27 April 2017

KJV Compact Thinline Bible, Cloth Over Board

 If you're wanting a smaller but readable Bible, this is probably the most basic and functional you can get before you run into the "paper so thin it tears when you turn the page" problem.  The Compact Thinline Bible from Thomas Nelson is a good choice in almost any situation.  It's a pretty "standard" sort of Bible without any real notes to the reader or extraneous "helps."

I like it. 

And maybe this sounds silly, but it has a friendly sort of a feel, and it doesn't smell weird.  If you're like me, that's important.  The only criticism I would have is that it doesn't lie flat as the advertisements claim.  I've posed the Bible here with my telephone bill so that you can see the size, but I really had to press pretty hard to keep it open while I snapped the shot.

So I'd give it four stars.  It's nice, it seems sturdy, it's pretty all-occasion and plain.  No surprises.  Something about this font is very readable, I think even more than the standard Helvetica type. 
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

24 April 2017

My Air Conditioner


It's such a cozy winter home if you're a mouse, and when you're hungry?  Just snack on an electrical cord! 

This sort of thing is exactly why we have regular maintenance on our machines.  It just wouldn't do to electrocute ourselves or start some huge fire in our cozy home, eh?  Mousie has an eviction notice, the machine is repaired and soon there will be repellant and/ or poison about.  It's always something when you own a home.

Sorry for the poor quality of the photo.  Our technician couldn't figure out how to send it to my email so I took a photo of his photo.  Good enough.


16 April 2017

Easter 1953

My father is the twin on the left.  I remember making odd paper crafts as a child as well.

14 April 2017

BJU Heritage Studies 4 Review

We've been using the "Distance Learning" option, which basically means that in addition to using the workbook and the textbook in our studies, we can also log in and watch video lessons online.  The fourth grade Heritage Studies curriculum covers American history from the Civil War through World War II.

What I like about the curriculum is that it doesn't talk down to the children.  It seems that the written textbook is a higher academic level than the online teaching or the workbook.  Which is fine, because watching is a more casual experience, and in terms of writing, children often don't write so well as they understand the material presented.

I'll give some examples:

The workbook is in full colour, and as you can see, I am allowing the children to write their ideas down freely. We are working on spelling these states properly during spelling time, though, I promise.  Can you tell that two children are sharing the workbook together?  It is their time to negotiate and figure out what goes where and to collaborate a bit.

Thumbing through the textbook, you can see that it goes into some pretty good detail considering it's for fourth graders.

The online program comes with PDFs so you can print supplemental worksheets to do at home.




I left a sample lesson above.  They always detail what materials you'll need.  Rarely to never do they ask for weird stuff like two yards of rope, but otherwise this is pretty much the sort of lesson you'd tune into each day or twice weekly or whatever.  You get to watch the lessons over and over during your agreement time, so you get to it whenever you feel like it.  I often use the video lessons for the children when I have something to do that will take 20 minutes or I just want a short break for lunch. 

It's a good break from my routine and I know the children are still learning quite a bit.  They love it.  I'm not sure if we'll continue next year as it's rather expensive.  We might want to try another subject next time for variety. 

12 April 2017

Thomas Nelson KJV Compact Thinline Review


The Thomas Nelson KJV Compact Thinline Bible is pretty much the perfect size to pop in a purse on the way to church or throw in a suitcase for travel.  I've included a photo of my hand next to the bible for reference - you can see that the type inside is going to be readable but small.  For travel, I'd honestly just keep it in the sturdy sleeve and tuck it somewhere it won't slide out and not bother with an expensive Bible cover. 

I have another much older Thomas Nelson KJV bible that is a mini-mini size and in battered but readable condition.  It's hard to explain but there's something about this new Bible that made me go hunt down my older little Bible and check for the publisher and sure enough, same outfit.  That makes me pretty confident that this Bible will stand up to any sort of regular use without falling apart.

I'm not including the picture of the book I got from the publisher because even with the glare, I think mine's better.  From the photo you can see the softness of the material and the nice stitching.  It doesn't have that new leather smell because it's not real leather but ohhh it is very soft.  True to the advertisement, it does lie flat so that one does not have to pry open the book in the middle to read to the end of the line.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

02 April 2017

A Modern Culture Moment



Turkish chef Nusret Gökçe is otherwise known as "Salt Bae".  This salt-sprinkling meme has been driving me nuts because I didn't know what it "meant".  It seems to be on every corner of the internet.  It's even on my coffee!  Good grief.  I'll spare you all the videos in which he spanks the meat "sensually" before salting it. You are welcome to google that stuff for yourself.

Bringing Garbage Home

Some people up the street were throwing this table away. It was in pretty bad shape and one of the legs was off. I've glued the leg back...