Homemade Ice Cream as a Chemistry Lesson

It is a common lesson in every Chemistry class to learn the effect a solute has on the freezing point and boiling point of a solution. In plain english, when you dissolve a substance into another substance it changes that property. Think about sprinkling salt on the roads in an ice storm. That lowers the freezing point of the water, so if the temperature is close to freezing, the water will now thaw, no longer being a hazard. This only works if the temps are on the high end close to 32F.

Here is how I teach this lesson in my high school Chemistry classes.

Bag Lady Ice Cream

You'll Need:
1 qt size freezer bag
1 gallon size freezer bag - regular sandwich/storage bags are not strong enough

1/2 c. whipping cream
1/2 c. milk
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 tsp. vanilla

crushed or cubed ice
rock salt

In the small baggie, measure your ice cream ingredients (1st 4 things). Seal tightly and mush it all together. Tape across the top of the seal, adding another level of protection.

Put 2-3 cups of ice in the large bag. Using a thermometer, get a temperature reading for the ice alone. Allow 3 minutes for the thermometer to register. Record this as the initial ice temperature. Now add 1/2-3/4 cups rock salt to the ice in the large bag. Place the small bag inside this larger bag and seal the large bag tightly. The ice shoud be surrounding the small bag as much as possible.

Now holding the top of the large bag, rock it back and forth. You need lots of agitation but NOT impact. you can toss it to a partner gently but we don't want to puncture the inner bag. I tell my students to bring gloves for this. You shouldn't hold the cold part of the bags with bare hands as it will get cold enough to do tissue damage. If you hold the top of the bags, that's fine, too.

Allow 15-20 minutes, depending on how well you keep it moving and surrounded. Add ice as necessary and a little bit of salt if you like. It's not really necessary.

When the inner bag feels firm enough (it will be a soft serve), open up the large bag and remove the smaller bag. Take the temperature of the ice/salt mixture and record this as final temp. Rinse small bag under cold water to remove the salty water. Cut off the top of the small bag just under the seal and enjoy!

Wednesday again...

I am here again trying to catch up on life. You may have noticed that the blogging has slowed a bit; this is a very busy time but how many times do you really want to hear about taking kids to soccer and the church? Really, my life is so predictable. This week we are in full gear for dsB's big performance in Godspell this weekend. He has done several shows, including a bonified opera with an opera company (Amahl and the Night Visitors) and always enjoys performing. But the last week is a killer. He'll rehearse Wed through Friday and then performances are Saturday and Sunday. My sweet husband came home last night proud that he had won tickets for a clasical guitarist on Sunday night, thinking the Sunday's performance was in the morning in services. Not so, I'm afraid. We'll try to figure it out. I think the family will be attending Saturday night instead.

Only one more week of classes until Spring Break. I need a break. I have paperwork piling up around me and planning to think of for next year. Thankfully, this will be the first year I am not planning to add a new class prep. The addition of Advanced Chemistry has been tough this year and I really need another year to refine that course. Each course takes 2-3 years to really flesh out and feel like it is just right. I'll add or rearrange as necessary but the bulk of the work is done for the 4 prior courses. Yesterday was one of my favorite days in the high school classes. Chemistry is in the unit for solutions and we always make homemade ice cream to demonstrate Freezing Point Depression. We use the baggie method, which I'll post in a separate post. It's the hit of the year. And Biology had their first dissection, the earthworm. Fortunately, I teach Chem BEFORE Bio so I didn't have to worry about cross-contamination :)

This evening we'll be sharing a soup supper at the church. I love this time of year since the Soup Supper lasts all through Lent. I may take some Butternut Squash Bisque if I can get to the store for the red peppers. I used the ones I had in chicken salad Sunday night. Last night we had Salmon Patties. J isn't crazy about them so I only serve them once every few years but I relaly like them, they are nutritious, fast, and affordable. We had pasta and sauteed veggies with them.

I did finally upgrade to the New Blogger. The one thing it will allow me to do is finally change the look of things around here. I am so tired of the pink and would like a new template but it sounds like I may lose so much of the work I have done on my current template, I'm scared to try it. All the special things on my sidebar have taken months to get just like I prefer. I'm wondering how many of them you pay attention to. So if you would, leave me a comment and tell me which things I should keep. I've got the menus-my personal favorits, the quotes, the verses, links. The one new thing I really want is lists of projects, books to read, etc. That is something I know I can do with the new template. So what do YOU think?

