On The Journey - Homeschool Blogger

Raising the Next Food Network Star

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:00:00 -0500

Getting my children into the kitchen to cook is generally not a problem at all. They all love to make their own creations; although some are more edible than others when they are on their own.

My son is the real cook though. He loves to try new recipes and experiement with spices and herbs. The Food Network is his favorite channel. And cooking magazines always grab his attention.

I am pretty conservative when it comes to cooking. I like the comfortable of tried and true recipes; of which I'm a stickler for following it to the tee. I generally don't make happy accidents, if you know what I mean.

Since I didn't learn to cook, save for 7th grade home ec, until after I was married (thank you Lord for a daring husband) I really didn't know how to teach my children the ways of the kitchen. When I came across Pearables curriculum I knew I'd found a simple, step-by-step program that wouldn't frazzle my nerves, but would allow my children to make simple dishes that we could use, adapt, and enjoy. For preschoolers we are using a book from Rod & Staff. (I'll have to look up the exact title later.)

If children in the kitchen is new for you, and them, then I would suggest starting with easy-peasy things like cookies, grilled-cheese sandwiches, salads, and such like. Always be there for safety and help though.

And as my dear son would say presentation is key. It is also a key to cooking in Japan. (Notice how everything in Japanese culture has purpose as well as beauty?) Check out Sarah Joy Albrecht's blog (October 9th) for a wonderful giveaway. It will surely inspire your budding Food Network Star to new cooking heights!

Happy cooking!

The Christmas Challenge this Year

Fri, 14 Nov 2008 22:12:00 -0600

Let's go all the way back to the Beginning.

Traveling the Learning Curve

Thu, 9 Oct 2008 10:10:00 -0500

Computers are one tool that I can't seem to get the hang of. It has taken me countless hours to put together a flyer with photos and a slideshow to upload on YouTube. Most of this done in the wee hours so that there is no hope of me remembering exactly what it was that I did to get it exactly like it is. Boy, am I plumb tuckered out!

Please take a look and let me know what you think on the slideshow. I'm to frazzled to try to figure out how to post the video in my blog (but I will take pointers from anyone who already knows!). Thanks.

New Babies

Thu, 2 Oct 2008 10:15:00 -0500

We are proud to announce that one of our broody hens, thanks to another undercover-chicken-raising neighbor, hatched two fluffy chicks. One downy little guy is a ball of yellow fluff, whilst the other has various brown stripes down his back (reminds me of our Dorking chicks).

The unlikely mama is our Scruffy hen, so named because she has spent the better part of this year nearly featherless on her back and upper wings (she does appear to be getting some feathers - just in time for winter). The other hens, when they care to notice, appear to wonder what all the racket is.

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

Wed, 3 Sep 2008 09:30:00 -0500

What I did on my summer vacation.... What summer vacation?

We have been going at light speed since my last post. We have stayed in town more than we did last summer, to be sure. We determined to only go south to visit my parents once a month rather than every other week. That has been nice, not traveling as much.

However, we did decide to try running a booth at our local farmers market. That has been fun, but takes half a day twice a month. We haven't made a living at it, but have enjoyed all the other vendors and getting to visit with market visitors. Our children even did an Irish dance demonstration one Saturday. Of course, they pulled me in and I did two dances with them (my first performance in public) and it was fun. We hope to do it again next year.

Our garden is growing! Wow! That has been fun this year. It has been so neat eating produce from our own backyard. We'd like to expand next year. We also ate some chicken, well, more specifically, the rooster. You will find a picture of him on the blog. He was tasty though. We'd like to do more of that next year too.

I haven't figured out how to load pictures from the new camera, well, even how to get them off yet, but I think I might be able to figure it out by Christmas!

We have done one camping trip this year. We went to Silver City, Idaho, a ghost town of sorts. There are now residents up there, not the ghosts, but not year-round. We were up there as extras in a western short some friends were helping out with. That was great fun!

My dear love is getting ready for elk and deer season. This will be his second. I hope he gets one this year. He wants to try bow hunting some year.

I painted the living room and kitchen, the master bathroom, the half-bath downstairs and the guest bedroom. Whew! I did those painting jobs during my loves business trips because he doesn't like it when I change the colors. He likes the new looks, but the process just kills him. I'm liking the changes, very refreshing.

Let's see, what else. Oh yes, we are planning to move this fall. We have decided to sell our home, so if anyone is planning a move to Idaho, we have a cute, new home for you! Really. We plan to list it on Craig's List. We haven't finished interviewing real estate agents, such a tedious process, but need to soon. Of course the chickens will go with us and the two cats too, but we'll leave the new shed. :O)

Thanks for stopping by to see what I did on my summer vacation. I hope yours was slower paced.

Home Again, Home Again...

Fri, 25 Apr 2008 14:04:01 -0500

Jiggity, jig!

We just returned from the Christian Heritage Home Educators of Washington conference in Redmond, Wa. Wow! What a wonderful, uplifting, challenging conference. Every session struck a chord with me. Encouraging me, filling my wellspring, calling me to look beyond this moment to my legacy and back to my heritage.

Sometimes it is so easy, to easy, to get caught up in the here and now, in the mundane, day-to-dayness of life and forget what our real intent and purpose is through home educating our children. It isn't about today's assignments, or next year's requirements, or even preparing them for a career. It is about cultivating deep, personal relationships with these people who are our children, being the wind and the tiller that guides them to their own discovery of Christ and God's Hand in their lives, and giving them a vision beyond themselves to help them guide and grow their own families and the generations to follow.

We were so blessed to attend and I would encourage anyone within a two day's drive to attend next year. Dr. Voddie Baucham will be speaking. (It is about a 10 hour drive for us to attend.)

Soon I hope to post some photos, but I first have to figure out how to do that with the new camera. Always something to learn!

Worth Quoting

Mon, 25 Feb 2008 11:22:00 -0600

"In not mentioning God, my public school teachers preached a thundering message daily. By implication they taught that God is not relevant to most areas of life..with every lesson, in every class period, all day every day for 12 years I was being taught to think like an atheist in the academic realm and didn't even know that I was being indoctrinated." ~Chris Schlect, Scriptural Woldview Thinking

Spring & Chickens

Mon, 25 Feb 2008 09:16:00 -0600

There is something about spring that just begs for Chickens. It could be the new green starting to appear. It could be the sun rising a bit earlier and staying just a little longer. It could be that the hens are laying eggs again and they taste SO good. It could even be seeing the Canada geese flying in the other direction now. But whatever it is exactly about spring that makes me think of chickens, I'm glad we have a few.

Our chickens are now about a year old. I am expecting egg production to be more regular. I am also hoping that one of the five hens will go broody and we would get some new chickies. The rooster's name is Michael Flatley (my children are Irish dancers), he is a Dorking (that is breed, not brains), and the various hens have been named after other Irish dancers, including their dance teachers, although they bear no resemblance, well maybe the in attitude.

Happy Spring!

Another Political Note

Wed, 19 Dec 2007 20:31:00 -0600

I have been quite impressed with Dr. Ron Paul. I listened to a six-part interview on Glenn Beck. Now, don't jump to any conclusions. I am not a regular Glenn Beck listener (for many of the same reasons I stated in my previous political note.)

If you get a chance, jump over there to watch the video, read the transcript or look it up on YouTube. He is all for less government. Gotta love that!

Testing, testing -- Fred the Cat

Wed, 19 Dec 2007 09:38:00 -0600