FREE Halloween Crossword Puzzle

It is that spooooky time of year… Let your goblins and witches get in some last minute spelling fun with a FREE Halloween Crossword Puzzle!

Free Halloween Crossword Puzzle Download

Get into the Halloween spirit with this spooky crossword puzzle. For more worksheets, activities and games your kids will love, visit Education.com.

Don’t forget to download the answer key.

Thank you to Education.com for generously offering us this great freebie to share with all of you!

 

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Mean Mama and Messy Meltdowns

Being a mom is hard… not just a little hard, really hard! Add in a few extra headaches like selling a house from 1,100 miles away while homeschooling and you have a recipe for a Mean Mama and Messy Meltdowns! So how can you recreate this perfect recipe? Let me tell you…

1. List your house for sale.

“Sell your house,” they said… “It will make your life so much easier.” LIES, ALL LIES! 
Let me tell you selling a house is never easy. We have tried to sell our North Carolina home twice before listing it again on October 1st. In between trying to sell we have rented the house out and have had a zillion problems. Everything from busted walls, missing doors, and moldy ducting! Don’t even get me started on this… Anyways, I had very low expectations of getting an offer, but amazingly we got an offer within the first 24 hours! (However, maybe it is not amazing because we listed it super low and figured we would have to come to the table with some cash at closing.)

2. Have a hurricane sweep through the area.

Thankfully our house was not directly hit by Hurricane Florence, but it did make for a hard to mow yard… which it turn means an almost impossible job to find a landscaper to clean up your hot mess of a yard! Finally find a shady landscaper and have the realtor (who has nagged you endlessly about the yard) leave the back gate open, so said landscaper can do his job.

3. Have someone break into your back door. (The one they wouldn’t have been able to get to if the privacy fence was not left open.)

Just so they can steal a 15 year old garage door opener… They did try to take the oven as well, but for some reason decided against it.

I hope it was worth it asshats- Oh, and I hope it stopped working and is useless now! 

4. Try to continue your homeschool lessons while handling 10,000 phone calls from your realtor, who is a dual agent, and come up with a resolution so you can still close on time.

This is the really tricky part… As a homeschool mom of 3 I have a lot to do during our homeschool days. I spend at least an hour reading aloud to my children a day, but when you have someone calling you endlessly it is hard to even get a few paragraphs read. After many interruptions, we finally made it through our reading and tried to move onto math. For my older children this was no problem, but my youngest still requires quite a bit of help. For days he has been asking to skip his math lessons, and this day his whining and pouting pushed me over the end.

Let’s just say mean words were said both ways, and now I have a little boy who is spending the weekend with no video games (and whining, crying, and being a handful). I also have books with bent pages and a scuff on the wall when this mama completely lost it. I may or may not have sent everything on the work table flying (hangs head in shame).

5. Get sassy and stop being classy…

Perhaps I already did this in the step above… However, apparently I didn’t do it well enough so I had to take another shot at being a hot mess! After many long winded (on my realtor’s part) conversations I was finally able to come up with a resolution to repair the house and not delay closing–at the tune of $875 out of my pocket. Only to get an email from the lawyer handling the closing to inform me that they cannot accept my personal check even though the assistant told me they could. I get the instructions to send the money in a different way, and surprise surprise there is another fee!

My realtor calls me again to discuss the whole situation, and after a few complaints on his end I completely lost it (again). I put it all out there- how I am being hosed left and right… How I don’t care if the yard is mowed or not and neither do the buyers. (Who I would like to add bought the house “As Is”.) And end the conversation with, “Just take it.. Take it all.. Want me to send you my Michael Kors bag too?“. I know… Super classy, right?

6. Send out more money and go to bed, and remain there for an entire day.

Yup… an entire day! Jack got his way- no math lessons or any lessons for that matter! No cooking, no cleaning, and no phone calls because you tell everyone you are unavailable to answer and just text if it is important. 

7. Finally close on the house that has been the bane of your existence for four years.

My advice to you is to never enter into a dual agent contract. Through this whole process I felt my realtor only cared about the buyers, and made this so much harder for me. 

