A moving addendum: the kitchen slims down, like it or not

We had some plans for the things that would go with us to the new place. Some of those ideas have gotten a bit nipped in the bud recently.

We weren't going to take the microwave, for space reasons and because we knew it was probably not going to last much longer, but it conveniently died a couple of weeks ago before we got around to dealing with it. We went out and bought an extra electric kettle for heating water. (Our old one is at the apartment.)

We were going to take the toaster oven, but it turns out that the best space for it is too close to the fridge, and we were reluctant to take up any of the rest of the kitchen real estate with it. Besides, there is a brand-new stove/oven in the apartment. Mr. Fixit went out and bought a toaster. (Pattern here?)

We were going to take the bread machine (I love my bread machine), but we did buy a stand mixer with dough hook at the thrift store, last winter. Because of storage issues and the age of the bread machine (it came from a yard sale almost four years ago), we have decided to send it to e-waste as well.

When we said new adventures, I wasn't expecting this much of a turnover in gadgetry. But better to figure it out now, I guess, than to have a storage room full of half-working kitchen gear.

What's for supper? Soup and bread night

Tonight's dinner menu

Split pea soup in the slow cooker
Country White Bread in the bread machine

Assorted leftovers from the rest of the week

Pineapple-Granola Muffins
Apples and oranges.

Slow Cooker Split Pea Soup

Adapted from a recipe in The Perfect Basket, by Diane Phillips.

Ingredients:

2 cups yellow split peas (one of the little bags from the grocery store)
1/2 cup brown rice (optional)
1 bay leaf
2 tsp. dried marjoram
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. white pepper (I didn't have any so I used black pepper)
1 quart chicken or vegetable broth plus more water as needed
Some chopped frozen onion
A couple of carrots, peeled and chopped
Three stalks of celery, chopped

If you weren't going to do this in the slow cooker, you could start by sauteing the vegetables in a bit of butter or oil, then adding the split peas, broth, and seasonings. I just put everything into the slow cooker, adding water to fill it maybe three-quarters full. I set it on High for a few hours, then turned it to Low partway through the afternoon when it was bubbling hard. I think it would work fine to leave it on Low all day.

What's for supper? Bean Soup

Tonight's dinner menu:

Slow-cooker navy bean soup, the same kind we had here

Homemade rolls, the recipe we made at Christmas. Made into bacon sandwiches if you want.

What's for supper? Bread and leftovers can be good

Tonight's dinner menu:

Reheated chicken-vegetable pasta
Raw veggies
Whole wheat bread from the machine
Things to put on bread: sweet potato hummus, regular hummus, liver sausage

Stovetop cran-apple crisp.

What's for supper? Pasta night

 Tonight's dinner menu:

Pasta with choice of meat in the sauce or just chopped peppers
Green beans
Bread-machine garlic bread

Watermelon! (Take that, winter.)

What's for supper? Homemade pizzas

What's for supper? Soup and snowflakes

Tonight's dinner menu:

Barley-split pea-vegetable soup

Bread Snowflakes (Mama Squirrel's were rudimentary, Dollygirl's were much prettier)

Cranberry-blueberry-strawberry crisp

School plans for this week: On weekly timetables and the second half of the year (Dollygirl's Grade Seven)

Charlotte Mason approved of school and home classrooms following a predictable weekly timetable.  Lots of variety, but a definite pattern to Monday and Wednesday geography, or Tuesday Shakespeare, or Saturday review.  (Yes, back then they went to school on Saturdays.)

Our problem with that is that, sometimes, often, we get Monday or Friday school cut off by a holiday:  religious, government-mandated, or all-the-other-schools-in-town-have-today-off-so-why-don't-we.  But never on Tuesday, or Wednesday, or Thursday, unless it's weather-related.  So that means we have to either never schedule anything important or interesting or at least weekly on Monday or Friday (unless we want to move whatever it is to Tuesday or Thursday that week)...or try a slightly different method of scheduling. (Also there are a couple of homeschool group field trips and events that also take place on Fridays...sigh.)

For the rest of Term II, a season that has more than its share of interrupted weeks, we're falling back on a different method, one we've used before.  I took the 28 scheduled school days that are left in the term, and just divided up the lessons and readings as evenly as I could.  For the two Apologia modules we're doing, I used the schedule from Donna Young's Homeschool Resources. (Except that we won't be doing the experiments that require digging up worms and dirt...um, not in February.)

So we have Day 1, Day 2, and so on, each with its own work, rather than a definite plan for Mondays and Tuesdays.  It may not look as neat on the wall as a weekly schedule, but at least it's laid out.

Also, we're doing some slightly different math for the rest of this term:  working through old Gauss competition pages, as review and also as a kind of diagnostic tool to see what we've missed.  In the third term we'll probably use Key to Geometry.

So this is the plan, more or less, for this week's school.  The lessons are not in the order we're doing them, but the way I have them written down by subject.  I've left off our opening-time routine: hymns, sometimes a poem, a reading from Ourselves or a Bible passage.

