Patriot Moms

If you missed our Moms Night Out last night, then you missed hearing Megan Morgan share about the FlashMaster. It is a handheld computer that allows students to practice their math facts without flashcards. It allows students to work independently, and the parent or teacher can monitor the childs progress.

You can learn more about the FlashMaster at their web-site by clicking here.

If you missed the Providence Family Night, you missed a fun event!

We had a great turn out for the Dodgeball 2009 Tournament.

There was some SERIOUS competition!


There were the "Webbinators."

Team "Gill."

Bruiser Blain.

And if it looks like in the pictures the parents were even more intense than the students, THEY WERE!

Austin and Lisa Bivens

Providence Academy welcomes Austin Bivens as the new Athletic Director.

We are so excited to have a Christian man of his caliber and his vision for launching the Patriot Athletics department. With Coach Bivens as the Athletics Director, we can now begin laying the foundation for a top notch college preparatory athletics program that will focus on bringing glory to Christ.

Mr. Bivens will lead the Patriots to "Storm TheFuture" in the Revolution P27-1.

"The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life, of whom shall I be afraid?"

Psalm 27:1

Prayer requests for Providence Athletics:

~CrossRoads - We take the Cross with us

~Christ to be our stronghold

~How can I help?

~Families to join The Revolution from within

~Families outside to join The Revolution

~Student/Athlete provision, protection, and prosperity

~Booster Club

~Coaches and Volunteers

~Conference and Opponents

~Excellence - Accept no substitutes

~Austin Bivens - Athletic Director

"What Works for Us" by Tanya Fifer, Patriot Mom

As a new Providence parent in the fall of 2007, one of the very first things I realized was that homeschooling is messy. Having four children (and three sets of books and schoolwork) at home three weekdays out of five is a recipe for chaos where housekeeping is concerned. I borrowed some basic principles from the Duggar family, tweaked it for our family, and set up a method to control clutter and keep our home somewhat organized. I purchased a medium sized whiteboard and mounted it in our dining room/school area. I assigned the three older children certain basic chores (feed pets, fold laundry, put away clean laundry, empty trash, etc.) that must be completed along with their school work each day, and those are posted on the whiteboard.

I also broke our entire home up into "zones", assigning certain zones to each child. As our toddler gets older, she will also be assigned zones, starting with just her small room. The job in their zones is to keep the rooms picked up and tidy. I can easily come behind and quickly vacuum the living room or wipe down counters and sinks in a bathroom if it is not filled with odds and ends that must first be picked up and put away. As chores and schoolwork are completed for the day, the list is marked off the whiteboard and the children are free to use the rest of the day as they wish.

I also post that evenings dinner menu on the board, which eliminates the "what's for dinner?" question at 5 pm. Of course there are days (many!) when we don't accomplish everything we have set out to do, but this method gives us a goal to strive for and helps us stay on track. It works for us.

Send your blog entry to Patriotmoms@gmail.com

Whatever you would like to submit, a teaching tip, cleaning tip, shopping tip, devotional, encouraging story, why you love Providence Academy, or quick recipe. We want to hear from you!

The drawing will be held and the winner notified on March 7! Happy writing!

Patriots moms, don't forget the upcoming Providence Academy activities:

Tuesday evening is Providence Family Night.
(Check your weekly Updates and Reminders for details.)

Thursday evening is our Patriot Mom's Night Out at 6:30 p.m. at the west campus Fellowship Hall.

Come for a fun evening with Providence moms to share tips to make our school at home days more organized! Bring an appetizer or dessert, and a tip to share.

Door prizes will be given!

By Shelley Cassar, Patriot Mom

We don't have a lot of spare time for TV but what TV we do watch we enjoy doing it as a family. Here are some shows we have found the whole family can enjoy together. TiVo has been great because we can record the shows and watch them together after dinner or on the weekends. To find out more about these shows and their times, you can check out the websites for Food Network and TLC.

Ace of Cakes - Food Network - a reality show about the goings on in a cake decorating shop. Lively group of individuals and yummy cake creations.

That's Clever - TLC - another reality based 1/2 hour show. Shows people from across the U.S. creating their crafts/art from start to finish.

17 Kids and Counting - TLC - Reality based show about the Duggar family. The Duggars are from Springdale and their show is great, especially because it shows the family sharing their faith in God.

What shows does your family enjoy watching together?

Congratulations to Ryan Hoyt for winning the Constantine Cup at the 4th Annual Providence Latin Spelling Bee for the 4th year in a row.

Congratulations also to 3rd grader Caleb Anderson for winning the 3rd-4th grade division.

