2020 TBR (to be read)

2020 is almost here and today I am sharing 24 of my TBR books. I'm so excited to be sharing this list with you and I'm excited that this is a collaboration post with Roxanne over at Homework and Horseplay. After you are done reading my list go over and check out Roxanne's.

My 2020 TBR

I am going to link the books for you below so you can easily find them on the Good Reads website. I will also do my best to give a short description of each book. Without further delay, here is my 2020 TBR list.

1. The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

 This book is a little hard to explain in just a few short sentences but basically, the main character comes across a strange book that's about him and it leads him on an adventure. The author of this book also wrote The Night Circus. I absolutely loved that book so I have high hopes for this one. You can read more about this book here.
*Update* I received this book as a Christmas gift and I could not wait to start it. I am over halfway through the book and it is incredible and has the potential to be my favorite book. I will keep you updated on that.

2. The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

The Hulu series is based on this book. I love the series and I am excited to read this book. The book is about Offred who is a handmaid and she lives with a commander and his wife. Her job is to get pregnant by the commander and deliver a baby for them. Her worth is found only by her ability to get pregnant and have a healthy baby. Read more about the book here.

3.  The Testaments by Margaret Atwood

This book is a sequel to the Handmaid's Tale. I don't want to say too much about this and accidentally give something away. You can read more about this book here on Good Reads.

4. Campaign Widows by Aimee Agresti

What better book to read when going into another election year. This book follows a few different women who become friends while their husbands are on the campaign trail. It sounds like such a great distraction while everyone on social media argues with strangers about who will make a better President. haha. Check out the book here for more information.

5. Lock Every Door by Riley Sager

Jules takes a new job as an apartment sitter for rich and famous people who live in a very well known building. Another apartment sitter tells Jules some history about the building that Jules passes off as just a ghost story. One day the girl goes missing and Jules tries to find out what happened to her new friend. This book is a thriller and so many others have raved about it. You can see some reviews here if you'd like.

6. American Royals by Katharine McGee

In this book, America has a royal family and the princess is in love with someone who is off-limits. This book seems like another great one to read for a healthy distraction during an election year, haha. See more about it here.

7. P.S. I Love You by Cecelia Ahern

I love the movie so why not read the book. Holly's husband passes away and she is lost without him and has a hard time picking up the pieces. To her surprise, her husband has written her letters and over time with the help of the letters, she is able to find herself. Find out more here.

8. The Young Wives Club by Julie Pennell

This book follows 4 women and the relationships that they thought would be perfect. The synopsis of this book reminds me a little of The Desperate Housewives. I am unashamed to admit that I love that show. Read more about the book here.

9. The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

This book comes highly recommended from lots of different blogs I have been reading. I'm not even going to give a brief description of this because I want you to go read the full synopsis of it here.

10. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

The dream chooses the dreamer, not the other way around. That alone grabbed my attention and I added it to my TBR list. You can read the entire description on Good Reads.

11. Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers

Set during the gold rush, Angel is a prostitute and meets a man named Michael who listens to God's calling and marries Angel. Angel feels unworthy of love and ends up running back to her old life. This book is based on the book of Hosea of the Bible. See more on this book by clicking here. 

12.  The Solace of Water by Elizabeth Byler Younts

This story takes place in the 1950s and follows the story of an unlikely friendship between an African American woman who lost her son and a white Amish woman who holds secrets of her own. So many people have said this book was a great emotional read and I can't wait to dive into it. You can find out more here.

13. One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Emma and Jesse are high school sweethearts who get married and live a wonderful first year of marriage together. Jesse ends up dying and Emma is heartbroken so she moves back to her home town. Years later she falls in love with a new man and they get engaged. She is ready for her second chance at love but then Jesse is found, alive. The synopsis of this book gives me goosebumps. You can find the book here.

14. The Secrets of Paper and Ink by Lindsay Harrel

The cover of this book caught my eye and the synopsis caught my heart. You would need to read the synopsis yourself to appreciate what this book is about. Go check it out here.

