Prejudices of Young Minds

Whew!

2011-09-03T20:34:00.000-06:00

Quite a saturday!

Produce and I have had a very different relationship this summer. Usually I just plan out my menu, buy the produce that the menu calls for, and then buy a couple of other things (mainly apples and/or oranges.) This year, however, I was introduced to Bountiful Baskets.

If you have a Bountiful Basket location in your area, I highly (HIGHLY) recommend it!

Now, I spend $15 per week on produce, and get a TON! (ok, not really, but it is a lot.) And, you never know what you are going to get. My first week I got a pineapple, a couple of mangos, and figs (among other things like lettuce, apples, peaches, carrots.)

Anyway, I seem to have a lot fruit that gets leftover. Plus we have a lot of stuff coming in from our garden.

So, saturdays have become preservation days.

Today, I got up and weeded the garden, (well, let's be honest here - I weeded part of one section of the garden. I haven't been very good at weeding this year, so there are a lot of weeds to be picked) picked up our Bountiful Basket, made a weekly menu and grocery list, went grocery shopping, and then came home and preserved! Between Emerson and I, we made banana bread (with our leftover bananas from last weeks' basket), put out some plums and pears to dry (leftover from last weeks' basket), made some dill refrigerator pickles, (this is such a treat, because we can't have most pickles - yellow food coloring - plus we have lots of cucumber coming in) and made a crock pot nectarine crisp. (which is not quite ready yet - can't wait!) With dinner we had sauteed zucchini and spinach (zucchini from the garden and spinach from Bountiful Baskets.) It was a yummy and productive day!

A couple of weeks ago, we got some grapes in our basket, and it was a variety that the kids didn't like. So the next week when we got the same grapes, I simply put them in they dehydrator and made raisins. The kids gobbled them up in a day! I got some teeny tiny grapes this week, so when the plums are done, I will probably put them in for more raisins.

I now have a tree full of apples and nectarines that are just about ripe. Last year I made the best jam I have ever had - nectarine/plum jam!! But I already have a freezer full of plum jam, so I don't want to make more jam. So what to do with the nectarines? I'm not sure. I might use some to make fruit leather, and I might freeze others for smoothies in the winter. And I really don't know what to do with the apples. If I had a fruit cellar, I would try to keep them as long as I could. But since I don't . . .

Oh!!! Dried apple slices!! Yes, that is what I will do. Thanks for the inspiration!

What produce adventures have you had this summer?

Various Items

2011-08-03T13:23:00.000-06:00

It has been a strange week. Hubby and second son are camping with the scout troop, so it is just five of us at home. And when Emerson is at "cooking college" it is really quiet around here.

It has been a slow week. A week that I was going to get a lot done. But of course, that didn't turn out exactly the way I wanted it to. But I did get some fruit dehydrated, and meals planned (but not yet purchased) for another camp next week (backpacking, this time, a 30-miler for Emerson.)

Today I read this fun post about John Hughes films. And of course I had to check Encore On Demand. And there was "Uncle Buck" which I haven't seen in probably over 15 years. So, of course I had to stop everything and watch it! :D The dirty bathroom will still be there tomorrow, right? I wonder where my copies of "She's Having a Baby" and "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" are . . .

Garden Fresh

2011-07-29T12:03:00.002-06:00

We have been enjoying the fruits of the garden lately. The berries have finally come on, and we are enjoying our strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and boysenberries! Yum!

We even have three peaches on our peach tree (or peach stick, as we lovingly call our tiny peach tree.)

Our little apricot tree is bending to the ground, loaded with fruit. I picked those that were ripe today, and am going to make fruit leather!

Then, when I was helping the berry harvest this morning, I saw several large cucumbers peeking out from under the leaves. So, we are going to make refrigerator pickles!! This is a special treat since we can't just go buy pickles from the store (yellow food coloring and preservatives.) The kids are very excited. And, since the recipe only makes a quart at a time, I can keep making them as the cucumbers ripen. (I wonder if Jayne will start making her pickle and mustard sandwiches again?)

The zucchinis are coming as well, but a little too fast. I am not a huge fan of zucchini, but to saute them in olive oil with some salt a pepper is really good, so I planted one plant. Just one. Those plants are amazing. I am sure that if every street in the world had three zucchini plants on it, there would be no hunger left!!

I am amazed at what this garden is producing this year. I was sure all was lost in the snowfalls and frosts of late May. What a lovely surprise!

(I am sorry for the lack of pictures - hubby always has his camera with him, and mine uses AA batteries, that are always drained when I go to use my camera! We'll sort this out somehow.)

Morning at the Park

2011-07-21T19:27:00.000-06:00

Usually I am a hermit is July. I hide out in my air conditioned home, and only venture out in the early morning or late night hours. The idea of walking through a black top parking lot heading to the grocery store or running other errands in 100 degree heat keeps me indoors, as much as possible.

But this July has been very different. After our very cold, very wet spring, I expected a hot summer. But it hasn't been. Daily high temperatures have been 10 to 15 degrees below average! (Yay!!) Today I think it got to about 93 degrees.

Because of this lovely summer, I have actually ventured out a bit more. We have a standing date with some friends at a park once per week. Since our children are older, a park with just a playground doesn't work anymore. We have this park pretty close by (kind of in the middle of our three homes) that is called the Castle Park. It has an awesome playground for the youngest of our children to play on. But it also has a wooded area with trails and a creek for the older kids.

It was really nice in the park today. Usually in July you can sit in the shade in the before noon hours, and sweat. But not today. Today it was comfortable, almost . . . pleasant!

So, our spring this year was like winter, our summer was like late spring, so what is autumn going to be like? Summer? Oh, I hope not. Winter? That I could handle. :D

Um, yeah . . .

2011-07-19T17:39:00.003-06:00

Howdy, remember me?

Yeah, I used to post on this blog periodically?

You'd think I'd have more time to post in the summer, but I don't. Plus my computer was really acting up. Apparently the battery had swelled, causing my mouse to only partially function. I would write this fascinating paragraph, and the next thing I knew it would be highlighted and then deleted - never to be un-done! So, I gave up for a while.

But, today I got a new battery and all is right in the world! :D

Today we also re-arranged the furniture in the school room. The coffee table is no longer working for my three younger kids (who continually get bigger, without my permission!) So we brought in another table, and actual table with chairs around it. This will be particularly necessary as we start our new classes - through a charter school - this fall. (Another thing we did this summer.) Computer use will be necessary, and I want the laptops to be stationary as much as possible. (Call me crazy . . . )

Another thing we did today was go to a movie. We usually only do this once per year, and it is usually a Pixar movie. Today was no exception; Cars 2. What was new and unique about today's venture is that is was a Tuesday, and Hubby had the day off, and we went to the new local theaters! We used to have to drive about 15 minutes either North or South to see a movie, now we can just go about two miles to the brand new (opened on Friday) movie theater! I mean the new grocery store (Harmon's) was very exciting for our small town, but a movie theater! Now that is big city (suburb?) living!

I also learned a fun new skill last week - soap making. With lye and everything. I am so excited to try my new homemade castille soap. It will finish curing in about four weeks.

But the big event of the summer was the surprise BBQ Birthday Bash for my Dad's 80th Birthday! All my siblings and their spouses and a few of the grandchildren, flew or drove into town for a couple of days, each arrival was a surprise for my Dad. Then on the 4th my nephew, Abe, cooked up a fabulous array of chicken, ribs, salmon, salads, and sides. It was amazingly good. We also had aunts and uncles come, some of whom I haven't seen since my wedding. It was a great day. And for the most part, the weather cooperated.

Well, that was just a quick update. Now that I don't have my computer to blame for lack of posts, what else do you think I can blame it on? Hmmm . . . might just have to be me. :D

Garden!

2011-06-04T17:30:00.000-06:00

The garden is planted!!

I had my doubts if it was going to happen this year, especially when there was snow on the ground five days ago!

The kids got their part of the garden done yesterday, so they got their spoils of the deal (TRON for the wii) and have been spending their day on that game, while I (with a little help from Jayne and Emerson) planted our vegetables, berries and flowers.

We have planted tomatoes, peppers, cabbages, watermelon, strawberries, and cucumbers. And that all fit on the two southern beds. So, I have decided to make our north-eastern bed into a pumpkin patch again this year. I just hope we have a long enough growing season this year to get pumpkins large enough to carve.

Now, I just have to fend off the snails and the weeds, and make sure we actually bring in the harvest.

Memorial Day 2011

2011-05-30T13:29:00.000-06:00

Whew! Shakespeare is officially over for the year! Yay!!! The kids did a wonderful job putting on a performance of "The Comedy of Errors" in 1920's mobster style. The flapper dresses and cardboard machine guns were really fun. Hubby and I were in charge of the music this year - so I bought some fun songs on iTunes like "Sweet Georgia Brown" and "Yes, Sir, That's My Baby" and "My Blue Heaven." The two oldest were involved this year, and our second son is actually showing signs of being an actor. He has always shied away from performing, but this year the acting bug was drawn out of him. He had a small part, but he made the most of it! The first son just had a walk on part, but he had been involved all year long as the assistant teacher and student director. It was a great experience for him!

I am writing this on a lunch break in the middle of our Memorial Day work weekend. The original plan was to get the yard cleaned out and the garden ready to plant (and hopefully planted.) However, the weather had another plan. Friday and Saturday we got quite a bit of yard work done before the rain came on Saturday night. Between Shakespeare and the weather, this was the first weekend I could get out and work. The massive amount of winter snows and spring rains produced loads of weeds, but at least the ground was soft enough to get them out rather easily. But, it started raining in the late afternoon on Saturday, and didn't stop until a few hours ago. We went to C.S.'s parents' gravesite in the rain and cold of Sunday. This morning, we woke up to snow!! Memorial day snow and 30 degree temperatures! So, no yard work would be done today. The plan moved inside to the poor neglected house. This kids got to work, and got it done (with the incentive of video game time, and nail polish for the girl.) Now, I just need to get motivated to finish my projects. I'm about 1/3 the way done.

The next couple of weeks are going to still be busy, because we are looking for a new gym for Jayne. She has worked out with one gym, and has been evaluated by a coach at another gym. We have two more gyms to try. Jayne has a goal to be a Lady Ute and her current gym is just not able to help her achieve that goal, so we are looking for one that can. The problem is, that the really good gyms are at least a 30 minute drive from our home. Put that together with three or four hour practices three times a week - that is a lot of $4.00/gallon gas! Plus, Emerson still wants to continue with Karate which is the next door neighbor of the old gym. The best gym, the one I would really like her to be able to attend, is a 50 minute drive, in non-rush hour traffic. Maybe the one that is a 10 minute drive will turn out to be a great gym - even though Jayne says the place smells like dog food.

Ok, now we are up to date. And since I have no more excuses to not write, I'll try to be better at posting.

Pick-Me-Up

2011-05-02T11:45:00.000-06:00

If you need a good Pick-Me-Up, check out this post on CakeWrecks - don't forget to read the comments, they are the best part!

Also, sorry for the silence, it is Shakespeare Season around our house. That means no extra time! :D

My New Menu Planner!

2011-04-03T11:59:00.005-06:00

As I have said before, meal planning, grocery shopping, and cooking are the bane of my existence! (Oh, and dishes.) Every Saturday morning, I would spend at least an hour, maybe two, trying to figure out what to eat the next week, and what to buy at the grocery store. It would drive me nuts! Especially, after going through all that work, some of my kids would turn up their noses and refuse to eat what I had made.

Many years ago, I was watching an episode of Oprah (back when I watched Oprah), and she had large families on that day. One mother, who had seven children and was expecting her eighth, was talking about her meal planning. She had two week seasonal rotating menus with ready made grocery lists. I thought that sounded like a great idea, but did nothing at the time. Now jump forward about 10 years, and I finally did something about it!

So, starting in January, I got to work. I decided to work on winter menus first, then spring, and so on, thinking it might take me half a year to do this. First, I did some spiritual creation - planning. I thought hard about how I wanted this to work, and how I wanted it organized. Then I gathered ALL of my recipes together, and chose my favorites. I separated them into seasons. Basically this means that I want recipes for summer that require little or no oven baking. Then typed them into a recipe database software that I bought a few years ago (when I was going to write a cookbook for sale - hasn't happened yet . . .) While I was putting the recipes into the seasons, I discovered that I needed a 3-week rotation, instead of two. As I was putting things like Lasagna and Meatloaf on the menus I realized that I did not want to be making a lasagna every other week! So, I added the extra week, as well as the additional recipes as shown below.

I made the basic documents needed for the organization. They are the section headings and menu rotation,

(Notice that the "snack" section is empty. I didn't think I could take that on now, but I wanted to leave that option open for the future.)

menu calendar and grocery shopping list.

The grocery lists are designed to be folded in half lengthwise, and have room to add usual shopping needs as well as non-grocery items.

So, then I got a LARGE 3-ring binder.

When I had all of my recipes in place in the seasonal rotation menus, I made weekly grocery lists. I only put things on the grocery list that I don't usually keep in my pantry - so meats, fruits & veggies, and specific items for particular recipes (i.e. bread crumbs, frozen lemonade mix, etc.)

And started printing. I printed the section headings on card stock, and everything else on regular paper. Then I put everything in page protectors.

I started with "Current Season" (which was winter when I started), and behind that section heading, I place the winter menu calendar with the grocery lists behind it in the page protector; then the weekly menu followed by the dinner recipes for that week; then the subsequent weeks.

After that section, I have a place to store the seasonal rotation menus and recipes while we are in a different season. So I have a separate section heading for each season - Winter, Spring, Summer, Autums - and behind those headings I have each season's grocery lists, menu rotation, and recipes.

Then I have the rest of my recipes:

Since we do our best to stay away from artificial ingredients, I need to have lots of recipes like salad dressing, taco seasoning, and cream soups. That is why I have this Basic Recipes section.

I am not completely finished with this book yet, although it is usable as it is. I have a section with alternate recipes, in case we tired of certain recipes in our rotation; a section with quick recipes in case I forgot to start the slow cooker; and a holiday section for holiday meal planning.

Then I have a section filled with the lunch and breakfast recipes that are not specified on the rotation menu. When I get ready to go to the grocery store, I choose what muffins, smoothies, or soups that I am going to make that week, and add the ingredients to the grocery list.

This has taken a LOT of work, and I feel like this whole year will be a testing ground for it. We went through one rotation of the winter menus, and are on our second rotation of spring menus, and so far, it has been an AMAZING SUCCESS!!! I can't tell you how wonderful it is to grab an already printed shopping list, add a few other needed items, and head to the grocery store in less than 5 minutes! I also love that the kids know where to look to find out what is for dinner. In fact, one night a couple of weeks ago, I was at gymnastics with my daughter, and had a short time between that and when I needed to leave the house again to get dinner on the table. When I came home and headed up the stairs from the garage, I thought it would be funny to say to Emerson "So, is dinner ready?" when I saw him in the kitchen working on it!!! He had looked in my book, saw what was for dinner, grabbed the recipe, went into the kitchen where all the ingredients were waiting, and got to work!

So far this has been a blessing. Let's hope it continues!

Spring into Action!

