CrossTimber Name Gifts {Review}

I want to squeal with excitement over CrossTimber! I love this product and am so very happy to have discovered John and the company. CrossTimber specialise in Personalized Framed Plaque with Name Meaning and Bible Verse gifts. 

I emailed John and asked him if he can help me find the name meanings of a few names and he was super helpful.  It was less than a day and I heard back from him. He has a huge database of names and loves to share the meanings of names.  If you would like to know the meaning of a specific name email him and he will get back to you with it's meaning. 

I'm so looking forward to giving these as gifts for Christmas this year to my children and to my husband for our 25th wedding anniversary.  I LOVE that I can have them as a printable. CrossTimber make two name plaques as well, these make wonderful wedding, engagement or anniversary gifts.  I love that the work is done for me. (I know how many hours go into creating graphics and this is why I haven't made these for myself ... ).

I chose to order  Multi-Name Plaque gift for Paul for his birthday and am so pleased that I did. I love these extra large plaques for up to three names at once. I used his first and middle name on the Golden eagle's Wings (NG-8x10-AN24)  These prints are designed to be 8" tall and 10" wide. For more detailed information on the Multi-Name Plaques read this page: What's a Multi-Name Plaque?  John sent me a note with the meanings of his names and attached my order via email.  I took it on a memory stick to Big W and had it printed in 8" x 10" gloss print and framed it. 

I want to do them for my grown children too so I can give them a beautifully framed name meaning board so they will always remember our love upon them through the choosing of their names the possibilities are almost endless!

A little back story to my passion about the meanings of names...
For many years names and their meanings have held a special significance to me and it all started with my first pregnancy.  It was important that the name be one of blessing. We called him Timothy (One who brings honour to God) our daughter was named Jane (Gift of the Lord) and then we waited many years (10 long tear filled years) for our third blessing and we named him: Nathaniel (Asked of the Lord).

About 15 years ago we became more aware of the significance of names and their meanings and so started telling our children what their names meant.

I recently realised that knowing what my children's names mean and knowing the positive meanings has been a huge encouragement to me through the many valley's we have walked in parenting.

When ever I look at Nathaniel I am reminded that I asked God for him and God heard my cry. His second name means brings joy/laughter and this is true too. He has brought comfort and joy into Paul and my life and we love him dearly.

When I hear my older two children's names I feel the hand of God and know that He is working in their lives daily.

For many years I really struggled with my own name ...
My name is a combination of my grandparents names (Charles and Kathleen) of which I am very proud. With my initial research I found out that Charles means manly and Kathleen purity. For many years I wondered why God would allow me to be called manly?

My passion for names and there meaning continued and so my quest to know more names and their meanings deepened. I soon discovered that the original meaning of Charles is actually strength not manly! I was not being called manly, my name actually means Strong Pure One or Strength in Purity.  I received my name/life verse: Zephaniah 3:17 The LORD your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.

Knowing that my name means Strong Pure One and that God delights in me and rejoices over me with singing has made a huge difference to how I see myself.
Name Meaning Gifts
Name meaning gifts have a HUGE impact on the person receiving the gift. I have watched people cry tears of blessing and seen the change in them when reading a note to them saying this is what your name means and this is who you are.

Types of name meaning gifts

CrossTimber have a large selection of options available for you to choose from.

• Name Plaques 7x9 frame
• Multi-Name Plaques 10x12 frame 
• Name Coffee Mugs
• Name Meaning Music Boxes
• Names of God
• Name Meaning Bookmarks

The process is super easy.

1. Choose the type of gift you would like to purchase.  
2. In the drop down menu choose the style of photo you would like and select it.   
3. Select the type of frame etc
4. In the notes section write in the name you would like on your gift 
5. Hit the Add to Order button.

Once you have paid for your order you will receive a confirmation email. I will be purchasing more of these gifts in the future.  CrossTimber mail their products worldwide. If you would like to order be sure to email John and he will get back to you on the cost of postage for your order.

**Please note the names and gifts photographed in my review are in frames I purchased locally.  I was given and purchased pdf versions of the names, meanings and scripture to print at my local store.

CrossTimber are sponsoring a name gift giveaway.  For your chance to win a name gift of your choice be sure to visit CrossTimber and enter their giveaway.  The giveaway ends on 4 December.

Elementary French Course (Grades 3-5) Middleburry Interactive Languages {Review}

The French language is a beautiful language and it's one of the languages on my bucket list to learn.  Recently Middlebury Interactive Languages blessed us with a subscription for their Elementary French Course (Grades 3-5)

The course focuses on: vocabulary acquisition and basic grammar principles.  These are intuitively grasped through stories games, activities, songs and assessments.

