New Beginnings

I have been so bad about blogging.  We haven't really been up to much, just the same stuff.  Nat has landed a permanent position with Amtrak.  No more on call 24/7.  YAY!  He is in charge of the buses (yes, Amtrak has buses) that go through Sac, Reno, and a few other places.  He is working 4/10's and unfortunately, he can't attend church due to the hours.  It is so nice to actually have a schedule now, and not having to wait until 2 in the afternoon to see if he is working or not.  No more having to pay for parking (he commutes in on the train Mon-Wed. and Sundays he can park for free on the street) or traveling to a station which eats the gas budget.

M has joined a Girl Scout troop and is loving it.  J is enjoying Cub Scouts.  C is having a blast in Boy Scouts.  Nat is the Cub Master for our troop, and I am the Bear Den Leader.  Scouting has become our life.  But we are enjoying it, and wouldn't trade it in for the world.

We are still homeschooling.  I have decided to go back with a charter school, after 2 years of being independent, I just need that re-enforcement and back up.  With Nat's new schedule, he will be able to help out in teaching the kids some of their lessons.  We have found a wonderful homeschool group in the area, and have made new friends.  We also just joined another (an outdoor one), and this week we will be meeting for them for the first time.  Make sure you go check out our homeschooling blog (Stamps Meadow Academy), click the picture on the left!

I will try my hardest to keep up.  Right now, I am busy gathering all of the school material, curriculum, and making lesson plans.  Our plan is to start the beginning of August, but will wait until I talk to our teacher who is going to be overseeing us.  Hopefully we hear from her/him soon.

Thankful

Horrible... freezing the tushie off in the beginning of a morning walk

Lovely... coming home to open arms, kisses, and I love you's

You know, I am a really lucky woman, and I mean REAL lucky.  I have the most wonderful children any mother could possibly ask for (yes, I am biased).  I also happen to have a pretty wonderful husband.  As I look at other married couples from a distance, I count my blessings each and every day for what I have.

When my dear sweet beloved husbands sees that something NEEDs to be done around the house, he DOES it.  Not waiting for me to finally get around to doing it, or thinking about doing it, then not do it, he just does digs in and gets it done.  He lets me be my own person as well.  He helps me by encouraging me to get out and spend time with myself, with other women... WITHOUT the children in tow, for a few hours each and every week.  I am a better wife and mother because I am able to take time for myself.

I am a very busy person.  Yes, I am a stay at home mom, so you think that I should be able to do it all on my own, and generally, I do.  But, besides 'just' being a stay at home mom, I am a homeschooling mom.  I am constantly on the go.

This time of year, I am extremely busy... and I mean extremely BUSY.  You see, we don't buy Christmas gifts for family members (immediate or extended)... I make them.  Sometimes, Nat and the kids chip in and help make gifts.  I do a lot of knitting, crocheting, and sewing this time of year, so from October all the way through an all nighter on December 24, I am constantly getting materials, making gifts from the heart, and so forth.  And the house seems to fall apart, especially when I am trying to do all the above as well as school with the kids... there just isn't enough time in the day for me to 'clean' the house as well.

This is where I become the luckiest woman EVER!  My hubby doesn't complain about the house becoming messy or the laundry piling up.  He steps up to the plate and gives the extra 75-80% that I am lacking and just does the work for me.  Yes, he is still working during this time as well, but he also knows, this time of year just STRESSES me out.  I am ever so thankful to have married a man who is willing to do WOMEN's work to help me out and not take advantage of me or expect me to be wonder woman.

I say that this is a stressful time of year for me, because...

I make and spend hours and hours on gifts for family, and most of them don't even thank or seem to appreciate all the hard work that I do for them.  They seem to be ungrateful for the time, love, and effort I put into making such gifts.  Do I expect recognition and praise, of course not.  I just wish that they would care enough to pick up the phone or write a note to say "Thank You."  How hard is that to do?

So, to make it all bearable, I remember (once the holidays are over) just how grateful I am for the husband and children I have, who do love and show me the appreciation for the things that I do for them.

