Last Friday, we made it out to a local farm to pick strawberries. Florida has a big strawberry season, but this is the first time I’ve ever been. It was fun, but hot…I would definitely go earlier in the morning next time. The kids didn’t seem to mind too much…they hauled in about 10 lbs of strawberries between the 3 of them. We made strawberry cake with strawberry frosting. I’ll post a recipe for that soon, because it was that good! We also made chocolate covered strawberries…and that by the way…never gets old. For Valentine’s Day, we brown bagged some and gave them out to our neighbors.
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They Said: I Like Monsters…
This child has an answer and a face for everything.
Me: You need to get dressed…we have to go to the store.
Savannah: I don’t want to go.
Me: Well, I’m sorry…but, you can’t stay home by yourself.
Savannah: Why not? I like monsters.
Enjoying The Little Things…
One of my biggest obstacles in homeschooling, has been keeping Annie busy while I teach my older two babes. Here’s the deal with Annabelle. She is insanely loud. Like ridiculous loud. It’s impossible to concentrate with the amount of noise this tiny person produces. Also, we have wood floors throughout our house and nothing to absorb her sweet, but obnoxiously loud voice. So there’s that. I’ll probably start including her in more of the lessons next year. But, since this was my rookie year, I didn’t want to take on too much. 
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Simplify: Photography Skills…
I’ve been on a mission to simplify my life. I’ve been in an organizing and purging frenzy since the New Year. Can’t stop. Won’t stop. Sometimes, simplifying is not just about getting rid of, it’s learning something new. Yeah, the thought of having to learn one more something seems daunting…I know, I’ve been there. I am there. For a while now, I’ve wanted to improve my photography skills. I have owned dslr’s for 7 years now and up until recently, I shot exclusively in auto mode. I tried venturing out to manual mode a few times before, but words like aperture, shutter speed, and ISO frustrated and overwhelmed me. So, I continued taking pictures in auto mode. It was easy and I liked it. Until, I didn’t like it anymore.
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Confessions of a Homeschooler…
When I think back to when I first started considering homeschooling, I can remember how overwhelming the whole idea of it seemed. First, there are slightly more than 1 billion curriculum to choose from. I remember spending hours each night scouring through reviews of books and programs, scared to choose the wrong one. I sought out advice from several homeschooling moms. I just wanted someone to tell me, “this is how it is…this is what you do.” The truth is, it’s different for everybody. There is no one right way. Then, it was the whole social thing. Would homeschooling make my kids socially inept? That one thought completely consumed me. Looking back now, that seems silly, because they still see their friends, just not during school hours. Homeschooling is just one of those things, you can’t know how you’ll feel about it, until you’re doing it.
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I Made A Strawberry Bag…
It has been a really long time since I’ve enjoyed sewing. Here’s the deal, I used to love sewing…I found great therapy in constructing things of fabric and thread. I always had this sense of pride of, I can’t believe I made that! Then, I had this great idea to sell my stuff. And it was great for a while. Then, I hated sewing. For a really, really long time, I hated it! I’ve said mean things to my sewing machine. I’ve thrown my hands up in the air at my sewing machine. I gave the evil eye to my sewing machine. Until one day…I abandoned sewing completely. I was happy to be free of it and I swore I’d never sew again!
Never say never…right? I wanted to make Annabelle a strawberry bag for her 3rd birthday. The thought of sewing one, just wasn’t doing it for me. I browsed the internets and scoured over pictures of strawberry bags…maybe hoping to just buy her one. Then, that old familiar voice of, I can totally make that!, started creeping in my thoughts. And, so I did. 
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Caterpillar Valentines…
For Christmas this year, my loves got bug catching nets. After several cheapies, I made the spring for real deal ranger nets. They have already gotten tons of use. Just a few weeks ago, Jacks caught a Monarch. When we released her, she found her way to our Milkweed and laid bunches of eggs. We have watched them grow from eggs, to full blown Milkweed munching caterpillars the last couple of weeks. They have been completely fascinated with those little guys. With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I went to work on these caterpillar cuties!
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Strawberry Confetti Packs…
For her 3rd birthday, Annabelle has requested a strawberry party complete with all things strawberry. She is beyond obsessed with strawberries…so a strawberry party she shall have! We are just doing a family party, but I still wanted to add some special touches for my littlest. First on the list, confetti! What’s a party without confetti? It’s like a cake without frosting…also a big, resounding “what’s the point?” in my book. For your tossing pleasure, I present strawberry confetti packs. 
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A New Year, A New Word…
Happy 2014 y’all! Okay, so that’s a little late, but I took a sabbatical of sorts. I needed a regrouping. So, now here I am, newly regrouped, ready to rock! For the last couple of years, I’ve given up resolutions and instead, adopted a theme word for the year. This year, my theme is: SIMPLIFY.
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Magic Reindeer Food Pouch…
Last year on Christmas Eve, we started the tradition of sprinkling magical reindeer food on the lawn. The story goes, that the glitter sparkles in the moonlight and helps Santa locate your house. The oats are there to feed the reindeer while Santa is creeping in your house. My kids were totally into it. This year, I thought, instead of just putting the food in a plastic bag, I would make these little pouches for them to tear into and sprinkle away. 
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