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"Home Makers Mentor" Review

Many of you have asked me to comment on the "Home Makers Mentor" subscription and give you my opinion.  I have been busier since the beginning of the year than I though I would be, so I have yet to complete any of the assignments or do much more than read the lessons.  Please bear this in mind as I give my opinion.

So far, the lessons have been on: cleaning the master bedroom, growing your own herbs,  and cooking beans.  It is the end of February and these have been the only lessons so far.  To be honest, I was expecting more lessons than only three in the first two months.  That being said, the lessons give a great amount of detail and instruction.  I am definitely looking forward to start growing my own herbs and using them in daily cooking rather than store bought dried herbs.  The writing of the lessons is very friendly, like a true mentor would be. 

One of the perks of purchasing the subscription is the ability to participate in the forum.  Same type of forum as you see in Sonlight or My Father's World.  This can be a great resource for getting encouragement as well as additional help with the assignments.

So, all in all, I have enjoyed the subscription so far.  However, I am still not sure if the product is worth the price.  It is a very expensive membership and I have not seen enough come out of it to truly make me feel like the investment was worthwhile for me. 

I need a Blog Makeover!!!!

I am in definite need of a blog makeover.  I have the same old, generic template.  I have no idea how to personalize my blog.  Don't know how to add items to the side bars, change my title picture, or as a matter of fact do anything to make it unique.  Will I get the coveted makeover?  I wish!!!  I see there are over 2000 of us trying to get this one makeover, so probably not....you get to continue reading my generic blog, lucky you!

I am ready for this

So I am really not an outdoorsy type gal.  I love my paved roads, running water, electricity, bug screens on windows.  I am a home body.  So you know I am ready for summer if I am actually looking forward to a few camping trips this summer.  I am becoming a true Alaskan woman.  Who knew?

Another thing I am looking forward to this summer is volunteering as camp nurse at http://www.solidrockbiblecamp.com/ a few of their sessions.  This will be my first time to ever be a camp nurse, so it will be interesting.  This camp is three hours South of us.  My two eldest attended last year and lvoed it.  After they attended, I found out they have a terrible time finding camp nurses willing to volunteer.  So I figured, why not??  I am volunteering during two sessions that my daughters will attend as campers and my little 3 year old man can tag along with me. Fun, fun! 

Much better today

My outlook on winter has improved today.  It is in the 20s and 30s now.  This cold I can handle.  It's the hovering around 0 degree that does me in, makes me wish I could move to Timbuktu (is Timbuktu warm year round??). 

I guess my biggest issue is contentment, being happy where I am planted.  Who's to say if we moved to the perfect sunshiny town (wherever that may be) that I'd be satisfied?  The greener pasture syndrome is my friend I guess. 

Thank you Lord for helping me get through the last few weeks.  Change my heart Lord and bring me closer to you.

Happy LOVE day to you all! 

Winter Blahs!!!

I officially have it, winter is really getting me down and I am so very tired of it.  It just seems to keep going and going and going...you get the picture.  We have had a VERY cold February in Alaska and it has really affected me emotionally.  It has made me want to get out of here very badly.  Don't get me worng, Alaska is a beautiful place, but I don't think I am cut out for this winter thing.  Summer time is great and wonderful, but then comes winter.  It is very hard. 

So if anyone is reading this, please pray for me that I would endure and perservere with some joy in my heart.  I don't want to be negative and bring the rest of my family down.  I want to make our home a joyful place.  This is proving to be just a tad difficult right now.

Lord in heaven, pleae help me to make it through the remaining months of winter.  Help me be content with where you have placed us.  Help me love this place and enjoy being a part of it.  Take this feeling of depression away from me and remind me that you are my refuge and strength no matter where I may go.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Thanks for letting me share.

FYI: Lesson topics for "The Homemaker's Mentor"

Listed below are the lessons they have planned:

The following 24 online classes will be available for 2008 to HMM Members:

*Cleaning the Master Bedroom
*How to Make Simple Curtains
*Homemade Notecards & Stationary
*Growing an Indoor Herb Garden & How to Use Fresh Herbs
*Beans, Beans & More Beans - Using Dried Beans for Simple, Delicious & Frugal Meals
*Children's Clothing - Storage Solutions & Organization
*Sew an Apron
*Quick Peek at the Well Stocked Medicine Cabinet & Treating Basic Illness and Injury
*Pantry Principles - Organizing & Stocking
*Family Meals - Making This Special Time Together Happen!
*Canning Blackberry Jam & Other Fruits
*How to Embellish Linens with Crocheted Lace Edgings
*Really Good Home Canned Pickles!
*Laundry Basics & Teaching Children to Help
*Simple Skirts for Girls - A Sewing Lesson
*An Abundance of Apples & How to Use Them All!
*A Clean Sparkling Kitchen
*Long Term Food Storage & Simple Emergency Preparedness
*In A Stew!
*Rebekah's Revolving Chore Chart for Children & Mother's Master List of Home Duties for the Year
*Table Settings & How to Create a Lovely Table Setting
*Making a Memory Quilt
*My Kitchen - A Restaurant?
*Gingham Embroidery with Two Projects
 