So there you have it- House selling, B&E, homeschool tears, and needy people lead to a Mean Mama and Messy Meltdowns…

I am emotionally drained, probably gained 5 pounds, and have nothing left to give. As for today I am going to drink my pumpkin spice latte, listen to Christmas music (don’t you judge me), and snuggle up with a good book. Needless to say, I NEVER want to sell a house again. 

And if you are feeling hard on yourself- don’t! Just remember we all have hot mess moments. I think most people, outside my family and a few close friends, would never picture me this way. My life is not picture perfect… that is just the social media facade. I can be mean, cranky, and a little crusty too. And no, you can’t have my Michael Kors. 

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{Guest Post} When a Homeschool Mom Says Your Curriculum Isn’t Good Enough

Have your family and friends put you through the ringer about your homeschool choices? What about other homeschoolers? As a secular homeschooler in a very small town I find myself answering A LOT of questions. Questions about why I homeschool, why I allow my faith (or lack there of) to rule our homeschool, and why I am using certain curriculums. Check out my {Guest Post} When a Homeschool Mom Says Your Curriculum Isn’t Good Enough, and find out how I handle this particular question!

Sneak Peak…

At some point, I am sure you have dealt with homeschool naysayers—folks lurking behind the corner, questioning your decision or making bold statements, such as:

• How will you know what to teach?
• Only teachers are qualified to teach kids. You should just put them in public school.
• How will your children socialize with others?
• Your children are going to fall behind their peers.

Facing homeschool naysayers is an unfortunate yet expected part of being a homeschool parent. If you know your why, it is easy enough to face these questions from outsiders head-on and continue on your happy homeschool journey.

However, every once in awhile a fellow homeschooler may catch you off guard with skepticism and criticism. Their critique will probably take on a different form, perhaps along the lines of, “You are using thaaaat curriculum?”

Head over to BookShark to read the rest of my {Guest Post} When a Homeschool Mom Says Your Curriculum Isn’t Good Enough to find out 3 points to keep in mind before getting upset!

How do you handle questions about your homeschool and homeschool curriculum?

Did you miss my past guest posts?

• How to Manage Multiple BookShark Programs in a Single School Year
• How Homeschooling Helps Me Manage My Bipolar Disorder
• 4 Reasons BookShark is Perfect for My ASD Child
• 3 Reasons I Treat My Homeschooled Teen as an Adult
• 3 Homeschool Picnic Ideas to Take Your Learning Outdoors
• How to Manage Your Time While Homeschooling
• 4 Ways to Commemorate and Celebrate the First Day of Homeschool
• Planning Your BookShark Homeschool in 3 Steps: From Box Day to Daily Lessons

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Death of Innocence or Perhaps Just a Dramatic Mama

The summer days have faded into fall, and a new season is upon us… It is a season of change for me and my family- and I am not just talking about the weather. Gone are the days of babies crying, toddlers running around, and young children just learning the alphabet. This year my “baby” turned 11 and started middle school, and with that a lot of things have come to an end. A lot of truths have been told. I find myself wondering if this is the Death of Innocence or Perhaps Just a Dramatic Mama desperately holding on to the past?

A Time for Truths…

My husband and I made the decision that the summer before our children started middle school it was time to have some very serious talks with them. You know all those really uncomfortable conversations that no parent truly want to have with their child. The talks about the changes in their bodies, sex (insert shudder), and discovering some truths they may not know yet! Such as there is no Santa Claus… Now some of you may be thinking, “What? Her almost middle schooler still believe in Santa Claus?”. I am happy to say a big, fat “YUUUUP”! 

One goal of mine as a parent was to protect my children’s innocence and childhoods as much as possible. The vast majority of ours lives are spent as adults dealing with some pretty heavy duty adult size problems, so I wanted my children to be young and innocent while they had the chance! As we all know time passes too quickly. A number of times my children did question if there was a Santa Claus because of conversations with other children. I simply told them “If you believe in Santa he is real, and he will visit you Christmas Eve“. Obviously that is a white lie, but a white lie that stopped many tears!

