5 Easy How-To's and Activities from Upside Down Homeschooling

Have you heard of Upside Down Homeschooling?  It's a faith-based multi-author site run by heather Bowen which I write for once a month, usually sharing how-to's and quick-and-easy ideas, such as:

Prepare for Fall: Host an Activity Bag Swap This Summer

 

 Top 3 Places to Look for Free Summer Fun and Learning

 

 

Easy Steps to Starting a Nature-Based Co-op or Club

6 Sensory Smart Ideas for Celebrating St. Joseph

 

 My New Favorite Way to Use Learning Cards

 

Of course, if you have requests or suggestions about things you'd like me to share about here or at Upside Down Homeschooling, just ask!

Welcome New Readers and, Regular Readers, Click on Over to...

Catholic Mothers Online, if you like, to learn a little more about me. 

I am featured there today in Angie's new series of Featured Moms.  That series is a wonderful initiative to help Catholic moms from all over blogosphere get to know each other (and each other's blogs) a bit better.  If you'd like to be considered for the series, check out the interview form here, and, of course, when you are over at CMO, spend some time clicking through inspirational and informative posts there and consider subscribing.  I always enjoy reading pieces from other writers there, and am happy to share occasionally at the site as a writer myself.

Welcome, Visitors from CMO!

If you are visiting Training Happy Hearts for the first time, please relax and stay a while:

As a mom with three young children who homeschools and works outside the home, too, I know that this blog isn't the most beautifully organized, but what it lacks in style, we hope it makes up for in substance: 

• Join our weekly sharing and link-up on Training Happy hearts:  A Call to Faith Formation for Young Children.
• Find our whole history of faith-related posts under the label Faith Formation.
• Or, focus in on some pictures and explanations of some of our Liturgical Table displays.
• Be inspired by our child-centered Saint Teas.
• Read about how we enjoy Feast Days.
• Reflect with us on the beginning of our Catechesis of the Good Shepherd explorations (which we really must get back to!)
• Find ideas for celebrating the Liturgical Year.

And, be sure to leave a comment with a link to your own blog if you have one.  I always delight in discovering new-to-me Catholic, homeschooling, education, parenting and special needs blogs as well as in visiting those I have not had a chance to stop by in a while.

Thanks, again, Angie, for helping us all build community near and far.  And, thank you, Readers, for sharing some of your time today here.  Have a blessed day!

Our Addiction Revealed at Signature Moms

Online communities are such a wonderful resource for our family that I have become a little addicted to blogosphere, yahoogroups and such. But, there is something else my family is addicted to that I revealed today over at Signature Moms, a community resource for moms of all ages.

Swing on over to my post there to discover what I have been known to schedule doctor's appointments and shopping trips around -- especially now that spring has sprung! Ah, no more hats and coats needed, at last.

In Honor of National Poetry Month: Bag a Poem and The Ideal

Need a quick, fun, tactile idea for poetry writing?  Please check out my Bag a Poem Post over at OJTA, where I look at bags and other household items through SPD Lenses.

Also, as I head into the weekend, when I know I will enjoy some time with our family's Sabbath Commitment, I wanted to share another poem that I wrote as a part of Jennie Linthorst's wonderful LifeSPEAKS workshop.  This one is about my original dream of marriage and family, which has come partly to fruition, as evidenced by a sunny family hike with three gifts of joy last weekend:

Jack, so content to be headed out for his first "long mountain" hike.  May he always take comfort that our Father will carry him through the more challenging spots in his life, just like his earthly Daddy did on the trails.

It was all we could do to keep up with "Cheetah" Luke, who kept racing ahead of us with excitement.  Thankfully, he stopped to shout out with joy at times, too.  May he always remember to pause for a moment of rest and praise!

When we saw this picture of Nina after last week's hiking adventure, we couldn't help but to smile.  It looks like she is talking to angels.  May the Spirit work in all our kids to help their ideals match God's!

The Ideal

Years I waited

Long years

To meet “that man” who was meant for me.

