Week 2: reality

With another week down and realizing that I can plan everything I want to but not always will everything get done as planned.

We didn't get to the 3-6 playgroup on Monday because I ended having to go somewhere and there just wasn't enough time to get him there. Besides that time of day he is super tired, we will try again tho for the next time they offer it.

The International Harvester Expo was amazing! So many GREAT things to see and do. We ended up only staying until 12:30 because Blaine was hot, tired and done. He would have spent ALL day in the corn sensory box! It was like heaven for the child who likes to play with tractors. Even from the start it was a zoo!

Next time I will call first, we drove all the way to the discovery play group (about 30 mins) to find out that it was canceled, he was bummed but we will try for the next one.

Mom chat and play ended up having to be in the children's section of our library. The kids had a blast and we chatted. It helps whose who feel alone while homeschooling more connected to other adults who understand what is going on. It was the grouchy librarian who was working. She was mad the kids were running around playing hide and seek and well being kids. It was raining so inside was our only option at the time.

We got all our work sheets done and attempted to do the apple seeds but sadly it would seem that they are not going to sprout. Found out he loves the topping I make for the dutch apple pie when he helped me make mini apple pies.

No apple picking but that will be this week as a home school group.

Did you get to the expo?

Where are the shapes?

At first I thought it was a fluke, maybe the machine missed this one, nope it was the whole box. No I didn't eat them all in one sitting. Figured it would be a new texture to try out and would be fun, noooo my son hates them so I ate them. Again not in one sitting!!

I haven't had these since I was a kid and got them in our lunches, I know the late 80's early 90's when "Healthy lunches" were if mom sent an apple that you either gave away or traded for something.


Excited to show Blaine the shapes inside I unroll one and get ready to show him the fun. As I unroll it on the table to my shock as we look at this oddly formed square of fake fruit there is nothing, no shapes. Just two colours blending into one another. Blaine looks at me and says "I thought u said there was fun inside" sigh nope and of course he tries it and hates it. So I figure its maybe a fluke and I told him we would try another one next time.

A couple days pass and I had forgot I even had them, I was digging through the snack bin for something for myself and come cross them. Oh right! Lets try this again. I open it and unroll it and BAM nothing, what is going on here, why are there no fun shapes I don't get it. So I show my sons father he thinks I am crazy and that this isn't a big deal and of course he could careless, he apparently never liked them as a kid anyway. Well fine be that way.

I decide to email the company General Mills and see what their answer would be, or even if they would answer me back. I doubted it because it seems of little concern to anyone but myself.  If I wanted to eat a fruit by the foot that is what I would have brought!

SURPRISE they email me back well this should be interesting. I read the email and have a WTF moment. What on earth do shapes have to do with product freshness?

Here is the email:

Dear Ms. Heimbecker,

Thank you for contacting General Mills regarding Betty Crocker Fruit Roll-Ups.We continually experiment with new ways to offer our products to our consumers. A successful package is one that provides greater convenience for the consumer, improves the freshness of the product it protects and/or provides a new way to present the product. Fruit Roll-Ups do not have shapes at this time.

Thank you again for contacting us. We appreciate your interest.

Sincerely,
Francine Grant
Consumer Relations Representative
##:19150877

Well that was anticlimactic I was expecting I don't know, something that made actual sense. 

Have you noticed things that have changed food wise since your childhood?

Week 2: The plan!

The plan is simple, the plan is easy to follow, the plan hmmmm I wonder how many plans go perfect with zero deviations? I haven't met one.

Blaine is enjoying school and I am enjoying watching him learn and teaching him!

Week 2 day 1: Sight word like, workbook, apple photo sort.
Outing: 3-6 year old play group put on the early years. 

I used card stock folded into business card sizes and put the word "like" and small words with it "I like" and used them as flash cards.

We are using the Usborne first numbers sticker book this week. I got it at coles. We are also using Beaver books search and smile.

Apple Photo sort is neat and I found the idea here.

Day 2: Sight Word Like, workbook, my apple book
Outing: The International Plowing Match in Pain Court.

This time I did the flash cards all with the word "like" and below that a scentence "It smells like soup" The word like is in bright yellow.

I used this idea but made my own.

Day 3: Sight word like, workbook, planting an apple seed.
Outing: Alphabites put on by the early years centres.

 This time I used a colouring page for the sight word.

We will be planting an apple seed in paper towel and once it sprouts moving it to a pot to watch it grow.


Day4: Sight word like, workbook, Apple picking
Outing: apple picking

I used this worksheet for the sight word.

Apple picking is so much fun and allows them to see where and how they grow.

Day 5: Sight word like, workbook, Bake an apple pie
Outing: Moms home school chat and play

I used this worksheet google is awesome lol.

Baking teaches sooo much MATH and life skills!

I'm in LOVE!!!

As a small business owner, a mom and a housewife my time is limited and well there is never enough of it, as I am sure ALL moms can relate! My business is a "crafty" business we do everything from sewing to heat press vinyl, and of course birthday invites and party supplies.

