Blackberry Hugs & Ketchup Kisses

Ambleside Online

2011-11-25T17:51:00.000-06:00

Well, we have gone a different direction with our schooling lately. Our school days had gotten stressful and were just not what I had envisioned when I had daydreamed about homeschooling in years prior. After reading For the Children's Sake by Susan Schaffer Macaulay two years ago, I decided I wanted to provide a Charlotte Mason style education for my children. However, as it goes, I got wrapped up in focusing on state standards and was doing more of a school at home approach. This was not working. I was looking up something online one day and came across a website called Ambleside Online. This website provides a lot of information and resources for people who want to provide a Charlotte Mason style education to their children. There are book lists with reading guides for each year and recommendations for various subjects.

I am still using some of the books I had originally bought for 1st grade this year, but the daily schedule has changed for the better, and I'm happy to say, the past few weeks have been a joy! Our daily schedule goes something like this:

Bible reading, Scripture memorization
Hymn of the month practice
Poetry reading
Listen to composer of the month or folk song of the month.

Math lesson from The Complete Book of Math grades 1 & 2

Phonics lesson (Adventures in Phonics) with Ella reading a story to me
Copy work for handwriting practice
I read a story aloud (something from the AblesideOnline list).

We usually break for lunch here and spend time outside, have free-play, work on various projects, etc. Our school work for the day is finished in the evening with me reading from classics. We also do artist study, art projects, handiwork, and study various topics of interest. Our handiwork for November was card-making. December will provide opportunities for cooking, baking, card-making, and some ornament making. Ella also wants to learn to use a loom to make pot holders!

For Science, we do nature study. I use the Handbook of Nature Study for ideas.

Today, Ella could choose anything she was interested in outside to learn about and draw in her journal. She decided she wanted to dig up wild garlic, so we did. Then, she drew a picture of it on her jounal page, we read about it online, and then we washed it and ate it with lunch. It was really good if you like eating garlic raw (which I do). She didn't like it so much. But she still thought it was really neat.

Our hymn is selected from Ambleside Online's guide here. This month, we learned To God be the Glory. The composer is selected from Ambleside Online's guide here. This month, we listened to Mozart and for our folk song, The Lion Sleeps Tonight. I print the poetry from Ambleside Online here. Today, for instance, we read "We Thank Thee" by Ralph Waldo Emerson. Ella did her handwriting copy work from it as well. We use our AWANA book as a guide for Scripture reading and memorization. I use The World's Greatest Artists Unit Study from Erica at Confessions of a Homeschooler for artist study. Copywork is pulled from the Bible or from poems. We also keep a bird journal to go along with the Burgess Bird Book for Children. Of course narration is an important part of a Charlotte Mason education. I try to make this happen naturally at this point considering Ella's age. She retells stories to her daddy and brother, and she and Mathew act out stories together. Winnie the Pooh stories are especially fun. (We're reading some of the books from the Kindergarten reading list as well as first grade.) Many of the suggested books on AO are free online. I can pull them up on the AO website or download them onto my Tablet from googlebooks. Others can be checked out from the library or of course bought. History and geography are covered in the literature selections. We are still using our map study book as Ella enjoys it, and map reading is a nice skill to have.

Of course, understanding the way Charlotte Mason methods work is important when trying to follow this curriculum as laid out on Ambleside Online. Charlotte Mason books can be downloaded free from Ableside Online or googlebooks. The copywright is expired since they are over 100 years old. I have been reading Home Education by Charlotte Mason. One of my favorite quotes from Home Education so far is ". . . it is upon the mothers of the present that the future of the world depends . . . " Wow. That's a lot of pressure if you agree with her statement. What really impresses me here is that Charlotte Mason did not even have children of her own. Yet she considered mothers, not professionally trained teachers, to be the most important and influencial people in the lives of children. She goes on to quote Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi that the mother is "qualified by the Creator Himself to become the principal agent in the development of her child; . . . and what is demanded of her is- a thinking love . . . God has given to thy child all the faculties of our nature, but the grand point is still undecided- how shall this heart, this head, these hands, be employed? To whose service shall they be dedicated? A question the answer to which involves a futurity of happiness or misery to a life so dear to thee. Maternal love is the first agent in education." These words touch me so deeply. It is up to me to decide how the hearts and heads and hands of my precious children will spend their time each day, where their energy will be used, and to whose service they will be dedicated. I believe, therefore, that a successful education is one based on rich quality literature, art, and music, a loving healthy environment, opportunities and encouragement to God's service, and Biblical truths.

And what about preschool? Matthew is independent in most of his learning at this point. He did this while I was working with Ella today with no suggestion from me . . .

He snuck in and "stole" the bears from the table when Ella and I had just finished up her addition lesson! haha. Then, he sorted them by color in the living room as part of his play.

Otherwise, we keep a Nursery Rhyme Journal. I read a rhyme and try to teach it to him, and we do crafts and games to go along with it. We also have printed off some theme units from http://www.2teachingmommies.com/ that we do occasionally. We read books, do puzzles, play with blocks, paint, count things, do crafts, cut, etc. I follow his direction mostly. Outdoor time is an important aspect as well as is good coffee.

It seems to be the time of year when many moms are reevaluating what is working and what is not in the school year so far. I tell my experiences and resources in hopes that it will be of help to someone . . . if not now, then some day. :)

Matt's Birthday

2011-10-27T09:06:00.001-05:00

Matt's birthday was October 14th. I know, I know.

This is late. I've been a bad blogger lately.

The kids and I made him some birthday truffles.

He doesn't love cake, but he loves my homemade Oreo Truffles!

This was the most excited the kids have ever been about their

daddy's birthday, so it was really fun!

We went to the store, and they each got to pick their

daddy out a small gift and wrap it themselves.

We each made a card for him too. Ella drew a picture of her and her daddy with birthday balloons

on the inside and wrote on the front and made a heart with happy faces in it.

Matthew drew this lovely picture and then told me all about it.

He was so excited to tell his daddy all about the things in the picture when the time came!

On the day of Matt's birthday, the kids could hardly wait to wake him up. His brother came by to tell him happy birthday (and eat a couple of truffles!) ;) And his mom came over for lunch.

We gave him his gifts and cards and sang to him and ate truffles. It was a special day.

Afterwards, we went outside and flew a kite and just spent time outside.

Dancing by the Fire, Math Games, and Fall Fun

2011-10-13T09:22:00.001-05:00

We closed out a wonderful Columbus Day with having my mother in law over for dinner and then hanging out by a bon fire in our yard til late. We ate popcorn, and then Matthew decided to flip our bowls over and make drums of them. Ella loved it and joined in the mini band, insisting her Daddy and I dance around the fire together to their beat. It's time like these I'm glad not only that the kids don't have to get up early the next morning to be rushed off to school, but also that we don't live in a subdivision!!!!! I'm sure we looked pretty loony, but boy did we have fun!

On Tuesday, one of our Math activities was an estimation game out of a Scholastic book I got online for free recently. I filled 5 jars with different items: grapes, popcorn, magnets, animal crackers, and M&Ms. I folded

post-it notes in half and labeled the front of each one and wrote the number on the inside of each one. We sang a little song for each one, and Ella wrote her estimates on cut outs of jars. Then we peeked inside the post-it notes or counted to see if she was right. Then, she wrote down the correct numer and wrote < & > sentences of the two numbers and illustrated the jar cut outs with the correct number of objects. She drew M&Ms on the M&M one but understandably didn't want to draw 140 of them.

Once the estimation game was over, we ate the snacks, and Matthew and I counted snacks together as I put them on his plate.

Ella made a color game with Matthew. She asked him what color each M&M was. If he got the color right, he got to eat the M&M. If he got it wrong, she ate it. Smart little cookie she is to come up with a game like that. For once, he cared about learning colors! And they both had their fair share of M&Ms. Below is Matthew drawing M&Ms just because he wanted to. He loves to draw.

Fall is such a beautiful time of year, and Ella feeds off of my excitement for the season, helping decorate and making paintings with me. She wanted to make this paper chain yesterday to count down to Halloween, when we plan to spend a fun Fall evening with our family.

When Matthew woke up, he saw it first thing and came running to me, hugging me and smiling and said, "Mommy, it is AMAZING! Thank you so much for making that for me!" I explained that Ella and I both made it and that he and Ella can take turns ripping one ring off each day til Halloween. He was so excited. It was so sweet!

Ella and I made these Fall paintings below one day after a trip to Hobby Lobby where we bought a large pack of craft wood with our 40% off coupon.

I painted corn, an apple, a pumpkin, and a sunflower.

Ella made a pumpkin tree.

(Yes, she knows pumpkins grow on vines on the ground, but I love her creativity!!)

Columbus Day, how fun!!

2011-10-10T17:06:00.000-05:00

Columbus Day Hand Art

idea from Hand-Shaped Art book

Ella's ship and Matthew's ship

Ella made her sails have pirate signs, because she loves pirates! She traced and cut out the hand herself, whereas I traced Matthew's hand for him and helped with the cutting.

Matthew made his water "splashing up" over the ship. I was most impressed

by his 4 circles he drew on the ship for the portholes!

We looked at the globe and talked about where Christopher Columbas sailed from, where he was trying to go, and where he wound up. Matthew was in a picture taking mood today!

We also made maps and mini ships.

I got the idea below from the Enchanted Learning website.

Matthew's map and ships

Ella's map and ships. We labeled the ships (Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria) after this picture was taken.

Ella making her map and Matthew showing one of his ships

Matthew enjoyed mixing the yellow and blue paint to make green for the land on his map.

After our Columbus Day fun, we went outside and gathered leaves and took pictures for our nature studies, and Ella worked on her nature observation sheet while laying up in the fort of her swing set.

For Science, we have pretty much ditched the book we were originally using and are doing nature studies only with a plan to go where curiosity leads. I'm now using the following website for ideas:

http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com/

Since I read the book For the Children's Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay almost 2 years ago,

I've wanted to follow a Charlotte Mason approach to homeschooling. However, in stressing about meeting state standards, I've gone off track and followed more of a school at home approach. It's causing more stress than necessary and is just really not what I had in mind when I daydreamed about homeschooling in the past. So I'm working to go back to more of a Charlotte Mason style.

The kids thought these pumpkins were looking rather bare, and they wanted to paint them.

So we did.

2011-10-08T20:14:00.001-05:00

It's Fall. I L♥ve apples! We took an apple orchard tour week before last at Honey Suckle Hill Farm but only got one apple each from there.

I have had apples on my mind ever since.

Then on Wednesday at The Turnip Truck I saw mini apple pies on sale for $3.99 each. The kids begged for one, and I said No. Did I mention they were $3.99? for single serving pies . . .

But I've had apple pie on my mind ever since.

So today I decided I wanted to make an apple pie. Looking through recipes, I saw I would need about all the apples in the house to make one. Apples are healthy. Apple pie is fattening. I didn't want to use up all those declicious healthy apples on pie. So I googled "mini apple pies in muffin pan" and found this wonderful blog ~~~> http://www.noveleats.com/dessert/mini-apple-pies/.

I called the kids in from the swing set and told them the plan.

As I got to preparing apples, they both had to have one, so I had to wash and peel more.

The recipe called for two large apples, but my apples are small, so I used three.

We tried making bottom and top crusts, but we didn't have quite enough dough, so we wound up making big bottoms and folding them over the top. Not as pretty as the ones in the food blog, but for our little family, it was fine!

Matthew had a plate in his hand before I could get the pies out of the oven!

We played outside while the pies were baking, and as we came inside, the delicious smell had taken over the house. We were all ready for our pie!

Matt wasn't home for pie making, but we saved him one.

It was really hard not to eat it!!

Preschool and 1st Grade at Home

2011-10-02T10:53:00.002-05:00

Since we learn "at home", it's hard to really put a date on when we started "school". Over the summer, we enjoyed working in our nature journal, visiting the Science Center and Zoo, doing various art projects, cooking together, reading together, and with Ella, finishing up Kindergarten. But for record keeping sake, I started logging days for 1st grade the second week of August. We've had several "field trips" since then. We've gone to the local recycle center, on a bird hike at the local Nature Center, to the Nashville Public Library for a play, skating with our umbrella school, and to Honeysuckle Hill Farm for an Apple Orchard tour.

Matthew has been enjoying learning through fun activities such as this chart below where he opened up a fun size pack of M&Ms and sorted them by color and drew one appropriately colored mark for each M&M.

We're also working on a Nursery Rhyme notebook together where we learn nursery rhymes and do crafts and learning activities with each one, and I'm getting ideas for theme activities to do from We Care preschool curriculum. Matthew spends lots of time building with blocks and playing with manipulatives, and he also enjoys working in his I can paste! workbook.

Ella is in 1st grade this year, and we are using the following books . . .

Phonics lessons- Adventures in Phonics Level B:

Horizons Health 1st Grade:

Maps Charts Graphs & A Literary Travel Log:

Math:

The Complete Book of Math for Grades 1 & 2 from My Father's World; they are now offering a different version:

Read and Understand Science Grades 1 & 2:

Bible Story Color 'n' Learn:

Teach them Spanish! Grade 1:

Ella is reading various phonics readers including these from Christian Liberty Press. For handwriting, Ella is drawing pictures and writing in a journal. We also write in our phonics lessons. Ella thinks the Adventures in Phonics book is boring, so I use the book to make lessons that I do on my own and write sentences in colorful markers on primary paper. Ella finishes the sentences using markers, writing learned words. The Science curriculum also provides reading lessons and writing opportunities. Ella also enjoys writing Bible verses and various thoughts on a dry erase board.

We are participating in AWANA at church on Sunday nights. We practice the Bible verses throughout the week at home. I write the verses out on notecards, maybe 4 words on each card, and Ella puts the cards in order. Then, she writes the verse on a sheet of paper or on the dry erase board. This practice has helped her come a long way in her reading and writing as well as helped her grow in Bible knowledge. I love it!

I have so much more to tell, such as how much fun we've been having with the literary travel log, how Math has gone from a struggle to the first thing Ella asks to do in the mornings, and all the other exciting resources we've been using, but this post is getting long, so I'll save all that for another day. ♥ ♥ ♥

2 Timothy 3:16 & 17

2011-08-20T17:46:00.000-05:00

I started attending a new class at church using the video/ workbook Read the Bible for Life. I decided on this class out of all the options because I prayed for God to tell me which class to take, and this was the one I felt led to. I feel like I need to increase my biblical knowledge in order to serve and also in order to mature as a Christian. I read the Bible a lot, and I understand most of what I read, but there are gaps. I'm uncertain about the order of certain events, the history of certain groups of people, the way people and events are connected, and which books of the Bible are meant to give advice to me and which ones are meant to give advice only to the specific group of people addressed by the author or speaker. I'm hoping this class will fill in some of the gaps. In doing my homework for the class one day this week, I came across a Bible verse that I wanted to memorize. (It seems to me that mature Christians are full of verses they have tucked away in their heads for just the right moment in a conversation. And I think in order to "meditate" on God's Word "day and night" as Psalm 1:2, Joshua 1:8 suggest we should, I need to have some significant verses memorized) So the verses I felt led to memorize this week are:

2 Timothy 3:16, 17
All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

These 2 verses seem so relevant to me in my life right now. These verses make it very clear how we are to use the Bible. How wonderful that reading the Bible can make us complete and equip us for every good work! And that we can use the Bible to instruct and correct. It's good to know that I have such a tool in raising my children. This week I am praying that God will make me complete and equip me for good works through His Word.

Another book I am reading right now is Victory Over the Darkness by Neil T Anderson. I am learning a lot from this book and recommend it. I'll probably write a review once I finish it.

