Diary of a Stay at Home Mom

Monday, January 30, 2012

Period Drama TV Series

Sandra Monday, January 30, 2012 17 Comments

Over the years I can say that I have watched hundreds of Period Drama series and movies and I thought that it would be a good idea to have a running list of what I've watched or am watching, just to see all the great shows :)

I am so extremely fascinated with anything Edwardian, Victorian, Pioneer, Colonial etc. So I'm dividing this list, and adding documentaries which I have watched over the years and think any period fan will enjoy.

Titles including *** can be watched on Netflix.

You can easily find this list up on the linkbar anytime you visit :)

#

1066 The Battle for Middle Earth (1066)

A
Anne of Green Gables (new modernized version coming to CBC Canada)
Anne of Green Gables
Aristocrats
Anne of Avonlea
A Harlot's Progress
A Town like Alice
A Place to Call Home
And then there were none
Alias Grace

B
Berkeley Square

Bramwell

Bomb Girls (Series)
Beowulf
Britannia
Banished
Bleak House

C
Christy
Cranford

Call the Midwife

Casualty 1900's
City of Vice
Cousin Bette
Courage, New Hampshire
Close to the Enemy
Charles II - The Power and the Passion
Charite

D
Downton Abbey
Dr Quinn Medicine Woman
Dancing on the Edge (1930's)
Defiance (1940's)
Duchess of Duke Street
Dracula
Doctor Thorne
Dickensian
Dark Angel
Decline and Fall
Daniel Deronda
Desperate Romantics

E
Endeavour

F

The Forsyte Saga

Foyle's War

Father Brown (About a Roman Catholic Priest who solves crimes)
Five Mile Creek
Fleming: The Man who would be Bond
Frontier

G
Garrow's Law
Gosford
Greayre - A Woman of Substance
Gran Hotel (Considered the Downton Abbey of Spain...this one is in Spanish)
Gunpowder

H
Home Fires
Hetty Feather
Howards End

I
Island at War
In Plain Sight

J
Jamaica Inn
Jericho
Jamestown

K
Knightfall

L
Lark Rise to Candleford
Little House on the Prairie
Little House Miniseries
Little Men
Land Girls
Lightfields

M
Murdoch Mysteries
Mr. Selfridge (Series)
Mercy Street
My Mother and other strangers
Medici: Masters of Florence

N
North and South

O
Outlander (series)

P
Parade's End
Peaky Blinders
Poldark

Q

R
Road to Avonlea
Return to Cranford
Ripper Street
Reign
Rillington Place
Roots

S
Sarah Plain and Tall
Spies of Warsaw (Set around 1914)
Servants

T
The Cazalets
The Pillars of the Earth
Titanic Julian Fellowes
Titanic Blood and Steel
The Three Musketeers

The Grand
The Paradise (Series)
The Village (Series)
The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady
The Aristocrats
The Mrs Bradley Mysteries
The Pallisers
The Barchester Chronicles
The White Queen (Series)
The Musketeers (Series)
The Spies of Warsaw (Series)
The Crimson Field
The Mill
The Collection
The Hollow Crown
Turn
The Crown
Texas Rising
Jekyll and Hide
The Durrells
Tutankhamun
The Moonstone
The White Princess
The Halcyon
Taboo
The Son
The Last Kingdom
The Miniaturist
The Alienist
The Last Post
The Duchess of Duke Street
The Ladies' Paradise (Italian with English Subtitles)
The Buccaneers
Troy: Fall of a City

U
Upstairs Downstairs
Underground

V
Victoria
Versailles

W
Wind at my back
War and Remembrance (World War II)
Wives and Daughters
When Calls the Heart (Based on Janette Oke's Canadian West book series)
Wolf Hall

X

Y

# period dramas TV series

Because I am dying for Spring

Sandra Monday, January 30, 2012 15 Comments

I think it's my favorite season of the year and I can't wait for it to start, matter of fact here in Arizona I already have a lot of flowers coming in, makes me so happy :)

So, new template for Spring! Hope it makes some of you smile because I know that there are a lot of you out there still suffering with crazy amounts of snow. :)

# template

{ Happy Homemaker Monday - 2012 #5 }

Sandra Monday, January 30, 2012 18 Comments

I am moving super slow today, I have whatever my dear husband had and it's really knocking me on my behind, feels like I have a knife stuck in my throat and my sinus is killing me too. BLECH!

