Our New School Year is Here!

I just finished ordering the last of our school books yesterday and we are getting excited to be starting school again!  Last year was our "official" start of homeschooling, although we had completed a year of Pre-k  the year before that.

We chose My Father's World curriculum for Kindergarten last year and both Luke and Chloe loved it.  Luke was already reading a little at the start of Kindergarten but he just completely took off.  He is reading on at least a third to fourth grade level now!  It seems he is a sight reader, so he just memorizes the words and that's good enough for him.  The K curriculum wasn't really a challenge for him but he still had fun with it.  My goal was to give him a good phonics base and I was pleased.

Chloe learned her letters, their sounds, and how to write them so she had a great year!  She is starting to read very simple books and I'm sure she will continue to excel with practice.

We are using My Father's World again this year and both children will progress to the first grade.  The reading will not be a challenge for Luke at all but my main goal for him is to have a good foundation for phonics and that will continue this year.  I realize Chloe is young to start first grade but I feel repeating Kindergarten would not be the best thing for her, as she grasped the material quite well.  She is starting the K level for math this year.  We weren't happy with the math in MFW so we chose Math-U-See and love it.

I am completely drawn to the Charlotte Mason style of teaching which is one of the things that drew us to MFW to start with.  If you don't know much about this style I would encourage you to educate yourself.  I think you'll find it well-rounded and "gentle."  

So here's what our year looks like:

Luke (6)

• Math-U-See  (Alpha Level)
• My Father's World for  History, Reading, Phonics, Science, and Picture Study
• Copywork for Little Boys

Chloe (5)

• Math-U-See (Primer Level)
• My Father's World for History, Reading, Phonics, Science, and Picture Study
• Rod and Staff Preschool Set-This is considered Rod and Staff's kindergarten level.  We LOVE these books and the kids have had a blast doing the workbooks.  Plus they are super affordable.  We've bought several different things from this company and have been very pleased with everything.

I also adore Sonlight curriculum because they are all about reading.  I am being extra ambitious this year and plan to read their read-aloud recommendations for the K level.  That's roughly 25 books!  I also plan to have Luke read the Grade 3 readers as he breezed through the Grade 2 readers this year without any struggle whatsoever.  Chloe will be reading the Grade 1 readers  as soon as I feel she's ready.

I have found about half of my material needed on allofcraigs.com .  This is a website where you can search all of craigslist for whatever you're looking for.  It has been a huge money-saver.  There are tons of homeschoolers out there that are selling their used books for a fraction of the cost you would spend new.

I have also utilized Amazon.com a ton.  We are Prime members so we get free two-day shipping on anything that qualifies, which is most everything!  :)  And of course the library is priceless.  Love, love, love the library.  They are used to seeing me weekly there with my huge stack of books all crammed into my Publix reusable shopping bag.

So there you have it.  I hope your retinas are still attached after such a long post!  It's basically a two-in-one post because I didn't write about school last year.  Now we'll just be watching for those last boxes from the mailman, UPS, and Fed-Ex this week so we can begin our new school year!

What Guys Think About Modesty

This is an awesome video about the importance of modesty.  And what better time to be reminded of the need for modesty than spring and summer-when suddenly everyone's clothes seem to disappear because "it's so hot?"  I trust this will be an encouragement to us ladies to choose our wardrobe carefully!

Gems in Chronicles...

Give thanks unto the LORD, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people,

Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him, talk ye of all his wondrous works.

Glory ye in his holy name: let the heart of them rejoice that seek the LORD.

Seek the LORD and his strength, seek his face continually.

Remember his marvellous works that he hath done, his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth;

~1 Chronicles 16:8-12~

Gratituesday: Spring

Join us for Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above...James 1:17

I've enjoyed Laura's Gratituesday posts for quite a while so I thought I would join her in writing about something I am thankful for.  I have so many things.....where to begin?!

The radio station said it's supposed to be 80 degrees today!  I love it! The beautiful spring weather has been so wonderful these past few weeks.  It's almost impossible to keep the kids indoors.  They are having so much fun jumping on the trampoline, digging in the dirt, having tea parties, making rivers in the mud, killing ants, target practicing, riding their bikes and Power Wheels, roller-blading, and picking flowers. There's just so much to do!  

Jacob riding the Gator

Digging dirt for the "garden"

Working in the "garden"

 Luke target practicing

Chloe and Asher having fun in the Jeep

Just yesterday I found the bag of pistachios missing only to find out that the nuts were being used as Easter eggs.  They were hiding them all over the yard!  They've been finding them all day today.  Hysterical, these kids of mine.  

