Turkeys, Shoeboxes, and Black Friday - Collage Friday
Friday, November 23, 2012 at 5:00AM 
It was a very relaxing week in our house.
We always stay home for Thanksgiving and spend the day at my father-in-law's house with family. I have to cook a few things, but not too much.
What results is a week of little schoolwork, and a lot of time for other things.
This past week my husband was home most of the week, so we played games, went to see a movie (might I recommend Lincoln for the adult? It was excellent!) , and just took it easy. I read a book I'd been wanting to spend time with, and also starting making Christmas plans.
I'm thankful for a week of (seemingly) NOTHING!
I'm writing this collage post Thanksgiving morning. The house is quiet, the sweet potatoes are in the oven, and only the boys are awake. It's going to be a good day and we have MUCH to be thankful for.
Anna started work on the Hearts and Trees Prairie Kit. This is such a cute little activity - I shouldn't call it "little", because it involves making a paper quilt, sewing a quilted potholder, notebooking, pictures study, and more. She and I had the afternoon to ourselves one day this week while Grant was at a friend's house, so we sat down with this.
The 3D Paper Turkey Cutouts come from The Homeschool Classroom. The kids colored them with watercolor pencils and they fit together easily - cute Thanksgiving decorations!
- We collected so many boxes at our church for Operation Christmas Child. I'm looking forward to working at the processing center in Atlanta next week.
- I did the Children's Sermon last Sunday - we packed the very last OCC Box and then blessed all of the boxes. I love working with the children of our church.
- Sunday morning Anna was with a friend of hers so it was just Grant and mom and dad for breakfast before church. We went to Dunkin' Donuts and enjoyed a little one on one time with our boy.
- One of the fun things about this time of year is seeing friends come home from college for a visit. The young man in this picture goes to our church, and is also a former piano student. Grant looks up to him and was very excited to see him on Sunday - not only that, but he got to sit with him in church, too! I imagine in 10 years Grant will be this big. Sniff.... sniff....
- We spent A LOT of time playing Othello this week - remember that game?
- Here's a very sad story: walking out of the grocery store this week I went to grab Grant's hand. I said "Grab my hand while we cross the parking lot." He looked up at me (ever so sweetly) and said, "Holding hands is getting kinda old." It was like a dagger through my heart. I made him hold my hand so I could take a picture to commemorate the occasion. Later in the week he looked at me and said "love ya, mom" - in return I asked him if he'd like to hold my hand and he promptly replied, "NO!". What a stinker.
We spent an evening reading Cranberry Thanksgiving. All of the Cranberry books are so sweet. In past years we have made a Cranberry Crisp and also experimented with exploding cranberries and made play dough.
This year I just read the book, then we sang "We Gather Together" (mentioned in the book) and finally Grant helped me make the Cranberry Bread for Thanksgiving. I don't often cook in the kitchen with just him and we had such a good time together. He was very serious about his job!
I treasured an evening of singing at the piano, baking, and watching A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.
While I don't participate in Black Friday, I am always on the lookout for good deals that will benefit any small business. Here are two deals I think are DEFINITELY worth snagging this weekend:
I LOVE Plan To Eat. (Remember when I told you about the best $5 I spend each month?). Through this weekend you can get a Plan to Eat yearly subscription for HALF OFF. Yes, that's right. It's a great deal! Click the graphic to learn more.
Next, Notebooking Pages is offering Lifetime Memberships! You pay for a yearly membership to the Treasury and now will receive lifetime access. Hop over to check it out - this is one I am taking advantage of and I encourage you to join me. It's a great investment in your homeschool.
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Reader Comments (12)
What a great week Mary. I love laid back easy going weeks. I crave more of them. Love the Hearts and Trees Prairie kit. Looks awesome. I love that Grant helped you cook. We don't do Black Friday either but Keilee and I just got back from Home Depot. My Daddy had given me the money to buy a Martha Stewart Christmas tree they had on sale for $59.99. It was regularly $179.99. We have a small 5' tree we have used for years and Keilee is SO excited about having a big one. It was an adventure. Lots of crazy people! The things about the hand holding made me smile. Keilee still holds my hand everywhere. I always tell her she doesn't have to but she wants to. Girls are different than boys though. Thanks again for hosting the linkup. :)
What a nice relaxing week. Only my youngest will hol my hand now. The rest think they are so grown up. I am glad you had a blessed week.
Blessings, Dawn
Sounds like a great week, Mary! Not all of them have to be jam-packed, but it still seems like you guys got a lot of fun, hands-on learning in! That's the best, huh? We love the Cranberry books too. We have Cranberry Thanksgiving in our library box right now! LOL We didn't make the bread this time though; too much pie making! I was just telling one of the kids that I thought we should get Othello! LOL It's one of those games that are easy to learn, but you need to think to win. Like Mancala! I'm SO tempted about the Notebooking Pages! ::sigh:: I'll have to read more about it. I have looked several times, but I wonder if we'll actually use them enough to justify any cost. The kids like making their own mostly. Well, have a great weekend and upcoming school week!
What a wonderful week. Oh, it is so sad when they start getting big - Nolan won't always hold my hand anymore either. He says he isn't a baby, but he doesn't get that no matter how big he is that he IS my baby!
Looks like a wonderful week full of memories!
Ours was a bit crazy with Mason having brain surgery again on Monday, coming home Tues and Caleb's birthday, Getting the house in order Wed, Thanksgiving on Thursday. Today the kids and I went to the post office and then spent the morning at the library choosing new books. Lunch was leftover Thanksgiving foods with Grandma coming over to join us. Now we're about to make cinnamon rolls for dinner to surprise Daddy. I'm praying for an uneventful rest of the year at my house!
loved your week... we love the cranberry series too!!!
What a peaceful week! Boys are funny aren't they? One minute they won't hold hands, the next minute you're getting a big bear hug - love them! Glad you had such a nice Thanksgiving, have a great weekend!
Looks like a wonderful week that just flowed! I checked out your cranberry play dough...very cool :) I'm glad you all had a nice Thanksgiving, Mary.
We too hang out at the house for Thanksgiving and I'm so thankful for a husband who enjoys cooking! For the second year, he's cooked everything for us! God knew when He chose my spouse :) I can relate to those feelings when a child wants to grow up and we want to keep them right where they are...just for a bit. All three of my girls have been in stages when they've pulled away, for reasons all their own. Now whenever one of them snuggles against me, or places her head on my shoulder, well my heart tugs! Enjoy the rest of your weekend, Mary! BTW, I like your new site design!
What a wonderful time you had this week. I am always in awe of the people who have the children's sermons. How they can captivate the children and get across their message in such a short time.
I love the Prairie kit idea and we love Othello. Cranberry Bread and Cranberry Thanksgiving sounds so lovely. I know how you feel about those little growing up milestones. It breaks a mother's heart. It is amazing how much can be fit into a week that seems like nothing going on. :)
We love Cranberry Thanksgiving (and cranberry bread)!
And my little boy told me he couldn't sit on my lap in front of other people any more. We must find a way to slow these kids down!