World’s Best Whole Wheat, Homemade Brownies {with dairy free options}

by Meghan // June 17, 2015 // Comments off

This brownie recipe uses WHOLE, REAL foods, like freshly milled whole wheat flour, sucanat, and coconut oil. These takes just like good, ole’ fashioned brownies. *yum*

You really can’t go wrong with a homemade brownie- everyone loves them and it is a simple way to include the kids in the kitchen, and spend a little extra time with them. And add in some math lessons for an added homeschool bonus!

Delicious, Whole Wheat, Super Chocolate Brownies

25 minutes

Number of servings: 16

See Detailed Nutrition Info on

Delicious, Whole Wheat, Super Chocolate Brownies

Ingredients

2 cup sucanat
1/2 cup cocoa powder
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup coconut oil for dairy free, or 1 cup butter

Instructions

Mix or beat slowly they: sugar, cocoa, eggs, and vanilla
Gradually add in flour and salt (it will be suuuper thick)
Blend in the oil/butter
add any extras you like: chocolate chips, nuts, etc
Spread evenly in a 9x13 inch pan. bake at 350 for 20 minutes
Now, I will tell you that I normally bake my brownies in an 8x8 or 9x9 pan, and take them out a few minutes before they're "done," because I like a chewy brownie. I went ahead and did these in a 9x13 pan, and they were a bit dry to me after baking for 18 minutes. So, adjust accordingly.

What’s your favorite, simple dessert?

O is for Organization {how we plan and organize our days}

by Meghan // April 6, 2015 // Comments off

Organization.

I have talked about organization in our home and homeschool before. I keep a general routine in place, and organize our school in such a way that it makes me life easier.

Posts to how we organize:

Organizing and Schedules/Routines

Our homeschool and life routine is ever changing (though not by much) simply because we have a baby in the house whose feeding and sleeping schedule changes as she ages. Here is what we are doing now with a 4.5 yo, 2.5 yo, and 6.5 month old.

6:00am Hubby and I are up emptying dishwasher, starting laundry, making breakfast, etc
7:00am Wake time for all, I nurse and bottle baby while older two eat breakfast
7:30-8:30am In this time I clean up the kitchen, pump after nursing Ila, and we begin our Sonlight P4/5 read alouds and circle/calendar time.
8:30 Ila goes down for nap 1
8:30-10:30 We continue school-this includes Bible, our SL read alouds, Max’s BFIAR, calendar and circle time song/poem/memory work, Lexie’s AAR, Math, HWOT, and a science video some days. We are also memorizing maps (which we’ve been doing informally for some time) just continuing work on: the 50 states, continents, and countries Daddy has visited and their geography (this is for fun and is NOT formal). On Fridays we do an art lesson using ARTistic Pursuits (which we LOVE-link & review coming soon!).
10:30-11:30 Lexie goes downstairs for independent play, Max goes to their room for his Independent play.
11:00 I get Ila up, nurse, solids, bottle then she chills while I make Lexie and Max’s lunch.
11:30- L and M eat lunch, then play outside weather permitting
12:15- Max down for Nap
12:30 Ila down for nap 2, then hubby or I do Lexie’s nap with her and she goes down stairs to rest; some days she may quietly play dolls upstairs, or she can rest for an hour then go outside for an hour.
3:00 Max up, Ila up and nurse, solids, bottle
3:30 snack for Lexie and Max, then outside to play weather permitting
4:30 Ila down for last cat-nap; I start dinner
5:30 Ila up from cat nap
5:45 we eat dinner as a family (Ila will soon get solids with us here), then baths and silly show or books with Daddy
6:30 nurse and bottle Ila
6:45 Lexie and Max to bed (daddy does this while I put Ila down)
7pm- Mommy and Daddy begin their night! =)

The only things here set in stone are the kids’ naps and eating times. Everything else has just fallen into place naturally. I prefer getting school done in the morning so we have the afternoons to read, play outside, run errands, cook, etc. Once it is off my plate I feel like we have the rest of the day to do whatever we want, or continue learning about other things. As they get older and school takes longer, that will change but for now we can accomplish all that I feel is important in a few hours in the morning.

