I don't have a menu plan for this week. Gasp!! Eek!!
We still have lots of precooked foods in the freezer and will continue eating on them: various soups, spaghetti, garden veggies, pinto beans, turkey to use for salad, etc. I also added two hashbrown breakfast casseroles, over a dozen sausage biscuits and whole wheat bread to the freezer. I did not make granola last week and the canisters are now empty, so that must be done in the morning. I did experiment with strawberry fruit roll ups and that was a failure. I definitely need the silicon sheets for the dehydrator as they would not peel off the wax paper that I used. They were also way too tart. I didn't add sugar, but I will next time. It's all a grand experiment!
Another reason I don't have a plan for this week is that Jeff will be out of town Monday through Tuesday, home on Wednesday and will be leaving again with Jordan from Thursday through Saturday. Lauren and Ashtyn Claire are coming up for a day or two of shopping this week and leaving the boys home with their daddy. I'm not sure when that is happening. I need to make a doctor's appointment, Devin has various duties outside the home this week and we have our regular school, music and work routines. I always find it hard to plan when things are so discombobulated! Which also means there may be some Sonic take out involved one night and some Chinese take out another night! I know, so unhealthy and so CONSUMER-ISH, but I have a feeling I'll be needing a little break here and there this week.
I now close this non-menu menu plan post to get back to my lesson plans...which will be non-plans if I don't get busy!
Family
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Friday, February 25, 2011
What Last Night Taught Me
Last night our electricity went out because of a storm. Losing our electricity is not unusual. Like our water system, our electric system has not kept up with the supply needed by all the new construction in our area. Even on the sunniest of days we can lose power.
So, what did I learn last night?
1. We need more flashlights.
2. Said flashlights need to be put up where two little guys can't get them.
3. We need lots of batteries for those flashlights.
4. We need more oil lamps. Yes, we have two. One doesn't have a globe, so it needs a new globe.
5. We need to store oil lamp.
6. We need to store oil lamp wicks.
7. When we lose electricity our phones don't work.
8. Yes, our cell phones will work, but will eventually need to be recharged--using electricity.
9. Our nebulizers for our asthma medications don't work without electricity.
10. Yes, we have a nebulizer that will work in the car, but do I really want to go out in the car to take a breathing treatment in a storm with lots of rain, thunder and lightening?
11. Our refrigerator that provides us with filtered water will not provide us with filtered water without electricity.
12. Yes, we need filtered water. Remember, our water system is bad....as in sometimes the water looks like mud.
13. Yes, dear daughter. We have water stored for just this purpose. Check in the boys bedroom closet.
14. I have plenty of candles.
15. I don't have plenty of lighters or matches.
16. Candle light is kind of romantic, but not when several children are afraid of the storm.
Thankfully we lost electricity at bedtime and it came back on during the night. I was actually just starting a breathing treatment for myself when the power went out. I was able to make do with an inhaler. However, they just don't work as well for me. The others who needed treatments had already had them.
What if our power was out for several days? It has happened in this area. Thankfully, we have not experienced it, but ice and snow tend to cause lots of damage down here in the deep south and there have been areas without power for many weeks. Have you experienced extended times without electricity?Are you prepared for times with no electricity? How DO you prepare?
So, what did I learn last night?
1. We need more flashlights.
2. Said flashlights need to be put up where two little guys can't get them.
3. We need lots of batteries for those flashlights.
4. We need more oil lamps. Yes, we have two. One doesn't have a globe, so it needs a new globe.
5. We need to store oil lamp.
6. We need to store oil lamp wicks.
7. When we lose electricity our phones don't work.
8. Yes, our cell phones will work, but will eventually need to be recharged--using electricity.
9. Our nebulizers for our asthma medications don't work without electricity.
10. Yes, we have a nebulizer that will work in the car, but do I really want to go out in the car to take a breathing treatment in a storm with lots of rain, thunder and lightening?
11. Our refrigerator that provides us with filtered water will not provide us with filtered water without electricity.
12. Yes, we need filtered water. Remember, our water system is bad....as in sometimes the water looks like mud.
13. Yes, dear daughter. We have water stored for just this purpose. Check in the boys bedroom closet.
14. I have plenty of candles.
15. I don't have plenty of lighters or matches.
16. Candle light is kind of romantic, but not when several children are afraid of the storm.
Thankfully we lost electricity at bedtime and it came back on during the night. I was actually just starting a breathing treatment for myself when the power went out. I was able to make do with an inhaler. However, they just don't work as well for me. The others who needed treatments had already had them.
What if our power was out for several days? It has happened in this area. Thankfully, we have not experienced it, but ice and snow tend to cause lots of damage down here in the deep south and there have been areas without power for many weeks. Have you experienced extended times without electricity?Are you prepared for times with no electricity? How DO you prepare?
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Lifestyle Changes--Becoming Producers Instead of Consumers
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| We need to take new pictures. This is over a year ago! |
1. We have seven children with a 24 year age span. (Just in case you are a new reader and think I miscounted: There are 6 of my children in the above picture, but we have one married daughter with three children of her own!)
2. We homeschool. (23 years now)
3. We don't watch tv. We do watch movies, though. Much too often I am afraid....another change that needs to be made.
4. The kids don't have electronic gizmos and games to entertain them. They play. They read. They work. They write. They draw. They practice their instruments. They build things.
Even with all these things that make us different we are continuing to learn new things daily that encourage us to be even more radical in our lifestyle. We are trying to become producers instead of consumers. We are trying to become more self-suffcient. Some changes that we have incorporated over the years include the following:
1. Using cloth napkins instead of paper. I buy napkins on clearance for about 50 cents each, but would love to make some using the boxes of fabric that are stored in the attic.
2. Rarely purchase baking mixes or boxed cereal.
3. Made jars and jars of homemade fruit preserves so we are not buying any from the store.
4. Make a maple flavored sugar syrup for pancakes, etc instead of buying syrup.
5. Making our own soap.
6. Making laundry detergent using our homemade soap.
7. Grinding grains to make homemade bread products.
8. Line drying some of our clothes.
10. Learned to make yogurt and applesauce in the crockpot.
11. Learned to purchase and cook using bulk foods.
12. Making body scrubs and ointments.
13. Make tons of granola to replace boxed cereal.
14. Raise as many vegetables and herbs as we can.
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| Ready for planting with more boxes to build. |
There are several other changes that we are trying to incorporate: larger garden, bigger food storage, learning how to dehydrate and use a pressure canner for more food storage, learn about and make herbal remedies, and raising our own meat and eggs--chickens, cow and pigs.
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| Love this picture of chickens on a family farm in Iowa that Jordan took 2 years ago. |
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Breathe
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| Taken in Cade's Cove, TN |
Breathe on Me
Edwin Hatch
Holy Spirit, breathe on me,
Until my heart is clean;
Let sunshine fill its inmost part,
With not a cloud between.
Breathe on me, breathe on me,
Holy Spirit, breathe on me;
Take thou my heart, cleanse every part,
Holy Spirit, breathe on me.
Holy Spirit, breathe on me,
My stubborn will subdue;
Teach me in words of living flame
What Christ would have me do.
Breathe on me, breathe on me,
Holy Spirit, breathe on me;
Take thou my heart, cleanse every part,
Holy Spirit, breathe on me.
Holy Spirit, breathe on me,
Fill me with power divine;
Kindle a flame of love and zeal
Within this heart of mine.
