Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken

I (HEART) my crockpot/slow cooker.  It's one of my most used appliances.

Last Thanksgiving, my sister-in-law fixed the dish I am going to share with you today. It was scrumptious and perfect for our night-before-Thanksgiving meal. I had mine while chopping veggies for the veggie tray.

This is one of those "don't need to measure-just dump everything in" kind of meals.

I first prepared my chicken. Which simply meant to take it out of the package. Now I got this chicken for a really good deal. Only 1.28 a pound. Yippee! I purchased quite a few packages and stuck them in my freezer. You can use boneless chicken thighs if you prefer those.

You can also add as much chicken as you think your family will eat. I only use ONE breast. There are only 3 of us and I have plenty left for The Muffin's lunch the next day and second helpings.

Next, I dump in a can of black beans and 1 can of corn. This is where you can add portion sizes to your dish.  You can see that the can of black beans is labeled "seasoned." I generally just use whatever I have and this time around this is what I had.  If you have a big crew to feed just add more beans and more corn. This is certainly a good budget meal! 

Next you add the secret sauce. A jar of salsa.You can use whatever kind or brand you wish. I happen to be allergic to jalapeno peppers. Most jarred salsa's contain jalapeno peppers. I have found a few (this is one of them) that don't have those offending peppers. I've tried to make the dish with my fresh salsa. It just doesn't taste as good. It is fun to try different salsas. Each one give the dish just a bit of a different taste. This salsa (which I got at the discount grocery for about $1) tasted a bit spicier and smokier.

This next ingredient is completely optional. It is smoked paprika. I only add it because I like sniffing it. I am so in love with smoked paprika that I try and sneak it into everything. Smoked Paprika Pancakes anyone?

So now everything is in the pot. This recipe does not take long AT ALL to cook. I put it on low for maybe 6 hours or on High 3-4 hours. If you use chicken thighs you might want to cook it longer.  I have also used frozen chicken breasts in this dish. They obviously take a little bit longer but they are a good option for all day cooking. After your dish has cooked and all those flavors melded together you will need to take out the chicken breasts and shredded it before putting it back in. 

The Muffin likes me to serve this saffron yellow rice with this dish. I have used both brown and this little bag below. The yellow rice does make a pretty dish and is easy to fix. 

Now we're ready to put the whole thing together. I usually put out some sour cream or greek yogurt, shredded cheese and maybe some chopped green onions...whatever I have one hand. This dish is comforting, just a little spicy and just plain tasty. 

Try it and tell me what you think?

A TOS Review: War Room

We love snuggling up together on a Friday Night after Swim Team Practice in front of a good movie. We all have just a few different tastes when it comes to movies. The Muffin and Josiah love the Superhero movies. I’m drawn to the period pieces with grand musical scores and flowing dresses. Sigh. We also have a growing collection of Christian movies that encourage our souls and lift our spirits.  The movie, War Room, does just that. We were recently blessed with a chance to review this inspiring movie thanks to the folks from FishFlix.com.

FishFlix.com is a company that provides quality Christian movies and films.  They feature all manner of options for Christian families in the form of apologetics, Bible teaching, biographies, children’s entertainment and plenty of wonderful films that can be enjoyed by the whole family. Their selection is simply marvelous! They have something for everyone. 

We have been privileged to review other films from FishFlix.com, Unbroken and Do You Believe? Both were such great movies to introduce to our family. I knew that when a chance to review for FishFlix.com came open again I needed to be on the review team! I begged. I pleaded.

My first choice? WAR ROOM.

Apparently, I’m a good beggar. And pleader.

You might have heard about this movie. It created a huge buzz. The creators are the gifted Alex and Stephen Kendrick. They have produced, directed and starred in some of our favorites. Courageous, Facing the Giants, Fireproof.

