Camping

Had a great time camping with the Cub Scouts this weekend. We were with about 10 other families in the primitive group area. We were well prepared with tarps, stakes, etc. This was my first solo campout without someone else there to do the set-up and take down... I did it all and we had a great time! This was one of the many sites we saw, There were cacti, wild onions, ferns, lichen, moss... everywhere. The ground was filled with granite and rose quartz. It was overcast, windy, but pleasant most of the time, with a little bit of drizzle. The kids ran and played and wore themselves out! And I got to know the boys Wesley is in scouts with. Win-win I would say.

Herbs

I love to cook with fresh herbs. It's been a while since I grew my own, in the busy-ness of life. But a few weeks ago, when Spring began to make its presence known, I noticed that some herbs were growing around a tree out front. These were leftover chives and oregano from an OLD herb garden. I mean probably 6 or 8 years ago. I had 5 or 6 herbs growing around the base of this tree. They grew well for a season and a couple of them came back for two or three years. Oregano took over everywhere, so I just let it all go.

Last summer I decided to try some basil in a pot inside. I've always had trouble growing basil well. I see that large beautiful basil in the grocery and I want to be able to grow it that pretty. The inside potted plant did well and lasted over a year. I recently used the last of it to make a tomato and mozzarella salad. The stems were getting very woody and too tall. I guess I didn't cut it back often enough.

But this year, as I walked past the garden area of the Super HEB, the herbs looked so fresh and pretty. They were healthy plants and very affordable. Between my renegade herbs around the trees, and this, I was hooked! I bought lemon thyme (above middle), cinnamon basil (in the square pots), chocolate mint, more oregano, parsley, and several peppermint plants. I put the parsley and oregano out under that tree to resurrect the "herb garden". The mints will grow and take over so I will keep them separate. I put the chocolate mint in a pot, and I think I will put the peppermint plants in a strawberry pot. I know it will grow and spread... I don't have a safe place to put it in the ground.

To the left you can see the chives that have grown back on their own... and the parsley which I put beside it. The oregano is on the other side of the tree. I hope it will take hold and grow in all around the tree.

Meet Jude Michael

This is my brand new little nephew, born Friday morning. Isn't he just precious. I can't wait to get my arms around him!

Please Send Help!

So, last night as I was resting on the couch after all the kids went to bed, I heard something. I looked around and thought maybe the dog stirred...

A few minutes later, I heard it again. A slight rustling noise. Nope, the dog is right beside me.

Hmmmmm... I didn't see anything amiss and no kids in sight, so I laid my head down.

Few minutes later and there it was again. So this time I got up and walked around to the back of the couch, where I found lying on the floor, one of Wesley's little plastic parachute men. Attached to it was a scroll of paper. Still no kid, but I opened the paper to find this:

I don't know if you can read it but it says: " If you get this message, READ it!!! It's hard to breath and I'm hearing Indian drum sounds."

Turns out he was congested from the high pollen counts and Bill was playing the bass on his stereo in the room under Wesley way toooooooo loud. I just thought this was priceless. When I told him he didn't have to drop that so many times, he could have just come and told me, his reply? "But it's a lot more fun this way, Mom!"

Turbo Tax

I did it! Today is April 15th, and I do not have to worry about my taxes. I have never done my own taxes before... and last year I had a CPA do them, since a divorce complicates everything. but this year, I thought I would at least try to do it myself with the assistance of Turbo Tax. I sat down and started plugging things in back in February. It became apparent I was going to have to pay, so I did not finish the whole thing and file... why hurry to give my money away? But when I sat down yesterday, I still had to itemize all the business expenses I have, the most tedious part. Fortunately, that reduced the bill to a manageable amount. Plus, TT estimates my quarterly payment amounts and prints coupons so I can make those payments more easily. It was far easier than I had expected. I can't wait for tax time next year!

Happy 16th Birthday, Bill!!!

Today, my second child turns 16. As my sister prepares to have her second child, also a boy, I am reminded of how he was as a little one. He was so very sweet, but I won't embarrass him by going on and on. This is Bill on his 2nd birthday. Oh, how time has flown. Happy Birthday, Son!