Cousins

I have been trying all evening to get into Blogger. Here are the pictures as promised. H had such a wonderful time bonding with her little cousin.


one trick they both liked was the old Suck-on-the-Finger trick. And H's finger must be just the right size:


I like this view of the sweet mother and child.


I took lots more but they all look about the same :) Sweet sleeping baby, adoring bigger cousin, loving mother...

Blogger Troubles and a Busy Week

I'm so sorry for the lack of updates this week but I am having a tough time getting into Blogger. Their new format is being thrust on me and when I try to switch over, it freezes at the point of opening a Google account. I am very resistant to change and have not wanted to change over at all. But it wasn't letting me log in to even post without trying to get me switched over. I will keep working on that over the weekend but for now, it let me in through the backdoor-someone else's blog. I don't know why but that worked.

Anyway, back to blogging. This has been an incredibly busy week, which made me less willing to work out the kinks. As much as I love going away for the weekend, the tasks of life are still waiting for me when I return. I have been behind since day one! I always do my menu planning and grocery shopping list planning (which means printing and finding the appropriate coupons from the Grocery Game-which is still saving me money)on Saturday in preparation for Sunday's shopping trip while ferrying children back and forth from church. And lessons planning for both the science classes and my own children happens on Saturday as well. Last night I finally got our new unit planned. We started the American Revolution this week. That meant our new readaloud is Johnny Tremain, one of my favorites of all the years we've homeschooled. Today we read of the state of affairs immediately following the French and Indian War and the early events in Boston that helped to set off the Revolution.

Tuesday night we held a Shrove Tuesday pancake supper at church for which I cooked at least 12 dozen eggs. We served over 200 people. That is a logistical feat for a breakfast meal where the food needs to be somewhat fresh. We had stacks of pancakes ready and still kept hopping to keep up with the line.

Immediately upon my return home, we met with a man about getting health insurance coverage for myself and the children. Going through J's employer is astronomically high and we need to find a catastrophic plan that is more affordable. We have so little need for routine coverage. Our total out of pocket for Dr. visits, etc. has been too low to justify full coverage at the current rates. We are financially ahead just paying as we go. BUT, we are also aware of the need to protect against unforeseen circumstances so we are looking for a high-deductible plan that covers the worst case. It's not easy to find, at least we haven't stumbled on one yet.

Wednesday night we went to the Ash Wedneday service where H was serving as acolyte. This was complicated by the fact that her soccer practices started up again this week (she is the only one playing this season, to my relief). Both Tuesday and Wednesday she was practicing from 5-6:30. Not surprisingly, her body rebelled yesterday with a bit of a limp. She's fine today, but it's not the best way to start the season. We were given a newsletter that had listed the service as starting at 7 so we thought she had plenty of time to get from one the the other and change. When I showed up at the church with the younger two who had choir at 6:15, they were preparing to begin the service. I quickly called J and had him rush her to the church. She got there just in time.

Yesterday we spent a good long time at the library getting stocked up on books for our new unit. This time period has some of the best literature available. I love so many of them, I want to share them with the children instead of sending them off to read alone. We'll see how much we get through together.

Most importantly in this busy week...today is H's birthday. She is 11. H has come to the realization in the last couple of years that she prefers a gift of time and togetherness in stead of "stuff". So her gift today was a special breakfast at IHOP with only Mom and Dad. She had Belgian waffle with strawberry topping. I had a delicious spinach and mushroom omelet which I only ate half of and still wasn't hungry at lunchtime. What a treat! This evening she'll have 2 of her friends spend the night, eat pizza, and probably play a game. The boys are gone on their Survival Weekend for scouts so it will be poor little W with all these girls. I got a special movie for B and I to share after bedtime tomorrow night as well. We loved our last girl's night in so much.

