Our weekend was pretty quiet.  We had to cancell all of our plans because my youngest daughter was sick.  Went to the doctor this morning and it is strep.  3 of us have it now.  While we were there, the doctor found a heart murmur in my youngest that has never been there before.  We have to go to the hospital to have some tests done wednesday.  I am praying it is a functional murmur and not more than that.

Paul was gone all weekend got back last nite.  He set a live trap for me and we caught another coon out at the coops.  I hate to have to get rid of them, but I can't let them destroy all of the hens.  My baby banti chicks got cocci and I lost two so far.  I got antibiotics in there as quick as I could once I caught it but it was too late for two roos. 

I am on our way out to the chiropractor and to pick up meds.  Hopefully I will get home in time to hang another load of laundry on the line.  Our dryer died and Paul goes on a two week lay off starting this friday so the line will have to do.

I have been reading some new blogs lately (new to me, anyway).  I have gotten some good information from them.  The first one is DeNice at www.organizedhomemakingforchrist.blogspot.com. She shares some neat videos.  One is a tour of her home with some cleaning tips and then a weeks worth of days in the kitchen with recipes.  I want to try the baked oatmeal, it sounds so good.  She is also doing a bloggy give away right now so go visit her blog soon.

Some other nice blogs are http://www.pennypinchinmomma.blogspot.com.  She gives lots of nice ideas about cutting costs.  www.givingbacktohim.blogspot.com gives alot of good kroger deal info. and cupon links.  Then one I just discovered today is www.tightwadtess.blogspot.com.  She gives lots of good money saving links and videos on how to cook depression style, give home haircuts, etc.

hope you enjoy

So far this morning, I have done feed chores and let everyone out.  I also collected eggs and watered the garden and outdoor plants.  I put a few cantelope plants in the garden.  They were the last plants I got to fill the spaces where my seeds didn't come up.

I need to get my house work done today.  I have washed one load of laundry and its ready to go into the dryer.  I want to pick up downstairs, sweep and mop.  I have to haul some clothes from the bedrooms to the basement for the yard sale next month.  I also need to make jam with some strawberries that my grandma sent down from her garden.

here is a picture I took yesterday of my chicks that hatched out several weeks ago.  They are a mix of my white leghorn bantam hen and my mille fleur d'ullce rooster.  They are getting ready to move outside this weekend

Today is the first day in a very long time where we don't have to go anywhere!  (except dh he is working this morning helping a friend) I have so many things I want to get done today. 

I need to get out to the garden and plant some pepper and squash plants that I got to fill in the spaces where my seeds failed from the cold dry snap last month.  I desprately need to weed the front garden.  I also need to mow if its dry enough.  This afternoon when hubby is home we will finish the chickens new runs.  This will be nice because I can finally get the brooder babies outside! 

I have to run laundry today, hopefully I can get some of it outside on the line to dry.  I also need to do some housework.  Maybe I can get some clothes boxed up from my closet and put down into the basement to make room for the smaller summer clothes (yippee, 18 lbs down!!) 

The next several days we will be eating food my oldest daughter prepares for suppers to complete her 4h project.  She has made some really good meals so far so we are looking forward to the next 5 nights.  Tonite it is potatoe topped beef stew.  She has 3 more menus to follow after that then she has to create her own stew recipe.

got to get busy!

I had a great trip to kroger for the tripple cupon event

I got:

8 cans of crescent rolls

3 bags of flipz pretzels

2 bottles spray and wash

1 hand soap

1 jello 10 calorie pack (my new best friends)

1 large tub country crock margerine

1 bottle tobasco sauce

1 box bandaids

2 bottles lysol 4 in 1 spray cleaner

1 bottle lysol antibacterial kitchen cleaner

1 bottle lysol bathroom cleaner

2 each suave shampoo and conditioners

and 1 bottle of suave mens shampoo plus conditioner

my total before cupons was - $48.80.  I paid - $13.59!  Not bad even though I forgot to use my crescent roll cupons which would have gotten me $2.20 more off, oh well.  I did get in a few other times and take advantage of the yoplait .45 off 6 cupon and the 50 cents off suave deoderant cupons (with the deod. at 1.19 I got two free!)

