Weekly Worship --Tasha Layton // Into The Sea (It's Gonna Be Ok)

I love songs with powerful vocals and Tasha Layton doesn't disappoint as she comes into the chorus of this song!  Yes, it has great words but I love the powerful voice even more! 

Weekly Photos 2020 #22

A quick look back at our week

Saturday - we were at home and just did some things around the house before going to my mom's for dinner.  Some friends from the other side of the state came over for a cook out.  It was an enjoyable evening with lots of laughing.

Sunday - we enjoyed a very quiet day at home.  I think peaceful is a word to describe it perfectly.  I also had my weekly Zoom with my mom and brothers and the kids had their Sunday School Zoom call as well.

Monday - We worked in the garage to get things cleaned out to donate to a fundraiser yard sale.  And Nate got to return to something "normal" - Tae Kwon Do started.  We had to really discuss this option and decided that we could let him participate because it is outside and they are always "social distanced" when they practice.

 The weather was perfect on Monday and the kids enjoyed eating lunch outside.  The love this table and chairs that my mom gave us. 

 I'm not going to lie, it was HOT to be outside for TKD but Nate did great.  

 Prior to the lock down, we ordered Nate's sparing gear and he was SOOO excited.  Well, fast forward a couple of months - he finally got it but said, "But now, I can't even use it!" Sparing means contact between two people and right now, there is no contact allowed.  Eventually he will get to use it though! 

Tuesday - it was HOT!  We took our truck load of stuff to the yard sale and dropped it off.  For the rest of the day we hung out inside! 

Tuesday evening we had "TV Dinners" in the living room while watching Family Movies (the kids idea - they like to see themselves as babies) 

Wednesday - Today was a stormy day.  Thankfully, the worst of the storms missed us and we just got tons of rain.  I think we were all kind of "off" today because of the uncertainty of the weather - even the dog was acting strange!

Thursday - It was grocery shopping day (so thrilling!)  The weather was beautiful so we opened windows and, after finishing up shopping, delivering, and putting away, I sat outside and read my book in the sunshine and breeze!!!

Friday - I should have taken some "before" photos today.  Why?  Darryl and I did some work in the yard.  Of course, we mowed.  (Every other Friday, whether it needs it or not HA!) .  We also worked in a corner of our yard that has been overlooked since having kids.  That is the area that they could "dig to China" in and I call it the "scary zone" because the ground is always soft and I'm afraid of what's living in the corners :-)  Anyway, it also became a little bit of a "stash" corner for some scrap wood. So we worked on starting to clean all of that out.  The weather is comfortably cool this weekend so we decided to attempt to get some work done outside - once it heats back up, we are done!

This seemed to be a week that just dragged - I'm not sure why.  Even as I looked back at photos from this week it feels like it Monday was forever ago!! 

Weekly Menu

Now that my brothers are all reading my blog (well, I know 2/3 are . ..the 3rd one is questionable HA!) I actually have to follow my weekly menu a little better or they give me grief HA!

It's summer time and I'm thankful for AC units or we'd be struggling with out "once a week" rule of eating out!  HA!  Prior to figuring out how to place the units in the windows to cool the whole house, my rule of thumb was "If it's over 85, I'm not cooking!!"  Well, not anymore!  I actually have to plan :-)

Here's the plan for the upcoming week:

Friday - Crock Pot French Dips, roasted zucchini, and Mac and Cheese

Saturday - We are going to my mom's for are weekly get together :-)

Sunday -  This is the night we often do our "eat out treat" - if not, I'll swap it with another night, like Friday!

Monday - .Stuffed Shells, Salad, and garlic bread.  I'm trying to keep Monday night dinners easy since Nate has TKD so he and I have to leave home by 5:25

Tuesday - Crock Pot Fajitas, Beans, Salad and Chips (This is one of my mom's favorites too - so, MOM - you want to come for dinner??)

Wednesday - Dill Shrimp with Angel Hair Pasta, Green Beans and Garlic Bread

Thursday - Tacos.  I usually do my shopping on Thursdays so I like keeping dinner low prep and taco's fit that bill! 

What We've Learned by Staying Home

Now that the "Stay at home order" is being lifted in our state, I thought I'd take a moment and look back at what we learned by staying home.

1) We learned that we are home bodies.  Honestly, my boys have always been homebodies and Darryl really is too but I have always love to go, go, GO!  Well, I actually found that I enjoyed not having the busy schedule we had for so long.

2) We enjoyed playing games together . . .for a time.  When the lock down first happened, the games came out.  We played old favorites and new ones too!  I taught the boys how to play Dutch Blitz and they taught me Throw, Throw Burrito.  Plus they got games for Easter that we played too.  Now, after about 3 weeks, the games stopped.  HA!  But it was fun to play alot of games for awhile.

3)  We learned that we ate out a lot more then we thought.  Eating out had become a crutch.  It was easy to just grab something quick on those busy nights.  Talk about going cold turkey!  We went from eating out at various times probably 3-4 times a week to eating 3 meals a day at home, 7 days a week!  BUT, we found that we liked that AND when we finally broke our stance on eating out, the food tasted SOOOO good AND we found that the treat was super nice.  We stuck by that - we only allow eating out 1 time a week and it is now considered a treat.