We clean up after each transition- so: before independent play, before naps, before daddy gets home, before bed, and always before we can go outside. This also encourages them not to ransack any one area in the house and leave it! 😉

On Tuesday night we pick up the entire house- everything goes in its place and Wednesday morning is cleaning day! The kids go down stairs after I put Ila down for her nap, and at that time I clean. They have already taken their clothes to the laundry room, picked up any toys that were out, helped clear the breakfast table, etc. I clean the house top to bottom alternating a different “deep clean” area each week (fans, blinds, baseboards, walls, etc). I try to use Tuesday night as my declutter/clean out time. I do a whole-house declutter three times a year, and I usually hire a company that does Hard rubbish removals. It’s surprising how much junk collects up over time! Fellow parents might already be aware of this, but the biggest mess in the house is usually toys that are strewn everywhere. If you’ve got the space, a playroom can take care of this problem. A friend had a nifty hack and got something like a prefab she shed to use as a playroom as they didn’t have enough rooms in their house and it works great for them.

Planning

For my homeschool planner I use the Mardel Simple Plan Homeschool Planner and I LOVE IT. I did use the Ultimate Homeschool Planner for a while and I did like it, too. I think either of these will fit most homeschooler’s needs. I just prefer the Mardel planner (and can’t link it for you because they don’t have them in stock until June or July).

For home and life in general, I use (and LIVE by) my Erin Condren Life Planner. I use it for everything not homeschool related-tracking Ila’s schedule, menu planning, to do lists, bills, purchases made, my monthly oils order, library books, husband’s travel, our travel plans, etc. basically everything NOT homeschool related. The ECLP is spiral bound, which is fine, but I chose to arc mine and will probably never turn back. I love it!

I may even arc our SL instructor’s guides; it might make it less desirable to others for resale, but we will be using the cores for all 3 children, which means I will have them for some time and I want them to be as convenient for me as possible, and that may mean arc punching them. I am still debating, but will definitely let you know what I decide and include a post!

So, that’s it! O is definitely for Organization in our home and homeschool.

How do you stay organized and on top of things in your home?

Tot Time {sorting by color} December 2014

by Meghan // December 22, 2014 // Comments off

The month of December we were going to take a short break from learning time, however- both kids are still begging to do it each day! So I decided to use this month as a trial for including Max in our structured learning time. Up to this point he has just been too destructive and too much of a distraction for Lexie.

Two Year Old Development

However, about 10-12 days ago, Max woke up a different child! (Mister is 27 months old) He is suddenly (a bit more) obedient, more independent, talking in complete sentences, eating so neatly, dressing himself, and his melt downs have become non-existent. (YAY!) During the time that Lexie is working on her school work, Max has been coloring, identifying letters, and sorting by color (his favorite) with us at the counter. He loves being included, and this fits well with our ultimate goal of everyone learning together.

This is my FAVORITE stage! He has started showing interest in a bit more structured learning (Lexie always showed interest so we have done it since she was tiny). Of course everything is through play and we/they play all day because that is the most important way for them to learn.

One thing I will mention is that, as much as I wanted to, I have tried not to push him to do learning time with us; he just wasn’t ready. And although it was hard for a few months during his really terrible two’s, ~~OMG~~ he has come out of that developmental leap ready to participate a bit!

Between Mister participating in learning time, and Ila stretching her wake time and feeding schedule, we have an ever evolving daily routine. So for a quick run down, our new routine looks something like this:

7am- daddy gets them up, eat breakfast, while mommy feeds Ila
7:55/8am – Ila goes down for nap, mommy cleans kitchen from breakfast, does a few chores, everyone ready for the day, kids outside if weather permits
8:45am- Sonlight readings for the day, Bible verse of the week, and discussion of any books we read. Sometimes we watch a video about what we have read (for instance this week we watched a few youtube videos on octopi, coral reefs, and sunken ships on the ipad. this is a treat, not a regular thing)
9:30/9:45- learning time- this includes Lexie’s All About reading, practicing sight word ring, shapes ring, HWOT work, any copy work, and math practice. We don’t do all these things every day. Some days we just doodle, color, and talk!
10:30- Max and Lexie to independent play/mommy feeds Ila
11:30- Ila down, big two eat lunch, outside if weather permits
12:15 Max down for nap
12:30 Lexie down for nap
1:30/2 Ila up to eat
2:30/3pm Ila down for nap
3:00-3:300 L and M up from nap, outside again if weather permits, if not we play and read
somewhere in here I prep dinner if I haven’t already
4:30/5- Ila up and eats
5:30/6- eat dinner; Ila back down for last nap of day (we are working on stretching to a 4 hour schedule, when we get there she will drop this nap and do a bit earlier bedtime. Until then she usually needs to be held during this cat nap. We don’t have the swing up or I would use it instead)
6:40- L and M to bed
7pm- Ila’s last feeding of the day, in bed by 7:40

