How was our week?

So for the first time ever I have decided to do the Weekly Wrap-up at Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers. This week has been great because we had extra time to get some work done!  Our Friday afternoon activity (a two hour art class) was cancelled that gave us a bit more time to catch up this week.

We recently started Plants Grown Up and have been enjoying touching on a different topic each week. We went through the concepts of organizing and planning.  For one of my sons this is such an issue...he really has a hard time being organized!  It is something that we are continuing to work on.

I am real excited that we have started our new science...I have decided to go with Apologia.  I really need to give my oldest son a firm foundation in science as more than likely that is the field he will get into. 

For history this week, we are slowly moving through ancient Roman history and started studying the Punic Wars. For my youngest, the story of Hannibal and his elephants going over the Alps is a favorite.  Noah has always loved animals and has this thing for elephants.  Wouldn't surprise me if he becomes a zoologist!

Our most important moment this week is when the boys and I had a long talk about dealing with friendships.  My youngest is struggling with a kid who is kind of a bully. We spent about an hour talking about what makes a kid act that way.  It is a hard concept for my boys to understand that this boy desperately wants friends, but is still mean to others.  They just marvel at the fact that someone would be mean in an effort to get attention.  I am not sure I understand the dynamics of it all, but at least we had a great discussion about it and how to handle someone who is constantly mistreating us.  It is a fine line between setting up boundaries so that my son doesn't get hurt more and still trying to show compassion to the bully.  I came to the realization that I don't have all the answers.

Well, that is a little of how our week went.  To see more Weekly Wrap-ups, click here.

Starting a New Adventure...

We are finished with our science for this year!  I had no idea that we would get through it that quickly!  About a month ago I made the decision that we would switch to Apologia and see how we liked it.  I had heard from several families that they love it, and with Zach nearing high school I needed to find something that would give him a solid knowledge base in science.  I have a feeling that Zach will get into some science related field.  So I took the plunge and ordered General Science for Zach.  Noah had some options for his science.  I went ahead and let him choose what topic he wanted.  We have just finished zoology so those Apologia books were out of the question, so he could have chosen between astronomy and botany.  I really wanted him to choose astronomy!  But it's not about me, right?  He chose botany which doesn't surprise me.  If Noah ever follows a career in science, I am sure it will be one of the life sciences.

A friend of mine that just recently started homeschooling, mentioned a great company, Nature's Workshop Plus, that sets up the lab kits for each of the Apologia curriculums.  Well, I just received our order from them and was totally impressed!  For each curriculum there are baggies with the materials you need to complete the experiments!  I love the way they have them set up because each baggie contains the items you need for each lesson.  All I have to do is look for the lesson bag we need.  Now obviously there are a few items (perishable items) that I will have to get for the boys to complete some of the experiments, but for the most part everything is there!

We were going to be starting Apologia this coming week, but we had a bit of extra time this week so we have done a little work to get started.  Zach will just start at the beginning of his book and work through it.  For Noah there was the challenge of scheduling the units so that we can study botany outside.  This is a real problem in Alaska considering we have snow almost nine months out of the year. Luckily, in the notebooking journal I bought there are instructions on how you need to schedule the units and what needs to be available to you outside.  Here is what I came up with...

March-What is botany? and Seeds
April-Flowers and Pollination
May-Leaves
We will take a break for a part of the summer
August-Seedless Vascular Plants and Nonvascular Plants
September-Fruits and Roots
October-Stems and Trees
November-Gymnosperms and Nature Journaling

I will keep you updated on how our adventure is going!

Got Pride?

I am currently doing Beth Moore's newest Bible study (which is actually an update of one of her older studies), Breaking Free: The Journey, The Stories.  Even though I did this Bible study years ago I am being blessed all over again by it!  I just completed the first week of homework and got hit hard with the concept of pride.  Beth takes a look at several kings of Judah and the pride that they show in their reigns.  One of the questions she asked was, "Did you notice in our study this week that the godly kings seemed to struggle with issues of pride more than the ungodly kings? How can you personally apply this point and guard against it in your own life?"

