Book Review: The Wackiest, Wildest Weirdest Animals in the World by Jack Hanna

What is the fastest two-legged animal? Which animal weighs less than a paper clip when born? The answers to these questions and other fascinating animal facts can be found in this exciting book by Jack Hanna.

Jungle Jack's Wackiest, Wildest, and Weirdest Animals in the World showcases one animal per page and includes vibrant, close-up pictures. Key information is given about each of the animals including what they eat, where they live and how big they get. Jack Hanna shares some of his own experiences of his interaction with many of these animals. A helpful glossary is included at the end of the book.

I appreciate that the book is written from a Christian perspective with several references to God's creation of animals and no mention of evolution. The book is written in an easy-to-read style and is specifically geared toward children with information they would find exciting. The colorful photos add a wonderful dimension of interest to the pages.

If your child is at all interested in animals, he/she would thoroughly enjoy this book. It would be great as a read-aloud for younger children and a read-alone for older ones. This book opens the door to understanding the diversity and uniqueness of some of God's creations.

Back To My Saving Ways

So it was back to Publix on Friday after a week of no grocery shopping due to being out of town on vacation. I want to make a concerted effort to add more fruits and vegetables to our diet, so will probably try to visit the farmers market next week.

To counteract that "healthy" talk, my best deal was free Oscar Meyer beef hot dogs. I had received a coupon in the mail for a free package, so I picked them up on this visit and put them in the freezer for a cookout I'm sure we'll have later this summer.

I also got two cans of Dole pineapple chunks for free; they were on sale for $.99 each and I had two $.50 off coupons that doubled to $1 off each. My bagged salad was only $1 thanks to a sale price of $2.50 and a Publix coupon for $1.50 off. The two blocks of Kraft cheddar cheese were also only $1 each with a sale price of 2 for $4 and two $1 off coupons.

In total I spent $28.40 for 29 items and saved $34.98. I'm back on the "saving more than spending" track and hope to stay there!

This post is linked to Super Savings Saturday, Shopping Superstars, Saving Our Cents, I Heart Publix, Publix Super Savers and Grocery Cart Challenge.

What Is a Good Deal?

Today I thought I should keep things simple since I'm in that "just got back from vacation and the laundry is stacked three-miles high" mode.

My simple frugal tip for this week is that you should actually know what a good deal is.

To illustrate..........

If we are anywhere in the vicinity of an outlet mall while on vacation, I try to set aside a little time for some bargain hunting. That was true during our trip this past week.

I enjoy buying clothes for our daughters at The Children's Place, so I made a stop at their outlet store. They occasionally carry plain, thin, long-sleeved layering shirts which I stock up on for the girls to wear to school under their uniform shirts.

This outlet had a great selection of these shirts in lots of colors and sizes, BUT they were priced at $4.99 each. That's not a bad price.......except for the fact that I just bought two of them a few weeks ago at our local store for $2.49 each. Needless to say, I left the outlet with no new shirts.

On the other hand, I was able to pick up the cute Gymboree sweater pictured above at their outlet store for only $6.99. It should fit my older daughter this winter and can hopefully be passed down to her sister.

The moral of the story is to know what a good price is on items you're looking to purchase and be willing to wait until you find it at or below your target price. When you see what is truly a good deal, be ready to buy.

For other frugal tips, visit Frugal Friday hosted by Life as Mom.

Many Memories Made

We had a great vacation this past week, spending lots of time together doing fun things as a family.

There was something for everyone - a day and a half at an amusement park, swimming in an indoor pool, lots of eating, miniature golf, reading and relaxing - and even some shopping!

I know we made some wonderful memories that we'll always look back on with pleasure. Our daughters, at ages eight and six, are so easy to travel with and are terrific company for each other.

Enjoying safe travels, a beautiful and fun place to visit and hours of uninterrupted family time - all finer things for us!

This post is linked to Finer Things Friday and Family Friday.

Ready to See More Great Book Finds?

Once again, I scored big time at the library with books that were on the sale shelves. They were all children's books this time, but what great ones they are!

We really enjoy the series Childhood of Famous Americans and already own several of them. In a box under a table, I found these five for just $.10 each:

Jim Bridger, Mountain Boy
John Audubon, Boy Naturalist
James Monroe, Good Neighbor Boy
William Bradford, Pilgrim Boy
Anne Bradstreet, Young Puritan Poet

My eight-year-old loves history and reading biographies so she was thrilled with these finds. Also for $.10 each we bought a nearly-new copy of The Adventures of Old Man Coyote by Thornton W. Burgess and Gorillas by Patricia Demuth. We have other books by Thornton W. Burgess and the short chapters are great for reading aloud. Those are the books that are keeping my girls busy reading this week!

As for myself, I'm reading Do Hard Things by Alex and Brett Harris along with We Still Do by Dennis and Barbara Rainey.

Next week we will head to the library to begin the first week of our Summer Learning Schedule which includes checking out books on different countries. I'm looking forward to seeing how planning our reading around a weekly theme works out. I'm sure we'll throw in a few "recreational" books as well!

