Homeschooling

Posted on Friday, August 29, 2008 at 06:45

It's so fall feeling with the cool weather it just makes the kids want to do school!  We discussed spelling and the consensus is that Excellence in Writing's Phonics Zoo really does teach spelling better than anything else we have used. I had Calvert's spelling CD last year to give them a break from the same old, same old and they tell me they didn't learn anything from it. They tell me they always refer back to the rules they learned in Excellence in Spelling anyway. Well, good. We still have it and we shall continue! Their spelling really has improved over the years. I have seen huge growth but none of them are natural spellers. I picked up a book from Costco called Painless Spelling. I was reading it and it's quite interesting. It talks about words in a fun way. I think we will go through the book together and see what we can learn. I also have Rummy Roots and I think we should play around with that some, too.


I enrolled in the 2008 -2009  Blogger Friend School and I am participating in their Back to School Giveaway. See, I think Brianna would LOVE those nature journals!!! I can always learn something new.

Hungry Anybody?

Posted on Thursday, August 28, 2008 at 07:31

There should be no exuse for hunger around here, should there? What am I going to do with all that spagghetti squash? There is a ton of sweet meats out there, too. I worked in the garden for an hour and pulled up some plants and picked these veggies and took my neat little hula hoe - which I had not used at all this year and trimmed up the weeds. It's looking good and going strong.

Thanks to the Talls for the beautiful pears.

This is it for our family orchard. We have a few boxes of these wonderful nectarines and they mark the end of harvesting our own fruit. 

Potatoes

Posted on Thursday, August 28, 2008 at 04:42

I was wondering out loud this morning if there were any potatoes in the lower garden as we were driving down the road towards town. Suddenly the girls remembered they had not fed the horse so we did a U turn and returned to feed Bella. Poor thing! The "Forgetter" was thinking it was another day of the week and someone else's day! While they took care of her, I put my hand down into the hay in the potato patch and came out with a nice big Yukon Gold.  So, we had new potatoes for dinner today.

We were 15 minutes late for our appointment, but the orthodontist forgave us and put braces on Vanessa's teeth. I can't wait to see her fangs move into place in the next couple weeks. I remember thinking Brianna's moved very fast. The other two were at music lessons and I had two hours to go shopping all alone. It was fun. I don't do that very often. I didn't get very far. I think I am a slow shopper. I bought a package of 105 skeins of craft floss and a lot of bright colors. The girls are into making the friendship braids and learning new designs right now. I think this fancy package will keep them and their girlfriends entertained for hours on trip to Africa.

So far we were able to only register 2 in our family for a yellow fever shot. This is getting complicated! I hope to register two more today and then maybe it will work to register the last one tomorrow... then we have to work out a time to actually get it done.

Yesterday, we drove into Wenatchee as soon as we knew Steve was off work and raced to the government buildings to get Vanessa's passport application in. With Steve working long hours everyday we can't seem to get there when the place is open... We got there 10 minutes before closing time and you would not believe it, but the woman refused to help us because it was too close to closing time!!! It was a total waste of time. They sure know how to complicate things.

Readymade

Posted on Monday, August 25, 2008 at 07:54

This is what 10 double batches of my experiment "just add water" cashew cheese looks like. I had a lot of fun with this. I think that I actually need to make more, but I ran out of a few ingredients. I have to dry more tomatoes because I used up all the tomato powder and I ended up making a few "jack" cheese batches. I vaccum sealed the packages and I will store them in my freezer until we are ready to go. This will be nice on haystacks, quesedilla's, breakfast burritos and such.

I am posting my recipe, not because I think anybody is going to make it, but because I need to have it for future use.

1 c. cashew pieces

1 Tbl. cornstarch

4 Tbl. dried tomato powder

1 tsp. onion salt

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 Tbl. Lemon powder

1/3 c. yeast flakes

Blend well. Seal in ziplocks and freeze. When needed blend with 2 1/2 cups water and simmer in saucepan, stirring constantly until thick. 

The girls enjoyed picking blackberries by the irrigation ditch this afternoon. They grow wild and abundant down by the water. They also picked the beans and I blanched and froze them. Today was the first real unharried and unhurried day I have had in a LONG time. I enjoyed it thoroughly. There is something about just staying home and doing home chores that makes me feel rested for a change.

. . . . . . . . ! ! !

