It is a delightful thing when kids learn to cook

Janai did very well with her first pie every!  It was a big hit!

My birthdays just keep getting better!

They really do! You can never hear the words "Happy Birthday mom!" I got to hear it all day today! And it never got old! I love how they drew a birthday picture on the wall chalkborard!

I began my day on a very good note, a healthy bowl of oatmeal with cream and slivered almonds! Then my husband took me to dinner, shopping, and home to have some yummy cake and ice cream. Robyn made this delicious Walnut Cake: AKA Hickory Nut Cake from one of my favorite movies Meet Me In St. Louis.

And speaking of things not getting old! Well maybe there are some things that get old according to my children! I just couldn't get them to stop putting all those candles on the cake! They are welcome to go all day wishing me happy birthday but STOP with candles already!

My little girls presented me with some very precious gifts.

This is a far of dimes and pennies my kids have been collecting. Their goal is to find 'real' copper pennies and 1965 or older for the dimes. They gave me part of their collection and after I opened it Mary asked if she could count them and I told her yes. So she dumped them out onto the table and I noticed there were dimes in there when I thought there were only pennies. I asked: "Hey are there dimes in there too?"

Oh yes, said Mary. But they're bad ones?

I was confused, Bad ones, what do you mean?

She said, You know bad ones, seriously, she (her sister) put them in there, I'm not kidding mom, seriously, there are bad ones in there!! (meaning 'newer' dimes) I just thought it was so cute and funny. Kids say the funniest things.

The Homeschool Mother's Journal

For the week of Feb. 13 - Feb. 17th, 2012

In my life this week....I have had more time to read to the kids than normal and I am really enjoying it. I have been enjoying this even more than reading books I am personally interested in. I sometimes struggle with staying focused and on track with all the things on my plate but as of late I have been praying for more focus and I'm seeing the fruits of those prayers everyday. In the end there is only so much that matters and that is the time I spend with my kids; in reading to them, taking time to train them, instruct them in their homeschool lessons, having quality chat time, and enjoying doing activities together. There can be so many distractions that take us away from our families and I have been determined to fine tune my attention to the best of my ability towards home and hearth.

In our homeschool this week....I'm proud to say that I actually got some handicraft projects incorporated into our days. I should rephrase that - A handicraft project!

We had 5 of them but one must have taken up legs and walked off!

A peek at our classical writing class. The model looks a bit rough around the edges but much work goes into these! We identify all of the parts of speech throughout the week by circling, underlining, checking, etc. Each week we focus on a different Aesop's Fable as our model to analyze. We cover vocabulary, spelling, dictation, copywork, parts of speech, elocution as each child reads aloud their model and we go on to discuss the fable in depth and talk about how we can apply it to our own lives. Each of the children has their own copy to "mess up." On the right Janai colored her picture of Abraham from out lesson in Christian Studies.

Helpful homeschooling tips or advice....Here's a 'tip' for a couple of the very best artsy type books I have found. They are full to the brim with awesome ideas.

I am inspired by....My daughter Christie and her resolute faith in the Lord. She prays, she patiently waits and listens, then moves forward with a clear mind resolved to do the will of the Lord in her life! Something I am always foggy on. Waiting, hearing, knowing for sure.........

Places we're going and people we're seeing....This statement gets me every time! I'm sure every time I post my Homeschool Mother's Journal it will always stay the same. - Staying home! (Does the grocery store and church count as places we are going?)!!!!!!!!!!!

My favorite thing this week was....Watching 4 of my kids sweating it out with Jillian Michaels. Typically, only the boys workout but since they finished with P90X they've wanted to try something new so they started doing Jillian's workouts. The girls decided they'd jump in just for the fun.

What's working/not working for us....Setting aside ALL movie time until after dinner has been helping us a ton. We only have the abilities to watch movies of our choice which is great but not when one child finishes with their school and decides to watch a movie. That always interferes with the other kids. Just knowing there is a movie on somewhere creates a loss of attention. Even though the movie is on in another room. So now, NO movies until all school and chores are DONE!

Questions/thoughts I have....This one just kills me!! It's a new twist on the same ole story of trying to get a new roll of toilet paper changed out once one is empty. Around here we have a certain someone, or someones, not sure yet on the who is doing it. What happens is that once the roll is empty, the cardboard roll gets taken off and thrown away but then they put the holder back into place before putting another roll on it. And yes, 99% of the time there are fresh rolls on the shelf which sits right next to the holder. Yep, this one has me baffled for sure!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Things I'm working on....Making sure the motorcycle gets out of my dining room and doesn't return! Our son's new toy just could not possibly spend it's first night outside in the cold! He told me I was a being a good trooper to let him have the opportunity to sit and look at it without freezing his little b*m off outdoors! And of course everyone HAD to sit on it! I would like to add - First there is NO carpet in our house! Second, eons ago when hubby and I were first married and had 2 small children we lived on the bottom floor of a condo in Colorado. He bought a motorcycle and just couldn't bear leaving it outside all winter with no garage or anything and he brought it indoors. (after MUCH discussion, coaxing, and buttering up to me!) We had a second bathroom that was never used since our children were so small and one in diapers as well and I guess I really didn't see what it would hurt. You know what they say?The apple doesn't fall far from the tree!

