Can I just say how incredibly BLOWN AWAY I am at the entries to this contest!!! It was AMAZING! 213 entries... WOW!
Without further ado.... the winner is... Valarie!!!
Congratulations Valarie, I will be contacting you shortly!
Be on the lookout, we will be having another contest in August!
So until then,
From my homestead to yours,
~Chas~
Chasity L. Burrell My Cup Runneth Over at Heritage Acres Farm
The Schoolhouse Planner has so many wonderful features. You told us what you wanted in a planner, and we have delivered!
Some of the main features include:
Calendars in various forms - yearly, monthly, weekly, and daily
Planners for your homeschool - in various styles to meet your individual needs
Household planning forms
12 "homeschool must-know" items, one for each month of the year
12 essays from some of our favorite authors in the homeschool community - you absolutely won't want to miss these!
24 easy main-dish recipes from some top homeschoolers around the nation
and so much more!
I have had a chance to look over my copy and all I can say is "OH MY!" You will LOVE this planner...
I can honestly tell you that I have had my share of planners, big ones, little ones and ones in between... this surpasses any and all I have EVER tried!
And best of all, it is geared RIGHT to us Homeschoolers/Homesteaders!
There is 200+ pages and you can pick and choose what best fits your homeschooling lifestyle! Monthly fill in pages, checklists, family recipes, timelines, teaching tips, and SO much more! WOW, it gets me excited just talking about it. I am working on my personalized planner also... and that is what is so great, you get to personalize it to how you function, what best works for you! No more cookie cutter planners for me! I make what I like... and with such a large variety to choose from it will be exactly what I need!
Alright... are you excited?
All you have to do now is leave me a comment below and you will be entered to win your own planner! Please make sure I have a way of getting in touch with you.
Drumroll please....
Our winner for the ONE YEAR Season's at Home magazine subscription is... Belle!!!
Congratulations Belle, I am going to be contacting Theresa and she will be getting in touch with you soon!
All you have to do is leave a comment on why you would like a subscription to the magazine and we will have a drawing next week! Simple as that!
Kris Price's review of the Spring 2008 issue of Seasons at Home.
~After receiving my second issue of Seasons at Home, I have to say that I am still as impressed with the content as I was with the premiere issue in Fall 2007. There are so many wonderful articles and projects in this 100+ page magazine. Rag quilting, Ribbon embroidery, Homemade grain pasta, making ice cream, Putting up Food (canning). Some homeschool articles about Geography and Science, a "Dad's project" - "Build a simple Hope Chest" for a little ladies room, Build a Morse Code Box for boys, Little Ladies Victorian Tea, of course encouragement articles throughout.
And the encouraging, uplifting articles are also appreciated by this stay-at-home mom. I encourage people to take a really close look at this publication which has well-written project instructions that even children can understand!
I can't wait for the Summer issue to arrive in my mailbox!~
So leave us a comment and check back to see who wins!
Blessings to each and everyone of you!
From My Homestead to Yours,
~Chas~
Chasity L. Burrell
Senior Editor Homesteadblogger My Cup Runneth Over at Heritage Acres Farm
Susan Godfrey is sponsoring our next giveaway here on the Front Porch. There will be THREE winners all randomly chosen and they can choose their prize from the following items. All you need to do to enter is leave a comment (please leave us an email or another way to get in touch with you in case you win!) and you'll be entered into the drawing to take place on Thursday, 4/24/08. Good luck!!
This week we are giving away a copy of our EBook, Homestead Simplicity!
Homestead Simplicity: A Primer shares helps for the Keeper of the Home! We like to keep it simple around here, and while I also want the best for my family, sometimes striking a balance between the two can be difficult at best. Join us as we share some simple hints, tips and recipes along with a little inspiration to add a little “Homestead Simplicity” to your life! Natural Cleaning recipes, Cooking from Scratch (easily!) planning/stocking your pantry, and loving care for your homestead and those in it!
