a tale from milkweed meadow

when B disappears for awhile and all is quiet, you can be sure she is up to something...usually something good! yesterday afternoon B decided to write a story. maybe it was the new Five in a Row book we started this week that was written by a 14 year old girl that inspired her or maybe it was jo in Little Women who is always writing dramatic plays! whatever it was, her imagination was unleashed and when she was done she had printed her story and presented it to me tied with a ribbon. what a girl.



Once upon a time, there was three little mice called Squeaky, Scrabble, and Shim, and they lived in Milkweed Meadow in a small rose bush....

she ended the episode with a promise, "to be continued..." i can't wait to see what will happen next! and i don't just mean in the story...i mean in the life of my girl who wants to grow up and be an equestrian -veterinarian- artist- farmer-knitter- zoo keeper- weaver- baker- author. ;o)

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everyday gift: a budding young author

klondike saturday

i awoke this predawn morning to the alarm clock. not my alarm. :o) i was careful not to move or open my eyes lest mark would think i wanted to help with breakfast. i just sprawled to other side of the bed absorbing mark's warmth and listened as he got the boys up to go on their boy scout winter adventure. the sound of toast popping and cheerios musically filling bowls somehow made my bed feel all the more cozy. i smiled at the muffled voices discussing the weather and temperatures, gear, and some klondike joke which was lost on me. they hurriedly put on their 2 pair of socks, boots, coats, hats, and gloves and slammed the door as they left. (either they leave it open completely or slam it, can't they just shut the door?)

ahhh. a quiet house. i can sleep 'til 10 if i want! but, no. my mind is already moving on into the day. i know i will find the kitchen table decorated with crumbs, peanut butter knives, open jam jars, and soggy cereal bowls. but i smile anyway. i will relish the morning alone...until B wakes up. i'll read my Bible (it is the last day of january and i am still, remarkably, on track for my read-the-Bible-in-a-year schedule! amazing.) i'll peruse my cook books and actually make a meal plan this week. i'll work on my plan to warp my loom this year, supplies were delivered this week! oh the possibilities...

everyday gift: a saturday all to myself and my sidekick, B :o)

exodus crackers

"Then Moses said to the people, "Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you,... You shall tell your son on that day, 'it is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.'" Exodus 13:3, 7, 8

we are studying the veritas press Bible card #20: the exodus. so i decided that for the occasion, we should bake some unleavened bread. i did a quick search of my cook books and the best i could come up with was a cracker recipe from the king arthur flour baker's companion. no jewish matzo, but the crackers used no leavening. we used a combination of flours that we had on hand: all purpose, whole wheat, and corn flour and seasoned them with garlic powder, thyme, and salt (kosher, of course!).

i do love the old testament full of such incredible events which give deeper meaning and insight into the new testament. i love how history sheds such prophetic light on Jesus, like the passover. it is nothing short of miraculous to find all of history, prophecy, and the complete Word of God woven together in such a seamless perfect story. i love knowing that i will never find the end of learning in God's Word. and it is an incredible privilege to share the wonder of it all with my children.

everyday gift: remembering how God has led me out of slavery, too.

aunt jessie's lemon sponge cups

aunt jessie's lemon sponge cups

tangy, refreshing lemon custard with a light cake top

2 tablespoons butter, softened

1 cup sugar

4 tablespoons flour

dash salt

5 tablespoons lemon juice

grated rind of one lemon

3 eggs, separated

1 1/2 cups milk

cream butter. add the sugar, flour, salt, lemon juice and rind. blend well. beat egg yolks with some of the milk. add the egg mixture and the rest of the milk to the lemon mixture. beat egg whites until stiff. fold into the lemon mixture. pour into 8 custard cups. set the cups in 9 x 13 pan with 1-2 inches of water. bake at 350* for 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown on top. serve warm or chilled.

the other night we had fun celebrating my mom's birthday. i surprised her by fixing this favorite dessert. i guess you could call it an heirloom recipe. aunt jessie was married to my grandmother's brother jim henry or uncle jimmy, making her my mom's aunt and my great aunt. mom remembers her as a real southern lady. she can still hear her say in her southern drawl, "why, ahh declarah". she was a wonderful cook and this recipes is always attributed to her.

happy birthday, mom! your example of faith and love through out your life has been such a blessing to all you meet, especially to me. love you.

everyday gifts: celebrating mom's birthday, such a blessing in our lives!

teeny weeny beanies

the flowering bean plant has actually begun to develop little beans! what a contrast this fresh green plant is against the frozen winter outside.
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i think these little pods will not produce any red kidney beans inside them since there have not been any bees buzzing around to pollinate them. but aren't they cute?! it has been so encouraging watching S carefully cultivate his plants and seeing them grow on the kitchen window sill.

everyday gift: watching my young botanist

tracks in the snow

we have had snow cover for several weeks. it has given us a wonderful opportunity to observe animal tracks, which has gone nicely with our five in a row book Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening.

several deer ran through our back pasture and lept the fence as though it wasn't even there! once again S is quick with the camera, he is my on the scene reporter.

some of the tracks we discovered have been a little bit disturbing. especially if you happen to be a certain lop eared bunny living in the backyard hutch!

hmm....wile e. coyote or foxy loxy?

what is he up too?

oh my. nellie, you had better stay in that hutch of yours,

safe and sound! do you see how that predator was digging at her fence?

sharing read alouds

raspberry tea for two, fancy pirouette cookies, and few good books

currently we have 4 books going, a few more than usual: Tirzah, about a young jewish girl and the exodus from egypt; Marcella: A Raggedy Ann Story, a book from grammy; Little Women; and Black Beauty to go with our history of the horse unit study.

one of my favorite parts of being a mom and a home school teacher has been reading aloud to my kids. from the very beginning i read to them. yes, before C was even born, i read some sweet rhyming and rhythmic books aloud in the direction of my stomach. (well, studies show the babe in the womb can hear!) *smile* of course the ones that came after got plenty of reading time before birth as i was reading to their older brother daily.

i have such warm memories of The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Good Night Moon. of course, we moved up in the literary world with Stellaluna and Miss Twiggly's Tree, and then graduated to chapter books. i can't tell you how many times i have read Charlotte's Web. for awhile i was on the look out for books of boy interest like The Mouse and Motorcycle, The Sign of the Beaver, and My Side of the Mountain (which i should mention, B also enjoyed heartily). now, with the boys at school and B my primary listener, i am all about girl books (and i should say, the boys sometimes listen in on those, too!). we have read The Princess and the Goblin, Little House in the the Big Woods, The Doll People, and Thimble Summer, just to name a few. i have shared favorites from my childhood, relishing the memories they brought. and i have met many new favorites that i missed as a child.

there is nothing quite like snuggling up on the couch with an exciting book and your kids scrambling for your lap or the best spot to see the illustrations. someday, i know, i will miss those voices begging for one more chapter...

everyday gift: sharing read alouds