Homeschooling: A Full Time Job

When I take on a project, I try to do it well. Homeschooling is no exception. Now that doesn’t mean I have it all figured out by a long shot. But each year I do my best to find the resources that my children need to increase their knowledge in the necessary areas. Researching those resources takes a lot of time and energy. And as anyone who has taught others knows, different people learn in different ways. So observing and then taking those characteristics into consideration while choosing material also takes time and energy. Then you actually have to implement the material which also takes time and energy.

So for those of you who are homeschooling, remember that this is your job. And there is a reason why you feel that there is very little time for other activities.

For those of you who think that homeschoolers should be able to drop everything at a moment’s notice, consider what all might be involved before being insulted when your friend says she can’t do something. It may be that she realizes she needs to guard her homeschool time so that she can do a quality job.

 

There is so much more I could say on the subject but I will leave it at this for now even though I feel I am not doing the subject justice at all. But at least it is food for thought.

Household Helps: Grocery Money

Setting aside a certain amount of money for groceries each month can be a helpful way of keeping a handle on spending. But what about when that isn’t enough and you find yourself short on grocery cash before the next period?

Split your total amount apart into the number of weeks in your period.

So if you pull grocery cash once a month…split your total into 4. Keep 1/4 out of the first week and set the remaining aside. Then each week, pull 1/4 more out.

Monthly: $800

Week 1; $200
Week 2: $200
Week 3: $200
Week 4: $200

No more stressing because you need vegetables and milk the last week before you pull money again. You have fresh money each week!

Mom Notes: Priorities

Do you struggle with taking on more projects than you should?

Does it leave you stressed out with not enough time?

The following idea did not originate with me but it makes a lot of sense. Try rearranging the rocks in your jar and let me know how it goes.

BIG ROCKS GO IN FIRST - What are my big rocks?

-Things that must have my attention - Things others cannot do.

MEDIUM ROCKS ARE NEXT - What are my medium rocks?

- Things that may enrich my life or the lives of others but are not essential

SMALL ROCKS ARE LAST - What are my small rocks?

- Things that would be nice to do but don't add much long term value to my or my family's life

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THE KEY

Say NO when the jar is too small for a medium or small rock!

Freezer Helps: Turkey for Casseroles

Today's post is simple but quite handy. Our family isn't a real fan of turkey dinners. But it is nice to pick up meat on a good deal around holiday time. So I will usually bake one and then package it up for casseroles. It ends up being used for chicken pot pie or chicken divan although hot turkey sandwiches is a possibility too.

Freezer Helps: Brown Rice / Quinoa

It is great having single portion sizes of brown rice/quinoa mix ready to pull out for a quick lunch or dinner side dish.

I like to bake my brown rice using Alton Brown's recipe as I prefer a coarser texture.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/…/a…/baked-brown-rice-recipe.html


After soaking, I cook my quinoa on the stovetop just like white rice. Simmer 20 minutes covered. Turn off burner and let sit 10 minutes covered.

Using 1-1/2 cups dry brown rice and 1 cup dry quinoa worked perfectly. Once cooked, mix together and fill containers in the portion sizes you use.

Freezer Helps: Spaghetti Sauce

Kitchen Helps: Cream of Sorghum

Discovery for the Day

Cream of sorghum tastes just like cream of wheat. 1 part coarse ground sorghum to apx 4 parts milk. Bring to boil and cook until desired consistency. (If you usually make your cream of wheat with water, you could probably do the same with the sorghum.)

I like butter and brown sugar in mine.


Experiments in the works:

Sourdough bread with soft white wheat
Gluten free chocolate chip cookies with amaranth, teff, sorghum, buckwheat, arrowroot, tapioca
Cream of Amaranth and Teff