Breathe on me, breathe on me,
Holy Spirit, breathe on me;
Take thou my heart, cleanse every part,
Holy Spirit, breathe on me.
Holy Spirit, breathe on me,
Till I am all thine own,
Until my will is lost in thine,
To live for thee alone.
Breathe on me, breathe on me,
Holy Spirit, breathe on me;
Take thou my heart, cleanse every part,
Holy Spirit, breathe on me.
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| Driving up to Cades Cove |
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Math with Jackson
We have been learning to count by fives. We have finally got the concept down after spending a couple of weeks counting objects and separating them into muffin tins and by putting some cards with the numbers 5, 10, 15, 20, through 60 in order.
Today he was writing out the numbers. After looking over his work I asked what a certain number was. It was supposed to be a 10, but looked more like an "H". He answered, "It's a 10 in Hebrew!"
He continued writing out the numbers again and was counting them out loud. He got to the number 40 and stopped for some commentary. He said, "Forty is a great age. You know why? "Cause you can shoot a machine gun!"
Life with Jack is certainly full of surprises....even in the middle of a math lesson!
Today he was writing out the numbers. After looking over his work I asked what a certain number was. It was supposed to be a 10, but looked more like an "H". He answered, "It's a 10 in Hebrew!"
He continued writing out the numbers again and was counting them out loud. He got to the number 40 and stopped for some commentary. He said, "Forty is a great age. You know why? "Cause you can shoot a machine gun!"
Monday, February 21, 2011
Too Little
Aaron is growing. This is the pile of clothes we pulled out from his closet this morning. Most of the jeans and dress pants are too short and some of the shirts are too tight through the shoulders. I am hoping they continue to make the big boys' pants and jeans with the adjustable waists. We seem to make them mighty thin around here. I don't know how.....they sure do eat a lot!
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Menu Plan Feb. 21-27
This week I am doing things slightly different. I have a small freezer full of prepared foods such as vegetable soup, spaghetti sauce, broccoli soup, lots of pinto and white beans, shredded chicken, half a turkey and a casserole or two. I also have a large freezer full of fruits and vegetables put up during the summer. This week I am going to create meals from what I already have cooked and from the fruits and veggies that I have put up. Both freezers need to be cleaned out and inventoried and I need to use up the food in there in the next few months to prepare for this year's produce.
We will most likely have the following meals:
-veggie soup with turkey salad sandwiches
-white beans with ham bits topped with cheddar cheese and corn bread
-spaghetti
-beef pot pie (I think there is one in there!)
-turkey and rice soup
-corn on the cob, stewed potatoes, yellow squash, okra and green beans
-grilled burgers
-chicken and cheese quesadillas
-cheesy bean dip with corn tortillas
-homemade pizzas
-baked potatoes and broccoli soup
Hopefully this will clear out the small freezer and we can start putting together some other meals in the next couple of weeks. What a blessing it is to pull out a meal that is either fully prepared or takes very little prep time straight from my freezer in the mornings!
While we will be eating mostly prepared foods this week there are several kitchen projects that need to be tackled this week. We will attempt to make the following:
-granola--we are almost out!!
-strawberry fruit leathers (Roll Ups) from the strawberries in the freezer
-strawberry bread
-scones
-bagels
-hamburger buns
-bread
-blueberry coffee cake
-blueberry pound cake
We will most likely have the following meals:
-veggie soup with turkey salad sandwiches
-white beans with ham bits topped with cheddar cheese and corn bread
-spaghetti
-beef pot pie (I think there is one in there!)
-turkey and rice soup
-corn on the cob, stewed potatoes, yellow squash, okra and green beans
-grilled burgers
-chicken and cheese quesadillas
-cheesy bean dip with corn tortillas
-homemade pizzas
-baked potatoes and broccoli soup
Hopefully this will clear out the small freezer and we can start putting together some other meals in the next couple of weeks. What a blessing it is to pull out a meal that is either fully prepared or takes very little prep time straight from my freezer in the mornings!
While we will be eating mostly prepared foods this week there are several kitchen projects that need to be tackled this week. We will attempt to make the following:
-granola--we are almost out!!
-strawberry fruit leathers (Roll Ups) from the strawberries in the freezer
-strawberry bread
-scones
-bagels
-hamburger buns
-bread
-blueberry coffee cake
-blueberry pound cake
Friday, February 18, 2011
Busy and Blessed
It has been another busy week here at Busy Hands Busy Minds. My sister was working in our area this week and stayed with us two nights. We enjoyed having dinner together Monday and Tuesday nights and the kids had lots of fun playing games with her.
Lauren came with her children and spent one night with us as well. That is always a sweet time watching the little ones play and getting in a hug or two as well. Here are pictures of Ashtyn Claire and Eli from the other day. Apparently Chase was too busy to get his picture made. Poor quality due to pulling them off of Devin's Facebook!
We have been eating "around the world" this week. It wasn't intentional, but Monday night Devin prepared a couple of wonderful Italian pasta dishes for our Valentine dinner. Tuesday Tracy treated us with Chinese takeout. Wednesday night we had a cheap US dinner of pinto beans and cornbread. Last night was a Middle Eastern theme with shish-ka-bobs, rice pilaf, flat bread and different spreads. Tonight we will have Mexican with chicken enchiladas, beef nachos and rice. We do like a varied diet around here and so enjoy good foods from all around the world.
Have any of you noticed the prices of foods going up in your area? Yesterday I needed to do some grocery shopping. We have two bank accounts as Jeff has a home business as well as his work with American Family Association, so he rolled money from one account to another so that I could shop. He told me how much he was putting in so I needed to be careful not to go over that amount. It was a generous amount, but we do a lot of food storage and I always buy much more than we need for the week. I knew my purchases for food storage would be limited. I checked the Kroger sale ads and only found a few items that I wanted to purchase and I needed a couple of items for our menu for the rest of the week that are not available as Sam's which is where I do most of my shopping these days.
At Kroger I noticed produce prices were up! A package of three colored bell peppers was over $6!! I generally buy them in the six pack at Sam's and was eager to see how much their cost went up. At Sam's 6 peppers were around $7. A better deal than Kroger for sure, but still about $1 higher than 2-3 weeks ago. Butter at Kroger was over $4 a pound. At Sam's 4 pounds were a little over $8. I have been buying reduced milk at Kroger for $1.25 per gallon, but yesterdays milk was reduced to $2. I still stocked up, but that is a substantial increase.
Do you buy reduced foods for your family? I have been for our entire married life! For an example of items that I find reduced I will tell you about our Middle Eastern dinner last night. I made shish-ka-bobs using reduced ground pork to make meatballs. I included mushrooms that I found reduced yesterday, onions, bell peppers and canned pineapple chunks. I made a wonderful rice pilaf that was chock full of veggies including organic celery that I purchased reduced. It also included grated carrots and cabbage, onions, garlic and a 32 oz. box of chicken broth that I purchased reduced. We made our homemade flat bread recipe and spread it with roasted garlic and had a Greek yogurt dip and hummus which were both purchased at reduced prices. I cooked so much food that we have plenty for lunch today! There is no telling how much money I have saved through the years buying foods at reduced prices. It really pays to look around your grocery store for those little stickers on reduced foods! I always feel so blessed to have found such great deals on good food.
