LIttle Boy: Friday Movie Night

We have done family game night, family prayer night, family --  Besides prayer night, especially during the certain church holidays like Advent and Lent -- the only thing that has stuck is family movie night.  It's pretty much always a Friday Night (except for a few Thursdays here and there because Friday wasn't going to work).

We actually did family night this week on Thursday, because the boy is camping right now, but yesterday we went to the library and got some movies.  Love the library for this!! Our library only charges 25 cents to have the movie for 7 days and they do have a mix of old and newer movies.

Last night we watched "Little Boy".



It was a heart wrenching movie so if you do decide to watch it be sure you have tons of tissues on hand! Over all it was a good movie and acceptable for older children to adults.  There are some war scenes and while mild as far as war scenes go they may be to much for the younger audiences.  Kids In Mind has pretty good review on what's in the movie if you are unsure.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click on a link and purchase something. See our full disclosure policy for more details.

Review: Toad Hats

We bought the kids a wii for Christmas and with it came Super Mario Brothers Wii. One of their favorite character from the game is Toad. I'm not sure why, seeing I've always pretty much like Mario.  It's funny how you think certain characters play "better" when in reality they all have the same functions. Or at least with this Mario game and the Mario game I grew up with.

So I had Toad Hats made by For The Love Of Scarves. We got them today! Don't the kids look great in them?

Superstar and Web-princess in their toad hats.
See how much taller SS is then WP?

I've bought other things from the For The Love Of Scarves. Like the hats I gave to my nieces for Christmas.
 

I swear the kids since getting the hats this afternoon have not taken them off! Well they did take them off for lunch, because we went out to eat and they didn't want anyone to steal them. They also took them off for baths. Those have been the only exceptions this afternoon. I'm thinking they may even sleep with them on!

Everything that is made by For The Love of Scarves are custom made. As you can see from her store the toad hat is shown has white and red. I just asked her to change the colors so they were the colors my kids wanted and give her my kids' head measurements!

Not only do I think she does great work, but by buying her products you are helping to supplement the income of a homeschooling family.

Disclosure: I was NOT paid or given anything to share my thoughts about For The Love of Scarves and their products.

Kids: When they stand side by side now I can't believe that they are only 10 months apart seeing SS stands so much taller now. At 10 1/2 years of age he's standing at 5 foot! I only stand at 5'6"-5'7". It won't be long and he'll be taller then me!

Review: Math Blaster

Title: Math Blaster

Creator: Knowledge Adventure (makers of Jumpstart)

Short Description: MathBlaster.com is a futuristic online adventure packed with wacky aliens, high-tech gadgets and, of course, math! As new recruits at the prestigious Blaster Academy, your kids will play arcade-style math games and race through high-speed missions with the help of a cast of characters that are out of this world! After learning the ropes in Blaster Academy, new cadets will join the Intergalactic Space Patrol (ISP), an elite team of Blasters sworn to explore and protect even the furthest galaxies and deepest black holes of the universe. Armed with the most advanced gadgets and fine-tuned math skills, the cadets of the ISP will travel to exotic new planets, discover bizarre alien races and face extraordinary challenges!

Review: Feb 2009 I did a review for Jumpstart's virtual world. So when Knowledge Adventure contacted me asking if I would review their latest virtual world: Math Blasters I happily accepted!! My kids have been playing jumpstart's virtual world on and off the last year and were thrilled with getting the chance to try out the newest features in both worlds! Of course Math Blaster did not disappoint us one bit!

The kids enjoyed making their online character and went straight to work playing the games. Their favorite game turn out to be Oozami (pictured above). In this game you have find the correct math problems and make it to the top before the ooze gets you. 

For example you can choose to work with place values. The game, for example, will tell you to find the 3 in the ones place (see picture below).  At various stations there are numbers.  You have to find the correct number with the 3 in the ones place. You have to find so many of them before the time runs out and the ooze catches up to you.