Laundry Soap

2011-08-13T12:18:00.004-05:00

I went to a class a few weeks ago to learn how to make natural cleaners for the home. I have been making my own cleaners for a year or so, but I learned a lot at the class and gained the confidence I needed to do more and use some different ingredients. We didn't make laundry detergent at the class, but everyone seems to be doing it these days, and the ingredients for the other cleaners we made in the class can be used to make the laundry detergent too. I already had Washing Soda and Borax. The ingredient I didn't have was Castile Soap. It's $16 at Whole Body (next to Whole Foods) for 32 oz. That seemed like a lot of money to me, but you can make so much stuff with it and lots of laundry detergent. So here's the recipe I'm using for laundry detergent . . .

1/3 - 1/2 cup liquid Castile soap, 1/2 cup Washing Soda, 1/2 cup Borax

Mix in large bucket with 2 gallons of hot water and stir.

Below is a 5 gallon bucket I bought at Wal Mart and put a homemade label on.

That's it! I filled an old bubble bath bottle with it to use on a daily basis, and I keep the rest in the 5 gallon bucket with a lid. I use 1/2 cup per load of laundry. Once my bottle gets low, I'll refill it from the bucket. The bottle is just easier to handle.

Oh, and you need to shake the bottle before using as it seperates some as it sits. You'll also want to stir the liquid well before refilling the bottle from the bucket for the same reason.

Week One of First Grade!!!

2011-08-12T17:18:00.010-05:00

Here we are, a new school year. Ella is registered with an umbrella school and we are officially doing school and counting days! What this entails is me drawing a little circle around the dates on a calendar that we do 4 hours of school work. I bought a red lesson plan book that I'm recording our daily work in for my own records.

We spent our first week finishing up Kindergarten work from My Father's World. I quit documenting our weeks on my blog, but we continued with My Father's World curriculum through the summer, and we are one day from being finished! This past week, we learned about butterflies, frogs, foxes, vegetables, and quails. That's 5 weeks worth of MFW curriculum in 5 days, plus we added some to the curriculum as well. Here are some highlights:

Birdhouse painting

Vegetable as stamps paintings

Vegetable and Vegan cheese roll ups

Celery dying

Wearable butterfly wings

Butterfly Art

Days of the week sight words & order

Seahorse from Your Big Backyard magazine

We also added to Ella's nature journal her drawing of a Red Velvet Ant that we saw in our yard. She made a book about frogs with lots of wonderful sentences describing pictures of frogs doing things like eating, laying eggs, swimming, etc. I was so proud of her book! She has come a long way in her writing this year!! We read lots of books, started on a quilt craft, baked oatmeal bars, made egg salad sandwiches, did daily Bible reading, Bible stories, and Bible devotions, practiced counting to 100 and worked on our 100 chart, drew pictures, and watched a documentary on butterflies. Ella acted out the life cycles of frogs and butterflies without me even prompting her to just because she thought it was fun. She and Matthew made a model of a barge with blocks after seeing one on the river. Ella read several stories as well as some books to me, wrote in her journal, and did lots of worksheets. I can't believe all we accomplished this week, and I'm excited about next week! We have some really exciting field trips coming up and we get to begin our "First Grade" work.

Matthew also did lots of "Preschool" work himself. He painted a lot, he helped with our cooking projects, I read to him, we sang songs, we made a quilt craft about him, and he started SOCCER!!!

Matthew at his first soccer practice!

Matthew's Quilt Craft

The poem says, "Blond is my hair, Blue are my eyes. I'm 3 years old. I'm just the right size. My name is Matthew, and as you can see, I'm very happy to be me!"

Matthew making his own sandwich

Today while we were all at the table doing school work, Matthew said to Ella, "You are the best!" and gave her a big hug. I am so so joyful that my children love eachother and get to spend each day together. Their relationship is beautiful. They are eachother's best friends, and I love watching them delight in eachother's successes. Noone is more proud than Matthew starting soccer this week than Ella!

Charlotte Mason Quote

2011-03-24T10:59:00.003-05:00

One of my favorite quotes by Charlotte Mason is:

"We believe children are human beings at their best and sweetest, but also at their weakest and least wise. We are careful not to dilute life for them, but to present such portions to them in such quantities as they can readily receive."

Just thought I'd share. She was so wise!

"Mean not to"

2011-03-24T10:28:00.002-05:00

I used to sell Mary Kay. I'm not a sales person, and that didn't really go as far as I had once dreamed it would. Anyway, while I was a consultant, I would go to seminars and listen to really successful women give motivational speeches. One really stood out to me. The lady told of being a teenager and getting in trouble and how she would say, "I didn't mean to . . . " And her dad would always tell her, "Well next time, mean NOT to." So in other words, although you didn't really mean to be late, next time don't just wing it; do whatever you need to do to make sure you're NOT late. That statement is applicable in every part of our lives. I think of it often and remind myself to have control over what I do. Or to live deliberately, intentionally and with control. Here are some examples:
"I didn't mean to gain 15 lb over the holidays." (I really gained that this winter!) Well, this upcoming year, I need to mean NOT to gain 15 lb. I need to pay attention and not down every treat on the thanksgiving table at the multiple family gatherings I attend. I need to exercise my body more than my mouth, not just eat as I please and hope for the best.
"I didn't mean to spend so much." Next time, be prepared and DON'T spend so much. Pay attention to the things going into the basket, and stop impulse buying.
"I didn't mean to drop $100 bill on the floor at the grocery store." Next time, put the money in a spot where it won't fall out! The back pocket of my jeans with my grocery list isn't a good spot. Yep, I really did that too. Matt was not happy.

Anyway, I'm sure you get it. Saying "I didn't mean to" is kind of a lazy excuse for things. We should take responsibility for our actions and live with control over our lives, our spending, our eating, our words, our timeliness, our driving, etc. Accidents happen, but we need to learn from our mistakes and take action to ensure that we don't make them again. I just thought it was a good lesson, and I've been reminding myself of it lately and thought I'd share.

Are We Living in a TV Show?

2011-03-18T11:32:00.002-05:00

Ella has always been curious as to whether we're living in reality or a TV show. Afterall, do the people in the cartoons and TV shows know that they are in a cartoon or show? Or do they think they're in "real life" but are really not? And how do we know we're not just part of a show? And if we are in a show, we're definitely in one that only "grown-ups" would watch, because "we're not a show kids would want to watch" as Ella said. I guess she thinks our lives are rather boring compared to the people's lives on TV (The only real people show she watches on TV is The Fresh Beat Band).

So today Ella told me that she knows we're not in a show because, "Look at this big beautiful world we have, and there are no animals that talk!"

Well that settles it then Folks! Enjoy reality.

Birds in My Yard

2011-03-17T19:54:00.006-05:00

Living in the country, we have an awesome array of birds. I love sitting and looking at them in the yard and even from my kitchen window while doing dishes.

The bird below is a Hairy Woodpecker, I believe. I really like watching woodpeckers in my yard, and this one is especially pretty.

A useful website for identifying birds is http://www.allaboutbirds.org/.

I have a book called Birds of North America, but I can't find it, which makes me mad, but it's a great book for helping to identify local birds.

We went to the local nature center recently and made birdfeeders out of pinecones, peanutbutter, and bird seed. Once we had them hung on trees outside, we watched from the window, and the birds ate 'em up!

This picture isn't all that clear as I took it through my kitchen window, but here is one little visitor who appreciated the peanutbutter and seed.

I got home one day from working out one rainy day last week to find this beauty in the creek. It's a Blue Herron.

We're a little late as the birds have been grouping in our yard for weeks now, but we finally filled our birdfeeder today, which has had many hungry visitors.

I think this bird on the left of the bird feeder is a Black-capped Chickadee.

My Father's World- Kindergarten Lessons 5 & 6

2011-03-11T14:05:00.007-06:00

Lesson 6 was on "T"- Turtle

We talked about the fable "The Hare and the Tortoise", and our words to remember were, "I don't quit; I persevere". Ella drew a picture of the hare and the tortoise. Our bible verses were on perseverance. They were Philippians 3:13-14, Hebrews 12:1, and Galatians 6:9.

Ella made a turtle by painting paper plates to staple together with legs, a tail, and a head. She also colored and cut out a turtle and glued it to green paper and drew foods for her turtle.

We also played a game where Ella had to go from one to another moving like a turtle, a kangaroo, a snake, a bird, and a child, and then move like a tree. We continued with our calendar, weather, and straw counting. Ella also did some reading and spelling. The curriculum is just now introducing some reading although Ella has been reading some for a while now. I'm glad we're finally getting to this in the curriculum. Ella wanted to spell words on her own, so I said words aloud using letters we've covered so far in the curriculum (S, M, A, L, N, T) and she wrote them down. The words we did were last, man, mat, tan, sat, and Sam. Her spellings were all correct! I was proud. I walked away while she was spelling "sat", and she got a little confused about the letter placement with the lines, but otherwise, I though her first "spelling test" went well.

Lesson 5 was on "N" - Nest

We talked about animal homes. We played a matching game with animals and their homes that we made out of pictures glued on note cards. We read Psalm 91: 1-4a, Psalm 17:18-9, and Thessalonians 3:3. Our words to remember were "God takes good care of me." The lesson suggested making a bird's nest out of mud, straw, and twigs, but we did this last fall, so we didn't do it again. We did, however go to the local nature center and make a bird feeder out of a pinecone, peanutbutter, and bird seed. We had a discussion on the sequence of birds making a nest, laying eggs, sitting on them, taking card of their young, and the young learning to fly and get their own food. Ella made a tree picture with torn paper and made a nest in it with a bird.

We read "A House is a House for Me", and Ella made her own version of the book. She narrated it, I wrote it, and she illustrated it.

Of course, we continued adding a straw to our cup each day and a number to our 100 chart. We kept up with the weather on a calendar, and Ella traced the calendar numbers in green and yellow, making a patters. We practiced handwriting, drawing, and some math and continued practicing letter sounds and did some reading. We also got a lesson on rocks at the local nature center. Ella got to break a geode open, make a bird feeder, and do some art.

My Father's World, Kindergarten, Lesson 4

2011-03-01T08:08:00.009-06:00

This past lesson was on letter/ sound "A" and Apples.

We continued adding a straw to our cup each day and adding a number to our 100 chart, and tracking the weather and date on our calendar. This week, we read the story of John Chapman, better known as "Johnny Appleseed", made a book about apples, and practiced handwriting, drawing, and reviewed letters & sounds.

Ella enjoyed making this beautiful apple tree using her arm and hand as the trunk and branches, a green oval as the leaves, and her finger dipped in red paint to make the apples.

I introduced simple fractions 1/2 and 1/4 with apples.

And we cut an apple in half horizontally to see the "star" inside, and Ella counted the five seed pockets.

Ella also really enjoyed tasting 3 different types of apples and learned that green "Granny Smith" apples are sour, and they are now her favorite.

We also made applesauce, which I already blogged about, and we read some really good books that we already had but definitely fit in this week. They were

"Apple Farmer Annie" and "Apple Picking Time".

We also checked out several books from the library, such as "Ten Apples Up on Top", and "Berenstain's A Book", which Ella can read a lot of before she gets tired and has me finish. We checked out several other books, such as "The Aminal" which was really cute and funny and "I Stink", which is about a garbage truck. He eats an apple in it, which is why it came up when I checked the library catalogue for "Apple". Although it was hardly relevant to our lessons and a really disgusting book, it was hilarious to my kids, and we've read it several times. Our vocabulary words for the week were core, orchard, market, scale, half, quarter, and remain. And we made a fruit collage too.

Our words to remember were "If I stay with Jesus, I will have much fruit." One of the bible verses we read is John 15:4-5 "Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can fo nothing." This verse is where the words to remember come from. We also talked about the fruits of the spirit from Galatians 5:22-23a "But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."

We talked about the fruits of the spirit throughout the week and I used examples in life to teach them. At one point, Ella's grandmother, "Gugga" came over with iced banana bread and Peanutbutter cookies. It is no secret to anyone we know that I am working on losing weight, so I told Ella, "Mommy is going to have self-control. That's one of the fruits of the spirit." Ella said, "Oh, I am NOT going to have self-control!" Haha! Well, at least she knows what it means now. She ate the banana bread with icing, and I went and brushed my teeth.

Apple Sauce, part of Lesson 4 of MFW- K

2011-02-26T12:30:00.006-06:00

Making Apple Sauce with your child:

Step One:

Start with your favorite apples. Scrub them with a vegetable brush.

Step Two:

Core, peel, and chop your apples.

Step Three:

Place apple slices in a pot.

Step Four:

Boil apples til soft.

Step Five:

Let your child mash the apples with a fork.

Step Six:

Allow your child to add Cinnamon.

Finally, eat up! Delicious!

Don't be picky when it comes to the texture. I let Ella do all her own mashing. It was fine that there were lumps. She loved it! It was really good, and we didn't need to add sugar. The apples we had were really sweet.

Linguine with roasted red bell peppers and pesto

2011-02-26T11:55:00.004-06:00

We really have been doing lessons this week, not just eating. I have a post on the past two week's lessons almost ready, but just one more food post first. I started eating meat again for a bit over the past few months. I believe that many times when we crave things, it's because we need it. (Not french fries maybe, but foods that offer nutrition). While I don't believe meat is healthy, it does offer some nutrients that can be challenging for vegetarians to get. And I was craving meat badly for a short time. So I ate it occasionally for a few months, then became totally disgusted with it, so I'm back to vegetarian. My diet will never be 100% anything. If I want a piece of tilapia my husband cooks, I'm going to eat it. But I'm mostly vegetarian. On top of being vegetarian, I'm working to lose 15 lb by summer. So eating has been a fun challenge lately. Today I made this delicious pasta. It's linguine with roasted red bell peppers, garlic, and pesto. I boiled about 1/4 lb of linguine in salted water, sauteed 3 cloves of garlic and a cup or so of the roasted red bell peppers in olive oil. Once the linguine was done, I drained it and tossed it with the garlic and peppers and added some salt and pepper. Then I added 1 teaspoon of pesto and stirred to coat the pasta. If you make this, go easy on the pesto! One "serving" has 21g fat!! Before you vow never to touch pesto again, keep in mind, one serving is 1/4 cup. That's a lot! So if you use 1 teaspoon in a pot of pasta, no biggie. But if you go crazy with the pesto, you're adding a lot of unnecessary fat. This was delicious by the way. . . And my kids wouldn't touch it.

My Father's World Lessons 2 and 3

2011-02-24T09:06:00.013-06:00

Week 3, of My Father's World- Kindergarten, we worked on the letter/ sound "L" and learned about leaves. We read that leaves provide food to the plants and trees that they are on. We talked about living and growing in Jesus and how leaves will wither and die if they are pulled from their tree or plant and how people will wither as well if they walk away from God. We read "A Tree is Nice" and Ella made her own book about trees and leaves. Ella really likes trees and leaves so this was fun for her.

Ella's tree book was made up of her drawings of trees with sentences I wrote down for her about her favorite things about trees as well as a few art projects we did with a dried leaf from our yard.

In addition to learning about leaves, we continued to review letters and sounds, add a straw daily for counting, and watch our raisins. They're finally raisins!!

This is our "picture box". Inside each pocket are pictures that begin with a specific letter that Ella has colored and cut out, and I have glued to cardstock and laminated. We use these along with the textured foam letters to review letter sounds.

This is our number bucket. Each week, we add a card with a number, and on the days we do our drawing page, Ella draws a number from the bucket and draws that many objects on her page.

Ella is excited that her grapes are now raisins!

Lesson 2 of My Father's World- Kindergarten is about the moon. We learned lots of neat information about the moon, its phases and its revolution around Earth. We talked about how the moon doesn't have light of its own but reflects light from the sun and about how we as Christians don't have light of our own, but we reflect the light of Jesus. We talked about how we can show others Jesus's light. We worked on the letter/ sound "M" and read "Goodnight Moon" and "Happy Birthday Moon" , and Ella made her own "Goodnight Moon" book.

