Miller Family Series Books ~ Character Building Basics

When we began raising our family, we knew we wanted to surround ourselves with wholesome and pure influences (The world would provide enough wicked stuff and in abundance!). That would mean a discerning eye toward everything we brought into our home, especially in the area of reading materials. The unfortunate part is that many modern "Christian" books present a normal household as one where children are disrespectful, lazy and disinterested. We wanted our child to see that a "normal" home is where God is Supreme, parents love Him, children want to please Him by loving Him, through obeying the parents (Colossians 3:20). Like many of you, we wanted to reach for the stars and introduce a model of high standard for biblical living.

The first (and still one of our favorite) books we embraced was the "Miller Family Series". These easy-to-understand stories feature a down to earth message and will plant pure seeds of Scriptural application into your children. We started reading them aloud with our 4 year old and have purchased every book since. Each chapter covers a verse from the Bible in a very practical, no-nonsense way. Written by an amish/mennonite woman, they are very conservative with the old fashioned values that are hard to find in most modern books.

• Storytime with the Millers by Mildred Martin (4 - 8 years of age) Valuable Lessons
• Wisdom and the Millers by Mildred Martin (6 - 13 years of age) Great Truths of Life
• Prudence and the Millers (7 - 14 years of age) Lessons on Courtesy, Health & Safety
• School Days with the Millers (7 - 14 years of age) Valuable Lessons
• Missionary Stories with the Millers Real Missionary Stories, Great Geography Resource too!

The Lesson by Jules Trayer

They also offer companion "Activity Workbooks" which further instill the lessons learned:

• Make and Do with the Millers (Color, cut and paste projects that go along with books above for ages 4 - 7 years.)
• Working with Wisdom (Companion to Wisdom and the Millers.) (An assortment of fun and educational activities, lessons, puzzles for 7 - 10 years of age.)
• Prudence and Your Health (Companion to Prudence and the Millers, a great supplement for teaching "health" for ages 8 - 12 years.)
• Character Companion (Companion to all of the books above, focuses on character building qualities and language art activities.) Note: I haven't personally used this one yet.

If you want to start reading some unadulterated, biblical, character building books aloud to your children, then I would highly suggest the "Miller Family Series" as an excellent start. You may also be interested in our favorite Biblically Based Picture Books and our criteria for What to Read/What to Watch.

"...if they (the parents) are wise they will bring into their home as much as possible of pure, elevating, and refining literature. Every beautiful thought that enters a child’s mind adds to the strength and loveliness of the character in after days. The educating influence of the best books and papers is incalculable, and no parent can afford to lose it in the training of his family."

~ J.R. Miller, The Family

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Create a "Baking Basics" Jar Set ~ Free Printable

Today I am sharing a short (but sweet) cut in the kitchen. The baking soda carton and baking powder bag we purchase are a hassle to use on a daily basis (especially if you cook from scratch). The same thing applies with salt. I was always on pins and needles when pouring from the spout and into my teaspoon, hoping it didn't malfunction and dump a heap of sodium into my mixes. We have found that these items are much easier to use when placed inside a wide-mouthed glass container.

Storing the "baking basics" inside jars allows for easy access with your measuring spoons. It also makes for an efficient kitchen because there are less spills, easier handling and a clear view of your inventory. They can be placed inside a cupboard close to your cooking/baking area or just kept out on the sink.

To make, simply gather three wide mouthed jars, insert contents and label accordingly. Ours are just recycled condiment jars, nothing fancy. You can also paint the lids to match your kitchen. The original lids were bright blue so we painted them black and pasted on some pretty labels. Being in the home most of the day, it really brightens a task when you add a touch of decorative detail.

This is a sweet and simple organizational project. Would you like to create your own "baking basics" jar set? Below are a set of free downloadable/printable labels.

"The best ways are commonly the easiest ways and those that give most comfort to the household. Know how is a great labor-saving invention, on which there is no patent." ~ Sel.