Two of my daughters had a graduation recently.  Last week Ali graduated from kintergarden and yesterday Liv graduated from 5th grade.  Here are some pics

ali with her graduation cap 

Liv with her homeroom teacher

I can't beleive that this school year is over already!  It seems like just yesterday we were picking out backpacks and school supplies.  Ali was sad to leave kintergarden, but excited to be going to school all day next year.  She can't wait to buy a lunch.  Liv is very excited to be going to the middle school, but a bit worried about the very early school bus.  Of course Im worried about the big school, high school boys next door, peer  pressure, Oh boy. 

So far its been a slow morning.  I got olivia on the bus and off to school and the other kiddos are still asleep.  I have had a nice opportunity to have a cup of coffee and enjoy reading up on blogs and my email.  There are a few blogs I like to read whenever I get a chance to get on the computer, they are www.keepingthechristianhome.com, www.moneysavingmom.com, www.homesteadmomma2.blogspot.com and http://www.organizedhomemakingforchrist.blogspot.com.  I also check out www.stretchingabuckblog.com whenever I get ready to go grocery shopping.  I like her links in the side bar where u can just click on the store of your choice and she has all of the cupon deals listed and links to printable cupons matched with the sales ad for the week.  Go visit them if you get a chance.

Today I will be cleaning house and baking some bread in the morning.  I also need to run a few loads of laundry and soak some beans for tonites supper.  This afternoon I will be picking up the girls from school then heading into town.  My daughters want to get flowers for their teachers. 

Tomorrow is alison's kintergarden graduation.  She is excited but sad at the same time.  She has loved this school year.  I am happy that we sent her. We planned on homeschooling, which I sometimes miss, but she wanted to go so badly we sent her.  She has really blossomed this year.  She also learned to read very well.  At first I didn't like their learning to read program, but now it is nice to see her pick up any book off the kids bookshelf and read it!  She has even started to work her way through a junie b jones book. 

Time for me to get to work!  have a good day

Things have been so busy around here lately!  The kids have one more week of school left then we can slow down and enjoy life for a while.  That will be nice because right now it feels like we live in the van driving from one activity to another. 

We bought chicks and ducks at tsc in march and they are just big enough to go outside.  My hatchlings should be able to go out in a week or two.  We had to reconstruct the coup last weekend and move them out.  The ducks had to get a new more secure run because of a coon attack a few weeks ago.  In all the years we have been here (14 years in september) this is the first coon we have had.  He took a chunk out of one of my ducks backs, but it is healing nicely.  We trapped and destroyed the coon yesterday.

I got both gardens planted.  I planted them two weeks apart so it would stagger the harvest.  I hope that makes it easier for canning and freezing this year.  The front garden has garlic, onions, spinach, raddishes, green yellow and lima beans, cilantro, broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce and peas all planted as seeds/bulbs. It also has cauliflour, broccoli, tomatoes, sweet banana peppers and cherry tomato plants from the greenhouse.  The back garden has all plants - tomatos, pumpkins, watermellon, acorn yellow and butternut squash, zucchini and hot peppers from the greenhouse.  It also has some onion sets and some multi-color peppers and multi-color heirloom tomatos that I started a few weeks ago in the house. 

We went to the zoo last weekend to see the new baby elephant.  Unfortunantly by the time we got there they had put it away for the day.  The girls twirled baton in the parade on monday.  It was nice because Claire walked the whole way and we didn't have to carry her this time!

