RootsTech, the world’s largest family history event, is almost here! I hope you join in some way, either virtual or in person. It all starts this coming Thursday, Leap Day, February 29, 2024. You can watch the virtual classes for free. In-person classes do have a cost, but it’s all worth it. It’s all so fun and enlightening! I love this annual event that combines technology with family history. I’ve never been in person, because of time constraints, but even just watching the classes online fills me up. I learn about new apps and websites to help in my family history research, I learn new research skills, and I get inspired to learn even more about my ancestors and collateral lines. The Family Discovery Day for members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, on Saturday, is always especially wonderful. With classes for beginners to experts, members of The Church or not, there is something for everyone! Just scan the QR codes you see on this screen if you want to register and enjoy learning about your roots!
Some of the classes are recorded, like this one below from last year. You can watch all the archived videos here, if you want to get that RootsTech vibe before it starts Thursday and keep it going all year round. They bring me so much joy!
I love using board games for schooling. I use them at home with my own children and at my homeschool co-op, as shown above. In that photo I am using Concept Kids: Animals. That’s one of my favorite games to play with my grandson. You can read my review of it here. Here are some of the games I’ve used for my 6-7-year-olds at my homeschool co-op. Sometimes I use these as gathering activities, and sometimes I use them just for independent play stations. Most of the time that I use board games, I introduce them as a gathering activity so that all the children know how to play them, before unleashing them as a play station. I have found most of these while thrifting.
The video below shows Ben, a homeschooling dad, and founder of theperfectboardgame.com, showing three lessons that board games teach us that schools don’t. Then the video below that shows some of his favorite educational board games.
For Hedbanz, which is just a repacking of “20 Questions,” I like to find customized cards online, always free, of seasonal and/or holiday-themed words, like these ones I found for Valentine’s Day.
Thinkfun is a great resource for educational games. I often see that brand of games at thrift stores and pick them up there, like the game to the right. The 6-7 year olds can do the easier challenges in this game. It has different levels. Even my 5-year-old grandson loves this game! They kiddos also enjoy Gravity Maze by Thinkfun as well.
If you want more info on using games in school, check out my slides here and go here to read more about different games for homeschooling.
Here’s what we are currently doing for our February Morning Basket time. This is a typical homeschool morning for us. If you don’t know what Morning Basket time is, go here. This is our routine for homeschooling after we have done our Morning Devotional and breakfast. Morning Devotional is where we as a family study the scriptures together, our “Come Follow Christ” study time where we do personal scripture reading, journal writing, and then as a family we read together the assigned reading that is in The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ. Breakfast is breakfast which needs no further explanation.
At this point, I only have two children who I am homeschooling, ages 18 and 14. The 18-year-old just got accepted to college on scholarship! She hasn’t been part of our Morning Basket for over a year now as she is pursuing her self-directed scholar studies. So, it’s just the 14-year-old that I’m homeschooling. So, keep that in mind as you see what I use below. If I had younger children I would definitely use books that appeal more to younger children.
First we read a picture book. You are never too old for a picture book! We can all learn a lot from reading picture books on a regular basis. I love, love, love picture books because they can pack a lot of information and beautiful pictures in a small little package, leaving me feel so satisfied at the end, if it’s the right kind of picture book. Picture book biographies are my absolute favorite type of picture book. I use the lists I created over here on my other web site, Christian Family Read-alouds and Traditions, to pick books. I like to pick at least one book that goes with the month and/or season. The books below are examples. Then at the end of Morning Basket I like to do one that is a picture book biography that inspires us to heed the call to create or invent something. More on that at the end. The Ballad of Valentine, shown below, is an example of a book I used this month of February. It’s a funny story about just how far someone will go to express love to a valentine. I also love to find humorous books to brighten up the wintry mornings. Sometimes I can even fit it three picture books in a morning. If I can fit in three I will do one seasonal, one seasonal and/or funny, like this one, and one picture book biography.
(Image Credits below are from amazon.com and goodreads.com)
Then we go through the following books pictured below. My 30-year-old son gave the family the book shown below several years ago for Christmas.
It’s so fun! I’ve decided to read a little bit every day for our MB. I can’t even say we do a page a day because sometimes the pages are so detailed it’s overwhelming and we can’t fit a whole page into Morning Basket (in an hour’s time, with the other stuff). I love that the author uses common words like big, small, hole, box, boat, thing, holder, cleaner, etc. to explain science and technology concepts. I love this book! I have a bachelor’s degree in science, so I studied chemistry and physics in college, but I can’t remember what elements are used for what, like sulphur and polonium. This book has a chart for the periodic table that explains each element in very simple terms. I love it!