And that is it for now. Hopefully in the next 4-6 weeks Ila will have her 3.5hr feedings stretched to every 4 hours. AAAAAH the 4 hour feeding schedule- YAY. That is when things really get easier. But for now, this is working out well for everyone. I have a little bit of time right now while all the kids are down for nap that I can rest, blog, or sew. =)

But, back to learning time- sometimes after we do our Sonlight readings for the day, we just sit at the table and talk while we all doodle and color. During this time Lexie spells words, practices writing and drawing, Max identifies letters, shapes, and numbers that I write on his paper. We also count, Max may go get a puzzle to work on, etc. So we are learning but it is much less formal and just as important as the formal stuff we do. This is a precious time, and I am so fired up about teaching them!

I am so excited about this time together! It is so much fun watching Max grow and develop from a baby into a big boy toddler; and Lexie is just becoming a sweet, precious little lady, while Ila is becoming more alert every day. We have so much fun.

**One more thing I want to add- I never thought Max’s terrible two’s would end. It was truly hard, stressful, and I was learning to breathe my way through the day. But IT DOES END. And on the other side there is a happy, independent, clumsy, and sweet phase- that’s where we are. Lexie never had terrible two’s (or at least they weren’t very hard if she did) so it was all new to me. If you’re a new mama in the throws of tantrums and all that is the two’s, just continue to be consistent and steadfast because it does end; and when it does, all the time, effort, and discipline you have put in during the hard time pays off!

And it is so much fun! So let the tot-time blog posts begin.

Weekly Wrap Up: November 2014 {and Notebooking American Girl Books}

by Meghan // December 1, 2014 // Comments off

This month has flown by! Thanksgiving is already over and everyone is prepping for Christmas.

We haven’t had any real weekly updates the last few weeks, because well … we haven’t done a lot of formal schooling. Most everything has been relaxed and theme based. And of course, we spend a lot of time just snuggling Ila. =) I mean, I spend 6 hours a day nursing her, and after every feeding Lexie and Max both request a turn to hold her. So, we school when we can. 😉

Fall Indoor activities {quietinthechaos.com}

Lexie and “Jane Kirsten” having a picnic, building forts, happy baby ila

We worked on some pumpkin activities, which involved Max making his own pumpkin description book. (you can find it at www.ThisReadingMama.com) He really enjoyed it! We are still working on NOT eating the markers … =)

Handwriting Practice and Fine Motor {quietinthechaos.com}

practicing handwriting, coloring with markers, gluing pumpkins in book

We also had our first big snow: (Lexie doesn’t mind the cold if she can play in the snow. Mister refuses to keep his clothes on, so of course he gets “too cold” and needs to come in. haha)

Lexie is still notebooking her way through the Kirsten of American Girl series. She loves doing this and I am so glad she does. I am going to introduce her to a timeline soon. We have been talking about so many things in history lately, and I know it will help her understand something so contrast if she can see a visual. We have two chapters left to notebook, and then we will move on to the next book. I got our blank notebooking pages from notebookingfairy.com. I chose the biography pages, whole punched them, and put in a folder with prongs. We will add to it as we go.

Notebooking “Meet Kirsten”

Last Saturday I was working on some knitting, and Lexie asked if I could show her how to knit. Of course I said yes! I love that my girl wants to sew and knit! So, this is the little progress we made. You may be wondering how I helped a four year old knit- I sat on the edge of my chair, and had her stand between my legs, so I could get my arms around hers. I place my hands over hers, and we just went through the motions. By the end, she knew exactly what to do, although she struggled with the dexterity needed. I have no doubt she will be able to do it herself before long!

We did do lots of reading about Thanksgiving. You can see my post of supplemental books for Thanksgiving HERE (link coming soon). Lexie really enjoyed this and learned lots of new vocabulary from these readings. She has been using the new words every chance she gets!

