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Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Tubing Down the Ichetucknee River

This past weekend, out family tubed down the Ichetucknee River along with other families and boys from Boy Scout Troop 77.  It was a fantastic weekend.

We camped at the Florida O'Leno State Park http://floridastateparks.org/oleno/default.cfm in a group camping area, about 6 hours drive from Atlanta.   The girls were particularly glad to go camping. 

Ichetucknee Springs State Park
http://floridastateparks.org/ichetuckneesprings/default.cfm
The crystalline Ichetucknee River flows six miles through shaded hammocks and wetlands before it joins the Santa Fe River. In 1972, the head spring of the river was declared a National Natural Landmark by the U. S. Department of the Interior. From the end of May until early September, tubing down the river is the premier activity in the area. In addition to tubing, visitors can enjoy picnicking, snorkeling, canoeing, swimming, hiking, and wildlife viewing. October through March scuba diving is available in the Blue Hole only (you must be cave certified). White-tailed deer, raccoons, wild turkeys, wood ducks and great blue herons can be seen from the river. Picnic areas, equipped with tables and grills, are available throughout the park. A full-service concession offers food, refreshments, and outdoor products from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Tubes plus snorkeling and diving equipment can be rented from private vendors outside the park located four miles northwest of Fort White, off State Roads 47 and 238.

Tom grew up in Jacksonville and has told me on many occasions about his trips tubing down the Ichetucknee.  The tubes they used were truck tire tubes, not these "fancy" tubes with handles made specially for "tubing."

Friday, May 27, 2011

Rain and Kindness

Just 2 miles from our house is the greatest little market/lunch spot/butcher called the Oak Grove Market. http://www.oakgrovemarket.com/   This is a favorite lunch spot, and it just doesn't take long at all to walk to from our house.

Well, yesterday I had Mary Elizabeth ride the bus to the "Meat Market" after school because I didn't think I'd be able to make it to Marta to pick her up in time.  I decided I'd walk up to meet her, and we'd walk back together.  I got to the Market and found her at a booth with her friend finishing an ICEE.

(When I was growing up, it was a BIG treat to go to the 7-11 after church and get and ICEE.  We'd wait in the car while dad when in.  He'd come out with 4 small ICEEs and pass them out to us kids in the back seat.  Good times.)  

ME said she was "starving", so she ordered a grilled cheese.  While we were waiting for that, Mary Elizabeth asked if it was supposed to rain.  I said that I didn't think so.  Of course, in a few minutes it started pouring!  I was sure that by the time the grilled cheese as eaten, the rain would be over.

The rain did not cease.  It continued to rain...and lightning...and thunder.  We decided to wait it out a bit at the outside tables. Still...it rained some more.  A mom and her two kids were leaving and getting in their mini-van.  The mom asked if she could give us a ride that she had seen me walking up just a bit ago.  We assured her that the rain would be letting up and that we were going to enjoy the walk home.  Still...it rained some more.  Finally, Mary Elizabeth decided that we should walk home in the rain!  We did not have umbrellas because  I didn't think it was supposed to rain.  We headed home.

Just at the light on the corner, a friend rolled down her window and offered us a ride.  Crazily, we declined, just knowing the rain was going to stop.  No...it rained some more, and harder.  We're laughing and walking and getting wetter and wetter.  It's also thundering and lightning a little.  I'm sure we just might die.  Mary Elizabeth thinks it's awesome.

About 3/4 mile into the walk, we're drenched.  I told ME that if anyone at this point offers us a ride, we're taking it!  In a few moments, a car turns into a driveway ahead of us.  A cute young girl hops out and brings us a HUGE golf umbrella and tells us to take it and to keep dry!  She gets back into her car and drives away.  Wow!  We didn't even have time to ask her her name.  She had on a Woodward jacket and an Alpha Delta Pi sticker on her back windshield.  I'm guessing she lives in the neighborhood and is home from college.  Thank you, who ever you are!!

After that, the walk wasn't so bad.  It continued to rain pretty good the next mile or so, letting up to a quiet drizzle.  ME had put on her flip flops before we left the Market.  My sneaker were completely soaked, making that squishing noise when I took a step.

As we walked we talked about the kindness that had just been displayed to us.  There are some really nice people out there.  Mary Elizabeth decided that we should keep the umbrella with us, and if we ever see someone in need of an umbrella, that we give this one to them.  What a great idea!

