Monday, March 27, 2017

Happy Homemaker Monday - March 27, 2017


The weather.....alternates between raining and being overcast. We haven't had rain for some time so it's good for the trees and grass. Perhaps it will make things more green and Spring-like.
Right now I am....planning the A to Z challenge that begins on April 1st.


I'm going to be going through my homeschool files and getting rid of papers that I no longer need or want; and then either doing projects or writing things about each of the letters. It's a way to use the files rather than letting them just take up space in my (home) office.

Thinking....about the fun time I had this weekend. Sophia and I went to an expo that featured local businesses on Saturday. There were tons of freebies, drawings, and free food sampling from Famous Dave's (a barbecue place). We're hoping that we win one of the drawings we signed up for at the expo.

On Sunday, we saw Beauty and the Beast at a movie theater that has reclining chairs. We have seats that we like to be in (there is no one directly in front of us because of an aisle; and we're in the center middle part of the theater) and had to search through all the different movie times to find the seats that we could reserve.

This is the only movie theater near us that takes reservations. It's the only way that you're guaranteed a seat for movies. At any rate, the only time available that had "our" seats: 9:15 a.m.! We've never gone to a movie in the morning, so that was a first for us.


The movie was very well done. The costumes were elaborate and beautiful; and the sets and special effects impressive.

One of the costumes from the movie.

There were some parts of the movie that I didn't expect - like the scene where Belle takes the Beast back to her childhood home in Paris. She wanted to know what happened to her mother.

The Beast discovered a metal mask that doctors wore in the 16th and 17th century when the bubonic plague broke out. Belle's mother had the plague; and implored her husband to take Belle and escape so she wouldn't be affected by the plague. Her father confirmed this when they returned to the French village where they lived. I knew about the bubonic plague, but for some reason didn't make the connection to France.

Reading...
still moving along in Animal Dialogues. Got many new books from the library to read over the upcoming couple of weeks.

On my TV.....didn't watch anything from Thursday night to now. Probably won't put on the t.v. until Tuesday night for a few shows I enjoy watching.

Favorite blog post last week (mine or other)....we have been using the Handbook of Nature Study for many years now as part of our homeschooling. One of the sections in the book is about zoo animals.

On March 16, 2017, we went with our 4-H club
on a behind-the-scenes tour and got to see the bears' kitchen.
The buckets are the food for the three grizzly bears.
They had a lot of good-looking produce -
including lettuce and carrots.

In March 2009, Sophia and Olivia were able to
see a sea otter up close.

In addition to sharing some facts about ten animals featured in the book in the post, I went back and looked at photos over the past ten years that I took of my daughters and I at zoos and sanctuaries with animals; and/or animals in the wild. It brought back many good memories.

Something fun to share....I was looking through my Pinterest boards and came across one I had started about hope chests.

These were something that seemed to be talked about more when my parents were growing up, although I do recall wooden hope chests being advertised when I was a teenager. The advertisements encouraged parents to purchase one for their daughters and start putting things in them to give to them either when they married or went off to college.

There are ideas on the Pinterest board for creating items for one's daughter: recipe box with favorite family recipes, kitchen towels, washcloths, and other practical items that can be used when she is starting a new life - either at college or in a relationship.

One of the crafts I like is for a tea towel that is at Lil' Luna.


Perhaps this Spring or Summer I can get started in making some items for Sophia and Olivia.

Blog hopping (newly discovered blog)....I'm wanting to learn how to make soap with lye and came across Sun Drop and Roses which shows a variety of different soap and bath bombs that she has made.

On the menu for this week....some of these meals may be leftovers instead if there's extra food that we need to finish first.

Sunday (yesterday) - Spiced Pork with Sweet Red Onions and Black Beans (Blue Apron meal). The picture below is from Blue Apron because their presentation is so nice.


The dinner was amazing! So much flavor; and the quality of the food was exceptional. This meal came to us thanks to Marci at Stone Cottage Adventures who gifted us with two meals (the other one we had last Friday).
Monday - Sloppy Joes
Tuesday - Taco Pockets
Wednesday - Teriyaki Chicken Casserole
Thursday - Barley Soup
Friday - Savory Southwest Couscous Salad
Saturday - Pork Roast with Potatoes and Gravy
Sunday - Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

On my to do list....in addition to homeschooling:

Monday - Sophia and I do our second volunteering one-on-one session with cats at the humane society where she plays the harp.

