Apple Camp Week 8

We just finished a three-day Apple camp for The Boys. They learned how to use the Ipad to make a movie. Can any one say marketing?

Apple Camp is a free three-day program at the Apple store for children ages 8 thru 12.  The children got lessons on making music in garage band; filming video with an ipad; putting it all together in imovie.

This was our first year participating in the camp. The Boys each received an Apple Camp T-shirt, some buttons, a lovely certificate, and a copy of their final project.

I was required to stay in the store while the boys were participating in the class. As a result, I received some valuable face time with the Apple associates. I would never schedule time in my day to visit the store to learn about my MacBook Pro. I have had the Pro for over two years never once have I considered visiting the store for lessons.

I was amazed at how much I learned. I learned a lot about the parental controls, and what I could use them for. Nothing takes the place of talking too and being involved with your children, but Knowledge is power. I like having knowledge especially since no one can be in two places at once.

My Boys also had a great lesson in advertising.  We had lots of conversations about how they provided Apple with lots of free advertising just by wearing the T-shirts. Also, they talked a lot about how much you could do with the Ipad and the fun they had. Again advertising for Apple, let the brain washing begin. I guess the 8 to 12 age range is when children are getting their own personal Ipad or MacBook.

It was also a nice way to point out that free is never really free. Apple not only advertized through my boys this week but when ever they wear those T-shirt. Even when something is free, reading the fine print is also important before we put our stamp of approval on it.

I like Apple and it is an American brand that I am confident in recommending. Like Ford, they have a quality product and great customer service. All things I look for morally before I buy a product. 

All the years of talking to my children about thinking through their purchases paid off this week. The Ipad was not something they were unwilling to leave in the store. And time will tell if this experience encourages them to be more creative in their movie making.  

Comments welcomed:

I am in love

Saturday 9: I'm Not in Love

1. Have you ever been in love but tried to deny it?
No!

2. Someone throws a party in your honor. The only guests are your past lovers. You're current spouse or significant other is cool with this. They ask you to speak and say something good about those assembled. Would there be someone there you could not say something good about?
No, I chose well and carefully.

3. How long can you go without your cell phone? Do you own a so-called “smart phone”?
If it was just a phone, a couple of months. I have a smart phone, so it keeps track of my day for me. I would forget to breathe if it did not remind me too.

4. Do you believe everyone deserves a second chance?
Yes, everyone deserves a second chance but depending on the circumstances I would be very cautious. I prefer forgiveness over stupidity.

5. Would you rather spend a whole day with your mom or your dad? (If either or both have passed, answer as if they're alive.)
My mom of course.

6. Tell us one thing about your first boyfriend or girlfriend.
Wonderful

7. Has an ex ever written something about you on facebook or their blog that was nasty about you?
No, I would never date anyone who would do such a thing.

8. What was the last thing you borrowed and never returned?
Never a borrower or a lender be.

9. Who is someone famous that you've met?
That I would admit to here. I would never tell.

Thanks so much for joining me again at the Saturday9 blog hop.

Living the Word

Completing the The Bible in 90 days does have it challenges. I have now finished Judges. I have noticed that they are many times when a leader strong in the Lord dies, that the Israelites are said to have turned away from God and his commands.

I wondered why? Was there no one to teach them about God and following his command. No one to lead them in the way everlasting. Why were these people forgetting to teach their children to love the Lord?  They were content. When we are content, we forget.

In Judges 6 we read about Gideon, who tested God saying
36 “If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised— 37 look, I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only on the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that you will save Israel by my hand, as you said.”38 And that is what happened. Gideon rose early the next day; he squeezed the fleece and wrung out the dew—a bowlful of water.
39 Then Gideon said to God, “Do not be angry with me. Let me make just one more request. Allow me one more test with the fleece, but this time make the fleece dry and let the ground be covered with dew.” 40 That night God did so. Only the fleece was dry; all the ground was covered with dew.

Was this not the same God who brought them out of Egypt. Who lead them by his very presence through the desert. They once again had been influence by the world around them. We are told in

Judges 8:28 Thus Midian was subdued before the Israelites and did not raise its head again. During Gideon’s lifetime, the land had peace forty years.

Forty years is a short time. As, we read the periods of peace and contentment gets shorter. The influences of what we see, and hear each day are what occupy our minds.

