HSV Garden Challenge

It's that time of year again ... Time to get the Garden prepped and planted! I will be participating again in The Homeschool Village's Garden Challenge.

We have had an unseasonably warm winter, so our surroundings think it's already summer. Its hot and humid today! I have kind of been dreading the prep work because my gardens look like this ...

I think you would agree there is only one way to describe them ... PITIFUL!

I didn't even take a picture of the hill where I will be planting our pumpkin seeds. It's scary. Yeah, I have some work to do.

Brynne and I have been doing a unit on The Secret Garden, so we have been doing some prep work for our area that we will transform soon, and prepping some accessories.

This is my favorite gardening spot. After it's taken care of, it is beautiful!

Brynne and I painted these this week. Now all we need are the veggies to go with them.

My potting table already holds some tomato plants, stevia, ground cover, and ivy  to be planted in various places soon.

I've got too much indoor spring organization to do today, so I can't get to my gardening right now. So, for now, I'll just have to enjoy this ..

And you might want to jump over to HSV and see what other homeschool gardeners are doing this year.

Girly and Green

Brynne has had some fun activities the past couple of days. Yesterday afternoon was her regular Girls Club meeting. I just love this club because they do all things GIRL! And for someone like Brynne, who really wanted to stay at Eli's Boys Club and play dodge ball, it's a great way to introduce her to things she wouldn't normally do.

In June, there will be a Smithsonian exhibit at a local library with a display about Aprons. The girls have been asked to create their own aprons and then do a fashion show with them. So yesterday at Girls Club, the girls chose their apron patterns and then did some related activities.

They made these adorable water bottle aprons and birds nest cupcakes.

Then they have been working on scarves using homemade knitting tubes made out of toilet paper tubes, craft sticks, and duck tape.

Then today we had a field trip to a fully sustainable nursery called Grogg's Green Barn. The owner took us on a tour and then the kids got to make "live" Easter baskets, planting wheatgrass in Easter buckets. They should be grown in just in time for Easter. (Even Dawson made one ... pink, of course!)

This field trip goes right along with a unit Brynne and I are doing on The Secret Garden. We are creating a "secret garden" of our own, so we bought some plants to help with that.

It was a beautiful day today to be out enjoying the sunshine and all of the beautiful plants and flowers!

Nicole's Daybook

Outside my window... has been a squirrel. Seriously, a small squirrel has been climbing on the screen of our office window. And she squeals, but we can't figure out why. She has been a constant form of entertainment for the kids.

I am thinking... about how much I prefer sleeping in until 9 a.m., waking to the sunshine of Florida, and lazing around all day.

I am thankful ... that Brynne's foot doesn't appear to be broken. She fell off the monkey bars in Florida and couldn't walk on it for two days. She is still hobbling around, but able to put weight on it.

I am wearing... a pink American Eagle baseball shirt, jeans, gray slip on shoes (Toms knock-offs from Kohls).

I am planning...  next year's school schedule, curriculum, etc.
 

I am creating... rock plant labels with Brynne. Yesterday we made a twig garden trellis. And Dawson and I are growing Fungi. I told Rick that those ziplock bags on the kitchen counter with bread in them are NOT his sandwiches for lunch!

I am going... to try to decide if I need to go back to the dentist today about my wisdom teeth. For the past couple of days I have had pain on one side that is sore when I touch my cheek. It's been a month. But this morning it feels better.

I am reading...  Fade to Blue by Julie Carobini, City of Orphans by Avi (Dawson's daily read-a-loud), The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (Brynne's daily read-a-loud),  Stepping Heavenward by E. Prentiss (my daily devotional).

I am hoping... that Dawson and my dental issues get completely resolved soon! Enough already!

From the learning rooms... Dawson is finishing up his unit on the early cities in America, growing Fungi, and gearing up for his dissection units. He started a new book, Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne. He also started Driver's Ed (good grief!), and is working to finish up a couple of subjects soon. Brynne is also working to finish up some subjects for the year, while focusing mainly on our The Secret Garden unit, including gardening and baking. She finished her first real chapter book (10 chapters) and started another in the series today. She is 25 books away from reaching her 100 book goal for this year.

