Thursday, July 28, 2011

M.O.B Blog Hop!

Mothers of Boys

We brought our son home from Guatemala four years ago, just a week or so after his fourth birthday.

He rocked our world.

Before that, our family had consisted of my husband and me, a teenage foster daughter, a daughter through birth, and (not pictured) my teenage sister who had lived with us for a couple of years. Lots of girls. No young boys.

By the time our son came home, my sister had long since moved out to go to college and be on our own and our foster daughter had grown-up, gotten married, and was also out on her own. For about 6 months before we brought our son home, it was just my husband, myself, and one quiet and sweet little girl.

And then I got my first glimpse at what having a boy was all about. This is us on a playground in Guatemala, the day after we met our son. My husband's expression pretty much sums up how ready we were for an active little boy.

(If you have an hour and a beverage of choice, and would like to read the journal I kept for the week we were in Guatemala, you can find it here.)

Granted, when he first came home, he was so small and so scared. Poor little guy.


But it didn't take him long to adjust, come out of his shell, and let us know that he was "all boy". It's hard to believe that these photos were taken only a couple weeks after he first came home. He seems like a different child than the small frightened face in the photo above.


The journey hasn't always been smooth and easy. But it has been rich and rewarding.

In the years since, I've been doing all I can to be a better mom to my boy. That's required a lot of patience and support, and not a small dose of humility. I still remember going up to another mother of boys and asking her, was it common for little boys to miss the toilet every time, or should I be concerned?  (Yes, she said. She said she had to clean her bathroom every day to keep it from smelling like a truck stop urinal.)

I am blessed to be able to homeschool both my children. My daughter, Sweetling, is now 13 and my son, Toa of Boy, is now 8.

On my blog, I try to post about activities, both school and recreational, that we have done that I think other families might also enjoy trying. I occasionally put a recipe up on my blog as well, and since I'm no cook, any recipe I can make is gotta be easy and pretty fool-proof.

I'm really looking forward to linking up with some other Mom of Boy blogs, because I know we still have quite a journey ahead of us!

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Two for Tuesday: Caramel Banana Cream Pie

It's Two for Tuesday! I almost forgot!

This week's recipe is:

Caramel Banana Cream Pie

Ingredients:
  • graham cracker crust
  • 1 box instant vanilla pudding
  • 3-4 bananas
  • 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
  • 1 3/4 cup milk
  • whipped cream for topping
Directions:
  1. Caramelize the sweetened condensed milk. You can do this in several ways. The easiest, and quickest, is to simply open up the can of milk, pour it into a sauce pan, and heat it over low heat while stirring constantly to keep it from sticking and scorching. Heat and stir until it just begins to caramelize. The longer you heat it and stir it, the harder and chewier it will become once it cools. (An alternate method is to put it in a crock pot full of water and heat on low for 10-12 hours. But then you don't know what you are getting till you open the can.)
  2. Remove the caramel from the heat. Allow it to cool off some. (You don't want it to be so hot that it cooks the bananas in the pie. Gross.)
  3. Meanwhile, slice about two of the bananas to cover the bottom and sides of the graham cracker crust.
  4. Spread the cooled, but still slightly warm caramel over the banana slices.
  5. In a mixing bowl, mix pudding mix with 1 and 3/4 cup milk. Whisk or beat on high for two minutes. (Yes, I just did use the word mix or mixing three times in one sentence.)
  6. Add another layer of bananas on top of the caramel in the pie pan. Spread the pudding over top of all.
  7. Refrigerate for 2 hours until set. (For real, let it set. Show some self restraint.)
  8. Top with whipped cream to serve.
You could, if you were feeling adventures, try reversing the order of the pudding and caramel layers, so that the caramel layer was the top layer of the pie. I can't promise that the caramel will spread easily over top a layer of bananas floating on pudding, but you could try it. The benefits would be that you could then drizzle chocolate over the caramel top layer. mmmmm....drizzled chocolate....

AND, because I still feel strange calling this "Two for Tuesday," but only sharing ONE recipe, here's a recipe that I found on another blog. I'm hoping to try it out, as soon as the temperature falls back down below stupid hot. Yes, stupid hot is a perfectly valid weather index, thanks for caring.

I love brownies, and I've been looking for a healthier, more substantial version of a brownie recipe for a while. The cheap brownie mixes just don't cut it anymore. They are just mushy, sugary, and don't really satisfy me at all any more.

Here's a recipe that uses a cheap easy brownie mix, but packs in black beans for protein and substance and some shredded zucchini besides. I will, of course, be stirring in some extra chocolate chips as well.

Monday, July 25, 2011

Good Friends

How do you spell friendship?

P-E-N-G-U-I-N-S

Everyone knows that, right?

No? Not everyone does?

Behold the proof....


Cause how many people go on vacation to Gatlinburg and while there think, "Oh look, penguins. I think I'll send their photos to my good friend, Piglet?"