We continued to watch our grapes change.

We also kept up with the weather and date each day on our calendar and added straws daily. At ten, we bundled the straws up and wrapped a ponytail holder around them and put them in a plastic container. We continue to put a straw in our cup each day and are adding the number in our cup to ten to write on our 100 chart. We had some worksheets on the number 2, the letter M, and review. Ella practiced writing, reviewed letters and sounds, and we went to the library. We played outside, went to the park, and played with friends. Overall, it was a productive and fun week.

Squash Casserole and Cooked Pears

2011-02-23T16:52:00.003-06:00

My husband and I stopped by my good friend Gigi's house because we saw she and her husband were outside working. We chatted a bit, and I petted her donkeys. They are so cute and always make me smile. Then, she showered us with gifts of food from her freezer. I love it when she does that! :)

I made squash casserole with the squash she gave me and cooked pears with the pears she gave me. Eating farm fresh food in winter is always nice. I hope I can learn the art of gardening and eating from it year round some day soon!

Squash Casserole:

I boiled 2 qt size freezer bags of squash with a small chopped onion. While that was boiling, I mixed a sleeve of whole wheat Ritz crackers with some shredded cheese. In another bowl, I mixed 2 eggs with 1/4 c milk. Once the squash and onions were cooked, I drained them and mixed them with half the crackers & cheese, the milk and eggs, and a tablespoon or so of softened butter. I poured all this in a glass baking dish and topped with the remaining crackers and cheese and baked at 400 for 25 minutes.

The pears, I just boiled in some water til cooked through but still firm and then added cinnamon and sugar. I don't think these dishes are super healthy, but they're good. And to have my kids eating spoonfuls of squash and asking for seconds feels good!

Quick & Easy Mexican Vegan

2011-02-18T18:40:00.002-06:00

Tonight, I made veggie fajitas with mexican rice and beans.

The beans were "Old Elpaso" fat free refried beans.

The spanish rice was Uncle Ben's Spanish Rice.

For the fajitas, I sauteed fresh sliced portobello mushrooms, chopped onion, and baby spinach in non-stick cooking spray and placed in a tortilla I browned in the skillet.

The inside

Matthew fixing up his tortilla. He loved it.

Beans: fat free, 90 calories

Rice: 2.5 g fat, 200 calories per one cup, which is A LOT of rice!

Tortillas: 5g of fat, over 200 calories

The tortilla would have tasted better fried in butter, but that's not really my style these days. You may be able to find another way to flavor them a little more.

Quick & Healthy Vegan Dinner

2011-02-17T17:58:00.003-06:00

This is the easiest vegetarian meal I've ever made, and I loved it. More importantly, Ella loved it. Matthew wasn't hungry, so he hasn't really tried it yet.

I started with a recipe, but opted to change it a bit due to desired consistency, what I had on hand, and my desire to keep it vegan. So here's what I wound up doing:

Sautee 4 cloves minced garlic in 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil about 30 seconds- 1 minute.

Add halved grape tomatoes and 1 can of white beans, and cook 2 - 4 minutes.

Add a few handfuls of fresh baby spinach and a little salt and pepper, and continue to cook until the spinach is wilted.

If you like white beans and spinach, I think you'll like this.

Lesson 1 of My Father's World Kindergarten Complete

2011-02-15T18:03:00.008-06:00

Lesson 1 of My Father's World, Kindergarten was about the sun. I was impressed at how much we were able to cover this week without really spending too much time each day on sit-down lessons.

We made raisins and charted their progress.

We made a sun dial!

The sun dial was a great idea. However, our's kept falling over in the wind and was not incredibly accurate, and then we had to leave. I plan on trying this again another day.

We kept track of the weather each day on our calendar and Ella traced the date in either red or blue each day to make a pattern.

We kept up with our 100 chart, adding a straw to a cup each day and writing the number of straws in the cup on the chart.

We worked on the "S" sound and practiced saying, "Jesus is the light of the world" and read
John 8:12- Jesus said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." and
Psalm 119:105 "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.

We practiced writing and drawing words that begin with "S".

We also worked on the number "1".

Ella made her own valentines to give out at our homeschool group's Valentine's Day party using pictures of real penguins, Ella's request.

Ella decorated a box for others to put valentines to her in.

We baked and decorated cookies together.

We did more than this, and it sounds like a lot, but no one day was really busy. It went smoothly. We read, ran errands, visited with family, ate meals together, went to church, and ate a little too much sugar. Our weeks, by the way, don't really run Mon - Fri. Ella likes doing school work every day of the week, but I won't allow her to on Sundays other than some simple art and reading books and devotions together. We're still observing our soon-to-be-raisins as they have not fully changed yet. This is exciting for Ella. The lesson suggested green grapes; I had purple already. I'm not sure if the color would have made a difference. Oh, and we learned how the sun shines on different parts of the Earth using a flashlight and a globe. Ella's loving it!

Gatlinburg

2011-02-09T20:05:00.007-06:00

I went to Gatlinburg this past weekend for my little cousin's birthday party. I rode with my aunt and cousin which made the drive much easier and go by quickly.

My cousin's birthday party was at Ober Gatlinburg. It was an ice skating party. Ella loved ice skating. She spent half the time holding onto the rail but then let go and did very well! If you don't know Ella, she can't stay on her feet on dry ground, so I was worried but then pleasantly surprised! Matthew told me beforehand, "I ice skate FAST Momma!" So I let him try, but as soon as we hit the ice, he said, "I done! I done!" He still insists that he ice skates FAST, and I don't tell him otherwise.

While in Gatlinburg, we made a trip to the Aquarium, where they had just added a $5 million penguin exhibit. Ella has been loving penguins lately, so this was perfect!

For an extra $25 per person, you can have a personal experience with a penguin but only on Tues, Wed, and Thurs. We weren't there those days, so we missed that opportunity but may look into it for the future. We ordered our aquarium tickets online using my cousin's laptop the morning we went making our tickets cheaper than they would have been at the door. They were $20 for me and $3 for each of my kids. It was definitely worth $26!!

On Sunday, we took my little cousin (the birthday girl) along with us shopping and to the Dinosaur Walk Museum in Pigeon Forge. The dinosaur museum was smaller than it looked from the outside and not really what we were expecting, but my kids are pretty easy to please and were delighted to be able to look at huge dinosaur models and dig up "fossils" in sand. The cost was only $10 for adults and $7 for kids. Ages 3 and under were free.

Above is my 17 year old cousin with Matthew. He loved playing "Airplanes" with her in the motel room. She's great with kids, and helped me a lot with them over the weekend!

Below is a picture of me with my Uncles Jerri and Jerry and Ella at the Smoky Mountain Pancake House the morning we left. Jerri & Jerry are Daddy and Papa to the birthday girl we came to see.

This little trip is why we didn't start Week One in My Father's World last week, but we are there now and learning about the sun. More on that soon.

I'm Back & Days 1-10 of "My Father's World"

2011-02-03T15:03:00.019-06:00

I've been totally out of the blogosphere lately, as is obvious if you look at the date of my last post. I would like to apologize and promise to do better! People have been telling me lately they enjoy reading my blog, and I've been out of the loop. But here I am. We've had a lot going on lately. Our lives have been turned upside down, but I think we're going to make it, and so I'm going to try and start acting normal again. Here goes . . .

Ella started a Kindergarten curriculum in January. We went with My Father's World. Ella insists on doing "school work" for hours every day and cries on Sundays when I won't let her do anything other than art and what she gets at church. I was trying to keep her occupied with all the free or cheap stuff I could find online and what we had here. It was going alright, but I didn't feel like we were really progressing, just reviewing. She knows letter names and sounds, colors, numbers, how to count, shapes, and is beginning to read and write. We do plenty of art and read "living books". So what was left to do? She's already ahead of what the Kindergarten curriculum is offering, but not quite ready for 1st grade. She's where a middle of the year Kindergartener would be I think. She reads some, counts well, writes legibly, etc. So that's where we are. We're through the first ten days of My Father's World curriculum, and I'm hoping to blog about it for other moms who are curious about the curriculum. Days one through ten went like this: Each of the first seven days, we followed the creation of the world by reading the Bible. Ella illustrated each day on paper and the seven pages were turned into a book. She also colored an already illustrated number each day, and cut it out, and we glued the numbers to green cardstock to make a creation poster. During those days and the next 3, we used small flashcards to practice the letters of the alphabet, sang the ABC song while Ella pointed to each letter on a letter chart, learned the songs "B-I-B-L-E", "B-I-N-G-O", and "Old Mcdonald". We also sang the song "My Father's World." We learned the words "first", "second", "third", and so on and Ella used her poster and book to tell me the story of creation. We made a chart using pictures cut out of magazines to show "Things made by God" and "Things made by people". We looked outside and talked about God's wonderful creations. The curriculum has kept Ella's attention so far, and she looks forward to doing "Kindergarten" every day. In addition to this, we keep a calendar. I have written all the numbers on the calendar, and each day, Ella traces the number with a marker and puts a sticker in the square for that day of a sun, cloud, snowflake, raindrop, etc depending on the weather. We've played with puzzles and with our Mighty Mind kit, read books, done a daily devotion, gone to story/ craft time at the library, seen a marionette show, played at the park, and made several Valentine's Day cards, and a Get Well Card. We've also read and done worksheets from "Weekly Reader" and reviewed all of our "Penguin" work we did during the first three weeks of January, including spanish words, puppets and rhymes, food chain, life cycle, etc. The past couple of days, we have been doing Groundhog day activities and learning to read and write words from those activities. Once you finish Creation in My Father's World, you start on Lesson 1, which is about the sun. I've checked out books and we're ready to start other than the fact that we have a busy weekend ahead, so I'm waiting til Monday to go further. I'll post again soon.

Food, Inc punched me in the face

2010-11-13T20:01:00.004-06:00

I recently watched the documentary, Food, Inc. One of the good points made in the movie is that we associate fast food places with happy childhood memories. If my mom, for instance took me to McDonalds to eat a happy meal every time I got an A on my report card, I will associate McDonalds with good feelings, rewarding treats, and cherished moments with my mom. Therefor, I may want to do the same with my children. Happy meals equalled happy times in my childhood and I will want to share those same special times with my children. This is a problem as fast food is becoming increasingly more fattening and disgusting. The man in the movie jokingly stated that he's going to punch his kid in the face every time they pass a fast food restaurant place assumedly so that his child will associate fast food places with pain & displeasure. Obviously we are not going to inflict pain on our children when we pass fast food places, but what can we do as parents to stop the happy feelings associated with these places? First of all, we need to stop frequenting these restaurants. Secondly, we have to replace going to the restaurants with something else that is fun so that our children do not feel deprived and still feel treated. How about packing a lunch and going to the park after running errands every Friday afternoon? Or visiting the nature center each week and going on a hike? Does there have to be food present to give the warm & fuzzy feelings? I really think this is worth brain storming.

Yummy

2010-11-13T18:35:00.000-06:00

Cheap cheese pizza with added onion, red bell pepper, spinach, and home grown tomato. And topped with a little sprinkle of extra cheese. Yummy!

Home life this past week

2010-11-13T17:37:00.002-06:00

M is for MAGNETS!! My kids loved doing this activity. I found the idea at http://craftychicmommy.blogspot.com/2010/01/muffin-tin-magnetic-tray-tips-for-tots.html

You put your magnetic and non-magnetic materials in a muffin tin. Then let your child try picking up the materials with a magnetic wand. I had Ella tell me whether or not she thought the items were magnetic or not and then try picking them up with the wand and then answering whether they were magnetic or not. It was great! Matthew enjoyed it too!!

Sensory Box for Autumn

Matthew's glitter art

First we worked on patterns with the beads and slid them onto laces to make jewelry. Then the kids decided the beads made nice building blocks.

A beautiful November day called for a relaxing trip to the zoo.

What Homeschooling Looks like

2010-09-09T16:05:00.006-05:00

While I realize my children are still pre-school age, I am very excited about homeschooling. We're always learning, exploring, and discovering. And I love that homeschool is not just the image some people have of my kids sitting at the table doing workbooks all day. Homeschool takes on many appearances. It looks like . . .

Nature hunts on a summer day

Katydid viewing in the morning on the way to co-op

Friends ready to learn and share together

Little girl ready to go to homeschool co-op, ruler in hand

Stacking pegs after bath-time

And yes, even a little time at the dining room table working on patterns in a workbook

Wordless Wednesday

2010-09-08T17:29:00.002-05:00

http://www.wordlesswednesday.com/

Good Glittery Gracious

2010-09-02T17:37:00.006-05:00

We are working on the letter G this week. Today, we did glitter art.

Glitter is one of those reasons normal people send their kids to "school".

But as a homeschool mom, I feel it is my duty to let my children explore the glorious world of making a mess so huge and sparkly that their dad is wondering what in the world went on while he was at work and at the same time is thankful he was indeed at work.

But when I see the thoughtful expressions on their faces as they are creating their masterpieces and deciding where to put the next dot of glue and glob of glitter, I can't regret my decision too badly.

And the way they work together and share with eachother and in eachother's delights is absolutely precious.

I wouldn't want to miss these beautiful glittery hands for any amount of money in the world. So what if I have to overwork my vacuum for the next few days to clean up the mess? It is totally worth it!

Day 6 So Far

2010-09-02T14:18:00.004-05:00

I worked out outside this morning. It always looks like fun in the magazines. In reality though, having people honk at you while you're doing your butt squeezes can make you lose count. That didn't really happen . . . exactly, but let's just say I prefer to exercise without an audience.

My diet so far today has been: Essiac tea, handful of walnuts, Vegan organic Split pea soup, a couple of crackers, an orange, & coacoa roasted almonds.

I've also drank 4 bottles of water and am about to have some "Power-Ade" Juice. For dinner, I'll probably have rice and vegetables.

Day 5

2010-09-02T14:02:00.002-05:00

First thing: Essiac tea

Breakfast: Steel Cut Oats made with soy milk, & raspberries

Lunch: A few bites of spinnach pie & curried cauliflower soup

Snack: watermelon

Dinner: Homemade vegan potatoes Au Gratin, lentil soup, & whole wheat toast

Dessert: Strawberries

Day 4

2010-08-31T19:13:00.004-05:00

Essiac Tea first thing

Breakfast: about 1/2 a serving oats and a handful of blueberries and walnuts

Lunch: Spinnach casserole & curried cauliflower soup

Snack: Watermelon

Dinner: Spinnach, brown rice, cherry tomatoes, whole wheat bread

Dessert: Banana, coacoa almonds

My lunch was a bit more than what I am planning on eating on this new diet plan, but I had company for lunch and leftovers that needed to be eaten. So lunch was not vegan, but I had only a small portion (maybe 4 bites) of the non-vegan casserole.

I feel good, I'm getting full, and I'm not tired and don't have headaches. I feel like losing the weight I want to lose is going to happen in time and am looking forward to adding a regular exercise program soon.

Day 3

2010-08-31T09:28:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was one of those days where I didn't stick to my diet entirely as I went to lunch at Logans and then to dinner at a friend's house, but I did the best I could. I had Essiac Tea first thing in the morning and some "Power-Ade" juice and a handful of walnuts for breakfast. For lunch at Logans, I had a salad with lettuce, tomato, onion and balsamic dressing and a baked sweet potato with cinnamon, no butter of course. For snack, I had coacoa roasted almonds, grapes, and cantaloupe, and for dinner I had a salad with raspberry vinaigrette and a toasted whole wheat bun with lettuce, tomato, and mustard. That's where I messed up according to my "rules". I wasn't going to eat bread that wasn't all natural/ homemade, etc. Oh well. I was hungry. Also, I only had the Essiac Tea once as I wasn't home to make it the second time. We were busy yesterday. My husband had steak at Logans, fried musrooms, a salad with cheese and bacon, buttered rolls, and an icecream topped brownie. Funny thing is I didn't crave any of it. I was completely satisfied with my plain foods. I thought I was only doing this for a week or two, but I may stay vegan/ mostly raw from now on. I feel good.

