Hannah Day Or My Perfect 10

You know you are a home schooled when school closes to celebrate your birthday.

Here she is on her second birthday. She is my first daughter after three boys.

She has one blue eye and one green eye as you can tell in this picture.

She can be super sweet.

Or very ornery!

But she's my perfect little/big ten year old.

I'm so glad I have this girl in my life.

My Soul Training

I read this post on a friend's blog. http://lanaeandbaby.blogspot.com/2010/01/new-years-resolution.html Made me think of what I've been neglecting. I train my physical body every day, now I need to start working on my inner fitness.

I started a plan to read the Bible in 90 days in January. I am many days behind on the schedule. I will try to get caught up and also take notes of any meaningful thoughts that I have while reading. I should also play my Christian station on Pandora while I'm taking my shower in the morning. It really helps me to stay focused on what is most important during the day.


I need to follow up on checking out some churches in our area. We have been here for a year and a half and have yet to even visit a church.

How do you make sure your soul is well?

Menu For The Week

I make my grocery list and menu on Friday. It usually runs from Sunday to Saturday. Here is what I plan to feed my family this week. I am low carb so some nights I make two separate meals.


Breakfasts:
Eggs, fruit, bacon
Oatmeal
Almond breakfast bread and fruit

Lunches:
Leftovers most days
Sandwiches on homemade soaked wheat bread

Snacks:
Popcorn
Nuts
Bread and butter
Fruit
Veggies and dip
Stevia sweetened almond cookies or cake


Sunday
Split pea soup, cornbread, veggies

Monday(Hannah's Bday)
Hot dogs, mac n cheese, corn on the cob, salad
Flour less chocolate cake

Tuesday
Eggs and bacon, fruit, fried potatoes?

Wednesday
Meatloaf, mashed potatoes, fried onions, veggies


Thursday
Tuna melts, salad, fruit or?

Friday
Baked chicken, brown rice, veggies

Saturday
Clam chowder, salad, toast?


Daily supplements for children
Gummy D3, probiotic tablet, kombucha, yogurt, emergen-c, fermented veggies, and herbal teas

Check out Cara's Menu from last week.

52 Books Week 14

16. Joan of Arc by Mark Twain. Twain wrote this as the memoir of a member of Joan's personal staff. It was very informative without being boring.

17. Let Me Be A Woman by Elisabeth Elliot. Lots to think about in this book. I will have to reread it at a slower more thoughtful pace later.

Boring Winter Garden News

My mom sent me home with some plants for my garden. They are just hanging around waiting to be planted. I don't know where to put them. You can't rush into these things, you know.

She bought me two old roses from Empire mine. They are in the box. I don't know where to put them either. Should they go with the roses I have in the backyard or should I start another rose garden out front?

And look what I found! A pansy, just waiting to show her little face to the world.

This is the lemon balm that I planted last summer. I didn't know it would survive in the cold weather. I found it while I was cleaning out the flower bed. I'll have to move it to the herb garden when I get it started.


I think it's time to pull out the seed catalogs and start planning my veggie garden!

What's happening in your garden?

Running My Lungs Out

I finally started running again! It is much nicer to run in the cold weather. I am on week two. We(hubby and I) are training to run a 5k in May.


My main goal is to be able to run for 30 minutes without stopping. That is a big deal for me. I liked to run when I was younger but not for a long time. I wanted to go fast until I was worn out, walk to recover, then run again. I have probably only run one mile without stopping and that was a long time ago.

So do you have any health and fitness goals that you are working on? How's it going?

Cuteness Parked In My Garden

Herbal Tea Recipe and My Beautiful Herb Collection

I took all of my herbs out of the pantry and tea cupboard so I could show them to you.

Aren't they beautiful? I love all of the different scents, colors and textures.

I take them out every once in awhile and mix up different teas to use. I make teas for general health, special ones to strengthen or cleanse the body and some for the children.

I use this book as a reference and also look up recipes on the Internet. Many times I combine a few different recipes to make the tea I need.

Here is one of the teas I made. This tea is a nourishing tea. I like to use it instead of daily vitamins and minerals. I believe that the nutrients are more easily absorbed by the body in the form of an herbal infusion. I usually put a few tablespoons of dry herbs in a quart jar and fill it with hot water. I let it steep 'till the afternoon and then drink it. Sometimes I will have it iced or if I want some right away wait about 15 minutes before pouring a cup. Anyway, to the recipe.

