Dec. 23, 2009
Wrapping Up Hannukah

Have a Happy, Happy, Happy, Happy Hannukah!

As our week of Hannukah celebration drew to a close last Friday, we enjoyed a final meal of potatoe latkes, applesauce, challah, & rugelach after lighting the 8th and final candle on our menorrah.  We invited a sweet single mom and her children over, but her children were sick so they had to cancel.  Although we were disappointed, we rolled with the day and enjoyed a relaxing evening wrapping up this holiday.  This night, as we lit each candle, we had the kids tell us one thing that was significant about that number biblically.  Each night this week, we brainstormed each candle's number, and this is what the kids recalled the final night.

1: One God

2: Adam & Eve

3: Trinity

4: How many were seen in the fiery furnace in Daniel

5: Number of Loaves for the miracle of feeding the five thousand

6: Satan's number

7: Perfection; days of creation, etc

8: Number of sons Jesse had.

This was a great way to review the bible, and many nights, I had my laptop on the table using www.bible.crosswalk.com to help us search the bible for the number for the evening. 

This year, we decided that all gifts from us would be given during Hannukah.  They were small things that I had collected through sales over the year (books, art books, puzzle books, videos, etc) with the final night being a "big" gift.  The kids really enjoyed this, and it was a great way to treasure each gift and watch, read, play or peruse each one slowly and really enjoy it.  They will still have gifts from grandparents to open Christmas Day, and every Christmas Eve we open a package from my mom which has new pj's in them.  It's very fun to wear them to bed Christmas Eve and see the kids running around in them Christmas Morning.

The challah was such a hit (and it made fabulous french toast the next day), I think we will have it some Fridays and other special days here at our home.  We all agreed that we will make celebrating Hannukah a tradition in our family and are looking forward to next year.

Dec. 20, 2009
Menus & Recipes for Monday, Dec 21 - Sunday, Dec 27

For the week of Christmas, we are going to enjoy preparing for my in-laws visit.  They will get in the middle of Christmas Day, so we will be having Cinnamon Rolls (Overnight Cinnamon Delights, see below) two mornings in a row, per the request of Darling Daughter, as we usually have them Christmas morning, but we want to have fresh ones for Grandma & Grandpa. 

Earlier in the week, we are going to keep things light and healthy with salad for supper (which we usually try to have at least 2 times a week).  I'm trying five new recipes this week:  Overnight Oats, Peanut Butter Waffles, and Gingerbread Scones for breakfast; Maple Roasted Chicken Thighs on Thursday which I will make a double-batch of so we have plenty for lunch the next day (Christmas) if anyone is hungery inbetween our big breakfast and before our big Christmas Dinner; and Baked Cranberry Brie for a "snacky supper" on Saturday, as I thought the guys may be watching some bowl games.

If in BOLD (black) recipe follows.  If in (red) BOLD, click for an outside link.

	BFAST	LUNCH	SUPPER	PREP DURING DAY
M, 21	Overnight Oats with Fruit	Grilled Cheese	Homemade Pizza	Boil eggs for salads. Make Sourdough bread
T, 22	Omelets	Appts in City -- Eat out (gotta love the Attractions Coupon Book!)	Salad w/ sunflower seeds, hard-boiled eggs, carrots, and cheese	Take Turkey out of freezer & put in refrigerator
W, 23	Whole Wheat Peanut Butter Waffles	Leftover Pizza	Salad w/ sunflower seeds, hard-boiled eggs, carrots, and cheese	Take chicken thighs out of freezer & put in refrigerator
Th, 24	Granola	Soup from Freezer	Maple Roasted Chicken Thighs with Sweet Potatoes	Prep cinnamon rolls; Make extra sweet potatoes.  Wash & cut potatoes; cover with water and put in fridge.  Make cranberries.
F, 25	Overnight Cinnamon Delights	Leftovers from last night	Turkey, Spiral Ham, Mashed Potatoes, Baked Beans, Sweet Potatoes, Stuffing, Gravy, Cranberries,   Croissants, Sparkling Cider	Set table after lunch.  Turkey first. Ham in crockpot.  Beans, Sweet Pototoes, & Stuffing in oven 1.25 hours before meal;  boil potatoes. Gravy & croissnats 20 min before meal.
Sa, 26	Overnight Cinnamon Delights	Leftovers	Ham Biscuits; Baked Cranberry Brie w/ crackers, apple slices, & sourdough toast	Make scones
Su, 27	Gingerbread Scones	Leftovers	Eating Out (?)

.

.

Dec. 18, 2009
Late Bloomers (Show & Tell Friday)

Last spring,  my mom sent me some of her irises.  They've been a nice reminder of her garden, my childhood, and of God's beauty. 

The first summer, they didn't bloom.   After reading, I found I may have planted them too deep.  This spring, I re-planted them, but only a few bloomed. 

But never give up on the "late bloomers." 

Adjust them, tend them, love them. 

Patiently, with hope, wait. 

But don't give up.  They are sometimes the most spectacular and the most appreciated. 

For suddenly, dispite the fact that it is December and many of the other flowers are long spent and are now a dull brown, almost every single iris plant is blooming in all their glory the last few weeks, with multiple flowers per plant.

I enjoy going down our sidewalk, seeing their regal purples standing out among the increasing fallen leaves.  But Wednesday morning, I finally took the time to really stop and just enjoy them.  To bend down, examine, and be surprised. 

Thank you, Father, for the lesson of "late bloomers." 

Dec. 16, 2009
Menus & Recipes for Sun, Dec 13 - Sat, Dec 19

A little late in posting our weekly menu, but our schedule has changed this week, and I've had to revamp my plans.  Sunday, Hubby & I enjoyed a rare treat of going out to a movie after church after our dear friend offered to watch the kiddos.  We enjoyed eating out at two of our favorite places.  For lunch, we quickly ordered some great burritos from our favorite "Burrito Barn" and ate them on the way to the movie, while we saved our chips (along with some of the best salsa ever) to munch on during the show.  After the movie were able to walk around the outdoor mall afterwards, relaxed and feeling content just being together.  We bought Little Man's "big" gift, a Nerf Dart Tag Hyperfire -- more of a "dual" gift, as I think hubby (and maybe sister & I) will have to get in a few games with it.

Before leaving the city, we had an early supper at one of our favorite places, Indochine.  As usual, the service was excellent and the food even more so.  Hubby got the Pad Thai, while I tried something new, Yum Yum Chicken, and that it was!  Hubby, who isn't a fan of cooked/stwed fruit in meat dishes, even liked it.  We took plenty home to enjoy for Monday's lunches.

I cleaned out the deep freeze on Monday and found that instead of the 5 containers I thought had blueberries in them, only 3 did.  The other two containers were of cinnamon rolls, which we will have on Sunday for a quick breakfast before church.  We love our blueberries (we pick them locally every summer and try to get 75-100 pounds).  We shared this year's haul with a few families, and we've also been eating them more -- so we'll have to ration them now to help them last longer.  That means no more Blueberry Pancakes every Saturday morning, which has been our tradition.  (Hubby was bummed when I told him, but still requested them every other Saturday.)   I like to make a special breakfast on Saturdays, so this will give me a chance to try some new dishes and also some old favorites instead.

	BFAST	LUNCH	SUPPER	PREP DURING DAY
S	Muffins from Freezer	Eating out	Eating out
M	Oatmeal	Leftovers from Sunday	Salad with steak, carrots, and sunflower seeds	Bake a pumpkin and make puree.  Freeze
T	Pumpkin Breakfast Bars	Eating out (gotta love the Attractions Coupon Book!)	Steak & Eggs Omelet w/ Skillet Mashed Potatoes (great way to use up our leftovers from Saturday night's dinner).	Make dough for sourdough bread; refrigerate
W	Quiches; Apple Tart	Sweet Potatoes and Sourdough Bread	Sweet Potatoes, Steak Sandwiches	Bake sourdough in am
TH	Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal	@ Friend's house	Leftover Quiche with Cranberry-Pecan Corn Muffins
F	Cranberry-Pecan Corn Muffins	Soup from Freezer	Last day of Hannukah (Friend's Over):  Potato Latkes, Homemade Applesauce, Challah, Rugelach	Prep french toast; Prep Stew. Use leftover challah for french toast
S	Do-Ahead Baked French Toast	Leftovers	All Day Beef Stew	Make muffins for week

This week I put 30 cups of pumpkin puree in the freezer.  I love making it fresh instead of getting it in the can (yummier, healthier, and more economical).  Our pumpkins serve 2 uses;  for decorations inside and out during October & November, and then cooked for pies, muffins, etc.  I used our large pumpkin that was on the porch, along with some little pie pumkins that I had decorating our mantle, etc.  Look for pie pumpkins after Halloween, as our local Walmart had them for only 33 cents/pound.  I stocked up and they really added to our fall decorations around the house in November.  I still have some in the garage, where it is cool, so we'll have lots of pumpkin dishes this winter. 

PUMPKIN PUREE

1.  Cut a pumpkin in 1/2 and clean out the inside.

2.  Bake at 350 degrees for one hour or until soft. 

3.  Cool for a few hours.

4.  Scoop out the pumpkin flesh from the shell and put into a large mixing bowl.  Turn on mixer and mix until well combined.

5.  Put in containers or freezer bags and store in the freezer. 

PUMPKIN BREAKFAST BARS

1 1/2 c. flour

1/2 c. raw sugar

2 t. baking powder

1 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. salt

1/4 t. allspice

1 egg

1 c. pumpkin puree

1/4 c. oil

1/2 c. raisins

1.   Preheat oven to 350.  Grease bottom of 8x11 inch pan; set aside.  In a mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and allspice.  Make a well in the center of dry ingredients; set aside.

2.  In another bowl, combine egg, pumpkin, oil, and raisins.  Add this mixture all at once to the dry mixture.  Stir just till moistened.

3.  Pour into the prepared pan,  Bake for 20-25 minutes or till a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Makes 16 servings.

PUMPKIN PIE OATMEAL  (serves 4)
2 cups water

2 cups milk

2 cups old-fashioned oats

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1/4 cup raw sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Dried cranberries, optional

• In a small saucepan, combine the water, milk, oats, pumpkind and pie spice.
• Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 5 minutes.
• Remove from the heat; stir in sugar and vanilla. Sprinkle with cranberries if desired. 

