Linda's Rambles

This is Who I Am

2011-09-29T01:35:00.000-04:00

I've been thinking a lot lately about who I am. I don't want to get all philosophical, but just want to think about the kind of person I am. You see, I'm an oddly sort. Here are some things that a lot of people don't know about me....

I'm a dork... I love Star Wars and Star Trek, and I'm not ashamed... I love them to the "I-have-a-Jedi-costume" extreme... I wanted to make a Klingon costume but never got around to it...

I love video games... they are fun and suck up way too much of my time...

I'm a 30-something year old wife and mother of 4...

I don't have a precise theology nailed down... I believe the Bible... I believe that Jesus and God are the same... I believe that Jesus Christ is the ONLY Way, Truth and Life... I believe that there is only 1 God (the God of the Holy Bible) and only 1 way to get to Him... through Jesus.... I don't believe it is logical for people to believe that the gods of all different religions are the same god... they can't all be right...

I've wanted to move to Africa and live in a mud house for about 10 years now... I'm getting ready to move to Honduras and live in an adobe house... this is good enough for me... I've never heard anyone say they dreamed of living in mud house before...

I wanted to have 8-12 children, but my body couldn't handle it... this still makes me sad... I hope to one day adopt at least that many... I'm excited to be another foster mother to the 23 girls at Project Talitha Cumi in El Obispo, Honduras... I don't speak nearly enough Spanish to live in a Spanish-speaking country...

I believe that evolution is a religion... it takes just as much faith to believe it as it does to believe the Creation account of the Bible... I believe that God literally created the world by the sound of His voice in 6 literal days...

I believe that all people are created with a need and desire for God... but most people don't recognize this for what it is and try to fill their lives with stuff, sex, drugs, money, food... I believe that this breaks God's heart...

I believe that bad things happen because of Satan... good men die... children get cancer... people go hungry... I believe that this also breaks God's heart and He wants the hurt, lonely, sick, poor and hungry to come to Him so that He can love and comfort them... I believe it breaks His heart even more when His creation chooses to blame Him for the bad things rather than cling to Him...

I believe that peanut butter is one of the most wonderful foods on the planet... combined with bananas, I believe it may be the perfect food...

I want to lay my life down for Jesus... I want to give up all hold or control of my life to Him... I want Him to lead and guide me every step of my life... This scares me... a lot...

Sometimes I don't have the faith of a mustard seed...

I am not a great, faithful person... I simply want to be obedient... I believe Jesus when He said, "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him." John 3:36

I don't mind washing dishes, but I don't like putting them away... I hate washing silverware...

I wish I could adopt every orphan in the world...

I think my children are cool people... I like to hang out with them... but they also drive me crazy a lot of the time...

I think my husband is nearly perfect... although I don't really want him to know I think this...

I wish I wasn't scared to talk to people I don't know... I want the Holy Spirit to fill me with love and boldness and power so that I can minister to hurt and dying people without being nervous....

I believe that the greatest thing in the world is LOVE... God wants us to love each other... I think that people who claim to be Christians and bomb abortion clinics or beat gay men to death are lying... they are not really Christians... I believe that God can heal the world through our love... Jesus said that the greatest commandment was to love the Lord your God with all your soul, mind and strength and to love your neighbor as yourself... if we would truly love our neighbor as we love ourselves there would be a lot less pain and heartache in the world...

I am naive and gullible... I want to believe that people are good (even though the Bible says that no one is good)... I can also be a little ditzy and airheaded... I wish I could fix that, but I can't...

I'm a wife, mother, teacher, friend, sister, daugher, Jesus-seeker, dork, dreamer...

This is who I am...

~Linda

Life Goes On

2011-09-07T14:28:00.000-04:00

Well, I haven't had time to post blogs since we left for Honduras. Our stay there was wonderful. Many of you know by now that we are planning to move to Honduras full time to work with Such is the Kingdom Ministries. Read more about us on our family blog.

We've been home for a month now, and life is anything but "normal" (not that our lives were ever very normal). Football season is in full swing and the team is doing well. Evan is playing, Elizabeth is cheering. Nathan will begin flag football this weekend.

I've had a hard time getting into the swing of school and cooking meals/caring for a household since we came back. I cooked supper yesterday AND today, which seems to be a real feat. I haven't done that since we came back. I'm trying to get back into the swing of things. My healthy eating has taken a nose-dive since we just haven't had access to things like whole-wheat flour and coconut oil while in Honduras. And as I've said, I haven't done much cooking since we got back.

Anyway, here is a menu plan for the rest of this week. Hopefully this will kick start me back into my routines. I'm starting simple...

Tuesday:
Chili and cornbread (just wanted to through this in to show that I really DID cook!)

Wednesday:
cereal (blah)
chili nachos or chili dogs
Crock Pot Lasagna, biscuits, gelato (15th wedding anniversary dinner)

Thursday:
Baked oatmeal with raisins and bananas
hamburgers
burritos

Friday:
Banana muffins, scrambled eggs
mac & cheese
Dirty Rice

Saturday:
Blueberry pancakes
sandwiches (on the road to the football game)
?? - dinner out as we'll be in Atlanta for a football game

Sunday:
muffins at church

Well, that's as far as I've gotten. I'll probably need to go shopping again Saturday morning so that we'll have something for Sunday. Oh the joys of settling back into life!

~ Linda

Honduras - Day 1

2011-05-19T20:18:00.000-04:00

The long awaited day has finally arrived. We made it to Honduras in the middle of the night. We were very nervous as we came through customs as we did not know what to expect. We had hoped that the hotel would send a shuttle for us, but they did not. Thankfully there were plenty of taxi drivers waiting at the airport. We were able to catch a cab. I had to use some of my very poor Spanish skills to get the taxi. I'm pretty sure they charged us an exorbitant amount, but when you hot and exhausted in a foreign country in the middle of the night, you just want to get somewhere and lay down.

So all of us plus the taxi driver and our tons of luggage stuffed ourselves into a station wagon and headed to the hotel. We checked in and settled down at about 2:00 AM. We only have a small window unit air conditioner in our apartment, so I slept in the living room with that.

We had a great breakfast provided by the hotel. I had eggs, toast and fried plantains... Jer and the kids had pancakes. I'm hoping that they'll branch out while we're here.

After breakfast, we spent a couple of hours at the pool and decided to take a taxi into town to have lunch. San Pedro Sula is one of the biggest cities in the country, and still there are people living in what we would say is squalor. The main streets through town are pavement, but most side streets and any residential areas are dirt roads. So we're driving through this area that is all run down and dirty and then suddenly we're on a street that looks more like downtown Atlanta or something. Tall buildings, a mall, the Hilton... By the time we made it to town and looked around the mall a little we were so tired and hungry that we just ended up eating at Applebee's... Maybe next time we will try something more authentic, but for today it was nice to have something familiar.

I have already developed a new appreciation for non-English speaking people in America. It's really hard and frustrating for everyone when you can't communicate properly. I'm trying. Jer knows zero Spanish, and I know very little. We're managing though. I'm hoping that we'll both speak it much better by the time we leave.

The chairman of the board of directors for Such Is the Kingdom Ministries (http://www.sikm.org/) has been coming here multiple times a year for 10 years though and still can't speak Spanish! Oh well, he gets by. He even traded some pigs for a generator once!

We will be leaving San Pedro Sula and headed for the farm and Project Talitha Cumi where the girls live on Saturday. Jer's parents are bringing a team to meet us and we'll be taking the 4 hour bus ride up the mountain on Saturday morning. Jer will be driving a bus load of supplies. Pray for him. He's never done anything like that before and the Hondurans drive like maniacs. They take traffic rules as more of a suggestion than an actual mandate! They will pass anywhere they think they can squeeze their car through and honk if you are in their way. There's a lot of honking going on!

After we head up to the farm, we will not have constant internet access, so I will try to update everyone at least weekly!

Thanks for your love and prayers... keep sending them our way! We could still use some financial donations to make sure we have enough to get back home... haha! If you're interested in contributing, contact me and let me know!

~Linda

Homemade Cheese Sticks

2011-03-03T09:22:00.000-05:00

I already shared a recipe for this in my Super Bowl Menu post, but I wanted to revise it a little and show a pic. These are really good!

1 - 8 oz. block of mozarella cheese, sliced into 1/4 inch slices
3 eggs, beaten
2 cups of flour
4 cups bread crumbs
1 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
oil for frying
Marinara sauce (optional)

Combine bread crumbs, garlic powder, salt and pepper in a bowl. Set up a dipping station with a bowl of eggs, your bread crumbs and a bowl of flour. Dip the cheese sticks in the flour, then in egg, then flour again, egg again and finally bread crumbs. Place on a tray. Once you have dipped all the cheese sticks in this manner, freeze for at least two hours. If you want to make a large batch ahead of time, then after two hours, remove cheese sticks from tray and place in a freezer bag. Store in freezer.

When ready to prepare, heat oil in a pot or deep fryer. Carefully add cheese sticks, and fry until golden brown and cheese is melty, about 3-4 minutes. Serve with marinara for dipping. These turned out great, and so much cheaper than what you buy already frozen.

~Linda

Homemade Hamburger Buns

2011-03-01T17:01:00.000-05:00

A while back I tried my hand at making homemade whole-wheat hamburger buns. They were pretty good, more like rolls than hamburger buns. But they were certainly edible. The best part however was that we made doughnuts out of the scraps. Thought I'd share a couple of pics.

We fried them up and dusted them liberally with powdered sugar. Certain little fingers couldn't even wait for me to get the picture taken before reaching for one!

Everybody loves a good doughnut!

Final analysis? The buns were good, but the doughnuts were better!! Give 'em a try and see what you think!

~ Linda

Any-Kind-Of Muffins

2011-02-23T09:24:00.000-05:00

We love muffins in this house. I make them all the time. We love them with cheese and fruit as an easy breakfast. We love them by themselves as a snack. I have a great, simple and delicious muffin recipe that I thought I'd share with you. You can change it up anyway you want. Unlike some of the recipes that I share here, this one is completely my own concoction!

For the writing of the recipe, I'll make the Apple Cinnamon muffins, but you can use whatever flavorings you like.

2 c. plain flour (you could use white, wheat, buckwheat, rye, cornmeal, whatever, or a combination)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tb Baking Powder
1/4 c. oil
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
8 oz yogurt (this can be plain, vanilla or whatever flavor would compliment your muffins)
1 apple, peeled and grated
1 c. sugar (or honey, sucanat, rapadura, maple syrup, or whatever - I'd like to figure out if stevia might work)
1/2 c. milk
2 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350. Mix flour with salt and baking powder. Add remaining ingredients and mix just until combined (if you stir it too much, they'll be tough, especially if you're using whole wheat flour.) Fill muffin cups 3/4 full and bake for 15-18 minutes.

You can double or triple the recipe and freeze them for later use. They make great snacks. One thing I'm trying to get in the habit of doing is preparing as much as I can today for tomorrow's use. So if we're having muffins tomorrow, I'll try to make them tonight so that all I have to do is heat them up.

