Busy Hands Busy Minds

School Mornings

2017-04-25T18:59:00.002-05:00

When we started homeschooling way back in 1988, I had just graduated with my master's degree in music education. My oldest child was just in K4 so we took things pretty lightly then, doing some table time learning three days a week, playing lots of games and taking lots of field trips with our large support group in Ft. Worth, TX.

As our two older girls grew, I eventually incorporated our morning time routine which started with a Bible reading or pictorial devotional, Scripture memory, Bible songs and story time. Our family continued to grow eventually to seven children with an age span of almost 25 years. Our group time grew as the family grew and as we solidified our homeschooling goals for our children.

For the past 20 years or so, I've begun our school day by reading a chapter of Proverbs to coincide with the date. If today is April 25th, we read Proverbs 25 and so on. We also go over Scripture memory, read a chapter from Vos' The Child's Story Bible, read a chapter or two from our current read aloud and then have time for some extras such as poetry, hymn studies, Greek and Latin root review, logic, manners, or our unit study vocabulary words. Each semester is different depending on how many children I have homeschooling and their grade levels. Every one participates and the younger ones quietly draw, color pictures relating to our unit study, play with Legos or quiet puzzles. I try to switch things up and incorporate some movement occasionally, especially on days our grandchildren join us for school.

After our group time we separate with the teens going to the dining room or their bedrooms for independent study and the younger school aged children join me at the school table for math and language. Kindergarteners and preschoolers who happen to join us have time on the floor with fun learning activities placed on towels. After 20-30 minutes I change their activities and give them time to move around.

Currently our senior daughter is finished with all her bookwork and is out of the house nannying a few days a week. When she is home she joins us for our Proverbs reading and memory verse review and then heads off to do some chores or preparing her display for graduation. On a normal day that leaves me with our two youngest sons ages 12 and 8. This is somewhat bittersweet to me, but I'm looking forward to studying with them and encouraging them in their Bible and academic studies for the next several years.

Our current readings are from the following books: the Bible, Vos' The Child's Story Bible, Then Sings My Soul by Robert J. Morgan for hymn study, You Come Too by Robert Frost for poetry study and Boys of Grit Who Never Gave Up from Lamplighter's Rare Collectors Series.

I keep a box or basket next to my chair in our den to keep our current books at hand and I also have the next books we will be reading through in there ready to start.

So, how does the beginning of your school day look? What books are you currently sharing with your children?

Tips for Homeschooling with the Littles

2017-04-24T17:05:00.000-05:00

Reposting this from 2011: My Caedmon is now an eight year old, but we have a two-year-old grandson with us every Monday. It's time to start "school" with him.

Two Year Old "School"

What do you do with the little guys while you are teaching the older ones?
I need to do some kind of learning activities with my toddler, but I have no idea what to do?

When you get busy teaching the older children it is often easy to overlook the educational needs of the little ones. Yes, we make sure they are clean and fed, but some days it is easy to stick in a video or two for a couple of hours of peace while we teach the older children. One way to make sure you are incorporating fun, entertaining and educational activities for your little ones is to make a plan.

Go through your preschool toys and games and make a list of everything you have that will make up a fun learning experience for your little one. This is my current list of things my 27 month old son, Caedmon, can do by himself or with help.

1. Lauri lace up animals
2. a magnetic board with magnetic shapes of various colors
3. Discovery Toys Giant Pegboard for color sorting, stacking, counting or stringing....the back of it can be used as a pegboard with rubber bands
4. bean bags tossed into a basket or bucket
5. jumbo Cuisenaire rods
6. Wee Sing tapes (ok, I have cassettes--I have had preschoolers for over 20 years!!)
7. board puzzles--Lauri, Melissa and Doug and Discovery Toys
8. stickers and paper--I may draw a shape or a letter and have him place stickers to outline the drawing
9. Color Wonder fingerpaint
10. Color Wonder markers
11. What's That Sound?--Discovery Toys listening lotto game
12. attribute blocks- sort shapes, colors and sizes
13. exercise CD or video
14. make pictures with rice, dried beans, pasta or cornmeal
15. tear construction paper and glue on other paper to make a collage
16. Duplos
17. Builders and Benders from Discovery Toys
18. Little People
19. Measure Up Cups (Discovery Toys) with a large pan of rice and a funnel
20. play dough and cookie cutters
21. large lace up beads from Melissa and Doug
22. plastic nuts and bolts
23. Trace and Place puzzles from Discovery Toys
24. pattern blocks---match colors and shapes, make simple patterns, make designs
25. small dry erase board and marker
26. Melissa and Doug box shape sorter
27. Melissa and Doug stacking blocks
28. Melissa and Doug pegged shape sorter
29. Mini Motors from Discovery Toys for sorting and playing
30. file folder games from preschoolprintables.com
31. activity bags from activitybags.com
32. books, books and more books!!
33. Sounds Like Fun tape from Discovery Toys
34. toy instruments from Melissa and Doug
35. play food

As we do many of these activities we will be talking together about various things. Naming objects, colors and shapes. Sorting objects also can help teach counting. Talk about same and different as you sort. Opposites are fun to teach. Caedmon is really funny these days as he makes a happy face and then a sad face as requested. We sing or count as we roll a ball back to each other on the floor.

Children at this age also love to help with various chores. There is a good bit they can help with if you take the time to enjoy and encourage their efforts. Caedmon loves to help load clothes in the washer or dryer. He can also pick up toys and help vacuum. A cleaning rag is great fun for him as he wipes down the fronts of kitchen appliances. With a spray bottle of plain water and a cleaning rag he can clean a spill or a sticky spot in the floor. With a damp rag he can dust low pieces of furniture.

When we were "poor" seminary students I borrowed several early learning resources from the library. As I came across an idea that I thought would interest my children I copied it onto an index card. I have a file box full of fun activities for early learning in all subject areas: science, physical activities, language, crafts, etc. Other resources that I have used in the last few years include Slow and Steady Get Me Ready by June R. Oberlander and The Preschool Primer: 101 Ideas for Learning and Doing.

