I discovered JL like this.  He utilized a step stool, his toy vacuum cleaner and an empty paper towel roll to make a microphone.  With his guitar on, he was ready to rock the house out.  I love my kid…he’s got such a great imagination!

$40 worth of groceries for the 1st week in March

$25 worth of groceries for the 2nd week in March

I also had to pick up $6 worth of groceries at SuperTarget, but didn’t take a picture of it.  So good, so far.  We still have $104 left in the grocery budget.

First off, I have to say that I am in no way pushing homeschooling on anyone.  I don’t think homeschooling IS for every parent and child.  This totally depends on your current life situation, your personality as a parent, your child’s personality and his/her specific needs, what kind of support system you have, etc.  Some families have parents where both have to work…this is the economy we live in.  Some families have children with special needs which may be better addressed in a different setting.  As for us, we like the premise of homeschooling and how it gives us the opportunity to teach our children through a Biblical worldview.  This is great!  However, we have also decided that we can only make choices for our children’s schooling ONE YEAR AT A TIME.  I don’t know if I explained that well at all, but if you have any other questions, please e-mail me.

Now onto the nitty-gritty.  After much research and discussion with other mothers, we have decided to go with the classical model of homeschooling.  For more information on this, you can Google it and a lot of information can be found about it. We are currently using The Ordinary Parent’s Guide to Teaching Reading by Jessie Wise and Sarah Buffington.  JL has really, really enjoyed it.  It doesn’t come with activities or stickers or any other bells and whistles; it is a simple book on teaching your child to read.  JL has run with it…he is reading books to his little brother now.

The book that has helped me teach JL how to read.

JL just turned 4, so our homeschooling is really not that intense yet.  Our desire for him right now is that he would LOVE learning.  We want him to be a life-long learner.  Here is what our day typically looks like with homeschooling incorporated into it.

7:30-8:00-Kids wake up and they have quiet play time in their room together, so I have a little extra time to get dressed and ready.

8:00-8:30-Breakfast

8:30-9:00-Chores for me and JL (washing/drying/folding laundry, prepping for lunch and dinner, washing dishes, etc.)

9:00-9:30-Reading with JL and Caleb (the Bible and other books/audio book)

9:30-10:00-Free play for JL while I catch up on e-mail, pay bills and the like; Caleb naps until

11:30 10:00-11:00-Homeschooling with JL (consists of the reading curriculum mentioned above and a hands-on craft)

11:00-11:30-I prep for lunch while JL independently does an activity.

11:30-12:15-Getting Caleb up and changed and eating lunch together

12:15-12:30-Clean-up after lunch

12:30-1:00-Free play for JL and Caleb

1:00-2:30-Errand-running with the kiddos or taking them to the park or library

2:30-4:30-Caleb has his afternoon nap and JL has a quiet time for some of that time.  I use this time to organize something, sew/make a gift, catch up on e-mails again, read, take a small nap, return phone calls, pay more bills, prep dinner, put away laundry.  There is always SOMEthing to do.

4:30-5:00-Kids have a little more free play and we set the table and finish up dinner prep.

Ben usually gets home between 5:15 and 5:30 and we eat. That’s what our basic day looks like, though we are extremely flexible.  There are some days where Caleb naps awful…I get less done around the house.  There are some days where we have people over for lunch and we go visit someone in the morning who could use some company/encouragement.  Sometimes we have playdates with other moms and their kids.  Sometimes life just gets REALLY crazy and the schedule goes completely out of the window.  That’s not ideal, but we manage just fine.

What I consider part of homeschooling is teaching my children about loving and serving others.  It is a time in which I can teach them how to be boys of godly character, how to love truth and hate lies, how to put others before themselves.  Every moment I have with them is a time of intentionality where I can be sharing with them the Gospel and show them what it means to follow Jesus and love Him.  And, maybe I’m just doing it all wrong, but each day is a new day… I’m learning, too!

So, homeschooling or non-homeschooling moms, what things do you do with your children each day that encourages them to love learning?  How do you point them to the Gospel amidst life’s daily happenings?

JL and a snowman he made out of some modeling clay one day.  This boy loves to create and imagine, much like his own Daddy.

Oh, and you may see some repeats from last week’s menu plan, but that’s because we ate really simply last week (leftovers, sandwiches, cereal, etc.) because we were going through some unexpected trials.  I hope that it’s still worthwhile for you to glance through for some new ideas though.  And, if you have a blog with great recipes, leave a comment with your link so that I can check it out!  I’m always up for food adventures.

Sunday
Breakfast: Cereal and Yogurt
Lunch: LITTLE CAESAR’S $5 Pizza
Dinner: BBQ Chicken Wraps on Whole-Wheat Tortillas and Grapes
Snack: Bananas and Dry Cereal

Monday
Breakfast: Whole-Wheat Pancakes (from Joy of Cooking cookbook) and Grapes
Lunch: Baked Macaroni and Cheese with Whole-Grain Pasta
Dinner: Beef and Asparagus Stir-fry with Jasmine White Rice
Snack: Apple Slices and Chocolate Milk

Tuesday
Breakfast: Oatmeal and Applesauce
Lunch: Leftover Baked Ziti and Garden Salad
Dinner: Friends treating Ben and I; kiddos will eat Grilled Cheese on Homemade Wheat Bread and Peas
Snack: Graham Crackers

Wednesday
Breakfast: Cereal and Bananas
Lunch: Chicken-Tortilla Soup and Biscuits
Dinner with Community Group: Italian Cheese Bread
Snack: Cheese and Crackers

