A wee little thing

As of yesterday, we've got a wee one in the house -- five days wee, in fact!  Unfortunately this little peach will only be with us for a week or two while his permanent adoption arrangements are made.

I have a wishful notion that perhaps God is using this little fella to get us ready for one we can keep -- practice at the whole getting up multiple times a night business.  Or, more likely, He's trying to remind me how poorly I handle sleep deprivation and that I should just be thankful all our kiddos are way past the up-at-night-stage and I should stop praying for those days to come back!

Before we picked him up at the hospital, I spelunked through what few baby clothes we still have and packed the smallest in a bag... and then packed the next size up, too, because seriously, babies aren't that small, are they?  Oh yes, they are!  The itty-bitty hat that I thought would never fit him sits all loosey-goosey on his head.  And those size 1 diapers fit him the way teenage boys' jeans fit.

For all his tininess, he's a whole lot of sweet though.  We're only 24 hours in, but thus far he's perfectly content to eat, sleep and poop and do nothing else.

I've got more thoughts on this little one and his future but bedtime and other duties are waiting.  Depending on my sleep levels I may or may not get around to expressing those another time.

An Advertisement

Disclaimer: I am not being paid, rewarded or bribed for making the following statements for the Bountiful Baskets Food Co-op.

Recently I began participating in a food co-op called Bountiful Baskets.  It's an on-line co-op, in which for $15 participants receive a large box full of fresh produce, about half veggies, half fruit.  You never know what will be in the box, but you do know it will be nutritious and a really good bargain for $15!

I calculated out what I thought the grocery store value of my first box would have been and came up with about $40 regular price.  However, I rarely buy produce at regular price, so I figured it again if everything has been on a pretty good sale and came up with $25 -- still a very good deal.

Here are two actual content lists (as best I can remember -- I may be leaving something out!) for two baskets I've received:

Basket #1

two heads of leaf lettuce

five pounds of potatoes

two pounds of carrots

one pint grape tomatoes

one pineapple

five or six apples

five or six pears

two lemons

one bag of grapes

Basket #2

three pounds potatoes

one head leaf lettuce

one eggplant

three avocados

one bunch of cilantro

one pineapple

four Asian pears

five or six oranges

two pomegranates

one large white onion

Besides the basic baskets there are extras available each week -- 20 pounds of oranges for $12, a five-loaf variety pack of breads for $10, a "harvest pack" including pumpkins, corn, gourds, etc, for instance.

The only thing I've discovered that would make these not a good deal is if a lot of the produce goes to waste, either a) because it's too much produce to eat before it goes bad, or b) because you don't like or know what to do with it.

Thanks to being "given" foods we don't often (ever -- eggplant?!?) have on hand, I've discovered that lettuce, cilantro and pomegranate make a fabulous salad, frozen pineapple is delicious in an orange julius, and even Wade doesn't mind a cracker dip made from eggplant.

Orders must be placed during a certain timeframe early in the week (usually Monday and/or Tuesday) and must be picked up at a designated location at a certain time on Saturday.  Some locations have deliveries every week, some have deliveries every other week.

So if you're interested in lots of fresh produce at a great price and aren't afraid to try a new or unusual food now and then, log on to www.bountifulbaskets.org and give them a try!  Happy eating!

Christmas Break for the Homeschooling Mama

'Twas the day after Christmas and all through the abode
Lay gift wrap and boxes -- it was quite a load.
New toys were scattered all over the place,
The children had smiles glued on each face.
Their dreams had come true -- there were Legos galore,
And new toys and games now covered the floor.
But despite all this mess and confusion and clutter,
Mom isn't moaning, not even a mutter.
In fact, she is smiling and singing a song!
Why?  Christmas break lasts another week long!

Christmas is Coming...

Winter is gently spreading its soft white blanket over our town.  The forecast says it will only be a sheet, but I'm hoping for a big, thick, heavy comforter's worth!  Then again, I don't have to drive anywhere in it.

Christmas break is almost here -- five more school days!  I do enjoy teaching my kids -- really, I do! -- but we're all so looking forward to this break.  We'll have completed 19 weeks of school in 20 weeks once break arrives, which explains our eagerness!

But do y'all know what else this means?  It means Grandpa and Grandma haven't been visiting (giving us an excuse to take days off) in far too long.  Tsk, tsk.

It also means we'll only have 16 required weeks of school left in the new year!  Wah-hoo!  

The snow is still dancing merrily down and we're at "sheet" depth... with no sign yet of stopping.  Yea!  It may be a white Christmas yet.

Book Joy

Because I'm stretching two years of history/geography/literature curriculum over three school years, I had the joy of ordering another year's supply of books this week, right in the middle of a school year -- and they arrived today!  Yea!

I feel a little silly expressing how extremely giddy I was opening up the cardboard flaps, inhaling deeply of the newly printed paper smell, caressing the glossy covers and reading the back of almost every one of the 40-plus books.  It was the highlight of my day.

Many of the titles are ones I'll read aloud to the boys, but there are plenty they'll read on their own, and as I perused them, I kept thinking, "I hope this is one I get to read, too!"  Some familiar titles were "Caddie Woodlawn," "Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry," "Gone Away Lake," "Old Yeller" and "Freedom Train: Harriet Tubman."

Some of the intriguing titles and covers I'm looking forward to are "The Great Turkey Walk," "Miracles on Maple Hill," "The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs," "Thimble Summer" and "Sing Down the Moon."  Don't those sound riveting?

I admit, I am one to get carried away by the title or cover of a book.  I know, never judge a book... but titles are like a glimpse through an old house's blinds -- not enough to show you anything clearly, but plenty to set your imagination roaming.  I remember playing the card game Authors as a kid, and being enchanted by titles like "The House of Seven Gables," "The Song of Hiawatha," "The Last of the Mohicans" and "Kidnapped."  

I got around to reading very few of those classic tales, but thanks to the "mandatory" reading that goes with homeschooling, I'm logging lots of fabulous titles anyway!  And who knows but that some of those other titles might not show up in another fabulous box of books in the future.