The warm weather we have been having has gotten Jordan itching to be outside. He has used up all of our scrap wood making several new raised beds and even scrounged up enough smaller scraps to make a planter box. He thinks he can find enough wood to make one more planter box and then we will have to break down and buy more wood.
Lauren came with her children and spent one night with us as well. That is always a sweet time watching the little ones play and getting in a hug or two as well. Here are pictures of Ashtyn Claire and Eli from the other day. Apparently Chase was too busy to get his picture made. Poor quality due to pulling them off of Devin's Facebook!
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| My first granddaughter...Ashtyn Claire |
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| Grandson Elisha Jeffrey will be two years old in just a few weeks! |
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| Uncle Caedmon and Ashtyn Claire |
Have any of you noticed the prices of foods going up in your area? Yesterday I needed to do some grocery shopping. We have two bank accounts as Jeff has a home business as well as his work with American Family Association, so he rolled money from one account to another so that I could shop. He told me how much he was putting in so I needed to be careful not to go over that amount. It was a generous amount, but we do a lot of food storage and I always buy much more than we need for the week. I knew my purchases for food storage would be limited. I checked the Kroger sale ads and only found a few items that I wanted to purchase and I needed a couple of items for our menu for the rest of the week that are not available as Sam's which is where I do most of my shopping these days.
At Kroger I noticed produce prices were up! A package of three colored bell peppers was over $6!! I generally buy them in the six pack at Sam's and was eager to see how much their cost went up. At Sam's 6 peppers were around $7. A better deal than Kroger for sure, but still about $1 higher than 2-3 weeks ago. Butter at Kroger was over $4 a pound. At Sam's 4 pounds were a little over $8. I have been buying reduced milk at Kroger for $1.25 per gallon, but yesterdays milk was reduced to $2. I still stocked up, but that is a substantial increase.
Do you buy reduced foods for your family? I have been for our entire married life! For an example of items that I find reduced I will tell you about our Middle Eastern dinner last night. I made shish-ka-bobs using reduced ground pork to make meatballs. I included mushrooms that I found reduced yesterday, onions, bell peppers and canned pineapple chunks. I made a wonderful rice pilaf that was chock full of veggies including organic celery that I purchased reduced. It also included grated carrots and cabbage, onions, garlic and a 32 oz. box of chicken broth that I purchased reduced. We made our homemade flat bread recipe and spread it with roasted garlic and had a Greek yogurt dip and hummus which were both purchased at reduced prices. I cooked so much food that we have plenty for lunch today! There is no telling how much money I have saved through the years buying foods at reduced prices. It really pays to look around your grocery store for those little stickers on reduced foods! I always feel so blessed to have found such great deals on good food.
The warm weather we have been having has gotten Jordan itching to be outside. He has used up all of our scrap wood making several new raised beds and even scrounged up enough smaller scraps to make a planter box. He thinks he can find enough wood to make one more planter box and then we will have to break down and buy more wood.
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| From the top |
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| Side view |
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| Raised bed garden on top of carpet remnants to keep weeds out |
Last night I was just wiped out! Cleaning, schooling, shopping and coming home to put away all the food, plus cooking a big dinner last night just wore me out. I also think my iron levels are low as I keep a glass of ice nearby to chomp on all day long. Not good! I was looking forward to going into my nice clean bedroom, lying in the bed and watching my last Net Flix interest...BBC series Larkrise to Candleford. Jackson, however, was really wanting me to lie down with him and Caedmon as they went to sleep. I have been doing this as I am trying to get them to go to bed earlier and Caedmon just recently became Jackson's bed partner. Usually we snuggle up with Caedmon on my shoulder and Jackson holding my hand. So sweet!! Last night Caedmon went to bed earlier and I was just going to send Jack to bed without me. I really felt the need to be alone! Jackson really wanted me, though, so as soon as Jeff finished some recording he was doing Jackson and I crawled in my bed and watched the next episode of Larkrise on Jeff's big computer screen. Jackson had the biggest smile across his face! As we snuggled and watch the movie he told me he was having the greatest time! Later he told me how much he loved me and held my hand. Then before the hour was up he was softly snoring. Later, Jeff carried him to his own bed. This morning he awoke with a smile on his face, gave me a huge hug and told me again how much fun he had last night. Special times with a special little man.
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Menu Plan for February 14-20
Monday-
breakfast-puff pancakes and eggless pancakes
lunch-grilled ham and cheese quesadillas, popcorn, apples and grapes
dinner-Italian Valentine's Dinner prepared by Devin (heavily influenced by Pioneer Woman)
Tuesday-
breakfast-blueberry muffins, granola, yogurt
lunch-leftovers or soup
dinner-my sister Tracy will be treating us tonight
Wednesday-
breakfast- blueberry muffins, bacon, eggs, grits
lunch-turkey salad sandwiches, turkey soup, popcorn, apples
dinner-beans and cornbread
Thursday-
breakfast-breakfast casserole, grits, homemade bagels
lunch-leftovers
dinner-grilled shish-k-bobs, veggie rice, grilled garlic, flatbread, hummus
Friday-
breakfast-pancakes, sausage
lunch-leftovers
dinner-homemade pizzas and dessert
Saturday-
breakfast-biscuits, bacon, eggs, grits
lunch-leftovers
dinner-chicken enchiladas, beef nachos, rice
Sunday-
breakfast-cinnamon rolls
lunch-roast, potatoes, carrots, onions, green beans, homemade rolls and buttermilk pie
dinner-leftovers
breakfast-puff pancakes and eggless pancakes
lunch-grilled ham and cheese quesadillas, popcorn, apples and grapes
dinner-Italian Valentine's Dinner prepared by Devin (heavily influenced by Pioneer Woman)
Tuesday-
breakfast-blueberry muffins, granola, yogurt
lunch-leftovers or soup
dinner-my sister Tracy will be treating us tonight
Wednesday-
breakfast- blueberry muffins, bacon, eggs, grits
lunch-turkey salad sandwiches, turkey soup, popcorn, apples
dinner-beans and cornbread
Thursday-
breakfast-breakfast casserole, grits, homemade bagels
lunch-leftovers
dinner-grilled shish-k-bobs, veggie rice, grilled garlic, flatbread, hummus
Friday-
breakfast-pancakes, sausage
lunch-leftovers
dinner-homemade pizzas and dessert
Saturday-
breakfast-biscuits, bacon, eggs, grits
lunch-leftovers
dinner-chicken enchiladas, beef nachos, rice
Sunday-
breakfast-cinnamon rolls
lunch-roast, potatoes, carrots, onions, green beans, homemade rolls and buttermilk pie
dinner-leftovers
Friday, February 11, 2011
Parts of Art by Kaelan
Kaelan, my beautiful 11 year old daughter, will be writing homemaking posts on Fridays. I hope you enjoy her first piece.
Anita
Making Cinnamon Bread
Mixing yeast, luke-warm water and honey.
You can see how much yeast can rise in a short matter of time.
salt
The honey helps the yeast "grow" as it is proofing
Pouring the water in the Bosch. It was very difficult
as I was pouring it with one hand and taking the picture with the other.
Honey and cinnamon in great amounts.
The finished product.
My Own Whole Wheat Bread
(Or any kind of flour you may have!)