Thursday
Breakfast: Strawberry Scones and Applesauce
Lunch: Chicken Salad on Homemade Wheat Bread, Pita Chips and Pear Slices
Dinner: Chicken Cambodian Salad with Jasmine White Rice
Snack: Homemade Banana Bread

Friday
Breakfast: Classic Homemade Cinnamon Raisin Biscuits
Lunch: PB&Js on Homemade Wheat Bread and Yogurt
Dinner: At the FAMILY ROOM (church event) for us; kiddos will eat Cheese Quesadillas and Peas
Snack: Dry Cereal

Saturday
Breakfast: Cereal and Pear Slices
Lunch: Bagged Lunch of Bagels and Cream Cheese to be eaten at Science Museum in Raleigh
Dinner: Black Bean Veggie Burgers (a new recipe I’m trying out this week!) and Sweet Potato Fries
Snack: Graham Crackers

Homemade crust with star cut-outs…my kids love it.

The yummy goodness in between the crusts.

Caleb super-excited for pie.

Just for a friend

We have so many people to be thankful for!

Another for a friend

I love how scraps of cardstock and a few stickers can turn into card creations for the important people in our lives.  Do you like to make cards?  Where do you get your ideas from?

Monday
Breakfast: Baked Oatmeal
Lunch: Cheese Quesadillas on Whole-Wheat Tortillas and Yogurt
Dinner: Leftovers
Snack: Graham Crackers

Tuesday
Breakfast: Leftover Baked Oatmeal
Lunch: Grilled Cheese on Homemade Wheat Bread and Tomato Soup
Dinner: Chicken-Broccoli Casserole with Brown Rice
Snack: Bananas

Wednesday
Breakfast: Wildberry Muffins and Applesauce
Lunch: BBQ Chicken Wraps on Whole-Wheat Tortillas and Peas
Dinner with Community Group: Lentil Soup
Snack: Pear Slices

Thursday
Breakfast: Sunshine Toast and Fresh Pineapple
Lunch: Baked Mac n’ Cheese and Fresh Mango
Dinner: At a friend’s house
Snack: Homemade Banana Bread

Friday
Breakfast: Cereal and Yogurt
Lunch: PB&Js on Homemade Wheat Bread and Corn
Dinner: At Friday Fun, Food and Fellowship with Community Group ladies
Snack: Graham crackers

Saturday
Breakfast: Homemade Whole-Wheat Pancakes (from Joy of Cooking)
Lunch: Leftovers
Dinner: Beef and Asparagus Stir-Fry with Jasmine White Rice
Snack: Bananas

You will be hearing more from us now.  The absence of blog posts was due to my own coming down with the flu.  When I wasn’t resting or sleeping, I was still trying to keep up with taking care of my husband and kids and accomplishing a minimal amount of housework.  Hopefully you will be hearing more from me, but maybe not as much since I am trying to get caught up on everything else that fell by the wayside.

Thank you to those who were praying for us and loving on us by bringing us meals and just calling.  We are so blessed to be surrounded by people from our church who are so quick to serve.

Anyway, a few updates…

• February was a short month, so we were able to come in under our $175/month food budget.  I am hoping that this will the be first of many months we can do this!
• One of our new financial goals for this year was to aggressively pay off my student loans totaling $10,000.  We have been able to cut that in half!  Praise be to God who has blessed us with a hefty tax return and side-job opportunities for my hubby.  We’ve been able to throw that extra income toward our school debt.
• Our house is actually FOR REAL being built now, so we are looking to move into our first home in about 90 days.
• Ben has been juggling his many responsibilities well and even managed to get Google Analytics-certified amidst his crazy schedule.  Yay, husband!
• Homeschooling has been going well for Joshua Lee and I.  He is now able to read most of his board books out loud and is eager to tackle hard words like “extinguisher” and “xylophone.”  My oldest loves to read!
• Caleb is becoming more and more verbal.  A few new words he says are: “ight” for “light”, “moo” for “moon”, “nana” for “banana”, and  “di-pah” for “diaper”.  He is such a little ham and he loves to be funny.
• We have lots of visitors lined up who are flying in to visit with us starting in mid-March through the beginning of May.  The Mellings, my mom and my brother, my sister and then my dad…we love it!

That’s it for now.  Come back soon for more blog posts of my grocery shopping trips, meal plans, pictures of my coupon binder, etc.

Ingredients:

• 2 pie crusts (I make mine from scratch because it’s so much cheaper and yummier that way)
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1/3 cup chopped onion
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 1 and a 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 2/3 cup milk
• 2 and a 1/2-3 cups chicken/turkey
• 2 cups frozen mixed veggies, thawed (I usually do a veggie medley of peas, corn, carrots and green beans)

Directons:

• Line pan with 1 pie crust.
• Melt butter over medium heat.  Add onion  and cook until tender.  Add flour, salt and pepper (sometimes I throw in some other type of chicken-y seasoning to spruce up the filling); stir until well-blended.
• Gradually stir in broth and milk, cooking and stirring until bubbly and thickened.
• Add chicken and mixed veggies; mix well.  Remove from heat.
• Spoon mixture into crust-lined pan and top with 2nd crust.  Seal the edges and flute.  Cut slits into top crust (and decorate with leftover crust, if you’d like…).
• Bake until golden brown in a 425 degree oven for 30-40 minutes.  Let stand 5 minutes.