Below is a list copied and pasted from amazon showing more of what the book explains:
food-heating radio boxes (microwaves)
tall roads (bridges)
computer buildings (datacenters)
the shared space house (the International Space Station)
the other worlds around the sun (the solar system)
the big flat rocks we live on (tectonic plates)
the pieces everything is made of (the periodic table)
planes with turning wings (helicopters)
boxes that make clothes smell better (washers and dryers)
the bags of stuff inside you (cells)
Right now, we are reading about one or two elements a day presented on the periodic table in that book. It doesn’t show the names though, just phrases like “thing that is in a salt shaker” for sodium. So, because I haven’t memorized the periodic table, to find out what that element is, we have to go to the periodic table in the book shown below. Then we read the two-page spread for that element in the book below.
Then we read the shorter description of the element in this cartoon-y book below. For some reason, it skips over krypton. Go figure.
Then we do Action Bible. After doing one story a day for over a year, we are almost done with this book! We listen to the narration using the Audible version. When we finish this we will replace it with some other scripture storybook, I haven’t decided what.
We started the above book before Christmas. It’s very thick and will take us a long time to get through. Maybe we will be done by Easter? It’s the story of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and her husband Joseph, starting well before the Nativity. I got it at the public library and had to return it last December, when we started it, but I was totally OK with that as God led me to find a copy while I was out thrifting for only $3! So, I snagged it and can keep it forever! Yay! It’s very good! I love how it puts me into Jewish culture before Jesus’ birth, helping to understand the life and times of Mary and Joseph, and the politics of the time.
That covers some science, religion, and literature for the day. Then we get some political history in with a few pages in the book below.
It’s so interesting!!! I knew some about some of the stuff but not all. Fascinating!
Sometimes if we have time, we do a Mad Lib from the book below. My son enjoys these because he is in a Shakespeare class right now at our homeschool co-op. We take turns being the writer and the word-giver. So he is learning parts of speech with this.
Then we wrap up with another picture book, like this one below. I just love reading about real people who overcame obstacles to invent things and/or pursue a passion, like Leo Fender, shown below, who invented the Telecaster and Stratocaster guitars. So, this is also some history for the day. You can see lists of my favorite picture book biographies here, and over here at my other website, under the October heading, over here, in the Fall section. Scroll down to the October heading to see it.
That takes an hour, so that’s it! I’ve committed to my son that I will only take an hour. We then stop looking at the books while being on the soft comfy couches in the living room and move to the dining room table. We then play a board game, for up to 30 minutes, and then he moves on to math and his other studies.
You might ask, does he really just sit or lie on the couch, listening to you read the whole time, being still? Sometimes he does if he was up late the night before, and then went to his morning religion class (seminary) but other times, he has more energy and wants to be doing stuff with his hands. I used to let him play a billiard video game on the iPad but I really prefer him to do non-digital stuff so I’ve been having do any or all of the following.
He can either play with something like these things while he listens:
or/also he can draw using these books, in a dedicated sketchbook that is for homeschooling.
Some of his drawings from these books are below. I feel strongly about teaching my children how to draw. I have done with all of them, some more than others. It exercises the brain and helps them grow in confidence as they learn to produce recognizable sketches. Being able to communicate visually is a valuable skill! Plus, it’s fun! These are simple enough drawings that he can draw them while listening to me.
Sketching and seeing my son sketch just makes me happy! I like the books below even better though because they break the sketching down into steps better, whereas the Draw Cute series don’t always have steps. Public libraries have scads of how-to-draw books you can enjoy! Look for them while thrifting too.
Here are the top 10 family board game recommended by Board Game Dad, aka Ben Nockles, from a new-to-me website I love for board gamers called perfectboardgame.com. Watch the video below and get ready for some fun! I’m only familiar with half of these games. I’m excited to learn about some new ones to play with my family and friends. If you want a brief list of Ben’s Top Ten, scroll down below the video. These are for 2021, a few years ago. I’ll be adding his videos that he’s done since for later years soon.
#10. Via Nebula
#9. Sushi Go
#8. Reef
#7. New York Zoo
#6. Andor the Family Fantasy Game
#5. Mighty Monsters
#4. Calico
I’m surprised he calls Calico a family game. I never would have thought to play this game for under 10s. It can get complicated. He does explain though to have younger kids play without using all the levels or goals. My review of Calico is here.
#3. Planet
#2. Kingdomino
I love this one! It’s my top pick of a quick math game for gameschooling, because it’s such a satisfying game that can be played in 15 minutes or less if you have just two people. The scoring involves multiplication and addition. It’s lots of fun!
#1. Karuba
I have this game but haven’t played it yet. Now that I see that the Board Game Dad ranks it #1 (at least for 2021) I for sure will get it out soon!
That’s it! If you want to know more about gameschooling, that is using games for homeschooling, go here.