See what others are reading this week at The Happy Housewife.

Thirteen Classic Toys

Over the years, our girls have had a good many toys pass through their playroom. As others before me have noted, there are certain ones that become favorites with nearly all children - and they are usually toys that involve using the child's imagination. To me, a "classic" toy is one that can be played with over and over and was enjoyed as much by me as it has been by my girls!

Here, then, is my list of thirteen classic toys.

1. Wooden blocks


2. Baby dolls


3. Legos
   
4. Playdough


5. Fisher Price Little People


6. Doctor Kit


7. Bubbles


8. Play Kitchen
   
9. Magnadoodle/Etch a Sketch


10. Matchbox Cars


11. Lincoln Logs


12. Paper dolls


13. Lite Brite

This post is linked to Thursday 13 and Happy to Be at Home.

Physical Goals for My Girls

As I complete this brief series on the subject of goals I have set for rearing our girls, I am challenged to keep these ideas in the forefront of my mind. In the busyness of daily life, it's often easy to get shortsighted and not see the big picture of the awesome responsibility we have been given to train our children.

Having already covered spiritual, emotional and mental goals, here are a few physical goals I would like to work toward with our girls.

• Teach my daughters to be able to take care of themselves. This would include knowing how to eat healthily, get enough exercise and sufficient sleep. They should be taught to wash and iron their own clothes, fix meals and clean up after themselves.


• Know how to run a household, including cooking, cleaning and basic maintenance. Help them learn to make wise purchases, whether it be as simple as a weekly trip to the grocery store or a major purchase, such as a new car.


• Work with them to develop whatever physical abilities they may possess, including playing musical instruments, participating in athletic events and pursuing artistic endeavors.

It has been an interesting experience to formulate my thoughts on these topics and put them into words so that I can communicate what is in my heart for my girls. Thanks for joining me on the journey!

Setting Up Our Daily Schedule for Summer

Last week I posted a schedule of weekly themes and activities that I'm hoping to do with the girls this summer. Since then, I have been trying to work out a daily schedule for us to follow. Here is what I've put together for my girls so far.

7:30 A.M. Breakfast

8:00-9:00 A.M. Make beds, get dressed, complete any other chores

9:00-10:00 A.M. Independent work: read books on theme, do writing activity, study memory verse, practice piano

[This is the time in which I would hope to be able to get any of my daily blogging activities accomplished.]

10:00–10:30 A.M. Go over independent work with me, research together on the Internet any questions they may have from their reading

10:30-11:30 A.M. Play outside (weather permitting)

11:30 A.M. Lunch (Girls to help me prepare it)

12:30–1:00 P.M. Work on Spanish or watch video/dvd on that week’s theme

1:00–2:00 P.M. Play inside

2:00-2:40 P.M. Computer time (each girl gets twenty minutes to play games on the computer)

2:45 P.M. Snack

3:00 P.M. Complete any chores left to be done, then free time

I want to get my daughters more involved in helping out in the kitchen this summer, so I hope to have them helping me prepare lunch daily and supper at least several times a week. I like to have the girls in bed no later than 9:00 P.M. even during the summer.

My goal is to be able to keep this schedule consistently at least 3–4 days a week. Monday will be our grocery shopping and library day. I am sure I will have to go out at least one other day each week to complete other errands, but am hoping to combine them all into one trip. We will also want to have friends over here and there, but this is at least a basic outline to get us started and we’ll adjust as needed.

On another topic, as I noted above, I would like to have the girls, especially my older daughter, begin learning Spanish (other then the few words she’s picked up from Dora the Explorer!) I’m going to see what’s available at our library, but if you can recommend any language learning programs, I’d love to hear about them!

linked to Tackle It Tuesday, Talk About Tuesday and Works for Me Wednesday.

Reflecting Manners in Our Appearance

While discussing the way we maintain our appearance may seem a strange topic for Mannerly Monday, I do think we reflect our courtesy toward others when we use some time to make sure we are neat and orderly in how we dress and take care of ourselves. These are obviously basic skills for most of us, but we should still make sure we help our children learn how to do these things properly.

• Bathe frequently, using soap and water to clean your entire body. Wash your face each morning after getting up and anytime during the day that it gets dirty.


• Wash your hands after playing outside, before eating and anytime you have been in contact with a large number of people.


• Brush your teeth at least twice a day, usually in the morning and before bed, and keep your breath fresh.


• Have your hair neatly trimmed and out of your eyes.


• Keep fingernails and toenails clean and trim them regularly.


• Refrain from picking at your fingernails, ears, nose, etc. when around other people.


• Keep your posture erect, standing up straight and sitting properly in your seat.


• Dress in clothes that are clean and not torn or holey. Learn to match tops and bottoms, as well as socks and other accessories, always selecting clothing that is appropriate for what you will be doing that day.

Teaching our children the skills they need for maintaining a pleasant appearance will help them feel comfortable and confident as they interact with others. Please share in the comments section if you have other ideas along these lines.

photo courtesy morguefile