Thursday, October 2, 2008 - The BEST Potato Salad EVER!!!!!!
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This week's theme is about our favorite snack foods. I thought I would write down what everyone likes.....
Trinity's favorite snacks include:
1. Chex Mix
2. Handi Snacks cheese and bread sticks
3.garlic bread ( that she makes for all of us)
4 s'mores
5 Popcorn home made with parmesan cheese, butter and adobo
Pop 1 cup of popcorn kernels in an air popper.
placed popped corn into a brown double paper bag
( this needs 2 sets of hands)
quickly, white it is still hot, pour desired amount of melted butter into the bag, while the other person shakes it like crazy.
DO the same with about 1/4 cup of grated parmesan cheese topping ( the kind you get on the shelf, not the cooler at the store)
then do it again with 1-2 tablespoons of adobo spice (garlic powder and salt will do, if you don't have adobo
Harley's favorite snack foods
1 Potato chips
2.apples
3 pears
4. mandarin oranges ( canned)
5.bananas
Rowan's favorite snacks
1. Garlic bread
2.apples
3.grapes
4.celery with (!) jelly(?) ( this is what he said, but I have never personally witnessed this!)
5.the " Secret Salad"- this consists of celery, carrots and dill pickles- on a tray.
My husband's favorite snacks:
1. Pepper Jack cheese and Triscuits.
2. Popcorn with salt and LOTS of cracked pepper
3.honeydew melon
4.Fruit salad
5.My great grandmother's potato salad- the best kind there ever was! Make this and I swear- it will disappear- everyone loves it!
Great Grandma Bates' Potato Salad
10 medium potatoes, boiled and diced
12 eggs, hard-boiled and chopped
4 stalks celery
1 medium onion, diced
1 tablespoon prepared mustard
2/3 cup moyonaise ( not sweet)
1/3 cup chopped hamberger dill slices
1/3 cup chopped dill spears
salt and pepper to taste
paprika ( optional) for garnish
1. combine ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Stir until well blended.
3. chill or serve at room temp ( someone is always eating it before it it hits the fridge!)
My favorite snacks:
1. cottage cheese and fruit
2.popcorn- with nothing or with anything- love popcorn.
3.baked apples
Nancy's Baked Apples
1 or more medium sized apples- of a tangy/semi-tart variety- I like Cortlands for this, but Jonathans and granny smiths work well too.
cinnamon
ground cloves
sweetener, such as sugar, brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup
butter
water
Preheat oven to 350
Cut the " lid" off of the apples, set aside. Using a melon baller, potato peeler or similar instrument, scoop out the cores. Place about 1 teaspoon of butter in the hole. Sprinkle cinnamon, cloves and sweetener ( to taste) into the hole. put about 1/2 to 1 inch of water into a 9x13 or 8x8 baking pan depending on how many you make. place the apples inside and the lids back on the apples. Cover with foil and bake for at least 20 minutes.....When the smell has spread throughout your home, they are close to done- check by taking the lid off of one apple and inserting a knife in the center. If it goes in easily, the apples are done.
Note- sometimes they fall apart if they cook too long- but I actually think they taste VERY good this way:)
4. pepper jack and Triscuits
5.olives of any type
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Saturday, September 20, 2008 - another Friday Fillin
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Those of you with multiple blogs or private blogs...if you could add a link to your blog when you comment, that would be GREAT!
And...here we go!