Now that I have resources and a list of activities I am ready for the planning session. I have a small plastic set of six drawers. Each drawer is labeled for each of the five school days. The extra drawer will contain quiet activities for family worship time. I keep 4-5 activities in each drawer. Many items on my list will not fit in the drawers, so I will tape the list to the wall next to my desk. As I make out my lesson plans for the older children I can easily write down 2-3 activities from the list on my plans for Caedmon. I am hoping that being a little more organized with his activities will keep us all a little less frazzled and Caedmon a little more content.

If you have any questions or suggestions, I would love to hear from you. Do you have a terrific resource for the early preschool years? How do you incorporate your littles into your school day?

Movies to Enhance Homeschooling

2017-04-20T13:52:00.000-05:00

We love to add movies and documentaries to our homeschool. From movies based on historical fiction to documentaries on history, science and geography topics to great film versions of our favorite British classic literature, we love them all. And they add to our studies with very little effort on my part.

Jeff has been working with PureFlix in the past few years as he has served as producer for American Family Studios. Recently I looked over what they had to offer and was impressed with the variety of their selections including many that would be useful in our homeschool like these for history and government or these for science and nature studies. Take a look at what they have to offer and check into a trial membership! There are also some freebies to check out.

Five Years Ago...Words Still Just as Sweet

2017-04-19T09:16:00.000-05:00

I posted this exactly five years ago yesterday. Words I need to hear all over again!

Getting Dressed

Last night during our family worship time, Jeff read to us from Colossians 3 and 4. This verses from chapter three, though, really stood out to me.

"Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. But above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to which also you were called in one body; and be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father, through Him. Colossians 3: 12-17

As he was reading I could see each one of us getting dressed each morning and adding on each of these qualities layer upon layer. How good and pleasant would it be if we could just go to our closets or drawers and physically PUT these qualities upon our bodies. Oh, if it were as easy as that!! Dressing ourselves each day with all of the following traits:

-tender mercies
-kindness
-humility
-meekness
-longsuffering
-bearing with one another
-forgiving one another
-love
-peace
-be thankful
-grace

Sounds almost impossible, doesn't it? And it is! It is only through Christ's righteousness that we can exhibit any of these qualities and even then it isn't always easy. I fail. every. single. day. At the end of a busy day of homeschooling, cooking, cleaning, errand running and child training it is so easy to think only of myself, to get tired of answering just one more question, of listening to one more piece on the piano, to hear the constant drumming, banging, snapping that one son MUST do (he has so much music and rhythm within him that it MUST come out!), one more dish to wash, one more load of laundry to fold....It's tiring and I snap, I fail. But then I remember that even though I do struggle, I do not depend upon my own works for salvation. I can rest on HIS righteousness and not my own weak self. How wonderful and precious is that?

The following poem, written many, many years ago by Charitie Lees De Chenez is so special to me. I cannot get through singing it at church without tears, but the third stanza is generally where I break down. Yes, I will strive to clothe myself in all the qualities listed in Colossians 3, but will daily remember that Christ has paid it all and has clothed me, even me, with His righteousness.

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong, a perfect plea,
A great High Priest, whose Name is Love,
Who ever lives and pleads for me.

My name is graven in His hands.
My name is written on His heart;
I know that, while in heaven He stands.
No tongue can bid me thence depart.

When Satan tempts me to despair,
And tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look, and see Him there
Who made an end of all my sin.

Because the sinless Saviour died,
My sinful soul is counted free;
For God the Just is satisfied
To look on Him, and pardon me.

Behold Him there! the risen Lamb!
My perfect, spotless righteousness,
The great unchangeable I AM,
The King of glory and of grace!

One with Himself, I cannot die,
My soul is purchased by His blood;
My life is hid with Christ on high,
With Christ, my Saviour and my God.

Easter 2017

2017-04-17T13:53:00.000-05:00

Our family continues to grow! Pictured: Kaelan, our 17 year old daughter who will graduate from our homeschool next month; Devin with her husband, Justin and son Haddon; Lauren with her husband, James, and their five children Eli (in the green shirt), Chase, Ashtyn Claire, Carolina and Aidan; our 12 year old son, Jackson, in the pink shirt and our 8 year old son Caedmon in the red shorts; daughter-in-law, Anna with our son Jordan and their new baby, Andy; me, Jeff and our 20 year old son, Aaron, who will graduate with his associates degree in accounting next month.

Our busy times seem to be even busier these days!! Lauren is expecting twins very soon and has been on bed rest for the past three weeks. We've had her children for about 12 of those days and doing school with them as well as our two youngest boys. Kaelan has almost finished all of her required work for her senior year. I need to catch up in checking it and she has two series of DVDs to watch for science and history and a couple of papers to write before being officially finished. She will begin the prerequisites for nursing school this fall.

We were blessed with an unexpected visitor this Easter weekend. A young woman was traveling by bicycle from Michigan to San Antonio, TX. She stopped in Tupelo and went to the Good Friday services at our church Friday evening. I introduced myself to her and discovered she was the oldest of ten children and was also homeschooled. She stayed with us Friday evening and then Kaelan and Jeff drove her to her next starting point late Saturday morning. Easter afternoon she called, having run into some trouble. We were able to get her some immediate help and then pick her up for another night/morning at our home. Due to an old knee injury, she has opted to continue her trip in a rental vehicle. She was quite disappointed not to finish as she started, but was determined to get to the Alamo regardless. A real-life lesson for our KONOS unit study on diligence and determination. We are thankful to the Lord for putting all the details in place so that we could serve her in a time of need.

Hope you all have a great week! I'll try to update more about the past four years in our lives. We have had some major happenings, but God has blessed us greatly through them all. Now, back to the books for me!

Why We Do What We Do

2017-03-02T13:02:00.004-06:00

This is a repost from May 2011, but it still holds true. Now we are at the end of our 28th year of homeschooling and graduating our fifth child in May. That will leave us with two children homeschooling...we have 10 years left!

