Is no one listening?

So I go to my favorite chat haunts and have been reading and I know people try to keep the politics down but no one is talking about preparing for what is sure to come. Is everyone blind? Or just not caring? I think now that gas is a bit below $4 people have stopped panicking.

We are so close to the brink of collasping and everyone is just going about every day life. Its like watching everything in slow motion and you see something coming but everyone is just going slow and not caring.

I know I am wierd hahaha but I am worried when our Treasury Secretary says "God help us all" seeing the huge businesses go down you got to be worried just a tiny bit. No one is talking about it no one is preparing.

We did a lot of gardening today and I am relucant to use any of our can goods I am using everything up in the freezer and fridge stuff that will last. I am trying to get more organized go to sleep earlier get up earlier but its still not helping and tomorrow will be no help.

Tomorrow we do a bit of fun and go to Homeschool day at SeaWorld its always fun to do this I can't wait though I feel guilty like I should be home inventorying instead. I am still not sure what I want to do for my birthday we are short money sigh....and I take my car finally in to see once again if they can fix my air conditioner I wish it would stay fixed because I have to do my transmission next.

We did sit down and talk to the kids about things changing and hubby sat down with me on us getting really back to budgeting just in case things go bad. There are some container lids we are looking into for bulk barrels for flour, sugar etc...it might sound extreme to some of you but we think of it this way if nothing happens then we buy in bulk which is frugal and we will have a lot stored up for any emergency.

Well got to run to get to bed early...we are still alive and kicking.

Sam

Money Class K-3rd

Edited July 16

Equipment:

Two poster boards with money bought at school house locker store
Money stamps stickers I got from Dollar tree for $1 each
Poster boards different colors from Dollar General
Play money I got from Dollar General $1 hated that it didnt nichols

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This year I am teaching a money class for K-3rd grade since its a broad range of ages I had to be prepared for kids who knew more then others on this subject. This sort of teaching reminds me of the old school house approach meaning that the teacher had a broad range to teach the kids in the old days; One teacher many age group of kids.

Bingo board: Above picture is my attempt at making a money bingo for basic identifications 1 c 5 c 10 c 25 c $1 $5 $10 and $20 I made cards to go along with it next to the boards as you can see. I made 6 boards each of them have different places where everything is place but each board has the same thing on it. Its not a matter of winning but idenitifying without looking at your neighbors board. I showed them the card the first time around then second time I just called out the money for them to try to find.

When I tried this game it went really, really fast with them both times so was it worth it? I think it was good practice for them this would have been especially good for prek-K

Next week I attempt another bingo game more advance

First week -Hour class actually about 45min because you have to settle down which takes around 5min and 10min to clean up.

Work on pennys-First Day

*I hide 20 pennies around the room and they had to find it and place on the table. (This went really well, the kids loved and and told their moms they loved it)
*We then placed them all on the table and discussed the penny how much its worth, how different they were, how some were older looking then others, how different ones have different dates on it. I brought in a canada looking coin that almost looked like it and told them to see if any of them looked different, they of course found it. I then told them what it was how it looked like a penny but it wasnt. I then showed them the fake pennies we were going to use in its place.

*I also have for the first day a coloring sheet, this went really fast especially for boys they didnt like it very well.

*We did some work sheets they didnt like it much but I know the moms love to see this later and the kids love to show it off. Each semester I buy those plain folders and have the kids color put stickers on it with their names at the end of the semester I give it back to them with their work sheets and they can take home to show other parent/grandparent. (note: I had tried to let them take it home each day their worksheets before but it always ended up on the floor someplace in coop or in their knapsack for ages. This is a lot better)

Identifying a penny sheet from http://www.moneyinstructor.com/

Money worksheets with pennies from http://www.dositey.com/

*I have bought from the teachers store-Carson-Dellosa Publ Poster boards of US COINS I hung this on the board and we discussed it, especially the one that says it takes 5 pennies to make a nichol, two nichols to make a dime etc...

*Playing my homemade bingo game I laminated

*Playing dice game with pennies - Role dice you get that many pennies-when they collect 5
pennies they can turn into bank (My class assistant was the banker) and get 5cents each person takes turns collecting pennies. When they get two 5 cent pieces they can turn it in for 2 dimes etc...till quarter This took a good 30min They boys loved it, the ones that didnt grasp it didnt like it but I have high hopes. It was a good game. We had only gotten to only 25cents. I need to spice it up a bit.

Emergency I will take playdoh in and they can press real pennies into it for fun. (Didnt have time for it but its good to have in future)

Sam

Texas Christmas Snow

Favorite Quote for today: "We ask justice, we ask equality, we ask that all the civil and political rights that belong to citizens of the United States, be guaranteed to us and our daughters forever." —Susan B. Anthony, Declaration of Rights for Women, July 1876

Oh how beautiful this cotton looks its all around me in the fields, but what comes with this beautiful prickly cotton is the worst allergery season for locals like myself that happen to live around it.