Thursday, May 26, 2011

May Mayhem

Remind me next May how busy and crazy it is!  Just about every day on the calendar is filled with events/activities...

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Book List

Reading is encouraged at our house.  This book list is for all ages.  Most good for older kids and up.  I'm just about finished with Anna Karenina by Tolstoy (#31).  It's very long.  It's okay.  I've italicized  the ones I remember reading.  I remember A Town Like Alice (#96)being very good.


1. Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings – JRR Tolkien 
3 Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series – J.K. Rowling
5 To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee
6 The Bible - 
7 Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four – George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials – Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations – Charles Dickens
11 Little Women – Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles – Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 – Joseph Heller 
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare 
15 Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier 
16 The Hobbit – JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong – Sebastian Faulks
18 Catcher in the Rye – JD Salinger 
19 The Time Traveller’s Wife – Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch – George Eliot  
21 Gone With The Wind – Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby – F Scott Fitzgerald 
23 Bleak House – Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited – Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment – Fyodor Dostoyevsky 
28 Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck 
29 Alice in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield – Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia – CS Lewis
34 Emma – Jane Austen
35 Persuasion – Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – CS Lewis 
37 The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin – Louis De Berniere
39 Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh – AA Milne
41 Animal Farm – George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code – Dan Brown 
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney – John Irving
45 The Woman in White – Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables – LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd – Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies – William Golding
50 Atonement – Ian McEwan
51 Life of Pi – Yann Marte 
52 Dune – Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm – Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy – Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities – Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World – Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time – Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera – Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck
62 Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History – Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones – Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo – Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road – Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure – Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary – Helen Fielding
69 Midnight’s Children – Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick – Herman Melville 
71 Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens
72 Dracula – Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island – Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses – James Joyce 
76 The Bell Jar – Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons – Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal – Emile Zola 
79 Vanity Fair – William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession – AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens 
82 Cloud Atlas – David Mitchell 
83 The Color Purple – Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day – Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary – Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance – Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web – EB White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven – Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection – Enid Blyton 
91 Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad  
92 The Little Prince – Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory – Iain Banks
94 Watership Down – Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces – John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers – Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet – William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl  
100 Les Miserables – Victor Hugo

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Dinner Tonight!

For dinner last night, we had "veggie plate."  I sauteed cabbage (yummy!), green beans (Steamfresh), rolls (Sister Shubert's) and our new favorite- Velveeta Down-Home Macaroni & Cheese.  Caroline said the mac is as good as Napoleon's.  (Napoleon's is a new restaurant right down the street from us.)  Thank you, Caroline!

Velveeta Down-Home Macaroni & Cheese

What You Need

1/4 cup butter or margarine, divided
1/4 cup  flour
1 cup milk
1/2 lb.  (8 oz.) VELVEETA Pasteurized Prepared Cheese Product, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 cups elbow macaroni, cooked
1/2 cup  KRAFT Shredded Cheddar Cheese
6 RITZ Crackers, crushed (about 1/4 cup)

Make It

HEAT oven to 350°F. MELT 3 Tbsp. butter in medium saucepan on medium heat. Whisk in flour; cook 2 min., stirring constantly. Gradually stir in milk. Bring to boil; cook and stir 3 to 5 min. or until thickened. Add VELVEETA; cook 3 min. or until melted, stirring frequently. Stir in macaroni. SPOON into 2-qt. casserole sprayed with cooking spray; sprinkle with Cheddar. Melt remaining butter; toss with cracker crumbs. Sprinkle over casserole. BAKE 20 min. or until heated through.   

Monday, May 23, 2011

Summer Schedule Final

After a super busy weekend of soccer tournaments and strings performance, I've finalized the summer schedule.