War Room introduces us to the Jordan family, Tony and Elizabeth. They are a super successful couple with a beautiful daughter. Tony works for a pharmaceutical company and Elizabeth is a real estate agent. From all appearances they seem to live the American dream. However, we quickly find out that under the surface there is pain. Tony and Elizabeth have drifted apart and can’t seem to meet in the middle.

Enter Ms. Clara. She becomes one of Elizabeth’s clients. Ms. Clara introduces Elizabeth to her favorite room of her house; a closet with a single chair and a plethora of notes pinned to the walls. This is Ms. Clara’s War Room. Ms. Clara (obviously led by the Holy Spirit) begins to challenge Elizabeth to take back her home and her family. I won’t give anymore away.  This is one you need to see.

What We Thought 

First of all, I was so impressed with Priscilla Shirer. She is a wonderful speaker and Bible Teacher. She also is a wife and a mom of 3 boys. I did not know she acted! This performance was one that touched my heart deeply. This wasn’t just another acting roll. You could see the passion for God and His Word all over her performance.

T.C. Stallings had appeared in one of our other favorite Kendrick movies, Courageous. He does a superb job of playing of playing Tony. So much so that I just wanted to reach through the television screen and smack him! Ms. Clara is played by Karen Abercrombie. I don’t want to overshare about the movie, but there is a spot at the end that made this Pentecostal girl want to get up and do a Jericho March around the living room. If you attended any old timey revivals you will know what I’m talking about.

You know something? Life can get pretty discouraging. There are times I personally feel waited down by the cares of this world. There have been times that I have struggled in my faith and have let my circumstances overwhelm me. I think we all have had those times. This movie is one of those experiences that flamed my hope. It gave me a plan and a direction. It reminded me that I don’t have to sit by and let the enemy steal my joy.

Of course, The Muffin and Josiah LOVED, LOVED this movie. There is a great set of special features that are also included in this movie purchased from FishFlix.com.

I also need to tell you that there is a terrific giveaway being offered by FishFlix.com right now.  You can enter to win a 50-movie prize pack. This prize pack includes War Room, The Ultimate Gift, Superbook: A Great Adventure, My Son, My Savior and Owlegories 2.  This is over $80 in DVDs! 

You simply need to join the email list through this link: https://www.fishflix.com/schoolhouse.  .

You can connect with FishFlix.com via the following social media outlets. Don’t forget to click on the banner to read more reviews! 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fishflix
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/FishFlix @FishFlix
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/ChristianDVD @ChristianDVD
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/fishflix/

A TOS Review: Rainforest Journey

 Are you looking for a cool science program? We recently had the chance to review  the 5th grade level of Rainforest Journey from EdTechLens. This takes cool science programs to a whole new level.

Here is just a bit of a disclaimer. Josiah is not in 5^th grade. He is in 8^th. However….he is dyslexic and when I saw that EdTechLens was multi-faceted I knew that I wanted Josiah to try it out. 

I received a year’s online subscription to Rainforest Journey. There are 34 lessons in the program. You can complete one lesson during the course of a class session or you can take advantage of the many assessments and supplemental programs to stretch it out.

The lessons are a blend of beautiful, vibrant photographs and informative and fascinating reading passages. The wonderful aspect of the whole program for Josiah is that there is a narrator to read to him if he so wishes. Some of the other components of the program didn’t have the same feature, but we didn’t fret over it. 

Rainforest Journey isn’t merely a series of pictures and words. There are also Hands-on Activities to give our kiddos plenty of “active learning” experiences. Following each lesson, there are review activities and a unit quiz to gauge what’s been absorbed. 

Let me show you how it works. I'm going to share with you some screen shots of Unit 1. Josiah's already completed this unit for it's fair game. 

To begin with, I set up my Teacher's Dashboard and then made Josiah his own account. We have separate user names and passwords so be sure to make note of that. His password and username is noted on my dashboard. That has been helpful! 

We'll start by going through Josiah's already completed Unit 1. 

The pictures in Rainforest Journey are spectacular! This cute fella is a Tonkin Snub-nosed Monkey. 

