Happy Thanksgiving!

It is really frustrating when I get behind with blogging.  Before I forget what we did this year, here is a rundown of our Thanksgiving Day.

 

 

Jane went shopping with me to get a few things.  She had a blast with the mini shopping cart at Macey's. 

 

 We ate our traditional "Charlie Brown Thanksgiving" lunch.  We ate pretzels, toast, jelly beans and the popcorn was inside of the 'turkey'.  It is a good little snack that fills us up before eating our big dinner. 

We went to my sister's house for dinner.  Kim and Blake live just down the street from us, so we didn't have to travel far.  I forgot to take my camera, so no pictures. 

I spent all day on Wednesday making cranberry sauce (if you haven't eaten home made before, yo are missing out- so much better than the canned kind and it is really easy to make!), sweet potato pies and a lemon merangue pie plus all of the food that I needed special for me (gravy, rolls, stuffing).  The pies were a disaster, so I had to make new ones on Thursday.  Now I know that I can't use more almond flour than rice flour in the pie crust recipe that I made. 

I made all of the special things that I needed and just served up a plate here at home and then reheated it at my sisters house.  It was easier than bringing a ton of small containers.  It was more work than just eating here at home, but I was glad to get together with the family.  It worked out well this time around.

We had a great time at the dinner.  Almost everyone from my family was there.  My parents announced that they are going on a service mission to Nauvoo, Illinois.  They will be temple workers there from April to October of 2013. 

I fell victim to a Black Friday sale this year.  I bought a new washer and dryer.  The set that I had been told was going to be on sale wasn't, so I went for an upgrade.  I have really enjoyed the new set.  The washer has a clear lid on it, so you can see it spinning around.  It makes for good entertainment! 

 

 

Christmas Time is Here!

We did our annual 24 days to Christmas countdown again this year.  We had to change things up a bit because we had Tae Kwon Do during the week.  We decided to stop taking at Master Hong's studio around the middle of the month, so we could have done a few more things, but I got pretty sick with a nasty stomach flu, so we just did simple things with the kids and it seemed to go well.  I really lacked enthusiasm for the countdown this year.  Hopefully things will be different next year- and by different I mean better, 'cause it will always be different.  This December has been kind of dull for me.  I didn't feel really 'Christmasy'.  I wasn't all "Bah humbug!" but I wasn't all "Merry Christmas" either.  It was kind of a weird year for me. 

We had a party with Ed and Madeleine Giles.  It was a great evening.  We had stir-fry with sticky rice and pot stickers.  Then we put on a play of sorts about The Christmas Carol. It was fashioned after the Jib Jab website style.  We each took turns saying the parts for the different characters.  We played a game of "If... Then..." where you write an if/then statement on separate papers and mix them up before reading them aloud.  We did some holiday Mad Libs and had dessert (caramel corn puffs, fudge and cinnamon almonds). 



Ed (Jacob Marley), Madeleine (Ghost of Christmas Future), Seth (Tiny Tim), Mark, (Bob Cratchit), Paul (Scrooge), Jane (Ghost of Christmas Past), Daniel (Ghost of Christmas Present). I was the narrator and photographer!



Ed and Madeleine



Paul filling out the Mad Libs

Mark got to spend Christmas in California with Daniel's parents, so we said goodbye to him on December 19th.  Janet and Les were in town for their daughter's wedding (Jenny married Nelson Torres) so they flew to CA with Mark.  He will fly home by himself, but I'm not too worried about him being alone now that he knows how the airports work. 


Paul, Talia, Seth, Mark



Les, Janet, Jane



Our family picture for 2012

Christmas Eve:
It had snowed, so we went outside to shovel the driveway and sidewalks after dinner. I love having a white Christmas!


All ready to go! Yes, Jane is wearing a skirt to play in the snow!



Seth and Jane making snow angels



Daniel hard at work



Paul



Look!  It's me!  I realized that the coat I am wearing is very old.  I bought it when I was in the 8th or 9th grade. I paid $20 for it at Kmart.. I wore this coat when I was in college and I still enjoy wearing it.  It is really warm!  It is weird to think that I have owned the coat longer than I haven't owned it (22 years)! 



After the work was done, we played.  Daniel buried Paul in the snow!

 

And then Seth wanted a turn to be covered!