Sue Greggs Lunches and Snacks cookbook
AMOUNT: 2 medium loaves
Bake 350* for 35 to 40 minutes
1. Blend ingredients in a glass measuring cup with a wire whisk,
(I just use a fork.), or spoon in order listed. Allow to stand until
mixture bubbles up, about 5-10 minutes (this is called proofing the yeast):
1/4cup water, very warm but not hot
1 Tbs (1 package) active dry yeast
1 Tbs honey
2. In large mixing bowl, (we use a Bosch), mix in with a wooden spoon:
2 cups water, very hot but not boiling
2 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup veggie oil (best to put oil in first, then honey.)
3. Blend in thoroughly with wooden spoon:
3 cups whole wheat (you can use any flour you want.)
4. Blend in, in order listed while easy to stir, then turn dough out
of bowl onto a floured bread board to knead in flour that remains:
yeast mixture
3 more cups whole wheat (again any flour that you want)
5. Knead for about 10 minutes, adding extra flour as needed
6. Place dough in a large greased bowl, cover with a towel and set in a warm place at about 85* or on a over a bowl of hot water. Let dough rise until double in size, about 1-1/2 hours.
7. Punch down the dough with your fist, (She said first!) divide it in half and shape each piece into a loaf
8. Set loaves in a greased bread pan, cover with towel, let rise in warm place until double, about 30-45 minutes.
9. Bake at 350* for 35-40 minutes until golden brown on bottom. Turn loaves out and lay on sides an a cake rack to cool. Cool completely before slicing.
This is Anita's last daughter who enjoys cooking.
:) See ya next Friday with a new recipe!!
Kaelan :)
Peace, Joy, Happiness!
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Yummy Oatmeal Recipes
I love cooking with oats. According to Sue Gregg in More Than Breakfasts, oats have one of the highest amounts of proteins and fats and give us lots of energy. They are rich in iron, phosphorus, and inositol and have many minerals. They also contain high levels of B vitamins and vitamin E. Oats contain silicon which contributes to healthy hair, skin, eyes, and nails. Oats also help lower cholesterol and are a mild laxative.
With all the many benefits of oats, it just makes sense to cook with them often. We use oats for breading hamburger steaks and as a filler in meatloaf. Here are some of our old and new favorite recipes for using oats.
This first recipe comes from Nourishing Heart and Home. I will give the original recipe, but I have to tell you that when I mixed up this recipe last night I made several changes. I was out of buttermilk, so substituted plain yogurt. I also used coconut milk as I have some that needs to be used quickly. Instead of eggs I used a powdered egg replacer and a pint of homemade applesauce. I also put the batter in the refrigerator overnight so my soaking time was much longer than the original. This recipe made over 40 full-sized muffins so we have enough for another breakfast and some snacks as well.
Oatmeal Muffins
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups milk
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup olive oil
2 tsp. vanilla
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
3 tsp. baking powder
In a large bowl, soak oats, buttermilk and milk for about 15 minutes.
Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
Fill greased muffin tins.
Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Makes 3 dozen muffins.
This next recipe was shared by a local friend on Facebook. She loves to cook and shares some wonderful recipes.
Oatmeal Cake
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
2 cups cooked oatmeal
Cream together above ingredients. Then add:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
Mix all ingredients and pour into a greased 9 x 13 baking pan.
Add topping:
2 T. butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Baked Oatmeal from Beverly Lewis' Amish Heritage Cookbook
1/4 cup cooking oil 1 t. cinnamon
1/2 cup white or brown sugar 1 1/2 c. quick or rolled oats
1 egg 1 c. milk
1 t. baking powder 1/2 t. salt
Beat together all ingredients with mixing spoon; pour into buttered 9 x 13 pan.
Bake at 275 degrees for 30 minutes or until done.
Granola-from Sue Gregg's More Than Breakfasts
Each recipe makes 8 cups. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Blend together in a large measuring cup:
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil
2 t vanilla
1 t cinnamon
In a large mixing bowl, mix:
8 cups of regular oats
1/4 cup of protein powder (I use rice protein powder from the health food store)
1 cup chopped raw walnuts
Pour honey-oil mixture over oat mixture until coated thoroughly.
Spread evenly in two 9 x 12 baking pans or rimmed cookie sheets.
Bake for 20-30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Let cool and store in a tightly closed container in refrigerator or freezer.
I add dried blueberries to the cooled mixture. I also add in 2 t. of maple flavoring in with the liquid ingredients. This granola is great cold and served with milk or heated in the microwave with milk. Some of my kids eat it dry. I now make this in my food dehydrator and it is even better than before!
With all the many benefits of oats, it just makes sense to cook with them often. We use oats for breading hamburger steaks and as a filler in meatloaf. Here are some of our old and new favorite recipes for using oats.
This first recipe comes from Nourishing Heart and Home. I will give the original recipe, but I have to tell you that when I mixed up this recipe last night I made several changes. I was out of buttermilk, so substituted plain yogurt. I also used coconut milk as I have some that needs to be used quickly. Instead of eggs I used a powdered egg replacer and a pint of homemade applesauce. I also put the batter in the refrigerator overnight so my soaking time was much longer than the original. This recipe made over 40 full-sized muffins so we have enough for another breakfast and some snacks as well.
Oatmeal Muffins
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups milk
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup olive oil
2 tsp. vanilla
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
3 tsp. baking powder
In a large bowl, soak oats, buttermilk and milk for about 15 minutes.
Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
Fill greased muffin tins.
Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
Makes 3 dozen muffins.
This next recipe was shared by a local friend on Facebook. She loves to cook and shares some wonderful recipes.
Oatmeal Cake
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
2 cups cooked oatmeal
Cream together above ingredients. Then add:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
Mix all ingredients and pour into a greased 9 x 13 baking pan.
Add topping:
2 T. butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
Overnight Apple Oatmeal
2 cups skim or 2% milk
2 T honey or 1/4 brown sugar
1 T margarine (we use butter)
1/4 t salt
1/2 t ground cinnamon
1 cup dry rolled oats
1 cup chopped apples
1.2 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1.2 cup fat-free half and half
1. Spray inside of slow cooker with cooking spray.
2. In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except half and half. Pour into cooker.
3. Cover and cook on low overnight, ideally 6-8 hours. The oatmeal is ready to eat in the morning.
4. Stir in the half and half just before serving.
Baked Oatmeal from Beverly Lewis' Amish Heritage Cookbook
1/4 cup cooking oil 1 t. cinnamon
1/2 cup white or brown sugar 1 1/2 c. quick or rolled oats
1 egg 1 c. milk
1 t. baking powder 1/2 t. salt
Beat together all ingredients with mixing spoon; pour into buttered 9 x 13 pan.
Bake at 275 degrees for 30 minutes or until done.
Granola-from Sue Gregg's More Than Breakfasts
Each recipe makes 8 cups. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
Blend together in a large measuring cup:
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil
2 t vanilla
1 t cinnamon
In a large mixing bowl, mix:
8 cups of regular oats
1/4 cup of protein powder (I use rice protein powder from the health food store)
1 cup chopped raw walnuts
Pour honey-oil mixture over oat mixture until coated thoroughly.
Spread evenly in two 9 x 12 baking pans or rimmed cookie sheets.
Bake for 20-30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Let cool and store in a tightly closed container in refrigerator or freezer.
I add dried blueberries to the cooled mixture. I also add in 2 t. of maple flavoring in with the liquid ingredients. This granola is great cold and served with milk or heated in the microwave with milk. Some of my kids eat it dry. I now make this in my food dehydrator and it is even better than before!