When scrolling down the student is able to either read the material or click on the speaker icon for narration. The Enrichment box tells us that scientist believe that only about 200 of these monkeys around.

After each lesson, there is a PDF printable available for Lesson Review. The student might be asked an open ended question or series of multiple choice questions.

Another fascinating feature of Rainforest Journey are these journal entries from a mother and son trip into the Rainforest.

Included in with the lessons is the occasional video. This video shows a plant struggling to find sunlight.

At the end of each Unit is a list of vocabulary. There is a PDF printable just in case you would like to print it off for further study.

These illustrations that were included in the lessons themselves are provided for further review. These were helpful to have because they showed up in the Unit Quiz.

Speaking of the Quiz...I didn't get a shot of that. You have the option to print the Quiz, but I felt the interactive nature of the online quiz suited Josiah better. The Unit 1 quiz had him clicking appropriate boxes, dragging pictures into the correct places, etc. He did very well.

Another neat feature is the Primary Sources tab. It gives an easy to find place for the expert interviews (along with background info), some neat videos and the complete Rainforest Journey journal I mentioned a few pictures back.  It was interesting for Josiah to see real life scientists in action.

In addition to the great interactive online components, you as the teacher are also given hands-on activity ideas for the end of lesson fun. There are downloads for the Teacher and the Student. This pic comes from the Student Guide for Unit 1. There are several neat experiments and activities available to use.

I just wanted to give you one last screen shot  This one is of the Teacher's Dashboard. You can see how easy it is to navigate.  As the Teacher, I am able to look ahead and browse the Lessons. I can also download any printables ahead of time. The EdTechLens folks make it super easy to do my job!

Did I mention that  this is a COOL program? There a couple of other items I want to talk about before I leave you. The photography is amazing. There is nothing silly or amateurish about any part of Rainforest Journey.

Rainforest Journey is a supplemental program. For our purposes, we used it approximately 4 times a week. Each lesson only took about 15-20 minutes. We did use speakers (or headphones) for listening purposes, but unless you want to print any of the downloads all you need is a tablet or computer. In fact, Josiah did most of his lessons on a tablet. 

If you interested in looking into Rainforest Journey, I suggest you take a look at this Grade 5 Sample.  This program is not intended merely for homeschoolers. There are options for the classroom, as well. 

You can connect with EdTechLens via the following social media outlets. Don't forget to click on the banner below to read more reviews. 

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/edtechlens
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/edtechlens
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/edtechlens/
Google +: https://plus.google.com/+Edtechlens
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/edtechlens

A TOS Review: Math-U-See (Digital Packs ~ Alpha)

Math has been a bit of a struggle for us. And when I say “us” my thoughts stray back to my 6^th grade math class. I can remember my teacher (a narcoleptic Mr. Carr), but little else. I should point out that my memories of math during my school years is a mixed bag. Until I reached college. In college, I killed it…strangely enough.

Nevertheless, my son struggles with dyscalculia. Mostly, he has difficulty remembering math facts. This has become more of an issue for us as we’ve approached the algebra years. I want him to have a better handle on being able to manipulate and understand numbers better. So we’ve gone back to the basics. We recently were blessed with the chance to review the Alpha Level Digital Pack from Math-U-See's new Digital Packs by Demme Learning. We were doubly blessed to receive a complete physical set of the program as well.

In case you haven’t heard about Math-U-See, you need to know a few things. It is a skill-based, multi-sensory curriculum that uses video instruction. It is intended for use with K-12. There are many levels available for use depending on where your student is at. I appreciate that the levels are not based by grades...merely need and skill level. 

The digital packs are a new venture for Math-U-See. The Alpha pack includes:

~ 12-month access to steaming instruction vidoes

~ A Instruction Manual (PDF)

~ Skip Counting Songs mp3

~ Songbook (PDF)

~ Digital Manipulates

You will need to purchase the student workbook. 