First the planes come zooming in at the wee hours of the morning if you want to sleep forget it as they zoom close by and spray chemicals all over. Of course they always pick the days when the wind has changed and its blowing towards our house. The first whif I get I go into a sneezing fit. They do this for a few weeks then finally one day you see the big trucks out there ready to pick and then it gets worse.

The dust they kick up and the final spraying combination just makes my throat tighten up and my eyes start to burn. I am a zombie those final weeks with so many allergery meds in me I have yet to find any that WONT make me sleepy. I go to my doctor and I tell her I don't need any that make me sleepy I am a MOM I can't have those. What does she do give me one that the first time I take it knocks me out for two days flat! I need to change doctors.

At HEB today I see locals surrounding the allergery medicine section. Its a cold they say smiling....bull I think ....funny when its a cold they say its allergerys hehe

A little rain comes today and with it the hopes of a hurricane in a distance which could be deadly for some but a God send for us far inland folks hoping it will bring rain and with it wash away the last remaining chemicals and cotton fields till they next plant the corn...which is not so bad unless you see movies like "The sign" with Mel Gibson haha

On to other news my ad in the homeschool paper didnt work out so well I didnt get one call from it :( I still have 13 lambs to sell I am at lost where to advertise next for it without costing and arm and a leg.

We had our co-op registration for our homeschool it went pretty well I think. I have only 5 students in my money class that is just enough for me. I did the happy dance when I found out. When I first started teaching I would end up with 14 students plus it was really hard back then to control that many little ones. I don't know how the teachers from public school do it. Years of practice I imagine and doing it over and over again.

I looked again at my pecan trees I really dont see any on the trees. Where did they go? Did they not form? Last year I didnt think I was going to get any and I did so hopefully I will again at least get a few. I was really hoping for a good crop this year :(

I feel a little depressed today must be from very little sleep the last couple of days I need to get back in a sleeping schedule, go to bed earlier, wake up earlier. I have been going to bed around 3am and getting up around 8am ...5 hours of sleep is not cutting it. I dont mind a 30min nap but anything longer wears on me.

My car is in the shop that could be another reason why I feel a bit under the weather. Every time it goes I get depressed because I feel trapped at home. They usually have to order a part that is in another city and it takes them days to get here then they fix it and it goes out again within a few weeks. This is the 4th time to take it in this summer, my family keeps telling me to get rid of the car....sigh...yah give me the money to buy a new one CASH and I will. I am thankful to even have a car right now. I heard last night that people are not getting loans for cars and keeping their older cars. My own mechanic says business has picked up haha yup sounds about right.

Ok dont want to be that depressed soooo...lets see good things....My house is clean, laundry is caught up, did all my shopping before car went down. Hubby let me order netflix and its really paying for itself we get two movies at a time and we can usually get 4 in all for a week. I am catching up with movies.

I had a dream of my mother after a year and 3 months and I was finally able to hug her and talk to her briefly saying how much we missed her and she said responded back. I realized I was dreaming, I realized she was gone I was alert in my dream...its was good...put me at peace. I had dreams of mom before but always I see her in a distance or I could never hear her or I hear her but not see her.....was frustrating.

Someone did me wrong not long ago sort of snubbed me in front of others. I was angry but instead of getting upset I sent them an encouragement card. It was hard to do I was upset. I had a feeling she might be one of those persons that might thrive in bad things happening in their lives so they can get care from others. I have seen this type before, but instead I sent the card with gritted teeth but my heart really meant it, it was was stubborness that was trying to hold me back.

Saw her again a few days ago, she hugged me said it meant the world to her and she felt bad about how she treated me that day, said I had no idea what is going on in her life. She didnt say any more I didnt ask her. I am not one of those women that are listeners I think she knows this... I am one of those people that say, "There is no victimes in life only volunteers". "Things happen for reason even when its really bad" Get a bit of comfort if things go wrong but then put the chin up and go on with life ...too much to do so little time we have on this earth. I hope things get better for her.

Speaking of which I need to get off of her and ...I am going to give my son icecream right now and we are going to spend some time together.

Sept is here

Picture: Last big storm we had here had over 3 inches of rain yah us!

Where did time fly? Its already Sept and school is starting and I am not ready! Ack!

I am not so worried because I have gotten most of the things I wanted to get done in and around

the house with the help of my husband, dad and kids so life is looking really good. We got the mulch down for the garden again and I have been slowing pulling down my summer garden and getting ready for the fall garden. Iam behind....go figure.

Well end of August we celebrated our sons 8th birthday and our 20th anniversary. We didnt do anything really really exciting like we wanted too but it was nice and we got to talk a lot which meant the world to me. Son had his birthday at home with his cousins and his pinata that he wanted so bad. We bought him a new and bigger fish tank with some new fish compliments of his grandma from Wash State.

Pecans should be falling soon I am really excited. Home school Co-op should be starting soon I am only teaching one class "Money class" for Tommy and kids his age should be fun. Tomorrow I am going flea marketing with my sisters so I better sign off early here just wanted to let y'all know I am breathing and everyone here on the farm is fine.

5 New kittens addition to our farm ...sigh....anyone want any kitten? :)

Sam