Deuteronomy 6: 4-9

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.

And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Many, many years ago Jeff and I were traveling I-20 from Mississippi to Texas on our way to visit Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary to determine whether or not Jeff would continue his music and ministerial training there. As we were traveling we listened to Christian radio and heard Marlin Maddox interview Raymond and Dorothy Moore. They were discussing homeschooling that day. Jeff and I already had one child at this point and we were intrigued with the idea of homeschooling. Jeff asked me to write down the Moore's name and we decided then that if it were ever possible for us that we would like to homeschool. At that time, however, it didn't seem probable as Jeff would soon be enrolling as a full- time seminary student. In the next couple of years, I completed my master's degree in music education and we added a second child to our family. When baby number two was just 6 weeks old we packed up and moved to Ft. Worth, TX.

Prior to moving to Texas I made various phone calls and sent letters and applications to the school systems in and surrounding the Ft. Worth, TX area. Apparently, no one needed a newly graduated master's level music teacher who was certified K-12. After arriving in Ft. Worth, we began searching more thoroughly. We also remembered that interview with the Moore's that we had heard two years earlier. The desire had never really left our hearts, so we prayed that IF the Lord wanted us to begin homeschooling our four year old that He would close all the doors of employment for me. And He did! I had two opportunities open up for me. One was teaching music in a K-2 day school. The other was teaching in a day care. Having heard and read the financial teachings of Larry Burkett, we knew to carefully consider the costs of mom being away from home. After crunching the numbers we quickly realized that child care, a teaching wardrobe, travel, and convenience foods would demand all of the income and more. What a blessing to see God's hand revealed! Thus, we began our homeschooling journey. Jeff did continue his full-time seminary training and, at times, worked 3-4 jobs as well. He did well in his studies and even received a few honors along the way.

God provided all we needed and so much more in those early years and I can say the same for today. There have been days that have been extremely frustrating as I have tried to teach my children and there have been days that have been extremely rewarding as well. There has only been one period in our homeschooling life that I have felt so discouraged that I could have sent the children off to school, but thankfully, I can see now that it was during a season of post-partum depression and God somehow sustained us all through that. Homeschooling is never easy. I really am convinced that you MUST take the command in Deuteronomy 6 to heart if you are to succeed. Diligently teaching God's Word as you sit in your house, as you walk by the way, when you lie down and when you rise up seems to be a 24 hour a day job. Yes, it can be exhausting but God has a precious promise for us in Galatians 6: 9. "And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart."

Being with your children 24 hours a day, 7 days a week has to be one of the most humbling and sanctifying positions to be in. My children see me for what I am....and I have to admit on some days what I am is not pretty. The faults that I try to correct in my children are faults that they have learned from me. How can I correct them when I continue to fail in the same areas? Yes, God uses homeschooling to sanctify parents and especially moms who spend so much of their days working with and teaching their children.

Our homeschooling days are not always those days that bring tears of joy to my eyes as a child finally grasps a new concept or we have an extra special moment sharing the wonder of God's Creation. There are many days that tears of frustration come as personalities clash, attitudes must be dealt with or a concept just seems too hard to learn. There are times that LIFE gets so busy that the books need to be put aside for a time so that the life lessons can be learned. Educating our children is definitely not limited to what we study from a book. Some of the most important lessons come from what God is teaching us as we learn to live together.

Why do we home educate our children? Because we truly feel that God called us to do so 23 years ago and unless He tells us otherwise we will continue on this course for another 17 years. Why am I sharing this today? I think it is because I needed to be reminded! It is so very easy for me to get frustrated when LIFE prevents me from spending time working on MY lesson plans. I need to remember that God's plans are always more important than anything I can plan. Learning to graciously handle interruptions and little twists in our day will, in the long run, be much more helpful to my children than learning the details of the surrender of Lee at Appomattox Courthouse, the greenhouse effect or unit multipliers. And, I share because I hope to encourage someone else out there who might be struggling today as well.

1 Thessalonians 5: 11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.

Grandchildren and More

2017-02-28T18:45:00.001-06:00

Jeff and I with Lauren's five children: in Jeff's lap is Aidan followed by Eli, Carolina, Chase and Ashtyn Claire; in my lap is Devin's son, Haddon. Not pictured is Devin's step-son, Joseph.

Lauren's husband was sick the day we took these pictures and didn't join us. Lauren is expecting twins, a boy and a girl, in May. We are still in shock!

When I last posted, Devin and Justin had just gotten married...way back in November of 2012!

Jordan married Anna in December of 2015. Anna has been a friend of our family since she was 5 years old! She and Jordan are expecting their first son, Andrew Scott, in just a couple of weeks.

We are so very thankful for the new additions to our family! God has blessed us with great children, sons-and daughter-in-law and wonderful grandchildren. We are excited to see how God works in our family as we continue to grow.

We're Back

2017-02-28T15:55:00.001-06:00

I can't believe it's been over four years since I've posted here at Busy Hands Busy Minds. There have been many changes within our family...mainly the additions of more grandchildren and a daughter-in-law. We now have 7 grandchildren and three married children. Three more grandchildren are due this spring...a first child for our oldest son and twins for our oldest daughter.

I hope to get back here much more frequently to share what we are learning in our homeschool, kitchen and in life. God has been so good to us! I'll be updating the sidebar information in the next day or two and hope to have another post to update you all on the past four years.

Thanksgiving Menu

2012-11-14T09:25:00.000-06:00

How many of you have already planned out your Thanksgiving menu? Are you taking advantage of great sales prices to stock up. Butter, cream cheese, turkey, ham, and cranberries are just a few of the items I have been finding at great prices right now.

This year my oldest daughter, Lauren, has decided to host Thanksgiving dinner at her home. They also live out in the country and have a nice lake just out their back yard. I'm sure some canoeing and shooting will be going on as well as eating lots of good food and chasing little ones. I am so thankful that both of my married daughters live close enough for easy visits and we can still be together for one of our favorite holidays.