Friday, July 22, 2011

Curriculum 2011-2012

Sorry for the extra comment step. I hadn't realized that putting my curriculum on its own tabbed page wouldn't have an option on the page for leaving a comment.

I really do want your feedback please!

Friday Fill-Ins


(To play, copy and paste the text. Replace the underlined words with your own fill in the blank information.)


And...here we go!

1. I hold _the awesome power and responsibility of packing up the van for our weekend trip to Canton. In our nearly two decades of marriage, this is a first. Be impressed with my new job title!____.

2. _Sweetling____ is someone I like to travel with because _I think she is just zoned out in her little world, until she calls out "yellow car." Then it is game on, baby :)____.

3. That day, _when the Jedi told me I was one of the sunsets he liked to watch, that was the day I fell in love with him____.

4. _I'm really excited about our new school badges system____ this year.

5. Trust _your animal spirit guide. Mine happens to be a squirrel. I think that explains a lot about me ____.

6. _(Pretty sure I don't want to lose my PG blog rating, so I'll leave this one blank)____ in the dark.

7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to _visiting with my oldest brother in Salineville_OH___, tomorrow my plans include __going to Talbert's ice cream parlor with the Jedi and his two moms___ and Sunday, I want to _stay cool at an outdoor graduation party near Columbus OH. Luckily there will be pontoon boats on the lake and a swimming pool to help with that ____!

Your turn!

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Patch Land!

(We almost held this meeting in Sweetling's room. I was pretty pumped about that possibility. It was like being invited into the Fortress of Solitude. I took my netbook in and plugged it in, but then some Mommy person went dancing up and down the hallway while humming her own spy music theme. And the netbook wouldn't see the internet. And if we held the meeting in the living room and used the media center computer, everyone could see the screen. So, no Fortress of Solitude field trip for Toa and I today.)

Here is what our meeting, and thereby this post, is about.

Tia Smurf called this morning with a rocking idea for what to do about grades. I'm super pumped about the idea, so we are meeting to work out some details we can all three agree on.

Tia Smurf's idea was this, in addition to letter grades for math tests, unit reviews, etc....why not have something Toa of Boy can earn for different aspects of schooling. Toa LOVES earning patches, jewels, badges....why not carry this into our schooling?

We are so down with this :)

So, here is our brainstorming list on patches we can earn. Sweetling is getting dragged into this too. Cause that's the kind of loving Mother I am.

  1. We are going to purchase and paint a cork bulletin board for each child. We'll hang these bulletin boards at the end of the hallway to display the awards.
  2. We'll buy white ribbons of different width and use permanent markers to draw and design the "patches". Tia Smurf is coming over to help with this step.
  3. We will have a specific list of the types of awards, and what is required to earn each award.
  4. For each category, we will have a Master Patch which will be big and cool and fancy and which can be earned whenever 10 regular ribbons are earned in that one category.
  5. We will decide if we are going to call these things ribbons, patches, badges, awards, or something else.
Types of ribbons.

(Edited to organize by subject.)

General Patches:

  • Discovery Patch--Independently discover and record three things you never knew before.
  • All A's Award--Get all A's for a week in every subject.
  • The A Honor Roll-- Get all A's for ten weeks in one subject.
  • The A Average--Get an average grade of an A for ten weeks in all subjects.
  • Daily Star Award--Get a star in each subject of the day for attitude. (not eligible for Master Patch individual. Instead, you need to collect 10 Weekly Star Stundent Patches to receive a Master Patch.)
  • Weekly Star Student--Get four Daily Star Awards.
  • Power Point Patch--Put together a power point presentation about one topic of your choice.


History Patches

  • Detective Patch--Find and record 10 interesting facts about person or event in history.
  • Producer Patch--Re-enact a scene from a book or from history, using live actors, paper puppets, stuffed animals or claymation. Film with video or take a series of still photos with captions.
  • Historical Sketch Artist--Sketch or draw an object, event, or person from history.
  • Time Traveler Award--Create a labeled and illustrated timeline with at least 10 events.
  • Current Event Patch--Write a short paragraph about three different current events.
  • News Hawk Patch--Publish a recreation of the front page of a newspaper from a given time or a newspaper article which could have been written about a specific occurrence. MS Publisher optional. OR write or act out a script of an eyewitness news reporter broadcasting "live" from at the scene of a historic event.
  • Ripple Effect Award--Pick one event in history and explain its significance, both in terms of its immediate impact and its long term effect. List your sources.
Literature and Language Arts Patches

