What's for Dinner?

Not much time to post tonight -- seems like this has been the day will not end! Thank goodness, however, for my new Gooseberry Patch recipe magazine. In this week alone I have made two great recipes from it: Zucchini Fritters and a Ravioli Casserole. The fritters were a hit with my husband and I --- not so much the kids, although my oldest did try one. Tonight, the Ravioli Casserole was loved by all -- even my picky son! For those of you that know him, you know what I mean. :-) My neighbor brought over a yummy dessert tonight, too -- Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars from the Barefoot Contessa's latest cookbook. Aren't we just the gourmet neighborhood?? So, if you're feeling bored with your latest menus, check out Gooseberry Patch. They have lots of free recipes, and I love the magazine I just picked up at the bookstore over the weekend!

Sharks, Sharks, Sharks!

This week we have been taking the California Achievement Test, so I wanted the rest of our school activities to be fun and stress free. In our "Mysteries and Marvels of Nature" book we had come across a section about sharks that seemed to fascinate both kids. So, I hopped online and did some research.

I found a really cute lapbook about The Magic School Bus book, "The Great Shark Escape". I ordered the book on Amazon and it seemed to be right at a level where both my eight and five year old could enjoy it. (On a side note, two years ago we bought the Amazon Prime Membership, which ensures you get free shipping on qualifying items. Most items do qualify, and we get two day shipping for free. This has been a great investment!) This morning after testing I just gave my daughter a ziploc bag which contained the lapbook directions and all of the minibook supplies she would need. She did the first 10 books in about 45 minutes and learned a whole lot about sharks in the process!

Tomorrow after testing I have some shark books we checked out from the library and I will also let Anna play on the Scholastic Magic School Bus site. These books seem like a great way for me to do unit studies about science that will appeal to both of my children. Check them out!

Butts Mill Farm

Today two friends and I took this crew of children to Butts Mill Farm, which is about 1.5 hours south of Atlanta. It is very close to Roosevelt's Little White House in Warm Springs, GA, as well. This part of Georgia is very pretty, and I'm thankful it's just a short hour's drive from our home.
I was surprised that the farm was not very crowded - considering it was 70 degrees and the last day of Spring Break for most schoolchildren in the Atlanta area. It was so wonderful to spend the day with my friends from church, Karen and Melissa, and all of our children (who are also great friends!).

The farm is set right by a river, with a covered bridge and lots of fun things for the kids to do in the summer time. Mental note: come back here in the summer when it's 90 degrees and everyone is miserably hot. The water trampoline sounds particularly fun, along with the slides going into the water and tubing. If it wouldn't have been for the highly active four and five year boys in tow I could have just sat by the river and read a book -- but instead we were patrolling the boys to make sure shoes didn't get too squishy and no one fell in!

One thing the children all loved was the track where they could ride bikes and scooters. There were some very neat Razor trikes with castor wheels on the back that made turning very fun! The scooters, called tri scooters, don't seem to be that expensive and would be a fun and different thing to have for your kids. Or, as you can see from the picture, they are fun for moms, too!

We loved seeing all of the animals at the farm, and the children got to ride horses and feed other animals, too. We are so removed from this, living the suburban life we do, that the kids are so enamored by farm life. It's kind of sad, and I want to make more of an effort to expose them to these sorts of things. I think this is where homeschooling is going to be great for us. We will have the time to do these things as a family and not be stressed about meeting the demands of a public school schedule. When I look at my children's sweet faces and see the joy they are experiencing on our journey together, I KNOW I am doing the right thing for them.

I just regret that I waited until third grade to make this decision for my precious Anna, and that I didn't have the courage to trust my heart and pay attention to God's gentle nudges and try it sooner!

As I type this post, Anna is curled up in the family room reading the third Harry Potter book.... she started Wednesday evening and is almost finished! Grant and his dad are upstairs racing some Mario Kart Wii together (big surprise), and I am looking forward to relaxing with my current book, "Crow Lake", when everyone is in bed! Enjoy the weekend!