Tracy | Heart of the Matter

July 28, 2010 By Tracy 1 Comment

Home education is an adventure, and beginning to home educate is like going on a journey.

Here are some steps to make your journey more pleasant.

1. Begin investigating the various methods of instruction and curricula available to home educators. The choices for home educators is almost limitless — you must determine which style of curriculum works best for you and your children. Your local library should have a couple of books on Homeschooing.

2. Decide if you want to join Home School Legal Defense Association.

3. Attend your State or Local Homeschool Convention, these are usually held annually. Most conventions offer informative and inspirational workshops and guest speakers as well as a large vendor hall display. HSLDA usually has a listing by state of conventions and other useful information.

4. Consider joining your State Association- if your state has one! It is usually a great source of information and support to home schoolers statewide.

5. Join a local Support Group. To find out about support groups in your area, contact your state association, who can direct you to groups in your area.

6. Complete any requirements your state has for Homeschooling.

Begin your home education adventure!

Tracy Jackson is first and foremost a Christian, a military wife and mother. She grew up as a military brat all over the USA and is married to her Air Force, pastor husband of 16 years. They have 2 beautiful teenage children that they home school. She is photographer, and owns Shots From the Heart Photography and loves to do what she calls “Capturing the Fingerprints of God!” in her images. Tracy also created a workshop called Mommytography, where she teaches Mom’s how to use their cameras and to take better pictures. You can visit her at her blog: Work of HeART and Soul.

June 2, 2010 By Tracy 2 Comments

Looking for a new FUN game for the summer ahead?

Nertz is the most fun game and is addicting! It has taken me years to get SOMEONE to actually show me how to play and then was taught two different ways. The other way is with partners. This way is the easiest, most fun and allows for many people to play. Also this is the endorsed way by the National Nertz Association. (Don’t laugh, seriously!) The best way to explain this game is Extreme solitaire that you don’t play by yourself!

2 or more players, ages 8 & up. You can have as many people as your table will hold. We have played with 6. Or you can have a tournament of sorts going on with different tables.

If you know the rules of solitaire you can play Nertz. It is fast paced so keep up!

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Each person playing needs their own deck of cards.

Each deck needs to be a different backing, color/pattern.

Each person sets up their own deck of cards like this.

11 cards are stacked face down, top one turned up. This becomes your Nertz pile. (Can go on right or left, which ever is comfortable)
It is the most important pile of cards on the table and when it’s gone you yell “NERTZ!” The first one to do this is the winner of that round!
The next thing is your River. Four cards face up. These cards are played just like in solitaire. Red, Black, Red, Black, of any suit, and vice versa…etc. The only difference is unlike solitaire you CAN place a higher card behind the top card, from either your Nertz pile or your Stream.

{I have also seen it set up where the Nertz pile is on the right of the river and the Stream goes on the Left…if you have a smaller table or many players.}