Anyway, here is today's HHM :)

If you want to save and use the new button, just click here.

The weather:::

45 degrees and sunny. Last week he had highs of 75 and it got quite warm around here.

On my reading pile:::
The Little Housekeeping book for the little girl
Haven't been able to finish it or read anything else since my Kindle is broken :( It's not even a month old and it came up with the Needs Repair Error, after talking to Amazon I was told that it's defective and needs to be replaced.....sooooo, hubby says forget it, come pay day he will just buy me the Kindle Fire. Yay!

On my TV:::

Call the Midwife Episode 3
Birdsong Episode 2
Also have Anonymous to watch :)

On the menu for this week:::

I only have two days planned as I'm working on the Menu/Grocery List for the next two weeks. Wednesday is grocery shopping day so I'll have a full Menu for you next Happy Homemaker Monday :)

Monday - Spaghetti
Tuesday - Crockpot Steak Soft Tacos
Wednesday -
Thursday -
Friday -
Saturday -
Sunday -

On my to do list:::

Sewing today
Finishing up my Crochet pillow
Grocery Shopping on Wednesday
Lola has another appointment on Thursday to see how she's doing

What I am sewing, crocheting, knitting or creating:::

Finishing up my Daisy Square pillow, decided to make a felt back for it.
Some more sewing today, not sure what yet.

In Homeschooling:::

Jasmine is doing a research report on Fast Food and the progress it's made, whether it's been good or bad. In Science she'll be studying food particle sizes and if those affect the rate at which they are digested :)
Nicholas is still working on fractions in Math and simplified fractions....and for Social Studies we'll be learning about the first English settlement in the United States.

Looking around the house:::

My coffee machine is noisily working behind me. My door to the back yard is open for the dogs to go out and I hear birds chirping and some kids talking on their way to school. I have my sewing machine on the kitchen table waiting for me to work on today and I also have a pile of dishes in the sink waiting to be washed.

From the camera:::

I love this shelf in my kitchen :)

Something fun to share:::

You all know how much I love Period Dramas right? Well there is a Tumblr account online that is devoted to posting high quality pictures of Period films etc. I could just sit there and look through it all day :)

On my prayer list:::

My sweet friend Jen's mom.
My family

Bible verse, Devotional:::

Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD.

Psalm 150:6

# happy homemaker monday

Friday, January 27, 2012

{ Friday Favorites - #4 }

Sandra Friday, January 27, 2012 16 Comments

If you have something special you would like to show, if you have a trinket which has a special meaning for you or maybe something you have just found and own or would like to have. It could be anything, a trinket, a book, a new cookware set, a necklace, a photograph, a project you're working on or finished....anything that you love and would like to show us all.

Take a photo, or two, or three...post it on your blog and come back and link up using Mr Linky.

Please only include links directly to your post and only those pertaining to Friday Favorites. Anything not related WILL be removed.

*******************************

I've shown you a few things already but today's is really one of my favorites, because the items I'm showing you make my house a home.

These crochet doilies are ones which I brought with me from South Africa when I got married. I actually started collecting them when I was a teenager because I wanted to have as many as my stepmother did. I just loved how she had them all over the home, in corners here and there.

I've talked about how my greatgrandmother was a big influence on my cooking, how my grandmother was a big influence on my sewing, but the one woman who was the biggest influence in homemaking and everything that went into it, was my stepmom Nela. :)

She is the reason I Menu Plan, she is the reason my grocery lists still look like a carbon copy of hers, she's the reason I know how to do paperwork, how to make a budget, how to pay bills, how to take care of a home and what to clean and when.
I truly have been blessed to have been raised among strong amazing women.