  • Webster Award--Learn a number of new words equal to your age. You can find these words in books you are reading, in your school subjects, or anywhere you encounter them.
  • Ivy League Award--Write at least one, thoughtful, in-depth response to a piece of literature you have read.
  • Poetry Patch--Write, and revise, your own poem.
  • Recitation Patch—Memorize and recite, with clarity and meaning, a poem of your choice. Be able to discuss the language, meaning, and poetic devices used with your audience.
  • Young Author Patch--Write your own piece of fiction (or a chapter in a longer piece.)
  • NaNoWriMo 1-2-3 Patch--Meet your daily writing goal for three days in a row.
  • Agent "W" Patch--Write and answer five "w" type questions about a book you have read. If you are Sweetling, these five questions must be more in depth and not just factual recall.
  • Script Writer Patch--Like the Producer Patch, but with your own creative fiction.
  • Linguist Patch--Learn an alphabet or ten/twenty vocabulary words in another language.
Art and Music Patches

  • Manga Award--Complete one manga project, or complete a discernable goal in a larger project.
  • Illustrator Patch--Sketch or draw a character or scene from a piece of fiction (your own or someone else's.)
  • Discovering Artists Award--Learn about one artist and their art and create a piece in that style.
  • Music Patch--Learn to play a song on an instrument, learn to sing a new song, or learn about music in a given time in history.
Science, Technology, and Critical Thinking Patches

  • Science Patch--Build a successful project or conduct a successful experiment.
  • Inventors Award--Learn about one invention or inventor. Convey or record your learning in a format of your choosing.
  • Capture the Queen Patch--Capture your opponent's queen in a chess game outside of co-op.
  • Checkmate Patch---Checkmate your opponent in a chess game outside of co-op.
  • Animal Patch--Put on a presentation about a certain type of animal.
  • Lego Patch--Complete a Lego Quest challenge.
Health and Life Skills Patches

  • Exercise Patch--Complete at least twenty minutes of exercise or physical activity on three different days of the week outside of Tae Kwon Do and co-op P.E.
  • Healthy Patch--For one week (five days), keep a food log. Eat a balanced diet.
  • Fruit and Vegetable Patch--For one week (five days), eat 5 servings of fruits or vegetables in each day.
  • Cooking Patch--Make two new recipes. (Or assist in two new recipes).
  • Bible--Pick ANY requirement for another Badge and complete it for a topic from our Bible curriculum.


AND, I just got an email from my friend Nora with a link to some rubricks. Hooray!

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

Grades

Toa of Boy wants grades. He wants the chance to be able to earn some A's on his schoolwork.

I'm not a grading kind of homeschooling mom. Most of the stuff we do isn't easily quantifiable for a score. I like it that way.

But Toa of Boy wants grades. And a report card. These things are important to him.

The Jedi has wisely stated that if they are that important, I should try to incorporate a system of grades into our schooling.

Math has unit reviews that I can use as tests. But, I don't want his grades to just be based on a handful of test scores. Yet, I also don't feel that he should be marked down for making mistakes on his daily work. If he can do his daily work perfectly on the first try, its obviously too easy for him, and I should be giving him something more challenging.

I'm in a similar boat for spelling, only worse. His spelling program includes a review test for every 40 lessons. For us, that's one test in 10 weeks. That one grade can't possibly reflect 10 weeks worth of work.

I have no idea how to "grade" him on reading. Or language arts. Or our cool history projects. 

And, for the record, he wants an A, B, C, D, F letter system grade, complete with pluses and minuses. None of this "Outstanding, Satisfactory, Needs Improvement" type of system.

I blame Arthur for this whole idea.

But, I can also see how Toa of Boy, who loves to earn Awana jewels, would love to earn good grades with his school work.

And, since this is so important to him, I want the grade book to be somewhere accessible to him, and I want the system to be one he can understand. So that, whenever he wants to, he can sit down and look at his grades and know where he stands.

Lastly, I want his attitude to be reflected in these grades somewhere. I want questions of, "Do I have to?" and "Awwwww, man!" and general whining and griping to count against him. Ok, spelling might not be his favorite subject, and I don't expect him to be happy about it, but I want to get through a lesson without the bellyaching. And without having to threaten to tell his father about it if he doesn't straighten up.

So, that's where I stand. I looked around for some free downloadable grade book, but I didn't see anything that immediately struck my fancy. Plus, I really need to resolve what exactly I'm going to be basing these grades on first.

Help, please??

Since I was ruminating on these topic all through the day, I asked Sweetling if she would be interested in grades.

She gave me a blank Sweetling stare and said, "I don't see how that could possibly work with the sort of schooling we do."

"Neither do I," I concurred, "but Toa wants some, so I'm trying to work a system out. I just want to know if that would be something that would be important to you, and if you would like to have a grading system for your schoolwork as well."

After a moment of reflection, Sweetling replied, "While it is nice to have some feedback and to know how I'm doing with my schoolwork, I just don't think it's practical, especially for your teaching style. I think I will opt out for this year at least." (Which I think means she's going to wait and see if this notion flops or flies this year.)

Wise, wise Sweetling.

Wordless Wednesday


Wifey Wednesday: Mirror, Mirror....

I went through three outfits this morning, not including the clothes I pulled off the hanger, then put back without even trying them on.