This post may be shared with some or all of the following lovely link-ups: Modest Mom Monday's, Make it Yourself Mondays, Country Momma Cooks, Homestead Barn Hop, Natural Living Tuesday's, Teach Me Tuesday, Domestically Divine Tuesday, Frugal Ways ~ Sustainable Days, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Farmgirl Friday, Deep Roots at Home. Graphics courtesy of: Reading, Roses and Prose.

You may also be interested in printable pantry labels for another organizational project.

Simply download and print. Please let me know if you have any problems printing.

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Autumn Inspired Posts

Victorian Autumn by Thomas Kinkade

"On the motionless branches of some trees,

autumn berries hung like clusters of coral beads,

as in those fabled orchards where the fruits were jewels…"

~ Charles Dickens

Here is a potpourri of autumn related posts from the past:

• Autumn Inspired Activities

• Autumn Inspired Beauty for Your Home

• "Easy as Apple Pie" Crust Recipe

• A Unit Study on Trees

• Apples in Autumn ~ A Unit Study

• Columbus Day (October 8, 2012) Activities

• Presenting the Pilgrims ~  A Week Long Study

• Save Your Scraps ~ Make Apple Cider "Scrap" Vinegar

May you enjoy this beautiful season in your home with warm tea, hot muffins, walks, apples, pumpkins, acorns, pinecones, leaves…

"The autumn drifted away through all its seasons; the golden corn-harvest, the walks through the stubble fields, and rambles into hazel-copses in search of nuts; the stripping of the apple-orchards of their ruddy fruit, amid the joyous cries and shouts of watching children; and the gorgeous tulip-like colouring of the later time had now come on with the shortening days."

~ Elizabeth Gaskell, Wives and Daughters

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Utilizing What You Have on Your Land ~ Being Creative

"That's the way Great-grandmother did it. She looked in the larder, the cellar and then took a walk through the garden to see what she had. And then she made menus for the next couple days."

~ Carla Emory, The Encyclopedia of Country Living

The more productive our land is, the less we need to purchase. Or, the more creative we are with what little we have, the same applies. Those words by Carla Emory have been a huge source of inspiration to me this year. I would love to use what we have to the maximum potential by creating my meals from our harvest rather than a grocery store list. Despite the garden produce, eggs and meat/dairy animals we are raising, we have tried to be innovative with other items. Here are some examples of what we did with the fruit producing plants on our farm...

Grapes

Our grapes have seeds in them so they are not our first snack choice. The solution we found is to squeeze them using an old-fashioned orange juicer. We use the juice in reduced-sugar canning recipes where grape juice is substituted as a natural sweetener. We have also mixed this with seltzer water and ice for a sweet and refreshing summer drink (this is a treat since we don't purchase "drinks"). If you have seedless grapes, they are excellent when frozen as an icy snack. Next year I think I am going to try my hand at grape jelly. What other ideas do you have to utilize grapes? I would love to hear them!

Pomegranates

We do love to eat the pomegranate seeds but had much more than we could keep up with (three trees). What we do with our excess is juice them. You can simply drink the juice (which is way healthy!) or add sparkling water for a summer style, italian "soda". We also froze some juice in ice-cube trays and added them into our smoothies. Delicious! Any other suggestions?

Figs

My husband likes to eat the figs as a fig. To be honest, they freak me out (I think it is the texture) so I turned them into jam. I think this jam would be a nice filling for jam bar recipes or making your own fruit and grain bars. Any other inspiration for the fig?

Conclusion

There are many opportunities if you really investigate your little piece of earth. It can be anything, small or large to produce something usable. For instance, I have shared how to make lavender infused cleaning products using your lavender flowers. The more we glean from our land (city dwellers too!), the less we need to rely on those price increases at the grocery stores. 

What creative ideas do you have in this same line…
to use what you have on your land

and increase your larder (pantry) supplies?

"Duchess went into her larder and took the pie off a shelf and looked at it."