Summer Daily 2011
  • make bed
  • clean room
  • eat breakfast
  • brush teeth
  • cursive practice (one page from book and name)
  • math pages
  • read-30 minutes
  • extra chore (I decide--pull weeds, water plants (indoor/outdoor), recycling, vacuum, dust, put yard clippings at curb, put recycling at curb, put trash at curb, shred papers, sharpen pencils...)
Summer Weekly 2011
  • Monday- Library 
  • Tuesday- "big" clean day (art closet, book shelves, ping pong porch, backpacks, soccer bags)
  • Wednesday- Cook day (eat by candlelight)  Kids cook dinner
  • Thursday- Write a letter
  • Friday- Lunch with dad
Field Trips 2011
  • Fox Theater Tour (see a movie)
  • Historic Downtown tour
  • Oakland Cemetary
  • Archibald Smith Plantation Home
  • DeKalb History Center
  • White Water
  • Aviation Museum
  • IKEA (We always go to IKEA the first week out of school...eat and play, although the kids are too big for the playroom now.)

Thursday, May 19, 2011

High Flight-Poem by John G. Magee, Jr.

Today was the 6th grade Chorus performance down at Woodward.  One of the songs sung was this poem, High Flight.  After reading the back story, I had to hold back the tears.  The children's grandfather flew planes for the Navy.

 

 

High Flight

Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds, — and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of — wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air. . . .


Up, up the long, delirious burning blue
I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or ever eagle flew —
And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.
— John Gillespie Magee, Jr
During the desperate days of the Battle of Britain, hundreds of Americans crossed the border into Canada to enlist with the Royal Canadian Air Force. Knowingly breaking the law, but with the tacit approval of the then still officially neutral United States Government, they volunteered to fight the Nazis.

John Gillespie Magee, Jr., was one such American. Born in Shanghai, China, in 1922 to an English mother and a Scotch-Irish-American father, Magee was 18 years old when he entered flight training. Within the year, he was sent to England and posted to the newly formed No 412 Fighter Squadron, RCAF, which was activated at Digby, England, on 30 June 1941. He was qualified on and flew the Supermarine Spitfire.

Flying fighter sweeps over France and air defense over England against the German Luftwaffe, he rose to the rank of Pilot Officer.

On 3 September 1941, Magee flew a high altitude (30,000 feet) test flight in a newer model of the Spitfire V. As he orbited and climbed upward, he was struck with the inspiration of a poem — "To touch the face of God."

Once back on the ground, he wrote a letter to his parents. In it he commented, "I am enclosing a verse I wrote the other day. It started at 30,000 feet, and was finished soon after I landed." On the back of the letter, he jotted down his poem, 'High Flight.'

Just three months later, on 11 December 1941 (and only three days after the US entered the war), Pilot Officer John Gillespie Magee, Jr., was killed. The Spitfire V he was flying, VZ-H, collided with an Oxford Trainer from Cranwell Airfield flown by one Ernest Aubrey. The mid-air happened over the village of Roxholm which lies between RAF Cranwell and RAF Digby, in the county of Lincolnshire at about 400 feet AGL at 11:30. John was descending in the clouds. At the enquiry a farmer testified that he saw the Spitfire pilot struggle to push back the canopy. The pilot, he said, finally stood up to jump from the plane. John, however, was too close to the ground for his parachute to open. He died instantly. He was 19 years old.

Part of the official letter to his parents read, "Your son's funeral took place at Scopwick Cemetery, near Digby Aerodrome, at 2:30 P.M. on Saturday, 13th December, 1941, the service being conducted by Flight Lieutenant S. K. Belton, the Canadian padre of this Station. He was accorded full Service Honors, the coffin being carried by pilots of his own Squadron."

Photo courtesy: Captain Keith Moody

John's parents were living in Washington D.C. at the time, and the sonnet was seen by Archibald MacLeish, who was Librarian of Congress. He included it in an exhibition of poems called 'Faith and Freedom' in February 1942. And after that it was widely copied and distributed. These copies vary widely in punctuation, layout, and capitalization, as I've found out from readers! The original is in the Manuscript Division of the Library of Congress, and I think I've transcribed it correctly. Note that most printed versions use "... even eagle" but the original seems to be "... ever eagle," with similar penmanship to the preceding "never."



Many thanks to http://www.skygod.com/quotes/highflight.html for this information.

Cooking with the kids

This morning my 14 year old needed to make a galette to take to French class.  He's loves French and has a super great teacher.  He prepped the ingredients last night and asked me to wake him at 5:45 this morning.  His sister came down while he was making it and wanted to help some.  (I only had to show him where stuff was and maybe what utensil to use...didn't have to help much at all.)  What a fun morning of French food making we had.  
 
