Oct. 29, 2008
Planning Book Organization.
 This week's Works for Me continues last week's series on school organization. I have 6 children (and three younger ones) to school this year. We HAVE to be organized or things will not get done. I already explained the system I use to check work, and see where people are each day. Today I will explain how I manage my binders so I do not go insane with all the paperwork.
For each child I have a page of assignments for the whole week. This makes 6 pages to be looking at each week. Plus, if they are behind in a subject or two there will be other weeks I am also assigning from. I used to have a section for each week, and each child's assignments in the section. But that drove me nuts when I was trying to figure out what they needed to catch up on. SO - I changed to have a section for each child. AND I Bought color coded page protectors!!! One for each child! I can see quickly where each one's section is, and there is no more frustrating flipping around! It looks like this: there is a section for each child with 36 assignment sheets. We are in week 10 this week. So if they are caught up, weeks 1 - 9 are all highlighted (see the previous post), and paper clipped together so they are out of the way. Week 10 is in a color coded page protector - Matt is blue, Josiah - green, etc. There were only 4 colors, so two of them double up, I just know that Sara and Emma are at the back of the book. I also use these page protectors in my Brain... my binder which has all our info in it. Yellow is the calendar, blue is the budget, etc. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these page protectors! They really Work for Me! |
Oct. 28, 2008
Hello... and an update on the chicken industry.
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My name is Carri, and I used to blog here. I am finally digging out from more than a month of vacations, and a multitude of other things to write a quick post. Phew! I am ready for our life to return back to normal. And our children to find their brains and good attitudes which were obviously left in Florida. But that is a whole other topic. On the chicken front we have quite a bit of news... 1)  You cannot tell on your monitor, but it is really the Golden Egg. We cannot find a goose in the area, so need to assume it came from one of our chickens. Total cost for this egg? $200. Butchering 20 chickens and most of the roosters is scheduled for Friday morning. [Update: This egg arrived several weeks ago, and we are now consistently getting one egg a day. Out of 55 hens. With our luck we'll butcher the one laying the egg. And no, Josiah's naming all the chickens "Carri" has not swayed me in my determination to see those money sucking Gallus domesticus surrounded by some biscuits and gravy.] - And while we are on the topic of chickens, Josiah did quite an amazing feat in the attempt to save a chick about a month ago. One of the horses had stepped on it's wing, and it was broken. Bones were even sticking out. Of course, I did not look at it since my stomach is well known for it's squeamishness. Anyway - Joe called the local vet for advice. He was told to wrap a rubber band around the wing tightly and CUT IT OFF. No joke. So he did! We had a wingless chick. We named it Uno.  - Unfortunately a couple nights later some predator ate the Mama bird and all her chicks. Including Uno. - We also have a racoon getting in to the field at night... we know this because one of the chickens was found with it's head severed. We are trying to catch it so Josiah can make a 'Cookskin cap like our favorite Savages did. And just since I LOVE this photo... here's one to leave ya with:  And if you think that it is EASY getting 9 children to all look the same way and smile while you are standing on the bars of a merry go round... think again. |
Oct. 22, 2008
Getting School Done and Checked
