Story Time

This is a sequal to Sarah, Plain and Tall which is a good book for readers beginning chapter books. It has a Lexile Level of 560, is 58 pages long, and is intended for ages 8 to 10. Caleb's Story has a Lexile Level of 290, has 116 pages, and is intended for the same age group. If you've never heard of the Lexile Level and want to check it out you can click on it above.

The Lexile Measure is a reading test to measure a childs reading level. I have no idea what Lizzy's is exactly, but I have used the website to find books that are in the similar ball park of books that are challenging and fun. I use 2 other resources: One is the Charlotte Mason Twaddle Free List which is a list books that combine good morals and full body content. My other resource is to ask friends and their kids :)

In Caleb's Story you learn that Papa's father abandoned him when he was Caleb's age who is maybe 12. It is around the age my father abandoned me and my siblings and also around the time my mother remarried, which followed alot of abuse for my my siblings and I. In this story Caleb has a great relationship with his father. At a certain point Grandfather comes back to town and Papa has a hard time forgiving him. Here is the exert:

"My birthday is coming," I said.

"And I don't want books or tools or even a horse of my own for my birthday."

Papa looked up, surprised.

"You've always wanted a horse fo your own, Caleb."

Not this year," I said. "What I want this year is something different."

"Different?" repeated Papa.

I nodded.

"This year I want most of all for you to forgive Grandfather. I want you to forgive Grandfather so I can grow up and be just like you," I said.

Papa stared at me. He said nothing. He lay back on the bed, and, after a moment, I went away. I closed the door behind me.

(Caleb's Story, Patricia MacLachlan)

History Lesson

What a nice suprise! I've been praying about school in general. I want it to be fun and yet I want her to show her work. A few days ago I also received some advice from a friend on getting Lizzy to comprehend a little better. Today she really surprised me, not only with comprehension but with her art work. This was a great day for her :)

Cherry Coffee Cake

I've made this several times now for different people and it seems to be a hit. It is very easy to make, so don't fear that you've offered to bring snack for church and it's already late on Saturday night. This may be your ticket :) This recipe came from a can of Lucky Leaf Cherry Pie Filling. Happy baking.

 

Ingredients

• 1 (18 oz.) package yellow cake mix, divided
• 2/3 cup water
• 2 large eggs
• 1 (21 oz.) can Cherry Pie Filling
• 1/3 cup margarine
• 1 cup sifted powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon water

Directions

Stir together 1 1/2 cups cake mix, 2/3 cup water adn eggs. Spoon into a greased 13 X 9 inch baking pan. Top with pie filling. Cut butter into remaining cake mix. Mix until crumbly. Sprinkle over pie filling. Bake at 350 degrees fro 25-30 minutes. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Combine powdered sugar and 1 tablespoon water. Drizzle over cake.

Makes 15 servings

Random

We are in the process of getting a new furnace and heating system. We are doing most of the work ourselves. I am thankful for a husband who knows how to do things like this. We are going with coal furnace because we live in the Antracite Coal Region of the US; so why not. We'll be paying 1/4 of what we have been paying in oil which is not found anywhere near our region nor state. When I'm not helping with school I have been helping hubby with this big project :)

Homeschooling is going well, though we have our challenges. I'm learning alot about the girls and I would never discover (their challenges) if they weren't home. Tonight my oldest and I had a long chat about her responsibilities. Honestly I was almost at wits end with not knowing how to get through to her. God was gracious in helping us both to communicate and come up with a plan. Looking back I wished we had prayed together though, I'm still learning and will give thanks to God tomorrow morning.

I've been saved for 2 years now and so for most of my daughters' lives I had not been saved. Before Christ I was an angry and unhappy woman. I wasn't worthy of God's forgiveness and yet he chose to save me. It is only by the grace of God that I can do anything good. God has been so merciful in helping my girls and I to grow spiritually. I am so thankful that both girls (16 & 8) who enjoy going to church with me and all three of us have a testimony of faith in Christ. We continue to pray for daddy.

I took a lil break from writing to check my email. My youngest now has a penpal from a lovely family. Oh I can't wait to tell her tomorrow morning :)

Last week was very cold and we had a little snow, but, so far this week it has been in the high 60's. Ladybugs are in the air!! :)

When was your first day of snow?

