Once A Month Cooking

My mother taught me how to meal plan. I've done it since I was in college. I saved money at the store, time on a daily basis, and pounds on (off?) my hips. I continued to meal plan when I got married, and then when we started having kiddos. However, when we started home schooling, I found it harder and harder to feed my family a healthy meal at home on a regular basis. I was exhausted at the end of the day! And really, who isn't? Regardless of our circumstances, we are all busy and have demanding lives. So, in my desperation, I reached out to my home schooling mentors and learned more about Once A Month Cooking (OAMC). It has really been a life saver for me. 

I haven't been able to do a batch of cooking since last October. That batch lasted us through redeployment and block leave. But then, we had to get ready to move, and had to empty the freezer. Those were some interesting meals! 

Now that we're settled, both physically and mentally, it is time to start planning again. After all, soccer season starts soon! That means practices twice a week for two kids! Ack! 

Two days ago, I made my menu and my grocery list (regular groceries as well as supplies for OAMC). Yesterday, I went to the commissary and stocked up. Today, I woke up and started cooking around 9am.

Most of my groceries for OAMC

I paid Gator to babysit Monkey since Hubs had to take the van into the dealership for a check-up. Gator kept him occupied while I chopped, sliced, diced, and chopped some more. By the time Hubs got home a couple hours later, I had finished all but one of the chicken meals.

Gator doing puzzles with Monkey

I needed Hubs help for that last meal. He flattened the chicken for me. See! It can be a family affair! 

Hubs goofing off with a frying pan

I had to take a two hour break to make lunch, help with the trampoline assembly in the backyard, and put Monkey down for his nap. Then, I got back to cooking. At the end of the day, I have twelve meals ready to pull out of the freezer, thaw, and dump in a baking dish or the crockpot: baked flank steak in tangy tomato sauce, chicken cacciatore, steak picado, Hawaiian chicken, beef fajitas, chicken parisienne, spaghetti, Italian stuffed chicken, pizza (so I didn't make this one!), baked jambalaya, continental beef, and cranberry chicken. To round out the menu, we usually go out to eat after ChapelNext, and have sandwiches on Sunday night before AWANA. [An aside: this has been a tough concession for me. I grew up eating a big dinner on Sunday after church with china, silver, crystal, and cloth napkins. Since we're a ministry family and Sundays are a "work" day for us, I try to choose another day to have our special meal.] We always have pizza on Friday or Saturday night. So, here is three weeks of food for my family, completed in roughly 8 hours! (As I was cooking, I realized that I forgot to buy the meat for one of the meals. I have all the rest of the ingredients though.)

All of my hard work, just waiting to be cooked!

Here are the cookbooks I use: Once A Month Cooking, Once A Month Cooking Family Favorites, Don't Panic Dinner's in the Freezer, along with a few family recipes. There are so many more available! Check your library first. That way, you can try it out for a month and see if it is a good fit for your family. 

There is so much information available on the internet, too. Just google "once a month cooking" and you'll get over five million hits! 

Many people take this a step further than I. They shop the sales and track grocery store loss leaders. I don't really feel a need to do this since I get all my meat at the commissary for a good amount of savings. Tracking sales will only save you more money! 

I suppose I've let the cat out of the bag. This is one of my sanity keepers. It's so nice to walk out to the freezer, choose a meal, and know it will be done without a lot of daily effort. 

Maybe it will work for you, too!

Home School - Month 1

(making cave paintings for Art and History)

Whew! What a month it has been! I'm exhausted in ways I didn't know possible, but soooooo thankful for our decision to keep the boys at home. We have been able to spend precious moments together as a family before Hubs deploys.
Our first week was a little bit trying. I think that besides getting used to school at home, we had a number of other things going on in our family and the stress level was very high. Also, we had to tweak some of the curriculum. We're still using the stuff I described here. We just had to adjust some of the leveling and pace. Once all of our activites started, extroverted Gator was much happier. I think he felt trapped for the first couple weeks before we got to see people other than each other. Mostly, it has been me learning how to manage my ever-present household duties, mothering, and now teaching. We've really settled into a great rhythm. We still have hiccups, but they are all managable.