 
I didn't get to sample the galette before he headed out the door, but it sure looked tasty.  He'll let us know how it tastes and what his classmates thought.  If they liked it, I plan to make it for our family for dinner one night.  (Actually, I'll have Thomas make it for us since he already knows how.)  I'll probably serve it with a big green salad.  It's super easy.
 
 
Mediterranean Galette


Ingredients:

1 package of puff pastry sheets
1 egg,Beaten with 1 tsp water
1(6.5-ounce) packages of Alouette Sundried tomato
1/3 cup diced red peppers
1/3 cup sliced black olives
1/3 cup crumbled cooked Italian sausage*

Roll out 1 sheet of puff pastry into a 10" square. Using a dinner plate as a guide, cut out one 10" circle. Place it on a ungreased baking sheet.
Brush the edges of the circle with the beaten egg mixture. Spread the Alouette to within 1" of the edge.

Sprinkle with the peppers and olives and sausage.

Roll out remaining sheet of puff pastry in the same manner. Make a small hole in the center of the pastry, about 1-1/2" ( can use a very small cookie cutter)

Place the pastry on top of the Galette align the edges and press to seal using a fork.

Brush the entire Galette with the remaining egg wash. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes.




* May substitute crab, shrimp or pre cooked chicken in place of the sausage.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Candy!

I definitely have a sweet tooth.  I can generally pass up on the salty stuff.

My favorite candies (not in any particular order):
  • Twizzlers (ate gobs of these after each pregnancy)
  • chocolate covered peanuts (Publix has a good double dipped kind)
  • Razzles
  • bubble gum 
  • Jr. Mints (might be the favorite)
  • Dove Chocolates with caramel in the middle

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

New Cell Phone Plan for Less!

I am going to be saving $20 a month on my cell phone bill!!  I've just signed up for the Straight Talk phone. www.straighttalk.com  I will pay $30 a month for 1,000 texts/1,000 minutes and NO CONTRACT.  (For $45 I could get unlimited, but don't need that.)  I was even able to get a FREE phone (reconditioned) and FREE shipping on the phone.

Right now I have Verizon and pay almost $50 a month for 450 minutes and NO texts!  Texts are extra.  And guess what?  Straight Talk uses the Verizon network!  Whoo-hoo!

My phone will arrive in 3 days.  I will activate it on-line and be able to port my existing number to the phone!

Monday, May 16, 2011

Veggie Co-op

About 7 years ago or so I joined a veggie co-op in the area.  The co-op consists of 12 families who pool their money together to buy fruits and vegetables at Collins Bros. Produce www.collinsbrosproduce.com at wholesale prices.  Not only has this saved our family money, we have learned to love and eat a larger variety of produce.

Here's how it works.  One of the members is the coordinator.  I was the coordinator for two years at the very beginning of my co-op days.  The coordinator collects $30 from each member (family) each month.  The coordinator makes a shopping calendar where each family is assigned two shopping days for the year.  The first and third Thursdays are shopping days.  On co-op day, the person (family) in charge of shopping calls Collins Bros. to make the order, drives to the warehouse, picks up and pays for produce, returns to coordinators house, divides produce between 12 baskets, and then calls each member to pick up.  The coordinator pays back the shopper from money collected. 

Being the shopper takes a bit of your time, but you only shop 2 times a year, and you get to choose the produce you know that you and your family love.  The other 22 times of the year, you are at the mercy of the other shoppers.  (I still love the surprise of seeing what I get!)

Ordering produce: $180 per shopping trip, paying equal amounts for fruits ($90) and vegetables ($90).  Of course, produce is bought by the case.  Produce prices are affected by season and other factors.  Prices change week to week, month to month.  We're always trying to get the best price possible, passing up on a fruit or vegetable if the price is too high that week.

So every other week, each family gets a large box of produce for $15.  Usually each box has 5-6 different fruits and 5-7 vegetables.  I guess we may save half over what you can pay at the grocery store.

Any person can call and order from Collins Bros., but you must purchase the quantity they offer.  For example, lettuce is packaged at 24 heads per case, apples come around 100 a box etc.  Anyone can start their own co-op.  12 families is a good number because most of the produce is easily divided by 12 and the quantities can be large.