If you are tired of winter, these picture books are sure to help you want to celebrate it, or at least see what fun you can have with it while you wait for spring to spring. I shared my top picks for Valentine Day books, over here, now I’m sharing my top 12 about creating hygge during winter. If you don’t know what hygge is, go over here.
I love the above book because it shows how one can brighten up winter by sharing both physical light in the form of lanterns and the internal light of love in the form of kindness. Fun fact: the illustrator, Apryl Stott, does all the artwork for the Grandpa Beck games. Watch the video below for a fun related hygge activity of making paper lanterns featuring Apryl herself. The template is here.
I love the above book for presenting the idea that even though winter is cold, it’s the warmest season of all. That’s because of its contrasting hot elements, like cocoa and fires in the fireplace, which brighten it up. So fun!
This book is amazing for showing kids how one young boy has generated his own beauty, which is so remarkable in this day of consumptive mass-market art and entertainment. Winter is the perfect time to cultivate our skill at handicrafts and Jonah shows us how!
We may not think that gardening is for winter, but the above book shows that it can be!
The above book is based on the real blizzard that happened for three days in New England in February of 1978, an event the author lived through when he was a child. I love his inventiveness and generosity in trekking to the store on tennis rackets for snowshoes to get groceries for his family and neighbors pulling a sled.
This one is a classic from my own childhood. I remember my mom reading it to me. I love the vintage 1960s vibe. It shows the wholesome fun that can be had in the snow.
Snowflake Bentley was a real man who lived in Vermont. He was captivated by the beauty of snowflakes. I love that he was homeschooled by his mother, and how she was so in tune with him that she got him a camera that launched his ability to capture photos of snowflakes. Reading this book helps one to see the wonder of snow and ordinary winter days. It also helps me ponder how I as a mentor mother can help my children with fulfilling their needs to fulfill their mission.
How about we go sledding at night under the light of the moon? This book almost makes me want to do that :-). Almost.
The above book showcases the power of cooking and sharing one’s food with neighbors, and how that produces instant magic. So delightful!
Another book about the power of community, food, and fun to combat the dreary winter blues.
Even when we think there’s nothing to observe in winter, we can find beauties in the wintry outdoors, as the above book shows.
The above book is another story about family life in a blizzard. This time it’s about a boy who gets to celebrate a memorable birthday with family and friends despite winter howling outside.
Want more wintry hygge picture books? Check out my free ebook over here!
This video for the Come, Follow Christ study, from over a week ago, highlighting 2 Nephi 1-2 of The Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ has so many gold nuggets of truth! It features Dr. Lili de Hoyos Anderson, a mom of 8, PhD, and family therapist. Watch below. I include some bullet points of what I learned and love. She uses a metaphor of alchemy that is so beautiful!
-she calls men to repentance, telling them, like Lehi told his sons, Laman and Lemuel, to “Man up and be men!” By this she means to awake and arise to follow God and follow the male roles in the Proclamation on the Family. (That’s at the 38:15 mark.)
-someone asked her what she would say to a woman who has been so hurt by men (father, husband) that she has a hard time praying to a male God. Dr. Anderson’s reply is right after the 44:15 mark, including her testimony of the Savior.)
-what people studying elephants learned about the importance of fathers in teaching young males healthy masculinity, and how this protects young men from toxic masculinity. (54:55)
-as family members, we can get help in fulfilling our roles by simply asking our children and/or spouse how we can improve (59:16) I love the example Hank uses with substituting the word/idea for “wife” for Nephi as he reads through 2 Nephi 1:24 “Rebel no more against your brother(wife) whose views have been glorious, and who hath kept the commandments from the time that we left Jerusalem; and who hath been an instrument in the hands of God, in bringing us forth into the land of promise; for were it not for him (her), we must have perished with hunger in the wilderness; nevertheless, ye sought to take away his(her) life; yea, and he (she) hath suffered much sorrow because of you.”
Ok here are some beautiful and tender things from Part 2, shown above.
-Lehi teaches that the Fall of Adam was fortunate for mankind. See 7 seconds into it. I am so grateful for Lehi’s teaching about this, which can’t be found in any other book of scriptures.
-she quotes Jordan Peterson about life, how it’s best for us to yield to Life/Universe/God and not be bitter (2:47)
-she shares some heavy personal challenges she’s had in the past year: flooding of home, death of her husband, and hacking of her bank account. Wow! This woman is a female modern day Job! I am so in awe that she has not let these things turn her bitter. This woman knows who her Savior is and trusts him completely. (hear it right after she quotes Jordan Peterson)
-God is the ultimate alchemist. He takes the heavy, leaden things in our life and turns them to gold, if we let them. (18:59) I love this! We each have sorrowful things in our life as heavy as lead. If we bring these things to the Lord Jesus Christ, He truly can turn them for our good, even more valuable than gold.
