Inexpensive Thank You Christmas Gift Idea

A simple and easy "homemade" gift to give to teachers or others that deserve a little "Thank You" gift this Christmas time is the time honored Candy In a Jar.

Everything I used to make these, for my youngest two daughter's Sunday school teachers, I had on hand- except for the M-n-M's.

We used to run a hand crafted soap and body care business and I have a few odd jars left over from that time.  I used a square jar with a cork lid but any shape will do and if you can't find anything with a lid a wad of tissue paper will work nicely.  Garage sales and thrift stores are great places to look for containers but craft stores and supermarkets will usually have something too.

We sorted the M-n-M's by color- something all the kids enjoyed helping with- by dumping our Costco sized bag onto a cookie sheet and grouping them into piles. Then we carefully filled the jar by the rainbow... ROY G BIV (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, Violet) and sealed it up.

 

Next I tied some wire-edged ribbon around the jar.

 

 

And attached a little thank you note with string and a hole punch.

 

Simple, pretty, and inexpensive!  It works with a lot of different types of candies and can be adapted to other holidays and occasions.  Being thoughtful doesn't have to break the bank.

Schedules and Limited Screen Time!

Who knew that a schedule would not only work to organize our hectic days but be embraced by my children as well.

Because of sickness we had been off schedule more than on and now that things are back to normal I've been hearing things like, "I like being on a schedule.  It makes me more productive."  Every one of the five kiddoes feel that way!  That is a huge praise.

Along with our time being mapped out we've also severely curtailed screen time (computer, video games and t.v.).  This too has had marvelous results.  My screen loving son actually got some puzzles out and started them!  Unheard of before.

We also severely curtailed copious amounts of free time.  They still have some but we've filled their days with school, chores, service to others, and skill building according to their personalities.  This prevents boredom, too much laying around being lazy and promotes a good work ethic and training for adulthood.

Also rather then separating out to do our own thing we have implemented family time in the evening.  Sometimes it's a game, sometimes a movie, TV show or listening and discussing a Generations Radio broadcast.

It's so easy to get caught up in doing our "own" thing.  It is good to reassess and make positive changes to bring the family closer together.

What do your families do?

Family Time & The Family Economy

With our new school schedule we have added an evening "family time".  Our first family time together last week was met with mixed reviews.  Farmer John wanted to get everyone involved with his future business, Bamboo On The Fly (tentative name), and so we all tumbled out to the garage to work on his current Bamboo Fly Fishing Rod.  I must admit only John and our two littlest (Reagan and Taylor) were overly excited to do this.  Later I realized that I had to confess sin because I was less than championing my husband's vision at the time. (Which is really silly because I very much want him to leave his "corporate" job for a home-based, family biz.)

Yes, we put a blowtorch in the hands of our 13 year-old son!

 

 And our 15 year-old daughter

 Not our 4 year-old- she was content to make up her own games with balls and badmitton birdies!

 

Here I am with the torch.  The pieces of bamboo for the rod are slid into the copper pipe and then the pipe is heated with the torch.  This dries the bamboo.  You could see the steam being released at the tube ends.

 

 

As you can see the garage is highly unkempt.  Farmer John is on vacation this week and so one of our projects (practical arts for school) will be cleaning the garage.  By mid-October we'll be getting heavy frosts/freezes and the cars will need to be parked inside overnight. (Farmer John does not want to scrape ice at 3:30 in the morning!)

 

Leave me a comment if you are interested in a Handcrafted Bamboo Fly Rod!

 

If you are wondering about family economies check out Kevin Swanson's Generations Radio show (search the archived shows for "family economies) and Herrick Kimball over at The Deliberate Agrarian writes frequently on this topic too!

 

Country Sundays are the best!

Spent a wonderful day of rest with my husband and my two youngest daughters on Sunday. The teens were off to Mid-Summer Lord's Day at Harbor Baptist Church in Holland so it was just parents and littles for the day.