Monday, Wednesday, Thursday mornings:
7:15-8:00- PE with other home school families (when we can make it)
8:00-8:30- breakfast, morning chores
8:30- review memory work (AWANA verses for both; poems for Gator; days/months for Bull)
8:45- handwriting/spelling/grammar (videos/PBS, phonics, games, letter practice for Bull)
10:00- breaktime, Monkey's naptime
10:00-12:00 - math, science reading (tangrams, math games/manipulatives, and some formal lessons for Bull)
12:00- lunch with Daddy!

Monday and Thursday afternoons:
1:00- finish up science, history (formal instruction is done at this point)
2:00- reading time (Gator)/quiet time (Bull)/naptime (Monkey)
3:00- snack, playtime
5:00- dinner
5:30-6:30- Gator's football practice on Thursdays (Hubs coaches the team)

Wednesday afternoon:
1:00- occupational therapy for Bull, science/history for Gator
3:00- Musikgarten for all three boys
4:00-6:15- library and dinner
6:30-8:00- AWANA

Tuesday:
9:00-12:00- PWOC (I'm teaching Precept's Marriage Without Regrets), Gator has assignments (memory work, handwriting, science/history reading) that he completes in the home school room at PWOC, Bull has a blast in the preschool room, and Monkey smiles in the nursery.
12:00- lunch with Daddy!
1:00- spelling, grammar, review assigned reading (Bull plays)
2:00- reading time (Gator)/quiet time (Bull)/naptime (Monkey)
3:00- snack, playtime
5:00- dinner
5:30-6:30- Gator's football practice (Hubs coaches the team)

Friday:
7:30-8:30- breakfast, morning chores
8:30- review memory work (AWANA verses for both; poems for Gator; days/months for Bull)
8:45- handwriting/spelling/grammar (videos/PBS, phonics, games, letter practice for Bull)
10:00- leave for co-op
10:30- Art class for Gator and Bull (taught by local college students)
11:45- Presidential Physical Fitness Program (coordinated/coached by a home school mom; Hubs comes to help)
1:00- lunch with Daddy!
2:00- science experiments, history timeline and special activities

(Glider experiment)

I know that this will undergo many revisions in the coming months as Hubs leaves, Monkey grows, and Gator and Bull advance. This is what is working right now. And I'm happy to say that we're pretty much staying on track with what I had laid out in my lesson plans (which are written in pencil!).

We're still here!

I promise! We've been getting into our new rhythm of home schooling. Things are going well. I'll be updating within the next two weeks with pictures from our recent trips, reflections from my first few weeks of being a teacher, and a Monkey-is-9-months-old post. For now, here's a picture from our first day of school to hold you over!

Classic

Since we decided to homeschool next year, we've been in a whirlwind of curriculum choices and lesson planning.
We will be using the Classical Method as laid out in The Well-Trained Mind.

Here are our curriculum choices by subject:

Spelling - Spelling Power; I love this because it's a one-hit wonder. I won't ever need another spelling curriculum. The lists are arranged phonetically.

Language Arts - First Language Lessons; The text covers 1st and 2nd grade. But since I'm not sure what Gator already knows, we're starting at the beginning. I think we'll fly through it though.

Handwriting - D'Nealian Handwriting; Gator already started learning D'Nealian last year, so we'll continue with this until he starts cursive. Then, I think we'll switch to A Reason for Handwriting.

Reading - Any reading we do will be directly linked to what we're studying in History, along with some leisure reading as well. We will visit the library a lot!

History - The Story of the World - The Ancients and Activity Book; I LOVE the way this series is written, chronologically from pre-history through to modern times in four books. If I had been taught history this way, it would have stuck! I will definitely be learning along with my kids for this subject. And we get to mummify a chicken while covering Ancient Egypt!

Science - Exploring Creation with Zoology 1 and Notebooking Journal; Science learning by immersion is such a great way to learn! I'm really looking forward to all the experiments we will do.

Math - Right Start Mathematics; I chose this one for Bull's sake. Gator could learn math by any method. This hands-on approach is perfectly suited for my kinesthetic second-born.

Music/Art/PE - I'm still trying to figure all of this out. Art will most likely be with a co-op. I'm not sure that I'm ready to commit to instrument lessons yet (baby steps!). So, we'll likely do some type of Music Appreciation. As for PE...well, they're boys! We'll most likely do some combination of Gymnastics Plus, team sports on post, and co-op involvement.