4) We learned that we liked having Apple Crisp every Friday night :-)  This happened by accident.  I had bags of apples given to me so I made applesauce and Apple Crisp.  Well, I continued to have an over abundance of apples for the school lunches we picked up so, it became a tradition to make Apple Crisp on Friday to enjoy through the weekend.  Darryl said it would know if it was Friday if there was Apple Crisp on the stove LOL

5) We found new foods we liked.  We found these Bolthouse Farms Mocha Cappuccino's by chance - we picked up food from a local food truck one week and these were in the box.  They are SOOO good!  Darryl and I have enjoyed them in the afternoon while sitting in my swing.

6) We learned our animals adore us!  Dash loves it when we are home.  He hates it when we leave so he has been in doggy heaven with us here all the time!  Harley is also a cat who loves people so he has enjoyed having us around too even though he pretends he is annoyed at times!!

7) We learned that Amazon is amazing.  I mean, we kind of knew that before but I have used Amazon to order everything from Super Glue to finish up a project to clothes!  Things I never would have ordered before because I could just run to the store.  We also learned how spoiled we were by "next day delivery" when Amazon orders started taking a week or more to ship!  HA!

8) We learned to take time to enjoy the outdoors.  Now, we didn't get all crazy and take hikes or anything like that but I have found that by taking even just 20 minutes to sit outside and read in my swing, it makes the day so much better.  Sometimes the weather doesn't allow for it - snow, rain, or super hot - but when it does, I make it a priority every day!

9) We learned that we can make things fun.  That one time a week we "treat" to eating out is very simply going through 2-3 drive-thrus so everyone can get what they want and then parking in a shady spot and eating in our vehicle.  We laugh a lot while eating that meal.  Or we take off on a drive to explore something just for fun.

Now, truth be told, we are still "staying home" for the most part for now.  Yes, we are very slowly allowing a few things like Tae Kwon Do but we just plan to wait it out and see what happens as more people are out and about.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs (What we are eating!)

I've had this recipe on my menu for a few weeks (as my brother, Jeff reminded me recently HA!) and finally made it!  It is actually a pretty easy recipe to throw together especially if you happen to already have the meatballs in the freezer (which I did not).  The hardest part of the whole recipe is cooking all the meatballs (and that wasn't hard!).

First and foremost, I loved the plain meatball.  They are simple and NOT Italian, which so many meatball recipes are very specifically Italian.  I also love that if you make the full recipe it makes a TON that you can freeze to use for a quick meal.  I cut the meatball recipe in half and it still made plenty (I have a bag of meatballs in my freezer now!)

Second, the "sweet and sour" portion was amazing.  I thought it was just about perfect, Darryl thought it was too sweet.  A disclaimer, I served it over spaghetti noodles because my boys don't eat rice (but they eat pasta) - it would taste better over rice for sure.  I also think this would make a great pot luck recipe just to take the meatballs - cook the recipe first then add the meatballs to the crockpot to stay warm.

So, what would I change?  I don't use red pepper flakes.  Ever.  We don't like heat like that!  Next time I wouldn't add the pineapple chunks mostly because Darryl doesn't like them at all.  Because it was really sweet, I might try putting in less brown sugar or instead of using pineapple juice with the cornstarch, just use water.

Here's the recipe!
Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Adapted from The Pioneer Woman

Ingredients:

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup rice vinegar or white vinegar 

1/4 cup ketchup 

1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce 

2 1/4 cups pineapple juice 

1 tablespoon cornstarch 

25 frozen meatballs, recipe follows

1 tablespoon sriracha or other hot sauce, more to taste 

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 cup drained canned or fresh pineapple chunks 

4 tablespoons sliced green onions 

4 1/2 cups cooked long-grain or basmati rice, for serving

Ready-To-Go Freezer Meatballs:

5 pounds ground beef

1 1/2 cups plain breadcrumbs 

1/2 cup whole milk 

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley 

1/4 cup heavy cream 

2 heaping tablespoons grainy mustard 

1 teaspoon kosher salt 

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes 

4 large eggs 

Olive oil, for frying

Directions:

Directions

1. In a large skillet (with a lid), combine the brown sugar, vinegar, ketchup, soy sauce and 2 cups of the pineapple juice. Stir the mixture around and bring it to a gentle boil over medium-high heat. To thicken the sauce, make a slurry by mixing the cornstarch with the remaining 1/4 cup pineapple juice in a small bowl until smooth. Add it to the sauce, whisking to combine.
2. Add the frozen meatballs, sriracha and bell pepper and toss to combine. Cover the skillet and cook until the sauce has thickened and the meatballs are heated through, 8 to 10 minutes.
3. Stir in the pineapple, then sprinkle in 2 tablespoons of the green onions. Serve the meatballs and sauce over rice and sprinkle on the rest of the green onions at the end.

