How Does Your Garden Grow

favorite preparation for zucchini is bread/muffins or fried up with some marinara to dip.

That's it folks the entire potato crop

our homemade pear/apple picker

one of our finest crops

running to catch falling pears

my country girl.  She is the greatest lover of nature of the kids

Overall we are really happy with our garden this year.  We had a lot of failures, but many more successes than last year.  Mainly we moved the garden to a much sunnier spot and that made ALL the difference.  Also this year I started everything from seed.  Due to various circumstances that meant we lost all our tomato, broccoli, and peppers.  And that stinks.  I was really counting on the tomatoes especially to can and last all winter.  Next year I think I will skip the tomatoes from seed and just buy those plants.  I will try the broccoli and peppers again though.

What we do have growing (or grown and already finished) is three types of lettuce, carrots, corn, peas, beans, cucumbers, zucchini, squash, pumpkins, a lame crop of potatoes, and a few grape tomatos, and one lone Roma tomato.  We also had some berries and pears and apples.  The pears we just pulled and the apples we will pull in another week or so.

What I have learned for next year....1. plant twice as many peas and beans so we have to eat and save  2.  squash, pumpkins etc take over the entire garden  3.  there is no such thing as too much watering  4.  recommended spacing for most (squashes aside) is way too far apart....pack them in!

Anna Turns 5

Annabella turned 5 on July 28th.  She is becoming such a big girl.  We have been very proud of her lately.  Showing lots of growth.  She is a blessing every day.

For breakfast she requested brownies.  And she got goggles and a hummingbird feeder.  Later in the day Grandma and Papa came over and we went to dinner at Friendly's.  Yum!!!

First Day of School 14-15

In case you wonder...Ben is expressing how much more he likes donuts compared to cinnamon buns.

Ohhh it feels good to be back to the familiar routine!!  I thought I was totally not ready and perhaps even rushing into the start of school unprepared.  But the first day has gone more than swimmingly (Ben is still working as he is a master dawdler) and oh boy did those all routines feel good after a summer of running wild!!

We are getting a nice and super early start this year because I find come August the kids are starting to get bored....just hanging around like lumps.  And I know from two years experience come April/May it is impossible to strap them down to get school done and at the precious young ages I can't bring myself to force it anyway.  So, hopefully we will be done come May when the kids want to run free...and again be ready to get back to routines come August.

A quick rundown of what we are working on this year:

Ben:
-Singapore 2A US edition (this is new this year...a switch from Abeka.  I am not entirely sure it is going to be a good fit but we are going with it for now)
-Memoria Press 1st gr. Literature Study Guide (this is a quick finish up from last year and we will be moving into the 2nd grade Lit. Guides in a few weeks.
-Grammar CHC Language of God for Little Folks Level B
-Spelling CHC My Catholic Speller Level A (finish from last year and then we will get our spelling from our other work)
-Religion St. Joseph Baltimore Catechism and a healthy dose of Lovasik etc
-Poetry as recommended in MODG.  We are starting with The Owl and the Pussycat
-Geography we are learning about the states and capitals
-Science Usborne Science with Plants and Milliken Seasons and Living Things and Magic Schoolbus and WildKratts for those rainy days.

Annabella is for real in Kindergarten now:
-Abeka K Number Skills for Math
-Phonics/Reading Little Angel Readers
-Religion Treasure Box Books, Chats With God's Little Ones, Leading the Little Ones to Mary
-Poetry
-Handwriting Writing Our Catholic Faith

Anna finished her school day in the time it took Mr. Slow Poke to finish Math and she did a wonderful, enthusiastic, and well done job!!  So pleased with my little peanut!!!  In fact she finished so quickly and thoroughly that I forgot to get a picture of her doing school!!  I will have to get one later because she chose quite the fetching first day of school dress.

Trampoline!

When I saw a large trampoline come onto freecycle right before going to bed one night I jumped on it (no pun intended). I never heard back so I assumed someone else claimed it. A few days later I get an email from the lady that the trampoline was still available! It has a little rust in places and definitely shows years of wear. But it also still has plenty of life left in it! WE have since gotten the netting up too so we don't have to worry about the kids flying off the thing or breaking their legs in the springs :)


 

Goodbye Training Wheels

This Spring I had encourage Ben to let us take off his training wheels. He insisted he was no where near old enough to have his training wheels removed. He said he would need to wait until he was approximately 26 years old. So, I simply took his training wheels off and let him fend for himself.......and he did. He started riding his sister's bike. Not wanting to be outsmarted I went ahead and took off her training wheels too. Mom win. After a few days he had it all figured out :)

Ben's First Holy Communion

 

 

On June 8th, the Feast of Pentecost, Benjamin received his First Holy Communion. He worked very hard all year to prepare and what a blessing!!  The FHC class was just 5 boys this year...no girls!  It was a beautiful day and we pray that Benjamin, and all the boys, continue to grow in their faith.

Wordless Wednesday - Ben Goes Vintage