Everytime I walk by one of these doilies I think of her, and I think of home and as much as it hurts that I'm so far from everyone, it does help in a way, it makes me feel just a little closer.

I know many people don't particularly like doilies, they find them old fashioned, but for me, they give a personal touch, they really do say "Home Sweet Home".

# friday favorites

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Some days

Sandra Thursday, January 26, 2012 5 Comments

I have a sick husband at home. He started feeling like he was coming down with a cold yesterday and by bedtime he was burning up with a fever, had body aches and was just plain miserable.

Unfortunately being military, he can't just call in and say "hey I'm not well, I won't be there today".....unless he wants the SP's knocking at the door. HA!

So early this morning, I got up with him at 5am, made him some coffee, fixed his lunch, gave him some medicine and sent him off to work. It broke my heart to see him walk out the door when all I wanted was for him to climb back into bed and rest.

I then cleaned up after his lunch making, made myself a cup of coffee and started the laundry....by then I did start feeling a little peckish so, I decided to make some Cinnamon Roll Toast for breakfast. If you've never tried it, you don't know what you're missing, it's quick to put together and really does taste like a Cinnamon Roll.

Within minutes the kids were up and in the kitchen asking what was smelling so good :) That's a sure way to get them out of bed right?

I set about my homemaking and around 9:30 am, my hubby comes walking in the door. He looked so sick, I'm glad he was able to come home and get some much needed rest, I don't know what good he could have been at work while running a fever.

That of course set me into mommy mode and making sure that he was well taken care of. First up a nice hot cup of tea with honey and lemon....

some cold meds and as soon as he was on the couch relaxing I set about making some chicken soup. His favorite? Chicken, bacon and rice. It is SO yummy and sure to knock out whatever bug is ailing him.

While that was simmering on the stove, I had my bread machine going, making some more of the bread bowl dough. The family love it so much and yesterday requested that I make more, lots more because they don't want to share LOL

Unfortunately for me, I have not only the sick hubby, but a little 8 year old who has been sniffling since yesterday, he hasn't gotten sick yet but was complaining that his head hurt, so homeschooling was set aside today in order for all the sickies in the house to get well :)

That gave mommy some spare time to work on my new Daisy Square Pillow. I am loving it so much.

I kind of stepped out of my comfort zone a bit, I'm using colors I don't usually go for, if you've seen my projects I tend to stick with colors that are very close to Cath Kidston's....but I'm so glad I picked these, they work wonderfully together.

I decided to go with two tones of purple and then do a white border on each....really makes them pop doesn't it?

And since this has been a soup kinda day, hubby requested Clam Chowder for dinner, so that's what I made. The recipe I tried had quite a bit of bacon and as much as I love bacon, I just felt that it was a bit too much, it almost completely hid the clam flavor. But, it was delicious, oh my. Next time though, less bacon, or none altogether :)

By the way, both the recipes for the bread and the clam chowder are on the food blog. :)

And now, I have to go apply some more ointment to Lola's eye. It looks so much better, it's almost completely healed but not quite, we have another appointment tomorrow and we've already prepared ourselves to hear that it's not healed and she has to be referred to the Ophthalmologist. *sigh*

Honestly though, it's only been a week and half and she fights us so much that I feel she's not getting as much of the ointment in there as she should, so obviously it will take longer to heal. Finger crossed for the appointment tomorrow.

Time for this mama to go take care of her animal baby, her human baby and her human hubby and then take herself to bed with a good book. Hope you all have a great night, and don't forget tomorrow we have the Friday Favorites, would love to see something special that you have :)

# family life

{ Cooking Thursday }

Sandra Thursday, January 26, 2012 6 Comments

Morning everyone :)

So today for our Cooking Thursday, I'm bringing you one of my favorites and also something that takes me back to my childhood in South Africa. Best street food ever....Bunny Chow!

If you want to use the picture, just click here for the original.