If you are a homeschooling mom like me, it is HARD to have the discipline to actually check the school the children have done. Because they may do it, but if I don't check it, their work gets sloppy and careless. Oh yeah - I am sure YOUR children don't do this, but mine will gamble that if I am not checking, they will say they did it, but really haven't. Your children are probably better than mine in that area, though.  Over the years, I have developed the following system... I create a chart on WORD with the days of the week on top, and the subjects the children need to do on the left... including EVERYTHING they have to do for the day (music practice, etc.). Then I fill in the assignments for the days. I have done this two different ways - last year I sat down each Monday and filled in a week at a time, looking at our schedule, etc. That worked well, because I could plan for any schedule glitches, or whatever. But I found that we didn't do as much bookwork as I had hoped to do, since so often "life" gets in the way. This year, I filled out 18 weeks of the planners at once. I have a section in my teacher's book for each child (6 of them in school this year), and they have a page for each week. This way I can tell them at the beginning of the week, "We need to be done with Week 10's work by movie time on Friday..." and even if I get busy with the toddlers, the older children know what to do. They come to me with questions, and it seems to be working really well. When it comes time to check, which should be done every day, but in reality isn't, it is hard to tell what I have sent back for correction or not. So I have developed the following system... when I check the page, I correct it in red. Then if it is done well, I highlight the square in the teacher's book in yellow. That way I can see quickly if the page is checked or not. If it is not done right, and I need to send it back to the child after more explanation of how to do it, I circle the page in the teacher's book in red. That way I can look quickly and see how many times the child has had to re-do a certain page. Of course, your children would never need that either. Yours would do it right the first time.I hope this is clear enough for you. I can easily look at the week and see if someone has work which is not completed. Since we only watch one movie a week (on Fridays), they have to be done with all their work by then. It's what Works for Me ! Head over to Rocks in My Dryer for other ideas.  |
Oct. 22, 2008
MOMYS Cookbooks, and other random Stuff
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Hello all! I am sorry to not have written much lately, but we are still scrambling to try to catch up after our vacations. I wanted to let you know that I have 9 MOMYS cookbooks for sale. This is seriously the best cookbook around. There are 1600 recipes! We have never tried a recipe we have not liked! It is written by moms of large families, in large family quantities. The children call it the "Wonder Cookbook". I am selling them for $35 ppd. First come, first served. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Here are some of the things we have been up to in no random order: - Laundry, Laundry, and more laundry. - Our monthly grocery run... with Wal Mart being almost an hour away, I try to only do it once! - Trying to eradicate the rodents which think that our house would make a great winter home. - Building my garden boxes ( or at least laying them out) so I can lay down a layer of cardboard (to kill the grass) and then the leaves which need to be raked up and some hay and manure so that in the spring we will have nice, organic soil. -Mercy had another round of appointments yesterday. This time to fit contacts (tell me how much I am not looking to putting THEM in and out!), and another hearing test. We are still so far from seeing the light at the end of the tunnel it is discouraging. Next week we go again to get the contacts, and to see the cardiologist and hemangioma doctors. I SO want a plan to get rid of this growth! - Visiting with the California grandparents. - Organizing clothes, coats, and shoes for the fall. It's a major job! - Helping to get our local Women's Shelter up and running by the end of the month. It's nice to have teenagers who can help with things like that. - I am sure we have tried to do a ton of other things. I feel I am being pulled in a million and one different areas. Surely we'll slow down soon? But I do hope to get back to blogging. One of these days! |
Oct. 17, 2008
Hit the Ground Running!
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Sorry for the long delay in posting... we were on vacation in Florida. But I am SO glad to be back home, even though it means mountains of laundry and cooking and never eating a hot meal! I'll fill you all in when I have a moment to breath! Justw anted to let you all know I have not passed away or anything. |
Oct. 6, 2008
Since I have "All the Time in the World"...