Sweet Day

2010-08-29T19:52:00.008-05:00

Matt, Ella, Matthew, and I went to Nashville Shores on Tuesday with my mother and father in-law and my husband's friend and his daughter. I am usually not a waterpark fan, but we had so much fun. Since it was a Tuesday, there was no line to get in, no wait on the slides, and it was not crowded.

It was a great day of bonding for everyone. Matthew was attached to me some but broke away for a while in the kiddie pool to sit at the top of the wrecked pirate ship slide and watch everyone take turns going down. He loved the lazy river and he splashed around in the kiddie pool quite a bit.

Ella went down the slide in the kiddie pool aGaIn and AGaiN and AgAiN with her good friend Mary. They were inseperable. She also loved the lazy river but wasn't such a fan of the wave pool.

My in-laws were lovey dovey like I've never seen them before. It was sweet, and they really enjoyed seeing their grandkids have such a good time. My mother in law went down a few slides and had a blast.

Matt and his friend Jeffrey had a great time going down the slides together and playing with the kids.

I never thought going to Nashville Shores would be so much fun. I guess it's all in who you go with that makes the difference. It also helps that it wasn't too hot. We stayed most of the day, ate lunch there, and everyone was in a good mood the whole day. And I didn't even mention . . . we all got in for FREE because Jeffrey has family season passes and was able to get one person in free for each of his season passes!! It's normally $29 for adults, $24 for kids and $8 parking!

Day 2

2010-08-29T10:10:00.005-05:00

I woke up feeling good and confident. I am ready to be healthy, and I feel good about how yesterday went. Plus, at the store yesterday I bought everything I needed to make some yummy filling juices. I drank some Essiac tea and got started making some "Power-Ade" from the book Raw Foods Life Force Energy. It consists of a beet, 2 apples, 1 head of celery (yes a whole head!), a lemon, and some kale. I forgot ginger at the store, but that ingredient was optional anyway. Oh well. The juice was hard to gulp down at first, but went down more smoothly once the ice in my glass chilled it and perhaps watered it down a little. I have enough bottled to have a couple more glasses of it, but I was rather busy the rest of the day today and didn't have any more. It's very nourishing though, so I look forward to having it on hand the next day or two.

After my Power Ade, I had a handful of walnuts. Then for lunch I had an apple, a carrot, a handful of grapes, and a handful of pumpkin seeds. I was feeling good and proud of myself. Then my husband thought it would be great to go to the Mexican restaurant. Aaaah! What?! We were already out running errands and headed to my nephew's birthday party, so I didn't have a way out. I knew I couldn't resist mexican, so I ordered an unsweet tea and some vegetable fajitas. My fajitas came with sour cream, guacamole, rice, beans, and shredded lettuce, all of which I gave to my children. I ate the sauteed and steamed vegetables along with a couple of tortillas but no chips, sour cream, cheese, etc. So I feel like I did good. After that, we went to a birthday party where I resisted cheese puffs, birthday cake, and icecream. But I feel so ready for this that it really wasn't even a challenge. Normally it would be, by the way. I LoVE sweets!! Anyway, after the party, I had some more Essiac tea, then some coacoa roasted almonds. A little while later for dinner, I had Amy's Organic vegan Vegetable Barley Soup. I feel great, full, and not tired. I've drank plenty of water throughout the day and I've eaten enough to feel energized. I'm glad for no headache today. I'm looking forward to the results of what I'm doing. Though, I must say I'm not really doing anything hard. When I feel hungry, I eat. I'm just keeping on hand the things I can eat and making good choices with my goals in mind.

Day 1

2010-08-29T09:49:00.003-05:00

Sorry if my blog is a little boring this week. I would like to use it to track how my detoxification thing is going. I don't know if I made it clear in my last post, but that is not how I plan to eat forever, just for a couple of weeks to get my body out of my bad habits and to get my body used to having less food so I don't need as much to get full and to get out of the habit of having salt, sugar, etc everyday. Anyway, I began yesterday as planned. Here's how it went . . .

- I woke up and finished making the Essiac tea. (It has to sit covered for 12 hours after initial boiling, then has to boil again, be strained, boil again and then be bottled.)
- I drank a serving of the Essiac tea, which was not bad. While it was boiling the night before, I didn't know if I'd be able to drink anything that smelled that way. But the taste was not as strong as the smell. I drank it with an open mind, and it was fine.
- I drank plenty of water and munched on some walnuts about 30 minutes later.
- I was surprisingly not very hungry until around 11 or so. At that time I cooked some oats with soy milk and ate them with a sliced apple. No sugar. First time ever. It was good.
- I went the next few hours with nothing to eat while we went to the pharmacy and the grocery store but downed a few bottles of water.
- When we got home, I was feeling good. I put everything away and made up another serving of Essiac tea and drank it. At this point, I was feeling a little hungry, so I made some organic vegan split pea soup. I crushed up 2 whole wheat crackers and sprinkled over it. I ate slowly really enjoying it. It was filling. I ate the whole can of it, which was 2 servings. After that I felt a sweet craving, so I had some coacoa almonds and a banana.
- I went outside to play with the kids and felt tired and had a slight head ache. When we got back in, I fell asleep on the bed after reading them a few books. They played around me for 10 minutes or so til I woke up. I felt hungry, so I ate some strawberries and blueberries. That was good but not filling enough, so I made a bowl of oats with soy milk, ate it and felt better. The rest of the evening, I felt great. I got the kids to bed and read for a while before going to sleep.

So summary is . . . I wasn't nearly as hungry in the first part of the day as I thought I would be. The walnuts and tea gave me enough energy to get a good start. I had a little bit of a headache throughout the day, which is normal with the Essiac tea as it makes toxins flow throughout your body; you just have to be sure to drink enough water to flush them out. Toward the end of the day, I felt hungry and tired. So I will plan better to get more of a boost in the afternoon before I wear down.

New Me Starting . . . Tomorrow

2010-08-27T19:00:00.005-05:00

I am a little disappointed in myself for gaining back all the weight I worked so hard to lose at the beginning of the summer. Truth is though, I didn't feel like I looked good even 4 lb from my goal weight. So I kind of just gave up. Well today I was looking at pictures of me with my kids at the beginning of summer and thinking that maybe there was a difference in my appearance at 139 lb versus what I am at now 149 lb. I am struggling to button my size 10 pants and shorts that I looked good in 3 months ago. I feel fat and don't want to go back up to a size 12. I refuse to. I already gave away all my size 12 clothes. So I'm going to do something about it.

I've been a vegetarian for 2 years now, maybe a little longer. Maybe not. I think it's time to give up the real problem in my diet though, sugar. I can't just give it up though and move on like nothing happened. Sugar and I have been in a serious mutual relationship for as long as I can remember. I don't think sugar will move on as easily as I would like for her to. So here's my plan . . .

Essiac tea twice a day for cleansing/ detoxification
LOTS of water
Raw carrots and apples
Homemade juices made of fruits and veggies
Nuts
Oats
Brown rice, steamed veggies and natural soups.
Salads with a little lemon juice or olive oil.

That's it. Otherwise I may have a little something at some one's home if invited over for dinner as not to be rude, and I will have a little something when we go to restaurants as to not make it awkward or starve. But I'm going to really work to get myself out of my bad eating habits and clean my body of all the junk, and start over. I think it's a great time as my toddler quit nursing recently, and I'm not feeling nearly as hungry as usual these days. I feel a real desire to be healthy, and I'm really enjoying healthy foods. I'm not having strong cravings and can take or leave sweets . . . as long as I don't see them anyway.

Goodbye Turtle

2010-08-25T21:23:00.005-05:00

http://www.wordlesswednesday.com/newhome/

4 in 1 post

2010-08-22T12:26:00.005-05:00

Vegan Curried Cauliflower Soup

My kids actually liked this one which shocked me.

2tsp extra virgin olive oil

1 large onion

2 medium carrots

2 Tbsp curry powder

2 cloves of garlic, minced

29 oz Vegetable broth

2 1/2 c water

2 medium potatoes cut in 1/2 in pieces

1 head of cauliflower or 3 cups frozen cauliflower florets

1 can chickpeas, rinsed

1/2 cup frozen cut-leaf spinach

Heat oil in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onions and carrots; cook 4 minutes or until onions are golden and tender. Stir in curry powder and minced garlic. Stir in remaining ingredients; cook covered for 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

This soup was delicious and made great leftovers. My kids like it with ritz crackers and if you are not vegan, it's also yummy to add a dallop of sourcream or plain yogurt just before you eat it.

4 Layer Gratin

This is what you serve to non-vegetarians to impress them. ;)

My manly husband and his manly non-veg friend loved this. I served with bruschetta.

gratin:

3 medium Zuccchini, cut diagonally into 1/4 in thick slices

1 yellow squash, cut diagonally into 1/4 in thick slices

1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp crushed ritz crackers

1/2 tsp dried sage

1 Tbsp flour

1 1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 can (8.5) oz artichoke hearts, drained

1 scallion, trimmed and minced

1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

3/4 cup light cream2 Tbsp grated parmesean cheese

Heat oven to 350. In large bowl, mix zuchinni, yellow squash, 1/4 cup ritz cracker crumbs, sage, flour, 1 tsp of the salt, and pepper. In blender, puree artichoke hearts, scallion, 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese, 1/4 cup of the cream, the remaining salt and a ping of pepper.

Spread 1/2 of the squash mixture over the bottom of shallow 2 qt baking dish. Spread half of the artichoke puree over the squashh. Repeat layers. Toss together the remaining 1 cup mozzarella cheese, remaining ritz cracker crumbs and the parmesean cheese. Sprinkle evenly over the gratin. Drizzle with the remaining 1/2 cup light cream. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes until squash is tender and the top is golden. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.
Bruschetta:

10 Large fresh basil leaves, sliced thin

2 cups roma tomatoes

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 loaf French baguette

Heat oven to 425.

Roll up several basil leaves and slice into very thin strips. Repeat with remaining basil leaves. Combine tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, basil, salt, and pepper in bowl.

Cut bread into angled 1/4 in pieces. Combine olive oil and garlic. Brush onto bread slices and place on baking pan.

Bake 6-8 minutes or until golden brown. Drain excess liquid from tomatoes into small bowl. Spoon tomato mixture evenly over bread slices. You may dip bread into the drained liquid whle eating if you like.

Ella's favorite lunch:

Heart shaped cheese, mayo, mustard sandwich

served with goldfish and chocolate chip teddy grahams!

Leftover night!

Progresso Lentil soup drained and served with steamed spinach that I added egg to and scrambled, sauteed onion, bellpepper, and potato slices, brown rice, and whole wheat bread with margarine sprinkled with a little garlic salt. All foods were leftover from various meals throughout the week.

Let's Get Wild

2010-07-31T17:14:00.006-05:00

There's a place in Tennessee between Wilder Mountain, The Obee River, Jamestown, and Dale Hollow Lake that you either know about or you don't.

It doesn't have a name, an address, or a sign. Or not that I know of anyway. And it is wonderful.

I did three things in one day that many would not believe I would do.

I explored a cave. We had to crawl in. Then we walked about 1/4 mile.

This is right outside the cave.

This is Matt and me about 1/4 mile in the cave. It may be less than that. I don't know. Once we got to this point, there was a gate we could not pass.

The gate had a sign on it that explained that it is gated for "your" safety and to preserve it for the future. The cave runs on 17 miles. Without light, we couldn't see our hands in front of our faces. It was dark, and it was very cold.

The next thing I did that noone (not even myself) would believe was I climbed a big rock.

Isn't it beauiful? The view from the top is beautiful too.

Here Matt and I are at the top. We climbed a fire escape ladder, which ran out a few feet from the top. Then we used a knotted rope to pull ourselves the rest of the way up.

Matt failed to tell me until I was on top of the rock

that the only way down was to jump, which brings me to thing number 3

I would not normally do. No pics of this, because the memory card filled up while

our friend was trying to get video of me jumping. Seems I hesitated too much, so

we didn't get video of it either. I did jump though. It's about 15 ft.

Next time we go, I'm taking a water camera so I can get pics from the top too. See, since the

only way down is to jump, you can only get pics from the top if the camera you are using can get wet. Matthew is weaned from breastfeeding, which is a very big deal. I thought it would be

very difficult and worried a lot for nothing. I ate something one day that made him think my milk was bad, and he would not nurse anymore. That was that. It happened about 3 weeks before his second birthday! My baby is two now. The day Matt and I went to Wilder Mountain/ Obee River/ Jamestown/ Dale Hollow, we left Matthew and Ella with grandparents and they ended up staying the night because we got home so late. We were just up the street and told them to call if either woke up in the night, and we would come get them. But it worked out, and we were able to sleep in the next morning, which was great. Our kids stayed the whole night at their grandparents' house!!! It was great for Matt and me. It felt like we were a married couple again, not just parents. ♥ ♥ ♥

If you lose your child

2010-07-31T08:38:00.005-05:00

If you lose your child in a public place, and she asks another adult for help and that adult returns your child to you, remember it is polite to thank the person who helped return your child. Don't lie and say you were watching her the whole time. We know you're lying; you wouldn't have let her walk off with a stranger crying. Just say "thank you", make a mental note to keep better track of your children or buy a leash or whatever you need to do, and move on. Don't forget to praise your child for asking for help. Children should always try to find another Mommy when they are lost and ask her to help them find their parent or person they were with. (Why not a daddy? Because almost 100% of sexual predators are men, and you can not trust your child to judge whether a man is a good man or not and it is safer to assume that a lady is not a sexual predator. Don't believe me? Read Protecting the Gift by Gavin De Becker).

I've seen this scenerio played out twice since spring, and it amazes me how moms will not even thank the parent who worked to return their terrified child to them. They must just be startled and embarrassed. It could happen to any of us, so next time you lose your child, just remember to thank the hero who returned her. lol.

To Train Up a Child

2010-07-30T17:27:00.006-05:00

My response to "To Train Up a Child" by Michael Pearl:

I recently read "To Train Up a Child" by Michael Pearl. I took some ideas from it that I am using in raising my children. Other ideas I thought were a little overboard or dangerous.

I realized while reading the book that I have been giving too many warnings. When I would tell Ella or Matthew to do something and they disobeyed, I would ask again, whine at them, plead, count, yell, and then finally they would either obey or get in trouble. Oh boy did I get a telling off by Michael Pearl. Lol. I felt like he was talking directly to me. Now when I give instructions, the first "No" or sign of disobedience gets a swat on the bottom or leg with my sad face spoon. Just one. I then calmly give instructions again. They either obey or get another swat. If I tell them to do something, and they disobey and then obey quickly once they realize I'm getting the spoon, they still get the swat. Hesitance in obedience is just as much a crime as disobedience. Boy did I quickly learn that if you expect your child to obey the first time, they will. If you give them 12 chances to obey, they will not obey until you get to the counting, whining, yelling point. I mean, you're either teaching them to obey the first time you give instructions or the twelfth. They will do what we have taught them. Thank you Michael Pearl for this lesson. Apologies to my friends who have had to hear me whine at my kids. Lol.

I thought that Mr Pearl's instruction to give 10 slow steady swats was overboard. I hurt for children who have to endure this. I find that 1 is sufficient. I think this might be necessary if we as parents have let our children become so disobedient and disrespectful that we have to give them a lesson to remember. Of course if we are doing our job right to begin with, spankings should be few and far between as our children already know they must be respectful and obedient. But in cases of them going astray, 1 swat should be enough to gain attention and alert our children to our consistency of our expectations. 10 is just too much.

