love this series. My 8 (almost 9) year old daughter and 11 year old son both read it and enjoyed it. The reading level is below the 11 year old’s skill level, but the historical components and reoccurring characters make it just a fun read. The series could be a great read aloud series for those not yet reading on their own fully, especially in conjunction with the Adventures in Odyssey audio stories.

Reader Recommendation:

If you have never tried out the Adventures in Odyssey or The Imagination Station book series, I as a parent and my children as readers highly recommend them! With years of episodes and books, it’s certainly something they could ‘binge’ on this summer that you can trust is encouraging positive growth and understanding. If your family is familiar, but just haven’t tried them out in a while, rest assured that Islands and Enemies continuing the engaging legacy.

Follow Tyndale on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TyndaleHouse/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tyndalehouse
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tyndalehouse
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/TyndaleHouse
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/TyndaleHP

Several families reviewed this book so check out other reviews to see if our perspective is consistent with theirs before you give this one to your kids.

DISCLOSURE: I RECEIVED THIS COMPLIMENTARY PRODUCT THROUGH THE HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW.

In my house we have big brains and ADHD symptoms galore, but all that really means is lots of mental energy that needs plenty of outlets. Physical activity, physical labor, and creative activities can go a long way, but teaching them to think critically and giving them lots of opportunities to use those analytical brains is proving to be really important. Today we're talking about a company that cares about this subject so much, critical thinking is in their name! We have tried out several things from The Critical Thinking Co.™ over the years and today we are talking about one of their workbooks, Language Smarts Level E.

What We Received:

We received Language Smarts Level E from The Critical Thinking Co.™ which is a 392-paged paperback workbook that is intended for Grade 4 students, ages 9-10.

How It Works:

Language Smarts Level E is a supplemental or complete curriculum that addresses reading, writing, spelling, punctuation, grammar and thinking skills. The book is divided into different elements of language arts, spending several pages on each element. Since they are broken into sections students can easily bounce around to different elements. If used as a supplemental curriculum, it is simple to find the elements you need to work on in the index and assign those specifically. If a student just needs refreshing or more work on understanding clauses or homophones, this is an excellent resource. It is also used as a complete curriculum where students work straight through from beginning to end in order to achieve mastery before moving on from each element. This book is designed with activities that help prepare students for standardized tests and targets thinking skills that prepare students for continual learning throughout their life.

What We Thought:

My 8 year old daughter is finishing out 3rd grade and will be heading into 4th grade this fall. She really enjoys language arts and had finished her curriculum for the year a couple of months ago. Since she is heading into 4th grade, I had her start at the beginning and work straight through for the review period. She worked on syllables, prefixes, suffixes and antonyms. Since she is largely self-motivated in this subject, I simply told her to do a couple of pages a day without any instruction. She would come to me when she had questions and occasionally got frustrated because she couldn’t figure something out. Once we went over it together, she was able to easily move on. My daughter really enjoyed this workbook I think mostly because a lot of it felt like puzzles to her, which is the curriculum’s intent. She loves figuring things out and is always up for overanalyzing something, which is a good thing in this format. As usual, this company provides excellent content that challenges and strengthens students’ minds and provides a great resource for homeschool families.

Follow The Critical Thinking Co. on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheCriticalThinkingCo
Twitter: https://twitter.com/criticalthinks
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecriticalthinkingco/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/criticalthinks/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCsVEVNa6UpVqXxo_t5sbb7Q

The Homeschool Review Crew tried out several kinds and levels of workbooks from The Critical Thinking Co.. Check out all of the reviews through the link below to see if there are other resources suitable for your family.

DISCLOSURE: I RECEIVED THIS COMPLIMENTARY PRODUCT THROUGH THE HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW.

It is a known fact that we fear that which we do not understand. Math is certainly a subject that many fear because they don’t understand or don’t understand it because they fear it! In our house, we tend to avoid things that we think are going to be difficult and math seems to be a regular offender of convincing kids it is harder than it really is. For today’s review we’re going to talk about a program designed to maximize math potential in kids by engaging them in critical thinking word problems and then walking them through the problem solving process. I’m going to show you all about Singapore Math Live - Challenging Word Problems from Singapore Math Live.

What We Received:

For this review we received Level 5 Singapore Math Live - Challenging Word Problems, a 209 paged workbook and access to accompanying solution videos from Singapore Math Live.

