End of Thanksgiving Challenge

Just got done with the Thanksgiving Challenge. I loved doing it. Thank you to Southbreeze farm for suggesting it!

Just in case you didn't see it on my sidebar, here is what I was thankful for this last month:


I am thankful for...
1. Fall, pumpkins and bags of candy
2. home church and a day home altogether
3. Election Lapbook
4. The right to vote
5. Sweet children
6. Kaedra and her many healings
7. Kaedra getting her picc line out
8. My girls' best friends.
9. the talent at my church
10. a new school week
11. My wonderful grandmother and her influence on me
12. My husband's day off and a new budget plan
13. a new nurse.
14. a friend's new pregnancy!
15. A weekend day that seemed like one
16. the Word
17. A Great day of School
18. A Husband who adores me
19. A Church that teaches the Word
20. My niece, Sherria
21. A system that, for the most part, works
22. A Clean house
23. Music that praises and worships the Lord
24. Michael's job
25. Marrying into a family where I get a great friend in the deal
26. an impromptu field trip
27. Our Almighty God, maker of heaven and earth
28. Friends that know me really well
29. Bountiful amounts of food
30. A strong marriage

Friday Fill-ins

This is my first time doing Friday fill-ins. I hope your father feels better, Janet. Thank you for the meme!

1. My stomach is queasy for some reason.


2. Cranberry Salad is what I ate the most of on Thursday.


3. The yard is covered with leaves and rather messy.


4. Home is where I'd rather be at any given time.


5. The smell of pumpkin reminds me of fall.


6. A steady tummy is what I need right now!


7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to hanging out with Paula this morning, putting up our tree this afternoon, tomorrow my plans include cleaning house and working on Christmas presents and Sunday, I want to praise the Lord!!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to my wonderful friends! I hope you all have had a blessed day and that you have a joyous holiday season.

I know this is "old school" but there is no better "Thanksgiving Song" that I can think of, than this one:



Thankful Heart by Petra
Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Thanksgiving Craft

Ethan has one too, but tore it off and refused to wear it. Oh well. :-(

Give Thanks

Why I started Crocheting again

Kaedra, my daughter, was recently in the hospital for pneumonia. I stayed with her the whole time, which ended up being a week. I kept wishing that I had some crochet with me to work on. I had some un-finished projects at home, but none of them interested me anymore. I didn't really have time to find a new project and go get the yarn and hooks and take them up there. It was driving me crazy. For some reason, I couldn't get crocheting off my mind.

Once we got home, I think within 24 hours, I had found some projects and started crocheting. I decided to make all my friends and family crocheted items for Christmas. I have been working non-stop since then and have virtually forgotten to read! I am not going to make this blog public yet because I don't want my best friend to see what I have made for her and her family. :-) I will have to make it public after Christmas.

I have a list of projects I want to do that's about a mile long. I am going to have to figure out how to get stock in a yarn company. Right now, Brittany and I are dreaming of going to a yarn store....we are hooked. HAHAH. Okay, dumb crochet joke. I have come up with a lot of those lately too. :-)

Anyway, this is a place where I am going to share what I have made, what I hope to make and what I am working on. I have recently discovered a love of crochet blogs. I love seeing the cute projects people have done! I hope that my blog inspires people as well! :-)

Simple Woman's Daybook Nov 24

Come join us in Simple Woman's Daybook
Click on the button above...

FOR November 24, 2008...

Outside my window... calm peaceful scenery, a pond that looks like glass, a (still) green field and a pretty white picket fence

I am thinking...of all the ways I am thankful to God. Of all the wonderful things God has done for us. Of endless blessings and an abundant life in His promises.

I am thankful for...My husband and all the hard work he does, my family and how we love to be together and work together and play together

From the learning rooms...nothing yet, but soon you will hear Thanksgiving hymns, you will see Thanksgiving crafts and you will hear verses about Thanksgiving being read.

From the kitchen... spiced chai latte in my cup, 3 envelope roast in the crockpot

I am wearing... my pink nightie with flip flops on it.

I am creating... a myriad of Christmas presents.

I am going...to run by church and drop off some things. To go to Walmart and pick something up.

I am reading...Intercessory Prayer by Dutch Sheets and Created to be His Helpmeet.

I am hoping... my hubby has a blessed day at work, the Zandis have fun at Knott's Berry Farm, our day is peaceful and joyous

I am hearing...Emily's incessant sweet-chatter, Ethan's bottle almost emptied, Kaedra's little giggles, Brittany upstairs on the squeaky floor

Around the house...my room needs to be cleaned and clothes put away, we are going to decorate for Thanksgiving, our dog is being fed.