The festivities started on the way home from church.  We were almost home and notice dust coming from the farm across from our house.  They are building a new barn to house their dairy herd but they don't usually work on it on Sundays.  As we drew closer we saw a cow out and about and then another... and another... and another.  They were running around the construction site, up and down dirt hills and out into the road having a marvelous time... at least 20 or 30 of them. (They have a dairy herd of 300'ish and a beef herd of around 100'ish.)

It isn't unusual for a calve to get out of its pen from time to time but this was the first time we had seen any bigs out.  We quickly put the car in reverse and went to go get the farmer.  He was just on his way out to catch them when we drove up and had his farm hands with him.  He thanked us and disappeared to corral cows.  They got them under control pretty quickly.

We found it all rather funny and I'm sure the farmer is glad we did.  Apparently the lady who we bought the house from was not amused by such happenings and was constantly complaining and making life hard for the farmer.  Now, he may be an industrial type farmer but I still respect what he does and appreciate the hard work it takes, not to mention I still buy my milk from the store so his service is vital to me. I don't understand why people don't treat farmers better.  Do they not like to eat?  This isn't Star Trek where replicators just make food appear.  Someone has to work hard to provide it! (I might add that this is a young farm family... second generation... we want to be an encouragement to them.)

After the cow excitement we spent the day relaxing outside.  (City daughter wasn't home to complain about the great outdoors.)  We had target practice, watched chickens, built a fire and roasted marshmallows and just in general had a marvelous technology free day!  I am so thankful for God and his wisdom to give us a day of rest.

 Daddy and daughters (Every girl needs a pink gun!)

 Reagan (Katniss Everdeen) Lewis

 Target Practice!

 Dancing in the great outdoors...

 

 Chickens on the move...

 

 The rare red-headed, blue clothed squirrel posing in her natural habitat! (There isn't a tree in our yard that she can't climb.)

Construction site across the street where the cows were playing.

Homeschool Season Is Fast Approaching!

 

 

It's almost that time of year again.  Back to home-school!  I've got schedules made. (Notice mine- up above- starts at 3:00am in the morning. Yuck! But that is what time Farmer John has to get up for his new shift so, why not.  I hope to accomplish much in the wee hours while children slumber.) I also have subjects and curriculums picked out.  Now I need to individualize assignments and purchase the remaining things we need.

This is my first year schooling all five.  Last year I did start pre-school with my littlest but it was quite lax.  This year I'm starting her in Kindergarten so we'll see how she does. If she was in public school she wouldn't start until next year since she turns 5 after labor day.  I figure if she needs a couple of years of Kindergarten we're okay.

So here is the break down:

Seven (Junior in Highschool)

Algebra - Alpha Omega Life Pac
History/Geography- Great Courses Daily life in the Ancient World
Spanish - Instant Immersion
Biology-  Apologia
Personal Bible Study- her choice
Personal Reading- her choice
PE/Nutrition- Work out videos/Nutrition 101 Choose Life
Theater- Homeschool Performing Arts group
ACT Preparation/Study Manual
plus she has her general chores and homemaking/entrepreneurial skills to work on
(I'll assign writing/language arts based on her history course study)

Andi (Sophmore in Highschool)

Algebra- Alpha Omega Life Pac
History/Geography- Far Above Rubies
Spanish- Instant Immersion
Science- Far Above Rubies
Bible- Far Above Rubies
Personal Reading- her choice
Reading- Far Above Rubies
PE/Nutrition- Work out videos/Nutrition 101 Choose Life
Practical Arts- Far Above Rubies
Decorative/Perfoming Arts- Far Above Rubies
Health- Far Above Rubies
Writing- Far Above Rubies
plus she has her general chores and homemaking/entrepreneurial skills to work on and she will be teaching cursive penmanship to her little sister to refresh hers

Remington (Jr. High)