Besides place values you can do math problems or work with money. Personally I like the money version of oozami the best seeing WP (my daughter) still needs to work on this skill. In this version of the oozami you have to find the correct money combination that is equal to the value you are looking for. For example the game can tell you to find 31 cents. If you see the combination of a quarter, nickel, and penny then you would want to select it because those things together equal 31 cents.

Another cool feature of this game, besides working on math skills is how it (for members) can link up to jumpstart.com original online world at jumpstart.com. My kids enjoyed being able to go from one world to the other by using the portals within the games themselves. Math Blaster can be a stand alone game, but it's really an extension to jumpstart.com virutal world. Membership to Mathblaster.com gives you full access to mathblaster.com AND jumpstart.com AND the ability to download 4 downloadable PC games. (Membership costs $74.99 per year)

Honestly, my kids have enjoyed Math Blaster so much that I'm seriously considering buying the Nintendo DS version of the game for them. Math Blaster even has mobile versions of the game: only compatible with IPhone, IPad or ITouch.  (FYI: I seen on Math Blaster's Facebook Page that they had a promo code for the mobile game: Math Blasters HyperBlast and are looking for reviewers.)

Overall I'm really pleased with what Math Blaster has to offer and that's saying a lot for a site that is only about 2 months old. Knowledge Adventure has done a fantastic job with the site and I look forward to seeing what is in store for Math Blaster's future by following the Math Blaster Blog and the Math Blaster Facebook Page.

Disclosure: I was provided with a membership good for Math Blaster and Jump Start at  no cost by Knowledge Adventure in order to test the products’ abilities and give my own personal opinions on it. The opinions I have given are mine and may differ from others but were not influenced by the company or the free product provided.

Review: Jumpstart

Title: JumpStart

Creator: JumpStart.com

Short Description: JumpStart is an award-winning adventure-based 3D virtual world that is super-personalized, wildly imaginative and really fun, but don't let that fool you - it also teaches math, reading, and critical thinking skills so kids get a real jump start in life.

Review: With the JumpStart program there are two different account options FREE and PAID (membership). For the sake of this review I was given a free membership by JumpStart. Having the membership allows us to access ALL of the gaming features. With the Membership there is actually access to 5 different games. 1 online game and 4 different (CD) games that you download directly unto your computer.

The downloaded games:

Preschool: My First Adventure

Kindergarten: Legend of Grizzly McGuffin

First Grade: Trouble in Town

Second Grade: Quest for the Color Meister

For the sake of this review I only downloaded Quest for the Color Meister. This is because my kids are 7 and 8 and that seemed to be the most appropriate game for them. If I wanted to I could have download all of the games.

With the free version you are given limited access to what worlds you can access within the online game. The membership allows you to have unlimited access to ALL of the online words including Future Land which is designed for kids ages 8-10. Please refer to the Free vs Membership Chart for more details.

For those FACEBOOK people you can even link JumpStart to your Facebook account which according to JumpStart's website will allow you to see what your children are up too and allow you to link to your facebook friends and their kids so that you all can play and compete against each other. (I do not have a facebook account and will not get one  just to test this.)

We LOVE this program! We LOVE both the download game and the online game. Web-princess and Superstar every day ask "Momma can we play JumpStart!?!"  I happily let them because of the "educational" value of the games, especially the downloaded game. This is one fun way to help supplement my children's education. 

Thank-You JumpStart for allowing us the opportunity to play and do this review. I'm really thankful to have this program now because it gives my kids a fun way to reinforce their phonics, math, and reading skills. Not only that but they keep coming back for more and more because they LOVE it!

They love the games and being able to have pets. Web-princess's favorite pet is the brain. It's a little blue brain that follows her where ever she goes. Superstar loves doing the car races. In the car race game he matches up words with the letter sounds he's looking for. The only thing they disliked was that at times the game froze up on them. (This only happen a handful of times and was an easy fix.)

The game freeze has NOT stop them from wanting to play! They still come back for more and more. They just understand that sometimes glitches like that happens, especially when it's an online base game. We have similar issues with other online games.