One last thing going on here is planning for summer. I hate to admit it, but I have to get a jump on it before camps fill up. H is the most excited as her camp experience is one designed just for kids with skin conditions, sponsored by the dermatologist she saw at Texas Children's Hospital last summer. They have both a weekend camp in April and a week long camp in August. Both are free of charge. They do this to provide a "normal" camp experience for kids who might otherwise not be able to attend regular camps. For readers who may not know, H has albinism, which means she has no natural protection from the sun, the melanin we have that causes a tan. It also affects her vision, but we are so fortunate int hat hers is relatively mild. The day to day ramifications of that are not all that serious but it does mean we are hyper careful about her sun exposure. We don't swim or do other outdoor activities except in the morning or after 3 or 4 PM, she wears full coverage swim suits, she has a daily routine of sunscreen and hats at all times. We did have a scare last summer when she had a basal cell cancer removed from her nose. This is very rare for a child that young. This camp will allow her to have normal activities and do the outside activities at night. The nurse called today and said they have 2 girls who come that have Xeroderma Pigmentosa, a condition that means they can have NO daytime exposure at all of any kind. They asked if we wanted H in the group with them. The activities planned for that group sounded like such fun, that's where H will be. Then at dusk, they'll take them outside for the challenge course and other activities. H has been fascinated by this condition since it is similar to hers so she is excited to meet the two little girls that will be with her. We are hoping she can go for both the weekend and the summer session.

Well, I guess that is all I have to say. I do have pics of baby all ready to post. I'll try to get to that tonight if the girls are well occupied.

Memories...and Reality

I'm home and it was a bittersweet visit. I so enjoyed seeing my new little niece and visiting with my sister and BIL. But watching that first time baby adjustment was so hard. I do remember that being one of the hardest things I ever did. it's tough each time but the first time is when all those idealistic notions of life with a newborn are shattered. The precious moments are unbelievable highs. But the lows are the lowest of lows. Sleeplessness takes on a whole new meaning. Exhaustion and fretting about milk supply. It all just piles up.

I've had several friends who have had babies in the last month or two as well as my sister and I had been longing for the days when I had a newborn of my own. but the reality hit me square in the face this weekend. I am past that time; it was beautiful and magic. But now I have a new phase. I can now enjoy others' babies vicariously and go home to hug my bigger children who sleep all night, use the potty, and do magical things of their own.

Oh, and as a bonus go check this out: The Mouth Revolution I promise you'll laugh, even if you aren't a health food convert.

Love is a Full Gas Tank

I'm too tired to do a beautiful photopost or anything but I need to process this day... It actually started yesterday when the dog woke us up at 3:20 barking wildly. I got up and closed the blinds so he couldn't see out. Back to bed.

3:40 - dog nuzzling me and running back and forth to the door. Needs to go out.

4:00 - J's alarm goes off so he can make a 6 AM flight to Washington DC

4:30 - J leaves and I try to go back to sleep

4:52 - dog needs to go out again

5:35 - I give up on going back to sleep since I have to get up at 6 anyway.

Today started much the same at 5:30 since I dont' sleep well when J is gone. Dog was trapped in girls' room who were trying to protect hamster in the playroom who had been exiled from their room in the middle of the night for chewing on the bars. Dog needed to go out, girls ignored. Dog messed on girls' carpet. Mom is most frustrated to awaken to this!

9:00 AM - Arrive at library with all schoolwork and laptop so B could do volunteer hours at a puppet show and we could all get our work done.

11:45 - leave library and drive thru Wendy's for a bag of cheap burgers and chili potatoes since this is the last meal dsB will eat for a few days and it IS Valentine's Day after all.

12:45 - try to read Gulliver; we are so CLOSE to being done. Tomorrow is the day!

1:30 - Doorbell rings; it is Fedex with a FLORIST box. In 16 years of marriage, my husband has never done this. They are so beautiful and you could have knocked me over with a feather. Pictures maybe tomorrow.

2:00 - drop off boys at gymnastics, go make copy of dsB' mouth BEFORE picture before giving it to dentist

3:00 - pick up boys at gymnastics and take dsB to dentist to have 3 baby teeth pulled that were not ready to come out and roots had to be dug out all so he can have braces put on his teeth in a few weeks.

4:11 back home to rest and refuel. Dress kids in different clothes for the evening activities.

5:00 - drop H at soccer practice

5:15 - stop at drug store for juice boxes I had forgotten I was supposed to take to the Valentine's party tonight. They had none so I chose non-staining white grape juice and plastic cups.