Ready-To-Go Freezer Meatballs:

Yield: 125 meatballs

1. Combine the beef, breadcrumbs, milk, parsley, cream, mustard, salt, black pepper, red pepper flakes and eggs in a large bowl. Knead it all together with your hands until well combined.
2. Scoop out 1-tablespoon portions of the meat mixture and roll into neat balls. Put them on parchment paper-lined rimmed baking sheets as you go, then put the sheets in the freezer for about 10 minutes to firm them up before frying.
3. To brown the meatballs, heat 1/4 cup olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches, add some meatballs to the skillet and cook on all sides until they have great color on the surface and are fully cooked inside, 5 to 6 minutes. Drain the meatballs on paper towels when they're done, then line them up on clean parchment paper-lined baking sheets. Cook the remaining meatballs.
4. Put the baking sheets in the freezer, uncovered, until the meatballs are frozen and firm on the surface, 30 to 45 minutes. Then just pop the meatballs into 5 to 7 freezer bags (roughly 25 per bag) and freeze them immediately. They'll be there when you need them.

The Official Last Day Of School

It's hard to believe that my boys have finished 4th and 5th grades!  When we started on this homeschool journey 6 years ago (well, really 7 if you count preschool) Junior High seemed SOOO far away and yet we are now facing it head on as Josh enters 6th grade.

What did we accomplish this year:
** Both boys worked on cursive handwriting.  This was a goal I set this year.  Nate took to it like a fish to water and loves writing everything in cursive.  Josh just goes with the flow but still prefers printing and has a desire to "make his printing better".
** Both boys had some success with independent work.  This was another goal.  Nate loves to work on his own and fully desires to just do his own work.  Josh will do it when pushed but his perfectionism makes it hard to just "do it" and seeks to make sure his answers are always correct so we are still working on that!
** They both gained independence in writing - the last papers they wrote (Opinion Papers) were written mostly on their own.  This is a HUGE milestone since they both hate writing assignments.
** They both improved in learning the Multiplication Facts.  We will continue to work on those this summer.  I'm tossing around a "reward" program for the kids on memorizing these facts (even the 2nd grader!) because it is so important.

And here are their year end photos!

Do I have goals for next year?  Even though I'm kind of taking the month of June off from thinking about school, I do already have ideas.  Josh has the opportunity to take part in some clubs so I'm going to investigate that more.  He loves Art and wants to learn a language.  I think he would also benefit from some photography skills and typing.  Nate has a big interest in learning Spanish and I know there are some options for homeschoolers out there.  Plus he needs more typing skills.  We will also continue on with cursive writing skills!  One other thing I'm looking at is some true Bible curriculum.  We've just used their AWANA books but I feel like they would benefit from some true Bible study now.  So I guess most of that is MY homework this summer!

It's Summertime!

Every summer I enjoy sharing a little of our plans and goals for the summer.  This year is different, of course, because I don't have the "extras" that usually fill our week so I have to do more planning then normal.  In past years, I take time to fill in dates on the calendar with ideas for each week like Library activities, going to the zoo, and other fun field trips but this year that is not happening.  We will be staying close to home.  Instead, I've picked a theme for each week and am hoping I can keep up with the plan!

Pinterest is always one of the best sources for ideas when it comes to planning stuff for kids.  I will say that more of the ideas are geared towards preschool/early elementary but if you dig, you can find ideas for the upper elementary ages too.  Plus, I've found that some of the younger ideas are fun for the older kids and they go faster :-)  I also really like the TeachersPayTeachers site.  This offers printables created by teachers to be used with students.  I usually search for free things as often as possible but for this summer I did pay a small amount for the daily review sheets and weekly them plans.  After doing a lot of searching, the small cost was really worth it in the long run.

One of the most difficult things planning for this summer is going to be to find things to do at home that get the kids outside . . .especially in the middle of July when it is hot, hot, HOT!  I'm thankful for a local state park that has a swimming beach with lots of space (I don't swim in it but the kids don't mind!) that we will visit a few times for sure.  I also have a sprinkler and I'm looking at picking up a few lawn games throughout the summer.  I have even considered getting a "kiddie" pool so they can fill it up and use to not only sit in but to fill water guns or whatever!  Honestly, we will miss the campground pool and had even hoped to be able to use it this summer after a discussion last year with the owner but, due to the COVID-19 restrictions, that will not happen.  BUT, that's ok!  We can be creative.  We MIGHT even take a trip to the big lake (Lake Michigan) with the whole crew this summer too.

So, here we go!  It's almost summertime!  Last week ended the school year --   Yes, my boys finished their school year 2 weeks ago but our two friends wrapped up their year last week so we work on a modified school scheduled still.   This week I have declared "Vacation Week"!  That means there is nothing specific planned.  There are no electronics breaks, no required outside times, and no review work.  After a long few months they can all just "veg out" for a week!  (I might do a lot of reading . .. or cleaning . . .or planning!)  Finally, the following week we will start with my weekly themes/plan.  I promise to share those, my sources, ideas, what works and, honestly, what doesn't work.  (I know, you can hardly wait!)