Just comment, with your name and email (so I can contact you when you WIN!) and you’re set! Blog about this contest on your blog and comment with the link for a SECOND entry
That’s it–S I M P L E, we’ll draw the winner next Monday the 21st!
We all love a good freebie, contest or giveaway…and here is where we’ll post them for you to win!
What do we have for you this April? Well…a couple things…our first contest? How about a free half pint, all natural soy wax candle in YOUR CHOICE of fragrance! That’s right, a lovely free candle!
So what do you have to do to win? Just go to the site, click on our fragrance list or mill around a bit, come back and post a comment at this link with your favorite scent, along with first name and email addy (so I can contact you when you win!)…that’s it. SIMPLE!
Have you noticed that in the last few months that the costs of milk and other dairy items, grain products such as breads and cereals, and related baked goods are shooting through the roof? If you are among the thousands of people who resolved to eat healthier in 2008 and live on a tight budget but don't know where to begin then read on.
My favorite whole milk yogurt just went up about 75 cents for one quart! I calculate that as about a 25% increase. I have noticed other staple products such as milk, butter, bread, and cereal have incurred substantial increases in the last few months with no end in sight.
One major factor is the world -wide shortage of wheat due to poor harvests in South America, Australia, and other wheat growing regions in recent years. For awhile last year, the United States was the only country in the world with wheat available for export.
Wheat market analysts had hoped that southern hemisphere markets would have had a better than expected wheat harvest this season. Another major variable contributing to the grain price equation has been ethanol which is typically derived from corn.
A percentage of farmers have pulled significant amounts of acreage out of wheat and other grain production in favor of corn, further contributing to a reduction in wheat availability. Even if worldwide harvests should improve over the next year (which is greatly debatable due to the past few years' track record), the ethanol connection will continue to affect crop plantings which will affect prices and availability.
I do not have a crystal ball and do not know what tomorrow holds. I do know I don't want to be grocery store dependent to ever spiraling costs for food. I want to have my own pantry to shop from.
Let's look at a couple Bible passages regarding preparing for the future. First let us look at Proverbs 6:6-11 a passage about the ant.
"Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise. Without having any chief, officer or ruler, she prepares her food in summer, and gathers her sustenance in harvest. How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from our sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a vagabond, and want like an armed man.
What this verse in essence is saying is that preparedness and planning ahead is a plan to succeed. Fail to plan, and you plan to fail.
Consider the story of Joseph, who through interpretation of Pharaoh's dreams, was led to put aside enough grain in the good years to carry the Egyptians and citizens of other countries, including the provision of his own extended family, through a long period of drought and scarcity.
My personal opinion is that home reserves of wheat, other grains, canned goods and learning to cook with basic whole food ingredients are a consumer's best protection against ever higher food prices. Now is the time to set aside reserves of food, grains, and household items for the future. Here are a few ideas for getting started:
Now is a great time to purchase a home grain mill and bread baking equipment, learn to cook with basic whole foods, build a home food pantry, and invest in your family's health while trying to mitigate against ever higher food prices.
Purchasing grains and other food items in bulk and case lots will save you as much as 50% or more over alternatives. You can purchase food items in bulk by joining a food coop or placing a special order in a health food store.
When you eliminate the purchase of processed and prepared foods and learn to make them from scratch you will not only save dramatically on groceries but you will eliminate all the unhealthy food additives found in processed foods.
Watch for bargains, particularly at small, discount grocery stores. Stock up and save.
Busy moms of young children have the responsibility to establish healthy, consistent eating habits in their children at a young age by learning to cook and bake healthful foods and meals at home from basic whole food ingredients.
To get you started I will direct you to some free resources at my website:
Another great way to get started with a lifestyle of health would be to invest in my comprehensive books, Fast and Healthy Menus for Busy Moms and A Beginner's Guide to Baking Bread.These books include all the instructions you need to begin, including family friendly menus, recipes, grocery lists and step-by-step instructions for baking your own whole grain breads.