To be gifted a child,

Or two

Or four

Or more

However many was in The Plan

But once I met him

The dream became blurry

I was told that children may not be possible

Love?

Yes

Love for our own child?

Maybe not

All I could do was pray

So, pray I did

With faith I waited

Praise God

This time not so long…

Sure enough,

Soon enough

You were there

A blessing growing within me

Once again

I could dream freely

A warm house of tradition

Sweetness and silliness

Love and laughter

Friends, Family, Faith and Fitness

Children playing

Laughing

Helping

Sharing the joys of Home

Freshly baked cookies

Friends dropping by

Vibrant family gatherings

A place

Safe

To learn

To grow

To treasure always

To kick up our feet

Or snuggle in

After a day at the beach

Or hiking in the mountains

Visiting

Volunteering

Finding the miraculous in the mundane bits of life

And the spectacular in savored moments

as family

My family

Our family

The family I prayed for since I was but a little girl

Thank you, Lord, for making part of my ideal your reality for me.  Please direct me in training my three awesome blessings up well so we may navigate the trails of this world as a path straight to You!

Honoring Autism Awareness and National Poetry Month

Not too long ago, I was selected as a Mommy Blogger for Signature Moms, where I am committed to writing two posts a month.  I was quite honored to be selected and excited by the great opportunity Signature Moms will provide for networking, learning from and sharing with other local parents, as well as with the wide world of blogosphere, about all things kids and parenting. 

This week, I dedicated my post there to honoring Autism Awareness and National Poetry month, for although I am neither a parent of an autistic child nor an established poet, I am touched by both things.  Through our experiences with Luke, I have come to know, appreciate and empathize with folks in the Autistic community and, as recent participant in a LifeSPEAKS poetry workshop, I have been embracing my love for writing poetry again.

So, if you want to read a bit about both -- including a poem I wrote entitled "Grace as I see My Gift", please click on over.

Two Inspired Activities for Teaching Skills with Winter Scarves

When it is too cold or dark outside, we sometimes use our winter gear inside to enjoy fun and learning.  Today, I am posting over at OJTA with Wearing SPD Lenses: Two Activities for Teaching Skills with Winter Scarves.  The first idea detailed there is about using scarves as a Social Awareness Skills Personal Space Prop.  It was inspired by a recent favorite read of ours: Personal Space Camp by Julia Cook, which has a companion Activity and Idea Book.The second one is about using scarves as a P.E. Skills Perceptual-Motor Development Prop.  It was adapted from an activity idea we found in Jack Capon's awesome Perceptual-Motor Lesson Plans, an all-you-need series for pre-k and early elementary home P.E./physical break activities.  Please take a moment to stop by OJTA to learn more about these activities if you are interested in them.  Also, we'd highly recommend browsing the books they were inspired by, which we find to be fantastic resources!

Guest Posting at Size Tracker

Sibling hugs after scarecrow building last month -- one way we re-use clothes that we are ready to purge.

We've been busy with homeschool get-togethers, play dates, Thanksgiving preparations and being present in the moment, so I have not been taking many pictures nor posting much this week.  I will get back to fun and informative, picture-filled posts soon.  In the meantime, I wanted to share that I was asked to guest post over at Size Tracker recently.  If you're headed into a seasonal clothing sort in preparation for the winter weather or in the spirit of pre-holiday out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new ideals, you might find my Kids' Clothing Management post helpful

We Are Guest Posting at OJTA Today with Shaving Cream Fun!

Need a lure to get your kiddoes into the tubbie tonight?  Check out our guest post over at Our Journey through Autism today where you'll find lots of fun pics and a full write-up of the sensory fun we had with shaving cream!

Part tactile experience, part practical life (self-care) and all exploration and fun, what a time we had with it!

Guest Posting at Hartley's Life with 3 Boys

 As we continue to live and learn with Luke, Nina and Jack, we face as many joys as we do challenges.  One of the challenges revolves around the behaviors and symptoms that make us believe Luke has Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD).  But, the question remains:  "He has SPD?  He has SPD - not?" 