Friday, May 13, 2011

I Got Vaccinated Today

So...I went in for my annual exam with my OB/GYN today.  I always go around my birthday.  That's how I remember. (Plus, they send me a postcard to remind me, too....although one year I didn't get the post card and went TWO YEARS without my check-up.  It didn't seem like 2 years!  That's when I decided that I would go around my birthday.)  I schedule my mammograms for Back-to-School.

While at the OB, they suggested I get the Tdap vaccine.  I remember my kids getting this vaccine (for kids its called DTaP.)  It vaccinates you against diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis.

Diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis are serious diseases caused by bacteria. Diphtheria and pertussis are spread from person to person. Tetanus enters the body through cuts or wounds.

DIPHTHERIA causes a thick covering in the back of the throat.
It can lead to breathing problems, paralysis, heart failure, and even death.

TETANUS (Lockjaw) causes painful tightening of the muscles, usually all over the body.
It can lead to “locking” of the jaw so the victim cannot open his mouth or swallow. Tetanus leads to death in up to 2 out of 10 cases.

PERTUSSIS (Whooping Cough) causes coughing spells so bad that it is hard for infants to eat, drink, or breathe. These spells can last for weeks.
It can lead to pneumonia, seizures (jerking and staring spells), brain damage, and death.

My nurse told me there's a resurgence of folks getting these diseases, and that they're encouraging all their patients to get the vaccine.

Although children get vaccinated, older people still need protection. A vaccine called Tdap is similar to DTaP. A single dose of Tdap is recommended for people 11 through 64 years of age. Another vaccine, called Td, protects against tetanus and diphtheria, but not pertussis. It is recommended every 10 years. There are separate Vaccine Information Statements for these vaccines.

The vaccine I got today will last 10 years.  My arm hurts a little.



I got this information from:
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Vaccine Information Statement
DTaP (5/17/07)
42 U.S.C. § 300aa-26

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Conversation Starters

Every have the whole family together and not know what to talk about?  Here are some conversation starters.  Put the questions in a bowl and draw one out for discussion. (My answer in parenthesis.)

  • Where would you like to go camping or backpacking? (Grand Canyon)
  • What friend's family tradition do you find interesting?  Why?
  • If you had to eat one thing for every meal for a week, what would you want it to be?  (bread!)
  • What language do you wish you could speak? (Spanish)
  • What family tradition do you hope to continue, even 10 years from now? (gingerbread at Christmas)
  • If your family had a theme song, what would it be?  (Love Will Keep us Together)
  • What meal would you like to know how to cook?
  • What was your favorite family vacation? (Williamsburg)
  • What's the best meal you've eaten this week? (Tacos at the Mexican place down the street, thanks Laura)
  • What family tradition would you like to start?
  • If you had $500 to travel anywhere, where would you go?
  • What food would you try for $100?
  • If you were to name a child after someone at the table, who would it be?
  • If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?  (Hawaii)
  • Which memory do you wish you could relive?

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Field Trips for Summer 2011

Okay, I think I've decided what we'll do for field trips this summer.

I just signed up for FREE bowling (www.kidsbowlfree.com).  We've signed up for the past two summers.  Last summer, I bought bowling shoes online and Play It Again Sports, so it really was FREE.  Otherwise, you must pay for shoe rental.  The kids can each bowl 2 free games everyday for the entire summer.  I  even get my mom to sign up the kids in Charlotte, so when we go there, we get FREE bowling.  I just sit and watch.  Adults are not free.  (PS...they try to sell you some other stuff along the way to getting your FREE bowling.  Simply click on the "no thanks" at the bottom of the page to skip the hard sell.)

Next, I'm going to sign our family up at the Atlanta Preservation Center www.preserveatlanta.com.  I'll get the family membership for $60 and then each week, we'll take a walking tour of some part of Atlanta.  The Family Membership includes 2 adults and any children under the age of 18.  If I don't sign up, it's $10 and adult and $5 a student for each tour.  Tours offered: Fox Theater, Sweet Auburn/MLK District, Inman Park, Druid Hills, Ansley Park, Historic Midtown.  Each tour is 1-2 hours.  We'll ride MARTA to our destinations.  The tours don't fit in perfectly with my weekly schedule (field trip on a certain day), but I'm flexible. 

I'm also hoping to go see some movies at the Fox.

