Homeschooling With Love

Meal Plan Monday

2010-03-15T17:17:00.000-07:00

We have been busy lately, but I still made my meal plan yesterday even though I was tempted to skip a week. I'm glad I didn't because every week since I started making a meal plan I have saved about 40% on my groceries for the week.
Here is the plan for this week:

Meatless Monday
Breakfast poached eggs, whole wheat toast and grapefruit
Lunch mini flat bread pizzas
Dinner Boca "chicken" sandwiches, salad, and potato chips

Tuesday
Breakfast oatmeal
Lunch grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup
Dinner shrimp, baked potatoes, and broccoli

Wednesday
Breakfast buttermilk blueberry pancakes
Lunch peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and yogurt
Dinner Irish stew and soda bread

Thursday
Breakfast egg souffles and whole wheat toast
Lunch fish sticks and carrot sticks
Dinner leftover stew and salad

Friday
Breakfast homemade cream cheese muffins
Lunch eat out
Dinner chicken tacos and salad

Saturday
Breakfast vegie sausage breakfast sandwiches
Lunch eat at Jacob and Ashlynns first chess tournament
Dinner hamburger tatortot casserole and salad

Sunday
Breakfast french toast and strawberries
Lunch make your own sandwich
Dinner pork loin, roasted red potatoes, and green beans

Thankful Thursday

2010-03-11T14:31:00.000-08:00

This is my 4th Thankful Thursday, the letter this week is D.

each day
dreams
determination
diversity
deer
daffodils
dogs
dads
donuts
dancing
the dirt in my garden
democracy
dresses
dragonflies

My Kids Make Me Laugh

2010-03-10T11:28:00.000-08:00

We have ice cream night every Sunday night. Last Saturday we went to the local Baskin Robbins to buy my favorite chocolate and peanut butter ice cream for ice cream night. I opened up my freezer this morning and I saw this note on my ice cream:

When Jacob woke up, I asked him if he really licked my favorite ice cream? I was so happy when he said he was joking. He cracks me up.

Meal Plan Monday

2010-03-08T10:00:00.000-08:00

Here is the plan for this week:

Monday
Breakfast oatmeal
Lunch grilled peanut butter banana sandwiches and yogurt
Dinner macaroni and cheese and broccoli

Tuesday
Breakfast poached eggs and whole wheat toast
Lunch alphabet soup and whole wheat crackers
Dinner spaghetti and meatballs and salad

Wednesday
Breakfast whole wheat toast and strawberries
Lunch fishsticks and carrot sticks
Dinner Italian chicken, rice and green beans

Thursday
Breakfast scrambled eggs and whole wheat toast
Lunch grilled cheese and tomato soup
Dinner lemon pepper cod, baked potatoes, and broccoli

Friday
Breakfast sweet potato bread
Lunch vegie corndogs and carrot sticks
Dinner Italian turkey meatloaf, mashed cauliflower potatoes, and salad

Saturday
Breakfast buttermilk pancakes
Lunch eat out
Dinner leftover turkey meatloaf sandwiches and salad

Sunday
Breakfast vegie sausage breakfast sandwiches
Lunch cheese, crackers, carrot sticks, and yogurt
Dinner at Grandma's house

Award Time

2010-03-07T17:42:00.000-08:00

We received this Read Across America Award from The Way We Homeschool for celebrating Dr Suess's birthday last Tuesday by reading Green Eggs and Ham.

Here are the conditions for accepting the award.

1.Thank the blogger who gave you the award. Thank you The Way We Homeschool:)

2. Pass on the award to bloggers who are reading with their children. I found 3 bloggers to pass it on to. 1. Small World At Home read The Lorax to celebrate Dr. Suess's birthday. 2. Mama To 3 Blessings for reading Flat Stanley to her children and introducing traveling Flat Stanley on her blog. 3.I always look forward to reading what Debbie at Children Grow, Children Explore, Children Learn is reading to Selena every week in her What We Are Reading post.

3. List 3 thing your children like about reading.

1. Both Jacob and Ashlynn like that impossible things can happen in books.

2.Jacob likes reading books to learn about things that interest him.

