Jay had the best idea the other day! She decided to make a craft with items she found outside. With a stick, leaves, pebbles (and a little help from an adult with a glue gun) she made a butterfly. I think it could look like a dragonfly, too. Didn't she do a great job?
Saturday, September 19, 2015
Friday, August 28, 2015
15 Afternoon Snack Ideas
Even though we homeschool, my kids still really appreciate an afternoon snack. These would be great for after school snacks, too!
Frosting and a Smile - S'more Snack Mix
Tuesday, August 11, 2015
Jay's First Grade Curriculum
I have decided to pattern Jay's First Grade year after the Charlotte Mason Method of teaching. I'm still learning about Charlotte Mason, so I am by no means an expert. I thought I would share with you what my plans are for Jay this year.
For Social Studies, I found this Around the USA Study on Pinterest. I loved the idea, but wanted to do it a little differently. I will make a worksheet for each state that she can color. We will study one state a week in alphabetical order.
I found a book at our Library, The Big Book of America by Roger Hicks, that gives a brief overview of each state. It's in color so Jay will know what each item looks like for her worksheet/coloring page. I also checked out a book that listed recipes from each state that we can try. We will read a book about someone who is from our state-of-the-week as well. For Alabama, we will read Helen's Big World by Doreen Rappaport about Helen Keller.
For extra Language Arts, Tara at Embark on the Journey is working on 31 Days of Read-Alouds. I LOVE this! We will do one book a week. I will check it out from the library, print out the activity sheets that I'm interested in, and do a couple of activities that go along with the book. For example, our first week we are reading Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey. She will do some of the activity sheets, we will make Blueberry Muffins, and make Blueberry Art with a potato.
For Science, we are beginning with the Outdoor Nature Challenge.
Each day, Jay will do a lesson in Teaching Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, a few math pages from the Houghton Grade 1 Math Workbook, and Scripture Copy Work for handwriting. We will read in her Picture Bible and work on scripture memorization as well.
We will also be working on the Little Helpers at Home book so that she can receive her award pins each month. This month she is working on the Dishwashing pin and the Baking pin.
This was our first week back to school and Jay LOVED it!
For Social Studies, I found this Around the USA Study on Pinterest. I loved the idea, but wanted to do it a little differently. I will make a worksheet for each state that she can color. We will study one state a week in alphabetical order.
I found a book at our Library, The Big Book of America by Roger Hicks, that gives a brief overview of each state. It's in color so Jay will know what each item looks like for her worksheet/coloring page. I also checked out a book that listed recipes from each state that we can try. We will read a book about someone who is from our state-of-the-week as well. For Alabama, we will read Helen's Big World by Doreen Rappaport about Helen Keller.
For extra Language Arts, Tara at Embark on the Journey is working on 31 Days of Read-Alouds. I LOVE this! We will do one book a week. I will check it out from the library, print out the activity sheets that I'm interested in, and do a couple of activities that go along with the book. For example, our first week we are reading Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey. She will do some of the activity sheets, we will make Blueberry Muffins, and make Blueberry Art with a potato.
For Science, we are beginning with the Outdoor Nature Challenge.
Each day, Jay will do a lesson in Teaching Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, a few math pages from the Houghton Grade 1 Math Workbook, and Scripture Copy Work for handwriting. We will read in her Picture Bible and work on scripture memorization as well.
We will also be working on the Little Helpers at Home book so that she can receive her award pins each month. This month she is working on the Dishwashing pin and the Baking pin.
This was our first week back to school and Jay LOVED it!
Sunday, August 2, 2015
Farm Updates
This is just a small update about the farming side of our life. The Hubby has done a great job on the garden. These are a few pictures.
![]() |
| White Scalloped Squash |
![]() |
| Green Pepper |
![]() |
| Okra Plants |
![]() |
| Baby Rabbits |
Wednesday, July 22, 2015
6 Tips for Camping with a One Year Old
Our family loves to camp. We are not hardcore campers, though. I'm not big on having the little ones out there in the extreme heat/cold or storms. We've decided to go again when the weather cools off here a little bit. We've had a heat index of 100 degrees or more for the last few weeks.