Memory Work - We will have numerous sources of memorization for the boys: literature/poetry, historical lists (i.e. Egyptian Pharoahs), and AWANA at a local church.

Bible - We will work Biblical history into our study of Ancient History. We will also take advantage of Daddy's time at home between PT and office work and do family devotionals while we eat breakfast.

While I need one-on-one time with Gator, Bull will have plenty of Montessori-inspired activities, worksheets, and play-doh to occupy his time and hands. And Monkey? He'll just keep being cute, I suppose!

That's the plan. Any other ideas? Do you see any holes? This will be quite a grand adventure!

One Word

At the beginning of the year, one of my radio stations gave listeners a challenge to come up with one word to define 2010. My word - margin.

This word came as a response to a very trying, although fruitful, first 10 months of life in the Army. We were very far away from family for the first time in our marriage. I had a hard first 18 weeks of pregnancy. The demands of Hubs' job were far more than we could have ever imagined. I found us having a hard time just surviving life through the fog of exhaustion that we were experiencing. We were living reactively for the first time in our lives. I knew something had to change if we were going to thrive in 2010.

I made a commitment in January to plan for more margin in our family life. Six months into it, I'm glad to say that we are succeeding for the most part. It's been hard though. I'm a classic first-born people pleaser with perfectionist tendencies. It is in my nature to say yes to everyone and everything. Saying no to opportunities has both stretched me and freed me. And my family is reaping the benefits.

We have tried to reserve Saturday for family time and rarely schedule things that would cause us to spend time apart. For most people, Sunday tends to be the day to lay low and reconnect with family (while Saturday is spent at sporting events, running errands, or doing yardwork). But we are the family of a Chaplain and Sundays can be one of the most stressful days of the week for us. Hubs has responsibilities at the Chapel, which means we arrive and leave at different times on Sunday mornings. I've had to let go of my "big Sunday dinner" dream. Instead, we have a special meal on Friday or Saturday night. On Sundays, we go out to eat and have leftovers or sandwiches. As for yardwork, we live on post and lawncare is provided for us.

We have tried to say no to things that would require us to be out of the house every night of the week. Therefore, Gator didn't play a sport during every season (though he really wanted to do so). I don't go to all the coffees I'm invited to attend. Hubs tries to keep after-hours counseling down to one night a week, if any at all. I have given up on having a perfectly clean house. I've stopped blogging as much. I've limited my computer time and the boys' TV/Wii time.

Our biggest change will begin in August. We will be home schooling our boys next year: Gator in 2nd grade and Bull in Pre-K. Yes, the girl who didn't major in education because she didn't want to write lesson plans bought a lesson planner a couple of weeks ago. We decided that margin is our priority. The boys and I will be here when Hubs comes home from PT and for lunch. We will be available when Hubs has a 4 day weekend. We can "do school" in the van on a road trip and not worry about the make-up work when we return from our trip. And these times spent together will fill our love bank accounts so we can make the withdrawals that a potential deployment will require. I know that bringing the boys home for school will not be "all sunshine and roses." However, I believe that the benefits will far outweigh any discomfort that I may feel! I'm certain that we will be able to create and preserve even more margin in our family life with this choice.

Ultimately, I've recognized that saying no to some things allows me to say "Yes!" to so many other more important things. I'm looking forward to the newest chapter in our margin-filled grand adventure!

Gator

has been making

baskets

when his nose

hasn't been

in a book.

I'm back (kinda')...

This is how I have spent the majority of the last 5 weeks.



That's because I have hyperemesis gravidarum. That's right...I'm pregnant! I am now at 14 weeks and due at the beginning of December. The baby is the size of a softball now. I have survived because of Zofran and Phenergan, and an incredibly patient husband. I have lost 16 pounds over the last few weeks. I've finally started to gain some of it back, though not quickly (I hope). I had this with Bull, though much worse. This time we saw it coming and got some meds before it got really bad. Hubs has been a trooper and has really kept us going. Yay for great husbands!


Therefore, my house is still a wreck, and very dirty. So, no pictures of the new place yet!
However, lots of other things have occurred.

We went to a Strong Bonds event and laughed a great deal. It was so much fun!