I'd also like to take the kids on  a tour of Oakland Cemetery. http://www.oaklandcemetery.com/guidedTours.html  ME says, "That's depressing."  I told her that folks used to go on picnics there.  There's even a twilight tour.

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Summer Schedule

This was our summer schedule for 2010.  I'll change it up  some for 2011. 

Monday-Library
Tuesday-Dad gets home early
Wednesday-Cooking day (a child helps with dinner), eat by candle light
Thursday- Write a letter (The President, favorite teacher, relatives)
Friday- Field Trip day

Field Trip Ideas from 2010- (Ideas...we only did a few.)
Circus at Calloway Gardens
High Museum
Oakland Cemetary
Strawberry/Blueberry Picking
Aviation Museum-Warner Robbins
Jimmy Carter Library
Paper Museum
State Capital
Movie
Agrirama
Archibald Smith Plantation
Talulah Gorge State Park


Summer Daily 2010
Make bed
clean room
eat breakfast
brush teeth
practice musical instrument
cursive practice
math pages
read 30 minutes
extra chore-water plants, dust, sweep, recycling, pick up stick, pull weeds, vacuum

Monday, May 9, 2011

Easy Easy Easy Yummy BBQ Chicken

I've got to go to the grocery store today!  Out of eggs, bread and almost milk...When I'm there, I plan to pick up a whole chicken to make BBQ chicken, a family favorite.

Easy BBQ Chicken
1 whole chicken
1 bottle of favorite BBQ sauce (we love Sweet Baby Rays...often buy1 get 1 free at Publix...and if you have a coupon....)
Salt and pepper the chicken and put on crock pot on high for around 5 hours until meat falls off the bones. Take meat off bones, discard fat/bones and any liquids from crock pot. Return shredded meat to crock pot.  Add 1/2-3/4 bottle of sauce to meat (more or less to your liking).  Warm on low setting. To serve: wrap meat in tortilla or large lettuce leaf.  


How easy is that?  Freezes well, too. 

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Recyclebank

I just printed a coupon at Recyclebank website to get $3 off my next trip to Publix if I spend $30 .

It's FREE to join, and costs NOTHING to participate.  Do fun little quizzes and stuff and earn POINTS.  Points can be traded in for COUPONS and other stuff.

If you follow my link (cut and past into your web browser),  I'll get 10 points when you sign up.

http://www.recyclebank.com/referafriend/?___store=us&bl=bWFyY3ltY2tlYW5AeWFob28uY29t&utm_campaign=Refer-a-friend&utm_medium=direct%20link&utm_source=U4057951&cm_mmc=Refer-a-friend-_-direct%20link-_-U4057951-_-referral

Happy Mother's Day

I hope all you moms out there have a great mother's day.  Over a week ago I started reminding my clan that Mother's Day was coming up.  I even offered suggestions about what I might like to receive...(pizza cutter, grocery store flowers)

This morning I came down to the kitchen and on the breakfast room table was a lovely bouquet of flowers in a cute pitcher, breakfast (made by ME) of oatmeal, sliced bananas, tea, and a wrapped gift (pizza cutter!) and homemade cards.  Wonderful!

The card from ME was soooo sweet:

Hello there, sleepy eyes,
I have a surprise.
No, it's not money,
but its almost as sweet as honey.
It's not clothes,
or shoes to cover your toes
Its not a book
or a personal cook.
Or a bridge made out of planks.
It is a Thanks.
Thanks for....
  • Being an awsome mom
  • Being a personal chef
  • Being a chaffeur
  • Being a maid
  • Being a game board player
I could list a thousand more.



CG also made me an awesome card.....

To: THE BEST MOM EVER!

Best mom ever
I'd never change her
I cuddle with her like she's fur
Always there never far


What awesome kids.

(T wished me a happy mother's day after he returned from his school over night trip.  I've got to work on that boy.)

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Keeping Lettuce

I'm in a veggie co-op.  Have been for about 6-8 years now.  Let me tell you about that later. 

We got two large, beautiful heads of romaine lettuce in our box Thursday.  I think romaine is my favorite lettuce.  It will take us a couple of weeks to go through it all.  Here is the way I keep it, so it will last.

Step 1: Wash your lettuce.
Step 2: Spin in a salad spinner to get most of the water off the leaves.

