MyFreezEasy.com Freezer Meal Plan Membership from MyFreezEasy: A TOS Homeschool Crew Review

 MyFreezEasy.com Freezer Meal Plan Membership from MyFreezEasy


This is a new FAMILY  FAVORITE -  MyFreezEasy.com Freezer Meal Plan Membership from MyFreezEasy!

This online subscription allows you to build and print your own meal plans with just a few clicks of a mouse.  This easy-to-use site offers several options to make meal planning easy.

You can choose from pre-designed meal plans for the month. The plans include 5-10 recipes that can make 10-20 meals.  You can make and serve, or make and freeze for later.  Each plan includes the recipe, shopping lists, assembly instructions and labels.  Recipes include modifications to make them gluten or dairy free. They offer various plans to choose from, and plans are updated monthly.  We were able to download September's plan and October's plan during our review time.  We tried almost every recipe and they were all hits with my family!

Plans include:

You can build your own meal plan with the MyFreezEasy desktop app.  Your customized plan will include recipes, shopping lists, assembly instructions, labels and even video instructions for 5 meals that you select.  Build your own plan allows you to access the vast recipe library that is organized in easy to search categories including:

• Chicken recipes
• Slow-cooker recipes
• Ground beef recipes
• Dutch-oven or saucepan recipes
• Gluten-free recipes
• Other beef recipes
• Baked recipes
• Dairy-free recipes
• Pork Chop recipes
• Gluten-dairy-soy free recipes
• Skillet recipes
• Other pork recipes
• Grilled recipes
• Paleo/Whole 30 recipes
• Seafood recipes
• Vegetarian recipes
• One-dish meals
• Top 8 allergy free recipes  

 Simply select the meal you want, including number of servings and drag it to your custom plan.  Being able to select an 8 serving plan was HUGE!  With 9 people at home (and some of them little) this is the perfect size for us.  It was so nice to have the correct measurements, and not rely on my math skills for doubling or tripling the recipe!   Add 5 meals, and your plan is created and ready for you to print in a handy PDF file. 

If you need help, My FreezEasy includes videos that will walk you through the assembly process for the month's meal plans.  Additional how-to videos will teach you the basics of flat freezing and safe, quick thawing, in no time.  A Bonus Side Dish cookbook is included with your Premium membership.  This was another sanity saver for me - I never know what to make in addition to the main dish.  The plans all include a recommended side to serve as well.  I printed out the Side Dish Cookbook and kept it in my recipe binder for easy use.

My main tester is my right-hand kitchen helper...my 13 year old.  She has fallen in love with creating new meal plans for us with the desktop app.  (it's that easy to use!)

Some of our new family favorites are "Lazy Lasagna Bake" and "Bacon Ranch Chicken".  They ask for them over and over.  With the plan, we make one to serve and one to freeze and save for a busy night.  The prep and assembly instructions make it so easy.

The Crockpot meal plan is far and away my favorite.  We are busy and on-the-go most nights and utilizing my crock pot with these yummy recipes has been a lifesaver.  Be sure to try "Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff"  - your family will love it.

Meal planning has never been so easy!


Find MyFreezEasy on Social Media:Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/freezeasy
Instagram:  http://www.instagram.com/freezeasy
Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/5dollardinners/freezeasy

Hashtags: #hsreviews #freezeasy #freezermeals #5dollardinners #freezercooking

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Birth of Jesus: Multi-Level from Grapevine Studies: A TOS Crew Review

Birth of Jesus: Multi-Level from Grapevine Studies 


Grapevine Studies  are Bible study curriculum where your child draws stick figures, even your non-artistic types can do this, to document and interact with the Bible as they study God's Word.

I love how they describe their program:   "Grapevine Studies teaches the Bible as if it were a puzzle, doing the frame first. Once the framework is in place then individual pieces (Bible passages, characters, and events) are much easier to place and understand in the context of the "whole puzzle" (the whole counsel of the Word of God)."

Activities vary in each level.  Starting with tracing, they will progress to learning Biblical timelines, geography, and how to use different Bible study tools as they get older.  This is truly a unique Bible curriculum that you can use with the entire family.  My testers range in age from 6 to 18.