One of the great features of the Math-U-See program is Steve Demme. He is the creator and instructor in all of the instructor videos. Josiah enjoyed his engaging and natural teaching methods. He explains things in a way that we all wonder why we were never taught that way in the first place.

A HUGE benefit to the Digital Pack in this regard was that Josiah was able to view his lessons using a variety of devices. His Kindle. His Daddy’s tablet. My Kindle. The computer. My laptop. We were able to “do math” on a trip out of town without packing the DVD player.

The Digital Pack also features online manipulatives. The blocks are the foundation of Math-U-See’s method.  I personally prefer the physical set of blocks for Josiah.  He is older than most kiddos using the Alpha lessons, but he seems to absorb the material better when he can actually build the problems. This is not to say that the online manipulatives aren’t helpful. In fact, he would probably tell you that he prefers those. They are simply much “cooler.”  You will need access the online manipulatives with Chrome or Safari. I will say that the digital manipulatives are much easier to cart around. ;<)

I appreciate that the Digital Pack also includes a helpful tutorial on how to use the online manipulatives.

I need to tell you that one of my favorite things about Math-U-See (and there are many) is that there are many opportunities available for mastery.  You will never be in short supply of materials for reinforcement. If your child is like mine (and needs a few trips around the block before it sticks) he or she will benefit from plenty hands-on experiences. I found the Parental Resources section to be exceptionally helpful.

When we were given the chance to choose what level to review, I felt like Josiah would benefit from Alpha most of all. I greatly underestimated where he is in his math journey. Alpha focuses on place value, addition and subtraction (single digit). He is just zipping right along. I will say that this review has given him much more math confidence, so I don’t regret my decision at all. However, he might have been better challenged by moving up to Beta (which focuses on multi-digit adding and subtraction, along with regrouping).

 If you are brand new to Math-U-See, I suggest you go poke around the site a bit. There is a "What Curriculum Set Do I Need" button just for you. Demme Learning is also responsible for the excellent Spelling-U-See curriculum (which is what we use). 

You can connect with Demme Learning via the following social media outlets. Don't forget to click on the banner below to read more reviews. 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mathusee

Instagram: https://instagram.com/mathusee/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/mathusee  @mathusee #​mathusee #homeschoolmath​ #hsreview


YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/mathusee

A 100 Calorie Challenge (#takeabiteoutof2016)

I am hesitant to even ask you this question.

How you doing with your New Year's Resolutions?

We're in March now. Have you thrown in the towel? Are you still trucking along?

Did you know that Weight Loss ranks as the #1 New Year's Resolution with Americans?

I know it's always at the top of my list every year. I've had some huge successes with weight loss, but have discovered it's a LIFELONG pursuit. Just be encouraged that you can do something everyday to help you reach your goal.

A few months ago, the Folks at Chobani came out with Simply 100 Crunch. I do enjoy a good yogurt and this one is made even more special by the added crunch.

My absolute favorite is the Strawberry Chocolate Truffle. It is Strawberry non-fat yogurt with a side of chocolate rice crisps, dark chocolate cookies and dried strawberries.

YUM!

Best of all it is only 100 calories. If you are like me and crave a little decadence (without all the calories) the Simply 100 Crunch is a perfect solution.

Because I tend to have a little "sinking spell" in the afternoon, this treat is what gets me through till suppertime. I can enjoy a sweet, chocolaty crunchy treat without all the guilt!

I've talked to you a lot about how to increase your activity through the day. Because I am limited in what I can do as far as exercise (a pesky car accident back in the 90's), I am always looking for ways to add just a little something extra to my day-to-day activities.

For one, I try and park just a  little farther out when going to the grocery story. I also like to do simple and quick exercises with a resistance band while I am watching TV.

Chobani was kind enough to give us all some fantastic ways to burn 100 calories.

I can burn 100 calories by shopping 38 minutes? I think that is doable!!

What about you? What can you add to your day to burn 100 calories?

Don't forget to check out Chobani's terrific line of yummy products. In fact, I think I spied a printable coupon on the Simply 100 Crunch page.