There’s so much more gold in this podcast/video/interview to be mined! For example, at some point in either part, I’m not finding where it is exactly, she says that her time being a stay-at-home mom of 8, being in the trenches every day of diapers and dishes, was harder than getting her PhD. She is grateful for that time at home. She is so grateful for her husband supporting her during that time when she could be home.
Want more of Dr. Anderson?
She has a website full of articles. These are soooo good! Go here.
She has a book. It looks so good! Truly, as she says in of the videos above, we each get to choose our glory.
She has a podcast! I’m going to start listening to it! It’s over here!
She has thoughts about being a non-victim Christian. See below. What a treasure she is, greater than gold!
This video makes me smile! I love how it shows a mother and father sacrificing to raise their 22 children in the coldest place on earth, Yakutsk, Siberia. It gets as cold there as -64 C. Brrr! The family stays plenty warm in their cozy home with lots of love and laughter. I love this! This family has 4 biological children and 18 adopted, ranging in ages from 6 to 37. Incredible!
The video shows hygge in action! (If you don’t know what hygge is, go here.) I noticed these hygge elements:
-twinkly lights (some on a tree, which I presume is a Christmas tree, and some that look like they are there regardless of Christmas, hanging from the ceiling)
-the cozy colorful blankets
-the older girls working with the mom to fix dinner
-bundling up a lot to go outside
-the younger children playing together
-the family eating dinner together, although they have to do it in two shifts to fit everybody
-the mom saying that she loves being with her family, talking, playing games, and laughing together
Watching this makes me so grateful that such good people live in the world, sacrificing to rear children, shining such a great example with their light.
This video below is so amazing! The presenter, Matt Jeppson, an attorney, presents about the eclipses we’ve had and the one coming up in April 2024. He explains how they relate to the signs of the times and the Hebrew alphabet. Who knew that they are all related?! It has to do with the paths of totality.
The paths of totality make letters of the Hebrew alphabet, and not just any letters, but the beginning and the end letters, the Aleph and the Tav. Why is this important? Watch above.
Do you want to spend Valentine’s Day doing something different this year with your sweetheart? Something to spice up the routine? What about doing something besides a movie after the traditional candlelight dinner?
If your love language is quality time, and you love playing games, I have a free ebook for you full of Valentine-themed games! I’ve played these games with friends, and they always bring some laughs and sweet connection.
By subscribing to my Tree of Life Mothering Newsletter, you can get it here.
If you are already a subscriber to my email newsletter, go here to get it with the password in the Feb. 10, 2024 email newsletter.
Here are my top 10 Valentine’s Day picture books. These are books about friendship, love, and kindness, which are all themes for Valentine’s Day. The one above is my absolutely favorite because it shows a whole family celebrating Valentine’s Day together in their cozy home. So far, it’s the only picture book I’ve found that features such a thing.
This one is super cute, but it doesn’t tell a story like the first one. Each page shows an image from a Little Golden Book with a pithy saying that goes with the image. If you especially love vintage art from old-fashioned LGBs you will love this! I found it thrifting, which made me giddy! It’s more for adults than young kiddos, since it’s not a story. If I read it to under 8s I will skip over some of the pages and words and focus on the more hilarious illustrations.
This book is such a delight! It shows the power of how one simple anonymous gift and note can change someone’s life. Read it then encourage your children to write kind anonymous notes to others.
Sugar Cookies is all about how to define some words relating to love in terms of cookies. So cute!!! Once I read this aloud to some of my friends at a couple’s Valentine’s game night, then we played the game I made based on it. See my game over here that I made to go with it. I originally made it go with the author’s Christmas cookies book, but you could play it with this book too.
This book is a story that links celebrating Valentine’s Day with forgiveness, set in a historical setting of 1960s Alabama. A beautiful story.
Here’s my favorite picture book about love between a mom and dad. The fact that the mom and dad are bears waking up from hibernation during winter makes it extra interesting for children. It can give you different themes to talk about after reading it aloud to your kiddos.
Sylvester is not a Valentine’s Day-theme book but I am putting it here because it’s all about being grateful for your family and the love you share. I feel happy every time I read it! It reminds me to appreciate my family, not take them for granted, and to cultivate the love and time we have together while we do.
This is the only one on the list from my childhood. It’s a sweet story about friendship between classmates and Valentine’s Day.
I love all the illustrations and graphics in this book that gives a basic history of Valentine’s Day.
I just love the Cranberry books. They take me back to my 70s childhood. The books just make me happy.
Want more Valentine’s Day books?
Go here to get my free ebook full of lots more titles about love, friendship, kindness and Valentine’s.
Tree of Life Mothering 