Its a wrap....

We have had a busy week so I have not been able to update like I wanted to do.

I have kept Sarah busy in the kitchen when not outside this week, and by doing so we are really moving along with additions.  We use our fingers and other objects but are adding items together.  For example, “Sarah can you bring me one egg, and then, let’s add two more eggs.  Now let’s count the eggs together.  How many eggs do we have?” 

Even in the car we are now adding things on our fingers and objects we find.  She is excited about this new found skill we have been working on.  Its amazing seeing how quick some things are being picked up, and this is without sitting down and doing book work!  Someone asked me recently how I can do it; school myself, home life and homeschooling…  I didn’t have a quick answer because I guess I was partially ashamed of the truth.  So far our homeschooling is easy.  We are very child led and the learning NEVER stops.  She doesn’t count learning as drudgery like many, but rather as fun.  Lots and lots of fun.   I have yet to meet a homeschool kid that is homeschooled and not schooled at home that does hate “school work.”  Rather, most view each instance of learning as pure unadulterated fun.  Granted there are some things many don’t care to learn or they struggle with, like writing or mathematics,  but as a whole learning is fun and doesn’t get turned off when the “school day” is done.  The learning is never over.

It isn’t always easy to juggle it all, but even if you send your kids to a brick and mortar school, is it easy to juggle everything?  If it is, kudos to you.  You are a strong person with an amazing life, but here in the reality I see around me, we all struggle.  We all have hard days when nothing seems to go the way we need it to.  In my goal to simplify our family life I am working toward making those hard times fewer in numbers.  I want more days of fun, calm, and relaxing and for our home to be a sanctuary from the harsh realities of the modern world. 

Yes I have days where I am overwhelmed beyond measure, taking Grandma Bear to the doctor or on other errands followed by the never ending line of laundry loads, coupled with an active preschooler and homework makes for some stressful times, but I am trying to alleviate some of those times.  I know what a garden needs to not only grow, but thrive, is love, calm gentle rains, and rays of warm sunshine.  I want my garden to not only grow but thrive.  I would love to hear how you provide a calm and happy home.  I am the student in this endeavor myself. 

So back to Bear.  We spent a lot of time in the kitchen and outside.  The weather has been nice and I know that rains are coming so we decided to make hay while the sun shined.    

With play outside and at local parks we managed to even get a little sunburn on our faces, I guess its time to break out the sunscreen. 

Thursday I once again adapted a recipe from Pinterest.   Corn Bread Taco Casserole.    The recipe with my adaptations is here: Print the recipe here.....

Taco Corn Bread Casserole

Cornbread Batter

3 cups cooked taco seasoned meat
2 cups of cooked/soaked black beans –soft enough to eat.
1 cup (8 oz.) sour cream, light
1 cup Colby jack, cheddar or Mexican cheese, shredded and divided
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 medium tomato, chopped
1 cup shredded lettuce
½ cup of green onion
1 can sliced olives

Corn Bread Recipe (Moosewood Cookbook)

1 cup cornmeal
1 cup flour
2 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 cup plain yogurt
1 egg
3 Tbsp. honey
3 Tbsp. melted butter

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl.  Combine the wet ingredients including honey separately.  Stir the wet mixture into the dry, mixing just enough to thoroughly combine.  Spread into prepared pan.

Spread into an 8 x 8 pan sprayed with cooking spray or coat with butter.  Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.  Combine taco meat and beans, spread over corn bread.  Combine sour cream, 3/4 cup cheese and onion.  Spread over meat mixture.  Bake for 20 - 25 minutes longer or until heated through and cheese is melted.  Sprinkle with tomato, lettuce and remaining 1/4 cup of cheese. 

This is another recipe where Sarah did a lot of the work. 

Yes, another great recipe for the family!  Thumbs up from everyone!

Friday we were busy playing until we left to go to a sleepover.  Sarah spent the night at her friend Adelle’s home where they went swimming and had a bushel of fun. 

Bountiful Basket

Saturday morning also found me up and at them at before 6:00 am to get my first Bountiful Basket. It was very much worth the early wake up call. We got a basket full of yummy goodness and as a result we have been eating much healthier, as in more fruits and vegies, which was my goal and for the $15 for the basic basket, it is well worth the cost. Check your area and see if they have one there by looking at their web site. I started looking into this when I began to seek to simplify our lives and home, which also means eating better. However since eating better I have done more dishes… what’s up with that? LOL 

Saturday we played and worked outside before getting ready for Fancy Nancy.  The first half of the ballet was all done to Disney tunes and it wasn’t until the second half that Fancy Nancy made an appearance.  It was a great ballet and Sarah loved it, especially the part about the butterfly garden.  Thank you again to Evergreen City Ballet and Sounds Fun Mom for giving us the opportunity to have some unique family fun.  We even talked the hubs into going with us.

Fancy Nancy

The Red Butterfly

I also completed a party dress for Sarah to wear to Fancy Nancy.  Sarah “sewed” beside me and before long was threading her own needle for hand sewing so she could learn to thread a sewing machine needle.  I think I will move beyond her manual machine soon and look for a less ‘antique’ kid’s machine.  I will keep the German antique one for display in my dream sewing area…. J

Dress I made

Sunday again found us outside.  We rototilled our garden spot and I got a hard look around deciding what changes we are going to make to the configuration to the yard since we want to get a swing set. 

Yesterday we played and walked around a park again, spending a good two hours playing and then came home and played a bit more since the sun was shining so beautifully.  Today the morning dawned cloudy and we had errands to run and by afternoon the rain hit, tomorrow though should find us playing in the mud.  Yes, we will be taking mud play to all new levels, the imagination is the limit!

Looking at spider webs with Miss. Colleen

Imgination is a glorious thing indeed!
Here they are "fishing"

Two turtles on a log

Before retiring for the night last evening, during dinner, we did mix up a yummy batch of frozen yogurt.  I had some plain yogurt that needed to be used and found a recipe and voila!  Homemade frozen yogurt.

So that has been my wrap up of sorts.