We’re off to Ohio for a youth camp. We’re looking forward to seeing old friends, meeting some new ones and having a wonderful time in the Lord! Last year’s chronicles of our time on the road and at camp can be found at: Trip to Ohio Had a Few Hitches (we will not be taking the little brown truck with us this year!) Somewhere Between Oklahoma & Ohio The Final Post on our Ohio Trip – Camp Activities I hope you enjoy!
Ohio, Here We Come
Wednesday, June 23rd, 2010 at
11:28 pm
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Using Basil from the Garden in Pesto Sauce
Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010 at
6:40 am
When you think of pesto, do you think gourmet? I guess I think it’s rather unique but in actuality it’s one of the easiest things to make. We have basil growing in our garden. It was getting overgrown and needed to be harvested. If you never use the leaves it will quit producing and start to flower. At that point your harvest time is pretty much over. Would you like me to show you how I made this delicious pesto sauce? First thing you need is some basil leaves which you rinse/wash. I didn’t worry too much about the brown on the leaves but if you don’t like the looks of it, just tear it off. Place all your ingredients into a food processor or alternatively, a blender and…
The Week in Review – 6/13/10
Monday, June 21st, 2010 at
10:06 am
Zachary is now a licensed driver. He’s 18, so if any of you have children that do not have their license and think they’re the only one not to have it at this great age, you can tell them about my son. :) Zachary was good about it and never complained but we just waited since insurance is so high and funds weren’t. Seth arrived home without all the hoopla I was wanting. As a matter-of-fact we were 30 minutes late picking him up from the airport. His plane was supposed to be later but than they arrived sooner than they had announced. Otherwise, we wouldn’t be late. Not us. No sirree. We are the on-time family. NOT! I’m sure Seth wasn’t too surprised by…
My Son is Coming Home!
Wednesday, June 16th, 2010 at
6:36 am
I am so excited! My Seth is coming home tomorrow from his month-in-a-half stay in Manitoba, Canada. He’s been staying with his aunt and uncle and working. He bought himself a camera before he went so I’ll try to post some of the highlights of his trip shortly. Audrey was pretty excited when I told her Seth would be here in 2 nights. ”Seth likes to tickle me,” she said, and I guess she must like that pretty much because she was sure happy to hear about his return. We want to write “Welcome Home, Seth” on the side of our Suburban so that when Seth walks out of baggage claim at the airport he can see it right away. So, dear readers, I need…
Button Jar Toppers
Tuesday, June 15th, 2010 at
6:40 am
I just love these fun and let’s not forget easy crafts (I need easy) I find from my fellow bloggers. I originally saw these in a book but I found a tutorial online that showed step by step instructions that I ended up following. I used cotton balls as my filler. One thing I wished I had done differently is to spray paint the brass rings a black color. But since I didn’t, I’m giving myself all the reasons why it’s better I did it this way. I can’t find the exact tutorial I followed but here’s one that will explain the process. Pincushion Jar Tutorial at Little Paper Dog. Check out Sugar Bee – Craft Edition to see what others have been crafting this…
The Week in Review – 6/6/10
Monday, June 14th, 2010 at
7:17 am
The big attraction around our place has been Sandi, which is the name Serenity chose for her new puppy. Sandi seems to be enthralled with her new owners as well. Is it any wonder? She’s carried around like royalty (on this day anyways ) on her big cushy pillow. Once in a while the kids will even let her walk on her own. But Sandi shows her loyalty and runs after Miss Audrey, just as fast as her little 4″ legs will carry her. She runs and runs until Miss Audrey is convinced she must be exhausted. So, while she rides her bike, daddy is given the charge of royal Sandi. …just until Miss Audrey reaches her destination and then, once again, Sandi, the royal…
Sewing Unit Study – Day 2
Friday, June 11th, 2010 at
6:39 am