Noticing that ... we are an injury-prone family right now! Kyndal smashed her finger in her boyfriend's truck door. Brynne smashed Eli's fingers in the door leading to our garage. Brynne hurt her foot while in Florida. I sunburned my legs so bad in Florida that I am peeling in full sheets. Although Dawson hasn't had any accidents, he has oral surgery in two weeks. This is very unusual for us! We are usually pretty healthy!

From the kitchen... we are doing a pantry and freezer purge this week. But, it all sounds good! Brynne and I are also making some Orange Marmalade today. Yesterday we made Treacle.

Around the house... are summer/winter clothes that need to be switched out.

One of my favorite things... is the newness of Spring and the prospect of planting flowers.

A few plans for the rest of the week... We actually have a busy week this week. Today Dawson has to go get spacers put in to prepare for his oral surgery. Then Eli and Brynne have Boys and Girls Club this afternoon. Tomorrow we have a field trip to a green nursery. The children's musical practice at church starts tomorrow night. Thursday we are home all day. But on Friday we have a 5th Friday Fun Day with our Homeschool Co-op and we are going to a big children's museum and playground. I am planning to start Spring Cleaning the outdoors this weekend ... cleaning out my flower pots and flower/garden beds, washing windows, pruning bushes.

From my picture journal.

Oh, I shall miss you! See you next March!

Lots of women Daybook. See what they have to say at The Simple Woman's Daybook.

Menu Plan Monday

Well, it's time to get back into the reality of my life which includes fixing nightly meals for my family. Coming off a great vacation, I am not feeling a big trip to the grocery store. So, that means it's time for a pantry and freezer purge. What can I pull together this week using what I already have? Let's get creative.

Monday ~ Spaghetti, with leftover meatballs in the freezer from meatball subs

Tuesday ~ Grilled pork chops (yay .. it's grilling season again!) with garlic mashed potatoes

Wednesday ~ FFY (I'll have to make a trip to get some pizza rolls, or Eli and Brynne will surely die!)

Thursday ~ Chicken and bows (I forgot we didn't get to that the week before vacation!)

Friday ~ Bacon, egg and cheese biscuits

Saturday ~ Bean and cheese tostadas

Sunday ~ Salmon patties, rice, and broccoli

I'll have to go to the store Sunday. We will be out of everything by then!!!

What I Learned on Vacation

There's nothing quite like a relaxing vacation to help you put life in perspective. It gives you the opportunity to reflect on the things that make you happy, and to recognize more clearly the things that don't.

To say that this past week in Florida was a perfect vacation would be an understatement. (Not to negate the amazing vacations Rick and I take together .. those are pretty darned perfect, too!) But this vacation to my parents' house in Florida was just what I needed, and the little kids had a great time as well. We did a little of what everybody wanted to do, so everybody was more than happy.

Here is what I learned:

1. I love to read and I want to make it more of a daily priority in my life. I don't need much entertainment, just a good book.

2. Life does not have to be such a rat race. Even real life can be done at a more leisurely pace with the right attitude to make it happen. I realize how happy I am that we are a homeschooling family with minimal outside activities. We can do what we need to do without cutting out the things we want to do.

3. I love the state of Alabama. Out of all the places we have been, I just love that state. I love the feel of it. It has that small town country feel with lots of open space, yet it's less than an hour away from the beach. And there's a GREAT outlet mall there, in Foley. I could seriously see myself living there someday. There would be a long golfing season, honey, and no winter season blues!

4. My mom and sister are great ladies. Although we are very different in many ways, we do share a love of solidarity and relaxation. We had just such an easy week together. This is such a blessing because my sister and I did not get along AT ALL until we were in our 30's. Seriously, we had a stormy past! But it's so great to be able to spend time with her, enjoying her pregnancy with her, shopping for items with her for my new niece, watching her be the woman she always wanted to be.

5. My husband is the best, absolutely truly THE BEST! What husband would stay home and work OVERTIME so that his wife and children can spend money (more than I should have) on a vacation? I hope that I never get to a place where I take him for granted. I treasure him! AND I came home to a clean house! May I never forget how blessed I truly am to have him for a husband!