Not Ready to Let Go…

I thought like most parenting hurdles tackling the “No Santa” for the third time would be a breeze… As the summer quickly sped by I couldn’t bring myself to have ANY serious talks with Jack. If you have been following our journey you know that although Jack is 11 and a middle schooler, he has a number of special needs. Developmentally he has always been about 3 years behind. He is not quite ready to have some of the serious talks that my other children had with me at this age. However, my husband said it was still time to have the Santa talk. 

I waited a few weeks longer than normal to talk with Jack. I was so afraid to see his little heart break and selfishly I didn’t want to end my fun. It is so exciting for me to play Santa! Christmas is by far my favorite holiday, and part of that is the magic that Santa brings. I knew I had to have the conversation though. With his special needs I maybe could have put this off for a few more years, but he is a big boy. As in he is not much shorter than me and towers over everyone his age (and even quite a few children older than him). He just doesn’t look like a little boy any more, and I didn’t want someone else to tell him the truth. 

I finally found the perfect time to talk to him, and guess what? He didn’t shed a tear. I think that broke my heart more than if he would have cried! Apparently I waited too long because someone had already told him some of the truth (that Santa doesn’t put the presents under the tree). He was full of questions about who fills the stocking and if Christopher (our elf) moves on his own though. That night in the shower my tears flowed freely. I am relieved that my son was not as upset as my other two were when they were told the truth, but it was still hard for me. 

So you tell me… Is this the Death of Innocence or Perhaps Just a Dramatic Mama being extremely emotional?

Part of that childhood magic is now gone from my house. After 15+ years of parenting a lot of things have come to an end. There are no baby teeth left for the Tooth Fairy. There will be no Trick-or-Treating in a few weeks. And there will be no anticipation of Santa and his reindeer arriving late in the night… My Mama heart is aching. This time has come far too soon. I feel as though I should still have a house full of babies still, but the reality is those days have been gone for many years. 

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CashCrunch Careers Review

Julia just started her 8th grade year, and recently we were discussing what path she might want to pursue after high school. As of now she has no idea what she would like to do. If you are anything like me, you are a planner… Her uncertainty puts me more than a little on edge because I have no idea how to plan her high school career or which direction to point her in. Someone must have been reading my mind because just a few days later  I was offered the opportunity for Julia to complete the CashCrunch Careers survey from CashCrunch Games. What path was recommended for Julia? Check out my CashCrunch Careers Review to find out!

What is CashCrunch Careers?

CashCrunch Careers is an online career survey based on research from the US Department of Labor and recruitment tools from the corporate world. The survey consists of 75 questions and will take about 10 to 15 minutes to complete. This series of 75 questions help to reveal what careers would best suit you, what you would enjoy, and how to attain that career.

 

Throughout the survey Julia was given word-pairs, such as “likable” or “adaptable“. She had to choose which of the two words best describes her. 

 

One nice feature we discovered is that if you do not know what a word means all you have to do is simply move the cursor over the word and a definition box will appear. For example, when Julia hovered the cursor over the word “Flexible” a small box appeared below the word with the definition “Adjusts to change“. I believe most students would know the large majority of these definitions already, but it is definitely nice for the student to be able to quickly double check if in doubt.

Julia’s Results

The CashCrunch Careers survey results consist of four parts:

1. Career Work Styles

2. Motivators and De-motivators

3. Career Attributes

4. Career Match

Julia was pretty surprised with her results because almost all of her matches were for manager positions. She has absolutely no desire to work in a management position. After seeing her results she was hesitant to even explore the career matches at first. However, I told her to simply explore the career pathways because sometimes we have to weed through the wrong paths first before finding our way. The first career match she explored was “Property, Real Estate, and Community Association Managers“. 

Each career in the database includes a description page that lists the projected growth, projected need, tasks, and activities required for the jobs. The descriptions provided are pretty thorough. In addition to the description, there are videos for each career with on the job footage and college locations that offer degrees for that field.

Homework and Horseplay’s final thoughts…

Although Julia’s results contained a lot of career paths she would never go down, I still found CashCrunch Careers to be beneficial. Together we were able to explore a number of career paths including a few that she may not have thought about on her own. This survey really opened up so many discussions about her future. I feel as though we are pointed in the right direction for planning her high school career now.

