CSN Giveaway on It's All About Baby!

I have blogged about CSN and their 200+ stores many times over, so if you're a regular reader of The Homeschooling Blog, you're familiar with how spectacular they are!

If you're just a lurker and have never made a purchase, you've just 3 days to enter a giveaway hosted by It's All About Baby for a cool $35 shopping experience with CSN!

Entering is super simple and only takes a few minutes.  Last time I checked there weren't an overwhelming number of entries. We need to help this awesome blogger out by joining her in her quest for an impressive number of entrants... it's what I like to call blogging love... so go show her some love and perhaps reap the rewards of an excellent shopping experience (on the house) to CSN!

Update on December's Simon and Schuster Giveaway

I want to apologize for leaving my readers hanging (for a month now) with the results of  December's Simon and Schuster giveaway a Value Tales Treasury book. As you may remember, we LOVED the book and provided a brief review along with the announcement of Simon and Schuster's desire to offer a copy to 2 random entrants.

For whatever reason, I'm not able to get a response from the contact with Simon and Schuster who approached me with this giveaway opportunity. At this point, I'm going to offer my two winners the book (as promised) out of my own pocket. No hard feelings towards Simon and Schuster, but I wish I knew what happened. Money is tight and getting tighter, but I can't hold a giveaway and not make good on it.

With that said, we do have 2 winners!  I'll be notifying you both this weekend. Upon hearing back from each of you, I'll share your names on The Homeschooling Blog!

My next book giveaway will be coming in the next couple of weeks and the good news there is that I already have both books in my possession! Be sure to continue following The Homeschooling Blog for my review of the Read and Share Bible published by Thomas Nelson Publishers. : )

Blessings!

Diapers.com and Great Buys on Diapers

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of PBM Products. All opinions are 100% mine.

Watching your budget? Looking for things to cut back on? If you have a child in diapers, there are certain things you can't cut out of the budget, but purchase location can save you tremendously. Especially, if you're brand loyal and not looking to cut coupons. If you just don't have time to be a clipper... there are still ways to save money!

Diapers.com offers great products... both store brand and name brand, with buyer incentives. In fact, if you buy on diapers.com, you'll find great offers... like 30% cash back on your first purchase... free shipping on orders over $49,  and 15% off Bob strollers... yes they have that too!

Be sure to join diapers.com on Facebook too... sometimes online retailers offer special incentives to their Facebook fans.  So, check out Bright Beginnings on Facebook.

We've talked a lot about store brand formula on this blog... diapers.com has that too! So, compare the savings you'll experience shopping one brand over another and remember the nutritional quality has been shown to be the same. Both name brands and store brands are required to meet the standards set in place by the FDA.

Happy mothering and happy "smarter shopping"!!

Elementary Resources for Teaching God's Truths and More

Welcome guest blogger Shannon Bryant!

What a joy it is to be able to share with you all!  My name is Shannon Bryant, and I am currently an elementary teacher of gifted students.  I have also served with my husband in Youth and Children's Ministry in GA over the last 10 years, and we particularly have a burden for families and family ministry! 

Professionally, I have noticed that many parents of gifted students often opt for home schooling.  In my TpT store and on my blog, I try to offer resources to develop both creative and critical thinkers.  Whether your children are already proficient in higher level thinking or whether they just need a little help thinking "outside the box," I hope you will find items which are beneficial to you.  

Personally, I have a burden for parents and want to see families cultivate real love and lasting traditions for learning God's truths.  At both of my sites you will find free devotion downloads for you to use or share, as well as resources for purchase developed for use with elementary age children.  I am right now developing a free family resource pack for Lent/Easter which will be available for you to download very soon.  I felt God calling me to write a few years ago, and now I am scrambling to keep up with the ideas that are pouring in.  Please check back often for new resources for your family and children!

I have 3 children of my own--10, 7, and 3.   My oldest is a rising middle schooler, so we are still praying about the best options for him as next school year approaches.  It has truly been a gift having him with me at my school, however, we are praying as we turn another page in the days ahead.  I feel so blessed to be able to share with you all on Wendy's wonderful blog!  Trusting Him!  ~Shannon

Shannon Bryant's Brain Train

Shannon's Blog

My son’s multiplication success with a free math game

I posted about this free game download a few weeks ago, but wanted to give an update. My son who has Asperger’s (high functioning autism) is still using this game to improve his multiplication memorization. He has a lot of trouble retaining mathematical facts. I don’t know if this is part of his disability, or if he just takes after me! Lol I’ve never been very good at math either.

We’ve tried a variety of things… some of which seemed to help initially, but he could never (or wouldn’t) stick with them. Our current game plan includes him playing TimezAttack for 20 minutes (we try to do this everyday, sometimes we miss! Lol) in exchange for a Pokemon card.  He needs that extra incentive and I’m of the attitude, whatever works! So, I give him Pokemon cards for TimezAttack and for his daily Kumon lessons, which take him between 10 and 15 minutes. Kumon is starting him at a very elementary level. He’s currently reviewing basic addition, but they hope to have him up to grade level in about a year. So, while his Kumon lessons aren’t yet helping him with his grade level assignments, TimezAttack is. I really feel confident that between the two additional resources my almost 10 year old will end up where he should be. 

We started with the free download and my kids took to it so well, I did upgrade to a paid version, but have no regrets. The paid version gives your kids more adventure than the free version and if it teaches them their multiplication facts, it’s worth every penny. They’re also coming out with an addition, subtraction, and a division game sometime this year. I’ll be sure to let you know if I see them launch. We’re planning on sampling the division game as soon as we see it’s available. Hopefully by then he’ll have his multiplication down!