The center of the table becomes the community Lake, where everyone plays.
You start with Aces and have to yell “Ace Out” which lets everyone know a new Ace is available for play. Then anyone can play 2 through the King of the SAME suit on that pile. If it reaches King, it gets flipped over and is “done”.
To begin play everyone draws 3 cards from your Stream (not looking, at them) and waits until someone says, “GO!”.
Everyone lays the 3 down and begins playing. You play out of the Nertz pile first if you can, and then your Stream (solitaire rules apply here, with no shuffling and you can only use the card on top). When a space comes open in your River, you move the card from your Stream in it’s place, not only a King like in solitaire. The more cards you get out in the Lake, the better because those count for positive points. You can play cards in the Lake that come from your Nertz pile, your Stream or your River (as long as they are on the bottom).
~~~~ When someone yells, “NERTZ!” Play stops immediately! The person who yelled Nertz starts flipping all the cards in the Lake over onto their backs.
The other players count the cards left in their Nertz piles. Each card counts for MINUS 2 points. So, if you end up with 4 cards left, that’s -8 points.
Then the Lake cards are sorted by backs. Those are you positive points. 20 Cards of your color/pattern = 20 points.
+20 minus 8= 12 total points for you this round.

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Scoring- each persons score it tallied and the player to reach 100 first wins the whole game. (For a faster game the Nertz winner for each hand can get a 10 point Bonus for Nertz-ing…or only play to 50!)

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At the end of each round you shuffle your deck 5- 7 times and pass it clockwise.

There are official Nertz gaming cards out there {also Dutch Blitz is just like it too}, but we prefer to use regular decks. Let me know if you try it!

March 30, 2010 By Tracy 7 Comments

I love to read! Always have.

However, sometimes I go through spurts where I will devour everything I can get my hands on and then all of a sudden I will not want to read anything for a while.

I have been in many book clubs and started three. The one I am in now is going well and growing monthly! We have been reading some GREAT books and are having some great discussions about them. Everyone brings completely different insights to the book that no one else caught, or has feelings about a certain part that none of the rest of us saw that way. Pretty neat.

I enjoy actually reading the books, but I also have learned to LOVE Books on CD/MP3.

When my 2 were little, I would want to read but could only sit when I did. I would really get into a book late at night after they were in bed or sometimes during nap time. Then a friend got me hooked on Books on Tape (back then)! My lovely husband even installed an under the cabinet tape/CD player in our great room for me.

The beauty of audio books is that your hands are FREE! So even though the kids were napping, playing in their rooms or whatever, I didn’t have to just sit and hold the book. I could get things done. (SO MUCH THE MULTI-TASKER!!!) Laundry, dishes, sewing/quilting and even scrapbooking got done while listening to my book!

As the kids got older and I read to them for our Homeschool curriculum (Sonlight), I would try to find any of the books on our list PLUS others that interested us on Tape/CD. We would listen to them in the car to and from our appointments, playdates, park days and long road trips. It was great and helped to save my voice. The professionals reading always pronounce the names and places correctly and use different character voices and accents, so much better than I can!

Now the kids even go to bed listening to them.

As time has gone on, I still try to find everything I want to read as a Recorded book. It is so easy nowadays with iPods/iTouch’s and our iPhones! Not only can you download recorded books from iTunes, but there is also a free Kindle app and you can download books to be read using your iTouch/Phone (JUST LIKE A REAL BOOK, with bookmarks and highlighters, etc)!

My library carries loads of Books on CD but also has the pre-loaded MP3 machines you can check out!

I have listened to all kinds of books that I would not have taken the time to READ. Now days I am mostly photo editing while listening but it makes the task go by so much quicker.

Here is my current book list, I am making my way through. You can get there anytime by going to my ABOUT page.

Have you tried Recorded Books? Are you in a monthly book club? Have you read anything FABULOUS lately?

Tracy is first and foremost a Christian, a military wife and mother. She grew up as a military brat all over the USA and is married to her Air Force, pastor husband of 15 years. They have 2 beautiful teenage children that they home school. She is photographer, and owns Shots From the Heart Photography and loves to do what she calls “Capturing the Fingerprints of God!” in her images. Tracy also created a workshop called Mommytography, where she teaches Mom’s how to take better pictures. You can visit her at her blog: Lighthouse Academy Home & School

February 8, 2010 By Tracy Leave a Comment

This is how my family is doing it!