VEGGIE QUICHE 

1 recipe Flaky Pie Crust (see below)

1 med. onion

1 cup vegetable(s) of your choice, it whatever ratio you desire (broccoli, mushrooms, peppers, zucchini, spinach, etc)

3 beaten eggs

1/2 c. cottage cheese

pinch of salt & pepper

1/2 to 1/3 c. shredded cheese of choice

1.  Prepare pastry and place in pie plate; prick with fork.  Cook at 325 degrees for 20 minutes. 

2. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute onions & vegetables in olive oil until slightly tender. (If using spinach, do not cook in skillet.  Just add into egg mixture

3.  In a bowl, mix eggs, cottage cheese, salt and pepper.  Add vegetables; mix well.

4.  Pour egg mixture into the hot, baked pastry shell.  Sprinkle top with cheese.  Cook at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or till a knife inserted in center comes out clean.  Makes 6 servings.

(NOTE:  I made 2 of these, one with broccoli and cheddar cheese, the other with spinach & sheep cheese.  We also had some leftover mashed potatoes, so I put them on top of one of the quiches.)

Left to right: Spinach and Mashed Potato Quiche, Apple Tart, Broccoli Quiche

FLAKY PIE CRUST

1 1/3 cup flour (I use unbleached, or a mix of unbleached & wheat or spelt)

pinch of sea salt

pinch of stevia or 1/2 t. sugar

1/2 cup butter, cold

1 egg

3 rounded teaspoons of cold water

1. Sift flour, salt, and stevia/sugar into food processor.
2. Cut butter into about 16 peices and distribute over flour.  Pulse several times until butter is broken into bite-sized pieces.
3. Beat egg briefly with fork, drizzle over flour mixture and pulse once or twice.
4. Turn processor on and pour water in.
5. Can be refrigerated several hours.
6. Roll out using unbleached flour. 
7. Makes one double pie crust or 2 single pie crusts.

APPLE TART

(I came up with this today after having leftover pie crust.)

• Roll dough into a 10-12" circle.
• Peel one large apple and cut into thin slices.  Place in a bowl.
• Add one heaping tablespoon of flour, one heaping tablespoons of sugar, and a sprinkle of cinnamon and nutmeg.  Can add nuts and or raisins if desired.  Mix well.
• Put in center of dough, leaving a 2-3" circle.
• Bring dough around the apple mixture.  If desired, sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top.
• Cook for 30-35 minutes in a 350 oven.
  
  

CRANBERRY-PECAN CORN MUFFINS

1-3/4 cups yellow cornmeal

3/4 cup unbleached flour

1-1/4 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1-1/2 cups (12 ounces)  plain yogurt

1 egg

1/4 cup oil

1/4 cup honey

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/4 cup chopped pecans

• In a large bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, combine the yogurt, egg, oil and honey. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in cranberries and pecans.
• Coat muffin cups with cooking spray; fill three-fourths full with batter.
• Bake at 375° for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks. Serve warm. Makes about 1 dozen.

POTATO LATKES 

6 big potatoes
3 eggs

1 medium onion, chopped
1/3 cup of flour
1 teaspoon salt
oil for frying

1. Grind the potatoes.
2. Add eggs, flour and salt.  Mix well.
3. Warm up oil in frying pan.
4. Pour batter onto the oil in spoonfuls.
5. Let fry for about 5 minutes on medium-high heat.  Turn over and let fry for another 3 minutes.
6. Take out latkes and lay them on paper towel to cool.

DO-AHEAD BAKED FRENCH TOAST

1/2 c. butter

1 c. raw sugar

1 loaf unsliced french bread

6 large eggs

1 1/2 cups milk

1 t. vanilla

1. In small saucepan, melt butter.  Add sugar and cook until sugary.  Pour into 9x13" pan.
2. Remove ends from loaf and slice bread into 12 slices about 1" thick.  Place over sugar syrup.
3. In medium bowl, beat egss, milk and vanilla.  Pour over bread.
4. Cover dish and refrigerate overnight.
5. Preheat over to 350 degrees.  Uncover dish and bake 45 minutes.
6. If desired, sift powdered sugar over top when ready to serve.  Top with syrup.

Dec. 14, 2009
First Three Days of Hannukah

As we celebrate Hannukah, and begin the holiday season, I love to think about what my husband penned in our Family Letter for this year which we sent out at Thanksgiving....

"...to help our family remember that gratitude should be at the core of our celebration of all of the other holidays – at the Incarnation, gratitude that Jesus came to earth; at Passover, gratitude for what He did for us on the cross."

This article wraps up a lot of what we've learned and mulled over the last few years regarding "Christmas" and "Easter."  I think my husband and I have come to the conclusion that we really want to remember and celebrate Thanksgiving,  The Incarnation (or The Nativity), and the Passover & the Resurrection of Christ, with our kids, with possibly of adding in a Hannukah celebration every year, as the more I dive into it, the more I enjoy the meaning, history, and richness of it. 

The first morning, the kids and I got the food ready for this evenings meal.  We prepared the applesauce which simmered all day in the crockpot (apples, lemon juice, cinnamon, nutmeg, apple juice, water).  I also made Challah Bread for the first time, and I gleaned information to share at supper from www.myjewishlearning.com and www.chabad.com.

Kids putting the finishing touches on the menorah we made Friday morning.

We took an hour Friday afternoon to just focus on cleaning the house, as I've been inspired by Antionette over at Ranch Shekinah about how she prepares for and celebrates the Sabbath.  Having my house clean and chores done by week's end, so I can focus on just my family over the weekend, is something I really want to master in 2010.

Our friends came over a litte before 6pm as I was finishing up the potatoe latkes and cherry cheese blintzes.  Both were a hit, as was the challah.  We lit the lighter candle first and I asked the kids questions. 

"Who is our light?"  (God & Jesus) 

"Can the other candles light themselves?"  (No)  "Can we 'light' oursleves?" (No)

"Who did God give us to help us?" (Some said Jesus, others said the Holy Spirit)

After we lit the first candle, we talked about the challah bread. It was covered with a white cloth, which symbolizes the dew of heaven, as it fell every day like dew from heaven.  The challah represents that manna which was given to the Israelites in the dessert.  All the other days, if they gathered too much, it would be rotten the next morning.  But the day before the Sabbath, they were allowed to gather a double-portion, as there would be no manna on the ground on the Sabbath.  That is why we had 2 challah breads on the table, to represent that double-portion. 

I also had them guess why the challah is to have 12 bumps on it.  Little Man said for the 12 disciples.  I said, "Well in a way.  It is a symbol of the 12 tribes of Israel and Jesus chose his 12 disciples to symbolize the 12 tribes of Israel."  We talked about the 12 basketfuls of bread that the disciples gathered after the miracle of the feeding of the 5000.  What a way to increase their faith!

As we ate, we talked a little about how Hannukah came about.  About why many of the foods are made with oil, to represent the oil that lasted 8 nights before more could be made when the temple was reclaimed.  We shared about the Maccabees and how Christ celebrated the Feast of Dedication (John 10).

After dinner we played the dreidel game.  I shared with the kids the history of it, and how the money was theirs to keep and do with what they liked.  We talked about having charity at all times, but especially this time of year.  That the Greeks had taught the Jews to be selfish with their positions and use money, etc for selfish means.  The Jews had forgotten that all of their blessings came from God.  Giving gelt was not only a way to thank their religious instructors who didn't get paid much and to encourage the children to know their lessons, but to teach the children (and remind the adults) that God is the giver of all things and we should remember that all things come from His hand and are to be used for His glory.  After telling the children this, I let them know that they could practice that and have charity by giving some of their gelt away.  However they decided to use the gelt, or divide it up, was between them and God. 

We ended the first evening with the giving of presents.  Some animal videos for Little Man and a purse with a cross-stitch kit inside for Darling Daughter.  For our friends, I wanted to thank them for their friendship to us, and told them why we had gotten them their particular gifts.  For their daughter, a diary, as she always likes to pull out her bible and write in her journal when she sees my friend, her mama, doing her quiet time in the morning.  For their son, a little football game, as he is such a good friend and example to our little boy, and they enjoy playing football together.  For the parents, a matching set of aprons, as every other Monday this fall,  we met at their house (the other Mondays we met at ours), and shared a meal they had made.  We've had such a good time deepening our friendship with them and hope to will continue in 2010.  Pray for this family, as they pastor our church.  Troy is the head pastor and is an amazing servant and leader, and Tabitha is in charge of the children's ministry and has such a heart for the kids and their families.  (How I enjoy her "iron sharpening iron" friendship and being on the children's team at church.)

The following 2 evenings of Hannakuah, Saturday and Sunday, we did it before bedtime, as we were busy in the late afternoon and evenings with other events those days.  (Saturday, we hosted a Murder Mystery Party with our small group that left us is stitches, as our guests really got into their roles.  Sunday, Tabitha had offered to watch the kids for the afternoon so Hubby and I could go see the movie "Blind Side" after church, do some shopping, and enjoy an early dinner.)

Each night, we discuss what we can remember in Bible that has the same number as the candles as we are lighting.  The first night, the kids said, "One God.  One Savior."  The second night, "Adam & Eve.  Animals 2 by 2 into Noah's ark."  The third night, "Trinity.  Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.  Wise Men.  Jesus took Peter, James & John on the Mt. of Transfiguration."  We are enjoying the richness of this holiday.  We like how it is spurring a remembering of events and people in the Bible, but to also remember to Dedicate ourselves daily to God.

Dec. 11, 2009
"Hope-To-Do" List for Winter Break

This break, not only do I want to relax and recharge with my family, enjoy my in-laws who will be spending a week with us over Christmas, and spend extra time with friends during playdates, I also really need to do some things that seem to get pushed to the back burner during our school weeks.

So to encourage myself to do it, and also do some of that extra reading, etc that I want/need to do, I'm posting my "Hope-To-Do" list, along with "rewards" (my extra reading) for completing them.

