We Remember

Memorial Day was not declared a national holiday until 1971 but it has been celebrated in many areas of the United States unofficially since 1868 when it started as a day to remember soldiers who had died in the Civil War or War Between The States as some would say.

Poppies became a symbol of Memorial Day shortly after World War One and partly from the effort of Moina Michael who was inspired by this line from John McCrae's poem, In Flanders Field:

To you from failing hands we throw the Torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die, we shall not sleep, though poppies grow in Flanders Fields."

There is more good information about Memorial Day at the PBS National Memorial Day Concert website. I enjoy watching this concert and it is a good family event with great music.

I suggest you also check out one of my favorite music blogs Music You (Possibly) Won't Hear Anyplace Else. The author, Lee, has put together an incredibly collection of patriotic music to download and some of it is spoken word. Lee is himself a veteran of the Navy so stop by, download some great music and thank him for his service to our country!

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Freecycle.org

If you haven't heard of Freecycle yet I suggest you go to freecycle.org and find one in your area. The principle behind Freecycle is to encourage people to give away things they don't want rather than throw them away. This in turn reduces landfills and gets useful items into the hands of those who need them.

I have found many, many great things on freecycle including the items in the pictures here. I have also given away many items which is a good feeling. I really don't like throwing things away and this helps me to let go of things I no longer use since I know it's going into the hands of those who will use them. Freecycle helps us to be a good steward of God's resources. Something we all need to do better.

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope you are all having a lovely restful day with chocolate in abundance!
If you care to you might hop over to TenTwo Studios for Lisa's Mother's Day countdown of downloadable goodies and don't forgot tomorrow is Homeschoolestore's Mother's Day Celebration with 28 e-books to download. Have a great day!

Praiseworthy Blog: Echoes of A Dream

I have been a reader of Echoes of A Dream for awhile now and I find I have so much in common with Simmy, the author, despite the fact that she is a first generation Brit and I'm an American Midwesterner. That is one of the wonderful things about the internet, contact with like minded individuals all over the world. Like me Simmy is in love with fiber and knitting. In addition, I discovered today that we have a similar passion in children's literature. I thought you would enjoy a peek into Simmy's world and get some recommendations on good children's literature as a bonus. So run on over there and check out Echoes of a Dream.

Save the Chocolate

There is no doubt on this blog that chocolate is a most praiseworthy food. The FDA is considering changing the definition of what can be called chocolate in the United States. That means that you could pick up something you think is 100% cocoa butter and real milk and get something masquerading as 100% cocoa butter and real milk. That is not praiseworthy. So I urge you to head over to Don't Mess With Our Chocolate and find out how to make your opinion known.

Happy May Day!

This is a sweet video of May Pole Dancing at Puddletown First School. What a fun tradition. As with all youtube videos I urge you to watch this on my blog rather than going to youtube as not all the content there is praiseworthy. Enjoy and have a wonderful day!

Victoria Magazine

My very dear friend, Dee Ann, at Grace At Home has blogged on some news that has us both on cloud nine together. For years now we have lamented the demise of Victoria magazine, the only magazine that made the day it was received into something special. A quiet respite of beautiful images and lovely articles. A celebration of the beauty in life.

I have often wondered how it could have failed. It's one of the only magazines that are no longer published that I see blogged about again and again. With this many devoted fans...how could it have failed? Well, through a joint venture of Hoffman Media and Hearst Publications it is returning this October. So many have blogged about this but I have heard that whether or not it continues will be determined by the number of subscribers so I'm doing my part to get the word out. Keep your eyes out for it!

More Praiseworthy Video: Jot the Dot

The animated short Jot the Dot appeared on my local television station's afternoon Children's show (anyone remember those?) in the early 70's. Jot was created in 1964 and aired all over the world teaching short bible lessons to kids. I remember these vividly and loved them. I have looked for them for years and just ran across a couple on YouTube, a site with some praiseworthy elements, but also a lot of unpraiseworthy elements so beware. In the comments section I found out the a video can be purchased here. Meanwhile I hope you enjoy the two I found on YouTube.

Bayeux Tapestry

For those who may be studying the Middle Ages as we are this year you may want to show your children this YouTube video. If you do, make the image full screen because, unfortunately, people who leave comments on YouTube don't always make those comments family friendly. But in full screen mode (done by clicking on the icon at the lower right of the image that looks like a rectangle within a rectangle) you can watch the video without your children seeing indecent comments. I thought this video was fun, educational and helped to reinforce the main points of the Battle of Hastings.

Free Cones at Ben and Jerry's!!

I LOVE Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream. So I was thrilled to learn they were offering free cones on tax day, April 17th. I was even more excited to go here and discover there is actually a shop close to me. Check it out yourself and celebrate with something free on tax day.