Nourish
1 p(part) oat straw
1 p rose hips
1 p nettle
1 p alfalfa
1 p red clover
1 p dandelion
1 p red raspberry leaves

Feel free to add in mint or your favorite herbs and leave out whatever you don't have on hand, don't like, or don't need. I love mixing my own teas, no rules, just have fun.


Add each part to your empty jar. I usually use 1/4 cup per part if I want a large batch or just a tablespoon if I want a small amount.


This is how it will look after you have added the different herbs(this is a different blend). Put the lid on the jar and then shake it up or roll the jar around in your hands.


Label the jar with the name of the mix. I just write on the jar with a permanent marker(it will wash off in the dishwasher). Sometimes I include the ingredients in case I want to mix the same tea next time.

Bye, bye herbs. Time to go back to the pantry. It is best to keep herbs in a cool, dark place.

While my jars were out I heard many exclamations of surprise from my family about how many different types I have. Let's just say I've been collecting and using herbs for a few years. You can start out with just a few and add to your collection as you learn more about them.

Disclaimer- I'm not a doctor, blah, blah, blah. It's always best to do your own research before experimenting on your body.

Direction

This is the post in which I was going to discuss the direction or lack of direction my blog is taking. I'll just leave it at that. You don't want to know the details. And I think this picture says enough of what I'm thinking. Thanks for coming here and witnessing my lack of direction!

What We Saw On The Way Home

I took these pictures on the way home from abandoning our two oldest sons at school.

Can you spot the potted plant?

The load on this car was taller than our excursion!

Unbelievable!

52 Books Week 13

15. A Beautiful Mind- Biography of John Nash.

Off To School

We took the boys to school (New Mexico Military Institute) Jan. 6Th. They shared their tunes with the baby on the way there. They can't have their ipods or computers for the first month. They can't call or email. The only way we can communicate is through the mail.

We started the checking in process at 7 a.m.

Inside one of the arches. It says duty, honor, achievement.

One of the squares on campus.

They had to read their little booklets while they waited to be marched to the next place on the check in list.

This is the library.

Here is all of the stuff they were issued. They haven't received their uniforms yet.

Marching to their barracks.

Caleb on his way to join his group.

Our last glimpse of Jacob.

We had to go to the new parent orientation and didn't get a chance to say goodbye. I can't wait until we get to see them next month. I am proud of how hard they worked to be accepted into this school. I hope they will keep working hard as they are faced with new challenges this first month. They have been home schooled from the beginning so this is a huge change for them. I still can't believe they are going to a boarding school!

And A Happy New Year!

Last year we started a new tradition. We have a bonfire and roast hot dogs and marshmallows on New Year's Eve. This year we were hoping to burn our Christmas tree and roast some peeps left over from Easter. It was too cold so the gas burner on the stove top had to be our substitute bonfire.


We skipped the hot dogs and just roasted the peeps for a late dessert. Everyone stayed up past midnight, except for the baby.

Merry Christmas (a little late)

David having fun emptying his stocking.

Come on mom! Can't we open presents already?

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

Monthly Tree Picture

We are going to spend one week a month studying trees. The children chose a tree in our yard and will take a picture each month to see how it changes throughout the year. This is the picture for December.

We have our nature study time on Friday. It is a nice end to the busy school week.

On The Way Home

We stopped at the dollar store before we started our second day of driving. Here is what the three year old chose with his dollar.

It was a pack of four so he shared with his brothers and sisters.

And with this post I am caught up to December 1st.

Are we there yet?

Empire Mine Cottage and Grounds

All of my "little" ones lined up below the cottage. These pictures aren't in the best order, but I'm too lazy to change them around. I'm so sorry, my dear readers, for my laziness.

They had Santa and Mrs. Clause set up in the club house and the cottage decorated for Christmas. It was fun to see all of the people dressed up in period costumes and the old fashioned decorations. Here is my oldest.

And my youngest.

The reflecting pool below the house.

The front of the cottage. It has beautiful woodwork inside and has not been remodeled so you can see how it was lived in.

I liked the way they topped the wall with large stones.

The arch in the center of the rose garden. In the summer roses and vines cover the arch.

The back of the cottage with one of the rose gardens in the foreground.

Hedges divide the garden into sections.

I love visiting this garden. My husband took pictures of the workshops, buildings, and mine shaft. But, I'll end with the garden. I could just hang out there the whole time and skip the mine part.