2011-04-01T16:51:00.002-06:00

It is a glorious day today. High 60's, full sunshine, light breeze - just glorious! So what have I done to celebrate this first glorious day of spring in the Rocky Mountains? Well, I ran errands. After our school day was over, I went with C.S. to have the driver-side window fixed on his car - for the third time - and then we had to do some birthday shopping for my 16 year old son *sniff*. While we were gone, the said 16 year old was at home taking an online course to get his food handlers permit. He wants to enroll in a culinary arts program at the local applied technology college. He had to be 16 to enroll, because he had to be 16 to get his food handlers permit. So, he took the course, and the test (got 100% correct), and printed out the certificate. Now all we have to do is take it to the county health department, and they will give him his permit! Yay! So that is done. Now all we have to do is finish the enrollment process at the ATC and, hopefully next week, and he can get started!

I am so excited for him to take this course! Maybe almost as excited as he is himself! Can you just imagine all the homework that is going to have to happen in my kitchen? And if I can coordinate that homework to be done around dinner time? That will be marvelous!! ;D Actually, I was looking over the required classes, and their descriptions, and thought that I want to take these classes, too! Since I am pretty much a self taught cook, I know that I have some missing skills. I have already told Emerson that if his teachers tell him to do something in a completely different way than I have taught him that he should definitely pay heed to the teacher . . . and then come teach me what to do. So, maybe I'll get the courses second hand!

Now, we are going to head out to have a birthday dinner at Jason's Deli (where they have lots of food on the menu that comply with our eating needs) with the family and Grandparents. The big party will take place next week. (Wish me luck!)

So, for such a glorious day, I didn't spend much of it outside. My yard really needs me to, but it just didn't happen. Maybe tomorrow while listening to conference . . .

Very Funny 4

2011-03-22T05:59:00.000-06:00

Very Funny 3

2011-03-22T05:58:00.001-06:00

Very Funny 2

2011-03-22T05:58:00.000-06:00

Very Funny!

2011-03-22T05:54:00.000-06:00

Oh, I love these videos!

Warning, don't eat or drink anything while watching!!!

Waiting for Superman

2011-03-06T14:59:00.001-07:00

I just watched "Waiting for Superman" yesterday. What an amazing film. Now, I know I am biased when it comes to the public school system, but if this movie has it's facts straight, then this is an important movie for all parents to see.

As the movie was going along, I was afraid it might not have any solutions for the problems it was showing. However, I found the movie to be very inspiring. And when it was over, I found myself thinking of ways that I could maybe help with the problems. I have a few ideas, but I need to ponder some more, and certainly pray for guidance. It may not be the time for me to help much yet, but I feel that I already am. Not in the homeschooling, because that is just me and mine. However, the commonwealth (or otherwise known as a co-operative) school that I have helped to get off the ground, and keep running, that is helping the community as much as it is helping my own children.

I highly recommend this movie, but have some tissues nearby; the lottery scenes left me feeling broken-hearted. Also, if you watch it on DVD, be sure to watch the deleted scenes. There is a man and woman in a deleted scene that were particularly inspiring to me.

FHE Funny

2011-03-02T13:18:00.000-07:00

On Monday, it was Emerson's turn to give the Family Home Evening lesson. (We are not very formal about these lessons, they are generally off the cuff.) He turned to Pinnocchio and said, "Do you know what a mission is?" and Pinnocchio answered "Well, I know that Dad went on a mission." Emerson continued, "Right. Dad did go on a mission." He then proceeded to say how Dad flew to Denmark, and . . . Pinnocchio interrupted and said, "Did that surprise him?" and "How was the wind?" It took us a minute to realize what he was asking. But then I said, "He flew in an AIRPLANE!" "Oh!" said Pinnocchio. Apparently he was excited that Dad had this amazing skill that he knew nothing about!

Hubby and Stuff

2011-02-15T12:45:00.000-07:00

Hubby has started a blog! He's really getting into it. There are fun stories there, if you are interested.

As for my project - it is actually coming together! I have the first part of it done, and I hope to have the second finished in a week. I'll tell you more about it later. Now I need to do the dishes and read about the Legislative branch of government in "The Making of America" for my class tonight.

Project!

2011-02-07T21:23:00.000-07:00

I am working on a new project. I am determined to complete it! When I do, and if I find it worthwhile, I will post the template for the project for those who might want to do this project as well.

This project has to do with food. Healthy food. A project that I have been working on, with more steam at times than others, for anywhere between two and eighteen years!

Today I got out a notebook (I can usually think better when writing than with typing) and wrote down what it was that I wanted out of this project; what I wanted it to look like.

I then went to Word and made a few templates, and am now trying to fill in the templates. This should take a while, but hopefully not too long. (I think I can . . . I think I can . . . I know I can . . . I know I can . . .)

Super Bowl Sunday

2011-02-06T17:16:00.002-07:00

I used to love football. I would spend most of Sunday (besides being at church) watching football with my Dad. I knew the teams, and the major players. I knew what was going on, for the the most part. In 7th grade math, my teacher would pass around a paper every Friday, where we would choose who we thought would win the college football games the next day. At the end of the season I won a candy bar, because I had chosen the most winners!

But high school changed all that. Home work and boys were much more important, and I lost touch with my team (the Raiders - I like black. :D)

Now, as a mother, I rarely have the time to watch a game. Even if C.S. is watching and I'm in the same room, I am usually working on some project or other and don't pay much attention.

But on Super Bowl Sunday, I usually watch. Even though I pay more attention to the commercials than the game itself. Like this year, Steelers and Packers, I really don't care who wins.

We used to have a family party at my sister house every year, it was a Super Bowl/Birthday Party for my nephew. But then he grew up and was away at college, and then my sister up and moved to San Francisco (the silly girl!) So last year we had a party at my Mom's house, which meant she and I talked in the kitchen while others watched the game.

This year, however, my folks are in the Florida Keys, so we are having a party of sorts at home. I made some clam dip (a must have!!!) and salsa, but I forgot to buy some Newman O's (If you haven't had those, you should - they are all natural Oreo type cookies. YUM!) So we'll just have to settle for ice cream. I also made Hawaiian Haystacks for dinner - so there has been some actual nutrition this afternoon.

Anyway, happy commercial day, if you watch, happy sabbath if you don't.

Twelfth Night

2011-01-30T15:51:00.000-07:00

Last night was a great night. Actually, it was a great day!

In our cooperative school, as you may know if you follow this blog, we have a Shakespeare class. The first semester they learn about and study Shakespeare. The second semester they learn about acting and perform a Shakespeare comedy.

However, there is a hitch. The kids love this class! (You're thinking - "that's a hitch?") They want to take this class over and over again. But we have had to put a limit on it. The students can only take this class for two years. This is so that we can allow the younger kids to have this great experience, and not just have the "good" parts go to the students with more experience.

But the older kids really want to keep doing shows! So, for the past two years we have had what we call "Advanced Acting" for those students who have already taken Shakespeare twice.

Last year, the kids wrote their own Shakespeare parody play, and then performed it. It was awesome, and they did a great job!

But, last spring, we thought we weren't going to be able to have the class, because we didn't have a teacher for it.

Then C.S. had an idea. He had just transferred offices to a building quite close to the church where we hold these classes. He wondered if he could take a long lunch on Thursdays and come teach the Advanced Acting class for us.

Of course everyone on the board jumped on the chance to have him teach. For one, most of their kids wanted to take the class, and for the other, having a father involved is so rare, it would be a good thing for the kids to have a male teacher in the midst of all the other mothers who were teaching the other classes.

He decided on "Twelfth Night" because it has the smallest cast of the Shakespeare plays, and also because it's funny. They started practicing, and all I ever heard from mothers and students was that they were having fun.

C.S. wanted to take a very minimalist approach to the play. Very few set pieces (a few tables and chairs that never moved), a few props (swords, coins, letters), easy costumes (western theme), and no microphones or lighting. He wanted them to be able to focus on the words they were saying, and to speak clearly and loudly enough to be heard. He also wanted to take a backseat in terms of directing - he wanted to kids to do the bulk of it.

So, yesterday was it. Performance day. They had a matinee and an evening performance. And it was fabulous! The kids did amazingly well (especially considering they had Christmas break right in the middle of rehearsals!) I could hear them, even without the mics, and it was the first time (in three years) that my Mom could hear what the kids were saying! The performances were great! The girls who played Malvolio and Auguecheek were amazing! And the sweet girl, who has never had a big part before, who played the duchess, was so wonderful!

I have some videos, but when I looked at them, they just don't show the facial expressions and the voice inflections that made it so charming. So, you'll just have to take my word for it.

Anyway, one Shakespeare play down, two to go!

Oh . . . My . . . Heavens . . .

2011-01-22T12:07:00.000-07:00

You have to, HAVE TO, try these recipes!!! It is a must! You cannot say no! You must drink these drinks. Even if you don't have the original ingredients, follow my substitutions and drink this for your Sabbath Morning breakfast. I promise that you will thank me.

Warm Vanilla Soother

Warm Chocolate Soother

If you don't have sucanat or pure maple syrup, you can substitute with brown sugar and maybe regular maple syrup (I didn't try that, since I don't keep that in the house anymore.) I didn't have maple syrup when I made the chocolate soother, so I just added two more tablespoons of sucanat (which is non-refined sugar cane crystals.) Enjoy!!

A Good Day

2011-01-08T23:34:00.000-07:00

Today is my birthday. I am now forty. I cannot believe that forty years could go by so fast! My Dad said that the next forty go by even faster!

Well, here's to a new decade with new adventures in store!

Blizzard

2010-11-23T23:28:00.003-07:00

Since last Friday, all we have heard about is the BIG storm that was heading our way. It was expected to drop several inches of snow, with high winds and very cold temperatures. It was covered on The Weather Channel. And an Emergency Broadcast Warning on Monday night, declared blizzard conditions until 9:00 am on Wednesday.

Now, over the years, I have learned to take these weather forecasts with a grain of salt. So often they are just not accurate. It always seems like when they predict a huge storm, hardly a flake will fall; and when they predict a small flurry of snow, we wake up to eight inches on the ground.

But with all the fuss over this storm I decided I'd better gather together emergency supplies in case we had a long power outage. The kids got their no-battery flash lights, and I got our big spot light and worked on charging the batteries. I gathered up candles and matches. I called C.S., who had been given two hours of leave to get home before the storm, and asked him to stop at the grocery store on the way home and get some batteries, some more candles, and some firewood bundles (for the Stovetec stoves.) (The store was PACKED! He had to wait for 10 minutes for a parking space, and then you could hardly get around the store. People were assuming that they couldn't go shopping for Thanksgiving groceries tomorrow, so they went today. And then there were the people like us stocking up on emergency supplies. He was there for more than an hour, getting his few items.) I even had Emerson put the new weather stripping on the front door.

I also cooked dinner early (Buttermilk Pumpkin Pancakes, in case you were wondering), just in case we lost power. As I was making dinner (at 5:00 pm), I watched the storm hit. And it hit hard. Pretty soon I could only see the roof of my neighbors house, but could not see any further down the mountain. It was white, and blowing. And then it died out. An hour later it had stopped snowing.

So, it was horrible for those on the roads. Otherwise, not so bad. I think the bad will come with the very low temperatures.

Anyway, as I was gathering candles and such, and wondering what we could eat if we were without power for a few days, I stumbled on the food for my 72-Hour Kits! I thought, "Oh, yeah! That's what those are for!" And just breathed sigh of relief.

Thanksgiving Menu

2010-11-22T17:44:00.000-07:00

Well, my crockpot Thanksgiving dreams are no longer. I'm doing a couple of things in there, normal things, but the stuffing, and mashed potatoes will be done in normal ways. I'm kind of sad about this, but I hope it will all turn out.

So, here is what I have settled on for our menu:

Beverages:
     Eggnog
     Wassail
   And ice water

Appetizers:
   Chips with clam dip (recipe below)
   Veggie Tray (carrots, celery, grape tomatoes, sugar snap peas, olives,
   pomegranate seeds) with buttermilk Ranch dip
     Barbecue Hot and Spicy Shrimp

Main Dish:
   Turkey (of course), Archer Farms butter basted (no artificial broth!
   Yay!)

Side Dishes:
   Mashed Potato Souffle (recipe below)
   Gravy
   Bread Stuffing
   Rolls (Rhodes Bake and Serve)
   Danish Red Cabbage (recipe below)
     Cranberry Sauce
   Spinach Salad (brought by C.S.'s Sister in Law)
   Another side dish (brought by C.S.'s Sister)

Desserts:
   Pumpkin Pie (brought by C.S.'s Sister in Law)
   Apple Pie (brought by C.S.'s Sister)
     Cheesecake Bars

Favorite Clam Dip

Dash Garlic salt
1 pkg. cream cheese (8 oz.)
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. Salt
1 can minced clams, drained (reserve clam broth)
3 Tbs. clam broth

Place softened cream chees in bowl and cream with electric beater until smooth, add lemon juice, clam broth, Worcestershire sauce, salt, garlic salt and mix well. Stir in clams. Refrigerate for several hours before serving with chips or crackers.

Mashed Potato Souffle

8 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/8 tsp. white pepper
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
2 cups half and half
2 whole eggs
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

Cook potatoes in boiling water until tender. Drain potatoes and place them back in the pot, and heat for one minute, so excess water evaporates. Place potatoes in a large mixing bowl with butter, salt, pepper, nutmeg and half and half. Mash with potato masher or the sire whip of a large mixer. (don't use a food processor.)

Place in a greased baking dish and cover with plastic wrap (don't use foil.) Place in the refrigerator overnight.

The next day, heat oven to 400 degrees. Place uncovered potato dish in the oven and bake until puffed and heated through, for about 25 to 30 minutes. (serves 8)

Old Fashioned Bread Stuffing (I usually double this recipe)

1 cup celery, finely chopped
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp. poultry seasoning or dried sage leaves, crushed
8 cups dry bread cubes
3/4 to 1 cup chicken broth or water (I usually use more - this makes a very dry stuffing)

In a small saucepan cook celery and onion in butter until tender but not brown, remove from heat. Stir in poultry seasoning or sage, 1/4 tsp. pepper and 1/4 tsp. salt.

Place dry bread cubes in a bowl. Add onion mixture. Drizzle with enough broth or water to moisten, tossing lightly. Place in a baking dish and bake at 325 degrees for 40 to 45 minutes or at 375 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes.

Danish Red Cabbage

1 head Red cabbage, shredded or finely sliced
4 Tbs. butter
1/4 cup vinegar
1/2 cup water

Place in a saucepan and simmer over low heat for at least 2 1/2 hours. Add more vinegar, if desired. (This is even better the next day.)

Happy Cooking!

Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving!

1st Round of Testing

2010-11-15T12:14:00.001-07:00

On Saturday, I made spinach artichoke dip in my small crockpot and bread stuffing in my big crockpot. And the score is 1:1. The dip was really quite good - I think that will be a go for Thanksgiving. But the stuffing . . . It's not that it was bad, but it just didn't taste right. I'm not sure if it was overcooked, or if I added too much salt, or what, but I will not make it with the crockpot next week. Bummer. But, maybe I won't need so much fridge space since we won't be having dinner until the evening (I usually have Thanksgiving Dinner around 2:00 - I Mean who wants to have to make breakfast, lunch AND Thanksgiving dinner?! Not me!) But to suit working schedules, we are having it late. Thus, more time for cooking the day of. I probably won't make the mashed potato casserole in the crockpot either. But I did add another appetizer that will be made in the crockpot - BBQ Shrimp! Because of that luscious addition, I will forgive the stuffing recipe for not working.