Need-To-Do	Done	Reward
Hang Curtain Upstairs	.	Read 1 Ch. of Ancient History*
Deep Clean Kids' Bath (Clean Woodwork, Organize & Clean Cupboards, Polish Cupboards)	.	Read Ch. 1 of Leadership Education
Deep Clean Master Bath (Clean Woodwork, Org&Clean Cupboards & Closet, Polish Cupboards)	.	Read Ch. 2 of Leadership Education
Deep Clean Front Entry  (Clean Woodwork & Door, Organize & Clean Game/Coat Closet)		Read Ch. 3 of Leadership Education
Deep Clean Little Man's Room (Clean Woodwork; Purge/Clean Drawers, Closet, etc; Clean Walls)	12-10	Read 1/2 of Spring 2009 TOS magazine
Deep Clean Darling Daughter's Room (Clean Woodwork; Purge/Clean Drawers, Closet, etc; Clean Walls)	12-22	Read rest of Spring 2009 TOS magazine
Deep Clean Hallway (Clean Woodwork; Vacuum Stairs; Clean Walls	12-23	Read TOS holiday supplement pdf.
Deep Clean Laundry Room (Clean Woodwork & Appliances; Purge/Clean Shelves; Scrub)	12/11	Read Ch. 4 of Leadership Education
Deep Clean Pantry (Clean Door & Floor; Purge/Clean Shelves)	12/10	Read 1/2 of Summer 09 TOS magazine
Deep Clean Large Freezer (Defrost/Clean off accumulated ice on sides)	12/14	Read rest of Summer 09 TOS magazine
Deep Clean Bottom Kitchen Cupboards (Clean Woodwork & Shelves; Organize Shelves; Polish Doors)	12/18	Read Practical Homeschooling mag.
Deep Clean Top Kitchen Cupboards (Clean Woodwork & Shelves; Organize Shelves; Polish Doors)	12-22	Read 1/2 of Winter 09 TOS magazine
Deep Clean Master Bedroom (Clean Woodwork; Purge/Clean Drawers; Clean Walls)		Read Ch. 5 of Leadership Education
Deep Clean Master Closet (Clean Woodwork; Purge/Clean; Clean Walls)		Read Ch. 6 of Leadership Education
Organize DD's school desk		Read Ch. 7 Leadership Education
Organize my school desk		Read Ch. 8 Leadership Education
Organize master bedroom desk		Read Ch. 9 Leadership Education
Organize & re-label rolling carts in school room		Read Ch. 10  Leadership Education
Organize & re-label art cupboard in school room		Read April Healthy Cooking mag.
Deep Clean Great Room (Clean Woodwork; Purge/Clean; Clean Walls; Mop/Vacuum)		Read June Healthy Cooking magazine
Deep Clean Dining Area (Clean Woodwork; Purge/Clean; Clean Walls; Windex Patio Doors; Mop/Vacuum)		Read Oct. Healthy Cooking magazine
Deep Clean School Room (Clean Woodwork; Purge/Clean; Clean Walls; Mop)		Read IEW's Magnum Opus magazine
Deep Clean Upstairs (Clean Woodwork; Purge/Clean; Clean Walls; Vacuum)		Read Veritas' Classical Teacher magazine

Dec. 11, 2009
Hannukah Study

This year will be the first time in the 12 years we've been married that we will be celebrating Hannukah. 

We've been honest with our kids that there isn't a Santa Clause (sorry, Virginia), but we did tell them about the real St. Nicolas.  Every year we read to them more information about this man who lived by Jesus' words: "sell what you own and give the money to the poor."  (A little different from the world's version of Santa Claus and Christmas, isn't it?)  This year, we did it on his feast day, December 6th, while we enjoyed cross-shaped biscuits, and Little Man & I also put on a little play (using dolls & stuffed animals as puppets) I found at http://www.stnicholascenter.org.  

I wanted to do a study with the kids on Hannukah this year during our December break, and as I prepared for it and the more I thought about it, I didn't just want it to be another educational study for the kids, but I really wanted to go ahead and truly celebrate it.

For one reason, Jesus may have celebrated it.  Read John 10:22-23.  I also found a great comment that someone ("Bride of Yeshua") wrote which can be found HERE).   

Second, Christ himself was called "The Light of the World".  Hannukah is the Jewish "Festival of Dedication," also known as the "Feast of Lights."

Third, as our family studies the Jewish festivals and history, we are amazed at what we learn and how it opens a treasure trove of riches and greater understanding to us.  

Fourth, the The Hebrew word Chanukah, which means "to dedicate," shares the same root as "chinuch," which means "education."  When the Greeks occupied Israel, they force Hellenism on the Jews.  The Jews lost their grounding in the Torah, God's Word, as they were forced to submit to the new culture or be killed.  After the Greeks were defeated, it was necessary to re-teach, or re-educate, the Jewish people, because they had lost the godly values, history, and lifestyle God had given them and which set them apart from the world. 

It made me realize, as I studied this, that is our goal for ourselves and our children.  To be re-educated from what the world has lead us to believe.  The world has told us that God's word isn't applicable, that evolution is true, that whatever you want to believe is ok as long as you don't push it on anyone else, etc.  

And sadly, and maybe worse, that even if as a Christian you can still say you believe God made the world, etc, there are times when we need to just "compromise" or "not rock the boat." 

I still remember a good friend in college telling me my freshman year, basically, "If you didn't tell me you were a Christian, I wouldn't know because you don't have any fruit."  I thought I was a "good kid" as I grew up in the church and had tried to live for him at times, but I desperately wanted to fit in with those around me, and as this very brave and sweet friend told me, I was very much like the world.  Soon after that, I came to a point where I truly did surrender my life to Him.  How grateful I am that she cared enough to speak the truth to me!

As I talked with my husband last night about what I had been learning regarding Hannukah, I almost started to cry.  I told him what I had read about Hannah, a Jewish woman who watched her sevens sons die one-by-one because they refused to bow down to an idol, or some say to eat the flesh of a pig.  Could I do that as a mother?  Have I have taught my children to stand fast -- or to compromise?  Do I myself stand fast -- or do I tend to compromise on things?  My children see me and I am their example.   It hit me that many times, I am not the follower of God I should be.  As we celebrate this "Feast of Dedication," may I let God work in my heart and in my family, and may we each dedicate ourselves to Him.

Romans 12:1-2 (Amplified Bible)

 ¹I APPEAL to you therefore, brethren, and beg of you in view of [all] the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies [presenting all your members and faculties] as a living sacrifice, holy (devoted, consecrated) and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable (rational, intelligent) service and spiritual worship.

    ²Do not be conformed to this world (this age), [fashioned after and adapted to its external, superficial customs], but be transformed (changed) by the [entire] renewal of your mind [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that you may prove [for yourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].

What we will be using as we celebrate & study this Holiday over the next 9 days:

• Daily Hannukah devotions.  Heart of Wisdom's site is wonderful, and someday I would really like to get her book on Biblical Holidays.
• Hannukkah Lighting Guide Video
• Miracle of the Maccabees audio story (first night)
• Other Hannakuk audio stories
• We will make a driedel and will play it with our "gelt" (or in this case, change from our change jar).  I really like the idea of playing this game, and I'm going to share the history of it and talk about how the Greeks didn't always strip the Jewish of their possessions -- they taught them to be selfish with them and use them for impure means.  After the Maccabee's victory, the Jews started giving their children gelt during Hannukah to teach them to increase in charity and good deeds.  We will be doing the same with our children and will encourage them to give a portion of their "gelt" to our church or to our missionary friends.  I may also let the kids play a fun Virtual Dreidel game online.
• Hannukah Songs
• More Hannukah Vidoes (one each night)
• http://www.chabad.org/holidays/chanukah/default_cdo/jewish/Hanukkah.htm has lots of great things we might use
• I also have a little workbook/coloring book that my sister gave us a few years ago. 

Dec. 9, 2009
Let Christmas Break Begin!

We enjoyed a relaxing day, as it is our first official day of "Christmas Break."  Now, while we do take a break from our weekly Classical Conversations classes, we don't quit learning, as we are always learning.  We just slow-down and enjoy a more relaxing pace. 

Darling Daughter (age 10) went over her math test with Dad, as she hadn't shown mastery on several of the problems.  This year he has been doing math with her using Saxon 54 3x's a week.  Little Man (age 6) did some math with me; we are slowly working through a math book, "Mathematics, the Path to Math Success," a few times a week.   I got it for 25 cents at the back book room at a local library, as he has gone through everything I had planned for him to do this semester.  He LOVES math and finds it fun, so it's always enjoyable to sit down with him and go through this book with him.  

Our goal for him at this time is to master his math facts (add. and sub. are pretty much mastered, and we are starting multiplication) before going on to Saxon 54.  Since math seems to be one of his favorite things, I think the SBG textbook is a fun supplement for him. (I might use it during some Family Math time, as DD could benefit from the book to, as it is strong on problem solving.)  Over break, Dad is going to do the math with both kids, using Go Figure!: A Totally Cool Book About Numbers we recently purchased after falling in love with it at the library (it's that neat); I'll follow-up with math read-alouds and math games.

After their math, we took the rest of the day off of our normal schedule, to just enjoy a relaxing playday.  I was able to get to some deep cleaning this morning that had been needed for a while.  I have a lot on my "Hope-To-Do" list in that area over break, so I plan to do a little bit every day and then reward myself with extra reading, etc.  I also spent time putting our Classical Conv. items away.  As a tutor, I have a rolling cart along with a rolling backpack that I take every week to classes, along with a large tri-fold board.  Hubby always helps me bring them and our week's worth of groceries, library books, etc. in from the car on Tuesday evenings, but it seems everything (except the groceries) ends up parked at the front door, so Wednesdays are a day to reorganize the boxes & book-bags and put them in their correct homes.

Last month, I asked our Classical group if they would like to help with a project a neighbor sent an email out about.  My neighbor helps with our county's Literacy Council and asked if anyone would like to donate new or gently-used books for their annual Christmas Book Drive.  When I told our group about it, they gladly agreed it was a holidaly project they would like to do with their families.  So last week, the day when the homeschooling families brought their books, the back of my van was FULL of bags and boxes of books at the end of the day.  As one mother put it, "Once I told my sons that there were some children who did not have their own books to read, they happily went through their bookcases to see what they could share."  As homeschoolers, it is foriegn to us to imagine not having books around.  A few years ago, an Early Elementary teacher in our church told me that many of the children coming into her class had never been read to -- it broke my heart!  What a joy it was to take over 250 books to my neighbor last week for those children!

Top: Organizing the books by reading levels

Bottom:  Books loaded and ready to go to my neighbor's

This afternoon, after reading to the kids and having my daughter ask, "Mom, are you going to fall asleep?", I enjoyed a nap and awoke to the kids playing school.  Large books were the desks, Stuff Animals and Little Man were the students, and Darling Daughter was the teacher and had made little workbooks for them all.  DD is like a female crafty MacGyver, using anything and her imagination (and sometimes just her imagination) to continually create something and/or coming up with things to do. Last night, we stopped at a friends house before coming home, and before I knew it, DD had whipped-up dolls for all the little girls out of pine needles -- creating them for the first time, just coming up with a pattern from her brain and what was handy outside.  She's amazing!

I made naan (first time ever!) to go with the curry we had for supper.  Hubby, who loves Indian restuarants and has gone to India, said it was the nest naan he's had anywhere.  We had a bunch with our meal, and that was only half of the dough.  We all agreed we wanted more, so I made up the rest with butter and cinnamon-sugar to have with dessert.