Our Thanksgiving menu rarely changes through the years. I'll be baking a turkey and ham, a sweet potato casserole, mashed potatoes and a dessert that my food allergic boys can eat. Devin will be making our sweet and sour beans and another dessert. Lauren is going to try her hand at dressing this year. She called yesterday wanting the recipe. Does anyone really use a recipe? Years spent watching my mamaw and my mama make dressing and being the taste-tester taught me how to make it. I made a few changes here and there, but we love our dressing. She'll have to get experience and make it her own. She also mentioned a caramel apple cheesecake. Oh, my!! Grandmother will be bringing rolls and our traditional cranberry/apple casserole. Here is a link to some of our favorite holiday recipes. I would love for you to share some of yours with us!!

Chocolate chess pies, blueberry cream cheese pies, sweet and sour beans and cranberry apple casserole recipes are here.
http://busyhandsbusyminds.blogspot.com/2009/11/more-thanksgiving-dinner-recipes.html

Menu for November 11-17

2012-11-13T06:57:00.000-06:00

A little late, I know!! I'm trying to reduce some of our meat consumption on a daily basis while adding in more vegetable dinners. Some of my guys are not liking the changes....and I am not surprised. I suppose I have been changing things up a lot with our foods, but for years I have cooked almost two seperate meals at times trying to make sure my food allergy kids had plenty to choose from. Now I pretty much cook one main dish that all can eat and fill in with sides. That means most of our dishes no longer have any dairy, egg or wheat products. We still consume dairy and egg, but not in our main dishes for the most part.

Breakfasts this week are baked oatmeals (I do make two pans...one with no dairy or egg and one with)...this morning's has some blueberries added in. GF DF EF pancakes, bacon, sausage, eggs and grits.

Lunches are leftovers or soups....beef stew, French onion soup, potato soup, chicken soup.

Dinners

Sunday-after our small group book study we headed to our favorite Mexican restaurant

Monday-lentil rice casserole, roasted root veggies (carrots, sweet potatoes, rutabaga and turnips), roasted red potatoes and onions, green beans and turnip greens

Tuesday-white bean chicken chili with tortilla chips and salad (making a few variations with the recipe...using a whole shredded chicken, dry beans and homecanned chicken stock)

Wednesday-ground beef hash and green beans

Thursday-stir fry beef and broccoli with rice, egg drop soup

Friday-homemade pizzas and salad

Saturday-chicken pot pie, English peas and salad

Sunday-pinto beans topped with chopped onions, shredded cheese and sour cream, corn cakes and salad

A Few Wedding Snapshots

2012-11-12T08:12:00.002-06:00

We are trying to get back into a normal routine with school and home. Devin and Justin are back home from their honeymoon and both will resume teaching today. Here are just a few snapshots from the wedding. Hopefully we will have some more by the end of the week. We had two great photographers taking pictures and are very pleased so far.

Mr. and Mrs. Justin Treadaway

Devin and the wedding ushers, Ben Riley, Jordan, Devin, Aaron and Nathan Bagget

bridesmaid bouquets made by Lori Corbin, my dear friend down-the-road

wedding cake made by a lovely church member, Sandy Morris

Jeff and Devin before the ceremony

Jordan giving Devin a good-bye hug after the wedding

Jordan, Aaron, Lauren, Jackson, new son-in-law Justin, Devin, Kaelan, Caedmon, me and Jeff

Menu Plan for October 29-November 4

2012-10-29T07:25:00.001-05:00

Well, here we are in our final week before Devin's wedding. As you can imagine we are finishing up final details, putting on final touches to our wedding attire, hauling decorations, food and more to the church, decorating the sanctuary and cleaning the house. I'm trying to make our meals as simple, but as nourishing as possible as I don't want anyone coming down sick. I did buy a boxed cereal for our breakfasts on Saturday and Sunday morning. My family couldn't believe it! We needed something very quick for those two days, so there you go!!

Monday
b-sausage, eggs, grits
l-cheese pizzas and raw veggies
d-vegetable soup, flatbread and salad

Tuesday
b-baked oatmeal
l-cheese cubes, sliced meat, fruit and chips
d-baked chicken, potatoes, carrots, onions and butterbeans

Wednesday
b-cinnamon bread, sausage and eggs
l-leftovers and popcorn
d-baked potatoes with trimmings and salad

Thursday
b-baked oatmeal
l-spaghetti and salad
d-pinto beans, sweet potatoes, corn bread, raw veggies and apple crisp

Friday
b-pancakes and bacon
l-leftovers
d-rehearsal dinner

Saturday (wedding day)
b-cereal
l-meat and cheese tray, raw veggies, crackers
d-ordering pizzas

Sunday (Jordan's 20th birthday)
b-cereal
l-garlic lime chicken, baked sweet and white potatoes, green beans, English peas, sauteed squash and onions, sweet potato and chocolate chess pies
d-leftovers

Ramblings for October 23

2012-10-23T09:26:00.002-05:00

-There are eleven days left until Devin's wedding!

-Audio books are our friends. Jackson teared up when we came to the end of My Side of the Mountain. He didn't want it to end, so I put the CD back in! ; ) I came across a free My Side of the Mountain Project Pack by Hands of a Child that I think we will work on next semester and we will read the two sequels together as well. They are not as good as My Side of the Mountain, but this will definitely fit into our planned study of the KONOS Attentiveness unit.

-This morning the little boys were listening to Kipling's Just So Stories. The reader has a strange voice and Caedmon was scared.

-There are eleven days left until Devin's wedding!

-We have pumpkins....lots of them....80 large pumpkins to be exact. Yes, we will use them to decorate for the wedding, but I am also putting some of them up. One pumpkin made about 15 cups of pumpkin puree yesterday. It's in the freezer now.

-We have become relaxed homeschoolers or maybe even unschoolers. Why?