Expanding the Options for Home Schooled High School Students: Dare to Compare High School Diploma Programs from Excellent Colleges and Universities Nationwide

Students can broaden their prospects of acceptance into college after graduation from high school through support available from the National College Counseling Center and earn their high school diploma from a regionally accredited college or university.

Home schooling of children has occurred since this nation first began, yet has become a growing practice over the past few years to levels never before seen in America. Societal acceptance of home schooling has also increased, as it has become more common for people with children in public or private school settings to have friends, co-workers, or others in their congregation in church that home school their children. There are many reasons why parents choose to home school their children: For some, it is because of their remote location, especially in remote farm areas. Others who live in heavily populated areas realize that their children are not getting the attention that they need in overcrowded classrooms where the student-to-teacher ratios essentially eliminate any possibility of individual support to students. In other cases, it is to provide a safer environment for their children, Regardless of the reasons, students typically do quite well in academic achievement when taught in a home school environment. Most states require that students take standardized academic achievement tests to ensure they are meeting or exceeding the expectations for the grade levels completed. Research in the past revealed that home school students scored exceptionally high (in the 70th to 80th percentile) on standardized academic achievement testing and that 25% of home school students were enrolled in courses one or more grades above their age-associated public and private school peers. What an excellent testimony to the success of home schooling in this nation. However, some high school graduates who were home schooled face obstacles in entering into the college or university of their choice – barriers that can be easily overcome, as will be described in this article.

Let’s face it … the entire nation is currently facing economically difficult times, which is impacting both large and small businesses, as well as government agencies. Anyone who has watched the news this past year has seen the reverberations of the economic downturn; however, what many do not realize is how this is impacting higher education across this nation. Education and employment are intrinsically related – the more education one has attained, the better the prospects of employment, retention, and promotion in the workplace. Enrollment at degree-granting institutions has actually increased over the past few years, even in these tough times. For example, the State of Tennessee reports that they have experienced a 6 percent increase in enrollments at State Colleges and a 15 percent increase at Community Colleges for Fall Semester of 2009. Although it may at first seem illogical, when the economy turns downward, enrollment in degree granting institutions turns upward. Similar results to the example in Tennessee can be seen across the nation. When economic downturns occur, as we have experienced over the past year, many organizations downsize and those employees remaining may need to sharpen their skills academically to carry the additional workload. Many are seeking to earn a degree when they are away from work in case they do later become a casualty of the downsizing and closures that have been all too common in America this past year or more. Take a look at the nationwide results that are reflected on this graph:

Notice the sharp upward line that presents the unprecedented growth in attendance at degree-granting institutions that has occurred over the past five years. As you can see by the lower green line, when the Department of Education projected growth over a ten-year period from 2002-2012, they expected an additional 900,000 to 1 million students to be attending college at the half-way point. When they received the statistics from the mid-point, the 2007-2008 academic year, they discovered a growth rate 5 times that which they had previously forecast. We now have more than 18.2 million students pursuing degrees in America.

What does this have to do with High School students? It means that the competition is tougher than ever to get into the college or university of their choice, as institutions of higher learning are being stretched to the limits with the new students seeking enrollment. How can high school students, particularly those that are home schooled, sharpen their competitive edge to help them get into the college or university of their choice after graduation? By not getting a home school high school diploma. Whoa, now! Don’t stop reading.

We’re not saying high school students should stop being homeschooled. On the contrary, the superior academic achievement of home schooled students testifies to the effectiveness of the process, as we stated in the beginning of this article. What we are saying is that high school students may be better served when they have their high school diploma is conferred from a regionally accredited college or university, rather than through their home school program of study, if they intend to compete for acceptance in top ranked colleges and universities across the nation. Read on to find out how easy this can be:

Although research has shown that home school students typically outperform students at public and private schools across the nation, many colleges and universities are hesitant to accept a home schooled high school graduate into their student body, even though academic achievement tests are required by most states throughout their secondary education. Some institutions of higher learning even require home schooled high school graduates to pass a GED for admission into their college. This can be very discouraging to students and can place students at a competitive disadvantage when seeking admission into a very selective college or university. There are numerous regionally accredited high school programs offered at a distance from higher education institutions across the nation. These include the University of Nebraska, the University of Alabama, Indiana University at Bloomington, the University of Missouri and many more. Students are typically required to complete just a few courses from the institution online to meet their academic residency requirement. The remaining credit may be completed through the student’s home school program of study, as long as it aligns with the curriculum requirements of their high school diploma program. The National College Counseling Center has created the most technologically advanced degree exploration program in the nation, Degree Quest, which, in addition to thousands of degrees from hundreds of colleges, also includes the curricula of high school programs of study from regionally accredited institutions of higher learning. They are able to empower students and their parents to compare where the student should stand toward these programs of study and provide them with a detailed plan to take them from where they currently are to the finish line – graduation and conferral of the high school diploma from one of the participating colleges or universities.

Take for example, Anna R. – a high school student in Central Georgia who aspired to attend the university in another state that her father graduated from many years ago: After reviewing several high school plans created in Degree Quest by the National College Counseling Center, Anna selected the University of Oklahoma to earn her high school diploma through. The university required her to complete five courses through them online, allowing the rest to be completed through the home school program taught by her mother using A Beka courses that aligned with their curriculum requirements. When she graduated from high school, she actually received her high school diploma from the University of Oklahoma, which helped fast-track her into the university she desired to enter to pursue her degree.

Parents of home schooled high school students are encouraged to check into these excellent opportunities for their children to earn a high school diploma from regionally accredited colleges and universities nationwide, especially with the support of the National College Counseling Center serving as advocates for their students. These opportunities also can serve as a means of having experts provide instruction in those subjects in which the parent feels least prepared to teach their high school student, while allowing them the liberty of teaching the other subjects they enjoy sharing with their children as they follow their trek to high school completion. In addition, the National College Counseling Center provides students with access to their student support website, HERC – the Higher Education Resource Connection. On HERC, students will be able to access hundreds and hundreds of resources to help them succeed in their educational endeavors, including nearly 300 semester hours of tuition-free college courses that may be used to prepare them for national college examinations. These may not only be used to help students complete requirements for their high school diploma, but can also give them a jump-start on earning a college degree.

The upward trend in college enrollments is not expected to subside, so the time to sharpen the competitive edge of your high school student is now. As we pointed out above, the surge in attendance that occurred between 2002 and 2008 is continuing, as evidenced in the 6 to 15 percent increase in enrollments that occurred in this 2009-2010 academic year. The National College Counseling Center can provide assistance to home schooled high school students across the nation and offers a significant discount on their one-time administrative fee to home school families.

(This article was presented by Tim N. Scoggins, a retired Lieutenant Commander and former head of the US Coast Guard Voluntary Education Programs from 1994 to 1998, and the founder and president of the National College Counseling Center.)

*Visit www.NC3degrees.info or call 850-819-3891 and use the support code: Tango35 if you decide to register! My family who is enrolled gets referral credit!*