This question really hit me...as Christians many of us struggle with pride...BIG TIME!  I know that I struggle with it in the area of not wanting others to see my weaknesses.  Just to give you an example, a month or so ago I ripped my calf muscle and had to limp along for awhile.  For those several days that I could walk right I was so self-conscious of walking in front of people.  I didn't want to do it...I didn't want the stares of others or to have them think, "What's her problem???"  Well, a few weeks after that my friend (the one I do bulk cooking with) sprained her ankle and was limping along as I had been.  She confessed to me that she was embarrassed to be seen in public limping like that.  We started to ask ourselves why we even cared and the conclusion we came to was PRIDE!  We had pride in our hearts!  This seeps out into other parts of my life...I don't want people to see that I struggle with unforgiveness, depression, anxiety and whole other list of weaknesses.  I don't want people to see that I do have "an ugly side" in my heart.  But God is leading me to a place where I need to be willing to expose the real me...in exposing the real me there will be no room for pride.

Pride is basically an arrogant attitude.  We think we are better than others...hence my unwillingness for others to see my weaknesses!  In having others see my weakness, I blow my cover! I am not all that I am cracked up to be!  I can't be prideful if I show weakness.  Basically, pride says, "I can put my trust in myself and my abilities rather than in God.  I have it all under control. I have no weakness."  But with pride comes a plethora of problems....remember, "pride comes before a fall".  If we raise ourselves up, then God is going to bring us down.  Plain and simple...we can't escape the penalty of pride.

God has been letting my see lately not only the pride in myself, but in other Christians and how that affects their lives.  He has been teaching me that pride is the chief destroyer of relationships.  It is the jumping off point for many other sins: self-righteousness, hypocrisy, stubbornness, defiance, contention, complaining, and the list could go on.  I have seen this play out over the last few months over and over again!  I am praying daily now that God will remove the pride in my life....the pride that I can't even see...that is subtle and hidden way deep down.  That has become my goal and prayer!

When there is no time for cinnamon rolls

I rarely buy convenience foods...we make most of our baked goods from scratch, and we love having cinnamon rolls in the morning!  However, they can be time-consuming.  Well, I just came across a recipe that doesn't take much time!  These aren't your traditional cinnamon rolls, but rather cinnamon roll bread.  Check out the recipe here from Baking Bites.  You might want to surf the Baking Bites site as there looks like a lot of great recipes!

He is wonderful because.....

This week I am going to be thankful for who God is and not necessarily what He does for me.....

372. He is all-knowing...He sees the big picture that we don't get.
373. He is all-powerful...He is in control when I am not!
374. He is forgiving.
375. He is just...He will not let the wrongs done to me go unpunished and He won't let my sin slide on by.
376. He is loving and deeply caring.
377. He is righteous...there is no evil in Him.
378. I can trust that He has my best interest at heart.
379. He is glorious...beyond our imaginations.
380. He is our Father...our daddy...the One we can go to when we hurt.
381. He is a good listener.
382. He is faithful to us and to who He is.
383. He is truthful...we can always trust what He says.
384. He is forever.
385. He is our Judge.
386. He is patient.
387. He is peace...our peace in a troubled world.
388. He is joy...the happiness in our lives.
389. He is merciful when we mess up.
390. He is full of grace.

State Postal Abbreviations

My oldest is trying to memorize the state postal abbreviations through his spelling program (Spelling Power).  I feel that knowing the abbreviations is important...one of those "basic knowledge" items that you need in the real world.  I can't tell you how many times people have looked at our postal code (AK) and thought we came from Arkansas!!!!  Not even close!  So I did a search on the internet for some resources to help my son solidify his knowledge on the postal codes.  See this post with a link to download some worksheets that help with the postal codes.