And then, of course, we had Thanksgiving dinner. Usually we spend Thanksgiving traveling to see family, but this year with Ila being so little we just decided to stay home. It was my first year to cook a real Thanksgiving dinner for my family- we had turkey, dressing, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole (from scratch, might I add…) and pecan pie. And of course I am using my turkey bones to make bone broth! As my sweet Lexie said, it was a “real Thanksgiving feast!” She was so funny, she was kinda wiggling around on her seat during dinner, and she says, “I am just wiggling my belly so I can make room for more!” haha She definitely belongs to us!

Between all this I have slowly started back running on the treadmill, and decorating for Christmas. I hope to get you a recipe for that DELICIOUS green bean casserole soon, and an update on our Advent activities. =)

Happy Holidays, and stay warm!

Oven Roasted Vegetables

by Meghan // November 13, 2014 // Comments off

Since we had Baby Ila, my husband has done all the shopping (except for one quick trip I made with Mister and Miss during Lady’s gymnastics)- every time he goes he grabs some veggies. Because just about every day, I have been making us oven roasted vegetables for at least one meal!

These are SO easy, even more delicious, and are loved by everyone in the house. You can seriously use any variety of veggies- I like a few red potatoes, fresh green beans, a whole head of garlic (because I could eat 10 heads of roasted garlic … that’s right, not cloves. heads), a few peeled carrots, zucchini, and my latest addition- peeled beets! Mmmm

Now, the zucchini get a tiny bit over
cooked, because all the other veggies take so long to become tender. However, for me that isn’t a problem. The zucchini is like …. buttery. It is so delicious when roasted!

We have all decided we like our veggies roasted better than sauteed, which is saying a lot!

Oven Roasted Vegetables

50 minutes

See Detailed Nutrition Info on

Oven Roasted Vegetables

Ingredients

You can use any combo of veggies, or any single vegetable (like potatoes or carrots)
4 red potatoes, chopped in medium to small cubes
a handful or two of fresh green beans (I just chop off the ends)
2 zucchini, cut lengthwise then chopped in half circles
2-4 beets, peeled and chopped into cubes or wedges
2-3 peeled organic carrots (I say organic because have you ever tasted an organic carrot?! Oh my they're SO much better than regular carrots)
1 head of garlic, peeled- don't chop the garlic, just throw each clove in there whole
2+ TBSP olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
large bowl for tossing
roasting dish for roasting (or any long baking dish will do)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 450*
As you chop your veggies, throw them in a large mixing bowl
After everything is chopped, drizzle bowl of veggies with olive oil
Sprinkle generously with real salt, and pepper
Pour into baking dish
Pope the UNcovered dish into the oven for 40-50 minutes
*I set my timer for 25 minutes, then toss the vegetables and place them back in the oven for 25 more minutes. This lets all of the veggies get roasted more evenly and they crunch up a little better. Mmmm I can taste them now!

You can get real salt here (remember real salt is NEVER white, even “sea salt.” It should be gray, brown, pink, etc). Plus, real salt isn’t “salty” it has flavor, and is delicious. We love it in our home.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

For the Foodie In Your Life {a holiday gift guide}

by Meghan // November 10, 2014 // Comments off

I have always had a love for all things home, kitchen, and cooking. In the last five years, I have fallen in love with real food and all things made from scratch. To help me save a bit of money with this, my friend told me about something called Makro specials which can help save people a bit of money when it comes to buying food. I know I will certainly give it a try and maybe I might use it to help when it comes to giving gifts to my friends.I love giving gifts that are just right. How good would it be if you can personalize all of your kitchen utensils to you or your loved? Your cooking experience would be so much more exciting. These cutting board designs would be a great place to start if you are looking to find a custom gift for someone who loves cooking. If you have a foodie in your life, check out the gift guide I have compiled for this holiday season!

1. A custom made, ruffle, zebra print apron

2. 1 Gallon Compost Bucket for the kitchen– I *love* this bucket! It is not only country-chic so it will look great in the kitchen, but it is a 2-in-1! You can easily lift the inside bucket out and take your compost scraps to the compost outside. Can you use a kitchen bowl? Yes- but this keeps your foodie friend from needing to use one of their handy mixing bowls. This is so easy, and so awesome.

3. Fermenting Crock– The real food lover inn your life will also *love* a fermenting crock. I don’t own this one personally, but have had my eye on it for quite some time. It comes with the stones and lid, which is what most crocks are missing. And, it is the perfect size- not too big, not too small. Perfect for making kraut, pickles, and salsas!

