Here are a few simple organizational tips from Heart of the Matter. Funny, I could have written this list myself. The only difference between my list and this one is that we buy bottled water (or use sports bottles filled with water from our fridge dispenser) and I go back and forth about whether or not to spend money on wipes to clean with.

I too “splurged” on an electric pencil sharpener for this year. (There is something sad about that…splurging on a pencil sharpener. Sigh.)  

And mechanical pencils! I have a love/hate relationship with them. Love because they write great; hate because they constantly need to be replaced or refilled and I can never figure out how to refill them. My eldest son claims he can’t write with a regular pencil because he can’t stand the way it sounds. Whoever heard of such a thing?! Before he mentioned it I never even noticed that a regular pencil made a sound. He’s weird about book pages as well, he says he can’t stand the feel of some of them. He used to refuse to use his finger to follow along the page because he said he didn’t like the feel of the page (usually paperback books).

Talking about splurging I finally ordered The Family Meal table and these other films from Franklin Springs Media.

For all you guys out there who secretly read my blog  in honor of Father's Day Heart of the Matter is dedicating this week’s postings to you. There are several great articles that you should read. I especially enjoyed Chuck Black’s article on a Father’s love. I’m planning on buying his Kingdom Series for Aaron very soon. Currently Aaron is reading Lloyd Alexander's series The Chronicles of Prydain. These are books he choose to read for the  TOS Summer Reading Splash summer reading club. Bethany has a list of over 22 books, but she started reading The Magic Treehouse books and hasn't read too many of the other books on her list. Lol. All homeschoolers are invited to join in the Summer Reading Splash. As further incentive for my own children I've added a few additional prizes: a trip for ice cream, a movie, and $10 to spend as they wish.

Since I am constantly on the look-out for tips on how to organize and structure my day (and I thought you might be too) I thought this article from Alpha Omega’s Homeschool View about the Duggar Family and their organizational strategies might be of interest. Btw, I recently ordered Switched on Schoolhouse (Alpha Omega) for Aaron. I’ll let you know how it goes and whether after this “trial” run we decide to stick with it. The Duggar family is always an encouragement to me. What a beautiful family. I especially like the Duggar's House guidelines.

In my inbox this morning was a great article about classical education (from the TOS Minute –sorry, I still haven’t figured out how to link to it).  

It is an interview between This Old Schoolhouse Magazine and Susan Wise Bauer (The Well Trained Mind). Check it out. I think you will enjoy it.

Here are a few food related truths about myself in no particular order.

Truth:  I get tired of cooking.

Truth:  I judge my own cooking very harshly.

Truth:  I do not get offended if you don’t like what I’ve cooked…because chances are if you didn’t like it, I probably didn’t either.

Truth:  If I did not enjoy a meal that I cooked, I will not cook it again even if everyone else at the table enjoyed it.  (Is that selfish or what! Sometimes I do make exceptions for the kids.) 

Truth:  I do not like to fry foods.

Truth:  I do not like to eat the same food more than one day in a row. (Although, sometimes I will eat leftovers for lunch.)

Truth:  I do not like to make everything from scratch. (I’m lazy.)

Truth:  I do like to use pre-made food once in awhile. (Again, I’m lazy.)

Truth:  I prefer whole foods.

Truth:  I do not like meals that take all day to make – unless they happen to be simmering in a crock-pot.

Truth:  I tend to prefer sour and bitter tastes over sweet…for example I like dark chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate, I do not like milk chocolate. (Although sometimes I make exceptions. Grin.)

Truth:  As an example of the above…my mom sent us four giant milk chocolate bunnies from Sees Candies for Easter…Yum, right? Well, they are still sitting in my fridge. (They are at the very top in the back where the kids can’t see them. They were confiscated shortly after the kids pulled them out of their Easter baskets. I’m a real Grinch…but too much sugar is just too much sugar and one giant bunny was/is way too much sugar. Four is like death.) They will probably be in there until next Easter. If you would like me to send you one, let me know.

Truth:  Because I decided to sit here and type this I burned our dinner…something I NEVER do. Sigh.

Truth:  I do not consider myself a cook, but I do cook most of our meals from scratch.

Truth:  I do plan weekly menus, but I also get bored with them and tired of searching out new meals.

Why do you need or want to know any of this? I’m sure you don’t but, if you have trouble planning meals or you are bored with your current menus I have a solution for you – it is called Menus4Mom’s.com. Check it out. All the menu planning is done for you for the whole week. There is even a grocery list and it is free.

Earlier this week I made Tasty Pork Tenderloins, Baked Asparagus, Wild Rice and Apple Turnovers. My whole family was blessing my name over and over…it was amazing. My kids (Bess! My super picky eater) ate it all (everything listed) and asked for seconds – even the wild rice. (We eat brown rice all the time and no one ever asks for seconds.) My personal fave was the asparagus. It was yummy. The turnovers were yummy too. The pork was a little sweeter than I like…but considering that all the kids gobbled it up I’m not complaining.

Just so you know, I made a few of the other recipes for the week of April 14^th and they were all yummy. Tonight we are having flank steak, baked potatoes, and corn. (I didn’t have any greens. I’m not sure I even know what greens are. Collard? Spinach? Hmmm.)

Check it out it.

Be blessed.

Well, it’s that time of year again, I’m sure you are familiar with it, the time of year when our thoughts (or maybe just mine) start turning to new curriculums and returning to those sources (The Well Trained Mind, Charlotte Mason, Whole Hearted Ministries, etc.) that direct, inspire, uplift and train us on this journey called homeschooling.

Once again I find myself wondering, “Should I switch to Tapestry of Grace? Should I go back to following The Well Trained Mind and plan out everything myself?  Should I stick with My Father’s World? And what about Charlotte Mason? There’s always Ambleside. Or do I change completely and go with Alpha Omega?” Sigh.

With that in mind I thought I would open a new tag called Homeschool Helps. Under this tag I will post information about homeschooling, family life, teaching helps, etc.  Anything that pertains to homeschooling and home life that I find interesting or helpful and think might be of interest or help to you.

I’d also like to invite you to share your wonderful resources as well. Teaching helps, websites, book recommendations, etc. that you have found interesting or useful over the years. Simply leave a link and/or name and a little info in the comments and I will check it out. Then I will either post the information or leave the link, etc. in the comments for others to pursue on their own.

So first up you will want to check out Simply Charlotte Mason.

This is a wonderful site, with lots and lots of great info on how to homeschool via Charlotte Mason. Topics include book recommendations, copy work, scheduling, narrating, dictating, and a whole lot more. Simply Charlotte Mason is also hosting the SCM Blog Carnival where moms are encouraged submit a blog post about Mother Culture.

While you are there you will also want to check out SCM’s sister site Intentional Parenting their personal blog where they talk about intentional parenting and life with a child with Autism.