No, I wasn't shopping. No, it isn't really a special occasion.

I just couldn't find an outfit I was happy with, despite the fact that my 'closet' is an entire side of a small basement room that is packed full of clothes.

Sometime, late in this process, I had to stop and wonder, just why am I doing this?

It isn't to impress my husband, not entirely. My husband does an AMAZING job of letting me know how lovely he finds me. But, as I was going back and forth between two different necklaces, I can't claim this is to impress my husband....since he really doesn't even like me wearing jewelry. (He says that jewelry is a distraction from my face. How sweet is that?)

And it isn't to impress, or compete with, an old friend from college who's in town for a visit. Really, if I were seriously struggling with my weight or body image, she would be one of the first people I would run to for help. So, I don't feel the need to seem perfect around her.

And it certainly isn't to impress the strangers at the restaurant we'll be going to tonight.

So, what was it?

I don't know for sure. I only knew that I really needed to feel good about how I looked today.

It reminded me of something I had read a few years ago, in a book called Captivating. Adam and Eve were both created in the image of God, therefore, both man and woman have unique characteristics which they reveal about God's nature through their own nature. Among other things....

A woman is created to reveal God's beauty.

It's why the pioneering women lived in little sod houses, yet carefully stitched together scraps of fabric to make pretty curtains for their one tiny window. Why women for centuries scatter a few flower seeds along the edges of their sustenance vegetable gardens. Why a woman can't help but try to catch a glimpse of herself in each reflective surface she happens to pass.

We are created to reflect and reveal God's beauty, and the beauty of His creation.

Yet, we are fallen, and we live in a fallen world. And that can cause us no end of frustration and consternation.

In our hearts, somewhere deep, we carry a yearning for beauty and we desire that for ourselves, and we desire to bring that to the environment around us. But we, and our world, are not only imperfect, but flawed. When that core desire clashes with the limits of reality, we develop all sorts of defense mechanisms to deal with it.

We can become obsessive about it, going on diet after diet or buying clothes and beauty products well beyond reason for our means or our circumstances.

We can become despondent about it, dwell in despair and give up trying...because sometimes its easier not to try than to try and continuously fail.

We can turn to some other outlet, developing all sorts of addictions, in an effort to avoid the stress and uncertainty.

We can be destroyed by it. Eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders, out of control addictions---so many of these cancers are germinated and fed by the discrepancy between our desire for beauty and our reality.

And just to be clear, when I say "our desire for beauty", I do not mean a desire to look like a super-model. Fundamentally, our desire for beauty is something good and healthy. The desire for beauty can, and should, take many forms. A desire to be physically attractive, desire to be a beautiful person, a desire to create a lovely environment around ourselves. All these goals are good, and worthy to be pursued. As long as a healthy balance presides over that pursuit.

So, where does this leave us, and how does it impact our marriages?

First, I think we need to confess to ourselves and to our Lord any sin that this conflict has led us into. Bitterness, avoidance, excessiveness. I'm not saying this to heap more guilt on anyone's shoulders. Heaven knows, if we hadn't felt so guilty about 'not being good enough', none of us would have struggled with most of these issues in the first place. So, don't read the word 'confess'  and either turn off your computer or start crying, or both. But, it is important to be able to honestly face what we struggle with so that we can be healed, and learn to move beyond it.

Second, I think we sometimes need to get additional help in the healing process. This can be from a prayer circle, a mentor, some quality reading material, a counselor, or a support group. I know personally several women who were genuinely transformed when they allowed themselves to face, get help, and work through an area of struggle. Don't sell yourself short. Don't pretend like a problem isn't really a problem. Do what you need to do to be the strong, beautiful woman God has created you do be.

Third, we really, really need to let go of unrealistic expectations. You know the kind I mean. We create in our minds some fictional super-woman. We take the components of many good role models around us, and roll them all together into this impossible standard we set for ourselves. And then we beat ourselves up when we can't reach this unobtainable mark.

Fourth, we need to cultivate an attitude of gratitude. It's unreasonable to expect ourselves to let go of unrealistic expectations, if we do not also learn to appreciate what we have. Otherwise, we will always be stuck in a "grass is always greener" mentality. Start keeping a journal, a little notebook. Everyday write down specific things that you are thankful for. But, everyday, make each of those items something different than the day before. How many small things can you start noticing about yourself, your spouse, your life that you are truly blessed by? Can you, over the course of several weeks, come up with 1000 different blessings to thank God for?

Let me take another moment to say, yes, I know this is all easier said than done. I know because I've struggled down this road myself. It is a struggle. It is hard work. It does take effort. It does take determination. Yes, there are days when you'll feel like you've messed it up, again, but those days get fewer and farther between the more you keep at it.


Fifth, we need to let ourselves be the revelation and reflection of beauty that we are intended to be. Think this is contrary to the first four steps? Think again.