Two words about a salad spinner-Must Have!  If you don't have a salad spinner, run out and get one right now.  (I have an awesome OXO that my sister gave me as a present.  Awesome present.  This past Christmas, I was wrapping presents for a charity at Lenox Mall, and this guy was giving his sister (or somebody) a stainless steel salad spinner.  Very cool.)


Step 3: Roll out paper towels on the counter.
Step 4: Lay the cleaned and mostly dry leaves on the paper towels.
Step 5: Roll up the paper towels around the lettuce leaves jelly roll fashion.
Step 6: Put this into a plastic grocery bag and store in the fridge.

This will keep your lettuce "forever!"  And it's all clean and ready to eat when you're ready.

Friday, May 6, 2011

What to do with all of those wonderful Vidalia onions...

I love, love, love Vidalia onions.  I think if I had another daughter, I'd name her Vidalia.

A favorite recipe introduced to me by my sister's mother-in-law--Hot Vidalia Onion Dip.  Quick, easy and delicious!

Vidalia Onion Dip

2 Cups chopped Vidalia onions
2 Cups shredded swiss cheese
1 Cup mayonaise

Mix all ingredients together.  Put in oven safe dish and bake at 350 degrees until hot and bubbly and starting to brown.  Serve with water crackers or cracker of your choice.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Alarm Clocks

Life changing event- alarm clock for each kid.

When my first child started kindergarten, we were living in an apartment down the street from the house that we were remodeling.  All three kids shared a room in our two bedroom place.  All three kids got up at the same time to get ready to take Thomas school and to drive him over. It didn't seem to be a hassle; everyone being happy to get going. In February of that year, we moved into our newly remodeled house.  The baby had her own room, but Thomas and ME shared. In the new house, all the bedrooms are upstairs.  Then things seemed to change.

I'm an early riser, going downstairs first thing for some quiet time, breakfast etc. before the house awakens.  When time for Thomas to get up, I'd have to, first of all, keep an eye on the clock, then go back upstairs to shake Thomas awake.  Sometimes I'd have to go up again to get him up.  Then I'd instruct him to get dressed/brush hair/put on shoes...hurry up....wear this/come to breakfast...blah,blah,blah.  This was a little too much for me.  I wanted this monkey off my back.  I decided after a week or so of this that Thomas (5 years old) would have to be a little more independent and get up to his own alarm clock.

So Thomas got his very own alarm clock!  (Actually, he learned that the digital clock that was already in his room was an alarm clock.   We got it for him when he was really little because he was a super early riser.  We taught him to not come into our room until 6AM.  We had to tape over the "minute" digits with black electrical tape because some times he'd show up in our room at 4:36 or 5:16 or whatever.)  Starting the night before the next day of school, he learned all about the alarm clock (mainly how to turn it off) and set it to wake the next morning.  Along with setting the alarm the night before, clothes were decided on and instructions were given to get dressed (head to toe--brush hair/clothes/shoes and socks) and to arrive in the breakfast area to eat just as soon as possible.  Can I tell you how freeing this was!!  I no longer had to keep an eye on the clock in the morning.  I didn't have to trudge back upstairs.  I didn't have to shake/beg/plead for Thomas to get up.  I didn't have to monitor clothing selection.  I didn't have to remind to brush hair/get dressed/put on shoes and socks.  Thomas was all ready for school when he showed up for breakfast.  I just had to get breakfast on the table.

Of course, as the girls were entering kindergarten, they each learned all about the alarm clock.  The only time we might have a problem is if the alarm is not turned on!  Other than that this system continues to work beautifully. 

I bless the person who invented the alarm clock.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

The Best Marriage Advice

I was married 18 years ago.  Time flies.  I really don't feel any older than I did when I got married.  Well, maybe I do when my hips bother me. That's another story.  Anyway....

My mom is the kind of mom that is laid back, really doesn't get in your business, is there if you need her, sort of mom.  She rarely tells you what to do, unless you ask. Well, when I got engaged and right before getting married, she did offer me some wedding advice.  Two bits of advice.  It seemed very simple at the time, but really was very wise. 

She said (I'm not sure these are the exact words, but it's very close to what I remember), "Marcy, I have a little advice for you before you get married.  Make sure your husband always feels important.  And don't go into debt." 