15. A Constellation of Roses by Miranda Asebedo

Trix comes from a hard life and she steals to make it on her own till she gets caught. Trix is given the choice to do jail time or to live with her long lost family. She chooses her long lost family and while there she notices that they each have certain gifts. This book sounds magical and heartwarming. You have to see the book cover as well, view it here.

16. Bird Box by Josh Malerman

If you haven't watched this movie don't do it. Read this book first. I have read lots of reviews saying the book was so much better than the movie and that's funny because the movie was great. Bird Box is about something horrible running around and if you look at it you end up killing yourself. You can read more here if you'd like.

17. Malorie by Josh Malerman

This is the sequel to Bird Box. That's all I want to say but if you want to know more you can check it out here.

20.  Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel

This book doesn't come out till March but it is one that I am extremely excited about. This book is about a mother and daughter. The mother has the daughter believing she is sick to get money and sympathy from people. Eventually, she gets caught and ends up going to jail but when she gets out she asks her daughter if she can move in with her. This reminded me of the Hulu series called The Act and the cover of this book is stunning. I can't wait to get my hands on this book! See the cover here.

21. A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer

This is a Beauty and The Beast retelling and it sounds like a good one. In this book, the female character has cerebral palsy. I think it's wonderful that books are including more characters with illnesses and disabilities. See more here.

22. The Institute by Stephen King

This will be my first Stephen King book I will read. I am so excited because I have heard lots of things about his book. This book is about a boy who is kidnapped and his parents are murdered. This boy is brought to an institute where other kids are also there and they have special talents. The people running The Institute are not kind. This book has gotten lots of great reviews so I can't wait to read it for myself. See more on the book here.

23. Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin

This story follows a witch and a witch hunter who is forced into marriage. I keep hearing great things about this book, you can read more about it here.

24. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

When I was picking out books to read for 2020 I knew I had to add this to my list. This book follows Jay Gatsby and his new love during the 1920s. This book is a classic and a perfect read for 2020! You can find out more here.


There you have it, 24 books that I have on my TBR list. I hope you found some good books here to add to your list. Don't forget to check out Roxanne's TBR list.
Have a happy new year!

5 Christmas Books You Should Read

I have made it a mission of mine to read Christmas themed books through December. I technically started in November after Thanksgiving because, for me, that is Christmas time. I have truly enjoyed getting back into books and the Christmas season has been the perfect time to do this. Okay, let's get into the books.

1. One Day in December by Josie Silver

This book mainly takes place in London. The main character sees a guy at a bus stop while she is on a bus. They lock eyes and she instantly feels sparks. She waves for him to get on the bus but before he can the bus pulls away. She tells her flatmate who is also her best friend about this guy. Over the next year, she tries to find him but doesn't have any luck. During a party, her best friend introduces our main character to her new boyfriend who happens to be the guy from the bus stop. The book covers a 10yr span and it's so good! I adore how this book ended. 
Warning: This book does use cuss words and has some sex scenes but doesn't get over descriptive. All in all, I enjoyed this book and I easily skipped over the sexual parts and it didn't take away from the book.

2. The Christmas Shoes by Donna VanLiere

This book is about a man who works too much and a little boy who's mother has terminal cancer. The paths of these two unlikely people cross in such a wonderful and Christmas spirited way. I don't want to say much more than that because I really think you should read this book. I cried so much but it also reminded me what matters most, especially during the Christmas season. I will probably read this book every December because I loved it that much.

3. The Christmas Town by Donna VanLiere

The main character in this book had a hard upbringing. Her father left when she was young and her mother has been in and out of jail leaving the girl to be tossed around to different foster homes. This Christmas all she wants is a family so she goes on Craigslist looking for one. She also comes across a neighboring town and meets some wonderful people in it. This is such a heartwarming story and I fell in love with many of the characters.