How It Works:

The Challenging Word Problems workbook is set up with 13 different lessons, review questions and answers. The lessons cover topics like Fractions, Ratio, and Area of Triangles. Within each lesson there are a couple of worked examples that demonstrate a concept and then followed by 8-10 practice questions. The online videos correspond with the practice questions and their solutions only. The worked examples are not addressed in the videos. The design is for students to walk through the worked examples and then try the following practice questions on their own. To check their answers they can check the back of the workbook, but for maximum understanding students should watch the videos for each practice question. The videos consist of the same instructor voicing over her writing out the problem solving process for each set of practice problems.

What We Thought:

Word problems are most definitely challenging in our household. I did just fine in math most of the time, but when word problems came on the scene about 6th grade, I struggled. While I eventually worked it out, I still hesitate and take a deep breath every time I sit down with my 11 year old and a word problem. Having the videos from Singapore Math Live changes the experience entirely. An answer key simply tells you whether or not you are wrong, but these videos teach students about the process, different problem solving techniques as well as checking your answer. The videos also make it less parent/teacher dependent if you are looking for a more independent work setup. The workbook is full of, as the name suggests, challenging word problems that are good exercise for any student, but the real value is the video instruction. As a homeschool parent, there is always value in someone else filling in possible learning gaps and the Singapore Math Live videos serve that need very well. And there always seems to be something more interesting about someone ELSE telling you what the right answer is rather than your mom!

Follow Singapore Math Live on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/singaporemathlive
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/singapore.math.live/

Singapore Math Live offers six different levels of workbooks and videos. Click on the link below to see what other families thought about the various levels available.

If you’re looking for the beginning of our Racecar’s path, you can read about it here: Part 1 and Part 2

The entire affair was not even remotely what I had expected to happen. Who starts labor in transition and doesn’t have any contractions? Well, that’s what I did. It made sense that he had trouble with breathing at first because there wasn’t enough squeezing to clean out his lungs. It also was going to make sense that his breathing was going to remain a bit too fast for a while, but not before a 4 day stay in the hospital was complete. Newborns are often born with rapid breathing that will usually calm down by day 3 or 4, but his didn’t. The midwives wanted to make sure there wasn’t something big going on - though everything else looked good - so we had an echo done. Turns out there were two holes still open that allowed them to calculate his lung pressure and it was too high. So, everyone was concerned but we convinced them to send us home with oxygen rather than admitting us directly.

Remember that I have just given birth 5 days ago. We’re trying to breastfeed and recover from the shock of his birth. So, stress only begins to describe what I was experiencing. After waiting ALL DAY for home health to deliver the oxygen and pulse oximeter, it finally comes at 7pm. The guy explained it all to us, but we didn’t know what we were doing. We hooked our newborn up to it all, which was not fun and then sat there and watched the pulse ox go up and down, wondering if all the dips meant he was about to die on us! If we truly understood how difficult it is to get a consistent reading on an infant and how finicky those machines can be anyway, we probably would have lasted longer, but we didn’t know that and were scared for our newborn. So as I’m holding him and Mr. Butler and I are staring at each other and then the oxygen numbers, he finally just said, “I think we just need to go to the emergency room.” I wanted to argue with him. The last place I want my 5 day old newborn was the emergency room, but I knew we were so exhausted and couldn’t bear the weight of missing something major out of ignorance. So I numbly packed a bag for us. I sat in the back of the car with him in his car seat and the oxygen, making sure it stayed attached as well as I could. It all seemed so surreal.

Once they finally got to look at him, we were admitted to Children’s around 4:30 in the morning and would stay for just over 4 days. He stayed on oxygen for most of the time and they ran all the tests known to man, it felt like. We braced for heart conditions or lung medications or all the unknown disorders your brain can come up with. Never in all my life had I been so eternally grateful to be married to a 6”2, 230 lb intimidating engineer. He asked all the questions and then more. I was traumatized just by being there but we were exceptionally cared for and protected through his determined advocacy and a great (or scared of my husband) staff. All the tests came back perfect. They sent us home with oxygen and an appointment with a cardiologist in 2 weeks. He seemed stuffy at times, on top of the fast breathing so we had started giving him some herbal remedies for mucous before we even left. They said to keep him on oxygen for the 2 weeks before weaning him, but our pediatrician encouraged us to try sooner if he would tolerate it. We turned it down to the lowest setting before off (we thought) and he struggled (meaning his oxygen levels would dip into low 90s high 80s) a bit for a couple of hours but then stabilized. Since we didn’t want to press our luck we kept it at that setting until the day of his appointment. Just to see what would happen, Mr. Butler tried to turn it off. Turns out, he already had!! So for the past few days he had been on no oxygen and we had just been wasting electricity! The good news was that he had stabilized on his own and things were looking really good. The cardiologist said he looked great and sent us on our way, never to return.