More Cooking Experiments

2010-11-08T15:57:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I decided to make beef stew. I didn't have any beef broth in the house, but I did have some beef bones in the freezer. So I threw them in the pot with the stew meat and seasonings thinking I had a great idea! I was going to come here and post about my fabulous new idea. Then, I added the veggies, and I saw my mistake. Since the bones were frozen, I did not see the amount of fat on the bones. I then noticed a thick layer of fat laying on top. Ugh! So when the soup was all done, I ended up skimming about a half cup of fat off the top. It did end up tasting OK, especially served up over mashed potatoes, but it took about twenty minutes to skim it. I guess if I am going to make beef broth this way (which I need to consider, since I can't find any affordable beef broth without MSG (or now called autolyzed yeast extract) in it!) I will have to make it the way I do the chicken broth, and make it ahead and cool it until the fat solidifies and can very easily get rid of it!!

But on the Thanksgiving front, I have found crockpot recipes for stuffing, mashed potato casserole, spinach and artichoke dip, and cheesecake!! Let the testing commence!

Visits from Siblings

2010-11-05T12:55:00.000-06:00

With the surgery of my Dad's and the broken bones of my Mom's, my siblings have come into town to help. See, the thing is, my Mom broke her right ankle, and is therefore unable to drive! So, my sister, from So. Cal., and her husband came for a few days and helped get Mom where she needed to go. (At that point Dad was still in the hospital.) She left on Sunday morning and then my brother from Washington flew in that afternoon to take over the chauffeur duties. Then I proceeded to get very sick. It was an amazing blessing to have him here since I couldn't have helped them without getting them sick!

It has been so good to see my sister and brother! I don't get to see them very often, especially my brother. My sister even got to see Jayne in one of her gymnastic meets! Jayne was thrilled to have her there. There was a striking lack of political talk, considering it was election time! (Out of respect for our widely dissimilar political views, we don't even broach the subject, except to complain about all the stupid flyers and phone calls. That happens from all sides! :) My sister's husband even had a 'honey-do' list given to him. He is a very talented handy sort of man, and they had him doing little things around the house for them!

My other sister (now living in No. Cal.) has offered to come, if she is needed. We'll see how it goes next week after my brother leaves.

My Dad is healing, although slowly, and my Mom keeps trying to do too much. But they do seem to be doing better every day. And that is a huge blessing in itself.

Bring On Thanksgiving!

2010-11-02T12:54:00.001-06:00

I was visiting a friend's blog today, and noticed her Thanksgiving theme wallpaper. Oh, that made me happy! I love Thanksgiving! It will be held at my house this year, with C.S.'s family, and I plan to use a new technique - crock-pots!

A friend showed me a fun website A Year of Slow Cooking and I have had such fun with it! I'm hoping to have my two crock-pots, and my mother's two, and have some wonderful, easy recipes cooking away! And the best part is, I will have to test them out before the big day comes. :D I never have enough fridge space or oven space on the day, even cooking some stuff ahead. Last year my mother made a mashed potato casserole, which I am going to try. I always have such a hard time making the mashed potatoes, because it is so last minute. This way it will be all done, and will just need to be warmed up!

I am starting this testing process today. I have some milk that is about to expire - so I MUST make eggnog! Yes, I must!! (This testing will be awesome!!)

Egg Nog (cooked)

1 gallon whole milk
9 egg yolks, (you can save the whites for making meringue cookies)
3 cups white sugar
1 tsp. grated nutmeg
2 TBS real vanilla (approved or only alcohol and vanilla listed, no vanillin)

Mix the milk, egg yolks and sugar in a large pot and bring to a rolling boil, stirring occasionally. WATCH THE POT CLOSELY so it does not boil over. As soon as it reaches a rolling boil, remove from heat and add nutmeg and vanilla. Allow to cool to room temperature; then refrigerate in large jars or a crock.

Week; Here we Come!

2010-10-26T13:10:00.000-06:00

This is going to be a killer week. Unlike anything I have ever known. And it is probably a taste of the future, unfortunately.

I got an email from my Dad about two weeks ago, telling all us kids about his up-coming, no worry, just routine, just maintenance OPEN HEART SURGERY! Yeah, nothing to worry about.(!!!) So, Ok, I can deal with that, maybe. Mom will need some help, but it should all work out fine.

Then, a few days later, we get another email from my Dad, telling us all that my Mom broke her ankle that morning while on her walk! Yikes! Well, that needed attention right away. So I took Emerson over there to mow their lawn, and I got a list of books she wanted form the library, and promised dinner for the evening. Also, we promised to get my Dad to his surgery the next week - to be their chauffeur after the surgery. Ok, this will be tougher, but it will work out.

Then, a few more days later I get a phone call from my mother asking for more help. See, she was trying to get out of bed, using her crutches, and then fell, completely wrenching her back. Oh, no! A broken ankle and now a very sore back? Ugh! So, we headed over there, and got her place ready for the winter storm that was supposedly headed our way. She needed to get her potted plants in the house, and her clay pots protected from freezing. She also needed to have her plants watered. Ok, done, and got some lunch for us to all share - while sitting around her in her bedroom. Ok, this will definitely be difficult. I hope she can get feeling better so that she can go to the hospital with Dad next week - I know she wants to be there with him.

That was Friday. I didn't see them over the weekend, their neighbors were bringing in meals, and talking to her on Saturday, she said her back was feeling a little better. Then, on Monday morning I get another phone call. She said she had gone to the chiropractor, and guess what? A broken rib!!!! Oh, that poor woman! So he got her all stabilized, and has helped with the pain. But, she will need to go back every day, or every other day for the next little while to get her back unwrenched.

So, today is the big day. C.S. got up at about 4:30, picked up my Dad and Mom at 5:00 and took them to the hospital. Then later today, I will go pick her up, and take her to her appointment, and then back to the hospital to see my Dad. I will then be shuttling her back and forth from the hospital, to home, and to the chiropractor on Wednesday as well.

Then, we have all the usual stuff of families - Dentist appointments, scouts, karate, gymnastics, our co-op classes, scout camp-out, and gymnastic meet all to give us a very full week without all this other stuff. Oh, and don't forget Halloween! Which all has to be homemade, since we can't eat the candy. I need to make homemade doughnuts (a tradition), carve pumpkins - and if there is time - go bowling.

Now, all my siblings live out of state. So, right now it is just C.S. and I to help. But, my siblings are banding together and working things out. My sister is driving up on Thursday, and will stay until Sunday morning. Then my brother is planning to come down on Sunday, and stay a few days next week. I think between all of us, we will be able to cope.

But, I can't help feeling that this is a taste of what is to come. My Dad turns 80 next year, and my Mom is in her mid-70's. I was always counting on my oldest sister to be there for my parents as they age, because her children are grown. But a year ago she moved out of state. So now it is just me. I hope I can have the strength to do what will need to be done.

Meanwhile, please send some prayers our way, we could use the help. :D

The Freedom Project

2010-10-06T11:47:00.002-06:00

Last night, some of the mothers from our co-operative school, got together to study about the Constitution and the principles of liberty. "The Freedom Project" is a class, using the materials from LEMI (Leadership Education Mentoring Institute), that will meet twice a month until June.

We started off with a lecture about Christianity and the Constitution. I gave the lecture, and it was a tough one for me to write. I am learning more and more about the Founding Fathers and the Constitution, but I am still in the early stages. Give me a topic of education, and I can easily write a lecture from memory. But this one was hard. However, I knew that some of the people coming to the class know a great deal more on the topic than I do, so I wrote my outline relying on a great deal of input from the class members.

Ten people showed up!! I was really only expecting five, so I was very pleasantly surprised. We had a great discussion about how Christianity is a dangerous idea, especially to those who seek to control others. We talked about liberty, and the God-given rights outlined in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, and how that is also dangerous to those who seek to control others. We touched on the fact that as long as there is a place in the world where there is freedom, people from all over will want to go there to have a piece of that freedom for themselves. And once people, especially those who have been under controlling governments, have tasted the sweetness of liberty, they don't want to give it up, and stand up to those who wish to have power and control over a people. All those in attendance gave input, and added a great deal to my outline (thank goodness!!!)

It was a long night - we started just after 7:00, and didn't finish until 9:30, and many people stayed behind and chatted for another half an hour! I am so excited to continue with this! Next time we will be having a book discussion about The Five Thousand Year Leap by W. Cleon Skousen.

Happy Anniversary, To Me!

2010-09-23T15:35:00.000-06:00

Yesterday was C.S.'s and my anniversary! 18 years!!

Of course, we didn't have time to do anything about it, at the time. We had gymnastics and karate, and we both needed to prepare for our classes the next day. (he teaches an advanced acting class and I teach an earth science class in our co-operative school.) And we don't have time to celebrate this weekend, either. So, a Thursday night, the day after the anniversary, dinner out it is! :D

More Bragging!

2010-09-21T19:25:00.003-06:00

This time, about Frost. He is taking a watercolor class with my Mother at the local community center. He wasn't sure how he would like it at first, but I think he is really beginning to enjoy it. Today he came home with these wonderful paintings:

As someone who is really not artistic in the visual arts, I am amazed at this! Great job, Frost!!!

Green Belt!

2010-09-19T15:43:00.005-06:00

Emerson got his green belt in Karate yesterday! He has worked so hard, and learned so much! Back in January, when this Karate studio opened up next door to Jayne's gymnastics gym, I went in there for information thinking that Frost might be interested. When I went home and told the boys about it, Frost had no interest, but Emerson did! I did not expect that at all. It has been such a good thing for him, I have watched his confidence grow. Frost is now gaining interest, and we'll let him try after he turns 12 (then he will be in the same class as Emerson, which is at the same time as Jayne's gymnastics lessons - all in one fell swoop!)

Here he is getting his belt:

A Good Homeschool Day

2010-09-19T15:02:00.003-06:00

So, having been sick all week, and watching my nectarines get riper, and riper, while not being able to do anything about it, we didn't have school on Friday, in the traditional sense. We made jam!

I was finally feeling a little better, and I knew that if I didn't get to the nectarines NOW they would soon be rotting on the ground, so I went to the store, got some jars, pectin, and lemons, and got to work on the jam. I asked Emerson to harvest the nectarines (I knew I didn't have the strength for that), and he brought in about 10 pounds of nectarines off our little dwarf tree! That is a good harvest! After making one batch, and starting one pot of chicken stock (ala Nourishing Traditions), the sink was clogged! I couldn't make anything else until my dear sweet hubby unclogged it for me. It was during this time that a neighbor of mine called asking if I wanted peaches, because she had to get rid of an old peach tree in her yard, and had bushels and bushels of peaches. So, I took one bushel off her hands - and therefore needed more jars and pectin! Friday evening, I was able to crank out 2 more batches of nectarine jam. (Dang, that stuff is tasty!)

Saturday, I got started early, and used about 2/3 of the peaches to make another six batches of jam. It is now like a color progression chart in my freezer. I have the peach jam on one side, and plum (that I made a week ago) on the other side, and in the middle is the nectarine. I was surprised to see the difference in color between the peach and nectarine jam - the nectarine jam really has a little purple in it!

I also found out why you never see nectarine jam anywhere, or even a recipe for it! Those buggers are hard to peel! The peach skin comes right off after shocking them in the boiling water for a few seconds. But the nectarines don't work that way.

Then today I had some of the homemade chicken stock with some pasta - Yum! It even felt nourishing as it went down. I bought some beef soup bones at the grocery store the other day, I'll have to give beef stock a whirl as well.

It was a good homemade food weekend! I really can't even force myself to eat store-bought jam, so I am happy to finally refresh my supply - I love knowing what is in my food!! However, I think I overdid it a little. I was coughing a lot yesterday. I am taking it easy today, and plan to tomorrow as well, while eating the homemade chicken stock, and bread with jam. :D

Sickness, again

2010-09-14T12:59:00.005-06:00

A few days ago, The Pioneer Woman posted about blogging tips. Seeing that she is the queen of the bloggers, I looked at them, and thought about them very seriously. I mean, if I am going to blog, then I should blog, no? One of the things she suggested is that you should write every day, writers block or not.

Since I read that post, and was inspired, I have been sick . . . ugh! And I think I may have gotten others sick as well . . . double ugh!! I'd had a minor cough for about a week, then on Saturday I started sneezing like crazy. But thinking that it was still part of this cough (that didn't seem contagious) I thought it was all due to allergies (this is my allergy season - late summer, early fall.) So, under that assumption, I went to a demonstration that I felt I really needed to go to. It was a demonstration on how to make some dough in the "Nourishing Traditions" way - whole wheat flour soaked with buttermilk (see my other posts on this subject.) I went to another demonstration a few weeks ago, but had yet been able to make this dough with any success, so I really felt like I needed to go. The rest of the family (minus the 15 year old) went to the raceway to watch some NASCAR racing (our neighbor works for the raceway and got us some tickets!! Thank you!), and the 15 year old went to split and stack firewood for a Scout fundraiser. So, me, in all my sneezing mania, got in the car to drive all the way to Clinton - about a 40 minute drive. When I started the car, the tire light came on. It wasn't the one I had seen before, this one had an exclamation point in it! Now, I know that I have a screw in one of my tires, but it is not letting out the air . . . yet. I got out of the car and inspected all of the tires - none of them were low. I took the risk, and went, staying in the slow lane the entire way. Looking back, I think God was sending me a message, that I ignored.

I got to my friends home, and proceeded to sneeze, and sneeze, and sneeze! Thank goodness she had a basket full of napkins on her table, and I did my best to keep the sneezes contained. I didn't know most of the people there, and I wonder what they thought of this incredible sneezing monster! Oh, well, too late to change this. But, now I think I can make the dough myself, although I still have yet to try, because by the time I got home, I realized that this was not allergies, but that I was sick. Really sick. I climbed in bed, and have pretty much been there ever since. I called my Sunday School co-teacher, to tell her that I wouldn't be there on Sunday, and then spent a sleepless night. By Sunday evening, I felt like I was wearing a mask, my face hurt, especially my cheekbones and jaw, and my breathing had become wheezy. I had just sent hubby off to his singing group practice, when I realized that I probably needed to be seen by a doctor, and soon. It would cost $45 before 9:00, or $150 after. This realization came to me at 8:05. So, I called C.S. and told him what I was planning, and he asked to come with me, so I picked him up on the way (he had been at his practice for about 1/2 hour. By the time we got there I was so exhausted, and any time of exertion (like slow walking) got me out of breath, and my fever was climbing. I told the doc my symptoms, and he pronounced a diagnosis of bronchitis. I kind of suspected, I've had it before. We then headed to the local 24 hour pharmacy, and got my prescription filled. When we got home, I tried to go to sleep, but every attempt made my throat dry up, which caused me to stop breathing. So, I'd wake up gasping, and then coughing. I basically slept about 20 minutes every hour. It made for a long night.

I asked C.S. to stay home from work, which he did, because I could not function. Later in the day Monday, I felt like I was finally on the mend. The pain in my face was lessening, but I still couldn't talk without coughing. And, man, do my rib muscles hurt from all this coughing! I have to hang on to them to lessen the pain. Today, I am definitely feeling better, although I still can't talk without coughing.

However, now my youngest son seems to be where I was on Saturday! I have an appointment with the doctor this afternoon, but if the infection hasn't progressed far enough, they won't give him a prescription, and the stuff that I have been doing with him does not seem to be helping. I don't want to have to go back in a day or two! I hope they will see what I see - that he is on the same path as me, just a little behind, and that they will be able to help him today.