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And you all know I just sit around eating bon bons all day long, I have been tagged by one of my favorite bloggers and her pirate crew to do the following meme. But first, WHAT IN THE WORLD IS A MEME and isn't it one of the stupidest words available? Off my soapbox now. I have a sneaking suspicion that she cheated, though, since hers was so incredibly exciting. Here are the rules: The rules of this meme are as follows:Grab the nearest book.Open the book to page 56.Find the fifth sentence.Post the text of the next two to five sentences in your journal/blog along with these instructions.Don’t dig for your favorite book, the cool book, or the intellectual one: pick the CLOSEST.Tag five other people to do the same.So, since I have such integrity, I am going to resist picking up a book which will make me look like a great mom (like the Mission of Motherhood by Sally Clarkson waiting in my to read pile on my shelf) or something like that. Or the BIBLE, which is next to my recliner... Here goes: 2 cans of Tomatoes, diced or stewed. Tortilla chips. 1 c. salsa. Grated Cheese. 1 can Tomato Sauce. Sour Cream. Need I go on?! It's a recipe for Black Bean Chicken Chili. What book is it from?! The one my children call the "Wonder Book" - my MOMYS Cookbook which is already open to page 4, since I was typing out the recipe for overnight coffeecake for the Open Kitchen thing I did last week. Here's the whole recipe: 6 chicken breast tenders 2 cans black beans, underained 2 cans tomatoes, diced or stewed 1 c. salsa 1 can tomato sauce 2 t. chili 1/2 t. cumin 1/4 t. garlic powder tortilla chips grated cheese sour cream Combine all ingredients in a crock pot, slow cooker except chipe, cheese and sour cream. Cover. Cook on low for 8 hours. Just before serving, remove chicken and slice into bite size pieces. Stir into soup. To serve, put a hanful of chips in the bottom of the bowl, ladle soup over chips, top with cheese and sour cream. Sounds good! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I tag: Misti - at Raising Sweet Savages Char - at Yours, Mine, and Ours Beck - at Full Hands, Open Hearts Eunice - at Home of the IVLeague Laura - at Quilt of Grace Just be glad I could FIND a book in the mess I have on my desk. So I tag Mother Hen to another MEME! One I am making up... I'll let her make up the rules just so she doesn't fall into a funk. (She likes to make up the rules to these things...) I want to see a picture of her desk. What do you all think? Do you agree? Let's start a workplace photo meme. And please - think of another name for meme!!! Humor me. |
Oct. 3, 2008
My Laundry Line
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I have been working on lowering our electric bill. And it worked! At least if we look at Kilowatt Hours... this summer we used on average 7 KwH less a day! Unfortunately it still cost us $.40 a day MORE to use LESS, but that is another story entirely. My main way to save money without sweltering, was to I LOVE HANGING OUT MY LAUNDRY!!! It is so nice to be forced to be out in nature for a little bit every day. I even love to fresh smell of the laundry when it comes in. And I especially love that it is so neat and orderly!!! I can actually hang all pants together. All shirts together. I even can hang the socks MATCHED... Wow. I have very little order in my life. Actually I only have one bookshelf, and my laundry line. I posted earlier that we have a basket in each room, and everyone just throws anything in the basket into the laundry all at the same time. We have never had trouble with bleeding. It may have something to do with the fact that we are blessed with enough hand me downs to clothe most of the family... so we rarely have to buy anything new. What a blessing, since it would run us almost $150 to buy one bag of socks, and one bag of underwear per person. I fold the clothes as I pull them off the line, so they come in the house folded. If only I could mange to be disciplined enough to put them away that very moment, I will have conquered the Mt. Laundry. |
Oct. 1, 2008
Kitchen Organization!
 It's the kitchen organization version of Works for Me Wednesday! I cannot wait to hear everyone's ideas on this one. For no matter how hard I try, my drawers stay a mess. Maybe because I let the cherubs do the dishes. And put them away. And they could care less if I have to fiddle around to find all the pieces of a bottle in the middle of the night.So I invested $7 in my sanity, and in the longevity of life for the children who are responsible to put dishes away, and bought this... And I no longer think murderous thoughts in the middle of the night with a crying baby. It works for me! Don't forget to visit Happy to be at Home to see a week in my kitchen! |
Sep. 30, 2008
So Here's The Deal -