Posted on Monday, August 25, 2008 at 01:20

The man in brown visited us today!  We are ready to start packing. This stack is a little intimidating to say the least. Actually  though, we are only allowing one footlocker each. The other footlocker each is for VBS supplies, food, and things to take over and leave for the project. You would be amazed at the things people think they need... I think Jason and Antionette are laughing at us right about now and my mom is rolling her eyes.  If they only knew!!! Actually, I have done my share of eye rolling... particularly at some of my husbands outlandish ideas. Uh, did I say secretly? Anyways.... as I was saying !!! We don't have any suitcases because we have never really needed any, I guess. We have small rolling bags but they don't fit anywhere near 50lbs. That's how much each piece of luggage is limited to.  These footlockers were $25 each which beats suitcase prices but I had to special order them and there were some shipping costs. Couldn't find a single footlocker in town, though Wal -Mart would have ordered them and they would have cost more than these with the shipping. I am a little afraid of this monumentous task - this computer isn't sure monumentous is a word, or that I spelled it correctly, but it describes the task very well, according to me.) I am afraid of all the STUFF we are going to bring that we don't need.  So, Antionette, Jason, Mom, let us know what you need from us quick... or forever hold your peace

The Seamstress

Posted on Sunday, August 24, 2008 at 07:06

Christina has been working very hard most of the day sewing. She has been making pillow cases for our travel pillows and she is getting quite creative about it! She doesn't need my help much. This is the perfect project since all the seams are straight.

She enjoyed looking through the stash of fabric, seam binding and rickrack and choosing her combinations. She's especially proud of the pink polka dot with the double rickrack that she made for Bri.

This lacy one is for me.

So far she has finished 5 and she plans to make 5 more so that we can change the pillow cases to wash them. I suggested that since I think this is a good way for her to practice her sewing skills. Of my three girls, she has more patience and desire to sew than the other two, but they are slowly becoming interested. Anyway,  I am quite happy with Christina's work!

Tomato Power

Posted on Sunday, August 24, 2008 at 02:39

The dried tomatoes blended up into a nice powder.  We're calling tomato power! It turned out well  and I am  sure it is going to work in my experiment very well.  It's pretty potent stuff. We'll have to use it in small amounts.

I decided half the tomatoes needed to wait another day to be all the way ripe. There were enough to can 14 jars of tomatoes and a big pot of spagghetti sauce.  The kids love homemade spagghetti sauce with peppers and eggplant, zucchini and homegrown herbs in it.

I am thinking there just might be something to the theory that the Night Shade family of vegetables are not good for arthritis. I have been eating an abundance of peppers, eggplant, tomatoes and some potatoes. I have a few knuckles that are more sore and swollen than usual, too.

Boy!  I've been doing a great job of burning off all the hair on my knuckles. Everytime I light the canner,  Whamp! There goes the hair on a few more fingers. I think I might have figured it out why I was having so much trouble lighting the silly thing. The propane tank was nearly empty.....and now it is empty.  In fact, it didn't finish the tomato job. I don't know how long it sat there. It seemed obvious that it boiled  'cause the  jars sealed in the pot... ( how come I don't know for sure?) But one must be cautious with tomatoes. I certainly didn't want to go and fill the tank. After all, I would have had to drive the 1/2 mile to the gas station!!! Worse yet I would have had to unhook the propane tank from the stove and I hate doing that. But my real handy excuse was that I think my husband has to take a look at the hose before I use it again. It's full of cracks. SO, I finished the job on my stove top. Yep! my glasstop. Nope, it didn't crack. Good thing. I would have had a hard time explaining that one!

It was a busy week!!!

Posted on Sunday, August 24, 2008 at 08:36

Life got a little crazy around here and I never had a chance to update this blog.

Wednesday:  On Wednesday I spoke at the Cashmere Rotary Club about our upcoming trip to Africa. Somehow I had gotten the impression I was talking to a little group of women. Not so! The room was full of business women and MEN all dressed up. I didn't know what a rotary club was, actually. All I knew was that I was to share about our project in Africa and have the kids sing. I had 7 girls  and their moms with me. They sang very well. Then I showed my mom's pictures of Africa and the orphans and talked about the needs created by the AIDS epidemic in Tanzania.

