The Next School Year

FPEA 2014 Convention Flyer

Our homeschool convention is only three weeks away!  We are trying our best to finish off the school year so when we are at the convention we can only focus on fun (for the kids) and all the possibilities of the next school year.

We have an excellent convention.  In fact, they tell us every year it is the largest one in the country.  Wow!  People come from across the U.S. just to attend (I think the fact that it is next door to Disney World doesn't hurt).  The hotel is always full and the vendor area can be crowded and chaotic so I feel like I always need a plan and a few goals.  These goals never match what my family has in mind.

Interior Images: Gaylord Palms Resort

I like to go through the program and catalog and decide ahead of time what I want and need to accomplish.  A lot of vendors offer you free shipping as well as a convention discount if you purchase their products on site so I try to take advantage of those offers provided they are the best deal I have found.  Also, I'm a "hands on" purchaser.  I like to see what I'm going to invest in before I jump in.

The whole convention can be a little overwhelming and crowded but in the same sense it is so inspiring to see all of the homeschool families in one place.  Such an amazing mix but somehow we are in
a journey together.

Interior Images: Gaylord Palms Resort

While I'm planning, shopping and researching (read - work!), the fam is partaking in the kid activities and enjoying every moment of the pool party(read - not work!).  It doesn't hurt that the convention hotel itself is a destination.  It is held at the Gaylord Palms Resort - Kissimmee.  It is amazing.  Beside the wonderful pool areas, you can feed fish and baby gators.  It is a pretty stunning place and keeps everyone busy!


I hope to get lots of pics and blog a little from the convention especially as I weigh some heavy curriculum changes for the year.  I'm in a math dilemma at the moment and thinking about a big switch but a little scared.

Do you attend a homeschool convention every year?  Maybe it's here!

Kids and Glasses

Ella has been complaining about her eyes for the past few weeks and although we had a basic check up at the pediatrician we scheduled her for a thorough eye exam with an optometrist.  She was really nervous and went crazy over having the puff of air blown in her eye.  We had to do the same eye four times because she kept moving.

After a full exam we got the news.  She is a little farsighted and needed glasses for all day wear.  She was excited, I wasn't so much.  We only have vision insurance for my hubby since everyone else was blessed with my excellent vision (or so I thought).  Wow there is an upcharge for everything in the eyeglass world.  Instead of making the decision that day, I decided to take the prescription and shop around for a decent deal on glasses especially for a 9 year old who isn't very careful with her things.  I found what I thought was a reasonable deal and she was very happy with the end result.

It was funny how they kept telling her how it will help her see the blackboard better and help her do better in school.  Every time they made a school reference, Ella would just look back at me and give me a wink.  When they asked her if she liked her teacher, she said "of course I do, she's my mom!"  Then she tells them she's homeschooled and that's when you get a few looks and a lot of questions but mostly we got really cute glasses.

Cute.  Right?

After Easter Freezer Meals

Ella and I were watching the Pioneer Woman this weekend on the Food Network and her freezer cooking episode aired.  I have tried freezer cooking in the past but have not been very happy with the taste or final product of some of the recipes but since Ella and I have done several of Ree's recipes with great success I was ready to give it another go.

After watching the episode we made a list of things we wanted to make and decided to make two of each (just in case they didn't turn out so yummy).  I was really excited to try the chicken pot pie.  I love chicken pot pie and I have never tried to make one because I was just too lazy to do the steps involved.

We made:

1. Chicken Pot Pie
2. Lasagne
3. Chili
4. Beef & Turnip Stew
5. Chicken Spaghetti
6. Pepper Steak
7. Carrot Soup

These were the recipes that appealed to us and our taste buds though there were others.  Most of the recipes can be found on the Pioneer Woman website or on the Food Network section for Pioneer Woman.

The Chili, stew, soup and pepper steak were easily stored flat in freezer bags.  The chicken pot pie, lasagna, and spaghetti we stored in disposable tins.  It took about five hours total start to finish (Netflix on the IPad in the kitchen really made the time fly) and the supplies cost close to $70 thanks to some nice sales at Super Target including $2 coupons on ground beef!  We had a few leftover veggies and some ground beef too.  That made each meal around $5.  We were really excited with the cost, the prep and the finished product. 

 (not sure how I didn't get ANY prep pictures)

We had the chicken pot pie tonight and it was awesome.  There wasn't a drop of anything left in the tins and everybody had that happy comfort food feeling look as they settled in for the night.  If the other recipes taste near as good, I wouldn't mind doing this more often.

Next time, I'll be sure to get pics from start to finish.

Ironic!

During our day spent on St. Simons Island we expended so much energy we were dead thirsty!  The kids asked someone at the lighthouse where the closest stop for a drink was and they said "somewhere in the village".  That's what happens when kids ask for directions, you get the answer "somewhere in the village".  So, somewhere in the village it was.  Unfortunately, we didn't know where the village was or might be so we decided to wander the island sans navigational aides.  While wandering the kids decided they wanted ice cream instead of a drink or maybe both.  During the drive we saw many seafood restaurants but not much else.  We decided to just head back to the hotel and find something on the main road we had become familiar with when we saw THIS:

 GOOGLE MAPS STREET VIEW

 

 

We were intrigued by the little car with the camera tower so we followed it.  As we were driving, we were looking around us at the people walking dogs or going about their daily lives and wondered if they would be frozen in time, soon to appear on Google Maps Street View. 

 

After following the car for about a minute (like some out of town creepers) my daughter yells "Mom!  Pull Over!"  After remembering how to breathe again, I saw it.  There it was.  A Dairy Queen!  Happiness.  Ironically, the Google Maps car led us right where we wanted to go.  Coincidence?  Hmmmm.  We were grateful and took the time to enjoy some delicious ice cream, ice cold drinks sprinkled with Google conspiracy theories and jokes.  It was a good day. 

 

Ironic.

 

 

Flexible!

Being a homeschool family allows for so much flexibility in life.  This is one of the top reasons we started homeschooling.  My husband can work crazy shifts sometimes and be sent off to random places on a whim.  Sometimes, we are fortunate enough to go with him. If we were traditional "public schoolers" this would cause disruption but for us, it just causes excitement!

Last week was one of those exciting times.  We had the opportunity to explore St. Simon Island and Atlanta while we were in Georgia. We have been to Atlanta plenty but we never had the chance to explore the Golden Isles.  We were very excited and the area delivered.  What a beautiful place!  We spent our whole first day just visiting the St. Simons Island Lighthouse.

You can see, it was an absolutely perfect day! 

For the kids, one of the best parts was that the lighthouse was next to a county rec center but not just any rec center.  It was on the water, had a pool, mini golf course and tons more.  Why don't we have these in our area? So cool!!!  Needless to say, it was a full day!

Here are some St. Simons Island Lighthouse factoids:

• In 1807 James Gould of Massachusetts was commissioned by the U.S. Treasury Department to build a brick lighthouse and one story frame home.
• The lighthouse was mostly made of tabby (oyster shell, lime, sand and water) since brick was a hard item to come by in the area.
• In 1810 President James Madison appointed James Gould as the first keeper for a salary of $400 per year.
• In 1862 Confederate soldiers destroyed it so the Union Troops couldn't use it as a navigational aide.
• In 1872 it was rebuilt with the structures we were able to tour on our trip. 
• Charles Cluskey the architect on the project, designed many Greek Revival buildings in Georgia from 1830 - 1847 and even assisted on remodeling the U.S. Capitol.
• Many crew members did not get to see the final build of the beautiful Victorian inspired structures as Malaria was widespread and very destructive.

I will post more trip highlights later in the week.