Homemade Bread Bowls

1/2 cup water (70 to 80 degrees F)
1 cup warm milk (70 to 80 degrees F)
2 tablespoons butter, softened
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast

In bread machine pan, place the first seven ingredients in order suggested by manufacturer. Select dough setting (check dough after 5 minutes of mixing; add 1 to 2 tablespoons of water or flour if needed).
When the cycle is completed, turn dough onto a lightly floured surface. Divide into six portions; shape into balls. Place on greased baking sheets.

Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes.

Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool on wire racks.

To make bowl, cut the top fourth off of bread; carefully hollow out bottom of each, leaving a 1/4-in. shell (discard removed bread or save for another use).

I’m keeping mine to make some homemade bread crumbs as I’m running pretty low

Now for the filling, you can find a gazillion different versions out there, it really depends on what you like….but this is how I made mine tonight, just kept it very simple but it was still really good

Bunny Chow Filling

1 lb ground beef
1 small onion, finely diced
2 small tomatoes, finely diced
chopped garlic
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
2 teaspoons curry powder

In a skillet, add a little bit of olive oil and the garlic, cook for a minute or so, don’t let the garlic burn though. Add the ground beef and cook until brown. Add the onion and tomatoes, salt and pepper and curry powder. At this point I like to add a little bit of water, not much but enough to give it a little bit of gravy and not allow it to dry up.

Cook for about 15 minutes for the flavors to combine well. Check frequently and stir, also remember to keep adding a little bit of water at a time, you want to end with a nice consistency and definitely a bit of gravy in there, just don’t add too much, you don’t want it soupy.

I know I’m horrible at writing recipes, I am such a visual and do-er person that writing it down is hard for me.

Once done, scoop into the bread bowls and serve immediately

# cooking thursday

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Period Drama Documentaries

Sandra Wednesday, January 25, 2012 1 Comments

#
1900 House

A
A 17th Century History for Girls: Harlots, Housewives and Heroines
At Home with the Georgians

B
Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner

C

D

E
Elizabeth: From Prison to Palace
Elegance and Decadence: The Age of the Regency
Elizabeth by David Starkey
Elizabeth: Heart of a King

F
Fit to Rule: How Royal Illness Changed History

G

H
Hidden Killers of the Victorian Home
Henry VIII The Mind of a Tyrant

I
Inside the body of Henry the VIII

J
Julian Fellowes' Historical Houses

K
Kings and Queens of England

L
London Hospital - Casualty 1906
London Hospital - Casualty 1907

M
Monarchy by David Starkey

N

O

P

Q
Queen Victoria's Children

R
Royal Upstairs Downstairs
Regency House Party

S
Servants: The True Story of Life Below Stairs

T
The Wartime Kitchen and Garden
Timewatch: Young Queen Victoria
The Diets that Time Forgot
Treats from the Edwardian Country House
The Marvelous Mrs. Beeton
The Edwardian Larder
The Perfect English Village
Tudors from Above
The Most Evil Women in History: Mary Tudor
The Dark Ages and the Plague
The Many Lovers of Miss Jane Austen
The Real Jane Austen
Turn Back Time

U

V
Victorian Pharmacy
Victorian Bakers

W
Wartime Farm
What the Victorians did for us

X

Y

Z

# period drama documentaries

Period Drama Movies

Sandra Wednesday, January 25, 2012 0 Comments

Over the years I can say that I have watched hundreds of Period Drama series and movies and I thought that it would be a good idea to have a running list of what I've watched or am watching, just to see all the great shows :)

I am so extremely fascinated with anything Edwardian, Victorian, Pioneer, Colonial etc.

If you have any movies that you have watched and that fit the criteria of Period Drama, and you don't see it listed below, feel free to let me know so that I can add them.

As always, if I can provide a link for you to watch online, I will do so.

Now, kick up your heels, grab a hot cup of coffee or tea and indulge in some of the best Period Pieces you'll ever see!

Titles in red are available to view on Netflix.

