Our Weekly Adventures - Week 27

In my life this week.....

It's taken a bit of an emotional toll.  We are trying hard to not raise voices, even though yelling is needed sometimes to get the kids attention in another room.  But Joe and I are both getting frustrated because basically all week it feels like everyone....kids and cats....are working against us.

I did get a shelf in the schoolroom cleared of clutter.  We took 5 large boxes of books and curriculum over to the used bookstore on Monday.  Hoping to get a nice phone call from them with a large credit to use...lol.  With the shelf cleared off, I was able to set Lydia and Caty up in "boxes" on the shelf.  I keep their books on each shelf and with their printed daily checklist, grab what we need to do "school" together.  I feel like the schoolroom is a little more organized.  My storage room though is in horrible shape, must clean that this weekend.

Also been tackling the all depressing budget issue.  We don't have credit card debt, but medical bills just keep accumulating.  Utility bills just keep getting higher, and the groceries aren't getting any cheaper.  Between lessons and any other little expenses, I am trying hard to keep it under control.  It took all weekend to get the next few months on paper and expenses into the computer.

I felt a relief that the budget was updated, and the lessons were also planned out for the next couple months.  I spent a lot of time on this because I needed to make sure we had some topics covered.  Everything of course is adjustable....but at least I have an idea.  I can easily order materials as needed from the library a couple weeks in advance.  (I usually order at least a month in advance, just in case there is an issue with getting a book back in.)

I also got a new cell phone this weekend.  I broke into the world of iPhones.  I have had an Android for two years now, but keep hearing how much people love the iPhone.  It was going to save us almost $100.00 a month to switch around our contract and get new phones, so it was worth it!!!  I am loving my phone right now!!!  Just must get used to not having a keyboard anymore.

In our homeschool this week....

We actually got our work done!!!  Whoohoo!!!  I felt very organized because of making plans all weekend.  All 4 kids were able to complete all their schoolwork this week!!!

We had art class on Monday.  I have one of the best classes....these students and their parents are so wonderful.  The kids are so sweet and polite. They are really creative!!!  And the parents surprised me with a special gift after class.  I was sooooo grateful!!!

Lydia and I started our first artist study as we are reading:

Watch for our weekly posts are the artists and projects we do.

Caty and I started back official "school" for her.  I was doing some stuff with her, but let her take a step back because she wasn't liking what we were doing.  I tried something new with her this week.  And though she had issue a couple times, we got everything accomplished that I hoped.

What I am reading.....

 

I am also reading...For school......

 

What I am cooking.....

This has been a weird week.  We definitely didn't starve.  We had a lot of chicken thighs to use up.  One day I baked them for a couple hours with lime juice, cumin, and salt.  Served these with Jasmine rice and peas.  Everyone ate and loved it.  The next day, I put the thighs in the crockpot with salt.  Let them cook for about 5 hours.  Deboned the chicken and put it back in the crock pot and added tomato paste, apple cider vinegar, brown sugar, dry mustard and a little cayenne pepper.  Served this BBQ shredded chicken with mashed sweet potato.  It was super yummy!!!  The leftovers were really good too!  I also made homemade chicken nuggets, cooked in coconut oil and floured with egg yolks and rice flour.  The kids loved those and have asked me to make them again.  I am going to make my beef and bean chili recipe I concocted a couple weeks ago....it was so yummy and even Lydia had seconds.

Today I made dairy/gluten/soy free coconut fudge.  It didn't set as well as I hoped.  I must have gotten a little too much coconut milk in it.  So next time I try it, I promised Joe I would leave out the coconut and add extra pecans.  We made the fudge for our American Girl party because we found a site on Belize that said this is served there.  They serve a lot of coconut there.

My favorite thing this week....

I have to say one of my favorite things this week was Lydia complaining that I wasn't planning a science experiment for her.  We started a new science book this week....you know one I found while cleaning the shelves (I forget what I have).   Hooked on Science to the rescue.  I used my new iPhone to video tape her doing the experiment.  We will have to continue doing that each week.  I highly recommend checking out Hooked on Science!

Things I am working on.....

Decluttering the house.  I really want to get more junk out.  Trying to sell some, and clean things up!

Photo to share.....

We received the prize we won from Creative Learning Fun.  The girls are loving this new addition to our home!!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful week!!!!  Be sure to watch for our Week in Pictures that will be published Saturday.

We are linking up with other Homeschool Mom's at iHomeschoolNetwork and No Ordinary Blog Hop!  Also linking up with Hammock Tracks....