A BIG Thank You to Choabni for inviting me to share this product!

A TOS Review: Grapevine Studies (New Testament 1)

Every morning, before we dangle participles or place decimal points, we dig into God’s Word. One of our favorite Bible Study curriculum companies as been Grapevine Studies . Over the past few weeks, we’ve had an opportunity to review New Testament 1: Level 4 Birth of John to Jesus' Ministry.

Grapevine Studies has a unique Bible study method. Josiah considers it inspired….he being a fan of the stick figure genre. Drawing helps students learn about the major events and characters in the Bible. And there are no artistic skills required! The stick figure characters are easy to execute. 

Along with the hands-on aspect of learning, the student also hears and reads Scripture. There are questions to be answered and in our Level (4) the student is introduced to further study.

Level 4 begins with the birth of Jesus and ends to Jesus praying. You can purchase this study via an ebook download or physical book.  There are 45 lessons in all.

I received the physical set. It included a Student Book and a Teacher Book. Both books were actually loose-leaf pages ready and punched to put in a binder. We spent approximately 15 minutes every day with this study, but it is really flexible. For example, we took a few days to work through the timeline at the very beginning.

Level 4 is intended for Ages 13 and up. I think the biggest difference with this Level is that it helps our kiddos learn to use valuable Bible study skills like a Bible Dictionary, Concordance and Topical Bible.

How We Used It and What We Thought

We started our Grapevine Studies journey by setting up our binders, locating the appropriate Bible Study tool, Bibles and favorite colored pencils and pens. It is also suggested that the Teacher use a whiteboard to model the stick figures. I wasn’t always near my whiteboard through the course of this study (we carried our lessons with us on a trip away to visit the Grandparents), but managed just fine with a blank piece of paper.

This is the shot of the Teacher's Book. The teaching notes are in green and easy to manage. 

I’ve mentioned frequently that Josiah is both dyslexic and dygraphic. Grapevine Studies have been an AWESOME way for him to participate and not feel frustrated. The stick figures are as cute as they can be and really help cement the lesson. I also had him read brief portions of Scripture.

For example, in this lesson (Jesus Taught), each point has its own little box. I think because the point on hand was easily defined  he was able to enjoy the study so much more. All the lessons are like this. Thank you, Grapevine Studies! 

I am a Big Fan (in capital letters) of the timeline and constant review. I also love that Grapevine encourages and TEACHES our students how to use Bible Study tools.

This is Josiah's initial Timeline. Notice Noah's little hammer and the plans for the Ark? Too cute! 

I have used Grapevine Studies with our small group of young people at church and I think it is a really fun and memorable way to learn the Bible.

Of course, Level 4 of this particular study defines itself by its use of various Bible Study tools. With each lesson the Quest Page gives students an opportunity to learn to use those tools.

For example, in Lesson 10 the student is asked to look up "apostle" in their Topical Bible.  They are asked to find a verse listing the names of the twelve disciples using the Concordance. To promote further discussion they are asked to compare and contrast the religious leaders of the Jesus' day with the apostles. That led to a very heartfelt question about who Jesus looks to use...and what He looks for. Is our education, position or prestige most important to Him?

Very good stuff. 

If you have a mixed-age group or just unsure of where to start here is a really great "Where to Start" pic. 

You can connect with Grapevine Studies via the following social media outlets. Don't forget to click on the banner below to read more reviews. 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrapevineStudies/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/GrapevineStudy 
Pinterest: https://pinterest.com/GrapevineStudy

A TOS Review: Here to Help Learning

I really like to write. In a perfect world it would be one of my favorite subjects to teach in our little homeschool. However (dum dum dum), my beautiful and creative son does not like to write.

Of course, he is dyslexic... so there is that. But I know that there are many kiddos out there without any learning issues (such as dyslexia) who do not enjoy the writing process whatsoever.

And, perhaps neither does mama.