Only after we have begun to move past our hangups, to let go of our unrealistic expectations, and to become women who practice true joy and contentment can we comfortably and confidently be free to express the beauty of our inner selves.

Last, we need to recognize that our husbands are naturally drawn to that inner beauty, when we allow it to shine through our outer selves. They are drawn to it, and they crave it, and they are sorely, but silently, crushed when we try to stifle it.

We can show love to ourselves, to our husband, and to our Creator, by carefully nurturing our inclination for beauty.

1. We can take care of our health and appearance. No, this isn't about being a certain size or a certain weight. But it is about making an effort to be healthy, to eat well, to remain active. Our body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Such a temple deserves some good upkeep. (It also deserves a hot fudge sundae from time to time, I'll agree. I'm not ever going to suggest eating nothing but rice cakes and carrot sticks. But you can't run a temple on junk food, and you can't keep a temple strong without movement.)


2. We can dress well. No, this isn't about buying designer labels, expensive jewelry, or the latest fashion. This is about showing a healthy pride in ourselves and in the calling God has placed us in. For some, that might mean jeans and a cute top. For others that might mean professional attire. Its not the type of clothing or the cost or the size. It's that you feel confident and happy with it. (Notice I didn't say comfortable. My jammies are comfortable and there are days that I just want to and do hang out in my penguin pants, but I try to make those days the exception, not the rule.)

3. We can make time to create. Carve out 30 minutes twice a week. Carve out an hour once a week. If nothing else, carve out 15 minutes. But carve out some time to allow yourself to pursue some creative endeavor, art, craft, or hobby. It doesn't have to be something that the Smithsonian will be displaying, or that Martha Stewart is asking to feature in her next magazine. Whatever it is you enjoy doing or making, even if you don't think you are all that great at it, give yourself permission to do it at least once every week. Don't let interruptions or the things on your to-do list keep you from just a small window of time to allow your soul to indulge and participate in the act of creation.

4. We can beautify our home. Again, this isn't about a right and a wrong style. This isn't about trying to copy a magazine, unless that's what makes you really happy. And this isn't about having the cash to install new kitchen counters or get a new living room set. This is about being able to look at what you have and smile. It's about being happy to walk into your home.

5. We can stop making excuses. No time, no money, no energy. I know, I know as women we are tired, we are busy, we are often overwhelmed. But making a commitment to make some small changes will make such a huge difference in your attitude and your contentment, and those changes will spill over into other areas of your life.

You are worth the effort.

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Two for Tuesday

Common Sense would ask, "What is 'Two for Tuesday?' "

To which I reply, "Two for Tuesday is for me to share a recipe that I like."

To which Common Sense will point out, "Yes, but that's only one."

"Yes," I say, "But if I share it with someone else, that makes two. You and me make two."

Common Sense says, "But more than one person is going to read it."

"Well, very likely," I say, "but it's sort of the principle that matters here. Plus, I really like how the phrase Two for Tuesday sounds. Alliteration makes me smile."

All of which explains why Common Sense doesn't often visit me.

This week's Two for Tuesday recipe:

Gluten-Free Peach Pie  (or "Pake" if the name suits your fancy)

The original recipe comes from Gluten Free Easily, in a great post called Mom and Apple Pie.

Ingredients:

5-6 peaches, not overly ripe
1 cup Pamela's Pancake Mix , we found ours in our local grocery store, in the same aisle as the other pancake mixes
1/2 tsp almond extract
~ 1 tsp cinnamon/sugar mix (I keep a mixture in my spice containers and I didn't really measure it when I sprinkled it on.)
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup melted butter
1 egg

Directions

  1.  Spray the inside of a deep dish pie plate with non-stick cooking spray. Preheat oven to 350.
  2. Peel and dice peaches. Place in pie pan. Drizzle 1/2 tsp almond extract over peaches and toss to coat. Sprinkle some cinnamon and sugar over peaches. Toss again. 
  3. In a bowl, mix 1 cup Pamela's with 1 cup sugar. Stir in melted butter and egg. Mixture will be very thick.
  4. Spread batter over peaches in pie pan. (The first time I made this pie, we slightly stirred the mixture into the peaches. The second time, I just spread it over the peaches. It didn't seem to make a difference either way.)
  5. Bake at 350 for 50 to 60 minutes. It will be slight goopy under the crust, but it shouldn't be completely liquidy under the crust. According to spell check, neither goopy nor liquidy is a word. Too bad. You know what I mean
  6. Let cool completely. I mean it. Make it and leave the house and come back to it. Or make it in the morning for a dessert after dinner. But you must let it cool for a few hours before cutting into it, or you will have a runny mess. Hey, if I can show a little self-restraint, so can you. Suck it up and let your pie cool.
  7. Serve in a dish with scoops of vanilla ice cream.