~ The Tale of the Pie and the Patty-Pan by Beatrix Potter

"He that tilleth his land shall be satisfied with bread…"
~ Proverbs 12:11a

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: Modest Mom Monday's, Make it Yourself Mondays, Country Momma Cooks, Homestead Barn Hop, Natural Living Tuesday's, Teach Me Tuesday,  Domestically Divine Tuesday, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways, Farmgirl Friday and Deep Roots at Home. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these. (P.S. All the paintings are done by dear, Tasha Tudor with the exception of the drawing by Beatrix Potter.)

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Sharing Our Eclectic Style of Home Education

In the past, I have shared about my love for unit studies and the teaching styles of Charlotte Mason. Both are wonderful ways in which to educate your children and we apply ideas from both to teach our children! We apply the Charlotte Mason concepts of living books, copywork, nature study, etc., into our unit studies (the best of both worlds for us!). The beauty of home education is that you don't have to limit yourself to one little box. You do not have to stand stiffly in front of a chalk-board and teach. You are free to cuddle on the couch and learn together!

In regards to additional curriculums, we do whatever looks good to our family. There are some curriculums written by experts in a certain subject that I may feel inadequate to teach (or to be honest, it may not interest me to teach though it is important to learn) and so we will include those into our studies. Or something may look so "good" that I know we will benefit. Then, that is introduced into our day as well. We are also flexible to what our family interests are at certain times and incorporate studies accordingly. That is the luxury of "eclectic" homeschooling! There is no forced program to follow. It is hand crafted by you to fit the changing needs of your family :)

Important Note: There is one area where I do recommend you teach according to a more rigid curriculum and that is math. I jumped around between different workbooks (bought 1st grade in one brand and the next year I would buy 2nd grade in another brand) in the younger years and found that they were leaving off in certain areas and restarting them in others (assuming we knew things we didn't yet know). There was no continuity. Math is like a pyramid and without certain foundations, you can not go to the next level. With that being said, I do recommend buying a math curriculum (same one year by year) and sticking to it as much as possible unless you detest it (then buy a new one by golly!). But to purchase a different one year to year depending on what looks "neat" or "cute" just doesn't work well (speaking from experience here) and leaves too many gaps to where the next set of math facts will not make sense.

How about you? What is your favorite style of home education? Do you like the textbook curriculums, Charlotte Mason style, unschooling, unit studies or perhaps the curriculums that blend a few of these ideas together? There is so much to choose from! It certainly makes things easier for the busy mother to have so many wonderful possibilities and I am thankful for them all.

“Tell me and I forget.

Teach me and I remember.

Involve me and I learn.”

~ Ben Franklin

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: Modest Mom Monday's, Teach Me Tuesday,  Domestically Divine Tuesday, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, and Deep Roots at Home. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.

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Making Lavender Infused Cleaning Products

Making your own cleaning products has made a comeback as many homemakers seek to save money and remove creepy chemicals from their homes. Most of the recipes involve vinegar, water and essential oils. The addition of essential oils encourages a sweet scent and adds a zest of cleaning power to your solution. However...

The oils can really add up! Instead of constantly dropping those expensive ingredients into your concoctions, why not create your own lavender based vinegar to clean with? All you need is a lovely lavender bush (or access to someone else's who doesn't mind a foraging hand) and white vinegar.

We are in love with lavender in our home! Candles, sachets and soaps… Anything infused with the intoxicating scent instantly becomes special. Dare I go a step further and say "housecleaning" products can make daily duties shine? Why not? 

"The power of finding beauty in the humblest things makes home happy and life lovely."

~ Louisa May Alcott

To make your own frugal and fresh scented, lavender cleaning products, simply snip into a clean jar, lots of lavender. This is honestly too easy to make a tutorial out of but since I have so many pictures, please humor me :)

I was short on the flowers due to a prior project so I added a lot of leaves to my mix though you will have a superior infusion with the purple flowers. (Edited to add: My second batch made with pure lavender flowers was nice but I actually preferred the fragrance with the blend of flowers and leaves. I think the addition of the leaves produced better results!)

Once your jar is packed full, cover the contents with white household vinegar. Make sure the lavender is submerged to keep it from molding. 

Lastly, cap your blend with a plastic lid. Let this infusion sit in a sunny spot for three to four weeks. You can replenish the old lavender with a fresh supply after a few weeks to get a stronger product.