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Upon being tired of seeing a the room being a continual mess, and laziness in doing his animal chores, I have made the following deal with Josiah. - If I never find the waters empty for the month of October, or if we don't have to remind him to close the Poultry Palace before bed, he gets 2 weeks of double computer time. If not, I get a foot rub a day for two weeks. - If he keeps his room completely clean for the month of October, he can have double computer time for 2 additional weeks. If he cannot, I get a foot rub every day for two more weeks. Can I toss some clothes around his room so I get my foot rub?! I tried to convince him that he should be my personal slave for two weeks, (along with calling him "pig boy'! Like on Veggie Tales...) but he thought that was a bit over the top. The girls are trying to figure out their deals... Angela wants money for her mission trip coming next year, but the littler girls don't know what they want to do... we'll see! I do know that the penalty for failure will be 2 weeks of kitchen duty, but they are not sure of the reward yet. They weren't interested in being my personal slave, either. Bummer. ~~~~~~~~~~ Don't forget to hop over to Happy to be at Home and get a glimpse into our kitchen! |
Sep. 29, 2008
I'm in love, a picture of love, and an update
Who could resist snuggling someone as sweet as my Bethany? Also I found this picture, drawn by Emma, age 7. I love these pictures, with the creative spelling. They are definite keepers in my book!  I realized I have not yet updated on Mercy's September appointments. The bottom line is that we are still waiting. I am anxious to get something started, but it just takes time. The hemangioma continues to grow if we try to go below a certain dosage. Dr. Adams has written a study and is waiting for the funding to put it in place. I assume Mercy will take part in it. It will track the use of the beta blocker (propanalol) which seems like a promising treatment vs. Vincristine (chemo) and prednisone. But that is still in the formation stage and we don't know details yet. She had an echocardiogram and EKG done. We'll meet with the cardiologist next month. There are some more in depth hearing tests they want to do, and we are still trying to get her to wear her glasses more so we don't have to try contacts. Developmentally she is doing great. When we started going to Dr. Adams in March, she was WAY behind in development. She was 15 months, and doing things more like a 6 - 9 month old. Now she was consistently doing things on a 21 - 22 month level, which is actually a little ahead of her age! I cannot tell you how much I loved seeing that. We continue to wait, but every month gets us closer to doing something, so we are waiting with anticipation. I leave you with a cute photo I got yesterday when she climbed onto the dining room table and got into the powdered sugar from the pancake dinner we had. I think she is trying to get out of being in trouble by being so cute!  |
Sep. 28, 2008
Guest Blogger
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I may not be here much this week, as I am a guest blogger at : Happy to be at Home . I'll be opening up my kitchen and showing what we prepare, eat, and clean up after each day in our kitchen! If you have wondered about how I do it... head on over there and see! |
Sep. 26, 2008
You know you're a large family when...
I found this at a friend's blog. She has 13 children! Go visit her here.You know you have a large family when...
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Sep. 26, 2008
Pumpkins
[This next week I will be a guest blogger at http://happytobeathome.net/ - don't forget to go visit me over there! I'll be opening my kitchen up for all the world to see for the next week!] I am trying a new Frugal Trick today...
The other day I stopped by a fruit stand and bought 6 pumpkins (they actually look like green and white squash, but the man declared fervently that they make the most sublime pumpkin pies you can imagine, so I trusted him). They were only $1 each!!! This morning I am splitting them in half, laying them face down in a pan, and cooking them until tender at 350*. I then am scraping the pumpkin out and sticking it in the blender to be nice and smooth. Then we'll freeze it to use in pumpkin muffins and pies through the winter. Hope that works for you! (I also got 2 bushels of apples for $18 to make into applesauce and eat, but that's for next week's post since I haven't made them yet!) |
Sep. 24, 2008
Fly Killing in the Country.
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Those of you who live on a "farm" know the constant battle against flies. Those of you in town have some too, I am sure! There is an easier, cleaner, better way to kill flies than a swatter. The thought of all those fly guts being splattered on my counters and all over the house totally grosses me out. Here's how you do it better: At night, when the flies are all roosting on the ceiling, get a cup with a fairly wide mouth. We have found that a white one works better than a colored one since the ceiling is white. Fill it with soapy water. Put the cup up around the sleeping fly. When he drops down to fly away, he get trapped in the suds and cannot get out. This is easiest with a tall husband (The dark and handsome part is a bonus!), but my boys have been known to carry around a footstool and do it. We have competitions between who can kill the most flies in one night. We have killed over 200 at a time! (We DO live in the country, you know!) And we keep track of the most flies killed in one shot - 4. Think you can beat us? So, for my friends who are new to the area - here's how to KILL FLIES IN THE COUNTRY! For other ideas that WORK , click on the link!  |
Sep. 23, 2008
WOW!