I recently had the opportunity to review Here to Help Learning. This is a COMPLETE homeschool writing program. I initially started our review journey by taking a look at Flight 1 Essay Writing, but decided that it would be better to go back and do some review with Flight 1 Paragraph Writing. 

As I mentioned above, Here to Help Learning is a FULL and COMPLETE writing curriculum. The beauty of the whole thing is that it doesn’t require a whole lot of heavy lifting from the teacher. You receive all the tools you will ever need, including video instruction by the lovely Mrs. Mora. You may purchase the video instruction via an online membership or the actual physical sets. I received the online membership which meant I received access to all of the levels…which wound up being absolutely perfect for us.

The writing program is intended for grades 1-6, but I think it will benefit a whole lot of kiddos like my Josiah, who is in 8^th grade but struggles with those pesky reading and writing issues.

It is recommended that you use Here to Help Learning two days a week. We did our lessons on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  I had printed off all I needed for a whole Projects worth of work and every week Josiah would add those sheets to his notebook. Tuesdays were spent on the video lesson and activities and Thursdays were used to do Josiah’s Flying Solo work…which is a writing project.

Josiah and I initially began our lessons with Flight 1 Essay Writing.

 I quickly decided (by reading the lost and bewildered look on my handsome boy’s face) that it had been too long since he had constructed an actual viable paragraph. I easily made the switch to Flight 1 Paragraph Writing.

Now, don’t let me scare you off. There is nothing intimidating about the Essay Writing course. In fact, it’s quite good. But because it had been a bit since we had implemented an actual writing program into our curriculum that he would benefit from a refresher. I felt like it was time he moved from the following form of paragraph.

Peyton Manning is a quarterback. He plays for the Denver Broncos. He is cool.

Our switch paid off even within the first few lessons.

One of my favorite memories of 8^th grade English (and there was many….I am a geek) was our writing exercises. In particular the “brainstorming” exercise. I would quickly fill up my journal with all manner of random thoughts.

Any brainstorming activities I’ve done with Josiah have not been successful. He starts out by listing 1 or 2 things and then begins to scribble random football statistics all over his page.  Mrs. Mora began every writing Warm-Up with a picture and the instructions to write down 6 words about that picture.

That was just right for my guy. 

Another huge benefit with Here to Help Learning is that he was able to see an actual group of kids working through an exercise with Mrs. Mora during the first lesson. 

He does so much better when he has a model. Hearing those kids brainstorming, asking questions, etc. was such a big help to him.

I would like to encourage all you parents out there who might need to move a little slower through the learning process. This program is very gentle. The students are encouraged to do what they can do.  I was heartened to see that Josiah was engaged and felt like he could complete the task before him.

Another little note. This is a great program to use with a multi-aged group. It is very flexible.

If you are interested in poking around the Here to Help Learning site, I suggest you try their online membership with a FREE 1 day pass. It will give you a good idea to see if this is something that will work for your family.

If your child is older (like my Josiah) he might feel that the lessons are a bit “corny”…. Josiah could really care less. I suppose he is secure in his teenagedom, but there are those might feel a talking dog is a bit much. I personally loved the talking dog.  You can’t going wrong with a talking Basset Hound.

You can connect with Here to Help Learning via the following social media outlets. Don't forget to click on the banner below to read more reviews. 

 Blog: http://heretohelplearning.com/hometohome/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heretohelplearning/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HTHLTweets
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/HTHLearning/ 
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/HereToHelpLearning

Mold and a Farm Retreat (in that order)

Hello from The Farm. 

Josiah and I are spending the week here while our kitchen is basically out of commission.

• This came about after it was discovered that a pesky leak behind our sink had produced a major mold issue.

Rather than worry about the work crew stumbling over my teacups and trying to cook in a neighboring unoccupied apartment, The Muffin and my Momma decided it was best for me and The Boy to come and take in the fresh air and sketchy internet at the farm.

I do what I'm told.

At first, I was worried about the very loonng "to do" list I was carrying around. Then I decided a week away was just what I needed.