So all of this has gotten me thinking of health and healing. I have learned so much about herbal and other natural remedies over the past 10 years, and use them on my family and myself. This has been a great help, since we don't have to go the doctor near as often as we used to. However, there are limitations. I had been using some of my favorite remedies on Pinnocchio and myself while we had these minor coughs, and still they progressed. I still can't believe how hard and fast this illness hit me! 18 hours, and bam! I felt like if I didn't get to the doctor that night, I would be hospitalized the next day. I don't remember ever being this sick. But other times, I will feel that tickly throat, that sightly stuffy nose, all the tell-tale signs of a cold, and I would slap on my favorite healing balm, and take some other herbs, and all those symptoms would go away, and the cold would be gone. Last year, I believe we kept the swine flu at bay by using these remedies (at least I think it was the swine flu - Emerson was at the local Jr. High for Seminary, and got sick one week. Later that week in the news they told of that particular Jr. High as having a 50% absentee rate that week.) We got sick in our family, but it did not progress into secondary infections. I am trying hard not to be too extreme when it comes to natural healing, but at the same time, knowing what modern medicine does to the body, it's hard to trust it. I know what is going to happen to my body now that I have this antibiotic in it. It is going to inhibit my absorption of vitamins and minerals, because it cause, well, you know, diarrhea; it will lower my immune system, so I will be more likely to get sick again in the near future, and it will destroy the good bacteria in my stomach and intestines. It already makes me nauseous every time I take a dose. But, it also is killing this bacteria that was making it difficult for me to breathe - and I do thank God for that!

Maybe it's that faith thing. With herbal medicine, and also these health ideas, you just kind of have to have faith. With herbal remedies, the healing is slow, and with modern medicine it is fast. Maybe if I had continued using the natural remedies, I would have healed just as well, but at a slower pace. Maybe not, it's hard to say. But I tend to be impatient. I want to see results - now! When I took my first dose of the antibiotic on Sunday, I was almost expecting to feel better instantly! I still don't feel great, and it is Tuesday, but I do feel better - I am seeing results. A friend of mine has often said that how you do one thing is how you do everything. And I can see that coming through in this. I want instant results! Instant results from a new curriculum book, parenting book, cooking book, health idea, homeschooling, prayer, computer glitches, weight loss, exercise, customer service, life in general! I want it all, and I want it all NOW!

Wow, well, I guess I felt like writing today. If you made it this far, I am impressed! And not a single picture! I think I have some things to mull over. We may be revisiting this! :D

Oh, and by the way, that tire light? Well, it turned off on the way home.

Sunrise on Antelope Island

2010-09-04T17:23:00.000-06:00

What an awesome morning! Even if it did start at 5:00 am!

We wanted to do something for Labor Day Weekend, but also stay close to home. So we headed to The Antelope Island Roundup for a balloon raise. And even though only four balloons participated, it was well worth the drive and the early hours.

We got to the Island just as the sky was beginning to lighten, and then played as the sun rose, and the balloon pilots decided whether or not they could take off.

The wind was blowing steadily towards the west - meaning that if they took off, they would go right over the Great Salt Lake, and would not have a landing point for more than 30 miles. Understandably, they did not want to do that! But, as we all waited, the wind died down, and it was determined that they could take short trips across the island.

It was amazing to be so close!

Then one balloon offered to give tethered rides, for free. A line formed quickly, and was very long. Jayne got in that line - she was determined to get up in a balloon! We waited and waited. The pilot said he would continue until he either ran out of fuel, or the air temperature got too hot for the balloons to take off. So we waited some more. Finally it started getting too hot, and most people in the line were told they wouldn't get a turn. However, the people in the front of the line allowed the little children behind them to get on. There was a 250 pound limit, so they could put a lot of little children in at a time. Jayne got on that balloon! And a little while after, Frost and Pinnocchio got their turn.

After all of that, it was time to throw rocks in the Great Salt Lake.

What a wonderful day! This may become a tradition in our family.

Harvest Time!

2010-09-02T11:25:00.004-06:00

I planted my garden on May 19 this year. I felt like I was running out of time. It had been such a cold spring, that I had not worked in the yard much by that time. So, I hurried and planted little vegetable plants (not seeds) - cucumber, zucchini, pumpkin, corn, tomatoes, and peppers. It was going to be great!

That night, a storm came through, starting with rain, and ending with snow on the ground in the morning, and temperatures were in the 20's. I lost everything in my garden, except the corn, and possibly the tomatoes. We even lost most of the apple blossoms. Two days later, I looked at the tomato plants and they were just sticks, no leaves, I thought they were goners as well. At this time, I was too busy with Shakespeare and school planning to get back out in the garden. When I finally got back to the nursery to buy more plants, all that were left were peppers. So I got some of those, and hoped for the best. When I planted those, I noticed that the tomato plants had tiny leaves on them, but were still only three inches tall. This was mid-June. The peppers and tomatoes looked like they might actually grow!! The corn was still very small, but it seemed to be growing as well.

June was a cool month, most days were in the high 60's and low 70's. I loved it! But my garden didn't.

The tomatoes are now doing great, and are giving us some yummy tomatoes, especially the grape tomato plants. The peppers have been small, but tasty. And the corn actually had a few ears on them. The stalks themselves are still very small, only about 3 1/2 feet tall. We decided to grill some burgers on Sunday, and thought what could be better with burgers than fresh corn on the cob!! So we harvested our corn. This was our bounteous harvest:

(That's a grape tomato, showing the actual size.)

It tasted good, but I think it is a fitting end to frustrating garden this season. Not even enough for everybody to have some! Oh, well, we'll try again next year. Although, I really want a bigger garden, rather than a patch here, and a patch there. But that means digging up grass, so I don't know if we can actually get it done. I would like, for once, to have a garden that produces enough to actually get some preserving done. I wonder if I can ever do that, especially since I don't like yard work! :D

#6

2010-08-07T20:44:00.004-06:00

My baby turned six today.

Is that even possible?

It can't be six years since my largest baby (8 lbs. 14 oz.) came into this world after only five hours of labor (my shortest by seven hours.) He was my only child born during the night (about 2:20 am), with a midwife instead of a doctor, and without an epidural. He is also the only child who looks like me.

Today he is six. He doesn't even let me call him baby anymore. He keeps telling me that he is not a baby! He doesn't understand that, barring any unforeseen events, he is my baby, and always will be.

So, today we had a small family party. We have an arrangement in our family. For birthdays, we only have 'friend parties' on the big birthdays (8, 12, 16, and I guess 19 or 21? We'll see when the time comes.) On all other years we have 'family parties.' We have another arrangement concerning gifts and/or outings. The child gets to choose what and/or where we will eat, and can then choose to get presents or have an activity (like a movie, or Boondocks. We only go to about one movie per year, and we never go to fun centers unless it is for a birthday.) During the past year, Pinnocchio said that he wanted to go to Boondocks. Every time we drove by he would say that is where he was going for his birthday. Then, out of the blue, last week, he completely changed his mind, and said he wanted presents instead. Then, yesterday he decided that he didn't want to go to a restaurant, he wanted to go to a park.

So, today we had a small little party, at the Castle Park, with the six of us, and my parents. We ate pizza, and treasures that we found at Good Earth grocery store - like cupcakes with colored frosting(!), pretzels, and cheese sticks! (These are rare treats, because the usual brands of these items contain artificial ingredients of some kind in them.) They played at the park a little, even thought it was quite hot, took a short hike on the "Save me, Grandma, save me!" trail. Then it was back home to play with the bootie, including a new video game.

Chocolate Smoke

2010-08-04T10:13:00.003-06:00

Did you know that chocolate burned by a magnifying glass does not smell very good? We found this out yesterday as we studied the power of the sun by burning chocolate and leaves with a magnifying glass. The leaves didn't smell very bad, but the chocolate was nasty.

We had a good time, and we even had a couple of neighbor kids stop by to see what we were doing. Pinnocchio even did a good job of focusing the light, but I had to hold him arm steady. Of course, I didn't take a single picture.

Help Me, Rhonda!

2010-07-21T21:36:00.003-06:00

I thought summer colds were bad, but we have discovered something worse this month. The summer stomach bug with fever! Yeah. Not fun. Pinnocchio and I had it the worst, and the longest - 10 days for me, 8 days for Pinnocchio. On the bright side, I did lose six pounds - but I'm sure they will come right back.

Then, immediately following this illness, Pinnocchio decides to come down with hives! Ok, so he didn't decide to. He has had hives before - once when he was given cinnamon apple pancakes when he was about one, and another time when he ate some cookies with macadamia nuts and others with walnuts. This time I suspect soy. I bought a new cereal, (curse you Kashi! You lured me in with your "all natural", and "as much protein as an egg." I should have known you meant soy protein. Should have known) and he ate some Monday night. In the morning I noticed the welts, and he said it started the night before. So much for getting a jump on it. By the time I got him to the doctor, it was really bad. They put him on a prescription steroid. The poor guy has just been miserable - the itching has been incessant! I think he is finally feeling a little better tonight, and the welts have certainly gone down.

Nobody can get sick for a long time - do you hear me?!

Ok, now back to the cooking adventures.

New Resolve

2010-07-11T14:09:00.001-06:00

I have got to get my family's health under control!

OK, maybe control is not the word I want. (I am also trying to stop my need for the control of everything around me :D)

But we have some health issues - obesity, allergies, vitamin and mineral deficiencies, digestive problems, and such. So, I am trying yet another way to help us.

A year and a half ago, I instigated a massive diet overhaul for our family - we eliminated all artificial flavors, colors, preservatives, and sweeteners, with the help of the Feingold Program. It was tough! And although I knew we needed to go further with our nutritional needs, I was tired! And would the kids follow along so easily this time?

But it has become crunch time. Stomach issues have become chronic, and they need to be addressed.

I attended a mini-class last week about the proper (meaning - old-fashioned and traditional) ways to prepare certain foods, particularly grains, for better digestion.

So, I am going to start a little slow, and hopefully get to the point where this method of cooking is almost second nature (like Feingold is now.) I will start with the soaked-grain buttermilk pancakes, and yogurt smoothie popsicles. That is my goal for tomorrow. Wish me luck!!!

July 4th; Well, 3rd, Actually

2010-07-03T15:21:00.011-06:00

Around these parts, if the 4th of July falls on a Sunday, the festivities usually occur on Saturday, July 3rd. So this morning, we attended the parade in a neighboring town. C.S. actually attended two parades this morning, one he was in, and one he watched for his kids.

First up was Emerson marching with his Karate studio.

You can't quite see it in this video, but Emerson broke the board with his hand.

Then came Jayne with her gymnastic team (and the cheer team.)

Apparently we should have been further up the parade route, because that is where gymnasts started tumbling. Jayne was doing front flips on the pavement! (Maybe it was good I didn't see!)

Meanwhile, Pinnocchio was making a friend back in the shade.

Then came the water fight.

It was a fun morning, but very tiring. Plus we have to go back there for fireworks (since Lagoon has stopped having them!! grrr!!)

Happy Birthday to these United States of America!

Bet You Can't Tell Which One Is New!

2010-06-22T13:23:00.004-06:00

In May, our 1996 Ford Windstar was up for inspection and renewal. Well, surprise, surprise, it didn't pass. The estimate for the repairs and new tires was about $1200, and the van is worth about $1000, when it is in working order. Plus, this is the third year that we have had to put major money into fixing this vehicle.

My parents have told us that they will give us their 1998 Ford Explorer when Emerson is 16 so that he can have his own car. But when this happened, the offered to give it to us a little early. It was very generous of them to offer, but for some reason it just didn't feel right.

Well, after C.S. posted about the situation on Facebook, a friend of his called him and offered to sell us his van. C.S. told him that we only had a few thousand dollars to spend on a car. And he said that would be fine - that he would lose money on the trade-in anyway, and he would rather lose that money on helping us, than by lining the dealerships pockets. So, we struck the deal.

The van? A 2007 Toyota Sienna, 8-seater. Our other van at home? A 2006 Toyota Sienna, 8-seater.

OK. So we knew they were the same van. But then C.S. asked the most crucial question asked when buying a new car (in my opinion anyway) - what color? His friend said "Grey." See, our 2006 van is silverish-grey. So, is that the grey he meant? Or did he mean the darker grey? It was a week before we found out that it is the silverish-grey as well.

So, we are now the proud owners of two nearly identical vans! The only way you can tell the difference is that one has a DVD player and TV mounted on the ceiling, and the other one doesn't.

It looks pretty silly when both of them are parked in the driveway - but what an extremely generous situation! And now we have two very safe, reliable vehicles for the first time in our marriage! Isn't life amazing?!?

Father's Day? Is that what that was?

2010-06-22T13:01:00.003-06:00

I was just reading some posts on several friends' blogs about their sweet Father's Day that they spend with their families. I just kept thinking - oh, my poor husband! Father's Day this year was pretty weak.

See, the day after Christmas, Frost started asking about having a yard sale. Apparently, he didn't get what he wanted, and needed to earn the cash to buy it himself. So, all through January, February, and March I told him (and Jayne, who also wanted in on the cash making scheme) that they needed to find enough stuff around the house to make it worthwhile - one box-full each does not a yard sale make!!

When April came, they each had a box full of stuff to sell, but that was it. I told them it wasn't enough, and also that it was still too cold to have a yard sale.

Then May came, and there was no way one more thing could fit into May. So, I told them the earliest they could do this would be June.

Finally, June came. I had the time to go through my own stuff and find things we no longer needed. We did pretty well, and had a pretty decent amount of stuff to sell. Then C.S. had an idea. Our youth Shakespeare group is going to go to the Shakespearean Festival in August, and it is going to cost $160 per student. Several of our students did not have enough money, even after selling tickets to their performance of "Much Ado About Nothing." So, C.S. suggested that we invite others to join in the yard sale as a fund raiser for the kids! That way, our kids could sell their stuff, and others in our group could sell stuff that they needed to sell, and their kids could earn some money for the trip.

We were finally able to narrow the weekends down to the 18th and 19th or the 25th and 26th. But then my Mom reminded me that she was going to be out of town on the 25th and 26th - and since I was relying a great deal on her help, we had the yard sale last weekend.

It was really good! The kids who helped both days got about $60 each! I think it was worth their time! We got rid of a lot of stuff, and Frost, Jayne, and Pinocchio all earned a little bit of money. We also sold our van (van post is coming - a story in and of itself), and my Mom sold the 4-poster beds I used while growing up (which by themselves paid for Emerson's balance due!)

It was a good two days - with actual good weather, for the first time this spring.

However, Father's Day was kind of pushed aside. I did get enough shopping done to get him presents from the kids and I, but not enough shopping to have a decent dinner. Oh, well, he said it was OK, and we are kind of making up for it tonight by going to see "Toy Story 3" in 3-D! (I mean, we are going for him, right? Not the kids . . . )

Teewinot

2010-06-05T23:11:00.004-06:00

I love this cat.

He has destroyed the weather stripping on the front door while scratching to get in the house.

He has destroyed the screens on my bedroom windows, because he has learned that jumping on those windows is a good way to get our attention and let him in.

He only eats canned cat food.

Or dry dog food.

He will not drink from a bowl - the water must be running.

And he hardly ever meows.

But, still I love him.

Back to Reality

2010-05-24T08:59:00.002-06:00

Aaaahhhhhh! Shakespeare is OVER! Life can go back to normal.