People seemed favorably impressed. The gal who asked me to speak knew the kids had to raise $1500 each for the plane tickets and she also knew many of them had made nice note cards from their water color paintings to sell and she asked them to bring cards. Isabelle was the only one with any cards ready to sell. She was one of the few who hadn't quite reached her goal. The cards were on the table and as people filed out afterwards they put money in her hands. It was MORE than she needed to complete her goal. She had $230 donated that day. Bethany was a little short on her goal so they split it.  We have been asked to update them when we get back. We were also asked to sing at a couple of churches.

 Our dear friend Sharon died Wednesday morning from cancer. We will miss her. When I think of her I think of all the years of faithful service to our children's choir. She was NEVER late and ALWAYs there. She loved the kids and she really contributed to our ministry. When cancer claimed her energy it was with a sad heart she had to give up playing the piano for us.

Thursday: Steve had the day off so we finally got to use the tickets for the water park that we had been give way back in May. It was a bit cooler than usual which was nice because there were less people there. In all there are 10 water slides. We like the double tube and the racer. The racer was just like crazy carpeting. I could imagine myself on snow rather than water. It was sooooooo FAST! Christina loved the purple haze the best. It is a dark tube where you can't see a thing for 400 feet of water slide.  My feet have deep blisters from walking on concrete without shoes.

Friday: Kristen and I got together to plan food for the Africa trip. My house can be grand central station with people coming and going and a houseful of kids. We didn't get everything done, but we kind of organized our thoughts a little and decided what needed to be ordered from Andy's Market.  I spent all afternoon preparing food for company. When you cook out of a garden it takes twice as long.... We picked green beans and snapped them  and blanched and froze the extras. I made a huge cabbage salsa from one of my great big cabbages for the homeless ministry and kept a little bowl for our meal. I did Spanish rice and a huge pot of refried beans and a great big cucumber tomato salad and I served water melon and cornchips with it all.

Sabbath: I was suppose to lead out in song service but I wasn't quite ready in time with trying to have the food ready for company, so Brianna went ahead and did it for me.

I enjoy teaching the little primary Sabbath school class with Elaine. The kids are fun! We have a new little girl in the class. I kind of get the picture she has had very little Christian influence in her life. She is very, very sweet and good, but she hasn't known the basics like kneeling when we talk to Jesus.  Her dad was a soldier shot in the head in Iraq and has been recovering for a couple of years. She tells me they are moving here. 

We miss our little buddy Payton in class. BUT we were glad to learn he and his family made it to Korea safely. We won't see them for 2 years. We are praying for their ministry there. Kids say the funniest things. Before they left a friend was saying goodbye to them and said to Payton, "You are going to be so big the next time I see you." He never batted an eye, "Yup, and you are going to be old!"

Vanessa was pianist for church... and since it was communion she brought her harp. Then we had the new Pastor and his family over for lunch and also our friends the Kahlers. The pastor's son was in Africa where we are going for a year. He think my brother is the coolest guy on earth!

We went and helped with the homeless ministry in the park. There were a lot of people. Probably 50 or so. The kids sang and played their violins and the guys seemed to respond well to that. There was another crazy fight. I don't particularly like going there with kids.

Sunday: Vanessa is going to play the piano for me at the United Church this morning and I am going to can tomatoes! We have a lot of tomatoes coming out of the garden so today is the day I can them.

The Homeschool Plan

Posted on Tuesday, August 19, 2008 at 08:23

I am not so organized as most of you at the moment! I haven't sat down with the books or anything, but I might not need to. Sounds weird, I know, but life is very busy and homeschooling  is just part of our life no matter what time of year it is. If we are off doing something or the fruit needs canning we don't study, but if we are home it is just a natural part of our daily routine.  So, maybe this is more to organize my thoughts than to really "tell" what we are doing.

 

17 years!

Posted on Tuesday, August 19, 2008 at 08:36

We've been married 17 years! If I had to choose all over again, I would marry the same man -  no question!! He is a very good husband and our life together has been a happy one.  I am grateful that he is so committed to the Lord, is a wonderful, dedicated father and loves me, even after all these years.

We actually went out to eat together Friday at Viscontti's. The kids were at a friend's and the NWYC.

He brought home the roses last night. He said there was one rose for each year we were married and one for this year. He also had a gift for me. I am the worst at getting gifts. Part of it is my practicality... I won't buy something just because. I won't buy something unless I  absolutely know it is needed and will be used. I think that most stuff people buy aren' t necessary and so, I have a hard time shopping for gifts. I like to plan ahead but when I am so busy, I just don't... That said, I still haven't given my husband a birthday present - and his birthday was the day before yesterday, let alone get him an anniversary gift. I feel crummy about that and at the same time I know that gifts from the heart are far more meaningful.

