4th Annual Not Back to School blog hop is coming!

For the past couple of years, I've participated in the Not Back to School Blog Hop sponsored by Heart of the Matter Online. This year, the blog hop has moved to iHomeschool Network.

Starting next Monday, August 6, join other homeschoolers from around the blogosphere to share your curriculum plans, school rooms, student photos and a day-in-the-life of your homeschool.

This is a great place to find like-minded homeschoolers to learn from and encourage. I've loved it every time I've participated, so I hope you'll consider linking up. It's going to be fun!

Menu Plan July 30-August 5

Oh my goodness! It's August! Well, almost. Can you believe how quickly the summer is flying by? We'll be starting back to school in the next couple of weeks. Although we greatly enjoy our summer break, I think we're all ready for a return to routine.

I'm going to keep this week very simple. Nearly everything I'm serving is already in the freezer waiting to be used in a meal. Sometimes cooking ahead really pays off later, and this will be one of those times.

Here's what is on the menu:

Monday
Mediterranean wraps using Mediterranean couscous and steak

Tuesday
Chicken stew

Wednesday
Cheeseburger rice, green beans

Thursday
Chicken burritos using chicken taco filling from the crockpot, tortilla chips

Friday
Oatmeal pancakes, sausage, applesauce

Saturday
Hot dogs with West Virginia hot dog sauce

Sunday
Ranch veggie pizza

For more meal planning inspiration, visit Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday.

Olympic Opening Ceremonies - mixed reviews

So, did you watch the opening ceremonies of the Olympics last night? We had some friends over for fish n'chips (which we ended up buying 'cause I wasn't going to fry THAT much fish!). I think we enjoyed each other's company more than the ceremonies themselves.

Here's what we liked.

The Queen is a Bond girl! Who knew? Although she didn't look very happy when she walked in, we certainly enjoyed her skydiving with Daniel Craig. Best royal entrance ever.

Chariots of Fire - Mr. Bean playing the keyboard with an umbrella was hysterical. And then his participation in the beach running - I had tears of laughter running down my face.

The scenery change - We thought it was clever to have the industrial revolution workers tear down the agrarian sets from the previous scene. And the smokestacks emerging from the stadium floor was pretty impressive.

The cauldron - Each country bringing a "petal" was unique. We were impressed with the whole thing, though in past Olympics the cauldron is highly visible. It seemed to us that unless you were actually in the stadium, you wouldn't be able to see it.

And what we didn't like:

The commercial for National Health Care. The whole hospital scene was a little screwy to us. What were those creepy black things hopping from bed to bed? I hope none of those kids who participated had nightmares after that! But we all felt they were trying to get a political message across about national health care and how wonderful it is. Just didn't like it.


The technology bit was hard to follow. We thought it was awesome that the director wanted to celebrate technology, but the inclusion of all the music and dancing didn't make sense to us. It was like they threw it all together just to get some British music in there. And how did the guy who found the girl's phone call her if he had her phone?

The IOC's decision not to commemorate the Israeli athletes killed in 1972. The IOC claims to be neutral, but not having a moment of silence in honor of those who were murdered by terrorists in Munich was a bad move. We all agreed that had it been any other country's athletes, there would have been a mention of it. We were glad to hear Bob Costas make note of it, though.

All the commercials! Why? I understand the network's need to make money, but the ceremonies were long enough as it was! Then we had to play "catch up" every time they cut back to the ceremonies. Didn't like it.

So, what did you think of the opening ceremonies?

Watermelon Lime Slushies

It's been a hot summer, hasn't it? Well, these fruity drinks are guaranteed to cool you off! And they're so, so easy.

The next time you buy a watermelon for your family to enjoy, save some of it to make these refreshing slushies. My kids have told me that it's now required to make them every time we get a watermelon. You'll need about three cups of cubed watermelon for this recipe, but feel free to use more and increase the other ingredients to serve a crowd!

Here's what you need for 2-3 servings"

3 cups cubed watermelon, frozen
Zest and juice from one lime
*1 cup coconut milk (I used just a little more to thin ours out a little, just how we like them)
1 TBSP honey or agave nectar

Put all the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth! See how simple that was?

The frozen watermelon gives this drink its slush, so plan ahead. The lime cuts the sweetness with just a hint of sour. It's an amazing combination!

*The coconut milk I'm referring to is NOT the canned kind! You want the coconut milk found in the dairy section.

Parmesan Couscous

Here I am with another couscous recipe. I love how versatile this pasta is and how quick it is to prepare. My children request it often, so I know it's a winner with them.

And honestly, this version is about the simplest I've found. It's fantastic with chicken, steak or pork. You really can't go wrong with this.

Here's what you need:

2 cups chicken broth (most recipes use water as the liquid, but broth gives it so much flavor)
1 TBSP butter
1 1/2 cups dry couscous (you can use a 10 oz box of plain couscous for this)
2 TBSP lemon juice
1 TBSP olive oil
1/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

In a saucepan, combine the broth and butter. Bring to a boil. Stir in the couscous and remove from the heat. Cover and let stand for 5 minutes.

Stir in the remaining ingredients. Fluff with a fork to serve.

It just doesn't get any easier than that!

I'm linking up with Tempt My Tummy Tuesday over at Blessed with Grace. Click over there and check out some more yummy recipes.

Menu Plan July 23-28

It's the last full week of July! Can you believe how quickly this summer has flown by? This week we're going to enjoy visiting with some friends from Iowa and Florida, so I've got a really cool theme dinner planned for Saturday -Chinese night! We've also got a theme night planned for Friday to celebrate the Olympic opening ceremonies. I'm going to serve fried fish.   And I'm going to fry up some potatoes just like the fish.

Now here's the rest of the plan:

Monday
Chicken fried steak fingers, mashed potatoes

Tuesday
Chicken sandwiches, Parmesan zucchini

Wednesday
Hot dogs with West Virginia hot dog sauce

Thursday
Tasty tilapia, broccoli

Friday
Fish n'chips - I'm going to use the same batter for the "chips"

Saturday - Chinese night
Beef and broccoli, baked egg rolls, sweet and sour chicken, fried rice

Sunday
Leftovers

  For more menu ideas, visit Organizing Junkie's Menu Plan Monday.

Praying for Colorado

By now, we've all heard about the horrific tragedy at a movie theater in Colorado. People doing an everyday activity, living their lives like normal, were caught up in an unimaginable act of evil.

Please take a moment to read this amazing testimony of a survivor, a Christian mom who explains the sovreignty of God and how we can trust Him even in the midst of tragedy.