However, I'm not sure what normal is anymore! Here it is the 24th of May, and it is snowing outside. I just sent C.S. and Emerson up to a Shakespeare camp in the mountains above Park City - I can only imagine the snow that they will be camping in! (At least the camp has pavilions and cabins, but they are not heated!)

We have given up on school for the year. It was just not happening last week, and we have logged in more than 190 days, so we are done! So, while the big boys are away, we are having video game days! I have yet to finish Guitar Hero World Tour that we have had for a year and a half! I better get crackin'!

After a couple of weeks of resting, I will get planning for next year.

I just hope my garden makes it through this snow storm. I finally got the veggies planted last week - I hope I didn't set them up to be frozen!

A Wonderful Article

2010-05-17T13:55:00.002-06:00

If you have a moment, pop over here and read this sweet article about motherhood. It is on a homeschooling website, but this one is more about mothers, and very inspiring!

Ugh! May!

2010-05-10T14:25:00.003-06:00

May drives me nuts. I really . . . um . . . strongly dislike May. For the past few years, May has been insane. I can never see the end of May, because there is this enormous mountain of stuff that needs to get done; a huge marsh that has to be waded through. And I don't see this subsiding anywhere in the near future.

Just on the school side of things, we have the final day of classes with our two co-ops, and of course I am teaching the last class for my math philosophy class. And it is about Soren Kierkegaard. Do you know anything about him? Well, after studying for about five hours today, I think I know a little about him and philosophies - but can I teach a class full of 13-16 year olds about him and existentialism? I sure hope so! I should probably have an end-of-year treat for them as well - when will I have time to do that? Then I will sit in on a class for the little kids, at least that's all that is - no teaching, just a helping hand.

Later that day, the teen co-op is having the Closing Social and Parent Night. That means we get the parents of our students all together, get to know each other a little better, have the students give presentations on what they have learned (my students need to have a science project or research project to give a short presentation about), and also have a meeting about the new leadership and teachers for the next year. So, to prepare for that, I need to make all kinds of posters, hand-outs, and prepare to talk and answer questions. Oh boy! And, did I mention that I will be the Chairman for next year? Our current Chair has been in that position for three years, and she needs a break! The problem is, I am the only one who can step in and fill it. Oh, and I need to make a dessert to share, probably brownies. How in the world can I do all of that? (Maybe I should be working on it, rather that blogging about it? That might help a little!) And, another OH!!! Because I just remembered that I forgot to reserve the park for the Closing Social. I hope no one needs that park on a Thursday night!!

Then there is Shakespeare. Emerson is in two Shakespeare plays this year, because I guess one isn't enough. So, we have two rehearsals per week, per play. (plus his job, plus karate, plus school work, plus piano lessons - and a recital on June 1st!!) Until the performance week - then we have all day rehearsals everyday, and performances at night (I really feel for the directors!) And the other play will have a performance the Saturday before the performance week of the first play. Finally, after that week is over - the Shakespeare kids (and my hubby) will be camping with other Shakespeare groups like theirs, and going to workshops and performing their plays for each other. Also, in order to have my child involved, I have to volunteer in some way to pull off the performances. I am doing the tickets. So, I need to make and print off 150 tickets per performance (a total of 600), cut them, and get them to the kids in such a way that they can keep track of what they sell (the money the earn goes towards a trip to the Utah Shakespearean Festival in August.) This actually needs to be done by this Thursday, so the kids can get selling!

OK, that was Shakespeare #1 and 2. Now for Shakespeare #3. The little kids. Frost and Jayne have been working all year towards performing their Shakespeare play (based on the Shakespeare Can Be Fun series.) They have a few rehearsals and two performances. Not as big of a deal, but nonetheless, something else that needs to be done. (Plus - I am really excited to see Jayne as Puck; I've heard she is just wonderful!)

Then we have Gymnastic meets and the movie filming for Jayne. These have already been going on, but they add to this month of crazy as well.

Now, Frost has been wanting and planning to have a yard sale since February. I keep telling him that we cannot do it until we have gone through the whole house and have enough things to make it worthwhile for people to stop by. I have not had time to do this, nor do I see that I will have the time before June. I don't want to have a yard sale in June or July. I am a wimp when it comes to heat. I like the A/C.

And this does not even begin to get into the yard work that needs to be done! C.S. and Frost have been doing some of it, but there is so much to do! I really want to have a big garden this year. Thankfully it has been too cold to plant so far, so I'm not behind in that, but the ground has to be taken care of first. Yuck! I am done! Can we skip summer this year and go back to winter? I really like winter. The only yard work I have to do is shoveling, and I have a snowblower for the big jobs. I don't have an automatic weeder for the summer!!

Maybe if I can get through May I can have a peaceful summer.

Yeah, right! Like that has ever happened!!!

Yet Another . . .

2010-05-01T18:44:00.004-06:00

I have another blog.

Yes, another one.

However, I am not be the creator behind this blog.

Frost is.

He loves Legos and he loves photography and movie making.

So we are combining the two and making "Frost Builds," where he shows you how he makes his awesome Lego creations.

Please check it out, and leave a comment. It would mean the world to him.

Thank you!

More Gymnastics!

2010-04-27T13:45:00.003-06:00

We had a crazy day on Saturday. It was Jayne's 10th birthday. And to celebrate her birthday, her Gymnastics team had their first meet! (Ok, it didn't really work that way - but Jayne couldn't have had a better way to celebrate her birthday.)

We left home at about 8:45 and drove to Lindon, Utah (about an hour away.) They had warm-ups for one hour, and then the meet began at 11:00. It was really crazy - there were probably 60 girls in that gym doing all the events.

Jayne did a great job! The scores of our team were not great, but I think we learned a lot, and will do better next time. (It truly was the first competition for our gym - our coaches had never coached a competition team before - so we ALL learned a lot! :D)

Here are her two best events, Beam and Bars:

Three more in the next month. Wish us luck!!

Musings of a 5 Year Old

2010-04-19T20:28:00.002-06:00

Pinnocchio has come up with some new, bewildering insults or come backs, or even just statements.

"How come your head smells like a muffin?"

"Fancy Pants!"

I have no idea where these have come from.

Last night, at dinner, C.S. asked Frost to say the prayer. Pinocchio then proceeded to argue with Frost, loudly, that he wanted to say the prayer. Frost made a deal - Pinocchio would say the dinner prayer, and he would say the night time prayer. Pinocchio, then appeased, began the prayer . . . and then proceeded to say " . . . bless us that we will never fight," I started to lose it right then. But then he proceeded to say " . . . bless us that we will never call anyone fancy pants . . . bless us that we will never call anyone house head . . ." By this time we were all laughing, and C.S. even tried to leave the room, because he was laughing so hard.

I know the laughing only encourages such behavior - but there was no helping it last night!

Bloggin'

2010-04-17T11:18:00.003-06:00

I have just had a post published in another blog! WaHoo! I am really excited about it!

It is a homeschooling blog, and I wrote the Saturday, April 17th post! It really a great blog, and the info is not just for homeschoolers, but for LDS mothers.

Check it out, if you have a chance.

BLOG

2010-04-15T20:07:00.002-06:00

POSTS!

(The pressure was getting to me. I just had to get it over with! :D)

WRITTEN

2010-04-15T20:06:00.000-06:00

ONE HUNDRED

I

2010-04-15T20:04:00.001-06:00

HAVE NOW

The Joys of the Sabbath

2010-04-12T10:12:00.004-06:00

Jesus taught that "The Sabbath is made for man. . ." Yeah, "man," not mommy!

Sunday mornings are crazy around here, especially when we are on the early schedule, and have choir practice at 8 a.m. But, yesterday was particularly trying.

Thankfully, we have the shower thing figured out, and most everyone gets a shower/bath on Saturday night. So that was taken care of. But, Saturday afternoon we received a phone call, reminding us that we were scheduled to sing in Scarament meeting. Well, we had forgotten, of course. (just like we had all of last month!!) So we hurried and put together a sweet duet with Daddy and Daughter. It was really cute. Sunday morning we still needed an accompanist. So, C.S. and Jayne went to choir practice together, to find an accompanist, and practice. Which they did.

Meanwhile, at home, we had a sick child. The plan was, to have Emerson walk to church, while I stayed home with Frost (the sick one) and Pinnocchio during Sacrament meeting, and then take Pinnocchio to Primary, while C.S. and I teach our Sunday School classes, and then C.S. would go back home during the third hour to be with Frost. (What do people do in these situations when they live far away from their church?!?)

So, after Jayne and C.S. and their accompanist had finished practicing, they went into the chapel for the meeting to start. After the opening song had begun, C.S. glance up at the hymn numbers, and noticed that there were four hymns listed. That means, of course, a rest hymn is planned. He didn't think too much about it, until after the sacrament, the program was announced, and the rest hymn was announced as well. That meant no special musical number!! C.S. then walked to the front chapel door, and poked his head in to make contact with the accompanist, to basically say "Well, I guess we're not doing it." All this time, the music chairman was not yet at church. He got there right before the rest hymn. When the rest hymn began, he looked for C.S., made eye contact, and made a wondering gesture. C.S. held up their music, and gave an I-don't-know gesture. We guessed that a breakdown in communication had happened - we will try it again in two weeks.

Meanwhile, back at home, I was trying to get Pinnocchio in the bath (he was the only one who didn't get bathed the night before), and then breakfast, and everything else. Finally we were all done, and headed out the door. I was making sure that Frost was comfortable, and knew my phone number, and all that, while Pinnocchio got himself in the car. When we got to church, I got Pinnocchio out of the car, and THEN I noticed he had no shoes on! Ugh! This is not the first time for our family - Frost has done this many times. At least this time there wasn't snow on the ground! But, there were holes in his socks.

When I got to my Sunday School class, I found that neither of my team teachers were there. We have a large class of about 20 thirteen and fourteen year-olds, so having three teachers is really helpful, and two absolutely necessary. But yesterday, I was it. And I was tackling a difficult subject - The Holy Ghost. For the most part, they were quite good. But trying to handle this subject (which they surprising knew very little about!) and keep a handle on the noise of 20 teenagers, left me brain-dead by the end of the hour!

Then, at the end of the block, Emerson was being set apart as the 1st Counselor in the Priest Quorum, which is where I was when Primary ended. Pinnocchio somehow knew where we were and came barreling in during one of the prayers, so I had to sneak out and wait with him in the hall.

After all that, we had a peaceful afternoon. But Sabbath mornings are NOT made for Mommies!

More Snow?

2010-04-06T13:34:00.006-06:00

We had a big storm yesterday. It started with rain in the afternoon, and then turned to snow as the temperature dropped in the evening. When we woke up this morning, we had this:

Isn't it beautiful?

I actually had to use the snowblower! It was so wet and heavy and deep. That is the third time this year we have used the snowblower - we haven't had a lot of snow.

I love spring snow storms!

I just hope we haven't lost any of our fruit - I haven't checked the apricot tree yet.

Easter Morning

2010-04-04T09:03:00.002-06:00

It's 9:04 am. Easter baskets and such have been found, opened and enjoyed, breakfast has been made and eaten, and we still have an hour until Conference starts. I don't have pictures to share, because . . . well, because the house is a mess this morning. But I did want to share one thing - this recipe for buttermilk pancakes. If you like buttermilk pancakes, this is a good recipe! I have never made them before, but a friend of mine told me how her kids ask for them at least once per week. Now I see why. Yummy!

Another April Fool's Prank

2010-04-01T11:32:00.000-06:00

Snow fell last night. We woke up to several inches on the grass, leftover clouds in the sky, and patches of blue. A gorgeous morning. Friends on Facebook are saying it is Mother Nature's April Fool's joke on us. It was so beautiful last week, and now more snow. It brought to mind the biggest April Fool's prank that has ever been played on me.

15 years ago, at 10:42 on a Saturday morning, the child who had been coming for nearly 40 hours finally made his appearance. I began the induction process on the evening of March 30th, and I was supposed to deliver on the 31st. But my oldest son had other ideas. He decided he always wanted to have a birthday that would be easy to remember, and one that would make people laugh when they heard the date. So, when my doctor came by to give me my post-partum check on Saturday morning (he was not on call Friday night), he found that I was still in Labor and Delivery. A few hours later, I was a mommy for the first time. Yay for April Fool's Day!

We are celebrating as a family today, the way he wants - Five Guys burgers and fries. Oh, and brownies and ice cream.

Happy Birthday, son!

Muffin tin Mondays

2010-03-31T11:53:00.006-06:00

Oh, my stinkin' heck!! This is such a cute idea! I wish somebody had thought this up years ago, as I don't think this will fill up my 15 year old (Yes! 15!! Tomorrow!!!!) I just may have to try it!

I saw a link on my new favorite blog - Latter-DayHomescooling, and kept following the links until I found the source. Latter-DayHomeschooling has some wonderful articles and resources for Homeschooling and for LDS Families. Check it out!

Wishing for Time Travel

2010-03-25T23:37:00.003-06:00

I tweaked my back the other morning. Ugh! And in such an adventurous way, too. I was getting out of the car at the gas station. That's how it happened. In the car I was fine. Out of the car I was in pain.

So, since I couldn't do any of the things I had planned for the next couple of days, I gave myself permission to lay in bed (on my massage mat) and watch "Thirtysomething" on my computer through Netflix. It was so fun to watch all the drama - and it is sooooo dramatic, as well as strangely silly. I had forgotten the silliness. Do you remember this show? I never watched it before it was in syndication, and only saw it after I had my first child. I loved it at the time.

Anyway, I hadn't seen it in years - maybe a decade. So, when I saw it available for instant play on Netflix I HAD to watch it!

I was surprised to see how dated it was. It's first season was 1987!!! I still have a hard time believing that was 23 years ago! But one thing I love about the show - the clothes!! How I miss the clothes of the late '80's and early '90's! Oh, to have long flowing skirts and blousy blouses. To have clothes that were cut with room built in, rather than buying clothing a couple of sizes larger so that they are not skin tight. To have shirts that do not fit closely to the armpit, which drives me crazy! I think I have sensitive skin under there; the seams really irritate my skin. I know that being a large woman makes all of these things even worse, but I think we would all look better if our clothes did not hug every curve, roll, or protrusion of our bodies!!

Anyway, I was thinking that I need a time machine, so I can go back in time, and buy a variety of clothing to wear now. Who knew, during that era of comfortable and figure flattering clothing, that a new era of skin tight "can't wear them if you have an ounce of baby fat" clothing would be on it's way - and that it would be around for a long time! I should have prepared.

Ok, enough reminiscing. I now just have to wait for season 3 and 4 to come out - next week. How will I bear the wait?!?!

This is Great!

2010-03-19T15:14:00.002-06:00

Hi everyone! (meaning all three of you! :D) You HAVE to read this blog post! It is from my favorite blog - The Pioneer Woman - and it is very funny! Warning: do not take a drink or a bite just before you scroll down - I will not be held responsible for food and liquid ingrained in your computer!

Soccer Explanations

2010-03-13T19:32:00.007-07:00

I was going through my photos today, and came across some fun pictures. Like these. They explain why Jayne is no longer playing soccer.

She did have her moments.

But this happened far too often.

Happy Birthday to Me!!!

2010-03-13T18:27:00.000-07:00

. . . a few months late!