3. Ashlynn likes that books can make you laugh.

Foodie Friday Applesauce Donuts

2010-03-05T16:31:00.000-08:00

My donut pan is one of my favorite things in my kitchen. Jacob and Ashlynn love eating the homemade donuts I make using it.

You can use most muffin recipes to make healthy donuts with it.

Applesauce Donuts

preheat 350

2 cups flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup applesauce
1/2 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda

1. In a large bowl combine all ingredients. Stir until blended. Fill greased donut cups 3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until donuts spring back when you press on them. Cool for 10 minutes. Remove from pan. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.
Enjoy!

Friday Follow

2010-03-05T11:30:00.000-08:00

It's Friday, time for another Friday Follow. I have really enjoyed the Friday Follow fun, finding new blogs to read and follow. I am looking forward to finding some more blogs this week. Thanks to Hearts Make Families, One 2 Try, and Midday Escapades for hosting.

Encouraging A Love Of Reading

2010-03-05T08:31:00.000-08:00

It makes me so happy that Jacob and Ashlynn love to read. They read for enjoyment, and to learn about things that interest them. Here are some of the ways that I encourage them to love reading.

1.I am a good role model. I read for enjoyment, and to learn new things myself.

2. I make time to read with Jacob and Ashlynn everyday. Even though they are older independent readers, we still read together.

3. I limit television.

4. We have a silent reading time everyday.

5. I make time to go to the library and the bookstore.

6. I leave groups of 3 to 5 books on the coffee table, end table, kitchen counter, my desk for them to find and read, every couple days. I never tell them they have to read these books, but they always do. I think it works like magazines at the doctor's office. You can't help picking one up, and reading through it.

Green Eggs and Ham In Honor Of Dr Suess's Birthday

2010-03-02T15:05:00.000-08:00

We had some fun this morning in honor of Dr Suess's birthday. We had scrambled green eggs and ham, and Ashlynn read us Green Eggs and Ham. Jacob and Ashlynn always loved me reading them a Dr Suess book when they were small. His books hold so many wonderful memories for me.

Poached Eggs

2010-03-01T11:33:00.000-08:00

Last Monday April from This Is What It's All About! left me a comment on my Meal Plan Monday post asking for my poached egg recipe. Here it is:

Poached Eggs

1. Fill a skillet with 1 1/2 to 2 inches of water, add a dash of salt. Bring to a low boil over medium-high heat. Crack eggs 1 at a time into a measuring cup, pour each egg into the water. Cook eggs for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes. Take each egg out with a slotted spoon, gently shaking off any water. Serve immediately,

Tip: I cook 3 eggs at a time, anymore than that I have a hard time not over cooking the eggs.

Meal Plan Monday

2010-03-01T10:36:00.000-08:00

I have a confession. I have never made a meal plan until a couple weeks ago. What I would do is just wing it every week. I started reading different blogs Meal Plan Mondays. I was so inspired I gave meal planning a try. I have loved it. I love to cook, but it isn't any fun at the end of the day when you have no idea what to cook for dinner. I can not recommend making a meal plan for each week enough. Here is mine for the week:

Monday
breakfast blueberry pancakes
lunch peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and carrot sticks
dinner cheese tortellini and salad

Tuesday
breakfast green eggs and ham
lunch fish sticks and carrot sticks
dinner pulled pork sandwiches and coleslaw

Wednesday
breakfast oatmeal
lunch chicken noodle soup and whole wheat crackers
dinner lemon pepper cod, garlic shrimp, baked potatoes and broccoli

Thursday
breakfast vegie sausage breakfast sandwiches
lunch pizza pasta
dinner Mexican lasagna recipe from Faith's Firm Foundation with salad

Friday
breakfast sweet potato donuts
lunch mini bagel pizzas
dinner leftovers and salad

Saturday
breakfast waffles
lunch eat out
dinner turkey bacon burgers and sweet potato fries

Sunday
breakfast omelet and grapefruit
lunch make your own sandwich
dinner salmon, roasted red potatoes and salad

Our Weekly Wrap Up

2010-02-27T17:30:00.000-08:00

We have had another great week filled with math, history, science, poetry, grammar,geography playing outside in between the rain showers, and chess club.