One of my favorite things...Peace and joy in a new morning

A few plans for the rest of the week: Cooking for ourselves on Thanksgiving, some of the family going to Mother in law's while Kaedra and I stay here (she can't be around smoke), decorating Christmas tree on Friday after Michael gets home from work and takes a nap (he has to be at work at 3am)


Here is picture thought I am sharing...
Kaedra decorated our faces!

We give Thanks.

Give Me Your Eyes

After going to the Twilight midnight movie last night (which I will write more about later) and people watching/hearing for 2 hours, this video is really hitting me this morning. I realize that I didn't have "HIS" eyes last night. What would I have done differently? I can't think of anything right off hand, but it does make me think.....What did I miss?

Daybook Entry for Nov 17th

From The Simple Woman's Daybook

For the 17th Day of November
Outside my window...beautiful leaves, sparkling pond, birds playing
I am thinking...of how beautiful fall is
I am thankful for...so very many blessings
From the learning rooms...Brittany is reading about Women during the American Revolution, Emily is practicing her reading and getting ready to learn about Ben Franklin
From the kitchen...Broccoli, Potato, Cheese soup and grilled cheese sandwiches
I am wearing...capri sweatpants and a t-shirt with flowers
I am creating...lots of Christmas presents
I am going...absolutely nowhere today
I am reading...Intercessory Prayer by Dutch Sheets
I am hoping...Michael has a peaceful day
I am hearing...Children playing
Around the house...messes are being made by little people
One of my favorite things...yarn
A few plans for the rest of the week: taking Sherria to dinner and movies on Thursday night for her B'day (which is next week), getting flu shots and going to the Social Security office for Brittany
Here is picture thought I am sharing...
a picture Brittany painted.

It's the Year of Jubilee!

God has brought this song into my life lately. I first heard it a few weeks ago and, since then, it keeps coming into my life and mind. Today we even sang it at church for the first time! The Holy Spirit is really speaking something to me!

Days of Elijah

Pumpkin Spice Muffins Saga

I had a can of Pumpkin Pie Mix in my pantry and I really wanted some Pumpkin Muffins this morning. Seemed like an easy enough deal.

So I start searching on the web for Pumpkin Pie Mix + Muffins. Hmmmmmm. Harder than I thought. Especially since a lot of the recipes I found said NOT "pumpkin pie mix."

I found a great looking recipe for Pumpkin Oat Muffins but it was a vegan recipe and I didn't have any of the special ingredients and didn't want to keep finding substitutes. I did find a recipe that said you could mix Pumpkin Pie Mix and Spice Cake to make muffins. I knew we didn't have any spice cake mix, so I kept looking. Another recipe I found (on the Libby's site) sounded great but needed baking mix. I only have 1 cup of baking mix at the moment. I also found substitutions for baking mix but didn't want to use ALL my flour for making the baking mix! Apparently you have to make baking mix in large quantities.

Not one to give up, but also not one to waste ingredients by trying to create things that might not work, I kept looking. Nada. Nothing. Okay, back to my pantry. Maybe I had some pumpkin hidden somewhere. nope. WAIT. Is that Spice Cake??? Where on Earth did I get spice cake? And Why? Okay, who cares, back to the 'net. Let's find that recipe again.

Guess what. Yup, couldn't find it.

Okay, there has GOT to be a recipe on here with pumpkin pie mix and spice cake. I eventually found one. I did. I actually found several. I decided on one I liked but still had to substitute things and I ended up combining a few different recipes. The batter was delicious. I mean, take a spoon and eat it all up delicious. (not really a good idea with raw eggs, I know) Luckily, the baked muffins were just as good. :-)

So, here is my made-up, spliced together, substituted recipe.


1 box of spice cake
1 30oz can Pumpkin Pie Mix
1 3.4 oz box butterscotch pudding
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla flavoring
2 tbs. sour cream
1/2 c. veg. oil
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
brown sugar

Mix cake mix, pudding and pumpkin pie spice. In separate bowl mix pumpkin pie mix, sour cream, eggs, vanilla, and oil. Combine the two mixes and stir until well mixed. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full. If desired, sprinkle tops with brown sugar. For small muffins bake in a 350 degree oven for approx 25 minutes. For large muffins bake in a 350 degree oven for approx 30-35 min. (or until toothpick comes out clean)

Yummy!!!
Got lots of oohs and aaahs.
We will definitely be making this one again.

Amazing Lilly

Check out this little girl, Lilly, who knows more places on the map than my whole family combined. She was 23 months old when this was made!



Guess who's putting a map up at a lower level, very soon???

Easy Test Maker

Just found a great online test maker. I used it to make Brittany's vocabulary test. I have to tell ya, I haven't been big on giving Brittany tests up until this year (except for spelling tests). I didn't really see the point; I knew exactly how well she was doing. I have given her a few open-book in the past, but no other kinds. This year, I realized I needed to get her ready for high school. She took a short answer test about a month ago and did great - a 96%. Tomorrow she has a vocabulary test. I was just about to get started making it on MS Word when I decided to search online. The first site I found, Easy Test Maker, is great! I just made her a 50 question test. 25 Multiple choice, 23 matching and 2 short answer. It was quick, it was easy and it saves it for me! (did I mention it was free???) I highly recommend it!