Here's the back story - Christmas Day, my parents were here and we were just sitting around and talking, when she looked up at a wall in my kitchen, which had been painted with chalkboard paint, and noticed that the writing on my chalkboard had been unchanged for a very long time. She mentioned that fact to me, and I agreed and told her that I just don't use that wall like I thought I would. Then she looked around the rest of the kitchen and noticed all the things sitting on the counters and on top of the fridge, and casually remarked that maybe I ought to put in a shelf or a cabinet there to ease up the storage problems in my kitchen.

Well, that led us to go shopping just before my birthday (in early January), but we could not find anything that would work. I wanted something that would be deep enough to keep the garbage cans there, but not much deeper because it is a narrow spot. The garbage cans are 15" deep, so I needed something no more that 16" deep. All the cabinets (at my most favorite store in the whole wide world - IKEA) were either 12" deep or 26" deep.

So, we decided to have it custom built. My parents have a neighbor who has done custom carpentry work for them, and we gave him a call. The first week of February he took the measurements, and got to work. My Mom and I got to work as well, because the wall needed to be painted before the cabinet was installed. I took of the boarder we had put around the chalkboard, patched up the holes, and sanded. Then my Mom painted the wall - and actually the whole closet (this chalkboard was one wall of a freestanding closet, separating the living room from the kitchen.)

Last week, the big part of the cabinet was ready, and our carpenter got it installed. And today the doors were ready! It looks fantastic! And it holds so much - much more than I expected! Look how well he matched my other cabinets!

Can you tell that I am excited!!!!?

There is still a little more to be done; there will be a roll-out shelf for the garbage cans, and some molding at the top. Plus he will fix the baseboard that had to be removed.

We also got our dishwasher fixed last week - so we now have a full-functioning kitchen! Yay!

Yuck!

2010-03-10T11:41:00.003-07:00

Here is a post from my friend's blog. She is the friend that introduced me to the Feingold program and the awful effects of petroleum based food additives (food coloring, artificial flavorings, preservatives and sweeteners.) Her daughter did a science experiment for school with the title "Do Petroleum Products Harm Living Things?" Here is the experiment and the results.

Not so good

2010-03-08T22:38:00.004-07:00

I attempted to make homemade fish and chips tonight. Not great. The chips were fine. I've made them before. But the fish . . . well, for one thing, I can't really afford nice, good fish. So I bought frozen sole filets. Not the best. The breading was pretty good, but when I put it in the deep frier, they separated, and it was fried breading with fried fish inside. So I gave up on the deep frier, and use a skillet with about 1/2 of oil in it. That held it all together, but I let the oil get too hot. Luckily I put on the lid, because if I hadn't, there would have been oil all over the kitchen! The glass lid looked like a windshield in the pouring rain!! *sigh* This one will not be revisited. I am really sad, because fish and chips is one of my very favorite dishes - but I could probably do without all the extra oil.

Hamlet School Musical

2010-03-08T11:17:00.003-07:00

I had an amazing opportunity on Saturday night. I got to see the creative genius of ten 13-16 year-olds.

Our cooperative school, the youth have the opportunity to take a Shakespeare class. The first semester they read/listen to/watch at least seven Shakespeare plays, and dive deeply into one as a class. The second semester they put on a play. Emerson has been in two productions - A Comedy of Errors and A Midsummer Night's Dream.

However, once a student has taken the class for two years, we don't allow them to take it again, mostly because we need to make room for the younger kids who want to take the class. This year, those students were offered an Advanced Acting class. In this class they wrote a script - a parody of four Shakespeare plays, Romeo and Juliet, a Southern Family Feud, Silent Macbeth, Hamlet School Musical, and the play within a play from A Midsummer Night's Dream. After they wrote it, they rehearsed it for about 8 weeks (once a week), and then we few, we chosen few, got to see the final result.

I laughed so much! It was so funny, and clever. I probably would have laughed more if I knew the show "High School Musical" better, but since I don't some of the jokes were lost on me. I found out that Emerson is the King of Ad Lib, and had one line that was never delivered the same, which kept the other actor on his toes!

But, I forgot my camera. So I do not have one bit of photographic evidence that this even happened. They have promised to make a DVD, and if that ever happens, I will upload bits of it to this site! This has to be seen to be believed!

Neat-o Website

2010-03-04T20:04:00.001-07:00

My daughter is BEGGING for piano lessons. Her older brothers are taking lessons, but she is in gymnastics. I can't really allow her to take both lessons without getting the brothers involved in another thing. And since I don't have the money or the time for everyone to have piano lessons and something else, she can't have piano lessons right now.

Unless . . .

A friend told me about this website, Piano Marvel, that has online piano lessons! You do need to have a midi compatible keyboard (we got ours from my sister when she was downsizing and moving to another state) and the right cord to connect the keyboard to the computer (we finally ordered our cord and got it in the mail yesterday.) There is a 30 day free trial, and after that it is $15 per month, per account (you can have one child per account, or you can have all your children on one account.)

My daughter loves it! She played through the whole 1A section (with a 96% and up on each song - meaning she played 96% or more of the notes correctly and at the right time.) It is really fun, and entertaining enough to keep the kids working at it! My second son wanted to play as well, and even I had a turn.

Very worthwhile alternative to real piano lessons, at least for beginners.

Homeschooling Article

2010-03-03T11:53:00.002-07:00

Here is an interesting article about a German Homeschooling family seeking asylum in the U.S.

New Obsession

2010-03-02T20:25:00.002-07:00

Oh, the joys of hearing your five-year-old sing along to "Amish Paradise." I am sorry, but that is very cute.

Weird Al Yankovic is the new obsession in our family. We were looking for ways to spend Emerson's iTunes card on music that is appropriate, but also enjoyable. He was reminded of hearing about this person called "Weird Al."

He said to me, "Have you heard of a guy called 'Weird Al'?" Um, yeah. I know who that is! Are you kidding? I listened to Dr. Demento. I watched "Friday Night Videos." I know this guy!

So, we surfed iTunes and found "The Essential Weird Al Yankovic." 38 songs for $16.99! Couldn't pass that up. It has all the old favorites - "I Lost On Jeopardy," "Like a Surgeon," and "Eat It." Plus some new ones that I didn't know, but now LOVE, like "White and Nerdy," and "I'll Sue Ya."

Pinnocchio loves them! He loves to sing "Amish Paradise," with the very favorite line ". . . get medieval on your heiney!"

We had a lovely family moment this evening, coming home from dinner at Wendy's, singing along to "The Saga Begins" (which is the plot of Star Wars Episode I sung to the tune of "American Pie." - "My, my, this here Anakin guy. Maybe Vader someday later, now he's just a small fry. And he left his home and kissed his mommy goodbye saying' "Soom I'm gonna be a Jedi. Soon I'm gonna be a Jedi.")

And I can't close this post without adding "Bob," and "Skipper Dan."

Too fun!

Another New Blog

2010-03-01T14:35:00.004-07:00

A friend an I have started collaborating on a new blog. It has all the things we Mothers do with our projects, and ideas, and successes, and failures. It is called "Who Do You Think You Are?!", and is about not listening to that voice in your head that says "Who do you think you are to . . ." have an opinion, to give advice, think anyone wants to listen to you - because that voice does not come from God. We want to start listening to the other voices that say we are worthwhile and have something to share from all the experiences we have had thus far in our Earthly journeys. It will be about mothering, cooking, family history, education, health and natural remedies. Everything we have tried on our guinea pig families, and what has worked and what hasn't.

I plan to still post here, but not on my Confessions of an Absentminded Homeschool Mom blog.

If you care to take a peek, here is the link.

On To The Next . . .

2010-02-26T16:30:00.006-07:00

I have so many balls in the air right now - too bad I'm a horrible juggler!

But something is really itching. It is an "idea that tickled and nagged and refused to go away. . ." and everyone knows that ideas like that "should never be ignored for in them lies the seeds of destiny."

I need to get my emergency kits and food storage up to par. I have the very basic food storage - wheat, flour, sugar, oil, water (2 weeks), some beans and other various items like canned tomatoes, chicken broth, popcorn, honey, and yeast. But, to live off of this stuff would not be fun. I saw these Youtube videos about a year ago, but I couldn't do it then - so now I am going to do it.

Basically, this lady's plan is: take 7 (or 14) of your favorite dinner recipes, 7 breakfast recipes, and buy enough of the ingredients to have each meal 52 (or 26) times. Pretty simple in theory, but difficult to pull off.

I want to have the 14 meal option, because I get tired of foods pretty easily. But now, I'm trying to figure out what 14 meal my kids will eat that I can keep the foods easily on hand!

Spaghetti - that will work.

Hmmm - that's all I can think of right now. Everything else I think of includes cheese, butter, and other such things that are difficult to store.

I do know how to make some cheese products now, and I could probably learn about more - but that requires fresh milk. How do I store fresh milk? I live on 1/3 of an acre - absolutely no space for a cow, and not even enough for a goat. That's always been a tricky spot for me - as a milk addict - in this food storage business.

So, I am going to start with the emergency kits - and get the kids involved. We're going to use the backpack method. I do already have the backpacks - I have done that. They just need to be filled. :D

Anyway, here is the link to the Youtube videos that actually inspired me to think about food storage. Maybe you don't need this, but I sure do!

I also just found this site that seems very helpful.

Is This Getting Out Of Hand?

2010-02-23T08:27:00.003-07:00

I'm sorry to keep boring you with these recipes and such, but it has been so fun!

I made homemade vanilla yogurt the other day, and it is soooo yummy! It is also sugar free, but isn't made with an artificial sweetener. Here is the recipe:

Heat a 1/2 gallon of milk to 180 degrees (using a candy thermometer to keep track of the temperature.) Stir frequently to prevent scorching. Turn off the heat and let it cool to 110 degrees. Add one cup plain yogurt with live active cultures (like Dannon). You can leave it like that for plain yogurt, or you can make vanilla yogurt by adding 1 Tablespoon vanilla and a scant 1/4 teaspoon of Stevia (pure stevia powder.) Put the yogurt in a covered container and place it in a cooler or ice chest for 24 hours, then refrigerate.

How simple is that!!! If you don't want to use Stevia, you can certainly use sugar, I just don't know the amounts - you would have to play with it.

I just had some this morning with Grape Nuts - a good way to start the day. It would be better with granola, but I haven't made any in a while. Should that be next?

Next . . .

2010-02-20T17:11:00.003-07:00

Today I bought caraway seeds, cabbage, carrots, cucumbers, rapadura, a slicer, and a meat tenderizer (hammer). I am going to make sauerkraut, ginger carrots, orange marmalade, and pickles (again, but this time with extra salt and no whey - may as well try!) The whey is dripping out of the sour cream at this moment.

So, earlier today, I got to thinking about all this stuff I want to make, and add to my food storage, when I thought "But where will I put it?" My fridge is very full, as it always is after Saturday grocery shopping. I know that this cold storage food needs to be cold, and I don't have a fruit cellar! So, I asked C.S. about buying a used refrigerator, when we get our tax refund, to put in the basement and put all this (hopefully) wonderful food into. I asked him how much he thought it would cost - he said about $150 or so. So I went online to the local paper classifieds and found a small fridge (not like an under-the-desk fridge, but one about half the size of my big fridge up in the kitchen) for $20. I sent C.S. up after it, but the guy didn't think I was serious, and sold it to someone else. While C.S. was driving home, I found another one (also close by) for $30 and directed him there. So, now I have a second fridge where I can store all of these wonderful cold storage for our family! I am soooo excited! (yes, about an old fridge down in my basement!) It is the perfect size for the spot I had in mind. A normal sized fridge would have been much too big. I know it's not good for emergency storage, but it is wonderful for just plain old food storage.

Just waiting for the bottles to get sterilized in the dishwasher.

And then I'll get busy.

I should be preparing my lesson for tomorrow.

But I'm not. Yet.

So, how are you?

Pictures of Pickles

2010-02-18T17:47:00.006-07:00

Haven't you always wanted to read a blog that has pictures of pickles? Or sour cream? Or clumpy sour cream? I know I have!

Well, minor successes. The pickles taste - well - a little strange, and have a very soft texture (even though they weren't cooked.) But Jayne likes the pickles, so that is good. She keeps on eating them - so I guess that means I need to keep making them! They look really good. Don't they look good?

I just wish they tasted as good as they looked. Maybe they needed more salt.

Like I said before, the sour cream is wonderful!

But the cream cheese . . . well . . . it spreads well; it looks good; but it tastes like . . . sour cream. I think I need a tutorial.

I have been told that preserving berries with the whey is very yummy. I might have to try fruit next.

I should probably tell you about the other stuff that I have been making - but then you will really think I am strange. Really strange. Even stranger than making pickles with whey!

Update

2010-02-10T21:16:00.003-07:00

Yesterday - sour cream (Emerson said it tastes just like Daisy sour cream)!!!

Today - making more soured milk; dill pickles (using the whey from yesterday's sour cream.)

Tomorrow - cream cheese and possibly more pickles.

If the pickles are good, and the kids like them, this will be a wonderful thing!

A Whole New World

2010-02-07T14:35:00.003-07:00

A friend has exposed me to a whole new world this week, and it is very exciting! It is the world of Lacto-Fermenting! This is an ancient method of preserving foods.

I am just starting out, and trying to learn, but I am very excited to add these wonderful foods to our diet. As I have said before, we have had to do without many foods because of our sensitivities to artificial food additives. A few of those foods are pickles and sauerkraut. My only option was to make them myself (or buy the really expensive ones from the natural food stores - and with kids who love mustard and pickle sandwiches, an $8 jar of pickles that last a week is not worth it!!) I have made pickles in the past, bread and butter pickles (which my kids don't like), but that was before I had a ceramic top stove. I have never attempted dills. I remember my mother did once, and they were HORRIBLE. She would even say so herself. But making lacto-fermented pickles looks much easier and might actually be do-able!!! I can't wait!

My friend gave me a start for making the necessary soured milks, and they are now sitting on my counter, just waiting to be made into cream cheese and yogurt. In the process of making those things, whey is leftover. This is what you use for lacto-fermentation. You just pour that into a bottle with cucumbers, salt, and dill (and maybe more, I don't have the recipe right here) and pickles are the result! No cooking, no boiling water bath, no popped seals! It does need to be kept cool, so I might be in the market for a used fridge to keep them cool, since I don't have a root cellar.

The biggest benefit to making them this way rather than with vinegar, is the live cultures in the foods. These cultures (similar to the ones advertised in the new Active type yogurts, but these are live) are so good for you! They keep the enzymes in your digestive system in balance. I have heard that the majority of your immune system is in your digestive track! It's also supposed to help with keeping your body's pH at the right level which is supposed to boost your metabolism, nutrient absorption, and is also a hostile environment to carcinogens!

I'll have to keep you posted on my progress; I might even take pictures (haven't I said that before?)

If you want to know more about it, there is a wonderful cookbook called Nourishing Traditions which has a whole section on making the soured milks and soured milk products, and then a section on how to use the whey.

Look! A cat!

2010-02-03T11:30:00.002-07:00

Wednesday mornings start out early for us. We have piano lessons at 7:30. In Bountiful. So we need to leave the house by about 7:15. All of us. (Well, C.S. has been gone for over an hour by that time, so I guess I mean the rest of us.) For us, that is very early. Homeschooling does not require early wake-ups. (Unless you are Jayne, and have been sleeping like a teenager since you were one.)

Anyhoo, the carload of us were heading out in the half-light of pre 7:30. When I turned out of our cul-de-sac I saw a cat walking down the sidewalk.

But wait, cats don't waddle.

And cats don't usually have two wide white stripes from their head to their tails.