Judges 8: 33 No sooner had Gideon died than the Israelites again prostituted themselves to the Baals. They set up Baal-Berith as their god 34and did not remember the LORD their God, who had rescued them from the hands of all their enemies on every side. 35 They also failed to show any loyalty to the family of Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) in spite of all the good things he had done for them.

That passage seems so sad and yet so real. How often do we desert those who have done good things for us. The people who are there when we need help are often forgotten when the crisis is over.

How do we protect our children and grandchildren from this fate. How do we protect them from the influences of the world we are surrounded by to the second, third, fourth or even the tenth generation?

My answer is found in Samuel 3:21 “there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word.” We need to be in the Word, always.

How do I teach my children to be in the Word always?

1. We do daily devotions separately with each child.

2. Now that they are older we are reading through the bible using a year plan.

3. On Sunday, we have our family devotional at the breakfast table.

4. When they are not obeying, we go first to the Bible. What does God say?

5. When they have a problem we look for the spiritual way to think it through. I use to tell them that if they could find it in the Bible I would do it. When bringing an argument to mummy it is better to be equipped with the Word.

6. Show them how the bible applies to your life and works in theirs. How are you living the word for them?

7. Point out the blessing and miracles of God no matter how small.

8. Be an example not of perfection, but of Godly grace in your personal walk with the Lord. My Boys know I pray things through and wait for God’s guidance. Be humble, we are not perfect.

9. Talk to them about God. God creates these opportunities we just have to use them.

10. Teach them the process of questioning and learning from the Bible. Teach the system that you use, but leave room for them to find their own system.

11. The Word should be on your lips when you speak to them. I quote the scriptures to my children daily.

This is one of my Favs with teens

12. This is one of the biggest things my heart believes parents need to do. Pray and commit your children to the Lord, as Samuel’s mother did. She did not hand her son over to perfect people when she left him at the temple. The Bible clearly tells us in

1 Samuel 3:13 For I told him that I would judge his family forever because of the sin he knew about; his sons blasphemed God,[u] and he failed to restrain them.14 Therefore I swore to the house of Eli, ‘The guilt of Eli’s house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.’”

Eli son’s were not good examples to Samuel as he was growing up. Yet he grew to love the Lord. Hannah was still praying for her son.

I know they are many ways to use the Bible to train our children in the way they should go. These are a few of the important guidelines we use to train our Boys.

As always leave a comment telling me how you are training your children in the Word.

Thanks for reading @

Mom's Tool Box

Late Nights

What’s the latest you’ve ever stayed up reading a book? Is staying up late reading a usual thing for you?

For years I stayed up all night reading books. Five in the morning was my end time. Now midnight is the cut off. I have to be up at 5 a.m and need at least five hours sleep. Depending on how good a book is, I can fall asleep reading now that I am using a kindle app. 


This has been a short one for Booking Through Thursday blog hop. What do you stay up late for......

Two for one

For this post I am linking up with Thankful Thursday and Brag on God Friday together. They compliment each other so well. As we should always brag about the things God has done, for which we are eternally thankful.

I have tried to teach My Boys by example through the Word. I consistently tell them that God rewards an obedient and joyful heart. We always obey God’s word in the Bible.

God knows best. Romans 8:28: And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him.

Galatians 6:7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.

And with God working for our good. If we a sow a harvest of happy obedience, God will allow us to reap a sweet harvest someday. The question for The Boys is always WHEN. They have a very hard time seeing the rewards.

My Wild Child recently graduated from our kids program at church. Now he is a young teen, and they get to sit in adult service. He does not enjoy the adult service, but he did attend on Sunday. I was very proud of him.

After church, we decided to take The Boys out to lunch. On the way to the restaurant, we discussed that we would not be purchasing sodas because they are just too expensive. If they wanted soda, they would have to cover the cost. Soda had always been our going treat because I never buy it. Buying drinks does add a huge cost to your dinning out bill.

When we got in the restaurant and realized that drinks were included in the cost of the meal. We allowed The Boys to have their drinks. While waiting for our food the electricity in the restaurant went out. We were informed that they would not be letting anyone else in, but our our meal would be out shortly.

From my perspective, this is how God intervened and blessed us. Because The Boys we willing to be content in all circumstances, God not only allowed them to have soda. He also allowed our family to be blessed with an unexpected free meal.