5:30 - make it to church in time for Wed night suppers. Fajitas and beans and rice. Yummy!

6:15 - send W and R up to children's choir and get back in the car to collect H from soccer (it's only about 5 miles)

6:30 - deliver H from soccer to home so she can warm up and eat supper; turn back around and go to church

7:00 - arrive at church for a video presentation on how Christians should respond to Global Warming and what we can do about it. Very interesting. Kids are done at 7:15 and they join me.

8:45 - finally arrive home to find I missed J's call and my sister is out on a date! Good for her :)

9:30 - tucked in and listened to last prayers.

So that about sums up the day. Each and every kid in this family had needs and activities today. That's what I call love; Love is a full tank of gas!

Should I let him do it?

We just watched Seventh Heaven, the Valentine episode where Ruthie and her boyfriend get tattoos to show their committment for each other. We saw Ruthie's on her lower back which was the name of the boyfriend. As soon as we turned off the TV, W said, "Can I get tattoo?" Of course I used my most authoritative parental voice, to say "NO!" But then I wondered what he would want. So I asked him what his would say, thinking he might say"MOM" or something similarly devoted. His response?

" It wouldn't be words. I'd have a picture of a bunny."


Awwwwww...

Do I Really Want to Drive a Beast?

So, we may be ready to finally make the jump. I'm not sure and we aren't ready to act today but it is inevitable. We realized on our trip to Illinois at Christmas that our family has outgrown our minivan. It is called a MINIvan, however and it's about the only thing in relation to our family that can carry that label. I buy MEGA, why shouldn't I drive mega?

I can think of lots of reasons, actually. First, gas mileage. Need I say more? Then, there's the pollution factor. DOn't know how much worse an SUV really is than a minivan, but it has to be somewhat worse, simply since it burns more fuel. Then of course there's the driving of a much larger vehicle. I drove a Ford Econoline giant blue van when I was in high school and college so I'm not a stranger to monster vehicles, just not crazy about it. And don't forget the money; our van is paid for long since.

Now for the pros, our poor teenagers have been riding around with very little knee space for a couple of years now. As we usher the other ones into teendom, this problem will only get worse. I know I don't like riding cramped in cars and that just makes them fight more in the car. Familial harmony would be a definite pro. Then there's the cargo space in the back. When I have to fit a whole science lab into the back of my car, it is a tight fit. I leave it there for the most part since it is 4-5 large pieces that I do not want to transfer each week, and neither do I want it in the dining room. It's already a storehouse for plenty of scientific supplies without the daily stuff in there. Right now I have about 120 preserved specimens in there :)

Lastly, we fill the van to capacity with just our nuclear family. If the kids want to take a friend anywhere, or if Grandma is here visiting, we have to work something out. This usually involves two vehicles or saying "no" ( to the other kids, NOT Grandma sillies) but we have been known to have a child ride on the floor within the neighborhood. Shameful, I know :(

In summary, although I am resistant to the change I think the time has come to upgrade, or upsize as it may be. We went this morning to look at our first candidate. It is a 2004 Chevrolet Suburban, 37K miles, reasonable asking price. The biggest problem with this particular model is that it is maroon. Did I mention that I am a graduate of the University of Texas? Having a maroon vehicle is tantamount to high treason in my book. And my husband already has a maroon monster truck. Two maroon vehicles in my driveway is a bit more than I bargained for. But you find precious few late model SUVs with this low mileage and a matching low price. We are in the decision process, part of which means finding funding and figuring out how to best sell our own van. So I am in prayer that if this is the right time and vehicle for our family, it will all fall into place easily and that I'll have peace of mind about it. I'm pretty attached to my pretty silver minivan. And besides, I just got it all organized and cleaned up!

Edited to add: Okay, so I had this all finished and I published and went to see how it looked. The quote for the day is quite timely so I thought I would add it here since it changes daily: Never have more children than you have car windows.Erma Bombeck more Famous Quotes

Birth Story Ready

Looks like my sister has found her way to the blogosphere to post her birth story HERE. She's having a little bit of trouble getting sleep wink:, wink: so encourage that girl to nap, ladies!

It's a cold and dreary day here today and I am working hard inside to pick up and clean before the weekend.