Once the month is up, strain and discard the lavender. The lavender infused vinegar is now ready for service and smells heavenly! The scent is absolutely superior than the counterpart recipe using the essential oils.

Make sure you use a fine strainer so that you don't have any particles in your cleaning solution.

Mine came out gold in color because I had so many leaves but it will be a lavender tint if you use more of the flowers.

Ideas for Use:

Use a 50/50 mixture of lavender infused vinegar and water for an all purpose cleaner.

Add a cup of this solution to a bucket of hot water to clean your floors.

For tough cleaning, use pure without diluting.

Isn't it wonderful to create something from your own home that has value and a sense of aromatic beauty?  

Here is a label you can apply to your spray bottle (just right click on image and press "save") which I think is half the fun! You may also be interested in making your own cleanser and carpet deodorizer.

"And the scent of the lavender—not lavender water, but the lavender itself, that puts you in mind of country churches, and old bibles, and dusky low-ceiled parlours on Sunday afternoons—the scent of the lavender was so pure and sweet, and lovely!"

~  George MacDonald

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: Modest Mom Monday's, Make it Yourself Mondays, Country Momma Cooks, Homestead Barn Hop, Natural Living Tuesday's, Teach Me Tuesday,  Domestically Divine Tuesday, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways, Farmgirl Friday and Deep Roots at Home. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these. Lavender label graphics are courtesy of Reading, Roses and Prose.

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Land of Milk and Honey? ~ True Preparedness

When we purchased our farm, I had "dreams of grandeur"… I was imagining orchards full of peaches, bursting with purple plums and rows of sweet apricot trees. 

However, there were only three sources of fruit on the property. They were figs, pomegranates and grapes.

My husband kept mulling these plants over in his mind and proclaimed them "wonderful".

He reminded me that when Joshua and his men went to spy out the promised land, these were the three items that they brought back to showcase it's prosperity.

Moses told them to research and find out "what the land is, whether it be fat or lean, whether there be wood therein, or not. And be ye of good courage, and bring of the fruit of the land."

~ Numbers 13:20

"And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they bare it between two upon a staff; and they brought of the pomegranates, and of the figs."

~ Numbers 13:23

"...they told him, and said, We came unto the land whither thou sentest us, and surely it floweth with milk and honey; and this is the fruit of it."

~ Numbers 13:27

What we are continually learning is that "dreams of grandeur" take work! Sometimes it is downright discouraging. The tractor breaks down, rain delays, animals die and crops sometimes fail…We are in constant need of those inspired words to be "of good courage".  We have to realize that the land of milk and honey isn't heaven but the earth we have been blessed to live on and subdue. Our hope for perfection lies only in the next land to come for those who love Him. This is ultimately what every homesteader needs to be "prepared" for.  Are you ready?

"Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

~ Revelations 21:1-4

Shared at: The Homestead Barn Hop

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Make Home Life Beautiful

"Through wisdom is an house builded;

and by understanding it is established:

And by knowledge shall the chambers be filled with

all precious and pleasant riches."

~ Proverbs 24:3-4

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Miss Austen, Miss Mason ~ A "Living Book" Home Education

"the point to be considered is that the subject be one on which, to quote again Jane Austen's expression, the imagination of the children has been 'warmed'..."

~ Charlotte Mason

Three of my favorite topics are the Regency Era, Victorian Times and Home Education. What can they possibly have in common here? Simply said, they are encouragement for your homeschool. Charlotte Mason, our Victorian Era teacher, encourages us through the words of Jane Austen to "warm" our children's imagination in home education… and the rest will follow! Quality reading is the wonderful answer.

"The children should have the joy of living in far lands, in other persons, in other times--a delightful double existence; and this joy they will find, for the most part, in their story books."

~ Charlotte Mason

"Education By Books: For the last twelve years we have tried the plan of bringing children up on books and things, and, on the whole, the results are pleasing. The average child studies with 'delight.' We do not say he will remember all he knows, but, to use a phrase of Jane Austen's, he will have had his 'imagination warmed' in many regions of knowledge."