I'm cooking/baking....Need I say more?

I'm grateful for....The latest small snowfall. We've not gotten nearly as much as we have in winters past and I worry about ground water come spring. We've still not had one day of sledding as the shortage of snow has made it impossible.

I'm praying for....Faith

A photo or quote to share - William Penn told the Russian Czar, Peter the Great, that "if thou wouldst rule well, thou must rule for God, and to do that, thou must be ruled by him." Penn also said that "those who will not be governed by God will be ruled by tyrants."

I've always loved this picture of oldest daughter and baby number 11

Left alone in the kitchen!

It was one of those days when morning came way to quickly! Lessons were taught, lunch was made and the sofa was screaming my name! I not only gave in to the sofa but I also gave in to two little girls who were anxious to get started on the cookies I promised they could make. In my tired desperation I decided that they could go ahead without me and I'd be in shortly. Well, they managed alright as the photos show. (I did get a bit of a shock though when I walked in a bit later to see the, well, you know, the results of all their effort all over the kitchen. Including the floor!) But they managed well and the cookies were delicious and best of all I had 2 happy little girls to eat some cookies with!

Nothing better than pizza two nights in a row!

My twins have been having so much fun in the kitchen lately. They've gathered up all my cookbooks, recipe magazines, and misc. recipes and have been building their own little cookbook of their favorite dishes. Not only have they been copying down recipes but inventing them too!! This week they made pizza twice. Chicken barbeque and ranch chicken broccoli. Both were very good. The recipes are below.

For one pizza that fits on cookie sheet (we doubled this)

Barbeque Chicken

2 T. yeast dissolved in 1 cup water

2 teas. olive oil

1/2 teas. salt

3 1/2 cups flour

MIx together the dough well and add 1 more cup flour to mixture as mixing. Let rise for 1 hour.

Punch dough down and knead for 2 minutes and press into greased baking sheet.

2 chicken breast, cooked and chopped

1-2 cups barbeque sauce

1/2 cup finely chopped onions (we used dried onions)

2 cups shredded cheese (parmesan and mozzarella are our favorites)

Spread some sauce on the dough, mix the rest with the chicken and onions and spread over dough. Sprinkle with parmesan and mozzarella cheese. Bake in 450 oven for 15 minutes.

Ranch Chicken and Broccoli

Same dough as listed above.

Chop in chopper about 2-3 cups fresh broccoli

2 cups chopped chicken

Ranch dressing or, in our case tonight we used random bottles we had in the fridge. We had 2 partial containers of Ranch and a partial container of Parmesan Caesar dressing. (It turned out to be a great combination)

2 cups shredded cheese

Make dough and set to rise. Then mix the chicken and broccoli in a bowl and add enough dressing just to coat and moisten the mixture. Spread dressing on dough then add toppings and cheese last. Bake as directed above. This was an extremely easy and fast pizza to make and it was a huge hit!! I think they preferred it over the barbeque.

Enjoy

Scenes from October

Fall decorated cupcakes and hot cocoa offered after hours of wood splitting

One day of many days splitting wood

Hugs from big sis!

Quietly working on lessons!

Daddy finishing up on the roof repairs!

Looking sweet after sister fancied up her hair!

What's for dinner?

I love that my kids know how to find their way around the kitchen. My twins are first rate when it comes to planning AND cooking an entire meal with dessert included. Here is one of our fall/winter favorites they made for us this week. And the cake was to die for. I highly recommend you try this recipe. They found it in one of my Taste of Home magazines.

Kielbasa sausage links

Potato Pancakes

Sliced tomatoes

Chocolate Buttermilk Cake

Cake Recipe

1/4 cup baking cocoa

1 cup water

1/2 cup butter, cubed

2 cups flour

2 cups sugar

1 teas. baking soda

2 eggs

1/2 cup oil

1/2 cup buttermilk

Icing

1/4 cup cocoa

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup buttermilk

3 3/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1 teas vanilla

1/2 cup chopped pecans, optional

Combine cake ingredients until smooth and bake in 350 oven for 35 minutes. Ice and enjoy.