A New Found Love

While in Target yesterday, we went through the kitchen goods (one of my fave sections of any store) and saw a donut maker machine for the home.  I immediately started coveting it and I am sure that it will become a member of my kitchen appliance family sometime in the near future (hint for Birthday/Christmas present).

Whoever invented this for the home is an awesome person.  I can just taste the day that when the kids answer the daily question of, "What do you want for breakfast?"  and they scream excitedly, "DONUTS!"  I won't cringe at the thought of going to the store, buying some donuts (paying an arm and a leg) that have been fried.  I am not a fried food kinda person.  Now, I do make some muffins that taste like old fashioned donuts, and boy, are they YUMMY!  You can find the recipe for these scrumptious donut muffins here. But, sometimes the muffins just don't cut it with my brude.

click on the picture to take you to the site where you can purchase it, if you like to shop online, or just head to your local Target or other retail store, to see if they carry it.

Brewing Apple Cider Time

Horrible... cold feet

Lovely... warm blankets and quality time with the family

Here is what I am up to this fine Sunday afternoon, while Nat is taking a nap after his 12 hour work day last night and while the kids watch Bedknobs and Broomsticks.

Homemade Apple Cider

the BIG stewing pot is full of...

APPLES and spices!  This is before the 1 hour of rapid boil (it is almost there) but the smells that are already coming from the stove is making my mouth water.

With the rain and the wind howling outside, this is the perfect afternoon to make such a treat.  It sure is beginning to feel, and smell, more like Autumn weather.I am beginning to think that this IS easier than making applesauce... I didn't have to peel and core the apples.



OH, the smells that are coming from my kitchen... I wish there was smell software for the computer, so you could add them to emails, blog posts, etc... The aroma that is filling our home is soooo much more enticing than a little candle that has the scent of apple cider can offer and provide (and I LOVE burning scented candles in our home).

after an hour of boiling.  Now it's time to cover and bring down to a simmer for 2 hours.  The house is smelling sooooooo scrumptious now.



after two hours of simmering.  Now it's time to take off the heat and cool down

finished product!

And the verdict?  It was a hit!  Nat says that it could be a little sweeter, but I like the tartness to it.  We added a caramel to it, and that was an even better treat, almost like a caramel apple

Taking it Easy

Here it is, Friday morning and I am not really motivated to do anything today.  I did go on my walk this morning w/my walking partner, and took a good friend to the airport, but not much has happened since.

On Wed. morning, I woke up feeling fine.  Went on my walk as usual, came home and got the day started and the kids working on school.  Then, around 8 or so, my lower back began to bother me.  Walking, sitting, laying down, nothing helped (imagine you are in labor and the contractions don't go away), I couldn't get comfortable.  I was getting a little nauseous, so, I cleaned the toilets (who really wants to get sick in a smelly toilet?)  After wards (round 9:30 or so), the pain was getting worse.  I laid down in bed praying the pain would go away, or hold off until the kids and I could go on our planned field-trip that afternoon.  By 10, the pain was unbearable, so I called Nat (who was working in Stockton at the time) that I was needing to go to the hospital.  Once off the phone with him, I texted a dear friend (the same one I walk with) if she could watch my kiddos, so I could go to the ER.  No sweat, I had then in the car in less than 5 min, dropped them off and was all checked in @ the ER by 10:30.

I had figured that I had a kidney stone (I've had one in the past, the pain is unmistakable).  The Dr's did all the tests, and I had a Cat Scan done.  Viola, it of course was a kidney stone (they estimated it about 15 mm), but along with that, my pancreas was also inflamed (as they see in drinkers... which I am not) and that baffled the Dr's even more.  So, they said that I would be admitted to the hospital for a day or two, until my tests came back 'normal'.

By the time that I was taken to my room, it was 6:30 pm.  I passed the stone around 10 pm Wed night.  And was pain labor free.  YAY!  To help get my pancreas back to normal, I was given lots of potassium and some magnesium.  By Thur morning, I was ready to go home and EAT (I was on a no eat diet, no water, no ice, nothing, until everything looked good)  I was on a liquid diet for breakfast and lunch.