Tracy is first and foremost a Christian, a military wife and mother. She grew up as a military brat all over the USA and is married to her Air Force, pastor husband of 15 years. They have 2 beautiful teenage children that they home school. She is photographer, and owns Shots From the Heart Photography and loves to do what she calls “Capturing the Fingerprints of God!” in her images. Tracy also created a workshop called Mommytography, where she teaches Mom’s how to take better pictures. You can visit her at her blog: Lighthouse Academy Home & School

December 24, 2009 By Tracy 4 Comments

Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa? How does your family celebrate the Holidays? Do you teach your kiddos about the other holidays? Do you take December off from schooling?

We celebrate Christmas WAY different than anyone else on the planet! And yes, we have taught our children about all the other holidays. We take off a week or 2 sometimes, with this year taking just one week off.

As far as “decorating” goes, we do not have a traditional tree. Instead we have 3 Trees! Our three small Pencil trees with white lights represent the (folktale) The Tale of Three Trees. When people ask us {and they ALWAYS do} about the three trees, we get to share Christ with them!

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We also have snowmen that have been collected over the years that go on our mantle/or piano top for most of the winter season; while our Nativity stays out ALL YEAR LONG!

In our home and family, we celebrate the holidays a little different then most families when we do what we call the Three Gifts!

Jesus only received three gifts from all the Magi, so we feel it is only fair. All of the over-abundance these days just makes people (especially children) NOT appreciate what they get and have! So we choose three gifts for our children out of these three categories: Head, Hands and Heart.

Head: something that will challenge them, make them smarter and they have to use their brains to play with or use.

Hands: something they make, create or use with their hands.

Heart: something they LOVE or something we give to them because we LOVE them and wanted them to have it.

These gifts are most likely NEVER something they specifically ASKED for (the list type things go to Grandparents, Aunts & Uncles, etc.)

If you were to ask my children, they would say the best part is getting the three gifts and figuring out why they fit in the category.

We hope that our children will grow up and carry on these “traditions” that point directly to Christ with their families. This year our budget will be especially TIGHT so the three gifts may be even smaller than years past, but they will mean just as much!

You can read the the folk tale of the three trees here.

The book is beautiful and it has been made into a DVD for kids as well!

I hope no matter how you celebrate, that you celebrate with Life, Love and Family! Blessings.

November 5, 2009 By Tracy 3 Comments

Have you enjoyed a fun filled summer with lots of swimming, fun in the sun and pulling your hair into a pony tail from the heat? Well, winter is almost upon us…or already here for some of you! Now is the time to give your tresses a relief from the stresses.

Here are a few easy recipes for helping your hair to look it’s best in the coming months.

Normal Hair

Wash every other day. You are the only hair type that doesn’t need conditioner, but it will help protect your hair from the harsh sun and heat damage of over use of hair appliances.

Magic Mayo

2 Tbsp Mayo
plastic wrap
old towel

Directions – Smooth mayo through damp hair, wrap in plastic, then wrap towel around to hold in heat. Relax for 10 mins. and rinse. Dry as usual.

Dry Hair

Only wash your hair when it’s needed, no more than every other day. Over washing stripes the natural oils away. Use thick conditioner as it will help replace the oils.

Banana-Honey Mask

1 ripe banana
2 tsp. honey
bowl and wooden spoon
plastic wrap
old towel

Directions – Shampoo and condition as usual, then mash banana up in the bowl and add honey, stir. Smooth the gooey mixture onto your damp hair. Wrap your hair in plastic to trap heat. Relax for 10 mins, then rinse and dry as usual.

Oily Hair

Choose a shampoo for oily hair, it will help dissolve that extra oil and let your hair shine. Also go light on the conditioner and stay towards the ends.

Lemon Rinse

The juice from 2 medium lemons
large bowl
4 cups of warm water
an old towel

Directions – After shampooing and conditioning as normal, pour juice in to the bowl and then the 4 cups of warm water. Lean over sink and pour lemon rinse over your hair. Wrap towel around your head and relax for 10 mins. Dry as usual.

** If you have light colored hair, this will give you “natural highlights” too.

Combination Hair

Try adding Lavender Essential Oil to a warm water rinse. And for all hair types, instead of buying those Hot Oil Treatments, just use Olive oil!

Lastly, to really help your hair from damage always use a product on your hair before using hot appliances on your hair. {Mousse, Styling Gel, Spray-in Conditioner}

Now, teach your daughter these tips and it will save her money and split-ends in the long run. You can also count it as Science or Home Ec!

September 19, 2009 By Tracy 6 Comments

Moving as much as I have, has forced even my naturally organized self to become even more organized! When you move from place to place and live on a one income budget, you have to figure out ways to make things work! I had a friend ask me recently to share a few things about organizing that I have learned along the way.