Even though I found CashCrunch Careers to be beneficial I think there is room for improvement with the survey. It was very discouraging for Julia to be matched up to so many careers that she is not interested in. I think if there were more detailed questions asked during the survey that better matches would be made. I would also like to see pay scales added to the description pages. Although life is not all about money it is something to take into consideration while planning for the future.

The creator of CashCrunch Games, Paul Vasey, is also a teacher on SchoolhouseTeachers.com. Now that Julia has had time to explore career options she will be completing Mr. Vasey’s Personal Finance in Bite-Size Chunks course to complete her Careers & Finance elective this year. Hopefully this course will better prepare her for her adult years!

Thank you for checking out my CashCrunch Careers Review…

Are your children ready to discover what career path is right for them? Sign up for CashCrunch Careers today!

Read more from the Crew…

As always, I just want you to know…

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Where is Roxanne? – A Homeschool & Life Update

Perhaps you have noticed that I have not been quite as active here on Homework and Horseplay or any of my social media lately, and I wish I had a great explanation for all of you… However, the truth is I have been feeling a little overwhelmed for absolutely no reason. Check out Where is Roxanne? – A Homeschool & Life Update to find out what this #hotmessmama has been up to!

Homeschool Update

Can you believe we are nearing the end of week 6 of the 2018-2019 homeschool year? I made some really big curriculum changes this year, and we have been loving the way our homeschool days flow. I think I will continue to make a few tweaks here and there, but overall my curriculum selections seem to be a good fit!

One of our biggest road blocks has been Kenten’s Chemistry work. As part of my SchoolhouseTeachers.com subscription (see my review here), we have access to the first 12 weeks of lesson plans for Friendly Chemistry. I was so excited when I seen this because it meant one less thing to buy right away, but it is not a great fit for Kenten. He has been having trouble following the schedule, and I am constantly having to assist him. On top of all of this our printer decided to stop working. I will either need to order the physical books for this curriculum or find something else. 

On the positive side, by grouping Jack and Julia together for science and history we have cut our homeschooling time in half! It is so nice getting everything completed before lunch time. The Horrible Histories books are really fun to read. It has been a nice break to bring some humor into our homeschool days, and take this new approach to history. I shared my Savage Stone Age Unit last week, and hope to get my act together to share the other units we have completed soon!

Homeschool Favorites

My favorite curriculum addition this year is the “Big Fat Notebook” series. Julia reads a chapter for each of these books one day a week. She has commented a number of times how she likes the layout of the books. They are really easy to read and understand, and it only takes her a few minutes a day to complete the reading. I love that each chapter has a quiz at the end. I have Julia write her answers in a notebook, and after I grade it we take a few minutes to discuss any questions that she got wrong. 

 

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Life Update

Almost four years ago Ryan, the children, and I (oh and don’t forget our two fur babies)relocated from North Carolina to Michigan. On and off since we moved we have been trying to sell our first home, but had no luck and ended up renting it out. Our tenants just moved out over the weekend, so we decided to try selling our house once again. For weeks I was dreading the whole process of preparing the house to sell and hearing negative feedback, but what can a girl do? I don’t want to carry two houses any more, so we listed the house October 1st.

We had our first showing that afternoon, and by the very next morning we received an offer. I am thrilled to say that we accepted the offer, and should be closing in 3 weeks time! *FINGERS CROSSED* that these next few weeks go by smoothly and we can close on time. We have so many wonderful memories from our time in North Carolina, but I am more than ready to close this chapter of our lives.

Last week Ryan and I celebrated our 14th wedding anniversary. It is hard to believe that it has been so long since we said I do… What is even crazier is the fact that I have been with Ryan for half of my life as of August this year! We have had plenty of ups and downs, but I can’t wait to see what the next 14 (and many more) years bring!

Thank you for checking out Where is Roxanne? – A Homeschool Update…

Even though I really have nothing to feel overwhelmed about, sometimes I just get in a funk and shut down. I promise I will try to get back into the swing of things and be more active online again. How is your homeschool year and life going lately? I would love to catch up, so leave some chatter below! 

 

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