We had baton on monday, baton private lessons and orchestra on tuesday.  Olivia played violin in the school orchestra concert on wednesday and 4H was thursday. Friday we all had to be at the school at 9am. Alison's kintergarden class had nursery rhyme olimpics in the morning and I volunteered to run one of the games.  It was a cute game called hickety pickety egg race.  The kids had to crab walk race with plastic eggs tucked under their chin from buckets to a hula hoop "nest" .  After that was track and field day at the park in the afternoon.  We went to a birthday party today, and are now back at home waiting for Paul (dh) to get home.  He has been on a trip since thursday so we have been missing him.

We have had all 11 of our cats in for several days because of the coon traps and alfalfa mowing so we are looking forward to letting them outside tomorrow.  They are so ornerey and I have had enough of them jumping on the furniture and shelves and dressers knocking things down.  Not to mention, their constantly meowing to go outside!  I am also excited to move the 4 youngest chicks and mallard duckling outside.  That means no more brooders to clean!!!

Tonite I still have to finish cooking supper, get everything ready for church, fold and put away several loads of laundry, and do feed chores.  Also we are re-setting the live trap to see if we get any more coons.  Hopefully after church tomorrow I can bake some bread and get the rest of the laundry done.  I will also try to get back on soon and post some recent pictures.

see ya

yesterday while I was cleaning the small chicken coup I let the chickens out to range for the first time.  They loved it!  They hatched out on september 1st and have just started laying.  Here are some pictures I took while they were out:

heres most of the gang.  I found the two eggs on the pen floor while i was cleaning.  only one hen has managed to find the nest box so far.

this is my roudy rooster. He is a bantam white leghorn and is much smaller than the picture makes him look.  He doesn't let his size bother him though, he is the king of the flock.  He is also a very good protector of his hens.

this is my tiny, timid rooster.  he is a bantam mille fleur.  he has a very sweet personality and loves to be held.  He will even sit in my lap and go to sleep.  He is scared of everything and is the first one into the coup to hide.

i think this is my prettiest hen.  she is a standard size americana.  Im still waiting for that first blue egg.

the girls call this black frizzle bantam mrs. frizzle.  she is a very moody bird and pecks my hands when I put out feed or water.  she is funny to watch because she waddles and doesnt seem to understand steps, she just keeps walking and rolls off the step and then just keeps on going like nothing ever happened

 these are my blue and blue splash andilusions.  I had a black and blue roo that went with them but I lost him last week.

last picture, this little bantam leghorn was so excited to go out she laid an egg right in the grass and just kept on eating!

hope you enjoyed my pictures.

joyful homemaker

long time no blog.  we just went through a bad cold then strep durring the busiest part of the girls baton competition season.  here is a picture update of some of the things we have been doing:

the girls home meet on valentines day

 my valentines day gift from hubby

met strawberry shortcake at mcdonalds and had happy meals

olivias orchestra concert

having fun at paul's fishing awards banquet

the girls zanesville meet

my pullets (hatched sept. 1) started laying

staff vs. student hockey game at school last friday

destination imagination saturday (they are dressed as chamelions)

This was followed by a trip to the zoo but I forgot my camera in the van so no pics.

joyful homemaker

I have been thinking about next years curriculum.  It will be our first full year of homeschooling.  We are headed to convention in april in cincinatti.  I dont want to make the mistake I did last year and buy all from one vendor.  My daughter was overwhelmed by all workbook work all day long.  It was boring for her and the testing in all subjects every friday was just to overwhelming.  I want to work with a variety this year and keep things interesting so that I dont wind up feeling frustrated and send her back to school half way through the year again. 

I will be teaching 6th grade, 1st grade and preschool.  My oldest has mixed feelings about homeschool (I dont blame her after I failed her last year). My first grader and preschooler cant wait.