While waiting for the test results to come back from the morning blood drawing (those DR's and nurses sure are vampires!)  On the news, I go to watch and listen and watch some more about our mall (the largest one in our region) go up in flames.  Click here to read the story.  You can google Roseville Gallaria Fire and get a lot more info.  What a major blow to our city, to all those that worked there.  I don't like shopping at the mall, but it is sad that our city will be losing a lot of revenue, many jobs were lost, and with the holidays fast approaching...

Anyway, as I was just watching in aww, the Dr came in and told me that I was good to go and she was discharging me.  YAY!  I called Nat, and told him not to bother stopping bu home to pick up my knitting and reading materials, and to just come get me.  I was home by 12:45 pm at the very latest.

So, today, I am taking it easy.  Not going to to muchm except for knit and read, enjoy the rainy weather, and let the kids play.  We can make up this school day another day.

Dark Times

As some may know, Nat lost his job Thursday morning.  Yes, it is sad, but everything happens for a reason.

I saw this quote and I fell in love with it, it is so true, and it definitely fits our situation right now...

"Like a photographer carefully developing his film in a darkroom, God allows us to go through dark times because He is trying to develop a beautiful image of Christ in us."  Tony Evans

Thank heavens for Heavenly Father's insight on our lives and has everything planned out to a tee.  Not only do we not have a mortgage payment, but we don't even have a car payment, our debt is very little, so we are going to make it until Nat, or I, or both, find a job.

The store that Nat was assigned too, closed... so, he was let go with a heavy heart.  But, they do have a job open for him... down in Bakersfield (can you see the scared look of horror on my face?)  I don't even want to come close to living in Bakersfield (neither does Nat), but if that is the only thing, then we will take it.

Nat has two job interviews for the next week.  It doesn't happen often when you get laid off from a job, after being unemployed for one day.

Please keep us in your prayers, we definitely need them right now.  We want to thank all the friends that have given us a heads-up on jobs (including out of state ones).

We will keep everyone updated as we know more of our future outcome.

I Looked Out My Window...

... and what do I see... Popcorn popping on the apricot tree.

Well, not exactly but,  for almost a year now, I have been without my van.  I had a perfect view of the empty field across the street and the greenbelt.  A sight that is now blocked by this. 

On Saturday, Nat and I drove into Sac and purchased this...

Nat's 'new' car.  I am greatful and thankful that the kids and I have our freedom and independence back to do and go where ever our little hearts desire.  No more calling up friends to borrow their car  or to pick up a kid or two who need to be somewhere (which I am very greatful to have such wonderfull friends), no more asking if Nat can get a ride into work (when he is working in Rancho) so I can have the van  Fieldtrips, park days, library trips (those that are farther away), get togethers, etc... here we come. 

I have come to appriciate those who are a 1 car family.  I walked the walk and talked the talk.  But I am not looking forward to the extra gas to be bought, and the upping of car insurance rates.  Those who say that can never do without, just try it... you never know.  You will find out what your true priorities are.  I used to be one of  'those' people who said, "We can never be a 1 car family."  I tried it, and we DID it for 10 months.  Sacrafices had to be made, but the kids and I are glad to have some of those sacrafices back.  With Nat jumping from location to location, it was hard for me to justify having the van when he needed to get to work and not being able to carpool.

So, I thank a dear friend of Nat's (whom he works with).  He saw a need and he fulfilled that need by letting us buy one of his cars off of him.

EEEEwwwwww!

I was bored and decided to do some re-arranging and consolidation in the classroom.  Less is more, right?  I used to have 3 bookshelves to store and hold some school stuff, but it was so dark in the corner, I wanted change.  Since I have Nat home for 5 days straight, he was able to help me move them.  Since I consolidated and got rid of one bookshelf, I gave it to my mom who so desperately needs shelving in their new home.  Once back and had the remaining shelves put into their prospective spots, I find this on the floor (it was under one of the shelves that we moved)...