And  a bonus for this week: something fun for teatime, Snowflake Buns or Bread Snowflakes.  (You gently fold circles of bread dough and snip them with scissors, as if you were making paper snowflakes. Then bake and sprinkle with powdered sugar.  Idea from Electric Bread for Kids.

Monday: 
Basic Bible Studies: continue study of salvation
Math page
Watership Down chapters 13, 14
Start Ivanhoe together
Copywork
English History:  Short chapter on the Saxon cultural traditions such as shires
Nature study
Science: wrap up the previous module
French: start a lesson about the map of the world (continuing through the week)

Tuesday (planning to go hear a jazz trio at lunchtime)
Math page
Watership Down chapters 15, 16
Return of the King
Easy Grammar Plus page 92
Geography:  Heidi's Alp, finish the chapter where they arrive in Germany
Write dictation from Geography chapter
Science  Read pages 217-219, introduction and "DNA and Life"
Grammar of Poetry: review old work (only if we have time)

Wednesday: 
Mr. Pipes, The Accidental Voyage: Finish chapter 10.
Math page
Watership Down chapters 17, 18
Ivanhoe
Easy Grammar Plus page 94
Architecture: finish the chapter on Norman architecture
Write in the Book of Centuries
Science: continue reading about DNA; build a model of DNA, and I hope I remembered to buy pipe cleaners for that. If I didn't, we may have to get out our old plastic dollar-store model instead.

Thursday:

Basic Bible Studies
Math page
Watership Down chapters 19, 20
Return of the King
Easy Grammar Plus page 95
English history:  one chapter
Science:--continue chapter..
Music history: starting chapter on Haydn and Mozart.
Whatever Happened to Penny Candy?--almost finished this book.

Friday:
Basic Bible Studies
Watership Down chapters 21, 22
Ivanhoe
Copywork
Heidi's Alp, part of chapter 6 (about Germany)
Science:  see Thursday.
Plutarch's Life of Demosthenes, Lesson 7, The Battle of Chaeronea
Picture Talk.

The way the cookie crumbles (What's for supper?)

Tonight's dinner menu:

Saving Dinner's Upside-Down Meatloaf
Budget101's Bread Machine Garlic Bread
Baked squash, peas

The Way the Christmas Cookie Crumbles Fruit Crisp, made from homemade cranberry sauce, chopped pears, and all the crumbly bits of raisin squares and shortbread as topping.

Frugal Finds and Fixes: Crocheting, Bread Machine, and More

There has been a lot of crafting going on at the Treehouse.  Dollygirl made a pipecleaner-and-bead version of the heroine of Frozen (she's now working on the sister), did some beading with beads that have been sitting around for probably a decade,  and crocheted a few more dolly things that I've lost track of.  Dollygirl also won a t-shirt in a photo contest.

I keep coming across neat little patterns, some of which take only bits and pieces.  I crocheted some bookmarks with red, white and green worsted-weight yarn, and decorated them with Mini Wishing Star motifs.  I am trying out this double-sole slipper pattern on the Red Heart site (I did have to buy a ball of SuperSaver for that).  I like the little flower decorations that are supposed to trim the slippers; if you don't want slippers you could just make the flowers and sew them on something else.  I also like Planet June's Mini Wreath Ornament, which would be a terrific small project for young or new crocheters, and which could use up scraps of green yarn.

Dollygirl sent me the link to this crocheted doll hat pattern, so I made one with leftover multicoloured SuperSaver.

On the food end, I tried Budget101's Garlic Bread Mix for our (yard-saled) bread machine.  It flattened out at the top, which may mean there was a bit too much liquid, but the rest of the loaf was fine.  I cut it in square chunks, rather than trying for thin slices, and we had it with a spaghetti dinner.  It's a good make-ahead, less-messy alternative to toasting things with garlic butter.  Budget101 also gives directions for converting bread machine recipes to no-bread-machine recipes.

I wanted to make some Christmas cookies, but most of our usual recipes call for a lot of butter, and we're very short on that right now.  So I made a bowlful of brownie batter (using oil) and baked it as round cookies, with crushed candy canes sprinkled on top, and powdered-sugar glaze swirled on afterwards.  The candy could have been added after baking, sprinkled on top of the glaze, but it's good baked on as well.

What's for supper? Cold day, warm food

On our "calendar of firsts" would be the first (short) snowfall of the year.  Tonight's dinner menu:

Reuben Chicken, made with bone-in chicken breasts (that is, sauerkraut in the bottom of the casserole, then chicken, then some Thousand Island dressing; bake till done)
Sweet potatoes
Peas
Whole wheat bread from the bread machine

Banana cake made with this muffin recipe (muffin batter baked in a 9 x 13 pan; we leave out the chocolate chips)

What's for supper? Fall-type Food

Tonight's dinner menu:

Slow cooker filled in layers: sauerkraut, frozen barley cubes, kielbasa-type sausage, whole mushrooms, and sliced celery added later on.  I unloaded the sausage, mushrooms and celery into a serving bowl, and served the sauerkraut-barley layer separately.