Wow!  What important words.
So true, but not always easy to do.  I do believe this wisdom from my mother has helped us along in our 18 years of marriage.  I do hope if you ask my dear husband if he feels important to me, he would say yes.  The only debt we have is our house.

Thanks, Mom, for the great advice!  I love you.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

How Does My Garden Grow?

I really didn't like tomatoes until I started to grow my own.  Now I love them!  I have one of the shadiest lots in the neighborhood, with the middle of the front yard being the sunniest.  I can't plant there because I have 3 kids who like to play "tackle loco," ultimate Frisbee, soccer, "flashlight tag" etc. in the front yard.  That means I have to find spots here and there to plant my veggies.

This year I have two tomato plants in the corner of the front yard with big tomato cages around them.  Hopefully a basketball or sneaker won't flatten them.  At the corner of the house, I've planted a bell pepper and a couple of sunflowers. (I have mixed success with sunflowers.  Most of the time the bunnies eat them before they get too big. )  Down the side of the house between the carport and sidewalk (about 1 1/2 feet of  dirt between carport and sidewalk), I've planted basil (one plant and then a packet of seeds, nothing happening with the seeds yet) and 2 more tomato plants.  I have rosemary and oregano there already that I planted a couple of years ago.  They look great.  If you need any rosemary, come see me.

Before planting, I amend the soil with some sort of nature's helper/vegetable soil.  Then I just throw them in the ground and water them and cross my fingers.  Last year was a bad year for my garden.  The year before was great! (Bumper crop of tomatoes!)  Don't know why. 

Other things I've grown: yellow crook neck squash (kinda prickly fuzzy), jalapeno peppers (planted 2 of these that year, loads of peppers), cayenne peppers (looked pretty, never did anything with them), that bean plant that comes home with your kid from school because of a science project (actually grew and ate those beans).  Growing stuff is so fun.  It's like watching a miracle happen.

When we have a lot of tomatoes we love love love Bruschetta (recipe courtesy of my brother and his wife!) Everyone loves this one!!

Bruschetta
1 1/2 pounds ripe juicy tomatoes
1 clove garlic - minced
1-2 teaspoons capers
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh oregano-shredded 
olive oil (a couple of tablespoons?)

Peel and roughly chop tomatoes. (To peel tomatoes: put and X on the stem end, drop in boiling water for 1 minute, then plunge in ice water one minute...peel those skins right off.)
Mix all ingredients together.  Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve on little toasted rounds of bread. (slice a baguette, brush with olive oil, toast in the oven)

I'm very fortunate that my friend, Jenny, brings me okra from her mom's garden in the summer.  I don't grow okra, but I love to fry a big batch every now and then.

Monday, May 2, 2011

Yellow Gloves

Honestly, I can do just about any household chore if I have my yellow gloves on (sometimes the gloves are blue or purple, but most of the time yellow...).  Not only do the yellow gloves make gross jobs a little less gross, they keep my hands from getting chaffed and dry.  Sometimes I even glob my hands with lotion before donning my gloves for a little extra moisturizing.  Ever since being on my own after college, I've worn yellow gloves for doing the dishes (at least).  When in college and manager of a Bruegger's Bagels there, there was a girl who was a "hand model" who worked at the store, and she always had her yellow gloves with her at all times to protect her hands!  I'm not a "hand model," but I must have my yellow gloves.

Sunday, May 1, 2011

Coupons!!

Yes, I'm a Couponer.  I'm always looking for and using coupons for just about anything I can.  www.TheKrazyCouponLady.com helped me to organize my coupon binder and www.iheartpublix.com and www.southernsavers.com help me match up coupons.

Where do I get my coupons?  Sunday paper, my sister, my boss, my neighbors.  I ask and I receive.  Thanks, friends.  Also, from the websites mentioned above, they have links to coupons you can print from your computer.  (Note: you can usually print 2 coupons from a particular link from one computer; if you have another computer in the house, you can print two more from there etc.)

Just this week at Publix, I was able to buy awesome Bic disposable razors that are usually $5.49 for a profit of 24 cents.  Yes, I was paid to buy razors.  I had five coupons.  I bought 2, gave 2 coupons to the guy who walked me to my car, and have 1 more left I'll use when I go to Publix again this week.  Every week there are items I get for absolutely free or get paid to take out of the store.   Check out those websites!!