DH & Little Man played Sequence tonight, and Little Man held his own, beating Daddy in the second game.  Darling Daughter painted a nativity scene, and I hope to help her make some leg-warmers tomorrow with her knitting machine she got a Christmas or two ago.  How I love this time of year, where things slow down and we don't have as many commitments during the day.   This mommy is ready for a much-needed break and is looking forward to four weeks of extra games, snuggling, reading, naps, crafts, movies, radio shows, audio books...

Dec. 7, 2009
A Good Start to the Week

While my early morning hours consisted of dozing off, only to find a cat around (and ON) my head every 20 minutes, it did allow me to finally get annoyed enough at 5:45 this morning to get up out of my warm, cozy bed and take the offending cat into the bathroom and shut her in. (Her brother was already in there, as they stay in our master bathroom during the night, but Charlotte must have snuck out when one of us went in there.)

Then to the kitchen to get a jump-start on my day.  I got the Roman Lentil Stew (Nourishing Traditions, pg. 215) started, which we will be having for supper, and into the crockpot.  I also drained and started cooking the garbanzo beans I had soaking, as I will be cooking them for a meal later this week.  I also made a quick batch of muffins -- I created the recipe yesterday before church using up left-over yogurt and it tasted so yummy, I decided to make it again for today's breakfast (along with oatmeal).

Yogurt-Coconut Muffins

1/3 c. oil or melted butter

1 egg

1 t. vanilla

1/4 t. sea salt

1/2 c. raw sugar

1 c. plain yogurt

1/4 c. coconut (I used organic raw coconut)

Mix the above well and then mix in until moistened:

1 3/4 c. flour (I used mostly wheat with a little unbleached white)

1 t. baking powder

1/2 t baking soda

Put in 12 buttered muffin tins and bake for 18-20 minutes in a 400 degree F. oven. 

Then kids to get up, lunch to get ready for DH's lunch box, and a quick vacuuming of the house (it was a mess last night, so for 45 minutes before I went to bed, I worked on cleaning up the family room, kitchen, and bathroom).  It's nice to start the week with a house that doesn't look like it's been in the middle of a whirlwind.

School was a little harder to get started.  The kids do presentations every week for Classical Conversations, and DD dawdled last Friday afternoon when she was supposed to be putting it together.  She completed her notes (although not always joyously) this morning and finished her editing worksheet before sitting down to a lunch of left-over chicken stew over freshly made biscuits.

Our Favorite Biscuits (I make this in my "new" Cuisinart food processor that I got at a thrift store for $6.  It was my super-find of last month.)

2 c. flour (I do 1/2 wheat/ 1/2 white)

1 T. baking powder

1/2 t. cream of tarter

2 t. raw sugar

1/4 t. salt

Mix together and then add 1/2 cup butter until coarse crumbs.  Add in 2/3 cup milk.  Roll out to 1/2" thickness.  I cut them out using different kinds of cookie cutters (stars, hearts, etc., which was very fun and very pretty).  Cook in a 450 degree oven for 10 minutes.

Here is this week's menus:

	Bfast	Snack	Lunch	PM Snack	Supper	Prep 4 Tomorrow
M	Oatmeal	Fruit	Left-overs	Veggies & Dip	Salad & Roman Lentil Soup	Cook Garbanzo Beans
T	Muffins	Fruit	Pizza @ CC	Chia Spice Kashi Cereal	Salad, w/ veg, HB eggs, etc	Defrost Turkey breast for curry & soup; soak rice; start bread
W	Omelets	Fruit	PB&J Sandwiches	Veggies & Dip	Salad and Indian Curry & Rice
Th	Muesli	Fruit	Grilled Cheese	Crackers & Cheese	Salad, w/ veg, HB eggs, etc	Prep Soup
F	Toast	Fruit	Veggie & Rice Soup	Kashi Sunshine Cereal	1st Day of Hanukkah: Potato Pancakes w/ applesauce; Challah; Cheery Cheese Blintzes	Cook Pumpkins
S	Blueberry Pancakes	Fruit	Leftovers	Crackers & Cheese	Murder Mystery Dinner: "Accomplice Appetizers," "Sleuth Salad," "Put a Steak a) on my plate,or  b) in my heart," Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Death By Chocolate (brownies, hot fudge, ice cream)	Make "Applesauce with Pumpkin" muffins

I'm very excited for the end of our week, as we will be having two nights of opening our home up to friends.  We are studying Hanukkah this year and invited over our good family friends (who is also our pastor's family) to have the first night with us.  For our gifts to the kids, we are doing this in leu of Christmas morning for 2009.  I'll post more on this later, with pics I hope to take of our celebration, and will explain why we are doing it this way for this holiday season.

Then on Saturday, we are hosting a Murder Mystery Dinner with the other two couples in our small group.  We just finished doing "Financial Peace University" in November, so this is a fun way to celebrate the completion of that as a group.   We've been trying to get together to do this for the last few weeks, so after a couple of times rescheduling, it looks like Sat. will be the night!  It's called "The Murder Mystery Party Kit"   -- it is all there in a tiny little box, but it is packed with fun. 

We ran errands and went to the chiropractor this afternoon.  When we got home, I cooked 4 pounds of ground beef I'd purchased and later put it in the freezer to use later this month and to have handy for something quick, if needed. 

The kids enjoy listening to Cinnamon Bear every year, so we listened to a few episodes before dinner to catch up (you listen to 1/day, starting at Thanksgiving, going until Christmas).  After dinner, we watched "Night at the Museum" which the kids LOVED and when we tucked them in, they pleadingly asked if we could get the sequel from Netflix, too.  (Hummm.... a pretty good carrot to get them motivated in a few areas.) 

We ended our day with reading about Samson from the Bedtime Bible Storybook.  This is a favorite book of mine, and I thought it was out of print, until I saw a young girl with it at our church.  I had purchased it 15 years ago at a Dollar Store when I was a First Aide-r at a Christian Camp, back during my summers of college when I was in nursing school.  I had bought it to have something to read to sick and hurt campers, and the first summer, I read all the way through it.  By seeing the bible laid out chronologically (I had never read all the way through the bible), it brought it alive to me and I came away with a rich sense of God's story and was hungry for more.  It warms my heart to read this to my kids and have them learn as we read and have good discussions.

Tomorrow  is our final day of Classical Conversations until January.  I was able to plan for my class and load the car this afternoon, so we are set to hop in the car early and make the almost hour ride to the city tomorrow.  We made cinnamon rolls this evening for DD's presentation, as she is presenting on St. Lucia.  Part of the tradition is that the oldest or youngest daughter in each family gives her family rolls or other pastries dressed as St. Lucia, so DD is going to give all of her classmates and her tutor some as part of her presentation. 

The house smells so good, I think we are all going to have great dreams.  Getting to enjoy a cinnamon roll for breakfast tomorrow morning will wrap up a great 24 hours that began our week.  Now if only the nocturnal cat will just leave me alone tonight and let me sleep without her rubbing against my head...

Dec. 5, 2009
A Favorite Shopping Site and Thoughts on Frugality

Ahhh... I love getting great things at amazing deals.  I just finished my shopping for Christmas, and to also replenish our "gift stash/gift closet," at one of my favorite online sites: Library and Educational Services. 

We like to give books, radio dramas, games, etc to our kids and other people for gifts, as we believe in the quote:

"You will be the same person in five years as you are today except for the people you meet and the books you read."  

(And some would add, "and the films you watch, the places you travel, and the new things you do.")

 From Top Left, going clockwise: DH & DD at Roanoke Island Living History; Kids studying; At Charleston Battery; walking through a garden; selling lemonade with friends; being Civil War Soldiers; at Wright Brothers Historical Site; our road trip to the Midwest and back this fall; with cousins at Roanoke Island.

While I can't disclose here the items I purchased (in case relatives stop by), I can say when I checked the shopping cart over with husband, he was pretty happy and liked the items I had chosen. AND the fact that while the 26 items totaled $435 retail, I was getting them for only $148. 

I think alot of homeschooling homemakers will agree with me.  It's not being cheap -- it's being wise, being frugal, and stretching your dollars.

(And don't forget that being frugal doesn't tend to stress your budget and thus your family.)

Don't be afraid to be wise and frugal. And really don't be afraid to keep things simple this holiday season.  I'll post more what we are doing for our kids this year, but for family, we are only getting one couple gift for grand- and great-grandparents.  Hubby & I aren't exchanging gifts.  For my niece & nephews, we will get them one great gift that they can all enjoy.  For our parents, along with the couple gift, we are giving them the gift of time, by taking them each out for a day, since we don't see them often due to living far away. (For DH's parents, when they visit us this Christmas; for my parents, when we go back home this spring.)

 And that will probably mean more to them than anything we could buy for them.

Dec. 2, 2009
Summer Memories: Give a Kid a Box...

...and stand back and watch! 

Or in this case, stand back and watch until the child-architect-builder comes to you in frustration wanting help -- but only when you do it according to her specifications!

The end result was a great little house, created by Darling Daughter, of her own design, and with 2 rolls of dut tape to hold it all together.  They spent about 2 weeks or so enjoying it -- until the rain came and put a damper on things.

Dec. 2, 2009
Sigh....

Nov. 24, 2009
Our Annual Family Letter

 DH wrote our letter this year, and I thought I would share it with you all....

_______________________________________________________________________

Greetings to all from North Carolina! This year, we wanted to send our annual letter at Thanksgiving in part to get it done before the holiday season gets into full swing, but also to help our family remember that gratitude should be at the core of our celebration of all of the other holidays – at the Incarnation, gratitude that Jesus came to earth; at Passover, gratitude for what He did for us on the cross.

Thanksgiving has always been my  favorite holiday, maybe because I'm partial to sweet potatoes and stuffing, but I think also because it's the simplest one for me to understand and celebrate. Have you ever heard anyone lament that "Thanksgiving has become too commercial‟ or say that "We're really going to try to focus on the true meaning of Thanksgiving his year‟? Or been confused about the symbolism and historical aspects of Santa Clause & gifts, ghosts & goblins, or colored eggs & bunnies at Thanksgiving?

Of course not, because Thanksgiving is a master stroke of simplicity and pageantry – family and friends gathering together just to enjoy each other's company and be thankful.

This year, may a spirit of gratitude permeate our entire holiday season and our very lives, not according to what we possess, but according to the Love we‟ve been shown.

In His Grace,

The Melchers

Nov. 23, 2009
Midwest Fall Vacation

We are grateful for …

…family, friends (& a future uncle)…

During our trip, we stopped to see old friends in Atlanta, Memphis, & St. Louis.  We spent several days with DH's folks in Ark., seeing their new house and having special "girl lunches" and "helping-Grandpa-time."