 4. The 13th Day of Christmas by Jason F. Wright

This book has a unique friendship between a little girl and an elderly woman. The little girl's family has lost everything and has to move into a trailer home. The little girl makes friends with one of the neighbors who is an elderly widow. There is something special about December 26th and it's not revealed till the end. I borrowed this book from the library but I loved it so much that I am going to buy it next year. It's such an amazing read and has forever changed December 26th for me.

5. Chicken Soup for the Soul Christmas Treasury: Holiday Stories to Warm the Heart by Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Matthew E. Adams

In this book we have lots of Christmas stories shared from all over that are all so heartwarming and sure to put anyone in the Christmas spirit. I kept this book on my nightstand and read it throughout the month.


Thanks so much for joining me here and I hope you can read at least one of these books! If you have other book suggestions I would love to hear them.

Medical Investigation 101 | High School Curriculum Review

If you are homeschooling a high schooler then I think you can agree with me that finding a curriculum can be challenging. It seems like many companies don't have anything to offer above 8th grade. I also don't think there are many reviews for high school materials. I'd like to offer more of that here on my blog and today I am doing just that. Let's get into it!

Medical Investigation 101

Medical Investigation 101 is an interesting curriculum that takes the student along in how doctors analyze medical mystories. This set comes with three books, a textbook, a workbook, and the teachers guide. Medical Investigation 101 will take the student along using realistic cases in how a doctor will break things down in order to find what is going on. The student will have to use the patient's complaint, symptoms, and their medical chart. If your high schooler enjoys an interactive curriculum, they will enjoy this.

My Thoughts

When I got this in the mail my 10th grader was very excited to begin using it. She cracked it open and took off with using it. I never had to remind her to do her work as she would always grab this curriculum first thing in the morning. She enjoyed everything about it, especially getting to learn more about practical things like CPR.

You can find Medical Investigation 101 here. This set is also part of the full 11th-grade curriculum bundle and you can find that here. My daughter was so sad when she finished this because she enjoyed it so much. She learned a lot of new things and believes other students her age would also enjoy this curriculum.

Thanksgiving Activites For Kids | Part 2

Thanksgiving is only a few days away and I am so excited. Keeping up with my part 1 of Thanksgiving activities for kids, here is my part 2. Let's just get right to it. Don't forget to check out my part 1.

Thanksgiving Activities For Kids | Part 2

Before I get into more activities I wanted to share this fun activity I was sent by Timberdoodle. This cute little donkey is fun to build and even more fun to paint. My 10yr old and 6yr old did this activity. After the donkey was built I had each of them take turns and paint a side of it. It worked out very well and they loved the opportunity to paint and be creative. This activity comes with everything you need aside from paint. I went to WalMart and had the kids pick out a few different colors of the .50 cent paints. You can find this cute UGears 4Kids Donkey and Cart here.

4 More Thanksgiving Activities 

• Writing or coloring a list of things the kids are thankful for is always a wonderful activity. I love reading what they have to be thankful for. 
• Playing with playdough and making their own little Thanksgiving dinner is so fun for kids. You can kick it up a notch and make your own pumpkin or apple playdough. You can do a fast search on Google and find lots of recipes. 
• Print off some Thanksgiving color pages. You can find tons of free color pages on Google.
• Turkey's handprints are a beloved activity in our home. It's simple and something you can keep for years to come.
  
  
  I hope you all have a happy Thanksgiving with your families.
  
  

Thanksgiving Activities For Kids | Part 1

If you regularly follow me it should be no surprise to you that I'm a mom of 5. Being a mom of so many it is always so much easier for us to have Thanksgiving at our house. I enjoy everything about Thanksgiving even if I am the only one who cooks. Over the years I have found that I need to keep my kids busy so I can get all the cooking and prep work done. If you are like me you are baking pies the day before Thanksgiving. I decided I would write up a 2 part blog on different Thanksgiving activities kids can do. These blogs will also include 2 featured reviews from my beloved Timberdoodle. Let's get into it.