The online world also has theme based games within the game. These themed games are based on the current seasons/holidays. Currently to celebrate Valentine's Day our kids can collect hidden candy hearts as part of the Valentine's Scavenger Hunt. The kids have enjoyed this and are delighted when they find a new heart. They also enjoy seeing other people online and interacting with them. In a safe way I might add.

On the parental end of things: I like that fact that I could, on the downloaded game, review what games my kids were playing, what skills they worked on, and how well they master those skills. I also like the fact that the online world is a safe environment for them to able to interact with other people.

Despite the game freezing up the program has 6 thumbs way up in this house. 2 thumbs from Superstar, 2 thumbs from Web-princess, and 2 thumbs from Mommy!!! If you are looking for a safe fun games for your kids to do online then JumpStart is the way to go.

Disclosure: I was given a FREE 1 year membership to JumpStart by JumpStart.com  in order to write my honest opinion of this product for this review.

Review: Creating New Life, Nurturing Families

Title: Creating New Life, Nurturing Families

Author:  Sidney Callahan

Short Description:  Digging deeply into the various dimensions of women's journeys and discussing love and marriage, sex, mothering, work and transforming joy amidst suffering, Callahan shows how a woman's commitment to the well-being of her husband and children is a participation in the very life of the Trinity.

Review: This book was a hard read for me. It has "feminism" and "feminine" terms in relation to God that I am not familiar with.  Seeing I was unfamiliar with these terms it made reading very difficult. I didn't know how to process this or how to understand it in relation to authentic Catholicism. I had to put the book down and research feminism within the Church.

I found some interesting articles on the Vatican's website regarding "Christ Our Mother". (One of the feminine terms used in the book.) I'm still NOT comfortable with the terminology, but reading the Vatican's site and other writings have helped me to digest the book more and get a better understanding.

Besides the terminology, I actually like the format of the book. The chapters themselves, if you can look pass the terminology, are thought provoking. I like how each chapter ends with food for thought questions.

This book is defiantly NOT for the average reader because of the feminine terminology. This is better suited for someone that has a deeper understanding in theology, Catholic Spirituality, and Mystics such as Julian (Juliana) of Norwich . It's definitely only for one that is STRONG in Faith.

If you're interested in learning more about Creating New Life, Nurturing Families then be sure to check out the Catholic Company. For more reviews about this or other products from other bloggers then please click here.

Disclaimer: I was given a free copy of Creating New Life, Nurturing Families by the Catholic Company in order to write my honest opinion of this product for this review.

Review: Christians Courageous

Title: Christians Courageous

Author: Rev. Aloysius Roche

Short Description: True tales of 14 believers who defied the savage Roman emperors and evaded assassins sent by them; confronted Attila the Hun unarmed, saving Rome from destruction by his Mongol hordes; repelled bloodthristy Moslem invaders of Europe; overcame the deadly Druids; risked death to carry the Sacraments to souls with crippling disease; and --to preach the gospel to souls in the remotest regions --climbed even to the roof of the world!

Review: I got this book because when I was looking at it on the Catholic Company's site I noticed these words:

"Here you’ll read about, among others: The Irish monk who crossed the Sea of Darkness to discover America."

I was excited to see this, because at that time my kids and I were studying about St. Brendan and I thought to myself. "That must be St. Brendan they are referring too. This book just might be a great book to have for reference when it comes to Saints". So I was excited and I couldn't wait to get this book!

The book came, I ripped open the package, and immediately starting to comb the book looking for the bit about St. Brendan, after all that's who we were studying about. I was eager to learn more about this Saint. I was eager to share more with the kids.

That was the end of my eagerness! I was disappointed because first and forth most the chapters are not labeled by the Saint's name. So it took me a few times to find the correct chapter.

Once I found it I was disappointed on what I was reading. It seemed to be random content and there was no real flow to the content. No matter how hard I tried. I just couldn't stay engaged in this book. I simply found it boring. The author would share things that I felt were out of place or off topic. I just didn't like this book and no matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't read it; completely that is.

I tried several times, but I just couldn't stay engaged. I wasn't liking the book, thus I didn't want to read more. There isn't much more to say. I just was disappointed.