We also got to visit Spring Canyon for a long weekend to attend the Council meeting. We went to a local farm and fed baby goats! Gator loved it. Bull wanted nothing to do with it!



Gator graduated from Kindergarten. Not a great picture, but it's what I've got. This is his sweet teacher, Mrs. D. She retired this year, so the graduation was bitter sweet for her.



We went to this hotel this past week for Chaplain Annual Sustainment Training. It was a lot of fun! I was actually feeling well enough to play in the pool with the boys.


Gator started indoor soccer yesterday. Bull is growing so quickly and says the funniest things. I think we are going to re-start potty training him this weekend. Last summer was not a happy time, so we dropped the potty training. This time we'll call it Potty Training 301. When the baby comes, he WILL be trained!



So, I think that this catches us up. We've got lots of fun stuff planned for this summer. I look forward to getting started. I think I will be posting on a more regular basis now that I'm out of the first trimester, but I reserve the right to not post if I don't feel good!

Bull's first day

was great!


He walked into his classroom like he owned the place. No tears and barely a backward glance. He played on the playground, didn't want to do his art project, played with the cars, and had a lot of fun. When I got there at the end of rest time to pick him up, he was squatting, looking at a toy whispering to himself "Be quiet" with his finger over his mouth.

After school, we visited Wal Mart and he picked out his first day of school prize - a monster truck!

Gator's first day

of Kindergarten was wonderful!

He had a great time, and had no trouble hopping out of the car in the car pool line. He played on the playground, read books, drew a picture, sat at the blue table, earned a panda buck (for the panda reward store) and stayed on green all day today! After school, we went to Wal Mart and let him pick out a prize - the Hot Wheels watch.

Bull was mopey. He kept saying "Where Gator go? I want Gator." I had to assure him that Gator would be home soon. Tomorrow, Bull starts Mother's Day Out. Maybe that will help his adjustment!

A Proud Mommy Moment

Forgive the gratuitous nature of this post. I think that I have the best kids in the world and today it was confirmed (at least for one of them)!
We had our "half-way through the year" parent-teacher conference today for Gator. His teacher says that he has a "sweet and happy spirit" and is "very giving, helpful, kind and polite to everyone." The one thing he needs to work on is that he doesn't like to color during seatwork time. That's it! Wow. What a great kid I have. Around this household, we reward such displays of excellence. So we took Gator to Toys R Us and let him pick whatever he wanted (within reason of course). So, he chose this (the Blue Operation Overdrive Power Ranger):









And he chose two more Nerf dart guns to go with the one he got for Christmas from his buddy E so that now everyone (all the boys, that is) has a gun to shoot one another. Ahhh, boys. Ya' gotta' love 'em. And just to be fair, here's a cute pic of the other best kid in the world taken in Texas:

And the winner is...

Aren't they cute?! The crying picture was the first one that we took, and this one was the next to last one we took. Glad we got a cute one, you just can't see how pretty their eyes are. Maybe next year we'll have more luck.

In other news, Gator got to go to school today! I know that he's missed it (we've all been sick). Hopefully, Bull will be able to attend on Thursday. I am glad that they are well enough to go back to school. I'm praying that 2008 will be a healthier year for all of us!

Bull's first day...

...went very well. He cried when I dropped him off, but he stopped soon after I left. What did I do all day, you ask? I got my teeth cleaned (no cavities!), a haircut, and a good workout at the gym. I cleaned the house (rather quickly!) and watched all of Martha Stewart without a single interruption. Hmmm. I might enjoy this....

First Day of School

Today was Gator's first day of school and he LOVED it! Before we left, he wanted to know if he got to ride the bus. He was bummed when I told him no. And he asked if it was time to go about a million times! After school, he didn't stop talking all the way home. He even told the Barista at Starbuck's that he got to go to school today. This was his synopsis of the first day: "I have lots of new friends. We got to play with bugs. We went to the playground." He ate everything in his lunch (it was a lot of food!) and got a green happy face for behavior (that's good). He also told me that he fell asleep during rest time. It's only 20 minutes long, so I know that he must have been very busy all day. Bull was a little unsure of what to do with all the Mommy attention that he got! I think that he missed his big brother though. Bull starts Mother's Day Out on Thursday. More pics then!