~ Charlotte Mason

May this year and those to come inspire many journeys of the imagination, not those of wizards and magic but science, nature, geographical and historical adventures! Excellent books will "warm" your children towards learning, tutoring them in many academics along the way. These treasures are referred to as "living books".

"Our business is to give him mind-stuff, and both quality and quantity are essential. Naturally, each of us possesses this mind-stuff only in limited measure, but we know where to procure it; for the best thought the world possesses is stored in books; we must open books to children, the best books; our own concern is abundant provision and orderly serving."

~ Charlotte Mason

"Our first care, when we stepped in safety on land, was to kneel down and thank God,

to whom we owed our lives; and to resign ourselves wholly to his Fatherly kindness."

~ Johann David Wyss, Swiss Family Robinson

Join the shipwrecked Robinson family on an exotic island and learn about the purposes of certain plants and the tendencies of interesting animals from a godly, dominion perspective. This is one adventure in science and nature that you will never forget. Keep your encyclopedia's close by and reference/sketch all the animals/plants you meet in a nature journal along the way. Have students copy some of the elaborate sentences from the novel for a harmless lesson in grammar.

          

Enter the colonial world of a young boy who is responsible for keeping his family's homestead during a long absence. The Sign of the Beaver will teach you about outdoor skills, colonial life and loyalty. Join a pioneer family on their homestead and live the frontier life with Caddie Woodlawn. American history was never so exciting! Don't forget to make a timeline (free printable here) with the children and record these stories on it using the approximate dates. Utilizing a blank map of the United States, have children color in and label the areas where these stories took place including any bodies of water, mountain ranges, and so forth that were mentioned in the books. Geography is natural and easy to teach when implemented through your literature.

“I'll always say my prayers…
and if God doesn't answer them at once I shall know it's because
He's planning something better for me.”

~ Johanna Spryi, excerpt from Heidi

Reading books that take place in other countries is another geography gem (such as Heidi, Hans Brinker, The Hiding Place). Locate and label the area on the world map. What countries are near by? What language do they speak? What is the traditional clothing worn? Have children plan a traditional meal from that country and dress accordingly. Each student can pose as a historical person from that country and see if anyone could guess who they are through their researched clues. They will be more interested in that country now that they "know" someone from it.

Live in Ancient Egypt as a Pharaoh on the run from a dangerous plot! He soon finds himself face to face with King Hezekiah and the Assyrian army who wants to conquer Jerusalem. God King will immerse your children in Biblical history and bring a whole new perspective to the Scriptures. Read 2 Kings 18:2 and compare it with the story. What archaeological findings confirm this account?

This is only a taste of what your children can learn this year. And if books are chosen carefully, the character building lessons will be the most beneficial! Education is an adventure. It is not dull. It is alive and waiting! Allow the literature to teach and their imaginations will be "warmed" providing for a lovely learning experience.

Happy is the homeschool with rows and rows of real "living books"!  Have a wonderful school year! ~ JES

"Ideas of nature, of life, love, duty, heroism, –– these children find and choose for themselves from the authors they read, who do more for their education than any deliberate teaching... a curriculum which shall furnish children, not with dry bones of fact, but with fact clothed upon with the living flesh, breathed into by the vital spirit of quickening ideas…" ~ Charlotte Mason

You May Also be Interested in:
Charlotte Mason ~ Home Education Series

Back to School Encouragement

Start with the Arts

"Education is a life. That life is sustained on ideas. Ideas are of spiritual origin, and God has made us so that we get them chiefly as we convey them to one another, whether by word of mouth, written page, Scripture word, musical symphony; but we must sustain a child's inner life with ideas as we sustain his body with food."

~ Charlotte Mason

This post may be shared with some or all of the following lovely link-ups: Modest Mom Monday's, Make it Yourself Mondays, Country Momma Cooks, Homestead Barn Hop, Natural Living Tuesday's, Teach Me Tuesday,  Domestically Divine Tuesday, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, and Deep Roots at Home

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