Salsa Chicken

I believe I've mentioned before that I like things easy and here's another easy crock pot recipe I found at Crockin' Girls.com.  I tweaked it a bit of course, but it was still so simple,  my oldest son fixed it while I was working.

Here's your list of ingredients:
       4 frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts
       1 pckg taco seasoning mix (I used my homemade mix)
       1 can cream of mushroom soup
       1 cup Picante sauce
       1/2 cup sour cream
       1 can corn (do not drain)
    
Put the chicken in the slow cooker.  Mix the taco seasoning, soup, corn, and picante sauce in a bowl then pour over the chicken.  Cook on low for 8 hours. Mix in the sour cream just before serving.  Serve over rice. 

I ate it just as described, so did the kiddos.  Hubby likes things spiced up a bit,  so he added cheddar cheese,  salsa, and more sour cream.  Also, I think next time this is fixed,  I'll add some black beans in there.  Otherwise,  another crock pot recipe well done!!

Summer Fun 2012

Our homeschool year runs from October to October,  so we don't officially have a summer break.  However,  we still find plenty of time for summer fun.  Today,  I took the younger four someplace we had never been and it was educational (field trip).  We packed a picnic lunch and after our morning regular duties,  off we headed.  It was a mere 25 minutes from our home and a very nice, quiet place to play and have fun.  It didn't have the normal playground,  but as you will see,  my children had no trouble finding something to do. 

Campbell's Covered Bridge

 Landrum, South Carolina

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all the real dads out there.  I'm so thankful I am blessed with a loving, caring, Christian father.  He has always tried to lead me in the right direction.  Did I always follow?  Well, of course not!!  But,  he kept redirecting and eventually I thanked him for it.  Love you daddy!!

I am also thankful for the father of my children.  God has truly blessed me with a man who is interested in being a daddy, and is a wonderful example of what a father should be to our boys.  

 My handsome hubby, his dad (another wonderful father), and our two oldest boys. 

Plan for This CrAzY Week!!!

This week is even more crazy than usual.  Let me first start out with this was my weekend to work,  so I just finished up three 12 hour night shifts at the hospital.  I left early this morning only to rush home to help get the two eldest out the door to camp.  I'll add here that if I hadn't come home,  they would have forgotten their pillows, Bibles, and Mr Gamer his contact case (and that's just what I know of).  I can only hope that I will get a little sleep today since my babysitters are gone:(  Princess 1 is gonna have to step up.

Next big thing this week - I start my new job!! YAY!! I can't tell you how excited I am.  However,  little did I know that my first week on the new job would require me to be there EVERY day! I'm only part time, but the full-time person is on vacation.  I get to fill in.  Fortunately,  my new boss seems to be very reasonable and is allowing me to only work half days due to baby sitting issues (again, my baby sitter is at camp).  So,  I'm having to come up with baby sitters (not an easy task when you have more than say 2 children).  Any volunteers????  It'll all work out,  it always does:)

Now,  the menu plan for the week.  Since I will be working everyday,  I'm planning simple and easy to fix meals.

Monday - crock pot roast, potatoes and carrots

Tuesday - hamburgers and hot dogs, fries, green beans, and applesauce

Wednesday - we're going up to the camp to see our boys :)

Thursday - ravioli with garlic toast

Friday - grilled chicken, cooked carrots, mac n cheese, crescent rolls

Saturday - pizza

Sunday - Hubby's choice (within reason, keeping in mind I'll be working a half day)

I'm also hoping to get some more painting done this week!!!  Busy, busy, busy :)

Soda Bottle Rocket

For our end of year homeschool group party,  each family was suppose to bring something they had done during the year and share it with the group.  My boys studied space this year in science.    Instead of doing the normal solar system display,  I thought we could do something a little different.  We made a rocket to blast into space.  Well, obviously not into outer space,  but way up the air.  Hopefully??

We first had to drink a 2L soda.  That was the best part for my kids I think,  as they so rarely get soda.
Then,  we designed our rocket.

Not too bad, huh?  We simply took poster board and hot glued it around the bottle.  Then, we rolled the cone top around and cut out the fins and glued them on.  Add a little paint and design,  then you're done with that part.

Now comes the fun part!!  Fill the soda bottle about 1/4 to 1/2 full with water (the less water,  the higher it goes).  You need a cork with a small hole drilled through to place in the opening.  Do not turn it over until you have the bicycle pump needle in place and are ready to pump in the air.  It took us a couple tries to realize the less water,  the more fun.  Usually, it's the other way around!!

So,  I had hoped to post a video of the blast off,  but it won't upload for some reason.  So,  a few more pics.

Just a little note:  whoever is pumping the air in the bottle might get wet:)  We had a couple mishaps,  but after we figured it out,  we blasted the rocket off at least 5 times.  It was a lot of fun.

Top 5 Reasons We Homeschool

I am always getting the "are they all yours" question and I love those.  But, the looks on people's faces when they find out I homeschool are priceless.  Then,  the infamous "why" question always comes up!!  I have never been at a loss for words.  I always have multiple answers for them. So, I decided to jot down the top 5.

1.  CONTROL - It's all about control.  I want to control what my children learn and who they are  learning from.  That of course doesn't just include curriculum,  our kids learn a lot by watching and hearing what goes on around them.

2. FLEXIBILITY - Hubby owns his own business and I've worked off shifts for years in order to avoid the whole child care issues.  Our families live miles away, so dependable child care is impossible.  With our crazy shifts and schedules,  getting them to and from school would have just been crazy.  Plus,  we enjoy vacationing during the "off seasons" much better.  Disney World is so much more fun when it's not super hot and there aren't big crowds.

3. FINANCES -   We had our 3 oldest children in a very good Christian school in this area, but our tuition bill was higher than our mortgage and we decided something had to give.  Public schooling was never an option with our family for personal reasons (I'm not getting on anyone who chooses that option).   So,  we decided to homeschool.

4.  FREEDOM - If we want to do school in our pajamas, we can.  If we don't feel like starting at 8 am, we don't.  If someone is sick,  we don't have to worry about missing a school day, we can make it up on Saturday if need be.  The choices are endless!!

5.  FAMILY - An unusual reason,  I know.  For me,  it's about spending as much time with my children as possible.  Do they drive me crazy some days?  YES!! But,  I wouldn't have it any other way.  Our children grow up so very fast.  If they were all in traditional school settings,  we would be running in so many different directions,  we wouldn't even get to see each other let alone spend quality time together.  Does that mean they don"t get to participate in sports or other activities?? Absolutely not!!  Our boys play football, our oldest daughter will be starting gymnastics in the fall, they participate in church groups/outings, as well as our homeschool group functions.  We stay busy, but imagine 8 hours of school plus homework added to that!!

I love the choice we've made.  Will I continue to homeschool all through high school?  I honestly can't answer that right now.  My oldest will be starting high school and for next year,  the plan is to continue on.  We'll go year by year and see what he wants to do.  The younger ones will continue on at least through 8th grade.  It's not as easy as dropping them off everyday for someone else to teach,  but it is well worth the effort we have to put into it.  Homeschooling isn't for everyone and I realize that.  I don't push it.  I realize it is everyone's individual choice, but we LOVE it!!