-There are eleven days left until Devin's wedding!

-We've been getting very crafty lately. Saturday three fall wreaths were made as well as 11 boutoneires. This week we need to make sugar scrubs, salt baths, 7 bouquets and some other items as well.

-Our church is doing a study on Thomas Watson's All Things for Good. Jeff is leading one of the small groups on Sunday evenings. As we have a 30 minute drive to church on Sundays some of us redeem the time by reviewing the chapter on the way to church. Daddy sometimes reminds the children to redeem this time. This Sunday we were surprised when Jackson asked to read the book. He is doing very well in his reading and will finish up level 2 and 2 1/2 of Explode the Code this week. Thomas Watson was a Puritan. It's a big stretch from Dr. Seuss to a Puritan writer!

-There are eleven days left until Devin's wedding!

-I need breakfast help. Some of my family members are not happy about our wheat free diet. Some of them are out of the home every day and are NOT on a wheat free diet. at. all. I need some ideas for wheat free breakfasts. My very spoiled family is used to homemade biscuits, pancakes, muffins and cinnamon rolls...every day! Help!!

-Please share some of your favorite bread free breakfasts and/or a favorite audio book or series for the under 10 crowd in the comments.

Menu Plan for October 22-28

2012-10-22T05:59:00.003-05:00

We made it through a crazy busy week! I don't think we were all home for dinner at the same time last week and there were two nights that there were only four of us sitting down at the dinner table. Praying that this week is a little slower as we relish Devin's final days at home with us. Less than two weeks to go before her wedding. We made some great progress in wedding prep last week and I hope to have pictures of some handmade items we will be using for the wedding soon.

Here is my menu plan for this week....minus lunch! Lunch will be leftovers, homemade pizzas, popcorn, fruit and salads.

Monday
b-apple/cranberry crisp, bacon, eggs
d-little saucy meatballs, rice, roasted broccoli

Tuesday
b-corn meal mush with syrup and sausage
d-pork fajita nachos with sauteed peppers, refried beans and all the trimmings

Wednesday
b-baked oatmeal
d-homecanned chicken soup for Caedmon and chicken tortilla soup for the rest of us

Thursday
b-apple oat muffins
d-fried steaks, mashed potatoes, gravy and green beans

Friday
b-corn meal mush with syrup, sausage
d-chicken pot pie, baked sweet potatoes, pinto beans and corn bread

Saturday
b-breakfast in a bowl--country style potatoes with sausage, eggs and cheese
d-grilled chicken, rice pilaf, grilled corn and broccoli

Sunday
b-baked oatmeal
d-vegetable beef soup and corn bread

Apples Apples Apples

2012-10-16T07:13:00.000-05:00

We've been enjoying lots of apples around here lately. I buy them by the forty pound case at our local fruit and vegetable market. Last year we started making our applesauce in the crock pot and then canning it. We still love our applesauce muffins in that post, but now we are making them gluten free. We've been experimenting with gluten-free baking and as two of the boys are deathly allergic to eggs our baking can be a challenge.

I have also been dehydating apples which I used to make fried apple pies before we went gluten free. They were absolutely delicious. We also snip the dried apples up and add them to our homemade granola.

For breakfast and dessert we are enjoying apple crisps. Sometimes I toss in a cupful of frozen cranberries for a wonderful fruity combination. For the breakfast version, I decrease the sugar.

I have also been making fruit leather with our applesauce and with pureed strawberries and peach butter. All natural with no added sugar, Caedmon loves the apple fruit leathers while my grandsons and son-in-law are partial to the strawberry. It's so rewarding to see them enjoy a good healthy snack that is so good for them!

Here are a few other apple recipes that we have enjoyed through the years. Do you have a favorite apple recipe you wouldn't mind sharing? I would love to add some more variation to our apple menu!

*words in bold print are links to recipes

Menu Plan for October 14-20

2012-10-14T10:33:00.002-05:00

It seems that we are back in order here at Busy Hands Busy Minds! For the past few months I was not able to access the blog due to some changes our internet provider made, but we recently made a switch to a different provider and now we are back up! I'll save the highlights of the last three months or so for another day. If you have followed Busy Hands Busy Minds on FB (see the link in the right side-bar) you will know that our second daughter, Devin, will soon be married. In fact, we have less than three weeks to finish all the wedding prep! Yikes!! More highlights another day!

This week seems to be like the rest of our weeks in this season....busy, busy, busy! Wedding prep, wedding shower, shopping, music lessons, school and a visit from Jeff's out-of state brother and his family late in the week. One thing that keeps me sane during our crazy busy days is having a menu and shopping list made out before the week starts. Here is what we'll be cooking up this week:

Sunday
b-baked oatmeal
l-at Grandmother's...taking apple cranberry crisps for dessert
d-chicken enchilada casserole, refried beans, chips and salsa

Monday
b-applesauce muffins, sausage and eggs
l-leftovers, popcorn, fruit
d-panfried chicken breasts topped with garlic creamed spinach, roasted carrots and broccoli and rice cooked in chicken broth

Tuesday
b-apple crisp, bacon and eggs
l-we'll pick up something in town
d-crockpot beef roast with potatoes, carrots, garlic and onions, roasted garlic

Wednesday
b-baked oatmeal
l-roast beef hash and green beans
d-taco soup or chicken soup

Thursday
b-blueberry muffins, sausage, eggs
l-leftovers
d-butter beans, stove top potatoes, candied sweet potatoes, corn, corn bread, deviled eggs

Friday
b-pancakes, bacon
l-chili with beans, shredded cheese, chopped onions, sour cream and tortilla chips, peach and blueberry cobblers, homemade ice cream
d-baked potatoes with toppings

Saturday
b-breakfast in a bowl--crumbled sausage cooked with diced potatoes, eggs and shredded cheese
l-leftovers
d-poppyseed chicken casserole, English peas, green beans, carrots

Paper Dream Winner

2012-06-27T21:06:00.001-05:00

Janelmartin, you are the winner of the Paper Dream DVD. Please email me at jeffandanita@wildblue.net with your full mailing address. Hope you enjoy!!