Yes, I am thankful for the official arrival of spring with all of its warmth and beauty.  Thankful to be pulling out the short sleeves and flip-flops.  Loving the fact I can leave the doors open to peek on the kids while cooking dinner or doing laundry.  Listening to their laughter while they're having such a good time.

The hard part is to be thankful when there is a brown ring of dirt around the bath tub and I have piles of muddy clothes to wash.  But that's a post for another day!

What are you thankful for today?

Menu Plan for March 20

We've got a super busy week this week so our menu is plain and simple.  I am working and selling in a local consignment sale Tuesday and Thursday, keeping my friends' two boys on Wednesday, and we are leaving for out of town Friday so that means packing for everyone!  Wow!  Just the thought of all I need to get done makes my heart flop.  I'll have to break out the energy boosting smoothies with all the running around I'll be doing.  :)

Monday

Smoothies-Muffins
Bean and Cheese Burritos
Steak and Potatoes

Tuesday

Pancakes
Egg Salad Sandwiches
Potato Soup

Wednesday

Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Casserole
Soup-Pretzels
Spaghetti

Thursday
Breakfast Cookies
Lunch at Mom's
Dinner at Mom's (I'll be shopping and working at the consignment sale from 2:30-9:30 so the kids will be at Mom's)

Friday

Cream of Wheat
Annie's Mac n Cheese-Veggies
Dinner out (Leaving for trip)

You may notice several of our meals are repeats of last weeks menu.....if I decide on something different for a meal, I just add it to the next weeks menu!  Hopefully we'll get around to the pretzels this week.  I'm looking forward to trying them, as I haven't actually made them yet.  I always forget to make the dough in the morning so it will be ready in time for lunch!  You would think I would remember since all I do is sit around and eat Bon-Bons and watch the Soap Opera Network.  ;) 

Don't Be-A-Chicken Chili

This chicken chili is fabulous!  You must try this dish.  I made it last night and there was just a tiny bit left.  The recipe is from The Gooseberry Patch Halloween Cookbook, but I got it through their e-mail newsletter.

1 T. oil
1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cubed
1 onion, chopped
14-oz can chicken broth
2 (15.8 oz) cans Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
2 (4-1/2 oz) cans chopped green chiles (I only use one to tone down the heat for the kiddos)
1-1/2 t. garlic powder
1 t. salt
1 t. cumin
1/2 t. dried oregano
8-0z. sour cream
1 c. whipping cream
2 c. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
Garnish:  cilantro

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat; add chicken and onion.  Saute until chicken is cooked through; set aside.  Combine broth, beans, undrained chiles and seasonings in a large Dutch oven.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Add chicken mixture; reduce heat and simmer 30 minutes.  Add sour cream and whipping cream, stirring well.  Top each serving with shredded cheese; garnish, if desired.  Serves 6-8.

I had cooked a huge crockpot full of chicken pieces yesterday which yielded me 10 cups of shredded chicken!  I used two cups for the chili and put the rest in the freezer to use later.  I used chicken broth that I had made from a previous crockpot chicken batch.  I soaked my beans the night before and cooked them in the crockpot yesterday (I have two crockpots!); used four cups for the chili and put the rest in the freezer for later!  It was easy to bring everything together and now I have lots of good food already cooked and ready to pull out at a later date! 

Sorry I don't have a picture to show you....the chili was gobbled up before I even thought about it! 

Menu Plan for week of March 14

I cannot tell you how much a menu plan has helped me!  I love being able to just look at my plan instead of rummaging through the fridge and pantry, which I was notorious for doing.  It makes life much simpler and that's something I can definitely use more of.

Our everyday life tends to change quite a bit from what we have planned around here so if we don't follow the meal plan for the day I'll just move it to another day or use it for the following weeks plan! 

Monday:

Muffins
Egg Salad Sandwiches
Ribs-Beans-Slaw

Tuesday:

Baked Oatmeal
Pretzels-Soup
Chicken Chili

Wednesday:

Pancakes
Cream Cheese Salsa Dip
Red Beans and Rice

Thursday:

Smoothies
Grilled Cheese
Garlic Chicken Pasta

Friday:

Cereal
Out for Dr. Appt.
Tilapia

Saturday:

Yogurt w/Granola
Bean and Cheese Burritos
Venison tenderloin wrapped in bacon

Sunday:

Breakfast Cookies
Philly Steak and Cheese
Fellowship @ Church-Taking Strawberry Cake and ????

Now you may notice I usually only plan the main course for the meal so that leaves me with adding easy choices of breads, fruits, or veggies, depending on what I'm in the mood for.  I usually just buy a variety of fruits and veggies each week and pull my sides from that. 

So what about you?  Do you use a menu plan?