#
1066 The Battle for Middle Earth (Part 1 and Part 2)

A
Age of Innocence
Amadeus
Amazing Grace

Amistad
Aristocrats
A Little Princess
Angel
A house divided
Adam and Bede
Anne of Avonlea
Atonement
Anna Karenina
Agora
Amelia
All Passion
A Dinner of Herbs
A Royal Affair
Austenland
A Quiet Passion

B
Becoming Jane
Bertie and Elizabeth
Bright Star

Birdsong

Basil
Black Death
Born of Hope
Bertie and Dickie
Burke and Hare
Beau Brummell
Bitter Harvest
Beguiled

Breathe

C
Catherine Cookson "The Moth"
Catherine Cookson "Fifteen Streets"
Catherine Cookson "The Glass Virgin"
Catherine Cookson "Tilly Trotter"
Catherine Cookson "The Rag Nymph"
Cathering Cookson "The Girl"

Creation
Carrie's War
Cold Comfort Farm
Casanova
Cinder Path
Copperhead (A family torn apart during the Civil War)
Cheerful weather for the wedding
Civil Love
Churchill
Crooked House

D
Daniel Deronda
Dombey and Son
Dolley Madison
Defiance (1940's)
Dunkirk
Darkest Hour

E
Elizabeth I TheVirgin Queen
Elizabeth "The Golden Age"
Emma (all versions)
Ever After
Edwin Drood
Echoes - Maeve Binchy

F
Falling for a Dancer
Finding Neverland

Far from the Madding Crowd
From Time to Time
Firelight

G
Girl with a Pearl Earring
Golden Bowl
Gone with the Wind
Gosford Park
Glorious 39
Great Expectations 1946
Great Expectations 2011
Gosford

H
Howards End
Haunted
Helen of Troy
Hacksaw Ridge

I

Iron Jawed Angels

J
Jane Eyre (1944, 1996)
Jane Eyre (1983)
Jane Eyre 2011

J. Edgar

J.S. Bach: The music, the life, the legend

K
King Arthur: Legend of the Sword

L
Labyrinth
Ladies in Lavender
Les Miserables
Little Dorrit 1988
Little Dorrit Masterpiece Classic
Little Women
Lost in Austen
Love Comes Softly (all the movies)
Love in a cold climate
Love on the Land
Lillie
Lorna Doone
Love & Friendship
Lady Macbeth

M
Madame Bovary
Mansfield Park (all versions)
Marie Antoinette
Miss Austen Regrets
Meek's Cutoff
Miss Potter
Moll Flanders
Mrs. Brown

Mozart's Sister

My Cousin Rachel
Murder on the Orient Express

N
Nicholas Nickelby
Northanger Abbey
Nanny

O
Our Mutual Friend
Onegin
Oliver Twist

P
Plain Jane
Persuasion (all versions)
Pride and Prejudice (all versions)
Princess Bride
Princess Soraya
Precious Bane
Planetarium
Phantom Thread

Q

R
Railway Children
Random Passage
The Remains of the Day
Restless (Set in WWII)
Romeo and Juliet
Restoration
Rag Nymph
Restless