And then Jane wanted a turn to be buried!  (I had no desire to go next!)

 

After we warmed up with some hot cocoa, we visited with Mark and the gang through Skype. 

Janet and Les had a full house for Christmas!  They had 9 guests!  I sure that it was crazy and fun!


Chris and Megan (Danie's brother and sister-in-law) came over on Christmas eve for some sweet potato pie and to play some games and visit.

 

We open one present on Christmas Eve.  Jane got a stroller for her doll.  She wouldn't hold still long enough for me to get a good picture of her and the doll!  (That Cabbage Patch Kid is the one that I got for Christmas when I was 7!)

 

Seth was going crazy chasing Jane and the baby around with his sword!



Christmas morning



My parents came over to visit



Seth and Daniel- SuperMen indeed!

Daniel surprised us all with an X-Box and the Kinect system, so we spent a lot of time playing the games (after Dad spent a lot of time getting it all hooked up!)  I pretty much rocked it at the Dance Party game, but didn't do so well at most of the other games! 



Jane had a lot of fun playing with her little kitchen set.

Outside it Nos!

Jane has been talking a lot lately.  Somehow she mixes up the letter order in some words so 'snow' is 'nos', 'chips' is 'pichs' and 'star' is 'tars'.  When we had a big snowstorm she was really excited and told us that "outside it nos!"  She LOVES to play outside and doesn't seem to mind the cold, unlike her mother! 

Making Snow Angels

Daniel helping the boys build a snow fort. He also had the boys stand under the trees and he shook the snow off of the trees onto the kids.  They had a great time with that!

Seth and his friends looked awesome with their matching blue coats!

 

The Tumble Weed Man at Scheels was such a clever idea!  That is one "nos man" that won't melt!

My goal is to catch up on my blogging this week!

Recipes

I have several recipes that people have requested over the last couple of months.  Since I have sadly neglected my blog (more on that in the next post- I promise it is coming before the new year!) I have decided to finally post them now.  It must be the Christmas spirit of sharing.  You know, deck them halls and all that stuff?!  All of these recipes are gluten and dairy-free.  When the recipe calls for butter, I use a dairy-free buttery baking stick, not spread. This time around I used Nucoa brand and it worked beautifully.  (Remind self to call Walmart and Harmons to ask them to start carrying it because I don't like having to make special trips to other stores to get it!) Enjoy!

Below you will find the recipes for:
Oatmeal Monster Cookies
Peanut Butter Squares
Chili
Taco Seasoning
Sweet Potato Pie
Pie Crust
Dairy-Free Cafe Rio Dressing
Ranch Dressing
Blueberry Muffins

From the family party in October:

Oatmeal Monster Cookies
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter (1 cube)
2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups peanut butter (chunky is best, but not necessary)
3 eggs
4 1/2 cup quick oats
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Cream the sugars and butter together.  Add baking soda, peanut butter and eggs.  Mix in quick oats and then stir in the chocolate chips.  Put on a cookie sheet using 1/4 cup of dough per cookie.  They aren't called monster cookies for nothing! You can also make them smaller, just use the shorter cooking time.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes (time based on how big the cookie is). Let cool on the pan for 5 minutes (don't skip this part!) and then move to a cooling rack.  Makes 2 dozen monster cookies. Easily doubles. Can M&M's if not needed to be dairy-free.


Peanut Butter Squares  Warning: These are highly addictive!
2/3 cup white sugar
2/3 cup light corn syrup
1 1/4 cups  crunchy peanut butter
3 cups cornflakes
1 cup chocolate chips

Bring sugars to a boil.  Remove from heat and stir in peanut butter.  Pour over cornflakes in a 9x13 dish.  Gently stir to mix and coat the cereal.  Melt chocolate chips and pour evenly over the cereal.  Chill for 20-30 minutes.  Cut and serve. 


Chili
3# ground beef
1- 14 ounce can diced tomatoes
2- 14 ounce can black beans, drained
1- 14 ounce can red beans
1/4 cup celery, chopped
1/2 cup carrots chopped
1/2 cup zucchini chopped
2 cups pasta sauce (I use an Italian garden variety)
1 cup salsa (I use medium)
1/3 cup white onion
1/3 cup green onion
1 tsp cocoa powder
1 TBLS chili powder
2 TBLS taco seasoning

Brown and drain ground beef.  Add all ingredients in a slow cooker (Crock Pot) for about 4 hours.