Now for the variations, you could add: bananas, berries, mango, pineapple, ham, sausage, or bacon & cheese, garlic and cheese (these would be good with a pasta dish), ham & pineapple for a Hawaiian muffin, cinnamon raisin, orange cranberry, sweet potato, pumpkin or any combination. One day I had some leftover mango, pineapple, and blueberries. I threw them in the food processor with a banana. They made the BEST muffins. NOTE: Remember to adjust your flavorings accordingly. You wouldn't want to use sugar, vanilla yogurt and cinnamon in a garlic and cheese muffin! If you're making a savory muffin, plain yogurt would be fine, but you could use sour cream instead if you're concerned. The yogurt or sour cream makes the muffins soooo moist!

This morning I used this recipe to make Vanilla Muffins with Cinnamon Crumb Topping.

What yummy combinations can you think of?

~Linda

A Day in Our Lives

2011-02-21T12:00:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago when I posted about our choice of homeschool curriculum, I promised a post about what our school day looks like. I've always been laid back when it comes to school. A year or two ago, I started to panic when I realized that high school loomed large, but I feel that I've gotten my emotions back in check and we are on a good course. So, our days are again laid back and as easy going as I can make them. That does not mean that they are without academic rigor. I expect much from my children. I personally believe that the public school system dumbs down their curriculum (here's another link regarding this subject). But perhaps we will save that debate for another day.

On to our typical school day. I have to note that there is little that is typical about my family. With 4 birth children and 1 foster child, days are always a little hectic. Also we are a very busy family with plenty of outside activities to keep us hopping. But here is what we strive for every day. If we hit this mark 3-4 days a week, I'm happy!

Evan (8th grade) usually wakes around 7:00 (which was long before the rest of us before Baby B came!) and gets started on his school work. He is required to do the following things each day:

Bible - 30 minutes (he is allowed to choose whatever portion of Scripture he would like.)

Math - 1 lesson each day - he is currently using Saxon Algebra 1

Reading - 1 1/2 hours each day - he is reading through the book list that I created - He is currently reading the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

History/Science - 30 minutes each day - alternating between the two daily - Currently he is reading Beacon Lights of History Vol. 1 and The Sciences by Eward Holden.

Writing - 1 hour or 1 page each day - usually he is composing an essay either based on his current reading or based on a topic that I have assigned - Currently he is working on a research project about Honduras.

Poetry/Current Events - 10 minutes each day - alternating - For poetry we use the suggestions at Ambleside Online. For current events we use magazines from God's World News.

Nathan (3rd grade) is required to do the following:

Bible - approximately 15 minutes per day - He is using the Keys for Kids devotional books

Reading - 30 minutes each day - He is also reading through the book list and is reading The Burgess Bird Book for Children by Thornton Burgess

Math - 1 lesson per day from Saxon 3

Spelling - 15 minutes per day - Spell to Write and Read

Poetry/Current Events - 10 minutes per day alternating between the two daily

McGuffey First Reader - 10 minutes 2x per week - Nathan is required to read this aloud to me so that I can make sure he is pronouncing the words correctly and understanding the use of punctuation.

Occasionally he is required to write an original composition and we work on grammar, punctuation and spelling based on the mistakes he's made in his writing. He is also required to narrate to me so that I'm sure he's comprehending what he's reading (Evan is required to do this as well.) These are both very Charlotte Mason ideas.

I am currently working with Elizabeth on phonics and basic math concepts. She is using Spell to Write and Read. She uses Math-U-See Primer for math.

Ben and Baby B are just tagging along for the ride. They are wonderful children, but not always the most helpful when it comes to getting school work done. *wink*

Friday's are supposed to be our Friday Fun Day. It is a shorter school day. The kids are still required to do math, but less reading. Evan alternates each Friday reading either How to Read a Book by Mortimer J. Adler or Community Civics and Rural Life and discussing it with me. We also do once-a-week unit studies on Friday. We are currently doing a study of the Life of Jesus.

Believe it or not, we are usually done with school by lunch or 1:00. This is great for me as the kids can have some free time and I (hopefully) have a few minutes to relax or get some work done (usually the latter).

What's your typical school day like? What would you change about it?

~Linda

Weekly Menu Plan - 2/19 - 2/25

2011-02-21T11:33:00.001-05:00

I know you've been dying to know what we've been eating around here for the last two weeks. I'm sorry to have kept you in such suspense, but it's been crazy hectic around here and I haven't had time to make a menu. Or this week, even to go grocery shopping. We've done too much eating out and Little Caesar's Pizza. Ugh! So here we go, I'm MAKING the time to make the plan since I can never FIND the time!

Saturday
Cinnamon Swirl Toast, Eggs
probably lunch out because we will be shopping
Taco Salad

Sunday
Muffins @ church
Grilled Chicken Salad
Burritos

Monday
French Toast Casserole
Leftovers
Chicken Casserole

Tuesday
Baked Oatmeal
Leftovers
Spaghetti

Wednesday
Muffins
Leftovers
Baked Potato Bar

Thursday
Grits & Eggs
Sandwiches
Black Beans & Rice

Friday
Oatmeal
Sandwiches or leftovers
Turkey & Veggie Quesadillas

~Linda

Mexican Ravioli

2011-02-19T08:35:00.001-05:00

This is Evan's favorite dish. He loves to make it, too! It's a quick and easy "go to" meal. I wish I could find some whole wheat ravioli that wasn't outrageously priced. I guess I could make up a big batch to freeze and have on hand.

1 bag frozen, cheese ravioli

1 can enchilada sauce

1 cup salsa

1 cup shredded cheese

1 can sliced, black olives

Cook ravioli according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet combine the enchilada sauce and salsa. Heat till bubbly. Add the cooked ravioli and stir to coat. Top with cheese and olives. Cover and remove from heat. Let sit until cheese is melted. Serve with sour cream.

So simple and so good!

~Linda

BBQ Meatloaf

2011-02-18T09:40:00.001-05:00

With having our new foster baby in the house, I've barely had time to think much less write any blog posts. I also haven't had time to make out a menu for the past two weeks. Hopefully I can spend some time doing that this weekend. We've got to get our lives back to "normal"!

On to the meatloaf...

Let me start by saying that I don't like meatloaf, never have. I've tried all kinds and varieties, and never found one I liked... till now! After I gave birth to Elizabeth, one of my good friends brought us dinner, BBQ Meatballs and Mac & Cheese. I was thankful to get it since it meant I didn't have to cook, but wasn't really looking forward to it. After I ate it though, I just couldn't believe how much I loved it. When I had Ben, I started to ask her to fix me the same thing again, but thankfully she didn't remember that she had fixed it before and so brought it again. I was excited!

I found this recipe in a magazine, and it is close to hers. It is just so good. It's one of Elizabeth's favorite meals!

2 lbs ground chuck
1 box of stuffing mix (not cornbread stuffing)
1 cup of water
2 eggs
1/4 cup BBQ sauce + more for the top

Combine all ingredients and shape into a loaf. Place in a greased 9x13 baking dish. Cover the top with more bbq sauce. Bake at 350 for about 1 hour. You'll never put ketchup on a meatloaf again!!

Now, having said all that, I'm trying to avoid processed foods. So how can I keep making this meatloaf, but without the processed ingredients?

~Linda

Super Bowl Menu

2011-02-01T18:37:00.000-05:00

I can hardly believe I'm saying this, but I forgot that Sunday is the Super Bowl. As Jer was looking at our menu plan for the week, he was very dismayed to find that I was planning to have leftovers during the Big Game. So, I've had to tweak our menu a little bit. Here is our newly revised menu for Super Bowl Sunday

Breakfast: Muffins at church
Lunch: Leftovers

Game Time:

Homemade Pizza
Chips and Homemade Salsa
Cheese Sticks
Jalapeno Poppers
Peanut Butter Popcorn

Homemade Pizza - I'll be using this recipe from AllRecipes.com to make the pizza crust. I'll set out a variety of toppings so that each person can make their own pizza. I'll probably do individual sizes for the kids. I plan on making mine a Super Veggie with spinach, artichokes, roasted red peppers, etc... oh, I can't wait!

Homemade Salsa
1 onion, quartered
1 bunch of cilantro, washed, dried, and leaves removed from stems
3-4 garlic cloves
juice of 1 lime
5-6 pickled jalapeno slices (more if you like it super spicy)
salt and pepper to taste
2 cans diced tomatoes

Add onion, cilantro, garlic and jalapeno to the bowl of your food processor and process till finely chopped. Add remaining ingredients, and process for a few seconds to combine. Serve immediately with your favorite tortilla chips.

Cheese Sticks

1 block of mozzarella cheese, cut into slices
1 egg, beaten
1 c. bread crumbs
spaghetti sauce for dipping

Dip cheese slices into egg, and roll in bread crumbs. Place on a baking sheet, and freeze for at least 2 hours. When ready to serve, fry cheese slices in hot oil until golden brown. If you want "sticks" you could use string cheese cut in half, but this has the same flavor for less money.

Jalapeno Poppers

10-20 jalapenos, cut in half and seeded
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
2 eggs, beaten
2 cups bread crumbs

Stuff each pepper half with a couple of tablespoons of the cheese, place on baking sheet and freeze for at least two hours. Dip each frozen pepper into the egg and then roll in bread crumbs. Return to freezer for another hour. When ready to serve, fry in hot oil until golden brown. Serve immediately.

Both of the above take a little time to prepare, but they're so much cheaper than buying them in the frozen food section. These are good, but might be better with a batter coating. If you come up with anything, let me know and I'll give it a try.

Peanut Butter Popcorn - this recipe is from the More-With-Less Cookbook that I mentioned yesterday.

2 quarts of popped popcorn
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c honey
1/2 c chunky peanut butter
1/2 t vanilla

Cook sugar and honey to a rolling boil. Remove from heat and add peanut butter and vanilla. Pour over popcorn, stirring to coat.

I'll update with pics after the Big Game!

~Linda

Indonesian Chicken

2011-02-01T16:56:00.001-05:00

Several of my friends specifically asked me to share this recipe. We had it last Thursday for supper. I didn't get to eat any of it because I was sick in the bed. Nor did I get to take any pictures. I was told that it was quite tasty however! Even Jer like it, which is saying a lot. They did say, though, that the sauce is better on the chicken than it is on the rice. I'll let you be the judge...

Crockpot Chicken Indonesian

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 TB soy sauce
4-6 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 tsp fresh ginger-root, minced
3 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (or to taste)
salt and pepper to taste
1/3 c peanut butter

Place chicken in the crockpot. Combine remaining ingredients (EXCEPT peanut butter) in a small bowl. Whisk and pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low 4-6 hours. Watch carefully as sometimes boneless chicken has a tendency to cook too quickly and dry out. If you use bone-in chicken, you will need to cook it a little longer. When chicken is done, remove from the crockpot and keep warm. Pour juices into a small pot and heat to boiling. Remove from heat and add peanut butter, stir until smooth. Serve sauce with chicken.