We should always be willing to point out the miracles in the little day to day things. From prayers answered too unexpected gift, they should all be celebrated. We had not eaten out in a long time. Sticking to a very strict budget. My husband had been riding his bike into work, and we were planning to use the money he had saved to pay for this meal.  

Just like in Matthew 15 where Jesus fed the four thousand, he fed a family of five. I made my children very aware of how God was blessing them.

This was not the first time that God granted us an unexpected gift. Last month our insurance was will to reconsider a bill I had no means of paying. Most people believe that insurance companies never reverse decisions, but in our case I was delighted that they did. I know in my heart that is was another blessing from God. I am very thankful to know Him and have Him in my life.

I am positive that there are many ways God intervenes in my life everyday that blesses me. Another busy week is almost over and I am thankful for God’s many blessings.

If you want to share something you are thankful for or how God has blessed your life, hop on over to Thankful Thursday and Brag on God Friday's blog hop. As always please leave a comment........

Summer Loving

Second Wordless Wednesday

My Top Ten Favorite Children’s books

My Boys are growing up. The baby is eight year old. Gone are the days mummy’s favorite books. They are recommend books for me to read. As, we were deciding what books to part with, my oldest asked why am I keeping these.

1. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin, jr., and John Archambault
A great way to introduce the alphabet. This book has great poetic rhythm and  beautifully complimenting pictures. It makes a fun, easy, memorable read.

2. Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown
Sitting next to the bed, the last book would be Goodnight Moon. The concept is simple we say goodnight to everything before going to sleep. The book teaches the names of items in the home. Another beautifully illustrated picture book.

3. Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey
I honestly love everything McCloskey. We own many of his books. My favorite from his collection is Make Way for Ducklings. It is a wonderful story of a family. The way father and mother duck take care to protect their nest. The journey of taking the ducklings from the safely of the nest to the lake. It is a hard warming and priceless story.

4. Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton
In this world where everything is replaceable, and there is something new each day, this story packs a punch. I think it is the first recycling program. As I try to save my wonderfully illustrated picture books from the Kindle, Mike tries to save his steam shovel from the junk yard. I will not spoil the ending for you but it is well worth reading with the little ones.

5. Bedtime for Frances by Russel Hoban
I loved books that would remind The Boys of their need to stay in bed. This is a very sweet book that reminds parents of how children wiggle out of bed. It also reminds children of the rules and what happens when they get out of bed. There is some keen insight into what they can do to help themselves stay in bed. If you have bedtime woos, this is well worth reading.

6. Stellaluna by Janell Cannon
My Wild Child loved this book and I grew to love it also. It does have great illustrations and a beautiful story. When we began with Stellaluna, it was our longest book. After a long day, I was not excited to read a novel to my son, it is really not that long. Stellaluna is the good Samaritan mixed with begin different is cool. It is a great adoption story.

7. Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish
Amelia Bedelia teaches us the power of our words. Words have meaning for Amelia, so you have to choose when carefully. Her employers learn very quickly that they have to watch what they say or things will go astray. I really enjoyed the message of this book.

8. The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf
The classic bull in a china store story. I used this book to teach The Boys that our behavior effects the outcome of our lives. Ferdinand get mad once and has some surprising results.

9. “The Sneetches” from The Sneetches and Other Stories by Dr. Seuss
At some point, we owned every book from the Dr. Suess collection. The boys learned to read using these books. The teach phonics and rhyme very well. I highly recommend them if your children are at this stage. We have given many of them away now, keeping only my favorites.

I like “The Sneetches” because it teaches a great lesson about trying to keep up with the Jones. It clearly shows what happens when we want what someone else has. The story ends with some heart felt words:

“I’m quite happy to say

That the Sneetches got really quite smart on that day,

The day they decided that Sneetches are Sneetches

And no kind of Sneetch is the best on the beaches.

That day, all the Sneetches forgot about stars

And whether they had one, or not, upon thars.”

10. My Bunny by James Young

This scholastic paperback I am sad to say is no longer in print. You could probably find a used copy or try the library. This is a heart warming story about a father, his daughter, and her bunny and the love that is shared. You can literally feel the love from this book. At least, I felt the love. I still do.

These books hold a special place in my heart. Great memories reading them again and again with The Boys. My response to my son was I will read these books to my grandchildren and my great grandchildren. He does not see the beauty yet, but he will.

What books are you treasuring for the next generation....

Hop on over to Oh Amanda for her Top Ten Tuesday blog hop and make your own Top Ten.