Taco Seasoning
1 TBLS chili powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper powder
1/4 tsp oregano powder
1/4 tsp powdered onion
1/2 tsp paprika
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

Mix together (I usually double or triple the recipe) and store in an air tight container. 
This makes enough to season 3 pounds of meat


From our Thanksgiving Dinner:

Sweet Potato Pie
4 ounces butter, room temperature
2 cups cooked and mashed sweet potatoes
2 cups sugar
1 small can (5 ounces, or 1/2 cup plus 2 TBLS) evaporated milk (for dairy-free use almond milk)
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 prepared pie shells

Mix potatoes, sugar and butter until well blended.  Add vanilla, eggs, milk and cinnamon; mix well.  Pour into the prepared pie shells. 
Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour, until set.  Makes 2 pies

Pie Crust (based on recipe from Gluten Free Easily)

1 cup GF flour mix (I use rice flour/corn starch mix)
1/2 cup almond flour
1 TBLS granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 TBLS milk (I use almond)

Sift flour, sugar and salt into a 9-inch pie plate.

In a separate small bowl add mix oil and milk stirring rapidly with a fork until the oil turns into little droplets.  Pour milk and oil mixture over dry ingredients and mix. 
Pat crust out with hands, trying to make the thickness the same throughout.  Extend crust as high as you would like it oh the sides of the pie plate. 

Bake per your recipe.  (If the recipe calls for a cooked crust, I bake it at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes)

Miscellaneous Recipes

Dairy-Free Tomatillo Salad Dressing (Cafe Rio)
1/2 cup green taco salsa (main ingredient tomatillos)
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 tsp minced garlic
2 TBLS lime juice
1/2 cup cilantro
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

Mix everything together in a blender, chill and serve!

Dairy-Free Ranch Dressing
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 TBLS lemon juice
pinch salt
1/4 tsp Italian Seasoning

Combine ingredients together in a small jar.  If it is too thick, add more lemon juice to thin.  Chill and serve.


and last, but not least, because this recipe seriously made my Christmas morning happy, is the:

Blueberry Muffin  (recipe from Gluten Free Goddess)
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup warm milk
1/4 cup Spectrum Organic Shortening
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup GF flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
 2 eggs beaten
1 cup blueberries
Crumble topping

Crumble topping
2 TBLS oats
2 TBLS brown sugar
2 TBLS shortening
1 tsp cinnamon
rub together

Add oats to milk and let soak for 20 minutes
Beat together the shortening and brown sugar in a medium bowl
Add oats to the shortening/sugar mixture

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl (flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon)

Scoop the oat mixture into the dry mix, mixing by hand

Add eggs and then add the blueberries

Scoop into 12 muffin tins lined with paper liners

Sprinkle with crumble topping

Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes

If using frozen blueberries, time may need to be increased by about 5 minutes
Check for doneness with a wooden pick

Our Homeschooling Adventure

I haven't written out my feelings and experiences with homeschooling Mark.  It seems a bit pointless now, though, because today was his first day back in public school- at his request.  The 'honeymoon' phase of homeschooling was over fast- in fact I'd dare say that it was a terrible honeymoon. 

We talked with Mark about what we would require of him if he were to homeschool.  We wrote down our goals for him and had him read them.  He agreed to our terms.  BUT, he didn't figure that we would follow through with them.  He figured that homeschooling would be easier than public school, that he could fly through his assignments within 2-3 hours a day, and that he could spend the rest of the day playing computer games.  Ummmm, do you want to take a look at that paper that we had you read?  It didn't allow for more than 2-3 hours of computer time and required 5-7 hours of study and volunteer time.  I didn't have all of the curriculum in place when we started, so I told him that he could do more of his computer programming and art each day until we got other things lined up.  He did the bare minimum of anything that he agreed to do. 

We had weekly meetings with me, Daniel and Mark.  Mark cried during all but two of the eight meetings that we had (not because we yelled at him or were mean, but because we told him that we would be adding more responsibility each week).  I cried after many of them.  The benefits of homeschooling (working at your own pace, spending time with family, field trips, setting your own schedule, etc.) are wonderful, but we couldn't allow Mark to homeschool without taking advantage of the academic benefits (learning more in depth about subjects, moving through textbooks more quickly,working on more subjects that aren't included in public school, etc). 