Cheese perogies

Pumpkin-spice yeast bread, from a recipe in the bread-machine owner's manual.  I hadn't tried this one before, but it's a keeper. Ponytails says it would be good with apple butter.

Almonds and mini rice cakes

Vanilla pudding, thawed blueberries

Showers of blessings (and more of Dollygirl's frugal hacks)

A Regal Pro bread machine from a yard sale: the same model we used to have, so we know how it works (and even have the manual, that the company kindly sent me last time).  I baked a loaf of Classic White in it this afternoon and we had it for dessert.  (Don't ask.)

A half-price fall floral arrangement from Michael's, for our front hall.  The kind that lasts forever.  I looked at those awhile back, but patience pays off...they were 40% off early last week, and I still hesitated, but by Friday's flyer they all went to 50%.  The one I picked is fairly small, but it goes well with the Tom Thomson painting over the hall cabinet.

Speaking of Canadian maples...I guess it is a blessing that the tree came down without any further damage, or the tree guys getting hurt.  Still, the stump looks kind of raw and lonely.  We are thinking of maybe putting a bird feeder on top of it.

The girls' friends, who (variously) like to ride bikes, take photos, and do homework with Dollygirl and Ponytails.

Ponytails' soon-to-arrive birthday.

Working on (thrifted) counted cross stitch kits.

A previously-ordered copy of The Heart of the Family arrived for me at the indie bookstore, and I had a bit of extra money put aside to pay for it..

The girls had optometrist checkups (kids' checkups are covered by the provincial health plan), and they don't need anything different (the anything differents are usually not covered).

Price-matching between some of the local stores...this has made my life easier (although maybe not the cashiers').

The funny bits in The Two Towers...'What is it?' growled Sam, misinterpreting the signs.  'What's the need to sniff?  The stink nearly knocks me down with my nose held.  You stink, and master [Frodo] stinks; the whole place stinks.'  'Yes, yes, and Sam stinks!' answered Gollum.  'Poor Smeagol smells it, but good Smeagol bears it.  Helps nice master...'

Some freebie-box finds from a support group meeting last night: a horse activity book for Dollygirl, a couple of teacher-books, and a set of Latin and Greek Rummy Roots card games.  I knew who owned the card games, and I did give her some cash for them because it didn't feel right just taking them for nothing.  But still, that was pretty neat.  Also I got to borrow Norms and Nobility from the homeschool library.

The ballet set that Dollygirl made for her Samantha doll this week...almost entirely out of odds and ends.  Really, she did an amazing job.  The tutu was made from strips of tulle knotted onto a ribbon sash; she has a choice of two tops (a camisole I had made before, and a striped stretchy top Dollygirl made from a sock); Dollygirl made felt-and-ribbon ballet slippers, legwarmers from the same sock, and a felt bag to hold dolly energy snacks and a towel.  Some of the other dolls joined Samantha in a recital of highlights from The Nutcracker.

Showers of blessings...yes.

What's for supper?

Homemade beef-vegetable soup; Sesame Seed Bread; cheese, fruit, this and that.

Pizza Roll-ups, hold the sauce

A current favourite recipe around here is Recipezaar's Pizza Roll-ups. (Originally found through Gayle at Grocery Cart Challenge.) Same idea as cinnamon rolls only you use cheese and pizza toppings. No sauce in the rolls--you save that for dipping, which works well here for those who don't like or have to be careful with tomato sauce. And I find they're easier to shape than individually-stuffed calzones--you don't have to worry about the ingredients popping out, they're supposed to sort of stick out of the dough.

I have my own version of Recipezaar's ingredients (I think it could take a lot of variation): a 2-pound (4 cups of flour) recipe of bread dough (made in the bread machine), a stick of pepperoni, 200 g shredded cheese, a few sliced mushrooms, and a bit of chopped parsley. (I left out all the other seasonings.) Green pepper works fine too but is not as popular with the Squirrelings. Roll out the dough in a long, thin rectangle, mix the chopped topping ingredients with cheese, roll dough around the stuffing as for cinnamon rolls, and slice into 24 pieces. You don't have to let them rise a second time, but the recipe does recommend letting them sit for 10 minutes, and I put them in the fridge for awhile instead since I wasn't ready to bake them.

What I would warn you about though is that, contrary to one of the comments posted on the Recipezaar site, that melted cheese can be horrendous to scrape off, even if you do grease the pans. Last night I covered the pans with foil and then used non-stick spray on that; it seemed to do the trick, there were very few stuck places.

You might not have to bake them as long or as hot as the recipe says--just go with what you'd usually do for rolls, somewhere around 375 degrees. Keep an eye on them and take them out before they get hard. Serve with your choice of sauce or dip, or just plain.

The Apprentice asked if I will make her some of these for school lunches this year.