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In today's news: I have "won" a blog award!!! Thanks Ship Full of Pirates for proving there is at least one person who reads my blog. What does this award mean? Absolutely NOTHING! But I am thrilled to get it all the same.    Ship Full of Pirates is one of the blogs having the privilege of being on my toolbar, so I can see quickly if there is a new post or not. Go check her out! ~~~~~~~~~~
I also have the good news that at least someone in the blogosphere also has trouble with their no egg laying chickens. Go read about it here . There is comfort in company. I have heard that in addition to layer mash, we need to give them cracked corn and wheat. Just how expensive are these eggs going to get before I just give up? I suppose I am just extra stubborn. That and unwilling to break my children's hearts by killing their pets. But if I catch Tyrian Tumnus in my garden eating my tomatoes again, there will be no mercy. |
Sep. 17, 2008
"Owning" a Horse
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I know that not everyone can (or wants to) live in the country. But I know that some of you also have children who would love a horse. I have found you a solution! Go check out this site . I heard about it at soccer practice the other day and thought I would check it out. It's quite addicting! You create a virtual horse, take care of it, and get a virtual job to earn virtual money to pay for your virtual horse. It's funny. Of course, they hope you will pay real money for extra things for your virtual horse, but that is going too far in my opinion. Check it out! Your children may thank you! It'll Work for You! |
Sep. 16, 2008
Let's discuss Chickens for a minute.
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I'm no newcomer to raising chickens. It all started 4 years ago when we won a hen and a rooster at the local 4th of July celebration... we appropriately named them Yankee Doodle and Dandy. Dandy even laid blue eggs for us. She was a great hen. Until a cow stepped on her. Everyone remember the post I had with my chicken advice? Mainly it was that you NEVER name a chicken after missionaries. It is impossible to eat Gladys Alward, Lillian Trasher, or Jim Elliot. They are still around getting tough and eating our grain. The next year the children named the chickens after Narnia characters. It's really hard to kill Mr. and Mrs. Beaver too. Especially when your 4 year old plays house with Mr. Beaver. Now they are being named after food products... Burrito, Walnut, Tortilla, Porkie, Hamburger, and McDonald's are all in our flock. (And our cows have been named Burger King and Supper. Boy are they good!) I think the hens have caught on to the food theme. My chickens have formed a labor union, and have gone on strike. We haven't had a home grown egg in over a month. And precious few before that. I'm a nice boss. I keep them in their yard until late afternoon in the hopes that they will lay an egg, but they just haven't done anything. They have access to layer pellets, and plenty of water. They have a huge building named the Poultry Palace in which to roost and get out of the rain. They range every evening and catch all the bugs they want. Now they are holding out for death and dismemberment benefits. Which is going to get all 40 hens and 12 roosters dead and dismembered and in the freezer if they don't get their rears in gear (most literally) and give me some eggs!!! Feed prices are up also - it now costs over $12 a week to feed them. Almost $50 a month on chicken feed and not a single egg! So I am going on record as saying - chickens - you have met your match. Either pony up the eggs, or we're eating you! No more Mrs. Nice Guy. I should be getting at least two dozen eggs a day. You have until Thanksgiving or we'll be having BBQ chicken for dinner. This is no joking matter. |
Sep. 15, 2008
The Growth of a Hemangioma, and the Lessons I have Learned.