I have invested a lot of time into homeschooling.  The first half of my day is spent with Mark.  I enjoy his companionship (mostly), but I do not feel adequate to be his teacher in math and science.  I got a Bachelors of Arts, not a Bachelors of science for a good reason! I took algebra and I remember most of it, but I am not proficient in it.  He needed a better teacher.  Daniel is a great teacher and great at math, but he is really busy with work (two jobs/contracts right now plus cello and Tae Kwon Do) I did find a math resource that had instructional videos that we felt would help.  If I wasn't sitting down with Mark, he wouldn't work, but he figured that the hour that he just spent messing around while his math book was open counted as an hour of math being done.  I needed him to be more self-driven and show more effort (both issues were discussed in the afore mentioned paper)

We gave Mark an assignment to write two persuasive essays.  One on why he should homeschool and the other on why he should attend public school.  He had all day on Wednesday to do it, and we would discuss it at our weekly meeting on Sunday. Thursday was Thanksgiving so the day before and the day of I was super busy in the kitchen and shopping for groceries that I didn't check up on him.  On Friday I asked him if he had the essays done, and he threw a fit.  No, they weren't done- not even started- and he was mad that he had to do it.  We told him that he couldn't use the computer for anything until the essays were completed and turned in.  He sulked.  He was sour and mean to everyone.  A few hours later, Daniel was resting and Paul, Seth, Jane and I decided to go outside to play (the weather has been amazingly warm for November!) I decided to go and check on Mark and  I discovered that he had snuck onto the computer!  He retreated to his bedroom.  As I went upstairs, I realized that his journey  to homeschool was over. 

By Saturday morning, Mark hadn't started his essays.  Daniel gave him a deadline of noon.  If they weren't done, then he would definitely go to public school.  At noon he handed in two pages with bullet points on them.  It wasn't an essay and it was done very sloppily.  His objections to public school mounted to not wanting to stand at the bus stop in the cold weather and not being able to pick his schedule.  He said that reasons to not do homeschooling is because he has to work harder to be social (a requirement on our paper!) and he had to work harder with his school work.  He put "I'd have to put more effort into my studies.  It's not that I don't mind, but I really enjoy being lazy."

Homeschooling has to work for the family. Daniel was ready to call it quits after the first month.  Paul chided Mark a few weeks into our adventure saying, "You are ruining my chances to homeschool".  I wanted to work things through and over time get things to be how we wanted them to be. Right now I can't put the work and effort into his learning if he is going to be lazy.  I didn't realize exactly how much work it would be for me.  I really hoped that Mark would be a better independent learner.  We have no immediate plans for homeschooling any of our other children (except for Jane for preschool). I love that each family has the option for doing things to work for their family.

After 8 weeks of homeschooling, I am done.  I have mixed emotions about how things went.  I didn't expect this to make me feel so stupid- and teaching algebra made me feel that way (it has been nearly 16 years since I took algebra).  I didn't expect that I would cry so much over all of this (perhaps I would have cried over other things anyway- it has been a rough patch for me). 

Could we have made this work?  Maybe.  I'm positive that it would take a big toll on Mark and Daniel's relationship- it already had. Things may have worked out over the next year.  I was dedicated to doing it for a year, but Mark wasn't dedicated to doing it the way we had outlined at all.  I wonder if we had been doing homeschooling all along if it would have gone differently.  We  could have done things differently. We could have given this more time and perhaps had things turn around.  We struggled with knowing when to keep going and knowing when it was time to call it a day. 

Public school is going to be a lot of work for Mark.  He will be bored in class.  He will spend just under an hour walking through the hallways to change classes.  He will be subject to foul language and possibly bullying.  He will be surround by (gulp) girls (yes, he notices girls!).  He will learn to adhere to the rules set before him or reap the consequences.  He will struggle with deadlines. These are things that he will adapt to.  He will need to make choices as to what kind of person he wants to be and who he wants to associate with.  I am excited for him to make these choices- to watch him progress and become a young man.  He has been armed with the ability to make good choices.  It is up to him.  That is hard to accept as a parent.  I have to allow him to fail. 