Book Recommendation
"Is he well educated?"
Yes, I think so, as far as he's gone," I answered. "Of course he will go on being educated every day of his life, same as father. He says it is all rot about 'finishing' your education. You never do. You learn more important things each day..."— Gene Stratton-Porter (Laddie: A True Blue Story)
Have you read this book? It is such a sweet story of a large farm family in the 1800's who live close to the land. It's one of those books that you just sigh as you read along. I hope to read it aloud to the children soon, but I know there are parts of it where I will cry. I don't mind crying as I read to myself, but it is a little bothersome when you are reading aloud.
Gather your children around the tea table in the afternoons or enjoy a time of snuggling close to the fire. Pass around a bowl of popcorn and enjoy some crispy apples together. This book will surely bless each member of your family.
And the above quote? All I can say is....I totally agree!
Yes, I think so, as far as he's gone," I answered. "Of course he will go on being educated every day of his life, same as father. He says it is all rot about 'finishing' your education. You never do. You learn more important things each day..."— Gene Stratton-Porter (Laddie: A True Blue Story)
Have you read this book? It is such a sweet story of a large farm family in the 1800's who live close to the land. It's one of those books that you just sigh as you read along. I hope to read it aloud to the children soon, but I know there are parts of it where I will cry. I don't mind crying as I read to myself, but it is a little bothersome when you are reading aloud.
Gather your children around the tea table in the afternoons or enjoy a time of snuggling close to the fire. Pass around a bowl of popcorn and enjoy some crispy apples together. This book will surely bless each member of your family.
And the above quote? All I can say is....I totally agree!
Monday, February 7, 2011
Getting Rid of the Clutter Stream of Consciousness
This past Saturday I was finally able to spend some time in my bedroom sorting through clothes, various Thanksgiving and Christmas decorations. It would be so nice if our bedroom was just our bedroom, but as we lack extra rooms and extra storage in this house our bedroom also serves as Jeff home office/studio, my scrapbooking and sewing room (ok, I don't really sew, but I have lots of sewing equipment) and until recently it was also Caedmon's room. Our attic access is also in our bedroom, so anything that needs to go up into the attic finds its way to my room until I can find the time to sort through and put it in the correct box.
I was able to get all the clothes that Aaron, Jackson and Caedmon had outgrown sorted and put up in the attic. The leftover Christmas and Thanksgiving items are now where they belong. I still have a huge stack of boxes of items to get rid of either through ebay, consignment shop, yard sale or giveaway. There are also several boxes in the attic to get rid off as well. I have kitchen items, homeschool books, young women's clothing, girl clothes, baby boy clothes including Robeez shoes and tons of other things.
In making out our chore charts I quickly came to realize that if I really wanted to have an orderly home I would have to first get rid of things. There are eight of us living in our home. We have been homeschooling for over 22 years and have accumulated a. lot. of. stuff. that we use. I am clearing out things that we haven't used in a while or things that no longer work for us. We have had children for almost 27 years and have accumulated lots of toys. Now, I am very picky about what kind of toys we bring into the house. Just ask my mother in law! ; ) At this stage in my life I have come to the conclusion that you can only have so many building toys. We have Legos, KNEX, Fischer Technic, Tinker Toys, Lincoln Logs, Waffle Blocks, Duplos, plain ole wooden blocks and wooden sets from Melissa and Doug. We even had giant Duplos but I have relegated them to the "get rid of" pile.
I also greatly dislike electronic toys or toys that make noises. In a house with many people there is always noise whether it be someone listening to a book on tape, an audio lesson, Christian talk radio, piano practice, violin practice or just some wild boys cutting loose. We just don't need any more noise. Really! Extra noises make my shoulders creep up to my ear lobes.
As soon as the weather warms up I would like to clean out our garage and install more shelving out there. The boys have been storing sleeping bags in the top of their closet, but I would like them stored away. Jackson likes to drag them all out and can't put them away without help. My solution is to put them out of sight where he can't get them. Then the top of the closet can be used for other storage. The boys have a good sized closet, but there are now four of them sharing it. Or they will be as soon as I find an extender rod or another shelf with a rod for Caedmon's clothes.
I have also decided we have way too many clothes. I have not gone shopping for clearance clothing this winter as I normally do. Jackson and Caedmon both have plenty of clothes for now and boxes for each size they will need as they grow are in the attic. All of the other children have many clothes hanging in their closets that they never wear. I cleaned out all of my drawers this weekend and threw away anything that was stained or misshapen or that I just never wore. My drawers now look nice, I can find what I need and can actually close them without any trouble. I keep my hanging clothes pretty well weeded out. Now if I can just talk Jeff into taking care of cleaning out his drawers. I may have to do that myself when he is out of town. He tends to be a packrat and hates to depart with anything. I do promise, though, not to burn anything....this time. (yes, I did burn a huge stack of astronomy magazines--with evolutionary content and notebooks of papers, etc that had been in the attic for 10 years and had not been touched since college or seminary days...except to move them....FIVE times).
Decluttering and organizing seem to be themes for me this year, This all fits into my goal to be more deliberate in my life. Making weekly menus for three meals a day, making lesson plans for five of the children, planning our food storage, working with Jordan to plan for our garden, making goals for our home to run more smoothly...I don't think it was in God's plan for us to live such cluttered lives. All the clutter that we accumulate (in physical items and in cluttering up our day with too many activities) takes away time and energy that could be spent in more meaningful time with our families and in a deeper relationship with God. It is my hope and prayer that as I declutter my home and my life that I will be able to focus even more time and energy on building better relationships with my family and deepening my relationship with God.
I was able to get all the clothes that Aaron, Jackson and Caedmon had outgrown sorted and put up in the attic. The leftover Christmas and Thanksgiving items are now where they belong. I still have a huge stack of boxes of items to get rid of either through ebay, consignment shop, yard sale or giveaway. There are also several boxes in the attic to get rid off as well. I have kitchen items, homeschool books, young women's clothing, girl clothes, baby boy clothes including Robeez shoes and tons of other things.
In making out our chore charts I quickly came to realize that if I really wanted to have an orderly home I would have to first get rid of things. There are eight of us living in our home. We have been homeschooling for over 22 years and have accumulated a. lot. of. stuff. that we use. I am clearing out things that we haven't used in a while or things that no longer work for us. We have had children for almost 27 years and have accumulated lots of toys. Now, I am very picky about what kind of toys we bring into the house. Just ask my mother in law! ; ) At this stage in my life I have come to the conclusion that you can only have so many building toys. We have Legos, KNEX, Fischer Technic, Tinker Toys, Lincoln Logs, Waffle Blocks, Duplos, plain ole wooden blocks and wooden sets from Melissa and Doug. We even had giant Duplos but I have relegated them to the "get rid of" pile.
I also greatly dislike electronic toys or toys that make noises. In a house with many people there is always noise whether it be someone listening to a book on tape, an audio lesson, Christian talk radio, piano practice, violin practice or just some wild boys cutting loose. We just don't need any more noise. Really! Extra noises make my shoulders creep up to my ear lobes.
As soon as the weather warms up I would like to clean out our garage and install more shelving out there. The boys have been storing sleeping bags in the top of their closet, but I would like them stored away. Jackson likes to drag them all out and can't put them away without help. My solution is to put them out of sight where he can't get them. Then the top of the closet can be used for other storage. The boys have a good sized closet, but there are now four of them sharing it. Or they will be as soon as I find an extender rod or another shelf with a rod for Caedmon's clothes.