I'm assigned to spend time with El - a 12-year cat.

Olivia has her weekly gymnastics lesson later that afternoon. She's making very good progress between doing that and a private lesson each week. Her coach's goal is to move her as quickly through the beginner and intermediate levels so she can be in the advanced level and be with girls closer to her age and eventual skill level.

Tuesday - Homeschool co-op for both the girls and harp lessons (Sophia). Bring taxes in if I didn't do so on Monday.

Wednesday - Sophia and I go to a thrift store to meet with a fashion consultant. We filled out a rather comprehensive online form that describes our style and size; and then linked to our Pinterest boards that visually shows what type of clothes we like. She will pull clothes and accessories that fit what we are looking for which will save us time.

In the late afternoon, go to Fare for All to get food that is sold at a greatly-reduced rate. The program is open to anyone who wants to stretch their budget.


Thursday - Take Sophia and Olivia to the Wildlife Project Bowl practice. Only one more practice and then we're headed to the state competition. I may take a mixed media necklace class at a bead store and ask if they can teach me how to make earrings as well.

Friday - Olivia has speech therapy and a private gymnastics lesson. If the weather is nice, have a backyard picket and finish sealing cracks in the concrete foundation/basement walls and steps.

Saturday - Do some crafting for the county fair. Start a thorough spring cleaning of the house.

Sunday - Pick up any litter along our property and across the street from us that's in the ditch.

In the craft basket....I quilted the Christmas table runner which was both fun and challenging. It's a random pattern that I created as I went along. It's nothing fancy...yet it does its job of holding the top, batting, and backing in place.

I purchased the flannel backing for the northwoods quilt and have it washed and ironed.

Looking forward to this week....decorating for Easter on Sunday.

Looking around the house....I'm happy that we're continuing to get rid of things that we no longer want or need. It will make Spring cleaning easier.

From the camera....went to a new county park on Sunday that I didn't even know existed. It was a bit chilly out - 37 degrees - so I didn't stay long.


However, I want to return when the leaves are on the tree so I can see what the trails and pond look like.


There were a couple geese that were on the pond and then took off; and several beaver lodges. Might be interesting to see what type of wildlife lives there in a month or so.


Also linked to:

7 comments:

Smily-Света said...

The park you walked looks nice. I can imagine how beautiful it wuld be when green and blooming.
As for plague, when you travel around Europe, there is a so called "plague post" in almost every single city or village. They put it when the desease left the city, as a gratitude for God. It creates a weird feeling, indeed.
Regards,
Szvetlana

Mrs. Laura Lane said...

What a wonderful post. This will be a great record for your life to look back on.
Blessings from Harvest Lane Cottage,
Laura

carrie@northwoods scrapbook said...

Happy Monday Ann! Love seeing what your busy week holds ahead. ;)
We saw Beauty and the Beast too and thought it was great! And we've still been enjoying our Blue Apron meals. They really have wonderful quality meat and produce. We've been very impressed.

I still have my hope chest that my MIL and my Mom bought for me. I love it! Now it holds memories. Letters from my Bro in the service. My wedding bouquet and other treasures from our wedding. Some of my things from high school etc. I've been working on a recipe book for my Annie and also both kids will have a bin with their baby album, files of their artwork awards etc and homemade scrapbooks by me of their baby years and school years. Plus other momentos like their Baptism certificates and candles, First Communion things etc. Such treasures.

Have fun decorating for Easter and have a lovely week ahead! xo

Stacy said...

The A to Z challenge looks helpful! I will have to check it out!

Pamela said...

I'm prepping for the A to Z Challenge as well. I've never heard of a thrift store that has a fashion consultant - what a great idea! Have a wonderful week.

Rita said...

Love these kind of posts.
Definitely a park to return to when it has greened up! :)

Row. said...

Those tea towels are adorable. I have a hope chest that was gifted to me as a child by my first teacher and neighbor who became family friends, I treasure it and it holds some childhood items like my teddy bear and also my wedding dress. I would love to bring it inside and use it as a coffee table but 1. we have a very small home and 2. it is VERY heavy and huge. My parents drove it from California when I got married. you know that doctors mask in beauty and the beast scared me lol have a great day!