Letting his child fall into a pond to learn to stay away from the pond or even pushing one in sounded dangerous and irresponsible. My good friend explained better that most ponds are shallow and that children learn best through experience, and letting a child get a gulp of water will scare them enough to make them stay away from the danger. A gulp of water for a lesson is ok I guess, but really, pushing your non swimming young child into a pond? I just don't think that's a good idea.

Mr Pearl recommends "training sessions" where you put a favorite toy in front of your child, instruct them not to touch, and then spank them every time they touch it. Aaaah. This is just mean. I think life presents us with enough experiences to train that we should not need to do this. I have put some breakables on my tables. There was one day that we had some naturally occuring training sessions. This was the first day I put the breakables on my tables. Matthew touched, I told him no. He knows what happens when he disobeys, so he hasn't touched them since, except for one candle that, poor thing, is shaped like a ball. Oh so tempting. He has had his hand swatted once for that. I agree that we should not "child proof our homes" but rather "house proof our children" as Mr Pearl explained. I think there's an age where this is appropriate though, and spanking a 5 month old as he has admitted to doing sounds harsh to me as well.

Something I had done in the past that I learned in this book NOT to do is spank when mad. I would get so tired of saying something twelve (that's the number of the day) times and finally be mad, yell, and spank. Mr Pearl reminds us that if we spank the first time, we do not get to the point of being mad in the first place and spanking is no longer a thing of anger. Our children just see it as a consequence of their actions, not as violence. I am also happy to find that the sad face spoon I use instead of my hand gets the point across better and allows me to use my hands only for loving as my good friend suggested. :) Mr Pearl recommends a switch, but my handy dandy sad face spoon is always with me and very reliable.

In conclusion, I am thankful I read this book. I took away some lessons on discipline, lessons that are helping me to enjoy my children so much more. I'm not following it all. But I did take some things away. I got the best compliment from my children's only babysitters the other day . . . "They obey the first time they are told to do something!" It wasn't always this way, but I feel that reading this book is helping me to make some necessary changes.

By the way I have some friends who have read this book and do not agree with a single thought in the book. I totally realize we all have different methods and have to find what works for our own families. Even the things about the book that I agree whole-heartedly with, some of my closest friends may find ridiculous. And I know that we can only raise our children the way we feel comfortable with. We have intuition and a God-given responsibility to follow it. If something does not feel right for our family, then there's probably a reason. We just have to trust that God will help us to know what the right methods are for our individual families and situations. I am only reviewing the book and giving my experiences with it. It is not my hope or expectation that everyone agree. I respect everyone's right to raise their children as they see fit.

If you have read the book, what did you learn? What did you disagree with?
If you have not read the book, does my review make you want to read it or stay the heck away from it? lol.

My review isn't really good or bad. It's very mixed.

Motivation

2010-07-15T18:52:00.002-05:00

Everyone needs motivation some times. What some refer to as bribery, I refer to as motivation. Of course doing what we need to do with no reward is something we must all learn at some point. In the young, though, I feel a reward is sometimes warranted to bring about the type of behaviour we want to see become habit. And without further adieu, this is the chore chart we started using for Ella, age 4.~~~>http://www.target.com/Board-Dudes-Erase-Chore-Chart/dp/B002HJKVN8 I am really impressed at the changes this has brought about in my child. Her manners were slacking, and her whining was driving me crazy. I wanted to focus on positive behaviour for the chore chart, so on the chart are the following:

Fold Clothes (Ella knows how to fold towels, wash cloths, and her clothes. She loves this chore!)
Clean table (Another favorite chore)
Feed Cat
Use your manners (This one can be earned as well as taken away & whining gets it taken away)
Story time (We read every day, but this makes her look forward to it more)
Brush your teeth (Now she brushes her teeth without me having to tell her to!!)
Practice writing (This one was her idea. She likes to practice writing letters each day)
Pick up toys (Another thing I used to have to tell her to do that I don't anymore!!)

The chores are all simple things she can do on her own. Getting a star for story time is really like a freebie, but I like that it makes story time even more important to her now. She really wants her star for it, so she makes sure we read each day. The writing practice is something she needs, so I'm glad she thought to put it on there. We sit together for this activity, and it's really relaxing. Matthew is interested in writing too. He always says, "I wanna Draw 'A' Momma" . He'll be 2 soon and is excitedly watching his sister and trying to do everthing she does. For now this is a good thing.

So what does she get for all these stars?
Pizza and movie night after 40 stars, which she'll reach tomorrow.
A new movie after 80 stars
A surprise from me after 120 stars

I already bought her a new movie that I found on sale for $5 the other day. It's a box set of 2 movies that I know she'll be excited about b/c she's been asking for them. I'm holding them til she reaches her 80 stars. The pizza and movie night will be with a movie we already have or borrow from netflix. I haven't decided yet what the surprise will be from me. Maybe a new toy or maybe a little outing for just the 2 of us. I'll have to pay attention to what she's needing at that time or really wanting/ showing interest in.

I'm glad I found something that motivates my daughter to behave, follow manners, be helpful, and take more responsibility. She has been such a joy lately, and I think it's because she feels needed and appreciated. That, and I just finished reading "To Train Up a Child" and have decided that I'm only going to give instructions once from now on. If I say it once, and Ella or Matthew do not obey, they get in trouble. No counting or repeating myself over and over. I'm also training attitude too. So huffing and whining gets them in trouble too. I'm enjoying my children much more now than ever before. They're being much more obedient, helpful, & respectful. Motivation comes in many forms I guess.

Visiting Florida and I Need to Go on a Diet

2010-06-25T19:07:00.004-05:00

I have spent the better part of the past 2 weeks visiting my mom in Sebring FL. My mom owns a cupcake shop. Need I say more?
I'll post pics once I have them uploaded.
We had a great time. The trip was originally only planned for 4 days but turned into an 11 day trip by the third day. Matthew sprained his ankle, mom broke her elbow, and the flight down was a miserable mess that would cinvince the most confident of travelers to just stay home next time. So on Sunday when I had a flight scheduled for Monday, I decided I wasn't ready to leave and that perhaps it was worth the almost $300 to stay an extra week or so. My generous mom and her husband paid most of that thankfully, which I worked off by scrubbing floors and dusting, cooking, washing dishes, and gorging myself, I mean helping in the cupcake shop.
It wasn't all work and no play though. We went to the Lake Jackson Veterans Beach for a swim, visited Sanibel Island, the Children's Museum of the Highlands, and McCracken Farm to pick oranges. We also went for a short hike at Highlands Hammock State Park. We went there two days in a row. The second day, we took the open air tram ride to view turtles and alligators. We saw alligators in the swamp just feet away from us!! It was so neat! I also learned how to decorate cupcakes! FUN!!
Noone had to teach me how to eat cupcakes, however. I've had that down a while and it took no arm twisting to convince me to try one of almost every cupcake my mom and Doug make. So to part two of my post title. I'm going on a diet when I get home.

*No more cupcakes. That should be easy enough other than the fact that I want to impress my friends by making them gourmet cupcakes when I get back. I love to bake and make desserts.
*My days should look something like this:
wake up, drink some water, work out 30 minutes, shower, make coffee and breakfast, eat & feed kids, clean up, homeschool/run errands or have playdate, make and eat lunch, clean up, Matthew down for a nap, Quiet time for Ella and me, play outside/ homeschool, make dinner, clean up, baths, books, bed time. Meals should look something like this:
Breakfast: whole grain waffle w/ honey, fruit, coffee & small glass of Calcium fortified orange juice
Lunch: Lentil or vegetable Soup & tomato sandwich
Snack: Fruit & coacoa almonds
Dinner: Pasta or rice or potato with sauteed and/or steamed vegetables. Add a tortilla and pinto beans or black beans for Mexican food one evening. Load a baked potato with sauteed veggies one evening and add a salad.
I plan to exercise 30 minutes every day. With two kids, I know I can make this work. I can play hard with them outside on the days I don't wake up in time to exercise. And we can make our play dates active by walking around the zoo or Cheekwood or on local trails. I haven't weighed myself since I made myself the official cupcake tester of Sebring, so I don't know exactly how much weight I plan to lose. I'm not "overweight"; I know that. But I could stand to tighten up a bit on my daily routine to be healthier, thinner, & stronger. So . . . . wish me luck! Off to www.sparkpeople.com.

Another Meal Idea

2010-04-20T10:09:00.004-05:00

Dinner here was Velveeta Shells and Cheese, carrots, green beans, and homemade beer biscuits.

Lunch Today

2010-02-11T17:37:00.004-06:00

Tofu nuggets, green beans, peas, and applesauce.

To make tofu nuggets, dip cubed tofu into a bread crumb/

flax seed/ seasoning mixture, & then into egg and

cook in olive oil in a large pan.

I used Mrs Dash Original blend seasoning to season the breading.

I ran out of bread crumbs about 1/2 way through

and just used seasoning, flax seed, &

whole wheat flour to finish the rest. I like the texture of the

ones with the bread crumbs better though.

Vegetarian Enchiladas

2010-02-11T15:53:00.005-06:00

Chop bell pepper & onion. Saute in small amount of oil until almost done. Add mushrooms and 1 tsp taco seasoning. Stir. Saute another minute or two. Pour mixture onto tortillas in a baking dish. (You may choose to save a couple of tablespoons of the sauted mixture for the beans and topping enchiladas when finished.) Roll each tortilla over. Pour enchilada sauce over all the loaded tortillas. Follow baking recommendations on enchilada sauce can. Something like 10 min on 350. . . We heated beans & mixed in some of our sauted mixture with them. Delicious!! High protein & good stuff. Very low fat!! Very much unlike the stuff you get at the Mexican restaurants.

New Year's Resolutions

2009-12-18T18:30:00.002-06:00

Yes, I still do New Year's Resolutions. They give me a boost of ambition to make some healthy changes in my life. In 2009, I vowed to eat no animal. I believe I succeeded minus this stuff at Thanksgiving that looked like a regular chip dip but I think may have been chicken salad. I took one sample of a bite and decided not to take a serving of it (In order to avoid offending anyone or bringing attention to myself, I just do the best I can without asking the present chefs for their ingredient lists.) This year, my resolutions are:

Switch to decaf coffee
Do yoga every day
and
Successfully grow something

Not too ambitious I don't think, especially since my children love doing yoga with me, I already drink half caff coffee, and surely I can make something srout from the ground this year that is edible??

Just One of Those Days

2009-12-18T18:11:00.003-06:00

True story:
One morning when I had lots of ambition, I scrubbed the bath tub with scrubbing bubbles and a sponge and then decided to take a bath. Matthew saw Mommy having a nice relaxing bath and had to join as usual. So I let him in or rather gave up on trying to keep him out. After bath time, I got out, dried off, and let the water empty and proceeded to brush my teeth while Matthew splashed in what water was left in the tub. As I was brushing my teeth I smelled something. I turned to see Matthew humped over with poop in the tub. YES! Now I had to rescrub the bathtub as well as my son. No biggie. This kind of thing happens everyday, well maybe not this exactly, ANYWAY . . . After bath time, I swept and mopped the floors and prepared to put up the Christmas tree. As Ella and I were hanging ornaments, she dropped a little glass snowman with little styrofoam snowballs in it. It burst on the floor and those silly little styrofoam balls flew wildly. As I tried to sweep them up, they were too light and just kept flying up in the air. Useless! So I made sure I had all the glass up and retreated to the dining room to gather a few more ornaments. I dropped one. Yep, a handpainted (by Ella) glass ornament. It shattered all over the dining room floor. I swept it up while Ella told me, "It's ok Mommy. I know it was an accident," the same thing I had been telling her just 15 minutes prior. After the ornaments were swept up and the remaining ones were dangling from the tree, we went to the kitchen to work on some other things. Ella found a bag of sprinkles and decided to try and open them. She ripped the bag open, and they flew up and fell over the counter and floor. Matthew, in the mean time found some juice to spill in the dining room on the floor. After all this mess was cleaned up, Ella spilled her juice in the kitchen, just in time for Matt to walk in, look at the disaster of a house and ask, "What have you been doing all day?" After a couple more smart comments, I told him in the most Christianly way possible, "I'm going to bed. Good luck with the kids". After 20 minutes of slow steady breathing, I joined my family for dinner where Matt appologized for picking on me. And I let him in on what I had done all day, in the most christianly way possible of course. ;) Haha.

For the Children's Sake

2009-11-27T12:20:00.003-06:00

I have been reading a book called "For the Children's Sake" by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay. I have about 20 pages left. I really like the new perspective I am finding in it. Some points I have learned (not all necessarily new but a reminder anyway) are:

-Read the bible to my children everyday. No little sermons or Sunday school fluff, just the bible. And only a couple of verses or within the child's ability to sit still and listen. Sermons are not necessary aside from church when our lives are reflective of our Christianity.

-Read good books to my children that may seem to me above their level. Read quality chapter books to my preschooler and have her retell what she is getting from the story. This should only be for short periods a day, maybe 10 minutes. Just as long as she likes. And have her draw pictures if she likes of what she's getting from the book. She may not take from it what an older child will, but she will take something from it, and it will be her's. We shouldn't underestimate the abilities of our children to comprehend good books.

-Make lots of time for outdoor explorations.

-Treat my children as friends. They are "born persons", and we are equally under the same law of God. Teach that we both answer to God's law, and be an example. We both have things to learn from each other or together.

-Learning is not a race. Have high expectations, but at a level that is "appropriate to the individual who is progressing at his own rate of development".

-Let the child learn things for learning's sake or for "his own sake", not because of the expectations of others or in competition of others' abilities.

-Teach that we must do things that are right by God's law. We do not "merely boss the child about for our own convenience".

-"Law restrain[s] from evil, and love impell[s] toward good"

-Create an atmosphere of friendship, acceptance, security, and creativity where the child is comfortable with who she is and can flourish by sharing in worthwhile studies with people who like her "as a person".

So I am not finished with the book yet, but I have already begun following some of the ideas introduced. The result? My daughter is understanding bible verses above what I ever believed she could. No fluff or coloring sheets, just raw bible. She gets it, and she's repeating the verses to me in appropriate circumstances! I have also begun reading the book "Black Beauty" to her. She likes it, and she understands it. Today when she asked to see a picture of the boy throwing sticks and rocks at the horses, I told her there was not a picture of this. So she decided we should draw our own illustration of this scene. We did so together, and I made a speech bubble for the master, in which she dictated what the master would say in our picture. I wrote in her words, "You're bad. I don't need you here. Go home, and be bad at your house!" Her dictation was a clear correct summary of what the master said in the book, which was, "You're a bad boy to chase the colts! But you won't get the chance to do it anymore. Take your pay and go home. I don't need you here." She clearly understands this classic, which is well above the level of what most 3 year old children are read. I believe any child can prosper and benefit from being respected, challenged, and not having her abilities underestimated and undermined.