Featured Item: Plus-Plus Turkey

What kid doesn't love to build things? I know my kids love things like legos and these plus-plus blocks we've had for some years now. When I was given the opportunity to review this cute turkey I jumped on it because I knew my son would love it. I wasn't wrong.

This tube comes with the pieces you need and also the instructions. My son has been playing with these blocks for years so he knows how to use them and had a pretty easy time putting this together. I will say that ours did not come with the exact colors as shown in the instructions but it was easy enough to improvise using other colors. It still turned out very cute and my son had fun. He also built other things with these like the Mayflower. All in all we enjoyed these and this will keep a kid busy for a while. You can find this kit on the Timberdoodle website.

Thanksgiving Ideas For Kids

In addition to the turkey plus-plus blocks, here are a few other activity ideas for kids this Thanksgiving.

• Using brown paper as a table cloth will keep kids busy because you can have them decorate it by coloring and drawing on it. 
• My kids enjoy making up plays. One year they dressed Haddy up as a turkey and used a paper bag to make her costume. It was very cute. 
• Make a special tradition. One thing my kids look forward to is eating their pumpkin pop tarts watching the Macy parade. 
• Make butter. This was something I did as a child and my kids love it. It's so easy to make this, All you need is a jar with a lid and heavy whipping cream. You can also add in salt if you would like. Have the kids all take turns shaking the heavy cream in the jar until you have homemade butter. 

I hope you enjoyed these ideas and make sure you come back tomorrow for part 2! 

 

My Toddler's Favorite Books

I have a 2yr old and she loves her books. We started out reading to her when she was only a few months old. Since then her book collection has grown a lot. She has lots of different types of books but she has a book series that is currently her favorite. Timberdoodle graciously sent me this Find It book series in exchange for a review.

What's Included 

You'll receive 4 Find It board books. The titles are

• Find It Farm
• Find It Bedtime
• Find It Things That Go
• Find It Animals

 When you open the books there will be one side with the pictures to find and the other side will have a brightly illustrated scene. The pictures are eye-catching with not a lot of busy art going on making it easier for a toddler to find the items in the scene.

My Thought

These books are wonderful quality and hold up very well to my 2yr old. I love that the pictures are bright and simple enough for a toddler to search out and find. Reading these books has helped to grow her vocabulary. She really enjoys the animal and bedtime books. You can find these books on the Timberdoodle website. This book series is also part of the Tiny Tots curriculum kit.

Chroma Cube

I love logic games for my kids. I do my best to make sure they each have a fun new game when we start the school year. I love these games, even more, when they can be played alone. I was gifted this Chroma Cube set from Timberdoodle in exchange for a review. This might be my favorite item I have been given by Timberdoodle.

What Is Chroma Cube

Chroma cube is a logic puzzle game that will challenge its players to use detective skills in order to solve each puzzle. The game uses 12 wooden multi-colored cubes and a wooden board. The player will need to place the 12 cubes on the board using only the clues given on the game card. The answers for each puzzle are on the back of the cards. The blocks can be arranged in 479,001,600 different ways so there may be more than 1 correct way to arrange the blocks.

What's Included With The Game

• 12 wooden blocks
• plywood try that holds the blocks and stores the cards under the try
•  25 puzzle cards

My Thoughts

This game truly is fantastic. My friend and I solved some puzzles with each other and had so much fun. She is planning to purchase one for her office at work. I like how challenging the clues are. I also adore how cute this game looks as an interactive decorative piece. This game would be great in any home on a coffee table. My teenager daughters also enjoyed this game and even took it with us when we went to the cabin for the weekend. Both of them enjoyed working together on the puzzle as much as they enjoyed working alone. This game will get played a lot in our home.

You can find this game on the Timberdoodle website here. The Chroma Cube is also included in Timberdoodles 11th grade curriculum kit found here.