4. Heirloom, Organic Vegetable Seeds– I think the titles speaks for themselves! =)

5. NutriMill Classic Grain Mill– I love, love, love my grain mill. Love it. We use it all the time, and every time we use it I know we are saving money. How? Because we buy organic wheat berries in bulk from Azure, I mill them myself using my grain mill, and bake everything from scratch. It saves a *ton* of money- everything from whole wheat biscuits and tortillas, to sourdough bread and pizza crusts- we essentially pay pennies by making them from scratch with our own milled wheat. This has been one of the best gifts I have ever received.

6. Bench Knife– In the kitchen, this can be used for so many things, but is mainly used when working with dough. This would make a great stocking stuffer!

7. Dough Rising Bucket and lid– These food containers are perfect for someone who makes a lot of yeast breads. but don’t forget the lids!

8. Le Creuset Enameled Cast Iron 7-1/4-Quart Round French (Dutch) Oven– This is the mother of all foodie gifts. Really. Everyone who works in their kitchen needs a good stock pot, and this is it! If I could put any one thing in my kitchen, it would be this pot! It comes is many beautiful colors that match an decor, or not if you like a pop of off the wall color. Need a big gift idea? This is it!

9. KitchenAid 5 Qt. Stand Mixer– If you want to make your foodie’s heart skip a beat, and make their life easier let them open one of these puppies for Christmas. I use mine all the time, for so many different recipes. It was a wedding gift, and I love it!

10. Ball® Collapsible (wide mouth) Funnel – Another great stocking stuffer! I love mine; it fits in any drawer because it collapses down and it is adjustable for regular or wide mouth jars!

11. Classic Cast Iron Skillet– Think bacon, and eggs … and pancakes. Enough said!

12. Sherpa Pink Gourmet Himalayan Salt– Real salt has so much flavor, isn’t over salty, is healthy, and a foodie’s best friend!

13. Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats– You know I love this cook book. It is so much more than a cook book and anyone that enjoys cooking and learning about health, nutrition, and food will love this book!

14. The Pampered Chef Deep Covered Baker– I love mine! Actually, mine doesn’t have the pretty enamel exterior, and I don’t have a cover (man …) but I use it for everything! From roasting chickens and pork loins, to baking rolls and roasted veggies. I use it for so many meals!

15. Double Stove Top Gill/Griddle– We got rid of our electric skillet a few years back. Honestly, I just hated the clean up, the bulkiness, and the fact that I had to plug it in near an outlet (obviously… hence the name “electric” skillet). I have been meaning to replace it with a double stove top grill, because A) it is easier to store, B) it is easier to clean, and C) it is NOT a non-stick surface. Win-Win-Win!

16. Jars– Yep. Jars. Chances are if you’re buying gifts for someone who loves their kitchen, then they probably already have regular ole canning jars. So grab something cute- small jelly jars, the short fat jars, or blue canning jars will be different and have lots of uses in a foodie kitchen!

Seriously, if you need a gift for someone who loves to be in the kitchen, look no further than this list! And Happy Holiday shopping!

For more gift giving ideas, check out more lists from the Crew!

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Stretching Your {real food} Grocery Budget: No Coupons Needed

by Meghan // November 3, 2014 // Comments off

With groceries at an all time high, we are all trying to find ways to make our grocery budget stretch. I want to share a few ways you can make your meals go farther, using nutritious foods, on a budget.