I am leaning towards bob jones for engligh and spelling, christian light or abeka for math and christian light for learning to read and first grade reading and deep into the heart of reading for all the kids reading. As far as science and history I am debating doing my own thing.  I own shelves full of beautiful science and history books.  I thought of buying a rod and staff text book in each subject to use as a basic guide and we are also borrowing noeo science chemistry 1.  I also like the look of christian liberty press history. As for preschool I am going to use a combo of abeka, rod and staff workbooks and things like a felt board, bulletin board, puzzles, blocks, etc.  I got some nice felt numbers and letters and whatnot from a give away table last.supper at the public school my kiddos attend now.

I want to do some unit studies for fun, some history pocket books and some nice local field trips.  We are also hoping to join a co-op for some extra gym and art.  The girls already have baton twirling for alot of their gym and they play soccer in the spring and fall.  We have good friends (hi meghan and addy!) that we are hoping to do alot of activities with next year.  I am also going to start a keepers of the faith club and teach the kids a home ec course because I really feel they will need these skills most no matter where life takes them.  I am going to make a binder for each child to keep their work in for evaluation at the end of the year and we are hoping to scrapbook a yearbook.

I am worried I am trying to do too much, not enough I dont know.  I just want this year to go so much better than last.  I dont want to let my daughters down again.

joyful homemaker

I am doing something different this month with our menu planning.  I have been stocking up on groceries since before christmas and now every cupboard is stuffed.  Also the freezers and fridge are packed and the overflow shelf in the laundry room is full.  Now its time to eat it all.  I am not grocery shopping durring the month of February other than the necessities.  So, heres my menu for the week:

Monday - crock pot chilli soup and cornbread

Tuesday - Tacos with homemade salsa and guacamole

Wednesday - french toast and scrambled eggs

Thursday - salisburry steak mashed potatoes and carrots

Friday - manicotti with green beans and garlic bread

Saturday - potatoe soup with fresh baked bread

Sunday - Chicken and cornbread casserole

joyful homemaker

I so need to get back into a good routine.  It seems things have been crazy since the holidays but now its time to get back on track.  Even though we are still quite busy, I feel like I can get a good schedule going now.  The house needs reorganized.  I need to go thru the old toys and whatnot and get rid of some since there are new things from christmas.  I also went a little overboard on my efforts to stock the pantry and freezers and now we need to eat it!

Today I want to get alot done.  I need to put away several loads of laundry I did yesterday but never put away.  I also want to clean and sweep/mop the entire downstairs so that tomorrow I can get the bedrooms back in order.

I also want to start working out again.  I have gotten so fat lately and its time to get the weight off.  I want to lose 25 or 30 pounds.  I dont want to get super skinny or anything I just want to feel better and not have to struggle to fit into clothes and look decent.  I also want my energy back.

Here is a sneak peek at what I have been working on lately.  If i get the house all straitened back up the next few days and finish decorating  I want to post pictures.  I have always wanted to do one of those house tours that I see on other blogs.

have a great day!

What a long day.  I took four of my cats to the vet today.  Three spays and one neuter.  They are doing well but very groggy and their back legs are still quite wobbly.  I am not looking forward to doing all the pain meds tomorrow morning.

It was also very cold today, there was a heavy frost on everything this morning.  It is supposed to be warmer tomorrow, if you can call 51 warm.  It will be nice for the animals though.

I have tons of laundry to put away tomorrow.  I washed everything today but didn't get it folded or put away yet.  I also need to bake some bread, we have been out for a few days.  I am excited to use my new bosch mixer for the first time!

What a busy crazy week I have had.  Im glad this one is almost over.  I have to worm my chickens today and Im not looking forward to it.  We found out the hard way that letting the kids dig up earthworms and feed them to the chickens can actually give the hens worms  With dh out of town, I have to do this myself today and Im dreding it.  Also we cant use the eggs for at least two weeks.

My housework is behind so that is what I will be doing today.  All day.  Hopefully I will get done at a decent time and I can set up my new bosch mixer and play!  I would like to bake a few loaves of bread and some cinamon rolls.

I forgot to post my menu plan on monday, but better late than never.

