Welcome to Our 2014 School Room

We have a room in our house that has been a dining room, a bedroom for each of the children; and now, it's our learning room.  The children generally work at the kitchen table or couch. I do not expect that they will use this room specifically for school work. However, having our supplies and materials in a location that is easy to access is super convenient. We had a beautiful room in the basement, but it was ignored and most of our materials were out of sight. The children would go down there and play, and it became a big mess. I think this little room is going to work well for us. Welcome to our 2014 resosource room.

We have books scattered throughout the house and in every bedroom. You can not have too many good quality books.  I gathered some and organized them on shelves. Here we have art, nature, and science books as well as a nature table on top.

The children have a desk and computer for researching and computer work. The kids love maps, so I make sure they are available and at reach for the younger ones.  

History and research books are organized for easy access.

Our fiction bookshelf is filled with chapter and picture books. Pencils, pens, markers, and crayons are also stored here.

Our paper organizer keeps drawing and writing paper in order and easy to find.

My area has teaching resources, poetry books, and homeschool and household binders.

This is work in progress. We still have art work and pictures to hang on the walls, and chairs and a table to bring in. I wanted to hurry and share it while it was clean and orderly. I think the children will enjoy having a quiet place to sit and draw, read, or study.

Does anyone else go on an early spring cleaning frenzy the day after Christmas?

Handmade Holiday

Each year the kids and I put together homemade gifts for family and friends. This year, with only a couple weeks till Christmas, we put our creative thoughts together and got to work. Daddy even joined in. Here is a taste of our handmade holiday:

A lap quilt for Grandpa

Pancakes and Muffins in a Jar, with local maple syrup

A movie night 

A Relaxing Bath. Lemon Sugar Srub, Labendar Bath Salts and Honey Bee Balm make for a nice night of pampering.

Penny Hockey for the children. A surprise by Daddy

A lap quilt for Grandma

Penny Hockey for a gift exchange.

A throw quilt for my Dad

A scarf for my sister

Now that the holidays are over, we can delve into projects for the home. Maybe I can finally get to that quilt for my bed. But, first we have to take the tree down and get the house back in order.

What did you craft this holiday season?

It Started with Bacon

Our kids love to cook!  They have been "helping" since the day they were born.  Sitting in the sling absorbing the sights and smells, to sitting on the counter tasting and touching all within reach, to stirring, mixing and creating their own concoctions.  These kids have always been a part of the daily cooking process.  Some days, they get carried away and make huge messes.  Other days, they eagerly help and clean up after themselves.  I believe it is important for children to help in the kitchen.  My boys will grow knowing how to prepare nutritious meals.  Who knows, maybe they'll want to be chefs.  My daughter will be able to prepare meals and manage her kitchen with ease.  But, most importantly, I am building relationships with my children.

It's easier to do it ourselves. Easier to clean as we go and enjoy the quietness.  But, the benefits of having them in the kitchen, by your side, outweighs the quietness.  Honestly, I occasionally distract my children with books, outside play or whatever, for a moment of quiet time in the kitchen.  We all need that.  But, we also need our children by our sides.

With that in mind.....it started with bacon!  I asked if any of my kitchen apprentices would like to make bacon for breakfast.  Two eager little boys jumped on the opportunity.  Who doesn't love bacon?!  Around lunch time, I smelled the bacon grease cooking. Warning!  These monkeys are supposed to ask permission before turning on the stove.  We might just have to go over the kitchen rules again.  Samuel and Eli would like to share what they did with that bacon grease.
Here's Samuel:

I love cooking. It is one of my favorite hobbies because it is interesting. First I made bacon and when I was done I saw bacon grease on the stove. And I thought "hmmm I think I could do something with that". Then I brought up an idea. I could use it for making potato chips. So I turned the heat up to 5 and put the potatoes on.  Samuel is using a Pampered Chef slicer to slice his potatoes

Next, I flipped the potatoes and cooked them till they turned light brown.  They also added salt

Then, I laid them out till ALL the grease was off.

Finally they were done and now we could eat them.

Yum!

Hannah's Scrappy Skirt

I've been collecting scraps from all the baby carriers constructed over the years. The batiks would make a beautiful quilt, so I thought. Hannah had something else in mind. She has been asking for a mama-made skirt....preferably, a broom skirt aka gypsy skirt or pioneer skirt. Or, in this case, a scrappy skirt. We gathered all the coordinating scraps we could find. After all the cutting and sewing, we still had to purchase a bit more. But, the time and small purchase was worth it. Hannah has a fun-flowing skirt that she can enjoy for a couple years.

                          

Hannah and I have made skirts similar to this for several years. This time, we wanted a fuller skirt. Pinterest was our go-to place for searching for a "fuller" skirt. We found directions to one that looked promising. It was a little fuller then I would have liked it to be, but that's something easy to change for the next time. I also would have liked it to be longer, but I did not have enough material for a longer skirt.  We decided that this skirt would cost a lot of money to make, especially with the Batiks, if you did not have scrap material laying around.  I'm thankful for all the scraps we save. It turned out nice, and Hannah is happy with it. Now, if only I could get motivated to sew my holiday crafts.

 

Here's the link to the skirt description from Pinterest:

http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=36489.msg316565#msg316565

Memory Tree

This year, I was determined to have the children make decorations for the tree instead of pulling all the boxes from the basement. The children were determined to pull everything out. I am really glad they talked me into it. Not only are we making memories together, I am reminded of memories of the past. Each of the ornaments on our tree hold a special place in my heart.  Most are crafted by children. Some by my children, others by children I have taught in the past, or by children I used to babysit. Our tree may look messy and mismatched,but I wouldn't have it any other way.

There are memories from high school and a crafty cheer coach.

   

Memories of a beautiful grandma who recently passed. Every year, from birth to teen years, Grandma gave each of her grandchildren a department store ornament. 

   

Tree trimming makes for fun family time and great memories.

   

There are ornaments from dear friends. Ornament exchanges and Ornaments when a child had not yet entered our family.

   

Ornaments from another grandmother passed. Beautiful memories of a beautiful lady.

   

Pictures of my babies, when they were really babies.

   

Reminders of dear children I had cared for in my home and others I taught in school.

   

Handmade from my babies. The collection grows each year.

   

My childhood memories of our Christmas trees came from the crafty school ornanments my siblings and I contributed to our parents' and grandparents' trees. As we grew, those panty hose bells and pipe cleaner reindeer hung on the trees for years. As children grow and move away, the trees gradually change from beautifully-messy to beautifully cooridinated, with matching garland, bells and bows. The memories get passed on to the next generation. I treasure those memories and I hope my children grow to treasure their messy home-made trees as well.

What kind of ornaments cover your tree?