On Top and Under the Weather

2009-11-12T17:11:00.005-06:00

Yesterday I felt so on top of things. I swept twice, cooked 3 meals, scrubbed the toilet, did all the laundry in the house, dusted, did dishes, did homeschool activities with Ella, played with Matthew and Ella outside, sewed a baby doll for Matthew following a free pattern I found online, sewed up a sweater with a hole and a shirt with a hole, went to the grocery store, and gave Ella 3 doses of colloidal silver to finish off her flu symptoms. Today, I was on top again. I cooked breakfast, played ball with Matthew, played some games with Ella and cut out an unbelievable amount of circles from scrapbook paper for a craft project, bathed me and both kids, and woke Matt up before noon. We went to the local consignment sale where I purchased Ella 2 outfits and 1 pajama set, which are now in the washer. But now, I feel like passing out. It's only 5:18. I need to cook dinner and play with the kids, read some books, and get them in bed. My throat is sore and I feel achy and tired. I've already had hot Chamomile tea with local honey. I think now I need a good dose of colloidal silver and some Amy's Organic "No Chicken" Noodle Soup and to get in the bed early. Oh, but there's this button bracelet I want to make first. ;)

My Other Blog

2009-11-10T07:46:00.001-06:00

My other blog is all about homeschooling. It mostly shows some of the activities I do with Ella. I started it to help other moms who are homeschooling preschoolers.

http://prehomeschool.blogspot.com/

Attachment Parenting and Me

2009-11-02T06:21:00.002-06:00

I have never gone out of my way to practice attachment parenting. Attachment Parenting is really what comes naturally to me and probably to most mothers before they are influenced by society and others around them. We sleep share, breast feed, baby wear, homeschool, and keep our children close. There are a few things though that we have done or currently do that do not go along with attachment parenting such as:

1.) I have herniated discs in my lower back, so baby wearing is often replaced by a stroller once my baby is too heavy or when I have pain in my back and shooting down my legs.

2.) Ella WOULD NOT breastfeed, so I pumped and gave her a bottle as long as I could until we had to switch to formula.

3.) We spank. This is very much against API recommendations, but we do it because the bible says to, it worked on us as children, and we don't want our children controlling us as they sure try.

I LOVE my children, I want others to enjoy being around them, and I want them to be respectful to others and also to people's belongings and homes.

So we're somewhere in the middle on the parenting spectrum. We will not allow our children to disrespect us, their grandparents, or others. They know we're in charge, not them. Yet, in other areas we're very gentle, loving, and . . . attached.

Not Bad for My First Time

2009-10-26T22:13:00.002-05:00

I have some friends who are into couponing. They've told me how to save lots of money. So I decided to give it a try. I couldn't print many coupons from my computer due to a printer issue this week. So I had to rely on loading coupons onto my Kroger card on the Kroger website and using clipped coupons from the newspaper. I went to Kroger with my coupons and list in tow. Here's what happened:
My initial total was 111.97. After my coupons and discounts were applied,
my total spent was 64.32.
So my total saved was 47.65!! AND Had I not bought 3 packs of organic vegetarian cheese at 4.19 a piece and 2 cans of organic vegetarian soup at 2.99 a piece, I would have only spent 45.77, which means I would have actually saved more than I even spent!! But I'm a vegetarian with needs for vegetarian organic soups and cheese, wo what's a girl to do? Haha. I think I did GREAT for my first time though!!

For those who do not know, Kroger doubles coupons up to 50c. Also, when there's a BOGO offer, you can just get one if you want and get it half price. One coupon I had was for $1.00 off some tuna (hubby eats meat still). Kroger added 50c to the coupon, which made it $1.50 off. Kroger had that tuna on sale for 50c this week, so I actually got the 3 packs of tuna for FREE!! It was 50c per pack, and I had $1.50 in coupon savings for it!! There are deals similar to this all over. I bought my husband a Tyson heat & eat meal, normally 6.99. Kroger had it on sale BOGO free. I just got one. So it was only $3.49. Then, I had a $1.00 off coupon for it, which Kroger raised to $1.50, so I bought a $6.99 meal for $1.99!!!! I'm so excited; I can see how this gets addicting!!

You can do it all, but you don't have to do it all BIG

2009-10-25T16:04:00.003-05:00

Something I've had a hard time learning and may continue to struggle with is that I don't have to commit to so much to still be part of lots of wonderful things. After talking with a friend this morning at church, I sense I'm not the only one who struggles with this. When I find something wonderful, I get excited and want to be a big part of it. I'm President of the local MOMS Club, I volunteer as an assistant ballet teacher, I'm in a homeschool group, I'm in a book group, I'm a cloth diapering, breastfeeding vegetarian. I'm a stay at home mom, but I'm rarely home. I'm busy, but there are some people who are busier than I am, which is hard to fathom. I get so excited about things such as volunteer opportunities and contributing to various organizations that I have overcommited myself more than once. I am trying to do better so that my children, husband, and home are the ones who get the most of me and to make sure that I am able to stay true to the reason I'm an "at-home" mom in the first place. I want to be active in church, and I want to serve God and my community. But I can't do any of it well if I'm doing too much. I have to remember sometimes that I can do lots of wonderful things, but I don't have to be in charge of it all or serve in a big way. A little here and there with God's guidance will go much further.

Misunderstanding

2009-10-25T15:57:00.004-05:00

Ella: "Look Momma!"
Me: Doing dishes, getting ready to make lunch, "Honey, you're distracting me from my duties."
Ella: Twists face, "WHAT?? I'm scratching your Doooodie?"

Hahahahahahahahaha.

Questions from a 3 Year Old

2009-10-16T09:13:00.003-05:00

Ella: "Mommy, can we go to China?"
Me: "Maybe someday."
Ella: "If we go to China and come back, will we be Chinese?"

She asked this hours after I told her that people who are "from" China are Chinese.

Ella: "My Granny died when I was a baby."
Me: "Yes, that's right. She's in Heaven with God."
Ella: "Did God die when I was a baby too?"

Autumn- Time for Soup

2009-10-07T21:55:00.004-05:00

The temperature is dropping day by day.

Today it felt like Autumn,

and it smelled like Autumn.

So I made vegetable soup.

The soup I make varies every time I make it. I use whatever I have and hope for the best. Today's soup went something like this:

4 Cans Vegetable broth, 3 Carrots, 1/2 leftover onion, several green onions, 1/2 leftover tomato, lots of fresh spinach leaves, 1 can green beans, 1 small can mushrooms, 1 head broccoli, 1/2 box whole wheat maccaroni noodles, some chopped parsley, 1 clove minced garlic, cracked pepper, salt, some olive oil, butter, and soy sauce. I chopped and boiled and sauteed until it was just right. And boy was it just right! It was the best soup I've ever made. Matthew ate it up as did Matt and I. Ella picked through it claiming to not like vegetables and settled on goldfish crackers instead, which I had given her to put IN the soup not to eat INSTEAD of the soup, but that's a 3 year old for ya.

I got the veggies in my girl by the end of the day though. Dinner was shells and cheese with mashed cooked carrots mixed in, green beans, and whole wheat bread with margarine.

Homemade Strawberry Costume

2009-10-06T12:05:00.005-05:00

Here is Ella's halloween costume. She wants to be a strawberry this year. I used microsoft "paint" to plan & design it. I traced all but the bottom of a dress onto a red folded fleece blanket. I free-handed the bottom to a strawberry shape. Then, I sewed it together at the shoulders and underneath the arms down the hips and let the rest hang like a dress. I cut out seeds and leaves from black and green felt, which Ella and I hot-glued to the costume, and I sewed some "leaves" to a headband. I'll put red tights and black shoes on her on halloween night. It's very home-made, and she absolutely loves it!! I'm so happy with it.

Another Simple Dinner (Vegan style)

2009-10-02T06:35:00.004-05:00

Dinner last night was warmed Organic Vegetable Barley Soup from a can from Amy's Organic soups. All the soups by "Amy's" are vegetarian. This particular one is vegan. I am working toward becoming vegan myself. To accompany the canned soup, I made home-made vegan whole wheat biscuits that were delicious. Matthew and Ella both ate 'em up and loved them. I made them Campbells vegetarian vegetable soup as it's a little less wild for their young tastebuds. (I've found Ella prefers this soup over any other). To make the biscuits, I used 2 cups of whole wheat flour, a pinch of salt, a teaspoon of baking powder, 1/3 cup vegetable oil, & 2/3 cups soy milk. I mixed it all up, added a little more flour to thicken it up, and then dropped the mixture by spoonfuls onto my pampered chef pizza stone and baked for about 12 minutes on 450'.

Delicous, SIMPLE, Healthy, Filling, Vegan

What more could I ask for?

Laurel Falls

2009-10-01T09:41:00.007-05:00

Our Hiking trip to Laurel Falls in Gatlinburg

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park located in Gatlinburg is wonderful.

We stopped by the Sugarland Visitor center to find out what would be the best hiking experience for beautiful scenery and stroller access. We were given several options and decided on Laurel Falls. The hike was only 2.6 miles total and the trail was paved. Kind of bumpy with tree roots grown up under the asphalt, but fine. On one side of the trail was a drop off, so we had to be careful holding onto Ella. Most of the trail was uphill on the way to the waterfall and being at higher elevation made us tire more quickly. So that was the only hike we tackled for the day. It was fun though. I'm so glad we did it and was happy to see a more natural side to Gatlinburg. The view was beautiful and the weather was cool. The kids enjoyed looking at all the colorful leaves, and Matthew especially loved the waterfall, saying "Whoosh Whoosh!" while standing under it. I loved looking at the mosaics of colorful fall leaves against the sky, the different shaped trees, the wildflowers along the path, and of course the mountains in the distance. It was exciting, too thinking we may see a bear, but we didn't. We did see a thin gray snake though.

Matthew speaks

2009-09-25T16:52:00.005-05:00

Matthew is 14 months old. Here's what all he is saying right now:

Mama

Daddy

Ella

Sissy

Kitty Cat

Whoof

Thank you

I WANT THAT!

What's that?

Get that!

Ball

Pappa

Eye

Bye Bye

Hello

Bubble

Wan Drink

The funniest thing though is the phrase "I want that" which is what he loudly proclaims when he wants to nurse while slapping his "food source"!!!! Oh BOYS. Haha!!

Enchanting as Always

2009-09-25T16:31:00.006-05:00

Enchanted Lovable Little Angel

Some Photos I took at Cheekwood on a wet drizzly beautiful day a few weeks ago

"The sun penetrates my soul. The wind whispers secrets in my ears."

Men Just Don't Get it

2009-09-24T15:33:00.005-05:00

I went to Target today. I spent about $55 on summer clothes for Ella for next year and even got 3 outfits and a dress for my little cousin who is staying with me this week. Matt had a little fit and threatened to take my debit card, but look what all I bought!! Complete outfits for $3 & $5!!!! He got mad because I bought summer clothes for next year, and summer is just ending this year. But that's how you get the good deals!!!

Purple Top $2.24, Gray skirt (w/ built in shorts) $1.74
Clearance total: $3.98 Original total $15.98

Green shirt $3.98, denim shorts $3.24
Clearance total: $7.22, Original total: $20.98

Peace Frog PJ's 4.98, orignal price $9.99

Purple frilly flower top $1.98, denim shorts from other outfit
original price for top: $7.99

Stripes and hearts top$1.74, denim shorts $3.24
Clearance total: 4.98, Original Total: $19.98

Butterfly shirt $1.74, polka dot pants $1.24
Clearance total: $2.98 Original total: 11.98

Striped shirt $1.48, denim shorts already shown
Original price of shirt: $5.99

Coral top: $3.98, denim shorts already shown
Original price of top: $7.99

White tank with bow 3.48, denim shorts already shown
Original price of top: $6.99

I paid $35.06 for the above items that would have cost me $107.87 at full price!! So, I could wait til summer and spend over $100 or I can buy the clothes 6 months in advance and spend $35. Um, how does he not understand how great this is?????? Men just do not get it!!

My 3 Year Old Has Something It Took Me 19 Years (at least) to Get

2009-09-18T15:58:00.004-05:00

Today, we were sitting in the YMCA cafe having snack after I picked Ella and Matthew up from the "YPlay" nursery area. Matthew fell out of his chair. Ella immediately put down her food, got out of her chair and went and picked up the stuff that fell off the table when Matthew fell. I, of course, grabbed Matthew. Once Ella had Matthew's napkins and snack back on the table, she gave him a kiss and asked if he was ok. I thanked Ella for her help. I was really touched that she was so helpful and caring. She's such a great big sister. Then, this afternoon, Matt took out the trash. As he did, something leaked out of the bag all the way across the house. Ella noticed the trail of gray liquid and (I'm seriously not making this up!!) went and got the mop, which was still wet from me mopping up from lunch, and mopped up the mess!!!!! She said, "Mommy, look what Daddy got on the floor" as she mopped away!!! I'm impressed. My 3 year old understands INITIATIVE, something my mom tried the 18 years I was at home to drive into my head. When she sees a need, she just takes care of it without being asked.

Art and Crafts

2009-09-01T07:07:00.004-05:00

There's a difference between art and crafts. Art involves creativity, exploration of materials, and potentially an end creation much different from the original idea if there was an original idea at all. Crafts usually involve a sequence of steps to create an intended end product. I used to think crafts for children were limiting, and that art was the much more important thing to do with them. However, as a "homeschool" mom to a preschooler, I'm seeing the benefits of craft projects. Ella learns to follow directions in a particular order. She learns that various shapes can be put together to create animals or vehicles or trees, etc. She learns that shapes are an everyday part of life, and probably most importantly for preparing for "Kindergarten", she's building fine motor skills. She needs these skills for learning to write. Her cutting skills are getting better and better, and her drawings are resembling the items she intends. So, while art is definitely important in many ways, crafts have their place. I think it's important to know the difference between art and crafts and the benefits of the two in order to fully take advantage of all the learning opportunities each presents.

So Simple

2009-08-29T07:27:00.008-05:00

Dinner last night was super simple: Steamed potatoes and green beans in butter sauce (came from the freezer section), creamed corn, whole wheat rolls-

And the verdict is . . .

YUMMY

How Many Trucks Does a Boy Need?

2009-08-22T08:07:00.003-05:00

Q: How many trucks does a boy really need?
A: As many trucks as his sister has dolls.

Thanks Courtney for putting this into perspective. I was at the store last night (Wal-Opoly) and decided to take Matthew to the toy section to spend his remaining $10 in birthday money. I thought I'd get him some little plastic animals to play with as he likes them when he's at other kids' houses. Anyway, the plastic animals said they were for ages 5 & up. Not sure why. But it didn't really matter, because as soon as he saw the fire trucks, he started jumping and reaching and going "Vroom vroom vroom!". Ya, he's definitely a boy. I didn't want to buy him another truck, because he already has so many. I said, "How many trucks does one boy need?" and my friend Courtney replied, "Well it's just like girls and their dolls. Girls have a large variety of dolls with different clothes and suff. Boys have the same number of trucks." OH. Ok. I get it. And I got the firetruck. BUT not the one he originally wanted as it was for ages 3 and up. I bought him the one for ages 18 months and up.

It's interesting that my baby boy goes for trucks and such. It tells me that boys really are born with that desire. I sure didn't do anything to make him desire trucks and balls over girly things. Let me tell you, he had no reaction whatsoever on the baby doll isle. And I encourage him to play with baby dolls and his sister's kitchen, tea set, etc. daily. So I guess my house is destined to be filled with trucks and baby dolls. Oh and plenty of art supplies!

Sometimes we just need a good hearty breakfast . . .

2009-08-14T21:02:00.004-05:00

For Dinner!
Tonight, we had scrambled (cage free) eggs (made with soy milk),
toast with blackberry preserves (from Loveless Cafe-- Thanks Courtney!!),
orange juice,
yogurt, (Matthew) and
cheerios with raisins (Ella).
And I had some pears.
Oh, and a spoonful of JIF peanutbutter for me, just because I got the urge.

For lunch, we had velveeta shells and cheese, green beans, and whole wheat bread with margarine.

Velveeta cheese is rennet free. It's also not very nutritious. But every now and then, it's nice.

Vegetarian Enchiladas, Mexican Rice, Refried Beans

2009-08-08T20:56:00.004-05:00

Today's big meal was Enchiladas, vegetarian refried beans, and mexican rice. For the enchiladas, I sauteed finely chopped mushrooms, bell peppers, onions, diced tomatoes, and a little salsa in a pan with margarine. Once cooked pretty well through, I poured the mixture onto whole wheat tortillas and rolled. Then, I topped them with red enchilada sauce and baked for 10 minutes on 350. I took them out and topped with a little sour cream. They were delicious! The rice was from a box with the seasoning included, just had to add diced tomatoes, and the beans were from a can. Just had to warm.