Today was our first snowy day. This is our dog Gretchen wearing a sweater my oldest daughter crocheted for her. The picture was taken last year because I didn't get outside to take a picture and didn't even think of it :) ... but wish I did :) By the way,,, we only had flurries so far.

When was your first day of snow?

Vanilla Almond Granola Bars

Our family is crazy for granol bars right now and since they are almost $3.00 at the cheapest store I thought it was worth trying to make them. I've made them 4 times now, trying things a little differently each time. The reason I've done things differently is because they are more crumbly than I hoped for. I am now thinking this is just the nature of cutting these babies up though. There are 2 great looking recipes for granola bars that I haven't yet tried. One is Ina Garter's Granola Bars and the other is Joyful Abode's Bars.

Preheat oven 300 degrees F.

4 c old-fashioned rolled oats
1 c slivered almonds
1/3 c wheat germ
1/3 c honey
1/3 c brown sugar
6 T butter, melted
1 T vanilla extract
1/2 t almond extract
1/2 t salt

1. Combine and spread oats and almonds on 2 cookie sheets. Bake 15 minutes, stirring 1/2 way through. Keep an eye on granola so it doesn't burn. Cool 10 min. Or put it in the freezer for a few minutes.
2. Meanwhile, combine honey, egg, sugar, salt, and extracts in a large bowl.
3. When oats are cool, add wheat germ and brown sugar.
4. Add oat mixture to honey mixture folding thoroughly. Then add and mix the melted honey.
5. Transfer and mash down into a greased 13 x 9 pan and bake for 30 minutes.
6. Cool on rack. Cut into squares. Makes 24.

A few times I have made them with 2 beaten eggs hoping to make them stick together better, but they are still crumbly. I saw another recipe where someone cooked them at 450 for 10 -12 minutes in a 10" X 15" jelly roll pan and they looked more the ones you buy in the store because they were thinner. If anyone has a recipe they love please share it with me :) I'm still experimenting. I've not had to throw out a single batch of bars, so try them if you like them :) All those crumbs are saved for yogurt! Yum! If you'd like to make your own yogurt from a tried and true source you can get the link here.

You Turkey

Tonight we made turkeys. We got the idea from That Artist Woman. She has A LOT of great ideas, so if you like doing crafts check her site out :) Next time Lizzy's friend comes over we will paint them.

Summer's End

This is Gretchen and her typical pose when she is outside. I thought all dogs crossed their legs but my friends say differently.

Labor Day weekend started with our dog getting a stomach virus sort of thing and her getting sprayed by a skunk at 4 in the morning. Instead of using tomato juice for this problem, I tried something new on her. This remedy can be found online. It's simply 1 quart of hydrogen peroxide, 1/4 cup baking soda, and dog shampoo. If there's a next I'll use a squirt bottle.

A day later Gretchen was smelling better and feeling better!

Peaches: I love them and can't get enough of them :)

Today we closed our pool. We didn't have much of a summer in the northeast this year because it was cool and rainy for the most part. Nevertheless Labor Day cannot be avoided and since it's the last 3 day weekend for a while, it's a great weekend to close the pool. Last year we were late getting a cover for the pool and ended up closing it when it was freezing and windy outside in early October. Don't want to ever do that again.
We did alot of yard work this weekend getting ready for Autumn and I needed a quick dinner to make. Since we don't eat out much and hardly ever eat meals like this, it was a nice change for the palate. The only thing missing were pickles.
My girls worked on making owls last week. They turned out really cute, so I thought I'd share them with you. That Artist Woman is where you will find the owls. Gail Bartell is That Artist Woman and has tons of great crafts you can do with your kids.

Happy Labor Day!

Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear

Re-purposed Teddy Bear

I just couldn't throw him out

Teddy's been sitting in a jar
Looking like a science specimen
Then one day I had an idea...

We regularly use white yarn for one thing or another.
It's like tape, we can't live with out it.
So we've displayed Teddy
Giving him a new life
As the Thread Bearer.

Seed Packets

The girls made pretty seed packets for seeds we harvested from flowers. They turned out really cute. We used a template from Gardens and Crafts.