On our way to Nebraska, we spent the night in Kansas with DH's cousin. They also homeschool, so we had a good time talking about our educational adventures, and the cousins had a great time playing together. Then a stop in Lincoln to enjoy some great food at "Bread & Cup," owned by DH's friends and to walk around the UNL campus, where we saw the Huskers practicing. We spent an afternoon with my folks and older brother, touring the Durham Museum in Omaha. Another highlight was getting to spend time with "Uncle" Brant, who will be marrying my sister this coming May. We can't wait for him to officially join the family and continue to keep us in stitches.

…and the addition of an aunt!

DH's brother, Pete, was married on Saturday, October 3rd, to Jessie, who has been deemed a fabulous aunt by our kids This wedding was DD's "favorite," perhaps because she had the honor of lighting the candles and the children were blessed with special gifts by the bride & groom at the reception. It was an intimate evening at a beautiful, quaint winery in a small town in NE, with close family and friends. We were grateful to spend time with everyone, especially DH's grandmother.  Grandpa Ralph passed away this spring and will be missed, but we spent the evening listening to stories, remembering, and enjoying Grandma Ruby share her love for her husband of 62 years. Welcome to the family, Jessie, and we look forward to creating many more family memories with you.

Aug. 15, 2009
COS & Learning Websites for our 2009-10 School Year

I love fun ways to help our kids (and myself!) learn.  Here is the plan I've come up with to use this year.  We are doing Classical Conversations again this year, and this will be my 3rd year tutoring.   Enjoy the links!

Our "Course of Study" for 2009-2010

Family:

Mar. 4, 2009
Our Favorite Books of the Quarter

We have been busy enjoying life the past few months, just soaking up family time and enjoying one another as we focus on schooling,life-and-character training, etc.  I also tutor for Classical Conversations, which along with homeschooling, cleaning, cooking, mothering, etc, limits my free time.   (Hence why not so much posting on the blog.  I may go back and back-date some entries from our Homeschool Tracker Journal and post some pictures.  Spring & summer lends us a little more free time, as Classical Conversations classes end in 5 weeks.)

This quarter, we are enjoying two wonderful books.  First, our family read-aloud is the classic "The Secret Garden."  Darling Daughter has the Focus on the Family Theater radio drama, and in the past we've borrowed the audiobook from the library.  This time around, I'm reading a chapter a day, either in the morning after devotions or at bedtime.  We are noticing the difference between the radio drama and the book and are learning about gardening.  DD has even confiscated a spot in the front yard for her own "secret" garden.  The book also reminds us of our dear friends who live in India and we know from them just how hot it can get in India, so we understand why Mary was sickly, sallow, and had languished from its heat.

Our historical living history is "Rifles for Waite."  We are learning about American History this year, and looking through the library audiobooks, I stumbled across this Newberry Medal winner.  We have loved it!  It contains what happened in the middle of the US during the Civil War and follows a young Kansan, Jefferson Davis Bussy, through his time with the Union Army.  You get to view the war from both sides, learn about life as a soldier, and grasp some of the history of the Cherokee Indian Nation.  We have 2 more CD's to go and can't wait to see how this ends.  What a rich, full book! 

(Update: March 5, 2009

Received an email about Homeschool in the Woods free sample of their Civil War package.  I will browse through it today to see if there is anything of interest for us.

Jan. 1, 2009
HELPFUL HOMESCHOOL LINKS: GEOGRAPHY

Owl and Mouse:   Free maps and map puzzles to learn United States and World geography with Maps that Teach. Free interactive maps and map puzzles to learn continents, countries, states, capitals, borders, physical features and cultural monuments. Maps are vital to our understanding geography and the world we live in.  Interactive and fun, Maps that Teach help students learn basic geography.  

Oct. 25, 2008
Little Man on the Race for President

Little Man has been extremely interested in this year's Presidential Race, in his own little five year old way.  He's caught glimpes of the canditates on TV when Daddy & I watch debates, news shows, etc.  He chatters on and on about the little bits he hears and sees.

His latest quips that have sent us putting our hands over our mouths trying to cover our giggles....

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I would make a great president someday."  When asked why he said, "Because I'm talkative!"  (Yes, Little Man, very important as a president.)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Daddy, McCain doesn't look angry anymore.  He's smiling. (When he saw McCain on the news at a rally.)  He's not looking at Obama like this..." (and proceeded to make a hilarious "grumpy" face like the one McCain made at the final debate.)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"When are they going to be done racing and who is going to win?  Who is the fastest?"  We think he is picturing the Presidential "Race" as a track and field event.

Aug. 21, 2008
S&T Fri -- Little Man's Birthday Extravaganza

Join the rest of us over at Mary aka CanadaGirl as we share our weekly Show&Tells.  

Our Little Man turned five last Friday, so we celebrated in our traditional family way -- A week-long BIRTHDAY EXTRAVAGANZA!!!!!

As the birthday boy, he chose the breakfast and then played all day with his new workbench.  (When he sees you next time, he'll be ready to help you, Grandpa Mel & Grandpa Farmer!)

On Saturday, we went up to the city where we went to the park as a family...

After a stop at Barnes and Nobles to read some books and play with their Thomas the Train table, it was time to eat. 

"So, Little Man, where should we go to eat for your special birthday dinner?"

"Should we go to Saigon?  Or Manila?  Hanoi ?  Or Seoul?"

"No?   Hummm... well all those did seem terribly far away.  Oh, what did you say?  The white sign on the bottom tells us where you would like to go?   Well, sure!  Indochine it is!"

Our family's pick of "bday dinner" restaraunts (so far this year -- 3 out of 4 of us have chosen it, and the fourth person hasn't had his birthday yet) has been a delightful place called Indochine.  The owner is half Vietnamese and half French, and has created a place that pleases all of your senses.

The rickshaw, the beautiful lush vegetation and fish ponds, the artistry of the decor, even the little bathroom made us feel like we really had travel thousands of miles to Vietnam.

It was nice enough for us to eat in the garden in one of the little outdoor "houses."   Everything is good here and we ordered pad thai, mamsaman curry, and chicken with basil.  YUM!   We came hungry and enjoyed every bite!

As our tummies were getting contented and the leftover food was ready to be boxed up, the birthday boy was not shy about letting the waiter know, when asked, "Are you folks going to have any dessert?", that it was his birthday.  Our excellent server laughed and then graciously brought out Little Man's chocolate cake topped with five lit candles for him to make a wish with.

[And, his week is not quite over yet. After all, it's not every day/year you turn five. This Saturday, we are having a few families over to swim at our neighborhood pool and join us for lunch.  Little Man even planned the menu for his friends:  grilled hamburgers, baked beans, homemade strawberry lemonade, grapes, watermelon, and ice cream cake.]

Last Friday, while he was playing, I looked back through the pictures of him through the years and reminised...

Aug. 16, 2008
Week in Review -- August 10-16

This week was a full one, but the kind I like -- what a blessing it is to be healthy, have chores to do, and places to go -- it means you have a home to care for, food to prepare, and family and friends to share life with.

Sunday, we went mini-golfing after church.  Little Man requested this last Friday, so Daddy made a phone call and we were able to enjoy 18 holes in the town where we attend church.  (We live in a county that has more neighborhoods than actual towns.  Everything is spread out and driving to get to places is just the norm for us.) 

After sun-set, we focused on taking time to clean the house (I call it our "House Blessing").  The kids tended to their weekly chores, and I did the others.  We try to keep things up, so it's not so bad most of the time and takes us under an hour.  I'm going to try to do this every Sunday night so we can start our week off fresh and not have to do it during the school week (which eats into our school time).  Saturday is usually our true day of rest unless we have some major house chores to do; Sundays DH gets up before 6 am to help set up at church (we meet in a movie theater) and I help with the children's ministry, and then we get home around 1pm, have lunch and usually nap, read, play with the kids, etc.

Monday, we went to DD's riding lessons in the morning and afterwards went to the "hometown" library.  We have started volunteering there a couple days a month.  DD gets to learn the library system and we both get to give back to the community -- Little Man hangs out and looks at books and plays.  We came home where I did several loads of laundry and made a call to the children's pediatrician to set-up routine annual check-ups for them for later this month.  We had a delicious dinner of homemade rotisserie chicken & couscous for supper.

Tuesday, I cleaned the master bedroom and washed the bedding.  I also made it my "Bread Day" and baked 2 loaves of wheat, 4 of unbleached with wheat bran, and a batch of cinnamon rolls that I freeze for a quick grab-&-go breakfast for Sunday mornings.  There is nothing better than fresh bread!  Unless it's fresh bread with homemade chicken soup, which I made with the leftovers from the night before, as DH felt like he was coming down with a sore throat and wanted to nip it in the bud (the soup worked!).  Little Man was thumbing though an atlas and saw a page on Mexico.  He got the art supplies and made the Mexican flag, and from there was spurred on to ask many questions about that country -- I love his love of learning  (Maybe he was drawn to it, as we are learning Spanish this year?)

Wednesday, we left early to drive up to the city for a day of errands and meetings.  Our kittens had their appointments to be spayed/neutered at the Humane Society, so we dropped them off at 9am and were told to pick them up at 5pm.  We went to the city library and Little Man wanted books on Mexico, so we checked some out. 

We met the director of our Classical Conversations group and the other four tutors at Monkey Joes to have tutor meeting in order to go over the first 12 weeks of our co-op (we were to meet at a park but changed plans due to the rain).  We were able to get a party room and spent 3 hours discussing our year.  I'm so excited for our upcoming classes.  We've doubled our enrollment and are adding 2 more Foundations classes (last year we had 3).  Another tutor & I are returning (the 3rd is moving) and the 3 new ones are going to be fantastic.  I love every family in our group and can't wait to meet the new ones and the students I'll be tutoring.  I also need to say a big thank you to DD who watched her little brother with such care and unselfishness so I could focus on the meeting.  She is the best big sister! (And daughter!)

Afterwards we did a quick shopping trip to Old Navy were I had  a $5 credit and I ended up buying 2 pairs of children's flipflops with the credit.  Then to Sams for our grocery run and gas, and finally picking up the kittens (who did just fine) and headed home.

Thursday was a work day for me as I finalized all the helps for the Foundations weekly memory work, etc I had created over the summer for Classical Conversations (CC) and sent them to the other tutors.  I also finished my parent letter, and other odds and ends for the Pressentials class I'll also be teaching. Foundations will be Tuesday mornings starting after Labor Day and Pressentials will be in the afternoons (where I'm teaching Writing Trails in American History, Shurley English Level 3, and all 3 Cycles/years of CC's English Grammar weekly facts) .

The kids did school and drew more Mexican flags and I pulled out our Ancient History Pockets book for Little Man who wanted more information on Mexico.  So copies were made for him of the Ancient Aztecs material.  Since DD had already did the entire book two years ago, she was content to spend the afternoon reading.

