T Is for Tree

Our family spends much time each day reading between what is required for schoolwork and what is chosen solely for pleasure. Most of the time, the books we review tend to be for the older kids--chapter books, biographies, historical non-fiction, etc.. I love reading those together as a family and appreciate many aspects of studying that kind of literature with my kids. However, there is something so special about cuddling close with a little one and enjoying a picture book. Our newest snuggle-inducing read is T is for Tree: A Bible ABC from Reformed Free Publishing Association.

Reformed Free Publishing Association was established in 1924 as an independent, non-profit organization. Their literature includes commentaries, devotionals, Bible study guides, church history, Christian living, children's materials, educational curriculum, and more. They have a wide selection as their book catalog contains over 70 titles and options of print, audio, and downloadable products.

T is for Tree, written by Connie L. Meyer, is more than a simple alphabet book for little ones. This book focuses on God while teaching the ABCs. Bible verses, truths, and promises in God's Word are woven throughout the pages.

Each letter of the alphabet has its own page. The capital letter is prominent and followed by its chosen word. F is for faith. J is for jewel. R is for ravens. Z is for Zion. A short 3-line poem and Bible passage accompany each letter and are complemented by beautiful illustrations.
  

I've been reading this book with my two youngest children. We don't read the verses every time, as the 3-year-old doesn't always have the longest attention span. Twenty-six pages of letters and short rhymes makes the length perfect for him for special book time in the afternoon, a bedtime story at night, or just some extra snuggle time whenever. I love that not only do my boys like to shout out the letters before I read them, but that the truths of God and His love for us are being cemented in their hearts. 

The poems themselves make this a good book for older children, too. Most typical ABC books are cute and sing-songy, but even though this one rhymes as well, the vocabulary is more advanced. Words like fearsome, wither, suffered, dwelling, and others are used. The syntax is a bit more advanced than preschool age at times, too. As I love to incorporate read-alouds that are above my kids' levels, I appreciate that aspect of this book. It also makes it more enjoyable for an older child to read to a younger sibling.

Some of my personal favorite pages are C, P, and J.

J is for JEWEL

There's rubies, and there's gold;

But far more precious are the lips

That speak with knowledge told.

"There is gold, and a multitude of rubies: but the 

lips of knowledge are a precious jewel." --Proverbs 20:15 

This one has a second group of verses wrapped around the border of the page, too.

"Receive my instruction, and not silver;and knowledge rather than choice gold. 

For wisdom is better than rubies; and all the things that may be desired are not to be compared 

to it." --Proverbs 8:10-11 

So often, our flesh is drawn to want gold and silver and jewels. We want wealth and nice things. But so much more, we should desire knowledge and instruction from God. Wisdom is far more valuable than earthly treasures. To instill that truth in the hearts of my children while they are young is my goal. Weaving those principles in a simple children's book is a bonus.

T is for Tree: A Bible ABC is a beautiful hardcover book that is full of teaching opportunities. Whether you use it to introduce the alphabet, to reinforce biblical truths, as a basis for Bible memorization, or simply as a picture book to enjoy with your child, this one is sure to please.

You can connect with on the following social media sites:

Facebook

Twitter 

You can read more reviews of this book on the Homeschool Review Crew blog.

Wordless Wednesday 101/14

Wordless Wednesday 6/12/13

Wordless Wednesday 6/5/13

Wordless Wednesday 4/17/13

Things That Make Me Smile 5/12/12

What? It's Monday and I'm just now sharing Friday's post? In the words of my 2 year old, said with a southern accent, "Dat not bery niiiice."

Without further ado, on to the smiles!

1. Tyler was making unhappy faces. Jake told him, "Don't cry." Tyler instantly started crying. Jake responded, "Hey, I said 'don't cry.'"

2. Jake was digging up a small, young Rose of Sharon. When he was almost through the root and was wiggling the tree around, he said, "It feels like a loose tooth."

3. Leighton dug up the remaining root of the tree so it wouldn't grow back. Jake asked, "Why can't we leave some? I want to do that again. That was fun!"

4. We were preparing to leave church when Alyssa started to panic. "Where's my purse? Where's my purse??? Where's my purse?!?" My mom calmly answered, "It's on your shoulder."

5. Jake, talking about our homemade Butterfingers: "It's the best thing I ever put on my taste buds."

6. A girl in our church wore her hair up in a bun. Alyssa said, "She looks like a grandma. Donald Duck's grandma."

7. Jake: "I wonder how far away the moon is. I think it's higher than 100 feet."

8. Jake loves making up his own jokes. His newest one is quite clever.
Jake: "Why was the house on the stove?"

Me: "I don't know. Why?"

