1.27.2011

Curly Hair Experiment

I totally love Ruthanne {eclectic whatnot}, her riotous sense of humor, and her rockin' cool curly hair. She has mentioned plans to share her curly hair tips and secrets, but she's a busy gal, what with going to Blissdom, making her awesome camera strap covers, and managing her modern-day Brady Bunch family, among a variety of other things. So of course, I understand that she just hasn't had a chance to post her series on curly hair. Not that I'm impatient or anything. Cuz I'm not. Well, maybe just a teeny tiny bit. But I'm an understanding patient. Not that she's a doctor. To the best of my knowledge, anyway.

But I digress.

I was at Borders today and look what I discovered:

curly girl-2

{You can check it out here should you be interested.}

I sat down to peruse this book and see if it held any potential. It looks quite promising. So I'm going to give it a try. I have no idea just how long this might take, but here's my before picture. This is what it looks like in the late afternoon. Still a bit wavy, but rather weak. Also just a little frizzy. I know there's more curl/wave in there somewhere.

before hair

Some day, I hope to show you an after shot with curlier, less frizzy hair.

1.26.2011

Wordless Wednesday - Dried Flowers

26 - tipped pot

Better late than never. Check out more wordlessness at Live from Waterloo and the Wordless Wednesday hub.

1.21.2011

BB King

Last night, my mom and I had the privilege to see BB King in concert. We've wanted to see him for years, but were never able to make it. It was very exciting to finally get to go. Going with my mom was extra special because it was her love for the blues that got me hooked. We had wonderful seats, the opening band was terrific, and the King and his band were incredible!

Bantering with his drummer.
bb_king_3

bb_king_2

He has a great sense of humor.
bb_king_1

1.18.2011

Wordless Wednesday - Kissing Camels and Pikes Peak

I never tire of this beautiful view.

kissing camels pikes peak

For more wordlessness, check out Live From Waterloo and the Wordless Wednesday hub.

1.17.2011

Mercy Benefit Day

We Are That Family is hosting Mercy Benefit Day today (sorry - I'm a little late). However, bids are being accepted until 10 p.m. (CST) tomorrow, January 18th. There are some amazing products which you can bid on. This event is to benefit The Mercy House.

From the site:

The Mercy House exists to provide alternative options for pregnant girls living in the streets of Kenya. The Mercy House will aid them in nutrition, housing, prenatal care, counseling, Biblical teaching and job skills for sustainable living.

As of this evening, there's still plenty of room for bids on almost 30 items. You'll find artwork, jewelry, clothing, music, hand-sewn items, and many other terrific things. You'll not only have a chance to win some lovely items, but you'll be making a difference in the lives of girls in Kenya.

1.12.2011

Virtual Nerd - a Review


It seems like math and science are two of the more difficult subjects for many families to teach in homeschool - particularly as the kids move into the higher grades. Private tutoring can be a huge help, but it can also be a huge expense, which some families just can't manage. If you're looking for some assistance for your kids, particularly in 7th - 12th grades, you should definitely check out Virtual Nerd.

Virtual Nerd is an online tutoring program that I've found to be pretty awesome. They currently have Pre-Algebra, Algebra 1, and Algebra II and Physics videos available (1,000+) and plan to add Geometry, Pre-Calculus, Calculus, Physics with Trig, and Chemistry in the next year. Biology will be following that.

You select the concept that you want some help with and a new window opens to a video with an instructor at their patent-pending Dynamic Whiteboard™. On the right side, you'll see a step-by-step script which follows along with the instructions.


If you don't need the first portion of that concept explained, you can skip ahead to the part you want, by clicking on that section in the script. Or, if there's something you don't understand, a term or concept, you can mouse over it in the script box and it will show a pop-up window that provides you with other tutorial videos which will explain that term or concept. In the meantime, it puts the original video you were watching into the background, but remains in the same place, so you can return to it. You can continue to bring up new videos over and over, as you review or learn about portions of a concept. Once you're done with that, you can close it, and go right back to the previous video.