For our review, we got a PDF download of Birth of Jesus: Multi-Level - for ages 7+. This includes:

• 65 page Teacher Manual 
• 49 page Student Book
• Special Bonus - Traceable Student Book , designed for ages 3-6.

To complete this study you will need a Bible, colored pencils, markers, access to a Bible dictionary, and atlas or map.

The study contains 4  lessons, and a Final Review which can either be completed 1- 2 lessons  a week or 24 daily lessons.  This study focuses on the Christmas story with chapters on:

• The Announcement
• The Birth of Jesus
• The Proclamation
• The Wise Men and Herod

The first lesson is drawing the Biblical timeline in stick figures,  My testers are about 50% creative, and 50% not-so-much.  That's one of the reasons we like this curriculum... it fits all of them!  
Each Lesson is clearly outlined in the must-have Teacher's Manual with the goal, key points, and memory verse.  You can use what ever version of the Bible you prefer.  I like that it gets my testers using their own Bible to look up the passages. 
The Student Lesson begins with a Timeline Review.  The main section of the lesson is drawing stick figures to illustrate the Bible passage.  You can either print the Student pages (that have notebooking style sections for them to draw in)  or simply use blank paper to create your own.  You'll know which one works best for your family!
Each lesson includes review questions for you to discuss.  These questions made my testers really think about the passage and notice the details.  It's a great way to get them truly interacting with the Word. Each lesson wraps up with a "drawing review" where your child draws their favorite part of what they have just studied.
The Traceable pages have the stick figures drawn in (light grey) so your child can follow along, and simply trace the figures.  My younger testers liked this - it let them focus on what we were reading.    I will admit, my younger testers loved this program (they are the 50% creative).  My teen age testers were not quite as enthusiastic (they are the 50% not-so-much).
It's a very easy to use, and affordable way to study God's Word together.  I think this would make an excellent study to do together during the Advent season as well.
Take a peek at some of the other levels the Crew reviewed:

Birth of Jesus: Beginner
Old Testament 1: Level 1 Creation to Jacob
Old Testament 1: Level 2 Creation to Jacob
Old Testament 1: Level 3 Creation to Jacob
Old Testament 1: Level 4 Creation to Jacob 
Find  Grapevine Studies  on Social Media:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrapevineStudies
Twitter: https://twitter.com/grapevinestudy
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/grapevinestudy/
Google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/+Grapevinestudies/posts
Periscope: @Grapevine Studies

See what other members of the Crew thought here

Practical Critical ThinkingThe Critical Thinking Co.: A TOS Crew Review

Practical Critical Thinking and Teacher Manual from  The Critical Thinking Co.

For grades 9-12+, This is a combo of a 376 page color, Student book and the accompanying 240 page, black & white - Teacher’s Manual.

The Bentz Test Laboratory has been a long time fan of products from The Critical Thinking Co.  I was excited to get to try a new product for us - Practical Critical Thinking and Teacher Manual.  My tester is in 10th grade.

The Student Book is in color.  A very nice touch, it makes it instantly more appealing to today's teenagers.  This program really focuses in on developing Critical Thinking in our teens.  By focusing on emotion and meaning, we get them motivated, grab their attention and build their memory.

The book is organized with 4 Units, each unit includes 2 chapters, and each chapter features 7-9 lessons.  The lessons are short and concise.   My testers enjoyed the variety and the humor.

We love to start our school day with Critical Thinking as a way of "waking up our brain".  Take a peek at the contents:

Unit 1. Becoming a Critical Thinking -

• Chapter 1: The 411 About Critical Thinking 
• Chapter 2: Playing Games, Doing puzzles: Practice Critical Thinking Skills

Unit 2. Adding to My Critical Thinking Toolbox

• Chapter 3: Some Basics Concepts for Critical Thinking
• Chapter 4: Critical Thinking and Language

Unit 3. Critical Thinking and Arguments

• Chapter 5: Analyzing Arguments
• Chapter 6: Informal Fallacies

Unit 4. Applying My Critical Thinking

• Chapter 7: Advertising
• Chapter 8: Eyewitness Testimony, Direct & Circumstantial Evidence

This program is designed to be used either independently (the way we did) or can be used in a classroom setting.  I think it would make a great Co-op class!   Different activities are used to teach and practice essential Critical Thinking skills like; evaluating evidence, creative problem-solving, ambiguity, doublespeak, vagueness, arguments, fallacies, advertising, eyewitness testimony and more.