Jake: "Because 'Home, Home on the Range.' You know, since range is another word for 'stove."

What made you smile?

Make It Monday: Popcorn Cherry Blossoms

One of the things I love about spring is seeing the trees start to bud. That new life and splash of green and is refreshing after the gloom of winter. My favorites though are the flowering trees. The pinks, the purples, the whites - all so pretty. We used to have a beautiful flowering tree in the front of our house. Pretty, that is, as long as the flowers were still on the trees. Once they started falling - and got glued to the exterior of our van - it wasn't so pretty anymore.  Even after we'd clean off the dead flowers, there would still be gunky residue left on the van. Yuck. 

Leighton cut down the tree and filled the space with concrete to expand our driveway. While I don't miss the dried flower gunk or having to walk through the mud to get from the van into the house, I do miss the pretty flowers.

Not to worry, we now have our very own cherry blossoms . . . inside the house.

To make the tree trunks, we traced each child's hand and arm.

Then, they colored them.

You'll need popcorn and pink/red/purple JELL-O for the blossoms.

Pour both the popcorn and the JELL-O powder into a bag.

Make sure the bag has no holes. One way to check is to pour them in and shake. If the powder spills out all over the table, there is a hole. 

Ask me how I know.

Once you pour the popcorn and powder into a new bag - one with no holes - shake, shake, shake it up!

Squeeze dots of glue all around the tree and place popcorn in each one.

Our blossoms were more purple-y than the pink I had originally envisioned. That's what I get for letting Jake, Mr. I-love-everything-cherry, choose the JELL-O. The color did change to pink once they touched the glue though. Also, I sprayed them with hair spray to ensure that the powder stuck and to turn them pinker.

I could have spritzed them with water to bring out the pink, but I remembered what would happen!

Of course, there was plenty of popcorn eating as well. And messy, sticky fingers. And dirty faces. And a powdery table. All the very best things about crafting.

Jake liked the popcorn so much that he asked if we could make it for Tasty Tuesday. It's no wonder he liked it; it tasted just like the fruit-flavored pancake syrup we made.

Aren't they pretty! There's really no wrong way to place the blossoms. The ones off the tree look like flowers that the wind blew away. (Good thing there's no van next to it!)

We got 3 beautiful cherry blossom trees (without the hassle of the clean-up!) and a tasty snack to boot? Sounds like a great springtime craft to me!


Hope you have fun making your own flowering trees!

Make It Monday: Hand-Print Fall Tree

Some parts of the country have talked about snow recently. Thankfully, here in Michigan we're still enjoying the bright sunshine glowing on the oranges, reds, and yellows of the trees. I'm glad the rain has finally stopped so we can enjoy the beauty of fall. 

Now it doesn't matter if it does continue to rain though. I have my very own colorful fall trees right in my kitchen.

Let your friend paint your arm and hand brown. Watch out - it tickles!

Press your arm down on a piece of paper. If there are some white spots visible when you lift your arm, simply fill them in with more brown paint. 

After you wash off all that excess cold brown paint, return the favor, and paint your friend. 

Please though, paint just his arm and hand.

 "Hi, Mom! Wanna hug?"

 Embellish your tree by using your finger to add dots of colorful leaves all around.

I had visions of glorious trees sprinkled with the colors of fall. Masterpieces to be hung on the kitchen wall, for sure.

What they painted was far different from what my idea of the pages was. They seemed more interested in painting other accents. Very little leaves were being added.

This was not the plan. These were not the works of art I was excited to see created. 

Or were they?

Jake's picture, on the top, shows the leaves gently floating to the the ground with the slight breeze. There are 2 piles of leaves that the daddy already raked up for the child to play in. The child is jumping off the tree swing into the larger pile. The house is visible in the background.

Alyssa's picture, on the bottom,  shows a huge gust of wind. The leaves are being swept away and blown all around in the chaos. A little red squirrel tries to take shelter from the breeze near the tree.

See, it's all about perspective. Upon closer evaluation, and taking the time to listen to their descriptions, I realized that these were, indeed, art at it's finest. They weren't at all what I envisioned, but that's what makes them true artists. They weren't restrained to paint what I saw, but what they saw, what they felt.  

These little ones of mine are creative and talented and have minds of their own. Who am I to try to stand in their way, making them reform to my way of creating things? 

These pictures are hanging on our kitchen wall. Right where they should be.