Acorn Sensory Bin

I love sensory bins for toddlers. I think they are a great way to keep little ones busy while also being beneficial for them for a number of different ways. Lately, I haven't made a sensory bin. I have so many ideas but they require me to go to the store and buy the things I need. While outside the other day I was inspired to collect acorns for the kids and decided later that the actions would make a great sensory activity for my 2yr old.

 

 What You Need

• Acorns
• soapy water
• tin foil
• baking sheet
• container for the acorns

 

How To Prep Acorns

 I grabbed a basket and started to collect the acorns from the ground. I made sure to also collect the tops of them since most of the acorns didn't have their tops anymore. My 6yr old joined me outside and helped to collect acorns.

After I had a good amount I headed inside to prep them. I preheated my oven to 200*F and filled up the sink with warm soapy water. I added the acorns into the water and gave them a little wash and rinsed them afterward. I then got out a baking sheet and lined it with tin foil before putting the acorns on it. After I had all the acorns on the baking sheet I spread them as much as I could making sure I only had 1 layer. I then placed the baking sheet into the oven for 3 hours. I did this in the evening and when they finished baking I turned the oven off and left the acorns in the oven overnight to cool.

Time To Play

I put the acorns in a big bowl and added in some leaves. I also gave my toddler some measuring cups she could use to play with. This kept her busy for about 2 hours. She had so much fun and my other kids would also stop and play with the acorns alongside her. Later on, I did hot glue the caps on to the acorns because I plan to use these for a craft. This is totally optional.

I hope you enjoyed this easy and very natural sensory activity. If you get the chance to make this I'd love to see pictures. You can tag
me on Instagram or Facebook @joyfulwifelife
Thanks for reading!

Morning Chore Madness

In the mornings after breakfast, the kids and I run around the house getting some chores done. I have the older 3 kids help in this so that things get done a little faster. We sweep, load the dishwasher, tidy up the living room, get a load of laundry in, and wipe down counters. During this madness yesterday I lost track of the baby (2yr old) and Haddy (6yr old) Typically Haddy doesn't help with morning chores because I find it easier for her not to. Anyway, I was searching through the house trying to find those two and I ended up finding them in my bathroom. Haddy had Raegan in her lap and she was brushing her hair. Haddy told me she wanted to help out so she decided to get Raegan's hair brushed out for me. She is such a sweet girl.

Missing The Picture

In the rush to get chores completed I'm missing out in other important things like allowing my 6yr old to help out. She desperately wants to be a helper and often finds her own little ways of helping. Sometimes she makes her bed and wants me to come look, she has even attempted to make my bed. I love her so much and don't have the heart to fix the bed after she made it. In my chaos of morning chores and trying to stick to a 9am sharp school start time, I am snuffing out Haddy's willingness to help out.

What Now

 We have a large family with 5 kids. It's essential to my survival that my kids help out with chores. I usually start them off at 9yrs old in doing chores when I should really be starting them so much sooner. The sense of accomplishment Haddy felt when helping out yesterday was so evident on her face when she smiled up at me to proudly tell me she was helping out with the baby. This really made me rethink everything. There really isn't any reason why I shouldn't be letting her help out. Haddy prides herself on being a big sister, she has ever since she found out she was going to be one. So, instead of worrying about a schedule I want to keep I now plan to include Haddy in the morning chore madness. Her new job is to brush out Raegan's hair and she couldn't possibly be more excited to do so.

What About You

At what age do your kids start doing chores and what do they do? I plan to add some evening chores for Haddy and even Raegan. Raegan loves to help get the laundry out of the dryer.

How I Teach About 9/11

Do You Remember

Chances are you remember the exact moment when you heard about 9/11. I was in middle school and I remember being so confused about the event wondering why it happened and who was doing it. I wasn't necessarily afraid for myself but I was afraid for those who lived in New York.

Here we are years later and I am no longer that middle school-aged girl. I'm a mother of 5 and I still take a moment on 9/11 to remember the event. As a mother, I believe it is important that we teach our children about those events no matter how scary it is. It's our responsibility to teach our children about these events that have affected our nation right to the core. We need to be teaching about this wether or not you are a homeschooler. I'm sure schools teach about 9/11 but it will mean so much more to your kids if they learn this from you.