Math- Spectrum
Guitar- Private Lessons
Typing- Typing Instructor Platinum
Bible- Blessed Is The Man
History/Geography- Blessed Is The Man
Reading- Blessed Is The Man
Writing- Blessed Is The Man
Science- Blessed Is The Man
Health- Blessed Is The Man
Personal Reading- his choice
PE/Nutrition- Work out videos/Nutrition 101 Choose Life
plus he has his general chores and entrepreneurial skills to work on

Reagan (4th Grade)

Math- Spectrum
Reading- Mom's choice, her choice, sister's choice
Cursive- Handwriting Without Tears
Grammar- Up With Language
Spelling- All about Spelling
Science- Apologia
History- Various sources following topics listed in what your 4th Grader Needs To Know
Bible- Character Building For Families
Art- What your 4th Grader Needs To Know
PE/Nutrition- Work out video/Nutrition 101 Choose Life
plus she has general chores and homemaking skills

Taylor (Kindergarten)

Math- Alpha Omega Horizons
Reading- Alpha Omega Horizons
Writing- Alpha Omega Horizons
Bible- Character Building For Families
Art- What Your Kindergartener Needs To Know
PE/Nutrition- Work out video/Nutrition 101
plus she has general chores and homemaking skills

Whew!  There done!  It's not as heavy as it looks really except for my oldest who has decided to go to college at this point.  I really only work with the younger two as the olders teach themselves! I very much love homeschooling and am glad God led us in that direction.

What do you all use/do?  How do you fit it all in? Do you schedule or fly free?

A Rainy Day Is Welcomed!

I awoke this morning to the glorious sound of thunder rumbling and rain falling.  This was wonderful in two ways;first, it drowned out my two roosters crowing- my normal alarm clock at dawn and second it meant an inside day!  No one needed to mow or weed or pick strawberries.  I only needed to take care of chickens and let's face it... they kinda take care of themselves except for daily food, water and egg collection. (And my little peepers occasionally like to fly to the top of their fencing and sit on it and then fly off the fence into the yard, so I do check on them frequently so as to avoid my garden being eaten by teenage chickens.)

Our rainy day was spent quilting downstairs with homeschool friends and planning for next year's schooling.  My older two daughters and some of their friends have been meeting weekly and bi-weekly for some time making their first quilts.  Today was a daylong push to finish up the projects.  One young lady finished quilting hers today and we got the binding ready to sew up.  Now if my two can finish up their quilting we can bind theirs and shout a "Hurray, we're done!"  At this point in time I don't think any of the girls will take up quilting as a permanent hobby. 

I also spent sometime researching science curriculum for Seven.  She has decided to attend Grand Rapids Community College after graduating (in two years) to earn an associates degree in photography.  Since she is going the college route I need to make sure she has what is needed credit wise so she is eligible for entry.  After looking at what we have already accomplished and what we were planning on doing, science came up as the weak link. We are on track for everything else. She will study biology this year and chemistry next year  (Apologia- I think.) and then we are good. (Provided I can get her through algebra two and geometry.  Math is her downfall.) She will also need to be studying for the ACT.

I had to laugh at Seven when I told her we'd need to do biology in a little more structured format.  She was very concerned that she will have to dissect something.  But I told her not to worry they have computer programs for that now days.  Of course she will still be required to help with the chickens when the time comes.  Not exactly dissection but a close second. Oh, how I wish they had computer programs for that when I was her age.  I was totally freaked out by dissection.  I made my lab partner do the entire thing. Still shuddering about that.  There is a good reason I am not in a medical field other than as a herbalist.  Yuck.

The sun did eventually come out a bit this evening but quilting all day can actually tire a person out.  I did point out to the girls that they should be thankful to live in this time period and in this country or they might be (or have been) sitting in front of sewing machines day in and out getting paid very little for their work. They groaned at the thought and suddenly were very thankful for their current lives.  Perspective is always helpful.

New Project? Me A Cookbook Author?

I just found out that one of my sister-in law's families has a family cookbook.  My niece just turned 19 and was gifted one.  What!?  How come my family doesn't have a family cookbook?  Oh... cause I'm the only girl and I haven't put one together yet.  Sigh.  New project!  But it will be a fun one and a good one to pass down to my kids and my brother's kids.