If you're interested in learning more about Christians Courageous then be sure to check out the Catholic Company. For more reviews about this or other products from other bloggers then please click here. 

Disclosure: I was given a free copy of Christians Courageous by the Catholic Company in order to write my honest opinion of this product for this review.

Review: SpellQuizzer

Product: SpellQuizzer

Creator: TedCo Software

Short Description: SpellQuizzer is a software program that helps children master their spelling and vocabulary. Using SpellQuizzer you can create custom word lists to match any spelling or vocabulary curriculum you are using or just to focus on a child's "problem words". SpellQuizzer makes spelling and vocabulary practice fun for your child!

Review: We had mixed reactions regarding SpellQuizzer. My son (8; 3rd grade) loved it! My daughter (7; 2nd grade) did not care for it.

For my son SpellQuizzer did turn out to be a blast to use. He mastered all of his spelling words for the week. Not only that but he was eager to get the next weeks spelling words up and going.

At the beginning of the week I sat down with my son and together we made a list of his spelling words. I did the typing and he enjoyed recording himself for the spelling list. SpellQuizzer does have an automatic spell check build in so you can allow your child to create their list totally on their own, which is something I'm going to allow my 8 year old to do in the future.

For the rest of week he used the spelling list that we made to study his spelling words and by the end of the week he mastered his list. I think he spent about 5-10 minutes each day on program. He would do the list and if the word was misspelled it would tell him the correct spelling. At the end it would tell him how many he missed total and asked if he wanted to redo the ones he missed. If he missed some he would redo them until they were all correct then he was done for the day. By the end of the week he was getting them correct on the first try. When he aced his test he exclaimed, "I want to use SpellQuizzer again! It made it easy!!".

My daughter on the other hand was not receptive to the program. She, like her brother, enjoyed recording her words, but when it came time to actually use the program she was very put off by it. She didn't like the fact that it said the word "quiz" in the title of the program. It made her feel like it was a test and that started the whole issue we had with her when it came to using this program. So for her it didn't really remove that dreaded "battle" when it came to studying for a spelling test. I know this has to do more with her personality then the actual program. She really didn't allow herself to get use to the program because she was upset by the name of the program. I would tell her it wasn't a test, or quiz, and she would come back with "Well if it's not a test/quiz why is it called a quiz?" She just had this preconceived idea that somehow this was a TEST and would not allow herself to honestly try to use the program completely.

But, even though there was some major resistance on her part, I did notice a slight increase in her spelling abilities too. I'm sure if she would have allowed herself to use the program without the resistance her spelling would have been better.

Despite my daughters reactions I found the program easy to use. This is going to be something that we will continue to use for my son and with time hope that our daughter will warm up to the program so that she can get the complete benefits as well.

We only used it for our spelling words, but it can used for vocabulary words for science, social studies, or any other class that would have vocabulary words.

Program cost? The program can be bought for $29.95 for a lifetime license for use on one computer or a "family pack" can be bought for $49.95. The family pack allows you install and use the software on up to five computers. It's not necessary to have the family pack seeing you can make as many list as you want with the program.

The purchase of the program also gives you access to FREE pre-made spelling lists. These lists can be downloaded and used with the program. They include a list of common misspelled words, a list of "sight words", and many more.

Another great feature of this program is that your spelling lists can be exported or imported from other sources. This can be handy if you belong to a co-op that uses the same spelling words. With using the import and export functions families can share lists rather then each one making the list up independently. Of course in order to use this function each family would need this program. SpellQuizzer does offer a homeschooling group discount rate.

So even though we had mix reactions here, I still think SpellQuizzer is useful and I'm glad that I have had the opportunity to use the program. This is something that I am going to continue to use for my son (8; 3rd grade). I hope my daughter (7; 2nd grade) will warm up to it, because it can help her too!

Disclosure: I was given a free copy of SpellQuizzer by TedCo Software in order to write my honest opinion of this product for this review.