Jacob started his new Life of Fred book , and he loves it as much as the first one. Ashlynn is doing really well with her Saxon math. She had a test on Thursday and didn't miss a single problem. She had a really tough time learning long division in January. I am so grateful that she is doing well now.

I love studying history with Jacob and Ashlynn. This week we learned about the start of communism in China. It was very fascinating to read about.

We started a new poetry book, Poetry For Young People William Butler Yeats, for us to read together. Jacob also read the poem The Leprechaun by William Allingham on his own. He loved it so much that he did a drawing of a leprechaun based on the poet's description.

I decided to plan 2 field trips for us this month. In 2 weeks we are going to our local newspaper to see the printing process, and to have a look around the different departments. In three weeks we are going to a youth symphony concert.

I gave Jacob and Ashlynn a school assignment for the weekend. They have to pick 1 thing that each of them would like to learn about. In April we are going to do 2 week long unit studies on the subjects they choose. Ashlynn picked the stock market right away. I can hardly wait for the fun activities that we will do that week!

If you pray, please pray for the people in Chile who were effected by the earthquake their this morning, and for the safety of the people in Hawaii who are under a tsunami advisory.

Friday Freebies

2010-02-26T15:53:00.000-08:00

A great free homeschool resource is the website Homeschool Freebie Of The Day. They have a different free book download or audio every weekday. If you haven't heard of them, you should have a look at the website. We have used a lot of their book downloads, and really enjoyed them.

Thankful Thursday

2010-02-25T17:31:00.000-08:00

This is my third Thankful Thursday, the letter is C.

I'm thankful for:
Children (especially my own)
Christmas
Chocolate
Coffee
Candles
Cookies
Cake
Cheese
Cats
Cafes
Carnivals
Clowns
Carnations
Caring People
Good Character
Cousins
Chickens
Crafts
Cantaloupe
Comedy
Chai Tea
Cinnamon Rolls
Cherries

Beautiful Blogger Award

2010-02-22T11:54:00.000-08:00

I was given my first blog award last week by Milena at http://beyourbestmom.blogspot.com/. She has a great blog, be sure to take a look at it. Thank you so much Milena!

Here is what you do to accept the award.

1.Thank the person who gave you the award.

2.Copy and paste the award to your blog.

3.Link back to the blogger who gave you the award.

4.List 7 interesting things about you.

5.Pass the award on to 7 beautiful bloggers.

Here are 7 interesting things about me.

1.I love children and wanted to have 4 of my own, for as long as I can remember. I stopped after Ashlynn because I developed severe preeclampsia with both pregnancies. I don't think that I would be happier than I am now, if I did have 4 children. It was just how many kids I thought I would have.

2.I love cats and dogs, and would probably be a cat/dog hoarder if it weren't for my husband. I think that he has helped me become a better person:)

3.Most of the paintings in my house, I painted myself. I am not a great artist, but I love painting. It tickles me that I can paint a tree, and it actually looks like how I see a tree.

4.Ever since my kids were small I have made up songs about all sorts of silly things, and sang them to Jacob and Ashlynn. If you spied into my house most of the day would sound like a really bad American Idol audition.

5.I love playing rock band with my family.

6.As crazy as this will sound to some of you, I really love cooking.

7.I dream very vivid dreams every night about all sorts of things.