After all of that, we never were given any answers. The oxygen seemed to be what he needed perhaps, but other than that no one knew what to say. Thankful for the no news is good news routine, but still frustrating to go through all of that when maybe we didn’t need to. Still, you just don’t know what you don’t know and that’s a scary place to be in. Now 5 years later, I think what happened was that little speed racer was born so fast that his body didn’t get cleared of all the fluids and such in this body and was carrying around more than his little body was prepared for. The oxygen gave him a boost and time mixed with some herbs helped get him where he needed to be. So so so thankful that he is strong and healthy today, but it still triggers so much conflicting emotions in me.

The next couple of months our Rory would settle in just fine, but the stress streak he started would continue with a lightning strike to the tune of $1000 worth of damage, a chunk of medical bills and my dog - my first baby - getting sick. After everything we had gone through to get Rory here and safe, having to put Grace down only 2 months into his life was the height of my grief. It felt like a bizarre trade that I didn’t sign up for. It was all more than I could process at times. And I know to the many families who have ongoing medical issues or events that didn’t turn out as well as ours, my roller coaster seems like a pebble in the road, which comparatively it is. I think comparing is disrespectful and misguided, but it is easy to get caught up in. This whole affair was very traumatic to me, which is why I needed to write about it. As a mother we get used putting our pain or needs over to the side until the child or family gets settled. In the same way, I have often felt uncomfortable talking (or writing) about my pain or needs because there are many someones with greater pain or needs. I hope we agree that we should never play a game of “My struggle is worse than yours” anyway, but I’m learning that there does need to be some space for a struggle to be a struggle no matter how it compares to someone else’s. Momma needs to eat eventually, even if the kids get first dibs. We all experience grief and struggle AND we all need to process it to be healthy and balanced. So, this is my attempt at feeding myself, I guess.

One of the most interesting thoughts I’ve had since Rory was born and I’ve gotten to know his personality is that even at conception, he was fast. Only a really fast swimmer was going to make it through because clearly all the rest weren’t cutting it. And the thought that all that waiting brought us the most determined, task oriented, crowd-loving racecar just shows God’s grand plan is more beautiful than we can imagine. This kid is one of the happiest kids I’ve ever met and never fails to bring an extra layer of fun to life. Looking back, I am so thankful for my 3 very different children and am in awe of all the different instincts and struggles that have led to my mama heart feeling full and complete in the family God has allowed me to serve.

IEW is one of our favorite language arts companies and Fix It! Grammar has been new to us this year. It’s been a hit so far!

If you missed the first installment of our little Racecar’s journey into the world, you can read it here: Part 1

What felt like a victory in getting pregnant at all turned out to be just the beginning of a rocky journey. Mr. Butler had already set his mind on no more babies so it took him a couple of weeks to warm up to the idea. Pretty quickly I started in with morning sickness like a freight train. I really didn’t throw up, but my energy and productivity bottomed out. A vacation got cancelled, Jude got really good at putting Zoey down for a nap, and my poor housekeeping skills fell to abysmal. My body was a lot older this time around and I felt it.

Somewhere around 20 weeks, where I had started to get a little energy back, I had a day where I progressively felt worse. I felt bloated pressure on my bladder, but couldn’t seem to empty it. Around Mr. Butler’s drive home from work, I called him begging him to take me to the emergency room. You know something isn’t right if I’m asking to go to the hospital because I HATE hospitals. But pain can motivate. After checking out the baby, who was fine, they emptied my bladder and the nurse claimed it was the most she’d ever seen come out of someone! After that I immediately felt better. They ran tests and double-checked all the things. My potassium was a little low, but nothing they came up with then or at later appointments could account for what happened. Terrifying, but all’s well that ends well.

Life moved on and my belly grew out. I couldn’t tolerate a lot of foods and had to be selective about what I ate, but there weren’t anymore events. Physically things calmed down with my body, but the stress was just ramping up. In late November, both of our cars died on the same day within a mile of each other. If hadn’t lived it, I wouldn’t believe it myself. We replaced the engine in my CRV and bought a new (used) one for Mr. Butler, something we certainly had NOT been planning for right before Christmas. My parents were building a house which added activity to everything in the following months. And still my belly grew out further.