I simmered pinto beans on the stove all day for beans & rice for supper, which we had along with a big spinach salad.  In the evening, since it was gloriously cool after several weeks of very hot weather, the kids and I slept in the playhouse (Daddy prefers his own bed).

Friday, we had french toast for Little Man's 5th bday and then he opened his birthday gifts from us.  He played with his new Home Depot play workbench and tools all day while listening to his new CD/radio.  He is truly one happy "Big 5 Year Old Boy."

I finally made much needed phone calls to friends to invite one family over for a swim next week, while the other friend told me about some co-op classes down here in our county that her group is going to do. (They sound wonderful, but we will need to see if we are able to do them since we are involved in our weekly Classical Conversations group, and two groups may just be too much for us.  They are doing a very wise thing though and planning for them to take place from 2:30 to 5:00pm, as they understand having a morning out of the house makes it hard to do your needed homeschool studies.)

  Hubby came home and took the kids to the neighborhood pool to swim so I could make homemade tortillas to go with the beans & rice.  We relaxed as a family in the evening and watched a little of the Olympics.  After putting the kids to bed, I had a cup of tea, read a little of the new Court Reporter magazine for HSLDA, and drifted off to sleep listening to the book of James from our audio bible CDs.

Today, Saturdy, we slept in until almost 8:00 am (a big deal at our house) and enjoyed blueberry pancakes.  We watched the video replay of Michael Phelps record-tying 7th gold medal swim.  Later this afternoon, we plan to drive up to the city to continue celebrating Little Man's birthday by going out to eat at one of our favorite restaraunts. (So far, 3 of us have had birthdays this year and we've all requested to go there -- wonder if Daddy will also pick it when it is his turn...)

Tomorrow, Sunday, we will go to church and then come home and get ready to go to our church's Baptism Celebration later that afternoon.  We always have it at a local Baptist camp that over looks the ocean -- truly a beautiful place.  I think I'll take Blueberry "Brownies" (a great story goes with their name) for the big potluck we'll be having. 

Aug. 16, 2008
We Found Our Fill, On Blueberry Hill.... (with recipes!)

Well, not a hill really.  Just a few acres that a wonderful family has owned along one of our local highways for several generations and has a U-pick blueberry farm on it.  Even though neighborhoods are popping up around it and a Dollar General has built a store next to it, they continue to bless the area with their wonderful blueberries. 

As the population grows and more people hear about it, due to demand (lots of people pick their fill quickly) they are only open a few Saturdays in the summer.  You just watch as you drive along the highway for their sign to change from "CLOSED" to "OPEN THIS SATURDAY 7-11."

I was thrilled to over-hear last year the conversation between someone I was behind in the "pay here" line and one of the family members who owns it.  The customer asked them when they were going to sell and reap the benefits of the "land boom."  "Never," was the family's reply.  (How I hope that determination lasts.) 

Every year, we pick bucketfuls of blueberries to enjoy throughout the rest of the year.  Last year, we picked 40-some pounds in one day (due to the late, hard frost of 2007, they were only open that one day last summer).  This summer, we picked 98 pounds during our two mornings of gathering.  One-third of our freezer is packed with blueberries for fruit smoothies, muffins, cobblers, etc., which will last us until next summer's picking.

Here are some of our family's favorite bluebery recipes which have gotten rave reviews from family and friends....

Aug. 15, 2008
"This is the Best Bread" -- "Just Like a Restaurant's!"

Those are the comments I got from Darling Daughter when she took a bite of the bread I had made from a new reciepe.  I had run out of whole wheat flour last week and needed to make some bread, so I grabbed the unbleached flour and doctored up a recipe I found.  It give you the lightness of white bread, but with the healthy-ness of unbleached flour and wheat bran.

1 ½ c. lukewarm water

4 c. unbleached flour

1 c. wheat bran (can also use oat bran)

2 t. salt

3 T. raw sugar

2 T. dry milk

2 T. olive oil

2 t. dry yeast

Mix all ingredients together in mixing bowl or bread maker and knead for recommeneded times.  Let rise for 1 hour or until doubled.  Punch down and form into loaves (can also make dinner or cinnamon rolls).  Let rise.  Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 20 minutes.  COVER with foil and cook for another 5-10 minutes or until done.  (I've only made free-form loaves out of it so far -- if using bread pans, it may take longer.)

Aug. 8, 2008
S&T Fri -- First Week of School

We do school year-round, but took time off from heavy academics during the month of July.  We started back this week, and what a great week it was!  (Our curriculm outline is HERE.)

Every year, we give the kids a large gift bag with their school supplies, books, etc and we sit around and the excitement begins as they pull everything out one-by-one.  Afterwards, they decorated the outside covers of their school planners.

Little Man is wonderfully creative, like his sister, and came up to me on Monday and said, "Mommy, I want to make an American flag."  Before I could finish what I was currently doing to help him, he had gotten some paper towel, a kite stick, and the markers out and was busy doing it all on his own.  Our little guy is getting big and more independent!

We also did some really great nature study this week, so go on over to our "For the Beauty" blog to check it out.  (Was a "C" Week theme -- Crickets & Cicadas!)

Please join the rest of the crowd for Show&Tell every Friday! Get all the information over at:

Aug. 4, 2008
Personal Quiet Time Goal Outline for 2008-09 School Year -- Paul's Epistles

I began my journey today of working through the Paul's Epistles during my quiet times as we start our school year.   These letters, or epistles, were written for doctorine, reproof, instruction and correction, all areas I'm desiring to grow in.

I'm am reading them chronologically, in the order he wrote them (some scholars disagree on the exact dates), studying his inspired teachings as he traveled around building and exhorting the early Church.  I study from The Reformation Study Bible and www.bible.crosswalk.com, along with listening to the bible on CD as we drive around in the car, hang out around the house, and drift off to sleep at night. (Deut. 6)

Books Written by Paul

Missionary Journey #	Books	Description	Date
2	1 Thessalonians & 2 Thessalonians	Written during 2nd missionary journey in Corinth. Called the "eschalogical epistle." "escha" = last     "logical" = study of Are about the study of "last things" -- the 2nd coming of Christ 1 Thes. is about the history of Paul's ministry among them; Instructions in Ethics, Eschatology, & Congregational Life 2 Thes. is about Paul's cause for boasting ; Instructions regarding the Day of the Lord, Prayer & Exhortation, and Labor	50-51 AD
The following 4 letters written during Paul's 3rd missionary journey are called the "Doctrinal Epistles"
3	Galatians	Discusses the problem in Galatia (Dif. gospel from false teachers; Defends Paul's Apostleship; Paul's Defense of the Gospel	54-55 AD
3	1 Corinthians	1 Cor was written in Ephesus.  Describes the divisions of the church (The Gospel & True Wisdom; Ministry & Apostleship); Responds to the Corinthians letter	55 AD
3	2 Corinthians	Written after Paul left Ephisus but before he arrived again in Corinth. Explains Paul's ministry; Shares about the Christians in Jerusalem; Defends against the false apostles	55-56 AD
3	Romans	Written in Corinth, before his visit to Jerusalem Themes are: The righteousness of God for Jew & Gentile Mankind's universal sinfulness God's righteousness for justification Grace reigns through God's righteousness God demonstrates His righteousness in Jews & Gentiles God's righteousness grasped & expressed in His people's lives Paul's plans & Concluding greetings	55-57 AD
The next 4 books were written during Paul's first imprisonment, which was a 2-year house arrest in Rome (Acts 28).  They are called the "Prison Epistles." The theme of these letters are "Christology" or the "study of Christ" because the doctorine of the person & work of Christ is prominent in them. I remember these books with the acronym that comes from a popular soft drink: "PEPC" (click to read a devotion I taught on Paul's prison epistles titled: "One Believer's Journey: Would We Sign Up for This Trip?"
	Philemon	Written to Philemon, a Christian brother & slaveholder, asking him to welcome Onesimus (Philemon's slave who had run away and met Paul in Rome, where Paul led him to Christ.) back not as a slave, but a Christian brother.	60 AD
	Ephesians	Ephesus contained the Temple of Diana, which was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Themes are... Our Position in Christ Our Walk in Christ: Toward Unity & Purity Our Stand Against the Spiritual Forces of Darkness	60-62 AD
	Philippians	Themes are... The Truth of the Gospel Truth Against Error	61-62 AD
	Colossians	Themes are... God's Son as Head over Creation & the Cosmic Powers, as well as Head over Re-creation & Reconciliation The Purpose of Paul's Ministry & and His Interest in the Colossians. The Sufficiency of Christ Life in Christ	61 AD
The final 3 books were written during Paul's release and 2nd imprisonment. Called the "Pastoral Epistles" or Ecclesiastical because of the emphesis on church adminstration.
4	1 Timothy	Written in Macedonia to Timothy Themes are... Dealing with False Teachers & the Law Paul's Testimony & Charge Instructions for the Life of the Church The Problem with False Doctorine Guidelines fr a Young Pastor	62-65AD
4	Titus	Written in Macedonia to Titus, a Gentile Christian. Paul wanted Titus to complete the organization of the churches, deal with false teachers, give instructions to the churches on proper conduct.  Themes are... Organizing the Churches in Crete Instructing Various Groups Instructing on Doing What is Good.	62-64AD
	2 Timothy	Written in Rome while awaiting death Themes are... Exhortations to Boldness & Faithfulness The Problem of False Teachers Paul's Final Instructions to Timothy	66 AD

Aug. 2, 2008
Padems Visit, Part 2

Here are some more pictures that I just received from a friend* from church of Sunday's events while the Padems were here visiting.  

• Yesupadem & Monika meet and greet people outside the cinema our church is renting on Sundays.  Yes, Virginia, we DO meet in a movie theater! 
• Pastor Troy & Yesupadem joking around.
• The prayer before the sermon.
• Yesupadem sharing his testimony and challenging us from God's Word.

*We have a wonderful servant at our church who takes pictures every week to capture the events of our church.  What a blessing she is, as it allows a chronicling of the history of our church, day by day, which all too soon turn into years.  As they use her pictures for slide shows, etc, I am always grateful that Ms. Bev is always there, quietly and consistently taking wonderful pictures.  She had snapped some the Sunday Yesupadem spoke, and graciously sent me some copies this week.

Aug. 1, 2008
Padems Visit-- One of Our Favorite Moments of the Summer

We are blessed to know a dear family who are ministers in India. Look HERE & HERE for past blog entries about our family's relationship with them.  We first met them 9 years ago at DH's uncle's home, when their daughter was 6 months, and I was almost due with our daughter.  (DD's cousins have each gone over to India for about 9 months between high school & college to serve with Yesupadem's ministry, Love-N-Care.)

