Homeschool "Trial-Run"

Two years ago if someone had said that I would homeschool I would say "are you nuts!?".  It wasnt for me, school is where my kids belong with other kids, socializing, etc.
Never say never because look at where we are today!
We put Ness in preschool this past year and Im not going to lie, there were times where I thought preschool was the best thing ever.  Sage is a very easy child if he is alone, as is Zael.  Its when they have their Ring Leader/Ness that chaos break out (Sage is like me and Ness is like his dad...of course..lol).  But at the same time it was a major pain brining him and picking him up plus he didnt seem to be learning anything.  He would bring home worksheets with a bunch of scribbles (always black or blue..?) or crafts that I KNOW he had no hand in making (trust me, I have crafted with this child).  There was nothing wrong with the school or his teacher, but Ness didnt seem to be flourishing and plus it was a lot of money.  THEN we found a house that we really really want (want to buy our house) and decided that we needed to start saving the money.
On top of all that the public schools in EBR are not great (cell phones are allowed in schools now? Insanity!)
So thats when I decided to do a Homeschool Trial run! Ness is only 4.5 so if we do preschool (starting in Jan.) and its a total bust I havent screwed him up too badly.  Then we will move on to Plan B, whatever that is.

At first homeschool totally overwhelmed me.  I thought about joining a Classical Conversation Co-op (which we may still do next year) but Mr. "Ants-in-the-pants" didnt seem to do well.  Maybe he will when he is older.
Then I found this: http://www.confessionsofahomeschooler.com/letter-of-the-week
Total God-Send!
This lady's style is right up my alley, its very organized but all very fun and diverse.  Its a lot of work, and a lot of printing but I have had fun!  I got a laminator (woot!) and have been laminating up a storm (we will be using this same curriculum again with the other boys).  It has been several weeks of work but I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I figured this blogpost would be helpful because we have very limited money and even more limited space (right now).  So I have cleared out a wall that will become our "School Wall" with a bulletin board, calendar, weather, sight words, days of the week, and whatever else Ness is interested in at the moment. (Hopefully potential buyers can look past that).
My main problem was figured out how to organize all the paperwork.  So I have several "lightbulb" moments (usually in the middle of the night) and I can see the light at the end of the tunnel!

One idea that I really like that we are doing (as we are aiming towards Montessori Style), is the Workbox System. Basically there are boxes for each day of the week (I prepare the week before) and each morning after our Circle Time (school wall stuff) he will go and get whatever is in that days box.  Those things will be put in "centers" (as he gets older those centers will be named) and then he will be able to choose the  order in which he wants to do them.  This will be helpful too because Sage may be doing some too and they can rotate activities.  I love this curriculum because most things are games/puzzles/"sewing" that can be used again and again (laminator baby!).

Another problem I had was that we dont have a school room right now so every time we did an activity I was running around the house and gathering stuff which would leave a mess and that stressed me. SOOO a good friend that saves weird stuff had given me all of these puff containers (and since baby #3 is an animal with food we will have EVEN MORE puff containers in our future) and that became my answer!  Hello free organizing!  Im keeping them on a rolling cart that can be easily moved (has all the other supplies too).  (I got a label maker and these plastic bins from a really awesome garage sale)

The last, and biggest problem I had was figuring out I was going to store all the flashcards and weekly curriculum.  After thinking about it for a long time I decided on a file box (why I didnt think of this sooner I have no idea).  So all of my laminated flashcards as well as extra worksheets are in this box.  Plus the curriculum and the games/activities that go with it.  My plan is that once a week of work is done all of it will go into my file box to be used again next semester for Sage.  I will mark stuff that will need to be printed again in my Curriculum Guide binder so I can easily find and print next year.  

      

There you have it folks.  Ness is SO excited about starting.  We will probably start the week after Christmas, he wants to start now but I still not ready!!  Updates soon!

In other things, we will probably be certified for Foster Care in the middle of January, we are really praying that we can be headed towards the other house at that time.  We are so cramped right now!  I have plans for a huge school room with a side play room for the little ones while we do school.  I would also love to start up a Montessori Co-op. 

Christmas is next week! Gotta go work on laminating! 

:)  

 

Thick and Creamy Yogurt Making!

So, with the help of a good friend, I have finally figured out how to make yogurt of a yummy consistency (THICK and CREAMY).  After perfecting my technique I have decided to share it with the world (ok, so maybe just my facebook friends).

Here goes!
You will need:
1/2 gallon of milk (makes a 1/2 gallon of yogurt)
1 Tbs of Beef Gelatin
1 small container (8 oz) of Voskos yogurt (for starter)
Ice
Crockpot
3 quart size mason jars
Thermometer

First take out your crockpot and fill it half way with water and let it start heating up.

I threw a fit when my husband bought the fanciest crockpot available, but now I am quite happy because it has a thermometer.  I had a candy thermometer and then I washed it in the dishwasher..well you can probably imagine how that went down.  

