New Stumbling Block

Jackson has Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) which makes speech and language difficult for him, but he has come such a long way. We are working on rhyming words which is giving us a bit of trouble right now. Researching strategies to help, but there seems to be very little information out there.

The Big Black C.Ds

When 1 of my kids was little I was cleaning out my entertainment center and reorganizing my record collection when little kid said, "What are those big black c.d. things?" I laughed hard. Today while out and about on errands, we had a chance to see a real live pay phone. The "oooos" and "aahhhhhs" from the back seat had me cracking up. My 12 year old's cell phone died last week and she has been in mourning and my 9 year old was amazed that you would only have 3 minutes to talk before having to put more money in to continue.

11 more days of school.

To The Bat Cave

I am thinking about putting bats in my backyard. The "mus-kee-toes" as my kids call them are out in full force and I hate using pesticides where they play. Besides the fact that the mosquitoes in my neighborhood seem to be Bl*ck Fl*g Addicts and sit at the bar like its happy hour waiting for me to spray, so I have been researching the use of bats. I know I don't have many readers, but have any of you ever had bats on purpose? (Not the kind in your belfry, I've had those kind for years now LOL!)

My mom bought the kids yet another yard toy today from Disc*very K*ds; an In flat able Sprink ler Gl*be. I think I will count this as history and geography!

Testing 1, 2, 3...

I have never been much into standardized testing as I always felt there was a certain unintentional bias in them. I remember in early elementary taking a test that used the word, "davenport". I had never heard that word before and had no clue what it meant. When I later learned that it was a synonym for "couch" or "sofa" I felt robbed.



Anyhoo, I decided to let 6th grade take the practice Terra Nova Test for the experience as she missed most standardized testing during the years she was in traditional school. She strongly dislikes them and thinks "...everyone should not be forced to take the same test as everyone else 'cause some kids are not strong in some areas like math and science." My little rebel. LOL!

Crock-Pot Dinner

I rarely, almost never post recipes on here because while I can cook, I don't like to and do not claim to be particularly skilled at it. I do however love reading other people's recipes and have tried quite a few. Some time ago, Kim over at His Hands and His Feet Today posted a recipe for taco soup that we really liked. Today I knew we would have a longer day at church as James is taking his Baptism classes so I decided to just throw all of the ingredients in the crock pot before we left. When we came home and opened the door it smelled so good that I have never had kids change out of church clothes so fast. LOL!

It was very warm today, so I decided to not do this as soup, but as nachos.

Our version of Crock-Pot Nachos:

1/2 lb of ground chuck (we rarely eat red meat so this is all that I use, but you could use more)
1 can whole kernel corn (drained)
1 can beans (kidney, black, whatever your favorite) drained and rinsed
1 can tomatoes (diced, stewed, however...)
1 pack taco seasoning (per amount of meat)
1 cup water

My ground chuck was frozen when I started so I just threw it in, added the canned items, emptied the seasoning on top, threw in the water, covered, set it on high and left. When we came home 4 hours later, I stirred, added another 1/2 cup of water and it was ready. I served in bowls with nacho chips (we like *Scoops*) on the bottom, spooned mixture over the chips, added shredded cheese and a dollop of sour cream.

It was so easy (especially since the kids opened the cans, rinsed and drained everything while I was in the shower) and fun.

New Toy

Every year I try to buy something new for the backyard as enevidently, things wear out and have to be tossed. This year I had great plans to build a teeter totter, but just never could muster the motivation to get plans and supplies. While perusing Ebay, I found this seesaw and decided this would have to do (and the price was just right - $10 + shipping).

It was fun to put together with the 6th and 2nd grader and because of rain they had to wait until this afternoon, but once they were able to use it, they all giggled so hard. Good fun! Have a great weekend!

Peace

Making Summer Plans

I just signed up for our 2nd year of “Kids Bowl Free” program. Last year was really good and it is a fairly cheap activity. Check it out to see if there are participating bowling alleys in your area.