Review: Come and See Genesis

Title: Come and See Genesis

Author: Fr. Joseph Ponessa, S.S.D., Laurie Manhardt

Short Description: This presents the 50 chapters of Genesis in a 22 chapter, easy to use, workbook complete with commentary, questions, and guide on how to present the material in a group study setting. The Come and See series is especially designed for families to do together and is ideal for use in the classroom, home study, or parish catechesis program.

Review: One of the very first things I do when I get a book of this nature is to check for a Nihil Obstat and an Imprimatur. I was very pleased to see that Come and See Genesis had both! This material is fit and sound and in line with the Church teachings, which is very important when taking on a Bible study.

The book is an easy to use workbook that is written in a very simple, clear, but yet educational format. The questions at the end of the chapters are good discussion starters and add value to the study especially in a group setting. I should add at this point that you will need a Bible and the Catechism of the Catholic Church to go along with this study; however this should be no surprise to anyone that is serious about studying the Bible. If you do not have a "Catholic" Bible or Catechism of the Catholic Church then one can be bought through the Catholic Company.

According to the description the Come and See Series is especially designed for families to do together. This statement is true if your children are, in my opinion, 13 and older. My kids are younger and this material, even though it's written in a clear and simple format, is beyond what they are be able to handle or comprehend, because of their young age.

I was disappointed that I was not able to share this with my children. On the other hand if your children are older (13 and up) this could easily be used as a family study. If you homeschool this could easily be used as your religion curriculum for your Jr High to High School age students. I recommend, at this time, that each student or person participating in this study has their own copy of this workbook.

If you're interested in learning more about Come And See Genesis then be sure to check out the Catholic Company. For more reviews about this or other products from other bloggers then please click here.

Disclosure: I was given a free copy of Come and See Genesis by the Catholic Company in order to write my honest opinion of this product for this review.

REVIEW: Paul In A Basket

Title: Paul in a Basket Musical Adventure For Kids (CD)

Author: Rob Evans, the Donut Man

Short Description: An audio CD of 10 stories and 10 songs that highlights the the life and teachings of St. Paul in a kid-friendly format.

Review: This is very upbeat, energetic, get-out-your-dance-shoes type of music. The kids and I were up dancing and singing along in a VERY short time. We really enjoy the music and any child from the ages of 3-10 will too.

Even though it is geared for kids, I played it for myself while working on the computer. The music is really good and the message throughout is very uplifting and true to Scripture. Many of the songs and stories quote Scripture so this could be useful for bible lessons in a homeschooling environment. I believe that many Christian-Homeschoolers, regardless of creed or denomination, would find this to be a good way to help teach their kids about the life and teachings of St. Paul.

The differences between the children's CD and the director's CD is that the director's version comes with instrumental tracks and other resources that you would need to put on a musical.

I've reviewed the director's notes for the hour long musical. At first I found the director's notes to be a little confusing. However, once I became familiar with the CD and the songs the director's notes started to make sense to me. So in order to make the most out of the director's notes I highly suggest listening to the songs BEFORE reviewing the director's notes. Once you are familiar with the songs you'll find the director's notes easier to follow.

According to the director's notes this hour long musical would work best with 15-30 children on stage. I think any homeschooling, church, or youth group that has that many kids could easily put on this one hour long musical if they were inclined to do so. The props for the musical are very simple and can be done inexpensively which is a MAJOR plus for homeschooling groups (and church groups) that are often on a tight budget.

Regarding the age range for the production: I would say kids ages 6-10 would enjoy putting on this musical. Children 10-12 may enjoy it too, but that really would depend on the individual child. I find it hard to picture a child older then 12 being on stage, but I'm sure that they would enjoy watching along with any parent, grandparent, or beloved adult.

If your child is familiar with Rob Evans' past work, then they may be disappointed that he does not use his Donut Man persona in this work. Also Duncan, the talking donut, is not present. However, the music is so great that it would not matter in the long run!!

If you are interested in learning more about Paul In A Basket then be sure to check out the Catholic Company. For more reviews on this and other products from other bloggers then please click here.

Disclosure: I was given a free coy of Paul In A Basket by the Catholic Company in order write to my honest opinion of this product for this review.