I'm thinking of not only putting in recipes but stories and pictures too. Hmmm... who knew my first "published" work would be a cook book.  I wish I would have realized to do this when my grandmother's were alive.  I hope my mom is able to share some of their recipes.  I remember Norwegian things from my mom's mom and wonderful potato pancakes from my dad's mom (German ancestry).  Both sets of my Grandparent's parents immigrated to the USA so I hope there are some recipes that go back to their "motherlands".

I guess while I'm at it I should get with my mother-in-law and my husband's sister and work on a Lewis family cookbook too.  Ohhh for more time in the day.

Have any of you put out a family cookbook?  What did you include and who did you "publish" it through? How much did it cost?

 

I imagine that a Schuh family cookbook would look similar to this.

5 Years of Leaves Moved In One Day

This homesteading thing... whew... it's a lot of work.  It may be a simpler life but it isn't easy.  We had an opportunity to help out our pastor recently.  He had been saving his very ample supply of yearly leaves in an ever growing compost heap... for five years.  This heap was a breathing, growing monster in the back corner of his yard.  He had dreams of setting up a great system but the time to work on it escaped him and it was apparent that it was time for the dream and the pile to go.  His fence and neighbor relations on the other side of the fence were falling down.  Enter the Lewis clan.

Would we like to have all that compost and leaves for free if we would haul it out of there?  Why yes, free stuff for compost, we will most assuredly come get it.  Little did I know that when my husband and I said yes to this that I would be required to come along and help along with all the kids.  My understanding of the situation was that it would be good father/son bonding time. 

So last Saturday morning all of us slumped out the door early with tools in tow; shovels, pitch forks and rakes. We arrived at Pastor's home around 10:00 am and didn't pull out until around 2:00pm.  We shoveled, forked, raked and hauled load after load into our be-tarped trailer and then traveled the 30 minutes back to our property very carefully as the trailer was riding low because of the weight of the leaves.

Then of course we had to decide what to do with all of it.  Do we dump it in a heap somewhere on the property, do we run it through the chipper and shred it so that we can mulch our fence lines or do we start new garden beds with it?  Secretly I was hoping for dumping it in a heap.  That seemed like the quick fix and I was exhausted.  But dumping it in the back forty would mean hauling it by wheel barrow to where we would need it thus actually creating more work.

We decided to make garden beds for next year.  We were able to back up the trailer to the general area where we wanted the beds.  We laid the leaves down for one and then remembered that we have a lot of cardboard left over from moving here last year.  So for the second bed we laid down cardboard and then covered it with leaves.  Then we called it a day.  We still have more leaves sitting in the trailer waiting for us to make at least one more if not two beds.  This way we will kill the grass, create more topsoil and not have to till or if we do till we won't be fighting growing grass which is a bugger to weed.

I came to two conclusions while doing all this work.  1. Farmers don't need to go to the gym. 2. Large families and farm work go hand in hand!  Without the help and hard work of our children we wouldn't have stood a chance getting those leaves moved.  Thanks kids!  I love working together as a family.

A special thank you to Pastor Sam and Miss Jill for giving us the leaves and to Pastor for helping us move them and to Jill for providing tasty refreshments and lunch!  We look forward to sharing yummy produce from our gardens with them!

 The start: 10 feet long and three feet high

 

 From the pile to the tarp

 

 Across the yard

 

Into the trailer

 

Finally full!

 

 A new home and more tarp filling and pulling

 

 The first bed done!

 

Homeschool Photography

Last year my older girls did a study on photography.  This was not a class they took outside the home.  I do not like having to drive ten thousand places for every child so this was from a book checked out from the library.  They read it, studied and took notes on it and then I made assignments for them for each chapter.  They enjoyed it very much.  My oldest is even considering further study in the field.