I have also decided we have way too many clothes. I have not gone shopping for clearance clothing this winter as I normally do. Jackson and Caedmon both have plenty of clothes for now and boxes for each size they will need as they grow are in the attic. All of the other children have many clothes hanging in their closets that they never wear. I cleaned out all of my drawers this weekend and threw away anything that was stained or misshapen or that I just never wore. My drawers now look nice, I can find what I need and can actually close them without any trouble. I keep my hanging clothes pretty well weeded out. Now if I can just talk Jeff into taking care of cleaning out his drawers. I may have to do that myself when he is out of town. He tends to be a packrat and hates to depart with anything. I do promise, though, not to burn anything....this time. (yes, I did burn a huge stack of astronomy magazines--with evolutionary content and notebooks of papers, etc that had been in the attic for 10 years and had not been touched since college or seminary days...except to move them....FIVE times).
Decluttering and organizing seem to be themes for me this year, This all fits into my goal to be more deliberate in my life. Making weekly menus for three meals a day, making lesson plans for five of the children, planning our food storage, working with Jordan to plan for our garden, making goals for our home to run more smoothly...I don't think it was in God's plan for us to live such cluttered lives. All the clutter that we accumulate (in physical items and in cluttering up our day with too many activities) takes away time and energy that could be spent in more meaningful time with our families and in a deeper relationship with God. It is my hope and prayer that as I declutter my home and my life that I will be able to focus even more time and energy on building better relationships with my family and deepening my relationship with God.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Menu Plan for February 7- 13
Monday
breakfast-breakfast casserole from the freezer, biscuits
lunch-chicken soup (make from chicken carcass from Sunday's lunch) or ravioli soup (from the freezer)
dinner-hamburger steaks, rice and gravy, okra, broccoli
Tuesday
breakfast-oatmeal muffins, bacon, eggs
lunch-cheese quesadillas with salsa, popcorn, apples
dinner-bbq sandwiches, cole slaw, baked beans
Wednesday
breakfast-oatmeal muffins, granola, yogurt
lunch-tuna wraps, popcorn, apples
dinner-grilled cheese and ham sandwiches, chicken soup from Monday or broccoli soup from the freezer
Thursday
breakfast-pancakes, sausage
lunch-ham or tuna sandwiches, homemade tortilla chips, salsa
dinner-chicken strips, garlicky potatoes, carrots and onions, green beans
Friday
breakfast-grits or granola
lunch-leftovers
dinner-Chinese takeout
Saturday
breakfast-biscuits, sausage, eggs and grits
lunch-sandwiches or leftovers with popcorn and apples
dinner-grilled porkchops, squash casserole, grilled corn, green beans
breakfast-breakfast casserole from the freezer, biscuits
lunch-chicken soup (make from chicken carcass from Sunday's lunch) or ravioli soup (from the freezer)
dinner-hamburger steaks, rice and gravy, okra, broccoli
Tuesday
breakfast-oatmeal muffins, bacon, eggs
lunch-cheese quesadillas with salsa, popcorn, apples
dinner-bbq sandwiches, cole slaw, baked beans
Wednesday
breakfast-oatmeal muffins, granola, yogurt
lunch-tuna wraps, popcorn, apples
dinner-grilled cheese and ham sandwiches, chicken soup from Monday or broccoli soup from the freezer
Thursday
breakfast-pancakes, sausage
lunch-ham or tuna sandwiches, homemade tortilla chips, salsa
dinner-chicken strips, garlicky potatoes, carrots and onions, green beans
Friday
breakfast-grits or granola
lunch-leftovers
dinner-Chinese takeout
Saturday
breakfast-biscuits, sausage, eggs and grits
lunch-sandwiches or leftovers with popcorn and apples
dinner-grilled porkchops, squash casserole, grilled corn, green beans
Friday, February 4, 2011
Great Tool for Handwriting, Copywork and Memory Verse Review
For many years I used Start Write-a downloadable handwriting program- to make spelling lists for my elementary aged children. I made pages for copywork and memory verses as well. Start Write enabled me to make individualized pages for each child and also to make them in the handwriting style that we use. A couple of years ago we switched from a PC to an iMac and that was the end of my Start Write program. Until.... I came across my Start Write receipt and contacted them this week. I told them that I had switched to Mac and was wondering if I could get Start Write re-installed. No, problem!! They just simply gave me a new code number and didn't charge me a thing. Now, that is service!!
I am so excited to be able to get back to printing out copywork and spelling sheets for Kaelan, but also I will be starting Jackson on some simple spelling words from his Alphaphonics drills each day. I will be able to reinforce his phonics lessons, handwriting and spelling all in one!
Start Write allows you to check their program out with a free download.
Click this button or the one in my side bar to get more information. I just became an affiliate for Start Write, but you must know that I only recommend programs that I really like. And I really like Start Write.
I am so excited to be able to get back to printing out copywork and spelling sheets for Kaelan, but also I will be starting Jackson on some simple spelling words from his Alphaphonics drills each day. I will be able to reinforce his phonics lessons, handwriting and spelling all in one!
Start Write allows you to check their program out with a free download.
Click this button or the one in my side bar to get more information. I just became an affiliate for Start Write, but you must know that I only recommend programs that I really like. And I really like Start Write.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
What We Are Studying- Leading Up to the Civil War
We just recently began one of our favorite studies of the Civil War. We will be learning about this time period for the next several months. For the next couple of weeks we are reading and discussing the time period leading up to the war. We have so many great resources that I thought I would share with you.
Aaron and Jordan, 14 and 18 years old, will be reading The War Between the States: America's Uncivil War by John J. Dwyer. This 38 chapter volume is jam-packed with lots of great pictures, maps, quotes and other information you will not get from any other resource. Dwyer has a handful of other well-known historians who contributed to this undertaking. The boys will be working through the study guides for each chapter and adding quotes and maps to their notebooks.
In addition to the above text the boys will be reading Sounding Forth the Trumpet by Peter Marshall. Marshall, being from Massachusetts, takes a decidedly Northern view of the war. We feel that it is important that we learn from both sides as every story has different versions. Dr. Marshall has meant a lot to us in our studies of American history. We have been privileged to meet him and had him sign all of our books that he wrote. Jeff made several programs with him about segments of American history for American Family Radio. They are probably still available for sale. If you are interested, leave me a comment and I will point you in the right direction.
In our group time we are reading:
Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Facts the Historians Leave Out by John S. Tilley
Sojourner Truth: American Abolitionist by W. Terry Whalin
Tonight we will watch an A & E Biography Frederick Douglass.
We have a stack of books from the library to read through in this next week as well.
Kaelan will read Harriet Beecher Stowe: Connecticut Girl by Mabel Cieland Widdemer, a Childhood of Famous Americans book. I will read Henry Clay by Helen Stone Peterson, a Discovery Book to Kaelan and Jackson. Other books to read through in this stack are-
Aquila's Drinking Gourd: A Story of the Underground Railroad by Pamela Kell
Escape to Freedom; The Underground Railroad Adventures of Callie and William by Barbara Brooks Simon
Harriet Beecher Stowe and the Beecher Preachers by Jean Fritz
Frederick Douglass: Abolitionist and Author by Norma Jean Lutz
The Story of the Underground Railroad by R. Conrad Stein
The Abolitionist Movement by Elaine Landau
I am still typing up our full lesson plans for this unit, but if you would like a copy I would be glad to share with you.