Activities include:

• Thought Experiments 
• Student Polls 
• Practice Sessions 
• Games and Puzzles 
•  Predictions 
•  Important Takeaways

Teacher's Manual is a valuable addition to this program!  It's divided into two sections:

• Answers - I need this section to make sure they are on the right track.  Critical thinking is much more complex than simple math solutions.  This is where you get to stay one step ahead of your teens.
• Reproducible Activities - Nice, especially if you are using this with multiple students.

Check out some of the other great products from The Critical Thinking Co. that the Crew Reviewed:

  Fun-Time Phonics!  (Gr. PreK-2)
Surfing the Net: Science  (Gr. 3-6)
The Basics of Critical Thinking  (Gr. 4-9)
U. S. History Detective, Book 1  (Gr. 8-12+) Find The Critical Thinking Co. on Social Media:
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/TheCriticalThinkingCo
Google +: https://plus.google.com/114500823774999703181
Twitter: https://twitter.com/criticalthinks
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/source/criticalthinking.com/ See what other members of the Crew thought here

Eat Your U.S. History Homework from Ann McCallum Books: A TOS Crew Review

Eat Your U.S. History Homework: Recipes for Revolutionary Minds from Ann McCallum Books

Check out this 48 page colorful,  hardcover book  that gives you a history lesson and a historically inspired recipe for 6 time periods in American History with tasty treats that are easy to make.

• The Pilgrims at Plymouth, 1620 - Thanksgiving Succotash
• The Thirteen Original Colonies, 1607-1776 - Colonial Cherry-Berry Grunt
• The French and Indian War, 1754-1763 - Lost Bread
• Slaves and the Southern Plantation, 1619-1863 - Southern Plantation Hoe Cakes
• The American Revolution, 1775-1783 - Revolutionary Honey-Jumble Cookies
• The Declaration of Independence, 1776 - Independence Ice Cream

The Bentz Test Labortory is studying American History this year, so Eat Your U.S. History Homework was the perfect compliment to our studies,  after all...who doesn't love to eat?  Ann McCallum believes that we are all connected by our "need for and love of food" - I believe she's right! This is a great resource for your 7-10 year olds, but all of my testers love to eat!

Each section begins with a short history lesson, perfect for introducing your children to this time period, and whetting their appetite to learn more.  Key words are in bold, and can be found in the glossary in the back, as well as a timeline.

My young testers loved the "rabbit"  in the cute, whimsical illustrations by Leeza Hernandez, the illustrator throughout this book.

The historically inspired recipe follows the history lesson.  We got a kick out of some of the "authentic" ingredients...i.e. Thanksgiving Succotash features not only bacon, but "2 hot dogs".  Wonder what the Pilgrims would think about that today :-)

The recipes are very easy to follow - and include illustrations of each step.  (I wish all my cookbooks did that!)  My testers could easily follow along.

There are "side dishes" through out the book as well.  These add another tidbit of history for your children to digest.  Most of these "side dishes" contained questions you can use to expand learning.  For example... "Take a look in your refrigerator, what food items would have been available to the Pilgrims of 1600? " This is where we laughed about the hot dogs!

On their website - I found a great 17 page Teacher's Guide to go along with this book that you can download.  It contains games, maps, graphs, activities and more.  This is a great way to add to the learning.

We all really enjoyed both reading and cooking from this book.  I think history is so much more memorable when you get to eat your way through it.  Sharing time in the kitchen together makes for some of your very best homeschooling memories!

Be sure to check out the other Ann McCallum titles:

Eat Your Math Homework

Eat Your Science Homework
Rabbits, Rabbits Everywhere: A Fibonacci Tale
Beanstalk: The Measure of a Giant