Butter Crocks

A friend of mine had a butter crock sitting on her table one afternoon when I went for a visit.  I had no idea what a butter crock was, but she soon told me!  My family always complains because I only buy sticks of butter...no tubs of the soften stuff (that really isn't butter anyways!).  They were tired of the bread getting torn up when they put the hard butter on it.  Well, a butter crock solves that problem!  Butter crocks can be left on the counter and will keep butter fresh for several weeks!  Your butter is always soft and won't go bad! Here is a diagram of what the inside of a butter crock looks like....

The water keeps the butter from being exposed to air so that it won't spoil.  I have read that you do need to change the water weekly and that the butter will be fresh for a month in the crock!  I bought my crock on Amazon.com.  Take a look as they come in all kinds of shapes and colors.

A Look at our Cooking Day Adventures....

Many of you know that I cook with a friend once a month.  We make 5-6 recipes that we quadruple and then split.  That comes out to about 10-12 meals that we stick in the freezer!  This has been such a blessing to both of us as we are very busy and have a hard time finding time to cook.  Here is a peek into what some of the cooking looks like...

My friend isn't fond of having her face on the internet...so this is all you will see of her!  She is cooking up some meat to go into our cowboy stew.  What you can't see is that she is wearing onion goggles!  These things really work!  You might laugh, but when you chop as many onions as we do to make all these meals your eyes really take a beating.  The goggles prevent that.  Another downside of mega cooking is that everything reeks of onion and garlic!  The months when we use less onion and garlic are a relief!

Here is the 16 bean soup we made this month.  We borrow pots from our church's kitchen in order to make the quantity that we need.

We also made baked potato soup this past month.  We modified the recipe a bit since we were freezing the soup.  We cooked the potatoes before putting them into the soup mixture because I was afraid that the uncooked potatoes would turn gray.  We also didn't put in the cream cheese...we will do that when we warm up the soup.  Our family had this soup last night...it was so yummy!!!

That's a lot of potatoes! They filled the oven!

Doing Laundry....

I have been making powdered laudry detergent for the past year now. I go in between using the homemade stuff and soap nuts.  Just this past week I decided to make fabric softener, too!  Here is my recipe for detergent:

2 cups grated Fels Naptha Soap (basically one bar)
1 cup Washing Soda (not baking soda!)
1 cup Borax

■Mix well and store in an airtight plastic container.  I normally make a double batch.

■Use 2 tablespoons per full load.

Here is the grated bar of soap...I use my Kitchen Aid attachment to grate it.  I know...it doesn't sound right to use my Kitchen Aid when I am going to grate cheese later, but all the equipment I use is put through the dishwasher a couple of times to get rid of any soap residue.

Here is the mixed detergent...it is ready to be used!

Making fabric softener was a new thing for me.  I was surprised to find out that one of the main ingredients in homemade fabric softener is white vinegar!  I have been using vinegar in my rinse cycle for years to get rid of that yucky smell that towels get sometimes.

Here are the ingredients that are needed...this is surprisingly simple!

Here is the recipe:

1 large container

1 gallon container for storing the softener

1 cup baking soda

6 cups white vinegar

water

essential oil (optional)

You need to mix the ingredients in a container that is BIGGER than one gallon!  Because of the chemical reaction of the baking soda and vinegar, the mixture needs a lot of space to expand.  Add the baking soda and 1 cup water to the big container.  No need to stir at this point. Slowly, pour in 6 cups vinegar.  Don't dump it in all at once or everything will overflow!!! I did about a cup at a time, and I let the bubbles subside a bit before adding more vinegar.  After all the vinegar is added let it sit for about 5 minutes.  Then add six cups of water.  Add 10-15 drops of essential oil if you like.  Stir.  Pour into your one gallon storage container.  You want to use about 1 cup for each load of laundry. 

I was surprised at how well this stuff worked!  The clothes were soft!  There is such a huge savings in doing this and it only takes a few minutes!  Besides, I recently heard that the dryer sheets (that I have used for years) are bad for your skin!  So we are going this route from now on!

Looking Ahead....

This is about the time I start thinking of what school will look like for us next year. It helps if I have some ideas before heading to our curriculum fair in April.

Here are my ideas so far...they aren't set in stone totally.