The videos are presented in a clear and easy-to-understand manner. I love the fact that your child can skip right to the portion they need help in; they don't have to sit through a video of information they already know. This helps to keep them engaged and interested. I think the individualization is an incredible feature of Virtual Nerd.

Virtual Nerd is available on a subscription basis and there are four different options, so you're sure to find one that meets your needs. You can take a look at those choices here. And in case, you think you'll have to sign up for something long-term, there's even an option for a single day. Sometimes that's all it takes to get your student back on track.

You'll find an introductory video as well as a lot of other information and FAQs. It's definitely worth taking a look at - for both you and your student.

If you need more proof, take a look at what other TOS Crew members had to say about Virtual Nerd at the TOS Crew Blog.


Disclaimer: I was provided access to the Virtual Nerd site to utilize their program for review as a member of the TOS Crew. The opinions stated here are my own.

1.11.2011

Wordless Wednesday - Filtered Sun

filtered sun

Not terribly clear, but not bad considering it was shot with my cell phone while at a stop sign on snowy and icy roads.

Check out more Wordless Wednesday entries at Live From Waterloo and the Wordless Wednesday hub.

1.09.2011

3 in 30, Week 1

What does it say for me that my first check-in with 3 in 30 is a couple days late? That's okay, I've already answered that question for myself. And it's not pretty.

Here goes, anyway.

So my big 3 in 30 goals and the first week's results are:

1. Go to bed on time. I guess that depends on how you define on time. Oh, right, I already defined that in this post. Lights out by 11:00 p.m. This hasn't panned out so well. The problem is I go to bed on time. But then I read. And I read some more. And my nearsighted little eyes pretend they can't see the clock well enough and they read a little more. I think midnight has been the norm. Prior to January, I was pushing 1:00-2:00 a.m., though. Oops, I just missed it for tonight. It's already a quarter after 11.

2. Drink water. I did drink more water. The first two days. Since then, I think most of my water has been carbonated. Like in a can of Dr. Pepper. Okay, okay, let's see what I can do this week. My chiropractor and massage therapist would be very happy if I drank more water this week. Of the pure, uncarbonated, un-Dr-Peppered variety.

Drink (from) this:

With water in it, obviously.

Not this:
cherry dp


3. Create meal plans. This one might've been a tiny bit better than the first two. Where I usually prefer to have them written down, I did know what we were having for 6 out of the 7 nights for dinner (dinner's the primary goal here). It's a step in the right direction.


Okay, I need to go read everyone else's progress over at the 3 in 30 weekly update. Perhaps I can gain some encouragement. Or motivation. Or something. I still have 22 days left to pull it off.

1.04.2011

WW: Skiing Peanut

peanut skier


For more wordlessness, check out Live From Waterloo or 5 Minutes for Mom.

1.03.2011

Best Face Photo - 2010

My niece is always such a ham, so it was fun to catch this rather subdued, yet mischievous, shot of her last summer at Fatburger.

mrs - fav face photo



This is my entry for I ♥ Faces' Best Face Photo of 2010 contest.

1.01.2011

My Word

I like the trend of choosing a word as a theme for the year. A focal point can be very helpful in life. In the past, I've done this {sort of}, but this year, I think it will be more official. It's already here in writing, so people might actually hold me to it. My word is

less

328-one more leaf

I've been pondering the whole idea of Less = More for awhile now.

Less online time = More time for family, projects, art, photography...

Less soda = More water

Less distraction = More focus

Less stuff = More space (mental & physical)

Less eating out = More healthy meals

Less staying up late = More rested & refreshed

Less junk food = More energy

And much, much more (resulting from less).

Do you choose a word for the year? If so, what is it? Do you want to join me in Less is More? We can hold one another accountable, share successes (and failures), and encourage one another. We could even have a linky to keep up with one another if there's a good response

Since I'm participating in 3 in 30, I think I'll use that to further refine my choices for less. All three of my goals for January are covered in the above Less = More list:

{1} Go to bed on time
{2} Drink more water
{3} Plan our meals

Click on the link if you'd like to join the 3 in 30 challenge. Leave a comment here if you want to participate in Less = More.

PS: I've added a tab at the top where I will link to various posts and articles I find that encourage and motivate on this topic.

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