The goal of Middlebury Interactive Languages is for the student to:

• Engage in language learning 
• become comfortable with the sounds and rhythms of French
• learn simple French phrases
• Begin to read, write, speak and listen for meaning in French
• To recognize distinctive practices and customs of the French-speaking cultures.

 

Navigating is very easy within Middlebury Interactive languages.  The screen is divided into to sections.  On the left you can see each using.  When you click on a unit a box drops down to reveal the lessons within the units.  You can see which lessons are complete at a glance by the little greet tick mark next to completed lessons.

Each unit is based on a story (Unit 1 was Little Red Riding Hood),  a myth or legend from various French-speaking cultures.

These are reinforced as students perform simple tasks in connection with each unit's theme. For example in Unit 1: Greetings each French greeting is connected with a character in the story.  In the exercises Practice: Greetings 1 the student is given the five characters and greetings and has to match them up with one another.

In the speaking lab the student listens to the vocabulary being learned and then records themselves speaking each word.  They are then able to hear themselves when they push the playback button.

Gradebook 
Under the menu you can select Gradebook. The system records all completed tasks and quizzes. In the menu under grade book you can view all graded work

Grade book summary view

 You will be able to view

• the grade accomplished 
• when it was submitted. 
• View button - you can view the activity and leave a comment.
• Grade Report button

When clicking the report button a pop up window opens to reveal:

• the current grade (subdivided into: evaluations, unit tests and quizzes)
• Assignment Average
• overall Course Grade.  The student can earn a total of 586 possible points

Connect on Social Media:
Facebook: Middlebury Interactive Languages
Twitter:  @middinteractive
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/middinteractive/

I'm enjoying watching Nathaniel's confidence grow as he works his way through Middlebury.  I just wish I could learn as fast as he does! I enjoy the simplicity of the overall program and how it automatically keeps track of his grade and progress for me.

What does it mean to be a part of the Homeschool Review Crew ?

When I joined the Homeschool Review Crew back in 2013 I had no idea what was in store for me.  I joined on a whim after seeing a friend of mine had been reviewing for them and I'm a curriculum junkie!  I'm still using products in my homeschool from back then.  I love my year on the crew so much I applied to be on their team ever since. Today I am joining in with the team as we share what it means to be on the Homeschool Review Crew.


My passion is supporting home school families to successfully home educate.  One of the biggest blessings of the Crew is getting to know about the wide range of new and updated curriculum on the market.  This in turn helps me help my new and veteran home school friends find what they are needing to home school successfully.  Having the product means I am able to show these families what I am talking about. 

At the beginning of the 2016 Crew year I was promoted to the leadership and now have some official responsibilities helping Debra Brinkman look after the 200+ bloggers who are a part of the Homeschool Review Crew.

The Crew Gave ME
Joining the Crew has opened so many opportunities for me as a blogger.

• The Crew introduced me to a mentor who helped me through the process of my first three reviews.  They were the go to person if I needed anything.  
• The leadership were approachable and super helpful and supportive.  
• I had access to a special forum which contained all the information that I needed.  
• The crew host fortnightly round up posts that I can submit links to which are shared on their blog. 
• I have the opportunity to guest post on their blog (They have 5,000+ subscribers) with links back to my blog.
• They have social media mentors who helped me learn to use my platforms better.
• They have up to 75 different homeschool curriculum opportunities for me to choose to use.  I am not given things I can not use and my reviews are 100 % my own thoughts.  I am not required to write positive reviews only honest ones.
• They host two annual blog hops which are a lot of fun.  Here are a couple of  hops I've participated in: 5 Days of Homeschooling Essentials,  5 Days of Curriculum Choices and 5 Days of Teaching Creatively.
• The best part of the experience are all the new blogging friends I make each year. 

Some of my favourite resources this year have been:

• If You Were Me and Lived in... Series by Carole P.Roman
• Online Christian Filmmakers Academy
• Beric The Briton {Heirloom Audio Productions
• Forbrain

Who the Crew are we looking for 
The Homeschool Review Crew is growing. They are currently looking for bloggers from all over the world to join their team.

• You need to have a blog.
• Currently home educating at least one child. Your child/ren can be anywhere from Pre-K to 12th Grade.
• You need to be active on social media of your own choosing (Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram)
• Love curriculum, homeschool products and books.

You can read more about the requirements to join the team here:  2017 Crew Applications Now Open.

How can you apply? 
After making sure you meet all of the requirements, if you believe you would to an asset to our Crew and wish to join us, please fill out their application. Click here to fill out the 2017 Schoolhouse Review Crew Application!