I serve it with brown rice, or you could try spaghetti noodles.

Here's a little garlic tip: I hate chopping garlic as it makes my hands smell garlicky all night (and most of the next day as well). I love to eat garlic though. I used to buy the little jars of minced garlic, but there's something weird about that. Plus fresh garlic is more healthy. Now I buy garlic in bulk and chop it in the food processor, and store it in one of the left over garlic jars. Three or four heads of garlic will fill up one of those little jars.

Here's how I do it: break the garlic bulbs into individual cloves. Place them all in a bowl. Cover with another similar sized bowl and then shake like mad. This will make the garlic skin just fall off. You can then just pick out all the peeled cloves and put them in the food processor. You may have to repeat the process a couple of times to get them all peeled. I then just turn on the food processor and let it go. I stop it every once in a while to scrape the sides down. I add a little olive oil to it as well. You can chop it to your desired consistency. It's never really lasted more than two weeks around here, so I can't give you any definite idea of a shelf life. A teaspoon of this is about equal to 1 clove of garlic. Now you can enjoy fresh garlic without constantly smelling like it!

~Linda

Menu Plan - January 31 - Feb 6

2011-01-31T17:48:00.000-05:00

Well, I've been sick with strep throat for several days. Now here it is Monday and I hadn't even thought of what we'd eat this week. I hate it when things work out to where I have to plan the whole menu in one day. I usually take several days to make the menu for next week. This way I can really think about what I'm doing, have some good variety, and make sure that I'm making the best use of the ingredients that I already have on hand. Weeks like this, when I don't have a lot of time to make the menu, I usually resort to my "old-standby's" (this is Jer's favorite time!)

Anyway, here it is:

Monday
Oatmeal
Wendy's (we had to go to the doctor today)
Chili & Cornbread

Tuesday
Eggs & Grits
Sandwiches
BBQ Meatloaf (I'll post the recipe for this, and trust me, YOU WANT this recipe!)

Wednesday
Sausage Pancake Muffins
Chili Mac
Mexican Ravioli

Thursday
Oatmeal
Sandwiches
Roast Chicken, Potatoes, & Carrots

Friday
Cinnamon Swirl Toast & Eggs
Leftovers
Chicken Stirfry

Saturday
Pancakes (or French Toast Casserole)
??
Going out to a Birthday Party

Sunday
Muffins
Burritos
Leftovers

In a slightly related note, I want to highly recommend a good cookbook for all you frugal, wanna-be healthy gals (or guys). The More-With-Less Cookbook by Doris Longacre is a great book. Tons of simple, healthy recipes made mostly with real food. The few recipes that call for ingredients that you might not want to use could easily be replaced with somthing you're more comfortable with, i.e. butter for margarine, etc. There are tons of great tips about how to stretch foods from one meal to the next. I got mine used off of Amazon several years ago, and I love it!

I have so many posts I want to write right now, but I don't want to bombard my meager readership with too much at once and have nothing left! Ha! Anyway, prayers for my family would be appreciated right now as we have 5 out of 6 members on antibiotics.

~Linda

The Evolution of Our Homeschool

2011-01-26T12:30:00.002-05:00

I was pregnant with Evan when we decided to homeschool our children. I knew even then that I wanted to keep my kids home with me. At the time the decision was influenced by fear that my kids wouldn't be safe in school, and doubts that the schools could do a good job with educating my little geniuses!

I spent hours and hours on the internet reading about homeschooling. I read about unschooling, Charlotte Mason, traditional "school-at-home" schooling. I really was intrigued by the unschooling, but my hubby was NOT on board with that. I decided that Charlotte Mason best fit my ideas about what a school should look like.

I tried for years to follow Charlotte's writings and methods. I read books and websites. I joined Charlotte Mason e-loops. I tried really, REALLY hard to have the perfect Charlotte Mason school, but... I just couldn't do it. I loved the idea of studying French, Nature, Latin, Plutarch, Shakespeare, Art, Folk songs, Hymns, Composers, Artists... sheesh, I'm exhausted just typing all that stuff, let alone doing it. And I haven't even gotten to the "normal" school stuff like the Three R's, science, history, composition, spelling, etc.

I felt like I was drowning.

We did Sonlight for years, but it is expensive (about $1200/year). It's also very time consuming as well. There are a LOT of books to read with Sonlight.

A couple of years ago I started looking into ways to homeschool my kids for free, or close to it. I have always loved the Ambleside Online site. (If you've never looked at it you should. It has a great free curriculum for you, using mostly free books found on the internet.) However, I've never been able to pull off trying to do all that. We were spending 7-8 hours each day on school... which is waayyy too much by the way... unless you have a highschooler. (If you're spending that much time on school each day... we need to talk!)

When I became the president of the homeschool group, someone gave me Switched on Schoolhouse in the right grade level for Evan. That was probably our worst year of homeschooling. Not that SOS is a bad curriculum, but when you're used to reading living books, biographies and historical fiction then text book is exceedingly dry and dull.

This summer I decided that something had to give. I wanted my children to have a super education, using high quality books, written years ago by people who knew how to write AND had a belief in God and a moral center. Two years ago I had fiddled with the Robinson Curriculum, but didn't trust the self-teaching method. I didn't think my kids had it in them to educate themselves! Well, this summer I decided to give it a go again.

I read through the Robinson website and created my own book list from the books in the Robinson Curriculum, Ambleside Online and Old-Fashioned Education. Each of my kids has to read through the booklist and complete Saxon Math up to at least Advanced Math (trigonometry) in order to graduate. The book list goes from kindergarten to twelfth grade. It includes all "subject" areas: science, literature, history, Bible, Poetry, etc. The majority of the books are free on the internet (we don't do too well with the library... I think I've probably paid for a new wing at ours.)

Well, this has already turned out longer than I wanted. Later I'll post about a day in the life of our homeschool so you can see how we make it all work.

~Linda

Upside Down Pizza Casserole

2011-01-25T10:24:00.000-05:00

1 - 1 1/2 lb ground beef, turkey, or pork

1 medium onion, chopped

1-2 bell peppers, chopped

4-5 mushrooms, chopped

4 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp Italian seasoning

salt & pepper to taste

Combine all the above ingredients in a large skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until meat is cooked through. Spread in the bottom of a well greased 9x13 pan.

Spread 1/2 jar of spaghetti sauce over meat and veggie mixture. Cover with pepperoni and shredded mozzarella cheese. Sprinkle with grated parmesan.

Topping:

1 c. milk

1 T olive oil

2 eggs

1 c. plain flour (I used whole wheat)

1/2 tsp. salt

Mix, stirring just until combined. Pour over casserole. This makes a very thin layer of topping on your casserole. If you wanted a thicker topping, you'd need to make more batter.

Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes. Enjoy!

You could get creative with this and use other pizza toppings that you like: spinach, tomatoes, black olives, artichokes, pineapple (if you're crazy enough to like that sort of thing), etc. It's made just like an upside down pizza, so use your imagination.

What else might you put in this dish?

~Linda

Camping in the Woods on a Snowy Day

2011-01-25T09:16:00.000-05:00

The boys got a good bit of camping gear for Christmas, so we decided it would be fun to go backpacking in the mountains for the weekend. Little did we know that there was still snow all over the mountains!

The hiking was absolutely beautiful! I would be more than happy to go hiking in this kind of weather again. However, it was entirely too cold for camping (for my tastes anyway). It was nice to get out into nature with the kids though. And we saw many beautiful and interesting things.

We camped beside this beautiful river. I loved listening to the river gurgling beside us all night. Especially since I was awake most of the night and needed something to listen to!

Don't know what in the world this is. Anyone care to enlighten me? Its a beautiful ground cover. It is "pine-needly" looking (how's that for a scientific description?) But it also looks soft and maybe even fluffy. Anyway, I liked the way it looked, so I took a pic. Maybe I'll be able to find out what it is and post. Maybe.

An old tree stump covered in moss. I think moss is beautiful. When I was a kid, I checked out a book from the library that had pictures of fairies living in the woods. I used to imagine that I was one of those fairies, living in logs, sleeping in the flowers. If I were really a fairy that lived in the woods, this is the kind of place I'd like to live.

All in all, our camping trip was great (despite the fact that half of us have colds now). I think we'll go hiking in the woods on a snowy day again... but we'll wait for warm, sunny days for camping from now on!

~Linda

Weekly Menu Plan

2011-01-24T11:22:00.002-05:00

Here's the grub at our house this week...

Monday
French Toast Casserole
Leftovers
Upside Down Pizza Casserole, Salad

Tuesday
Oatmeal
Mac & Cheese
Cuban Black Beans & Rice, Mexican Chopped Veggie Salad

Wednesday
Eggs & Grits
Leftovers
BBQ Sloppy Joes, Oven Fries

Thursday
Muffins
Sandwiches
Indonesian Chicken, Rice, Green Beens

Friday
Leftover French Toast Casserole
Leftovers or sandwiches
Turkey Noodle Soup

Saturday
Pancakes, fruit
??
Date Night - My Taco

Sunday
Muffins @ church
Pulled Pork Sandwiches, Baked Beans, Cole Slaw
Leftovers

French Toast Casserole... mmm...

2011-01-24T09:18:00.002-05:00

Today we tried something new... French Toast Casserole...

One of the great things about this recipe is that I can start it the night before and in the morning just pop it in the oven. It also uses simple ingredients. I've seen these types of casseroles before that needed special ingredients, such as french bread, or instant vanilla pudding. I don't keep these types of things in the house. This recipe calls for regular old loaf bread. I used Dutch Colony Whole Wheat (that's my favorite). I cut the loaf in to squares (each slice cut into 6 pieces), and let it set on a towel to dry out some.

The recipe calls for 6 eggs and 3 cups of milk, but I felt that it needed a little more milk than that. I added about a half a cup more. Once I had the casserole assembled, I sprinkled the top with cinnamon and sugar.

In the morning I dotted the top with butter, cause butta' makes everything betta'!

On a distantly related note... once when I was cooking with one of my children who was in the "why??" stage of life, I was adding cheddar cheese to a recipe. Of course the child* asked why I was putting the cheese in there. I said, "Cheddar makes it better." Then the child started singing, "chedda' makes it betta' when you're feeling worse or deada'." Dontcha just love kids!

Anyhoo, back to the French Toast Casserole... the recipe says to bake for 45-50 minutes, but I thought it would be done in 30... nope! After calling the kids to breakfast and having the table ready, I cut into it to discover that it was still kinda runny. After many an "Aw maaaannn!", back into the oven it went. The house smells heavenly right now!

I guess you want to know about the taste... It's fabulous! If you like french toast, you'll love this recipe. It can make a hectic morning easier because you can just take it from the fridge and pop it in the oven while you get ready.

You should really try it!!

~Linda

*Names have been omitted to protect the innocent... or easily embarrassed.

Baked Oatmeal

2011-01-20T10:18:00.000-05:00

A friend suggested that I should start a recipe section on here. This is not one of the recipes she asked for, but it's one we love and we had it for breakfast this morning.