First lesson from "The Homemaker's Mentor"

I promised some of you that I would return and give a report after the first lesson from http://www.thehomemakersmentor.com/  So here I am reporting for duty

The first lesson focused on "Cleaning of the Master Bedroom."  This wasn't just a "wipe a cloth over the dresser, change the sheets, and kick the clutter under the bed" type lesson.  It gave detailed instructions on in-depth cleaning of the Master Bedroom.  Very inspiring for me, as my bedroom is the dumping ground for everything that does not have a place to belong in our home---wrapping paper, suitcases, my scrapbooking goodies, piles of papers, items to be donated, sewing items, books to be read, etc.   This is a room I always neglect, it's way too easy to keep the door closed and forget about it during the day, and just step over the piles at night. 

Overall I really enjoyed the lesson and the way it was written (by a friend-for a friend).  The forum belonging to the site is also becoming a very active community. I guess the real test will be:  Will I complete the lesson?  The answer:  You betcha....as soon as I get back from Hawaii

Crafting to go

We leave freezing cold Alaska for our much anticipated trip to Hawaii on Sunday.  I am taking a book to read (probably "Chasing Fireflies" by Charles Martin).  I also wanted some sort of sewing/knitting/craft type project to keep busy on down times.  So I perused my latest favorite blogs:

http://norththreads.blogspot.com

http://homespunliving.blogspot.com/

http://sewmamasew.com/blog2/

http://angrychicken.typepad.com/angry_chicken/

I finally found a project to bring along with me.  It's a Valentine's Day Penny Rug that the first blog mentioned above, Northreads, had made and turned out really cute.  Here's a pic:

It is made out of felted wool and the supplies I need to bring with me are minimal (needle, thread and small scissors).  The pattern for this is a freebie from http://www.fonsandporter.com  I am using a mint green background with the red hearts and pennies.  I love working with felt and this will be a perfect runner for on our table during the month of February.

Do you enjoy any craft blogs you could share with me?  I love seeing what others make and copycat projects.  Happy crafting!

Eagle River Christian Homeschool Association (ERCHA)

If you homeschool or will be homeschooling near Achorage, Alaska there is a wonderful support Association in Eagle River/ Chugiak.  www.ercha.com

Welcome to ERCHA! We are Christian families who have chosen to educate our children at home. --> Learn more about us There is Freedom in Homeschooling In Alaska, you have the freedom to homeschool independently without government restrictions or oversight. --> See why Attend our meetings! When: Third Tuesday of each month, 7:00pm (except June, July and August) Where: Eagle River Grace Brethren Church Mile 1.8 Birchwood Loop Road, Chugiak Child care will be provided. --> See map

Coming December 27th! ERCHA Annual Mom's Tea - Please register here by December 21st Coming April 2008! Writing seminars by Andrew Pudewa, Institute for Excellence in Writing : About Us :: Meetings :: Homeschooling in Alaska :: Legislative Watch :: Activities/Clubs :: Contact Us :: JOIN : ©2007 Eagle River Homeschool Association

I subscribed!

I jumped in with both feet.  I have now subrscribed for the full year of "Home Maker's Mentor" and I can't wait to see what all I can lear and glean from this subscription.   There will be two monthly lessons starting in January. I have so much to learn, I'm sure every single lesson will be enlightening.

http://www.thehomemakersmentor.com/

Charles MArtin, author

I love this guy's books.  If you are in the market for wonderful Christian fiction, you have gotto read his stuff. http://www.charlesmartinbooks.com/   You can trust me on this, I read ALL newly published Chrsitian fiction and this guy rocks.

Chasing Fireflies

Maggie (sequel to "The Dead don't dance)

When Crickets Cry (My all time favorite story on redemption and forgiveness---well my almost favorite, I also love "Redeeming Love" by Francine Rivers).

Wrapped in Rain

Moosequito's

I love the name of this place in Soldotna, Alaska.  Too bad it's a bar or we'd give them some business.