There are so many beautiful bloggers that it was really hard for me to only choose 7.
Here are my picks:

From Misery To Happiness

Never Just A Housewife

A Blonde Walks Into A Blog

Children Grow, Children Explore, Children Learn

New Mama In Spain

The Pursuit Of Mommyness

Amundsen House Of Chaos

Meal Plan Monday

2010-02-22T11:50:00.000-08:00

Here is my plan for our meals this week:

Meatless Monday
Breakfast scrambled eggs and wheat toast
Lunch grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup
Dinner alfredo sauce pasta, broccoli, and salad

Tuesday
Breakfast oatmeal
Lunch gluten free nachos
Dinner beef stew and salad

Wednesday
Breakfast cereal
Lunch egg salad sandwiches and yogurt
Dinner leftover stew and salad

Thursday
Breakfast poached eggs and wheat toast
Lunch fishsticks and carrot sticks
Dinner pork tacos, re-fried beans and salad

Friday
Breakfast homemade blueberry muffins
Lunch quesadillas
Dinner lemon pepper salmon, broccoli, and baked potatoes

Saturday
Breakfast buttermilk pancakes
Lunch Sandwich Party
Dinner eat out

Sunday
Breakfast omelets
Lunch make your own sandwich and carrot sticks
Dinner roasted chicken, roasted red potatoes and peas

Our Weekly Wrap Up

2010-02-20T11:21:00.000-08:00

We had another great week filled with science, history, math, geography, grammar, reading, piano, chess club, and lots of time outdoors. I would have liked to have gotten in an art project, but I always feel like we could have done one or two more things each week. I have learned to let that feeling go, and plan for the next week.

In math Jacob finished his first Life Of Fred book. It only took him 2 months to complete it. There was some review, because I had him start with Fractions The first book in the series. I just wanted to make sure that he wouldn't miss any concepts after switching from Saxon. Ashlynn is about 75% done with Saxon 5/4, and we are only half way through our school year. When she is finished I will just give her the next Saxon book. That is one of the many things I like about homeschooling, children can work at their own pace.

The weather here was beautiful this week . It feels like spring is here already. We spent a lot of time outside, going for walks, jumping on the trampoline, in the garden, we even did a science experiment outside. We blew up lunch bags, and popped them to demonstrate how thunder is made.

I hope all of you had a great week, and have a good weekend!

Food Friday

2010-02-19T16:23:00.000-08:00

I posted our menu for the week on Monday, and I promised some recipes on Friday.
Here they are:

Here is a link for a wonderful cinnamon roll recipe http://thewelltrainedkitchen.wordpress
Your family will be so grateful if you make these!

Here is a link to my macaroni and cheese recipe

www.homeschoolingwithlove.com

Here is a link to my recipe for grilled peanut butter banana sandwiches

www.homeschoolingwithlove.com

Happy 6th Friday Follow

2010-02-19T09:17:00.000-08:00

It is Friday Follow time again. Crazy that a week can go by so fast. Friday follow is a great way to find new blogs to read and follow. Thanks to one2try.blogspot.com, heartsmakefamilies.com, and www.middayescapades.com for hosting.

Thankful Thursday

2010-02-18T14:07:00.000-08:00

This week is my second Thankful Thursday so the letter is b.

1.All babies(so glad I had a couple)
2.Brothers and Brother-in-laws
3.Books
4.Blogs
5.Blog friends and Blog followers
6.Bananas
7.Banana Bread
8.Banana Cream Pie
9.Bells
10.Blueberries
11.Blueberry Pie
12.All Barbecue
13.Blue Skies
14.Bees in my garden
15.Birds singing
16.Bread
17.Brussels Sprouts
18.Butter
19.Beaches
20.Bagpipes

Easy Lunch Idea-Pizza Pasta

2010-02-18T14:00:00.000-08:00

This is a easy one pot lunch that everybody here loves!

Pizza Pasta

Cooked Noodles
1 cup carrot puree
1/2 package of Hormel uncured pepperoni, cut into strips
1 15 oz can of tomato sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Parmesan cheese

1. Cook noodles according to package directions. Drain noodles, leave in pot. Stir in carrot puree, tomato sauce, pepperoni, olive oil, and spices. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring frequently, or until sauce is heated through. Garnish with Parmesan cheese.

History Of The Medieval World Review

2010-02-16T17:21:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite subjects I teach Jacob and Ashlynn is history. We use The Story Of The World Series By Susan Wise Bauer history curriculum. I was reading the Well Trained Mind Forum a couple of months ago, and came across the opportunity to review Susan Wise Bauer's newest book, History Of The Medieval World. I jumped at the chance.