The 2009 Latin Bee was the most competitive one to date. Some of the words that were spelled by competitors were: fortissimus, sistuli, celeriter, intellegebant, duxerant, cucurrit, pessimus, recurrit, immortalem, libertatem, vehementer, revocaverunt, diutius, and so many more.

Thank you to Magister Randall and everyone who helped to make the 4th annual Latin Bee a success.

Come and support Ryan Hoyt, our very own Providence Patriot who will represent Benton County in the Arkansas Spelling Bee.

The 2009 Arkansas State Spelling Bee has been scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 28, 2009, at the University Theater at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. The spelling bee will begin at 9 a.m. and is open to the public.

If you would like to attend, please contact the front office for a map.

Thursday, February 19th at 6:30 p.m. at the Providence West campus sanctuary on Pleasant Grove.

PCCA 4th-9th graders will compete to see who will take home the Constantine Cup.

Dr. Leman is a well known Christian speaker on family and marriage.

His latest book is "How to Have a New Kid by Friday".

Here is the schedule for his visit to Northwest Arkansas:


Sunday 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. services "The Deception of Perfection"

Sunday 6:00-8:00 p.m. "Making Sense of the Man or Woman in Your Life"

Monday 9:30-11:30 a.m. "Motherstress"

Monday 7:00-9:00 p.m. "Have a New Kid by Friday"

For more information, please go to http://www.christianlifecathedral.com/

To learn more about the resources offered by Dr. Leman, please refer to his website at: http://www.drleman.com/store/

You are invited to an upcoming Providence Family Night on Tuesday, February 24th at the West Campus.

6:00 p.m. 5th-9th Grade Parent Meeting

6:45 p.m. All Providence Parents Meeting

7:00 p.m. Fathers of Providence Dodgeball Tournament

$3 Pizza

$3 Dodgeball

or

$5 Pizza and Dodgeball Entry

*Please bring gym shoes.

Wasn't the weather today just perfect for Valentine parties?

By Shelley Cassar

Turn on any radio or TV channel and you are instantly bombarded with commercial messages about the next big holiday: Valentine's Day. Now, I am just as big a sucker for roses and all things nice as the next girl, and typically I find myself focusing on the earthly love my husband, children, family, friends and I have for each other. But this year, I am determined to focus more on the ultimate love: the love that the Lord our God has for us! Unconditional, and always forgiving. Reading these verses, it is hard not to be encouraged and strengthened by His love. Happy Valentine's Day!

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son,[a] that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. - John 3:16

This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. – 1 John 4:9-11

My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. - John 15:12-13

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. . .And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. - excerpts from 1 Corinthians 13:4-13

'Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD. - Leviticus 19:18

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. - 1 John 4:16

By Lynette Duncan, Patriot Mom

One of my favorite time-savers is using the Crock Pot. I’ve always been a fan of the Crock Pot, but in the last couple of years, I have moved beyond roasts. The first non-roast recipes I tried in the Crock Pot came from the newspaper’s food section. Last year, I discovered the “A Year of CrockPotting” blog and ramped up my Crock Pot cooking.

One of my favorite recipes from this blog is enchiladas. I like chicken enchiladas, but I don’t make them often because of the time involved in assembling them. In the Crock Pot blog, she mentions layering them instead of rolling them, and this was a great time saver. I adapted her recipe to my family’s tastes, and this was the result:

Crock-Pot Creamy Corn and Spinach Chicken Enchiladas

1~ 14.5oz can creamed corn
1~ C shredded, cooked chicken
1~ C baby spinach leaves
1½ ~C, plus extra shredded cheese
1 ~14oz can green enchilada sauce (or ½ of a 28oz can)
1/3~ C sour cream
Corn Tortillas

In a large bowl, mix creamed corn, chicken, spinach, and cheese.
Place a layer of corn tortillas on the bottom of Crock-Pot (tear to fit).
Top tortillas with some of the filling.
Repeat with a layers of tortillas and filling until the filling is gone. (I usually end up with 2 or 3 layers of filling in my 5-quart round Crock-Pot, and there is plenty of room for more layers).
The top layer should be tortillas.
Mix enchilada sauce with the sour cream and pour over the top.
Top this with more cheese.
Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours or on high for 2-4 hours.

Click HERE for the original recipe.