A Question on Sex for Christians

2009-08-08T07:39:00.002-05:00

I had a long talk with a good friend last night. Some much needed adult conversation after my lovely little heathans went to sleep. (Whew they were hard on me yesterday!) Anyway, one topic of our conversation was sex. Don't we ladies always go there when we're having adults only girl talk?! Well, we were talking about christians and premarital sex. When a christian raised girl has sex, and her parents find out, her parents tend to ask, "What did I do wrong?" Well, I also want to know what went wrong. Who is to blame for so much premarital sex these days? Is it the parents for not having "the talk" early enough? Surely not. My mom had that talk with me when I was like 6! Is it the media for making sex look so glamorous? Is it our culture? Or is it God's fault for making us sexual beings? Of course we are all responsible for our OWN actions. So when it comes down to it, the reasons are probably different for everyone. My former pastor made the statement last Christmas that Mary was around 14 years old when she gave birth to Jesus. So why are we surprised to find out 14 year olds are sexually active? A long time ago, people got married in their teens. Now the average age in the US is 25 for women and 27 for men! Is it any wonder 50% of new mothers are unmarried? Is it really still realistic for us to expect people to wait til they're married? We all know waiting til marriage is the way God intended for it to be. Our lives would be so much easier if we would follow God's plan. But what is the solution? We can't lock our kids in their rooms and take away their magazines and televisions and radios. God created us with a desire for sex. We are created to procreate. Why has the average age for marriage gone up so much? 14 year olds are not as mature these days as they were back in Jesus's time. Or at least I would hope not. If a pregnant 14 year old had to ride for miles on a camel and give birth in a barn these days, she'd probably shoot herself and her husband too. Are we not setting the expectations high enough for our children? We say they're growing up too fast, but are they really? Can you really expect a man to wait 27 years? A woman 25 years? Should we encourage our kids to get married younger? But the divorce rate is high enough as it is. I'm really curious to know the opinion of other Christian ladies on this topic.

Vinegar to the RESCUE

2009-08-06T09:05:00.004-05:00

So if you ever want to blame your favorite coffee company for crappy coffee, just look inwardly first. My MIL informed me that a dirty coffee maker will cause nasty coffee. So, I ran some vinegar water through it and then ran it with just water to rinse. I once again have delicious coffee. Yay for my mother in law and my once-again-delicious-coffee!!! And yay for vinegar too. That stuff cures everything doesn't it!!

Almost Healthy

2009-08-06T09:01:00.006-05:00

This meal was VERY healthy until I added the ranch and margarine. Haha. Oh well. It was yummy anyway and still pretty healthy. And that's Apple Juice in the glass BTW.

Rotini cooked in EVOO & margarine, steamed carrots, broccoli, and mushrooms, & fresh salad.

Matthew's FEET

2009-08-06T08:56:00.002-05:00

Aren't these just the cutest little FEET you've ever seen?!?!?

(Besides your own kids' feet of course!)

More meal ideas

2009-08-02T11:00:00.002-05:00

Homemade Pizza with bought personal pan pizza dough rounds, pizza sauce, sauteed mushrooms, onions, spinach, and garlic. Could have added peppers, but I didn't.

Mashed Organic Potatoes with skin on made with Soy Milk, Margarine, Onions, and garlic salt, Steamed Broccoli seasoned with Margarine & Mrs Dash Original seasoning, Corn, and of course, Whole Wheat Bread. Ella likes it when I crush up some chips on top of her potatoes. She calls them "crunchy" potatoes. It's simple and gets her to eat them. Potatoes have more potassium than a banana and are good for you if you don't alter them greatly (as in frying or adding too much salt)

Did Folgers replace their coffee with cow dung or am I doing something wrong?

2009-08-02T10:25:00.002-05:00

I LOVE coffee. I became addicted to coffee when I quit smoking back in 2004. I needed something to do on my breaks at work instead of smoke. So I took up drinking coffee, A LOT of coffee. Enough to not miss my pack-a-day habit. I gave it up while I was pregnant with Ella, only drinking one cup a week or less, usually decaf. While pregnant with Matthew, I switched to half caf and have continued drinking that while nursing. Anyway, coffee is kind of something you have to acquire a taste for. I don't think many people like it the very first time they try it. Matt & I talked about that one day. He asked me, "Why would you want to acquire a taste for coffee?" And I responded cleverly with, "Why would you want to acquire a taste for beer?" He came back with, "To get drunk, duh!" Oh- HAHA. Well, I acquired a taste for coffee when I was 18, I think to feel grown up. With a little cream and sugar, I started to really like it and now I must have like 6 cups a day to function! But lately, my Folgers 1/2 caf is tasting nasty. Did they change their coffee or am I doing something different without knowing it?? It's ruining my coffee apetite, which could result in me losing my acquired taste or having lots of headaches!!

Meal Ideas for Moms

2009-07-31T20:57:00.002-05:00

I am going to start posting meal ideas, because I am sometimes in a slump and out of ideas. I figure I'm not the only mom who has these times. So, I'm going to tag all my meal ideas as Meal Ideas for moms. Here are today & yesterday's main meals from our household:

Couscous with asian stirfry, peas, & whole wheat bread
Rotini w/ margarine & herbs, green beans, stirfried mushrooms & cabbage, & whole wheat bread

Do What You Want

2009-07-26T11:03:00.004-05:00

I find myself saying "no" a lot to my 3 year old, so sometimes I just let her do what she wants if it isn't harmful in any way. So today Ella is wearing her panties inside out and pants that are too big. I'm not a lazy mom, just one who doesn't like to be the "bad guy" all the time. She's also watching SpongeBob. NOT my fav kids show. But she's a happy little girl in her inside out panties and too-big-for-her pants.

Over the Top

2009-07-13T10:29:00.002-05:00

I have tried so hard in being vegetarian not to inconvenience ANYONE with my choices.

I have continued to eat foods cooked by others with cow's milk although I gave up cow's milk in January and only use soy milk for cooking.

I have eaten eggs at other peoples' homes that are not "cage free".

I have allowed my daughter to continue to drink milk although I know the cows are often given horomones to make them produce more milk than natural and are seperated from their babies who are often slaughtered and not allowed to nurse from their loving mothers.

I have NOT demanded that my husband sell my car with leather seats and replace it with a car with cloth seats. I have voiced my desire for a car with no leather, but I love and respect my husband and will patiently wait until he says it's time to switch to another car.

I have not taken out all the plastic meats my daughter plays with in her play kitchen.

I have tried to please everyone while raising my children with the values I would like to instill in them. However, I am still being told I'm wrong by raising my children as vegetarian. I'm even being told I'm over-the-top. Some people think I should raise my children with the values of others instead of my own until they are old enough to truly decide for themselves. I don't think this makes any sense. Would a Christian raise her kids as atheists until they are old enough to decide? Of course not. So why would a vegetarian raise her children as meat eaters? Just because that's the societal norm doesn't make it better. Everyone has the right to raise their children with their own values, and dietary choices are no exception. That's not over-the-top. It's common sense.

Hello Old Friend

2009-07-10T13:34:00.003-05:00

Hello Old Friend whom I have not seen in twenty one months.
I have not missed you while you were away, not even once.
But here you are after so long knock knocking at my door.
What a disruption. Couldn't you stay gone a few months more?

Matthew will be one next week. He is only nursing once a day or so now and at night. Nursing moms will understand my poem. Others may not, which is just as well!

Just a hairdresser

2009-07-04T17:55:00.003-05:00

I had lunch with a friend from high school this past week. I met her at her work, we went to lunch, and then she put some highlights in my hair(She's a hair stylist). It was nice. I had a break from my mommy duties, and it was nice to see someone I hadn't seen in years who I used to be really close to. I asked her about her venture into doing hair. She told me she had always wanted to do it, but it took her years to finally go to hair school and get into it. I asked her why and she said that her father discouraged her from doing hair, because he thought she was better than that. He thought she could do so much more with her life than styling people's hair. Her father is a preacher and I'm sure his intentions were good for his daughter, but I think it is sad. I have another BFF who does hair. Her father was not supportive of her decision to go to hair school either. He paid for her siblings' education but not her hair school as it was not real college. It's frustrating and common it seems. If doing hair makes someone feel fulfilled, why would a parent discourage their child? My mom always taught me that I could do whatever I wanted to do. I could be whatever I wanted to be. Parents say this a lot. However, I think many parents really mean, "You can be whatever you want to be as long as it's something I think is good enough for you." Parents don't want their children to sell themselves short. However, becoming an adult and living a fulfilling life is about doing what you like and making your life into one you want to live and doing what makes you happy. If all preachers' daughters were to become cancer research scientists, that would take away a great population of young women to reach the average person for God. We are all needed in different places. My mom always taught me that all jobs are important. There has to be a variety of jobs and people to do them. Someone has to clean up the trash, work on people's cars, clean up the schools, etc. Everyone can't be a doctor. If everyone became a doctor, the streets would not be drivable, and our cars would fall apart, and who would teach our children? So I would like to encourage parents to mean what they say when they tell their children, "You can be whatever you want to be." Raise them right, and you can trust they will do something respectful with their lives, even if it isn't exactly what you had in mind.

Happy 4th- Let Freedom Ring

2009-07-04T17:42:00.003-05:00

This independence day, I am thankful for my freedom.

I am thankful I have the freedom to worship the God I believe in without being forced to worship or believe in something I don't.

I am thankful for the freedom to wear the clothes I want to wear.

I am thankful to be able to love and marry the person I want to.

I am thankful for the freedom to live where I want and do what I want for a living.

I am thankful I have the freedom to stay home with my children and educate them at home.

I am thankful for the freedom to listen to the music I like.

I am thankful for the freedom to vote, to work, to take vacation, and to wear pants (or shorts).

I am thankful for the freedom to use my voice and to disagree with my husband, my parents, or my government.

I am thankful to be able to eat or not eat whatever I so choose.

I am thankful for the freedom to raise my children the way I see fit.

I am thankful for freedom and my country, and our military soldiers who dedicate their lives for the good of the people in our country.

I am thankful for the freedom and ability to go to sleep at night in a comfortable home with a full belly and peaceful mind.

I am thankful to raise my children in the USA.

Knickernappies and turtles

2009-06-25T11:58:00.003-05:00

Ella: Mom, can we play playdough?
Me: Not right now, honey. We can later when Matthew takes a nap.
Ella: Oh, Matthew is sooOOoo sleepy!!

I bought some knickernappies diapers for Matthew. Just 2 to have enough for each day plus one for him to wear while I'm doing laundry. I think I like the knickernappes better than bumgenius one size now b/c knickernappies have snaps. The velcro on my bumgenius diapers is worn and not working all that well. You can buy knickernappies from Marie at http://www.greenpixiebaby.com/.

I took Ella (Matthew stayed home w/ his daddy napping) to the local nature center yesterday. It was so much fun. I recommend the activities they offer. We went to an activity called Turtle Time. We listened to a story, learned about turtles, viewed, held, and fed snacks to 2 real turles, made craft turles, went on a short hike with our craft turtles, and then had strawberry shortcake. (Turtles love strawberries.) It was so well planned, and I actually learned quite a bit about turtles myself. Ella excitedly told her daddy about counting the rings on the turtle's shell when we got home. She got to hold the turtle and look at its shell through a magnifying glass. So fun!

My mom is making these cool vinyl window stickers for dog lovers. Please visit her ebay store. http://shop.ebay.com/merchant/sheribear1263_W0QQ_nkwZQQ_armrsZ1QQ_fromZ

How to Become a Vegetarian

2009-06-09T22:23:00.002-05:00

I am a vegetarian. I really am. Not partly. Not sometimes. Not only when its convenient. I don't eat fish . . . or chicken . . . or meat that will be wasted b/c my husband can't finish it. Not a little . . . not ever. I finally am a complete strict vegetarian. This wasn't always so. First, I was a meat eater. I'm talking rump roast, big juicy hamburgers, barbequed pork, chicken, shrimp, fish, medium cooked steaks, any and all, I'd pretty much eat it. Then, I saw some information from PeTA on the treatment and lives of the animals we eat before they are killed. I also saw information on how they are killed. So, then I became partly vegetarian. I stopped eating all meat except fish. Fish, afterall are not cuddly. And I had to eat something. Then, I started eating left over meat that was destined for the trash anyway. Afterall, who was I really saving just to let it go in the trash? And I'd occasionally sneak a little piece of pulled pork from an all-too-appetizing looking dish at my in-laws'. Well, I finally made the decision many months ago, maybe 9 or so, that I wasn't going to be a part-time vegetarian any longer. No more fish, no more sneaking bites, no more leftovers, no more meat. Period. I also accidentally caught video of a cow being slaughtered. That'll do any animal lover in. Not pretty. Very very sad. I get looks and questions from people all the time about being vegetarian. Some say they'd die without meat. I'm here to say, no, you probably would not die. You'd probably live longer, in fact, and so would the hundreds of animals you would have eaten. Some people have thought about becoming vegetarian but don't know where to start or how to cohabitate with non-vegetarians. I'm here to help. Here's my best advice on becoming vegetarian.

1.) It doesn't have to be all or nothing. But if you aren't all the way vegetarian, just don't give it a title yet. Telling people you're a vegetarian but still eating fish confuses people. Vegetarians do not eat fish. Pescetarians are people who eat no meat except fish. It's different.
2.) Starting off by dropping all meat except one will help you in the long run. Here's why. When you initially quit eating meat, it's overwhelming if you are used to eating a lot of meat. You won't know what to eat, you'll feel really hungry and probably give up and go back to meat thinking being vegetarian isn't for you. So, if you start by giving up all meat except fish perse, at least you'll have something to fall back on if you can't think of anything vegetarian to eat. Once you have it down, you can give up the fish or whatever one meat you've held on to.
3.) If you don't like tofu, no biggie. Just find foods you do like that have lots of protein (such as soy milk, brown rice, whole grains, oats, free-range eggs, milk, nuts, chickpeas, beans, ) and iron(chickpeas, spinach, beans, apricots, bran flakes, eggs, avocado).
4.) When you go to a restaurant, the one meal you can find almost anywhere is a salad and baked potato (no cheese or bacon bits). Otherwise, choose something like pasta with red sauce and veggies or rice and veggies. Many meals can be made without the meat added. Just ask.
5.) Want a sandwich for lunch? My favorite is Tomato, Avocado, Onion, & Lettuce on whole wheat, whole grain Bread with Mayo and Mustard. You can also make an egg salad sandwich or the classic PB&J. Sub shops usually offer a veggie sub as well that's really good.
6.) Cheese is not vegetarian. Or most of it anyway. It contains rennet, which is made from the lining of a dead baby cow's stomach. It helps it coagulate. It's listed as "enzymes" on packaging. You can get vegetarian cheese at health food stores. It will say on the packaging Microbial rennet or Vegetable rennet. Soft cheeses such as cream cheese and cottage cheese usually do not contain rennet. You must read the label to be sure.
7.) If you're looking for a quick and simple meal like hamburger helper, but obviously without the hamburger, try this. Buy PastaRoni (Angel Hair Pasta and Herbs). Heat 2 cups water and 1 tbsp margarine to a boil. Add the pasta as well as whatever vegetables you want tp the pot. I added mushrooms and asparagus one night. It was delicious. Just pick a few vegetables, add them. Cook the recommended amount of time, and it's done. It takes about 10 minutes total.
8.) Other simple meals are:
Campbells Cream of Potato Soup. Add fresh cracked pepper and parsley.
Baked Potato topped with margarine, sauteed spinach and salsa.
Baked Potato topped with vegetarian chili (Hormel makes vegetarian chili)
Rice and veggies (Such as broccoli, carrots, & onions)
Pasta and veggies (such as peas sprinkled on top and a side of carrots)
Vegetarian Chili (Hormel)
Vegetarian baked beans (Busch's), mashed potatoes, and one other veggie
Corn bread with vegetable soup
Beans and cornbread
Rice and veggie stir fry with bok choy, broccoli, onion, mushrooms and soy sauce
spaghetti with chunky sauce (add onion, mushrooms, & spinach to pasta sauce to make chunky)
mushroom, bell pepper, onion tacos (or enchiladas) with refried beans and spanish rice
Buy a bag of frozen mixed vegetables. Cook. Also cook some rice. Top rice with vegetables.
9.) When you go to someone's house for dinner, it helps to tell them beforehand that you're a vegetarian so they will plan to have vegetables and other foods there you can eat. It would embarass a hostess to find out after preparing roast and vegetables in the crock pot all day that you don't eat meat or veggies that have been roasted in the meat fluids. That would make for an uncomfortable situation. It would make you look rude not to eat the food and probably cause you to just eat it anyway with her feeling guilty. So, simply alert your host before the dinner date. Don't make a big deal about it. Just mention it. Any understanding host should be thankful.
10.) When going to a "cook out", simply take your own item to grill such as skewers with zuchini, mushrooms, & onions. Or plan to eat lettuce, tomato, & onion on a bun if the hosts are making hamburgers. Surprisingly, this is really good with mayo and mustard. At restaurants, I order it sometimes, and it's so good when they make it on toasted buttered bun.
Visit these websites for frequently asked questions and reasons to become a vegetarian.
http://www.peta.org/about/faq-veg.asp
http://www.giveusahome.co.uk/articles/vegetarianism.htm