 Further notes:

I haven't tried this recipe with a regular gluten baking mix. If someone wants to be brave and experiment, please let me know. Also, this recipe doesn't work at high altitudes. I didn't get to observe this effect myself, but apparently the pie becomes Peach Vesuvius while trying to bake at high altitudes.

Also, if you are wondering where the word "Pake" comes from, it's because this pie turns out a little like a pie, a little like a cobbler, and a little like a very moist sponge cake. Whatever you want to call it, it is very, very yummy. And very, very easy. That makes it a two-fer in my book. Which is why I can share it with confidence on "Two for Tuesday."

Take that, Common Sense.

Monday, July 18, 2011

More Reading Lists

Three boxes of school books were delivered today, and I'm feeling the need to peg down some specific book selections for Toa of Boy's reading time. Toa of Boy has decided that he is too old for the beginning readers, so....I'm trying to find some nice intermediate books for him. He's still a bit intimidated by pages that are too full of text. I'm using Amazon's 'search inside this book' feature to preview the books for Toa's reading level and interest.


ANATOLE & THE CAT
Titus, Eve


BIG BALLOON RACE 
Coerr, Eleanor

This is a beginning reader book, but its for grades 2-4, so maybe Toa will accept it.







COMMANDER TOAD & THE PLANET OF THE GRAPES
Yolen, Jane





 COYOTE STEALS THE BLANKET : A UTE TALE
Stevens, Janet




THE DANCING GRANNY
Bryan, Ashley
An Ananse tale.






THE DRINKING GOURD
Monjo, F. N.






EARTHQUAKES
Branley, Franklyn M.



THE FORTUNE-TELLERS
Alexander, Lloyd






HARRY GETS AN UNCLE
Porte, Barbara A.
(And other "Harry" books by the same author.)



HOW MUCH IS A MILLION?
Schwartz, David M.






 
LON PO PO : A RED RIDING HOOD STORY FROM CHINA
Young, Ed







  MANY MOONS.
Thurber, James






 SOAP SOUP : AND OTHER VERSES
Kuskin, Karla



STRINGBEAN'S TRIP TO THE SHINING SEA
Williams, Jennifer










TAXICAB TALES
Porte, Barbara A.




WHAT TO DO WHEN A BUG CLIMBS IN YOUR MOUTH : AND OTHER POEMS TO DRIVE YOU BUGGY
Walton, Rick

Ok. That's at least enough to get started with :)

Day 18: Homeward Bound

Friday, May 13th

Despite the thunderstorms which rolled through in the early hours of the morning, the sky was sunny and the weather was beautiful when we left the motel. (The breakfast 'bar' was just some donuts, packaged cheese danishes, a loaf of bread and a toaster, but with the promise of bbq on the horizon, we weren't too phased by the poor breakfast choices.)

We headed out to Memphis in May. We drove around for a bit, checking the prices of the various lots near the event, before finding that parking was free in the field next to the event. We went with that option.

Sadly, though the website hadn't listed any 'open to the public' times, we discovered when we walked up to the gate that the general public wasn't being admitted until eleven o'clock. So, we headed back to the van to play Munchkin.

Back at the van we met a couple from Vancouver (I think?). We talked with them for a while, and they were really nice. And we played zombie munchkin on the little table in the back of the van. We had the windows open for ventilation, and we had some amount of grief with cards getting blown off the table, but it was still a fun game.

At eleven, we headed back up to the gate, and set out to explore Memphis in May.

I was immediately blown away by the size and complexity of the booths. They had seating arrangements, decks, and landscaping.

They had multiple levels, sometimes reaching three floors.

They had canapies and spiral staircases.

And many of them has some pretty unique flair.

I would never have guessed this, but each year the festival tries to spotlight a different country. This year, the spotlighted country was Belgium. I asked the Jedi what Belgium had to do with bbq, but he said that was the point.

Still, a few of the booths proudly displayed international flags from past contest years.

By far, the most amazing thing about the booths was that they are all transported, erected and decorated, and then broken down and carted away. What a massive amount of work and dedication each of the booths represented.

The competitors were not allowed to sell any bbq, and there were only a few actual bbq venders there. That was a bit of a disappointment, but we got some bbq from the venders, and found a shady curbside to sit and eat. The food was good, not competition quality by any standards, but still good.

Getting our picture taken, AGAIN, was not as good.

After our lunch, we headed out of town toward HOME. For the past few days of the trip, Sweetling has been counting down how many more days until we are HOME. I have to confess, as much as I loved the trip, I'm looking forward to being home, too.

Our last stop of the trip was in Nashville. Being the geeks that were are, we had to stop and see the Parthenon. Unfortunately, since we couldn't get in to Memphis in May first thing in the morning, as we had hoped, we didn't hit Nashville in time to tour the inside of the Parthenon. That will have to wait for another trip, perhaps.

This time, we were happy to snap some pictures, admire the friezes, walk around the portico, and play on the playground across the street.