Carrots in spaghetti– Every family as spaghetti lovers (in my house, it is everyone but me…) All you need is a cheese grater and you are good to go! Simply grate your peeled carrots into the spaghetti sauce (I use 2 carrots for a recipe with 2 pounds of meat). You can use this idea in any recipe that can handle a *hint* of carroty sweetness. You don’t even taste the carrots, really. But it adds bulk and therefore stretches that spaghetti for leftovers.
Zucchini in spaghetti– Basically do the same thing here, that you did with the carrots; only don’t peel them. You can even use one carrot and one zucchini. Not peeling them makes it easier to grate, and adds more fiber.
Fill in with rice or pasta– I am not huge on using carbs to fill in, because they don’t add a lot of nutritional value to a meal. However, I do use long grain brown rice (the regular kind NOT minute rice), and sometimes whole grain egg noodles to fill in recipes.
Use all of the vegetable– For instance, when I use bell peppers, I cut the tops off and use them in my recipe (just pop the core off). This is how I see it: that amount of bell pepper is the equivalent to what will be found in one bowl of my 2 year old’s dish. Cut off and chop up the stalks of broccoli and cauliflower when cooking them- no one is going to notice it is the stalk after it’s been cooked in a recipe. These parts don’t taste any different than the “main part” of the veggies- they just aren’t as pretty.
Always add a salad– This is so easy, and requires little effort. Add a salad to every dinner (even lunches) and you can make the main dish stretch farther. In our home, we all *love* my family’s Italian salad. It is simple- olive oil, red wine vinegar, and garlic with salt and pepper to taste. SO YUM!
Menu plan– this is a LIFE saver for me. Honestly, I am not sure what I did before I started menu planning? But how does this stretch your grocery budget? When you menu plan, you can make many dishes from the same ingredients. So instead of buying a bunch of celery for one dish, you make 3 dishes that week that call for celery- a whole chicken and roasted veggies, chicken soup, and maybe chicken salad. See a trend there? You can also make a whole chicken (or two) on Sunday (one in the crock pot, one in the oven), and then use the part of a chicken for one meal, and the leftovers for the soup, chicken salad, and maybe even BBQ chicken sandwiches for lunch one day.
Start a garden- This is obvious, but look at what your family eats the most of? We eat a TON of tomatoes, green beans, zucchini, squash, broccoli, and carrots. These are things we like to plant in our garden, they don’t require a lot of planning or caring for, just water and sunshine. =)
Price Match- I know we all hate Walmart, I have never met someone that says, “oooh, I just love going to walmart.” However, they price match! Don’t get the paper? Don’t have time to compare all those prices? Do a squick google search for a price matching blog in your area; it is almost guaranteed some lovely blogger has already done the hard work for you. In my area we have www.PriceMatcherz.com I *love* this website, and use it every time I go to the store. I write out my list, then add the pricematcherz price out beside the items on my list. I can’t tell you how much money this has saved me on produce like grapes, apples, and bananas. Now, if you have time to go to the other stores instead of price matching- good for you! And some of the smaller grocery stores also price match now, so no need to go to the Big Blue for everything.
Start eating smaller portions- This is a BIG one, and one we are working on here in our home (mainly because I need to lose weight from my second child haha). I let the kids have as much as they want- they are growing children with tons of energy,they need the third small bowl of chili more than I do 😉 But try cutting your first portion of everything in half, then if you are hungry go back for a second smaller portion. This will help create leftovers for lunches/dinner the next day.
Don’t buy processed foods- You know I am a huge advocate of eating real foods; whole foods that are not in a box, package, and are their own ingredient. Processed foods- chips, crackers, cereals- They’re expensive! Even if you have a coupon, it is cheaper and healthier to buy a real food version in bulk and prepare it yourself. Replace chips with homemade chips (simply slice potatoes and bake), crackers with baked crackers, and cereals with oatmeal that you dress-up yourself (using raisin, dried fruit & sucanat or Grade B maple syrup). This will save so much money and it is REAL FOOD. All of the above can be made ahead of time and stored, or frozen!

What are some things you do to stretch your grocery budget?

Pumpkins & Fall for Tots and Preschoolers

by Meghan // October 19, 2014 // Comments off

Having a 4 year old that begs for learning time can be a challenge with a two year old all-boy toddler literally running around, and a 5 week old baby in the house. So when it comes to our themed and “extra” activities, I like to try to find things they can do together. That way if Mister doesn’t really want to participate it is okay, but he is able to if he would like. This month we are studying pumpkins. While Lexie is ready to learn what kind of plant a pumpkin is, and how a pumpkin grows, Mister’s activities are much simpler.