"Skunk!" I stopped the car, and made everyone look. There was this big ol' skunk just walking down the sidewalk. Like he owned the place. He was really cute, and checking us out like we were checking him out. I am very glad we have to drive to piano lessons, and weren't walking!

I love this part of living on the edge of the forrest. We always have deer tracks around, and we sometimes even see them. Last year they ate a couple of pumpkins. I saw a coyote once, but he was far up the mountain. We had a family of bald eagles soaring overhead during a Father's Day picnic - that was the coolest thing ever! The bats keep the mosquitoes in check. I haven't seen a raccoon in full light, but they do pass in front of the headlights once in a while, and they are HUGE! August and September bring the tarantulas - they are sooooo cooooool! You can just follow them along and watch them. They are slow, and they don't jump, so they don't freak me out - as long as they are outside, of course. The only things that worry me are the rattlers and the cougars. But I've never seen a rattler, and I've lived here for 13 years. Nor have I seen a cougar. I heard one, once. In the middle of the night. And I've heard plenty of stories of finding them in the backyard. But that was six blocks over, so we're safe over here, right?

Plans . . .

2010-01-31T13:08:00.003-07:00

I am really trying to write in this blog every week. Some weeks are tougher than others. So, do I write about the plans that were made and fell through (like the wonderful menu I had planned and shopped for that I only used for two dinners, and three of the others ended up being take-out!) Or how I convinced Emerson to try a Karate class (that is in a studio right next to Jayne's gymnastics gym, and at the same time!) and now have to figure out what we can cut from the budget to pay for it? And am secretly grateful that Frost didn't even want to try the class? How I was going to use the wii Fit every day for at least 30 minutes, and only did it twice? Or that I had planned to finish the book I'm reading, Mao; The Untold Story, which I have been working on for about a year and need to move on to another book! (like Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, or The Idiot.) I was going to clean my bathroom on Saturday, but instead spent the day building a website for our co-operative school. Another one; hopefully a better one.

My plans for the math class that I teach at the co-operative school went quite well. So that's one.

Oh, well. Here's to making plans, and breaking plans, and accomplishing stuff that you didn't know you needed to do! :D Have a great week!

Gymnasts, Singing, Gymnasts, Sleepy

2010-01-24T14:35:00.004-07:00

Outings were the theme for this week. And not just the typical grocery shopping and various lessons.

For Christmas, Jayne got season tickets to the Lady Utes gymnastic meets. I got to take her to the first one on January 15th. It was really cool! We had pretty good seats - row 21, right behind the vault. And there were so many people there! I didn't think they would rival the men's basket all team, but that stadium was about 3/4 full. They announced that there were 12, 605 people in attendance. Jayne and I were amazed at what they could do on the beam! Near the end of the meet (against Ohio State) Jayne said she wanted to work really hard a be a Lady Ute when she grows up. And, you know, she just might be able to, she is a natural when it comes to gymnastics.

The next night, we had four tickets for "Singing in the Rain" at the local theater. Emerson and I had to flip for the fourth ticket! Not really, he wanted to go, so I stayed home with Pinocchio. The kids were so excited when they came home - they wanted to tell me all about it! They had a wonderful time. How had I let 14 years go by without showing them that movie?!? Parental neglect for sure!

We realized that we had double booked ourselves for the next friday, Jan. 22nd. We purchased tickets for the play "Sleepy Hollow" at Weber State (written and directed by a friend of C.S.'s) and the Lady Utes had another meet - this time against Georgia, their chief rivals. So, we asked my Mom to take Jayne to the meet. So, Friday came, and despite all the threatening weather, my Mom and Jayne headed south to the U of U, and C.S. and I headed north to Weber State. "Sleepy Hollow" was amazing! Very well sung, and the costumes were great. I really enjoyed it and was glad the weather held out so we could go - although we did drive on snowy, slick roads on the way home. And the Utes squeaked out a win against Georgia, by .05 points.

So, now I'm ready to settle down a bit, but we do have an art festival, through our virtual school, to attend this week - Frost has entered a little cartoon drawing of his for the program. The theme for the festival is "Seasons." But before we knew what the theme was, he drew a darling pirate cartoon.

So, we named it "Pirate Season" and called it good! We are such the rebels! :D

Oh, Yum!

2010-01-16T17:12:00.004-07:00

Home made corn dogs! Holy cow! They are sooooo good!

Since we started on the Feingold program, and are not eating artificial preservatives, we can no longer eat fried foods from restaurants. And . . I really like fried foods. So, we have been finding lots of recipes for fried foods so that we can have them once in a while.

Only, it's been happening a lot lately. Probably too much. But it is soooo good! Much, much better than from the restaurants!

Today it was corn dogs. Now, you might think that this would be a difficult or complicated process; but it is quick and easy. From start to full-tummies it took one hour! Not bad for a last minute meal. Plus, we can use higher quality, and thus better tasting, hot dogs.

Last week it was chicken nuggets and egg rolls. And before that it was cheese fries (cut the potatoes into fries, fry them, then sprinkle with cheese and pop in the microwave for a about 30 seconds - you'll never need Training Table again!)

Happy frying!

Another Funny

2010-01-10T20:18:00.005-07:00

First, the back story. Whenever Frost, Jayne, and Pinocchio are watching some type of race or competition show, Frost will always root for the boys while Jayne and Pinocchio will root for the girls.

OK, now the story.

C.S. and all the kids were driving some other friends home, a 16 year old boy and a 13 year old girl. The 16 year old was sitting in the back seat with Pinocchio. Out of the blue Pinocchio says "My brother doesn't like girls. He only like boys."

Yeah.

The friend should understand; he has little siblings as well.

At least, I hope he understands.

He looks like an angel, doesn't he?

No More Diapers!!!

2010-01-05T20:19:00.003-07:00

Now, I know you are looking at that title, and two posts ago I talked about my youngest child's birthday last August, and you are thinking "Your youngest child is 5, almost 5 and a half!" Yeah. Did you notice the three exclamation points? We have tried over the past three years to get him potty trained, and it was a horrible fight - so I always gave in, and continued with the diapers. He had been dry at night since he was one-and-a-half, so I kept thinking he was ready, and would try the training. But that free-will, that free agency thing gets in the way, doesn't it?

Then something happened in November, something which I know nothing about, and he decided to use the toilet. And that is all it took. It took a little more convincing to get him to wear underwear, but he did it. He is absolutely dry. We have had two very small accidents since then, one was right by the toilet, and that is it. It always amazes me - whenever I start to loose faith in my children, something like this happens to let me know that God is in charge, not me. He has a plan for each of us, and I have no control of my child's plan, I just need to sit back and realize that someone wiser, more loving, and who knows my children infinitely more that I do is guiding them.

On Sunday, C.S. said to me, "How long have you been changing diapers?", and I said, "Except for 6 months between Jayne and Pinnocchio, it has been 14 1/2 years!" Then I said "So, we need to have another one, right?" But he just laughed.

Fun with iMovie

2009-12-27T21:12:00.003-07:00

I've been playing with iMovie a lot this month. It has been a lot of fun. Here are two movies that I made:

Christmas Piano Recital, December 22, 2009 (Frost's first piano recital - he's been playing since June. Emerson has been playing for about four years.) Then Jayne's Gymnastic Competition Routines.

Trying Again

2009-12-27T17:44:00.003-07:00

I have been so delinquent in my posting. But, I did better with this than with any journal I've ever owned. So, I will try again. Wish me luck!

In August, I forgot to post that Pinocchio turned 5! My baby is 5!! I can't believe it's been so long. We celebrated by going to Kangaroo Zoo and bouncing around. He had a great time - said it was his best birthday EVER!

In September Jayne started practicing with the Gymnastics Competition Team at her gym. She has amazed me in what she has learned to do in the past four months. She has really grown in her abilities. Her competitions will start in March.

September also brought our co-op back to life. Pinocchio is actually going to classes this year, and keeping his teachers captive by talking constantly. He has a gym class, science, and phonics. He really looks forward to it. But it makes me think how life would be if we sent him to public school. I just think he would always be in trouble, because he cannot, for the life of him, keep quiet! He would monopolize the teacher's time. Jayne and Frost are taking a Shakespeare class where they are writing a little shakespeare play (like the opera of last year), a gym class, and a writing class where they wrote storybooks, illustrated them, had them bound, and then read them to the younger classes. They had a blast with that class. Emerson took a Civil War History class, a Shakespeare class (where they are also writing a comedic script with little Shakespeare vignettes), and a Speech and Debate class. We attempted an online public high school (called Open High School Utah), it was eye opening, but it did not work for us. It was pretty much all fill in the blank type of learning, and it required a lot of busy work, which I am not a fan of. We did it for about 7 weeks, and then, since the promises that got us in the first place were not realized, we left, and are working on a high school curriculum at home - including biology, German, Algebra, and don't forget Seminary down at the local Jr. High. So far it's been a good adventure.

November brought us two birthdays - Frost turned 11 and C.S. turned, well, 40+. And December has been full of projects.

We had a wonderful Christmas. We tried branching out a little, and tried to be less selfish with our Christmas - and because of that I think we were financially blessed. We took money out of our Christmas budget and gave it to someone else, but the deficit was not felt by our children. In fact, two of them said it was the best Christmas ever! We'll be doing that again!

Ok, now we're all caught up. So, we'll start again. I might even remember to take pictures!

Have a beautiful new year!

The Bard

2009-08-17T13:54:00.003-06:00

Cedar City, Utah in the summer means only one thing . . . Shakespearean Festival!!! And this year it is even better, because I am here! I have always wanted to go, and this year is it.

Remember way back in May when Emerson and his Shakespeare class performed "A Midsummer Night's Dream"? Well, that was a fundraiser to pay the kids' way to the Shakespearean festival. So here we are! C.S. is a chaperone, and the rest of us are tagging along (group discount tickets are very helpful in this situation). We are seeing "The Secret Garden," "Henry V," "A Comedy of Errors," and "As You Like It." Emerson, Frost, and Jayne will be seeing all four plays, while C.S. and I trade off watching Pinochio. I am having a turn with Pinochio right now - while the rest are at "The Secret Garden." But I get to go tonight to see "Henry V." I am so excited I can hardly stand it!! This is my first real vacation in about three years. Graduate school will do that to a person.

Speaking of Graduate school - C.S. is done!!! Hooray!!! Great Job!!! He is now a Master of English!!!

Now it's my turn, except I won't be going to school, I'll be teaching an online class. Can you say "Yikes!" I am really excited, and have taught this class before, but that was face to face. I am nervous about the technology side of this one. But I can do it *I know I can, I know I can . . .*

I think Pinochio and I will take a walk around the hotel now.

Got to check out the pool.

Yay!

2009-08-01T15:19:00.003-06:00

Emerson just got home from Pioneer Trek. Man I miss that kid when he is away. He is such a settling influence in our home! I haven't heard how it went, yet, but he had a smile on his face and he wasn't sunburned; so far, so good. He's getting cleaned up, and then I'm going to get the lowdown. He has had so many camps and trips this summer! This one was number three of five!

It's a good thing I homeschool my kids. I really miss them when they are away. If they were gone every week day all day long, I think I would go crazy! Or, maybe I'd just learn to clean.

No, probably not. I'd probably just read.

Wild Weekend

2009-07-25T21:52:00.008-06:00

We have NEVER done this before - NEVER! Thursday we decided to leave town, the next day. I am so not spontaneous, therefore it is extra weird that it was my idea.

It started out that "Joseph" was ending Thursday night, and C.S. had Thursday off (because of 4-day work weeks, and holidays - his July 24th day off was July 23rd), and we had nothing we had to do on either Friday or Saturday. That hasn't happened in months! Also, C.S. is working on his master's project, which is a story about his mother's upbringing in depression era, small town Idaho, and the escapades she and her brothers created. But in order to make it scholarly enough for a final project, he needed to do some research. And some of that research needed to be done in person. We decided to drive up to Driggs, Idaho to spend the afternoon at a museum there, and then drive to Hamer, Idaho to spend the night with C.S.'s aunt and uncle.

It was all falling into place - we decided to take the dog with us, my mom would take care of the cat, C.S.'s Aunt and Uncle would be at home, and the museum would be open until 5:00 pm on Friday afternoon.

Thursday night, I went grocery shopping for the trip, and as I passed the front of the car to put the groceries in, I noticed the steel belting showing through one of the tires!!! Not good! So not good! I am so grateful to God that he showed that to me then! Who knows what would have happened if I hadn't seen it and we were traveling on the freeway at 75 miles per hour! I shudder to think! It was too late to get new tires right then, so we had to wait until morning.

Friday morning, while C.S. was at Wal-Mart getting new tires (it was a holiday, that was pretty much our only choice!) the kids and I were getting ready to go. When he came back we started to load up the car.

Now flash back one week, I woke up to a very loud wooshing noise outside my bedroom window - a faucet had sprung a leak, and was flooding our lawn. C.S. had never used this type of sprinkler pipe, and asked a friend for help on how to fix it. So last Saturday he did get it fixed.

Back to yesterday; we were loading up the car, and I heard the sound of water. C.S. pointed to the neighbors running sprinklers, and basically said "Duh!" But I was sure it was coming from the opposite direction. He reluctantly walked around the house to see (I was barefoot - and we have a dog, I wasn't about to go over there myself!), and then ran up to the main shutoff for the irrigation water. It had completely popped off this time - we now had a nice hole in the lawn.

C.S. called the guy who put in the sprinkler system (a neighbor) and told him what had happened - he was actually on his way up towards our house when C.S. called! He saw what had happened, and explained to C.S. what had gone wrong - our friend had not told us that we needed to heat the pipe to make them meld together. (we are old-fashioned; we know how to use PVC pipe, not this new-fangled stuff!!!) I'm sure our friend thought we knew about that part of it! So Sprinkler Guy said he would fix it in just a little bit - which he did.

So, with the irrigation water turned off, and four new tires on the van - we headed off, only 2 1/2 hours later than we originally wanted. Not too bad.

The drive up was fantastic, overcast the whole way. And we made it to Driggs with plenty of time for C.S. to get what he wanted from the local museum. And the kids and I had a great time at the old family home (now owned by his cousin), where we jumped on the trampoline, and hunted for kittens, and chatted with family. It was a beautiful Driggs summer afternoon - about 77 degrees and breezy.

Driggs, Idaho is on the Idaho side of the Grand Tetons. C.S.'s Cousin has the best view of them around!

The old family house, built in 1906.

The parlor window with the Teton's reflected in it.

Then we headed over to Hamer, where we were treated to stay in the new "Bunkhouse." It was fabulous! It used to be a large cinder block shed - it is now a very nice motel room! Three sets of triple bunk beds, a queen size bed, and a bathroom with a shower!!! It was wonderful! We were very comfortable, and the dog could stay with us.

Sunset in Hamer, Idaho. (Unfortunately no photo of the bunkhouse - we'll have to go again soon!)

C.S. interviewed his uncle about life in Driggs, and recorded it. It will be a great addition to his project.

We are now back home; pulled in around 6:00, after making a stop at a local army surplus story for Emerson's Pioneer Trek supplies, and after picking up pizza for dinner. It was a whirlwind, but very valuable and highly enjoyable.

We should be spontaneous more often. Or I should say I should be spontaneous more often!

Now I know . . .