S
Scarlet Pimpernel
Sense and Sensibility (all versions)
Shakespeare in Love
Sommersby
South Solitary
Seasons of the heart
Summer in February
Spies of Warsaw (Set around 1914)
Silas Marner: The Weaver of Raveloe
Sharpe
Sally Hemmings
Sisters of War
Sunset Song
T
The Hollow Crown
The Lost Prince
The Mission
The Other Boleyn Girl
The Patriot
The Secret Garden
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall
Tess of the D' Urbervilles
Tristan and Isolde
Tuck Everlasting
The Duchess of Duke Street
Tess
The Blue and the Gray
The Governess
The Mill on the Floss
The Return of the Native
The Secret Life of Mrs Beeton
The Cazalets
The Old Curiosity Shop
The Incredible Journey of Mary Bryant
The Suspicions of Mr Whicher
The Crimson Petal and the White
The Abduction Club
The Eagle
The Hour
The Duchess (Life of the Duchess of Devonshire)
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
The Great Gatsby
The Secret of Crickley Hall
The Making of a Lady
The Courageous Heart
The Last Station
The Bleak Old Shop of Stuff
The Painted Veil (Set in 1925)
The Trip to Bountiful
The Mayor of Casterbridge
Turn of the Screw
The Woodlanders
The Shadow in the North
The Way we Live Now
The Pickwick Papers
The Aristocrats
The Countess
The Princes in the Tower
The Bostonians
The Feast of All Saints
The Devil's Whore
The Woman in White
The Winslow Boy
The Woman in Black
The Lady and the Highwayman
The Secret
The Moonstone
The Black Candle
The Colour Blind
The Gambling Man
The Buccaneers
The Tide of Life
The Dwelling Place
The American
The Ballad of Lucy Whipple
The Book Thief
The making of a lady
The Well-Digger's Daughter
The Birth of a Nation
To Walk Invisible
Tulip Fever
The Zookeeper's Wife
The Little Stranger (August 2018)

U
Under the Greenwood Tree

V
Victoria and Albert
Vanity Fair
Viceroy's House

W
War Horse
Wide Sargasso Sea
Wuthering Heights (2011)

Whittington Manor (2012)

WPC 56 (1956)
Women in Love
Wallis and Edward
Waiting on Dublin
Wingless Bird
Winter's Tale
When Calls the Heart

X

Y
The Young Victoria
Young Herriot
Young Catherine

# period drama movies

{ Yarn Along }

Sandra Wednesday, January 25, 2012 8 Comments

Another Wednesday, another Yarn Along.

Don't know about you all, but these days seem to just be flying by, goodness.

Anyway, here is what I've been working on, since finishing my crochet hook case, I've started a Daisy Square Pillow, following this pattern. I've seen different ones out there where the petals are much longer, but I like this one better :)

If you look at my kitchen table right now, this is what you'll see.....my crochet bag, my Kindle and my project :)

I made all these last night right before bed, they come together really fast and the pattern is very easy.

Loving the Daisy Squares, the pillow is not going to be very big, I'm thinking about 16 squares of these Daisies should suffice.

Should have them all done today :)

As for what I'm reading, I'm really enjoying A Little Household Book for a Little Girl. It's really sweet and you learn a lot about housekeeping in the 1800's, lots of cute little tips that I plan on using myself.

I'm also thinking of putting together a similar little book for my daughter who is almost 13 years old, but changing it up a bit to fit into our day and age. Just think it would be a cute book for her to learn housekeeping :)

That's what I'm working on. Now I'm going on over to Ginny's blog to add my entry to the list and see what others are making :)

# yarn along

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

{ Building birdhouses }

Sandra Tuesday, January 24, 2012 4 Comments

You haven't seen joy on a child's face, until you tell them that you are going to spend the day building something together.

Truthfully, our children are actually pretty easy to please, they don't really want very expensive outings or special days at out of this world places. They want our time, they want our attention and they are happy just doing something as a family.

This past weekend we decided to join homeschooling with fun for the family, by building birdhouses. It was part of the Home Life lesson but it was fun to do because they not only learned about birds, they learned about the different tools, they learned about wood and from that the conversation switched to how wood is made and where it comes from, which then led into a lesson on the environment and cutting down trees and what happens when we do and how that affects us etc.

With one simple theme....Birds, you can open up a whole broader spectrum.

So let me show you what we did.

First we started with some very simple Bird House directions, nothing fancy and since the kids were building them themselves it had to be easy.

They measured and they drew the templates, or helped in some cases.

Dad did all the cutting of the wood, that is one thing they wanted to get their hands on, but they are way too young to be handling power tools and not to mention the fact that I think I would have been so scared the whole time.

Always practicing safety.

Starting to come together. Watching their faces as they build something themselves is for me, one of the best parts of doing this as a family.