Zach (will be in 8th grade)

Math-- Math-U-See Algebra I
Science-- Apologia's General Science course
Language Arts-- Institute for Excellence in Writing (Medieval), Spelling Power, IEW's Fix-it, reading books related to our history, Word Roots
History-- Biblioplan Medieval, Renaissance, and Reformation
Spanish-- Rosetta Stone
Technology-- Help!  Anyone have any great suggestions...Zach loves technology...is there a great computer course out there for homeschoolers?

Noah (will be in 4th grade)

Math-- Math-U-See Delta and Epsilon (Finish Delta the first half of the year before moving on)
Science-- Apologia's Botany
Language Arts-- IEW's Fable, Myths, and Fairy Tales, Spelling Power, IEW's Fix-it, reading based on our history, and Italics
History-- Biblioplan Medieval, Renaissance, and Reformation
Spanish-- Rosetta Stone
Typing--Typing Instructor for Kids

Attitude Adjustment

 My attitude has been changed by doing Multitude Monday!  Each week I create a list to share with you of the things that I am thankful for.  The goal is to get to 1,000!  By focusing on the positive in my life, I have found that I can get through the day better...I can praise God more...I can relate to others in a way that honors them.  I would highly encourage you to give it a try!  Click on the button above to find out more. 

361.  Valentine's Day!

362.  The love of my family.

363.  Financial blessings that God has sent our way recently.

364.  The money to send the boys to camp.

365.  God's love and His pursuit of us.

366.  The growth of the Jr. High Sunday School class that I am teaching...praying that it continues to grow not only in numbers, but that there is also spiritual growth among the kids.

367.  That Noah's scar from his stitches is healing nicely.

368.  A full night's sleep in the midst of a bout of insomnia.

369.  Early morning time to blog and read a devotional.

370.  More daylight...we are coming out of the darkness that happens every winter here.

371.  Humor!  Like when my friend posted on Facebook the following: Inspirational tip: When someone asks you to 'think about what Jesus would do', remember that a valid option is to freak out and turn over tables.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day to all my readers!  This is what I am doing for Tim and the boys this year....  I have made them candy I-pods and will decorate our kitchen table with pink and red (Men love this! LOL) and will place some of their favorite goodies along with the "I-pods" on the table.  Thought you might like to see them...here are the instructions for making them.

What Difference Do It Make?

Thomas Nelson contacted me in late January to see if I would be interested in reviewing What Difference Do It Make?, the sequel to Same Kind of Different as Me.  I read Same Kind of Different as Me, the story of a homeless man and his friendship with a rich art dealer, in just two days.  The story captivated me and convicted me on how I deal with others. So I was excited to receive the sequel...

What Difference Do It Make? is an update on Ron Hall (the rich art dealer) and Denver Moore (the former homeless man) and what they have been doing since the last book (Same Kind of Different as Me).  I appreciated how the book was set up...there are chapters where Ron and Denver go back and forth with updates (included in these updates are portions of Same Kind of Different as Me in italics to remind the reader of what happened in the first book).  Since I recently read Same Kind of Different I skipped the few italicized parts.  There are also chapters on how people who read the first book were influenced by the story and how they then went out to help others in need.  One of them in particular was real inspiring of a woman saying a man's life (I won't go into detail...don't want to spoil it for you).

There were many parts of the book that were inspiring especially the parts where Denver gives spiritual insight like...

"I think part a' this problem is that too many folks ain't ready to face up to the fact that to love the unlovable, they got to face the people they fear.  They is afraid to get out of their regular livin' space 'cause they afraid it might be suicide, right? 'Cause you wouldn't be scared a' nobody if you didn't feel like they was gon' do you wrong."

What a true statement!  Doesn't the Bible say that "perfect love casts out fear"?  When we are fearful of others we can't totally love them.