A Rose in Bloom

We have a renegade rose bush out front that I don't do anything to care for and yet each year I get a few blossoms from it. How timely that this one is here for Easter. New life... resurrection....

Good Friday

It was truly a Good Friday here. We had a productive morning in school, despite the fact that the neighborhood kids were knocking on the door. Then Wesley went off to play with them while Bill, Honour, and Rebecca went with our neighbor to the strawberry farm to pick the last of the crop. I didn't make it there this year, but the kids brought back a box of the tiniest berries. I guess today we should do something with those :) Since Bethany and I were alone, we ran a few errands and had some nice time together. Then I came home and went to the Egg Hunt below. That was fun but since the house was practically empty, I decided to clean it. I swept, mopped, dusted, vacuumed. It was all clean at the same time, downstairs at least. And smelled so fresh!

By then, the berry-pickers were back and it was time for supper. We had breakfast for supper, one of their favorites. And since it was a rare night that all of us were home, we played Life. Bill was beating us all..... until..... At the Day of Reckoning I took a chance.... and became...... a Millionaire Tycoon and it was all over. I won! I never win when we play those kinds of games. Then we finished off the evening with ice cream or cake...Perfect!

I had intended to go to the Tenebrae service at church, but it is so nice to have a calm quiet evening with my kids at home. So we remember Jesus' loving act of sacrifice, but we spent our time invested in each other. It was a Good Friday.

Wesley's Eggs

Wesley went over to the neighbor's for an egg hunt today and I caught a cute pic of him next to the fountain with green dye in it:

The Post that Will Not Die

Three years ago, I had an ironing marathon that lasted most of the day. In that time, I was also very actively blogging, so naturally I wrote a post about "how to iron a man's shirt". I took pictures, wrote step by step, and detailed how I do the job. I moved on and have had many posts since then, 434 all told. But for some reason, at least 3 or 4 times a week, I get hits from people doing a search on that very topic. I am amazed that it continues to get that much traffic, even three years down the road. I no longer have to iron massive quantities of men's shirts... a welcome side effect of the sad thing called divorce. But, I can make a mean crease in a sleeve when needed.

You can read that tutorial yourself HERE .

Garlic Herb Monkey Bread

Got a wild hair to try my traditionally sweet Monkey Bread recipe with melted butter and Garlic Italian bread dipping herbs. I bathed the dough balls in it, let rise all day and baked.... Yummy! Wish you could smell it :)

School Days

It's been a while since I talked about the daily routine of our school. These days, it can be hit or miss on the days I teach, sometimes doing math at 5 in the afternoon, or playing catchup on the weekend. But on my days at home, we get LOTS done. We always start with Bible, reading round-robin style as we move through our chosen selection. Thanks to Susan for that idea, which allows me to keep tabs on the reading skills of my youngest ones while not doing a formal "reading" curriculum. All of my kids are good readers, so I just want a small way for them to practice reading aloud skills, and for me to hear them. Our current book is Luke.

Then I dismiss the older two to go do their own thing. They have most of their work as independent work. Bethany is taking Government, Computer Applications, and British Literature out, as well as Spanish and Writing Comp at the local junior college. Bill is taking Pre-Calculus and English IV. I give them health, history, and literature assignments as needed.

Then the younger ones and I settle in for some read aloud time. Most recently we have been reading about mid 1800's historical fiction. We started January with The Great Wheel, a book about the building of the first giant ferris wheel built for the Chicago World Fair in late 1800 something..... Then, we read the first book in the Orphan Train series, which they loved, Since we had to get the second one through interlibrary loan, we read Sarah, Plain and Tall while we waited for it. We now have the second book and are reading it slowly, but surely. About once a week we read history and Fallacy Detective, pre-logic book.

Then they have math and grammar to do close by where I can supervise. Honour is taking my General Science class, Latin, and Writing out so she has homework for that. Rebecca is taking Writing as well, so she has a paper to write each week. Wesley and I are following Honour's science class, which is now covering the Human Body. Today's topic was the digestive system.