One great thing, {I read somewhere} for kitchen items was to take everything out {say cooking utensils} and put them in a box. Everytime you need something go get it out of the box, use it, wash it of course and put it BACK in the normal spot, or drawer, etc. Keep doing it. What is left in the box in say a month or two, get rid of because you don’t use the items! For clothes, hang everything in the closet with the hanger facing backwards, where you have to work to get it around the pole. Hang it the “right”, normal way after washing. At the end of a few months, what is still backwards you DO NOT WEAR! Evaluate why it never gets worn. Too small, too big, wrong color, nothing to wear with it. Solve the problem or get rid of it! Do this every season.

hangers

Speaking of clothes, another great tip I have learned, is to put up a wire shelf with a rod in the laundry room, or buy one of those free standing racks. On wash day round up all the empty hangers and put them on the rack. Take clothes right out of the dryer and hang them up. Then carry the hung clothes to the proper closet! No more piles all over the couch until someone folds them, and THEN puts them all away. Little to no ironing needed as well! You can also assign certain colored hangers to each child for them to easily recognize their items. Just fold towels and non hanging items right out of the dryer as well, then carry to proper place and your job is done! Board Games, clean out and organize all your family’s board games. Put a rubber band or a piece of yarn around each game. Have the kids remove the rubber band or string when they play the game. After 6 months or so, check the games. Whichever games still has them, are not being played. Evaluate if you should find a new home for them!

Home_Photo_books

Books and Videos, I know with homeschoolers this is a very touchy subject. After having to pay out-of-pocket for extra weight on our moving allowance, because of a lot of book boxes, I realized that the library can “hold” my items just as well a I could! So, we have 3 book cases. If new books come in, they must fit on one of the bookcases or it’s time to clean out the old ones! For Videos, we have a dresser with 4 deep drawers and our entertainment center has one more. No new videos come in the house, unless we clean out to make room for them in the drawers.

Toys and Stuffed Animals, how about giving the rotation method a try. Separate out all the kids toys into 2 or 3 piles, depending on the amount of kids and toys of course. Then box up one pile (or 2), storing away in the attic, basement or garage and find places for the items in the other pile, back in the play area. Rotate the toys out every 6 months or so. The kids will feel like they are seeing old friends and discovering new favorite toys. Growing up my parents always had us do a big clean out in the fall, “to make room for the new stuff” we would get for coming holiday gifts. This always helped get us in the mood to get rid of things we really didn’t use, like or play with anymore.

~A place for Everything and Everything in its place ~

These few tips and having a couple of yard sales a year help keep the clutter down. I would love to hear any tips that have worked for your family.

August 20, 2009 By Tracy 4 Comments

Want to know how to find your “Outdoor Studio”? Now, just because I am a pro and am out scouting new places to shoot all the time, doesn’t mean you can’t do it for your own pictures of your own children and family. The results will amaze you, if you just look around a little bit! It only takes a SMALL area or space to get great images. For instance a nice corner of your own back yard, deck or patio. How about one side of the house…that isn’t a wreck, with toys strewn hap-hazardly and not to mention the dog house…etc. How about your neighbor’s yard or pretty front porch? It doesn’t hurt to ask! If they let you be respectful {no picking the beautiful flowers!}, so they will allow you to come back again. I want to show you HOW small a space you can use to get great shots. At the beginning of the summer I was getting ready to do a homeschool girl’s Senior Portraits. I had been scouting out locations close to home, since they were driving in from out of state for the session. I came across an empty lot filled with wild flowers. And “saw” the possibilities.

When the day arrived and the family was following me in their own vehicle to the spot, which was to be our first of 3. I pulled up and got out and began to get my equipment ready. They didn’t even get our of the vehicle, because they JUST KNEW I had made a mistake and was checking my directions or something! When I assured them we were in the right spot, they looked at me like I was crazy! This is what we had pulled up to….

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Mom, Senior and I walked over to the middle of this field (directly above the copyright symbol)…I posed the senior and Mom held the reflector for me. I got on the ground and began the shoot! I had to show them a few images for the to “believe” that I could get any kind of GOOD shot in this place. They saw and trusted me and we shot many images here.
The results:

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I was able to get totally different shots, just by having her stand and me laying the ground beneath her.

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What do you think?

Here are a few more of my nieces and nephews on a impromptu session in a corner of Nana’s front yard!

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Let me know if you find your “Outdoor Studio”!

July 22, 2009 By Tracy 3 Comments

Why is it that the people that were BORN and RAISED in a town, don’t know how to get places, or where new stores are, or have never visited the one thing their town and even state is known for? Now I know not everyone will fit in this category, but there are many of you out there! It also depends on how big or little your town is. How old, how large and fast it has grown.

My Father was in the Coast Guard when I was born and I have moved almost every 3 or 4 years my whole life! Why, you ask? I married a man in the Air Force! So, I have moved a lot and lived many different places and on every coast! Also my parents drove us everywhere we went! Yep, my 2 brothers and I squished in the back of the station wagon for hours. Yelling, “He touched me!”, “She looked at me!”, “He’s over in MY space” and the to my parents utter pleasure fell asleep, lying on each other. Whether we were moving to a new state or just visiting family and friends, and even on all of our vacations, we drove! I did not fly in an airplane until I was an adult and had 2 children of my own.

My Mom being a military wife learned many lessons through the years and taught me many valuable things along the way. I am going to share a few of them with you.

Moving to a new place:

THEN: She would get out the phone book and a map of the area. We would go find stores and places we would need to know of for later use. Once we found it and we were on our way to said place, she would use her map and find other routes to get there and back. She would find all the short cuts! People that had lived there all their life wouldn’t even know all the short cuts she new! And by the way, don’t make fun of people who don’t pronounce things right, when they are asking for directions. We are having enough trouble trying to find the place, much less how to say it right!

NOW: I have a GPS and a cell phone, not to mention the internet and Mapquest! When we move somewhere, I find the short cuts and back ways. Where we live at the moment, this has come in handy MANY times!

Have a new Address? (Even moving to a new place in the same city)

THEN: My Mom would get address labels made ( ______ Family) and even use those ones that come free in the mail. She would put them in her purse and keep them with her. When she had to fill out a million forms for all of us just to go to the dentist or wanted to quickly drop her film off to be developed, she would place an address label where the address was needed and just put the appropriate person’s name on top!

NOW: I do this too, but the first time we went to the dentist here I had to fill out a ZILLION forms and had forgotten my labels! I also have taken it a step further and made old fashion calling cards. You can get a set made cheap or create some yourself in a Photo editing program. I put our family name, address, phone number and e-mail. Even our blog address now! This is so helpful when you meet so many new people and you don’t have a pen and paper handy. It helps making connections with other people and setting up play dates for the kids. People will remember you too! Also, if you meet someone new to the area, contact them! Don’t wait for them to contact you. They are overwhelmed with moving, so many new people, places and are probably lonely, if they aren’t around family!

“Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it.” Hebrews 13:2

Act Like a Tourist!

This one applies to all of you! Even if you were born in the house you live in! Go out and see your town. Go to the little museum downtown, visit the library and check out the book on your town. Take a field trip and just go check out the shops, nooks and crannies you have never been to or at least not in a 100 years! Take your camera and act like your a visitor who had never been here before. Put on fresh eyes and really SEE your place. It is amazing the gems you will find! The things and places you pass everyday will take on new meanings when you know WHY or how they got there. Just yesterday, friends were stuck behind a parade coming home in their very small town they live in. They stopped and asked the officer what was going on? He told them it was the town’s 100th birthday! They had no idea!

Some of the best field trips we took in Ohio, were to the small surrounding towns. People who had lived their all their life had never visited the Barber Shop Museum, the Whistle Maker’s Shop, the Seeing Eye Dog School and the Candy factory! Going to a Military Museum in the TINY town we lived in, we found out the man who dropped the Atom Bomb on Japan lived near us, and that he didn’t regret it one bit. He was following the orders of his Commander, doing his job! Amazing.

So, this summer, save some gas money and stay close to home! See where you live and discover something new. What hidden gems or exciting places have you discovered in your area?

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