I'm not sure how well Brittany will like it...I'll let ya know. ;-)

What is Blogging?

Brittany has to write a poem today called a "Definition Poem." She is struggling with it. I am trying not to give her too many ideas. So, I decided to jot my own poem down to keep out of her hair.

What is my Blog?

• An opportunity to be creative
• A way of keeping in touch with friends
• A journal of events
• A living testimony of God's goodness
• A list of movies we've seen
• A way to meet new friends
• Prayers
• A place to keep my friend's blogs
• A soapbox
• A place to be silly
• A place to share videos that amuse or touch me
• My personality manifested

That is my blog.

Kaedra's Fourth Birthday

I want to write something really wonderful and sappy about how blessed we are to have her and that she defied all the odds and that doctors said she would never walk, talk or have any kind of quality of life and how wonderful she is and how wonderful God is.

However, the blessed child wants me to play Hungry Hungry Hippo, AGAIN.

Nuff said.

What's Cooking

I just had to tell you about the wonderful smells in my kitchen:

Crockpot Chicken topped with Monterey Jack and Stuffing

and my super dee duper yummy spiced green beans (that Michael doesn't like but he's closing tonight so we are going to have them!)

saute green beans in olive oil
add garlic powder
italian seasoning
and allspice.
Saute until crispy.

Oh my.....my kitchen smells fantastic.

C'mon over, I'll make more.

Election Lapbook Pictures

We got our election lapbooks from this wonderful site. I am so grateful to her for making this wonderful lapbook! It was a breeze to use, it looks great and I didn't have to think! WOOHOO!!!

They both have this as the cover (but we put it on the back)


Here are pics from Emily's book:



(we folded up her electoral map and put it under the map index card)

Here is Brittany's:




as you can see, Brittany has a lot more in her book. The blue vocabulary book at the top middle is taped in so it made it's own page, you can move it back and forth. She also has her map in the index card pocket and has a venn diagram (comparing and contrasting McCain and Obama) behind her candidates.

Election Lapbooks!

I had planned on spending about a month studying the elections with my kids. However, a wise friend said that it would just naturally be talked about and we didn't need to stop our regular studies to learn about it. Well, now that election day is here, I realized that we didn't naturally talk about ALL the things that I would want to cover. So, yesterday we started Election Lapbooks and we will be working on them through tomorrow.

Here is the site of the Election Lapbook we are using. She did a GREAT job on making an election lap book and I highly recommend it! The only thing we have added to her book is to make a book that had what the duties of the president are.

Here are the links we have used:
This is a cool little “slide show” type thing that we used for the basis of our studies yesterday

http://www.pocanticohills.org/election/president.htm

We used this for vocab:

http://www.pocanticohills.org/election/words.htm

Here is the main page:

http://www.pocanticohills.org/election/election.htm

it has some fun stuff on it.

We went to each candidates site for their issues.

We got the red and blue states from here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_states_and_blue_states

And here is the Electoral College info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Electoral_College

Hope this helps someone not have to look up so many links!

We also played "Hail to the Chief" last night which is very fun and quite educational!

I will post pictures of our lapbooks when they are done!

Insect Identification Fun

This morning Ethan was screaming at Kaedra's window. Despite what you may think, this is a pretty rare occurrence, so I went to see what was wrong. There was a large bug on the inside of the screen. Apparently it was really bothering Ethan. Emily said he yelled at it a lot yesterday, too.



So, being the good homeschool mommy that I am, we got a jar and collected it and tried to find it on the internet. My friend was supposed to send me an identification page about a week ago, but, being the busy homeschool mommy she is, she had forgotten. I quickly emailed her and my homeschool group to see if anyone had any good sites.

She started sending me sites right away (because she sits at her computer just waiting for my emails, y'know) About the third of fourth email she sent, my bug was on the FRONT PAGE!! Hallelujah!!! Not only that, but my bug was THE BUG OF THE MONTH!!!! What a treat! I mean, how much better could we get than that?

Now, it gets even better!! My friend, the same above mentioned friend, found the same bug (well probably a different individual bug, but the same kind), across town in her yard about a week ago! How cool is that! We both found this same, extremely weird bug!

So, here is a good pic of the bug. The scientific name is Arilus cristatus. And the common name is "Wheel Bug" a type of assassin bug. We will be adding this guy to our nature notebooks!

And, for your identification pleasure (and so I can find them all later) here are a list of identification sites that I found and my friend sent me:

Bug Guide
What's that Bug
Insect Identification
Insect Identifier