Baked Oatmeal

2 1/2 c. rolled oats (old-fashioned)
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
1 1/4 c. milk
2 large eggs
1/2 c. honey or sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. raisins (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine wet ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Add dry ingredients and stir to combine. Pour into a greased 8x11 pan. Bake for 30 minutes or until center is set. Serve with butter and milk. Enjoy!

~Linda

I Left My Heart in Honduras

2011-01-19T14:30:00.019-05:00

Jer, Evan and I had the awesome privilege of taking a mission trip to Honduras the week after Christmas. This was such an amazing time, and God really worked in our hearts and lives while we were there.

We were at a girl's home in the mountains of western Honduras. The country is just beautiful and the scenery breathtaking. The girls at the farm were wonderful, and we really fell in love with them.

As I sat down to write this post, I wondered, how do you describe a moment that has changed you forever? Like the moment you fell in love or the first time you laid eyes on your newborn child, you knew your life would never be the same. And yet you can't find the words to adequately describe how you feel, how it has changed you. That's the way I feel about our trip to Honduras.

As our plane was taking off to come back home, I knew my heart was staying behind. I knew that I had to go back to that place. When we came home, Jer and I spent several days weeping, mourning, longing for the girls at the home.

We are already planning our next trip. We will be staying in Honduras for 2-3 months. We will be leaving sometime later this year. Please pray with us and for us as we try to do what we know God is calling us to do.

~Linda

Menu Planning

2011-01-18T22:37:00.001-05:00

I can barely function if I don't have a menu plan. No menu means we end up eating peanut butter and jelly or just going out to eat. I would guess that we easily spend 3 times our normal food budget on the weeks when I don't make a menu.

So, how do I go about making a menu? First I take a look at the ingredients that I have on hand already. I try not to choose a lot of dishes for which I have to buy every single ingredient.

Then I take a look at what's on sale. Well, I try to do that anyway. It doesn't always work out that way. Sometimes I will say lets have a pot roast this week, but I get to the store and find out that roast is not a reasonable price. In that case, we'll have roast chicken instead. This is a comprable dish that uses many of the same ingredients. I try to do the same with other recipes I've chosen.

My next menu planning step is to think about what we've had in the last couple of weeks (having a written menu makes this a simple step). I don't want to have chili every Wednesday for a month. I try to not repeat the same dishes too frequently. If it's something that my hubby likes, he would love for me to repeat the same dishes over and over, but I would get bored. (He's very much a creature of habit while I'm a little more adventurous.)

If I get stumped, I bring out my recipe books and just look through them. I don't like to have the same thing over and over. Wait, did I already say that? Oh well... I love looking through recipes, food magazines, blogs and websites with recipes. That's fun to me. I know, weird, huh?

I created a menu worksheet to help me plan all of our meals (pictured above). When I'm done I can print it out and hang it on the wall in the kitchen. The kids love this because they can go to it to find out what our next meal will be (it's rather exciting for them). I love it because they're not asking me 100 times a day what's for supper. Jer doesn't like to look at the menu. Just between you and me I think he's scared of what I'll be feeding them this week! He would be totally thrilled if we had Meatloaf Monday, Taco Tuesday, etc. every day of the week.

The menu worksheet lists the meals across the top and the days of the week down the side. Then I can just fill in the chart each week. Harder to see is the snack selections across the bottom of the page. I don't just let my kids graze all day. We eat breakfast and lunch pretty close together, and then they have a snack in the afternoon. We try to eat supper at about the same time every day. So the kids can choose 1 snack per day from the list. This week it happens to be all fruit. Sometimes I'll bake some muffins and cookies and they can have some of those for a snack. Homemade snacks are something I'm working on, but that's a different post for a different day.

So here's our menu for this week:

Monday
Grits & eggs
leftover enchilada casserole
White Bean Soup and Biscuits

Tuesday
Oatmeal & apples
Chicken burritos
Pork loin, turnip greens and corn bread

Wednesday
Muffins
leftover White Bean Soup
fried chicken, mashed potatoes, peas

Thursday
Baked Oatmeal
pb&j
spaghetti, salad

Friday
eggs & toast
salmon patties, mashed potatoes, peas
Chicken Divan

Sat. & Sun. - we're going backpacking so we'll be eating MRE's.

What's for supper at YOUR house??

~Linda

My Very First REAL Biscuits!

2011-01-18T12:09:00.001-05:00

I'm a Southern girl, born and raised. I'm also a good cook. I'm not really bragging, but my friends and family always tell me that I'm a good cook, so I guess that I am. I guess that's why I've always been so embarrassed by the fact that, shhhh... I can't make biscuits. There, whew, I said it.

For years I've been on a quest to better my health. I've read book after book, article after article, blog after blog, website after website for a really long time trying to find ways to improve our diets and become more healthy. (I know biscuits and healthy eating seem like conflicting ideas, but hang with me here for a minute...) I have tons of head knowledege about eating healthily, but I've never made that leap and actually started putting my knowledge into action.

A couple of days ago I discovered a wonderful blog called Heavenly Homemakers. This is a great blog, and I highly recommend it. She has a great, easy-going writing style. She and her family have been on a journey for the last few years to eat a healthy diet. In fact she has a series of blog posts dedicated to her family's journey. I was so inspired by her journey and her Simple Steps Toward Healthy Eating that this week I've decided to incorporate some of her ideas.

As I went grocery shopping yesterday I tried to avoid most processed foods and buy whole, real foods. As my budget is limited and I'm just beginning, I didn't buy anything organic, but I didn't buy anything that comes in a box either.

Here is a short summary of some of the steps:

1.) Decide to start. You have to decide to make healthy eating a priority.
2.) Incorporate more FRESH fruits and vegetable into your diet.
3.) Drink more water.
4.) Switch from white to brown in the following areas: rice, flour, sugar.

This is a very short summary, and there are more tips at the site, and I'd highly recommend that you go there and read through the posts for yourself.

Now back to the biscuits...

For Monday's supper I decided to make some White Bean Soup (perhaps I'll post the recipe later), and biscuits. I wanted to learn how to make biscuits, but I also wanted them to be healthier so I made whole wheat biscuits. I rolled them out and everything. The recipe called for butter, and I used shortening instead. If I had thought of it, health-wise, butter would have been the better choice. Oh well, now that I know how, I can make them more often, and I'll remember to use the butter instead.

Look at the picture above and drool my friends... they tasted even better than they looked!

~Linda

I Want to Start Blogging Again

2011-01-17T21:02:00.002-05:00

It's been almost 2 years since my last blog post. So much has happened since then... duh...

I spent a year and a half being the president of our homeschooling support group (www.scchoice.org). It was a great learning experience for me, and I'm thankful to have had that opportunity. During that time, I decided not to blog because I didn't want to be tempted to share things (or even complain about things) that I should not share (or complain about) in a blog. Of course after 1 1/2 years, I really fell out of the habit of blogging, but I want to start back. Hopefully there is still someone who might be interested in reading what I have to say! ;o)

So hopefully I'll be blogging full time again, and hopefully someone will read it!

~Linda

Free Computer Lessons

2009-01-27T12:18:00.005-05:00

Last Friday, Evan asked to go to work with his dad. He took his school work and did it there at the cabinet shop. We had an old computer there that no longer worked, and Jer wanted Evan to take it apart to get a basic working knowledge of computers. He decided to search for some lesson plans, and found this:

Computer Connections on Kaboose.com. These are free for the taking and geared toward Elementary age children. Evan is is 6th grade and it was right on his level.

Enjoy!

~Linda

Mondays on Mothering - Moms Off Duty!

2009-01-26T22:29:00.003-05:00

Tonight was our monthly Moms Off Duty - M.O.D. Squad - night with our local homeschool support group. I know that this Meme is supposed to be about the joys of mothering, but I believe that every mom needs a break now and then! One of the ways I keep my joy as a mother is to get out of the house by myself once in a while. Tonight we went out for Chinese and had a gift exchange. We exchanged something that we got for Christmas that we didn't need or want or something that we had around the house that we wanted to get rid of. We were not allowed to spend any money. I was able to get rid of something that, while I liked it, I did not have any use for. I came home with an adorable purse. The kind you would buy at the Christian book store, that I could never afford for my self. We had a great time of fun and fellowship. Everyone was able to get rid of something unwanted and everyone enjoyed what they received! After this enjoyable evening, I was able to come home feeling refreshed to my wonderful children who were waiting for me to come tuck them in!

Before I left, Evan said to me, "Mama, do we look funny or something, you keep smiling." "No," I said, "I'm just excited to be going out!"

What brings you joy as a mother? Join Amy for Mondays On Mothering to share!

~Linda

New Beginning

2009-01-20T09:28:00.004-05:00

Wow, it's been awhile.

At the end of every year, I end up feeling as if that year was a bust! With the new year comes a new beginning, a new chance to "get it right." At the beginning of 2008 I made so many resolutions. I was going to be a better wife, better mother, better follower of Christ. I was going to exercise and eat healthy. Make and stick to a budget. The list could go on.

Well, I did not exercise and eat healthy last year. I did not make and stick to a budget, in fact 2008 was one of the worst financial years we've had in a while. It seemed as though we were always playing catch-up with our bills, and we're still playing.

I always have so many ideas for ways to improve myself, and I find I'm always thinking and hoping that when I accomplish "_________", things will be better. If I was thinner, neater, more organized, if I was kinder to my husband, if I yelled at my kids less, if our house was larger, if there was more money in the bank, then I would be happy, then I would be content. The truth is that if I cannot find contentment in my life now, changing my circumstances will not help!

So how do I become content? Is it a gift? Does it come naturally? No, it is learned! "...I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4: 11-13. Jesus gives us strength to be content no matter what. What we have to do is pray and ask for that strength.

So this year I've resolved not to make any resolutions. I don't want to come to the end of this year feeling like a failure. However, I am going to continue to work on the goals I want to achieve. Every year brings me closer to being the person I want to be, the person that God wants me to be. Every day gives me a new chance to be a better wife and mother, to make healthier eating choices, to exercise, to spend my money wisely, to learn to be content in my 3 bedroom single-wide trailer. Every day is a new beginning!

"No dear brothers and sisters, I am still not all I should be, I am focusing all my energies on this one thing. Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead." Philippians 3:13

~Linda

Homeschool Memoirs - A Thankful Heart

2008-12-02T14:08:00.003-05:00

OK, so I know that Thanksgiving was last week, but there is always time to be thankful right? This weeks topic is 27 things we're thankful for. So here goes...

1 - Salvation through Jesus Christ
2 - My husband
3 - My children
4 - Growing up in a Christian home
5 - Parents who love me and put up with a lot from me over the years!
6 - My sister who loves me even though I can be really mean to her sometimes! :o(
7 - Friends!!!!!!
8 - A great church
9 - A roof over my head
10 - Clothes to wear
11 - Food to eat
12 - Computers!
13 - Air conditioning!
14 - Living in America
15 - My van that the Lord miraculously provided for us
16 - Chocolate (WOW, this is harder than I thought it would be!)
17 - The ocean
18 - Our camper
19 - Family vacations
20 - Mom's night out!!
21 - Date night!!
22 - Books
23 - Family traditions
24 - Music
25 - Fresh fruit in the summer
26 - Colorful leaves in the fall
27 - Cool weather!