We have always had a vinyl cutter, but it was a very basic one that I used/use for fondant (the blade and sheets are different so there is no cross contamination), we loved it and used the crap out of it, still have it on the shelf downstairs as a just in case.

This year after a mountain of research I decided to buy an upgraded version, well oops I guess I didn't research enough because the one I bought (Cricut air explore) wouldn't do what I needed it to do. So back to the research bored I went. After Extensive research I finally decide to go out and buy new, a Silhouette Cameo 3. I got mine off Amazon as it was a better deal than Micheals because it came with all kinds of neat add-ons.

It arrived fast (I am a Prime member) and as soon as it got here my excitement turned to dear god how am I ever going to figure this out. Please keep in mind we were going from a non-digital easy to use machine that I had been using for 8 years! So many parts and pieces and of course the instructions are online and I am that person who if there is no paper instructions I just fiddle around until I figure it out, oh who am I kidding even if there are paper instructions I do the same things.

I get it all set up and excited and installed the software, update the machines software and here I am ready to go! Well dang it the whole reason I bought this thing was so I could design anything I wanted from any image I wanted. Well it turns out after googling and reading post after post, in order to do that I have but the paid for software. Okay I can do that! Buy the software now I am lost because how on earth do I make the file type it needs without buying expensive software. Within my search I found a free program with easy to follow instructions and easy to use it is called inkscape  .
The instructions on how to create the .dfx file you need is here.  It is a lot like using my embroidery software.

I couldn't be happier with my decision and it is so much fun to use. I have used my machine with construction paper, card stock and vinyl so far but my next task is going to be print and cut stickers!!!

One week down 700 weeks to go!

Going into this nervous and not sure I can handle this. Coming out of week one I GOT THIS!!! We are going to ROCK THIS!!

Week one went well, not fully as planned but very well just the same. If it wasn't for some of the other amazing moms telling me their stories and the way they do things I wouldn't be feeling as confident as I do right now. We are going into week 2 and I am not over whelmed, scared or nervous.

I did learn a few things this week, things I already knew in the back of my mind but were brought to light this week. We have to do our seat work FAST! move from one task to another very quickly and put fun things in between. Our seat work lasts about 20 mins in the morning depending on how long he wants to do the fun activities for. The longer he wants to do them the longer we do school. For anyone who was worried for social, well it never ends there is ALWAYS something social to do.

In just two days he was tracing the things on the page better than he has in a year, he knows the sight word I, we did colour mixing science and that didn't work out as well (we are going to try it again this week a different way).

Monday we baked muffins at home instead of going to cooking class because I was sick. He did pretty much everything himself I just assisted and did the oven. He even "licked" a muffin to give it a try, lol better than nothing.

Tuesday I still wasn't the greatest so we did our science at home. Tuesday night I had moms home school group.

Wednesday We went all the way to forest for kids discovery just to learn it had been canceled and no one called me.

Thursday we went to library and shopping. 

Friday we had forest school and did the mom chat and play at the park/animal farm. Friday we didn't do any seat work as it was a very very busy day.

So for week 1 we are off to a great start and pretty much everything has gone to almost plan.

How was your first week back to school? Home school or traditional? Did everything go well? Bumps in the road?

Pinterest: Sloppy Joe Sliders

I hate most things in a can, I hate most things I don't make from scratch because well when I make it from scratch I know what is going into it and it doesn't taste like the can. Connely has been requesting for WEEKS for sloppy joes because I have a can of it in the cupboard and I kept telling not unless I make it from scratch. Well I happened upon a cute recipe for MINI (Who doesn't love mini things) Sloppy Joes.

The recipe calls for:

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1/2 cup diced white onion
• 1/2 cup seeded and diced green bell pepper
• 1 8 ounce can tomato sauce (This is the only thing I use in a can because I do not can my own sauce anymore)
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 teaspoons prepared yellow mustard
• 2 teaspoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cumin (I couldn't find mine so I just left it out)
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper or to taste (optional)
• fresh ground black pepper to taste
• 12 slider buns I used King's Hawaiian Savory Butter Rolls (I used fresh bakery butter mini buns)
• 1-1/2 cups shredded cheese (I used marble because that is what I had on hand)
• 2 tablespoons butter melted
• 1 tablespoon sesame seeds or as needed (I didn't use these because I didn't have any)
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  The full recipe can be found here.
  
  
  
  To say the buns I picked made this recipe is an understatement OMG the buttery taste mixed with the sloppy Joe taste was like heaven and this recipe is super simple and QUICK!!!
  
  This will be 100% added to my favorites list and it should be added to your must try list!
  
  
  
  
  
  

Nella the Princess Knight Cake

Spending my birthday making cake for others is my norm but spending it sick is another thing altogether. Dizzy and can only stand for short periods of time makes decorating a cake rather difficult but I couldn't let a sweet little lady down so I did it. Not my best work but she was thrilled!!

I took 2 9*11 rectangle cakes (1 chocolate and 1 vanilla) and cut them into the shape I needed.

The icing took care of the rest.