How I Teach About 9/11

My kids are all different ages from 2yrs old to 15yrs old. Of course my 2yr old has no idea what I am talking about but my other 4 kids do. This year they are 6, 10, 13, and 15. Last year was the first time I sat with the 4 kids and showed them the videos of the Today Show. That is what I watched all those years ago and I want my kids to see what we all saw.

After we watch the video clips on YouTube I take time to explain what happened. I tell them about the hijackers, the buildings collapsing, and all the people who lose their lives including the children. I take time to listen to what my kids have to say and answer their questions. We take a moment to be silent in remembrance of all the lives lost.

Once we have finished with that I start to tell them about the heroes. I tell them about the firefighters, the police officers, and the volunteers who all worked together to help save lives. I explain to my kids how some of those brave people lost their own lives trying to help save others.

I wrap it all up with a quote by Fred Rogers, When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”

Reality

Teaching our kids about these emotional topics is never easy. No parent wants their kid to feel afraid or sad. These events have to be taught and they need to be taught by parents not just the school. The reality of it all is that there are horrible things that happened in the world and our kids need to be exposed to those things. I'm not saying you need to show your child videos of people jumping out of the windows, but we do at the very least need to discuss topics like this and keep it age-appropriate. I would love to hear how you teach your kids about 9/11 below in the comments. Thanks for reading.

All About Reading 1

Teaching a child to read used to terrify me. I don't have any formal training in how to do this and I have never taught a child to read from scratch. When I started to homeschool my son already had the basic knowledge on how to read. My daughter, Haddy, has never gone to public school. Teaching her to read is all being done by me. Thankfully I found a curriculum that had everything done for me and all I needed to do was open and go.

All About Reading 1

All about reading is what I'm using to teach my child to read. I am thrilled to be sharing this with you and tell you how much we have been enjoying it. The curriculum tells you everything you need to know and includes tips along the way. After the first few lessons, you will get the basic flow of how this curriculum works. You can easily split lessons up if you or your child needs to. This curriculum caters to all learning styles such as visual, verbal, and physical.

Materials Included

Here are all the things you can expect to get when purchasing the full All About Reading 1 kit.

• Teacher Manual 
• Student activity book in full color
• Three hardcover readers in full color
• Reading review box with dividers
• Letter tiles and magnets
• Tote bag

Other kits are available if you don't need everything mentioned above. To find out the other options you can view the website here. 

 Assembly

 When you first get the curriculum you will need to do some prep work. The curriculum comes with flashcards and letter tiles. You need to place a magnet on the backs of the tile and punch out the flashcards that have perforated edges. This didn't take me long to do and it was a fun little activity I did with my 15yr old. After all the prep work is done there isn't much else to prep when doing the lessons. All you need to do is grab your materials and you are set.

My Thoughts

This curriculum is working perfectly for my 6yr old. I am thrilled with the quality of everything because I will be using this set for my toddler one day when she is old enough. This set can easily be passed down for years if you have multiple children who will be using it. All About Reading is one of those classic materials that tend to be a favorite amongst many homeschoolers. It's no wonder why, this curriculum makes teaching a child easy and makes learning to read fun for the child. I can't recommend this curriculum enough. If you interested in this curriculum you can find it by clicking here. This particular level is also found in the full curriculum kit by Timberdoodle for Kindergarten. I hope you found this review to be helpful and I would love to hear your thoughts on this curriculum. Leave me a comment below. 

Why I Love Highway Noise

I wake up at 6am and tiptoe out of my bedroom as to not wake my sleeping toddler. I open up my bedroom door slowly as it squeaks pretty loudly. I'm holding my breath now just praying my toddler doesn't wake up. Once I cross the threshold into the hallway I sigh a breath of victory because she is still sleeping. I make my way to the kitchen to start making coffee. I don't know why I just don't set this up the night prior, I always ask myself this as I fumble around for the things I need.