Of course we still have phonics, math, language and science to cover each day, not to mention the piano, violin and all those chores we do! Time to gather my little (and big) chicks around and get our group learning time going!
Aaron and Jordan, 14 and 18 years old, will be reading The War Between the States: America's Uncivil War by John J. Dwyer. This 38 chapter volume is jam-packed with lots of great pictures, maps, quotes and other information you will not get from any other resource. Dwyer has a handful of other well-known historians who contributed to this undertaking. The boys will be working through the study guides for each chapter and adding quotes and maps to their notebooks.
In addition to the above text the boys will be reading Sounding Forth the Trumpet by Peter Marshall. Marshall, being from Massachusetts, takes a decidedly Northern view of the war. We feel that it is important that we learn from both sides as every story has different versions. Dr. Marshall has meant a lot to us in our studies of American history. We have been privileged to meet him and had him sign all of our books that he wrote. Jeff made several programs with him about segments of American history for American Family Radio. They are probably still available for sale. If you are interested, leave me a comment and I will point you in the right direction.
In our group time we are reading:
Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Facts the Historians Leave Out by John S. Tilley
Sojourner Truth: American Abolitionist by W. Terry Whalin
Tonight we will watch an A & E Biography Frederick Douglass.
We have a stack of books from the library to read through in this next week as well.
Kaelan will read Harriet Beecher Stowe: Connecticut Girl by Mabel Cieland Widdemer, a Childhood of Famous Americans book. I will read Henry Clay by Helen Stone Peterson, a Discovery Book to Kaelan and Jackson. Other books to read through in this stack are-
Aquila's Drinking Gourd: A Story of the Underground Railroad by Pamela Kell
Escape to Freedom; The Underground Railroad Adventures of Callie and William by Barbara Brooks Simon
Harriet Beecher Stowe and the Beecher Preachers by Jean Fritz
Frederick Douglass: Abolitionist and Author by Norma Jean Lutz
The Story of the Underground Railroad by R. Conrad Stein
The Abolitionist Movement by Elaine Landau
I am still typing up our full lesson plans for this unit, but if you would like a copy I would be glad to share with you.
Of course we still have phonics, math, language and science to cover each day, not to mention the piano, violin and all those chores we do! Time to gather my little (and big) chicks around and get our group learning time going!
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Of Chores, Routines and Clutter
Every few years I get inspired to create new master lists of detailed chores and routines. This year my inspiration came from Kim Brenneman's Large Family Logistics. If you have children, this is a book that you should purchase! Even though the title says "Large Family" there is so much to glean from it, even if you have two children.
I sat down with the children and we came up with Before Breakfast, After Breakfast and Before Bed routines. I typed them up and they hang in the kids' rooms. I made detailed lists broken down into daily increments for the bedroom, bathroom and kitchen. I combined the den, school room, porch and deck into one set of chores. The dining room, hallway and laundry duty are included on another set. The kitchen chores are all by themselves.
I divided the living area chores among three children: Aaron-14, Kaelan-11 and Jackson-6. The chores lists are labeled A, B and C. Each week we rotate so no one has to be on kitchen duty more than a week at a time. As Jackson is only 6, he is in training and I will be working with him on his responsibilities. All the children are responsible for bathroom and bedroom routines.
Devin and Jordan were not included in the ABC chore division as they are away from home a good bit. However, when they are at home they are to pitch in wherever needed....which is mainly in the kitchen!
If we can keep up with our routines and scheduled chores then our home should be relatively in order each day. One huge detriment to this whole endeavor, though, is the fact that there are several areas in my home that have too. much. clutter!! Our house only has three closets: one closet per bedroom. The laundry room is really a closet and I have a lot of things stored in there on two shelves above the washer and dryer and all my soap making supplies are stored on the dryer itself. (I have a door laid over the top of the washer and dryer that gives me more storage space.)
My biggest clutter is found in the master bedroom. The attic access is there and anything that needs to go into the attic gets put in a stack. The stack now has taken over the room! We have just moved Caedmon out of our room and into the boys' room, but we still have some baby things that need to be sorted through, stored, sold or given away. Jeff's studio for his home business is also in there and so are many stacks of boxes with equipment, books he rarely or NEVER uses and just stuff. The school room is another area that can quickly get cluttered. It is really a part of the den just slightly divided by partial walls and quite open to the living areas. I put a table in there a few years ago so that we could do our table work in there instead of cluttering up the dining room each day. The table, however, is generally covered with items that need to be put away and is seldom used for school work.
This week I spent one afternoon decluttering in the school room. I had three bags of trash which included magazines, papers and toys. I also had three large boxes of toys and books to put up in the attic until I decide what to do with them and I finally decided to get rid of the small easel/desk combo that we have had for years. We continually had to move it to get to other items that were needed and I decided it wasn't used enough to warrant all the handling it received. I still have a huge cabinet to go through, a set of shelves above my desk, my desk drawers and the file cabinet to go through. One day I hope to have another school room that is much bigger and has a door that can be closed!
We hope to tackle the laundry room this weekend. We will pull everything out including the shelves on the wall, scrub it completely, paint and install cabinets and one shelf on the wall above the appliances. I plan to work in small increments in the school room and my room over the month of February and hope to have those two rooms in good order by the time warmer weather and gardening prep gets here. Having less clutter will really help us get the routines and chores done in a more orderly way. I can't wait to get to that point.
Here are our daily lists for each area of the home with the exception of our morning and evening routines and our bedroom chores. Apparently I did not save those on my word processor.
I sat down with the children and we came up with Before Breakfast, After Breakfast and Before Bed routines. I typed them up and they hang in the kids' rooms. I made detailed lists broken down into daily increments for the bedroom, bathroom and kitchen. I combined the den, school room, porch and deck into one set of chores. The dining room, hallway and laundry duty are included on another set. The kitchen chores are all by themselves.
I divided the living area chores among three children: Aaron-14, Kaelan-11 and Jackson-6. The chores lists are labeled A, B and C. Each week we rotate so no one has to be on kitchen duty more than a week at a time. As Jackson is only 6, he is in training and I will be working with him on his responsibilities. All the children are responsible for bathroom and bedroom routines.
Devin and Jordan were not included in the ABC chore division as they are away from home a good bit. However, when they are at home they are to pitch in wherever needed....which is mainly in the kitchen!
If we can keep up with our routines and scheduled chores then our home should be relatively in order each day. One huge detriment to this whole endeavor, though, is the fact that there are several areas in my home that have too. much. clutter!! Our house only has three closets: one closet per bedroom. The laundry room is really a closet and I have a lot of things stored in there on two shelves above the washer and dryer and all my soap making supplies are stored on the dryer itself. (I have a door laid over the top of the washer and dryer that gives me more storage space.)
My biggest clutter is found in the master bedroom. The attic access is there and anything that needs to go into the attic gets put in a stack. The stack now has taken over the room! We have just moved Caedmon out of our room and into the boys' room, but we still have some baby things that need to be sorted through, stored, sold or given away. Jeff's studio for his home business is also in there and so are many stacks of boxes with equipment, books he rarely or NEVER uses and just stuff. The school room is another area that can quickly get cluttered. It is really a part of the den just slightly divided by partial walls and quite open to the living areas. I put a table in there a few years ago so that we could do our table work in there instead of cluttering up the dining room each day. The table, however, is generally covered with items that need to be put away and is seldom used for school work.