I turn to Nat, pointing and asking, "Is that what I think it is?"
He looks down and says, "Why YES, it is."
"Is that the skeleton, or the skin?" I ask.
"Both" was his reply.
"How in the world did it get in here?"
"I have no idea."
Ok, now I have the chills running up my spine again.  EEEwww!

Don't get me wrong, I love am ok with frogs, but as long as they STAY outside and I don't have to get close to those slimy, slippery little things that go CROAK all through the night.

How Many is Tooo Many?

That is the question of the day...

While we were out this morning running errands, we went to one of my favorite stores... our local  Hospice store.  I always make it a point to go in there to see what they have when we are on that side of town.  Well, as we walked in the door, we saw this HUGE sign saying that everything in the store was 1/2 off.  My eyes went from brown to GREEN dollar signs.  I love sales, especially at second hand stores. 

So, anyways... we have been using plastic bowls and plates since the kids were very young.  I have had it about up to my eyeballs, I am so done with using plastic.  We do have a dish set that is ceramic and black, which I love, but they are my 'good' dishes and don't want to use them, 'cause I have a fear of them breaking (as I can't replace them, and I can't stand having miss-matched anything and odd numbers).  Well, I found a set at the Hospice... not all pieces are there (just short of a a complete set), but hey, they are 1/2 off, no biggy.  Now, I just need to donate all the plastic ones to a well deserving family.

Now, not only will I have these beauty's with the fruit theme,

I also these,  my 'good company' black ones,

 and this flowered set from my grandmother. I remember eating off these plates when visiting my grandparents.

I have come to realize that I need to let go of some of my OCD and that it is OK, to be unique and have an eclectic style, and have WAY to many dishes.  But, some of my kids are like me... a klutz, all thumbs, so I need lots of them.  I like variety and I am pretty sure that I won't be getting bored looking at and using the same set of dishes over and over and over again.

Blue Moon

What a spectacular sight in the sky last night! I was to young to remember the last time we had a Blue Moon. Here are some picture that Nat took last night. I think the cloud cover makes it even look better. Don't mind the date... these were actually taken 12-31-09 around 11:00 pm

Worm Composting

We are trying to be more earth friendly as well as more self reliant. We have started some container vegetable gardening. It all started last week after visiting Whole Foods for a field trip here in town. Since Earth Day was Wednesday, Whole Foods celebrated it on Saturday for the whole community. The kids wanted to go, so we went...

One of the tabled was Red Worm Composting. Of course the kids just had to have one, so we got one and had to set it up once home, to give the worms their proper home. Well, we couldn't really have a compost bin without a garden to put it in, right? Oh, did I tell you... the compost bin is here in the house, can't you see my skin just crawling? So, we planted ourselves a garden. We have some herbs, veggies, fruit and even some flowers to go it it. We don't have a lot of space, so we are doing container gardening (this way, when we buy our house - our first house, we can take our garden with us). We will be adding to our garden some fun things like, windmills, bird houses, and some bird feeders. We are getting and using the ideas from the book "Green Thumb".

There has been a lot of talk about bloggers taking other bloggers thoughts and storied & coping them and posting as their own blog. That is rude. This post may seem like you read it before over @ Adventurous Instruction... that's ok, I did plagiarize, but hey, that is my homeschooling blog, so, I am aloud to do it.

Update

Yay! We got the car running! No leaks, so far so good. We will be taking a test drive to my folks house. To be on the safe side, Nat wants me to take my AAA card with me, just in case. We missed church today, so we could finish up the car (I didn't want to leave Nat home by himself working on a car -- with no one here if there was an accident). While working on the car, we noticed that our sewer was leaking from the driveway. GREAT! Another problem. We called the city, they came, snaked, and removed a couple of BIG root balls. Lucky for us, it was on city property and not ours. Oh, did I mention, the back half of our house has no power? Yep, no power. Nat, his dad, and brother have been up in the attic, at the breaker box, etc. Can't figure out why there is no power to the back of the house. Heck, they can't even figure out the wiring and why it was done the way it was done, go figure. Umm, I think it's time for our landlords to get a hold of an electrician. Talk about a fire hazard waiting to happen (and this time, it won't be from my kids). I go to bed each night praying that our home won't catch fire.... I know that I would love to go back in time and live like they did in the pioneering days, but, and this is a big but, I do like my modern day conveniences. I tell you, we are sooooooo ready for this black cloud to leave us.