1. There is no need _to explain- lyrics by Geoff More about the Judgement seat of Christ
Verse One
It Was An Open And Shut Case
I Was Guilty As Sin
There Was Blood On My Hands
I Was Waiting To Be Condemned
You Get What You Pay For
And You Pay For What You Do
How Could The Judge Be Talking To Me
When He Looked Down And Said
"You're Free"
Chorus
And There Is No Need To Explain
And There Is Nothing You Could Ever Say
To Change The Way I Feel For You
Verse Two
How Can This Be True
What Kind Of Place Is This
Where The Guilty Are Forgiven
Where The Blind Can See
And Losers Win
And Slaves Go Free And Where
Chorus
There Is No Need To Explain
And There Is Nothing We Could Ever Say
To Change The Way He Feels
Where There Are Debts That Have Been Paid
And There's A Stone That Has Been Rolled Away
To Say There Is No Need
Bridge
Hurry, Hurry
Drop Your Stuff, Grab Your Friends
Take Everyone We Can
Together, We'll Find Mercy For All
We'll Walk, We'll Run, We'll Crawl
Unconditional, There's A Word That Seems So Foreign
Unbelievable, But Undeniable, Inconceivable
And Yet So True
Chorus
There Is No Need To Explain
And There Is Nothing We Could Ever Say
To Change The Way He Feels
And There Are Debts That Have Been Paid
And There's A Rolled Stone At An Empty Grave
To Say There Is No Need
No Need To Explain._________.
2. Where in the heck did the ____time go?______.
3. ____this week, this fill in______ is all I managed to do.online
4. Prospects for ___Koko and Ndume to have a baby are slim_______. We have been learning about Koko in school.
5. _____Till all that lives through me_____ is the message. more song lyrics- must be the thought pattern for me today
The message by 4Him
The fields are white and now the time has come
For there's a harvest, there is work left to be done
Lord here am I, I will be the one
I'm committed to the finish
Until the setting of the sun
Lord, I will be faithful in all I say and do
CHORUS
To live a love that never fails
To love my neighbor as myself
And to give til there is nothing left to give
To live a faith that never dies
To be crucified with Christ
Until all that lives through me
Is the message
I can't ignore what's right before my eyes
For all around this world is searching for a sign
Outside the door they're living in the night
And the light that lives within me
Is the hope they long to find
So I must be faithful in all I say and do
REPEAT CHORUS
BRIDGE
If we all will work together
We can make this world a better place to live
We can make a difference if we try
6. Simplicity and tranquility are ____things that I wish I had more of!______.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to ___watching a movie about Koko_______, tomorrow my plans include ___seeing my friend Mary sing on the worship team at church___________get some rest and maybe take a hike.______! and Sunday, I want to |
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Friday, September 12, 2008 -
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And...here we go!
1. I enjoy _The fall weather, the sights and smells, the food and festivities. This is my favorite time of year- I just feel SO ALIVE and so glad to be here during this season.... it also helps that my birthday is in this season:) I love the colors of the leaves, especially those that are turning orange around the edges but are still bearing their green veins. I love cinnamon and allspice, cloves and nutmeg, pumpkin pies and breads and apples. I'm always glad when fall comes because then I can start making stews and CHILI, and baking again. I relish the cooler nights, leaving my window open and waking in the cold. I revel in the creativity- making costumes, carving pumpkins, beginning a new homeschooling year, spending fun times with loved ones at community events. My whole family loves the fall- especially my semi-goth ( but Christian) husband.... To us, this is the most wonderful time of the year!
2. What to do next year for homeschooling my daughter who will be entering 9th grade is something I wonder about often lately.
3. In your heart, you knew there was a God, but denied His existence, until you came face to face with a truth that you could not dismiss.
4. Take Bisquick, add a little milk, roll the dough flat, spread butter, sugar and cinnamon over it, roll and slice it and you end up with _cinnamon rolls! ( but you still have to cook them in a greased pan for about 15-20 minutes at 350 degrees)
5. Life has gifted me with a lot of difficult situations, but GOD has gifted me with everything I need to be who He has called me to be and do what He has planned for me to do with this life..
2 Peter 1:3
His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
Ephesians 2:
, 7in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. 8For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9not by works, so that no one can boast. 10For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
6. Going to a nature preserve is an instant vacation. It relaxes me immediately just to be there, and brings me out of any bad mood.