By Shelley Cassar

The internet can be a great teaching and learning tool for families. For me the tough part is finding the sites that are not only family friendly but easy to use. I am always looking for new sites that are child friendly or Mom friendly. Below are some of our favorites, check them out and see if they are right for your family. I would love to hear what sites your family enjoys!

http://www.wonderzone.com/ - Lots of games, adventures, devotionals, and activities. Run by Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF), the Good News Club people.

http://www.freekidsmusic.com/ - especially great for the younger kids. Hundreds of songs to choose from and download for free.

http://www.deepspacesparkle.blogspot.com/ - this one I just found and it is a blog. It has some great art projects for Kindergarten through 6th graders. I am going to try some!

http://www.getonemorestory.com/ - You have to signup for this and there is a yearly fee, but it is a great site! Great access to lots of story's and the kids can follow along by themselves too!

http://www.howrse.com/ - for the horse crazy boy or girl in your house!

http://www.funbrain.com/ - This is a not only fun for the kids but very educational and I can sometimes fit it into our teaching at home.

PATRIOT MOMS NIGHT OUT!

Mark your calendars.

Do you love to hear organizational ideas from other moms to learn how to make your at home school days more successful? We do! Everyone come with a great tip to share with the group.

"Bring a dish and a tip to share!"

There are no Providence soccer games for Saturday, February 7th. Our games that were cancelled due to weather will be made up in March.

Chicken Chili with Mexican Flair!

White Chicken Chili

1 T. olive oil

1.5 cups onion chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

2 t. dried oregano

1.5 t. ground cumin

1/2 t. powdered ginger

1.5 cups chicken broth

1 bay leaf

2 cups cooked and shredded chicken

(if in a time pinch, use a rotisserie chicken from your local market)

2 cups white beans (can use canned beans drained)

2 jalapeno peppers, minced (omit if needed – I used green chilies)

1.5 cups grated Monterey Jack cheese

1/2 t. ground pepper salt

2 T. cilantro, finely chopped

2 T. fresh squeezed lime juice

Heat olive oil in large pan or skillet. Add onion and saute over medium heat until softened. Add garlic, oregano, cumin and ginger. Cook stirring for one minute. Add broth and bay leaf. Cook uncovered over medium heat until somewhat reduced (5-8 minutes). Add chicken, beans and jalapenos. Simmer uncovered for ten minutes, stirring occasionally. Over low heat add a little cheese at a time, stirring until melted. Add pepper. Taste and add salt as needed. Add lime juice and cilantro. Cook five minutes. Remove bay leaf and serve.

By Lori Bova

By Julie Roetzel

Sunset on the North Pole.

Psalm 19 verses 1-4

"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world."

Read that verse again SLOWLY and let it soak in.
The heavens are speaking to us, giving glory to our Creator. Speaking of His Holiness, Greatness beyond compare, Wisdom and Might and much, much more! Their speech is understandable by all men who choose to listen. It is spoken in every language and tongue to the entire earth. There is No man without excuse for it has been spoken to all.
Praise be to God on High!

I think most of us will agree Wednesday is our busiest day of the week. I have a recipe for a wonderful Chicken Salad. It is best made a day in advance. If you prepare it on Tuesday, you will have a tasty easy meal for Wednesday. I like to serve mine on croissants or lightly toasted bread with a side of fruit salad. (It feels a little like you have gone to the Crumpet Tea Room!)

Honey Chicken Salad

4 cups chopped cooked chicken
3 celery ribs, diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 cup sweetened dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
1/3 cup honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Combine first 4 ingredients. Whisk together mayonnaise and next 3 ingredients. Add to chicken mixture, stirring gently until combined. Chill till ready to serve.

Makes 4 to 6 servings.

I hope your family enjoys this recipe as much as mine does!

Alicia Taylor
Providence Mom of Phillip and Bethany Taylor

By Beth Rogers, Patriot Mom

Prospective Families are invited to attend our PCCA "Patriot Preview" Night.

This is a great opportunity for parents to speak with administration, faculty, and students, as well as learn more about Providence Academy and University-Model Schooling® .

Parents will also have the opportunity to take a tour and learn about admissions, financial aid, and student activities. We invite you to come and discover if PCCA is right for your family.

*Please note: Due to PCCA being a "Family-Education Model", both parents are required to attend one of the upcoming "Patriot Preview" events prior to their child being accepted for admissions to PCCA.

This event will be held on Thursday, February 5th th at 6:30 pm. at the PCCA Upper School Campus (1st Nazarene Church of Rogers: 4911 W. Pleasant Grove Rd.) You may reach the school by calling 479.263.8861.

Congratulations to Kelly Kraus for winning the $10 gift certificate to Starbucks for commenting on the moms question of the week last week.

Many of the Providence families are counting our blessings as the Ice Storm of 2009 has come and gone. We have heard countless stories of how God has provided in the midst of the storm. We would love to hear the blessings that you have to share from the past week.

Please COMMENT to let us hear how God was glorified in your home as He provided protection and provision even in the midst of the storm.