Busy Hands and Minds....Really!!

2012-06-26T08:45:00.000-05:00

We've been keeping our hands busy by moving chicken tractors and constantly watering and feeding 90 Cornish Cross chickens several times a day. These chicks eat! And with the temps in the 100s this week, watering is extremely important.

I wish watering the garden would insure a good crop, but it seems that our soil (even in the raised beds) and the heat are taking a toll on our garden. I think Jeff has decided that buying fresh produce from friends or farmers' markets would be cheaper for us in the long run. Despite our meager yields we have been canning green beans, blueberries and making various jams and jellies. I've dehydrated onions and made caramelized onions that I'll be canning today. This brings us to the end of a 50 pound bag of onions that we purchased for only 5 bucks. Yep!! Good deal!!
http://canninggranny.blogspot.com/2011/05/canning-caramelized-onions.html

We've also bagged up gallons of blueberries and strawberries for use throughout the year. Today I'll be making up cranberry applesauce in the crockpots to can later. I recently bought 40 pounds of apples for about 16 dollars and have lots of cranberries in the freezer. We love a combination of cranberries and apples, so I am going to use them up! The cranberries have been in the freezer for 2 years when I found a great deal on them after Christmas and I am diligently trying to use up the frozen fruits and veggies in the freezer so we will have room for those 90 chickens that will be slaughtered in a couple of weeks.

In the dehydrator I've been drying sage, oregano, zucchini and blueberries. I'll do some of those apples as well. We love having dried apples on hand for granola and now a new favorite, fried dried apple pies...Oh, My!!

For school, we've been doing at least two days worth of math each day, working on grammar and studying Egypt which involves lots of reading, research and writing for my 15 and 13 year old children. The 7 year old is working along at his math and phonics and has enjoyed a light bird study this summer. He is excited about a family trip to the beach next month so he can see some sand pipers and other water birds. We will also get to visit an Audobon bird sanctuary which is on the island we will be staying on. We've been reading the Childhood of Famous Americans biography about Audobon for the last few weeks.

I'll stop with a link to a great post by Amy at Homestead Revival. Some great information. http://homesteadrevival.blogspot.com/2012/06/debt-crisis-homesteading.html

Paper Dream Giveaway

2012-06-19T08:49:00.000-05:00

Late last summer American Family Studios began filming a short movie that has a wonderful message...a message that we don't hear much in today's world. The message? That God IS sovereign. That He created all and He is all.

Psalm 73: 25-26 Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You. My flesh and my heart fail; but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

My husband and oldest son both worked hard on this project. Jordan was the second assistant camera while Jeff was the producer and also composed the original soundtrack minus one or two pieces. I have to say that when I watched this for the first time a couple of months ago I was pleasantly surprised. I wasn't sure about how the story of a barren woman would apply to me, but as it unfolded I could see my own barreness....not of the womb, but in other areas. I alternately laughed and cried as we watched this short film. I think you will as well.

Today this film premiers locally and the proceeds will benefit a local adoption agency. I have one copy of this dvd to give away to a blog reader. It also includes two other films, both nominated as finalists in the San Antonio Independent Film Festival. Jeff also produced and wrote the soundtrack for one of them, Divorcing God.

If you would like to recieve this copy of Paper Dream, leave me a comment and will have a drawing early next week. I think you will be blessed!

To order Paper Dream for your own home DVD library or to watch the trailer, click here!

Paper DreamChristy had a dream...
For as long as she can remember, Christy Davis has wanted to be a mom, but things haven’t worked out the way she imagined them. When hopes of getting pregnant fall through, she and her husband Matt turn to adoption, but will that be enough to fill their longing for a child?

American Family Studios is proud to present a story of hope in the midst of difficult circumstances. Do unfulfilled dreams define who we are, or is God enough to give us fulfillment?

Runtime: Approximately 40 minutes Start a Paper Dream Event or bring to your church

BONUS: The Paper Dream DVD also includes American Family Studios
original documentaries "Flame On" and "Divorcing God"

Flame On: A True Story of Hope in the Midst of Great Personal Tragedy
How would you react when tragedy strikes? Would your faith in an all loving God waver? Would you turn your back on the Lord? Flame On was filmed just months after the extreme loss of a loved one, and follows the Jasper family through the true heart wrenching and faith stretching question of "Why does God allow bad things to happen to good people?" Watch and marvel at how a strong Christian family deals with the emotions of shock, loss and grief from a Biblical perspective. Flame On illustrates the struggle between the sovereignty of God and human responsibility while examining how faith in the Lord Jesus Christ can take you from the very bottom of despair to victory through tragedy. Flame On s a 'must see' for those grieving the loss of a loved one and will leave you with the peaceful knowledge that we serve a gracious, loving God who gives us light through the dark moments of life. "There are no words to describe how we hurt," says J.J. Jasper. "But God's sovereignty and His character do not change. He is still a good God. We knew that intellectually and now we know it experientially."
Runtime: Approx. 40 minutes
16 x 9 widescreen
For more information visit: www.FlameOn.net

Divorcing God: Secularism and the Republic
Divorcing God is a look at what the Founding Fathers believed about morality and religious faith as the pillars of our government and nation, and the dangers posed by secular humanism. Divorcing God also explores the historical patterns of the lives of nations and empires - from birth and growth to prosperity, weakness, decay and death. The film is not just about doom and gloom, however. “Divorcing God is a hopeful presentation of the power of our Christian faith and the power of renewal,” said AFA president Tim Wildmon. “The film represents AFA’s very reason for existence: We believe Christians should get informed about what’s happening in our country and get involved.”