This year we will have a 15 month old with us. I've been searching Pinterest for some tips to make things easier. I thought I would share with you some of the ideas that I'm going to try. After our trip, I will let you know whether they were a success or failure.
6 Tips for Camping with a 1 Year Old
1) A tent to sleep in and a tent for the little ones to play in. Extra bugs and dirt can go in the play tent and stay out of the big one.
2) A Sound Machine to help everyone sleep.
3) A Baby Carrier that can also carry baby on back or hip for hiking trips.
4) Some kind of bug repellent is a MUST. I don't really want to put any bug spray or bug lotion on the littlest one, though. I would like to try these stickers.
Creamy Baby Oil also works wonders against mosquitoes. I'm not sure about ticks.
5) I love the idea of using Johnson's Baby Head-to-Toe Disposable Washcloths to give the little ones a bath before bed so they will sleep better.
6) The Pack and Play will be another good place for the littlest one to play so that I don't have to worry about her walking into the fire or something while I'm busy.
For more camping tips, check out my Camping Pinterest Board. Let me know if you've got any good tips for camping with a one year old.
Monday, July 13, 2015
Perfect Southern Biscuits
My husband and I LOVE large buttery biscuits! No matter how hard I tried to make them, I could never find the perfect recipe. Until the day that I did! I modified that recipe, of course. I thought I would share with you how I made them. Let me know if you love them as much as we do!
How to Make Perfect Southern Biscuits
Add Self-Rising Flour to a mixing bowl. Cut in cold butter with a pastry blender until coarse crumbs form. (The pastry blender makes life SO much easier!)
![]() |
| Blending butter and flour. |
Add milk. Using a fork, stir until just moistened. Turn out onto a floured surface.
![]() |
| Dough ready to roll out. |
Lightly knead the dough with floured hands for about 30 seconds or until nearly smooth. Roll dough to 3/4 inch thickness.
![]() |
| Dough 3/4 inch thick. |
I like to use an old soup can with holes cut into the bottom to cut out 12 biscuits. Place on a greased cooking sheet with sides touching.
![]() |
| Biscuits ready to bake. |
Bake at 475 degrees for 13 minutes or until golden brown.
![]() |
| Golden Perfect Southern Biscuits |
Spread butter on top and serve warm. My husband loves his biscuits with honey.
![]() |
| Warm biscuit served with honey |
To print this recipe, pop-out the image below.
Monday, July 6, 2015
It's Time to Can Peaches!
My friend Kaity and I canned peaches for the first time this weekend. Things like this are definitely more fun to do with a friend! Since we had never canned peaches before we needed a little help. We found some awesome instructions on this post.
How to Can Peaches
Ingredients Needed:
Peaches
Water
Fruit Fresh
Equipment Needed:
Water Bath Canner
Jars, Rings, New Lids
Jar Lifter
Magnetic Lid Lifter
Knife
How we did it:
We had 3 boxes of peaches that were each a 1/2 bushel. We decided to can them in three batches. This worked well for us, but it took ALL day long. Good thing we were having fun, right?
![]() |
| 1/2 Bushel of Peaches |
Begin by washing the peaches.
![]() |
| Washing Peaches |
The peaches were then peeled, quartered, and pits removed. Use Fresh Fruit to keep them looking nice because this process takes a while.
![]() |
| Peaches ready for the jar |
The water in the Water Bath Canner was heating during this process.
![]() |
| Water Bath Canner |
The jars were washed and kept warm while the lids were in a little pot of simmering water. Then it was time to put in the peaches and the hot water before placing them in the Water Bath Canner. (Make sure to wipe off the jar rims before placing the lids on.) Process pint sized jars for 25 minutes and quart sized jars for 30 minutes. Remove the jars and place them on a towel to cool.
![]() |
| Canned peaches cooling on a towel |
Let me know how your canning process is different than mine!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)




























