{Family Friday} Marketing-

It's that time of the month- the monthly marketing at the nearest Navy base. Big Daddy is not in the Navy (although his was in his youth) but his current service in the local Air National Guard means we can still take advantage of the (mostly) lower prices on base. Since I stocked up on bacon today I saved $40. I kid you not, it is at least $4 dollars more expensive per pack in town (why yes, I did buy 10 packs. I know what you're thinking but it will last us for months, we don't eat it very often).

Since it is a 45 minute drive to the base I need to make sure I buy things that are a substantial savings. Occasionally there will be something that is more expensive but mostly I find better deals on base or at least prices that are the same. I did a price comparison several months ago so I feel good about my decision. Plus the kids love being on a base. They don't care if it is Daddy's base, they just love the whole atmosphere and so do I.

Generally the things I don't get are a specific brand or size... I want the huge bottles of real maple syrup and Erik's specific yogurt brand preference and the right kind of bread. We are also taking advantage of the amazing local produce and going to farmer's markets. We used to subscribe to a CSA which gave us a weekly box of local produce but we weren't able to pick what we wanted and often ended up with something we didn't care for. Plus it gives us a reason to get out of the house as a family.

Shopping monthly like this also means that I have to plan meals by the month. I also plan dinners by season (who wants shepherd's pie on 100+ degree weather?). I try to get Big Daddy's help with planning dinners or at least the veggie side dishes. My kids are unfortunately picky eaters so they don't get too much input because if they did it would be sandwiches and pizza and chicken strips all the time. I do allow them to have their picks at lunch and thankfully it is generally just peanut butter and honey sandwiches or hot dogs served with yogurt or applesauce. Nothing fancy. Breakfast is usually pancakes or french toast but occasionally hash browns or cereal. Easy to plan for :)

Healthy Eating Tip

In the evening while making Big Daddy's lunch salad for the next day I made myself one, too. It is so nice to only have to prep once and if I'm tired or, far more likely, I'm too busy to fix something yummy and health it is waiting in the fridge for me. All I have to do is add onions, dressing and almonds for crunch.

{Wordless Wednesday}

Holidays

I love holidays. Not only do we get a day off of school but also my Honey has a day off of work.

On the subject of summer holidays I have a few thoughts-

Last summer I had planned to do school through the summer, aside from the weeks Babalu and Rookie spent at zoo camp and at their Nonni's house. I wasn't thrilled with the thought of all that knowledge I just spend 9 months helping them learn would stagnate in their little minds. It didn't work out that way and we ended up with most of July off. Contrary to my belief they did both remember the things they had learned and the world didn't end (pretty much how in I envision all things ending!). In retrospect it was better that way and this summer we will take the whole month of July off on purpose. I always hated the summer break when I was a kid because there was nothing to do at home (I lived in the boondocks). Babalu and Rookie love vacations, though. They are able to ride their bikes and play in the backyard (usually jedi games) when ever they want and we take day trips or go to parks. Their lives are far more exciting than mine was at their ages.

The boy's Nonni is a school teacher and we also take holidays when she does. Her school district has a wonderful week off in February called "ski week". Her school is near a ski resort so this gives the students (and faculty!) a change to do snow sports during the week. We take this day off and generally the big boys spend most, of not all, of it with Nonni. 

Secular history

One of the hardest pieces of our curriculum to pick has been history. My state doesn't require history specifically only "social studies" which meant that after our pick for Babalu's first grade year didn't work out (Story of the World volume 1) we were able to stick with geography and reading random books about relevant topics. This continued into his second grade year when I became annoyed by Sonlight's Core B "lets pray for the 'godless' people". On the other hand Sonlight has an amazing selection of books about history for kids so we use the books but without the instructor's guide.

Part of the difficulty is that we are a secular homeschool. Most of the history programs I have found are Christian based. I don't have a problem with that but I do not want to teach history with that view in mind. After constant searching I have found History Odyssey by Pandia Press. Basically you buy an e-book that has a schedule, list of required books, suggested books and projects. They also go from ancient history all the way to modern. We follow the classical method in this way (it is also the way I wish I had been taught history).

Because we didn't start this new program until early this year we skipped a great deal of it as to finish in June. It is working out really well. We are skipping the map work this year because Rookie is still young but beginning in the fall (when we begin the study of the middle ages) we will be doing that. So far we have studied the beginning of time, the ancient Egyptians and currently the Ancient Greeks. Babalu is enjoying the reading but so far Rookie finds it a bit boring (everyone loves the projects!). Hopefully as we continue on our homeschool journey he will begin to enjoy it.