Friday, September 30, 2011

On being prepared...


I'd like to type, "Don't Ask" but since I posted the pics, I'd better explain.

Yep, I think I need to explain why my boys are wearing gas masks.  And not just any gas masks, Israeli gas masks.  It all started in Cape Cod. We regularly like to visit the Army/Navy Surplus store in Hyannis.  We stay in Hyannis Port and the boys love to go to "town" to wander the stores.

The Army/Navy store is a highlight. It's stuffed to the rafters with all things military.  They all eye the Gillie suits, the netting, the knives, the grenades, patches, pins, and the gas masks.  At $25 bucks a pop, we weren't about to let them spend all their vacation spending money on them.


A month later, the gas masks still hadn't left their little minds.  This is the younger two we're talking about now.  Logan regularly thinks of them, mentions them, and decided to do a bit of research on ebay.



We found a deal.

A good deal. (2 for less than $25 including shipping)



They were new and sufficiently scary looking.



They even came with an extra filter!

I'm feeling really warm and fuzzy now that my youngest too are prepared for a gas attack.



The only problem is....

Ya can't drink yer tea with 'em on.

The Lunch Lady

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Getting Dirty for Learning Sake




Our current 5 week session at our homeschool co-op is on Extreme Weather.  Each week we cover a different type of Extreme Weather.  First was tornadoes and last week, we studied the topic of Flooding.  Now, this is a topic close to all of our hearts around here lately.



Miss Angie gave a fantastic overview of what Flooding is all about complete with videos during our first class of the day. After lunch, she brought the kids out for a hands on experience.



The parking lot had 3 different piles of stone.

Large gravel, brown dirt filled stone, and finer gray stone.  (I obviously don't know my "stones")

They differences were perfect for testing out ground saturation and flooding principles.



The kids were encouraged to hypothesize on what the water would do.

They each had a figure  that they could place in the stones.



Everyone could participate.



The boys loved to dig the trenches.



It was a great practical way to understand the effects of water on the Earth.

Yay for co-op!
The Lunch Lady

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Multiplication...whatever works.

I don't know 'bout you, but I find that teaching my boys the multiplication facts is one of the most difficult and challenging things that I need to do in homeschooling. Ya can't just infuse the facts. Osmosis would be nice but it seems like it's just one of those things that requires some rote memorization skills and a bit o' ingenuity.

Last year I made Logan (9) write and write and write them in a notebook.  He didn't mind writing so much.

But then there's Lucas who. hates. to. write.  He's 8.5.  He was ahead  in Math until we had to make a HUGE brake with multiplication facts.  He gets all the other new concepts of fractions, time, temperature....but those durn multiplication facts...they just ain't stickin'.

And then I was enlightened, as if a choir of angels were singing in my ear yesterday morning.  I was cutting up Lukie's morning fruit, specifically his apple, like he likes it, in his neurotic thirds. Each quarter has to be cut into thirds.  It was my "ahah" moment. I get those once in a really big long while.  Why not teach him the multiplication facts with fruit?



I was on it.  I enlisted Lance, my computer designer guru (also known as my 11 y/o), to come up with apple segments that I could print onto some red card stock.  We decided to go ahead and do bananas and orange segments too.



I cut up 36 apple segments this morning. I felt like I was making paper applesauce.  I just can't get away from food somehow.  We arranged six segments per apple.  It was so simple. It worked!  2 apples = 12,
3 = 18, etc...



I was finally speaking his language.  The kid decided he wants to be a chef this morning.

A boy after mine own heart.
The Lunch Lady

Pizza Pizza


These beauties were just calling to be eaten.

I picked them up at a farm stand down the street.

SO beautiful.


I decided to make pizza for lunch.

They got a plain ole' cheese pizza.

But me, I jazzed mine up a bit.


I rolled out the crust super thin, used pesto instead of tomato sauce, sliced up some mushrooms...



The tomato slices were next, and some leftover peas, and a sprinkling of pecorino romano cheese.



Pop it in the oven on 400 for 10 minutes or so.



Thin crust pizza.




Now this is my kind of pizza.

The Lunch Lady

Monday, September 26, 2011

My Guys....











I'm SO incredibly blessed,
The Lunch Lady

Homemade Spelt Croutons


No more picking croutons out of salads.

Hubby doesn't eat wheat. But he eats a lot of salad.

Inevitably, the American salad usually has some form of crouton in them at restaurants.

He always has to pick them out.

I had a bunch of spelt bread in the fridge (from Trader Joe's) that was getting a bit old.

I decided to pop them in the toaster, let them cool and dry a bit, and then cut them up into small cubes.

I had just sauteed some veggies in my cast iron skillet.  I added a coating of olive oil and tossed the cubes a bit with some garlic powder.



This was lunch yesterday.

Organic brown rice spaghetti with leftover veggies, topped with croutons.





Crunchy wheat free goodness.

The Lunch Lady

Sunday, September 25, 2011

Yankee Doodle Moments...


I caught my youngest two boys like this yesterday.

It's a great way to "catch" your kids.

Unsuspectingly.

Unknowingly.

Stalker-like.



They started piano about 8 months ago.

My 10 year old loves it.  He keeps the 8 year old interested in it.

They are buddies.

They sleep in the same bed.

By choice. Honest.




I'm thinking we have some talent on our hands.

One plays the song, the other sings it.




If you know our family at all personally, you'll know that me and Hubby sing.

We love it.

I want my boys to love it too.





Suddenly, I feel a bit Von Trappish.

And I like it. A lot.
The Lunch Lady

Saturday, September 24, 2011