!I did it

My first three batches of freshly milled whole wheat bread have been a hit!!!!   It was quite time consuming, as I am using a KitchenAid grain mill attachment and it is rather slow.  But, it worked and did not even burn my motor up!   I have my mother-in-law's original KitchenAid (30 plus years old) and it works great.  So anyway, I milled the grain and did a triple batch of dough.  One was for dinner rolls with soup last night, one batch of cinnamon rolls for this morning and a loaf of bread for sandwiches, toast, etc.  I can see myself really getting the hang of this bread-making thing!!  I can't wait to try more things and expand the different type of whole grains we eat.

I need to invest in a good freshly milled whole grain cookbook.  Any suggestions?

Patting my own back in Alaska!

Eagle River, Alaska

My four precious kids with my hubbie this past summer.

Homemade Whole Wheat Tortillas

I am borrowing this recipe from:  http://strivingforproverbs31.blogspot.com/   These look so good.  I am definitely going to try them.  Has anyone made these before? 

In a bowl, mix:
about 4-5 cups whole wheat flour
a glob of butter (we use organic or virgin coconut oil)...this may be about 3 tablespoons
about a teaspoon of baking powder
water, enough to make dough into a playdough like consistency

Knead a bit and let rest in bowl for 1/2 hour minimum, covered. Last night's tortillas were our best yet and the dough rested for 2-3 hours.

Form into balls. Roll out thinly between wax paper. If you roll them out not so thin they will be flat bread. We like this too. When rolling we have had the best results when we smeared the wax paper with coconut oil, thus eliminating the sticky factor.

Cook on a hot grill until lightly browned. Cover immediately or they will get crispy. This makes about a dozen.

Here are the other tortillas we make and enjoy:

MASA FLOUR TORTILLAS
4+ cups masa flour
enough water to make a thick playdough consistency. Follow same method of rolling out and cooking as above.

Where is our snow???

We are without snow in ALASKA!!!!!  Odd, I know!  This weather is no fun.  If it's going to be this cold, for this long, we need snow!!!!!  Our snow melted on a very warm day the second week of November.  There has been no new snowfall since then.  So it's just cold and icky.  Nothing to send the kids outside to play in, no sledding, no nothing!!!! 

I keep seeing pictures from you guys in the lower 48 and you have more snow than we do!!!  Definitely not fair.  If you would please, send some of the pretty white stuff this way......

Seasons at Home

I subscribed to this new magazine: Seasons at Home.  I really enjoyed looking through the premier issue.  It has lots of recipes, beginning sewing projects for little girls, and overall encouragement to a learning homemaker.  www.ripe4harvest.com is where you go to subscribe. 

Rudolph Popcorn Balls

We tried this Gooseberry Patch recipe and really enjoyed it.  My daughters number 2 and 3 were big helpers and were very motivated as these will be "Christmas Thank Yous" for the swim instructors, Piano teacher and other tutors.  So here is the recipe.

Rudolph Popcorn Balls

12 to 14 quarts popped popcorn

1/2 cup butter

16 oz bad of mini marshmallows

red food coloring

Place popcorn in a large roaster pan; set aside. Melt butter and marshmallows in a large saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and stir in red food coloring to desired shade.  Pour mixture over pocorn, stir well.  Coat hands with butter and shape mixture into softabll-sized balls.  Wrap each in plastic wrap.  Makes 4 to 5 dozen.

Here is a picture of one of our finished products:

The Homemaker's Mentor

Has anyone heard of this? Is anyone planning on subscribing? I am very intrigued by this, as I need all the help I can get to learn this homemaking deal.  But $50?? that seems very pricey to me.  Opinions?

 The link is:

http://www.thehomemakersmentor.com/

This is what the website says:

From the comfort and convenience of home, The Homemaker's Mentor brings you helpful lessons to inspire, expand and enjoy your homemaking skills.

As each lesson is learned ~ your homemaking skills increase and are refined.

Lessons Start January 2008

Though the hustle and bustle of life may surround you and your family, your home will become a welcome haven for all who enter. You will find a deep enjoyment in being a homemaker by learning from older, like-minded women who have traveled the way before you and can look back and help you overcome life's struggles as a homemaker. If you have ever wished for a friend or older woman to hold your hand and teach you skills you have always wanted to learn, The Homemaker's Mentor is for you.

A friendly hand reaching out to help you with lessons that can make your
homemaking experience joyful and rewarding.

The Homemaker's Mentor is sponsored by

Mrs. Martha Greene & Mrs. Rebekah Wilson