Today, we are guest posting over at Hartley's Life with 3 Boys about this as a part of her awesome awareness-and-funds raising event, 30 Stories in 30 Days.  Please head on over to read the post today, and be sure to click through to read all the month's posts, which are sure to enlighten and entertain.  Then, if you are inspired and have the funds, please consider donating through the Chip In link on the left of her blog.  (If you do chip in and can do so noting our name and email address, we'd be so appreciative!  It'd put us in the running for some great prizes which we could use with the kids.)

Thanks!

Also, for more on SPD check out 30 Facts in 30 Days at One Sensational Life, being sure to leave her your thoughts for fact #30!

Sensory Awareness Month: Shampoo Finger Paints

I am guest posting over at OJTA today.  You can read the rest of this post and see some cute pics of the kids painting in the tub there.

Three questions, one answer.

First the questions:

-How can you easily slip some tactile input into your home therapy routine?
-How can you explore art concepts while attending to personal hygiene?
-What can you do to lure one craft-loving, but tubby-refusing, boy and his sister into the bathtub?

One answer:

Flip to page 13 of Bonnie Arwine's Starting Sensory Integration book to learn how to easily make Shampoo Finger Paints with ingredients you most likely already have in your home!

We did just this the other day and what fun our sometimes tactile defensive SPD son and his sister had!

Read more.

Gratituesday: Honored Again -- I Am Now Blogging at OJTA Sensational Homeschooling Once a Month

Yesterday, I mentioned how honored I felt to be asked to guest post at Hartley Steiner's wonderful Hartley's Life with 3 Boys blog.  Today, I am thrilled to announce that on the heels of that invitation came another one, from Tiffani Lawton, an incredible homeschooling mom and austism/SPD advocate who is beginning a new blog called OJTA Sensational Homeschooling as a sister site to the established and comprehensive site Our Journey through Autism that she heads up.

The new OJTA Sensational Homeschooling is modeled after OJTA, but with an emphasis on homeschooling children with Sensory Processing Disorder and other "glitches" like Auditory Processing Disorder, ADD/ADHD, fine motor delays, etc.  It is just getting started, but promises to to be a rich resource for those who visit often -- regardless of if you have a child with special needs.  (Sensory activities help all children!)  Both experts and "Sensational Mamas" like me will be posting on it, offering perspective, concrete ideas and all sorts of tid bits related to our similar, yet unique experiences.

You will find my introduction at the site here.  In it, I explain just a bit about Luke's SPD, which is something I guess I have never done much of here at Training Happy Hearts.  And my first official activity post is up today.  Then, from now on, on the 15th of each month, you will find another post by yours truly (life balance allowing), and, in between, helpful posts by other parents and professionals alike.

God sure is leading me into both a supportive and a supported role in the homeschooling -- with SPD -- journey.  I look forward to sharing about it here and on OJTA Sensational Homeschooling as time goes on.

To be inspired by what other folks are grateful for today, please visit the links at Heavenly Homemakers.

What an Honor - I am Guest Posting over at Hartley's Life with 3 Boys

Wow! Hartley Steiner, author of This is Gabriel Making Sense of School: A Book About Sensory Processing Disorder, who is and incredible mom, author and blogger, happened upon my Sensory and Skills Spring Activity Bags post, and, after after reading it, asked me to guest post on her blog.

As a new SPD mom and a fairly new blogger, I was both humbled and excited by Hartley's request. And, today, I am thrilled to announce that I am guest posting over at her site.  Go there, to read Homemade Sensory Diet for Summer if you'd like a few ideas for sensory-based outdoor activities to enjoy with your children this spring and summer.  The ones I describe are definitely ones Luke and Nina like!  And, of course, while you are there, take a look around.  Hartley's blog is chock full of great information and ideas.  I feel blessed to share a snippet of our homeschooling and SPD journey on it.