This often takes us past lunch time and into the afternoon. Then we might run errands, or go to the library, or have appointments. Today is Wednesday so we had a library run, dropped Bethany off at her college classes, and then came home to make some chocolate tarts (thanks to Singapore Math, in which many of Rebecca's word problems were about tarts. I am about to take her to cheer class, then off to church for choir and Bible Study. THe afternoons and evenings are all filled but I do try to protect those mornings when we can stay close and get school done. Today I also did much grading and record keeping that had been piling up.

All in all, it's not the ideal I had when they are younger and I was home full time. But we are making it work, and it is so much better for our family than the alternative of public school and mom working full time.

Then and Now Scout

Tonight was a momentous occasion. Bill received his Life Rank in Boy Scouts. Thought I'd share a few pictures of his 10 years in scouting. It all began as a Tiger Cub. In those days, the moms did all the work. I remember hosting a meeting during which we made paper mache masks... and coffee can ice cream. Those were iron-on patches for "paws" they earned. What a pain! Now that Wesley is in Cub Scouts, they get a real uniform and different achievements. Bill continued with the local Cub Scout Pack 158 until he crossed over into the church Boy Scout troop, which my brother had also been active in. He wore Uncle Cal's class B (t-shirt) under his uniform and his grandfather's keppie envelope hat tonight for the ceremony.

This is Bill a few years ago, one of his first in Boy Scouts. Once he got to Boy Scouts, they began to do lots more activities. He camps almost monthly, lots of first aid, hiking, swimming, summer camps. This summer, he is gearing up to go to the Philmont Scout Camp in New Mexico.

And this is tonight... Life!

Saving Money on Groceries

It's been a while since I shared any good ideas... but I'm full of them today. I go in fits in spurts about all out saving on groceries, but when I do, I am amazed at the amount I CAN save. Take the last week, for example. I have three key "secrets", which I am more than happy to share with anyone who'll listen.

First, get to know your store's patterns and secret "goody" hiding spot. Most of them have them. Whether it's very ripe bananas by the bag, day old bakery racks, or the clearance meat bin, they are usually somewhere. My local high-end store has a clearance meat bin that almost always has treasures in it. Just after Christmas, I hit the jackpot with holiday roasts, steaks, fancy burgers, and pre-marinated meat. I stocked my freezer well. This afternoon I found some great pork chops for less than $2/lb. As long as you can freeze them, or cook them that night, as I did, it's a wonderful way to save on meat.

Second, look for outlets in your area. I have a Mrs. Baird's bakery outlet close to where I teach one day a week, so about once a month, I stop there afterwards and stock up on loaves of bread, bagels and English muffins, tortillas, buns, and a few treats like coffee cake. The healthy whole grain breads we eat are less than half the price of the grocery and still plenty fresh. Again, into the freezer they go.

Lastly, I know I've mentioned it before but The Grocery Game saves me loads of money when I use it correctly. Just today, at that same high-end store, I saved $67.99, which was 58% of the total bill. This post of mine from a while back tells all about it. It's well worth the investment. Actually, I save more at the high-end store with it, than at my regular lowest prices store, HEB. The more expensive stores run better sales and I can often combine a sale with a store coupon AND a manufacturers coupon, doubled... to really save. Just be sure it's something you'll use :)

One last note, in case you aren't aware. The higher stores also have more of what is called "loss leaders". They are usually on the front and back of their weekly flyers. Mine are in the Wednesday paper, but sometimes also in the Sunday paper and you can pick them up right inside the door of the stores. They offer something at a loss, knowing it will "lead" you into their store, where you'll spend MORE money. The key is to ONLY buy those items. My store like this is the closest, right on my way home from almost anywhere, and milk is one thing they run on sale often---and I run out of often! So it works for me.

Other ideas - Angel Food Ministries, farmer's markets, pick-your-own, wholesale stores (for select items), gardening of course, bulk cooking. So many ways to save. You have to decide where and how you want to cut the food budget. For me, I no longer bake all our bread. Just no time. There was a time..... it is past !

I'd love to hear of any new ideas or success stories, too. Every penny helps.