Whew! I had no idea it would be so hard to come up with 27 things to be thankful for! There is still one day left for this theme! Are you up to the challenge??

Until Next Time,
~Linda~

Mondays on Mothering - Babies

2008-12-01T16:35:00.003-05:00

I took an unintentional break from blogging for the last couple of weeks. I've been so busy, I haven't had time to blog!

I love babies! Who doesn't? Babies are so fun to watch. One of my favorite things about being a mother is watching my babies play and interact with the world around them. Now that Ben is crawling and into everything, I really have to stay on my toes. This child can be sitting sweetly in front of me on the floor one minute, and at the other end of the house eating legos the next!

He is so funny when he is exploring something new. First he looks and sizes up the mysterious object. He needs to decide if it's worth the effort to crawl to it...it usually is. Next he tries to pick up this new thing. Of course the next step in exploration is the taste test. A baby MUST know what something tastes like if he is going to take the trouble of playing with it. It is especially fun when we go some place new and there are so many more things to see and do!

Here's a sweet picture of my little man!

What do you love about being mother? Join Amy for Mondays on Mothering to share your mothering joys!

Until Next Time,

~Linda~

Mondays on Mothering - Random Thoughts

2008-11-17T22:53:00.003-05:00

Here are some random things I love about being a mother!

~ Little sleepy heads coming out in the morning, rubbing sleep out of their eyes, climbing in my lap to cuddle!

~ Slobbery kisses from a teething baby!

~ Being great friends with my eleven year old son!

~ Little hands helping me cook dinner and sneaking tastes before everyone comes to the table!

~ Having my kids still think I'm "cool"!

~ Doing "girly" stuff with my daughter!

~ Sweet baby giggles!

~ Hugs!

~ Admiring Play-doh creations!

~ Having an excuse to color!

What do you love about being a mother? Join Amy for Mondays on Mothering!

Until Next Time,

~Linda~

Elizabeth's Birthday

2008-11-15T20:52:00.005-05:00

My little girl just turned three! I can't believe how fast she is growing up! On her birthday we asked her, "how old are you?" "Free," she said! "How old will you be on your next birthday?" "Fifteen," came her response! HA! That is about the truth, three going on fifteen! Heaven help us! I wanted to share some pictures of her special day.

On her actual birthday, she wanted to go to our favorite Mexican restaurant "Arrierrierrieo." Actually, that's El Arrierro.

How old are you Elizabeth?

She's not sure about the big hat.

She's even less sure about the singers!

OK, this is just too much!

She was willing to give it a try, but she steadfastly refused to use the spoon and actually eat the ice cream!

She did share with Daddy though!

At her birthday party, she would not open the presents at first. She finally got into opening on the last two or three presents!

She loved the cake, but again, Little Miss Stubborn absolutely refused to blow out the candle! Daddy had to do it, no one else would do! The cake is supposed to be a Princess Castle. Some people thought it was a crown, but what the hey! It looked pretty and tasted great! She's holding a jewelry box that Evan made for her in his woodburning class. She loves it!

Happy Birthday Princess! I love you!

Until Next Time,

~Linda~

Happy Veteran's Day!

2008-11-11T12:29:00.002-05:00

As the daughter of a Vietnam Vet and the wife of a Desert Storm vet, I am extremely proud and thankful for their service to their country!

Today is the day for honoring our vet's. No matter what your political views or how you feel about the war we are in now, you can't question the bravery and sacrifice of our soldiers! Please remember to thank a veteran today for their service!

Until Next Time,

~Linda~

Mondays on Mothering - For the Love of a Sister

2008-11-10T16:26:00.004-05:00

One of my favorite things is seeing my "all boy" boys playing with their little sister! They are not afraid to play dolls or kitchen or dress up with her. A couple of weeks ago, she got an American Girl catalog in the mail. She wanted me to look at it with her, but I was right in the middle of something. Her brothers valiently offered to look at it with her! It was so sweet. The three of them were laying on the floor in a row all looking at this doll catalog. The boys were pointing out to her, "Look Elizabeth don't you think this is a pretty dress?"

I'm glad that they are so loving toward their sister. They are willing to risk looking like "sissies" in order to make her happy! That's how a big brother should be!!

If you would like to join Amy in sharing the joys of motherhood, please visit her blog!

Until Next Time,

~Linda~

The Best Vegetable Soup

2008-11-06T08:42:00.003-05:00

I love vegetable soup! When the weather starts turning cold, there is nothing that I'd rather have than a big pot of soup. I recently made a pot, and I thought I'd share my tips for making the best vegetable soup ever!

As you probably know, veggie soup doesn't really need a recipe. You just add what you have. You can make this once a week or every other week to clean out your crisper. But there are a few things you can do to ensure that your veggie soup is delicious every time. Some of these tips are from a friend and some are my own discovery.

1) Never use onion in your veggie soup! Now I love sauteed onions, but the onions do something to the soup that actually takes away from the flavor.

2) Always use cabbage in your soup! I don't know why but the cabbage adds to the soup. Even if you don't like cabbage, try just a quarter of a head. You'll find that your soup will never taste the same without it!

3) Always add some fat to your soup, preferably animal fat! Sorry, I know this is not as healthy as adding olive oil or something, but there it is! I usually use hamburger meat, but you can use bacon or ham. I had some once with country ham, it was delicious!

4) Only season with salt and pepper! Don't try to get creative with the seasonings here. Simple is best!

Those four are my absolute rules for making veggie soup. Here are a couple more things that I prefer to add to my veggie soup, but you can leave them out if you want:

Tomatoes - I feel like my soup is just "not right" without tomatoes. I just add a couple of cans of diced tomatoes.

Black-eyed Peas - Again, I just love to have them in the soup.

Okra - Mama always made veggie soup with okra (pronounced okry in the south). I do it the way Mama does! Besides, okry is one of my favorite veggies. My family dislikes it, so this is one of the few times I get to eat it at home.

I always serve my veggie soup with a nice hot pan of cornbread! Not that sweet stuff in a box! Real cornbread. I use a white cornmeal mix, choose your favorite and follow the recipe on the bag. Buttermilk makes the cornbread better. If you don't have buttermilk on hand, use soured milk or add a teaspoon of vinegar to sweet milk. My best tip for cornbread is to make it in a cast iron skillet and preheat the pan while you're mixing the batter. I do this on an eye of the stove. I have found that it just doesn't get hot enough if you try to heat in the oven while it's preheating. If you preheat the pan, you get a nice crunchy crust on the cornbread that just can't be beat! I always eat the first piece slathered with butter! Yum!!

Well, this has made me really crave veggie soup. It may have to be on the menu next week!! As the weather turns colder, warm the bellies and hearts of your family with a BIG pot of veggie soup and a pan of hot cornbread!

Until Next Time,
~Linda~

Homeschool Memoirs - Field Trips

2008-10-29T14:31:00.005-04:00

Today's theme is Field Trips. We have taken a ton of field trips throughout our years homeschooling. I thought I would list a few of the different ones we've taken. I also asked my children what their favorite field trip has been and I will share that, too.

Here is a list of some of the better field trips we've been on:

Apple Picking

Farm Tour - we've visited several farms including an organic dairy farm, a goat farm and more recently a pig farm!

Zoo - A trip to the zoo can become common place, however on our last zoo trip, I carried along the The Complete Zoo Adventure. This made looking at the animals more interesting. The book gives info about the animals similar to the plaques in front of the cages however from a Biblical Creation worldview. One of the best zoo trips we have taken was to a place called Hollywild where they have animals that have been in movies, TV shows and commercials. This was a lot of fun. They have one large enclosure where many different types of animals are kept and you ride a bus through this like an African Safari! Here we saw giraffes, buffalo, a watussi! Very neat experience!

Museums - One of our recent trips was to the High Museum of Art in Atlanta. Right now they are having exhibits from the Louvre in France. We were able to see the ancient exhibits where they had artifacts from Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia! This is the kind of stuff I LOVE! Our local county museum is also very well done. It does a great job of telling the history of the area with great hands-on features and it's free!

Homeschool Days - Various places have an annual homeschool day and they usually do an excellent job of making things interesting for the kids. One in particular that I remember fondly was at Stone Mountain in Atlanta.

I asked the boys what their favorite field trip that we'd ever taken was and they both said the trip to a water wheel-powered grist mill. Nathan loved it because the boys had played adventure on the creek banks there and that's the kind of stuff he loves. Evan enjoyed it because he had just read all about mills in his science book and was able to see what he'd read about in action. Now this was the most recent field trip we've taken, so it may just be that this is fresh in their minds and so, is their "favorite". But you never know! Here is a picture from this recent trip.

I did enjoy the High Museum, however I think my favorite field trip we've ever taken was to the Titanic exhibit. This is a traveling exhibit that came to Atlanta a year or so ago. History is my "thing"! I love to read and learn about the lives of the people that have brought us to where we are today. This is an AMAZING exhibit. You get a ticket with the name of an actual Titanic passenger. At the end, you can check your ticket to see if you were one of the survivors or not. We went with a group of about 15 people. All the boys in our group "died" and only 1 girl. She had a thrid class ticket. Oh it just brings it to life so much! They have an an actual panel from the hull of the ship that has been excavated and preserved. There is also a chunk of the hull that you can touch. They have on display a multitude of personal items, dishes, suitcases, jewlry, clothes and such that has been recovered from the bottom of the ocean. If you see this exhibit coming to your town, please take the opportunity to go. We did a three week unit study on the Titanic before going on this trip! It was AWESOME!

We love taking field trips and in some ways I wish we could do it more often. Although doing it less frequently makes it more special! Have fun with your field trips this year!!

Until next time,

~Linda~

If you would like to participate in this weekly Meme, please click the link in the sidebar of this blog!

Book Review - When You Rise Up

2008-10-29T14:01:00.002-04:00

This month, I read the book When You Rise Up: A Covenantal Approach to Homeschooling by R.C. Sproul Jr. I was encouraged and motivated by this book to make God my reference point when it comes to educating my children.

Most of the book is based on the passage from Deuteronomy 6:1-9. As Christian homeschoolers, most of us look to this passage to give a reason for our homeschooling choice. However, it is much more than that. This passage tells us what we should be teaching, when we should be teaching and how we should be teaching it. The Bible should be our curriculum! Our number one priority is the educate our children in what Mr. Sproul calls the "Three G's": Who is God? What has God done? What does God require?

In this book, Mr. Sproul answers such questions as: What is the goal of education? What is the standard for measuring the success of our children's education? Who should be teaching our children?

Do we homeschool our children just so that THEY will have a superior edcation or be sheltered from the world? Are we teaching God's truths to our children AND teaching them that they are to be taught to their children and their children and their children for generations to come?