Car's Finished....

I'm doing the happy dance. I'm thinking, hey, I will have my van back by Monday! Can't wait... Well, Nat was putting the car back together yesterday and needs me to start the car.... all of a sudden... I hear Nat say, "STOP... We're leaking gas!" "What?" I say. So, I stop trying to start the car... He finds what he thinks is causing the fuel to leak, puts it on, tightens the bolt, and we try again... "STOP, we're still loosing gas." AARRRH... please let this be a simple fix. Now, here is where I notice that he has 2 bolts left over... 2 bolts. All the bolts were in when you started taking the car apart, now you have 2 extras, oops, you need to find where they go. Maybe they go where the fuel leak is coming from... Nat says no. Why don't men listen to women when they suggest something? I turn and walk away, and he calls his friend up (the one who has been so wonderful to take two weekends out of his time to help fix the car). He tells Nat to find the problem... to no avail, Nat is having a hard time fixing the leak. SAM, we need you, please come back and help! I just love knowing mechanics who take a payment of homemade banana bread, for their time and energy. I also love that Nat offers MY services as a payment, without even asking me first, Geez Louise. (But I really don't mind, especially since we aren't paying an arm an a leg for someone else to do the dirty work.) Who know when I will have my car again... I did the happy dance tooooooo early I think. I will post an update later. BTW... It has been 2 weeks since I had a set of wheels at my disposal.

Cabin Fever, Bored, Restless, Spunky

We (kids and I) have cabin fever. It's raining, it's raining, it's pouring, it's not stopping. But, we are not complaining, we need this rain. Our little city has been put on restricted water usage, everyone has to cut their water usage by 20%. 20%! Please tell me how I am supposed to do that, when I have small children? If we don't, we will get a fine. So, we have implemented a new rule... Yellow, let it mellow, Brown, flush it down (gross I know). The kids aren't used to the new rule. They say, but you always tell us to flush! What's more important here, good, clean, bacteria free toilet, or a fine? I guess it's all in the eye of the beholder... me, I will forgo the clean, bacteria free toilet to avoid a fine. Hey, I am the odd ball in my husbands family--they don't always 'get' me... in my family, I just follow suite in the flower child & hippie mantra.

Now, you may ask, why cabin fever? Well, it's not that we don't get out, we DO... Mud puddles are the bestest thing ever invented. Yes, I DO let my kids go play in the rain, get soaked and muddy, jump in puddles... that's what the puddles are for, right? I mean, they are kids (heck I'm a kid!) and we will go out without umbrellas and just get good and soaked to the bone...

Nat's car engine is all torn apart right now, and is having to use the van to go to and fro work, so we can't go and "do" our little errands during the day. Oh, how I am already missing my van, (my FREEDOM away from the house, the chores, the ever ongoing 'honey-do' list that a mom of 3, who just happens to be the best mom ever to homeschool's her kids so they don't end up corrupted by the public school system {imho--no one else better judge me}), and it has only been a measly 9 hours without a set of wheels. And today is only the 1st day without my wheels, with many more to come.

I guess, it is now time to take a nice long walk in the rain, get all muddy and have fun jumping in puddles... who cares about having dinner on the table in an hour... life is tooo short.

forgive me, I am in a spunky, bored, and restless mood... hence the sarcasm in this post

An Update

There has been a lot going on, since our little excursion to 1820. And I am sorry that I haven't had the time to write. We finally got the $800 back, and got all our finances squared away. Man, when they say things happen in 3's, they REALLY aren't kidding! After 2 weeks, we finally got the money back, then, come to find out, (1) Nat has to take 2 UNpaid days off a month (no, he doesn't work for the state). We are thankful that Nat still has a job though, so we don't have a problem with the furlough, if it means saving some jobs. (2) Nat's car has a motor mount crack or a head gasket that needs replacing (we are hoping for the latter), and (3) our fridge quit working (we really have bad luck w/fridges), we go through fridges like a child with candy it seems. On a positive note, everyone is in good health, and school is going good. Well, I wish I had time to post more, but life as a mom, teacher, playmate, friend, etc is calling me back into reality. 8:30 am Update: Good news, we now have a new $50 fridge... Craig's List is my new Best Friend. I just hope that this lasts longer than the old free one.