And then the hammers were brought out and of course for THEM that was the best part.

The look of determination

Dad went through the rules, the safety, the how to's and then let them go for it.

Nicholas got to practice his Fractions as well, which is something he is doing right now in school. He thought it was really cool that fractions are written on tools.

Here he is sanding down the opening for the birds....his birdhouse is looking mighty good for having been built by an 8 year old :)

And here's the girly. This child of mine makes me laugh, she was out there in shorts, a hoodie and black boots LOL I just started laughing but she was all "I'm comfortable, leave me alone" LOL

I can happily report that no fingers were harmed in the making of the bird houses. Well except daddy's, Nic accidentally whacked his thumb LOL

The birdhouses are now waiting to be painted, we need a few moments to do that but during the week it's kind of impossible between the homeschooling and all the other running around.

So, they will be painted and finished this weekend and then hung up for the birdies to enjoy. I'll share more pics once those are up.

After a morning of hammering and cutting and measuring, we came inside for a quick lunch, the kid's request. Nachos, a lettuce/pepperoni/cheese sandwich and some fruit salad. :)

Honestly, I have to tell you again that the kids had such a blast doing this project and are now looking forward to more.

Next on our Home Life course though is Herb Gardening, so we'll be starting on those shortly.

# family crafts

Monday, January 23, 2012

{ Happy Homemaker Monday - 2012 #4 }

Sandra Monday, January 23, 2012 13 Comments

I'm such a ditz, I totally forgot to tell you all that I added an extra category for the homeschooling families :) Sorry about that, it should be right after the category about creating/sewing etc :)

If you want to save and use the new button, just click here.

The weather:::

37 degrees right now, I'm actually feeling cold, but instead of complaining I'm going to embrace it and enjoy it because pretty soon we'll be back to triple digits.

On my reading pile:::
The Little Housekeeping book for the little girl (loving this one)
Also have all the other ones I shared with you and am looking forward to reading those.

On my TV:::

Call the Midwife Episode 2
Also, Birdsong which premiered yesterday on BBC. Wonderful series based on the novel by Sebastian Faulk's. They take place during WWII.

On the menu for this week:::

Monday - Creamy Oven Chicken, Mashed Potatoes
Tuesday - Shepherds Pie
Wednesday - Fettucine Alfredo, Garlic Bread, Salad
Thursday - Garlic Herb Fish Fillets with Potato Salad
Friday - Homemade Pizza
Saturday - Onion Burgers, Curly Fries
Sunday - Homemade Clam Chowder

On my to do list:::

Homeschooling
Iron and put away last load of laundry
Take Lola back to the vet for a follow up appointment

What I am sewing, crocheting, knitting or creating:::

Starting a new crochet pillow :)

In Homeschooling:::

Jasmine is learning about diseases in Health, for Social Studies she worked on a pamphlet highlighting a natural resource that both Canada and the US share, she picked Uranium :)
Nicholas is learning about different soils in Science and Math has us revisiting Fractions.

Looking around the house:::

Lola is laying on the couch licking the air (true story lol), Jasmine is still fast asleep and Nicholas is playing with the turtle. It's kinda dark in here this morning, I'm wondering if it's going to be cloudy again. Through my kitchen window I can see the birds flying in and out of the feeder :)

From the camera:::

Something fun to share:::

One of the greatest things we love about homeschooling is learning any day, whether it's a week day or a weekend and no matter where we are. Yesterday we all built birdhouses, the kids were so excited, they got to make their own and they're not perfect of course, but it doesn't matter because they learned about birds, they learned about wood, they learned about tools and they were able to put those into practice. I'm doing a post later to show you the pics :) It was a lot of fun for us all, so just remember that spending time with your family doesn't have to mean going out and spending money :)

On my prayer list:::

Our little Lola, her eye is doing SO much better but it's still not 100%. I pray that it continues to improve and hopefully heal completely.

Bible verse, Devotional:::

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.
– 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

# happy homemaker monday