Day 2 of our unit study was started off with a short children’s book. (My daughter does not seem to be interested in history but she really liked this short & colorful children’s book.) If you feel the history segment of this lesson is too short, you can of course, read a chapter book about Betsy Ross instead of the short children’s book suggested. History & Writing Read: Betsy Ross – written and illustrated by Alexandra Wallner Make 5 pointed star from instructions in back of book and place in sewing notebook (this can be as simple as a composition book or a 3-ring binder that you add your own pages. we are using a composition book) Next to your 5 pointed star (in notebook),…
My New DIY Thread Rack
Monday, June 7th, 2010 at
11:12 pm
I’ve been wanting a thread rack – you know the thingamajig I’m talking about right? It’s a rack that holds all your sewing thread and not only are you able to readily see what colors you have on hand, you actually have a storage area for all your thread. I wasn’t really sure how to make one but thanks to Sugar Bee and her Thread Rack Tutorial I was able to see that it is quite possible to make your own. So, using some of that pink pegboard my brother-in-law gave us, I had my son… cut it to the exact dimensions for the area in which it would hang and then spray painted it black. I used a 1/4″ dowel and spray painted that…
The Week in Review 5/30/10
Monday, June 7th, 2010 at
7:14 am
The week started with a BBQ on Sunday, May 30, with about 40 of us. We had the typical Memorial Day fare with hamburgers and hot dogs… and of course, ice cream. That’s almost a given when you come to our house. Not much happened that was picture-worthy during the week until Friday when we went to my sister in law’s for supper. I always feel as if I’m at a resort when I go to their place. Saturday, we went to a lovely tea party with its theme being international. Serenity was dressed Chinese, I was from Mexico and Audrey was Heidi/peasant girl. East Indian & French We visited Mexico, Israel, England and Russia during the course of our tea party and made these…
Sewing Unit Study – Day 1
Friday, June 4th, 2010 at
7:33 am
Lately I’ve been challenged to help my daughter enjoy the schooling process more. Like all of us have found out each child is different with their own unique personality and learning style. My daughter has seemed bored with school with no real interest in history or science. Neither has she discovered a love for reading (exception to that is the Trailblazer books by Dave & Neta Jackson). I have been at a loss as to how I can get her excited about school. Then I thought of Dr. Raymond Moore, a man of much common sense and understanding of children and how they learn. What would he suggest? From reading all of his books I knew what he would say. ”Find the child’s interests and let them study…
The Week in Review 5/23/10
Monday, May 31st, 2010 at
1:47 pm
Before I start my week in review, I want to give honor to those who fought and gave their lives in service to our country - a very great price to pay. May we never forget them. Monday was the day we said goodbye to Zachary’s cello teacher he’s had for the last year. She’s moving and will be pursuing her doctorate in cello. She was a good teacher for Zachary. As we’ve had different teachers over the years, I can say that you definitely need to find a teacher that’s a good fit for your child. We had our end of year awards at 4-H. This is Zachary’s last year to be in 4-H and so it was another “Goodbye” for him. Our little Boer that was…
Double-take
Thursday, May 27th, 2010 at
6:23 am
As we neared the street corner, before entering the highway, I caught a glimpse of a cardboard box. Thinking it was a notice for a garage sale, I gave it a quick glance-over. Then I did a double-take. Did I read what I think I just read? I’m hoping I’m not the one that be a findin’ it.
Reversible Tote Bag
Tuesday, May 25th, 2010 at
5:13 am
I guess I was feeling rather crafty last week and so when I took Serenity to buy some fabric for a skirt, I became inspired to make a reversible tote bag. I found a very helpful tutorial here at Crafster – http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=91070.0. It did take a little while an entire day to complete but I prevailed and actually have a completed reversible tote bag. Yeah! Besides the time involved, I have about $6 invested in this tote. If I can make this, I know you could, too. I think this lined bag is pretty cute – http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=32204.0. Maybe for my Audrey?