6. Dawson is a great kid who needs his time away from me and the little kids. He had a full week to just hang out with his best friends. I can trust him, and them, to do what they are supposed to do. AND, again, I came home to a clean house! He did his part and cleaned the entire upstairs. His friends are like my own sons. I care about them deeply. And they are here for Dawson to help him through a difficult time he is having in his life as a young man. (Girls stink!)

7. Life is too short not to enjoy it. It doesn't have to be as hard as we make it. There is beauty everywhere we look. We just have to look.

8. I love my little two kiddos so much and they are the most well-behaved children I have ever been around. There was not ONE SECOND of trouble this whole week. They travelled in a car packed to the gills with three adults and two dogs for 13 1/2 hours each way, stopping only two times to go potty and grab food to eat in the car. Other than restlessness the last few hours coming home (we all had it), they were PERFECT! I could NOT be more blessed to have them as children.

9. You do not have to gain 5 pounds on a vacation. Just stay somewhere that has a full kitchen and buys groceries for healthy meals. Thankfully my parents' house is just that ... a house. So we bought groceries and had good meals: spaghetti, homemade pizzas, salmon and veggies, ground turkey and rice with veggies, sandwiches for lunch, yogurt and fruit for snacks. It can be done, with a little work. We treated ourselves to a couple of meals out, but ate mostly at home. Cost efficient and good on the body.

10. I am grateful to my parents for purchasing their home in Pensacola and for allowing us to come to stay there. We could not be able to go to Florida every Spring Break without their home. We are a lucky family, and I thank my parents for their generosity.

Life is good. I am sitting on my back porch watching the huge crows effortlessly fly out over the bluff behind our house, probably looking for their next meal. My neighbor is laying out at her pool, listening to some good 80's music. The dogs are taking a nap. The kids are playing upstairs. Rick is playing golf. I have laundry going, and I just got done mopping the floors. I am enjoying my new tulip and azalea blooms. The birds are just chirping away. I can hear, and smell, someone mowing nearby. Spring has sprung. Everything feels new and alive. Thank you, Lord, for the blessings in my life.

Pensacola 2012 ~ Naval Air Station

Eli, Brynne and I got up bright and early this morning and went onto the Naval Air Station for a day of fun!

We started our morning by watching the Blue Angels practice. We were bummed to find out that their real practice schedule starts next week, and they won't start signing autographs until then. Darn.

Oh well. We sat and watched them do several passes, then went inside the National Naval Aviation Museum that is on the base. If you EVER have the opportunity to vacation in the gulf shores area, you HAVE to go to this museum! It is FREE, and full of planes, simulators, and aircraft carrier models. There are many cockpits for the kids to climb into. We even did the Fly with the Blue Angels simulator. The kids LOVED it! We also made personalized dog tags this year. After a pricey trip to the gift shop (oops!), we moved onto our next destination.

Our intention after going to the museum was for Eli and Brynne to change into white and khaki clothes and take some photos at the Pensacola Lighthouse beach. We took a couple of pictures on the path before the dunes, and then the wind hit us! We had the hardest time getting any decent shots. But, we did get a couple.

Before we left I asked the kids if they wanted to put their feet in the water before we left. They waded in, ankle deep. Then the waves started coming in hard and before we knew it they had wet pants. And then all of a sudden, they were soaked! I told them to just go for it! So for the next 15 minutes or so, they jumped and splashed in the waves fully dressed! Eli would fall down and Brynne would just laugh and laugh. It was such a joyful moment! I laughed and smiled and took over 100 photos. I couldn't get enough of their happiness, giggles, and smiles!

We were supposed to stop off at Fort Barrancas on our way off the base, but we were too soaked and full of sand! So we went back to my mom and dad's, took baths, and changed clothes. We convinced Grandma to go with us and we headed back to the base to go to the Fort.

It was very interesting and HUGE! It's amazing that it has been standing for about 250 years.

To say we were exhausted after this day would be an understatement! We came back home, made some homemade pizzas, and called it an early night. The rain comes in tonight, so our outside time might be over. I am hoping it will clear up by at least Friday afternoon so we can hit one of the nearby beaches one last time.