Finally, the coffee is done brewing and I reach for my current favorite mug and coffee creamer. I pour everything into my mug and take in all the morning aroma. The fresh morning air coming in from the kitchen window and the coffee scent that reminds me of my childhood. I make my way to my living room and sit down while blowing on my coffee to cool it down.

As I begin to sip on my coffee I allow myself to enjoy the sweet stillness in my house. Everything is quiet, I can hear my son breathing and the birds outside chirping. 6:30am begins to roll around and the chirping birds are starting to get less noticeable as a new noise starts to emerge. The highway. The noise from the morning commuters as they all make their way to work or school. Now that school is back in session I also hear the buses on the highway. My husband hates the noise from the traffic, he finds it annoying. Myself, on the other hand, I love it.

The highway noise can sometimes resemble waves crashing on the beach but that's not why I love the sound. I love the sound because it reminds me of how blessed I am to have the opportunity to be home and enjoy the slow mornings. I'm not rushed to get myself ready for work or to get the kids packed up for school. I get to slowly sip down my coffee and check my emails. The traffic noise reminds me of this blessing every morning and I am thankful for that reminder every day

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Laser Maze for Logic

I like to have some kind of hands-on logic activity for my kids to do. Sometimes finding logic activities for older kids can be hard. My older kids think so many of them are babyish, their words not mine. Today I am excited to show you this fun Laser Maze that got the stamp of approval by both my teen girls.

Beam Bending Logic Game

This game can be used by 3rd graders and up. My son hasn't used this yet but my girls who are in 8th and 10th grade have and they love it. There is little set up time to this game. All you do is select a challenge card and place the tokens as shown on the card. Next, you need to figure out where to place the other tokens in order for the laser to hit the target. When you think you've figured it all out you can then turn on the laser to see if it hits the target.  Everything you need is included and there are 60 different challenge cards from beginner to expert.

My Thoughts

I love this game and plan to use it a lot this coming school year. This is great to have on hand for when kids are waiting to use the computer or have finished their lessons early for the day. This doesn't just have to be something homeschoolers use, any kid would love this game. Both the girls agree that this is fun, interactive, and can be challenging. This game has become one of the favorite games in the house to play.
You can find this game on the Timberdoodle website. This game is included in the 7th-grade curriculum kit.

Thank You

Thank you Timberdoodle for sending us this fun game in exchange for a review. We absolutely love it and know so many of you will love it too. 

What Are Family Subjects

If you've been following me for any amount of time you know that I have 5 kids. This year I have an 10th, 8th, 4th, and Kindergarten. I also have a 2yr old. I'm a busy lady and need to find ways to save time. This is why I started to teach subjects as a family. It saves so much time and I know what all the kids are learning. It also gives us a great opportunity to learn with each other.

What Are Family Subject

Family subjects are any subjects that you can teach to all the kids as a group. In our home, these subjects include history, science, bible, and enrichment. My 10th and 8th grader do their own science curriculums but my 4th grader and Kindergartener will do their science together. All the other subjects I mentioned include all of the kids. Thankfully companies like The Good and The Beautiful have made it easier to teach multiple grade levels using 1 curriculum. Because of that, we use their materials for science and history. I did a video explaining more about the history curriculum and you can find that here.

Enrichment Studies

This year I am taking more of a Charlotte Mason approach and adding in enrichment studies. This will include studying different artists, poets, composers, and nature. These topics are perfect for the family to do together and it can be done in sorts of different ways. I plan to share more on how we do our studies in the coming weeks.

Things To Come

I'm excited to share our family subject curriculum choices with you in the next few weeks. I plan to have a back to school week. During that week I will be sharing our curriculum choices for each grade and our family subjects. These videos will be shared on my blog, YouTube, and Instagram accounts. You can follow any of these accounts for updates so you don't miss when these go live. If there's anything you'd like to specifically see, feel free to comment below.