They stayed with us the 17-21 of July and how we enjoyed them in our home!  It always blesses us in such an amazing way.   Since our daughters are the same age, they get along very well and did the girly things of dress-up, playing in the playhouse, being imaginative, etc.  The boys, while further apart in age (their son is 8 and ours is almost 5), they got along famously and played cricket with the daddies.  All the kids played very well together and put on a play for us the first evening they got in...

Yesupadem & Monika getting some much needed R&R while the kids perform their play.

Our days were spent swimming, going to the beach, and playing cricket (DH had bought cricket bats during his trip to India this past January, so we were glad to get some pointers and rule clarification).  DH was also able to have them with some electronic equipment, and worked with them on details for the website that he hopes to help them upgrade. (A new website has been on their prayer list for awhile.)   We filled them up with homemade meals and fresh bread -- something Monika said she truly missed as they don't have ovens in India.  (After her statement, I made sure to have bread on the table every evening.) 

Friday evening, we went to Celebrate Recovery, a ministry our church has, where both Yesupadem and Monika spoke.  (Monika telling about how they met and the ministry, and Yesupadem gave the message from John 9 on the blind man, that was full of challenge and truth.  (Yesupadem says he could right a book on that chapter and how I hope someday he will!).

1.  Christ always went to those who needed help, acceptance, & love

2.  The man didn't need any more condemnation in his life (v.2) -- it was the disciples who asked the question, "whose sin caused this man's blindness."  Are we in the church condemning others when we ourselves have a sin nature in us? 

3. Jesus replied to them that God allowed that man to be blind because God wanted to glorify his name.  He didn't rebuke the disciples, just spoke the truth to them.  We need to make sure people feel welcomed in our churches and that as the church, we never lose our salt & light.  One soul is more important than the whole world.

On the way to Friday's service.

On Sunday, Yesupadem spoke at our church and what a powerful message!  To hear it, click HERE.  (Sorry there is not a more direct link.  Click on the "podcast" icon and then on the July 20, 2008 message titled "Go."  You will see Yesupadem's name and a description of his sermon.)  I know we are all busy, but I hope when you have a minute, you will listen to it to be encouraged and challenged, and learn more about what Jesus can do and desires to do.

That evening, we had the church staff over, along with those who had gone on the mission's trip in January, to our neighborhood clubhouse to swim...

.. and to share a meal and enjoy some great fellowship with each other and the Padems before they had to leave the next day to continue their trip across North America.

Their son had never had apple pie, so we made sure to pick some up specail just for him -- he LOVED it! Little Man did to, and he loved Monika and Yesupadem.  He keeps telling us how he is going to go to India.  He has been praying for a helicopter (yellow, to be exact) for their ministry to use in medical missions since they mentioned it last year.  If you have read about our son, you'll know that he ADORES helicopters.  Perhaps someday he'll be flying one for Love n Care! 

The story of Yesupadem & Monika's marriage is quite interesting  -- and a testimony of how God can bring 2 people together.  Yesupadem's first wife (whom he had 2 children with who are now grown and are serving in the ministry) died of cancer and about a year or so after her death, he was being pressured to remarry.

He did not desire to so and prayed to the Lord a prayer he didn't think He could answer.  In his "Impossible Prayer," he told the Lord that if He had him to remarry, his wife must...

1. Have blond hair.

2. Have blue eyes.

3.  Be light-skinned (so far these do not describe any Indian, do they?)

4.  And come to him and ask (a cultural taboo, wherever you live!)

Meanwhile, across the Atlantic Ocean in Canada, there was a young woman named Monika who had read the story of Isaac and Rebekah, and who asked the Lord to arrange her marriage as He had done for that biblical couple.  She recalled the quote, "God gives His very best to those that leave the choice up to him."

While she waited on Him to arrange for a husband for her, she grew in the Lord and served Him through YWAM and other opportunities.  As she shared more about this during year's stay with us, it was amazing how He used it all to prepare her for India.  (We encouraged her to write it down and Yesupadem agreed!)  One thing the Lord did to prepare her was to have her be an assistant to a paraplegic who was going to Malaysia, which allowed her to experience the spiritual darkness of a nation.  She said the woman she was assisting was not a Christian, and she felt very alone in her faith, but that God strengthened it as she leaned on Him and she learned to have a strong faith in a place where there was none.  Eventually during her time there, she found a church that was like a shining oasis in the dark desert.

When she got back home, she was told about a pastor from India who was going to speak at a church.  She had always felt a call to missions, and as she listened to this missionary, she felt led to go.  She didn't have enough money or financial support to take such a trip, but he said that if anyone wanted to come help at the ministry, they only need the plane fare there.

A few months later, she was in India and joined the team of foreigners that had heard this man, Yesupadem, speak and had planned to serve the Lord short-term in India.  DH's cousin, the first from his family to go, was one of those people she met during her stay there.

As time passed during her trip in India, she felt burdened by the responsibilities Yesupadem had and began praying for him.  One evening, during a crusade in which he was speaking, Monika was praying for him while the team from the minstry attended it.  She heard the Lord say, "He is your husband.  You are to tell him."  Yes, she was shocked!  If you knew Monika, you would know that she is quiet, reserved, and not one to tell a man such a thing.  She prayed, asked if He was sure, and I'm sure struggled with many other questions one who is in that situation has. 

The next day, the car which they were riding in, along with some other people from the ministry, broke down.  While others went of to get the car fixed, Yesupadem and Monika were left to wait along the side of the road.  God told Monika, "Tell him" and she bravely obeyed.  Needless to say, Yesupadem was quite surprised, but then he thought back to his "Impossible Prayer."  In that prayer, God was leading him to the perfect woman to be his second wife, and He had prepared her to meet that role.

They were married about 18 months later and Monika has now been in India 11 1/2 years.  God has blessed Yesupadem with 2 more children, and Monika is the perfect helpmeet for him.  Another  amazing "thread" through all of this story is how God used a nation (Canada) to bring Yesupadem to a relationship with him, and to provide him with a second wife.

Before Yesupadem was born, his father (who was an untouchable, the caste named so as in that culture they believe that particular caste was so low that it came from under the foot of God) served as the village priest for the monkey god, who he had been named after.  (The priests usually come from the high caste, but would not come to an untouchable village, so his father was assigned to do those duties.)  He was married, had four children, was very poor and sometimes only had enough food for his family for 3-4 meals a week. 

One day, a Baptist missionary from Canada came to his village and being preaching.   Some people came out to listen, including Yesupadem's father, and one-by-one they all left but him.  He accepted Christ and as a result, became an outcaste among outcastes and was rejected by his village and family. 

When his fifth and last child was born, his father gave him the name "Yesupadem" which means "the foot of Jesus."  One day on the way to school at the age of 10, dying of starvation, Yesupadem collapsed on the road.  No one would help him, due to his untouchable status.  But a Canadian missionary riding in a jeep with his family stopped his vehicle, picked the young boy up and took him to the hospital.  The missionary paid for his almost 2 week stay, and without his "Good Samaritan" act, Yesupadem would have died.

Yesupadem did not share the faith of his father, due to the injustice he felt in the caste system. He continually felt rejected by society.   It was added to by the fact that he was known as a "Christian", due to his father's faith -- being a Christian in India limits you even more than being an untouchable.  He became a communist, as it promised to remedy many of the things wrong with his nation.  Many miserable and sinful years followed.  While disappointed, his father never stopped telling him, "Son, Jesus loves you.  He died for you."

One day, he was invited to a Christian meeting and as the preacher spoke, he saw a vision of Christ on the cross.  As he saw a close-up of Christ's hand with the nail and His blood dripping drop by drop, He heard Christ say, "All this I have done for you.  What will you do for me?"

Radically saved from that moment, vowing from the very last breath of his life that he tell his people that Jesus is God, he became like Paul the apostle and immediately began to preach. Those who knew him before were shocked.  Though threatened with death by his former friends in communism, he said that he would tell people about the salvation of Christ until his dying day.  Amazed by his courage and the truth of God, that day three of those friends accepted Christ. 

For more information on his ministry, visit http://www.love-n-careministries.org

Aug. 1, 2008
S&T Fri -- "Farm Families Have Always Gone Green"

Yesterday, I received the most delight surprise in the mail.  Two months ago, I was reading about 100 mile diets, gardening on city lots, etc.   As I pondered on all of those things, thoughts of my childhood came to my mind, and I jotted down a little something on my laptop.

My sweet MIL, who is editor of a local newspaper in her area (I'm so proud of her for fulfilling her dream!), is always interested in my musings that I share on this blog, along with any private ones I may have.  So off went the document to her via email, to give her a little smile.

Imagine my surprise when she replied to me that she loved it and wanted to know if I would consider submitting it for a Going Green section they were planning on for the end of July.  So I agreed, and didn't think about it much more, as I was busy being a wife & mom, was delighted to be working on another writing opportunity God had sent my way (writing a chapter for a Nature Study ebook TOS will be putting out soon), and preparing & attending Creation Camp.

Well, yesterday the newspaper arrived from her and within the section was my article!  Thank you my dear, sweet mother-in-love* for helping another person fulfill her dreams.

*What a privledge it is to have her for a mother-in-law, but she is far more than that.  She welcomed me from the very moment we met and has been one of the dearest people in my life.  Although a 17 hour drive separates our families, we chat via email or phone weekly, and she is always interested in our going-ons and encourages us.  We may be bound through the legal law, but there is a bind between us even stronger for the love and respect we have for one another.

FARM FAMILIES HAVE ALWAYS "GONE GREEN"

Have you heard about the 100-Mile Diet?  It is becoming a popular movement today in some circles, encouraging people to eat locally.  Much of our current food supply comes from 1500 miles away – that’s right 1500 miles! 

People are saying, “Enough of that!  Let’s get our food locally, fresh & organic, and in season!”  They are supporting their local farmers’ markets; buying from health food stores that carry local produce, meats, and dairy products; even replacing some of the sod in their yards for a small garden, all with goal to have the food on their plate come from less than 100 miles around.

Hum… seems like this farm kid’s parents were hip before they knew it – they just did the 100-mile diet out of necessity and by following how their parents grew up, and their parents before them.  Seems like this new “idea” is just a matter of getting back to the way things used to be.

My folks are 3^rd generation farmers; my older brother is currently the 4^th generation farmer for the land that has been in our family for about 90 years.  Growing up, my mom was “super-woman” of farm-wives, but then again so were most of the farm-wives around us.  Typical of most of the farmers around us, we had a large garden, chickens, beef cattle, etc. and what ended up on our dinner plates came from our own farms.