Your goal is to get the water to 110 degrees.  Since this takes the longest I suggest getting this going first. 

How pretty is milk in glass jars?!? (I did a gallon with these pictures, but in the end I realized that I couldn't fit 5 jars in my crockpot (its the milk plus the 8 oz of yogurt), so one jar went to the chickens. (do it in half gallon size to make life easier).

Pour your milk into a large pot.

Now, this is VERY important!  Add Beef Gelatin BEFORE the milk gets hot!

Here is the one I used, I believe its from grass-fed beef.

Add 1 Tbs of gelatin to COLD milk

Whisk in quickly, it will dissolve well if the milk is still cold.  

Now you wait for your milk to get to 190 degrees F.  

While you are waiting get a nice ice bath going for your yogurt, I usually empty out the ice bin and add water until there is plenty of coldness to go around.

Once your milk has reach 190 degrees bring to ice bath and stir frequently.

Let your milk come down to 110 degrees (same temp you want the crockpot!).  This doesn't take as long as you would think.  So keep checking.  (ignore the white soap scum on my sink! eep!) 

Once its down to 110 degrees its time to add the yogurt starter (and you are almost done!).  I use Voskos because I was told to use Voskos and frankly Im scared to try something else.  I use a 8 oz container. If you use a different starter with the same results please let me know! Voskos is not available everywhere (whole foods mostly).

Take your milk out of the ice and add yogurt.

Whisk it in as much as you can, it will still be a bit lumpy but thats ok.

Now pour your milk/yogurt mixture into your jars.  Only 4 quart jars fit into my crockpot so dont do more than 4!  It will make all yogurt, no whey and no waste.

She's ready to grow me some yogurt!

Put jars into the hot crockpot (100 degrees F). Fill it as high as you can without overflowing.

Put the lid on.

Cover with foil. This is where this crockpot is cool.  I poke the thermometer through the tin foil into the water so I can check the temp throughout the day.  

And now cover with blankets!  My husband not-so-fondly refers to this as "my blanket yogurt".

Now here is the real secret to this yogurt making business. You MUST keep the yogurt between 105 and 110 degrees ALL 10 to 12 hours!  I usually check it every few hours to see where it is.  I will turn it on for 5 min (set the timer so you dont forget!) and then turn it off again.  The thicker the blankets you use and the more foil you use the less often you will have to heat it up.  I always start around 7am so that its for sure done by 7pm (almost my bedtime!).  You can do 10 hours though and if you need to add an hour or two to that it should be fine as well.  

Happy Yogurt Making!  Let me know how it turns out!

Some of my own personal cuteness to make your day brighter:

  

Triple Coconut Supreme Blueberry Muffins

You will not regret making these muffins.  They are the best muffins I have ever made, by far.  They are a combination of these two recipes: http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2012/02/double-coconut-muffins/
http://www.cookingclassy.com/2012/01/finally-the-blueberry-muffin-of-my-dreams/
PLUS my own changes (no white sugar, etc)
I always change recipes but I never write it down and when people ask me how I make a certain recipe I have no idea.  SOOO I decided to mark down exactly what I was changing.
Here goes:

Triple Coconut Supreme Blueberry Muffins

Yield: 20 medium size muffins

Ingredients:
1 cup unbleached white flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup honey
1 cup coconut milk (whole milk can be used instead)
7 Tbsp of WARM (has to be warm for it to not harden) extra virgin coconut oil
1 large egg
2 Tbsp of yogurt
1 1/2 cups of fresh blueberries (more can be added if you want more)

Topping:
1/3 cup unbleached white flour
1/3 cup sweetened shredded coconut
2 1/2 Tbsp chilled butter, diced
2 Tbsp Raw Sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Prepare topping by combining 1/3 cup flour, 1/3 cup coconut, 2 1/2 Tbsp butter in a food processor.  Pulse just a few seconds until combined, it should look crumbly (dont do it to much or it will become to dense).  Put topping into a bowl and whisk in 2 Tbsp Raw Sugar (MUST be Raw!!) and coconut, set aside.

In a mixing bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, set aside.  In a seperate mixing bowl, using a wisk (no hand mixer!), mix together 1/2 cup honey, milk, egg, yogurt, and WARM extra virgin coconut oil (do not mix it in cool, it will become a globby mess).  Gently whisk in dry mixture until just combined, batter should be slightly lumpy (do not over-mix, key to fluffy muffins.)  Fold in blueberries with a spatula.  Divide mixture evenly among 20 (or so depending on how big you want them) muffin tins.  Evenly sprinkle topping over the muffins.  Bake muffins for 19-23 minutes until light golden and toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool for a few minutes then move out of muffin pan on to a wire rack to cool.

Soo yummy!  The "topping" is sweet and crunchy also the coconut oil makes it have a crunchy outside with a dense middle.
Ness says: Super!