The Week in Review – 5/16/10
Monday, May 24th, 2010 at
7:13 am
This past week was spent with our guests from Canada, Michigan & Tucson. Farm chores still had to be completed. One morning Audrey carried the compost bucket out to the compost pile wearing her brother’s too big shoes. I just had to snap this picture because it warmed my heart to see her outside working, enjoying her job. I am so thankful that we can live a rural lifestyle with our menagerie of animals, making us feel like we have a farm. The boys even filmed a short “movie” in which they all brainstormed the script and which is now being edited by Mitch. Wesley acted out the part of a spy. One day on our way to Sedona, a very beautiful place, we stopped…
The Boys' Adventure Outing
Saturday, May 22nd, 2010 at
1:08 pm
Here’s that post I promised about the boy’s wilderness camping trip. Zachary, Wesley, Mitch (a friend from Tucson) and Andrew (another friend from Michigan) loaded up their gear and readied themselves to leave one morning after a breakfast of oatmeal and toast(??). Zachary made the breakfast so I’m not sure if he added toast to their fare. Notice the bananas in Wesley’s hands (far right). I gave that to them at the last minute so they’d have some back-up provisions because these boys only took a few homemade bread baguettes to sustain them; the rest of the time they were going to live off the land. Also notice, Andrew (on the far left) is carrying his sleeping bag in front. The boys just barely dropped…
The Week in Review – 5/9/10
Monday, May 17th, 2010 at
8:38 am
The week started off with Mother’s Day. The kids in Sunday School sang a nice song about mothers and gave us each a red rose as well as these cute little teapots with a tea bag in them. Such a cute idea. This picture was not taken on Sunday. Justus really didn’t wear this spotty t-shirt to church. Really! Then we had boys arrive from Tucson and Michigan. My boys and them wanted to test their mountain man skills and live off the land; so they packed up their gear and headed for the woods (about 4 miles from our house) with some bread and bananas. The boys took a camera and got some good shots. I’ll try to get a post up later in the week on…
A Completed Peg Board for My Sewing Area
Thursday, May 13th, 2010 at
10:55 pm
It’s done. I actually completed my own peg board after being inspired by Cami at Creating by Cami. Here’s one of them… and here’s the second one… (The black string was some I found in our barn that held a hay bale together. ) My brother-in-law gave us quite a bit of peg board that he had used in his furniture store. It was pink but my laundry room is beige & black… so Serenity spray painted them. then we hot glued white ric-rac along the edges. Then I used the peg board holders that I purchased from Home Depot and placed them where I wanted. So easy, so fun! Oh yes! and somewhere between the time we glued the ric rac on and I…
Peg Boards for Craft Rooms
Wednesday, May 12th, 2010 at
6:26 am
When we redid the boy’s bedroom (which reminds me – I haven’t posted pictures of that) my laundry room ended up having an extra little cubbyhole. I am thinking of turning this tiny little spot into a permanent sewing area. By small I mean it’s only about 2 1/2″ – 3′ wide but it has quite a bit of depth so I’ll use some of that space for storage. Serenity really desires to learn to sew and I’m actually in the middle of writing up a unit study that we can do together that will cover learning to sew as well as some of the history & science of it all. I think it would be just great for us to have a permanent place to set…
The Week in Review
Monday, May 10th, 2010 at
7:29 am
So many things happened this week that I didn’t post about, so I’m going to just do a week in review with pictures. (that’s me, lots of pictures ) Seth left for Manitoba, Canada, Monday morning at 12 a.m. I’m missing him! I grab 8 forks out of the drawer to set the table and then realize, oops! I only need 7. Russell took me on an anniversary get-away. Our anniversary was in April while the 4-H EXPO was going so we had to hold the celebration. 21 years. Unbelievable that it has went by that quickly! When we arrived home from our time at the Scottsdale Plaza Resort, which is very reasonable this time of year because of P*riceline (our little secret ), we…
That Oldest Boy of Mine!
Monday, May 3rd, 2010 at
7:14 am
Well Seth has taken off on a jet plane for the country of Canada, specifically Manitoba, Canada at midnight last night. He’ll be staying with his aunt (Russell’s sister) and her husband for 6 weeks doing construction and also commercial fishing which starts in June. We’ll miss you, Seth!
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