I could say that about worship music too:)
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to __getting over this cold, and caught up on the laundry- we are skipping school because I need to rest up for tomorrow___, tomorrow my plans include _singing on the worship team- that's what gives me life!____ and Sunday, I want to _rest and enjoy the season___! |
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Thursday, September 11, 2008 - Homeschool Routines
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Ok, first off- I need to say that I *in my flesh* detest schedules... I don't like being tied down..... there is never a schedule that has worked well for us enough that I have not changed it halfway and then decided to chuck it because some crazy disaster mucked it up. I begin and re-begin each year with high hopes, and then I begin again and again.....and end up cranky, with cranky kids. I may not stick to this routine... but so far, I think we like it:)
I avoided doing this particular theme because I can't quite figure it out yet.
But my kids DO like to have a schedule. God is a being of order, and not the author of confusion, so I really should try to be more like Him and figure something out that works- most of the time- and hopefully keep it.
I also noticed in God's order of things that He has made processes into seasons, and apart from the phases of the moon, and tides, most things to do not happen at EXACT times- the sun rises and sets at differing times each day, and so in nature, the animals adapt to a routine and not necessarily a schedule.
This year, unlike previous ones, my husband has attempted to get on a schedule for his work. Mind you, he only works part time, because of his health, and disability takes care of most of the rest of our needs.
I don't know about you, but I personally find it hard to do school with him around and stick to a schedule- sometimes even a routine is hard. My husband is home at infrequent intervals- sometimes has a weekday off, sometimes a weekend, rarely 2 days off in a row. Our church times( we go in the evenings) are always off though so that is a blessing.
So for the moment, his work is from 9am to 1-pm various days. This is a benefit to me because I am a VERY light sleeper- I cannot sleep if there is a light on in any room of the house or anyone is awake. I have to get up and out of bed before the kids do because I am VERY much NOT a morning person and I need some space and quiet in which to meditate and contemplate before I can focus on them. Therefore I NEED to get to bed early, which doesn't happen if my husband works after 9 pm- I try to sleep but wake up every few minutes- and I find that HORRIBLE.
Mornings are hard- noise grates on my nerves, and they all have ADHD, which means that they are forgetful and sometimes loud until their meds kick in. My youngest does not take medications only suppliments. I have to try to keep them separated to minimize fooling around or argung. We have a small house.
Anyway, this time around I have realized that because of my tendencies to be a bear in the a.m., and my children being on medication that must kick in before they are really ready to learn, and the fact that some days we neglect our read alouds for lack of interest.....
This is what I decided prayerfully to do:
We do not have Bible right away as I have found over the past 5 years that until they are ready to pay attention ( meds work) I am not helping them to love the Lord- they invariably argue, fool around, and otherwise end up getting punished or at the very least yelled at and I am not capturing their hearts this way, but helping them have reasons to dislike having Bible class and prayer. Following Deuteronomy 6:7-9, we will talk about God and his Word frequently throughout the day and night anyway.
Moving formal study to a place after the medication works and after they have had a bit of movement doing chores sets them up to listen, and to have good conversation about what they are learning, and spending much less time being corrected or rebuked. I can really see a difference.
730-9am- I get up, have some time with God, make coffee, maybe talk to my husband before he leaves for work. Someone takes the dog out. Sometimes I make a hot breakfast. Yesterday I threw together some home made cinnamon rolls and got a lot of affection from my husband who had that day off:)
8:30-9am- wake up the kids. Harley is usually awake first and I rarely have to wake him. Many times he is up before me but is quiet and doesn't bother me- although, with my light sleeping, he can be quiet and still wake me up just being awake. Trinity is the most difficult to wake. It's the Bi-polar, but she is getting better. I wake her just enough that she responds to me and tell her that I will be back in 10 minutes and she has to be sitting up or out of bed. Lately she is stumbling through the living room like a zombie before the 10 minutes are up- THAT is QUITE an accomplishment! Rowan usually wakes faster then her, but slower than Harley. It is a 50/50 chance that he will be a GRUMP. But he comes out of it quickly, and we seem to have the same kind of day whether he is happy and excited or ducks back under the blanket and announces that he doesn't want to have school ( he gets up anyway- it's just expressing his opinion, not defiance)
As soon as they get out of bed-
medications are given, and breakfast starts. I try to make sure we have it together. We sit in the living room, in our pajamas, and I start with the read alouds. I find that the eating keeps their hands busy, and keeps them quiet, while the stories engage them and keep them from squabbling and me from going insane. I switch after one person has finished eating, and they read a little so I can eat. This gets the day off to a good start- no pressure for me to try to MAKE THEM learn it- and none for them to try too hard to sit still and be quiet, because it is not an essential subject.