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(I have linked this in the Talk About Tuesday found HERE: Go visit to see what others are talking about these days!) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I often write about my Sweet Little Mercy... let me fill you in if you are a newer reader. She was a beautiful Christmas Gift... arriving just after midnight on Christmas morning. When she was born she had what looked to us like a bruise along her left temple. The pediatrician told us it was a port wine stain. Here is a photo of when we brought her home from the hospital...  Following medical advice (thinking it was a port wine stain, and there was nothing we could do about it), we watched it grow (Jan. 3),  and grow (Jan 22),  and grow (March 5).  In March, we got an appointment with a dermatologist, who recommended laser surgery. They told us she would not be at all uncomfortable, which was a bold faced lie. Four people held her down for the laser, while she was screaming bloody murder. It obviously hurt her, and after this I refused to return to that doctor. We went to a pediatric dermatologist in Louisville until she was a year old. (April 15 - on a high dose of prednisone, resulting in the bloated cheeks. You can see the burns from the laser. These later ulcerated, got infected, and resulted in some terrible scarring.)  (June 2)  When she turned a year, and the hemangioma was still growing, we moved from having her care in Louisville, to getting her seen monthly by a specialist in Cincinnati. We are so thrilled by Doctor Adams and her staff. (Jan. 2008)  I tell you all that to tell you what I have learned. Mercy is a beautiful child. Everyone who sees her agrees about this. This week I realized that when I look at Mercy, I don't see the hemangioma... I see MERCY! I see her sweetness, and her smile. I see how adorable she is, and see the potential for a wonderfully full life.  And I realized that is how God sees us. When he looks at us he looks past the awful things we do - past the growths which deform us, and make us less than perfect, and HE LOVES US! He sees us as we are meant to be. As He designed us. He doesn't look at our horrible parts... He sees the sweetness He put in us!  If you are like me, you wonder sometimes how in the world the God who created the universe could even care about you. When there are so many people out there who are so much better and more beautiful then I am, why does he bother about me? But He sees the me He knows I can be. The one I was designed to be if I could just get past my own selfishness and greed. He takes my sins, forgives them, and seperates us as far as the east is from the west! He can't see them anymore.  Mercy's Hemangioma is still growing. If we were to just look at the hemangioma, it would seem that she is just getting uglier. Her face is not "normal". People stare when we go places. But we see past that, to the beauty we know is there. So does God. Be encouraged, my friends, He loves you more than we love Mercy. And while we hope the doctors accomplish what they claim they can do - make Mercy's face look normal someday - we would still love her even if they couldn't. She would still be beautiful to us because she is OURS.  You are the same. God loves you because YOU ARE HIS. He created you! Let Him love you. Let Him forgive you. Forgive yourself. Forgive the others who only look at your "ugliness" and know that God sees you how you can someday be.  |
Sep. 15, 2008
Kentucky Dictionary
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Having some friends move to the area, I realized my dereliction of duty to help them understand the local speech. For, much as I totally love this place, there are some weird things that they say, and it's important to understand them! It'll take a while to understand the accent, but you might as well understand the phrases! If someone in Kentucky says "I don't care to" they are meaning they would love to. As in, "I don't care to watch your kids for you at your appointment" - TRANSLATION: I'd be glad to babysit your kids during your appointment. TRUE SAYING: "If you play with matches, you'll pee the bed." No joke. As if getting burned isn't bad enough! This really is said! And when we ask why they say this, EVERY ONE OF THEM says, "Well, of course you'll get burned. Everyone knows that. No one wants to pee the bed, though!" Real Food: When most people think of real food, we are thinking of whole foods, as close to their natural state as possible. Not in Kentucky. When they say they want REAL FOOD, it's fried chicken, macaroni and cheese, butter beans (what they call Lima beans), etc. Anything fried is REAL FOOD. Salad is definitely not. If someone says they'll stop by tomorrow evening after dinner, they are NOT talking about coming at twilight to catch lightning bugs. They'll be over in the afternoon. Makes sense, if you call the noontime meal dinner, after dinner is evening! When they regularly do something they will say they do it "of a morning", "of an evening", etc. So we do school "Of a morning, after breakfast." I am sure I'll think of more, but I need to go get the day going. Any of you Kentucky people - feel free to add your sayings in the comments! Let's help the newcomers out! Because, they're not from around here, are they? |
Sep. 12, 2008
Only in MY house...
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Only here would you hear the following: Emma: Mercy! Where's your nose? Where's your hair? Where are your eyes? ... WHERE'S YOUR HEMANGIOMA?  |