I got to thinking I better start planning for the girl's birthdays in October, now. Vanessa will be 15 the day she plays for the symphony and three days before our Africa trip. Christina will turn 11 on our trip. I need to think of a little thing that would mark those milestones in their lives and make it a bit special.

We've been to the river twice this week. We floated our tubes around Black Bird Island. The first day was 103 degrees and even muggy. We went with the Talls and had a great time. The water felt wonderful. Then the next day the girls and I decided to invite the new Pastor's wife and daughter to go with us and have a little picnic. It was only 92 degrees and a bit cloudy. I still thought the water was nice. It was a bit of a risk inviting someone you don't know very well... not knowing if they like adventure, if they know how to swim, or if they care for cold water - after all the Icicle wasn't named that without reason! However, we thought it might be good to get to know them outside of the church and church related functions. Besides the girl - who is Vanessa's age, is really missing their old home and friends, etc... Everything turned out great! They are adventureous fun loving people. Vanessa's says the girl is "not the boring kind" . She's really outgoing and enjoys life. Now she wants to go to Africa with us! See, her older brother spent time in Africa already and he worked with my brother. Her mother was even excited about the prospects. I don't know if it is even possible... we bought our tickets months ago so we would have to see if we could get her on the plane. And she plans on attending the day academy in town - and all our kids are homeschooled. Not sure if the school would be kind enough to let her miss that much time. She thinks she would like to be homeschooled but her mother isn't up to that.

Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow

Posted on Monday, August 18, 2008 at 09:20

The tomatoes are loving the heat and are all ripening at once. They are very nice tomatoes; big, juicy and tasty. Nothing like a large slice of tomato on a toast for breakfast with a little Spike. It looks like I need to start making things with the tomatoes, though. We can't eat that many on toast. I would like to dry a few for my experiment, otherwise I will can them for spaghetti sauce.

I can't believe it's already the 18th of  August! I saw the farmers putting out bins in the orchard yesterday and commented to Vanessa that bartlett harvest starts next week and she was in total denial. LOL. It can't possibly be that late in the summer, can it???  Where did it go? Well, I think she is a bit confused 'cause it takes until the middle of October for the orchardists to be done picking the different varieties of pears. It's the big crop of the Valley so it's a big deal!

We are all done picking one white nectarine tree. Things ripened a bit too quick for us with this heat and we were so busy with the North West Youth Conference that a few were over ripe. I am looking forward to the other nectarine tree more than this one.

I am adding some produce pictures just as a garden record:

It's kind of a little hobby for me to make vegetable gift baskets for people I know don't have a garden. This one was given to our new pastor's family.

I made Red Curry and Rice for the potluck at the North West Youth Conference. It was a hit! There wasn't a scraping left and I was asked how it was made several times.

Red Curry

Use about 4 cups of gluten pieces. This can be homemade. Prepare ahead and keep in freezer for easy use. Or buy Bits and Pieces from Creative Cuisine .

In large wok or skillet, sauté a sliced onion, in a little oil.

Add gluten

2 T Curry paste.  Pataks Mild Curry with Cilantro and Cumin

Buy at World Market - $3.99 or online at: www.qualityspices.com, $3.49 plus shipping.

1 8 oz can stewed, diced tomatoes

4 -6 oz water

Heat and serve with plain rice

Here's the gluten recipe I use:

Jeanne’s Gluten

2 ½ c Do-pep fluff before measuring

¼ c. wheat germ – very important to cut the gluten fibers & make your gluten tender

½ c quick oats –as the oats swell it forms pockets to fill with gravy

1 tsp garlic pwd.

1 T onion pwd.

3 pkgs of golden broth or chicken broth

Dash of Cayenne

Mix & form bowl. Pour in : 2 ½ c cold water. Mix well and use your hand.

Use a container to shape the gluten. Rinse container in cold water to keep from sticking. Refrigerate gluten. Allow enough time for oats to swell.

Broth:

Fill pot ¾ full of hot water. Add: 8 pkgs golden broth – or other, chicken seasoning, vegetable bullion, liquid aminos, and or chicken seasoning. Add: ¼ c parsley flakes. Bring to rolling boil.  The broth must be seasoned so that the broth does not take the flavor out of the gluten or the gluten out of the broth.