After the read aloud, we take a few minutes to get dressed, comb hair, brush teeth...
When that is done we clean up, make beds, clean off table , make sure clothes are where they belong. This is new. I have tried having them do it before breakfast, but it is too much a of a struggle. After school- some deal, and then they are tired.....this is still a struggle, but at least it is getting easier, and I am not busy trying to catch up on Bible, email or what not while they fight and argue in their room- the boys, that is, my daughter usually makes he bed fine. They are just learning. Again.
After things are in order- just this wee bit, we sit down for prayer and Bible.
After that is math- they all work seperately, and usually I can have a few minutes to recharge myself, since their curriculum is self- teaching.
Next, we have PE- it usually ends up being around noon. We are doing the 10 minute solution, which I enjoy and can commit to. It is a short 10 minute work out- there are many different choices, and it is effective. I always try to do exerecise when dh is out, because he tends to joke about it.
Following PE is language arts including handwriting, vocabulaty, spelling, and writing on varied days according to our curriculum.
Raymond is home between 1 and 1:30, and we eat lunch together.
After lunch, I plan for science and social studies and fine arts, since the medication is starting to wear off then and lunch tends to make the kids a bit sleepy. These are the favorite subjects and if I decide I am tired out and just tell them to read, they are perfectly happy to just learn it that way. They absorb those subjects readily, and often learn more than I would have asked them to.
At times, the science or social studies is a video, which we watch later in the day.
At some point, I will add back in music, but for now, this is the routine.
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Sunday, September 7, 2008 - Another Friday- this time the fill ins come from song lyrics...
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Here we are with another Firday Fill- in ( on SUNDAY!)
1. If I was to walk into your life, you would be OVERWHELMED!!!! Y. You'd also see a MOUNTAIN of laundry today..... And you would probably look around and feel a just a bit discouraged with all the goings on- but if you were to walk into my HEART- you would see things in a new light and be endlessly grateful for and in love with Jesus!You would hear Psalm 37 being repeated over and over, songs flowing, and forming the background of my life.
2. Catch a bright star and place it in a NAPKIN?. I don't know why THAT popped int my head!
3. And you can send me "dead flowers for my wedding. And you can send me dead flowers every day. But you won't see me puttin' roses on your grave." I think that's how the song went anyway... Not my choice of lyrics, but this is a song I heard my dad sing, while playing his guitar when i was a kid.
4. __________ but I'm dealing with a memory that never forgets.
All I can think of is that I am dealing with a forgetter that never remembers! That's me- I'd forget my name and loose my head if it weren't attached!
5. I'm the innocent bystander / Somehow I got stuck _With YOU!_________.
6. What's keeping us apart isn't selfishness, _it's the OCEAN______.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to __going to the forest preserve__, tomorrow my plans include __Church, and taking a trip out of town___ and Sunday, I want to __take Trinity to church to try out for the camera operator___!
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Thursday, August 28, 2008 - ok- we're strange:)
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1. Dancing to the washing machine while laughing with the kids makes me appreciate our family's uniqueness... I guess.
I don't lnow who started it............ Ok, we do this funny thing when the washing machine is aggitating- we call it the washing machine dance- OH I KNOW we've made you REALLY believe we are dilusional now!
