Friday, July 24, 2009

Freebies and what's going on around here.

Hi everyone,

Life has been very busy lately so I have not been able to post very much. We had a wonderful time in NY with family. The weather was refreshingly cool and comfortable. The Adirondacks were new to me and I really enjoyed the scenery and views. We toured the Adirondack Museum at Blue Lake Mountain and learned so much about the region. (Of course, a homeschooling family has to see at least ONE museum on a vacation!) The Barton Garnet Mine was very interesting, too. They bring you to a large pit with a pond where you may pick up garnet pieces off the ground. That was fun and fascinating! (Check out Julia's blog for lots of pictures and more details of our trip.) I especially enjoyed seeing Amish country in Lancaster, PA. My sweet husband insisted we stay longer so that I could see some beautiful quilts and fabrics. We even visited an Amish farm, saw the barn complete with cows and horses and admired their neat and lovely homestead. Yes, I bought some fabric for a quilt project. Now if I could only find some time to sew....

Peach season is coming to a close in a few weeks, so yesterday, I went to a peach farm and got some culls (rejects) for $10 for 50 lbs. They are huge, the size of softballs and also are freestone. I plan to make some jam today and probably tomorrow. Some will be canned as slices.

As I mentioned before, I was given a grain mill by a friend. I tried to make bread with a standard mixer and it was a hard job. In order to do it regularly, I would need a bread machine to do the mixing and kneading. PRAISE GOD! I was able to get a new Zojirushi bread machine yesterday! It was basically a miracle. I can't go into details. But God is so faithful! Today I also plan to make my first loaves of bread with the new machine. Wahoo!!

Salsa is also on my list for upcoming projects. With tomatoes in season, I would like to can our own salsa this year for the first time. Have I said that I just love to can? Well, I do!

I have been feeling so well lately that I am constantly amazed! What a blessing to be able to function without all the body aches, etc, that are a part of RA. I felt awesome all through our trip and kept up a rigorous schedule without any problem!! See previous posts for more info on my health.

In the next month, a friend and I are trying to finish up a medieval unit study that we did together over the summer. Health issues and the unexpected trip to see family interrupted out study. But this week we plan to finish up the learning part and then give the children time to film a movie set in medieval times. Costumes need to made and the script needs refining but it should be fun and educational! More details to follow.

My plans for the next school year are firming up. It will be very different having only 2 to work with on academics. I will still be helping Julia learn but the dynamics will be changed. Our main text this year is the Bible. After hearing Victoria Bodkin's CDs I am finally freed to follow my heart on teaching my children what I believe is vital. I plan to incorporate an Old Testament and New Testament survey, book by book along with more indepth study for personal application. I am using my own form and Bible notes for the survey. I'll share as it goes along.

I have a culottes tutorial in the works. I hope to post that soon.

Sorry this is so long-winded. I haven't posted in a while and a lot is going on! :)

Now for the FREEBIES!! Two of my favorite free sites are Behemoth.com and The Homeschool Freebie of the Day. Both of these site post free things DAILY so mark it in your favorites and check back often.

So good to hear from friends, Michelle, Cindy, Victoria and Jacque. If you are visiting, please consider leaving a comment. It's nice to hear from you!

Many blessings,

Friday, July 17, 2009

On Vacation!

We have been on vacation for about a week now. Bob's Aunt Barbara lives in upstate New York. Bob's mother is also in New York visiting Aunt Barbara. Our trip has been wonderful! Please go read Julia's blog as she has posted about the first part of our trip, including pictures. While we have had a great time, there's no place like home! I'll post more about the trip when I get caught up on unpacking....
Hope your July is wonderful!

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Busy, Busy!

Life has been very busy lately. I haven't posted in a while because I just haven't had time. Since I last posted we hosted our home church at our house. Also on that Sunday we had a graduation party for Julia. We had so much fun with over 60 people attending the party.

Then after a nice week of catching up we spent the evening of July 4th at a friend's house with her family and parents. We cooked out and ate great food, way too much! Then we had our own little fireworks display complete with sparklers.

We are now packing to go on a cross country trip to see some family in New York. It will be 2 days of driving to get there. Touring the Adirondacks and upstate New York will be a new experience for me and the children. It's where Bob grew up but he has been there in years. I'll post about it when we return.

A sweet and generous friend recently gave me a grain mill. This is such a blessing from God. I have been wanting one for a while now ever since eating another friend's wonderful bread. She also passed on her supply of wheat berries and such so I am all set to start on a new chapter of my life, bread baking!

Another exciting thing is how well I have been feeling. The antibiotic therapy is really working! I have no more body aches. I can walk and move so much better. No more crutches. And to top it off, I am no longer anemic. I have been anemic most of my life. My levels went from 10.8 (which is below the normal range of 11.6) to 12.5! Wow! I am so blessed.

Well, the beef in the crockpot is done so I better go can it up. Never a dull moment around here!

Hope you have a wonderful week and see the hand of God in your life.

Blessings,