Interviewees include Hadley Arkes, professor of jurisprudence at Amherst College; Brad Dacus, president of the Pacific Justice Institute; Daniel Dreisbach, professor of public affairs at American University; Michael Farris, constitutional attorney and chancellor of Patrick Henry College; Matthew Franck, professor of political science at Radford University; Robert George, professor of jurisprudence at Princeton University; George Grant, author and founder of King’s Meadow Study Center; Peter Lillback, professor of historical theology at Westminster Theological Seminary; Judith Reisman, visiting professor of law at Liberty University School of Law; and Matthew Spalding, director of the B. Kenneth Simon Center for American Studies at the Heritage Foundation

http://www.hiphomeschoolmoms.com/2012/06/giveaway-day-62112/

Work Week

2012-06-18T08:40:00.003-05:00

We've been really busy concentrating on some heavy school work the last few weeks and things are really progressing in that area. However, my house is a mess and I have lots of kitchen work that needs to be done this week. I'm thinking we may be taking a much lighter school schedule this week so we can get some home blessings accomplished!

Here is my to-do list broken down for each day. And yes, the children will all be working with me or by themselves on some of these.

Monday

--make grape jelly (I made the juice on Saturday from grapes that have been in my freezer since October!)
--dehydrate onions
--grate cabbage to make sauerkraut
--get boys' room and bathroom thoroughly cleaned
--get laundry done

Tuesday

--can all the frozen blueberries leftover from last year
--dehydrate more onions
--get dining room and kitchen thoroughly cleaned
--get laundry done

Wednesday
--make strawberry jam from last year's frozen berries
--dehydrate sage
--get laundry done
--get den thoroughly cleaned
--get girls' room and bathroom thoroughly cleaned

Thursday
--pick blueberries at the local blueberry farm
--make blueberry jam
--freeze blueberries
--dehydrate onions or apples
--no laundry--the boys will be working on the washing machine drain pipe on Friday evening and it needs to be dry
--get school room cleaned...start organizing little boys workboxes

Friday
--dehydrate onions or apples
--find something to make with several bags of cranberries
--make a batch of soap
--no laundry
--thoroughly clean master bedroom and bathroom

Saturday
--dehydrate something
--keep house in order
--laundry
--ironing
--lessson plans

Of course, we have an orthodontist appointment one morning this week and I need to do a few other errands as well, but this gives us a plan for the week!

Menu Plan for June 18-24

2012-06-18T07:05:00.002-05:00

Monday-
breakfast-bacon, eggs, grits
lunch-leftovers
dinner-baked chicken with potatoes, carrots, onions, garlic, cabbage and peas

Tuesday-
breakfast-pancakes
lunch-artichoke rice salad (see recipe below), raw veggies, popcorn, cheese and crackers
dinner-beef enchiladas, Army Man rice, refried beans, chips and salsa (using my chicken enchilada recipe but substituting ground beef) This is Devin's requested birthday dinner.

Wednesday-
breakfast-strawberry yogurt smoothies, eggs, granola
lunch-leftovers
dinner-potato soup, cheese, crackers, salad

Thursday-
breakfast-baked oatmeal
lunch-beef and cheese nachos
dinner-lasagna and salad

Friday-
breakfast-pancakes and eggs
lunch-leftovers
dinner-sauteed squash and onions, corn on the cob, green beans, stewed potatoes

Saturday-
breakfast-beef sausage, eggs, grits
lunch-popcorn, raw veggies, fruit, yogurt or smoothies
dinner-grilled pork loin, onions and garlic, grilled peaches, roasted potatoes and green beans

Sunday-
breakfast-baked oatmeal
lunch-leftovers
dinner-potluck at church...we'll be taking buttermilk pies (Kaelan made a bunch last week and they are ready-to-go in the freezer) and turkey pot pie using my starter from the freezer and this pie crust http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1937,148167-226200,00.html

Artichoke Rice Salad

14 1/2 oz. can chicken broth

1 cup uncooked rice

12 ounce drained, quartered artichoke hearts

2 chopped green onions

1/2 cup mayo

1/2 t. curry powder

8 oz. drained, chopped water chestnuts

Cook rice in broth. Cover, reduce heat, simmer 20 minutes. Cool. Stir rice, adding all other ingredients. Chill for two hours.

http://homesteadrevival.blogspot.com/2012/06/barn-hop-66.html

My Lap is Big Enough

2012-05-16T09:07:00.001-05:00

My lap is big enough to hold my oldest granddaughter, Ashtyn Claire, and my youngest son, Caedmon, while grandsons Chase and Eli and my other son Jackson snuggle close by to listen as I read them a book. You can see the little boys each take turns counting the pirates as I turn the pages.

Another day the little boys enjoyed homemade lemonade popsicles on the swing. Poor little Ashtyn Claire wanted one, too!

Chase is at that age where he likes to be a clown. He'll soon be five years old. Every time they come the first thing they ask me is if we can "play school"!! They are coming tomorrow to spend a couple of days with us while their mommy, daddy and little sisters go to the homeschool conference. And yes, we will be "playing school"!

Freezer Cooking with Italian Sausage and Ground Beef

2012-05-13T20:17:00.000-05:00

The other day I came across this post with this recipe. http://lifeasmom.com/2009/05/queso-fundido.html

I thought it sounded pretty good and, as we love Mexican food around here, I thought I would try it out. And in true ME fashion I changed it up...so much so that it might not be recognized as the original any more!! I used mild Italian sausage instead of the spicy (I bought 10 pounds at Sam's and divided it up between this recipe and the spaghetti sauce) And I made it in the crock pot. I added some Mexican spices, 2 cups of chopped tri-colored peppers and some minced garlic. I also made this recipe times 5. And I divided the resulting dish into three quart sized baggies without adding cheese. So, maybe I didn't really follow this recipe at all!! Do you do that? We will try this dish out Thursday evening as a quick meal before heading off to Aaron and Kaelan's piano recital.

I also made up a big batch of spaghetti sauce. I wound up with 7 bags holding about four cups of sauce each. I usually triple this batch cooking recipe, but this time I used 5 pounds of sausage. This recipe is from Once-A-Month Cooking by Mimi Wilson and Mary Beth Lagerborg.