(homeschoolers are CRAZY!, yes we all are! mwahahahaha)
Seriously- one of us ( me, kids... not my husband- he thinks we are nuts too:) will notice that the washer is making its familiar, rythmic swishing and say "Dance to the washing machine!" wilst grinning from ear to ear and moving to the beat. Others join in, giggling and enjoying the silliness! It happens whenever--- even during school... sometimes when one of us is having a not so happy moment... it stops the bad attitudes in a flash and gets everyone happily involved in having fun. Now aren't you glad you know that about us?
"WOAH- I'm stearin' clear of THOSE lunatics!!!!"
We love you too. Now ... do the dance! No, really, try it- it's FUN!
2. The last time I used the microwave to reheat my coffee I nearly made it evaporate because I accidentally put it in for WAY too long and then I forgot about it.. and it bubbled over and spilled inside the microwave....
3. When I drive I like to listen to music and sing along. For a small sampling of what I like- scroll down and turn up your speakers:)
4. I saw the old bent tree standing in our front yard the morning after the scariest night of storms I have ever lived through. The lightning struck so close to our house we could hear it sizzle!
5. Give me life, give me love, give me more of You JESUS!
6. Next week I am looking forward to having enough money to buy groceries and pay the bills, and possibly lay the bathroom floor.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to getting a good night's sleep, tomorrow my plans include singing on the worship team at my church, and Sunday, I want to.... have my Dad and my brother's family stop by at least for a while before they head back out of town:) |
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Wednesday, August 27, 2008 - What's on the Agenda......
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Where to start?
We are unit study people-
This year I plan to use the same curriculum that I discovered last year- AWOA.
I enjoy teaching unit studies, and this one seems like it was tailor made for us!
For this unit we are continuing on Greece, we are using History pockets with it
We are currently using Mammoth Math with all of the kids.
I think that this year, we will take Wednesdays and use them for playing educational games and getting outside more. I feel like we have spent most of our summer indoors and I miss it.
I think we need to focus more on handwriting.. we are just using Happy Scribe
Currclick.
This will be Miss Trinity's last year before high school. (SCARRY!) I sense the leading to get her involved in an apprenticeship or volunteer work, probably at the Humane Society. She is interested in being a vet or some other kind of animal care worker.
We will continue to use Keyboard Capers for music class daily.
I want to get some kind of exercise going on here- don''t think we get enough. i have a homeschool family fitness book, but I don't like it-
ANY SUGGESTIONS OF WHAT WE COULD USE OR DO WOULD GREATLY HELP!
Rowan will be starting 2nd grade, Harley will be in 7th and Trinity is, of course in 8th.
As of right now, though, we are just focusing on some character issues and getting our home back to normal after remodeling....
The verse that is foremost in my mind at the start of this year is
Isa. 40:11
11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.
He takes care of our needs, in every way. He holds my young ( and not so young) ones in his arms, close to His heart. I need to let Him do that more in our school. I tend to focus on getting there, but God seems interested in using the time in the journey to bond closely with my children.
I need to focus more on gentleness this year, and it also helps my perfectionist nature to know that God is GENTLY leading me... that he is patient, and does not ask me to hurry up, or overwork myself. He also does not expect me to carry the children on my own.
It means more to me that He is leading me gently, in that I am going to get a soft nudge here and there to let me know where to proceed. I am by nature, a control freak. Learning to be submissive has been frustrating... I keep trying.... I miss the opportunity sometimes to step back and watch Him do what only He can do. I have trust issues... but I hear God saying " Do you trust ME?"
This year, I am finally seeing my husband rise up as a leader here, and a covering over our family. God is doing it, just through him. No, Raymond isn't perfect... but I am learning how to build him up and hold my tongue so that his greatness can shine forth. It's really God's greatness anyway!
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About Me
Well, I'm a Mom, a Medical Assistant, a knitter, kite flyer, nature lover...Around here we have special needs, ( Asperger's, ADHD, Bi-polar) a few animal pals, some tattoos and a homeschool. It's our 6th year. This is my 16th year of marriage to a Mr. Visionary who happens to be a walking miracle.
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