 Monday -  Split pea soup with ham served with bread and butter

Tuesday - Home made pizza nite

Wednesday - dinner out at our families favorite mexican resteraunt

Thursday - potatoe soup

Friday - breakfast for dinner (pancakes)

Saturday - home made happy meals

Sunday - Tater tot caserole and green beans

joyful homemaker

A new favorite meal around here is split pea soup with ham.  It is so simple to make.  You can use any kind of beans really, but the family favorites are split peas or navy beans. 

Soak the beans overnite.  In the morning, rinse beans and put into the crockpot and turn on high.  In the food processor chop up carrots, celery and onion until very small and add to pot.  Put some ham chunks in the food prossesor and chop up into tiny bits and add to pot.  Some times I also dice up some potatoes and add to the soup but only with the navy beans.  Add a packet or two of ham flavoring (I use goya sason).

Cook on high for an hour or two then switch to low and cook until meal time. Serve topped with fresh chopped onion and bread and butter.

If you dont like ham or ham flavoring, leave it out.  The soup is equally good with a little salt, pepper and garlic and a handfull of chicken bullion cubes tossed in.

enjoy! 

Good monday morning!  We have been sooooo busy lately trying to pack the weekends full of activities before its too cold to be out so much.  I am looking forward to slowing down for a for a few weeks before all of the holiday baking, dinners and shopping starts up.

Last week I finally moved my baby chicks out of the brooder and into their own coup.  I worried about it being to cold, but the weather is certainly cooperating.  They are enjoying being outside and having more room!

We took the girls trick or treating friday.  They had a good time!  We only go to a few houses of people we know and then to the community party at the library.  They have games and prizes and snacks for the kids. I used to go to that party when I was little!

Yesterday I spent the day trying to get caught up on laundry.  I got seven loads done (boy was I behind!) and about two thirds put away.  Today I need to finish putting it all away and get caught up on the housework.  We have been so busy lately that I have only done the work that absolutely had to be done and now things are a bit disorganized. 

While I was working yesterday the girls played in the leaves.  They were being so cutel

Have a great monday!

We have really needed to reduce the grocery budget lately and menu planning is one thing that helps alot.  I find we spend alot less if we dont just go to the grocery and buy whatever sounds good that day.  We have also been shopping every other week (with dh picking up milk on the way home from work a few times each week).  We have been averaging 75 - 100 dollars every other week.  This includes all pet food, diapers, toiletries and cleaning supplies.  Here is this weeks menu plan:

Monday - navy bean and ham soup with fresh bread

Tuesday - Sloppy joe sandwiches and carrots

Wednesday - Scalloped potatoes with ham and green beans

Thursday - Apple cinamon oatmeal (crock pot) and scrambled eggs

Friday - Hamburger helper and peas

Saturday - vegetarian chilli and fresh rolls

Sunday - dd's birthday at the bowling alley Pizza!

joyful homemaker

I am participating in Org-junkies organizing round-up for the month of july.  The theme was bathrooms.  I did my half bath and moved all bathroom supplies from the extra pantry shelf in the laundry/craft (soon to be dining room) room to the linnen closet upstairs.

here is the before of the bathroom cabinet:

and here is the after:

one container is for hair things and one for feminine things and the big basket is the catch all basket.  The spare toilet paper is stacked up in the back corner.  Also in the back is the walpaper border for the room that I will put up someday.  It has a real cute celestial theme on it.

Much better, I sure like the containers better than the throw things in and slam the door real quick so nothing falls out thing I had going before.

Here is the rest of the room.  I bought a new rug and waste can the other day at kohls and target for the room. 

There is no before pic for the linnen/bathroom closet cause there was nothing there before but some old bedding and clothes that are now bagged up and ready to go to goodwill when I go in to town next.  I love to stock up at cvs and thats where most of this comes from, that and the grocery game.

joyful homemaker