See what other members of the Crew thought here

The Brinkman Adventures: Season 3: A TOS Crew Review

Brinkman Adventures  exciting new audios  The Brinkman Adventures: Season 3   12 new episodes with 5 hours of family friendly listening excitement  (available on 4 CDs or as an Mp3 download)
Episodes in Season 3 include…  God’s Mule  Mountain Mover  The Silent Ambassador  Translating Trouble  Man-Up  Acorns & Oaks  A Saint’s Story, Pt. 1 A  Saint’s Story, Pt. 2  Untouched Busy Bees   Bullhorn Missionary Tourist, Pt. 1  Missionary Tourist Pt. 2
The Bentz Test Laboratory LOVED this one!!  We spend countless hours in our van on the way to various activities.  We enjoy passing this time listening to audio dramas, and this is most certainly a new family favorite.
The Brinkman Adventures Series tells real life missionary stories with big family adventures as they travel around the globe sharing the Gospel.  Their names have been changed for protection, but the actors/actresses play themselves.  What could be better...missionaries and BIG families, this is right up our alley.
Even though we had not listened to Seasons 1 & 2, we were able to jump right in and join the adventures of Season 3.    My testers range in age from 6 to 18 years old, and everyone loved them.
The sound quality is excellent, you can tell they have been professionally done.  Each episode was about 30 minutes long, which was the perfect length to listen to in one sitting (or riding...)  
The very first story had all of us on the edge of our seats..."God's Mule" was about a young man following God's call to leave Harvard and begin smuggling Bibles to a closed country (they changed the country name as well.. but, it's a true story).  WOW!  This hit so close to our hearts, my oldest tester and I just returned from a mission trip to India.  The miracles of taking thousands of Bibles through hostile customs without a hitch were inspiring stories full of action and adventure.
That's what I appreciate most about these audios.  They are designed to both entertain and inspire.  There is no better thing to fill  your children's ears, minds, and hearts with than stories of God's power and faithfulness in the lives of real people, just like them.
"The Silent Ambassador" was also very timely... It's a story about a young girl overcoming her own inscurities to start a "Shoebox Club".  My testers had just packed their shoeboxes for our church's version of Operation Christmas Child.  They listened to how God uses even young kids to do BIG things.  My testers want to form their own "club" next year.
I love this quote from Steve Saint - "Brinkman Adventures tell incredible stories that God writes about people who offer their will as HIS quill and their lives as HIS slate,"  What a testimonial!
Visit Brinkman Adventures to find out more about the actual missionaries and behind the scenes information. 
They sell these amazing audios for a suggested donation of $27.99 for the  4 CD set or $17.99 for MP3. The donations go to supporting missionaries around the world, as well as producing more faith filled adventures to share.   These would make excellent Christmas gifts...I know the Bentz Testers will be finding them in their stockings.
 Be sure to sign up for the Brinkman Adventures newsletter, and you can download three free episodes!
 
Find Brinkman Adventures on Social Media:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Brinkman-Adventures-152895116079/
See what other members of the Crew thought here

Homeschool Courses from Standard Deviants Accelerate : A TOS Crew Review

Homeschool Courses from Standard Deviants Accelerate

Arithmetic (grades 3+)
Fundamental Math (grades 4+)
Earth Science (grades 6+)
Nutrition (grades 6+)
Biology (grades 7+)
Algebra (grades 7+)
Chemistry (grades 9+)
English Comp (grades 9+)
U. S. History (grades 9+)
AP Biology (grades 11+)
AP Chemistry (grades 11+)
AP U. S. Gov. & Politics (grades 11+)
AP Eng. Composition (grades 11+)

 Homeschool Courses  from Standard Deviants Accelerate. 

These are 13 unique, online, supplemental courses in math, science, history, composition and even AP test prep. designed to capture their interest and keep them excited to learn in this online subscription program  Homeschool Courses  from Standard Deviants Accelerate, SDA. 

 You can try it for 7 days for free .

The testers from the Bentz Test Laboratory were several middle and high school age student.  SDA does offer courses in Arithmetic and Math for your younger crew too.  

It's relatively easy to set up an online learning classroom. Once you have done this, your child needs their own email to complete this step, you can easily add the courses they are interested in.

For our review, my testers visited a variety of the Homeschool Courses - mainly focusing on US History and Biology, since they are studying them this year. I don't think SDA can be used as full curriculum, it's not comprehensive enough, in my opinion.  However, it makes a nice supplement, or can be used to review.

Since it's online and self-paced, my testers could pick and choose what topics they wanted or needed to spend more time on. A general course outline makes it easy to see what topics are available. 

  

Each course offers 30-40 minutes of  short  instruction videos, as well as: review activities, vocab, diagrams, quizzes, and writing assignments Here's a peek from US History.