Josiah is living it up. This morning, when I suggested that he take a shower, his eyes took on a vacant look.

"What is this shower you speak of?"

I posted this picture on my social media pages Monday. You can see that he's making the most of things. AND he is getting to spend time with his cousin, Chris.

The Muffin informed me just this afternoon that the work on the kitchen is nearly completed. My job for when I get home will be a doozy.

Sigh.

A TOS Review: The Dragon and the Raven (an audio drama experience)

One of our most favorite things to do is listen to books on tape. But even more wonderful than a book on tape is the audio drama. Audio Dramas are the stuff of life.

I recognize that I am being more than a little dramatic, but if you could only hear the quality of some of our favorite audio dramas you would undoubtedly agree. Some of our most-loved audio dramas come from Heirloom Audio Productions. We were recently blessed with the chance to review TheDragon and the Raven.  It quickly became one our favorites.

The Dragon and the Raven is based on a book originally published in 1885. G.A. Henty (the author) is best known as a historical novelist and war correspondent. The Dragon and the Raven takes us back to the Middle Ages. The Danes are conquering England. Our hero, a young man named Edmund, finds himself in royal company, learns the powerful lesson of loving your enemies and learns to turn to the God of hope and forgiveness.

I received a set of two CD’s and whole list of bonuses. These bonuses included an MP3 download, The Dragon and the Raven E-book by G.A. Henty, a printable cast poster, a study guide and the official MP3 soundtrack. There are even more goodies that I didn’t list! Those are a lot of goodies. 

The Dragon and the Raven is intended for ages 6 and up. Which means a whole lot of folks will enjoy it! The CD’s run about 2 and ½ hours of listening time. We listened to it the first time as we were wandering about town on errands, to swim team practice and our PE class.

Josiah loved every second of it. If you have listened to any of Heirloom Audio Productions before you know what to expect. The quality of acting, the music, the message….all superb. 

There were many famous voices we recognized.

Is that you Sallah?  Whatcha doing in the Middle Ages? 

Josiah just about jumped out of the passenger seat when he heard the unmistakable voice of John Rhys-Davies. Sallah and Gimli! Of course, Mr. Rhys-Davies has taken on a Danish accent for this part.  This actor has been one of Josiah's favorites for yeaars. We are talking before Kindergarten. The boy is 14 now. That's practically a lifetime of hero worship. 

Other actors we were familiar with also appeared in the production. I recognized the voice of the lovely Helen George from one of my favorite shows, Call the Midwife. There are others you will be thrilled to hear, as well. 

And you must know that the always excellent Brian Blessed brought his rich and melodic voice as G.A. Henty. The whole thing was a pleasure from beginning to end. Mr. Blessed is a familiar voice in Heirloom Audio Productions. 

The study guide we provided with is a great addition for any family looking to expand their listening. I didn’t take full advantage of the guide, but it does provide study questions, vocabulary, information about the author and more historical facts.

It also contains three Bible studies; emphasizing the themes found in the production. I know many of you will take comfort that God's Word is front and center in all of Heirloom Audio's Productions. 

I do need to tell you that this is an adventure story with the emphasis on adventure. Josiah and I loved it. We are all about the action, but there are sections of the story that might need some parental explanation or buffering. This is a story of war, after all. It's not light and fluffy, though the folks at Heirloom Audio do their best to provide us with a chuckle now and again. 

Most of all it is a story of forgiveness. Listeners are encouraged to love their enemies and to turn their hearts towards God. Those are the lessons I am most anxious for Josiah to learn.  I am elated that I can provide my son such character building experiences through Heirloom Audio Productions.

You can connect with Heirloom Audio Productions via the following social media outlets. 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HeirloomAudio
Twitter: https://twitter.com/HeirloomStories @HeirloomStories
Google+: https://plus.google.com/b/114534826166314080647/114534826166314080647/posts

Instagram: @HeirloomAudioOfficial.

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