On the day he was born, only a couple days after his ‘due date’, I hadn’t had any contractions really. I hadn’t felt well, but I was 9 months pregnant. That morning I had asked my mom to come over and work on my feet - she does reflexology - and I just wanted to feel better. It felt great, but I was still pregnant. As the day progressed, I felt worse but no contractions to speak of. I took a shower and proceeded to feel worse, but no evidence of labor. Probably around 3pm or so, I developed severe pelvic pain. No contractions, just increasing sharp pain. Mr. Butler kept asking me if I was in labor but I didn’t know what to tell him. I knew what contractions and labor felt like and this wasn’t really it, but it also wasn’t normal. Finally, he called my mom and the midwives to come over. Jude was already with my dad and Zoey was taking a nap. The pain was getting more and more uncomfortable. I couldn’t lay down but felt weak standing up. The pain was exponentially worse than my other two labors and there was no comforting me with headphones and music. It just agitated me. Finally the pain was so bad that I stood at chest high cabinet and fluctuated between squatting and guttural noises. So, clearly in labor but none I had ever experienced before.

When the assistant midwife arrived, they moved me into dining room. Why? I had given birth at home twice before, though not at this house. Had I determined that the most comforting and meaningful place to give birth was in my dining room? Nope. It was the closest room with tile and not carpet, so way easier to clean. While it seems a little bizarre to me that cleaning was the deciding priority, boy was it wise this time around. Remember, the pain is so much worse than my two other very natural births and I’m feeling completely sideswiped by this labor. The assistant midwife takes a look at me and says I’m going to need my other bag. While she set up what she had, Randy ran to the car and grabbed everything he saw. As soon as they (Randy, my mom and Chelsea, the assistant because the head midwife hadn’t made it yet) got everything setup, I was either going to die from the pain or have a baby. So, with just a few pushes, he came gushing out. And I mean gushing. All liquid, contents and his whole 10 pound self game out in a single wave. That tile floor certainly came in handy.

That chunky race car opened his eyes and I saw him. He was right there. I was in shock and full of oxytocin. And then he closed them and started to fade. The oxytocin kept me convinced - in a way only mothers can do - that he was going to be just fine. “Just give him a minute.” I said. Chelsey, the assistant who had helped deliver miss Z, was amazing and professional from start to finish. She did all the things to get him to come back to us. It only felt like a few seconds, but it was a lot longer and Mr. Butler and my mom were in no way calm like me. They were - appropriately - afraid we were going to lose him. But in what felt like moments to me ( but in actuality a lot longer), he coughed and started brightening back up. All was well. Rory Emerson Butler was born at 6:31 pm barely 30 minutes after Chelsey arrived.

And that was just the beginning.

If you are looking for the rest of the story, click here: Part 3

Our family is powered be HERBS! From the womb to today, we support our family’s health with a powerful assortment of supplements. Nature’s Sunshine, our quality company of choice is now offering bundles at a discount, a great way to save money and take a step towards better health.

DISCLOSURE: I RECEIVED THIS COMPLIMENTARY PRODUCT THROUGH THE HOMESCHOOL REVIEW CREW

“When are we going back to the library? I have nothing to read!” This is a common complaint in our household usually a mere day or two after coming home with a stack. We are blessed with reading children. I’m sure in some parts of the world, the screen is king, but in our house there are never enough new books. That’s one of the reasons I’m so willing to do reviews like this because we get to try things I otherwise wouldn’t even know about. Thanks to the Homeschool Review Crew, my daughter got to read a new book, Farmyard Faith from Whatsoever Stories this past month. Of course, she had it read in a few days because she reads ridiculous fast but it certainly brought a smile to her face.

What We Received:

We were given one paperback book, Farmyard Faith from Whatsoever Stories that contains 26 chapters, 204 pages, and several black and white photos.

What the Book is About:

This book by Kinsey M. Rockett is a collection of stories about time spent on her family’s farm growing up in Chattaroy, Washington. She recounts various lessons in farm living and character building that her family experiences. Each chapter begins with a picture of an animal from the farm and often a character from one of the stories. The end of each story or chapter usually includes a Bible verse or some spiritual truth that she saw reflected in the previous paragraphs. The book is intended for ages 10 and up, but also does really well as a read aloud with the whole family. Each spiritual reflection serves as great discussion starters.

What We Thought:

My 8 year old daughter snatched this book up as soon as we got it in the mail. Anything with animals can enthrall her with ease. So, a book about farm life AND steeped in religious reflection was a slam dunk. We have one of those Chicken Soup for the Soul books for Pet Lovers that she will periodically read from and this book reminds me of it a bit. True stories that get rounded out at the end in a way that makes you reflect or just feel good are certainly good for the soul. She had no trouble with the reading level, but I’m certain she didn’t grasp all the spiritual connotations simply because she is a speed demon when reading. While I think reading it alone is perfectly suitable for upper elementary aged kids, there is a valuable bonus in reading it together as a family where you can bring out things that might get overlooked in a child’s rush.

Did you know that the Crew reviewed two other books from Whatsoever Stories? Check out the reviews of Trial at the Ridge and Prisoner of War through the link below.