One of my joys in homeschooling is seeing not only learning taking place but a love of it as well.  Now, you won't find my kids doing math for fun but just the other day the girls went outside and took these wonderful pictures all on their own.

I love it when learning becomes doing and time gets spent productively!

Homeschool Rocks...

You might be a homeschooler if....

 You have a giant periodic chart in progress on the kitchen table...

 Coloring pages of frog lifecycles... also on the kitchen table

Short story illustrations in progress...

Studying Roman road building technology by creating our own stepping stones and placing them to form a pathway.

Make soap dishes from seashells for an unit study on oceans.

God's Plan For Us

A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies. Her husband has full confidence in her and lacks nothing of value.

Proverbs 31: 10-11

Moving!

No... not me, us or this blog.  We are just about out the door to help our fellow church member and missionary, Dr. Troy Manning, move into his new home.  "Mr." Troy is a translator at Bibles International, based in Grand Rapids.  He will live here in the States and travel as needed.  We are excited to get to help him set up his new home!

Homestead Bath Seltzers

These little gems go by many names: Bath bombs, bath seltzers, bath fizzies... but no matter what you call them they are an easy, inexpensive way to help you enjoy a nice, relaxing bath.

Our Maiden's of Virtue Bible study lesson this week was on "the bath" and how God not only desires cleanliness in our hearts but also desires us to present ourselves clean on the outside as well. Usually after the lesson we scrapbook but since "bath" was the theme, and in a former life I ran a handcrafted bath and body care business, I thought I'd teach the girls to make bath seltzers. (They are solid bath salts that fizz and release color and scent into your bath water.)

Most of what you need to make these can be found in your kitchen or around the house. You can also find supplies at Micheal's or Hobby Lobby or through many suppliers on the internet. Nothing is overly expensive or hard to locate. The one exception might be Citric Acid as you usually can't just jaunt into the grocery store for it. But there are many bath and body suppliers on the web. Google handcrafted soap or bath products in your state and you'll find a good list to check out.

The process is easy and after a quick demo and some learning curve experience the girls were off and creating.

Since I used to have a small business making and selling these types of products I still had plenty of supplies on hand. I have lots of molds, scents and colorings. But something as simple as a muffin tin can serve as a mold, and food coloring for color or you can go colorless which can be simple and elegant. Synthetic colors are pretty but they are synthetic chemicals so who knows what you are exposing your skin and self to. As for scents you can get these online, at a health food store, some grocery stores or craft stores. Try to stick with essential oils which are natural vs. fragrance oils which are synthetic. NEVER use a fragrance oil that is not approved for skin. If you find it in the home fragrance or candle section of a store you do not want it for body products. Who really wants to bath in a chemical cocktail?

The process can be messy but clean up is pretty easy.

My son was fascinated by the creation process and so he got into the action the next night using a more manly scent, shape and color. The girls were able to teach him how to do it with out my help.

So go ahead and get your hands dirty so that you can get clean in the bath.

The resulting relaxation is well worth it.

You will need:

One cup baking soda

1/2 cup cornstarch

1/2 cup citric acid (this is what makes the fizz)

scent to liking

color to liking

Mix the baking soda, cornstarch and citric acid in a bowl. Carefully add scent and color a little at a time. (Too much liquid will activate the citric acid and make it bubble. So add small bits... you can always add more but you can't take it away.)

Once you have your color and scent added you will take a small spray bottle and lightly spritz the mixture until it holds it shape when squeezed in your hand. It's a lot like playing with playdough or wet sand. The learning curve comes from knowing what the right consistancy is. Too little water and your shape will fall apart. Too much water and it will fizz up and lose its shape.

After you are satisfied with the consistancy then you will press the mix into your mold. Pack the mold tight- just like brown sugar. Once the mold is entirely filled and packed tight you will turn it out on some cardboard covered with wax paper. Be gentle these puppies are fragile. Don't worry if your shape breaks in the process. You can just crumble it, spritz it again and shape it once more.

Let your seltzers dry overnight.

To use just drop into a drawn bath and relax.