For a high school level course (grades 9+), We found it rather lightweight in the rigor area.  Another disappointment was that all the writing was the same 2 critieria with a different question, in every course we previewed.

  

My testers found the videos a bit goofy at times, and not that entertaining.  I have to agree, although, sometimes I did find them funny...maybe it's my age showing :-)  

 
I thought many of the Homeschool Courses were well thought out, and great tools for reviewing. One MAJOR note of caution - SDA is not produced or taught from a Christian worldview - your students will hear evolution and big bang theory... but, you can also choose to skip those parts easily (Here's a couple of shots from Biology...I can't really recommend this course in the SDA line up...make sure you review it before turning your students loose on it!)

Interesting question for a high school biology course I thought, Match the butterflies to a city they are ill-suited to survive.  I prefer science that is more critical thinking focused....fortune tellers not included. 

You can choose to print off hard copies, or work online - or both. My testers really enjoyed the flexibility of this program. I was impressed by the depth and variety of information that is easily accessed all from one location. 

 
The grading for most of the student's work is done online. ALL of the prep work is done for you - you don't have to spend hours looking for that something extra, Standard Deviants Accelerate makes it easy on you as the teacher.


This could be a useful and effective tool, especially for your visual or auditory learners. It's engaging and easy to use.

Find Standard Deviants Accelerate on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SDAccelerate
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SDAccelerate
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+Sdaccelerate/posts
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/SDAccelerate/

See what other members of the Crew thought here

The Nutcracker from Maestro Classics: A TOS Crew Review

The Nutcracker from Maestro Classics Bentz Test Laboratory could not wait to get the newest edition to the award-winning lineup from Maestro Classics! They currently have 12 CD's available for a range of classical music and well-loved children's literature.  Each CD is just $16.98, and MP3 downloads are available for just $9.98.  We love being able to take them with us in the van!

The Nutcracker , recommended for ages 5 and up, couldn't have arrived at a better time!  Two of my testers are ballerinas, and they are performing in an upcoming Christmas performance of this very story with the San Antonio Ballet as a soldier and a mouse.


This CD features the music of Tchaikovsky - performed by the London Philharmonic Orchestra and adapted & conducted by Stephen Simon is narrated by Jim Weiss (a personal family favorite!).

The Nutcracker is a delightful story about young Clara, who gets a Nutcracker as a gift from her Uncle on Christmas Eve.  During the night, the handsome Nutcracker comes to life as a prince and takes Clara on a magical trip to the land of the Sugar Plum Fairy.  He valiantly battles the Mouse King, and sweeps Clara off her feet.  When morning comes, Clara awakes from her enchanted dream.

We LOVE this story, but the music is what blows us away, every time!

In addition to the hour long CD, which features the music from every section of the ballet, you get narration from the great Jim Weiss. (We have listened to his voice on audios for so long, we feel like he's a family friend!)   I just love how Maestro Classics brings these stories and music to life for my young listeners.  The narration takes place during the music, so that you know exactly what is happening in the story.

Each CD comes with a 24 page , full color booklet that gives more information about the story.

• A description of each track
• The History of Ballet  
• Music for the Overture
• An introduction to the Harp 
• A short biography of Tchaikovsky
• And some fun activities like a word scramble and crossword puzzle.

Maestro Classics also offers free downloadable curriculum guides that correspond with all of their CDs. For The Nutcracker, the curriculum guide included activities about ballet, history, geography, science, language arts, art, music, and math.  This is a really fun way to expand the learning potential!

This is the perfect time for you to introduce your children to The Nutcracker, and make it a new family holiday tradition. 

Several Special Deals are available right now that I want to tell you about... these are great stocking stuffers:

The complete 12 CD set is currently priced at $150 (the list price is $200), and they’re offering free shipping.  Enter the code PIANO for a limited time to get another $20 off.

Or, you can use the code FLUTE to receive 15% off your purchase.

Remember, CDs are $16.98, but if you order three, you will get them for $45.

Other members of the Crew got to listen to :Peter and the Wolf. You'll love this one too!

Find Maestro Classics on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MaestroClassics
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MaestroClassics
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/maestroclassics/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/maestroclassics
See what other members of the Crew thought here