Buy Better Than Bullion, vegetarian, no chicken base,  at Albertsons.

Cut gluten with scissors into thick rectangular pieces. And place in broth. Keep at a rolling boil for 45 mins. Use lid. Don’t stir – this makes your gluten fall apart.

For Steaks use McKay’s beef style seasoning instead of chicken /light broth. Add a speck of cayenne pepper, soy sauce and veggie beef bullion. Allow gluten to sink in broth (store gluten in broth to keep juicy.) Bread steaks, then fry and serve.

Dare To Stand!

Posted on Sunday, August 17, 2008 at 11:18

The concert last night was great! The kids did very well and I was very proud of them all. They were clear and precise in their speech. We are always striving for a lot of expression and I think the kids really put a lot of effort into their parts.

Dare To Stand! is a program based on the story of Daniel and his three Hebrew friends. They were true to God no matter the circumstances and no matter the persecution they faced. The kids tell the story and explain how the youth of today are called to stand for truth, for right and for Christ. It's a message we all need to live. The songs bring out the points of the program.

Our new choir mics are good. We had great sound. There were some problems with the slides and the lighting... because other people were running them and were not familiar with our program. My husband usually runs that but these people wanted to record and they wanted it run on their system. I don't think the dvd turned out because the lighting was poor but we might get a cd out of it.
The double trio (yep, we are needing one more girl and we have her all picked out, but she just moved here and is getting used to the idea.) call themselves Echoes of Heaven. They are blending better and better. I hope that we can continue to practice  even though choir is over until after the Africa trip. All these girls are going to Africa with us, so should be able to sing together there, even.
We used cordless mics for the speaking parts for the first time and I must say it was a real plus.
My part in the whole thing :-)

The greatest want of the world is the want of men-- men who will not be bought or sold, men who in their inmost souls are true and honest, men who do not fear to call sin by its right name, men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole, men who will stand for the right though the heavens fall. ED.057

Dear young people, you may have the same spirit that Daniel had; you may draw from the same source of strength, possess the same power of self-control, and reveal the same grace in your lives, even under trying circumstances.

 

The same mighty truths that were revealed through the four Hebrew youth, God desires to reveal through young people today. The life of Daniel and his friends is a demonstration of what He will do for you if you will yield yourself to Him and with your whole heart seek to accomplish His purpose.

Who is this?

Posted on Wednesday, August 13, 2008 at 05:46

That can't be my daughter, could it? Who would have thought a haircut would have changed her so much! She looks older to me. She was having a very bad hair day ... er... make that a bad hair month. She was very unhappy with her hair!  She has been growing out her bangs and she looked like a sheep dog because they would not go to the side. Plus she has been swimming a lot with swimming lessons and early morning lap swimming for exercise and her hair has become impossible! Very, very tangly. She has thick, fine hair so she donated 10 inches to Locks of Love and is enjoying easy hair. The hair dresser did something to make her bangs more friendly, too.

Here is a before picture - cut out of a group picture in the wind.

And this is when her hair was on it's best behavior a few months ago.

My Favorite

Posted on Tuesday, August 12, 2008 at 08:54

I've been posting pictures of the fruit on our trees as they come ripe and today you will see my favoritist  of all! Brianna came in the kitchen with her arms loaded with fruit the other day. She says, "First we think the cherries are really good. Then we think we have the best apricots in town, but then the peaches ripen up and we think they are the best in the world! But then the nectarines ripen and ahhhhh....oohhh, there's nothing like them!" I had to laugh because I was thinking the same thing except that I ahhh ooohhh over the plums.

Christina was a busy little beaver yesterday. She got the sewing machine out and sewed herself a little travel pillow and pillow case for our trip to Africa. It turned out well. I only made her take out one seam. Ten year olds don't like to take out seams, but she managed. She wants to make more for the rest of us.

Steve and Brianna dragged me out of bed to go do laps at the pool at 6 am this morning. It was good once I got going. I don't like being cold when I first wake up so I wasn't too excited about it. Vanessa has been going with her dad. He thinks it is helping his sore shoulder. Brianna thought she would like it and she outswam me for sure. They are all strong swimmers.

It's a busy week with the North West Youth Congress happening and us doing a lot of music. Our big concert is Sat. night at 7 with my children's choir. We are doing Dare to Stand!