History Of The Medieval World is written for the high school student, or adult. I have thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It is 746 pages, has 100 maps, 15 illustrations, published by Norton & Company, the list price is $35.00, and it will be released on February 22, 2010.

While it is a complete history of the medieval time period, it doesn't feel dry or boring. Instead it reads like a story filled with facts and famous people. We will use this book as part of Jacob and Ashlynns high school history curriculum when the time comes. I would recommend this book for anyone who enjoys history, or for a high school history course.

(I haven't received any compensation for this review.)

Meal Plan Monday

2010-02-15T11:43:00.000-08:00

I hope all of you had a great Valentines Day! We had a relaxing day, with lots of chocolate, a bouquet of flowers, and a nice walk around our neighborhood. I know we need some healthy meals after our overindulging in chocolate, so here is my plan for the week.

Monday:
Breakfast wheat toast or oatmeal
Lunch grilled cheese sandwiches with oranges slices
Dinner Meatless Monday Tuscan bean soup and salad

Tuesday
Breakfast scrambled eggs and toast
Lunch pizza pasta
Dinner Italian Dressing cod, baked potatoes, broccoli

Wednesday
Breakfast oatmeal or cereal
Lunch potato leek soup with whole grain crackers
Dinner chicken ala king over rice and a salad

Thursday
Breakfast vegie sausage breakfast sandwiches
Lunch fish sticks and carrot sticks
Dinner pot roast with potatoes and carrots

Friday
Breakfast homemade cinnamon rolls
Lunch grilled peanut butter banana sandwiches
Dinner left over pot roast and a salad

Saturday
Breakfast buttermilk pancakes
Lunch make your own sandwich
Dinner homemade macaroni and cheese with broccoli

Sunday
Breakfast individual egg souffles and toast
Lunch left over macaroni and cheese with orange slices
Dinner balsamic vinegar pork loin, roasted garlic sweet potatoes, and green beans

Our Weekly Wrap Up

2010-02-13T15:48:00.000-08:00

We had a great week filled with math, history, reading, science, art, geography, spelling, poetry, gardening, chess club, going for walks, and an orthodontist appointment. It actually looks like we were busier than I felt we were.

Ashlynn has been having a better time with division. I think (I'm keeping my fingers crossed as I write this) that she has caught on to the process. Thank goodness! I was considering changing to a different math program for her next year.

In between all of their school work Jacob and Ashlynn made stained glass hearts. They chose three different colors of crayons. They grated the crayons with our cheese grater. They put the crayon shavings in between pieces of wax paper. Ironed the wax paper with a towel on the top and bottom of the wax paper. Then they glued hearts that they cut out over the wax paper, and cut the excess wax paper off. Viola, a stained glass heart for Valentines Day.

We also had to make my favorite heart shaped spritz cookies for Valentines Day.

There aren't any left for the actual day, but they were yummy while they lasted.

This week in geography we studied Greece and Italy. The meals we had to represent these countries were cheese tortellini for Italy and moussaka for Greece. We really like tortellini and eat it once a month for dinner, but we have not had moussaka before. I found a recipe for it in one of my cookbooks. I followed the recipe, but I don't think that it turned out like it was supposed to. I was the only one who liked it at all. Oh well, at least we all tried something new.

I took Jacob to his orthodontist appointment, and the exciting news is he is going to get his braces off in 7 weeks! I am so ready for them to be off, and I am not the one with the braces. I feel bad when his mouth is sore from them. I get tired of trying to cook food that can be eaten while having braces. The bad news is the orthodontist wants to see if Ashlynn is ready for her braces the day Jacob gets his off. I hope she isn't:) If she is, I will try to help her make the best of it.

I hope that all of you have a Happy Valentines Day!

Happy Friday Follow!

2010-02-12T08:20:00.000-08:00

This is my second week joining in the Friday Follow fun. It is a great way to find new blogs to read. Thanks to heartsmakefamilies.com, www.middayescapades.com, and one2try.blogspot.com for hosting.