Crock Pot Rice Pudding - cooking

I love rice pudding. I mean really love it. Sometimes I make it just so I can have it for breakfast. I usually leave out the raisins but sometimes I add dried cranberries or cherries. Here is the recipe I use for the crockpot. If I have time, I like this creamy version.

Rice Pudding in the Crock Pot

1 cup white uncooked rice (arborio or other short grain makes a creamier pudding but long grain will work)
1 cup sugar
8 cups milk
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
nutmeg or cinnamon

1- In slow cooker, mix together rice, sugar, and 8 cups milk. Cook on high 3 hours.
2- Beat together eggs, 1 1/2 cups milk, vanilla, and salt. Add to slow cooker. Stir.
3- Cook on high 25-30 minutes. Sprinkle with nutmeg or cinnamon.

Filed in cooking.

Coffee and a Muffin

That's what I am enjoying for breakfast this morning as I greet you. One of the wonderful things about living in a big city in the south is that the wide variety of produce we have available at great prices is awesome. I have talked to other moms around the country and they are amazed at the selection we have even in the winter. This week berries were on sale at the grocery so I got quite a few little pints. Blackberries are my favorite for raw snacking. I can eat a pint at a sitting. B loves raspberries so I always buy one of those for her. And this time, the cheapest and most chockfull of antioxidants, blueberries were well represented in the cart as well. That is what led me to make muffins this morning. Since Thursday is our slowest day I usually try to make a little more special breakfast: waffles, pancakes, muffins.

Today's list is quite long but has only two categories: school and housework. Thursday is also the one day I don't even think about my business. I call it my day off :) I won't check that email account, I won't grade papers (which is fine since I finished the whole pile last night at church!). I am just a mommy teaching her kiddos. It is raining this morning but if it dries up, we may go to the park. It's been warmer this week. Yesterday I think it was in the high 70's...

Time to rouse my sleepyhead boys out of bed now.

filed in homekeeping

Keepin on at keepin on...

Nothing really exciting to report around here but I like to check in on Wednesdays after the busy beginning of the week. I have been working hard on keeping up with all of the paperwork in my life. I have graded a mountain of papers this week, prepared all my deposits in a timely manner, recorded all transactions, and dealt with several email requests concerning next year's registrations. I am still surprised about how many people plan this far in advance. I'm much more "in the moment", often making school year decisions in June, but never in February. But these are parents who are afraid of classes filling so they start calling early. I need to revise my registration form and be prepared to take next year's registrations by March 1.

Today we hit the history hard and heavy since I want to finish our Truthquest history guides by May. We are on the cusp of the American Revolution but are tying up loose ends around the world first ( Frederick the Great, Spanish Missionaries to the southwest, etc.). I went to the library and stocked up on books to flesh out our guides. All of them are reading Amos Fortune, Free Man, a fabulous account of a slave who is captured from Africa and who eventually buys his own freedom. Tomorrow is a day we won't have to leave home so I plan to do lots of science and home economics with the girls. When we do those, it takes all afternoon. The weather has been lovely so we may even do a bit of schoolwork outside on a blanket. The kids always love to do that.

I'm almost finished with Your Girl and I'm really enjoying it. She has lots of concrete things I want to share with B that will help us both in appreciating and furthering her growth as a Christian. I am also convicted to strengthen my own prayer and devotional life to set the example for my girls (and my boys, too of course). We are reading Proverbs together for our Bible time and I would like to find a good study for myself. I have been reading in the New Testament for a long time, but I also love those Proverbs.

I hear my tub calling me for a hot bath right now. I'll leave you with a fond farewell until the morrow.

Isn't She Lovely?

Isn't she beau-ti-ful? I finally have pics to share. I'll refer you to my sister's blog (see sidebar) in a few days to hear the full report, since I don't want to steal her thunder but I'm pretty sure blogging isn't her first priority right now :)

Here is the new wee one :

And here is the new family. They all look so happy. Congratulations Sis!