2009-07-23T11:57:00.002-06:00

Jayne has had a bad week. Starting Sunday night she started having her panic attacks. They are so scary!!! She thinks she is going to die, or at the very least, throw up. (Throwing-up is a very unnerving idea for her - she says she can't breathe when it happens, and therefore wants someone to be by her side all the while she is feeling like she might.) On Monday she woke up crying, feeling very ill, but by 9:15 she felt well enough to go to swimming lessons. Then in the evening it would happen again, and Tuesday morning it was worse. I couldn't figure out what was going on! She didn't seem truly sick, but yet she said she was feeling sick. This used to happen a lot before we stopped eating food coloring and artificial flavors, but it hadn't happened in a long while. Plus, I couldn't think of a thing she had eaten that would have cause a problem! I thought maybe it was being around all that make-up and hair spray at the play - but she's been around that for a month with no problem. She told me she had had some animal crackers at church, but they were the ones that we buy at Costco that don't cause problems. (The Primary President called and asked about treats that my kids could have!! Isn't that wonderful!?!) I really thought something was wrong; like I needed to get her to a psychiatrist!

Then, this morning, I was out doing some yard work, and again Jayne came out telling me she felt horrible. I told her to go lie down, and I'd help her in a bit. Then a few minutes later, Emerson came out holding a package from some bagels I had purchased last Saturday. They are the same brand that I usually buy, but these were blueberry. The kids loved them! I assumed they would be OK, since the plain, egg, and whole wheat were fine. But Emerson had found it - blue food coloring! Argh!!! Jayne had been eating at least one per day since Saturday!!!!

At least I know I am not going crazy, and Jayne really settled down, once she realized that it was the food coloring that was making her feel that way. And now I know that I cannot buy something simply because of the brand - I need to check the labels of new and different things that I try (and of course, reference the Feingold list!!)

I am happy she if feeling better, and I'm glad it wasn't worse than that. She'll be over this in a day or two, and no more blueberry bagels will come into this home unless they are homemade!!

Summer BREAK?! Not hardly!

2009-07-04T20:06:00.014-06:00

Whoever thought I would be getting a break this summer break (me!) was wrong! I guess that's what happens when you sign children up for double gymnastics lessons, swimming lessons, early morning piano lessons, and then have four church camps for various family members! (Do I ever write about anything but being busy?! Maybe I need to re-examine my life?)

Anyway, I actually got some pictures of the busyness this time, so I can show you what we did! Aren't you excited?!

The real crazy started on June 23rd with a homeschool/K12 Lagoon day. Even though we live about eight blocks from Lagoon, and get free entrance (but not ride) passes for living in this town, we haven't gone there for eight years. So, I bit the bullet, and took the kids there by myself - it was a Tuesday after all! If you know me, and my children at all, you know the bravery involved. We ended up having a fabulous time and found that Jayne is the adventurous soul of our family. She wanted to go on all the big rides, but being only 49" tall, she missed some of them by only an inch. She could have gone, though, if her big, tall 14-year-old brother could have been talked into going with her. But most of the time that was a no.

Have you ever tried taking pictures of kids on amusement park rides? Most of mine turned out like this:

I have several of just the bottom of the ride car, or in between cars. That is not an easy task.

Cub Country was next. Oh, joy. I tell ya, I have such a bad attitude about Cub Scouts right now! Argh! But Cub Country makes it worse. Is there no better way to spend a day than to stand around while eight and nine year-old boys check off items on their to-do list (otherwise known as requirements)? At least it is up in the mountains, so it is pretty to look at; while the boys are folding paper airplanes. (yeah, that needs to be done in the mountains, that can't be done in a den meeting!) Sorry - I'll stop the ranting now, and show a picture of how fascinating that weekend was:

But after that second day of torture (I know I promised to stop, but really, is this a "best" way to spend our time? Or just a "good"? I can't decide.) I got to experience some true joy: seeing my niece as a mother. She came and brought her husband and four-month-old twin girls. We had a big family dinner at my mom's house, and I got to hold those precious darlings for quite a while (one at a time) and got to see my niece's amazing parenting abilities. She is fabulous. She has them on a great schedule, has persevered through the first difficult months of nursing, and she has the sweetest, calmest little angels in the world! See for yourselves:

Pinocchio was pretty much oblivious to the fact that the babies were even there; he was just overjoyed that his big cousins were there to swing him around.

We're kind of late in the swimming lessons department. Frost and Jayne really don't know how to swim. So last spring when I saw that a local woman was going to teach lessons in her private pool, I signed them all up. Frost was not happy about it. But they have done very well. And since they are doing so well, I have signed them up for more. But it has made for a hectic schedule. They finished their first session on Friday June 3rd, and the parents got to watch and feel proud!

That night we had another big family party, because my sister came to visit from California. It was a late night of playing board games (inside, because it got a little too cool to be outside!!!! On July 3rd, in Utah!!!! Very strange summer.)

Today was the pinnacle (I hope) of this busy time. It started off with C.S. leaving the house at 5:50 am to run in a 5K. Which he did, and did well!! He came in third in his age category! After the race, he and Jayne were in a parade with a float for the community theatre. I'm not a huge fan of parades, so I stayed until they went by, and then went home. They boys stayed home to clean the house. (their choice - we really don't like parades in our family!) These pictures are from after the parade:

Then, it was back to Lagoon. We "bounced back," which means when you buy one ride pass, you get to go a second time for about 75% off the regular price. Since it had been so long, and who knows when we'll get back again, we spent The 4th at Lagoon. C.S. got to come this time, and he was amazed at all the changes. (this from the man who spent entire summers of his childhood at this park - I told you it had been a while!) The kids had a good time, but were tired of it after a few hours. The lines were again so short, that we really only had to wait at one ride! Great for us, not so good for Lagoon.

Remember how I told you that Jayne is the adventurous one? She desperately wanted to go on the really big rides. She wanted to go on a ride called The Rocket (basically, you are lifted up about 50 or 60 feet in the air, and then dropped, bounced, dropped again, etc.) but she was too short, even with an adult (but Emerson wouldn't have gone, anyway.) So, we finally hit on a solution. She was tall enough to go on Colossus, and you can still buy tickets for individual rides. C.S. bought the required tickets, and he took his daughter on this ride. She LOVED it! Except the fact that her glasses fell off in the loop-de-loops. She was grinning from ear to ear when she got off! Here she is, very excited to be going on a Big ride:

We were then going to cap off the evening with watching the Lagoon fireworks from our home, but Lagoon decided to not have them this year - another victim of the economy. It just wasn't the same! We could've gone to the next town north and watch the show at the high school, but not after a day like today. If this is the new reality, we'll have to figure out something for next year. You have to have fireworks on the 4th!

C.S. has crashed, and I should probably get to sleep as well. It's been a fun and crazy "summer" break for us. Now back to the usual routine on Monday.

Stories

2009-06-16T19:14:00.008-06:00

I am sitting here, avoiding the call of the dirty dishes in the sink, reading a new (to me) discovery - Ken Jennings Blog. (If you don't know Ken Jennings , find out who he is on Wikipedia) He was telling a funny story about the Geography Bee, and it got me thinking about some of the stories in our family.

My daughter, Jayne, my sweet girly girl, has had some delightful experiences in her short life. I was reminded of this first one by Ken Jennings (in the May archive): We were enjoying a family dinner and having as nice a time as you can with an eight-year-old, four-year-old, and three-year-old, when all of a sudden Jayne felt the music and it had to be expressed right then, right there. So she stood up in her chair, put her hands on her hips, stuck her tushie out and sang "Shake your bootie, shake your bootie." Now, if that weren't bad enough, it just so happened that a man walked behind her right at that very moment! Oh! I could barely eat, I was laughing so hard!

About a year later, this darling daughter, this token female really displayed her femaleness in a church meeting. It was the quietest part of the meeting; the pews were full to the brim. When all of a sudden, out of nowhere, came an enormous belch! I mean a rafter-rattling belch! And who was the culprit? Yes, my darling daughter. We were right in the middle of the all the pews, and I saw shoulders shaking on the back row and behind the pulpit as well. Jayne had discovered a new talent. It has been coined in our family as "The Burp Heard 'Round the Ward."

This face? Can you imagine this face doing anything like that?

A Good Homeschool How-To Article

2009-06-11T11:24:00.001-06:00

I love The Pioneer Woman blog anyway, but here is a homeschooling post that is just wonderful. This is exactly what I would tell a newbie - but more succinct and with better writing!

The Pioneer Woman Homeschooling

Enjoy!

UP

2009-06-05T17:22:00.003-06:00

Aaaaah, Pixar. Why can't all movie companies have your vision, your talent, your creativity! But then it wouldn't be such a treat to go and see one of your movies.

We celebrated the end of our school year by seeing "UP" today. The movie guy in the Deseret News gave it four stars, so I was intrigued. (He hates just about every movie he sees.) I was expecting a good, funny show; but I saw a work of art. The story, artwork, characters, all of it was exquisite. Ed Asner was perfect.

I am so happy to be able to take all of my children to one show and have it be so enjoyable. We ALL loved it. Four-year-old Pinocchio was engaged, as was 14-year-old Emerson; and C.S. and I thoroughly loved it! It is PG (I didn't realize this until we got to the theater - Pinocchio is sometimes bothered by movies that are PG) because it is very intense in some scenes, but there is nothing inappropriate - none of those "Well, there was one scene . . ." scenes. There wasn't even any politically correct stuff that I noticed. (and I have a pretty sensitive nose for that.)

We usually only see one movie a year in a first run theater, and this certainly wasn't a waste of money; even though we had to pay full price for the 3D version at 1:30 in the afternoon. Now, compare that with the movie "Monster vs. Aliens" - what a difference; even the kids were disappointed. Not worth the money at the dollar theater!

I am so grateful to Pixar for giving us quality choices for our family.

Go see it . . . but don't forget the tissues. I'm still teary-eyed.

And, no. I am neither an employee of Pixar nor a movie reviewer. I just play one once in a while.

School's Out For . . . well, June

2009-06-04T09:53:00.003-06:00

We are now officially on summer break. I have found that I need more than 180 school days to get through many of the homeschool materials we use. Most require about 40 weeks of school, not just 36. We generally have 190-200 school days per year. So we don't take the entire summer off, just June. I started out taking July off (because of the holidays) but found that the kids stayed indoors a lot because of the heat. When we switched to June, there was a lot more outdoor time; then in July we stay in with the air-conditioning and kick-off the new school year. This July we will start with a 9th grader, 5th grader, 4th grader and kindergartener! 9th grader?!? No way! High School! It's just crazy how fast they grow up!

A Funny

2009-06-02T10:56:00.002-06:00

C.S. forwarded this to me the other day. He doesn't usually do that, so I knew it must be special.

So, without further ado, here is . . .

The Next Survivor Series

Six married men will be dropped on an island with one car and 3 kids each for six weeks.

Each kid will play two sports and either take music or dance classes.

There is no fast food.

Each man must take care of his 3 kids; keep his assigned house clean , correct all homework,

and complete science projects , cook, do laundry, and pay a list of 'pretend' bills with not enough money.

In addition, each man will have to budget in money for groceries each week.

Each man must remember the birthdays of all their friends and relatives , and send cards out
on time--no emailing.

Each man must also take each child to a doctor's appointment , a dentist appointment and a haircut appointment .

He must make one unscheduled and inconvenient visit per child to the Urgent Care.

He must also make cookies or cupcakes for a social function.

Each man will be responsible for decorating his own assigned house, planting flowers outside
and keeping it presentable at all times.

The men will only have access to television when the kids are asleep and all chores are done.

The men must shave their legs , wear makeup daily, adorn himself with jewelry, wear uncomfortable yet stylish shoes , keep fingernails polished and eyebrows groomed .

During one of the six weeks, the men will have to endure severe abdominal cramps, back aches,
and have extreme, unexplained mood swings but never once complain or slow down from other duties.

They must attend weekly school meetings, church, and find time at least once to spend the afternoon at the park or a similar setting.

They will need to read a book to the kids each night and in the morning, feed them, dress them,
brush their teeth and comb their hair by 7:00 am.

A test will be given at the end of the six weeks, and each father will be required to know all of the following information:each child's birthday, height, weight, shoe size, clothes size and doctor's name. Also the child's weight at birth, length, time of birth, and length of labor, each child's favorite color, middle name, favorite snack, favorite song, favorite drink, favorite toy, biggest fear and what they want to be when they grow up.

The kids vote them off the island based on performance. The last man wins only if...he still has enough energy to be intimate with his spouse at a moment's notice.

If the last man does win, he can play the game over and over and over again for the next 18-25 years eventually earning the right

To be called Mother!

I don't know the author, but whoever wrote this, thank you for making my day! :D

Homeschooling Article

2009-05-28T12:45:00.001-06:00

C.S. found this article this morning, and I thought I'd pass it on . . .

U.S.A. Today

A Midsummer Night's Dream

2009-05-24T09:27:00.005-06:00

Well, we're almost done. It's been one heck of a week - Emerson had three all-day rehearsals, one dress rehearsal, and two performances. Next week, he has one more performance, and then it's off to Shakespeare Showdown. (basically a 3-day Shakespeare camp, where several troops get together, take classes, and perform for each other.)

The kids did a fabulous job!! Especially considering all the problems we had with this year's production. It's really funny seeing Emerson act like a jerk! So opposite of his actual personality. He played Demetrius, and had to be rude and disdainful towards his beautiful friend who played Helena. The poor guy had to have this girl fall at his feet, literally, and beg him to love her! And he had to push her away - until the end, that is.

Here is the curtain call; Emerson is in the black hat with the cane::

Oh, I can't wait for the first week of June! I'm going to watch a LOT of movies!!!

Sweet Sunday Afternoon

2009-05-17T17:31:00.006-06:00

Aaaaaahhhhhh. It's Sunday. I love Sunday afternoons. I try to let the crock pot do the cooking, so that dinner is ready when we get home from church, at 4:15 pm. We eat, and then rest. The worries of the week can wait until tomorrow; you know, like the fact that our trusty green Ford Windstar has decided to die, shortly before it's 14th birthday . . .

Or that this week is tech (spelled H - E - double hockey sticks) week for Emerson's Shakespeare play, or that I might be teaching the Shakespeare class next year. No, I don't think about that.

Instead, we go have a pillow fight with cousins . . .

Or just lounge around . . .

Or maybe, just maybe, I might look through old photos of good friends and times past, just for kicks . . .

That was fun!

Renaissance Fun!

2009-05-08T17:39:00.007-06:00

We went to a Renaissance Festival today. I never thought I would say those words, but here we are. It was great fun. When I first heard about it, I thought it might be fun, but then promptly dismissed it. (I don't do well with crowds, and herding my children.) But then, I found out there would be jousting! So, that, combined with a huge discount (I'm talking a $48 dollar discount for the family!); it was on a Friday so C.S. could come; and the fact that we will be studying the middle ages next year in our homeschool; we decided to go. And I am so glad we did.

There were lots of fun booths and stuff for sale, as you will see:

Then came the Jousting! It was worth the wait. It was originally supposed to start at 11:00, but they had an injury and decided not to do the 'instructional' session. (with the "do not do this at home" disclaimer!) Then we heard it was going to start at 1:00, then 3:00, then 2:00. And surprisingly at 2:00 we got a great show:

And then we were blessed with this the rest of the day:

A Funny Website

2009-05-01T10:40:00.001-06:00

C.S. sent this to me. I found it quite enjoyable. If you are not much of a cynic, you may not enjoy it. :)

http://www.despair.com/lithographs.html

Enjoy!