Work on it Wednesday

My work on it Wednesday it is going to be getting the mending done. I have a mountain of mending that needs to be done. To be honest it will take me about an hour to get it all done. But I have had a case of the “I don’t want to’s” for a while. I hate mending. It seems like a useless task. So the item, grows into a pile, that grows into a mound, and which grows into a mountain.

And most of the mending is actually stuffed animals that have been so loved to death that the stuffing is falling out. Then I have a few buttons to sew on and a few seams that need to be mended. So I am going to get that done and out of the way. Then I won’t have the mending monkey on my back anymore!

Menu Planning Monday

Back on track with Menu Planning!

Monday
Faith Formation End of Year Party
Need to make a Pasta Salad

Tuesday
Mandy — Dentist in the afternoon
Donna — Subbing
Crockpot chicken breasts
Broccoli
Seasoned Egg Noodles

Wednesday
Mandy — Pulmonary Function Test
Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce
Spaghetti
Salad
Garlic Bread

Thursday
Douglas — Doctor in the afternoon
Douglas — Boy Scouts in the evening
Fish Sticks
Macaroni and Cheese
Salad

Friday
Teriaki Chicken on the grill
Roasted Potatoes
Green Beans

Saturday
Tacos

Sunday
Pork Loin Roast
Sweet Potatoes
Spinach
Salad
Rolls

Share a Recipe Sunday — April 26

Did you ever want to bake a loaf of bread but you are afraid of failing? Well I have a recipe that is nearly fool proof that I have been using for two years. This is a great versatile bread. It can be made half white flour and half whole wheat to sneak some of those whole grains in.



Amish White Bread

2 Cups Warm Water (110 degrees)
2/3 cup white sugar (you can use half of this and it works well)
1 1/2 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup oil
6 cups bread flour (or 6 cups regular flout with 4 tablespoons gluten added)

In a large bowl, dissolve sugar in warm water and then stir in yeast. Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam.

Mix salt and oil into yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Place in a well oiled bowl. Turn dough to coat. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until doubled, about an hour.

Punch dough down. Knead for a few minutes and divide in half. Shape into loaves and place into well oiled 9 x 5 inch loaf pans. Allow to rise for 30 minutes or until dough rises 1 inch above pans.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. (Bread will sound hollow when tapped on.)

And you entire house will smell wonderful!

Finding Freedom Friday: Time Management

This week’s Finding Freedom topic over at Cents to get Debt Free is Finding Freedom through time management. I think this is something most women struggle with whether they work outside the home or not. How do you manage the 24 hours you are given to make sure you make the most of it and get everything accomplished that needs to get done, be that cleaning, feeding the family, or errands.

I have tried many different approaches to time management. Most of them have failed. If I didn’t follow it perfectly, then it wouldn’t work so I stop working it and everything would fall apart. Over the past four years I have gradually realized several things:
~ I need to control my time or it will control me.
~ I need to set a good example for the children so they can learn to better manage their time.
~ I don’t need to “work” all the time. I need to allow some down time in the day or I get stressed.

Last year I discovered Managers of Their Homes, from Titus 2. While this program is primarily for homeschooling families, I have found I can utilize their principles and have it work for my family. My day has a structure it follows so I know things will get done. My day flows like this:

6:00 Get up, dressed
7:00 Breakfast, Clean up the Kitchen
8:00 15 Minute Clean up for children
8:30 Take the Children to School
9:00 Morning Chore Time
10:00 Work with the girls on Letter of the Week
11:00 Lunch
12:00 Girls down for Nap, Clean up Kitchen
1:00 Afternoon Chore Time/Baking
2:00 Computer Time for Me
3:00 Girls up from nap, Play time with them
4:30 Pick up Middle Four from Boys and Girls Club After school Program
5:00 Dinner Prep/Finish up Homework with Middle Four
6:00 Dinner
7:00 Girls Baths
7:30 Evening Chores
9:00 Free Time
10:00 Shower
10:30 Bedtime

I use the times as a guideline, they are not set it stone, but this framework helps to keep the day on track and make sure everything that needs get done, gets done.

To see my MOTH schedule (in Excel), you can see it here.

Once again life got into the way of blogging. Emma had sealants put on her molars, Mandy and Becky are now in glasses, and thankfully Liz’s wrist is not broken, just horribly sprained.

This weekend is a spring cleaning weekend. We are getting the bedrooms organized and the winter items removed from the closets and dressers. (It is also a great time for mom to remove broken/unused toys.)

We are also reorganizing the pantry downstairs. We are moving things around so I will post some pics once that is all done.

I hope you all are having a wonderful weekend!

Catching up

I hope everyone had a wonderful and Blessed Easter! The past couple of weeks here have been, ummm, interesting to say the least. We had have the dreaded end of winter/early spring cold being passed around. It seemed to go from sniffles to bronchitis within a day. So far all of the children have had it, some of them twice. Both Liz and Mandy were out of school for a week with it. (Of course at the end of the quarter so the teachers are not happy, but oh well they will need to deal with grade changes as the work gets done.)

Last week was Spring Break so all of the monkeys were home. Of course brilliant mom that I was I thought to schedule everyone for dental and eye exams so the children wouldn’t miss school. NEVER AGAIN! I spent every day at the dentist office for cleanings and sealants. Oh turns out I need to have a route canal thrown in for fun. I learned my lesson, one week breaks are to be kept scheduled doctor visit free so the family can have some fun time.

Oh Liz and I went to visit Mount Saint Mary’s on April 5th for Accepted Students day. She has decided that this is where she will be going. So come next fall she will be a “Mountaineer.” In June she goes for a two day orientation. It includes placement testing and scheduling so she should have a fun time with that. She is wrapping up her capstone project at the Science and Math Academy so the next couple of weeks will be very busy as she completes the final experiment and starts to put together her paper and poster. Graduation is set for June 1st at 1:00 PM.