Our job as Christian parents is to give our children a firm grasp of the "Three G's" as mentioned above. Does that mean that academics are secondary? Not necessarily. Why do we teach our children to read? Is is so that they can read great classic literature? So that they can read street signs? So that they can function in society? No, we teach them to read so that they can read God's word for themselves! Why do we teach them to write? So they can fill out job applications? No, it's so that they can write words of encouragement to their sons and daughters and brothers and sisters. Why do we teach science and math? So that they will be culturally literate or be able to balance their checkbook? No we teach these subjects because God created them, and they give us a better picture of the "Three G's".

This is a somewhat unconventional homeschooling book. Most books on the subject focus on the academic aspect, however, our most important task is raising godly children. Part of fufilling the role that God has called them to is being literate in the 3 R's as well as history and science, but the attainment of knowledge is not an end in itself! The attainment of knowledge makes them better equipped to to God's will!

If you get a chance to read this book, I hope you will. It will help you put a new perspective on your homeschool. And hopefully, it will help you prioritize!

Until next time,
~Linda~

Igor

2008-10-28T12:33:00.003-04:00

In spite of some of the sad things going on with me right now, there are some great things happening as well. My in-laws are in the process of adopting a 14 year old boy from Russia named Igor.

Igor came to the US in January of 2007. He was brought here by Project Hope and the Shriner's Hospital. Igor was born with a deformity and left on the doorstep of an orphanage. When he came to the States, he had surgery to have his left leg amputated from the knee down. He was then fitted with a prosthetic leg. Igor is now able to run and play as much as any other kid.

Igor is adjusting relatively well to life in his new family. My husband is the oldest of three children who are all grown and have families of their own now, so Igor is in effect an only child now.

There is still a lot to do in order for them to be able to adopt him. The biggest obstical is money (as it usually is with anything). They still need to raise $17,000, and they have to do it by January 2009.

I am writing to ask for your help in this. We would love to see Igor stay. If they do not raise the money by January, Igor will have to return to Russia and will never have the chance to be adopted or to return to the United States again. This would essentially be a death sentence for Igor. He will be 15 in a couple of weeks. At age 18 he will be turned out of the orphanage and left to live a life on the streets. There will be no training for him and because of his handicapped status, most people would be unwilling to hire him. He will have nothing.

Please help us to keep Igor here. Please help us save this boy's life so that he can be used for God's glory.

If you would like to help, please visit Igor's website.

Until next time,

~Linda~

Homeschool Memoirs - 10 Timely Facts

2008-10-22T12:01:00.003-04:00

Ok, this sounded like a fun Meme to participate in. Hopefully each week I will be able to post about our Homeschool Memoirs!

This week's theme is 10 Timely Facts about ME! So, here we go:

1. I am a hopeless Sci-Fi fan! Especially Star Wars and Star Trek.

2. I love being a wife and mother more than I ever dreamed that I would.

3. I wish I could read 24/7.

4. I'm a southern girl all the way, I even type y'all in my e-mails.

5. I am a list person. I love to make lists but...

6. I'm not very organized.

7. I am a sweets-aholic.

8. I love football and actually know a lot about the sport, which has surprised more than one man in the past!

9. I get frustrated more easily than I would like.

10. I pray that the Lord will bless us with more children through adoption.

Until next time,

~Linda~

If you don't know what a Meme is, see this site. Disclaimer: I cannot guarantee the content of this blog. I chose it because it was the first site that came up when searching for the meaning of Meme. Please use caution!

Mondays on Mothering - Camping

2008-10-20T10:16:00.010-04:00

One of the joys I have as a mother is time that we spend camping. We are a camping family and we just enjoy each other's company so much. I wanted to share some pictures of our fun family time this weekend.

Here is Miss Elizabeth. Isn't she just so pretty?

Babies love hammocks!

Here is Nathan holding Ben while we get the camper ready for sleeping.

The kids had such a good time while we were camping. When we first got there, they caught a baby toad. Elizabeth squealed with delight over this. The boys took turns holding it. Elizabeth tried to hold it, but dropped it immediately. It was too funny!

They rode bikes and played on the playground while I read and Jer slept in the hammock. Although as you can tell from this picture, he didn't always get to sleep.

Saturday night we sat around the fire and made s'mores. How can you go camping without s'mores? Sunday morning we had healthy breakfast of Pop-Tarts and hot chocolate around the campfire! I just love camping in fall weather!! We had a great time and I feel like we made some wonderful memories with the kids!

Until next time,

~Linda~

PS - I couldn't get the photo of Evan to load properly, you can see our Camping Photo Album here.

Free Math Games

2008-10-19T16:45:00.003-04:00

In response to my previous post about free math curriculum on the internet, I received a link to a new site with free interactive math games. Hooda Math has some neat games for reinforcing basic math facts as well as other things. I tried my hand at the Coffee Shop game and found that I neede more milk in my coffee recipe! I also ran out of sugar after just 5 cups of coffee! Oh well, live and learn. I did recover my initial investment with those 5 cups! WOW!

There are also some video tutorials for learning new math applications, as well as links to other helpful sites. Please check it out today!

Until next time,
~Linda~

Homeschool for Free - Math

2008-10-15T14:31:00.009-04:00

There is so much information and homeschool material on the internet free for the taking. For years I have been researching free homeschool curricula. I have never been brave enough to try most of it, I like having a plan laid out for me. This is why we have pretty much stuck with Sonlight. I do dream of homeschooling my children for free, or virtually free though, and I though you might be interested in trying some of the free curriculum I've found. Math will be our focus for today.

MEP Math was designed by the Center for Innovation in Mathematics Teaching at Plymouth University in the UK. This curriculum goes from K or 1st grade all the way to advanced mathematics. While I have never used it, it seems very thorough. You are provided with the student workbooks, lesson plans and answer keys. There are also printable manipulatives for the younger levels. You can print overhead transparencies if you want to use them. They also have an online test maker. The test is computer generated and timed. You work the problems offline and then enter them online to get your score. For just the cost of ink and paper, you can have a quality math program for all your children for all years.

One caveat, this program is made in the UK for use in European schools, so you will encounter European money and metric measurements. There will also be occasions when your child will encounter unfamiliar words. For example: in the year 1 student book, you are asked to circle all the "lorries", for Americans this is "trucks". I don't really think you will have much of a problem with this aspect of the curriculum.

You do need a password to access some of the files - teacher lesson plans, answers, etc. If you e-mail them and honestly explain who you are and why you need the password, you should have no problem. I had no trouble obtaining it.

Free Printable Flashcards - These are"make-your-own" flash cards. You can choose any information to go on these. Therefore, they are not limited to the subject of mathematics. I tend to cringe at flashcards, but I know that they can be very useful. We use flashcards for foreign language and phonics as well as math facts. You could also use them for vocabulary.

Basic Math Fact Worksheets - This is on the Saxon math website. This allows you to make timed drill sheets for free. You can choose which function you want to review (+, -, x, /), which facts (2 times table, addition +10, etc.). You can choose the number of problems per page. You can also choose whether to time them or not. These would be great for math drills or basic fact quizzes or tests. (Edit - this is an online drill, not printable worksheets. Sorry for the mix-up!)

Worksheet Works - This is another site where you can make practice worksheets. Again this is not limited to math (although I have only linked to the math portion). Some of the worksheet topics include: money, time, geometry, fractions, etc. There are many things to choose from and they are currently working to add new sections.

This is just a sampling of the free math curriculum available on the internet. I'm sure there is much more to be found. If you find something you'd like to share, please leave a link in the comments.

Until next time,

~Linda~

Mondays On Mothering - Sibling Love

2008-10-13T08:21:00.007-04:00

I recently joined a blog group that agrees to write a post every Monday about the joys of mothering. Sometimes we get so bogged down in the day-to-day cleaning, training, disciplining, and schooling of our children that we just focus on the negative. I know that I tend to do that. Mondays on Mothering is about helping us look beyond the frustration that we sometimes feel and focus on the joy.

I have four children, ages 11, 6, 2 and 7 months. Obviously there are some tough and stressful times! But the joy that comes from these four little people is overwhelming at times. Sometimes I watch them playing and interacting with each other and tears come to my eyes from the love that swells up inside of me! Right now my six year old and 7 month old sons are in the floor playing so sweetly together. I'm so thankful for the relationships that my children are building with each other. Do they argue? Certainly! But I can see the love that they have for each other shine forth every day! They definitely have more love for each other than my sister and I had when we were young (sorry Gail, I love you!!!).

My six year old, Nathan, just had his birthday in September. He asked for Legos and received PLENTY!! He got two sets exactly the same. We told him that we would take him to Toys R Us to exchange one set for a different one, but he didn't want to do that. He told us that he wanted to give the extra set to his eleven year old brother instead because Evan didn't have that set and he really wanted it! How many of us would have given our sibling one of our extra birthday presents when we were six years old??

I'm excited to see the kind of relationships they have when they are older. Through the suggestion of Cindy Rushton, in addition to my number one prayer for my children - that they would know the saving grace of Jesus - I have begun praying that my children will always be each other's best friends! I know they will because God's Word promises that we shall have whatever we ask for in Jesus' name!

Until next time,

~Linda~

Our First Lapbook! YAY!!

2008-10-08T20:14:00.003-04:00

Well, we've completed our first lapbook! Actually, Nathan completed HIS first lapbook. We just finished a study of plants, and Nate created a lapbook to go along with it. This was pieced together from different sites. You can see pictures of the completed book in the sidebar of this blog.

Here are some of the sites I used to find the minit books for this book:

Origami tulips on cover

Colorful Flowers book

Flower Pot Addition File Folder Game

Vocabulary Flap book

The rest of the plant books

We had so much fun making this. I paid nothing for the book templates. Most of the information about the plants came from our Sonlight Core K science books. The only cost involved was for supplies: paper, ink for printer, crayons, file folders, glue, clear contact paper and velcro dots. Most of us have these supplies on hand for school anyway.

This lapbook will make an excellent record of what we've accomplished in school for the last month. It will also serve as an excellent tool for review. What child can resist those lift-the-flap books? Even my eleven year old loves them. He can't wait to finish his first lapbook!

Evan is actually making two lapbooks right now. One about the presidents and one about elections. Nathan is now working on an election lapbook as well. Elizabeth is working on an ABC lapbook. Lapbooking has become our favorite part of school!

I hope you will look at our pictures and be inspired to try your hand at lapbooking!

Until next time,
~Linda~

Values Driven Giveaway

2008-10-07T23:01:00.002-04:00

I wanted to let you know about a great giveaway. Values Driven Family is a great site offering wonderful resources for raising a Godly family. If you join their mailing list, you will will receive several very helpful downloads for free.

This week they are giving away several great prizes. To enter the drawing, simply comment on their blog. Check out the details here! Good luck!!

Until next time,
~Linda~

Free Copy Work Ebook

2008-10-04T08:29:00.002-04:00

In my last post I gave you some tips for finding and storing ebooks. I came across a free ebook that I thought you might be interested in. This is from The Old Schoolhouse Magazine. They offer a new free ebook each month.