We have been very busy & that's why we haven't posted (if you can call it that). We thought our computer crashed, but luckily not, we just had a virus that wiped out all of documents that we have saved to the hard drive (IE: ALL pictures (quite a few hundred), all of my recipes, etc.), you name it, it was lost. Luckily, a friend of ours came over and got us back up and running, but in order to get rid of the virus, he had to totally ERASE everything on on the hard drive. I LOVE knowing people who know a thing or two about computers. But, while we haven't had a computer, let alone, one of my stay at home, homeschooling mom outlets, the internet. How can one survive without it after having it for so long? Well, somehow we managed, barley! These are some of the things that we have been doing: making Christmas presents, and more Christmas presents, and even more Christmas presents, oh, and cleaning the house as well. I forgot what my kids bedroom floors looked like. I would post pictures of what we have made, but that would just SPOIL the SURPRISES, but I will give you a little glimpse of what some of you are getting this year... Keep looking, I know it's here somewhere... Yes, I found it, here it is...

Shh! It's a secret until Christmas. You have to wait for Christmas morning to open up all the presents that we made with love, just for you!

Where have I been?

I promise, I'm not hiding out from you all. I have been very busy these past few weeks! We are doing a 'modified' school schedule this month so we can get prepared for Christmas. We have been busily working on handmade presents for everyone in the family. I am kicking myself in the butt for not getting pictures of what the kids and Nat made for our family who live in North Carolina, I think of it now, that the package has already been shipped off. We have decided to make homemade gifts for everyone this year, due to the fact that we are on a very TIGHT budget, and with the economy... it just made more sense to do this. We have had so much fun doing this this year, we will probably turn it into a tradition for every year.

I do have other Christmas gifts to post, that are for other family members, but once again, I can't until they have them and opened them. Well, I do have a couple of pics for some of the gifts we sent, but I will not post those until I am sure that they received the package and have opened it. But as far as the projects that I have been working on, here are a few (these are for my kiddos). I am working on a pair for Charlie, and will post a picture when I am done with them. I am planning on making them all matching hats and scarves as well. (For those of you who don't know me, I am a knitter & crocheter, as well as many other needle works too.)

These Fetchings are for Mareal (fingerless gloves)

These are fingerless gloves for Jimmy.

These are Charlies fingerless gloves.

Enough of Polotics, onto the Holidays...

(well, yesterday)

Did you?

Wow, this is such a NEW begining for America isn't it? We have elected our 1st African American president, stood up for what is Morally Right, and just having a FRESH start... (well, with politics, do you really get a fresh start?). I am very greatful that I live in this country, that I have a right to make my voice heard (when its hidden in the BIGGER crowd), to help make the choices for our country.

Now, I can get focused on Christmas Presents... Yes, I did say CHRISTMAS... have you started yet... There are only 49 DAYS until Christmas.

I have 7 presents done, #8 is almost finished, then, I get to knit SOME MORE... I have a total of 12-15 more gifts to make... Time is a wastin'... Please keep your eyes posted for the lovely presents that I (I mean, my family & I) have been making (knitting & crocheting) for our loved ones.

Turkeys,

We had the turkeys back this morning. I love seeing all the turkeys, I was out in the middle of the street, surrounded by turkeys. One got up in my neighbor's tree, and one even got up on my van. The cats didn't know what to do with all the turkeys. I can't tell if they were scared for their lives, or saying, "SCORE, I'm having me some BIRD for BREAKFAST!" Amazingly, they are not afraid of humans.