Less is More; More is More

2009-05-27T07:58:00.002-05:00

When it comes to makeup, seasoning foods, decorating, etc, "Less is more", as the saying goes and that can be applied to many aspects of life. There are some things, however where more is actually more. Such as in swim suits. I was pleasantly surprised at the beach a few weeks ago by the coverage of the swimsuits most women and girls were wearing. I used to be a string bikini kind of gal, but since motherhood has taken its toll on my body and attitude, I'm more of a tankini with a skirted bottom kind of lady. Many other women were wearing tankinis too, even the very fit, attractive, teenage girls. I was happy to see that. First of all, those of us who can not pull off a string bikini anymore don't really care to see the girls in their sting bikinis with their flat bellies. And let's face it, nor do we want our husbands. Sooooo, in the case of swimsuits as a modest married mom, I'm going to say More is More.

There's a Fine line between loving, nurturing, & teaching children and spoiling them

2009-05-17T22:56:00.007-05:00

Ella: "I want to go to the zoo."
Me: "Ok Honey. We will try to go one day next week."
Ella: "I want to go now."
Me: "Well, we have to go home and put up our groceries and cook dinner. We have a lot to do today and over the next few days. We can't go right now, but we will try to go next week, though."
Ella: "Noooo. Now!!"
Me: "Ella, we can't go now. "
Ella: "Yes we CAN!!"
Me: Ella, we can not go right now. We have to go home now. We can try to go next week."
Ella: "No! Not next week. I want to go right NAaaooooww!!!" (She adds extra syllables to "now" and talks in a very country accent)
Me -in stern voice: "Ella, some kids only get to go to the zoo once every 10 years. I take you all the time. We can't go right now. Now, I'm the mommy. I'm telling you we can go another day but not right now. That's enough."
Ella: "NO! That's not enough!! Take me to the zoo RIGHT NAaaoooow!!"
Me: Looks at husband. Quietly, "How did she turn into such a brat?"
Matt: "You did it."
Me: "Well, what can I do about it? She is so spoiled!"
Matt: "There's nothing you can do about it now. She's already spoiled. Once it's done, it's done."

Alright, first of all, I'm not a usual name-caller. I'm not sugar coating the conversation though. I did ask Matt how she turned into a brat. Probably shouldn't have said it, but I did. Now, moving on . . . I have always put my children as a high priority in my life. All I have ever desperately hoped for in life was to be a mom and raise happy, healthy children. I love to teach and nurture. I am taking care of my wonderful children the best that I can, and that involves many trips to the zoo, library, and various other places I find to be beneficial to their growth and development. That I do not regret of course. However, where's the fine line between loving, nurturing, and teaching one's children and spoiling them? I want my children to appreciate what they have including the time and attention from me. I'm a loving mom, but having my 2 year old boss me around and make demands is unacceptable. Her expectations are a little too high. Now what? I told her today that I want her to appreciate the things I do for her, and she said, "I do Mommy." She's so loving and smart. I feel like talking to her about her behavior is a good place to start. It's just frustrating, because I try so hard to have balance, and I feel like maybe I've failed my children in some way by doing too much. This behavior is happening all too much these days. And yes, I realize she's 2. She won't be 2 forever though, and I have to teach her appropriate from inappropriate. I'm not just going to accept her behavior because "she's 2"!

Sunscreen is not safe

2009-04-26T11:01:00.003-05:00

You see recommendations for sunscreen everywhere to protect against sunburn and skin cancer. Most people will just accept that and use it, not knowing that all the while, they are putting themselves and their children at risk by slathering cancer causing chemicals on their skin. It is dangerous, and more people need to be made aware of the harmful effects of sunscreen.
We stopped using sunscreen maybe year before last. Please see the following articles.
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2004/05/26/summer-sun.aspx
http://www.naturalnews.com/021927.html
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=are-sunscreens-safe
http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/special/sunscreens2008/summary.php?nothanks=1

To work or Stay at Home?

2009-04-23T10:28:00.002-05:00

I know a lot of women want to be SAHMs but can not afford it. I think for many moms, they just don't know how to afford it. My husband does not make a whole lot of money, but we afford it with our lifestyle, which has included some sacrifice from the way we used to live. Here are some ways in which I have sacrificed.

While the working mom buys business appropriate clothes at Express or New York and Company, I buy whatever fits and looks decent from Good Will.

While the working mom is sipping mocha lotta chai at Starbucks, I'm downing a cup of 1/2 caf folgers- just enough to open my eyes and not scream at my whining tot, but not too much caffeine for my breastfeeding babe.

While the working mom wears lacy satin panties from Victoria's Secret, I wear Hanes Her Way. They're not sexy, but they don't ride up my butt while doing "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes".

While the working mom buys a new piece of lingerie to surprise her hubby for their anniversary or his birthday or valentines day . . . I surprise hubby by slipping out of my nursing bra and into a strappy nightgown from pre-baby days.

While the working mom drives a $25,000 car and makes payments each month on it, I drive an older car that was paid for the day we bought it. Yes, it's called saving and buying outright. It can be tough initially, but we don't live outside our means. If we can only afford a $6,000 car, then that's what I drive.

Those are just some differences I notice. And it is not the same for everyone. Not all moms WANT to be SAHMs. They like the mental stimulation and social aspect of working around other adults. And lets face it, they also like their mocha lotta chais, Victoria's Secret panties and new cars. Who wouldn't? And if they want to work, then there's no reason for them to feel guilty for it.
I personally do not want someone else to raise my children. The desire of my life is to have the unique, irreplacable experience of raising my children. All the other stuff can wait. I can wear lacy negliges when I'm a GRANDMA!! HaaHaA!

The Amish may be on to something

2009-04-22T10:12:00.004-05:00

I got together with a friend a few days ago. One of the things we discussed during our "coffee and pie" outing was school. She recently pulled her child out of public school to homeschool. I have planned on homeschooling anyway, but the more stories I hear, the more sad I am for the children who have to go to school in unsafe places. So far this year at the school where her daughter was attending KINDERGARTEN, a little boy threatened a little girl, saying he was going to bring a gun to school and shoot her in the back of her head. Nothing was done, as the principal says, "He's in Kindergarten. He doesn't have the means." That is an ignorant assumption. Just last year at the same school, a 2nd grader brought a gun to school. A few weeks ago, a switch blade knife was taken from another child. Not everyone can or wants to homeschool, and not all schools are bad.

A family member of mine witnessed a shooting a few weeks ago at 11:30 in the morning. Yes, in the bright daylight one man shot another in a parking lot and calmly got in his car and drove away. Another incident was at a local (wealthy area) mall. A 62 year old man was beaten and robbed -also during the day. Things are out of control. It is scary and sad.

What is it going to take to change the direction in which our country is headed? Prayer? Fasting? Stricter laws? Security cameras everywhere? Getting rid of TV? Don't even get me started on tv these days. There is almost nothing on tv I find appropriate for my family. I am beyond disappointed by the programs these days. I am not for isolating myself from the world. I like being involved in the positive aspects of this life and world, but I am thinking the Amish are on to something. . . Or maybe one of those self sustaining communities . . . Hmmmm.

Senae's Recipe for Happiness

2009-04-06T19:22:00.002-05:00

100 mg Zoloft
2 cups coffee
2 handfuls Prayer
Fruit, Veggies, Grains
1 hr exercise
30 min sunshine
Plenty of snuggle time with children
Sprinkle of hubby kisses

Mix well.
Add baby laughter to season.

Buca di Beppo

2009-04-03T21:28:00.002-05:00

Matt, Ella, Matthew, and I went to dinner last night. We got a gift card to Buca di Beppo in Franklin and decided to go check it out. It is an Italian restaurant with "family style" dining. (The entrees are meant to be shared.) The salad and bread were delicious. The rest of the meal wasn't great. They didn't have much for vegetarians. I asked the waiter to ask the chef what he recommends for vegetarians and he just came back and said they do not have rennet free cheese and that they can take the meat & cheese out of most dishes. (Rennet is made from the lining of a calf's stomach. It's in cheese. I don't like animals being killed for my food, so I don't eat cheese) That was a little disappointing, b/c all the other italian restaurants we go to have wonderful meatless dishes on their menu. We ordered the spaghetti. It was ok. Matt's is so much better. We got a side of green beans. They were al dente and barely edible. Ella didn't like the food at all. We ordered gelato for dessert, which was delicious. The bill was around $47. Considering, there was enough spaghetti and salad to feed 4 people there, that wasn't bad, but honestly, I just was un-impressed by the food. The atmosphere was nice. There was a table filled with 13 people beside us who were VeRy loud. I was thankful. They drowned out rounds of Matthew clanging a large spoon on the table followed by fits of screaming when he would drop it. His screaming would end when we would clean off his dropped spoon or get him another one to BANG CLANG CLANG on the table. This went on the entire dinner. Ella had to go potty at one point as she always does when we go somewhere. Being newly potty trained, we go potty often. The art in the restroom was questionable. Ok, it was totally inappropriate. I consider myself pretty open minded artfully, but in a supposed family restaurant, are naked women on the walls really necessary? At the end of dinner, Matt looked at me and asked, "You're going to write a blog about this aren't you?"

Rite of Passage

2009-03-26T22:01:00.003-05:00

Today, I took my children to Kroger and did some grocery shopping. The trip went unusually smooth. Ella asked for items that she didn't get. (She wanted easter goodies- I explained she has to wait for the easter bunny to bring her those sorts of things.) She accepted that & didn't throw any fits. She went potty & didn't have any accidents. Our trip took about an hour. Both children were wonderful and so patient. When we were loading the car, an older lady came to me and said, "I just wanted to stop and tell you what darling children you have. They are so well behaved!" I felt so proud of Matthew and Ella and . . . myself too. I feel like my parenting strategies are working. Yes, I know I'm bragging. But please understand, I have spent the past 2 years prying my screaming daughter from the grocery store floor everytime something didn't go her way. She's 2 1/2. She is smart, good, and very loving, but has my temper and moodiness. I felt proud of her today. Of course, I was proud of Matthew too. He smiled at every passer-by and didn't yell at me for taking too long.

Amazing

2009-03-21T21:08:00.003-05:00

This Earth is an amazing creation. I look at this picture I took last week while hiking with my family and can't even believe it's real. To have the opportunity to live and experience this life in this beautiful world is truly wonderful.

Pot Full of Tea

2009-03-05T13:24:00.003-06:00

Ella and Elana and a pot full of tea

Pretty little dresses and smiles of glee

"A cookie for you and a cookie for me"

Friendship served with a pot full of tea.

Ella's Oatmeal Cookies

2009-02-26T16:57:00.004-06:00

So what do vegetarians eat?

2009-02-26T16:42:00.005-06:00

Homemade Potato Soup:

Sauteed Veggies w/ Rice Pilaf

Vegetarian Baked Beans, Mashed potatoes, & carrots

Veggie Noodle Soup

Greatest Form of Flattery

2009-01-03T06:44:00.007-06:00

Some say the greatest form of flattery is imitation. After reading Ms Lori Shaw Cohen's article in Her Nashville this week, I may venture to say the greatest form of flattery is an attempt at imitation in which one failed miserably and found it neccesary to write an entire article to let everyone know she's ok with that. Lori Shaw, an experienced writer and mom to 3, tags Martha Stewart as "the original 'mean girl'" in her article "resolving not to reduce" and concludes that "'Martha Stewart Living' should be retitled 'Get a Life.'" Sure that sounds harsh, but we women know that the equivolence of wanting to ring another woman's neck is secretly wanting to be just like her or at least live up to some of her ever-so-perfect attributes. Let's face it; if Martha Stewart was your husband's best friend's wife, you'd really hate her. BUT she isn't; she's more like the (ok . . . rich and famous) grandma next door from whom we all have much to learn. She's an image, a celebrity, an artist. I'm sure she's a lovely host and gracious guest. More over, she's an all around image of perfection in the spotlight of homemaking and holding classy dinners. We should all hope to one day be able to plan and host a party half as nice as one she's just thrown together last-minute. Then again, who has time to host a dinner party these days? And I'm right there with Ms Cohen on the craft box of google eyes and pipe cleaners.

Little Miss Manners

2008-12-24T08:27:00.003-06:00

I work a lot with Ella on manners. She's only 2, so she sometimes just blurts out something like, "I want juice!!" in a demanding tone. I always then ask her to rephrase her request. Then she'll say, "I would like some juice please," and I'll give her some juice. Well, last night we were going to bed, and she was yelling and saying she didn't want to go to bed. I said, "I understand you want to stay up; we've had a fun day, but it is time for bed, and we have to get some sleep." After a while, I guess she thought if she rephrased it & said it nicer, she'd get her way. So she said sweetly . . .

"I don't need to go to sleep. Thank you though." !!!!!!! HAHAHAHAHA.

1 Pear/ 10 days of good eating

2008-12-17T10:38:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I peeled and cut up a pear. The core and peelings went to the chickens. I boiled the pear pieces in a small pot with water. It took a while for the pear to turn soft. Once soft, I scooped the pear chunks out of the pot & put them into my blender. I pressed the button beside "puree" and let it puree for about 5 seconds and then added the hot water from the pot to the mixture and pureed for about 15 seconds longer. Then I filled 9 spaces of an ice cube tray with the pureed pear and put one serving into a bowl. I fed the pear mixed with rice cereal and a little water to Matthew. He loved it. I covered the ice cube tray with wax paper and placed in the freezer. That was all yesterday. Today, I removed the ice cube tray & pulled off the wax paper. There was a little freezer burn on the puree. I rinsed with water for just a second and popped the puree out of the tray and placed the pureed-pear cubes into a labeled/ dated freezer bag, which I put into the freezer. Of course, one cube went into a bowl to thaw for Matthew's lunch. Matthew loves the pear. It's yummy to him and easy on his little belly unlike banana, which caused fussiness. I love cooking for my family, and Matthew is no exception. I like that I can provide all he needs through milk from my body and then turn a simple pear into a nutritious bonus he can enjoy each day with some rice cereal. Making baby food is very rewarding.