This is a book of copywork for young ladies called Noble Womanhood.

Enjoy!

Until next time,
~Linda~

My Ebook Library

2008-10-02T09:43:00.003-04:00

Have you discovered ebooks yet? I have and I have built up quite a collection. There is something thrilling about purchasing a book and being able to access it instantly! Actually, I've only purchased a couple of ebooks, I find most of them for free at different places on the internet.

My main source for free ebooks is Homeschool Freebie of the Day. I've mentioned this site on my blog before. This is a great site that does exactly as the title suggests, brings you a homeschool freebie each weekday.

Another great place to get ebooks, free or otherwise, is Currclick.com. This site sells curriculum ebooks. It is awesome! You can shop for, purchase and download curriculum for your homeschool instantly! The best thing about this site is that a large portion of the curriculum that they sell comes from family-run businesses and self-publishers. I am happy to be able to support these families by purchasing their products! Most of which are priced so low that they are practically free! This week I purchased a 5 e-book Election Unit Study set for $6.50! What an incredible value! Also, if you sign up for their weekly newsletter, you will receive a free e-book each week! I've gotten some great free lapbooks, as well as forms for organizing and record keeping, and other curriculum titles!

Well, now that you know where to find the free e-books, how do you organize all of these treasures? My Ebook Library is a free software download that allows you to organize all of your ebooks into collections. I have collections for individual subjects, topics of interest, one for each child, etc. You can use this to assign e-books for each child. This is a great help in planning your school year. I have a collection of notebooking pages so that when I need some pages, I know right where to find them. You can also place a book in multiple collections at once. My Ebook Library does not store duplicate copies of your ebooks. By storing only the title, the Library links directly to the original file location. As with any organization software, it takes a bit of time to set up your collections and move your books to the collection you want them to be in. However, once you have it set up, it takes very little effort to add new books to your Library and maintain. The best part is that it is free!

Once you have built up a collection of ebooks and organized them all with My Ebook Library, make sure you back them up! It would be terrible to lose all that wonderful material as well as the work you put into organizing them! You can back them up on a flash drive or on an external hard drive.

Have fun collecting and using your ebooks!

Until next time,
~Linda~

Music

2008-09-30T10:33:00.003-04:00

Don't you just love the internet? There is such a wealth of information available at our fingertips.

Today I'm going to share some resources I've found for studying music.

Listen to Classical music for free! - Classical Archives is a great site for listenting to classical music. You can download up to 5 Mp3's daily for free or for $25/year, you can get unlimited daily downloads. For my needs, 5 a day is plenty. I plan for us to listen to classical music during our lapbook time.

Free Guitar Lessons - I found tons of free guitar lessons on the internet by doing a google search for guitar lessons. Here are just a few of the ones I found. Lessons for Absolute Beginners, Video Lessons, Guitar Player World. Disclaimer: I cannot guarantee that these sites are 100% kid friendly! Please, parent, check them out for yourself before allowing your child to use any of these sites!!

Free Piano Lessons - Again, I found tons of free piano lessons by doing a google search. This site looked the best to me of all the ones I looked at! Zebra Keys offers over 50 lessons for piano as well as links to several helpful resources, such as a virtual keyboard and free sheet music!

Hymn Studies - Even though many of our churches today use more contemporary forms of worship, I feel that there is still great value in having our children learn the old hymns. In fact Ambleside Online recommends studying three hymns each term of the school year (3 term year if following Ambleside). This wonderful site includes an alphabetical listing of many, many hymns and more being added on a regular basis. There is an overall explanation for each hymn, a brief biography of the writer, an explanation of each stanza including the lyrics to each stanza and Bible verses to support the concepts presented in the song. We actually have our own hymnals that we use when learning hymns. We got ours from a friend who's church bought new hymnals and just wanted to get rid of the old ones. Check your local churches, they may have hymnals just waiting for you to take them home! You can also purchase them rather reasonably from your local Christian book store. Rod and Staff also sells hymnals ranging in price from $7.25-$14.50. They do not have a website, you can contact them by phone at 888-271-6392. Edit - I found a website that sells Rod & Staff materials. This is not the "official" Rod & Staff site.

Composer Studies - You can use Wikipedia to help with your composer studies. You will find useful information about each composer there. Here are some great, free notebooking pages for your study of composers. At this same site you can also purchase a nice set of composer notebook pages for $5.95. I also purchased a great book called Spiritual Lives of the Great Composers by Patrick Kavanaugh from Amazon. I got it used and paid less that $8 with shipping.

Well, I'm sure there is plenty more out there, but hopefully, this list is enough to get you started studying music with your children!

Until next time,

~Linda~

Lapbook Lessons

2008-09-24T13:01:00.002-04:00

I wanted to share a new lapbooking site with you today. Lapbook Lessons is another site for sharing lapbooks. You need a membership to access the free lapbooks, but membership is free for the asking!

There are some cute ideas for lapbooks on this site. I'm going to teach a class for our co-op based on the Alphabugs lapbooks ideas on this site. (I can't link directly to the Alphabugs pages as they are for members only- I hope you will sign up so that you can see them for yourself!) They are still developing some of the lapbooks. In particular, I'm looking forward to seeing the Prince and Princess Mission lapbooks - as in Children of the King! These are Christain morals based lapbooks that teach children about what it means to be a child of God. This will be especially good for my daughter who LOVES anything that has to do with princesses! There are lapbooks for Bible study, animals, literature, character, etc.

As good as the lapbooks are, I think you will most enjoy all the pictures and videos of member-made lapbooks. I know this is my favorite feature! There are tons of pictures here to inspire and give you ideas, as well as teaching you the basics. I love to look through the pictures to gather ideas. You can share your own pics and videos, and you can also create a blog to discuss your lapbooks.

This is a wonderful site with a treasure trove of information and new things being added daily! Enjoy!

Until next time,
~Linda~

Nathan's Birthday!

2008-09-22T16:33:00.003-04:00

Nathan is six! We had a great time a couple of weekends ago camping out for Nathan's birthday. We had a party at the lake. Everyone had a great time. I wanted to share some pictures of his fun weekend. Before we went camping Nathan said, "Saturday is going to be the day of my life!" So here is Nate on "the day of his life"!!

The Birthday Boy himself!

First present!

The cake! I made this for him. It's a pirate ship on the ocean with an island. There is a pirate marooned on the island!!

Elizabeth in pirate gear!

Nathan cleaning up camp to go home!

We had a great time camping and celebrating Nate's birthday. He's such a special guy! Happy birthday baby, I love you very much!!!

Until Next Time,
~Linda~

Plum Tuckered Out!

2008-09-19T19:33:00.003-04:00

The other night Jer and I were watching TV after the older kids had gone to bed. Ben was jumping in the Jump-A-Roo. After a while I noticed that he'd gotten really quiet. When I looked over, this is what I saw...

Poor little guy!

Until Next Time,
~Linda~

September Book Review

2008-09-17T20:49:00.003-04:00

I would like to try to write a different book review each month. I think it is helpful to read others' opinions of different books. Given my lack of free time to read, it may be difficult to pull it off each month, but that is my goal!

So, here's my review of So You're Thinking About Homeschooling: Fifteen Families Show How You Can Do It! by Lisa Whelchel (Blair from the Facts of Life). This is a great book for introducing the subject of homeschooling to those interested. With her easy, conversational style Whelchel introduces the reader to 15 families who tell their story of how and why they began homeschooling. In this manner, the reader learns the various types and methods of homeschooling from Classical to Charlotte Mason to Unit Studies to Unschooling.

By reading the stories of each family you will find suggestions for how to structure your day and organize your home to ensure your success as a homeschooling family. Tips are given for yearly planning and record keeping. Included is a helpful Appendix of various resources and curriculum. There is even a section about how to prepare for and navigate local and state homeschool conventions.

I love the friendly glimpses into the lives of the different families. Even as a veteran homeschooler, I found some encouragement from reading the stories of each family.

I believe that this book will become my number one recommendation to families who ask for my help getting started with their homeschool journey!

Until Next Time,
~Linda~

Homeschool Share

2008-09-14T22:58:00.003-04:00

I found this site about a month ago, but did not realize what a great find it is, until now!

Homeschool Share is a site where homeschool moms can share great ideas. There are tons of free unit studies, notebooking pages and lapbooks. I have already found several great lapbooks that I want to make with the kids. I am starting the Presidents lapbook with Evan tomorrow. We are going camping again in a couple of weeks and we will do the camping lapbook then. I found several that go with books I'm reading to Nathan this year. We will do these as we come to them: Johnny Appleseed, My Father's Dragon, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. I'm going to do the Alphabet book with Elizabeth.

I could go on and on listing lapbooks that I want to do, but you can search for the ones YOU like! And I've only scratched the surface here. I didn't even list any unit study titles or notebook pages!

Have fun with this site. I will post pictures of our completed projects as we do them!

Until Next Time!
~Linda~

PS - Notice that I changed my Shelfari Widgets on the side. I now have one shelf for the books that I've read or am reading, and one shelf for the books that the boys have read or are reading!

Twelve Glorious Years

2008-09-10T18:01:00.005-04:00

Sunday was Jer's and my twelfth wedding anniversary! It has been a wonderful and challenging twelve years!

We decided to do something we had talked about doing for a long time: Backpacking! We had never been before, but we had a great time. We only hiked about 5 miles, but it was plenty, let me assure you. We hiked down one trail and saw two waterfalls. Then we hiked to a campground and made camp. The next morning, we hiked to a third waterfall (the most beautiful) and then hiked back out of camp. Sunday night when we got home we were so sore we could barely move!

We didn't get many pictures as the batteries in our camera died, but I wanted to share the few we did get!

Here is Jer as we set off!

Here I am in the river at the first waterfall. It seemed much bigger in real life! After our hike, it was a beautiful site! I'm in the river because we have a tradition in my family of putting our feet in every river we come to. I've done it since I was a kid!

Jer is packing up the tent in the morning. Have you heard the song "Praying for Daylight"? That's what I was doing all night trying to sleep on those little blue mats! I've never been so glad to see the sun come up in my life!!! We both agreed that we'd like to go again, but we need better "accommodations" next time!

Until next time,

~Linda~

The World's Cutest Baby

2008-09-04T12:08:00.003-04:00

I haven't posted any pictures of sweet Baby Ben on here. I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce him to you.

He is nearly six months old and such a funny guy. He has a terrible temper though, so you'd better watch out!!

Who wouldn't love that face?!

I absolutely LOVE this picture!!

Jer says that this is the best picture of Ben he's ever seen!

Here's the whole gang!

Of course you agree with me that I have the cutest kids in the entire world!! LOL

Until next time,

~Linda~

Dioramas

2008-09-04T11:15:00.003-04:00

Do you remember doing dioramas in school? These were some of my favorite projects when I was a kid. One of the things I looked forward to the most about homeschooling was doing projects like this with my kids. Unfortunately, life has always gotten in the way, and book work has taken priority over the "fun" stuff. I recently saw a post on one of my favorite blogs about dioramas, and decided it was high time the kids and I did some of our own.