New Smart Habit

I know I only committed to one habit per month, and February is staying on top of the kids' rooms. But I just have to change this bookkeeping mess now and that means another habit. I am designating Wed., Fri, and Sat. to make sure I have kept the business books neatly for the week. This involves getting deposits prepared promptly and keeping the receipts in a file. I need to register each check as written even though I have duplicate checks for the business account. I need to keep up the record book where I write all expenses and payments. I need to file all receipts for lab supplies and copies. And I need to keep up my little mileage log. I need to get a new one of those, I guess. To help facilitate this process, I am going to keep the files in the van! I know that seem like a strange place to keep files, but I always get my deposit receipts from the drive thru teller and I'm usually purchasing lab supplies out and about as well. If it is an ordered supply, like the $325 worth of preserved specimens I just ordered from Home Science Tools, then I can file that in the big bookkeeping record inside until the reconcile day comes. I guess I'll make that Friday. End of the week, not too busy. I have a little black file box made for checks that will fit in the van easily. We just have to make sure it gets back to the van each class day so it is ready to receive again.

If I can streamline this system, then next year at tax time, I won't have to spend an entire year recreating the records. I'm pooped...

To see what other women are developing as new habits, pop over to Lara's place and read all about it.

Tax Break

That's what I need right now. I've spent most of the day trying to gather and analyze the financial records for my business. What you have to know is that I am not a financial wizard. I am a relatively good saver, but keeping track of the pennies, well, let's just say Enron looks good compared to me. I stash receipts, deposit slips, statements just wherever I happen to open them (shaking my head in shame as I type this). I need a system, and even more I need to use the system! I am really good at designing organizational systems if I know what I am dealing with (like spices and kids' clothes) but I'm not sure what I need to keep and how I should best handle these funds. For instance, I pay all business expenses out of that separate account (check for me) and I deposit ALL income without taking anything out so that my bank statements show deposits and that IS my income, (another check for me). Beyond that...all bets are off. I also pay for all of the kids' classes, sports, activities, and all homeschool curriculum and expenses out of is. That is the primary reason I continue to do this anyway; it supports our habit. But do I need to track all of that each month; should I pay myself a salary and then put it in the personal account. I really need an advisor here but I'm too cheap and too small time to go pay for one.

One thing I have learned in this process today was that I earned 125% of what I earned in the public school system. And I only teach 2 days per week. Granted there is quite a bit of prep and "homework" so it's really not just 2 days per week, but I had the same level of homework when I taught public school. At least this way, aside from those two days out (when my children are with me) I get to choose my hours for the rest of it. This is a true blessing for a mom like me.

In other news, I had to take B to the mall today to get her glasses fixed. The tiny screw just kept falling out and I was afraid she would lose the lens. He put a new larger screw in which essentially created new threads. Clever, they are. We went to Michael's for yarn for her and I bought...NADA, Nothing, Zilch! So proud, I am.

I'm doing pretty well at inspecting rooms. Unfortunately for the girls, I added under the bed to their inspection after finding 2 days of dirty clothes under there Thursday night. We had completely cleared and even moved the beds last weekend so I knew this was a recent addition. Today they are digging into the 2 foot layer in the closet which has built up over the last MONTH. Yes, you read that right. I had it picked up at the new year. Girls, girls, girls. The boys are neater than them!

Too Old to Be an Idol

Well, I guess it's out of the question. I have just been made aware that there is an upper age limit to the participation requirements for American Idol. It's 28! Doesn't that seem awfulyoung to you? I mean, really, some of the most talented people I know don't even reach their prime until 35. But I guess given the nature of the beast, this is appropriate. Despite the urgings of my children to go perform my most motherly rendition of Amazing Grace before Simon and his cohorts, it's not very likely that I can chuck everything here and go gamboling off to Hollywood to become a famous superstar. If I knew Olivia Newton John would be a guest judge, I'd still give it a go. She is one of my all time favorite stars. I owe it to the fact that when I was 7, my mother had a migraine that sent her to bed for days and my Dad had tickets for 2 to see Olivia. I was one lucky little girl. I remember one day after that event we were driving in the car and I was watching out the window as the radio played. All of a sudden I yelled, "Hey that's Olivia!" Thinking I was having visions, my mother scolded me about not making up stories. When she realized I was talking about a song on the radio, she laughed and apologized.

For now I guess I'll have to settle for being my kids' favorite singer, well right after Nicole Nordeman, Newsboys, Chuck Berry, and Joe Scruggs.