From there, we headed to a nearby street to have dinner at Rotier's. Onion rings, burgers, and good shakes. What more could we ask for?

As we left the restaurant, a nasty storm was brewing. We hurried back to the van, hoping to beat it out of town, but, sadly, I made my first serious fail as a navigator and got us turned around. Consequently, we wound up driving through some pretty nasty weather for an hour or so.

We stopped at Louisville to put the van seats down and get out the sleeping bags for the kids.

It was sometime between 2 and 3 a.m. when we pulled into our driveway. I was too tired to write down the exact time of our homecoming. I had called Mom from Nashville to tell her we were on our way, but wouldn't be getting in till very, very late. And even though I had tried my best to discourage her from waiting up for us, guess who came out the front door in her nightgown just before 3 a.m.? Yep. She claims she was in bed, but had heard the Jedi open the door before he came back to the van to carry in the sleeping children. I couldn't even fuss at her, I was so happy to be home.

Our total mileage for the trip was 6,203. We had been gone 18 days, had driven through 16 states and slept in 12 different cities. We had spotted 46 state license plates as well as plates from Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, D.C., the Sac and Fox Nation, the Muscogee Nation, and the flag of Germany. We had visited 6 national parks, three state parks, two or three local parks, and ten museums or science centers. We had encountered two brand new weather types, gropple and virga, and had seen big horn sheep, a charging buffalo, a golden eagle, a pronghorn deer, wild turkey, three chipmunks, one small cute lizard, many huge mean looking ravens, and around 15 elk.

But most importantly, Sweetling won the yellow car game with a total of 168 sightings.

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Back to Day 17

Sunday, July 17, 2011

Getting Back on the Wagon

I fell off the Grocery Budget Wagon these past several months.

I was doing good last summer, when I was a couponing queen. But couponing was just way too time consuming to keep up during the school year this year. I kept falling behind and wasn't able to use my coupons effectively. When they weren't being used effectively, I was barely saving enough to cover my newspaper subscription costs. Also, I was trying to get away from processed food, so wasn't buying as much of the foods that were featured on coupons.  For the hassle, it ceased to be worth it.


I threw in  the towel on couponing, but the grocery budget took a huge hit because of it.

Now, the challenge is, can I get back on track with the grocery budget, without couponing?

I'm already at or near, my budget ceiling for July, so I can't put a new strategy in play this month, but I'm trying to get my game plan in place for next month.

We do have a deep freeze now, so I'm going to get back to buying good quantities of meat on sale so that I can freeze them. I also continue to try to wait and buy other items on sale. I don't have to abandon those practices just because I've abandoned couponing.

But, here's the new game plan. I don't know how effective it will be, but I'm going to give it a try for the month of August at least.

My grocery budget is $500 a month. That breaks down to $16 a day, assuming 30 days in the month and leaving $20 for paper and cleaning products. (That's a completely unrealistic number by the way. I'm sure we go through more than that on toilet paper alone. But I can only fix one area at a time, so I'm focusing on the food first.)

Let's pretend that we can do it on $16 a day. If I break that down by meals, it looks like this--

$2 per day for breakfast, or $14 per week
$3 per day for lunches, or $21 per week
$1 per day for snacks, or $7 per week
$10 per day for dinners, or $70 per week

However, we also spend at least $12 a week on milk, and maybe $6 a week for frozen juice concentrate. That's $18 a week that needs to come out of our weekly totals. So, here's how I'm adjusting that.

 I do NOT cook seven dinners a week. We eat leftovers at least one night. That's $10 off my weekly total. Plus, some of the lunch and breakfast spending should include the milk and juice, so I'm going to shave some off of their totals. The adjusted numbers look like this:

MEAL Daily Weekly Monthly
Breakfast $2 $10 $40
Lunch $3 $17 $68
Snacks $1 $7 $28
Dinner $10 $60 $240
Milk -- $12 --
Juice -- $6 $24


Now, when I go to the grocery store, I'm going to organize my written list by meal category, and as I put items in my cart, write down the cost of the item. I have a homeschooling children whom I might just put in charge of keeping track of the totals for the categories. Behold the power of the homeschooling mom.

I'll set up a spreadsheet on my phone (I lose pieces of paper), to record the total spending for each category by week and month. That way I can at least see which items might be putting us over budget.

I'm hoping just being more conscious of how much I'm spending on different meals and snacks will help me to bring the grocery budget back into check.

Portrait of Humiliation

This was the scene ten, maybe 15 minutes into our chess game. Toa was playing white. I was playing black.

I'll spare you the agony of trying to figure out what white pieces are missing from the board. I only captured two, a rook and a pawn, and I paid dearly for falling into the trap of taking those pieces.

I need to find some good "Chess for Dummies" books or something. This can't happen again.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Day 17: Come Hell or High Water

Thursday, May 12

After a long day on the road yesterday, and two more long driving days ahead of us, we took our sweet time at the hotel this morning. The Jedi took Toa of Boy swimming in the hotel's indoor pool while Sweetling got a shower and hung out in the room and I uploaded ever more photos to my blog. It felt so good not to be on a time table this morning.