While I enjoyed the book, I have to say that there were parts of it that disturbed me.  First of all, there is use of rough language in the book. While the "milder" cuss words are used and are there to show where people are coming from, I found it shocking that they were in the book.  Same Kind of Different didn't have this type of language.  Also, the storyline about Ron's relationship with his father bothered me.  While I appreciated some of the insight Ron had about his alcoholic father's abusive behavior and their relationship, I found it odd that Ron would serve him Jack Daniels.  On the up side however, I think that Ron was trying to get the point across that he was meeting his dad on a level that his dad understood.  However, it still disturbs me that he would contribute to his alcoholism.

I have to say that I enjoyed Same Kind of Different as Me more than the sequel.  There were some great moments, insights, and inspiration in What Difference Do It Make?, if you are willing to look past some of the language and tough subjects presented in the book.

A Common Bond--We've been featured!

Go check out The Frugal Homeschooling Mom blog...Deana introduced our family in one of her regular features called "A Common Bond" where she highlights the lives of different homeschooling families. To see the article on us, go here!  At the end of each post for "A Common Bond" there are instructions you can follow if you would like to be featured.

Praying Through the Bible

My Word of the Year for 2010 is "prayer".  God has been teaching me so much about prayer and how we are to relate to Him.  I have grown closer in my relationship with Him by keeping a prayer journal and learning more about prayer.  One of the books that I have been reading is The Power of Praying Through the Bible.  This is not the type of book you would just read through.  It is more of a devotional.  Stormie has selected certain passages from the Bible starting with Genesis and working through to Revelation.  For each passage she writes a short devotional about prayer.  I have gotten through all the Genesis devotions and am now moving onto Exodus.

I have recently been struggling with the fact that some of my prayers God has given no answer or He is saying "Wait" for the time being.  When I read this paragraph in Stormie's book it bought me peace and conviction at the same time...

"How long do you patiently wait for answers to your prayers? Does a week seem too long to wait? What about a month? Waiting for a year seems to be beyond our ability. To see that Abram waited for a quarter of a century for an answer should give us hope to wait for our own prayers to be answered."

I marveled at this passage...for 2009 my word was "patience" and now this year "prayer".  God is rolling both these words together now for me as I pray and patiently wait on Him!

Think Spring!

A few days ago, a friend of mine sent us pictures from awhile back when we went to the frog pond with them.  Being in the depths of winter (January and February being some of the hardest months of the year), it was good to see some spring/summer pictures!  Gives us something to look forward to!  The frogs that we caught are called wood frogs (Rana sylvatica) and are the only amphibians that live in central Alaska. They freeze into "frogsicles" in the winter and then come out in the spring!  I can't wait for the cold and snow to leave!  I am sure there are a few frogsicles that would agree with me!

In hot pursuit of a frog!

Reaping the rewards of all our efforts!

Zach in the pond.

Dragonfly...can you spot it?

Guess what we just saw...

...the biggest plane in the world!  The Antonov 225, built in the Ukraine to be used in the Russian space program to carry their space shuttle, is here in Fairbanks for the day.  It is on a stopover before it heads to Haiti to bring relief supplies to the people there.  We were able to drive by it tonight to let the boys see it.  Pretty impressive!  It was so big around that I am surprise that the thing can even get up in the air!  We are praying that its cargo will be able to bless the Haitian people.

Cooking with Style

For over a year now one of my closest friends and I have been doing what we have termed "Cooking Adventures". Each month we get together to cook meals that we can put in our freezer.  I have tried to post each time we cook and share the recipes with you.  You will notice on my left sidebar a recipe button.  If you click on that you will get a list and the links for our favorite meals.  But before I go into what we cooked yesterday for Februrary, I thought I would show you this awesome gift that my friend just gave me...a chef's shirt!  See what it says?!

Now I am a all decked out to cook what I want....

...just don't mess with the chef!  LOL

By the way, my friend got herself a matching shirt!

So onto more important things like our recipes...

"Fried" Chimichangas

Gobble-icious Chicken Strips

The rest of the recipes come from the Year of Slow Cooking Blog

Creamy Corn and Spinach Enchiladas

Baked Potato Soup

Cowboy Stew

16 Bean Soup