I mentioned that he cried at all but two of our meetings.  The last meeting we had, I expected him to cry and throw a fit at us when we discussed the idea of him going back to public school, but he didn't.  He was very calm, easy to talk with, and almost relieved.  If he wasn't relieved, he was resigned.  He didn't want to do homeschooling OR public school, so he had to decide between the two.  He decided to go to public school (with a bit of persuasion on our part!).

I am at peace with our decision (but the house sure seems quiet today!)

Happy Birthday Seth!

Seth is 8 years old today!  He had a fun birthday party last Saturday.  He wanted it to be a science themed party, but he wanted the details (including his gift) to be a surprise!  He said that he wanted a surprise, but not a girl toy.  It was a little bit frustrating trying to figure out what he wanted, but I am glad that he feels content with what he has and doesn't feel like he NEEDS something. 

 

The weather was beautiful for a November in Utah until the day before his party.  It snowed all day long and Saturday was a super cold day (high of 34 degrees!)  We were going to do a Mentos/Diet Cola bomb, but it was way too cold and snowy to venture outside for the party.  (We could have done it, but I didn't want to deal with all of the wet shoes in the house afterward!)

 

I haven't done a themed party in a long time.  I know that the kids really just don't understand the amount of work that goes into the decorations and events, but it was good for me to do at least one fun party for Seth before he gets too old for themes! 

For the lab coats: I bought white t-shirts and cut them down the front (size boys xl) no sew and simple! 

Name tags: I wrote "Dr. Seth" and on the bottom it said, "Now let us pause for a moment of science"

Lab glasses: sunglasses from the party department at Walmart.  I punched out the lenses, cut off the silly stickers on the sides and wrapped tape around the middle. 

I didn't get a picture of the decontamination station, but I cut two plastic table cloths into long strips and hung them on the ceiling next to the bathroom.

 

 

The first thing we did was make pizzas.  Each scientist got to put on his own toppings.

 

Then they helped me blow up some balloons with vinegar and baking soda.  We used the vinegar/baking soda trick again with food coloring on spoons to help determine groups for the rest of the party.

 

The green group went to the dry ice bubbles first.  My friend Shelley has a cool machine that makes fun bubbles.  This was definitely the hit of the party!  Thank you so much for helping out with the party Shelley! (A big thanks to your grandpa for making the machine!)

 

 

When the bubbles pop the mist that was trapped in the bubble is left and it is a lot of fun!

  

 

It was even "cool" enough for the big boys to play with it!

 

Jane had a blast running around to the different stations.  Her favorite was the dry ice bubbles!

 

We had a container with dry ice, water and soap.  It produced tiny bubbles that they could play with.  It was the same concept as the big bubble machine, but on smaller (and not as impressive) scale!

 

 

You can see the yellow and green decontamination station in the upper left side of this picture!

 

While waiting for their turn to play with the dry ice bubbles, the kids played with magnets, a reflection table,  and flashlights with water balls.  After they had their turns with the games, they ate lunch.  Daniel was hard at work in the kitchen getting the pizza ready. 

 

 

 



Seth requested brownies for his cake. 

 

 

Jane playing with the water balls in a test tube.

The kids played with balloons.  They got them to float in the air above the fan.  I put a hex bolt in some of the balloons.  If you spin the bolt around inside of the balloon, it will make a fun sound.  The boys loved making the noises (I planned this for the last thing to do before going home!) We sent the boys home with a kit to make snow at home and a set of rattling magnets. 

 

The experimenting didn't end when the party ended!  We played around with the water balls, we held lights to them, bounced them, smashed them, froze them! These are little balls that you can get in the floral department for floral arrangements.  They absorb water  and grow bigger.  They look a lot like bath beads.  I dumped them into one large container after the party, and the next day the colors had all blended together!  Instead of yellow, red, orange and green balls we had brown! 

Seth Paul and Mark playing with the tornado machine that was a birthday gift from Carson.  I decided to give Seth a plasma ball, he was surprised and loves it!

Having Daniel take over kitchen duties was a ton of help!  This isn't the best picture of him, but I wanted to show that he was there!  Daniel even wore the glasses! 

The party was a great success! 

 

Happy birthday Seth!  I'm glad that you had such a fun day! 

 

Now I need to figure out what to surprise him with for Christmas!