Drumroll please!! Here are our dioramas!

Evan did his on the book he just finished reading: By the Great Horn Spoon by Sid Fleischman. He really enjoyed the book. This is his favorite scene, where Praiseworthy punches a guy and knocks him backward 15 feet. Does it surprise you that this would be an eleven year old boy's favorite scene?!

Nathan did his on The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner. Nathan absolutely loved this book. He said it made him very hungry though. There is Jessie cooking at the fire. Benny and Henry are playing and Violet is petting Watch in the background.

Elizabeth wanted to do her diorama about ballerinas!

We had such a great time doing these, that I plan for us to do at least one craft or project every two weeks. I think that this brings so much to our homeschool!

Until next time,

~Linda~

Homeschool Freebies

2008-08-08T07:44:00.004-04:00

Most homeschoolers I know spend a fortune on curriculum. We want the best for our kids, and we are willing to sacrifice to provide that for them. But the vast majority of us live on one income. Sometimes, one very small income! There is a wealth of free material available on the web. I wanted to share some of the things that I've found. Hopefully this will help you stretch your homeschooling dollar a bit further!

Ambleside Online - A free Charlotte Mason style curriculum, with booklists for every year and a loose schedule. I would say that at least half of the books you need for this curriculum are available for free on the internet. I have tried to use this curriculum for my kids in the past, and I just couldn't pull it together. However, it is a great resource for information and free materials to help you in your homeschool journey. In fact, I am using the booklists there for my own continuing education. (You can see which books I'm reading on my Selfari shelves on this blog.) You can also read the entire Original Homeschool Series by Charlotte Mason at this site.

Homeschool Freebie of the Day- If you're a homeschooler, you MUST check out this site. There is so much great stuff available each week. Each day is a different e-book, audio download or website with great free information. Some examples I've gotten - 37 Ways to Prepare Your Child for College E-book, Stichery Curriculum (5 year hand sewing curriculum), 4 different kids cookbooks from the early 1900's, Bird House Building for Boys E-book, several kids devotional E-books, the list could go on and on. Even if you don't homeschool, you will find uses for the great free products for yourself or your children.

Cindy Rushton E-zines - These are free and each week contains so much great information. Usually a free E-book and/or Mp3 download. Cindy is a great encouragement to me as I try to teach my kids in the Charlotte Mason style.

Notebooking Pages.com - This is a great site if you are interested in notebooking. Great "getting started" articles. Great free notebooking templates. Plus she has pages for sale that are super cheap! I bought a set to do our Greek and Latin root studies on for $2!

These are just a few that I came up with off the top of my head. There are tons more out there. I will post more as I think of them. I hope you will check them out and start incorporating some free items into your homeschool to make it more affordable for your family!

Until next time!
~Linda~

Mini Society Camp

2008-08-04T21:41:00.004-04:00

Last week, Evan attended 4-H Mini Society Camp. He had a great time as he and his fellow campers created their very own society, created money and a flag, elected officials and bought and sold goods. Each camper had to create their own business. Evan had an advertising business, he also sold origami animals on the side. I thought I would let Evan tell a little bit about his experience as a businessman in his own world!

Here's Evan:

Well, I can tell a lot about my time in Atlantis (the name of our country) it really was a lot of fun. We elected our president, treaserer and paymasters. Everybody had a business and I had an advertising and oragami business, somebody had a pawnshop someone else had a knick knack shop another had a jewelry shop, it was just any thing you can imagine. I just can't wait to go again next year!!

signed: Evan

What Evan didn't tell you was that while they were having all this fun, they were learning a great deal about how society works. On the second day, Evan came home and said that their society treasury was almost empty. The "citizens" had decided to pay people for following the rules, and in the process, they almost bankrupted themselves. Hopefully they learned a valuable lesson about how the government should or, in this case, should not work! They learned about scarcity and supply and demand. They learned that running a business is much harder than they anticipated.

Because they had such a good time, they are offering 2 more days of camp this week for free if everybody is willing to come back. Evan is working hard right now on some more stuff to sell. He is making pirate door hangers. I think he is also going to make some paper mice.

This was a great and inexpensive day camp. We paid $31.50 for 5 days of camp, 3 1/2 hours per day. Plus we're getting the bonus days this week. If you have a 4-H club in your area, I would strongly encourage you to get involved. 4-H is more than just raising and showing animals (we don't have any animals). You can learn some valuable leadership and community skills from the 4-H.

Until next time,
~Linda~

Evan's Birthday Redeux

2008-07-28T10:31:00.002-04:00

Well, how many kids do you know who get two birthday parties in one year?! Evan is that lucky kid this year. We live in a tiny house/trailer (mobile home - for the uppity), and we have a large family. When we all get together for one of the kids birthday's there are close to 30 people not to mention the kids' friends and their families. Well I decided that the best method of population control for this years festivities was to hold two separate parties, one for the friends and one for the family. The boys all came over on Evan's birthday for a sle epover. On the Sunday after his party, we had the family over. I wanted to share some pics!

The Birthday Boy himself!

My Sweet Honey!

The birthday guests.

The CAKE! This is an Oreo Cake - special request by the birthday boy!

The highlight of the day! Evan actually bought this dirtbike with his own money. He helped dad build a deck and used the money he earned to buy this bike.

Until next time!

~Linda~

Planning for Next Year - Part 2

2008-07-28T10:00:00.002-04:00

Well I posted before about my upcoming planning day with my friends. I am pleased to say that it was a huge success. We had our husbands take the kids out for some "daddy time", and we brought all of our materials together and were able to get a good bit accomplished.

I used several resources for my planning:

One thing that was a tremendous help was listening to an audio by Cindy Rushton called "Let's Get Ready For a New School Year." It was wonderful for helping me prepare my heart and my mind for teaching my kids this year. I feel like I've been missing the mark all these years that I've homeschooled. There is so much to consider when homeschooling. People think that you're weird and that you've made a bad decision to keep your children out of public school. I have always felt a need for my kids to be the best kids in our family. I don't want our public schooled nieces and nephews to outshine my kids academically. I don't want to give anyone any ammo to blast my decision with. So I've really pushed the academics and let the spiritual side go. What a mistake! With Cindy's help, I was able to realize that I don't want to focus on academics this year (or any year), I want to focus on my children's relationship with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! There is eternal value in teaching my children to love the Lord.

Don't get me wrong, academics are still important and I will do academic work with my kids, it's just that I've changed my priorities. A dear friend used to tell me to make a list of the things that I felt we needed to do every day in order to say we really did school. Reading, 'Riting and 'Rithmetic were always at the top of that list. This year Bible Study and Prayer are at the top of that list. I am trusting that the Lord will bless our efforts and that through this we will have the best year we've ever had - spiritually and academically.

I used planning sheets from Donna Young. She had tons of great forms and ideas for organizing your homeschool as well as your home. You will definitely want to book mark this site and return again and again.

A great resource that I found years ago is the Garden Patch of Homeschool Reproducibles. This is a CD Rom with printable forms, calenders, notebook pages and covers and on and on. There is also a book with the same forms for you to copy. I have had both and have found the cd easier to use as I can just print the forms straight from my computer. Rainbow Resource carries this product.

Here is another product that I've used for the past couple of years - Homeschool Tracker. This is a handy little program. You can download the basic program for free. There is a "Plus" version that costs around $30-$40. I've only used the basic/free. You can input all your info for multiple students and multiple school years. It takes a while to get all your info entered in, but once you do that you can plan your school week in a matter of minutes by clicking and adding assignments for each student. You can also keep track of attendance and grades and print out a report card. It is a great resource.

Well, I didn't schedule in all my lofty goals from the previous post, although I got a good many of them, but I don't think we'll miss them!

Until next time,

~Linda~

Blogging!

2008-07-27T16:53:00.000-04:00

Who knew that blogging could be so complicated! How many blogs have you had? If you're like me, you've probably had umpteen! As a homeschool mom, I feel an urgent need to be connected with the rest of the world. I like to talk and so I want my voice to be heard! What better way to do that than through blogging. I mean I can type what I want to say and go back and correct my mistakes, edit and take back the rude things I've said, unlike in the "real" world!

However in my endeavour to make myself known to the internet community at large, I find that I'm just not technically savvy enough to operate and maintain these blogs. To be honest, HTML scares the daylight out of me. I don't know my .jpg's from my .gif's! I need something user friendly! Leave the web design to the professionals! I just want to type!!!

However, as I look at other folk's blogs, I see the vast array of different personalities. I want my personality to shine through with my beautiful blog design! I don't want people to come to my blog and instantly recognize that (gasp) "she doesn't know how to HTML!" My generic template is a dead give away!

I just have to say, I wanted to write a post about my son's first week of first grade. So on my "other" blog, I tried to do just that! I typed and I typed and I typed and then I decided to add a couple of cute pics of my boy's work and one very cute pic of the little genius himself. Two hours later, almost in tears, I've completely blown my whole diet by wolfing down half a dozen blueberry muffins from this morning because of the stress and I still had to settle for LINKS to my precious photos! LINKS, can you believe it?? What is this world coming to?!

So here I am yet again beginning a new blog in hopes that I can finally find one simple enough for my poor brain to use (did I mention I have 4 kids, which I homeschool?). And for now, you'll just have to put up with my generic template! I've got better things to do right now...I think there's still one more muffin!

~Linda~

PS - if you want to take a look at my "old" blog...it's here.

Nate Starts First Grade

2008-07-27T16:48:00.004-04:00

Nathan surprised me last Sunday by saying that he wanted to start school on Monday. So of course I was happy to oblige! We had a great first week and I wanted to brag a little bit and post some of the things we tried!

Nate's reading has improved by leaps and bounds since the beginning of the summer. I'm amazed at what a couple of months can do to a child's reading ability! His handwriting is coming along nicely as well. He just started learning to write a couple of months ago, and we have't consistently practised! Here is a picture of his copywork from this week...

We use Sonlight curriculum and we also try to incorporate the Charlotte Mason method. Sonlight provides worksheets for science and language arts. I tweaked our worksheets this week and turned them into nice notebook pages. I think they look great...

The Water Cycle

How Rainbows Form

We completed the workbook pages as assigned by Sonlight (Sonlight only schedules one or two questions per day - there may be six questions on any given activity sheet, but the child does not complete the entire sheet in one day.) Then we cut them out and pasted them to the notebook pages. Nate dictated to me what he wanted to say about each page and I was his scribe! I used the "writing tablet" type lines to show him how his own handwriting should look - give him something to strive for.

Evan will not start school until the week after next because he is going to attend 4-H Mini Society Camp this week. I'll try to post about that when it's over. It has been nice just having Nathan for school. It gave me a great opportunity to see how our days would go. We spent about two hours per day working on school, excluding math (I'm still waiting on the math curriculum to arrive).

Now I know you're dying to see a picture of the little genius, so here he is...

This is pretty close to the post I wanted (see this post). So, I'll leave it at that!

Until next time!

~Linda~