Spaghetti Sauce

1 pound bulk Italian sausage
1 1/2 cups finely chopped onion
1 12-can tomato paste
3 28-ounce cans Italian-style or plain crushed tomatoes in puree (I buy the big cans at Sam's)
2 cups water
4 teaspoons minced garlic
4 bay leaves
2 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons dried basil
2 teaspoon dried oregano
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley ( I use dried)
2 teaspoons salt

In a large pot, cook and stir the bulk Italian sausage with onions until the meat is brown; drain fat. Add remaining ingredients. Bring sauce to a boil; reduce heat. Partly cover, and simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Makes 12 cups of sauce. I then freeze 4 cups of sauce in gallon bags and lie flat on a cookie sheet placed in the freezer. When frozen I can stack them on top of each other and use my cookie sheet for cookies!!

Devin made up three pans of lasagna plus two mini pans for my mom. Here is our favorite family recipe from our childhood. We have since made adaptions as we are trying to stay away from canned soups with their added corn syrup.

Lasagna

1 lb. ground chuck
1 cup chopped onion
2 large gloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. oregano, crushed
2 cans tomato soup
½ cup water
2 tsp vinegar
½ lb lasagne noodles (cooked & drained)
1 pint cottage cheese
½ lb mozzarella cheese, grated
grated Parmesan cheese

In saucepan, brown meat, cook onion, garlic, oregano. Add soup, water and vinegar. Simmer 30 minutes, stirring frequently. In baking dish, arrange 3 alternate layers of noodles, cottage cheese, meat sauce, mozzarella. Top with Parmesan. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes. I usually double or triple as it freezes well.

Mini Meat Loaves

http://www.tasteofhome.com/Recipes/Little-Cheddar-Meat-Loaves

Years ago, I came across these Little Cheddar Meatloaves. We loved this recipe...except I put the shredded cheese IN the meatloaf, not on top of it. And now, when I make this, I totally leave out the eggs and cheese so all of us can eat it. I top a few of the little loaves with ketchup that is mixed with a little brown sugar and cayenne powder to give it a little sweet and spicy kick. And of course, you know I make a huge batch of these! I made one pan with a dozen little loaves and two pans with nine loaves. I also made up a mini-pan for my mom.

Turkey Tetrazzini

And, because I had a good bit of turkey meat and turkey broth leftover, I mixed up a huge batch of what I call turkey tetrazzini. I cooked up about a pound and a half of spaghetti and added about 4 cups of chopped turkey, a couple of diced onions, a large package of mushrooms chopped up, some salt, pepper, dried chives and then made a sauce with the broth and flour. All this was mixed up in a huge bowl and then I added in about 3-4 cups of parmesan cheese. I'll add in a little cream or sour cream before cooking as I forgot all about it putting the dish together. I packaged this into 3 gallon sized bags. The last time I made it, my oldest son commented that it really wasn't all that bad. Which translates into "It's really good and a very tasty way to use up some leftovers!

Menu Plan May 14-20

2012-05-13T18:38:00.001-05:00

This week we did a lot of freezer cooking and I will share recipes later.

Monday
b-blueberry muffins, ham, eggs, grits
l-pasta salad, cheese, crackers, popcorn, olives, apples
d-turkey/barley soup or white beans w/ham, corn bread and salad

Tuesday
b-granola with yogurt, English muffins
l-leftovers
d-baked chicken, broccoli, lentil rice casserole

Wednesday
b-applesauce muffins, ham, eggs, grits
l-leftovers
d-hamburgers, roasted potatoes, raw veggies

Thursday
b-baked oatmeal
l-grilled turkey/cheese sandwiches, apples
d-queso fundido, black bean salsa

Friday
b-pancakes and eggs
l-pasta salad, cheese, crackers, popcorn, olives
d-homemade pizzas, apple dessert pizza

Saturday
b-biscuits, bacon, eggs, and grits
l-leftovers or sandwich
d-chicken alfredo, spaghetti with Italian sausage, salad and garlic bread

Sunday
b-cinnamon rolls
l-finger foods at church
d-turkey tetrazzinni, green beans, corn, cookies and cobbler

This Week's Menu and Kitchen To Do List

2012-05-06T15:22:00.001-05:00

We had an unexpectedly busy week and some of the planned menu items just didn't happen, so they are being moved over to this week. I also didn't get any apples dehydrated nor did the grape jelly get made. I'll try them this week. I did get ALL the beef broth canned and got all the onions I needed to dry this week done. So, this is what's going on in the Busy Hands Busy Minds kitchen this week.

Monday-
b-blueberry muffins, eggs, bacon or sausage
l-leftovers
d-French onion soup, sandwiches

Tuesday
b-yogurt and granola and/or leftover muffins
l-leftovers, popcorn, cheese cubes, fruit
d-baked turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, green beans, fried squash and zucchini

Wednesday
b-baked apple oatmeal
l-pasta salad and green salad
d-bbq pork sandwiches, cole slaw and roasted potatoes

Thursday
b-applesauce muffins, sausage and eggs
l-leftovers
d-lasagna, salad and rolls

Friday
b-pancakes
l-sandwiches, popcorn, fruit
d-flatbread pizzas, salad, cookies

Saturday
b-biscuits, bacon, eggs and grits
l-leftovers
d-pinto beans with chopped onions and shredded cheese, cornbread and raw veggies

Sunday
b-cinnamon rolls
l-roast beef with potatoes, carrots, onions and peas
d-sandwiches, fruit, ice cream

Kitchen To Do List

Monday-dehydrate apples, clean out small freezer

Tuesday-Town/Errand Day, make butter

Wednesday-make up several pans of lasagna, organize staples cabinet, dehydrate more apples

Thursday-organize pot/pans cabinet, make meatloaves and meatballs for freezer, dehydrate more apples

Friday-organize canned goods cabinet, make grape jelly

Saturday-make granola in the dehydrator, can sloppy joe mix with ground beef