Max (2) will be learning and focusing on:

the letter “P”
the color orange & coloring pumpkins by following instructions
Completing a “My Pumpkin” book (color, cut, and glue) from www.ThisReadingMama.com
Gluing/matching pumpkin shapes (from www.1+1+1=1.com)
Count the Pumpkins (also from www.1+1+1=1.com)
P is for Pumpkin do a dot (also from www.1+1+1=1.com)
reading (his favorite poem) Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Eater
words (non sense included) that rhyme with pumpkin
textures of pumpkins (smooth, bumpy, etc)
introduce why leaves change color in the fall
Reading pumpkin/fall books

Lexie (4) will be learning and focusing on:

how pumpkins grow
what kind of plant pumpkins are
words (non sense included) that rhyme with pumpkin
Completing a “My Pumpkin” book (color, cut, and glue) from www.ThisReadingMama.com
Counting pumpkins math sheet (we will use unifix cubes to add hands on) from www.1+1+1=1.com
Pumpkin number match book (from www.childcareland.com)
Pumpkin Syllable Count and Clip (from This Reading Mama)
introduce why leaves change color
reading pumpkin/fall books

Now, obviously all of these activities aren’t solely focused on fall; many of them just include pumpkins. But at this age especially, I am following my children’s lead as to what interests them. Lady loooves “worksheet” type activities, cutting, pasting, assembling books, etc. Mister … well, he is just being introduced to activities and learning time, so I am still trying to find what he loves to do. Also, many of their activities overlap; I will modify and adjust as needed for Max.

Hopefully we will be making a trip to the pumpkin patch soon. We spent some time playing in pumpkins last week. This was great sensory play for tots and preschoolers- they had fun digging out the insides and sorting the seeds. We then roasted the seeds for yummy snacks (which they ask for constantly). I plan to use some of the roasted pumpkin seeds in granola as well. We talked about how the pumpkins felt- were they rough, smooth, smushy, hard, etc.

This unit has been a lot of fun so far, and I suspect it will be a lot more fun as we continue through it in the month of October. I was hoping to get more of the activities and lapbooking done before this post went up, but life got in the way. Hopefully I can bring you a post full of completed activities and lapbooks in the coming weeks!

Healthy Beef and Rice Casserole

by Meghan // October 9, 2014 // Comments off

I make a variation of this recipe that isn’t baked … we call it “goolash.” This recipe is a version of “Beef and Rice Casserole” adapted from Better Homes and Gardens Cook Book (mine was the 11th edition).

This was a HUGE hit with my family, including the two year old. While he isn’t picky, he is what I call lazy and doesn’t like to chew meat; he will just suck on it, get all the flavor out, then spit out the meat. He ate every bite of this!

And it is something you can feel good about feeding to your family. This recipe does call for homemade bone broth- click HERE to learn how to make yours (it is SO easy!)

Healthy Beef and Rice Casserole

1 hour, 10 minutes

Number of servings: 12

See Detailed Nutrition Info on

Healthy Beef and Rice Casserole

Ingredients

2 pound ground beef or pork (I used grassfed beef)
1 sweet or red onion, diced
2 cups long grain brown rice (we like organic jasmine rice from Azure)
2 14oz can diced tomatoes
1 can rotel tomatoes
1 can sweet corn
1 small can sliced olives
1 small can green chilies
4 cups homemade bone broth
chili powder to taste
Worcestershire to taste
salt and pepper to taste
shredded cheese of choice for topping (we used Daiya dairy free mozerella)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350
In a large pot or skillet brown the ground beef and onion until meat is cooked and onion is soft
Add the rest of ingredients
Bring to a boil
Remove from heat and transfer to a large casserole dish
Cover and bake in 350 oven for one hour
Uncover, top with cheese of choice and put back in the oven until cheese is melty (10 mins or so)
This is about 264 calories per serving

A Peek into Our PreK Day with Pictures {Crew Carnival}

by Meghan // October 6, 2014 // Comments off

Our Homeschool Day in Pictures {Quiet in the Chaos}

This week we are linking up with the Review Crew’s “Our Homeschool Day in Pictures.” Click on the image above to read other Crew members’ posts!

This week Lexie’s reading EXPLODED! She has been reading her AAR readers like crazy; we love this program. I am so proud of her, but mostly I am just thankful her confidence has gone through the roof. She will try read just about any word I point to. We are working on using her finger to point to the words (she doesn’t like to do this, but reads much better when she does) and not using the pictures to guess what the sentence says. As you can see, we used an envelope to cover the pictures so she will read the words first, then look at the pics.

And now we do a whole lot of this ….

We have snacks outside, twice a day. (I think this is their favorite thing to do …)

The Mister enjoys playing “connect four” and reading books.

We have also been gardening (LOTS of tomatoes coming off our plants), and just adjusting to having a baby in the house. Overall, everything is going smoothly and everyone is adjusting well! =)