Even though the morning was leisurely, we were still out the door and leaving Oklahoma City by 9:33....further proof that we have this whole hotel/travel thing down to a science. It was 69 degrees, with a slight chance of rain, and an expected high of 88.

Once again, our plan was to eat up the miles. We didn't have many stops scheduled for the day. We grabbed lunch at Arby's and ate in the car....and I got my second turn behind the wheel for the entire trip.

(On a side note, I don't know what the bunny did to deserve this fate....)


The one stop we did make was a slight side trip to DeValles Bluff, Arkansas...to a small family run pie shop. We drove back and forth on what I guess was a main street to this small little town before we found it. The pie shop is a small cinderblock building behind a residence. I personally didn't take any photos while we were there, because I didn't want to risk being rude. But, here's a photo from Road Food.

Because its run by a sweet grandmotherly woman named Mary, it is hit or miss as to what types of pie she felt like baking that day and when she sells out. Today's pies were chocolate cream, with a homemade meringue, or coconut cream. Which means, we bought a chocolate cream pie which I was tasked with eating ALL BY MYSELF. What a darn shame that was for me ;)

Mary gave us some styrofoam containers so that we could cut the pie up and fit it in our little refrigerated cooler in the van. She said she had made some turnovers earlier that morning, but that they sold out very quickly, since the National Guard was stationed nearby and they had been coming in to buy treats from her.

Back outside, I chatted with one of Mary's neighbors. I told her how excited I was to have a real meringue on my pie. I don't think I've had that since Mammaw was alive. Oh sure, Mammaw showed me how to make a meringue. And when Mammaw was standing right beside me in the kitchen, my meringue turned out "right fine". But when I try to make it on my own, it flops, melts, becomes rubbery, and generally inedible.

We also went across the street to a bbq joint, where the Jedi got a pulled pork sandwich to snack on. Sadly for the Jedi, they had put coleslaw on the sandwich....so guess who scored herself a pulled pork sandwich too?

Driving out of town, following the little state route 33 north or east or something to get back to the interstate, we came across the National Guard. There they were, with a barricade across the road, some military vehicle parked beside it, and soldiers in fatigues hanging out in lawn chairs. The area to the north and the west of us was completely flooded. So, we turned around, and backtracked back to the west to get back to the interstate the way we had come. Again, I didn't snap a photo. My hands were too covered in bbq to work the camera.

For miles as we headed east towards the river, we would pass one field where a farmer was out plowing his field, then several that were completely flooded, then a field where the farmer was out plowing, then more flooding. Sometimes roofs of houses were just visible above the waters.
The picture is deceptive, because it looks just like a lake. It isn't a lake. The line of trees marks the edge of someone's crop field. See how close the water comes to the highway embankment?

As we drew closer to the river, the land was just completely underwater for a good two to three miles.


Our destination was Memphis, Tennessee, where we were planning to spend the night and attend Memphis in May in the morning. The traditional location for the BBQ festival was a park next to the river. Since the park was completely flooded out, they had moved the location to the local fairgrounds, several miles further inland.

The motto for this years Memphis in May had become "Come Hell or High Water." You can see why.


Because we knew some roads downtown were closed due to flooding, and because the site of the festival had been changed, the Jedi had canceled our reservation at a down town hotel and moved it to a motel much closer to the festival.

We drove in to downtown Memphis, found a reasonably priced parking lot, and walked over to Rendezvous for dinner. It was good, but different. The rib rub seemed pretty heavy on the chili powder. Not too heavy, mind, but just a lot different than what we are used too. The place was totally packed out, and the bulk of the seating was in this underground labyrinth of rooms with distressed brick walls and small round wood tables. So, I felt a little claustrophobic, but it was still a nice restaurant and I'm glad we went.

After dinner, we climbed back in our van and headed out to find our motel. Once we did, we sat in the tiny, barely off the street parking lot trying to decide what to do. It was too late to cancel our reservation, and yet it was clear that this little "Roadway Inn" was not in a fairly rough neighborhood. With our van just feet off the sidewalk and our big car top luggage carrier, we just didn't feel like the van was safe where it was. There was a hospital nearby, and the hospital's secure parking garage and its big fenced gated parking lot was right across from the motel. So, the Jedi suggested that we drive over and ask about parking there for a nightly rate or whatever. The attendants in the parking lot totally understood our situation, and told us where we could park in the lot and not to worry about it.

So that's what we did. We parked in the secure, fenced, well lit lot, grabbed what we needed from the van for the night, and walked back to the motel. Inside, the room was one of the biggest we stayed in. It was clean, and everything was in good condition. We hung out for the evening, and I had a, um, few, pieces of my delicious chocolate pie.

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