We have pictures of Mom pulling my older siblings in a wagon while she tended her geese. We slept on feather pillows, thanks to those geese and my mom’s pillow making abilities.  We sliced fresh sweet corn off the cob every summer to put into the freezer.  Strawberries would be sliced, sugared, and frozen for toppings for ice cream (the home-made kind, of course, made with milk from our dairy cattle and eggs from our chickens).  And I remember how sad Mom was when her huge strawberry patch had to go to make way for a much needed grain bin!

 Vegetables were enjoyed fresh out of the garden and the remainder canned.  We milked twice a day, brought the milk in, strained it, separated the milk from the cream, sold some to a few town people, and had the rest to drink and cook with.  Mom even made fresh butter from the cream.  

A whole cow that had spent its entire (short) life on our farm was usually wrapped in neat white paper in the huge chest freezer located in our cellar.  I remember many scary times of going down into the dim light of a single 60-watt light bulb, getting out steak, hamburger, etc. to bring up for Mom to cook for dinner.  There were many nights we kids, sick of beef, complained, “Oh, Mom!  Not T-bone steak AGAIN?!”

Every spring Mom ordered dozens of little fuzzy yellow balls of baby chickens, or peeps.  For those of you who don’t know chickens, in my mom’s, aunts’, and grandmothers’ minds, there were two kinds:  layers & fryers.  When grown, the layers lived a life of producing eggs on our farm and my mom made a small income off their eggs and the above mentioned milk from our cattle, while the fryers… well, became fried chicken.  I remember learning anatomy when we butchered those chickens every late summer – that might be why I had the stomach to be a nurse. 

I also became an expert at holding my breath for long periods of time when it was my turn to gather eggs from the chicken coop (due to all the good “natural fertilizer” in there).  My sister and I also had the joy of cleaning the eggs before putting them into the cartons – they aren’t always the nice clean white things you see in the store!

Farming is hard work, especially keeping up on daily chores.  We kids whined – a lot!  We always had chores to do.  We would complain that our other friends had nowhere near the number of chores or amount of hard work.  We did daily farm chores, helped with inside house work, did dished by hand every morning before school and every night after supper, walked beans, cut thistles out of pastures, were in 4-H, helped with seasonal work around the farm, etc. 

But, wow, what an amazing work ethic we each have now.  We shake our heads when we see people who don’t know how to work, or who fail to have any initiative.  I’m afraid it’s becoming an epidemic.

People are amazed when they see “little, petite me” lifting heavy things, doing hard work, etc.  We helped at a work day last spring at a friend’s house, as a group of us cleaned up his acreage.  When he commented that he has never seen another woman work as hard as me, I was a bit amazed.  In my family, you just worked HARD.  It was normal. 

When an elderly neighbor recently offered to help my husband and I move a mattress box spring into our house, my husband declined, thanking him but saying, “My wife is one strong lady.  We’ve got it.”  The neighbor turned to me, looking at me like, “How can your husband make you do this?”  I replied, in a joking way, “I grew up on a farm.  If you didn’t learn how to work, you got yelled at or made fun of.”  J   

Plus, it was the only way your family would make a living or have anything to eat…

Please join the rest of the crowd for Show&Tell every Friday! Get all the information over at:

Jul. 31, 2008
2008-2009 School Plans

We enjoy using Classical Conversations as our main curriculum; it is 24 weeks long and we meet for 12 weeks from Sept-Dec, and then another 12 weeks from Jan to April.  It looks like a lot, but it is very do-able, as you meet one day a week as a group to learn & review memory work and do science & art projects together.  Then during the rest of the week, we will review our facts in the car, at breakfast &/or lunchtime, etc.  We use the audio CD and Memory Resource Computer CD by CC to help with review also, and those are some of our favorite resources. 

We also do the children's reading assignments and our family read-alouds based on a few interesting facts/people that we are learning about that week.  We use our memory work for copywork, notebooking, timelines, etc. to learn more about certain things that interest us, etc.  Because both Darling Daughter and Little Man are covering the same things, it makes it very easy on me, and we learn so much together.  This is our 3rd year doing Classical Conversations (2nd with a group) and I'm always amazed at how much we learn and how wonderful the program is.  It allows us the structure we need to make sure we are staying on track and the flexibility we need to tailor it to our family.  To me, it is a perfect combination of the Classical and Charlotte Mason philosophies.

To supplement our history, we will be listening to Story of the World (Volumes 3 & 4) this year, along with Living Principles of America audio series and old-time radio shows. 

A friend introduced us to www.brainpop.com this spring, so we are going to use that website this year for many of the different events, places, facts, etc we will be learning about this year.

For the "origins" section of our CC program, we will be watching Creation Science Evangelism's 7-DVD Creation Seminar Series as a family and discussing them in the evenings and weekends, and will be reading "It Couldn't Just Happen" aloud.

Our Bible time will consist of memorizing John 1:1-7 in English & Latin and we will continue family devotions in the evening with the book, "How to Get Into the Bible" that we just started on this week.  After that is completed, we may do a hymn or Christmas study.  We will begin our school day with First Lessons in Gentleness & Truth for our devotions to open our school day, along with Catechism Q&A.

**Optional Memory Master track, where a student strives to m

Jul. 25, 2008
Creation Camp

The week of June 7-11, the kids and I attended a week-long Creation Camp at OneLife, a ministry our friends have.  It was a joy to spend all week with them, helping them with the camp.  We got to know them even more, which was such a blessing.  I worked at a camp in college and realized once again how much I love camp life.  The fellowship with the staff is so uplifting and seeing everyone pour into the kids encouraged all of us and gave us strength (His strength!) all week. 

Our friend, Brent, who ran the camp, did Nature Study and did a fabulous job.  He was able to find a King Snake prior to camp starting and gave it a home that week so the kids could see her up close and personal.  We were surprised to come into the barn one morning (where we had worship and nature study) to see 4 eggs in the corner of her terarium.  Later in the week, Brent let all the kids hold it (all who wanted to -- all the girls did, including our Darling Daughter who had no qualms about it).

King snakes are named so, as they eat other snakes, especially the poisonous kinds like cottonmouths, rattlers, etc -- they are immune to their venoms!  Some people think that the snake from Aaron's staff was a king snake, since it devoured the Eygtian magician's snakes in Pharoah's court. (Genesis 7:8-13)

Kids enjoyed worshipping and singing, and all become very close-knit during the 5-days.  Darling Daughter is the 2nd from the left and Little Man is belting it out 2nd from the right.

I had the priviledge of doing the Bible teaching.  During that time, we focused on the 6 days of creation, dinosaurs, and Noah's Ark.  Our family has learned a lot about those things over the last year, so it was great fun to pass on God's truth to the kids.  Answers in Genesis has wonderful studies that I used as visuals for the kids and we talked about each day in depth the first 2 days.  It was neat to see how the first 3 days God created the "spaces" (Heavens/Earth, Sky/Water, Land/Water into Seas), and Days 4-6 He filled them (Sun/Moon/Stars, Birds/Sea Creatures, Livestock/Creeping Things/Beasts of the Field/Man).

Darling Daughter sat next to me as I reviewed with the girls the days and the items we drew in each section.  We went over this for several days and every kid now has a solid understanding of what was made when, and how a little how evolution cannot be correct, as it has birds evolving after dinosaurs, etc.

On Wednesday, we read from Job 40-41 and discussed how although the word "dinosaur" is not in the bible (since it was invented until the 1800's, while the KJV was traslated in the 1600's), the words "dragon, behemoth, and leviathan" are.  We read each verse and the children drew pictures from what was described.  I also shared with them some facts from "The Great Dinosaur Mystery and the Bible."  They were really surprised that dragons were indeed real, not a myth as they've been lead to believe, and that they were seen up to the 1500's.  The boys also thought it was very neat that the royal family in China had them to pull their chariots.

Thursday and Friday, we discussed Noah's ark.  We talked about what a cubit was and although some references say a cubit is 18.5", while the Babylonian cubit was 24".  Using the both cubits, we measured off in feet.  Seeing it on the land, it was amazing how large it was!  I shared with them some information from http://www.worldwideflood.com/.  I also showed them the hydroplate theory video; I also highly recommend the free download videos from www.dr.dino.com.  (Our family watched the series from netflex.)

 The last day, we went out on a raft trip on a tidal creek that is on the Camp's property.  We saw alligators, herons, ibises, barn swallows, red-tailed hawks, and more.  The kids helped the rowers by adding a "feet-powered motor."

 Our friends' daughter, who is about 9 months younger than Little Man, enjoyed having her friends spend the whole week at her house, as we slept in their spare bedroom.  The kids climbed their fabulous cherry tree in the front yard, challenged each other to races to the barn, snuck tomatoes to snack on from the garden, and just enjoyed being together.

Please join the rest of the crowd for Show&Tell every Friday! Get all the information over at:

Jul. 23, 2008
School Year Preparations

It's that time of year again at our house -- when Mama makes plans for our year as Daddy oversees the direction for the upcoming year.  I love his help -- he lets me know what is really important in his eyes, saving me much time and sanity. 

Last Wednesday, my dear friend took the kids for me so I could have a planning day in a quiet, quaint town near us.  I was thinking how rare it is that I ever have day to myself -- I love being a mommy, but how glad I am my friend offered to take the kids for me.

My morning did get away from me, but in a glorious way -- I had two "divine appointments."  The first was an unexpected phone call from our friend who did the Creation Camp -- the woman who had blessed the camp with the pontoon frame from the raft was leaving town and wanted to see pictures.  My camera was the main camera used at camp, so I met Brent at a coffee shop and downloaded the boat pictures onto a CD for him.

Next, I went to a park that looks out over the waterway, and read from 1 Timothy.  I felt God nudging me to talk to the person who I could hear on a bench behind me.  So I turned around and said, "Isn't it a beautiful day out?"  That started a chat, and he asked me what I was reading, which lead to a talk about churches, a relationship with the Lord, his past experiences in churches, and more.  Finally, as our conversation wound-down and we said our good-byes, I was able to give him an invite card to our church.

I went to lunch at a Thai resteraunt in town and then headed over to the library to do some planning.  I am tutoring again this year for Classical Conversations in their Foundations Program, so I planned my first 12 weeks of classes in the areas of history and science.  My friend said she wants to give me another planning day, which will help me with my other planning (our own homeschool, the rest of Foundations, and a Pressentials class I will be teaching at Classical Conversations).

I finished my day with a chocolate-peanut butter shake from a dairy bar in town and then met my friend at the chiropracter both of our families go to so we could get adjustments.  What a blessing my friend is, and our children had a great day together.  (Playing on their slip&slide, seeing their friends' great-grandmother, and exploring their backyard.)