This week I spent one afternoon decluttering in the school room. I had three bags of trash which included magazines, papers and toys. I also had three large boxes of toys and books to put up in the attic until I decide what to do with them and I finally decided to get rid of the small easel/desk combo that we have had for years. We continually had to move it to get to other items that were needed and I decided it wasn't used enough to warrant all the handling it received. I still have a huge cabinet to go through, a set of shelves above my desk, my desk drawers and the file cabinet to go through. One day I hope to have another school room that is much bigger and has a door that can be closed!
We hope to tackle the laundry room this weekend. We will pull everything out including the shelves on the wall, scrub it completely, paint and install cabinets and one shelf on the wall above the appliances. I plan to work in small increments in the school room and my room over the month of February and hope to have those two rooms in good order by the time warmer weather and gardening prep gets here. Having less clutter will really help us get the routines and chores done in a more orderly way. I can't wait to get to that point.
Here are our daily lists for each area of the home with the exception of our morning and evening routines and our bedroom chores. Apparently I did not save those on my word processor.
Kitchen Chores
Monday
-Cook meals
-Put away clean dishes
-Load dishwasher
-Wash dishes
-Scrub countertops and freezer tops
-Wipe stovetop
-Wipe down cabinet fronts
-Wipe down front of dishwasher, stove, fridge and freezers
-Wipe off table
-Take out garbage
-Scrub kitchen sink
-Vacuum and mop
Tuesday
-Cook meals
-Put away clean dishes
-Load dishwasher
-Wash dishes
-Scrub countertops and freezer tops
-Wipe stovetop
-Scrub kitchen sink
-Wipe off table
-Take out garbage
-Clean microwave
-Vacuum
Wednesday
-Cook meals
-Put away clean dishes
-Load dishwasher
-Wash dishes
-Scrub countertops and freezer tops
-Wipe stove top
-Scrub kitchen sink
-Wipe off table
-Take out garbage
-Vacuum and clean window
-Vacuum and mop
Thursday
-Cook meals
-Put away clean dishes
-Load dishwasher
-Wash dishes
-Scrub countertops and freezer tops
-Wipe down front of dishwasher, stove, fridge and freezers
-Wipe stove top
-Scrub kitchen sink
-Wipe off table
-Take out garbage
-Clean under and behind microwave
-Vacuum
Friday
-Cook meals
-Put away clean dishes
-Load dishwasher
-Wash dishes
-Scrub countertops and freezer tops
-Wipe stovetop
-Organize cabinets--deep clean one
-Clean out one drawer
-Wipe off table
-Take out garbage
-Scrub kitchen sink
-Vacuum and mop
Saturday
-Cook meals
-Put away clean dishes
-Load dishwasher
-Wash dishes
-Scrub countertops and freezer tops
-Wipe stovetop
-Wipe off table and clean off buckets
-Take out garbage
-Clean out refrigerator
-Scrub kitchen sink
-Vacuum
Dining Room and Hallway
Monday
-clean up clutter
-set table
-clear table
-wipe off table and chairs
-clean high chair
-clean off all surface areas
(bench, shelves, bar, cabinet)
-vacuum
-mop
Tuesday
-clean up clutter
-set table
-clear table
-wipe off table and chairs
-clean high chair
-clean off all surface areas
-vacuum window sill
-vacuum floor
Wednesday
-clean up clutter
-set table
-clear table
-wipe off table and chairs
-clean high chair
-clean off all surface areas
-dust bottom of table and chairs
-dust other furniture
-vacuum
Thursday
-clean up clutter
-set table
-clear table
-wipe off table and chairs
-clean high chair
-dust chandelier
-clean windows and doors
Friday
-clean up clutter
-set table
-clear table
-wipe off table and chairs
-clean high chair
-clean off all surface areas
-dust all furniture
-vacuum--especially baseboards and molding
-mop
Saturday
-clean up clutter
-set table
-clear table
-wipe off table and chairs
-clean high chair
-clean off all surface areas
Den, School Room and Porch
Monday
-clean out from under furniture
-clean up clutter
-dust
-straighten books
-vacuum window sills
-vacuum couch and chairs
-vacuum floor
-spot mop with rag and spray bottle
Tuesday
-pick up clutter
-vacuum
Wednesday
-dust TV shelf
-clean up clutter
-clean glass and windows with vinegar
-vacuum
-clean off and sweep porch and deck
Thursday
-clean and dust toy shelves and bookshelves in schoolroom
-clean out from under furniture
-clean up clutter
-dust ceiling fans
-vacuum
-pick up trash in yard
Friday
-clean up clutter
-dust bookshelves, piano and cabinets
-clean off desk and school table
-clean out individual school space
-vacuum
-mop
-clean up yard toys
Bathroom Routines
Monday
-put your things away
-clean out your drawer
-scrub sink, faucet and knobs
-wipe off countertop
-clean mirrors and light fixtures
-scrub toilet
-scrub shower and door or scrub tub
-put towels in the laundry
-put out a fresh hand towel
-vacuum
-mop
Tuesday
-put your things away
-wipe down sink and countertop
Wednesday
-put your things away
-wipe down sink and countertop
-put out a fresh hand towel
-wipe down base boards
-vacuum
Thursday
-put your things away
-wipe down sink and countertop
-put towels in laundry
Friday
-put your things away
-clean out your drawer
-scrub sink, faucet and knobs
-wipe off countertop
-clean mirrors and light fixtures
-scrub toilet
-scrub shower and door or scrub tub
--put out a fresh hand towel
-vacuum
-mop
Saturday
-put your things away
-straighten cabinets
-clear out empty bottles
-wipe off countertop and sink
Laundry Detail
4 x 4= Do 4 loads of laundry by 4 in the afternoon!
Sorting and Washing Directions
-bath towels--wash in hot water with 1 heaping spoonful of detergent, one scoop of Oxyclean and a compartment full of vinegar--WASH ON MONDAY AND THURSDAY
-sheets- wash in hot water with 1 heaping spoonful of detergent, one scoop of Oxyclean and a compartment full of vinegar--WASH ON FRIDAY
-reds/oranges/purples-wash in warm water with 1 heaping spoonful of detergent, one scoop of Oxyclean and a compartment full of vinegar
-whites-wash in warm water with 1 heaping spoonful of detergent, one scoop of Oxyclean and a compartment full of vinegar
-wash clothes/white socks/light undies/dish towels--wash in hot water with 1 heaping spoonful of detergent, one scoop of Oxyclean and a compartment full of vinegar
-jeans and dark blue towels-wash in warm water with 1 heaping spoonful of detergent, one scoop of oxyclean and a compartment full of vinegar
-darks-wash in warm water with 1 heaping spoonful of detergent, one scoop of Oxyclean and a compartment full of vinegar
-greens-wash in warm water with 1 heaping spoonful of detergent, one scoop of Oxyclean and a compartment full of vinegar
-lights-wash in warm water with 1 heaping spoonful of detergent, one scoop of Oxyclean and a compartment full of vinegar
Monday and Thursday
-wipe off front of machines
-clean off top of machines,
-blow out dryer vent
-vacuum
-spot mop with rag and spray bottle
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