Juicing and The Dirty Dozen

We do a lot of juicing around here. That's what makes summer and spring my favorite seasons....the abundance of fresh foods priced at their best! However, choosing the best of the produce can be a bit tricky at times depending on where you shop. Local farmer's markets, road side stands, and of course your own garden are the best places to find organic or mostly organic produce for the best price. But when that isn't possible and the grocery store is our only option then we need to look closer into 'where' the produce is coming from. Try to buy from products from the USA as much as possible, and if you are able to, and can afford it try to find organic. We have an awesome grocery store in our area that sells 'in season' organic produce for an affordable price. Many times, I can find organic for only pennies more than non-organic. Another thing that is helpful is knowing which fruits and vegetables are the considered the 'worst' and 'best' when it comes to choosing what our family likes. Here is the 'Dirty Dozen List' that I found and memorized. It is good to know that not ALL produce could or should be considered best to buy organic.

The 12 most contaminated

peaches

sweet bell peppers

celery

nectarines

strawberries

cherries

pears

imported grapes

spinach

lettuce

potatoes

apples

The 12 least contaminated

onions, avocados, sweet corn, pineapples, mangos, asparagus,

sweet peas, kiwi, bananas, cabbage, broccoli and papaya.

Wonderful Wednesday

At least us kids think its wonderful. Thanks mom!

Melt 1 & 1/4 C peanut butter with

1 C. honey or kayo syrup and

1 C. brown, white, or all natural sugar

8 C. dry cereal-we combined both chex and cheerios because we didn't have enough of either!

When mixture is all melted together add cereal and stir to coat. Press into pan and cool.

PS. If you don't have any dry cereal on hand use popcorn. That's yummy too.

Taming the cookie monster.....or, monsters?

Homemade oreo cookies

Someone, or several someones didn't have enough patience to wait for the filling.

1 box cake mix

2 eggs

2/3 shortening

mMx together until thick, scoop onto cookie sheet and bake at 375 for 14 minutes. Frost with your favorite white frosting and enjoy!!!

Mock Cheese Cake

This yummy little snack is so easy to make and tastes just like cheese cake. Our favorite jams to use are black raspberry and strawberry. Just take a box of Ritz crackers, package of cream cheese, and some jam and you can make a quick and tasty snack or dessert!!

My determined 4 year old

If you are not in the mood to bake cupcakes then don't read this blog post from Karen while having your 4 year old sitting at your side!! Because there will be no rest for you until you whip up a batch of them with your little one at your side! And since it's nearly Christmas you have to icing them green and red. (her idea!) But plain green has to work since the red was all gone! Somehow I don't think it mattered though.

I think the pan would have been full but I couldn't keep up with the kids. Every time I got icing on one and sat it down it disappeared.

Sure made Mary's day!

Cooking with kids!

"Now it was time to check the oven to see if it had cooled enough to cook the pies. Mama had a special way to tell when it was cool enough!"~Little House by Boston Bay

By the time we finished reading this chapter my girls were quite decided on making pies!

They made blueberry and cherry. Needless to say everyone really enjoyed them!

What's for Dinner?

Beans~Again!! Tonight we will have beans as a soup along with the bagels we all helped in making earlier today. The cinnamon rolls are for dessert. A perfect winter storm meal. We are expected to get several inches of snow so I made sure that this week we will eat some hardy meals from my 5lbs of beans we cooked up today.

Egg Bagels

4 medium eggs

2 T. yeast

8 C. flour

2 C. warm water

1/4 C. oil

1 T. salt

1 T. sugar or honey

Mix all ingredients together and knead for about 10 minutes. Place mixture in greased bowl and let rise for 20 minutes. Punch down and divide in about 20 balls and flatten. Let sit for 15 minutes. Drop bagels in boiling water for 3 minutes turning once. Place on greased sheet and brush on egg yolk. Bake at 450 for 20-25 minutes. You can put a hole in the middle if desired but as you can see I didn't. I rarely use all white (unbleached) flour but I don't make these enough to worry much about it!! Once in a while a little white won't hurt anyone!! My kids love these and most likely they will be gone by the end of the day!!

My twins made these cinnamon rolls today. They were intended for dessert but I think they are finished already!! Right when they came out of the oven the kids started on them!!

NOT a Chocolate Lover

But, this cup of hot chocolate just changed my mind. And for a plus, the ingredients are all natural and good for you. Even the whipping cream can't be beat. I have included the recipes under the picture.

5 T. unsweetened cocoa--(but I only used 4 to be on the safe side)

1/2 teas. cinnamon

1/8 teas. ground nutmeg

Pinch of salt

1/3 C. of honey

1/2 C. hot water

4 C. milk

1 teas. vanilla

Combine the cocoa, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and honey in saucepan and mix well. Stir in the hot water. Heat until it just begins to boil. Quickly turn down the heat so the mixture barely simmers for about 30 seconds. Add milk to the saucepan. Stir constantly over medium heat for 1-2 minutes just to heat it.

Stir in vanilla. Use a wire wisk to beat the got chocolate until is is frothy. Top with whipped cream and enjoy.

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Whipped Cream

1 C. Real Cream

couple T. maple syrup

1 teas. vanilla

Beat the cream until thick and add syrup and vanilla and mix well.