I also would like to give away three combinations of Fast and Healthy Menus for Busy Moms along with my ebook A Beginner's Guide to Baking Bread, just for posting your best cooking, baking and pantry tips for busy moms at my blog, urbanhomemaker! Let's all share our tips and wisdom with each other so we can learn together to be better wives, mothers, and homemaker's! Here is thelink to my blog where you can post your comment for the contest.
If you purchase Fast and Healthy Menus for Busy Moms for $9.97, I will also give you a complimentary copy of my ebook A Beginner's Guide to Baking Bread, also a $9.97 value. Two for the price of one ! Plus one exclusive release, Soups and Stews for Busy Moms! Click here to take advantage of this offer!
Marilyn Moll, passionate lover of "old fashioned skills", began cooking and baking with Betty Crocker Cookbooks around age 10. She holds a degree in home economics education from Colorado State University. When she quit a full-time job to stay home with her 12 month old daughter, she began baking all of her family's bread and teaching baking classes.
Together with her husband Duane, and three home schooled children (one in college, one college graduate), they have operated The Urban Homemaker, a family business specializing in bread baking equipment and products for better health in the spirit of Titus Two, for seventeen years.
She has published articles in various Christian Women's Magazines including The Homemaker's Forum, Open Arms, The Old Schoolhouse, New Harvest Homestead, TEACH magazine, The Urban Homemaker and other magazines and periodicals since 1991.
Her desire is to see busy families recover their health, re-learn the lost arts of cooking and baking with whole food ingredients and return to the family dinner table.
It's time for another Win Big contest in the Schoolhouse Store and our prizes are even bigger and better than ever!
The best prize of all is an incredible 12 year subscription to The Old Schoolhouse Magazine! PLUS, this time the gift certificate to our Store is going to be not $100, not $200, but $250!
100% of that $250 certificate is good towards products in the store. Don't set aside even a penny for shipping and handling. As always there are no shipping charges in The Schoolhouse Store.
To check out all that you can win, just visit this page or the button above! Good luck!
Here is something else that I saw in The Homeschool Minute today. I have 2 special needs children (ADHD/Aspergers son and a daughter with hearing loss).
A Note from the TOS Publishers
TOS has created three ebooks and is in the midst of putting together its newest project, an ebook about special needs homeschooling.
Can a child with special educational or physical needs be successfully home educated? The answer is a resounding YES. We are turning first to our own readers to assist us in the development of this new e-Book. If you are willing to share your story, please contact Gena right away with your answers to the questions below. Those who are chosen to appear in the book will receive a $50 gift certificate in the Schoolhouse Store and will receive up to ten free copies of the ebook to distribute to friends.
How many special needs children are you homeschooling?
What are your children's special needs?
Have you been successful?
Do you plan to home educate your children through high school?
Please send the answers to these questions to publisher@thehomeschoolmagazine.com. If selected for inclusion in the book, you will be notified shortly.
Paul & Gena Suarez
Publishers
The Old Schoolhouse Magazine
I saw this today in The Homeschool Minute and thought I'd pass on the info to anyone interested! This was posted by Todd Wilson of Familyman Ministries
THE GREAT SOAP CONTEST -This past Christmas I was given some great homemade soap. I loved its smell, texture, and the way it cleaned. I'm out and need some more. But you can't walk into Wal-Mart and buy a bar of homemade soap.
That's when the idea hit me that there must be about 10,000 homeschooling/homesteading/homebirthing soap makers out there. I decided to have a contest like the good people of TOS often do.
Join us on the Front Porch to talk about anything and everything that has to do with homesteading! Catch up on the latest news at HomesteadBlogger. Chat with our Front Porch Team as they blog about their favorite topics. The Front Porch is the heart of our community. Make yourself right at home!
CONTEST TIME!!!! 
